Parliament Budget Session 2024 Highlights: Opposition targets Dharmendra Pradhan over NEET row, ‘students convinced Indian education system a fraud,’ says Rahul Gandhi

In response to questions on the National Testing Agency (NTA) and the conduct of NEET-UG in the Lok Sabha, the Government has said there has been a “likely breach of chain of custody” of the question paper in only one instance and that “there is no material on record to indicate any proof of any large-scale breach of confidentiality in this pan-India examination”.

“The Ministry of Education has asked the Central Bureau of Investigation to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the entire gamut of alleged irregularities including conspiracy, cheating, breach of trust etc,” a response submitted by Union Minister of State for Education Sukanta Majumdar stated.

On the number of cases registered on the leakage of the NEET-UG question paper and the action taken by the Government, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has said in his response that an FIR was registered only in one case, in Patna, alleging the leak of the question paper and that the ministry lodged a complaint with the CBI, which then registered an FIR in the matter on June 23.

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The Centre has so far provided a financial assistance of Rs 35,492 crore to the Andhra Pradesh government, Union MoS for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary informed Lok Sabha Monday.

Replying to supplementary question asked by TDP member Daggumalla Prasad Rao, Chaudhary said the Centre has provided Rs 1,678.76 crore as resource gap, Rs 1,750 for Rayalaseema, the most backward region of the state, Rs 2,500 crore for the capital at Amaravati, and Rs 15,147 crore for Polavaram irrigation project.

Under the provisions of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014, the Centre provides financial assistance to the state.

Chaudhary said that the central government has released over Rs 63,000 crore to Andhra Pradesh over the last five years from 2019-20 to 2023-24 under various centrally sponsored schemes. They are Rs 11,003.60 crore in 2019-20, Rs 12,928.69 crore in 2020-21, Rs 9,696.98 crore in 2021-22, Rs 16,114.94 crore in 2022-23 and Rs 13,313.77 crore in 2023-24.

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A little over 15% of the beneficiaries, who have got houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U) so far, come from religious minority communities, according to a reply by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs to a question in the Rajya Sabha Monday.

Replying to a question by nominated MP Satnam Singh Sandhu, Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry MoS Tokhan Sahu said 118.64 lakh houses had been sanctioned under PMAY-U, which was launched in 2015, based on proposals submitted by states and UTs as of July 15. Of them, 85.04 lakh houses had been completed or delivered to the beneficiaries.

Of the total sanctioned houses, 15.15% or 16 lakh houses were for beneficiaries from the minority communities. Of them, 13.45 lakh (12.74%) were Muslim beneficiaries, 1.73 lakh (1.64%) Christians, 49,670 (0.47%) Sikh, 19,707 (0.19%) Buddhist, 10,457 (0.10%) Jains and 1,127 (0.01%) Zoroastrians, the reply said.

The Lok Sabha was adjourned till 11 am on July 23

The Lok Sabha on Monday took up the issue of preparedness of the Indian contingent for the upcoming Paris Olympics.

Opposition members questioned the timing of the debate on the games that begin later this week.

When Speaker Om Birla asked the House to take up the discussion, RSP's N K Premchandran questioned the timing and asked what suggestions could the House offer when the Indian team has already left for the Olympics beginning July 26.

He accused the government of taking the House for granted, noting that supplementary agenda is issued to bring important legislative items.

Initiating the discussion, BJP's Sanjay Jaiswal hit back and said the opposition finds the discussion on sports irrelevant. (With PTI inputs)

Citing an inter-ministerial group report prepared in 2012, the Centre on Monday asserted that no case is made out for granting special category status to Bihar, news agency PTI reported.

The government’s stand comes a day after the BJP’s allies from Bihar demanded the status for the backward state during an all-party meeting.

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Congress MP from Rohtak Deepender Hooda lashed out at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party over its protection of former MP and ex-Wrestling Federation of India president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who had been accused of sexual assault and harassment by female wrestlers.

He also accused the ruling dispensation of neglecting sports.

In the Lok Sabha today, Mumbai North Central MP and Congress leader Varsha Gaekwad continued the Opposition's attack on Adani Realty being given the tender for the Dharavi redevelopment project.

"Sansad TV began the alarming practice of replacing the speeches of MPs in English or regional languages with Hindi voice-overs in the first session of this Lok Sabha, and it has continued doing so in the Budget Session on the television broadcast. This is a form of censorship—it denies crores of non-Hindi speaking Indians the right to hear their elected representatives’ original words in their own languages. The government must immediately discontinue this discriminatory and anti-federal move," NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) MP Supriya Sule's post on X read.

The Lower House resumes proceedings. Chaired by Sandhya Ray, the Lok Sabha takes up matters under Rule 377 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Lok Sabha.

