Page 166 - Bjp

Priyanka wishes Rahul on his birthday; calls him 'argumentative guide'

As Rahul Gandhi turned 54, his sister Priyanka Gandhi on Wednesday posted a heartfelt message for him on social media and said he was her "friend, argumentative guide, philosopher and leader". Rahul Gandhi, a former Congress president and MP from Rae Bareli, has instructed all Congress workers to avoid any grand celebrations, and instead celebrate this occasion by engaging in humanitarian efforts and charity. In a post on X, Priyanka Gandhi said, "Happy Birthday to my sweet brother whose unique perspective on life, the universe and everything lights up the path." "Always my friend, my fellow traveller, argumentative guide, philosopher and leader. Keep shining (star emojis), love you the most!" the Congress general secretary said. The brother-sister duo often share heartfelt messages for each other on various occasions and post funny exchanges between them.

Didn't want my wife to contest polls, but Cong brass insisted: HP CM Sukhu

Congress leader and Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu Wednesday said he did not want his wife to contest elections, but the party high command insisted she should, and announced her candidature for the Dehra assembly seat bypoll. Sukhu's wife Kamlesh Thakur's name appear in the list of candidates released by Congress general secretary K C Venugopal on Tuesday. She has been fielded from the Dehra seat against two-time Independent MLA Hoshiyar Singh, who is contesting this election on a BJP ticket. "I was not willing that my wife contests elections but could not refuse to the Congress High command" Sukhu told reporters late on Tuesday night. He said the party leadership had told him during the Lok Sabha elections too that Thakur should contest the elections "but I was not willing". "This time again when the High Command insisted, I could not refuse" given what the political scenario in the state demanded. He said his wife emerged as the front-runner in the part

People protest over firing incident in Dehradun, CM Dhami warns criminals

People held a protest in the Raipur area here on Tuesday against the firing incident in Dobhal Chowk in which one person was killed and two more were injured, while police arrested the main suspect and another man in connection with the case. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami warned that no one would be allowed to disrupt Uttarakhand's peace and said the criminals should leave the state or face strict action. Police officials said main suspect Ramveer of Muzaffarnagar was arrested from Rajasthan's Kotputli district, and another suspect, Ankush alias Golu, was nabbed from Raipur. So far, five people have been apprehended. The firing followed a dispute between two sides late Sunday night involving a vehicle. During the altercation, one group fired gunshots, killing vehicle owner Deepak Badola and injuring his friends Manoj Negi and Sanjay Chhetri. On Monday, police arrested Sonu Bhardwaj, his brother Monu Bhardwaj and Shambhu Yadav. Authorities are searching for two more people, th

No change in Maharashtra's leadership, plan to win Assembly elections: BJP

The BJP on Tuesday ruled out any change in its leadership in Maharashtra after its poor showing in the Lok Sabha elections and asserted that it is working on a blueprint for the Shiv Sena-BJP-NCP coalition to emerge victorious in the assembly polls, due later this year. The decision was taken at the Maharashtra BJP's core group meeting with party president JP Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. "There will be no change in leadership in Maharashtra," Union Minister Piyush Goyal told reporters at the BJP headquarters. The leaders discussed the strategy to ensure the re-election of the MahaYuti alliance in the upcoming assembly elections, Goyal said. The meeting was attended by senior BJP leaders BL Santosh, Bhupender Yadav, Ashwini Vaishnaw, state BJP leader Chandrashekhar Bawankule, Sudhir Mungantiwar, Chandrakant Patil, Pankaja Munde, Raosaheb Danve and Vinod Tawde, among others. The BJP won nine seats in Maharashtra in the recent Lok Sabha elections, down from its 2019 tally

In 2014, farmers became part of country's political agenda: CM Adityanath

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday said that for the first time since independence, farmers in 2014 became a part of the country's political agenda. Addressing a PM Kisan Samman Sammelan in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi here, Adityanath said several schemes were launched by the Modi government to increase the income of farmers and transform their lives. He added that the schemes ranged from Soil Health Card to Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi, and "today its results are visible". "When Prime Minister Modi took oath for the third time, the first thing he did was to sign a file dedicated to the farmers. Today crores of farmers are benefiting from Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi," Adityanath was quoted as saying in a statement. The chief minister mentioned that for the first time in 62 years, a politician has brought about extensive changes in the lives of all sections of society through his work and took oath as the Prime Minister for the third

