Leaders of several INDIA bloc parties protested on the Parliament premises on Wednesday over the Adani indictment issue and called for a joint parliamentary probe into the matter. MPs of the Congress, AAP, RJD, Shiv Sena (UBT), DMK and the Left parties, among others, raised slogans in favour of their demand and held a banner reading "Modi-Adani are one" at Parliament's Makar Dwar. The TMC kept away from the opposition protest. Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi was not part of the protest. He left for the violence-hit Sambhal district in Uttar Pradesh along with a Congress delegation in the morning. The Lok Sabha Secretariat on Tuesday issued an advisory urging the MPs not to hold protests in front of Parliament gates, saying that such obstruction of movement could affect their safety and security. The opposition MPs held a protest at the same spot on Tuesday. The Congress and some other opposition have been demanding a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) probe ...
Jairam Ramesh noted that the opposition parties will also demand a discussion on Manipur and Nagaland
The meeting is part of the JPC's study tour in five cities namely Guwahati, Bhubaneswar, Kolkata, Patna, and Lucknow from November 9 to November 14
The meetings of the JCP are part of a broader initiative to reform the Waqf Act, which has faced criticisms of mismanagement, corruption, and encroachments
The committee met on Monday, inviting officials from the Ministry of Minority Affairs to provide oral evidence regarding the bill
These consultations aim to refine the proposed amendments to the Waqf Act
During the meeting on September 18, representatives from the Ministry of Minority Affairs will record oral evidence before the committee
The Congress on Wednesday reiterated its demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the Adani issue, saying it is needed urgently to unearth the full extent of the corruption, monopolisation and glaring gaps in the country's regulatory system. Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh cited a media report and said the latest in the "Modani magic" is the rags-to-riches journey of a private power infrastructure firm. "Diamond Power Infra Ltd was dragged to bankruptcy court in 2018. By 2022, it was taken over by Mr Gautam Adani's brother-in-law, at the price of paying Rs 501 crore to the lenders, for a company with a market cap of Rs 1,000 crore," Ramesh said in a post on X. "The firm had zero business in 2022, but by 2023-24, it had revenue of Rs 344 crore -- largely from orders placed by the Adani Group businesses. Thanks to Mr Adani's business, Diamond Power Infra Ltd is now valued at Rs 7,626 crore, a seven-fold increase in valuation," he ...
Opposition parties have been continuously opposing the Waqf Board Amendment Bill in JPC meetings
BJP members of the committee appreciated the proposed amendments, particularly the one that seeks to give representation to Muslim women in Waqf boards
Parliament's Joint Committee on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill met here for the first time on Thursday where officials from the minority affairs and law ministries are briefing them about the various amendments proposed in the draft law. The 31-member committee, headed by BJP member Jagdambika Pal, has been tasked by the Lok Sabha to scrutinise the contentious bill, which has drawn protests from the opposition parties and Muslim organisations. The representatives from the minority affairs ministry were expected to brief the committee on the "amendments proposed on the Bill", the Lok Sabha secretariat said. The JPC will discuss the bill threadbare and also the concerns over it, Pal said ahead of the meeting, adding that voices of different stakeholders will be heard by the committee "We will discuss all the 44 amendments and bring a good and comprehensive Bill by next session," he said. Pal said the committee will call various Muslim bodies representing different sects to hear their ...
The demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the Adani issue goes beyond the Hindenburg Research's revelations, the Congress said Friday and claimed the "irregularities and wrongdoings" relating to the business conglomerate span every dimension of the political economy. Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said "Hindenburg is only the tip of the iceberg" and its allegations are limited to those that deal with the capital markets. "The demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) investigation into the Adani Mega Scam goes far beyond the revelations made by Hindenburg Research's reports. "Irregularities and wrongdoings relating to the Adani Group span every dimension of the political economy, as documented in our 100 question series HAHK (Hum Adani Ke Hain Kaun)," Ramesh said in a post on 'X'. Elaborating on what he said were key elements of the "scam", Ramesh claimed it pertains to "misuse" of India's investigative agencies to secure ..
The Congress on Wednesday reiterated its demand for a joint parliamentary committee into the Adani issue and alleged that the Gujarat government was helping Adani Ports to "secure a monopoly" on the state's port sector. Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said the Gujarat government grants private ports a 30-year concession period on a Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) basis, after which ownership gets transferred to the government of Gujarat. On the basis of this model, Adani Ports currently has control over Mundra, Hazira, and Dahej ports, he said. Before the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections, Adani Ports requested the Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) to extend this concession period by another 45 years to 75 years in total, Ramesh claimed. "This was much beyond the maximum permissible period of 50 years, but the GMB hastened to request the Gujarat Government to do so anyways. The GMB was in such a hurry that it did so without approval from its Board, resulting
Stepping up its attack on the PM Narendra Modi government over the Hindenburg Research's allegations against SEBI chairperson Madhabi Buch, the Congress on Monday threatened to launch a nationwide protest if its demand for a JPC (Joint Parliamentary Committee) probe into the matter is not accepted. AICC general secretary (Organisation), K C Venugopal, described the allegations as "very serious" and accused the Prime Minister of supporting Adani on the matter. "The Prime Minister's silence on the matter amounts to a destruction of credibility," Venugopal told reporters at the airport here. He accused the union government of trying to divert people's attention from the matter by using the Enforcement Directorate against Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha. "Don't try to threaten Rahul Gandhi with an ED notice. We will strongly oppose such diversionary tactics," the Alappuzha MP said. Venugopal said that "this is the most serious issue in the country" and warn
This comes a day after, Kiren Rijiju on Thursday introduced The Waqf (Amendment) Bill and proposed sending it to a joint parliamentary committee after Opposition parties objected to its provision
Opposition parties have criticised the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, calling it an attack on the Constitution, religious freedoms, and the federal structure of India
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said that since India is hosting the G20 meeting next week, such allegations affect the "image of India"
The Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023, has approved all proposed amendments to the principal Act, including the addition of a preamble and renaming it to Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam while specifying areas included in its purview. The main purpose of the bill is to provide clarity on what qualifies as a forest, thereby bringing such areas under the provisions of the Forest Conservation Act (FCA). The Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023, was introduced in the Lok Sabha on March 29 and referred to a 31-member joint committee of both Houses on the same day. In its 201-page report tabled on Thursday, the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) stated that it received 1,309 memoranda, including comments from experts, state governments, departments, public sector undertakings, ministries and defence forces, as well as four notes of dissent from opposition members of the committee. The key amendments proposed to the principal
The Congress on Thursday said only a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the Adani issue will reveal "the full truth of the Modani scam". Senior leader Jairam Ramesh, in a tweet, cited a news report that has alleged a "cover up". The Congress has been alleging that the money of LIC policyholders has been invested in the Adani Group. It has also claimed that LIC share prices have declined drastically since the Hindenburg Research report, which alleged stock price manipulation by the Adani Group, came out. The Adani Group has denied the allegations. Sharing the link to a news report on Twitter, Ramesh said it is an "expose of the anatomy of a Modani cover-up". Citing the report, he said, "Hire a tiny accounting firm to audit gigantic companies. Get auditors to make identical 'qualified opinions', the minimum needed to comply with the law, without saying why or how it affects investors. "Claim an 'independent review' has been done by an unnamed law firm but without disclosing a
As 2024 elections draw closer, parties in the state are reviewing their options