New Delhi:

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Thursday said that TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee has submitted a written apology for his remarks against Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia besides apologising in the House.

As soon as the House met, some members belonging to the ruling alliance stood up to raise the issue of the remarks made by Banerjee.

However, Birla intervened and said whatever happened on Wednesday was unfortunate and no member should make any personal remark against any fellow member.

Without taking the name of Banerjee, he said any remark against women is in bad taste and it hurts their dignity and honour.

The speaker said agreements and disagreements are part of the democratic process but no member should make any personal remark against anyone.

“The member concerned had apologised (in the House). He has also given me in writing too,” he said and started with the day’s proceedings.

On Wednesday, there were verbal clashes when Banerjee was speaking in the House during a discussion on the amendments to the Disaster Management Act.

The TMC member had alleged non-cooperation by the central government during the COVID-19 pandemic, but Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai countered it, saying it was Prime Minister Narendra Modi who helped all the states and successfully handled the crisis by taking everyone along.

Rai also alleged that the West Bengal government tried to put hurdles in the transportation of the Covid vaccines through the state.

Scindia stood up to support Rai, saying that India had emerged as a “Vishwa Bandhu” during the pandemic and helped all the needy countries across the world.

Following this, Banerjee attacked Scindia and made certain remarks against the minister which were expunged by the Speaker after an uproar.

The verbal spat between the treasury and opposition benches led to adjournment.

When the House reconvened, Banerjee apologised for his remarks, but Scindia refused to accept it, saying the opposition members should desist from making personal attacks.

“Mr Kalyan Banerjee rose in this House and said sorry. But I will say that we all come to this House with the spirit of contributing to the nation’s development… but we also come with a sense of self-respect.

“Any individual in their lives will not stand compromising with their self-respect. Attack us on our policies, on our views, but if you will get personal, certainly be prepared for the response,” the Union minister said.

“He has apologised… I do not accept his apology for the personal attack that he had made on me and on the women of India,” he said.

Banerjee apologised again but protests from treasury benches continued leading to two more adjournments of the House. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Monday requested Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to remove the restrictions imposed on the media within Parliament premises.

“Sir, I would request you to allow the media, who have been restricted to a cage, to move out,” Gandhi said in the Lok Sabha.

Media persons have been recording comments from members of parliament on camera near the entry and exit points of the Parliament building but now they have been restricted to an enclosure made for them.

Mr Birla reminded Mr Gandhi about the rules of procedures of Parliament and said such issues should be discussed with him in person and not be raised on the floor of the House.

Mr Gandhi and other opposition leaders such as Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien, Congress MP Karti Chidambaram, and Shiv Sena-UBT MP Priyanka Chaturvedi met media persons in the media enclosure.

“This is censorship. This is completely unacceptable. We are with you in this fight,” Mr O’Brien said.

Later, the Lok Sabha speaker met a group of journalists and assured them that all their grievances would be addressed and better facilities would be provided to them to discharge their duties.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The Centre has listed six new bills for introduction, including the one which seeks to replace the 90-year-old Aircraft Act, to provide enabling provisions for ease of doing business in the aviation sector, in the upcoming Parliament session beginning Monday.

Besides the Finance Bill, the government has also listed ‘The Disaster Management (Amendment) Bill’ for introduction, consideration and passing.

The proposed legislation aims to bring more clarity and convergence in the roles of different organisations working in the field of disaster management, a Lok Sabha bulletin issued Thursday said.

The Bhartiya Vayuyan Vidheyak, 2024 seeks to replace the Aircraft Act of 1934 to provide enabling provisions for ease of doing business in the civil aviation sector.

The session beginning July 22 will conclude on August 12.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is scheduled to present the Union Budget on Tuesday, July 23.

Other bills listed for introduction and passage during the session are the Boilers Bill to replace the pre-Independence era law, the Coffee (Promotion and Development) Bill and the Rubber (Promotion and Development) Bill.

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has also constituted the Business Advisory Committee (BAC), which decides the parliamentary agenda.

