Parliament Session 2024 Highlights: Lok Sabha adjourned till 11 am tomorrow, ‘Jai Hindu Rashtra’ slogan raised today

Congress Rajya Sabha MP Dr. Syed Naseer Hussain expressed optimism about the start of the new parliamentary session, highlighting the arrival of many new MPs. In preparation, he stated that all party MPs have been summoned to the CPP office for instructions on parliamentary duties.

“There will be a constructive opposition,” Hussain affirmed. “We will raise people’s issues and when it comes to the country, we will cooperate in that too…” he added.

Mallikarjun Kharge, the Congress National President and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, left his residence ahead of the commencement of the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha today.

Samajwadi Party MP Virendra Singh urged Parliament to prioritize the NEET exam and UGC-NET on the first day of the 18th Lok Sabha.

“Our part in the functioning of Parliament should not be overlooked. Our work is to put forward pressing issues,” Singh said, adding that “Right now, the NEET exam and UGC-NET are pressing issues. The future of students depends on these issues, and these topics should be given priority.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to address the Lok Sabha on July 2, responding to the President’s address. He will then speak in the Rajya Sabha on July 3. During this period, there will be no Zero Hour or Question Hour.

The 264th session of the Rajya Sabha will take place from June 27 to July 3, 2024. Both Houses are expected to take a short recess and reconvene on July 22 for the presentation of the Union Budget.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju welcomed newly elected members to the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha on Monday, expressing readiness to assist as needed.

In a post on X, Rijiju said he shall always be available to assist the members of Parliament as the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs.

“The First Session of the 18th Lok Sabha begins today, the 24th June, 2024. I welcome all the newly elected Hon’ble members. I shall be always available to assist the members as Minister of Parliamentary Affairs. I’m positively looking forward to co-ordination to run the house,” Rijiju said.

The alleged irregularities in the NEET-UG and the now-cancelled UGC-NET examinations have sparked the first major controversy since the BJP-led NDA formed the Union government. Addressing at a press conference in Delhi, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi asserted that the government will be under significant pressure from the Opposition to address the issue of paper leaks in competitive exams. “They (government) can indulge in eyewash. But they will face such pressure from the Opposition that they are going to think twice about whatever they are doing,” Rahul said.

One of the session’s key tasks will be electing a new Speaker of the House. Given the recent strong performance of the NDA coalition in the Lok Sabha elections, there is considerable speculation about who will assume this critical role. Until the new Speaker is elected, BJP leader and seven-time MP Bhartruhari Mahtab has been appointed as pro-tem Speaker of the Lok Sabha.

Over the next two days, newly elected Lok Sabha members will take their oaths or make affirmations before Pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab and a panel of chairpersons. On Wednesday, the new Lok Sabha will elect its Speaker.

On Thursday, President Droupadi Murmu will address a joint sitting of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, outlining the NDA government’s agenda for the next five years. Following the President’s address, both Houses will debate the Motion of Thanks, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi scheduled to respond on July 2-3.