NEW DELHI - Few can beat the Communists when it comes to opposing something. They can oppose even those who agree with them.
The Congress and the Left party MPs from Kerala had given a notice for discussion in the Lok Sabha to oppose India’s decision to sign a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the ASEAN nations.
During zero hour, Speaker Meira Kumar first invited Congress MP K.C. Venugopal to present the matter. He said the farmers and the political leadership of the state had some “apprehension” over the agreement and the central government should “clarify” all the doubts over the deal.
But the Left parties, while agreeing with the Congress MP, disagreed with the word “apprehension”.
Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) MP P. Karunakaran added: “The deal should not be signed as it would cause the collapse of the state’s economy based on agriculture.”
_*_
Chinese invasion in time of India-Pakistan heat
While the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has generated heat in parliament over India’s new stance on Pakistan, it was the Chinese ‘invasion’ of the Indian market that took the limelight during question hour in the Lok Sabha Monday.
Congress’ Anto Antony wanted to know what the government was doing about the “dumping” of Chinese goods in the Indian market. Commerce Minister Anand Sharma was quick to allay fears of the members on this count.
Only those Chinese toys that meet international standards were allowed to be imported to India, he said, pointing out that this applied to toys from all countries.
Sharma said dairy products from China had also been banned and so have chocolates and other related products.
About Chinese mobile phones, the minister said: “The government has already imposed a ban on all those mobile phones which do not carry International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI).”
The ban was imposed from this month for security considerations.
-*-
Media friendly, but not always
Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Prithviraj Chavan is usually quite friendly with the media, but on Monday he was tight-lipped. Journalists tried
to get him to say something on the joint India-Pakistan statement but he wriggled out.
“You will come to know about it on July 29,” was all that he would say when reporters tried to get him to comment.
-*-
Taking on Maya, getting away with it
What is it that gives the Congress confidence to take on Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati despite her outside support to the government?
A senior Congress leader said she would not withdraw support “as she is scared of the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) cases” about her alleged disproportionate assets.
“We will continue our fight against Mayawati both inside and outside parliament. She has lost touch with the ground reality in Uttar Pradesh. We know the ground reality,” he said.
Related News
BJP appeals to president for early polls in JharkhandSeptember 17th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Thursday appealed to President Pratibha Patil for early elections in Jharkhand, which is under the President's Rule since Jan 19. "We informed the president that keeping the legislative assembly in suspended animation had no logic as no political party in Jharkhand is in a position to form a new government," Raghuvar Das, Jharkhand BJP president, told reporters after meeting the president.
Jharkhand BJP legislators resign, demand assembly polls (Second Lead)September 9th, 2009 RANCHI - All 22 Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislators in Jharkhand Wednesday resigned from the assembly and demanded lifting of the president's rule and early elections in the state. The BJP legislators accompanied by state party president Raghubar Das, Lok Sabha members, former chief minister Arjun Munda and former central minister Yashwant Sinha met Speaker Aalamgir Aalam and submitted their resignations.
Moldova's Parliament elects new speaker in vote boycotted by CommunistsAugust 28th, 2009 Moldova's Parliament elects new speakerCHISINAU, Moldova — Moldova's pro-Western coalition government has chosen a new parliament speaker in a vote that was boycotted by the Communist legislators. Last month, the four-party coalition won a narrow victory in a national election in Moldova, a former Soviet republic.
CPI-M demands white paper on India-ASEAN trade pactAugust 14th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Friday demanded that the central government bring out a white paper explaining the impact of the India-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (FTA) on the Indian economy. The CPI-M also criticised the government for signing the agreement without any discussion in parliament.
Reduce parliament tenure, says Bangladesh ministerAugust 4th, 2009 DHAKA - A senior minister Tuesday said the tenures of parliament and other local government bodies should be reduced since "five years' tenure is very long". Local Government and Rural Development (LGRD) Minister Syed Ashraful Islam said that the five-year duration of any form of government "is very long", Star Online reported.
NDA to submit memorandum to President over Indo-Pak joint statementJuly 27th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Members of Parliament of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance would submit a memorandum to President Pratibha Patil on Tuesday to draw her attention on the controversial joint statement with Pakistan issued in Sharm-el-Sheikh in Egypt and some other issues. "All NDA MPs will march to the Rashtrapati Bhavan from Raisina Hill to hand over a memorandum to the President," BJP Deputy Leader in the Lok Sabha, Sushma Swaraj, told media in the capital on Monday.
Mongolian parliament sidesteps mining pact with foreigners, asking the government to handleJuly 17th, 2009 Mongolian lawmakers sidestep foreign mining pactULAN BATOR, Mongolia — Mongolia's parliament, unable to agree on a mining deal, has given the government a freehand to renegotiate terms with Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. and Rio Tinto Ltd.
Parliament approves six-month extension of President's Rule in JharkhandJuly 17th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The extension of Presidential rule in Jharkhand by another six months has been approved by the Parliament, after the Government assured that the assembly polls would be held there "at the earliest opportunity". "We will hold elections at the earliest opportunity.
Sonia to Congress MPs - 'Don't irritate Mamata' (Parliament Diary)July 3rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Aware of Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee's temper, Congress president Sonia Gandhi Friday gestured her party MPs not to upset her when she presented the railway budget in the Lok Sabha. Banerjee clashed with Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) MPs as she began her budget speech.
President's rule extended in Jharkhand by six monthsJuly 2nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - The union cabinet Thursday extended the six-month-old President's rule in Jharkhand by six months beyond July 18. The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, said cabinet spokesperson and Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni.
Canada says European Parliament ban on seal imports won't prevent free-trade deal with EUMay 5th, 2009 Canada to talk trade despite EU seal product banTORONTO — Canada's trade minister says a European Parliament ban of Canadian seal products won't prevent Canada and the EU from agreeing on a wide-ranging free-trade agreement. The European Parliament voted Tuesday to ban imports of seal products in an effort to force Canada to end its annual seal hunt.
Priyanka takes dig at Left's 'regressive' approach, but okay with allianceApril 21st, 2009 AMETHI - Priyanka Gandhi, canvassing for her brother Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi, Tuesday did not rule out the UPA forming a post-poll alliance with the Left, but said the Communists should do a rethink on their 'regressive' approach with regard to building up a strong economy. In an interview to Times Now channel, she did not rule out the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) forming a post-poll alliance with the Left as coalition politics 'is a reality'.
Zardari formally lifts Governor Rule in PunjabMarch 30th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has formally lifted Governor's Rule in Punjab by signing a summary on the advice of Prime Minister Yousuf Raja Gilani. After a late night meeting with Gilani, Zardari signed the summary to lift governor's rule, The Dawn reports.
With several conditions, Sharif ready to reconcile with PPPMarch 23rd, 2009 RAIWIND - Pakistan Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani and Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz chief Nawaz Sharif have agreed on political reconciliation based on several conditions. During a meeting at his residence in Raiwind, Sharif said that he would extend cooperation to the People's Party for the superiority of the parliament.
BSP candidate demanded money from police officer: government recordMarch 19th, 2009 LUCKNOW - A Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidate for the Lok Sabha polls in Uttar Pradesh allegedly demanded money from a police officer so that the candidate could recover the money he claimed to have spent to 'buy' the party ticket, an official record shows. Hussain Ansari, candidate of the state's ruling BSP, called up inspector Subhash Tiwari Jan 20, demanding Rs.20,000 from him, records the general diary of the Leharpur police station of Sitapur district, 85 km from here.
Loading ...