Page 211 - Congress

Cong MLA urges BJP to appoint tribal leader Kirodi Meena as Rajasthan CM

As the suspense over selection of chief minister continues in Rajasthan, Congress MLA and Rajasthan Adivasi Meena Seva Sangh president Ramkesh Meena has wrote to BJP brass asking them to appoint tribal leader Kirodi Lal Meena as the CM of the state. Kirodi Lal Meena is the BJP MLA from Sawai Madhopur. Adivasi Meena Seva Sangh chief Ramkesh Meena said he, as the president of the adivasi sangh, has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP chief JP Nadda in this regard. I have written letters to Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and JP Nadda conveying the sentiments of the community that Kirodi Meena should get the post of CM, Ramkesh Meena, Congress MLA from Gangapur seat, said. Kirodi Meena has struggled a lot and led several movements, he said. The BJP got a mandate of 115 seats in the results declared on last Sunday but the decision regarding the CM face has not been taken so far. The party has appointed three observers, including Defence Minister Rajnath

Rs 351 crore cash haul in I-T raids against biz group linked to Cong MP

The cash seizure in the income-tax department's searches against an Odisha-based distillery company, owned by a Congress MP's family, has been calculated at Rs 351 crore after five days of counting and is the "highest-ever" haul in a single action by any probe agency in the country, official sources said on Sunday. The premises of the Congress Rajya Sabha MP from Jharkhand, Dhiraj Prasad Sahu, in Ranchi and other places, were also covered during the searches by the department. The company and the member of Parliament did not respond to PTI's queries regarding the action being carried out against them. The marathon raids against Boudh Distillery Private Limited, its promoters and others entered the fifth day on Sunday. The raids were launched on December 6 by the taxman on charges of tax evasion and "off-the-book" transactions. The sources told PTI that Rs 351 crore cash has been counted and the process has ended. The counting involved nine teams of about 80 people from the tax ...

Shah targets Oppn over massive cash seizure from premises of Congress MP

Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday hit out at the opposition over the seizure of a large amount of cash from premises linked to a Congress MP, saying it is now clear that their "propaganda" about probe agencies being misused was driven by the fear that their corruption will be exposed. In a statement, the senior BJP leader questioned the "silence" of INDIA bloc leaders, saying he can understand why the Congress is keeping mum but wondered why parties like the TMC, DMK, JD(U) and the RJD were doing the same. The Income Tax has seized over Rs 300 crore in cash from several premises of a business group linked to Congress MP from Jharkhand Dhiraj Prasad Sahu. The Congress has distanced itself from him, claiming that the party has nothing to do with his business, even as the BJP has latched onto the issue to press ahead with its charge of corruption against opposition parties. Shah said this must be the highest amount of money seized from a parliamentarian since independence. "It can be

Foreign policy no longer exists in the domain of elites: Milan Vaishnav

"Today, welfarism has become a necessary - but insufficient - condition to triumph in Indian elections"

'Baba felt Rahul had the arrogance of his lineage minus their acumen'

She tells Archis Mohan how she was wrong in opposing her father's visit to the RSS headquarters, his views on Rahul Gandhi, his equation with PM Narendra Modi, and her political ambitions

Is the 'North-South' political divide a reality, or just a perception?

From Telangana triumphs to Karnataka challenges, the Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party clash in a narrative that redefines the 'North-South' discourse

Karnataka Congress Legislative Party meeting in Belagavi on Dec 13

The Karnataka Congress unit has convened its Legislative Party meeting in Belagavi on December 13. CLP secretary E Tukaram in a statement said Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will chair the meeting, which will take place on Wednesday evening at Shoonya Farm Retreat at Belagundi near Shivaji Nagar Ground in Belagavi. Deputy Chief Minister and Congress state president D K Shivakumar along with legislators will attend, he said.

INDIA bloc to meet on Dec 19 in Delhi, to work on 'Main Nahin, Hum' motto

Evolving a "core positive agenda", seat sharing and a programme to hold joint rallies are among the main challenges before the opposition INDIA bloc that will be taken up at its next meeting in the national capital on December 19. "The 4th meeting of the leaders of INDIA parties will be held on Tuesday December 19th, 2023 in New Delhi at 3 pm," Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X on Sunday. The parties intend to move forward with the unity theme - "Main Nahin, Hum" (We, Not Me) - as a counter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the meeting, a senior leader of the Congress said. The meeting is being held in the backdrop of the Congress' poor show in the just concluded assembly elections, where it suffered humiliating defeats in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, while the BJP asserted that people have affirmed their faith in "Modi's guarantees" and will re-elect his government in 2024. The challenge before the opposition parties now is to come out wi

