UNParliamentary!

UNParliamentary!

Indian Holocaust My father`s Life and Time- One Forty TWO

Palash Biswas



Top Andhra politicians linked to human smuggling: Rasheed
India eNews.com - 5 hours ago
Travel agent Rasheed, arrested on charges of smuggling Indians abroad, has told the police that several top politicians in Andhra Pradesh were involved in the racket, police sources said Friday.
Passport kingpin indicts Cong MLAs CNN-IBN
Trafficking scam: Kingpin reveals more names Zee News

Indian Parliamentary affairs seems to be most UN PALIAMENTARY!
Whatever may happen inside the Parliment, it seems an All Party allaince is there to enhance Swiss Bank Accounts! Latest Human Trafficking Scam proves it.

Ashok Mitra, the firebrand Marxist and ex chief economic advisor of Mrs indira gandhigovernment as well as the first finnace miniseter of Left Front government led by comrade jyoti basu, has pointed out the rot very well in his autobiography.The Partition of India found him and his family in the new country of East Pakistan that they were to leave, like millions of other refugees, to a new where they have to re-build lives. He goes on to analyse the fledgling democracy of India, taking his readers through the days of the early Five Year Plans, with which he was involved in the 1950s. Ashok Mitra's involvement with economic policy continued in his work as Chairman of the Agricultural Prices Commission, and with his appointment as Chief Economic Adviser to the Government of India when lndira Gandhi became Prime Minister. Soon after, the political crisis in East Pakistan turned into the war of liberation and the author provides much new insider information. Highlighting a different aspect of his live, that of his association with writers and intellectuals, Ashok Mitra talks of his friendship with Sachin Chaudhuri and his brothers and the founding of the Economic Weekly and its second coming as the Economic and Political Weekly. Throughout the book, he also weaves in the cultural and literary history of Bengal as his literary interests have been as vital as his political ones. Mitra's reminiscences are enriched by his analysis of Marxism and Marxists in a poor country, of how the alliance of parties that formed the Left Front that has been elected to power in the state of West Bengal functioned, his story of his stint as the Minister of Finance and Planning in the late 1970s and 1980s, and what lay behind his sudden resignation. He is open about his disagreements with the current world-wide mantra of globalisation and liberalisation. The memoirs give valuable insights, adding to our understanding of India's past, present and possible future. {A Prattler's Tale: 473pp, 155x230mm, February 2007; HB, £30.00).

Ashok Mitra's memoirs, translated for the first time into English from the Bengali original, 'Apila-Chapila' (Ananda, 2003), brings contemporary India alive. He exposes the truth that a finance minister of India has to be nominated by IMF and World Bank in coordination with White House Administration!

Though the VVIP refugee Economist did not mention names in most of the cases, the most stunning fact is he has given enough hints to prove that Dr Man Mohan singh is a Prime Minister planted by US. He has to defend US MNC interests at all cost. No matter, how many Nandigram massacres the Indian People have to witness. Thus, the post modern Manusmriti works!
Indian Parliament is represented by Comradors all along, who arenothing but his master`s voices!


Make your stance clear on SEZs, FDI: BJP tells Govt.
Hindu - 2 hours ago
New Delhi, May 4 (PTI): Criticising the government for failing to take "bold" decisions on economic reforms, the Opposition today asked it to clear its stand on FDI and SEZs.
Chidambaram's visit to US called off Economic Times
Chidambaram cancels US visit Rediff

The West Bengal government submitted its status report on Nandigram violence on Friday. The report indicted CPI(M) cadre for inciting violence in the district. According to the report, clashes broke out after CPI(M) activists entered Nandigram. The report also says that CPI(M) activists stopped a Trinamool Congress MP's vehicle and damaged it. The police admitted their inability to reach remote areas of Nandigram, the report added. The report further stated that the state police was helpless without the support of political parties. The report was signed by the Additional Secretary of the West Bengal Home Department.

