Page 6 - Opposition Parties

'Unacceptable tone': Jaya Bachchan demands apology from RS Chair Dhankhar

The Opposition staged a walkout on Friday after Samajwadi Party MP Jaya Bachchan accused Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar of using unacceptable' tone

Protest over Phogat disqualification in RS, anguished Dhankhar leaves House

An anguished Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar left the House for some time during the morning session on Thursday, following an uproar and walkout by Opposition party members, who were not allowed to raise the issue related to the disqualification of Vinesh Phogat from the Olympics. Soon after the listed papers were tabled in the House, Leader of Opposition and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge stood up to raise the Phogat disqualification issue and wanted to know "who is behind" it. However, Dhankhar did not allow Kharge to raise the issue. In the meantime, Derek O'Brien of TMC, stood up to raise some issues but was not allowed by the Chair. To this Dhankar cautioned the TMC member, saying "You are shouting at the Chair. Your conduct is ugliest in the House. I condemn your actions. Next time I will show you the door". As uproar increased in the House, Opposition parties staged a walkout. Dhankhar expressed his anguish on the conduct of Opposition members and left the H

Oppn leaders protest on Parliament premises, seek crop MSP for farmers

Opposition leaders on Thursday held a protest on the Parliament premises, demanding that farmers' crops be bought at MSP and justice ensured for them. MPs from parties such as the Trinamool Congress (TMC), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) - Sharadchandra Pawar, and the Shiv Sena (UBT), among others, protested on the steps leading to the Makar Dwar of Parliament. The MPs wore a garland of vegetables and raised slogans such as "Kisan ko phasal pe MSP do" and "Kisan pe anyay bandh karo". "The manner in which the BJP has given minimum support price to TDP (Telugu Desam Party) and JD(U), it should also ensure MSP (minimum support price) for farmers and that is why we are protesting," Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said. The export ban on onion farmers of Maharashtra should be lifted. Innumerable requests have been made to the Centre but to no avail, she said. The protesting MPs said justice for farmers was their objective and they would keep raising

Oppn slams govt for not withdrawing GST on health, life insurance premiums

Opposition members in Lok Sabha on Wednesday slammed the government for not taking up an amendment in the Finance Bill to withdraw the 18 per cent GST levy on medical and life insurance premiums. Opposition MPs staged a walkout from Lok Sabha after an amendment moved by RSP member N K Premchandran seeking removal of 18 per cent GST on medical and life insurance premiums was not taken up by the House during the passage of the Finance Bill. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who piloted the Finance Bill, said any amendment in GST has to be approved by the GST council. "Specific demand of the entire opposition is to withdraw the 18 per cent GST on life and health insurance schemes for which I had given an amendment. Normal procedure of the House is that the amendment is circulated only if it is admitted," Premchandran told reporters outside Parliament after the walked out by the opposition MPs. "This was circulated yesterday itself. This gives a message that it has been accepted, or

Opposition stands with govt amid Bangladesh crisis

On Tuesday, the central government convened an all-party meeting in the Parliament building to discuss the situation in Bangladesh.

BJP spreading lies, trying to create fissures in BJD: Odisha's Oppn whip

Opposition chief whip in the Odisha assembly Pramila Mallik alleged that the ruling BJP was spreading lies that several BJD leaders would join the saffron camp, asserting that such an attempt was aimed at creating fissures in the regional party. Her comment comes after BJP MP Aparajita Sarangi had, on August 4, said Rajya Sabha MP Mamata Mohanta joining BJP after resigning from the BJD was just a trailer and many others would follow her suit. Mallik, a former state minister and ex-Speaker of the assembly, also rejected several BJP leaders' remarks that many BJD functionaries were in touch with the saffron camp. A false campaign is being spread by BJP leaders, she said. Several BJP leaders, including former minister and MLA Arabinda Dhali, were accused of spreading lies that many BJD leaders would join the saffron party as they did not have confidence in former chief minister Naveen Patnaik. They (BJP) are spreading lies to disturb our party. No one from our party is interested in

Opposition slams government over 18% GST on life and health insurance

Sources in the TMC said that its MPs have raised the issue in Parliament and their party chief, WB CM Mamata Banerjee, has written to FM Nirmala Sitharaman on the matter

Oppn leaders target govt over water leakage in new Parliament building

Congress' Lok Sabha MP Manickam Tagore posted on X a video of water leaking from the roof in a lobby of the new Parliament building and a bucket placed to collect it

India has overcome after-effects of pandemic with capex push: FM Sitharaman

Nirmala Sitharaman said that not mentioning a state in the Budget speech does not mean that it will not be given any financial support, referring to the Opposition's charge on Bihar and Andhra

Budget 2024: Minister Meghwal says Oppn trying to create false narrative

Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal on Saturday said a strong foundation has been laid in the Union Budget to achieve the goal of 'Viksit Bharat-2047' but the opposition was trying to create a "false narrative" to mislead people. He claimed the opposition parties' "Constitution in danger" propaganda fell flat during the recent Lok Sabha polls and the same thing will happen this time too. The opposition parties have accused the Union government of meting out "step-motherly" treatment to states ruled by non-NDA parties and claimed the financial packages to Bihar and Andhra Pradesh showed this was a Budget of "compulsion". Hitting back at the opposition, the Union minister of law and justice said, "A strong foundation has been laid in the Union Budget for 'Viksit Bharat-2047'." "Since the names of Bihar and Andhra Pradesh were mentioned (in the Budget), they are trying to create a false narrative. I come from Rajasthan and its name was not mentioned in the Budget. Does that mean that the

