The Congress-led Opposition is set to keep the pressure on the government in Parliament over the alleged police brutality against protesting students, demanding action against those responsible for the assault and an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, sources said on Sunday.
President Droupadi Murmu gave assent to a bill which now provides 'Vande Mataram' with the same legal protection and status as India's national anthem, 'Jana Gana Mana'.
The much-debated Lokpal Bill, which seeks to create an anti-corruption watchdog, is likely to come up for discussion and passage in the Rajya Sabha next week.
The Liberhan Commission report on the demolition of Babri Masjid on Wednesday generated heat in the Rajya Sabha with the Congress and the Samajwadi Party squarely blaming the Bharatiya Janata Party for the demolition of the historic structure, while the main opposition debunked the report.
The Rajya Sabha on Monday witnessed uproar over the steep Rs 2.35 a litre hike in petrol price and 50 paisa a litre increase in cost of diesel.
'The entire party is centred around one man and that is Arvind Kejriwal.' 'Till the time you are in Kejriwal's good books you are powerful. The day you are not with him, you are no one in the party.'
A weak presence in the Rajya Sabha has forced the NDA to try and rope in 'weak links' in the Opposition ranks to pass key legislation in the Upper House.
Amar Singh built an extensive network for the party, and was often spotted with celebrities, from the Bachchans to Anil Ambani to Subrata Roy.
Yoga guru Ramdev on Saturday sought to find fault with the Rajya Sabha nomination to Sachin Tendulkar, alleging that the "sinking" Congress might have pressured him to accept the honour to enhance its prestige.
The Congress is finding it tough to accommodate defeated senior leaders in the Rajya Sabha as it does not have the numerical strength in various assemblies to win the seats.
The ruling NDA coalition in India faces a significant challenge in passing the women's reservation bill in Parliament due to insufficient numbers. The bill requires a two-thirds majority in both houses, and the NDA needs to secure additional support or abstentions from other parties to achieve this.
The deadline for withdrawal of nominations ended on Friday afternoon.
The contentious bill will be tables in RS on Wednesday. The BJP hopes to get up to 130 votes in a 240-member upper house.
The Delhi services bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha on Monday with 131 MPs voting in its favour and helping the government complete the parliamentary procedure for the proposed legislation that saw the opposition parties join ranks.
Elections for 19 Rajya Sabha seats spread across eight states will be held on Friday with the contest in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan promising to be a close affair between the BJP and the Congress.
The Rajya Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday saw cross-voting by a BJP MLA while another party legislator claimed that she was prevented from voting.
Opposition MPs, including Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, staged a protest in the Parliament House complex against alleged donation theft at the Ram temple in Ayodhya and "police excesses" against student protesters. The INDIA bloc vowed to continue their agitation, demanding accountability from the government, particularly Home Minister Amit Shah, on these issues.
The AAP government in Punjab successfully moved a Confidence Motion in the state assembly, following the defection of seven Rajya Sabha MPs to the BJP. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann asserted the party's strength and national presence during the special session.
Though the Bharatiya Janata Party is not overly worried about getting the amended land acquisition bill through in the Upper House, it has nevertheless decided to have a three-day gap between the dates of the sitting of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha for the Budget session.
The front row of Rajya Sabha may have a new look in the monsoon session beginning Monday with the biennial elections throwing up new winners and losers.
The crucial, neck-to-neck contest was necessitated as the Bharatiya Janata Party fielded three candidates while Shiv Sena put up two and Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party one each.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav was detained in Patna during a protest march concerning police action related to NEET paper leak protests in Bihar. Yadav, along with RJD workers, was protesting against frequent exam paper leaks, stating that the government is jeopardising students' futures.
The BJP's defeat in Bihar dents its hopes of improving its RS tally but the grand alliance victory could also present the first signs of tension when five JD-U members retire next year.
An international convention of people of Indian-origin in the US has demanded voting rights for Indian citizens living outside India and Rajya Sabha seats for Non-Resident Indians.
The National Conference and BJP held significant protests in Jammu and Kashmir, accusing each other of failing to deliver on promises. The NC demanded the restoration of statehood, while the BJP criticised the NC government's performance on issues like jobs and corruption, marking the first major political unrest since Article 370's abrogation.
Dissident Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Kunal Ghosh, whose name has cropped up in the Saradha chit fund scam and who was served a show-cause notice for speaking against party chief Mamata Banerjee, was suspended from the party on Saturday, while two other MPs who had also hit out at the leadeship were spared.
As Rajya Sabha bade farewell to 53 retiring members, the House saw voices against the alleged "encroachment" by judiciary on the rights of legislature
In the throes of a financial crisis, the state's ruling Congress government has little to be triumphant about as Assembly elections approach next year, points out Aditi Phadnis.
There are strong possibilities of some Union ministers being sent to take organisational roles in the BJP and party office-bearers being inducted into the Modi ministry.
For renomination to the Rajya Sabha, Nadda will have to look for a seat outside his home state of Himachal Pradesh as the Congress is in power there.
The bill to amend the 49-year-old law to guard against claims of succession or transfer of properties left by people who migrated to Pakistan and China was passed amid a walkout by the entire Opposition.
A savings or current account with no customer-induced transaction for more than 24 months is classified as inoperative.
The Rajya Sabha elections saw several candidates elected unopposed, including Sharad Pawar and Ramdas Athawale, while Bihar, Odisha, and Haryana prepare for contested elections.
The absence of NCP-SP leaders from a key Maha Vikas Aghadi meeting in Maharashtra has ignited concerns about opposition unity ahead of the crucial budget session and upcoming Rajya Sabha elections.
'You cannot run Parliament with 800 MPs as nobody will get time (to speak in Parliament). And Parliament sits for barely 60 days in a year.' 'Look at the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. They have 650 MPs and they sit for 150 days on an average in a year.'
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju met Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi to discuss resolving the persistent deadlock in the Lok Sabha's monsoon session, focusing on the Delimitation Bill and FCRA Bill, though no immediate commitment was secured from the Congress leader.
23 political parties of the INDIA bloc will meet on Monday to redraw their strategy to take on the BJP and iron out differences amid changed power dynamics after the defeat of regional anchors TMC and DMK in the recent assembly polls.
The Congress party has announced its support for Nationalist Congress Party (SP) chief Sharad Pawar as the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) candidate for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections in Maharashtra.
This after most of the Opposition including the Congress, Left parties, the Trinamool Congress, the Samajwadi Party and the Nationalist Congress Party decided to boycott House proceedings in protest against the suspension of eight MPs for the remainder of the session for unruly behaviour.
'It's a bit uncertain. Let's see what happens. But he is the top man of Assam, and since my politics is in Assam, I thought it's best to seek his guidance before I take any decision.'
