Page 161 - Congress

LS polls: Cong will get more seats than in 2019 elections, says Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Saturday asserted that his party would get more seats in the ensuing elections than in 2019 and predicted that the INDIA bloc would secure a resounding victory in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. In an interview with PTI, Chidambaram also said that neither Hinduism nor the Hindus were under any threat and it was the BJP's "calculated strategy" to paint the entire Opposition as "anti-Hindu" to project Modi as the "saviour of Hindus". He also described West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee as a "key player" in this election and said that her ability to hold the fort in the state will strengthen the INDIA bloc. "I cannot speak for all the states. I can confidently predict that the INDIA bloc will record a resounding victory in Tamil Nadu. In Kerala, the two fronts (UDF and LDF) will share the 20 seats, leaving nothing to the BJP. In Karnataka and Telangana, the Congress governments are popular and Congress will get many more seats than

Highlights of the Day: IIP grows 5.7% in February, retail inflation falls to 4.85% in March

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Congress to become extinct like dinosaur in few years, says Rajnath Singh

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh claimed on Friday that the Congress will become extinct like the dinosaur in a few years. The senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader compared the infighting within the Congress to the house of television reality show "Bigg Boss", saying the leaders of the party are tearing each other's clothes on a daily basis. "The exodus of leaders from the Congress continues. They are quitting the party one after another and joining the BJP. I am afraid that in a few years from now, the Congress will become extinct like the dinosaur. In a few years after 2024, if we take the name of the Congress, children will ask, who?" Singh said, addressing a rally in Uttarakhand's Gauchar in support of Anil Baluni, the BJP candidate from the Pauri seat in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. "They (Congress leaders) are fighting with each other on a daily basis. The party has become somewhat like the house of Bigg Boss on television. They are tearing each other's clothes on a daily

LS polls Highlights: Congress' thinking is anti-development, says PM Modi

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Some parties seek LGBT vote as most Indians disapprove of homosexuality

Election manifestos of Congress and CPM promise stronger legal protections for the community

'J&K Assembly polls soon, statehood to be restored': PM Modi in Udhampur

Prime Minister says abrogation of Article 370 has put an end to the 'long sufferings' of people of Jammu and Kashmir

For 70 years, Congress nurtured Article 370 like its child: HM Amit Shah

Union Home minister Amit Shah on Friday attacked Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge over his recent remark on the abrogation of Article 370. Addressing an election meeting in Moradabad, Shah said, "Khargeji of the Congress asks what do people of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh have to do with Kashmir. I want to tell them that every child of Moradabad is ready to give his life for Kashmir." "For 70 years, Congress has nurtured Article 370 like its child," he said. Shah added that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kashmir has been united with India forever.

LS polls: No BJP wave, only Congress and 5 guarantee waves, says Shivakumar

"How can Kumaraswamy and Deve Gowda field their family members from the BJP and build the JDS party?" quipped DCM DK Shivakumar

'Royal vs ordinary citizen' battle erupts in Mysore Lok Sabha constituency

In a battle involving the 'royal' and the 'ordinary', the voters of Mysuru are faced with a dilemma of choosing between BJP's Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar and Congress's M Lakshmana in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. While Wadiyar, the scion of the erstwhile Mysuru royal family is making his political debut from the Mysore Lok Sabha segment, Lakshmana is state Congress spokesperson and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's confidant. It's no secret that Siddaramaiah has chosen to focus on this constituency given the number of his visits and campaign meetings in the region. "Voting for Lakshmana is like voting for me. His victory means my victory," says Siddaramaiah, who represents Varuna Assembly segment in the district. The Congress has also chosen to play the caste card, highlighting that Lakshmana is a Vokkaliga, the agrarian community that dominates the region. "National issues do matter but we have to think locally as well," Raju Gowda, a farmer, sitting at an 'Ashwatha Katt

Left devoting campaign to attack me, tactic can only help BJP: Tharoor

Accusing the Left of dividing anti-BJP votes in Thiruvananthapuram, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has said the Left claims to be very concerned about opposition unity, but fails to address why it is devoting most of its energies in the constituency to undermining him instead of focusing on the "BJP's misrule". Tharoor, who is locked in a three-way contest with BJP leader and Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar and CPI's Pannyan Raveendran in Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram, said it is ironical that the Left seeks to divide the anti-BJP vote in the parliamentary seat, and preach alliance dharma in Wayanad, from where Rahul Gandhi is contesting. In an interview with PTI, the former Union minister said that putting up a candidate against him is something the Left has done every time, and he can't criticise them for that, since he took the seat from them in the first place in 2009. "But devoting their entire campaign to attacking me is a tactic which can only help the BJP. The Left claims

