Parliament no-confidence motion Highlights: No-trust motion defeated amid Opposition walkout

Kerala Congress leader Thomas Chazhikadan raised concern over violence in Manipur and Haryana. He said that several Christian churches were demolished and burned in parts of Manipur. He said the Christian tribal communities in Manipur believe that there is discrimination in how the cases were dealt with.

Reacting to Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury’s statements on violence in Manipur, Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said, “The last nine years have been the most peaceful in Manipur from the insurgency point of view. There has been three times lesser insurgency and six times lesser civilian deaths as compared to your (Congress) 10 years of rule.”

BJP leader Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore on Thursday said Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi came to Beijing to meet members of the Communist Party of China. Citing this, he said the two Congress leaders should be tried for treason.

Leaders of the Opposition parties have walked out from the Lok Sabha.

BJP leader Jyotiraditya Scindia demanded an apology from the Opposition for “attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi”.

Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury's 'Nirav Modi' remarks against PM Modi were expunged after BJP MPs protested.

While speaking during the debate on the no-confidence motion, Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury compared Prime Minister Narendra Modi to fugitive Nirav Modi.

“You should've held a ‘Mann ki Baat’ with the people of Manipur,” Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said during the debate on no-confidence motion.

Pharmacy (Amendment) Bill, 2023. to amend the Pharmacy Act, 1948 passed in the Rajya Sabha. Earlier, the Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on August 7.

Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury speaking for the no-confidence motion said, “The power of no-confidence motion is such that we brought PM Modi to the Parliament. We just wanted the Prime Minister of India to come forward and speak on the Manipur issue.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in the Lok Sabha for the no-confidence motion debate as Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury began his speech.

BJP's Locket Chatterjee, while speaking in Lok Sabha, said, “PM Modi has said that he will not tolerate corruption. All corrupt people have come together here (Opposition bloc).”

Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra on Thursday hit out at the BJP government over its handling of the violence in Manipur, saying it was the “biggest failure” of the double-engine government.

She said, “The no-confidence motion was brought not to defeat the government in terms of numbers, but to break the silence of the Prime Minister on the matter.”

Moitra said such type of violence was not witnessed in any state for the last few decades.

The Rajya Sabha has been adjourned for the day to meet at 11 am on Friday.

Taking on the BJP government over the Manipur violence, TMC MP Mahua Moitra said such a type of ethnic violence was not witnessed in any state for the last many decades.

“6,500 FIRs in three months, which state has seen this? Four thousand houses destroyed, 60,000 people displaced, which state has seen this?” she said during the no-confidence motion debate in Lok Sabha.

Participating in the no-confidence motion debate in the Lok Sabha, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said “India is the fastest-growing economy in the world”.

She cited an instance where Morgan Stanley had upgraded India's rating as its economy was doing well.

“In 2013, Morgan Stanley had included India in the list of five fragile economies of the world. India was declared a fragile economy. Today, the same Morgan Stanley upgraded India and gave it a higher rating. In just 9 years, the economy rose and saw economic development due to the policies of our govt — despite Covid-19. Today, we are the fastest-growing economy in the world,” she said.

Nirmala Sitharaman said, “UPA wasted an entire decade because there was a lot of corruption and cronyism. Today, every crisis and adversity has been changed into a reform and an opportunity.”

“We have realised that the banking sector needs to be healthy and therefore we took a lot of measures. Banks are able to work without political interference, they are working with professional integrity. 'Banks mein failaya hua aapka raita hum saaf kar rahe hai',” Nirmala Sitharaman said.

While speaking on the Indian economy, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman took a jibe at the erstwhile UPA government. She said, “During UPA's rule, citizens were ‘supposed to’ get benefits and during the NDA's rule people ‘are already getting’ the benefits.”

While addressing the Lok Sabha on Thursday, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, “Believe in empowering all, appeasement on none.”

In a move likely to trigger a fresh face-off between the Centre and the judiciary, the ruling party is set to push a legislation that will exclude the Chief Justice of India from the process to appoint the country's chief election officer.

The Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Services and Term of Office) Bill, 2023, about to be introduced in Rajya Sabha today, proposes that the polling officers shall be appointed by the President on the recommendation of a panel comprising the Prime Minister, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and a Union Cabinet Minister nominated by the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister will chair the panel, it says.

The Bill, if brought into effect, aims to dilute the Supreme Court's March 2023 judgment in which a Constitution bench held that the appointment of Chief Election Commissioners and Election Commissioners shall be done by the President on the advice of a panel comprising the Prime Minister, Leader of Opposition and the Chief Justice of India.

The Rajya Sabha has been adjourned till 2 pm.

The Lok Sabha has been adjourned till 12 pm.

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya is set to move the Pharmacy (Amendment) Bill, 2023 in the Rajya Sabha today for consideration and passage to amend the Pharmacy Act, 1948. The Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on August 7.

Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Derek O'Brien on Thursday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi ahead of his reply to the no-confidence motion and said he was compelled to speak on the Manipur after “missing” for 21 days in the Lok Sabha.

He alleged that the Prime Minister was still “absconding” even as the Monsoon session is set to end on Friday.

“Summary: Parliament Monsoon Session. Lok Sabha: After missing for 21 days, PM Narendra Modi has been compelled to speak on Manipur today because INDIA moved a no-confidence motion. Rajya Sabha: Session ends on August 11 and PM Narendra Modi is still absconding. Bills bulldozed daily,” he said in a tweet.