Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Abhishek Banerjee has formally petitioned Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to disqualify 20 rebel MPs, arguing their claimed merger with the lesser-known Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI) is invalid under the anti-defection law.
The move has sparked a political row, with the opposition accusing the BJP of promoting a vegetarian agenda.
West Bengal's appointment of Manoj Agarwal, the former Chief Electoral Officer, as the new Chief Secretary has ignited a political firestorm, raising concerns about the fairness and impartiality of the state's electoral processes.
The Supreme Court will hear on Wednesday a plea filed by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee challenging the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state.
Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar expressed gratitude to several leaders, including Congress leader Sonia Gandhi and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, for their concern and well wishes after he was hospitalized for cardiac-related ailments. Dhankhar, who resumed chairing the Rajya Sabha on Monday, said he was "greatly touched" by the concern expressed across party lines, which contributed to his speedy recovery.
'BJP wanted a compromised Opposition and found a match in this faction of the Trinamool.'
Trinamool Congress strongman Shajahan Sheikh, accused of sexual abuse and land grab in West Bengal's Sandeshkhali, was on Thursday suspended from the party for six years, TMC leader Derek O'Brien said.
Top leaders of opposition parties including Congress' Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, TMC's Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Tejashwi Yadav of Rashtriya Janata Dal and Uddhav Thackeray of Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray, besides Left leaders and those from smaller parties, are likely to attend the meeting at the Constitution Club in the national capital.
The opposition parties were demanding a division of votes as they had moved a motion to send the Bill to a select committee, which was rejected by voice vote.
Opposition MPs have submitted notices in both Houses of Parliament seeking a motion for the removal of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, alleging partisan conduct and obstruction of electoral fraud investigations.
TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee was allegedly attacked by locals during a visit to Sonarpur, West Bengal, to meet families affected by post-poll violence.
By asking Vijay to produce letters of majority support before inviting him to form the government, the governor risks overstepping established Constitutional principles, notes Harishchandra.
Raising slogans against the Bharatiya Janata Party, Trinamool Congress (TMC) leaders ended their 24-hour protest at the Mandir Marg police station in New Delhi on Tuesday evening, a day after they were detained while staging a dharna outside the Election Commission's office.
A Trinamool Congress delegation on Friday alleged before the Election Commission top brass that around 40 SIR-related deaths had occurred in West Bengal so far, a charge junked by the poll authority.
Modi is scheduled to reply to the debate on Thursday.
Opposition MPs in India have moved notices in Parliament seeking the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, accusing him of bias, misconduct, and acting under the influence of the executive.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju stated the government is open to discussing electoral reforms in the Rajya Sabha, urging the Opposition not to impose a timeline. Opposition parties staged a walkout after demanding an immediate discussion on the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
The leaders were prodded by the Twitterati to defend the AIB's freedom of expression.
The Winter session of Parliament will be held from December 1 to 19, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju announced on Saturday, in what the opposition has described as an 'unusually delayed' and truncated session.
This is the fourth such death reported in the state since the exercise began on November 4, sparking a political blame game.
"In Bengal, the region of India I come from, we call this humanistic philosophy of 'Ma, Maati and Manush' signifying an equilibrium of the universally caring Mother, the earth, that nurtures us and human beings who must be central to our developmental endeavours," TMC MP Derek O'Brien told delegates while speaking on why poverty eradication should be the focus of UN's operational activities for development.
The party released two videos as 'proof' of BJP workers vandalising the statue.
The eight members -- distributed among the Congress, Communist Party of India-Marxist, Trinamool Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party -- were suspended earlier in the day for the remainder of the Monsoon Session over their 'unruly behaviour' during the passage of farm Bills in the Upper House of Parliament.
India's Parliament is set to begin its Budget session on Friday, with opposition parties poised to demand a discussion on the alleged mismanagement of the Maha Kumbh festival in Prayagraj, where 30 pilgrims died in a stampede. The opposition also accused the government of politicising parliamentary committees and pushing its agenda through its majority. The session will start with President Droupadi Murmu addressing both houses of Parliament. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget on Saturday for the eighth consecutive time.
Several opposition parties on Wednesday decided to jointly oppose the delimitation provisions in the Constitution amendment bill in Parliament, even as they reiterated support for women's reservation, with Mallikarjun Kharge alleging the move is politically motivated.
Advertising industry veteran Sylvester daCunha, the creator of the iconic 'Amul Girl' campaign that started in the 1960s, has died, the Gujarat-based milk cooperative that owns the dairy brand said on Wednesday. "Very sorry to inform about the sad demise of Shri Sylvester daCunha, chairman of daCunha Communications last night (Tuesday) at Mumbai," said Jayen Mehta, managing director of Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF).
Insisting that the decision to introduce Foreign Direct Investment in retail requires vigorous Parliamentary sanction, the Trinamool Congress on Wednesday accused the government of indulging in 'hoodwinking tactics' to claim that there was need for it.
An IndiGo flight from Delhi to Srinagar encountered severe turbulence after a sudden hailstorm. The pilot requested permission from Lahore Air Traffic Control to use Pakistani airspace to avoid the turbulence, but the request was rejected. The flight, carrying over 220 passengers, including Trinamool Congress MPs, landed safely at Srinagar Airport. The incident is being investigated by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
Dhankhar expressed his anguish on the conduct of Opposition members and left the House for a while.
"This is the minimum expectation at this time of national tragedy," she said.
A meeting of leaders of political parties, called by Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari to break the deadlock in the House over coal block allocation issue, remained inconclusive on Thursday.
Opposition parties in India's Rajya Sabha, including the Congress and the TMC, walked out of the chamber after their demand for a discussion on the Election Commission's alleged lapses in issuing duplicate voter ID cards and delimitation was disallowed. The Deputy Chairman, Harivansh, rejected the notices under Rule 267, citing non-compliance with previous rulings. While TMC and Congress MPs focused on the duplicate voter ID issue, Tamil parties expressed concerns about the impact of delimitation on southern states. Despite raising slogans and pressing for a discussion, the opposition staged a walkout after their notices were rejected and their statements deemed not part of the official record.
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) team comprises O'Brien, MP and leader of the delegation Sunil Mondal and MP Abir Ranjan Biswas.
Claiming that the police had no role in the death of Student's Federation of India student Sudipta Gupta, Trinamool Congress Member of Parliament Derek O'Brien said on Wednesdaa that CCTV footage suggested that it was an accident.
A meeting of the Trinamool Congress parliamentary party has been convened in New Delhi on August six to finalise party's stand on the vice-presidential election slated for August seven.
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has demanded that the Election Commission (EC) accept its error in issuing duplicate voter card numbers within 24 hours, threatening to release more documents on the issue if the EC fails to do so. The party alleged that the EC issued the statement after the TMC announced it would hold a press conference on the issue, and termed it an "Epic Scam." The EC had said it would rectify the issue and update its technology-driven platform, but the TMC insists the EC must accept the error. The party also demanded an in-depth probe into the matter.
Trinamool Congress on Saturday removed Mukul Roy, a former confidante of Mamata Banerjee, from the key post of party general secretary.
'This is a humanitarian visit. This is a visit to stand with the grieving families. We hope to reach Tinsukia in about two hours and spend some time with the families'
Wedding preparations for Parineeti Chopra and AAP leader Raghav Chadha are in full swing.