The committee chaired by the Speaker has Sudip Bandyopadhyay (TMC), P P Chaudhary (BJP), Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu (TDP), Nishikant Dubey (BJP), Gaurav Gogoi (Congress), Sanjay Jaiswal (BJP), Dileshwar Kamait (JD-U), Bhartruhari Mahtab (BJP), Dayanidhi Maran (DMK), Baijayant Panda (BJP), Arvind Sawant (Shiv Sena-UBT), Kodikunnil Suresh (Congress), Anurag Thakur (BJP) and Lalji Verma (SP) as members.
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:
After Rahul Gandhi’s fiery speech in Parliament yesterday, in which he launched a scathing attack on BJP – large portions of which have been expunged from official records – the stage is set for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s anticipated response

Here are 10 points on this big story:

New Delhi:

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla chided Congress member Deepender Hooda over certain remarks as Shashi Tharoor chanted ‘Jai Hind, Jai Samvidhan (constitution)’ after taking oath as a member of the House.

“He is already taking oath on the Constitution,” Mr Birla commented when opposition members chanted ‘Jai Samvidhan’ as Mr Tharoor took oath as Lok Sabha member.

At this point, Mr Hooda, a member from Rohtak, said the Speaker should not be objecting to this.

“Don’t give me any advice on what I should or should not object to. Take your seat,” the Speaker said, addressing Mr Hooda.

Reacting to the development, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra wondered whether one cannot say ‘Jai Samvidhan’ in Parliament.

“People from the ruling party were not stopped when they raised unparliamentary and unconstitutional slogans in Parliament, but when the opposition MPs raised ‘Jai Samvidhan’ slogans, they were objected to,” she said in a post on X.

“The anti-Constitution sentiment that emerged during the elections has now taken a new form, which seeks to weaken our Constitution,” Ms Gandhi said.

“Will the Constitution, on the basis of which Parliament functions, on which every member takes oath, which gives protection of life and livelihood, be opposed to suppress the voice of the opposition?” the Congress general secretary asked.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday said that he hoped that actions like suspension of MPs would not be taken in the 18th Lok Sabha. Speaking shortly after NDA’s Om Birla was re-elected as the Lok Sabha speaker, Mr Yadav said he believed that the BJP MP would be impartial towards the opposition and give its leaders equal opportunity.

“I congratulate you and extend you best wishes on behalf of all my colleagues. The post that you are occupying has glorious traditions attached to it. We believe that this will continue without any discrimination and as Lok Sabha Speaker you will give equal opportunities and respect to every member and party,” he said. 

ALSO READ | PM Praises Speaker Om Birla: “Key Bills Passed Under Your Leadership”

“Impartiality is a great responsibility of this great position… We expect that no public representative’s voice will be stifled, nor will an action like expulsion take place again,” he said.

Mr Yadav was apparently referring to the unprecedented suspension of more than 100 MPs during the Winter Session of Parliament last year.

“लोकसभा के नवनिर्वाचित अध्यक्ष जी को मैं बहुत-बहुत बधाई और शुभकामनाएं देना चाहता हूं। उम्मीद है लोकसभा के अध्यक्ष के रूप में आप हर सांसद और हर दल को बराबरी का मौका और सम्मान देंगे, निष्पक्षता इस महान पद की जिम्मेदारी है, किसी भी जनप्रतिनिधि की आवाज दबाई न जाए।”

– श्री अखिलेश… pic.twitter.com/oJEOc0UMVq

— Samajwadi Party (@samajwadiparty) June 26, 2024

“Your control is on the Opposition but it should be on the ruling side too. The House should function on your signals and not the other way round,” he said.

“I hope that you would respect the Opposition as much as you respect the ruling dispensation and let them present their side,” Mr Yadav said.

Rahul Gandhi’s Similar Appeal To Lok Sabha Speaker

Speaking before Akhilesh Yadav, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also made a similar appeal to Om Birla and said that “it is very important that the voice of the Opposition is allowed to be represented in this House”.

“I am confident that you will allow us to speak. The question is not how efficiently the House is run. The question is how much of India’s voice is being allowed to be heard. So the idea that you can run the House efficiently by silencing the voice of the Opposition is a non-democratic idea. And this election has shown that the people of India expect the Opposition to defend the Constitution,” Mr Gandhi said.

LIVE: Welcoming the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha https://t.co/NvAdTFvoyP

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) June 26, 2024

“We are confident that by allowing the Opposition to speak, you will do your duty of defending the Constitution,” Mr Gandhi, who is also named as the leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, said.

