Page 2 - National Democratic Alliance

New government, new homes: Ministers compete for Delhi's top addresses

Some ministers of the new government reportedly visited Lutyens' Delhi bungalows before formally submitting their requests to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs

PM Modi faces Budget pressure as Nitish Kumar seeks Rs 30,000 crore aid

Modi's biggest ally in the coalition - N Chandrababu Naidu of the Telugu Desam Party - has already made a request for more than $12 billion in aid over the next few years for Andhra Pradesh

CM Naidu scheduled to meet PM Modi, likely to discuss funds for Amaravati

Sources in the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) underlined that it was Naidu's first visit to the national capital after taking oath as the Andhra chief minister last month

With four more bridge collapses in a day, Bihar tally touches 10 in 2 weeks

Four bridges collapsed within 24 hours in Bihar on July 3, marking the tenth such event in the state over the past 15 days. Here is why the bridges aren't able to stand tall in bad weather

BJP-led Centre constitutes 8 Cabinet committees; allies find space too

Composition of Cabinet Committee on Security remains unchanged

Rahul Gandhi enjoyed power without liability so far: Anurag Thakur in LS

BJP leader Anurag Thakur on Monday listed out various economic achievements of the NDA government in the last 10 years and took a swipe at Rahul Gandhi, saying he was enjoying power without responsibility till he became the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha. Initiating the discussion on the Motion of Thanks on President's Address, Thakur said the Lok Sabha elections have kept those against the Constitution in the Opposition benches for the third time. While congratulating Gandhi on becoming the Leader of Opposition, Thakur said the Congress leader now has power with responsibility and "absentee landlordism will not work". For the last many years, Gandhi was enjoying power without responsibility, Thakur said and asserted that it was an "agnipariksha" for the Congress leader now. "Will he sit in Lok Sabha all day?... he is not there (even) now," the BJP leader remarked. Gandhi was not in the House when Thakur made the remarks and there were protests from the Opposition ...

Not just China, all PLI-led visas being fast-tracked: Piyush Goyal

On 100-day agenda, Goyal said the commerce department and DPIIT were still working on it and it was a "work in progress"

JD(U) names Sanjay Jha working prez, seeks special package for Bihar

The JD(U) appointed its Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Jha as working president on Saturday. The decision was taken at a meeting of its national executive where the party reiterated its demand for special category status for Bihar, while adding that the Centre could also consider an alternative in a special package, its senior leader Neeraj Kumar said. The BJP ally also demanded stringent action against culprits in exam paper leak cases and called for a strong law to rule out such incidents in the future. The decision to appoint Jha as working president is significant since he is known to have a good equation with the BJP leadership. He is also the party's leader in the Rajya Sabha. Party sources said Jha was well-suited to draw a good deal from the BJP and maintain a friendly relationship between the two parties, which have a history of bumpy ties. Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) president Nitish Kumar, Union ministers Lalan Singh and Ram Nath Thakur, and other senior leaders from aro

NDA candidate Om Birla elected as Lok Sabha Speaker for second time

'Your sweet smile keeps the entire House happy,' Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, congratulating Om Birla on his appointment, passed through voice votes

LS Speaker poll: Om Birla vs K Suresh - a fight for dominance. Key updates

After the Opposition INDIA bloc put forth Kodikunnil Suresh as its candidate for Lok Sabha Speaker post against NDA's Om Birla, the Lower House is poised for an election after decades

LS set for first Speaker seat contest since 1976; NDA fields Om Birla

The INDIA bloc, in turn, pointed to the convention that the Opposition should be given the post of Deputy Speaker

LS Speaker election: BJP begins consultations, Oppn too weighs options

The BJP has begun consultations with its allies on the ruling NDA's candidate for the Lok Sabha Speaker's post while the opposition INDIA bloc is considering its options and may force a contest to score political points, sources said on Monday, a day before the filing of nomination for the key position. The National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which enjoys a clear majority in the Lok Sabha, gave little indication about its choice as it weighs its options and looks to deny the opposition any opportunity to mount a political attack. Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader and Union minister K Rammohan Naidu told reporters that the alliance's leaders, including his party's president and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, will take a decision on the matter, adding that no final decision has been conveyed to them yet. A leader of another BJP ally said on the condition of anonymity that the BJP leadership has held consultations with him. He declined to discuss the details. With th

Lok Sabha session: People want substance not slogans, says PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said people have given his government mandate for a third consecutive term and have put a stamp of approval on its policies and intentions. He also said that the 18th Lok Sabha begins on Monday with a resolve of building a 'Shreshtha Bharat' and 'Viksit Bharat'. Addressing the media in Parliament complex at the beginning of the first session of the new Lok Sabha, PM Modi asserted that his government will take everyone along in fulfilling the aspirations of the people. Modi also noted that Emergency's 50th anniversary falls on June 25, and described it as a "black spot" on India's democracy when Constitution was discarded. Welcoming new MPs, he said the 18th Lok Sabha commences with a dream of building a developed India by 2047. People expect good steps from the opposition but it has been disappointing so far, he said while expressing hope that it will fulfil its role and maintain democracy's decorum. India needs a responsible opposition and

