Parliament Budget Session Highlights: Opposition vs Centre over protest against Waqf amendment bill

Parliament Budget Session Live: Lok Sabha proceedings have been adjourned till 11 am on Tuesday, March 18.

Parliament Budget Session Live: Ministers and MPs on Monday met Vice President and Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankar as he resumed work after being discharged from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).

Former prime minister HD Devegowda, Leader of the House JP Nadda and leader of opposition Mallikarjun Kharge met Dhankar in his chamber.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs and Minister of Power Manohar Lal, Minister of Railways, Information & Broadcasting and Electronics & Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw, Agriculture Minister Ram Nath Thakur besides Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal also called on Dhankhar at Parliament House.

Parliament Budget Session Live: Former solicitor general of India and senior advocate Harish Solve backed the 'One Nation One Election' bill before the joint parliamentary committee.

He asserted that the proposed laws meets the constitution requirements while former Delhi High Court chief justice AP Shah said it might face legal challenges, news agency PTI reported citing sources.

The sources said that Shah, a former law commission chairman, faulted the bill on several counts, including the power given to the Election Commission to recommend postponing state assembly polls.

Parliament Budget Session Live: BJP MP and 'One Nation One Election' JPC chairperson PP Chaudhary said that the next meeting of the joint parliamentary committee will take place on March 25.

He noted that on Monday, Former Solicitor General of India Harish Salve participated and for three hours the members interacted with him.

"The members also interacted with Justice Ajit Prakash Shah for almost two hours. The meeting lasted for five hours and it was a very positive meeting. The members sought clarification on various issues...The members are taking a lot of interest (in the One Nation One Election)," he told news agency ANI.

Parliament Budget Session Live: Rajya Sabha proceedings have been adjourned till 11 am on Tuesday, March 18.

Parliament Budget Session Live: Trinamool Congress MPs on Monday accused the BJP government at the Centre of cutting railway allocations to West Bengal and opposition-ruled states.

They also slammed Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw over his faux pas in the Rajya Sabha while replying to a debate on his ministry's work.

Parliament Budget Session Live: Opposition leaders on Monday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not visiting the strife-torn state of Manipur, saying that the imposition of President's Rule is not healthy for democracy.

AITC leader Sushmita Dev said, "What has this double-engine government given to the people of Manipur? Manipur is burning." She claimed that it was a "run-of-the-mill budget" and "a golden opportunity for the Prime Minister to vindicate himself".

Parliament Budget Session Live: BJP MP Satnam Singh Sandhu on Monday raised concerns over increasing cases of grabbing of properties of NRIs in the country, suggesting the mapping of these to check encroachment.

He highlighted the role played by NRIs in India's freedom struggle and said that about 3.5 crore non-resident Indians (NRIs) are also playing a pivotal role in the nation's journey towards becoming a 'Viksit Bharat'.

The BJP MP said people of Indian origin living abroad still have emotions attached with India and that is why they did not sell their ancestral properties, a PTI report said.

"But many incidents have come to light where these properties are being encroached upon. People (of Indian origin) living outside India are now scared about this. They have also started selling their properties. This is a very serious issue," Sandhu said.

Parliament Budget Session Live: Chairperson of Delhi State Haj Committee, Kausar Jahan reacted to the protest against the Waqf Amendment Bill, 2024. She told news agency ANI, "First of all, I can't understand what is the meaning of this protest? All important parties have been given a place and included in the JPC. Owaisi sahab of AIMIM is also included. Everyone's suggestions have been taken in."

"Secondly, if you have to say anything, there is Parliament for that - have a debate in Parliament...Those who are protesting, I would like to ask them whether they have actually studied (the Bill). You are neither ready to read it nor doe you want to debate. You only want to misbehave. This will arbitrariness will not work," he added.

Parliament Budget Session Live: BJP MP Bhartruhari Mahtab told news agency ANI, "Meeting is going on very smoothly. Most of the members are participating. Harish Salve is detailing the report and need for One Nation One Election. I believe he is very convincing...Basic structure of the Constitution is not being hampered. If you have One Election at a time throughout the country, it helps financially and the stability is maintained."

Parliament Budget Session Live: TMC MP Shatrughan Sinha reacted to the All India Muslim Personal Law Board's protest against the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024 and told news agency ANI, "People are hurt by this Bill... This is being brought to divert attention from the main issues... The protests are natural. An impartial meeting should be conducted on this."

Parliament Budget Session Live: Congress MP Mohammad Jawed said, "We see how lands are being given away to selected industrialists... Now that there is a lack of lands, they want to occupy Waqf lands that belong to the poor... Was Chairman asked if the JPC worked properly? Constitution gives us the right to protest peacefully and we are doing the same... This is a conspiracy against all Indian citizens."

Parliament Budget Session Live: Congress MP MK Raghavan on Monday raised concerns over the appointment of the professor, who once praised Mahatma Gandhi's killer Nathuram Gods, as the Dean of the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Calicut.

The Kozhikode MP took to the floor of the Lok Sabha during the Zero Hour to question the elevation of Professor Shaija A to the top post, citing her controversial praise of Godse.