Rajnath Singh meets top ministers to discuss Parliament House strategy

A meeting of the top BJP leaders is expected to be held at Defence Minister Rajnath Singh's residence here on Tuesday evening to discuss the names of the candidate for the Lok Sabha Speaker and Deputy Speaker. Some of the NDA constituents are also expected to participate in the meeting, sources said. The election for the Lok Sabha speaker's post will be held on June 26, two days after the first session of the Parliament begins. Meanwhile, a separate meeting of the Maharashtra BJP core group will be held at the party headquarters this evening to discuss the party's strategy for the assembly polls due to be held in the state later this year, sources said. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, party state president Chandrashekhar Bawankule, Ashish Shelar, MP Ashok Chauhan, Minister Girish Mahajan and other leaders are expected to attend the meeting to be presided over by BJP chief J P Nadda. Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP general secretary (organization) BL Sant

News updates: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi resigns from Wayanad seat of Lok Sabha

Latest news updates: Catch all the news updates from around the world here

TMC-led Oppn MPs group seeks probe on result-day crash, meet Sebi officials

After the meeting, Banerjee said that though they did not get any assurance from Sebi, the officials said that they will look into the matter

Cong says govt destroying railways, asks for Ashwini Vaishnaw's resignation

Accusing the government of "destroying" Indian Railways, the Congress on Tuesday demanded Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw's resignation in the wake of the Kanchanjunga Express accident and said that he has no moral right to remain in the position. The opposition party also took a swipe at Vaishnaw for reaching the accident site riding pillion on a motorcycle, asking whether he is a rail minister or a "reel minister". Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said whenever there is a train accident, Modi government's railway minister reaches the spot under the glare of cameras and behaves as if everything is fine. "Narendra Modi ji, tell us who should be held accountable, the Railway Minister or you?" the Congress chief asked. Kharge posed seven questions to the government and demanded answers. After a major accident like Balasore, why was not even a single kilometer of the much-hyped "Kavach" anti-train collision system added, he asked. "Why are nearly 3 lakh posts vacant in the ..

Kerala BJP mocks Cong over Priyanka Gandhi's candidature from Wayanad

The BJP in Kerala on Tuesday continued to mock the Congress party's decision to field Priyanka Gandhi in Wayanad, which was vacated by Rahul Gandhi, and said the grand old party may consider her husband Robert Vadra in the upcoming by-poll in Palakkad assembly segment. BJP state chief K Surendran and senior leader V Muraleedharan criticised the Congress leadership over their decision and alleged that they had cheated the people of Wayanad. Surendran, who had contested against Rahul Gandhi in the April 26 Lok Sabha polls in the hill constituency, said it is once again proven beyond doubt that the Congress is the only "tool" for the so-called Nehru-Gandhi family to serve their family's interests. In a post on 'X', he said: "Mr @RahulGandhi claimed that Wayanad is his family. Now he has decided the candidature of his own sister claimed that Wayanad is his family. Now he has decided the candidature of his own sister @priyankagandhi to the upcoming by-election in Wayanad. Hope that Mr ..

TMC MPs meet Sebi officials, seek probe into stock market 'manipulation'

A delegation of Trinamool Congress MPs met officials of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) here on Tuesday and demanded a probe into the alleged stock market manipulation following exit polls earlier this month. The delegation, comprising TMC MPs Kalyan Banerjee, Sagarika Ghose and Saket Gokhale, was joined by Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Arvind Sawant and former NCP (SP) MLC Vidya Chavan. Notably, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi had alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah were "directly involved" in what he described as the "biggest stock market scam" with retail investors losing Rs 30 lakh crore due to the market crashing after the Lok Sabha poll result earlier this month. The BJP has dismissed his charges as "baseless". West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) head Mamata Banerjee has demanded an investigation into how stock markets were "manipulated by using fake exit polls". After the meeting, Kalyan Banerjee told reporters, SE

