Page 31 - Lok Sabha

'Aap Hindu ho hi nahi': Rahul Gandhi attacks Modi govt in Lok Sabha

Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi criticises Modi government's Hindu stance, Agniveer scheme, and misuse of agencies such as the ED in Lok Sabha

Rahul Gandhi enjoyed power without liability so far: Anurag Thakur in LS

BJP leader Anurag Thakur on Monday listed out various economic achievements of the NDA government in the last 10 years and took a swipe at Rahul Gandhi, saying he was enjoying power without responsibility till he became the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha. Initiating the discussion on the Motion of Thanks on President's Address, Thakur said the Lok Sabha elections have kept those against the Constitution in the Opposition benches for the third time. While congratulating Gandhi on becoming the Leader of Opposition, Thakur said the Congress leader now has power with responsibility and "absentee landlordism will not work". For the last many years, Gandhi was enjoying power without responsibility, Thakur said and asserted that it was an "agnipariksha" for the Congress leader now. "Will he sit in Lok Sabha all day?... he is not there (even) now," the BJP leader remarked. Gandhi was not in the House when Thakur made the remarks and there were protests from the Opposition ...

Rahul Gandhi seeks discussion on NEET in Lok Sabha, Opposition walks out

Opposition members on Monday demanded a separate one-day discussion on the NEET paper leak issue in the Lok Sabha and staged a walkout after they sought a clear assurance from the government on the issue. Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi raised the issue of irregularities in NEET soon after the Lok Sabha assembled for the day, prompting Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to assert that a separate discussion cannot be held till the House finishes with the motion of thanks on the president's address. "We wanted a one day discussion on NEET. It is an important issue. More than two crore students have been affected. Paper leaks have happened on 70 occasions. We would be happy if you allow a separate discussion on the issue," Gandhi said. Singh, deputy leader of the Lok Sabha, said the House has certain rules and procedures and also on healthy tradition, which are a strength of this House "In my decades-long tenure as a parliamentarian, never has any other issue been taken up during the ..

No vision, direction in President's address to Parliament: Kharge

Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday said there was no vision or direction in the President's address to Parliament and attacked the ruling party for only giving slogans and not doing development works. Participating in the discussion on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address in the Rajya Sabha, Kharge said the President's speech has "ignored" the challenges faced by the country and has tried to hide the government's failure. He said there was no mention about the poor, Dalits and minorities in the President's address. Targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said Opposition parties talk about the plight of common man, while Modiji does only 'Mann Ki Baat'. The Congress president also attacked the prime minister for not visiting Manipur, which has been burning from the last one year, and said he is an expert in only giving slogans. Accusing PM Modi of trying to divide society through his speeches during the polls, he said no prime minist

Adding words to oath lowers Constitution's dignity; follow format: Speaker

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla urged MPs on Monday to follow the prescribed format while taking oath or affirmation and not add words as it lowered the dignity of the Constitution. His statement came against the backdrop of several members raising slogans of "Jai Samvidhan" and "Jai Hindu Rashtra" while taking oath last week. Making a reference in the Lok Sabha, Birla also announced the setting up of a committee comprising representatives of major parties to delve into the issue. "This House resolves that all members will take oath or affirmation as per the format mentioned in Schedule III of the Constitution ... it is expected that we take oath or affirmation as per the format and such things are not repeated in future," Birla said. It is a serious issue and a matter of concern for all as well as the House, Birla pointed out. Several MPs had raised slogans while taking oath as members of the 18th Lok Sabha. The speaker had urged the members to stick to the prescribed format but in ..

NIA agrees to let Engineer Rashid take oath as MP, court order on July 2

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday gave its consent for jailed Kashmiri leader Sheikh Abdul Rashid, known as Engineer Rashid, to take oath as MP on July 25. Additional Sessions Judge Chander Jit Singh will pass an order on the plea on Tuesday. Rashid, the MP from Baramulla who has been arrested in a 2017 Jammu and Kashmir terror funding case, had moved the court seeking interim bail, or custody parole in the alternative, to take oath and perform his parliamentary functions. A special court here on June 22 had adjourned the matter and asked the NIA to file its response. On Monday, the NIA's counsel said Rashid's oath taking be subject to some conditions like not speaking to the media. He also said Rashid must complete everything within a day. Rashid has been in jail since 2019 after he was charged by the NIA under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for his alleged involvement in a terror funding case. He is currently lodged in Tihar jail.

Bull market on steroids: June's record-breaking lift post LS result day low

2,425 stocks muscle their way to new peaks

Cong MP Tagore urges Om Birla to ease journalist restrictions in Parliament

Congress MP Manickam Tagore on Sunday said he has written to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, urging him to lift Covid restrictions on journalists covering Parliament. In a post on 'X', he shared a copy of his letter written to the Birla on June 27. Wrote to Hon @loksabhaspeaker to lift Covid restrictions on journalists covering Parliament. Established journalists are being restricted in the name of curbs. It's time to restore media access and give them their rightful place," Tagore said in the post. In the letter to Birla, he said that several journalists, many of whom have been covering Parliament for over a decade, are facing restrictions in the name of COVID-19 protocols. "Preventing them from accessing the Parliament not only hampers their professional duties but also restricts the flow of accurate information to the public. In the interest of preserving the democratic ethos of our nation, it is imperative that all accredited reporters be allowed to cover the proceedings without an