Advocate-General Mr Balai Ray submitted the status report on the situation in Nandigram to Calcutta High Court and said the state did not agree with the suggestion that the CBI shall either investigate or inquire into the Nandigram police firing of 14 March. He said under the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, consent of the state government was necessary before the CBI could make any investigation at any stage other than in the erstwhile Union Territories. When the CBI is permitted to investigate it has to investigate as a member of the police force of the concerned State. An inquiry is also not possible by the CBI because the Act empowers it to investigate and not to inquire.
The AG said the situation in Nandigram was serious. The status report mentioned a series of violent clashes between CPI-M supporters and those of the Trinamul Congress and the Bhumi Uchched Pratirodh Committee from January, 2007 till 16 March this year. Police parties faced difficulties in reaching remote villages.The AG stated that an area in Nandigram measuring about 65 sq km and inhabited by 60,000 people had become an independent island. The state can restore normalcy in that area in a day by using force under the relevant provisions of the law but it has not done so because it may result in further bloodshed.
The status report says that at present there is considerable police presence in Nandigram. Police have been advised to exercise utmost restraint.
The executive inquiry into the police firing is proceeding. The Commissioner, Burdwan Division, has visited the affected areas and examined a number of eye-witnesses. After hearing the Advocate-General and some senior advocates of the Bar Association who suggested further inquiry into the Nandigram incident, the Division Bench of the Chief Justice, Mr SS Nijjar, and Mr Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose observed that the people of Nandigram had been denied their fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India.


It is quite typical of Indian parliamentary sytem where State Power is run by Gestapo or Ranabeer Sena. Ministers and officials as well as the elected so called represntative of People are not only corrupt top to bottom, the play havoc as Comradors of alien market forces to annihilate indigenous people. And it is irony quite well, SEZ or no SEZ Nandigram Massacre has become a killing field to ensure political supremacy and the people have to pay for it. We all know about AFSPA and army rule continued in North EAst and Kashmir. But fire brand Bengal opposition leader MS Mamata Bannerjee demands paramilitary forces, army at Nandigram ! Following up their joint meeting, Congress and Trinamool Congress on Thursday met West Bengal Governor G K Gandhi and demanded that Nandigram be brought under the Disturbed Areas Act and para-military forces and the army be deployed there to restore peace.

"Peace can return to Nandigram only if state-sponsored violence on the people is stopped. Nandigram should be immediately brought under the Disturbed Areas Act and para-military forces and, if necessary, army should be deployed to ensure return of peace," Banerjee said after meeting the governor together with a delegation from Congress to submit a joint memorandum.

She alleged ferry services with Nandigram had been withdrawn by the authorities which had led the people there to face a virtual economic blockade while CPI(M) supporters were indulging in violence in connivance with the local administration. On Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee's offer of talks to restore peace at Nandigram, she retorted: "There cannot be any talks unless the state-sponsored violence stops."

Representing state Congress former Rajya Sabha member Jayanta Bhattacherjee was a part of the delegation comprising leaders of the Trinamool led Krishi Jami Rakshya Committee (Save Farmland Committee) formed to fight against acquisition of farmland for industry. The state Congress, so far reluctant to commit itself to joining forces with Trinamool Congress' because of the latter's ties with BJP, changed its mind after Sunday's clash in Nandigram which left one person dead. Congress pointed out that BJP was not part of the TC-led platform.

Mamata alleged CPI(M) did not want restoration of peace in Nandigram and that was why party supporters with government supplied arms were attacking attacking people.

It is once again Comrade Jyoti Basu, the nonogenerian Bhism Pitamah Of Indian Communist movement, have come out to rescue entrapped Buddha Brand and cover up the unparliamentary, undemocratic affairs of the state.Jyoti Basu Friday said the Left Front government in West Bengal would comply with the directions of the Calcutta High Court for restoring peace and normalcy in trouble-torn Nandigram in East Midnapore district of West Bengal.