Swati Maliwal writes to INDIA bloc, seeks time to discuss assault case

Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal on Tuesday sought time from INDIA bloc leaders to discuss the alleged assault against her by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's aid Bibhav Kumar. In a letter to INDIA bloc leaders like Rahul Gandhi and Sharad Pawar, the Aam Aadmi Party member complained she was subjected to "victim shaming and character assassination" for speaking up against the abuse. "Instead of finding support, I was confronted with incessant attacks on my character and victim shaming orchestrated by the leaders and volunteers of my own party," she wrote. "Over the past one month, I have encountered first-hand pain and isolation a survivor faces when she fights for justice. . . I would like to seek your time to discuss this pertinent issue," she added. Maliwal posted the letters addressed to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and national president Sharad Pawar on X. "I have worked on the ground for the last 18 years and have heard 1.7 lakh cases in the Women's Commission in 9 years. Withou

NEET row: AAP leaders protest at Jantar Mantar, demand SC monitored probe

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders gathered at the Jantar Mantar here on Tuesday to protest against the alleged irregularities in the NEET exam. Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj demanded that a Supreme Court monitored probe be initiated into the matter. "There are 24 lakh students, who appeared in the NEET exam. They prepared for 16 to 18 hours for the exam. Never before have people heard that someone paid a bribe to ace the exam," he said. Bharadwaj cited the example of Bihar where some aspirants received the exam's question paper and answers in a 'safe house' near Patna a day before it was conducted on May 5. "Some students have approached the Supreme Court. We want that a committee be set up to probe the matter and it should be monitored by the apex court," he added. The NEET-UG 2024 was conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) at 4,750 centres in 571 cities for more than 24 lakh candidates.

Goa liberated in 1961 only after freedom fighters pressured govt: CM Sawant

Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Tuesday said it was after immense pressure from freedom fighters that the then central government took up 'Operation Vijay' and Goa got liberated from the Portuguese rule in 1961. Had the state got liberated when the country attained independence, its pace of development would have been much faster, Sawant said on the occasion of the Goa Revolution Day. Goa Revolution Day is celebrated on June 18 to commemorate a public meeting held at Margao in 1946, during which freedom fighter Ram Manohar Lohia gave a clarion call for liberation. Sawant was addressing a gathering after laying wreath at the Martyrs' memorial at Azad Maidan here in the presence of Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai, Union Minister of State for Power Shripad Naik, freedom fighters and other people. The coastal state was liberated 14 years after India's independence, the CM noted. "India got freedom from the British rule but Goa continued to reel under the Portuguese rule for next 14 yea

After Maha CM meets Dy CMs, BJP leaders leave for review meet in Delhi

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde held a late night meeting with Deputy CMs Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar after which some state BJP leaders left for Delhi for a review meet, sources said on Tuesday. Details of the meeting were not available. It was convened in the backdrop of the ruling Mahayuti's below par performance in the recently-concluded Lok Sabha elections. "CM Shinde held a meeting with Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar at his official residence 'Varsha'. After Pawar left, Shinde and Fadnavis continued the meeting for some time," a source in the BJP said on Tuesday. BJP's central leadership has called a review meeting with state leaders in connection with the party's performance in the Lok Sabha polls. "It is a routine exercise in the BJP to hold such review meetings with state leaders. (BJP leader) Fadnavis offered to resign some days back after the results were out. He had stated that he wished to work for the party full-time till the state assembly elections. This will

After LS poll win from Vidisha, Shivraj Singh Chouhan resigns as MLA

Union Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Monday resigned as the MLA from his traditional Budhni seat in Madhya Pradesh, days after getting elected to the Lok Sabha from Vidisha in the state. After submitting his resignation from the assembly membership to the speaker, Chouhan said he will continue to serve the people of Budhni in Sehore district from where he started his political career decades ago. In a video statement, the BJP veteran said it was a very emotional moment for him to resign from the Budhni seat, which elected him to the assembly 6 times. I am feeling very emotional today. I have resigned from the membership of the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly. The people of Budhni reside in every breath of mine. I started my public life from Budhni and people continued to shower me with their love and affection," he noted. "Since childhood, I took part in agitations in Budhni. Thereafter, I am getting people's love and affection. Serving ...

