Parliament highlights: Chit fund Bill passed, Pragya faces action, and more

Parliament Winter Session 2019: Lok Sabha passes bill to grant ownership rights to residents of Delhi's 1,731 unauthorised colonies

The Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the Bill to grant ownership rights to residents of Delhi's 1731 unauthorised colonies. A war of words broke out between the BJP and Congress in Lok Sabha during discussion on the bill, when BJP's Ramesh Bidhuri alleged that successive Delhi governments failed to extend ownership rights to people residing in those colonies.

Participating in the discussion, A R Reddy of the Congress said that former chief minister Dixit took several steps for the development of the national capital and this is time when the House should remember her.

The Parliament passed a bill which provides for raising the monetary limits for chit funds to three fold and hiking commission for foreman. The Chit Funds (Amendment) Bill, 2019 was passed by voice vote in Rajya Sabha.

8:06 PM

Godse row: BJP axes Pragya from def panel; Rahul says remark reflects 'heart and soul' of BJP-RSS

Amidst a raging row over its MP Pragya Thakur's Godse remark in Lok Sabha, the BJP on Thursday barred her from attending its parliamentary party meeting and removed her from the consultative committee on defence, even as the Congress stepped up its attack over the issue with its leader Rahul Gandhi asserting that her comment reflected the "heart and soul" of the saffron party and the RSS. Read more

6:55 PM

LS passes bill to grant ownership rights to residents of Delhi's 1731 unauthorised colonies

6:54 PM

Will deal with 65 affluent unauthorised colonies of Delhi later: Puri in LS

Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri told the Lok Sabha on Thursday that the government will deal with the issue of 65 affluent unauthorised colonies in Delhi later. Read more

5:38 PM

Govt has issued notice to NSO; WhatsApp didn't inform about vulnerability in system: Prasad in Parliament

IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad told Parliament that a WhatsApp CEO-led delegation had not mentioned about any vulnerability of their system during their meetings with the ministry, and that the government was yet to receive the names of people targeted by unnamed entities using Pegasus spyware.

5:36 PM

Godse row: MP Congress wants Pragya's LS membership annulled

Denouncing BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur's remarks on Mahatma Gandhi's assassin Nathuram Godse, Madhya Pradesh Congress has demanded that her Lok Sabha membership be revoked immediately.

5:19 PM

Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury backs Owaisi on privilege motion against Pragya Thakur

Congress Parliamentary party leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, backed AIMIM MP Assadudin Owaisi for moving a privilege motion against BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur's now expunged remark on Mahatama Gandhi's assassin Nathuram Godse. Read more

5:10 PM

Parliament passes chit funds bill

Parliament has passed a bill which seeks to raise the monetary limits for chit funds and commission for foreman. Read more

2:19 PM

96 corrupt officers retired prematurely in public interest in last five years: Govt in Rajya Sabha

As many as 96 corrupt officers were given premature retirement in the last five years, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Thursday.

 

From July, 2014 to October, 2019 (as on November 21, 2019), Fundamental Rules 56(j) has been invoked against a total number of 96 Group 'A' officers of different ministries/departments, Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh said in a written reply.

 

The government has the absolute right to retire government officials prematurely on the ground of lack of integrity and ineffectiveness, in public interest, under the provisions of Fundamental Rules (FR) 56(j)/(l), Rule 48 of Central Civil Services (CCS) Pension Rules, 1972, he said.

2:18 PM

Pragya Thakur should not be allowed to sit in parliament till she apologises: Tharoor

Shashi Tharoor, Congress on BJP MP Pragya Thakur: They (BJP) gave her ticket and brought her to the parliament. Wwhat will happen by not allowing her in parliamentary party meetings? She should not be allowed to sit in parliament till she apologises, we will demand a censure motion.

2:12 PM

Over 13,000 cases pending for more than a year in CIC: Personnel Ministry

There are over 13,000 cases pending with the Central Information Commission (CIC) for more than a year, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Thursday.

 

"Total number of pending cases for more than one year is 13,453," Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh said in a written reply.

 

Transparency watchdog CIC has registered 14,523 second appeal/complaints during 2019-20 (till November 20), he said, adding that of these, 11,117 were disposed.

 

A total of 22,736 such cases were registered during 2018-19, of which 17,188 were disposed. In 2017-18, the CIC had registered 25,815 second appeals and complaints and disposed 29,005 cases (including previous pending cases).

 

As many as 23,811 such cases were filed in 2016-17 and the Commission disposed 32,344 cases (including cases pending previously).

2:11 PM

Industrial Relations Code bill introduced in Lok Sabha

Amid vehement opposition by the Congress and other parties, Union Labour Minister Santosh Kumar Gangwar on Thursday introduced the Industrial Relations Code Bill 2019 in Lok Sabha.

 

Congress and other opposition parties were protesting against the bill while describing it as "anti-labourers". They demanded that the bill be referred to the parliamentary standing committee on labour.

 

Speaking about the bill, Gangwar said there is nothing in this bill which is against the right of labourers.

 

This bill is part of the government's initiative to reform labour laws by amalgamating 44 legislations related to labourers into four codes.

 

The bill was passed by the Cabinet on November 20 and has been drafted after amalgamating and simplifying three central labour acts. 

2:06 PM

Congress, other UPA parties, set to move censure motion in Lok Sabha against BJP MP Pragya Thakur: Report

Congress, other UPA parties, set to move censure motion in Lok Sabha against BJP MP Pragya Thakur for her remarks on Nathuram Godse: Report

1:51 PM

377 websites hosting child porn material taken down

As many as 377 websites hosting child pornography material have been taken down and 50 FIRs filed, Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Zubin Irani said on Thursday as she urged immediate reporting so that swift action can be taken.

 

Intervening on a Zero Hour mention by Vijila Sathyananth (AIADMK) on rise in child abuse cases due to easy access to pornography on mobile phones and Internet, Irani said methodology of reporting such incidents is being shared with the district administration for prompt action.

 

She said, "377 websites have been taken down and 50 FIRs filed."

1:49 PM

16.34 cr rural households have access to toilets: Govt to Lok Sabha

Over 16.34 crore rural households in the country have access to toilets and highest of them are in Uttar Pradesh, Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said in Lok Sabha on Thursday.

 

Shekhawat said out of the over 16.34 crore rural households which have access to toilets, 2.84 crore are in Uttar Pradesh, 1.59 crore in Bihar and 1.37 crore in West Bengal.

 

The Union Minister of Jal Shakti said no universal sanitation coverage survey has been published by the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation.

 

However, in order to ensure sustainability of open defecation free status and to ensure that no one is left behind, the government has advised all states and union territories including Uttar Pradesh to identify if any rural households have been missed out.

 

Subsequently, many states have undertaken special drives to identify such missed out households and all the states have been encouraged to provide necessary support to these households to construct toilets, he said during Question Hour.

1:36 PM

MOSPI updates Rajya Sabha about inputs by the Advisory Committee on National Accounts Statistics

Advisory Committee on National Accounts Statistics recommended to the MOSSPI to consider 2020-21 as the next base year.