New Delhi, Feb 26 (IANS) Veteran BJP leader L.K. Advani seemed the happiest with Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu's budget Thursday.
As soon as Prabhu finished reading his more than an hour long speech, a pleased looking Advani, who was sitting next to him, patted him vigorously and shook his hands.
The senior leader usually keeps a low profile in the house these days.
A beaming Prabhu folded his hands and greeted the senior leader in return.
-*-
No front row for Jaitley
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who was a little late in entering the Lok Sabha, had to sit next to Akali Dal's Harsimrat Kaur as his usual seat in the front row was occupied by Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, Advani and Prabhu.
Jaitley came in nearly five minutes after Prabhu began his speech. Harsimrat Kaur immediately attempted to strike a conversation with the finance minister.
Though initially Jaitley was seen trying to concentrate on the railway budget, very soon he chatted up the food processing industries minister, who is the wife of Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal.
-*-
'Hey Prabhu'
The Railway minister evoked peals of laughter when reflecting on the challenging tasks before him, he remarked:
"Hey Prabhu, ye kaise hoga? (Oh God, how can this be done?). His remarks led to guffaws in the house, which was till then listening with apt attention to the finer nuances of the budget.
However, he was quick to add that large resources will ensure "re-birth of the railways".
-*-
An animated Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who usually sits with an impassive face, was seen animatedly discussing the rail budget with Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
The two top leaders were holding copies of the railway budget speech and discussing it.
-*-
No MP fund for railway
Prabhu Thursday touched a raw nerve when he suggested that MPs use part of their development funds in improving facilities at railway stations.
"No no no..." almost all opposition MPs shouted when he made the suggestion.
Talking about making passenger amenities better as he presented the railway budget for 2015-16, he said: "I request all corporates, NGOs, charitable institutions and religious institutions to come forward and invest generously for passenger amenities from their CSR fund.
"I also request all MPs to use part of their MPLAD funds in improving facilities at railway stations."
Some opposition MPs were quick to ask for a raise in the MPLAD fund.
'Bhabi Ji Ghar Par Hain' fame actor Dipesh Bhan said goodbye to this world forever. From the cele
The Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a heavy rain alert for 14 states including Gujarat
The former Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe was shot dead yesterday. This kind of news from a
Modi asks MPs to defend land acquisition bill
New Delhi, Feb 24 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday asked his party MPs to aggressive
In the recent past, many people have lost their lives due to heart attacks. Some of these cases w
Ranbir Kapoor is in the news for his upcoming film Animal. His first look from the film has alrea
Crypto Price Today: Profit-booking in the crypto market, Cardano and Shiba Inu break five percent
After a strong rally in the past few days, the cryptocurrency market saw profit booking on Friday
University education for girls has been completely banned in Afghanistan. A day later, Higher Edu
Pakistan is currently facing the worst economic crisis. The situation has reached such an extent
Oscar 2022: 'No joke is too good', Salman Khan's reaction to Will Smith's slap scandal
The controversy between Will Smith and Chris Rock at the 94th Oscar Awards ceremony remains in th