'The state government will act in accordance with the directives of the Calcutta High Court,' Basu told reporters after a meeting of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) state secretariat here.
Gere issue: Minister criticises TV channels
Hindu - 16 hours ago
NEW DELHI: Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunsi on Thursday criticised the television channels on their reporting of the kissing incident involving actors Richard Gere and Shilpa Shetty, saying they were guided by purely ...
Why is a 28-second kiss shown 100 times on TV, asks minister Khaleej Times
Bollywood star says keep distance NEWS.com.au

Earthtimes.org
'Asia must step up financial cooperation'
Economic Times - 4 hours ago
KYOTO: Asia must step up financial cooperation to cope with large capital inflows that are putting the squeeze on the region's most open economies, the head of the Asian Development Bank said on Friday.
Asian Ministers Under Pressure to Declare Stance on Wolfowitz Bloomberg
Environmental Activists Blast ADB Houston Chronicle


Auburn Citizen
The Front page of The New York Times
El Financiero (México) - 1 hour ago
The 30-minute meeting with Syrians foreign minister, Walid al-Moallem, came in the middle of two days of international talks on Iraq in which the Bush administration is seeking the help of Iraq's neighbors, and countries around the world, ...
Iraq holds talks to stop bloodshed TVNZ
Iran blames US for Iraq chaos Guardian Unlimited


A division bench of the high court Thursday ordered the state government to quickly restore normalcy in violence-hit Nandigram, after the state submitted a status report on it.The bench comprising Chief Justice S.S. Nijjar and Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghosh asked the government to mitigate the volatile situation in Nandigram, about 150 km from here, and to ensure return of people who fled villages and restoration of their fundamental rights in the wake of violence since January this year over acquisition of agricultural land for an industrial complex.

Residents of Nandigram have been denied fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution, Calcutta High Court observed on Thursday.

Though state Home Secretary Prasadranjan Ray said the police would enter Nandigram if need be, the HC didn't stop at just restoring order. The HC asked the government to provide assistance to residents of the area. Essential commodities will have to be distributed free of cost and necessary medical assistance provided to villagers. The ferry service between Nandigram and Haldia will have to be restored soon and the state government will have to ensure that people are not prevented from moving around freely, it said.


Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya and the party's state secretary Biman Bose were present in the state secretariat meeting.

Basu also condemned the attack on a relief team of Kolkata intellectuals in Nandigram by CPI-M supporters Tuesday.

'It is very bad. I do not know who has done this,' Basu said.

The latest exposures, see!

SEZs are turning into land scam, says Rahul Bajaj.In a zest to secure tax holidays, developers are gradually turning Special Economic Zones (SEZs) into a land scam, a leading industrialist has said. Today, big industrial houses acquiring land for SEZs are "almost turning it into a scam in the name of development," Bajaj Auto Chairman and Rajya Sabha member Rahul Bajaj said at a seminar organised by Consumer Unity and Trust Society here yesterday. Advocating direct interaction with the farmers, he said, if vast stretches of land have to be acquired to set up SEZs the companies must get them by paying the right value, and not the subsidised rates. He also said it would not be fair to compare the SEZs in India with that of China, as in case of the latter the land is owned by the state and the benefits go directly to the people. But, in this case it is the developer who is benefiting the most.

Bajaj said development of an industrial area does not mean it has to be near an existing city. It would be of more significance if the infrastructure creation takes place at a distance providing an opportunity to promote auxiliary settlement, he added.

