Parliament roundup: Day one marred by adjournments over price rise, Agnipath

New Delhi, Jul 18: Multiple adjournments marked day one of the monsoon session of Parliament which predictably got off to a chaotic start on Monday following sloganeering and disruption by Congress MPs over issues like price rise and GST. Earlier, several newly elected members of the upper House took oath.

Here's how the day unfolded:

The Monsoon Session of Parliament began on a stormy note with the opposition demanding discussion on issues ranging from price rise to the Agnipath scheme. The morning session of the Lok Sabha was adjourned to allow members to vote in the presidential election even as opposition members tried to raise some issues.

In the Rajya Sabha, Congress members trooped to the Well of the House raising slogans as soon as Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu read out the obituary references. "As some people have come determined not to allow the House to function and also enable members to go and vote in the Presidential election, I am adjourning the House for the day," Naidu said.

Newly-elected Lok Sabha members take oath

In the Lok Sabha, three newly-elected members - Bollywood actor and Trinamool Congress' Shatrughan Sinha (Asansol, West Bengal) and two BJP members from Uttar Pradesh Dinesh Lal Yadav Nirahua (Azamgarh) and Ghanshyam Singh Lodhi (Rampur) - took oath as member of the Lok Sabha.

As opposition members raised slogans, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said elections in India are celebrated as a festival and since the election to the president was underway, it should also be celebrated. The Speaker said members should participate in the festival and adjourned the House adjourned till 2 pm

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah, Congress President Sonia Gandhi were among those present in the Lok Sabha.

As the Lok Sabha re-convened at 2 pm, members of Left parties were in the well of the House waving placards protesting rising inflation while Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury was trying to raise some issue.

Chowdhury said the opposition wanted to raise issues such as price rise and the Agnipath scheme, but the House was adjourned to allow members to cast their vote in the presidential election. BJP member Rajendra Agarwal, who was in the chair, allowed the laying of parliamentary papers on the table of the House.

Bill in LS to grant legal cover to family courts in Himachal, Nagaland

A bill to grant statutory cover to family courts set up in Himachal Pradesh and Nagaland and retrospectively validate all actions taken by them was introduced in Lok Sabha on Monday.

Law Minister Kiren Rijiju introduced the Bill in the lower house amid din by opposition members over issues such as rising inflation and Agnipath military recruitment scheme. The Family Courts Act was enacted in 1984 to set up family courts to promote conciliation and secure speedy settlement of disputes related to marriage and family affairs. There are 715 family courts functioning across 26 states and Union territories in the country.

Two family courts were established in Nagaland in 2008 and three in Himachal Pradesh in 2019 through notifications issued by the respective state governments.

As the opposition uproar continued, Agarwal adjourned the proceedings for the day.

Harbhajan Singh, Misa Bharti, Rajeev Shukla among 28 MPs take oath in Rajya Sabha

Cricketer-turned-politician Harbhajan Singh, Misa Bharti, daughter of former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, and BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla on Monday took oath along with nearly 28 other leaders as Rajya Sabha members.

Obituary references

Earlier in the day, the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha paid homage to former Japan prime minister Shinzo Abe, ex United Arab Emirates president and Abu Dhabi ruler Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Kenya's third president Mwai Kibaki. The Lok Sabha Speaker also read out obituary references of eight former members of the House who passed away recently. They are Rabindar Kumar Rana (Bihar), T Basheeer (Kerala), Nawal Kishore Rai (Bihar), Sukh Ram (Himachal Pradesh), Hussain Dalwai (Maharashtra), Shivaji Patnaik (Odisha), Chakra Dhari Singh (Madhya Pradesh) and Harivansh Sahai (Uttar Pradesh).

In the Rajya Sabha, Naidu made obituary references to former members Kishore Kumar Mohanty, Robert Kharshiing, K K Veerappan and santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma.

Govt, RBI measures help banks recover bad loans worth over Rs 8.6 lakh crore in last 8 fiscal

Concrete steps taken by the government and RBI helped banks recover bad loans worth over Rs 8.6 lakh crore in the last eight financial years, the government informed Parliament on Monday. Minister of State for Finance Bhagwat Karad in a written reply to the Lok Sabha said the occurrence of non-performing assets (NPAs) is normal, although an undesirable, corollary to the business of banking.

Several factors -- including prevailing macroeconomic conditions, sectoral issues, global business environment, delayed recognition of stress by banks, aggressive lending during upturns, improper risk pricing and poor credit underwriting -- are attributed towards NPA build-up, he said.

The Monsoon Session of Parliament started on Monday and subject to exigencies of government business, it will conclude on August 12.