Page 24 - Congress

All 'taarif', no gain: Congress mocks PM Modi as Trump slaps 25% tariff

Congress criticises PM Modi after Trump imposes 25% tariff on Indian imports, saying the 'Howdy Modi' friendship has brought no real benefits

Cong seeks govt's help for release of Catholic nuns jailed in Chhattisgarh

Congress members from Kerala in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday demanded government intervention for release of two Catholic nuns jailed for alleged human trafficking and forced religious conversion in Chhattisgarh. Nuns Preethi Merry and Vandana Francis along with Sukaman Mandavi were arrested at the Durg railway station in the BJP-ruled Chhattisgarh on July 25 following a complaint by a local Bajrang Dal functionary, who accused them of forcibly converting three girls from Narayanpur and trafficking them. Raising the matter during Zero Hour, Congress members K C Venugopal and K Suresh said the incident is "deeply disturbing and shocking" as the nuns are innocent and were doing social work by providing palliative care for cancer patients. Venugopal said the nuns were manhandled and "falsely accused" of religious conversion and human trafficking by Bajrang Dal members. The two nuns were stopped at the Durg railway station while they were travelling to Agra. "These two nuns are in jail .

Rahul Gandhi to protest against 'votes theft' in Bengaluru on Aug 4

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who recently claimed that his party has figured out the modus operandi of the "votes theft" by studying a Lok Sabha constituency in Karnataka, will participate in a protest in Bengaluru on August 4 and submit a representation to the Election Commission officials here. Amid the raging row over the revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, on July 23, alleged that elections are being "stolen" in India and claimed that his party has figured out the modus operandi of the "votes theft" by studying a LS constituency in Karnataka. "Rahul Gandhi has raised voice against irregularities in elections. He had said that such things had taken place in Karnataka too, so he is coming here to give representation to the Election Commission officials. He is coming on August 4," state Home Minister G Parameshwara said. Speaking to reporters here, he said the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee will be organising a programme (protest)

Parliament Highlights: Op Sindoor showed India knows how to protect its sovereignty, says Rajnath

Parliament Monsoon Session Highlights: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is set to open discussion on Operation Sindoor in Rajya Sabha today. Follow live updates on the debate and proceedings here

Op Sindoor debate: Nadda apologises to Kharge over 'mental balance' remark

The Rajya Sabha witnessed heated exchanges between the Opposition and treasury benches after Leader of the House J P Nadda made some objectionable remarks against Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge that he later withdrew and apologised. Rising soon after Kharge spoke over one hour during the discussion on Operation Sindoor and the Pahalgam terror attack, Nadda first accused him of "losing his mental balance" as he made some remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Nadda demanded that Kharge's remarks on the Prime Minister be expunged from the records as they were made in a "flow of emotions". However, Kharge as well as Opposition benches made strong objections to Nadda's "mental balance" remark and demanded an apology. Kharge also said that Nadda is one of the ministers in the NDA government whom he respected, but said it was a matter of shame that he made such remarks against him and demanded his apology. Nadda soon got up to say that he has already withdrawn his wo

Amit Shah slams Chidambaram for 'clean chit' to Pakistan in Pahalgam attack

Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday accused P Chidambaram, a previous incumbent of the ministry, of giving a "clean chit" to Pakistan in the Pahalgam terror attack, asserting that it amounted to questioning India's attack on terror facilities in the country. Shah lashed out at the senior Congress leader as informed Lok Sabha during a discussion on the terror strike and Operation Sindoor that three terrorists killed by security forces in Kashmir on Monday were behind the horrific Pahalgam incident. He said the government had proof of the three being from Pakistan, including that the voter numbers of two of them. He added that they carried chocolates made in Pakistan, turning up the heat on the former home minister. The Congress leader, a Rajya Sabha member, Shah said, raised the questions when Parliament was to begin this discussion. "Whom do you want to save? What will you gain by shielding Pakistan?" In an interview, Chidambaram had raised questions on the claim that the terrorists

Rahul Gandhi to sponsor schooling of 22 kids orphaned by India-Pak conflict

During his visit to Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch in May, Rahul Gandhi had reportedly asked Congress workers to identify children affected by cross-border shelling in the region

Parliament Highlights: Retaliation by Army forced Pakistan to bow down, says Rajnath Singh

Monsoon Session Highlights: Top leaders from NDA and INDIA bloc to face off in Parliament over Pahalgam attack and Operation Sindoor. Follow live updates on the debate and proceedings here

Congress, Chidambaram speaking Pakistan's language: Shivraj Chouhan

Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Monday accused the Congress and its leader P Chidambaram of "speaking the same language" as used by Pakistan and claimed that the Opposition was "running away" from a discussion in Parliament on Operation Sindoor out of fear of being unmasked. Speaking to reporters inside the Parliament complex, he said when the government is ready to discuss the issue then why is the Opposition running away from it. The Lok Sabha was adjourned till 2 pm on Monday amid opposition protests on the revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, delaying the start of the discussion on Operation Sindoor. A political row erupted on Monday over Chidambaram's reported remarks that the terrorists behind the Pahalgam could have been "homegrown". "It was their demand only that a discussion should be held on Operation Sindoor. And, when the government is ready for discussion, why is it running away from it? The entire Opposition is not letting a discussion on terror and terrorism

Tharoor declines to speak on Op Sindoor, opts for ports bill debate

The Congress asked its MP Shashi Tharoor if he was interested in speaking during the Operation Sindoor debate in Parliament but he declined and instead expressed a desire to speak on 'The Indian Ports Bill, 2025', party sources said on Monday. There has been intense speculation on whether Tharoor, who led the delegation to the US among other countries, will be picked as a speaker by the Congress given that his enthusiastic endorsement of the government's action following the terror attack has soured his ties with tge party. Asked whether Tharoor was asked to speak during the debate, a senior Congress functionary told PTI, "It is a practise that senior leaders are asked whether they are interested in speaking on a major issue. Gaurav Gogoi and K Suresh had reached out to him and asked if he was interested in speaking during the debate on Operation Sindoor, to which he said he is not interested and would like to speak on the ports bill." There was no immediate response from Tharoor on

Clerical error turns Madhya Pradesh farmer into India's poorest man

An income certificate in Satna showed a farmer earning just ₹3 a year, triggering ridicule and Congress criticism before officials admitted a clerical error and issued a correction

Congress stages protest demanding SIR not be conducted in West Bengal

Congress workers on Sunday staged a protest here demanding that a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal not be conducted. An SIR is being conducted in neighbouring Bihar, where assembly elections are due later this year. Assembly polls are likely to be held in West Bengal in mid-2026. "The main issue is illegal immigration from Bangladesh," Congress leader Asutosh Chatterjee, who participated in the demonstration in south Kolkata's Bhawanipur area, said. He demanded that immediate steps be taken to fence every inch of the international border between India and Bangladesh in West Bengal. "Our national leadership has opposed the SIR of electoral rolls in Bihar, and we also oppose any plan to hold the same in West Bengal," he told reporters. The Congress workers raised slogans against the SIR. Chatterjee alleged that the Election Commission was working at the behest of the BJP. The Congress leader also questioned how Leader of Opposition in West Bengal

Congress highlights background to Sindoor debate, Trump's ceasefire claims

Ahead of a discussion in Parliament on Operation Sindoor, the Congress on Sunday recapitulated the events forming the backdrop to the debate, prominent among them US President Donald claiming "26 times" since May 10 that he stopped Operation Sindoor by threatening to cut off trade with India. The opposition party said the debate was a long time coming, but "better late than never." "The Lok Sabha is scheduled to begin a 16-hour debate on Pahalgam-Op Sindoor tomorrow and the Rajya Sabha is set to do so the day after tomorrow. The INC had been demanding a special two-day session of Parliament immediately after Operation Sindoor was abruptly halted. That demand was ignored. Nevertheless, better late than never," party leader Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X. The Pahalgam terror attack took place on April 22, but the terrorists directly responsible have still not been brought to justice, the party's general secretary, in-charge, communications, said. Reportedly, they were involved in

Highlights: French President Macron says France will recognise Palestine as state

Highlights: Catch all the latest news developments here

PM Modi surpasses Indira Gandhi in tenure, becomes 2nd longest-serving PM

PM Modi completes 4,078 uninterrupted days in office today, overtaking Indira Gandhi to become India's second-longest serving Prime Minister, just behind Jawaharlal Nehru

Parliament session highlights: Rajya Sabha, Lok Sabha adjourned for the day after oppn ruckus

Parliament Monsoon Session highlights: The revised National Anti-Doping Act is scheduled to be tabled in Parliament. Catch the developments related to the proceedings in the Parliament here

US Speaker cuts short House session to avoid vote on releasing Epstein file

Republicans had planned votes this week on an immigration measure, a permitting bill and a rollback of some Biden-era regulations

Parliament highlights: Rajya Sabha, Lok Sabha adjourned for the day amid protests

Parliament Monsoon Session highlights: Catch all the developments related to the proceedings in the Parliament here

Rajya Sabha adjourned without transacting any business amid Oppn protests

The Upper House earlier saw two adjournments during the pre-lunch period, before it was finally adjourned within minutes of meeting at 2 pm

Opposition raises questions over ex Vice President Dhankhar's resignation

The opposition on Monday raised questions over Jagdeep Dhankhar's sudden resignation as the vice president, with the Congress saying that clearly, there is "far more to his totally unexpected resignation than meets the eye". The Congress also urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to convince Dhankhar to change his mind. In a sudden move, Dhankhar resigned from his post on Monday evening, citing medical reasons. He has sent his resignation to President Droupadi Murmu and said he is stepping down with immediate effect. "The sudden resignation of the Vice President and Chairman of the Rajya Sabha is as shocking as it is inexplicable. I was with him alongside a number of other MPs till around 5 PM today and had spoken to him over the phone at 7:30 PM," Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X. "No doubt Mr Dhankhar has to give topmost priority to his health. But clearly there is far more to his totally unexpected resignation than meets the eye