Birla's comments on Emergency not apt, not suitable for LS Speaker: Pawar

NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar on Saturday said the reference to Emergency made by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla in his speech was not apt and did not suit the stature of his post. Addressing reporters here, Pawar also said the sops announced in the budget presented by his estranged nephew and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Friday, was just an effort ahead of the state assembly polls to project that they are doing something massive. Soon after his election as Lok Sabha Speaker, Om Birla on Wednesday set off a firestorm by reading out a resolution condemning the imposition of Emergency as an attack on the Constitution by the then prime minister Indira Gandhi. Referring to it, Pawar said, "The speaker's reference to the Emergency in his address did not suit the stature of the post. It has been 50 years since the Emergency, Indira Gandhi is no longer alive. So why is the speaker bringing up this issue now?" "Is it the role of the speaker to make a political statement? .

Lok Sabha adjourned amid Opposition MPs protest over NEET paper leak issue

Dhankhar bemoans Kharge entering Rajya Sabha Well

Lok Sabha adjourned for day amid Oppn uproar over NEET; MPs storm the well

Speaker Om Birla and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju told opposition members that they can discuss the matter during the course of the Motion of Thanks on the President's address

Amartya Sen's remark on 'Hindu Rashtra' has no relation with reality: BJP

The BJP on Thursday disapproved of Nobel laureate Amartya Sen's assertion that the Lok Sabha poll results showed India is not a Hindu Rashtra', asserting it had no connection with the actual picture on the ground. The saffron party said the eminent economist should see things from a neutral point of view. "Even if the NDA government does the best work in the world, Mr Amartya Sen will not appreciate that. He should have judged the situation in the country before the party came to power, and the current situation after all these years," senior BJP leader and its former West Bengal president Rahul Sinha told PTI. Sinha also accused Sen of being biased towards the ruling Trinamool Congress in the state. "He is making such remarks to please Mamata Banerjee (CM). I wish he could see things from a neutral point of view... People of India have voted for the BJP for their efforts to cleanse the system, making it corruption-free and taking the economy to greater heights. Sen's comments are

Looking ahead

President points to the Budget for explicit policy agenda

Amid desk thumping, PM Modi introduces council of ministers in Rajya Sabha

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday introduced his council of ministers in Rajya Sabha, amid clapping and thumping of desks. The prime minister had introduced his council of ministers in Lok Sabha on Wednesday after the election of the Speaker. "I have great pleasure to introduce Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India, who has been sworn in as the Prime Minister for the third consecutive term after a gap of six decades," Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar announced amid thumping of desks and applause. He then asked the the prime minister for the introduction of the ministers. Leader of the House J P Nadda, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress leader Sonia Gandhi were among those present in the House. Thursday was the first day of the 264th session of Rajya Sabha. The House met after President Droupadi Murmu addressed a joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament. The President's address was also tabled in Rajya Sabha. The House will pass

Travesty of traditions: Congress slams Speaker Birla's 'Emergency' remark

Congress leader K C Venugopal has written a letter to Om Birla condemning his remarks on the 1975 Emergency following Birla's re-election as Lok Sabha Speaker

'Reference to Emergency could have been avoided': Rahul to LS Speaker

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi met Speaker Om Birla on Thursday and voiced his displeasure over the reference to Emergency made by the chair, saying it was "clearly political" and could have been avoided. It was a courtesy call during which Gandhi also raised the issue of Emergency being invoked by the Speaker in the House, AICC general secretary K C Venugopal told reporters after the meeting in Parliament House. "It was a courtesy call. The Speaker declared Rahul Gandhi as the Leader of Opposition and after that he along with other INDIA alliance partner leaders met the Speaker," he said. Asked whether Gandhi discussed the issue of Emergency being raised in the House, Venugopal said, "We discussed so many things about Parliament functioning. Of course, this issue also came up." "Rahul ji, as Leader of Opposition, informed the Speaker about this issue, and said it could have been avoided from the Speaker's reference. That is clearly a political reference, it cou

Govt committed to fair investigation in paper leaks, says President Murmu

The government is fully committed to a fair investigation in the recent incidents of paper leaks and ensure that the guilty are punished, President Droupadi Murmu said on Thursday, asserting there is a need to rise above party politics and undertake concrete measures nationwide. In her address to the joint sitting of Parliament, Murmu said the government is working towards major reforms in all aspects of exam process and the functioning of examination-related bodies. Addressing the 18th Lok Sabha for the first time, the president said the examination process requires complete transparency and probity, whether it is competitive examinations or government recruitment tests. As she mentioned steps taken by the government on the education front, some opposition members were heard shouting "NEET", the medical entrance exam whose question paper was allegedly leaked according to an investigation by the Bihar Police. "Whether it is competitive examinations or government recruitment, there

Rahul Gandhi shares the stage with PM Modi after years in his shadow

As head of the opposition, Rahul Gandhi has sturdier footing to negotiate with PM Modi. He'll be afforded powers including the ability to freely meet visiting heads-of-state

18th Lok Sabha: Om Birla elected as Speaker for second straight term

LOP Rahul reminds him of his duty to honour Constitution and allow Oppn to raise people's voice

Will protect Constitution, hold NDA govt accountable: LS LoP Rahul Gandhi

Rahul Gandhi won from both Raebareli and Wayanad Lok Sabha constituencies in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls