The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, passed in Parliament on Thursday (August 13, 2026), does not seek to impinge upon the rights of States over their resources, Union Minister for Coal and Mines G. Kishan Reddy said on the day. The legislation is primarily aimed at ensuring growth and equitability in the overall ecosystem, he told reporters here.

The Minister said the amendment encompasses only certain major minerals and does not extend to minor minerals over which the States retain absolute control.

“The government’s primary objective is to ensure identical [taxation] rates across the board to ensure [effective prices] do not spike. We are neither seeking to impinge upon any State’s rights nor acquire any control [over States’ resources],” he stated.

Seeking to clarify the standing on minor minerals, Mr. Reddy said, “It [the ratified legislation] does not change the revenue dynamics for minor minerals, neither for its exploration, production, land acquisition, instituting blocks, auctioneering as well as its levying of State taxes and cess.”

According to a memo circulated by the government, the list of major minerals includes coal, lignite, iron ore, graphite, cobalt, lithium and nickel among others.

Further, the provision of the law encompasses only 11 States: Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Goa.

Arguing that the Union government has ensured flow of revenue to States, he reported that States’ share in overall mineral revenues have accelerated from 65% to 88% between fiscal year 2014-15 and 2024-25. That from has elevated to 96% from 55% during the same period.

Separately, Mr. Reddy also told reporters that the proposed legislation would be seeking to put forth a suitable structure for the proposed coal and minerals exchange.

“We want to enable reforms that would help spur the production of major minerals,” he stated, adding, “In [the proposed] exchange, differing rates would hamper the market for entities with higher prices. Thus, similar prices become important.”

Separately, officials also informed that India is expected to have its first coal exchange in the “eight to nine months”.

The Rajya Sabha on Wednesday (August 12) passed the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, which, among other things, seeks that States do not levy any tax or cess on mineral bearing lands and their operations. The now-ratified legislation had drawn opposition from States, especially Kerala, for “overriding” federal structure and encroaching upon their constitutional powers.

Stepping up its attack on the Narendra Modi government over alleged police excesses against students protesting the NEET paper leak and alleged chadhawa chori (donation theft) at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, Opposition MPs on Thursday (July 30, 2026) staged a protest at the Makar Dwar, the main entrance to the Parliament House.

Congress general secretaries K C Venugopal and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Samajwadi Party’s Dharmendra Yadav, Trinamool Congress’s Sagarika Ghose and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha’s Mahua Maji were among those who participated. 

The MPs raised slogans including “chadhawa chor, gaddi chor”, “Grih Mantri sadan mein aao” [Home Minister come to the House] and “who gave the order?”, demanding an explanation for the use of force against protesting students. 

They also carried a large banner reading “Who gave the order?” and displayed a donation box, into which they placed money to symbolically highlight their allegations regarding temple donations.

In a post on X, Mr. Venugopal questioned the absence of Home Minister Amit Shah from Parliament, referring to him as “MIA (missing in action)”, and asked who had ordered the use of pellet guns against students. He also alleged that the government had prevented Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi from speaking in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday (July 29, 2026).

Political statements and allegations

Opposition leaders used the protest to press for answers on both issues, with several MPs accusing the government of failing to provide clarity on the police response to student demonstrations. The protest was also used to reiterate allegations of irregularities in the management of donations at the Ram temple, which the MPs said required investigation and accountability.

Mamata’s Congress history and a reply from Priyanka Gandhi

The space outside Makar Dwar also saw a sharp exchange between Ms Vadra and suspended Trinamool Congress MP Kalyan Banerjee, who was holding a separate demonstration over his suspension. 

Mr. Banerjee was wearing a poster displaying photographs of 20 TMC MPs he described as “traitors from Bengal”. Seeing the poster, a visibly amused Ms. Vadra told the suspended Trinamool MP leaders that many of them had left the Congress to join the TMC.

Mr Banerjee told Ms. Vadra that the Congress would not be in its current position had Mamata Banerjee not been expelled from the party in 1997.

Responding to his remarks, Ms. Vadra recalled that former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi had extended “love and respect” to Ms. Banerjee during her time in the Congress. 

Mr. Banerjee countered that the Congress’s later decision to align with the CPI(M) in West Bengal had created divisions between Ms. Banerjee and the party.

The Opposition’s demand for Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation continued to stall proceedings of the Monsoon Session of Parliament for the fourth day in a row on Thursday (July 23, 2026).

In the Rajya Sabha, Leader of the Opposition and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said the Education Minister has to resign, while Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju reiterated the government’s commitment to hold a comprehensive discussion on the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) paper leak issue. The Minister said the Opposition can decide the date and duration of the debate. 

Also read: Parliament monsoon session day 4 highlights on July 23, 2026

Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, accompanied by Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Trinamool Congress leaders Saugata Roy and Mahua Moitra, met Speaker Om Birla to resolve the deadlock.

The Rajya Sabha functioned for less than 10 minutes in the morning before being adjourned twice amid the impasse. Soon after the House assembled, Mr. Rijiju said the government was ready to discuss the NEET issue “today itself” and urged the Opposition not to attach conditions to the debate.

Mr. Kharge, however, insisted that Mr. Pradhan must resign before any discussion could begin. Referring to the police action against student protesters, he said many students were in hospital and their parents were deeply disturbed. “Until he [Mr. Pradhan] resigns, discussion will not start,” he said. Amid sloganeering by both sides, Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan adjourned the House till noon and later till 2 p.m.