Echoing his thought, independent Rajya Sabha member P C Alexender said, currently, SEZs are defying the initial social objective of providing small and medium entrepreneurs a growth opportunity. Supporting the SEZ Policy of the government, Rajya Sabha member and Founder of Farmers' Union Shetkari Sangathan Sharad Joshi said farmers, who are unable to repay their debts, are willing to give up agriculture in return of a better life that an SEZ promises.
More MPs, MLAs in smuggling ring


Radhika Iyer
Friday, May 4, 2007 (Hyderabad)
Hyderabad-based travel agent Rashid's surrender has proved to be bad news for many senior political leaders in Andhra Pradesh.In his confession statement, which is available with NDTV, he has named quite a few mighty and powerful politicians.

The following are some of the names mentioned by Rashid.
TRS MP Ravinder Nayak
TRS MP Madhusudan Reddy
Balchand Yadav, MP from UP
Mohammad Taher Khan, MP from Sultanpur, UP
A Narendra, Ex-MP from Medak
Ex-MP Suguna Kumari
Former minister Krishna Yadav
Travel agent Rashid claims that he paid these MPs and MLAs a minimum of Rs 10 lakh each to use the passports of their family members and forge them to send his ''clients,'' mostly Gujarati women, abroad.
http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20070010837

Rajya Sabha approves Finance Bill
New Delhi, May 4 (PTI): Admitting that income tax laws were complicated, Finance Minister P Chidambaram today promised to table the new Income Tax Code in the monsoon session of Parliament. "We are in the last leg of drafting the new income tax ...
Did the lady in red thwart Mideast diplomacy?
Globe and Mail - 3 hours ago
AP. SHARM EL-SHEIK, EGYPT - Iran's Foreign Minister walked out of a dinner of diplomats where he was seated directly across from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, on the pretext that the female violinist entertaining the gathering was dressed too ...
Violinist's dress 'halts US-Iran detente' Times Online
Iranian FM: US worsening Iraq situation Jerusalem Post

NDTV.com
Fake encounter: Supreme Court to give final order on May 15
Financial Express - 17 hours ago
NEW DELHI, MAY 3: The scope of Central intervention through the CBI in the Gujarat fake encounter case remained unresolved on Thursday with the Supreme Court giving two weeks time to the Narendra Modi government to file its final report on the issue, ...
Fake encounter: CID keen on forensic tests on IPS officers Zee News
'Submit final report in fake encounter' Sahara Samay

And again!

May 04, 2007 13:19 IST

Rajya Sabha plunged into turmoil during Question Hour on Friday on the issue of a letter written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh by a group of US lawmakers questioning India's relations with Iran, as the entire opposition as well as the Communist Party-Marxist strongly condemned the US interference in India's foreign policy matters.The strong-worded letter from Capitol Hill came from senior lawmakers like Tom Lantos, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, ranking Republican Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Howard Berman, Gary Ackerman, who is the Chair of the House Middle East and South Asia subcommittee, and others.Cutting across party lines, members, including United Progressive Allaince allies CPM, demanded the US be categorically and in "very strong terms" conveyed that India would not accept any outside interference in its foreign policy matters nor compromise with its sovereignty and national integrity.

The letter to the prime minister asking India to 'sever' military ties with Iran and "terminate" all cooperation in the energy sector.

As soon as the House assembled for Question Hour, members were on their feet demanding suspension of the Question Hour and a discussion on the subject. Chairman Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, however, said the matter could be discussed after Question Hour.

Members' persistence later paid off and the first 25 minutes were devoted to the subject.

Bharatiya Janata Party member Yashwant Sinha, who spoke first, said it was a matter of India's sovereignty and should be discussed in the House. He criticised the government for not taking the House into confidence on the issue when it was in session, especially on the recent visit of Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon to the US and his discussions with Bush administration officials.

"This is a dangerous developmnent. But the government has not thought it fit to take the House into confidence," he said while accusing the government of "buckling" under US pressure.

Brinda Karat (CP-M) demanded that US Ambassador to India David Mulford be called to the Foreign Office and conveyed in "very strong terms" that India would not allow any interence with its sovereignty.She said the US should be told categorically that "this country is not for sale." Both Sinha and Karat demanded that the House be taken into confidence on the ongoing negotiations on the Indo-US nuclear deal.Karat said the prime minister should give a statement in the House on the issue.

