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Opening the Lok Sabha debate on electoral reforms, Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi delivered a sharply worded and symbolic address, accusing the Election Commission of India of colluding with those in power and enabling systematic voter suppression under the guise of bureaucratic process.  Image Source: Economic Times Screengrab of Sansad TV Without naming the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise directly in his opening remarks, Rahul Gandhi laid the groundwork for a broader critique of institutional erosion and democratic subversion, framing the vote as the fabric binding 1.4 billion Indians in a shared national project. In a speech rich with metaphor but grounded in political accusation, Rahul Gandhi began with a reference to Mahatma Gandhi’s emphasis on khadi, positioning it as a symbol not merely of resistance but of people’s self-expression and unity.  “Khadi is not just a cloth. Khadi is the expression of the people of India,” he said, before drawing a parall...

In a high-stakes Lok Sabha debate marking 150 years of the national song Vande Mataram , Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a fierce historical critique against the Indian National Congress, accusing it of compromising the legacy of the song during the pre-independence era. His speech, which traced Vande Mataram’s journey from Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay’s pen in 1875 to its role as a galvanizing force in India’s freedom struggle, sparked a sharp counterattack from Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who alleged deliberate historical omissions and political motives behind the ruling party’s narrative. Image Source: TheSincereDude on X Calling Vande Mataram the “mantra of freedom, sacrifice, and national spirit,” Modi framed the song’s evolution as a mirror to India’s struggle, and its betrayal. He cited the 1937 Congress Working Committee’s decision to adopt only the first two stanzas of the song after Muslim League objections, framing it as a moment of ideological weakness that, ...

Even as Congress MP Shashi Tharoor’s presence at the state dinner for Russian President Vladimir Putin drew national headlines, it is his continued legislative activity in Parliament that continues largely unnoticed in the public discourse. Image Source: Bangalore Lit Fest on X On a day when Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi were conspicuously excluded from the guest list at the President’s residence, Tharoor stood out as the sole Congress invitee to the diplomatic event.  His decision to attend drew internal criticism from party spokesperson Pawan Khera, who stated that “those who extended such an invitation raise questions, and those who accepted are also open to scrutiny.” But behind the scenes, Tharoor has been consistently active on key policy matters in Parliament. In recent weeks, he introduced several Private Members' Bills and raised detailed parliamentary questions across sectors ranging from urban development and compe...

India's Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday introduced three bills in the Lok Sabha that seek to disqualify the Prime Minister, Union ministers, Chief Ministers or State and Union Territory ministers who remain in judicial custody for 30 consecutive days on serious criminal charges. Image Source: Daily Excelsior on X The bills--Constitution (One Hundred and Thirtieth Amendment) Bill, 2025, Government of Union Territories (Amendment) Bill, 2025, and Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2025--were tabled amid heavy opposition protests and sloganeering, with members tearing copies of the documents and throwing paper bits toward the minister. The proposed legislation states that if any elected office-bearer is in custody for 30 straight days in connection with offences carrying a punishment of five years or more, they will automatically cease to hold office on the 31st day.  Shah also moved a motion to refer the bills to a joint parliamentary committee for further discu...

When India’s Parliament gathered this week for a critical session on Operation Sindoor , launched in retaliation for the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, it wasn’t the Indian armed forces or the political leadership that dominated the national conversation.  It was US President Donald Trump . His repeated claims of mediating the ceasefire between India and Pakistan after four days of intense military action forced India’s top leaders to respond on the floor of Parliament. It also triggered an unusually sharp political and diplomatic debate that overshadowed the original intent of the session. Image Source: JoJofromJerz on X Trump announced on May 10 that a ceasefire between India and Pakistan had been reached following “a long night of talks” mediated by Washington.  That announcement was made just hours after Indian forces halted Operation Sindoor , a high-intensity air and drone campaign targeting Lashkar-e-Taiba-linked infrastructure across the Line of Control. Si...

