Page 8 - Bjp

Honour, respect for Indians abroad were 'never the same' before 2014: Goyal

Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Sunday claimed that the honour and respect Indians get abroad now were never the same before 2014. He was addressing BJP workers and leaders at a gathering in Lucknow, after announcing the name of Union Minister Pankaj Chaudhary as the state party president. He said that before 2014 -- when the BJP came to power at the Centre -- the news featured corruption and major scams every day, and the law and order scenario was "very bad" in Uttar Pradesh. Addressing the attendees, he said that by making Narendra Modi the prime minister and ensuring the formation of the NDA government with a huge majority, "you have been the witness to ('saakshi') and the facilitator of ('sutradhaar') the development spree it started". "In the journey from 2014 to 2025, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the mindset and the way of working changed. At the international level, India's identity also changed. Today, wherever we go carrying t

Gyanesh Kumar must answer how EC allowed vote theft, says Priyanka

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Sunday said every step of the poll process arouses suspicion and asserted that the chief election commissioner and the two election commissioners must answer how they "conspired" to take away people's voting rights. Addressing the party's 'Vote Chor, Gaddi Chhod' mega rally at Ramlila grounds here, Priyanka Gandhi said Indians must rise when the country's institutions are being crushed. She named Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, and said the BJP will not be able to save them, as one day they will be forced to answer for "conspiring" to take away people's vote. "I challenge the BJP to contest polls on the ballot paper. They know they will never win," the Congress general secretary said. "You should not lose heart over losing Bihar, the entire country knows BJP wins through 'vote chori'," she said. The party leader said the Election Commission turned a blind eye to Rs .

Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary named new UP BJP chief

Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary was on Sunday named the new president of the BJP's Uttar Pradesh unit, with his election being formally announced by Union Minister Piyush Goyal here. The announcement was made in the presence of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Deputy Chief Ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak. Chaudhary filed his nomination for the post on Saturday and was the sole candidate in the fray. He submitted the papers to former Union minister and BJP state election officer Mahendra Nath Pandey and central election observer Vinod Tawde. Adityanath, his two deputies, and Jal Shakti Minister Swatantra Dev Singh were present during the filing of the nomination. A seven-time Lok Sabha MP from the Maharajganj constituency, Chaudhary belongs to the Kurmi community, categorised under Other Backwards Classes (OBC). He is considered a close confidant of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.

'Vote Chor, Gaddi Chhod' rally aimed at protecting infiltrators: BJP MP

Ahead of the Congress' rally over the "vote theft" issue, the BJP on Sunday alleged that the main opposition party was holding the event in its bid to "protect infiltrators" from being removed from the electoral rolls. The ruling BJP asserted that the Congress will not succeed in its design of misleading people as well as "insulting and defaming" constitutional institutions, because the entire world knows that India's democracy is "very robust". Stepping up its campaign against the alleged "vote theft" by the BJP in elections, the Congress has organised a rally at the Ramlila Maidan here on Sunday that will be attended by the party's top leaders, including general secretaries Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, K C Venugopal, Jairam Ramesh, and Sachin Pilot. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi are expected to address the gathering. Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi is also likely to be present at the event. Ahead of the event, BJP national spokesperson

Messi Kolkata event poorly managed, administration responsible: BJP MP

Speaking on the incident, BJP MP Praveen Khandelwal said, The West Bengal government clearly appears to have failed in this event

Meet R Sreelekha, ex-DGP who could be BJP's first Thiruvananthapuram mayor

The BJP's historic civic poll win in Kerala's capital has put the spotlight on R Sreelekha, the retired DGP who delivered a big ward victory and is now seen as a frontrunner for mayor

Congress gears up for 'Vote Chor, Gaddi Chhod' rally in Delhi today

The rally comes amid heightened political activity surrounding the Congress's campaign against alleged electoral irregularities

Opposition slams plan to rename MGNREGA, says Centre erasing history

Congress MP Akhilesh Prasad Singh said the move reflected a larger pattern. The Indian government is changing the entire history

