Page 10 - Rajya Sabha

Congress' priority is family first; BJP puts nation first: PM's top quotes

Congress prioritises 'family first' while BJP puts the nation first, said PM Modi in Rajya Sabha, accusing Congress of fostering a model of lies, corruption, and appeasement

Both Houses adjourned till noon after ruckus on deportation of Indians

Opposition MPs were continuously sloganeering and demanding to discuss the issue of deportation of Indian nationals

India has robust system to tackle pandemics: Health min tells Rajya Sabha

India has a very robust system to deal with future pandemics and public health emergencies, Union Health and Family Welfare Minister JP Nadda asserted in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday. Replying to supplementary questions in the Rajya Sabha, Nadda highlighted the steps taken by the government in the last 10 years to strengthen India's health system, especially in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. India has proven under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that we have got a very robust system to address the issue of any pandemic that comes, the minister said. Listing out India's capabilities, Nadda said the country has the National Center for Disease Control (NCDC), which oversees and keeps surveillance. "It is the apex body which takes care of the diseases and the pathogens, and the other emerging virus mutation, which takes place," he added. Under the NCDC, he said the country has an integrated disease surveillance programme, a platform for disease ...

BJP MPs file privilege notice against Sonia over remarks on President

A group of BJP MPs from the tribal community filed a breach of privilege notice on Monday against Congress parliamentary party leader Sonia Gandhi for using "derogatory and slanderous" words against President Droupadi Murmu. Led by Rajya Sabha MP Sumer Singh Solanki, they met Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar and sought disciplinary action against Gandhi, contending her remarks lowered the dignity of the office of the President. The notice was filed over Gandhi's remark on President Murmu after her address to a joint sitting of Parliament on Friday. Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were seen discussing the speech on the Parliament complex. "The poor lady, the President, was getting very tired by the end... she could hardly speak, poor thing," Sonia Gandhi was purportedly heard saying in a video doing the rounds on social media. The BJP MPs said in the notice that the remarks are "a clear manifestation of elitist and anti-tribal mindset of Smt. Gandhi who is yet to ...

Budget 2025-26: Lok Sabha gets Rs 903 crore, Rajya Sabha Rs 413 crore

Lok Sabha has been allocated Rs 903 crore in the Union Budget, more than double the amount given to the Rajya Sabha. A sizeable allocation -- Rs 558.81 crore of the total Rs 903 crore --? has been assigned to the Lok Sabha Secretariat, which also includes Grants in Aid to the Sansad TV. Of the Rs 413 crore allocated to Rajya Sabha, Rs 2.52 crore have been assigned for salaries and allowances of the Chairman and Deputy Chairman in the Rajya Sabha Secretariat. The budget for Rajya Sabha also has a separate allocation of Rs 3 crore for the salaries and allowances of Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha and his secretariat. The budget has also allocated Rs 98.84 crore for members. For Lok Sabha, Rs 1.56 crore has been allocated for salaries and allowances of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker, and there is no separate provision for the office of the Leader of the Opposition. There was no Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha for 10 years as no opposition party had the required numb

Wait and watch as RS dy speaker yet unlikely: TMC leader Derek O'Brien

Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Derek O'Brien has said a deputy speaker may not be appointed even during the current Budget session, even as he asked people to "wait and watch" if the opposition brings another impeachment motion against Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar. In a post published on his blog on the first day of the Budget session of Parliament, the TMC Parliamentary party leader in RS shared notes on the upcoming Session, and said speeches by two women President Droupadi Murmu, and Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who will present the Budget will dominate the news space in the next few days. He, however, added that of the six largest political parties, Trinamool Congress at 39 per cent has the highest number of women lawmakers. In contrast, Telugu Desam Party has 6 per cent women MPs, BJP has 13 per cent, and INC, DMK and SP have 14 per cent each, he said. On Prime Minister Narendra Modi's saying that India has massive scope for live concerts, the TMC leader wondere

Parliament Budget Session to begin on Jan 31 with President's address

Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha will take up discussion on President Droupadi Murmu's address to Parliament on Monday as the Budget Session begins on January 31. The President will address both the Houses of Parliament assembled together in the Lok Sabha chamber on Friday and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the General Budget on Saturday. The Finance Minister will table the Economic Survey on Friday when both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha will convene briefly after the President's address. Lok Sabha has provisionally allotted two days (February 3-4) for discussion on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address, while Rajya Sabha has earmarked three days for the debate. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to reply to the debate in Rajya Sabha on February 6. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju has convened a meeting of floor leaders of political parties in Parliament on January 30 to ensure smooth functioning of the Budget Session. The first part of the Budg