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered a blistering address in Parliament on Tuesday, accusing the Congress party of consistently undermining India’s armed forces and echoing Pakistan’s propaganda--even as the country mourned the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack and lauded the military's rapid retaliation under Operation Sindoor. Speaking during the Lok Sabha debate, Modi targeted both the Congress’ present leadership and its past legacy. “Opposing the military has been Congress’s old habit,” he declared.  Image Source: Kiran Kumar via Sansad TV “They sought proof after Uri, doubted Balakot, and now they question why Operation Sindoor ended. The country is laughing at them.” The Prime Minister opened his address with a sharp rebuttal to claims that the U.S. played a mediating role in ending Operation Sindoor, which began after the April 22 Pahalgam attack killed 26 civilians.  “On the night of May 9, U.S. Vice President JD Vance tried calling me. I was in a meeti...

US President Donald Trump’s announcement of a ceasefire between India and Pakistan has triggered strong criticism from Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who called it a “deeply irresponsible” reflection of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership.  Speaking in the Lok Sabha during the ongoing debate on Operation Sindoor, Gandhi questioned why the announcement came from a foreign leader rather than India’s own government or armed forces. Image Source: Sansad TV “For the first time in the history of our country, a war is halted and it is not announced by our government or military--but by the President of the United States,” she said, addressing the House. “It reflects the irresponsibility of our Prime Minister.” Trump made the announcement on May 10, stating that India and Pakistan had reached a ceasefire after what he described as a night of talks mediated by Washington.  His remarks came just three days after India launched Operation Sindoor, a targeted strike against terr...

U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated claims of brokering the ceasefire between India and Pakistan after the Pahalgam terror attack sparked sharp criticism in the Indian Parliament on Tuesday, as the country's Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi accused the Indian government of strategic weakness and prioritising image management over national security. Referring directly to Trump’s assertion--made publicly at least 26 times--that he used trade pressure to bring about a halt to India’s cross-border military action, Gandhi challenged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to deny the claim explicitly.  Image Source: Dr Nimo Yadav / Sansad Screengrab “If he's lying, let the PM say that he is lying,” Gandhi demanded, adding, “If Mr Modi has even half the courage of Indira Gandhi, he should come to Parliament and clearly say that we did not lose any aircraft, and that the ceasefire was not done by Trump.” Operation Sindoor was launched by India on May 7 in response to a terror attack in...

India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Monday firmly denied any connection between U.S. trade talks and Operation Sindoor; stated that the request to halt military action came from Pakistan through official military channels; highlighted near-universal global backing for India’s response to the Pahalgam terror attack ; and confirmed new diplomatic and strategic measures against Pakistan including a freeze on the Indus Waters Treaty. Addressing the Lok Sabha during a special discussion on India's military response, Jaishankar asserted that there was no linkage at any point between Operation Sindoor and trade negotiations with the United States.  Image Source: LS Secretariat He  countered repeated claims by U.S. President Donald Trump that Washington used trade leverage to bring about a ceasefire between India and Pakistan.  “At no stage in any conversation with the U.S. was there any linkage with trade and what was going on,” Jaishankar said.  He also cla...

When a civilization as old as human memory is forced to speak the language of war, it does so reluctantly but certainly not softly. This week, the Indian Parliament is gathering to face its reflection in the cracked mirror of national trauma of Pahalgam that we already seem to have gotten over.  The strikes under Operation Sindoor , targeted against Pakistan-sponsored terror infrastructure, have ignited the most consequential test of democratic resolve since the attack. But the stakes here are civilizational. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address in Gangaikonda Cholapuram was deliberate. The site--a monument to imperial endurance--was perhaps chosen by symbolism.  There, under the gaze of Chola greatness, he framed the strikes as a declaration: there are no safe havens for terrorists or their patrons. It was a message to the world and to India that is Bharat itself. Yet the Parliament now convening must answer a different question. Both  what was done and  what ...