EC should invite Musk to attempt hacking EVMs, says Andhra BJP chief

BJP's Andhra Pradesh unit chief D Purandeswari on Monday appealed to the Election Commission to invite global technocrat and Tesla founder Elon Musk to come and attempt hacking Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). Reacting to a social media post by Musk that EVMs should be eliminated as they can be hacked by humans or Artificial Intelligence (AI), Purandeswari made this plea to the poll panel. "According to Elon Musk, any EVM can be hacked. Request election commission to please invite him to India to attempt hacking our EVMs," she said in a post on X. According to the state BJP chief, despite "numerous opportunities provided by the Election Commission, no one has succeeded yet'. On June 15, Musk, a top global serial entrepreneur, called for the abolition of EVM in a post on the micro-blogging site X owned by him. "We should eliminate electronic voting machines. The risk being hacked by humans or AI, while small, is still too high," said Musk. However, this social media post by the

'Symbol of dynasticism', says BJP on Priyanka contesting from Wayanad seat

The BJP on Monday slammed the Congress accusing it of indulging in "dynastic politics" after party leader Rahul Gandhi decided to retain the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seat and vacate Wayanad in Kerala for Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to contest the by-elections from the seat. "With Rahul Gandhi deciding to vacate the Wayanad seat and his sister to contest from there, it has become clear today that the Congress is not a political party but a company of the family," BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonwala charged. "Mother (Sonia Gandhi) will be in the Rajya Sabha, son (Rahul Gandhi) in the Lok Sabha from one (Rae Bareli) and Priyanka will also be in the Lok Sabha from another (Wayanad) seat. This is a symbol of dynasticism," he added. The BJP's reaction came after Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said that Gandhi will keep the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seat in Uttar Pradesh and vacate the Wayanad seat in Kerala from where his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will contest. The BJP spokesperson ter

BJP leaders meet to discuss election strategy for Haryana Assembly polls

Senior BJP leaders held a meeting on Monday to discuss the party's strategy for the assembly elections in Haryana, due later this year. Home Minister Amit Shah, Union ministers Dharmendra Pradhan, Manohar Lal Khattar and Krishna Pal Gurjar were present at the meeting, presided over by BJP chief JP Nadda at the party's headquarters in the national capital. The BJP's Haryana core group leaders, including Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, were also present. The meeting came within hours of Nadda appointing Pradhan as the party's election in-charge for Haryana, setting in motion its preparations for the assembly polls. Former Tripura chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb was made the party's co-election in-charge. Nadda also appointed the party's election in-charges and co-incharges for assembly polls-bound Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Jammu and Kashmir. Senior BJP leader and Union Minister Bhupender Yadav was appointed as the party's election in-charge for Maharashtra while Railway Minister

Naveen Patnaik likely to become leader of Opposition in Odisha Assembly

BJD president and former chief minister Naveen Patnaik is likely to become the Leader of Opposition in Odisha Assembly as the regional outfit has scheduled its first legislature party meeting on Wednesday. This could be Patnaik's first time as leader of opposition (LoP) in his political career, which began in 1997. Patnaik served as the CM of Odisha five consecutive times from 2000 until June 2024. If Patnaik takes on the role of LoP, the party may elect a deputy leader to handle day-to-day activities in the Assembly, party sources said. In the 147-member Assembly, the BJP has 78 members, followed by the BJD with 51, Congress (14), CPIM 3, and Independents 3. In the last Assembly, the BJD had 113 MLAs. While Patnaik is expected to be unanimously elected as LoP, one of the senior leaders of the party is likely to be his deputy in the House. Given the saffron surge, many senior leaders lost their seats, but a few managed to retain it. Senior BJD leaders who won include Prasanna Ach