Page 266 - Bjp

Oppn stopped from visiting Sandeshkhali, NCSC recommends President's rule

National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) chief said the commission has recommended the imposition of President's rule in West Bengal in its report submitted to President Droupadi Murmu

Spoke to PM on BJP 'poaching' Oppn leaders by 'scaring' them: Kharge

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday said he had recently spoken to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the BJP's "poaching" of leaders from the opposition ranks and asserted it was being done by "scaring" them. Against the backdrop of former chief minister Ashok Chavan joining the BJP recently, Kharge said such switching of sides was an act of "cowardice". He was speaking after inaugurating a two-day state level training camp in Lonavala here for Congress functionaries. "During a tea meeting in Parliament where Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present, I asked him how many people are you (BJP) going to poach as ministers and ex-chief ministers are joining your fold. I asked him about the appetite (to take leaders from opposition ranks into the ruling party)," Kharge told the gathering. "He (PM) said what could he do if people want to join the BJP. I told him they (BJP) are carrying out this work (poaching) by scaring people. He said these people want to join because of .

BJP national council meet: More than 1,200 delegates from MP to attend

More than 1,200 delegates from Madhya Pradesh will take part in the Bharatiya Janata Party's two-day national council meeting set to start from Saturday in New Delhi, state unit chief VD Sharma said. The meeting will discuss Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "mantra" of getting 370 extra votes in every booth when compared to the 2019 general elections to ensure the BJP crosses the 370 seat mark, Sharma told reporters on Friday. "A total of 1,226 delegates from MP will take part in the two-day national council meeting. Party president JP Nadda will address the opening session while PM Modi will speak to delegates in the concluding session," Sharma said. "The BJP has resolved to win 370 seats and cross the 400 mark along with (NDA) allies," he said. Candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls will be decided by the party's parliamentary board under the leadership of the PM, he added. Brushing aside Congress allegations that the BJP was using Central probe agencies to target the opposit

BJP's return will cause existential crisis to regional parties: Chidambaram

Veteran Congress leader and former Union finance minister P Chidambaram on Friday said he cannot predict the future of the INDIA bloc as he is not part of the negotiating committee of the national alliance, but said that the return of Narendra Modi and the BJP to power would cause an existential crisis to state-specific regional parties. He said the Ram temple in Ayodhya could be a factor in the upcoming elections but "whether it will be a decisive one, only time will say". "I cannot say anything about the future of the bloc because I'm not part of the national alliance's negotiating committee and also not part of INDIA bloc meetings. My information is only secondhand or even thirdhand. But I sincerely hope that all the remaining parties understand that the return of Mr Modi and the BJP to the Centre will cause an existential crisis to the state-specific regional parties," Chidambaram told PTI in an exclusive interview here. The veteran Congressman was recently in the city for a ...

7 BJP MLAs suspended from Delhi Assembly's Budget session for disruptions

Seven BJP MLAs were on Friday suspended for the remainder of the Budget session of the Delhi Assembly for interrupting the Lt Governor's address. The BJP MLAs had interrupted Lt Governor VK Saxena multiple times during his address on Thursday as they sought to attack the Arvind Kejriwal government. Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel had also sent the matter of disruption to the Privileges Committee. AAP MLA Dilip Pandey moved a resolution in the House seeking action on this issue, which was accepted by the Speaker. Pandey said that opposition members on Thursday acted in an "planned manner" while disrupting the LG's address which lowered the prestige of the House. "It was unprecedented and unfortunate," he said. While reading out from the rule book, he said the behaviour of the opposition members has lowered the dignity of the House, and demanded action. Speaker Goel while accepting the resolution of Pandey, said the matter be sent to the Privileges Committee. Seven members

Sandeshkhali violence: NCSC delegation submits report to Prez Murmu

A delegation of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) which visited West Bengal's Sandeshkhali to probe alleged harassment of women by TMC supporters has submitted its report to President Droupadi Murmu, officials said on Friday. A large number of women in Sandeshkhali have claimed that TMC leader Shajahan Sheikh and his supporters captured swathes of land by force and also sexually harassed them. They are demanding the immediate arrest of Sheikh, who has been absconding since an Enforcement Directorate (ED) team that raided his house in connection with an alleged ration scam was attacked by a mob last month. The NCSC delegation visited Sandeshkhali on Thursday and submitted its report to the President after returning to Delhi, the officials said.