Leader of the House J.P. Nadda termed the Opposition’s conduct “highly irresponsible”. “They don’t want any discussion and won’t let the House function either. First, they wanted us to discuss the paper leak, and the government said we would discuss NEET and all other issues,” he said.

The disruption continued when the House reassembled at 2 p.m. Deputy Chairman Harivansh appealed to members to at least take up the listed Bills, but adjourned the House till 3 p.m. after barely two minutes. When proceedings resumed, he invited Mr. Kharge to speak in an effort to break the impasse. As the Congress president began reading from a written note, Mr. Rijiju objected, saying the government was willing to hold a discussion but the Opposition was not. The House was then adjourned for the day.

The Lok Sabha too witnessed repeated disruptions over the demand for a discussion on the NEET paper leak issue and Mr. Pradhan’s resignation. 

The Speaker appealed to members to allow Question Hour, assuring them that the government were prepared to discuss every issue thereafter.

“The Question Hour is the most important. After Question Hour, the House is ready to discuss every issue. I will speak to the government, and the government is also ready for discussions. I appeal to all members to participate in the discussion after the Question Hour,” Mr. Birla said.

However, Opposition members continued raising slogans, forcing repeated adjournments. When the House reassembled at noon, members again trooped into the well, displaying placards. Presiding Officer Dileep Saikia urged them to return to their seats, saying it was not right to disrupt proceedings.

Mr. Rijiju accused the Opposition of attaching preconditions and trying to avoid a debate on the issue. He said the government was prepared for a comprehensive discussion and wanted to place its position before the House as well.

He said Opposition members could speak for as long as they wished and the debate could continue for even two days. The government, he added, was willing to let the Opposition decide the date and duration of the discussion and had already approached the Congress and other Opposition parties to evolve a consensus. 

But as protests continued, the House was adjourned again within minutes.

When the House met again at 2 p.m., the protests resumed, prompting Mr. Saikia to adjourn it for the day. 

Lok Sabha proceedings were disrupted on the first day of the Monsoon Session of Parliament on Monday (July 20, 2026) as Opposition parties raised various issues, primarily the alleged NEET paper leak and Ram temple donation theft.

The disruption over the NEET issue came amid attempts by protesters, led by Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), to break barricades to march to Parliament, demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the alleged paper leak and CBSE exam irregularities.

The House was adjourned six times since it met in the morning, and was later adjourned for the day at 3 p.m. The only business transacted was the introduction of a Bill by Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal to replace an Ordinance which increased the number of Supreme Court judges from 34 to 38.

The changed political alignments following the recent Assembly polls were also visible during the proceedings.

As soon as the Lok Sabha assembled, Opposition MPs raised slogans, with Congress, Samajwadi Party and Trinamool Congress members protesting over alleged NEET paper leaks and the donation embezzlement at Ram Temple in Ayodhya. However, the TMC MPs who trooped into the Well of the House did not include the 20 rebel MPs who now claim to be a part of the National Citizenship Party of India (NCPI).

DMK-Cong. split evident

Also, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), which parted ways with the Congress after the latter broke off their alliance, allying with the newly elected TVK government in Tamil Nadu, also entered the Well, but its members raised slogans over the Karnataka government’s proposal to build a dam at Mekedatu across the Cauvery river rather than the issues flagged by the Congress.

The split between the Congress and the DMK appeared clear inside the Lok Sabha, although DMK MP T. R. Baalu continued to occupy his earlier seat next to Congress MP K. C. Venugopal, with Speaker Om Birla yet to approve the party’s request for separate seating.

The DMK from the INDIA bloc was evident since the morning, as it skipped the customary strategy meeting of Opposition parties convened by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge at his Parliament office.

Sources told The Hindu that DMK supremo M. K. Stalin, during a Zoom meeting, made it clear that the party’s Lok Sabha members shouldn’t associate themselves with issues raised by the Congress on the floor of the House.

Repeated adjournments

Mr. Birla, who began the proceedings with obituary references to six former MPs, first adjourned the House till noon as Opposition members raised slogans during the Question Hour. He objected to two members raising slogans during the references, saying it was not a good precedent.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the House could not function if disruptions continued.

Subsequently, the House was repeatedly adjourned before being adjourned for the day at 3 p.m.

Earlier, at 2 p.m., BJP MP Jagdambika Pal, who was officiating as the Speaker, said there was adequate quorum to conduct business, but some Opposition MPs alleged they were being prevented from entering the House.

Rajya Sabha Chairman C P Radhakrishnan on Monday (July 20, 2026), administered oath to nine newly-elected members of the Upper House of the Parliament.

Parliament Monsoon Session: Follow live updates on July 20, 2026

The members who took the oath represent the States of Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Rajasthan and West Bengal.

The newly-elected members who took the oath on the first day of the Monsoon session were Mukeshbhai J Rathwa (BJP-Gujarat), Pawan Khera (Congress-Karnataka), Mahesh Kewat (BJP, Madhya Pradesh), Jamesh Pangsang Kongkal Sangma (NPP-Meghalaya), Khiangte Laltluagkima (Mizoram), Satish Poonia (BJP-Rajasthan), Prakash Chik Baraik (BJP-West Bengal), Sushmita Dev (BJP-West Bengal) and Sukhendu Sekhar Ray (BJP-West Bengal).

Some other members elected earlier had already taken their oath during the inter-session period.