YSRCP MP Vijayasai Reddy to resign from RS on Jan 25, to quit politics

YSRCP Rajya Sabha member V Vijayasai Reddy on Friday said he will be resigning from his parliament membership on January 25. In a post on 'X', he said he is not joining any other party and also quitting politics. "I am quitting politics. I am resigning from the Rajya Sabha membership tomorrow, ( January) 25th . I will not join any political party. I am not resigning hoping for any position, benefits, or money. This decision is completely my personal one. There was no pressure. No one influenced me," he said in the post. Reddy is currently serving his second term as Rajya Sabha member from YSRCP from Andhra Pradesh. He is one of the key figures in former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy-led party in the state.

Parliamentary panel on One Nation One Election set for first time on Jan 8

The first meeting of the 39-member parliamentary panel on 'one nation, one election' is set to be held on January 8, setting the tone for nationwide deliberations on the key poll reform measure of the BJP-led NDA government. Parliamentary sources said the first meeting of the Joint Committee on bills for simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, chaired by BJP member P P Chaudhary, is likely to be an introductory one with officials briefing the panel on the two bills to implement a long-cherished election promise of the BJP. The Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill were introduced in the Lok Sabha last week and referred to the joint committee of Parliament on Friday, the last day of the Winter Session. The government decided to increase the committee's strength from 31 to 39 as more political parties expressed the desire to be part of the exercise to examine the two draft legislations on simultaneous elections. Form

V-P Dhankar calls for accountability of MPs over Parliament disruptions

Against the backdrop of Parliament witnessing poor productivity due to disruptions, Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Sunday called for accountability of lawmakers and said people would force them to think why they were sent to Parliament. He also said that for any democracy to succeed, expression and dialogue must go hand in hand with great responsibility on both sides. Dhankhar is the Rajya Sabha's ex-officio chairman. Calling for accountability among parliamentarians, he said, "... Make no mistake, I am referring to parliamentarians. People have learned to take disorder as order. There is no sense of revulsion." Hopefully, people will write and their thoughts will move, the vice-president said, according to an official statement. "People will force you to think, why did you go there (Parliament)?" he said. Addressing awardees of the Chaudhary Charan Singh Awards - 2024, the vice-president said agriculture was the spine of rural development. "Unless agriculture develops, the

Parl winter session: 39-member House panel set up to scrutinise ONOE Bills

The committee will have 27 members from the Lok Sabha and 12 from the Rajya Sabha

Opposition's impeachment bid against Dhankhar: Symbolism or strategy?

Injured egos may rile them, but they cannot justify the Opposition's move to impeach Jagdeep Dhankhar

Orders placed for machines to bore undersea tunnel for bullet train: Govt

The orders for three tunnel boring machines to carry out about 21 km under sea tunneling for the Bullet Train project have been placed, the government informed the Rajya Sabha in a written reply on Friday while updating the status of infrastructure projects in Maharashtra. Construction works on the flagship high speed bullet train project have gathered momentum in Maharashtra. Now 100% land acquisition has been completed. Works of bridges, aqueducts etc. have been taken up, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said. Meanwhile, all preparatory works required for the working of TBMs (tunnel boring machines) such as construction of shafts etc. have also been taken up, he added. Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut wanted to know whether the government has reduced funding for new railway lines in Maharashtra in recent years, the critical rail projects which have been delayed due to reduction in funding and the steps taken by the government to mitigate potential delays in railway projects to ensu

From Adani row to Ambedkar clash, how Parliament's Winter Session unfolded

The Winter Session of Parliament ended on a tense note as members of the INDIA bloc staged a protest march calling for Union Home Minister Amit Shah's resignation over his remarks about BR Ambedkar

Total 2,200 cases of violence against Hindus, minorities in B'desh: Govt

A total of 2,200 cases of violence against Hindus and other minorities have been reported in Bangladesh this year till December 8, and India's expectation is Dhaka will take necessary measures to ensure their safety, the government said on Friday. Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh gave the information in a written response to a query in Rajya Sabha, citing data from minority and human rights organisations. In Pakistan, the number of cases of violence against Hindus and other minorities in Pakistan this year stood at "112 till October 2024," the MoS said. The corresponding figures for 2022 were 47 in Bangladesh and 241 in Pakistan, while in 2023 the figures were 302 in Bangladesh and 103 in Pakistan, according to the data he shared. The minister said the Indian government has urged "Pakistan to take steps to prevent religious intolerance, sectarian violence, systemic persecution and attacks on minority communities and ensure their safety, security, and ...