I-T dept freezes Cong's bank accounts, appellate tribunal de-freezes later

The Congress on Friday said Income Tax authorities had frozen its main bank accounts, impacting all political activity. However, the accounts were later de-frozen by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal pending a further hearing next week. Party leader Vivek Tankha, who appeared before the tribunal against the order, said the party was now allowed to operate its bank accounts. The tribunal will hear the matter next Wednesday before a final decision is taken on the matter. Tankha said he told the tribunal that the Congress would not be able to participate in the "festival of elections" in case its accounts remain frozen. Earlier in the day, treasurer Ajay Maken said the Income Tax department had frozen the Congress' main bank accounts on "flimsy grounds" and this affected all political activity of the party barely two weeks before general elections are announced. The accounts, including that of the Indian Youth Congress, were frozen on an Income Tax demand of Rs 210 crore for 2018-19,

Everyone leaving Cong as it's trapped in vicious circle of nepotism: PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday hit out at the Congress, saying that everyone is leaving the party as it is trapped in the vicious circle of nepotism and dynastic politics. He said the Congress' sole agenda is to oppose Modi. The prime minister was virtually addressing an event, 'Viksit Bharat, Viksit Rajasthan', in Jaipur. He also laid the foundation stones of projects worth about Rs 17,000 crore and inaugurated various development works. "The Congress has only one agenda, anti-Modi. It spreads such things against Modi which divide society. This is what happens to a party when it gets trapped in the vicious circle of nepotism and dynastic politics. Today everyone is leaving the Congress and only one family is seen there," Modi said. A big problem with the Congress is that it lacks the farsightedness to frame positive policies. Neither can the Congress foresee the future nor does it have any road map for it, he said. To make India a developed country, the prime minister sai

Will probe incident involving LS member Pragya Singh Thakur: Akasa Air

Akasa Air on Friday said it will carry out a detailed investigation into the "deboarding experience" of BJP leader and Lok Sabha member Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur at the Delhi airport after she alleged that airline staff conspired and tried to cause loss to her. Details about the incident that happened on February 15 after the member landed at the Delhi airport from Mumbai in an Akasa Air flight could not be immediately ascertained. In a post on X on Friday, Thakur alleged that Akasa Air's duty manager Imran and his associates conspired and tried to cause loss to her. Tagging civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, she requested the minister to take action about the incident. "We regret the deboarding experience that Hon'ble Member of Parliament Ms Pragya Thakur had on our flight QP1120 on February 15, 2024. We apologize for any inconvenience caused to her. "While we will investigate the incident in detail, we take this as an opportunity to learn and to continue improving on

BJP, Cong teams to visit West Bengal's violence-hit Sandeshkhali today

West Bengal's Sandeshkhali, which has been rocked by protests over alleged atrocities on villagers by TMC leaders, continued to remain tense on Friday even as a BJP central team and a Congress delegation are scheduled to visit the area during the day. The police have been patrolling the area and have put up barricades to stop the visit of political leaders to the area, apprehending that it might worsen the situation. Six BJP MPs, including five women, are scheduled to visit Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district this afternoon and they alleged that the law and order there was "non-existent". BJP president J P Nadda has constituted the six-member committee of party MPs to visit Sandeshkhali where women have been protesting against alleged atrocities by local TMC leaders. Union ministers Pratima Bhoumik, Annapurna Devi, who is the committee's convener, Sunita Duggal, Kavita Patidar, Sangeeta Yadav and Brij Lal, a former Uttar Pradesh DGP, are members of the panel. "We hope the .

Sandeshkhali violence case: PIL filed in SC seeks court-monitored probe

A PIL was filed in the Supreme Court seeking a court-monitored CBI or SIT probe into the violence in West Bengal's Sandeshkhali village. The plea filed by lawyer Alakh Alok Srivastava also seeks compensation for victims of the Sandeshkhali violence and action against officials of the West Bengal Police for alleged dereliction of duty. The plea also seeks transfer of the probe and subsequent trial outside West Bengal. Besides it seeks an inquiry by a three-judge committee as done in the Manipur violence case. Sandeshkhali, a village in North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal, has been witnessing protests over allegations of sexual abuse of women by a local TMC leader. Several women in the region have accused the local Trinamool Congress strongman Shajahan Sheikh and his supporters of land-grab and sexually assaulting them under coercion. Shajahan has been absconding after a mob, allegedly affiliated to him, attacked Enforcement Directorate officials who has gone to search his ..