The House witnessed further turmoil when Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Priyaranjan Dasmunsi, while making a statement, accused the NDA of "bending on its knees" when they were in government.This was strongly objected to by the BJP members who demanded that the minister withdraw his remark.

Human trafficking scam kingpin spills the beans
http://www.rediff.com/news/2007/may/04traffic.htm

May 04, 2007 12:06 IST
Last Updated: May 04, 2007 13:52 IST

The interrogation of Rasheed, a city-based travel agent and alleged kingpin in the human trafficking case, has opened a can of worms as names of several politicians are understood to have tumbled out during the grilling.

"He has made allegations against several parliamentarians, legislators and former ministers across political parties. We cannot disclose their names at this juncture. We are verifying the records," police sources said in Hyderabad on Friday.

Rasheed, whose name had figured prominently during the investigations ever since the emigration scandal broke out, had surrendered before the police on Thursday. He is being interrogated by a team of Central Crime Station police.

According to sources, Rasheed had named one Rajupitti, believed to be a bookie, as the key person in the racket. He admitted that Rajupitti had allegedly introduced to him the prospective clients who were in need of forged passports and travel documents to go abroad.

Rasheed, who had allegedly approached some MPs and MLAs with offers of huge bribe to use passports of their family members, will be produced before Nampally criminal court in Hyderabad.

It was third time unlucky for 'trafficking' MP
http://www.rediff.com/news/2007/apr/19katara.htm?zcc=rl

The police have claimed that Bharatiya Janata Partry MP Babubhai Katara, who was arrested while trying to take a woman to Canada on his wife's passport, had smuggled people out of the country for monetary gains twice in the past. Katara, who was arrested on Wednesday at the Delhi airport, had struck a deal of Rs 27 lakh with Paramjeet Kaur through a travel agent but the money had not changed hands, a senior police official said.

Investigations have revealed that Katara had travelled to the United States and Britain in 2005 and 2006 and had taken women along with him on his wife's passport. It has also come to light that he had forged arrival stamps on the passport to show that they had returned.

He said Paramjeet, hailing from Hoshiarpur in Punjab, wanted to go the United States to live with her husband, who works there. The boy also has relatives in the US and his parents had struck the deal through a travel agent. The police is now hunting for at least two travel agents and the MP's aide and have sent special teams to several states including Punjab and Gujarat.


Waning of Hypnotism of Political Leaders Along The Road To Power
By: L Memo Singh.


Of all the political events which bring the closer or distance between the leaders and the led, the most important is the elections of leaders for every constitutional term in a democratic set-up. The universally accepted electoral principle of the Paris Commune was once published in the Chinese Daily, Red Flag as, “All leaders must be elected by the people; the elected must be the servants of the people and be submitted to their surpervision the electors have the right to recall and replace the elected at any time”. Lin Piao, the first vice-chairman of the party and Minister of Defence of Mao Tse-tung’s time, said” “The people’s democratic rights are being fully instituted in accordance with the principle of the Paris Commune. Without such extensive democracy it would be impossible to initiate a genuine Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution.”

Keeping in view the peoples’ verdict provided by the 9th Manipur Legislative Assembly Elections the State has witnessed the active participation of the great masses of people in the elections and the rapid mobility of voters accompanied by an apparent decline in the organizational capability of all the political parties irrespective of the regional and the national Parties.

