Page 29 - Parliament

Govt plans to re-enact law on disqualification of MPs over office of profit

The government plans to repeal a 65-year-old law which lays the ground for disqualification of MPs for holding office of profit and bring a new one which is in sync with present requirements. The legislative department of the Union law ministry has floated the draft 'Parliament (Prevention of Disqualification) Bill, 2024' prepared on the lines of recommendations made by the Joint Committee on Offices of Profit (JCOP) then headed by Kalraj Mishra in the 16th Lok Sabha. The proposed bill seeks to rationalise section 3 of the existing Parliament (Prevention of Disqualification) Act, 1959 and to remove the negative list of offices provided in the schedule containing offices, the holders of which would incur disqualification. It also proposes to remove the conflict between the existing Act and certain other statutes which have an express provision for not to incur disqualification. The draft bill also proposes to omit section 4 of the existing law relating to "temporary suspension" of .

Parliamentary committee reviews Indian Coast Guard's role in security

A meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence was held in Chennai yesterday to review the working of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) in ensuring coastal security along India

Standard of LS debates dropped since Rahul's entry in Parliament: Rijiju

Union Minister Kiren Rijuju on Saturday said that the standard of debates in the Lok Sabha has gone down since Congress leader Rahul Gandhi entered Parliament. Addressing a press conference, the Union minister of parliamentary and minority affairs, who is here to campaign for the November 20 Maharashtra election, said there is an undercurrent in favour of the BJP and Mahayuti, and the Ladki Bahin scheme will benefit the ruling alliance. "The standard of debates in the Lok Sabha has gone down since Rahul Gandhi's arrival. We have people who can talk and debate, but the Congress seems to have no one, and those who want to debate are afraid of Rahul Gandhi," he said. Rijiju claimed that many senior Congress MPs have told him they want debates and discussions, but the Leader of Opposition is not concerned because he cannot debate and reads chits given by some NGOs. He further criticised Gandhi, saying he didn't have the right to speak about Dalits, tribals, the Constitution and Dr ...

Sri Lankan president's NPP secures majority in parliamentary election

The ruling National People's Power party led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake is poised for a sweeping victory in the Sri Lankan parliamentary election held on Thursday. As of 11 pm local time, with partial results declared, the NPP has secured a substantial 70 per cent of the vote. The main opposition, Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), and the National Democratic Front (NDF), backed by former president Ranil Wickremesinghe, have been reduced to just 11 and 5 per cent of the vote, respectively. In the only polling division result announced so far, the NPP won decisively in the southern province capital of Galle with over 70 per cent of the vote. Analysts note that the NPP has increased its vote share compared to the September presidential election. If this trend continues, the party will surpass the 150-seat mark, achieving an absolute majority in the 225-member parliament. Thursday's election was the first major test for NPP. The snap parliamentary polls were the first after the

Sri Lanka President's party wins parliamentary majority. India impact

Sri Lanka's National People's Power, led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, has secured a parliamentary majority, as per official results announced by the country's elections commission

Sri Lanka votes in parliamentary election that's key for its new president

Sri Lankans are voting in a parliamentary election Thursday that is key for the country's new Marxist-leaning president to consolidate his party's power and follow through on promises of economic recovery. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake won the presidential election on September 21 in a victory that marked a rejection of the traditional political parties, which have governed the island nation since its independence from British rule in 1948. However, Dissanayake's failure to secure more than 50 per cent of the votes has fuelled concerns over his party's outlook in Thursday's election. His National People's Power party must increase its votes significantly from the 42 per cent it won in the presidential election if it is to acquire a minimum of 113 seats to take control of the 225-member Parliament. The biggest challenge for the NPP which was founded in 2019 and is a relative newcomer on Sri Lanka's political scene is that many of its candidates are new faces in politics ...

Parliamentary panel to hear officials on marriage age from next week

A Parliamentary Standing Committee will take up the issue of the age of marriage for men and women next week as a bill aimed at bringing uniformity in the matter has lapsed with the dissolution of the 17th Lok Sabha. The secretary of the Women and Child Development Ministry (WCD) and representatives of the National Coalition Advocating for Adolescent Concerns (NCAAC) and the Young Voices Campaign will appear before the panel at its November 22 meeting on the proposed changes in the marriage age for children and other women-related legislation. According to the agenda of the meeting, the panel on education, women, children, youth and sports headed by Congress MP Digvijaya Singh will also hear the WCD secretary on the functioning of various statutory and autonomous bodies such as the National Commission for Women, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights, Central Adoption Resource Authority, and the National Institute of Public Cooperation and Child Development. The ...

Sri Lanka set for parliamentary polls on Nov 14, all arrangements in place

Sri Lanka is set to hold its parliamentary election on Thursday with all arrangements in place to ensure a fair and transparent process, a top election commission official has said. Voting will take place at over 13,314 polling stations across the country, from 7 am to 4 pm local time on Thursday. Director General of the Elections Commission Saman Sri Ratnayaka on Tuesday said that all ballot boxes and other equipment needed at the polling stations would be dispatched on Wednesday. The polling station officials will carry out rehearsals from 7 am on Wednesday," Ratnayaka said. Over 17 million voters from the island's 21 million population are eligible to vote. 225 members would be elected from voting based on proportional representation. The western province district of Gampaha would elect the highest number of Members of Parliament 19 with the capital district of Colombo from the same province having 18 MPs elected. The eastern province district of Trincomalee will elect the lo

Parl panel to hear views of media bodies on mechanism to curb fake news

A parliamentary committee headed by BJP MP Nishikant Dubey has called media bodies -- News Broadcasters and Digital Association and Editors Guild of India -- to depose before it on the issue of curbing "fake news". An official statement said the Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology will meet on November 21 on the subject of "Review of mechanism to curb fake news". The panel will hear the views of the News Broadcasters and Digital Association (NBDA) and Editors Guild of India (EGI), it said. The committee had earlier decided to review the mechanism to curb fake news as well as the issues related to the emergence of OTT platforms. With cryptocurrency making its presence felt in India, the committee will also examine the emergence of new forms of currencies and their impact. The panel has selected the impact of the emergence of Artificial Intelligence and related issues as one of its subjects. It is mandated to examine the functioning of the ministries of

Dawoodi Bohras ask Parliamentary panel to be kept out of Waqf law

Contending that the Waqf (Amendment) Bill does not recognise their special status, the Dawoodi Bohra community, an affluent but microscopic minority sect among Muslims, told the parliamentary committee examining the proposed law that they should be kept out of the purview of any Waqf board. Senior advocate Harish Salve appeared for them before the panel headed by veteran BJP MP Jagdambika Pal, and a written submission made by the community noted that it is a "small and tightly-knit" denomination. "Its affairs do not need the kind of regulation that may be considered necessary or even desirable in relation to other denominations that do not believe in any such religious tenet," it said, according to sources. It is necessary that the community members are permitted to establish, maintain, manage and administer such properties in accordance with their beliefs and essential religious practices, it stressed. The power of the Waqf board undermines the community's founding faith, it claim

Waqf Bill: Parliament panel meets today to hear Muslim women group, others

The meetings of the JCP are part of a broader initiative to reform the Waqf Act, which has faced criticisms of mismanagement, corruption, and encroachments

Joint Parliament Committee on Waqf bill to visit 5 cities for study tour

According to an official communication from Joint Secretary JM Baisakh, the study visit program is designed to assist committee members in their review of the proposed bill

Iraq's Parliament elects Mashhadani as new speaker, ends yearlong vacuum

After a nearly yearlong vacuum, Iraq's Parliament elected a new speaker Thursday, selecting a prominent Sunni lawmaker who has a close relationship with Iran. Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, who served a previous stint as speaker from 2006 to 2009, was elected by a vote of 182 of the 269 legislators who attended the session, a surprise move after months of deadlock between political factions. Former Speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi was dismissed by a Federal Supreme Court last November against the backdrop of a lawsuit filed by then-lawmaker Laith al-Dulaimi. Dulaimi claimed that the speaker had forged Dulaimi's signature on a resignation letter, an allegation that Halbousi denied. The court ruled to terminate both Halbousi and al-Dulaimi from their parliamentary posts. It did not elaborate on why it was issuing the decision. The position of speaker of Parliament is assigned to a Sunni according to convention in Iraq's power-sharing system, while the prime minister is always Shiite and the ...

EU Parliament reaffirms support for Taiwan amidst China's war games

Report further indicated that European Parliament had previously suggested establishing bilateral investment agreement with Taiwan; however, many experts consider this move to be 'too ambitious'

What does a shocking parliamentary loss for Japan's long-ruling party mean?

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's ruling party and its junior partner lost their majority in Sunday's parliamentary election. The loss, much bigger than expected, is bad news for a leader who's only been in power for a month. It's largely a reflection of voters' anger at the repeated financial scandals that have hit the Liberal Democratic Party, which has ruled Japan nearly without interruption since 1955. The big loss throws the nation's politics into turmoil, and will make it difficult for Ishiba to push through the changes he needs to win back voter support. The Associated Press explains how the election results could weaken Ishiba's hold on power, and what the poor showing means for Japan's diplomatic, economic and security goals. What happened Sunday? The governing Liberal Democratic Party lost its sole majority in the lower house, the more powerful of Japan's two-chamber parliament. Even adding the Buddhist-backed Komeito party, which has partnered with the LDP for a

Waqf (Amendment) Bill: Opposition MPs walk out of meet over witness list

Opposition MPs stage walkout from Waqf Bill panel, alleging witnesses lack relevance to the legislation; return briefly after protest

Govt floats draft bill to amend arbitration law; adds emergency provision

Seeking to provide "further boost" to institutional arbitration and reduce court intervention in such cases, the government has come out with a draft bill seeking views on the proposed amendments. The Department of Legal Affairs in the law ministry has invited comments on the draft Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill, 2024, saying "the aim and purpose is to provide further boost to institutional arbitration, reduce court intervention in arbitrations and ensuring timely conclusion of arbitration proceedings". The draft bill comes months after an expert committee headed by former law secretary and former Lok Sabha secretary general T K Vishwanathan submitted its report on proposed reforms in the arbitration sector to the law ministry. The draft bill proposes the concept of 'emergency arbitration'. The proposed amendment says arbitral institutions may, for the purpose of grant of interim measures, provide for appointment of "emergency arbitrator" prior to the constitution of

Sebi Chair Madhabi Puri Buch's meeting with Parliament committee postponed

Madhabi Puri Buch and three to four senior Sebi officials are likely to be questioned by Parliament's Public Accounts Committee

Meeting of Parl PAC to be held tomorrow, Sebi chief to appear: Report

The meeting will be held in Delhi on Thursday at 11 am. The PAC is headed by K C Venugopal of the Congress

Waqf Bill panel meet: TMC MP smashes glass bottle during heated exchange

At the meeting, TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee smashed a glass water bottle and threw it away during a heated exchange of words with Bharatiya Janata Party's Abhijit Gangopadhyay