New Delhi: With two years to go for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, it should have been easy for Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to go in for a tough Budget and push through reforms like Goods and Service Tax (GST) and FDI in retail. But the Budget, to be presented on February 16, comes just days after a poor electoral performance by the Congress, making it difficult for Mukherjee to...
07:54 AM, Mar 12, 2012
Hyderabad: In a spillover from the previous week, the Andhra Pradesh assembly remained paralysed on Tuesday with the Opposition parties insisting on a debate on the liquor syndicate and Telangana issues. Speaker N. Manohar had to adjourn the house for the day as the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and other opposition parties stalled the proceedings. As soon as the house met after a three-day break, TDP...
04:19 PM, Feb 21, 2012
Thiruvananthapuram: Former Kerala chief minister V.S. Achuthandan will remain the opposition leader in the Kerala assembly, Marxist leader Pinarayi Vijayan said on Friday. Accusing the media of "propagating baseless lies" about the Communist Party of India-Marxist's (CPM) Kerala meet, state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan denied that Achuthanandan wanted to step down. "One thing I can say is that Achuthanandan is the tallest leader we have and he is not going to...
05:05 PM, Feb 10, 2012
Bangalore: Upping the ante following the porn scandal, opposition Congress and JDS on Thursday demanded imposition of President's rule in the state. The opposition offensive comes a day after an embarrassed BJP central leadership gave marching orders to the three ministers in the wake of all round criticism. "We have met Governor HR Bhardwaj and requested him to recommend to the Central government to dissolve the Assembly and dismiss the...
09:14 PM, Feb 09, 2012
Imphal: Even as Manipur's ruling Congress appears on course to retain power, the opposition alliance is hoping for an upset win relying on the support from BJP and CPI. The opposition People's Democratic Front (PDF) made up of Manipur's People Party (MPP), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), CPI(M) and JD(U) expect to garner at least 29 out of the 60 assembly seats, two short of majority, and then hopes to call...
08:17 PM, Jan 21, 2012
New Delhi: Rejecting the contention that the Opposition was obstructing passage of the Companies Bill, BJP leader Yashwant Sinha said the government came up with a new version of the legislation which would be re-examined by the Parliamentary Standing Committee at its meeting on January 24. Sinha argued that the Bill which was placed in the Lok Sabha for consideration and passage was completely different from the original one that...
03:35 PM, Jan 15, 2012
![Rajesh Kumar]( "Rajesh Kumar")
A pandal came up outside Ittooppu's tea stall. The year-end came as a bonus for the goat - three days of debate in Parliament on ...
09:59 PM, Jan 03, 2012
New Delhi: Former Lok Sabha speaker Somnath Chatterjee has defended the Government's decision to avoid voting on the Lokpal Bill in the Rajya Sabha where the Opposition and the Trinamool Congress joined hands to stall the Bill. "Those who did not allow Parliament to function for days in and days out have suddenly become very conscious about Parliament's image. It is politics," said Chatterjee. Upset over the allegation that the...
06:54 PM, Dec 30, 2011
New Delhi: The DMK on Tuesday night attacked the Opposition parties for defeating the Constitution Amendment Bill on Lokpal saying it exposed their "dubious" role. DMK Parliamentary Party leader TR Baalu said that parties like BJP, AIADMK and Left parties wanted a strong Lokpal bill but they have been exposed when they ganged up to defeat the Constitution Amendment Bill. ...
07:19 AM, Dec 28, 2011
New Delhi: The Lokpal Bill was finally introduced in Parliament after repeated adjournments, but not without much drama in the Lok Sabha on Thursday. It was clear that the bill was unlikely to get support and its fate is uncertain. Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad was its strongest critic and accused anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare of dictating terms to Parliament. "A retired police officer, two lawyers, an activist...
07:46 AM, Dec 23, 2011
New Delhi: The government, once again, seems to be bending to the pressure from the Opposition and Team Anna, on the Lokpal Bill as sources say the government has now proposed to introduce a new draft. According to sources, the government will table the new Lokpal Bill in Parliament on Thursday and has proposed to discuss the new bill draft on December 27, 28 and 29. The Opposition has agreed...
01:48 PM, Dec 21, 2011
New Delhi: In her first address to the party MPs since she returned from the US after having a surgery in August, Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday criticised the Opposition and Team Anna over the Lokpal and other Bills. Addressing the Congress Parliamentary Party meeting, Sonia Gandhi said, "We are ready for the fight over the Lokpal and Women's Reservation Bill." Taking a strong stand on the Lokpal Bill,...
10:49 AM, Dec 21, 2011
New Delhi: As the UPA ministers meet on Sunday to discuss the Lokpal draft, there are several aspects of the legislation that are still being debated by members of the civil society. A senior citizen, Jameela's montly pension of a thousand rupees from the Delhi's social welfare department is her only support but Jameela gets it once in a while with devastating consequences. She has registered her grievance in the...
07:10 PM, Dec 18, 2011
New Delhi: A day after CNN-IBN aired a report showing an alleged case of conflict of interest against Union Home Minister P Chidambaram, the Opposition has been demanding his resignation and stalled Parliament on Thursday. Even as the Congress defended him, Delhi's Lt Governor revoked the withdrawal of prosecution against the hotelier in question. CNN-IBN had exposed on Wednesday how the Union Home Minister acted in conflict of interest while...
07:19 AM, Dec 16, 2011
The Government decides to table the Lokpal Bill in Parliament next week even as the allies rally behind the Congress. ...
11:14 PM, Dec 12, 2011
Opposition parties on Sunday shared dais with Anna Hazare during the anti-corruption rally at Jantar Mantar. ...
10:21 PM, Dec 12, 2011
New Delhi: Parliament Standing Committee on Friday tabled its Lokpal Bill draft report with 16 dissent notes, which failed to impress Team Anna and the Opposition, and they have rubbished the report. The sticky issues like inclusion of the CBI, lower bureaucracy and PM remain unresolved. Hazare squarely blamed Rahul Gandhi for what he calls his stalling tactics. While the Government claimed that they had moved closer to finalising the...
09:02 PM, Dec 09, 2011
New Delhi: The Government on Tuesday said it hoped that Wednesday's all-party meeting on FDI in retail issue will pave the way for smooth running of Parliament paralysed for the last two weeks. "We hope that Parliament will run smoothly from tomorrow after the all-party meeting", Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal said, suggesting there were no irritants after the government put on hold the decision. Opposition parties BJP and...
10:23 PM, Dec 06, 2011
New Delhi: The deadlock over the Government's decision to allow foreign direct investment (FDI) in retail sector continues and the Government is now working over time to first get its allies on board as the Opposition keeps up the pressure. The DMK and the Trinamool Congress are still opposed to the FDI decision and want a discussion in the House. Showing the party's distress on the issue, TMC member and...
07:57 AM, Dec 02, 2011
New Delhi: The controversy over allowing FDI in retail rocked Parliament for the third day on Tuesday with a united Opposition forcing adjournment of both the Houses till Wednesday. Both Houses were first adjourned till noon after the Opposition created ruckus, and later for the day as the situation didn't improve even after the MPs reassembled after the first adjournment. Shortly after the Lok Sabha met for the day, members...
11:48 AM, Nov 29, 2011