The pre pole scenarios of the State were full of fear and suspicion that in the midst of compelling circumstances any section of people would vitiate the electoral process to impeach the political structure of the state by unsalutory methods and accordingly the political faith of the people would have been shaken and to that extent that it happened, the moral basis of the State Power would shrink irreparably.
http://www.kanglaonline.com/index.php?template=kshow&kid=856

Indian incomes to triple in 20 years: study
http://www.rediff.com/money/2007/may/04india2.htm

May 04, 2007 16:23 IST

Continued rise in business productivity and competitiveness of Indian economy is likely to inflate incomes in the country by almost three times over the next two decades, according to a latest McKinsey study.The rising income levels would lift 291 million people out of poverty and create a 583 million strong middle class in the next two decades, a report from McKinsey Global Institute reveals.If India maintains the growth momentum over the next 20 years, income levels would almost triple, it added.




Constitution of India

The Constitution of India is one of the best constitutions of the countries of the world. India attained freedom on 15th August 1947. The Constitution of the Republic came into effect on 26th January 1950. It was framed after a careful study of a number of constitutions and efforts were made to retain what is the best in them in view of the requirement of our country. It was framed by "The Constituent Assembly". Dr. Rajendra Prasad was the chairman of the Assembly and among its members were the most prominent personalities of those days. The draft of the constitution was prepared by the draft committee, which had 8 members, under the chairmanship of Dr.B.R.Ambedkar.It was initially summoned on December 9, 1946. A draft of the Constitution was published in February 1948. The Constitution was finally adopted for 26 November 1949. It came into effect on 26th January 1950.

The Indian Constitution closely follows the British Parliamentary model, but differs from it in one important respect that is, the Constitution of India is supreme, not the Parliament. So the Indian courts are vested with the authority to adjudicate on the constitutionality of any law passed by the Indian Parliament.

The Constitution of India guarantees equal rights to all Indian citizens, and prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, caste, and religion; it also allows universal franchise, thereby making the Indian electorate the largest in the world.
http://www.indianchild.com/indianparliament1.htm

Former bandit joins race for MP seat in India's lower house
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2007/05/03/2003359260

Pl See:India's great rush for SEZs
http://www.rediff.com/money/sez.html?zcc=rl
http://presidentofindia.nic.in/scripts/palatest1.jsp?id=8
http://www.india-seminar.com/2000/487/487%20narayanan.htm
http://www.carnegieendowment.org/events/index.cfm?fa=eventDetail&id=908&&prog=zgp&proj=zsa
http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/World/india.htm
http://www.lokniti.org/people_nm_loknit_Akverma.htm
http://parliamentofindia.nic.in/
http://loksabha.nic.in/
http://www.answers.com/topic/parliament-of-india
http://finance.indiamart.com/government_india/parliament_india.html
http://presidentofindia.nic.in/
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2005/specials/tribune_125/main2.htm
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2005/specials/tribune_125/main2.htm
http://goidirectory.nic.in/legis.htm
http://india.gov.in/govt/parliament.php
http://www.asianinfo.org/asianinfo/india/politics.htm
https://www.vedamsbooks.com/no14044.htm
http://www.answers.com/topic/parliamentary-system
http://www.onlinenews.com.pk/articledetails.php?id=62495
http://www.athabascau.ca/govn/parliamentary_democracy/chapters/chapter3.html
http://www.eci.gov.in/ElectoralSystem/the_function.asp
India
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/India

Republic of India

Flag Emblem

Motto
"Satyameva Jayate" (Sanskrit)
??????? ???? (Devanagari)
"Truth Alone Triumphs"
Anthem
Jana Gana Mana

