Page 42 - Parliament

Positively looking forward for coordination to run Parliament, says Rijiju

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Monday said he was positively looking forward to coordination to run Parliament, as the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha gets underway. In a post on X, Rijiju said he shall always be available to assist the members of Parliament as the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs. "The First Session of the 18th Lok Sabha begins today, the 24th June, 2024. I welcome all the newly elected Hon'ble members. I shall be always available to assist the members as Minister of Parliamentary Affairs. I'm positively looking forward to co-ordination to run the house," Rijiju said. The newly elected members of the Lok Sabha are set to take oath or make affirmation over the next two days before the Pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab and the panel of chairpersons. The new Lok Sabha will elect its Speaker on Wednesday. President Droupadi Murmu is scheduled to address the joint sitting of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on Thursday, setting out the agenda o

18th Lok Sabha convenes on Monday: House test for govt amid exam row

It's rare for a special session to begin on a fractious note with NDA, Oppn bloc engaged in war of words over appointment of pro-tem Speaker. Archis Mohan writes

Paper leaks to pro tem Speaker issue: 18th LS set for combative 1st session

The war of words indicated that the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha, which begins on Monday, is likely to be combative

Pak PM assures Bilawal Bhutto-led PPP of addressing its Budget concerns

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has assured Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari that the government would take steps to address the key ally's reservations on multiple issues by forming a committee after tensions rose among ruling coalition partners over the budget. A delegation of the PPP headed by Bilawal on Thursday met Prime Minister Sharif to sort out differences over the budget which was presented in Parliament last week. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb presented the federal budget on June 12 but the PPP, which is the major ally of the government, was not happy as it was not consulted when the budget was being prepared. As the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government lacks a majority, there is a genuine concern that the government may not be able to get the budget passed in Parliament if not supported by the PPP. Geo News reported that Sharif assured Bilawal Bhutto of taking steps to address the key concerns. The Dawn newspaper quoting sourc

BJP MP Bhartruhari Mahtab appointed pro-tem Speaker of Lok Sabha

Mahtab, a six-term Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MP, had joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) weeks before the Lok Sabha polls

Should MPs get a salary hike? Here is what other major countries do

They are paid less than elected representatives in other major nations

Sebi invites application to hire executive director on 3-year contract

Capital markets watchdog Sebi has started the process to recruit an executive director and invited applications to fill the vacancy. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has invited applications for the post until July 18. The appointment of executive director will be on a deputation or contractual basis, for a period of three years, the regulator said in a public notice issued last week. The candidate applying for the position is required to have at least 20 years of experience in dealing with problems related to the securities market or special knowledge or experience of law, investigation, finance, economics and accountancy, among others. At present, Sebi has 10 executive directors -- S V Muralidhar Rao, G.P. Garg, Pramod Rao, Biranchi Narayan Sahoo, B Rajendran, Ruchi Chojer, Manoj Kumar, Govindayapalli Ram Mohan Rao, G Babita Rayudu and V S Sundaresan. Earlier this month, Sebi initiated the process to hire 49 officers in different departments this year, a move

South Africa re-elects Cyril Ramaphosa as president; what happens next?

Two smaller parties, the socially conservative Inkatha Freedom Party and the right-wing Patriotic Alliance, are also part of the pact

Pak highlights critical risks to Budget 2024-25 in statement to Parliament

Pakistan's cash-strapped government has highlighted almost a dozen critical risks to next year's budget and medium-term outlook, including lower than estimated economic growth, unexpected climatic or natural disasters as well as continuing poor performance of state-owned entities. In a written statement on the fiscal risks submitted to Parliament, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and Secretary Imdadullah Bosal said a combination of three risks higher than the estimated interest rate, lower than non-tax revenue collection and higher subsidies had the most significant impact on fiscal variables across the board. "The combination of reduced revenues, increased expenditure on subsidies, and potential financing needs due to higher interest rates lead to substantial fiscal deficit and higher debt stock, the Dawn newspaper quoted the statement as saying on Monday. It underscored the interconnectedness of fiscal policy and the need for comprehensive approaches to address fiscal ...