When will Assembly polls be held in J-K, Jairam Ramesh asks PM Modi

With Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing a rally in Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur, the Congress accused the BJP-led Centre on Friday of suspending democracy in the Union Territory and asked it when would the Assembly polls be held there. In a post on X, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said while the prime minister was in Udhampur, in its attempt to retain power in the erstwhile state, the BJP-led government has suspended almost all tiers of democracy and refuses to hold fresh elections. "PM Modi must answer for his suspension of democracy," Ramesh said while posing several questions to the prime minister. He said the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir has been under the Centre's direct rule ever since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) withdrew support to the Mehbooba Mufti-led government in 2018, citing a "deteriorating security situation". "The people of Jammu and Kashmir have been left without an elected government since then. Four seats in the Rajya Sabha also remai

Congress in Kerala demands probe by central agency into Kannur blast

The Congress in Kerala on Friday demanded a probe by a central agency into the recent blast in Kannur district that claimed one life and injured three others, alleging that the state police cannot be trusted to safeguard the evidence in the case. Youth Congress state president Rahul Mamkootathil, while talking to reporters in this district, said that a probe by a central agency was necessary to ensure that the police do not destroy the evidence in the case. "Bomb making is a serious issue," he added. Similar views were aired by P K Firos, the general secretary of the Muslim Youth League's Kerala State Committee. Firos claimed that the police were hiding details about the case as well as the health condition of those injured in the blast. Therefore, there is an apprehension that the police might not carry out a proper probe, he alleged. A country-made bomb, while being made, had exploded on April 5 at Panur in Kannur and had stirred the political waters in the state which is headi

LS polls: Rahul to address election rallies in TN, share stage with Stalin

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will address election rallies in Tamil Nadu on Friday, in his first set of such engagements after the announcement of the poll schedule. The Wayanad MP will address a public meeting in Coimbatore along with DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin. He will also address a rally in Tirunelveli. The Lok Sabha elections in Tamil Nadu will be held on April 19.

MoS Ajay Bhatt complains against Cong candidate for 'false ad' on MP fund

The BJP candidate said that the false statement published by the Congress candidate is a violation of the Model Code of Conduct

Congress' Muttemwar writes to EC over agitation by BJP near his Nagpur home

Congress leader Vilas Muttemwar has written a letter to the Election Commission seeking action against BJP activists for holding an agitation in front of his Nagpur home, calling the stir illegal and violation of the Model Code of Conduct in place for the Lok Sabha elections. The April 5 agitation also violated prohibitory orders enforced in the area where his residence is located, the former Union minister said. Muttemwar, in his letter to the EC, said as a Congress member he has been actively participating in election campaign of party candidate from Nagpur Lok Sabha seat Vikas Thakre and addressing poll meetings in his support. The Congress leader said he came to know from media persons that activists of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were planning an agitation in front of his residence for some statements made by him during the election campaign. "Around 6.30 pm on April 5, around 40 members the BJP came in groups and assembled at Shankar Nagar Square near my residence, ...

LS polls: PM resorts to polarisation on critical issues, says Venugopal

The senior Congress leader and AICC member claimed that the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) would win all the Lok Sabha seats in Kerala

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Cong facing problems in supporting candidates due to fund issues: Ramesh

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said on Wednesday that the party is facing difficulties in supporting its candidates in the Lok Sabha polls, mainly due to financial crunch caused by "steps taken by the central government". Addressing a press conference here, he said the party will fare very well in the polls and the opposition alliance will secure a "clear and convincing majority" despite all attempts to scuttle its progress. "There has been an attempt to create problems for us. Our accounts were frozen and Rs 300 crore of money received through public funding were stolen by the PM," Ramesh said. In February, the Income Tax department has frozen four main bank accountants of the Congress on a tax demand of Rs 210 crore for 2018-19. The Congress leaders are humiliated daily and such attacks are being led by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, Ramesh alleged. Asked if the party is facing any problems due to such action from the government, he said: "I will not disagre

Farmers asking for MSP, youngsters want jobs, but no one listening: Rahul

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi hit out at the BJP-led Centre on Thursday, saying farmers are asking for a minimum support price (MSP) for their crops, youngsters are seeking employment, women want relief from inflation, but no one is listening. The upcoming Lok Sabha polls are about protecting the country's Constitution and democracy, the former Congress chief said. "It is an election of the backwards, Dalits, tribals and poor people in the general category," he said, addressing a rally in Rajasthan's Bikaner. Gandhi said the bank accounts of the Congress have been frozen. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre has taken money from big industrialists through electoral bonds, he claimed, adding that the upcoming election is a battle between the country's poor people and 22-25 billionaires. "Farmers are saying give us MSP, youngsters are saying give us employment, women are saying save us from inflation, but no one is listening," Gandhi said at the rally organised in ...

'PM crossed all limits of cowardice': Congress on Modi's Newsweek interview

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had an opportunity to send a strong message to China, but his weak response will encourage China further