No evidence PM Modi understood true meaning of people's verdict: Congress

The Congress on Monday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has nothing new to offer and as usual resorted to "diversion" in his remarks ahead of the start of the 18th Lok Sabha. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the PM has shown no evidence that he understood the true meaning of people's verdict. "The non-biological PM who suffered a resounding personal, political, and moral defeat in the Lok Sabha elections has just given his usual 'desh ke naam sandesh' outside the Parliament as the 18th Lok Sabha prepares to commence its tenure," he said. "He has said nothing new and as usual resorted to diversion. He has shown no evidence that he understands the true meaning of the people's verdict, which saw him eking out only a narrow and dubious win in Varanasi," Ramesh said in a post on X. "Let him be under no doubt: the INDIA Janbandhan will hold him to account for every minute. He stands brutally exposed," Ramesh also said. In his customary remarks ahead of the start of 18th Lo

Who Is Bhartruhari Mahtab? BJP's pro-tem speaker who sparked controversy

BJP MP Bhartruhari Mahtab was sworn in as the pro-tem Speaker by President Droupadi Murmu in the 18th Lok Sabha's first Parliament session on June 24

Andhra assembly session begins, 1st after TDP-led coalition comes to power

The maiden session of the 16th Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly began on Friday with the oath-taking process of the newly-elected MLAs. TDP MLA G Butchaiah Chowdary presided over the proceedings as the Pro-tem Speaker. The session commenced at 9:45 am in the Assembly Hall located at Velagapudi, Amravati. Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu attended the session after more than two and half years. Actor-Politician and Janasena chief Pawan Kalyan entered the House for the first time in his 16-year-old political career as Pithapuram MLA and Deputy Chief Minister. The session will witness the election of a new Speaker and Deputy Speaker. According to TDP sources, senior party leader and Narsipatnam MLA C Ayyannapatrudu is likely to be elected as the Speaker. CM and Kuppam MLA Chandrababu Naidu was the first to take oath followed by Deputy CM Pawan Kalyan. After taking oath, Naidu went to the Pro-tem's Speaker's chair and exchanged pleasantries. The NDA alliance swept the 2024 And

Jolt to Cong in Haryana: Kiran Choudhry, daughter Shruti quit; to join BJP

In a jolt to the Congress in Haryana where assembly polls are due in October, senior leader Kiran Choudhry and her daughter Shruti Choudhry quit the party and will join the ruling BJP on Wednesday. Both Kiran Choudhry and Shruti Choudhry resigned from the primary membership of the Congress on Tuesday. Shruti Choudhry was also the working president of the Haryana unit of the Congress. Kiran Choudhry, who is also a sitting MLA, told PTI that both she and Shruti, a former MP, will be joining the BJP on Wednesday. Kiran Choudhry snapped her four-decade long association with the Congress. Their joining is likely to come as a big boost to the BJP in Haryana with few months remaining for the polls. Kiran Choudhry, daughter-in-law of former Haryana chief minister Bansi Lal, is considered as bete noire of senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda. She and her daughter sent separate resignation letters to Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge in which they took a veiled dig at Hooda. While

Unprecedented mandate for NDA has created history: PM Modi in Varanasi

The mandate given by the people in this Lok Sabha election is truly unprecedented and has created history, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday on his first visit to his Varanasi constituency after the polls. He was addressing a PM Kisan Samman Sammelan, where he released the Rs 20,000 crore 17th installment of the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi for more than 9.26 crore farmers. Modi said the first decision of the new government related to farmers and the poor. With the blessings of Baba Vishwanath, Maa Ganga and love of Kashi's people, "I became the country's 'pradhan sevak' for third time," the prime minister said.

'Teary' PM said NDA couldn't win single Lok Sabha seat in Tamil Nadu: DMK

DMK's Tamil mouthpiece 'Murasoli' on Monday claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the recent meeting of MPs of the National Democratic Alliance had said with 'teary eyes' that they could not win even a single Lok Sabha seat in Tamil Nadu. "He did not say why they could not win. He does not seem to have realised the reason for that. He will not spell out the reason even if he has realised and he cannot disclose that reason," Murasoli said in its editorial on June 17. The DMK-led INDIA bloc in Tamil Nadu has been unmasking the BJP not only for electoral politics but it is being done ideologically and this alliance was not formed in the state just before the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. "This alliance has been waging a democratic war against the fascist BJP for the past five years." The DMK and its allies could secure a landslide victory by its grassroots campaign that nurturing BJP would be dangerous for the whole of India. DMK president and Chief Minister M K Stalin's pitch of a vote

In day-long meeting, Virendra Kumar reviews progress of DEPwD schemes

Union Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Dr Virendra Kumar convened a pivotal daylong meeting on Saturday to review the progress of various schemes and strategize on key departmental initiatives for the next 100 days. The meeting included the participation of Ministers of State Ramdas Athawale and B.L. Verma. During the meeting, Secretary of the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD), Rajesh Aggarwal, delivered a comprehensive presentation on the department's initiatives, according to an official statement. This was followed by a detailed discussion on the modernization efforts of the Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India (ALIMCO). Heads of various organisations, including the Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities (CCPD), the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI), National Institutes (NIs) and the National Divyangjan Finance and Development Corporation (NDFDC), presented their significant achievements. The participants engag