India has laid out a roadmap to scale up its nuclear power capacity from the current 8,780 MW to 100 GW by 2047, backed by accelerated construction, advanced tech R&D, and private sector participation.  The Union government disclosed in Parliament that 24 reactors are currently operational, generating 56,681 Million Units (MUs) of electricity in 2024--25 -- around 3 percent of total national power output. Another 13,600 MW worth of projects are under construction, with a near-term capacity goal of 22,380 MW by 2031--32. File Photo Source: Russia in India on X India is simultaneously betting big on rare earth minerals and critical raw materials essential for clean energy and defence sectors. Through its joint venture KABIL, the government has secured 15,703 hectares in Argentina for lithium mining, signed cooperation deals with over 10 mineral-rich nations including Australia and Brazil, and launched a Rs 16,300 crore National Critical Mineral Mission.  Efforts are also und...

Even as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi departed for a high-profile diplomatic visit to the United Kingdom and the Maldives on Tuesday, domestic politics in India entered a turbulent phase.  The sudden resignation of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, combined with escalating demands from the Opposition over Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood, has created a charged atmosphere in the Monsoon Session of Parliament—drawing intense scrutiny of the Modi government’s internal handling of key constitutional and security matters. Image Source: PM NaMo In a formal departure statement released by the Prime Minister’s Office, the Prime Minister emphasised the importance of the UK and Maldives visits, underscoring the need to strengthen bilateral ties in trade, defence, technology, and maritime security.  “I am confident the visit will yield tangible outcomes, benefiting our people and advancing our Neighbourhood First Policy,” he noted, ahead of scheduled meetings with UK Prime Minister Sir...

India’s Monsoon Session of Parliament opened with intensity and interruption on Monday, as the opposition's unrelenting demand for a debate on Operation Sindoor, the code name given to India's decisive military action against terror launch pads in Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Jammu and Kashmir, and accountability for recent national tragedies sparked repeated disruptions in the Lok Sabha. In a crucial development, a 16-hour debate on Operation Sindoor has now been scheduled for next week, according to a decision by Parliament’s Business Advisory Committee (BAC).  Image Source: Sangeetha on X The decision comes after days of behind-the-scenes negotiations and pressure from the opposition parties, who insisted the Prime Minister must respond personally. However, the debate was deferred due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s scheduled diplomatic visits to the UK and Maldives from July 23–26.  The Opposition has criticized the postponement, asserting that Parliament’s time shou...

India's Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu assured the upper house of India's parliament that the investigation into the Air India Flight AI-456 disaster is being conducted with zero bias and in full accordance with global aviation safety norms.  In stating so, the minister who had accompanied Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the crash site and has since been running a hectic schedule, also p ledged absolute transparency and integrity to the house and the people of India.   Image Source: AmravatiInfra on X In his first detailed statement to the Parliament since the horrific June 12 crash that killed 260 people -- one of the worst air disasters in Indian civil aviation history -- the minister emphasised that the country's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is adhering to a strict, rules-based approach grounded in data, not conjecture. “We are guided solely by facts. Our commitment is to the truth — not to headlines, not to corporate interests, and certainly...

The Monsoon Session of the Indian Parliament began earlier today on a high-stakes and emotionally charged note, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing the nation outside Parliament.  The Prime Minister framed the session as a “celebration of victory” in an apparent reference to recent national achievements, including India's decisive military operation inside Pakistan and in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, along with the country's diplomatic mobilisation against terrorism after the Pahalgam massacre by Pakistan based and sponsored TRF. Image Source: LevelUpMindz on X Speaking to media before entering the House, PM Modi praised India's armed forces for the swift and successful execution of "Operation Sindoor," which he described as a 22-minute precision strike that “neutralised terror launchpads deep inside enemy territory.”  The operation, conducted in retaliation for the brutal killing of Indian tourists in Pahalgam by the Pakistan-backed TRF terror ou...