The bill was taken up for consideration in the Lok Sabha after the Speaker rejected Opposition demands to refer the key reform measure to a parliamentary Standing Committee.
"The Bill will end the scramble among high court judges for promotion to the supreme court," Jethmalani said introducing the Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2005.
'The new Waqf bill sows the seed for conflict in every town and village of India.'
While the BJP went back to the drawing board to recraft its political and governance outreach and regained momentum by notching up surprisingly big wins in a string of assembly polls, the burst of fresh optimism in the main opposition Congress and other INDIA bloc parties fizzled out.
The Parliament on Tuesday unanimously passed the bill to restore the power of states and union territories to prepare and maintain their own list of socially and educationally backward classes (SEBCs).
Even as some government departments have raised concerns on the Bill in its present form, the finance ministry has decided not to delay any further and may table it in Parliament next week.
The house of the BJP Minority Morcha's Manipur president, Asker Ali, was set on fire by a mob allegedly for supporting the Waqf Amendment Act. The incident happened at Lilong in Thoubal district on Sunday night. Ali had expressed his support for the Act on social media on Saturday. An irate mob gathered outside his residence around 9 pm, vandalised it and later set it on fire. Following the incident, Ali posted a video on social media, apologising for his earlier statement. He also expressed opposition to the Act.
The Supreme Court of India has ruled that governors cannot indefinitely delay giving assent to bills passed by state legislatures, setting a timeline of one to three months for their actions. The court said the governor must act "as soon as possible" and that failure to comply with the timeline will make their inaction subject to judicial review. The ruling comes as several opposition-ruled states have accused governors of delaying assent to bills passed by their assemblies.
Bharatiya Janata Party member Subramanian Swamy on Friday introduced in the Rajya Sabha a private member bill which seeks "deterrent punishment", including the death penalty, for slaughter of cow and issues related to that.
Sivadasan noted that the post of the governor is being misused by the central government to forward its agenda in the states.
The Congress party has accused Union Minister Nitin Gadkari of conflict of interest, alleging his sons' companies have benefited from the government's ethanol blending policy. The BJP has rejected the allegations.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget on Tuesday as the Monsoon Session of Parliament gets underway next week with the united opposition set to corner the National Democratic Alliance government on issues ranging from the NEET paper leak case and railway safety.
Samajwadi Party and Shiv Sena on Thursday thwarted an attempt in the Rajya Sabha to take up for passage the contentious Bill providing for quota in promotion for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes in government jobs.
The opposition bloc also got support from Telanagana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao's BRS, which saw the bill as a move to usurp powers of an elected government in Delhi, and asked the House to vote against it.
The draft legislation seeks capital punishment for persons convicted of rape if their actions result in the victim's death or leave her in a vegetative state.
Home Minister Amit Shah introduced the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2023 for consideration after the Upper House, which was adjourned earlier in the pre-lunch session, reassembled at 2 pm.
The Monsoon session of Parliament concluded after facing disruptions and protests over the revision of electoral rolls in Bihar. Despite the disruptions, the government managed to pass key legislations.
The 71-MP strong ruling Congress is determined to push ahead with the Constitution amendment bill on Monday in the Rajya Sabha, which has an effective strength of 233, coinciding with the International Women's Day.
Neerja Chowdhury on the various theories doing the rounds on why several Congress MPs we missing during the vote on the constitutional amendment bill.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla is expected to name the committee's chairperson soon.
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.
Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra expressed confidence in GST.
The Congress slammed the government on Tuesday after the passage of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in the Lok Sabha, with former party chief Rahul Gandhi saying the proposed legislation is an attack on the Constitution and anyone who supports it is attempting to destroy the foundation of the country.
According to the Centre's legislative business list for the upcoming session, three bills have also been listed to replace three ordinances.
The government rejected the Opposition's demand for a discussion on electoral roll revision in Bihar, citing that the matter is sub judice and pending before the judiciary.
The government introduced the 122nd Constitution amendment Bill.
With former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati voicing certain reservations over FDI policy in its present form, the government on Monday sought to keep the Bahujan Samaj Party in good humour by declaring its commitment to a Constitution Amendment Bill providing for promotions for SC/STs in government jobs.
The bill seeks to peg the size of the Council of Ministers to not more than 10 per cent of respective strengths of Parliament and state legislatures.
The Goods and Services Tax Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha in May.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said his government is committed to ensuring that the 'Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam' aimed at expanding women's participation in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies becomes a law, as he urged MPs of both Houses of Parliament to pass the bill unanimously.
The Rajya Sabha has already given its nod to the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Bill, 2023.
States' demand for 5 years and Constitutional provision ruled out
A meeting of political parties supporting the Women's Reservation Bill on Tuesday failed to evolve a strategy on its passage in Rajya Sabha, with the Bharatiya Janata Party and Left parties demanding that a discussion be held before voting.The meeting was called by leader of Lok Sabha Pranab Mukherjee to discuss a strategy to ensure smooth passage of the Constitution amendment bill.Sources said the meeting failed to reach a consensus on the passage of the proposed law.
After securing Congress support for a rise in the foreign investment cap in the insurance Bill, this is another key reform Bill where the Centre has managed a broad consensus.
Government originally planned to roll out GST from April 1 last year, but a consensus could not be reached on the introduction of the Bill.
Opposition MPs in the parliamentary committee scrutinising the Waqf (Amendment) Bill are scheduled to meet Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Tuesday to protest its chairperson Jagdambika Pal's alleged 'unilateral' decisions and attempts to 'bulldoze' proceedings, indicating that they may disassociate themselves from the panel.
The bill was passed by LS last year and now it has to go back to the Lower House for incorporating the amendments approved by Rajya Sabha.
The passage of this major legislation comes ahead of the general election due early next year.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said his party would oppose the Centre's move to bring a bill in Parliament to amend the 1995 law governing Waqf boards, and accused the BJP of trying to snatch the rights of Muslims.
