Polity Current Affairs

BJP MP Om Birla was re-elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha on 26 June 2024. He was elected with a voice vote as the opposition, which fielded Congress MP K. Suresh, did not press for voting.

After his election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju escorted Mr. Birla to the Speaker’s chair.

Om Birla had previously served as the Speaker in the 17th Lok Sabha since 2019.

Q: Who was re-elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha on 26 June 2024?

a) K. Suresh
b) Rahul Gandhi
c) Om Birla
d) Kiren Rijiju

c) Om Birla
BJP MP Om Birla was elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha. He had previously served as the Speaker in the 17th Lok Sabha.

On 25 June 2024, the Congress party announced Rahul Gandhi as the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the 18th Lok Sabha. Rahul Gandhi is won from Raebareli constituency.

The position of LoP had been vacant since 2014, as no opposition party met the required minimum of 10% of the total Lok Sabha seats.

The LoP is recognized as the leader of the largest opposition party with not less than one-tenth of the Lok Sabha seats. The Congress party secured 100 seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, an improvement from 52 seats in 2019.

The LoP is a member of crucial committees such as Public Accounts (Chairman), Public Undertakings, Estimates, and various Joint Parliamentary Committees.

The LoP is entitled to membership in selection committees for heads of statutory bodies like the Central Vigilance Commission, Central Information Commission, CBI, NHRC, and Lokpal.

The LoP in both Houses were accorded statutory recognition under the Salaries and Allowances of Leader of Opposition in Parliament Act, 1977, with salary and allowances equivalent to a cabinet minister. The office of the LoP is not mentioned in the Constitution.

Q: Who was appointed as the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the 18th Lok Sabha on 25 June 2024?

A) Mallikarjun Kharge
B) Sonia Gandhi
C) Rahul Gandhi
D) KC Venugopal

Ans : C) Rahul Gandhi

Q: Why was the position of Leader of Opposition vacant for 2014 to 2024?

A) No opposition party met the required minimum of 10% of the total Lok Sabha seats
B) The position was abolished
C) The ruling party opposed the appointment
D) There was a lack of eligible candidates

Ans : A) No opposition party met the required minimum of 10% of the total Lok Sabha seats
The position of LoP had been vacant since 2014, as no opposition party met the required minimum of 10% of the total Lok Sabha seats.

First Session of the 18th Lok Sabha which began on June 24, and scheduled to run up to July 3, 2024.

Oath-taking ceremony: All newly elected Members of Parliament (MPs), including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, took oath. This session marked the historic first swearing-in ceremony in the new Parliament building.

Speaker election: The session will witness the election of the new Lok Sabha Speaker.

President’s address: The President of India will address the House, outlining the government’s agenda.

Possible stormy sessions: The opposition, strengthened after the elections, staged protests highlighting concerns about democracy and the controversial NEET-UG 2024 exam.

The 264th Session of Rajya Sabha will also commence on June 27 and conclude on July 3.

Q: What is a significant aspect of this first Session of the 18th Lok Sabha which began on June 24, 2024?

a) Introduction of a new voting system
b) First oath-taking ceremony in a newly built Parliament building
c) Introduction of a no-confidence motion against the Prime Minister
d) Farewell address by the outgoing President

Ans : b) First oath-taking ceremony in a newly built Parliament building
This session marked the historic first swearing-in ceremony of newly elected Members of 18th Lok Sabha, in the new Parliament building.

New criminal laws Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita, Bharatiya Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam will come into force on July 1, 2024. IPC, CrPC, and Indian Evidence Act are being replaced after consultation and Law Commission of India reports. Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) and judicial academies are providing training.

Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita will have 531 sections, with 177 provisions changed, nine new sections, 39 new sub-sections, and 44 new provisions and clarifications added. The police custody under general criminal laws is increased from 15 days to 90 days, depending on the offense.

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita will have 358 sections, with 20 new crimes added, increased imprisonment for 33 crimes, higher fines for 83 crimes, and mandatory minimum punishment in 23 crimes. Community service penalty introduced for six crimes, and 19 sections repealed or removed.

Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam will have 170 provisions, with 24 provisions changed, two new provisions, six sub-provisions added, and six provisions repealed or deleted.

Q: When will the new criminal laws Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita, Bharatiya Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam come into force?

