The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance is expected to achieve a clear majority in Rajya Sabha after bye-elections for 12 seats scheduled next month, which would help the party get the nod for key legislations such as the Waqf (Amendment) Bill.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's tally in Rajya Sabha has dipped below 90 for the first time in several years but the party and its allies are expected to not only recoup the their losses but also make some gains when by-elections to fill the existing vacancies are held in the coming weeks.
The only occasion when the BJP had 100 seats in the Upper House was in 2022.
Senior Congress leaders P Chidambaram and Digvijaya Singh will now occupy front-row seats after their reallocation by the party.
The BRS, the AAP said that they are boycotting the address to protest against the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre.
The bill seeks to reserve one-third of all seats for women in the Lok Sabha and the state legislative assemblies.
Alva, 80, would file her nomination papers on Tuesday, July 19 which is the last date for filing nominations for the August 6 election.
Adani group stocks have taken a beating on the bourses after Hindenburg Research made a litany of allegations, including fraudulent transactions and share price manipulation at the Gautam Adani-led group. The group has maintained it complies with all laws and disclosure requirements.
Both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned till 2 pm after opposition members held protest in Parliament seeking a discussion on the issue.
The government on Monday said that matters regarding Chinese intrusion can't be discussed in Parliament as it concerns the security of the country.
Shashi Tharoor has also been retained as the chairman of the panel on Information Technology.
Congress is likely to clear its position on the vexed issue of Telangana soon, as a view is firming up in the party that dragging on with the separate statehood demand will be detrimental to its interests.
Special prayers were offered at a mobile temple outside Gandhi's 10, Janpath residence and enthusiastic Congress workers cut huge cakes and distributed it to all those gathered.
In this interview with Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa, Rao says that he has decided to join the TRS, but would wait until Thursday night before taking a final decision.
Congress Members of Parliament and members of Legislative Assembly from Telangana on Monday slammed Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and accused him of weakening the party in the region that is witnessing an agitation for statehood. The MPs also condemned the "repressive measures" against Telangana protagonists and alleged that the chief minister's actions were "provoking" people of the region.
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.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah asked the opposition on Monday to allow a debate on the Manipur issue to begin in Parliament but the deadlock persisted in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha as both sides refused to budge from their stand, with Congress and its allies insisting on a statement from Prime Minister Narendra Modi first.
With the Bharatiya Janata Party withdrawing support to the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha-led government in Jharkhand, the Congress on Wednesday dropped enough hints to indicate that it is not averse to forming an alternative government in the tribal stateSpeaking on whether the party sticks to its earlier stand -- that it will not form an alliance government in the state with Shibu Soren as the chief minister -- a Congress leader said, "In politics, there is no last word."
The government faced embarrassment in the Rajya Sabha today as it was forced to defer a key education reforms bill, following strong opposition from members cutting across party lines. HRD Minister Kapil Sibal had to make a hasty retreat after the Education Tribunal Bill, 2010, came under all- round attack, including from senior Congress leader K Keshava Rao.
The Congress Working Committee and the All India Congress Committee secretariat were on Friday reconstituted by Sonia Gandhi, who dropped veterans like Arjun Singh and Mohsina Kidwai and G Venkatswami, who attacked her recently, and inducted new faces in the hierarchy.
The Congress party on Thursday sought to downplay Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee's remarks on alliance, saying she was only raising the issue of misuse of central forces in West Bengal, which she has the right to do.
This is the first time that oath-taking of members will take place in the House chamber during the inter-session period so as to maintain norms of physical distancing due to COVID-19, officials said.
The Congress high command has spared Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K Rosaiah from campaigning for the party in the 12 Assembly constituencies in Telangana going to by-elections on July 27.
The Congress on Thursday objected to Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar deleting some portions of Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge's speech from official records, saying he used no unparliamentary words and some of the expressions he employed were earlier used even by former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
"For me, they (Maoists) are no enemies at all. If they are under some wrong notions, we need to talk to them," Rao said in the Rajya Sabha, while participating in a debate on the Dantewada massacre.
The incident happened three months ago.
Chief Justice of AP High Court G S Singhvi administered the oath of office to the new governor at a simple ceremony at Raj Bhavan.
The Congress said on Tuesday that "time is running out" for finalizing seat-sharing with Trinamool Congress for coming Lok Sabha polls in West Bengal and talks are on between the two parties for reviewing some of the seats.
Opposition parties, including the Congress, Trinamool Congress, Bharat Rashtra Party and Samajwadi Party, came together in a show of unity on Thursday and accused the Modi government of getting the second half of the budget session washed out, while asserting that if this attitude continues, the country will move towards a "dictatorship".
Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu also made a fervent appeal to the leaders of various parties at an all-party meeting to ensure smooth and effective functioning of the House during the Budget Session.
Telugu movie doyens mourn a legend.
Consensus seems to be eluding the Congress over the issue of Telangana with Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde on Tuesday refusing to set any deadline for deciding the statehood issue.
With the Telangana Bill having been passed in Parliament, a victorious Telangana Rashtra Samiti president K Chandrasekhar Rao returned to Hyderabad today from New Delhi to a hero's welcome by thousands of enthusiastic TRS party workers.
The Telangana Rashtra Samiti had backed the NDA on demonetisation, GST and in the elections to the post of President and Vice-President during its last term.
A draw of lots was held on Friday to allot Rajya Sabha members to Telangana and residual Andhra Pradesh following division of the state.
'Even at Galwan Valley, our soldiers are now not allowed to patrol at the point at which they used to patrol earlier. In the Pangong area, in a more than eight-kilometre area they are not allowing us to patrol, the area which we used to patrol. Previously, we used to patrol till Finger 8 and now we are not being allowed to patrol till Finger 8'
The Rajya Sabha on Tuesday passed a bill on protection of rights of transgenders after a motion to refer it to a Select Committee of the Upper House was defeated.
The Bill was supported by the members across party lines, however, some suggested to add in its purview hospital sanitary staff, ASHA (accredited social health activist) workers and 'Corona warriors' in emergency services such as police and personnel from other departments.
The bill rules out any provision for anticipatory bail for a person accused of atrocities against SC/STs, notwithstanding any court order.
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