Parliament LIVE | Pradhan: Repeatedly wrote to TN CM to join NEP
Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan replied to the discussion on the working of the Education Ministry in the Rajya Sabha
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday (March 11) said he repeatedly wrote to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin urging him to join the National Education Policy (NEP) and PM SHRI.
Also read: CM Stalin vows TN will reject NEP, cites BJP’s hostility towards Tamils
Replying to discussion on the working of the Education Ministry in the Rajya Sabha, Pradhan said, "I do not dispute that the NEP has an ideological commitment which is our pride in Bharatiyata and our culture. This is why course books under NEP have to be prepared in 22 languages."
"I told him (Stalin) that Tamil Nadu has always been a pioneer in education," Pradhan said.
He added that the Chief Secretary of Tamil Nadu wrote back to me saying Tamil Nadu is "very keen to sign the MoU for establishing PM-SHRI schools in Tamil Nadu" and that "in this regard a state level committee has been constituted and based on the committee report MoU will be signed for 2024-2025".
DMK MPs protest
Earlier on Tuesday, Kanimozhi and other DMK MPs staged a protest within the Parliament premises over the NEP, the three-language policy, and against Pradhan over his remarks in Parliament on Monday calling the Tamil Nadu government “dishonest” and the people of the state “uncivilised”.
On Monday, Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned for about 30 minutes after DMK members staged protests over Pradhan’s remarks that the Tamil Nadu government was “ruining” the future of the students of the state by taking a complete “U-turn” on the issue of implementing the PM Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI).
“The Tamil Nadu government had initially agreed to sign the MoU. But now they have changed the stand. Many non-BJP-ruled states, including Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh, have signed the agreement,” he said. “They (DMK) are dishonest and they are ruining the future of the students of Tamil Nadu. They are doing politics,” he added.
Taking strong exception to the minister’s remarks, DMK members registered strong protests by raising slogans against the central government. After some time, Birla adjourned the House till 12 noon. Monday was the first day of the second half of Parliament’s Budget session.
Opposition walks out of Rajya Sabha
In Rajya Sabha, Opposition parties led by the Congress staged a walkout after their notices for discussions on issues ranging from “duplicate” voter ID cards to US funding to voter turnout were rejected, even as Union minister JP Nadda insisted that the government was ready to discuss any issue, provided they were under the rules.
The Opposition MPs raised slogans after the deputy chairman of the House, Harivansh, said a dozen notices under Rule 267, which calls for setting aside the business of the day to take up discussions on urgent matters, have been rejected. Citing the rejection, Harivansh did not allow Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge to make his submission.
The opposition MPs then protested for a while before staging a walkout.
Notices by Opposition
Earlier, Harivansh said 12 notices had been received under Rule 267. Tiruchi N Siva of DMK, CPI’s Santosh Kumar P, Vaiko of MDMK, CPI’s PP Suneer, and P Wilson of DMK demanded discussions on concerns regarding the upcoming delimitation exercise in the southern states.
Trinamool Congress members Saket Gokhale and Sagarika Ghose, along with Pramod Tiwari and Ajay Maken of the Congress demanded discussions over the alleged lapse by the Election Commission in issuing multiple “duplicate” voter ID cards across states.
While Sanjay Singh of AAP demanded a discussion on the financial loss incurred by the small investors due to the continued decline in stock market indices, Ramji Lal Suman of the Samajwadi Party called for a discussion over a statement made by US President Donald Trump on American funding to increase voter turnout in India.
V Sivadasan of the CPI(M) wanted to raise issues faced by Anganwadi and mid-day meal workers.
In this Parliament session, the government is expected to get the Finance Bills passed, while the Opposition will look to confront it on Waqf Bill, NEP, delimitation, and US tariffs, among others. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is also scheduled to table the Budget for Manipur, which is now under President’s Rule.
Also read:
Budget session: 'EPIC' showdown in the offing; Budget, Waqf Bill govt's top priorities
Hindi imposition 2.0? NEP brings TN language warriors back to forefront
Union Cabinet clears 14 changes to Waqf Bill proposed by JPC
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Live Updates
- 10 March 2025 7:59 AM GMT
Rahul Gandhi demands discussion in LS on voter lists
Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Monday demanded a discussion in the Lok Sabha on the issue of voter lists on which several political parties have raised certain questions.
Raising the issue during Zero Hour in the Lok Sabha, Gandhi said the entire opposition has been demanding a discussion on voter lists.
"We accept your remarks that the government does not make voter lists. But we demand a discussion on the issue," the Congress leader said.
"The voter lists are being questioned across the country. Questions have been raised by the opposition in one voice in every state, including Maharashtra," he said.
Earlier, Trinamool Congress member Saugata Roy said there were some flaws in the voter lists and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has pointed out that voters with same EPIC (Electoral Photo Identity Card) numbers were present in Murshidabad and Burdwan parliamentary constituencies and in Haryana.
Roy said a Trinamool delegation was meeting the newly-appointed chief election commissioner to flag concerns on voter lists.
He also demanded a thorough revision of the voter lists, particularly ahead of the assembly elections in West Bengal and Assam scheduled next year.
"There are some serious flaws. This has been pointed out with respect to Maharashtra, which had inflated voter lists. This was pointed out in Haryana. They are now trying to jump into West Bengal and Assam where elections are due next year," Roy claimed.
"Let the total voter lists be thoroughly revised. The Election Commission should answer to the country why some mistakes occurred in the lists," the Trinamool leader said. PTI
- 10 March 2025 7:43 AM GMT
SP MP slams BJP government for ignoring national Issues
Samajwadi Party MP Awadhesh Prasad said, "The BJP-led double-engine government is ignoring the key issues faced by the common people. Currently, the main concerns are the Manipur crisis and the lack of government jobs for the youth. The youth are the country’s greatest asset, and we must hold discussions and create policies to address their challenges."