A) January 1, 2024
B) April 1, 2024
C) July 1, 2024
D) October 1, 2024

Ans : C) July 1, 2024

Q: What laws are being replaced by the new criminal laws on July 1, 2024?

A) Constitution of India
B) IPC, CrPC, and Indian Evidence Act
C) Consumer Protection Act
D) Right to Information Act

Ans : B) IPC, CrPC, and Indian Evidence Act

N. Chandrababu Naidu took the oath of office as Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh on 12 June 2024. This is Naidu’s fourth term as Chief Minister and Second term since the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014. Previously served as Chief Minister from 1995 to 2004 and from 2014 to 2019.

Ceremony attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Ministers Amit Shah, J.P. Nadda, and Nitin Gadkari. Oath administered by Andhra Pradesh Governor S. Abdul Nazeer. Cabinet consist of 21 MLAs from TDP, three from Janasena Party, and one from BJP.

Notable attendees: former Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundarajan, Naidu’s son Nara Lokesh, Union Minister Rammohan Naidu, actors Chiranjeevi, Rajnikanth, and Nandamuri Balakrishna.

Naidu led TDP-BJP-Janasena National Democratic Alliance to a landslide victory in assembly and parliamentary elections. TDP holds majority in 175-member assembly with 135 MLAs. Janasena Party has 21 MLAs, BJP has eight MLAs. Opposition YSR Congress Party has 11 legislators.

Q: Who became the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh on 12 June 2024?

A) Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy
B) Pawan Kalyan
C) N. Chandrababu Naidu
D) K. Chandrashekar Rao

Answer: C) N. Chandrababu Naidu

BJP leader Pema Khandu was re-elected as leader of the BJP Legislature Party in Arunachal Pradesh. Pema Khandu will become Chief Minister for the third term in a row. He will take the oath of office along with his cabinet on 13 June 2024. He became Chief Minister for the first time in 2016.

BJP won 46 seats in the 60-member Arunachal Pradesh assembly in the elections. A meeting of the newly-elected BJP MLAs was held in the presence of Bharatiya Janata Party’s central observers Ravi Shankar Prasad and Tarun Chugh and Pema Khandu was unanimously elected as the leader of the legislative party. Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, who is an MP from the state, was also present at the meeting.

Q: Who has been elected Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh for the third time in 2024?

A) Kiren Rijiju
B) Nabam Tuki
C) Pema Khandu
D) Tapir Gao

Answer: C) Pema Khandu

Mohan Charan Majhi will be the new chief minister of Odisha. He was elected leader of the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) legislature party at a meeting held on 11 June 2024. The 52-year-old leader, a four-time MLA, is a prominent tribal face in Odisha.

There will two Deputy CM- Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo and Pravati Parida.

The BJP is forming its first government in Odisha after securing a majority in the assembly polls. The BJP won 78 of 147 seats in the Odisha assembly.

Rajnath Singh and union minister Bhupender Yadav were in the state capital as the party’s central observers for the meeting of MLAs.

Q: Who has been elected as the new Chief Minister of Odisha?

A) Rajnath Singh
B) Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo
C) Mohan Charan Majhi
D) Pravati Parida

Answer: C) Mohan Charan Majhi

The portfolios allocated to the members of the Council of Ministers, who have been sworn in on 9 June, 2024, are as shown in the below
list.

LIST OF COUNCIL OF MINISTERS WITH PORTFOLIOS

Prime Minister

Cabinet Ministers

Ministers of State (Independent Charge)

Ministers of State

Official List : Portfolios allocated to the members of the Council of Ministers : Download PDF

Narendra Modi was sworn in as Prime Minister of India on 9 June 2024 for his third consecutive term. President Droupadi Murmu administered the Oath of Office and Secrecy at Rashtrapati Bhawan. 31 Cabinet Ministers, 5 Ministers of State (Independent Charge), and 36 Ministers of State took oath.

Key Cabinet Ministers:

• Senior BJP leaders who took oath include Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, Dr. S. Jaishankar, Piyush Goyal, Dharmendra Pradhan, Nirmala Sitharaman, and BJP President J.P. Nadda.
• Other significant figures include Kiren Rijiju, Pralhad Joshi, Giriraj Singh, Ashwini Vaishnaw, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Bhupender Yadav, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Annapurna Devi, Hardeep Singh Puri, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, G. Kishan Reddy, C.R. Patil, Dr. Virendra Kumar, and Jual Oram.
• Former Chief Ministers who took oath as Cabinet Ministers include Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Manohar Lal, and Sarbanand Sonowal.
• Other notable figures include H.D. Kumaraswamy, Jiten Ram Manjhi, Rajiv Ranjan Singh, Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, and Chirag Paswan.
• Ministers of State (Independent Charge) include Rao Inderjit Singh, Dr. Jitendra Singh, Arjun Ram Meghwal, Prataprao Jadhav, and Jayant Chaudhary.