Vice President Dhankhar inaugurates 'Prerna Sthal' in Parliament complex

Rajya Sabha chairperson and Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Sunday inaugurated the 'Prerna Sthal' in the Parliament complex which now houses statues of national icons and freedom fighters that were earlier at different places on the premises. The 'Prerna Sthal' will inspire and motivate people, Dhankhar said, amid criticism by the Congress over the removal of the statues from their original places. The Congress on Sunday claimed the decision to relocate the statues within the Parliament premises was taken by the ruling regime "unilaterally". Its sole objective was to not have the statues of Mahatma Gandhi and B R Ambedkar, which have been traditional sites of democratic protests, right next to where the Parliament actually meets, it alleged. Referring to the contribution of leaders in shaping the country, Dhankhar said he had never imagined that he would be able to offer tributes to great personalities in a such a way by inaugurating the 'Prerna Sthal'. "Imagine the contributio

Om Birla discusses statue relocation in Parliament with stakeholders

Statues of freedom fighters and national icons spread across the Parliament complex have been relocated to a new enclosure on its premises, Prerna Sthal, following discussions with different stakeholders, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said on Sunday. The relocation of the statues, he said, were done as part of a landscaping and beautification exercise. Addressing reporters here, Birla also asserted that discussions were held from time to time with different stakeholders on the relocation of statues as such decisions were within the purview of the Office of the Lok Sabha Speaker. "None of the statues have been removed, they have been relocated. There is no need to indulge in politics on this," the outgoing speaker said when asked about the opposition criticism on the relocation of the statues. "From time to time, I have been discussing these issues with different stakeholders. People were of the view that having these statues at one place will help disseminate information about their .

Three new criminal laws come into force on July 1. Here is what will change

The three criminal laws will replace the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), and the Indian Evidence Act of 1872

First session of 18th Lok Sabha to start from June 24, says Kiren Rijiju

During the first three days of the session, the newly elected leaders will take their oaths or affirm their membership in the Lok Sabha

No queer representation in 2024 Lok Sabha, 108 MPs vocal on LGBTQIA+ issues

In the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections, all three transgender candidates lost their security deposits for not securing one-sixth of the total valid votes

Delhi police files chargesheet against 6 in parliament security breach case

All the arrested accused have also been produced before the court as their Judicial Custody was ended. The court also extended the judicial custody of all the six accused till July 15

Gandhi, Ambedkar statues relocated to ensure Oppn can't hold protests: Cong

The Congress on Friday alleged that statues of Mahatma Gandhi, B R Ambedkar and Chhatrapati Shivaji among others have been relocated within Parliament premises to ensure that Opposition parties cannot hold democratic protests, and said such "stunts" cannot save Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "unstable government" from falling. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh termed the Lok Sabha secretariat's explanation for relocating the statues as "wholly bogus", and said there has been no discussion with any political party on the matter. In a statement, the Lok Sabha Secretariat said Thursday that due to their location at different places in the Parliament premises, visitors were not able to see these statues conveniently. "For this reason, all these statues are being respectfully installed in a grand 'Prerna Sthal' in Parliament House premises. This 'Prerna Sthal' is being developed in such a way that the visitors coming to visit the Parliament complex view the statues of these great

Composition of new Parliament: More graduates, fewer women elected in 2024

The share of graduate MPs is 78 per cent in 2024. It was 72 per cent in 2019. This remains lower than the 79 per cent seen in 2009

3 arrested for using forged Aadhaar card to enter Parliament complex

Three labourers trying to enter the high-security Parliament complex by allegedly using "forged" Aadhaar cards were apprehended by the CISF personnel, official sources said on Thursday. The Delhi Police has arrested the three persons identified as Kasim, Monis and Soyeb and has charged them under various sections of the Indian Penal Code related to forgery and cheating. Sources told PTI said the trio were intercepted and detained by CISF personnel at the flap gate entry of the Parliament House on Tuesday when they had lined up for security and identity card checks. The three were trying to gain entry into the Parliament complex by showing their Aadhaar cards. The CISF personnel found the cards to be doubtful and on further scrutiny found that those were forged, the sources said. The CISF has recently taken over the entire security of the Parliament complex by replacing the CRPF and Delhi Police contingents. Officials said the three persons were hired by a company called Dee Vee ..

Gandhi, Ambedkar, Shivaji statues shifted within Parliament; Cong unhappy

Statues of Mahatma Gandhi, B R Ambedkar and Chhatrapati Shivaji, among others, have been relocated within the Parliament premises as part of a landscaping exercise, a move that drew sharp criticism from the Congress on Thursday. The statues of tribal leader Birsa Munda and Maharana Pratap have also been shifted to a lawn between old Parliament building and the Parliament library. All statues are now in the same place. Reacting to the development, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said on X, "Statues of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Mahatma Gandhi, and Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar have just been removed from their places of prominence in front of the Parliament House. This is atrocious." Attacking the BJP, Congress's media and publicity department head Pawan Khera said when Maharashtra voters did not vote for BJP, the statues of Shivaji and Ambedkar were removed from their original place in Parliament. When they did not get clean sweep in Gujarat, they removed the statue of Mahatma

Hung Parliament, NDA win or loss: Stock strategy for poll outcome scenarios

Ambitious targets were tactfully set by BJP to ward off complacency among the BJP and NDA cadre; it had become a talking point in the absence of the strong wave, as seen in 2014 and 2019: JM Financial