Parliament of IndiaParliament Live News Updates: Congress MP Manish Tewari has given an adjournment motion notice in Lok Sabha over the farm laws. The issue of farmers’ protests dominated the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha on Wednesday. Speaking in Rajya Sabha, MP Swapan Dasgupta defended the three farm laws saying it will bring investments in a whole range of areas. He said reforms are needed for the growth of the agriculture sector. Minister of State for Home Affairs G Kishan Reddy today introduced Bill in Rajya Sabha to replace Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Ordinance, 2021 (J&K Cadre merger with AGMUT). Besides this, Congress MP Chhaya Verma and Samajwadi Party MP Vishambhar Prasad have given short duration discussion notice in Rajya Sabha, “over rising unemployment in the country”.
On Wednesday, Congress Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad asked the Centre to withdraw the three contentious farm bills without making it a prestige issue. He highlighted the problems which farmers would face because of the new farm laws and said the government should not see repealing of the legislations as a “prestige issue”. Describing farmers as “annadata”, Azad said there was no point in confronting them. Instead, the Centre should focus on other important issues, including on revival of the economy.
Highlights
Parliament LIVE: When there was UPA government, the health budget was not utilized fully. Congress-led UPA's 5 year budget was Rs 1,75,000 crores while NDA's one year health budget is Rs. 2,23,000 crores, 137% increase from last year, says BJP MP Jyotiraditya Scindia in Rajya Sabha.
BJP MP Jyotiraditya Scindia in Rajya Sabha: "When country is battling COVID, Opposition is busy pointing fingers. First they questioned lockdown and then the unlock phase. Despite Congress MP Anand Sharma appreciating lockdown measures in his report, party alleges vaccine politics."
A Rajya Sabha MP on Wednesday called upon the government to institute an impartial inquiry into the Reppublic Day violence, headed by a sitting Supreme Court Judge, if possible. Addressing the Upper House during the Motion of Thanks on the President's Address, Prasanna Acharya of the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) said while everybody has condemned the violence on January 26, "putting the whole blame squarely on a few farmer organisations, or few farmer leaders is not going to solve the problem". He called for a probe to ascertain the truth about who was behind the violence, "how thousands of people were allowed to enter the Red Fort. Who opened the gate of the Red Fort". Acharya suggested an inquiry to determine the role of the police, the local administration, farmer leaders and organisations who were spearheading the agitation against the three agricultural legislations. "My suggestion to government is that a proper, impartial inquiry should be instituted into the incident. Let it be headed by a sitting Supreme Court judge. Let us know the truth. Who was behind all these things," Acharya said. (PTI)
Parliament, Farm Laws LIVE: BJP Rajya Sabha MP Jyotiraditya Scindia today quoted the Congress manifesto to back farm reforms brought in by the Centre. He said Congress had suppported the same reforms and promised to repeal APMCs after coming to power. Scindia also quoted former union agriculure minister and current NCP chief Sharad Pawar who had also backed these reforms. He said they all had agreed on these reforms but if they have any issue they should point out.