THE Union agriculture ministry will redraft the seed bill following complaints by MPs, states and farmer groups. Their main grouse is that the bill, which aims to regulate the quality of seeds, does not monitor their prices, crucial for farmers. The Seed Bill 2010 was approved by the Cabinet in March and was to be tabled in the Rajya Sabha in mid-April. Sources in the ministry said MPs and state government...
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CIC asks PMO to declare Ministers' assets
The Central Information Commission (CIC) on Monday directed the Prime Minister's Office to declare Union Ministers' assets after getting the nod from the Rajya Sabha Chairman and the Lok Sabha Speaker, and said the opinion of the heads of both Houses will be applicable to all future Right to Information queries seeking such information. Chief Information Commissioner Wajahat Habibullah passed the order while hearing a petition from RTI activist Subhash Agarwal,...
More »Panchayat warns MPs & MLAs: Support khap stance or face ire by Vijay Sabharwal
By scraping and bowing before khap leaders and agreeing to hold aloft their frayed flag of patriarchy, youth icon and Congress MP from Kurukshetra Naveen Jindal may have staved off a siege on his home by the violent keepers of middle-ages morality. But other MPs and MLAs who represent areas where the khap writ runs have now been warned that the lawmakers face khap ire if they don't make their...
More »SC upholds constitutional validity of MPLAD scheme
The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the constitutional validity of the Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) saying it was for public purpose. The bench said that improvement can be made in the working of the MPLAD scheme, but it is not illegal. Under MPLAD scheme, members of Parliament are allocated Rs two crore annually for development of their constituencies. "We hold that the MPLAD scheme is valid,"...
More »70 Lok Sabha MPs yet to reveal assets
At least 70 Lok Sabha MPs, including former prime minister HD Deve Gowda, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad and cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu, have not yet disclosed details of their assets, a Right to Information (RTI) application has revealed. The information was obtained in reply to an application filed by RTI activist Subhash Chandra Agrawal with the Lok Sabha secretariat, seeking names of the members who have not...
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