Rajasthan Cong MLA Mahendrajeet Singh Malviya likely to join BJP: Report

Malviya currently represents the Bagidora Assembly seat in the Banswara district

Parl Committee of Privileges directs WB top officials to appear on Feb 19

West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar was shifted from the ICU to a room in the daycare building of Apollo Hospital Salt Lake Kolkata on Thursday

Highlights of the day: Lok Sabha's fifteenth session ends today

News updates: Catch all the latest updates from around the world here

Subramanian Swamy moves Delhi HC seeking probe against Axis Bank

Subramanian Swamy has filed a Public Interest Writ Petition against the Union of India, Axis Bank, Axis Securities Limited, Axis Capital Limited, and others before the High Court of Delhi

Electoral bonds worth Rs 16k cr sold so far, BJP got nearly 55%, shows data

Electoral bonds have accounted for more than Rs 16,000 crore worth funds contributed to various political parties so far, a lion's share is estimated to have gone to the BJP, data shows. All political parties put together received more than Rs 12,000 crore till last fiscal since the introduction of the now-annulled electoral bond scheme in 2018, of which the ruling BJP got nearly 55 per cent or Rs 6,565 crore, according to the data available with Election Commission and Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR). While the party-wise data for the current fiscal 2023-24 would be available later after they file annual audit reports for the year, ADR put the collective amount of funds generated through sale of electoral bonds between March 2018 and January 2024 at Rs 16,518.11 crore. On an average, these bonds are estimated to account for over half of total contributions received by the parties, though it is more than 90 per cent in case of some regional parties that are in power in thei

RS polls: 4 BJP, 1 Cong candidate file nominations from Madhya Pradesh

All four BJP candidates, including Union minister L Murugan, and one Congress candidate from Madhya Pradesh filed their nominations on Thursday for the Rajya Sabha elections to be held later this month. Murugan, BJP Kisan Morcha's national vice president Banshilal Gurjar, state party women's wing chief Maya Naroliya and Valmiki Dham Ashram head Umesh Nath Maharaj, who has been nominated by the BJP, filed their nominations before the returning officer in the state assembly complex here. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, former CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan, state BJP president V D Sharma and ministers including Kailash Vijayvargiya and Prahlad Patel were present on the occasion. Earlier, Yadav welcomed Umesh Nath Maharaj and Murugan on their arrival in the state capital Bhopal for filing their nominations for the Rajya Sabha polls scheduled on February 27. The Election Commission had on January 29 released the date for the Rajya Sabha elections to 56 seats from 15 states, includ

Only BJP benefitted from electoral bonds, say Maharashtra Oppn parties

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party was the only outfit that benefited from electoral bonds, said opposition parties in Maharashtra on Thursday after the Supreme Court struck down the political funding scheme, calling it "unconstitutional". The NCP-Sharadchandra Pawar claimed the electoral bonds were brought into practice to solely benefit the BJP from anonymous donors. This scheme cannot rule out the possibility of a 'quid pro quo' from an individual or a company to a political party and therefore seeing the quantum of electoral bonds received by the BJP, this is a possibility, said party spokesperson Clyde Crasto. The Supreme Court's decision to strike down the electoral bonds scheme, calling it unconstitutional', is a very welcome move. There should be transparency and accountability of every donation that comes to a political party, Crasto said. The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) said the top court has given a landmark decision over poll bonds but it should not go the way t

Govt must stop implementing such ideas in future: Kharge on electoral bond

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday welcomed the Supreme Court decision to strike down the electoral bonds scheme and hoped the government will stop resorting to "such mischievous ideas" in the future. He said the Congress party had called the scheme "opaque and undemocratic" when it was launched. Subsequently, in the 2019 manifesto, the Congress promised to scrap the Modi government's "dubious scheme". "We welcome the decision of the Supreme Court today, which has struck down this 'Black Money Conversion' scheme of the Modi Government, calling it 'Unconstitutional'. "We remember how the Modi Govt, PMO and FM bulldozed every institution - RBI, Election Commission, Parliament and Opposition to fill BJP's coffers. No wonder, 95% of the funding under this scheme was received by BJP," Kharge said in a post in X. "We hope that Modi Government will stop resorting to such mischievous ideas in future and listens to the Supreme Court, so that Democracy, Transparency and ...

BJP's Nand Kishore Yadav elected unopposed as Bihar Assembly Speaker

Veteran BJP leader Nand Kishore Yadav was on Thursday elected unopposed as the Speaker of the Bihar Legislative Assembly. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Yadav escorted the new speaker to the Chair. Kumar congratulated Nand Kishore Yadav and said he was an experienced leader. "You (Speaker) are an experienced leader. I congratulate you on your election. You have been supported by all MLAs. I am sure you will hear both sides, ruling as well as opposition". The Leader of the Opposition expressed hope that the new speaker will listen to the opposition also. "You are a very senior leader and I am sure that you will remain impartial and listen to the opposition also", Tejashwi Yadav said. Deputy Chief Ministers Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha congratulated Yadav on being elected as the speaker of the state Assembly. "You are our senior leader and you come from the land of Guru Govind Singh Ji. We all are thankful to our central leadership for this