ALSO READ | PM Modi, Rahul Gandhi Shake Hands As They Welcome New Lok Sabha Speaker

Mr Birla, a three-time BJP MP from Rajasthan’s Kota, was elected Lok Sabha Speaker for the second consecutive time on Wednesday after he won the election by a voice vote.

New Delhi:

Today’s election for the post of the Lok Sabha Speaker, already tilted in the government’s favour, can push the Opposition further down, with five of its 232 MPs yet to take oath. The oath pending, they cannot vote in the election, sources have told NDTV.

The list includes stalwarts like Congress’s Shashi Tharoor and Trinamool Congress’s actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha.

There are also a few others — Deepak Adhikari and Nurul Islam of Trinamool Congress and Afzhal Ansari of the Samajwadi Party and two Independents. It is not yet known why the oath of some of these leaders is pending.

Afzhal Ansari is the elder brother of criminal-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari. Sentenced to four years in prison, his jail term was put on hold by the Allahabad High Court in view of the election.

The case will be heard when the court opens in July. If the court upholds his sentence, he will lose his membership of parliament.

Victory in Speaker election is based on the number of MPs present and voting – which means the absence of these seven MPs will bring down the total number and therefore the halfway mark.

While the Opposition won 232 seats, it will miss five MPs in its ranks, bringing it down to 227 – assuming the rest turn up and vote. The majority mark will stand at 269.

The NDA, already with 293 MPs, is also expected to have the support of the four MPs of YS Jaganmohan Reddy’s YSR Congress, which, like Naveen Patnaik’s Biju Janata Dal, had lent issue-based support to the government.

Now, routed in the Odisha assembly election, the BJD has said it will not provide any support to the BJP. But the YSR Congress, though trounced by BJP ally Chandrababu Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party, is sticking to its stance.

For the BJP, which already has enough MPs in its corner to ensure a victory of Om Birla — who is contesting against Opposition candidate K Suresh for a second stint at the job — the question is one of optics.

The BJP is also working to bring Harsimrat Kaur Badal of the Akali Dal, Nagina MP Chandrashekhar Azad, and Shillong MP Ricky Andrew Syngkon on board. With their support, the party aims to surpass the psychologically significant threshold of 300 seats.

The party, unlike in 2014 and 2019, has been unable to achieve majority on its own and is dependent on Mr Naidu’s TDP and Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal United to keep its head above the halfway mark. A decisive victory in the Lok Sabha is expected to boost morale in the party camp.

New Delhi:

Congress MP Kodikunnil Suresh – a late entrant in the Lok Sabha Speaker race – has accused the government of “breaking convention” regarding the naming of an opposition leader as the Deputy Speaker of the House. “We tried for a consensus but the ruling party… they are not ready. Consensus means, if we support Speaker, then they should give Deputy’s post to opposition,” he told NDTV.

Mr Suresh was also asked about the futility of contesting an election for the Speaker’s position – given s/he is elected by simple majority and the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance can count, potentially on over 300 votes. “Numbers are not the point. Winning or losing is a different matter.”

“The point is, there is a convention in Lok Sabha… a convention the government is breaking. There is a system for the Speaker’s post (referring to the opposition’s argument that the Deputy Speaker needs to be from a non-ruling party to ensure balance) and that has been broken…” he told NDTV.

Mr Suresh also rubbished the BJP-led NDA’s claim the opposition is indulging in “pressure tactics”.

“We are not pressurising… we are only asking for our right. Deputy Speaker is the opposition’s right… that is all we are doing. If they are not ready to do even that…” he said shrugging his shoulders.

Mr Suresh also referred to the row over the Pro Tem Speaker’s post, which the Congress and the opposition had expected would be handed to him given his status as one of the senior-most MPs.

There was drama in Parliament this morning after the BJP-led NDA government reached out to the Congress-led INDIA opposition bloc to build consensus to re-appoint Kota MP Om Birla as Speaker.

READ | Government vs Opposition On Speaker, First Contest In Decades

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju met INDIA bloc leaders, including the Congress’ Mallikarjun Kharge, and were the opposition wanted the Deputy Speaker’s post.