Capital New Delhi
28°34'N, 77°12'E
Largest city Mumbai
Official languages Hindi, English and 21 other official languages
Government Federal republic
- President A.P.J Abdul Kalam
- Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
Independence from the United Kingdom
- Declared 15 August 1947
- Republic 26 January 1950
Area
- Total 3,166,414† km² (7th)
1,222,559 sq mi
- Water (%) 9.56
Population
- 2007 estimate 1,126,000,000 (2nd)
- 2001 census 1,027,015,248
- Density 329 /km² (31st)
852 /sq mi
GDP (PPP) 2006 estimate
- Total $4.042 trillion (4th)
- Per capita $3,737 (118th)
GDP (nominal) 2007 estimate
- Total $984.21 billion (12th)
- Per capita $820 (132th)
Gini? (1999–00) 32.5 (medium)
HDI (2006) 0.611 (medium) (126th)
Currency Rupee (?) (INR)
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
- Summer (DST) not observed (UTC+5:30)
Internet TLD .in
Calling code +91
1 †Includes only Indian-administered territory.
The Republic of India (Hindi: ???? ??????? Bharat Ga?arajya; see also other names), commonly known as India, is a sovereign country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second most populous country, and the most populous liberal democracy in the world. India has a coastline of over seven thousand kilometres, bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal on the east. India borders Pakistan to the west;[1] China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north-east; and Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka, Maldives and Indonesia.

Home to the Indus Valley civilization and a region of historic trade routes and vast empires, the Indian subcontinent was identified with its commercial and cultural wealth for much of its long history. Four major world religions, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism originated here, while Islam, Christianity, Judaism and Zoroastrianism arrived in the first millennium CE and shaped the region's variegated culture. Gradually annexed by the British East India Company from the early eighteenth century and colonised by Great Britain from the mid-nineteenth century, India became a modern nation-state in 1947 after a struggle for independence that was marked by widespread use of nonviolent resistance as a means of social protest.

With the world's 12th largest economy by exchange rates and the 4th largest in purchasing power, India has made rapid economic progress in the last decade. Although the country's standard of living is projected to rise sharply in the next half-century, it currently battles high levels of poverty, illiteracy, persistent malnutrition, and environmental degradation. A pluralistic, multi-lingual, multi-ethnic society, India is also home to a diversity of wildlife in a variety of protected habitats.


Parliament of India
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Coordinates: 28.617146° N 77.208001° E
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliament_of_India

Sansad Bhavan, The Parliament of IndiaIndia

Portal:Government of India

The Parliament of India (or Sansad) is bicameral. It is located in New Delhi at Sansad Marg. This is the federal and supreme legislative body of the Republic of India.

The Indian Parliament consists of two houses - the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.

Any bill can become an act only after it is passed by both the houses of the Parliament and assented by the President.

The Central Hall of the Parliament is used for combined sittings of the lower and upper houses and is of historical significance.

[edit] Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha is also known as the "House of the People" or the lower house. Almost all of its members are directly elected by citizens of India. It is the more powerful of the two houses since it can precede or overrule the upper house in many matters.

The Lok Sabha can have up to 552 members as envisaged in the Constitution of India (Article 81). It has a term of 5 years but it may be dissolved earlier by the President in the event of no party getting a majority. To be eligible for membership of Lok Sabha, a person should be a citizen of India and be not less than 25 years of age. Up to 530 members can be elected from the states, up to 20 members from the Union territories and no more than two members can be nominated by the President of India.

As of now, the Lok Sabha has 545 members, 530 members from the states, 13 members from the Union territories and 2 members of the Anglo Indian community.

The representatives from States and Union Territories are directly elected by the people on the basis of universal adult suffrage. Every citizen who is over 18 years of age is eligible to vote. There is reservation of some seats for members of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes but not for members of any other community.


[edit] Rajya Sabha
The Rajya Sabha is also known as "Council of States" or the upper house. Its members are indirectly elected by members of legislative bodies of the States.

The Rajya Sabha has 250 members in all. Elections to it are scheduled and the chamber cannot be dissolved legally. Each member has a term of 6 years and elections are held for one-third of the seats after every 2 years. The composition is specified in Article 80 of the Constitution of India.

12 members are nominated by the President from people having special knowledge or experience in literature, science, art or social services.
Representatives of States are elected by the elected members of the Legislative Assembly of the State in accordance with system of proportional representation by means of single transferable vote.
Representatives of Union Territories are indirectly elected by members of an electoral college for that territory in accordance with system of proportional representation.