Bengal in anarchic condition, restore law, order: Adhir writes to President

Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Saturday wrote to President Droupadi Murmu, alleging that West Bengal is in an "anarchic condition" and sought her intervention to "restore law and order" in the state. Chowdhury, the president of the West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee, referred to poll-related violence and alleged attacks on party workers during this year's general elections. "I wish to seek your kind intervention in restoring civility and law and order in public life in West Bengal. For me, at a personal level, it is not only disturbing but also deeply anguishing to see the anarchic condition in the state owing to the ruthless approach of the ruling party on the workers, sympathisers, and supporters of the opposition," Chowdhury wrote in the two-page letter. As a result, many innocent persons have lost their lives, and have been jailed or taken into custody, he alleged. "There are also several cases of people not affiliated to the ruling party and inclined favourably

Kejriwal being treated as political prisoner, efforts on to scare him: AAP

AAP alleged on Friday that the BJP-led central government is treating Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal as a "political prisoner" and said all INDIA bloc parties have given in-principle approval to attend a protest to support him on July 30 at Jantar Mantar. At a press conference here, AAP general secretary (organisation) Sandeep Pathak claimed that Kejriwal's blood sugar level dropped to 50 mg/dL and below 34 times in jail between June 3 and July 7. "Dictators imprison people due to their political animosity, and Arvind Kejriwal is also a political prisoner," he said and added that the opposition alliance will join the protest to support Kejriwal. "Efforts are being made to scare Kejriwal but he is not going to be afraid. This is not a question of an individual or the Aam Aadmi Party but to save the country and the system from the whims of a dictator," Pathak said. This issue has been considered by the INDIA bloc parties and there is "consensus" that this is not a question of a

Niti Aayog meeting faces boycott from opposition leaders over budget woes

Chief ministers from Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, Punjab, Jharkhand, and Kerala will be skipping the Niti Aayog meeting

Rahul Gandhi meets farmers, vows to push for MSP legal guarantee

The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (non-political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha have also decided to renew their 'Delhi Chalo' march demanding a legal guarantee for minimum support price (MSP)

Opposition MPs stage walkout to protest Union Budget 2024 in Parliament

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman responds by saying it was not feasible to mention every state in the Budget

Centre amends rules to give more power to J-K Lt Guv, Opposition slams move

The Centre has significantly strengthened the authority of the lieutenant governor in Jammu and Kashmir, empowering him to make decisions on crucial matters such as police and all-India services officers and granting sanctions for prosecution in various cases. The opposition slammed the Union government's move and termed it a step towards "disempowering" the people of Jammu and Kashmir. Official sources, however, said the notification does not in any sense alter the balance of powers as enshrined in the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019. The Union home ministry gave more powers to the lieutenant governor on Friday by amending the transaction rules framed under the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019. This Act, passed alongside the abrogation of Article 370, bifurcated the erstwhile state into two Union territories -- Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. The sources said that with the amendments to the transaction rules, the powers of the legislative assembly and the functi

Congress, INDIA bloc to raise Manipur issue in Parliament: Rahul Gandhi

The Congress and the INDIA bloc will raise the need for peace in Manipur with full force in Parliament to put pressure on the government to end this tragedy, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said on Thursday, days after his visit to the violence-hit state. He also reiterated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should personally visit Manipur, listen to the problems of the people of the state and appeal for peace. Gandhi made the remarks in a post in Hindi on X as he shared a video of his interactions with the people of Manipur during his day-long visit to the violence-hit state on Monday. "I have visited Manipur three times since violence broke out there, but unfortunately there is no improvement in the situation -- even today the state is divided into two parts. Houses are burning, innocent lives are in danger and thousands of families are forced to live in relief camps," the former Congress chief said. The prime minister should personally visit Manipur, listen to

Oppn questions Maha govt over Rs 11 cr reward to cricketers, BJP hits back

Opposition Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) in Maharashtra have raised question marks over the Eknath Shinde-led dispensation's announcement of giving Rs 11 crore reward to the T20 World Cup-winning Indian team, and alleged that by doing so, the government wants to pat itself on the back. The opposition parties said that while they were proud of the cricketers' achievement, there was no need to give Rs 11 crore from the state coffers and asked the chief minister to pay the amount from his own pocket. BJP legislator Pravin Darekar, however, hit back at the Congress, accusing it of politicising the issue. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Friday announced Rs 11 crore cash reward for the Indian cricket team. The announcement was made in the Vidhan Bhavan (state legislature complex) here, where four Mumbai players from the team -- captain Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shivam Dubey -- were felicitated. Talking to reporters later, Leader of Opposition in the

Former J'khand CM Hemant Soren to chair crucial INDIA bloc meeting today

Former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren is scheduled to preside over a crucial meeting of INDIA bloc legislators on Wednesday, amid speculations of a change of guard in the state, MLAs of the alliance said. Soren, the executive president of the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), was released from jail on June 28 after nearly five months, as the high court granted him bail in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam. "A change of guard in the state is possible... This meeting is crucial. All the legislators of the ruling alliance will assemble here at 11 am," a party source told PTI. The speculations were fuelled by the sudden cancellation of all important programmes of Chief Minister Champai Soren, including distribution of appointment letters to 1,500 selected teachers on Wednesday. On Tuesday, too, all public programmes of Champai Soren, who had taken oath as the 12th CM of Jharkhand on February 2, 2024 after Hemant Soren's arrest, stood cancelled. "We were

EVM, Manipur to Agnipath scheme: Opposition trains guns on govt, EC

SP chief Akhilesh Yadav said he would mistrust EVMs even if his party were to win all 80 seats in UP