This allows members of the House to raise matters of urgent public importance.

Similarly in the Rajya Sabha, this is done under 'Special Mentions" under Rule 180-E.

CPI MP Sandosh Kumar, in a special mention, spoke about the move to change name of Kerala to Keralam.

Kerala Assembly on Monday (June 24) unanimously passed a resolution urging the Centre to rename the state as “Keralam’’ in the Constitution. This is the second time in the past year that such a resolution has been passed.

The resolution, moved by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan states: “The name of our state in Malayalam is Keralam… However, the name of our state in the first Schedule of the Constitution has been written as Kerala. This Assembly is unanimously requesting the Union Government to take immediate steps under Article 3 of the Constitution to change the name of the state to Keralam.”

After a break, Rajya Sabha resumes proceedings with Special Mentions by the Members of the House

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Monday tabled the Economic Survey 2023-24, which projects a real GDP growth of 6.5 to 7 per cent. It adds that the Reserve Bank of India expects inflation to be 4.5 per cent in FY 25 and 4.1 per cent in FY26.

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The Lok Sabha has been adjourned till 2.30 pm. It was being chaired by Sandhya Ray.

Earlier in the morning, the House also paid tributes to Nguyen Phu Trong, general secretary of Vietnam's ruling Communist Party, who passed away on July 19. As a mark of respect for the departed soul, the members also stood in silence for a brief while

Rajya Sabha adjourned till 2 pm.

Earlier this morning, Vice-President of India and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar expressed condolences in the on the demise of HE Nguyen Phu Trong, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam.

"There is no bounded rule/regulation that a personal letter has to be replied. It is courtesy to respond to it, yes," says Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju.

He was responding to Gujarat MP Shaktisinh Gohil.

"If the concerned minister is unable to fulfill the assurance. Is there any mechanism to write to the member within 3 months?" Kerala MP Dr John Brittas.

To which Rijiju responded: "About special mentions or calling attentions, I also personally feel and as a minister assure that it must be repsonded to well in time. Extension is always a provision."

It was also a matter raised in the all-party meet on Sunday, he added.

Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi arrives at the Parliament for the Monsoon Session.

"It's obvious to the whole country that there is a very serious problem with our examination system. This is not just the question of the NEET but major examinations.

Now, the minister has blamed everybody except himself. I don't think he understands the fundamentals of what's going on here.

The issue is that there are millions of students in this country who are extremely concerned about what is going on and who are convinced that the Indian examination system is a fraud.

Millions of people believe that if you're rich, you can buy the Indian examination system, and this is the same feeling we as the Opposition have. This is why we are asking some very simple questions to the Hon. Minister.

👉As this is a systemic issue, what exactly are you doing to fix the issue at a systemic level?"

Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankar on Monday rejected notices from opposition MPs calling for discussion on an Uttar Pradesh government order asking shops along the Kanwar Yatra route to display names of their owners and staff.

Opposition MPs had given notices under rule 267 seeking suspension of the business of the day to take up discussion on the issue.

Dhankar said the notices were "neither in conformity to requirements of rule 267 nor to directions given by the chair... And so the same are not accepted".

Ahead of presenting the Union Budget tomorrow, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tables the Economic Survey 2023-24.

The survey typically comes out on January 31, a day before the Finance Minister presents the Union Budget for the next financial year.

However, in election years like 2024, the government takes a different route and presents a shorter report titled “The Indian Economy – A Review” and tables an interim budget in February. After the dissolution of the parliament and the conclusion of elections, the newly-elected government presents a comprehensive Economic Survey and Budget for the financial year.

Shatrughan Sinha won the Lok Sabha elections from West Bengal's Asansol constituency by 59,564 votes. Asansol constituency voted in Phase 4 of the 2024 Lok Sabha election on May 13, 2024. He took oath as the Member of the House this morning.

In the Question Hour, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman speaks on steps taken to reduce burden on courts regarding pending cases.

Congress' Kerala MP Shashi Tharoor flags the staffing issues in the NCTs and NCLATs, especially in southern states.

"It is being addressed with a sense of urgency," she responded talking about increased number of recruitments.

"Of the 4,700 centres where the NEET exam took place, only one centre in Bihar in Patna region faced the issue. It is being investigated by the Bihar police and other investigative agencies."

Dharmendra Pradhan also hit out the Congress government's "track record". He also provided a background of the centralised examination.

Responding to Akhilesh Yadav, he says: "I don't want to bring politics here, but how many paper leaks have happened in Uttar Pradesh?"

"Better to wait and watch what the Supreme Court says and follow the directions. The government has nothing to hide and has put out all facts," he adds.

In the ongoing Question Hour in the Lower House, the ongoing NEET-UG paper leak issue is brought up with Opposition leaders hitting out Education Minsiter Dharmendra Pradhan and asking some tough questions.