Parliament highlights: Winter Session ends with both Houses adjourned sine die

Parliament highlights: On Thursday, INDIA bloc MPs took out a protest march in Parliament premises demanding the resignation of Amit Shah for his remarks related to BR Ambedkar

Winter Session of Lok Sabha sees 57.87% productivity despite disruptions

The Lok Sabha's Winter Session, hamstrung by disruptions over issues ranging from Adani to billionaire George Soros' "links" with the Congress leadership and Amit Shah's Ambedkar remarks, had a productivity of 57.87 per cent, official sources said on Friday. The Lower House met on November 25 and was adjourned sine die (indefinitely) on Friday amid protests by the opposition and the treasury benches over the alleged insult to BR Ambedkar and directions by Speaker Om Birla to members against holding demonstrations at any gate of Parliament. Among the key bills introduced during the session were two that lay down the mechanism to hold simultaneous elections. The two bills were on Friday referred to a joint committee of Parliament for examination and wider consultations. The Lower House last week saw a debate on 75 years of the Constitution's adoption, during which the treasury and the opposition benches launched a series of attacks at each other. The Lok Sabha sat an extra day last

RS adopts motion to nominate 12 MPs to panel on simultaneous polls bills

The Rajya Sabha on Friday adopted through voice vote a motion to nominate 12 of its members to the joint committee of Parliament that will scrutinise the two bills proposing simultaneous elections. Soon after the House met following an initial adjournment in the morning, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar asked Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal to move a motion to nominate members of the Rajya Sabha to the panel. Moving the motion, Meghwal said the Upper House of Parliament resolves to nominate 12 members to serve on the joint committee. The members nominated from the Rajya Sabha are Ghanshyam Tiwari, Bhubaneshwar Kalita, Dr K Laxman and Kavita Patidar of the BJP, Sanjay Kumar Jha of the JD(U), Randeep Singh Surjewala and Mukul Wasnik of the Congress, Saket Gokhale of the TMC, P Wilson of the DMK, Sanjay Singh of AAP, Manas Ranjan Mangaraj of the BJD and V Vijaisai Reddy of the YSRCP. Minutes before the Lok Sabha was adjourned sine die, the House on Friday adopted a resolution recommendi

Dhankhar spoke for almost 30% of time in RS, claims TMC's Derek O'Brien

Amid the opposition's charge that Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar does not allow them to speak, Trinamool Congress (TMC) Parliamentary Party Leader Derek O'Brien on Friday alleged that the Rajya Sabha chairman spoke for around 30 per cent of the time the Upper House functioned. Slamming the chairman on the last day of the Winter Session, O'Brien in a brief statement said that the Upper House ran for a total of 43 hours till December 18 and Dhankhar spoke for around four and a half hours. There are no official records of speaking time of the Rajya Sabha chairman or its members. "As of December 18, the Rajya Sabha ran for a total of 43 hours. Of this, the bills were discussed for 10 hours," the TMC leader said. "The debate on the Constitution lasted for 17 and a half hours. Of the remaining 15 and a half hours who spoke for four and a half hours or nearly 30 per cent of the time? It was the Rajya Sabha chairman and vice president," O'Brien said. "Did Jagdeep Dhankhar set a new recor

Reports by various foreign entities often found to be biased: Govt

The government is aware of reports issued from time to time by various foreign entities, including in the US, about the situation of human rights in India, but such reports are often found to be "subjective, misinformed and biased in nature", the Centre informed Parliament on Thursday. Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh said this in a written response to a query in Rajya Sabha. He was asked whether the government is aware of the recent US Congressional Research Service report which "highlights concerns" over India's human rights record, particularly regarding religious freedom and communal violence; and the steps being taken by the government to ensure that India's secular constitution and pluralistic values are upheld, both domestically and internationally. The government is "aware of reports issued from time to time by various foreign entities, including in the US, about the situation of human rights in India. Such reports are often found to be subjective,