Ministers of State:

36 Ministers of State took oath, including BJP MPs Jitin Prasada, Shripad Yesso Naik, Pankaj Chaudhary, Nityanad Rai, Krishan Pal, V. Somanna, S.P. Singh Baghel, Shobha Karandlaje, Suresh Gopi, Raksha Khadse, Ajay Tamta, Bandi Sanjay Kumar, Kamlesh Paswan, Harsh Malhotra, Satish Dubey, Ravneet Singh Bittu, and representatives from other parties such as Ramdas Athawale (RPI), Ram Nath Thakur (JD-U), Anupriya Patel (Apna Dal-S), and Dr. Pemmasani Chandrasekhar (TDP).

International Attendance:

Leaders from neighboring countries and the Indian Ocean region attended, including the President of Sri Lanka, President of Maldives, Vice-President of Seychelles, Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Prime Minister of Mauritius, Prime Minister of Nepal, and Prime Minister of Bhutan.

Dignitaries and Celebrities:

Attendees included Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Chief Justice of India Dr. D.Y. Chandrachud, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister-designate N. Chandrababu Naidu, Chief Ministers of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, Haryana, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, actors Rajnikanth, Shah Rukh Khan, Akshay Kumar, Vikrant Massey, filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani, and business tycoons Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani.

Q: Who was sworn in as India’s Prime Minister for a rare third consecutive term?

A) Yogi Adityanath
B) Narendra Modi
C) Manmohan Singh
D) Amit Saha

Answer: B) Narendra Modi

Newly elected MPs of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) are expected to meet on 8 June 2024 to elect Narendra Modi as their leader. This election will pave the way for Modi to take oath as prime minister for a third term, with the swearing-in likely on 9 June 2024(Sunday).

Senior NDA members, including TDP’s N Chandrababu Naidu and JD(U)’s Nitish Kumar, will join Modi to present the list of supporting parliamentarians to President Droupadi Murmu.

The NDA has 293 MPs, comfortably above the majority mark of 272 in the 543-member Lok Sabha.

World leaders including Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Sri Lanka President Ranil Wickremesinghe, Nepal PM Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu are set to attend the function.

Q: Who is expected to be elected as the leader of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) MPs?

a) N Chandrababu Naidu
b) Nitish Kumar
c) Narendra Modi
d) Mukesh Dalal

Ans : c) Narendra Modi

Q: Who is the Prime Minister of Bangladesh ?

a) Ranil Wickremesinghe
b) Pushpa Kamal Dahal
c) Sheikh Hasina
d) Mohamed Muizzu

Ans : c) Sheikh Hasina

National Democratic Alliance (NDA) leaders unanimously elected Prime Minister Narendra Modi as their leader during a meeting on 5 June 2024, in New Delhi. According to sources, PM Modi will take the oath for the third time on June 8, 2024.

• The meeting was held at Modi’s residence in New Delhi.
• Key attendees included BJP President J P Nadda, Union Ministers Rajnath Singh and Amit Shah.
• Leaders from various NDA constituent parties also attended, including:
  • N Chandrababu Naidu (Telugu Desam Party)
  • Nitish Kumar (Janata Dal (United) and Bihar CM)
  • Eknath Shinde (Shiva Sena (Shinde Group) and Maharashtra CM)
  • Chirag Paswan (Lok Janshakti Party (Ramvilas))
  • Anupriya Patel (Apna Dal)
  • Jayant Chaudhary (RLD)
  • H D Kumaraswamy (JD(S))
  • Jitan Ram Manjhi (Hindustani Awami Morcha)
  • Pawan Kalyan (Jan Sena Party)
  • Other NDA leaders

The participation of N Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar in the NDA meeting is a significant step as the support of their parties is crucial for the BJP to form the government. This time, the BJP fell 32 seats short of the majority mark of 272 and will need to rely on its allies to form a government.