Congress downplays BJP's Thiruvananthapuram win, claims UDF wave in Kerala

The Congress on Saturday downplayed the victory of the BJP in the Thiruvananthapuram municipal corporation, saying no amount of spin can take away from the reality that there is a UDF wave in Kerala and it will be decisively repeated in the 2026 Assembly polls. AICC general secretary K C Venugopal, who hails from Kerala, termed the BJP's claim of its surge in Kerala as "laughable". Interestingly, his remarks came after Congress Lok Sabha MP from Thiruvananthapuram Shashi Tharoor congratulated the BJP for the "historic performance" in the city corporation and said "the people's verdict must be respected, whether for the UDF overall or for the BJP in my constituency". In a post on X, Tharoor said he campaigned for a change from 45 years of the LDF "misrule", but the voters have ultimately rewarded another party that also sought a clear change in governance. "That is the beauty of democracy. The people's verdict must be respected, whether for the UDF overall or for the BJP in my ...

MGNREGA rename row: BJP says Modi govt aimed to change scheme's spirit

The BJP said on Saturday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision to rename the rural job guarantee scheme was not to alter its name but to change its "spirit". Hitting back at the Congress following its criticism on renaming MGNREGA, BJP national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said the opposition party and its leaders cannot understand the decision as they function with a sense of entitlement. "The name on which the Congress considers its exclusive right belongs to the entire country," the BJP leader said in an apparent reference to Mahatma Gandhi's name. The Union Cabinet approved a Bill on Friday to rename the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) as 'Poojya Bapu Grameen Rozgar Yojna'. On Saturday, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh slammed the Modi government, saying it was a "master" at renaming schemes and asked what was wrong with having "Mahatma Gandhi" in the name of the scheme. Congress general secretary in-charge (organisation) K C Venugopal sa

BJP wrests Thiruvananthapuram Corporation from LDF, ends 45-year Left rule

The lotus bloomed in the state capital as the BJP-led NDA achieved a resounding win in the polls for the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, snatching it from the CPI(M)-led LDF and marking an end to 45 years of continuous Left rule in the local body. The win in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation will act as a boost for the BJP in the 2026 assembly polls, especially in the state capital. Of the 101 wards in Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, the BJP won 50, LDF 29, UDF 19 and two by independent candidates. The BJP is one seat short of a decisive majority in the corporation. Besides this, the NDA retained the Palakkad municipality after a close battle with the Congress-led UDF and wrested the Thrippunithura Municipality from the grand old party. In Thrissur, from where Suresh Gopi won in the Lok Sabha polls last year, the BJP won 18 out of the 46 wards in Kodungallur Municipality, 8 in Thrissur Corporation, two each in Guruvayoor and Vadakkancherry municipalities, 7 in Kunnamkulam ...

Karnataka 'vote theft' case: SIT names ex-BJP MLA, son in chargesheet

The SIT which is probing the alleged 'vote chori' (vote theft)' in the Aland Assembly segment in 2023 Assembly elections in Karnataka, has filed a charge sheet naming seven persons, including a former BJP MLA, his son and his close aide. The charge sheet, filed before the First Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate in Bengaluru by the Special Investigation Team, relates to alleged efforts to remove the names of 5,994 voters. According to sources in the CID, the charge sheet comprises over 22,000 pages explaining in detail the modus operandi adopted to delete the voters' names. Those named in the charge sheet are Subhash Guttedar, a four-time former MLA from Aland, his son Harshanand Guttedar, his personal secretary, Tipperudra, three Kalaburagi-based data centre operators-- Akram Pasha, Mukaram Pasha and Mohammed Ashfaq-- and Bapi Adya from West Bengal. Adya was the first person to be arrested in the case. He allegedly operated a website, OTPbazaar, which was linked to a US-base

BJP set to elect new UP prez; senior leaders to file nominations on Dec 14

With the nomination phase formally beginning Saturday, the BJP is poised to unveil its new Uttar Pradesh chief on Sunday

