Page 2 - Opposition

GST 2.0: BJP leaders celebrate, opposition alleges 'undue credit'

Congress accused that the 'limited' reform comes eight years too late; Vaishnaw pointed to the significantly higher tax rates under the UPA government

Oppn MPs also voted for Radhakrishnan, listening to their conscience: BJP

The BJP on Tuesday hailed NDA candidate C P Radhakrishnan's election as the 15th Vice President of India and said the poll outcome was an indication of his wider acceptance as several MPs from the opposition camp also voted for him after "listening to their conscience. Radhakrishnan secured 452 votes against the joint opposition candidate B Sudershan Reddy's 300, winning the contest with a bigger-than-expected margin, indicating cross-voting from the rival camp. Expressing gratitude towards all those who voted for Radhakrishnan, BJP chief whip in the Lok Sabha, Sanjay Jaiswal, said the NDA nominee won the vice presidential election by bagging 452 votes because he received support from some opposition MPs also. About 40 MPs belonging to the opposition camp supported the NDA's vice presidential candidate Radhakrishnan, listening to their conscience, he said. We express gratitude towards them also, he told PTI Videos in the Parliament House Complex. The BJP MP also hailed the prime .

Nation continues to wait for Dhankar to speak out, says Jairam Ramesh

Opposition has time and again claimed that Dhankar has been "silenced" and has enquired about his whereabouts. It was Dhankar's registration that triggered the race for the Vice Presidential elections

GST rate reforms: Oppn-ruled states call for additional levy for 5 yrs

At a consultative meeting in the capital, ahead of the GST Council's meeting on September 3-4, these states supported the Centre's proposal for rationalisation

Oppn states demand compensation for revenue loss due to GST reform proposal

Opposition-ruled states on Friday said the Centre's proposal for GST rate rejig could result in a revenue loss of about Rs 1.5 crore to Rs 2 lakh crore and demanded compensation for the losses incurred by them. Finance ministers from eight states -- Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and West Bengal -- decided to present their proposal to the GST Council at the next meeting on September 3 and 4. Their proposal for balancing rate rationalisation and revenue neutrality suggests levying an additional duty on sin and luxury goods in addition to the proposed 40 per cent rate to maintain the current tax incidence. The proceeds from this levy should be distributed among states, the opposition-ruled states demanded. Briefing reporters after a meeting of the eight states, Karnataka Finance Minister Krishna Byre Gowda said each state is expected to lose 15-20 per cent from its current Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenue. "The 20 per cent GST reven

Dhankhar resigned due to health reasons, no need to stretch it: Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah said former Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned due to health concerns and cautioned against speculating further

Amit Shah tables Bill to remove arrested ministers amid opposition protests

Constitution (One Hundred and Thirtieth Amendment) Bill, 2025, aims to remove PM, union minister, CM, or minister of a state or Union Territory when arrested or detained on serious criminal charges

'Should leaders run govt from jail?': Shah defends PM, CM removal bills

Shah said the bills were introduced "on account of the Modi government's commitment to restoring moral standards in politics and in view of the public resentment towards the menace"

'Death knell for democracy': Opposition slams Centre's PM, CM removal bills

The bills propose that ministers who are arrested on charges carrying a prison term of five years or more and remain in custody for 30 consecutive days, will be removed from office on the 31st day

Left parties call bills to remove PM, CMs over criminal charges 'draconian'

Left parties on Wednesday said the new bills that provide for the removal of the prime minister or chief ministers arrested on serious criminal charges, are a direct "assault" on democracy and the federal framework, and vowed to oppose it "tooth and nail". The government plans to introduce three bills in Parliament on Wednesday for the removal of the prime minister, a Union minister, a chief minister or a minister of a state or Union Territory when arrested or detained on serious criminal charges for 30 days in a row Flaying the move, CPI(M) general secretary MA Baby said on X that "Modi Govt's 3 bills to oust PM, CMs, Ministers after 30 days in custody expose its neo-fascist characteristics. This direct assault on our democracy will be opposed by CPIM tooth and nail. We urge all democratic forces to unite against this draconian move". "These bills, cloaked as tackling crime in high office, reveal their true intent given the RSS-controlled Modi govt's history of undermining elected

Meet Sudershan Reddy, former SC judge now Opposition's vice president pick

Opposition alliance names former Supreme Court judge B Sudershan Reddy as its vice-presidential candidate against NDA nominee CP Radhakrishnan. Election is scheduled for September 9

Rajya Sabha remains in deadlock as SIR protests force adjournment till 2 pm

Rajya Sabha proceedings were adjourned till the post-lunch session within minutes of assembly on Tuesday, as Opposition MPs persisted in demanding a discussion on alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar. Soon after listed official papers were laid on the table of the House, slogan shouting Opposition MPs moved into aisles and well of the House raising the issue of SIR, leading to proceedings being adjourned till 2 pm. The House will reconvene after the lunch break. Deputy Chairman Harivansh rejected 20 notices that invoked Rule 267, which allows suspension of listed business to discuss matters being raised in them. Without indicating the subject, he said the notices were received on four different subjects, but none of them adhered to the prescribed rules and so were not admitted. He called for taking up the listed Zero Hour, where MPs raise issues of urgent public importance, but sloganeering drowned his attempts. He also object

RS takes up Indian Ports Bill, passed by LS on Aug 12, amid Oppn walkout

A bill to consolidate laws relating to ports, promote integrated port development, facilitate ease of doing business, and ensure optimum utilisation of India's coastline was introduced in the Rajya Sabha on Monday, amid noisy protests by the Opposition. The Indian Ports Bill 2025 was passed by the Lok Sabha on August 12. As the Upper House reassembled at 2 pm, BJD's Sasmit Patra, who was in the Chair, informed the legislators that the Business Advisory Committee had decided to allot three hours for discussion on the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2025. He also said that the committee has approved one hour for consideration and passage of the Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) Bill 2025, after it is approved by the Lok Sabha. Patra then asked Union Ports, Shipping and Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal to introduce the Indian Ports Bill 2025, which was listed on the agenda of the House. Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge

Nadda to ensure unopposed election for Vice President with Oppn talks

A veteran BJP leader, Radhakrishnan, was elected to the Lok Sabha from Coimbatore twice and previously served as the Tamil Nadu BJP State President

PM Modi accuses Oppn of maintaining unjust, regressive laws while in power

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday took a swipe at Opposition leaders, saying that those "who dance with a copy of Constitution on their head" had maintained unjust and regressive laws while in power, trampling the spirit of the Constitution. Addressing an event in the national capital after inaugurating two expressways, the prime minister also said that opposition parties have not been able to digest the success of BJP in Delhi and its adjoining states of Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. He said: "Ye jo log samvidhan sar par rakh kar naachte hain na, woh samvidhan ko kaise kuchalte the, woh Baba Saheb (Ambedkar) ke bhavna ko kaise daga dete the, woh sachai main batane jaa raha hoon. (Those people who are dancing with a copy of Constitution on their heads, how they used to trample the Constitution and betray B R Ambedkar ideas, I am going to tell you the truth now.)" "You will be astonished after hearing this. Our sanitation workers in Delhi are fulfilling huge ...

Parliament passes Merchant Shipping Bill 2025 amid Opposition protests

Parliament on Monday approved The Merchant Shipping Bill, 2025 with the Rajya Sabha passing it with a voice vote. The Lok Sabha had passed the bill on August 6. The bill was passed in the Upper House amid a walkout by the Opposition that was protesting in the House and demanding a discussion on the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar. The Merchant Shipping Bill, 2025 seeks to expand the eligibility criteria for ownership of merchant shipping vessels and provide for investigation and enquiries on marine casualties among others. Earlier, Opposition members protested the taking up of the bill and demanded that the SIR issue be discussed. Amid the din caused by Opposition members, the Rajya Sabha also saw a brief adjournment for a few minutes. Later, when the House assembled at 3 pm, the bill was taken up and passed.

Lok Sabha briefly passes two sports bills amid Opposition protests

The Lok Sabha on Monday passed two sports bills after a brief discussion, amid the din of opposition protests over the revision of electoral rolls in Bihar. When the House reassembled at 2 pm after an initial adjournment, the Lok Sabha took up The National Sports Governance Bill and The National Anti-Doping (Amendment) Bill for consideration and passage. When the Bills were taken up, there were hardly any opposition members in the House as most of them were detained during their protest march towards the Election Commission against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar and alleged voter data fudging. Soon after, opposition members returned to the House and started raising slogans. Amid the din, the two bills were passed by a voice vote, following which the House was adjourned till 4 pm.

Cong, Oppn protests part of plan to create instability in country: BJP

The BJP on Monday slammed opposition parties over their protest against the voter roll revision in Bihar and alleged vote theft in past elections, accusing them of trying to create anarchy in the country. Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters here, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan termed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's allegation of vote theft against the ruling BJP and the Election Commission a lie and said the Congress has been resorting to such tactics as it has no other issues to raise. He alleged that the opposition's protest is a well thought out strategy to create instability in the country. Congress and other opposition parties want to create anarchy in the country, Pradhan charged. Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, is speaking the language of those big forces who want to destroy democracy in India, he charged. Pradhan alleged that the Congress and other opposition parties are raising questions on the poll process and voter roll revision in Bih

Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha adjourned till 2 pm amid opposition protest over SIR

The Lok Sabha was on Monday adjourned till 2 pm due to vociferous protests by opposition parties demanding a discussion on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Bihar electoral rolls and other issues. When the House met at 11 am after the weekend break, opposition MPs, including those from the Congress, were on their feet, raising slogans and holding placards. Initially, Speaker Om Birla tried to continue the business of the House -- Question Hour -- by allowing members to ask questions related to the Ministry of Environment and Forests amid the din. After about 10 minutes, Birla said the opposition members have been "systematically disrupting" the proceedings of the House for 14 days with their protests. "This is against the rules and regulations and against the democratic process. People elected you as their representatives to raise their issues and to fulfil their hopes and aspirations, but you are only protesting," he said. "People of the country are watching you," he said a

Opposition's demand for discussion on votebandi non-negotiable: Congress

The Congress on Wednesday said the Opposition's demand for a discussion on the "votebandi" by the Election Commission is "non-negotiable" in both Houses of Parliament. There has been a logjam in Parliament over the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, which the Opposition has alleged is being done to cut votes ahead of the state election. Congress general secretary in-charge, communications, Jairam Ramesh, said the Chair in the Rajya Sabha is a continuing entity despite the comings and goings, scheduled and unscheduled. "Yesterday, the Deputy Chairman gave a ruling that because the Lok Sabha Speaker had said so on December 14, 1988, any matter concerning the Election Commission cannot be discussed in Parliament. But on July 21, 2023, the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, a Modi appointee, had categorically ruled that 'the Rajya Sabha is entitled to discuss anything under the planet with only one restriction'," Ramesh said in a post on X. "He had gone on to say that th