The leaders who spoke were Manickam Tagore, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi.

Tagore asked if the education minister will resign over the matter and take responsibility. Akhilesh Yadav stood up to say that if the minister continues, there will be no justice to the students who are bearing the brunt of the alleged irregularities.

"If you are rich and have money, you can buy the education system. That is the feeling in the country and is same for the Opposition," says Rahul Gandhi asking about the change in the system now.

Rajasthan's Churu MP Rahul Kaswan begins speaking in the Question Hour.

It is the first Hour of every sitting of the Parliament during which the MPs can ask questions to Ministers on matters related to their ministries. The purpose of Question Hour is to elicit information from the government on various issues.

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Rajya Sabha Chair Jagdeep Dhankar start the proceedings in both the Lower and Upper House.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a customary press statement ahead of the Budget Session, appealed to the Opposition to participate in the Parliament for the "nation and not individual parties"

"Some parties' misused the Parliament for their unsuccessful politics," he said, in reference to the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha earlier in June.

He appealed for the first-time MPs to be given a chance to put their points across during discussions of the House.

- "Some parties misused the Parliament for their unsuccessful politics in the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha.

- "Give chance to first-time MPs to put their points across during discussion," Modi said in an appeal to the Opposition ahead of the Monsoon Session of Parliament scheduled to go on till August 12.

- "In first session, there was an attempt to suppress voice of elected govt, strangulate the PM's voice in an undemocratic manner."

P Chidambaram writes on why he leaves Parliament House often disappointed on Budget day.

"...Afterwards, I go back to the people and speak to persons from different walks of life including MLAs, economists, businesspersons, farmers, women, youth and, above all, party activists. The last-named give me feedback from the ground, especially the chatter in the local markets. In practically every year during the last 10 years, I found that the Budget ‘announcements’ vanished without a trace in 48 hours, and the chatter ceased. The main reasons for the disappointing outcome are because the Budget makers lose touch with reality and fail to make an objective assessment of the economic situation," he says.

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Ahead of the commencement of the Budget Session of Parliament this morning, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's will give a customary press statement, while Opposition leaders will meet to discuss coordination during the session.

The session is expected to be a stormy one with a resurgent Opposition set to corner the Modi government on issues ranging from the NEET paper leaks to railway safety, to unemployment and price rise.

With the Opposition having not got a chance to raise the issue of the alleged irregularities and leaks in the NEET exams as well as the Manipur crisis in the first session after the Lok Sabha polls, its expected to be focused upon this time as well.

KANWAR YATRA ROW

At the all-party meeting held on Sunday on the eve of the session, the Opposition leaders were united in raising their concerns over the ADG, Meerut Zone’s contentious directive asking the eateries and carts on the Kanwar Yatra route to display the names of their owners and employees, ostensibly clarifying their religion, as reported by Liz Mathew. They asked the Centre to intervene, calling the directive “divisive”.

Even before the Parliament convenes for the Budget Session today, Congress MP Manickam Tagore has given an adjournment motion notice in Lok Sabha, demanding a discussion on the ongoing issue of alleged irregularities in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) and University Grants Commission-National Eligibility Test (UGC-NET) conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA).

In his notice, Manickam Tagore urged the House to suspend all listed business of the day to discuss the "unprecedented cases of paper leaks in conduct of exams including NEET-UG and UGC NET and the failure of National Testing Agency (NTA)."

Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha witnessed several adjournments in the last session which was also the first session for the 18th Lok Sabha, with Congress and other opposition parties pressing for a "dedicated discussion" on the row.

The highly-anticipated Union Budget will be presented tomorrow. The Budget Session of the Parliament (also the Monsoon session this year) begins with the tabling of the economic survey today.

The government is expected to bring at least six Bills in Parliament over the course of the session scheduled to go on till August 12. The session is expected to be a stormy one with a resurgent Opposition likely to continue its aggressive approach from the first session in June. From the all-party meet on Sunday, it’s gathered that the opposition leaders are looking to corner the NDA-led BJP government on issues ranging from the NEET paper leaks to railway safety, to unemployment and price rise.

Sitharaman will release the Economic Survey 2023-24 today, just a day before the Union Budget 2024 is presented.

Now, the survey typically comes out on January 31, a day before the Finance Minister presents the Union Budget for the next financial year.

So, why is it on a different date this year?

In election years like 2024, the government takes a different route and presents a shorter report titled “The Indian Economy – A Review” and tables an interim budget in February. After the dissolution of the parliament and the conclusion of elections, the newly-elected government presents a comprehensive Economic Survey and Budget for the financial year.

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The Budget Session the Parliament begins today and Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will be releasing the Economic Survey around noon.

Stay tuned to get real-time updates from inside the Parliament!