Congress leader's letter exposes 'Team Rahul vs Team Priyanka' rift: BJP

In a post on X, BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla cited the letter and said the Congress's internal tensions were "out in the open now"

Parliament Winter Session LIVE: FM Sitharaman introduces Appropriation Bill in Lok Sabha

Parliament Winter Session LIVE Updates: Follow all the latest updates from Parliament as government and opposition debate key issues

BJP leadership has summoned party MLAs to Delhi for talks: Biren Singh

Former Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh on Friday said the BJP central leadership has asked the party MLAs to come to Delhi to discuss issues related to the state. Singh told reporters, "BJP is a national party. Party leaders have asked the MLAs to come to discuss issues related to the state on Sunday. I believe it may be related to government formation, but we are yet to have any confirmation. Many of us are leaving." Singh also expressed hope that a popular government may be formed soon in the state. More than 260 people have been killed and thousands rendered homeless in ethnic violence between Meiteis and Kuki-Zo groups since May 2023. The Centre had, on February 13, imposed President's rule in the state after N Biren Singh resigned as chief minister. The state assembly, which has a tenure till 2027, has been put under suspended animation. The BJP has 37 MLAs in the 60-member Manipur Assembly.

Told to form alliance at any cost before civic polls: Maharashtra BJP Prez

Maharashtra BJP president Ravindra Chavan on Friday said that senior leaders of their party have directed that an alliance must be forged at any cost ahead of the major municipal corporation elections which are to be held before January 31. We have been clearly told by the seniors that there should be an alliance at any cost before the civic polls, Chavan said, adding that the matter has been discussed at length by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy CM Eknath Shinde, who also heads the Shiv Sena. Chavan said elections to 29 municipal corporations, including the Mumbai civic body, are likely to be held in January, while the Zilla Parishad polls may get delayed as the matter is currently before the high court. He said Fadnavis had asked him to hold another round of discussions, following which he met Shinde at the latter's residence on Thursday night. We have created some committees in municipal corporations. But in Mumbai or Thane, seniors have already decided to have an ...

BJP MP urges govt to ensure standardised, transparent medical billing

BJP MP K Laxman on Thursday urged the government to ensure transparent and standardised medical billing, as he raised concerns over "exploitation practices" by private hospitals. Raising the issue in the Zero Hour in the Rajya Sabha, Laxman said in the absence of norms, many families are pushed into hardship due to medical bills. "There is a rise in exploitative practices by certain private corporate hospitals. Reports from patients, civil society and consumer bodies point to a disturbing pattern of unnecessary diagnostic tests, unwanted prolonged hospital stays with no clinical justification, and opaque billing processes," Laxman said. "Absence of transparent norms leaves people with little choice, pushing many families into hardship. Reports highlight they charge Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,000 as OPD, which is not covered under schemes like Ayushman Bharat," he said. The BJP MP urged the government to take steps to ensure transparent billing. "I urge the government to ensure transparent .

Parliament Winter Session HIGHLIGHTS: Lok Sabha begins discussion on electoral reforms

Parliament Winter Session HIGHLIGHTS: The discussion on electoral reforms continued, with speakers from the BJP-led NDA and its allies accusing the Opposition of double standards

BJP turning EC into 'tool' for 'vote chori', says Rahul Gandhi in Lok Sabha

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday alleged that the BJP is turning the Election Commission into a "tool" for "vote chori". Sharing a clip of his speech during a discussion on election reforms in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, Gandhi said on X, "India's public is asking these 3 very important and direct questions: 1. Why was the CJI removed from the EC selection panel? 2. Why was almost complete legal immunity given to the EC before the 2024 elections? 3. Why the hurry to destroy CCTV footage within 45 days?" "The answer is one - BJP is turning the Election Commission into a tool for vote theft," the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha said. In a no-holds-barred attack, Gandhi on Tuesday alleged that the BJP and the Election Commission were "colluding to destroy" India's democracy and "rob people of their voice". Participating in the discussion on election reforms, Gandhi claimed the BJP is "directing and using" the Election Commission to damage India's democracy. Making suggestion