Q: Why is the participation of N Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar in the NDA meeting for formation of Govt is significant?

a) They are new members of the NDA.
b) Their parties’ support is crucial for the BJP to form the government.
c) They were absent from previous meetings.
d) They opposed the NDA leadership.

Answer: b) Their parties’ support is crucial for the BJP to form the government.

The results of the Lok Sabha elections 2024 have been officially declared by Election Commission of India. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has emerged as the single largest party victory with 240 seats.

Detailed Seat Distribution:

Key Highlights:

• BJP’s Resounding Victory: The Bharatiya Janata Party has won 240 seats. BJP with the support his alliances Telugu Desam (16) and Janata Dal (United) – (12) and some other regional party securing a majority in the Lok Sabha.
• INC’s Position: The Indian National Congress has secured 99 seats, reflecting a significant opposition presence.
• Regional Parties: The Samajwadi Party, All India Trinamool Congress, and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam have shown strong performances with 37, 29, and 22 seats respectively.

Q: How many seats did the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) win in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections?

A) 240
B) 220
C) 200
D) 260

Ans : A) 240

Q: How many seats did the Indian National Congress (INC) win in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections?

A) 75
B) 99
C) 120
D) 135

Ans : B) 99

Counting of votes for the State Assemblies of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha was conducted on June 4, 2024.

Andhra Pradesh Assembly Polls:

• Total Seats: The State Assembly has a total of 175 seats.
• Telugu Desam Party (TDP): Won 135 seats.
• Janasena Party: Won 21 seats.
• Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP): Secured 8 seats.
• YSR Congress Party (YSRCP): Won 11 seats.
• Key Individual Wins:
  • YSRCP candidate and Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy won the Pulivendula Assembly seat by over 61,000 votes.
  • TDP Chief and former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu won the Kuppam Assembly constituency.

Odisha Assembly Polls:

• Total Seats: The State Assembly has a total of 147 seats.
• Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP): Bagged 78 seats.
• Biju Janata Dal (BJD): Won 51 seats.
• Congress: Secured 14 seats.
• Communist Party of India (Marxist) CPI(M): Bagged 1 seat.
• Independent Candidates: Won 3 seats.
• Key Individual Wins:
  • BJD President and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik won from the Hinjili Assembly constituency.

Q: Which party won the most seats in the Odisha Assembly polls?

A) Congress
B) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
C) Biju Janata Dal (BJD)
D) CPI(M)

Ans : B) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)

The NOTA (None of the Above) option received over 2 lakh votes in Indore. This marked a new record for the highest votes secured by NOTA. counting for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections took place on June 4, 2024.

1. Congress candidate Akshay Kanti Bam withdrew his nomination on the last day and joined BJP.
2. The Congress party then urged voters to choose the NOTA option.
3. BJP candidate Shankar Lalwani won the Indore seat by a margin of 10,08,077 votes.
4. NOTA secured 2,18,674 votes, more than any other candidate except the BJP winner.
5. The next highest votes were for BSP candidate Sanjay Solanki, who received 51,659 votes.

Q: Which Lok Sabha seat set a record for the highest votes secured by NOTA in the 2024 elections?

A) Mumbai South
B) Indore
C) Bangalore North
D) Delhi Central

Ans : B) Indore

BJP Wins Assembly elections in Arunachal Pradesh:

• The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has returned to power in Arunachal Pradesh.
• The BJP secured a landslide victory, winning 46 out of 60 seats.
• Prominent BJP winners include Ninong Ering, Dr. Mahesh Chai, Tai Nikio, Homchun Ngamdam, Wangling Lowangdong, Tsering Lamu, and Chakat Aboh.

SKM Wins Assembly elections in Sikkim:

• The ruling Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) has secured another term in Sikkim.
• SKM won 31 out of 32 seats. The Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) won only one seat.
• Incumbent Chief Minister and SKM President Prem Singh Tamang won from both Rhenock and Soreng Chakung Constituencies.

Election Context:

• Counting of votes for Assembly elections in Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim was held on 2 June 2024.
• Polling for the seats was held on 19 April, alongside the first phase of Lok Sabha elections.

Q: Which party won the majority in the Arunachal Pradesh Assembly elections held in April 2024?

A) Indian National Congress (INC)
B) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
C) Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF)
D) Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM)

Ans : B) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)

Q: Which political party won the majority in the Sikkim Assembly elections held in April 2024?

A) Indian National Congress (INC)
B) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
C) Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF)
D) Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM)

Ans : D) Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM)