Page 3 - Bihar Assembly

Bihar caste survey: Here's what it reveals about poverty, jobs in the state

Bihar caste survey: Around 99.49% of people belonging to the SC category in the state have no access to laptops

Aanganwadi workers' protest rocks Bihar Assembly, cops use water cannons

Police on Tuesday used water cannons to disperse thousands of Aanganwadi Sevika workers who had gathered outside the Bihar assembly to press their demands, even as ruckus created by the opposition on the issue rocked the House. Speaker Awadh Bihari Chaudhary adjourned the proceedings till 12 PM, within minutes of commencement at 11 AM, as repeated pleas by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary that the issue be debated after the Question Hour went unheeded. The Aanganwadi workers have been staging a protest, demanding a two-fold increase in their stipends, claiming that a promise to the effect had been made by Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav during the last assembly polls. The workers also shouted slogans demanding that they be treated on par with government employees. When Yadav reached the assembly premises, he was booed by MLAs of the opposition BJP, who were staging a demonstration in front of the main gate expressing their support to the protest.

Bihar tables bill in assembly to replace ordinance on 28% GST on e-gaming

The Bihar government on Monday tabled an amendment bill in the assembly to replace an ordinance to facilitate the imposition of 28 per cent GST on online gaming in the state. The additional tax on online gaming, racecourses and casinos has been in force in the state since October 1, following the Centre's notification in this regard in September. State Finance Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary tabled the Bihar Goods and Services Tax (Second Amendment) Bill-2023 on Monday, the first day of the winter session of the state legislature. The Union Ministry of Finance issued notifications for implementing 28 per cent uniform GST on online money games, casinos, horse racing, betting, gambling and lottery in September. The new tax regime has been in force in the state since October 1. Now the promulgated ordinance will be replaced by the amendment bill," Choudhary told PTI. The state would certainly get additional revenue following the imposition of the higher tax rate, he said. The Goods an

Data collected during caste survey to be tabled in Bihar Assembly: CM

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday said details collected as part of the caste survey, including the economic condition of households, will be tabled before the state assembly. He was responding to queries from journalists, on the sidelines of a function organised here to mark the birth anniversary of legendary socialist leader Jayaprakash Narayan, by whom he had been inspired, as an engineering student in the 1970s, to take the political plunge. "What we have accomplished is being talked about across the country. Now, as the next step, we will place on record details like the economic condition of households which will give a clearer picture. This will be done in the next session of the assembly," the chief minister said. The JD(U) leader, however, ducked queries as to whether the survey, which has shown OBCs and Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs) to be nearly two-thirds of the population, would be followed by a rise in quotas to ensure proportionate representation. "It

What Bihar thinks today

Kanshi Ram was a genius and a political visionary, his ideas gave India an OBC Prime Minister. But Bihar-style caste census will be a very sad offering to the rest of the country

BJP disrupts assembly proceedings in Bihar demanding Tejashwi's resignation

The Bihar Assembly was on Tuesday adjourned till 2 pm amid uproar by members of the opposition BJP who entered the well demanding Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav's resignation following a CBI chargesheet. The proceedings began at 11 am, when BJP members rose in their seats and trooped into the well, pressing the demand for the resignation of the RJD leader who is named in a land-for-jobs scam which is being investigated by the CBI. Speaker Awadh Bihari Chaudhary tried to conduct the proceedings amid the bedlam but gave up in less than 10 minutes as his pleas for orderly behaviour had little effect. "Your behaviour is a blot on the history of this august House. You are impeding the Question Hour, even though many issues you wished to raise are listed for the day," the Speaker said, before announcing that the House would reassemble at 2 pm, after lunch hour. The case pertains to people allegedly given employment in the railways, during the tenure of Lalu Prasad as the Railway ..

BJP creates ruckus, demands Tejashwi's resignation inside Bihar assembly

The opposition BJP in Bihar on Monday created a ruckus in the state assembly demanding the resignation of Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav against whom the CBI has filed a charge sheet in land for jobs scam. No sooner than the House assembled, on the inaugural day of the monsoon session, BJP chief whip Janak Ram rose in his seat and demanded the resignation of Yadav, who sat quietly in the treasury benches alongside his boss, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Proceedings for the day were adjourned minutes later, after obituary references, but the opposition party made it clear that it would keep pressing the issue. "We did not press the matter today in view of the solemnity of the occasion. But during the rest of the session, we will force the government to come clean on corruption", Leader of the Opposition Vijay Kumar Sinha told reporters outside the House. "The chief minister seems to have struck a compromise with corruption. He will be held to account for his acts of commission

Five-day long monsoon session of the Bihar legislature to begin Monday

The five-day Monsoon Session of the Bihar legislature will begin on Monday. The monsoon session of the assembly and state legislative council, which will continue till July 14, is likely to be stormy as the opposition led by BJP has decided to take on the state government on various issues including the government's alleged failure to provide 10 lakh government jobs to youths, recent amendments in the school teachers' recruitment rules and withdrawal of the domicile policy for fresh recruitment of school teachers. Besides, opposition members are also expected to raise the issue of the recent charge sheet filed by the CBI against state Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav, in the land-for-job scam in the railways. The CBI had on July 3 filed a fresh charge sheet against Tejashwi, his father and former Railway minister Lalu Prasad, mother and former state CM Rabri Devi, and others in connection with the case. The BJP will also take out a march from Gandhi Maidan to the state assembly cornering th

BJP blames Speaker for taking side of ruling Mahagathbandhan in Bihar

BJP MLAs on Wednesday blamed Bihar assembly Speaker Awadh Bihari Choudhary for taking side of ruling Mahagathbandhan in the state on the last day of the budget session

Rahul Gandhi's disqualification rocks Bihar assembly, evokes protest

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's disqualification from the Lok Sabha on Monday evoked furious protests at the Bihar assembly from members of the ruling 'Mahagathbandhan', of which his party is also a part. 'Mahagathbandhan' (grand alliance) members had made their intentions clear when they reached the assembly with black bands wrapped around their arms and heads and their hands clutching posters with images of Gandhi and captions screaming "democracy and Constitution in danger". Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U), which had raised many eyebrows last week by staying away from a demonstration against Gandhi's conviction, was also participating this time. When the proceedings began at 11 am, members of the Congress, which has less than 20 MLAs in the 243-strong assembly, trooped to the well, angrily shouting slogans. They were, however, soon joined by a dozen-odd legislators of the ultra-Left CPI(ML) Liberation who support the Nitish Kumar government from outside. The BJP, which has en

Securing absolute majority in Assembly polls top priority: Bihar BJP chief

The BJP's new Bihar unit chief Samrat Chaudhary on Thursday asserted that securing all 40 Lok Sabha seats of the state next year and ensuring an "absolute majority" for his party in the assembly polls of 2025 will be his top priority. Currently the Leader of the Opposition in the state legislative council, Chaudhary, who was a minister in the Nitish Kumar government till the JD(U) leader remained with NDA, also did not deny that by hedging its bets on him, the BJP has sought to make a dent in the "Luv-Kush" base of the Bihar chief minister. "The BJP cares for all. But, of course, where else would Luv Kush go except the place where Lord Rama abides", Chaudhary replied, tongue in cheek, to questions from journalists about the "Kurmi-Koeri" combine, known by the name of the mythical twins in Bihar's political lexicon. The development is an indication of the challenges faced by the BJP in a state where it has become a force to reckon with but feels hamstrung by the "pro-upper caste ...

BJP creates ruckus in Bihar assembly over attack on migrants' in Tamil Nadu

The opposition BJP on Friday created a ruckus in the Bihar assembly before staging a walkout, demanding that a team of members of the House be sent to Tamil Nadu to verify reports of attacks on Bihari migrants workers in Tamil Nadu. Speaker Awadh Bihari Chaudhary took a grim note of the unruly behaviour of some of the BJP MLAs who had entered the well and placed chairs on the table of the reporting staff. He asked Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary to advise the Chair on suitable action against the errant members to which the latter assented while lambasting the BJP for trying to derive political mileage. "They have an issue with our Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav having visited Tamil Nadu on a personal invitation from the chief minister of that state. Even if reports of violence against migrants were true, would it have entailed officials and dignitaries from both states snapping all ties, the minister said. Earlier, Yadav, who was present in the House, ...

Nitish Kumar biggest obstacle for Tejashwi becoming Bihar CM: RJD MLA

RJD MLA Sudhakar Singh once again targetted Nitish Kumar by terming him the "biggest obstacle" in the path of Tejashwi Yadav taking over as Bihar Chief Minister

Bihar by-polls: BJP's Kusum Devi wins Gopalganj with over 2000 votes

After an intense poll battle in the Gopalganj Assembly seat in Bihar, BJP's candidate Kusum Devi defeated RJD's Mohan Prasad Gupta with a margin of nearly 2,000 votes.

Bihar Assembly by-polls: RJD candidate Neelam Devi wins in Mokama

RJD candidate Neelam Devi won the battle of Mokama. Neelam Devi is the wife of Bahubali leader Anant Singh, who defeated BJP candidate Sonam Devi with a margin of nearly 17,000 votes.

BJP can be reduced to 50 seats in 2024 polls: Bihar CM Nitish Kumar

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar has claimed to reduce the BJP to 50 seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections

RJD's Awadh Bihari Chaudhary unanimously elected Bihar Assembly Speaker

Veteran RJD leader Awadh Bihari Chaudhary was on Friday unanimously elected as Speaker of the Bihar Legislative Assembly. The post had fallen vacant upon resignation of Vijay Kumar Sinha, against whom a no-confidence motion was moved by the 'Mahagathbandhan', after it came to power in the state earlier this month. Chaudhary was seated on the Chair by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Sinha, a senior BJP leader, who has now become the Leader of the Opposition.

RJD's Awadh Chaudhary files nomination for Bihar assembly speaker's post

Veteran RJD MLA Awadh Bihari Chaudhary on Thursday filed his nomination papers for election to the post of the Bihar assembly speaker. Chaudhary filed his nomination papers in presence of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Deputy CM Tejashwi Prasad Yadav and a number of other senior leaders of the 'Mahagathbandhan'. The voting is scheduled to take place on Friday, the Vidhan Sabha secretariat said. The post fell vacant on Wednesday following the resignation of Vijay Kumar Sinha, a BJP leader, against whom members of the ruling alliance had moved a no-confidence motion.

Wherever BJP is not in power, it sends CBI, ED and I-T, says Tejashwi

Stung by raids on a number of RJD leaders, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Prasad Yadav on Wednesday called the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Income Tax (IT) department three jamaai" (sons in-law), which the BJP sent to states where it was not in power. Taking part in a debate on the motion of confidence moved by the new 'Mahagathbandhan' government, Yadav accused the BJP of having tried to "break" Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's party in a bid to "wipe out socialist ideology". "My father Lalu Prasad, mother Rabri Devi, my sisters and I are all paying the price for our commitment to socialism. The CM and I have the same ideology. You (BJP) cannot reap what we socialists have sown," said Yadav. The RJD heir apparent also expressed dismay over a section of the media saying that a mall being raided by CBI in Gurugram belonged to him. "These media outlets should do some research. It belongs to someone based in Haryana, and was ...

'People are watching and they understand': Rabri Devi on CBI searches

The ruling 'Mahagathbandhan' in Bihar on Wednesday cried foul over raids conducted at a number of premises owned by leaders of the RJD, the largest constituent of the seven-party coalition. The CBI raids, in connection with a railway land for jobs scam, commenced barely a few hours before the new government was to prove its majority on the floor of the state assembly. "I do not wish to comment on merits and demerits of the case. But the timing of the raids is a clear indication that the investigating agencies are trying to help the BJP," alleged Upendra Kushwaha, parliamentary board president of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U). The BJP has been stripped of power on account of the volte-face earlier this month by Kumar, who has now aligned with the RJD, Congress and Left combine. Former Chief Minister Rabri Devi, whose own residence here was raided by the agency in connection with the case a few months ago, told reporters, "The people are watching and they can understand what is