Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said that the President should inaugurate the new Parliament building and not the prime minister.
Kumar leaves in the midst of assembly polls in five states and ahead of the February 20 election in Punjab.
The Congress on Monday strongly criticised the Union budget, saying Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's speech was oblivious to the declining GDP and the budget was a case of "wrong diagnosis and prescription".
After some recent events that turned against the party, including the Congress' G-23 Group asking for a revamp in the party, Congress leader and MP Manish Tiwari has been included in the star campaigners list of Congress for Assam and West Bengal Assembly polls.
The Congress on Friday described the Centre's announcement to repeal three farm laws as a victory against injustice, and said arrogance had to bow its head before the peaceful satyagraha of farmers.
The government on Tuesday decided to cancel the examination for appointment of postmen held on July 14 to hold it in all local languages including Tamil.
An anonymous letter threatening to kill Rahul Gandhi at an election meeting in Puducherry has been received by a senior Congress leader V Narayanasamy.
A host of top Congress leaders wished him on his birthday, with former prime minister Manmohan Singh among the first to send his best wishes through a letter in the morning.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday assured at the all-party meeting that the government is ready to discuss all issues.
Opposition charged the government with making Parliamentary Standing Committees irrelevant.
A day before the start of the Budget session of Parliament, as many as 18 opposition parties, led by the Congress, the Nationalist Congress Party, the Shiv Sena and the Trinamool Congress, decided on Thursday to boycott the President's address to the joint sitting of both Houses in solidarity with the farmers protesting against the new farm laws.
Senior Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad made this assertion outside Parliament while speaking to reporters and said the revocation of suspension of the Opposition Rajya Sabha MPs was not a demand, but a 'request'.
Rahul is scheduled to address a rally of the Congress-Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam alliance on Tuesday at Karaikal in Puducherry.
Congress said it will comply with all formalities to get the status of the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha even as the party has been kept on tenterhooks on the issue ahead of Budget Session beginning on Monday.
The vice president met Leader of the party in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, P Chidambaram and Deputy Leader of the party in Rajya Sabha Anand Sharma, among others and discussed various points regarding the key tax reform legislation.
While several opposition parties criticised the move, Union minister Prakash Javadekar said the Parliament session is being held under special and extraordinary circumstances.
Congress on Friday termed as "disgusting" and "petty-minded" the way the Narendra Modi government marked the death anniversary of Indira Gandhi while the ruling BJP wondered if that party prefers to see history through the "perspective" of Nehru-Gandhi family.
The Congress will take on the government in Parliament on the Indo-US nuclear deal
Expecting fireworks in both Houses during the Winter Session of Parliament starting from Wednesday -- with the opposition planning to target the government on several issues, including demonetisation -- the Bharatiya Janata Party Parliamentary Party Executive will go into a huddle on Monday to chalk out strategy to counter the opposition which is divided over how to take on the government on the issue.
Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh puts it succinctly: "Arun Jaitley was every non-BJP person's favourite BJP-ite."
As the debate over the issue of leadership raged, another group of leaders put their weight behind the Gandhi family on Sunday, calling for Sonia Gandhi to stay or Rahul Gandhi to take charge again.
Party sources said Gandhi will be accompanied by Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, Leader of the party in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and several other party leaders and MPs.
A united Opposition on Tuesday tore into an ordinance promulgated to amend land acquisition rules, calling it an "anti-farmer" move brought by "bypassing" Parliament to benefit corporate houses, a charge vehemently denied by the government.
The Bharatiya Janata Party plans to target Sonia Gandhi and other Congress leaders on the issue of bribes in the AgustaWestland chopper deal during the United Progressive Alliance regime
The government, on its part, is seeking to counter the opposition's offensive by bringing the Fugitive Economic Offenders Bill.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley appealed to parties to rise above partisan considerations to support it.
Amid a stalemate between the government and the Opposition over the issue, the House failed to transact any significant business and was adjourned for the day.
They alleged that the central bank has "failed miserably" in handling the situation post-demonetisation.
Congress accused the BJP and RSS of being behind the 'murderous attack' on Gandhi.
After days of adjournments, the Rajya Sabha unanimously passed the crucial Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Bill along with two bills on supplementary demands for 2015-16, within minutes without any debate.
The Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance were ranged against each other both inside and outside the Parliament on the opening day of the budget session on Monday.
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