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Parliament Budget Session Live: Speaking to news agency PTI, BJP MP Kangana Ranaut said, "No riot has taken place in the country in last one decade, no bomb blast, attack or plane hijack news has come to notice. This isn’t an easy job for the government, PM, and Home Ministry. We should have some gratitude for them and our security forces."

Parliament Budget Session Live: BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar reacted to the protests against the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024 and slammed Congress for being "hypocritical and shameless", especially its MPs from Kerala who are supporting the All India Muslim Personal Law Board in its protest against the bill.

"It is hypocritical and shameless on the part of the Congress, especially Congress MPs from Kerala who are today sitting in support of these people who want the Waqf Bill to remain as it is, when in Kerala there are over 300-500 families in a place called Munambam where poor Christian fishermen and other communities whose land has been grabbed by or is being grabbed by the Waqf," he said.

Parliament Budget Session Live: Samajwadi Party MP Zia Ur Rehman Barq told news agency PTI, We are totally against the Waqf Amendment Bill since the very beginning. AIMPLB is protesting, we will join, we will protest against it from the road, to the Parliament, and if necessary in the court as well, because it has been forced on us, and effort is being made to snatch our right from us."

Parliament Budget Session Live: BJP MP and 'One Nation One Election' joint parliamentary committee chairperson PP Chaudhary told news agency ANI that former Solicitor General of India Harish Salve is coming for an interaction with the JPC to enlighten the committee, adding that former chief justice of the Delhi High Court Ajit Prakash Shah will also come for an interaction.

Parliament Budget Session Live: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi, along with BJP MP and 'One Nation One Election' joint parliamentary committee chairperson PP Chaudhary, arrive at the Parliament annexe building for a meeting.

Parliament Budget Session Live: Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi spoke to reporters about the All India Muslim Personal Law Board's protest against the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024 and said that the opposition saw how its members were suspended in the Joint Parliamentary Committee and how their suggestions were rejected.

"We expressed our protest many times. It is clearly visible that this government does not want to solve the problems of the country. Their only intention is to create hatred in society. Our views were not being given importance in the JPC," Gogoi added.

Parliament Budget Session Live: AIMIM chief and MP Asaduddin Owaisi on Monday joined the All India Muslim Personal Law Board's (AIMPLB) protest against the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024 at New Delhi's Jantar Mantar.

Owaisi described the law as "unconstitutional" and said that it was the board's job to protest.

"This bill is not for saving Waqf property, not for removing encroachers but for ending Waqf property, for snatching away graveyards, Khanqah, Dargah from Muslims. Their intentions are bad and they want to increase distances in the country. We are saying that we will protest, if Chandrababu Naidu, Chirag Paswan, Nitish Kumar support it then the public will remember them for life", he told reporters.

Parliament Budget Session Live: The opposition on Monday slammed the Railways ministry in the Lok Sabha, saying that making Instagram reels will not help the public which is on a "ventilator" due to poor management of the government.

Speaking in the debate on the Demands for Grants under the control of the Ministry of Railways for 2025-26, Congress' Varsha Gaikwad said claims that the rail budget was a "record breaking" measure were wrong and it was in fact a "failed budget".

Parliament Budget Session Live: Opposition parties, including the Congress and the TMC, on Monday walked out of the Rajya Sabha after their demand for a discussion on the Election Commission's alleged lapses in issuing multiple duplicate voter ID cards and delimitation was disallowed.

Opposition MPs from the Trinamool Congress, Congress and Left parties gave notices under rule 267 that calls for setting aside business of the day to take up discussion on the issue being raised through them. But Deputy Chairman Harivansh said they could not be accepted as they were not in conformity with the rulings of the chair on such notices.

Parliament Budget Session Live: Congress leader Sonia Gandhi and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee were among the leaders who got in touch with the family of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar to inquire about his health after he was hospitalised for cardiac-related ailments.

Dhankhar revealed this in the Rajya Sabha on Monday as he resumed chairing the proceedings of the House.

He said he was "greatly touched" by the concerns expressed across party lines which contributed to his speedy recovery. (PTI)

Parliament Budget Session Live: Six sites, including the Mudumal Megalithic Menhirs in Telangana and the palace-fortresses of the Bundelas in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, have been added to India's tentative list by UNESCO's World Heritage Centre, Union Minister of Culture and Tourism Gajendra Singh Shekhawat announced on Monday.

Speaking in the Lok Sabha, the minister stated that the other sites included in the list are Kanger Valley National Park in Chhattisgarh, the Ashokan Edict Sites along the Mauryan Routes (multiple states), the Chausath Yogini temples (multiple states), and the Gupta temples in northern India (multiple states).

Parliament Budget Session Live: Congress MPs from Kerala urged the Centre to avoid the scheme of opening sand blocs for offshore mining in the state.

Kollam MP Premachandran said the proposed area for mining is abundant in fish wealth and is contrary to the interests of the fishing sector.

MoS environment Kirtivardhan Singh said the Centre would grant clearances only after due regulatory approvals, including environmental impact assessment.