READ | In Speaker Row, Rajnath Singh’s Call, Congress’ Deputy Reply

Sources, however, told NDTV the BJP said a decision on his deputy would be taken later.

The opposition, however, refused to play ball and, as the clock ticked down to the noon deadline, whispers emerged that the Congress’ K Suresh would be offered as an alternative to Om Birla.

And so it happened; as visuals showed senior leaders from the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance accompanying Mr Birla to file his papers, it was confirmed that Mr Suresh had submitted his name.

This means, for the first time in decades, there will be a formal election to pick the Speaker.

READ | Om Birla To Be Speaker Again, BJP-Led Govt Sticks To Continuity

Meanwhile, in the inevitable back-and-forth that followed the opposition’s decision, BJP sources told NDTV efforts were made to build consensus but the opposition responded with “pressure politics”.

Sources said the Congress’ KC Venugopal and TR Baalu of Tamil Nadu’s ruling DMK insisted on a commitment from the BJP – one to the effect the Deputy Speaker would be an opposition MP.

Earlier, while the INDIA bloc was waiting on the BJP’s response, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi referred to media reports that quoted Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging the opposition to work “constructively”.

“Today newspapers reported that PM Modi said the opposition should cooperate constructively. Rajnath Singh called Mallikarjun Kharge and asked him to extend support… entire opposition said we will support but convention is Deputy Speaker should be from our side. Rajnath Singh said he would call back… but he has not yet…PM is asking for cooperation but our leader is getting insulted…”

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The Congress-led INDIA opposition bloc on Tuesday nominated Kodikunnil Suresh, an eight-time MP from Kerala, for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker, triggering an election for the top parliamentary post for the first time since 1946.

Mr Suresh’s nomination underlines the tense stand-off between the INDIA group and the ruling coalition led by the BJP, which had approached the opposition – Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju were so tasked – to build consensus to re-appoint Kota MP Om Birla as the Speaker.

The INDIA bloc said it was willing to back Mr Birla, but required the deputy’s post to be allotted to a member of the opposition, in keeping with parliamentary tradition.

However, there was no response from the BJP till 11.50 am – 10 minutes before the deadline for filing papers – following which news broke that the opposition would nominate Mr Suresh.

Sources said the BJP indicated a decision on the Deputy Speaker’s post would be taken at a later stage, and once again called on the opposition to support Mr Birla.

The stand-off between the new BJP-led coalition and the opposition comes 24 hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi underlined the need for consensus to run the government and the country

New Delhi:

After days of uncertainty over the Lok Sabha Speaker’s post, the NDA has decided to nominate Om Birla for the post again. BJP’s Om Birla was the Speaker in the previous Lok Sabha. Sources said that Mr Birla will file his nomination at 11.30 am today.

The opposition INDIA bloc is unlikely to contest the post and Mr Birla is likely to be elected unopposed, sources said. A Lok Sabha Speaker is elected by a simple majority of MPs voting.

The BJP, thanks to brute majorities after the 2014 and 2019 elections, was unchallenged in nominating Sumitra Mahajan and Om Birla to the post. This time, though, it doesn’t quite have the numbers; Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party is the single-largest in Parliament with 240 seats but is 32 short of a majority, meaning it relies on Nitish Kumar’s JDU and Chandrababu Naidu’s TDP to remain in power.

However, the Opposition has demanded that they be given the choice to pick the deputy speaker. According to sources, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has made it clear to senior BJP leader and Union Minister Rajnath Singh that the Deputy Speaker should be from the Opposition benches. The Congress chief has said that while the Oppositions wants consensus too, healthy traditions must be followed, the sources added.

Earlier today, Mr Birla held talks with PM Modi ahead of day 2 of the Parliament.

Om Birla has been associated with the BJP since his early days as a student leader. He currently serves as an MP from the Kota-Bundi constituency in Rajasthan and was reelected for a second consecutive term in the recently held Lok Sabha elections. Previously, he served three terms as a legislator in the Rajasthan Assembly.

In 2019, Birla was unanimously elected as the Speaker of the 17th Lok Sabha, becoming the first MP from Rajasthan to hold the position. His selection was seen as a surprise by many, but he has been praised for his ability to take everyone along.