Clarification sought from Dheeraj Sahu: Jharkhand Congress in-charge

Jharkhand Congress in-charge Avinash Pandey on Sunday said that a clarification has been sought from party MP Dheeraj Sahu in connection with the recovery of huge cash from premises linked to him. Pandey, however, clarified that is it a private matter of Dheeraj Sahu and the party has nothing to do with it. "Since he is Congress MP, he should make an official statement about how such a big amount of money came to him," Pandey said while speaking to media persons at Ranchi's Birsa Munda airport. He also said, "The party has a clear-cut stand that it is a private matter of Dheeraj Sahu, which has nothing to do with the Congress party. A huge pile of cash has been recovered so far in the searches conducted by the Income Tax department against Odisha-based Boudh Distillery Private Limited and entities linked to it. Premises linked to Sahu were also covered as part of the searches, according to officials. The seizure amount is expected to reach Rs 290 crore, making it the "highest-ever

Why Rahul silent on Cong MP Dhiraj Sahu's I-T seizure? asks Kishan Reddy

Union Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy on Sunday sought to know why Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was silent on the seizure of crores of rupees from premises allegedly linked to his party MP Dhiraj Prasad Sahu during a recent Income Tax raid. Addressing a press conference here, Reddy, also Telangana BJP president, expressed doubt that the unaccounted cash which was recovered during the searches might have been meant for use in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The Union Minister dubbed Sahu as black money, hero and said the Jhankhand MP is a close confidant of Rahul Gandhi and allegedly supported and fulfilled all the requirements of the Congress leader's 'Bharat Jodo yatra' last year. This is an example of how Congress leaders have looted the country. We demand that the Congress party and Rahul Gandhi given an explanation to the people as to why the party nominated him thrice to the Rajya Sabha, he said. A huge pile of cash has been recovered so far in the searches conducted by th

Kapil Sibal slams BJP for boycotting Telangana MLAs' oath-taking ceremony

Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal slammed the BJP on Sunday after its MLAs boycotted the oath-taking ceremony of the newly-elected legislators in Telangana over AIMIM's Akbaruddin Owaisi being made pro-tem speaker, saying such "public expression of hate" makes him wonder where the country is heading. The first session of the third Telangana Legislative Assembly began on Saturday with the oath-taking ceremony of the newly-elected MLAs. The BJP MLAs, however, stayed away from the House, alleging that AIMIM MLA Owaisi was appointed as pro-tem speaker in violation of rules. In a post on X, Sibal said, "Telangana, Protem Speaker Akbaruddin Owaisi -- 8 BJP MLAs boycott oath. Such public expression of hate makes me wonder where my country is heading!" "Is this the Mother of Democracy we publicly proclaim to be!" the former Union minister said. Before the commencement of the Telangana Assembly session, Owaisi was administered the oath by Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan as the pro-tem speaker at

PM talking up transformative GDP but what matters is growth rates: Congress

The Congress on Sunday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman are "repeatedly talking up" transformative GDP growth based on the recent July-September numbers but what matters more is annual growth rates over a longer period. Annual average GDP growth rate during the UPA government was 8.1 per cent against 5.4 per cent under the current dispensation, it further said. The Congress' attack comes after Modi said last week that the GDP growth figure for the second quarter of this fiscal displayed the resilience and strength of the Indian economy amid testing times globally. In a post on X, Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "The PM and the FM are repeatedly talking up the 'transformative GDP growth in India' based on the recent numbers for July-September 2023." "But if you leave aside quarterly growth numbers, which could be high or low for a number of reasons. What matters a lot more -- to understand how well the economy is doing -- is ..

Congress' Jagadish Shettar questions BJP's moral right to raise corruption

He asked, why the Prime Minister did not direct Central investigating agencies to do an enquiry into the Karnataka contractor's allegation of demand for 40% commission during BJP's rule in the state

LIVE: Cong holds meeting to review party's performance in Assembly polls

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Odisha cash haul: BJP stages protest in J-K, demands action against Cong MP

The BJP's Jammu and Kashmir unit on Saturday held a protest over the recovery of a huge amount of "unaccounted for" cash in Odisha and demanded stern action against Congress MP Dhiraj Prasad Sahu. The protesters also burnt an effigy of Sahu. The seizure of "unaccounted for" cash after Income Tax department raids against an Odisha-based distillery group and its linked entities is expected to reach Rs 290 crore, making it the "highest-ever" black money haul by any agency in a single operation, official sources said Saturday. Premises linked to Sahu were also covered as part of the searches, the sources said. Shouting anti-Congress slogans, the BJP activists assembled outside the Press Club in the heart of Jammu and held a peaceful demonstration. Setting ablaze an effigy of the Congress' Rajya Sabha MP from Jharkhand, they also demanded that Sahu be arrested immediately. The protesters were led by Yudhvir Sethi -- the BJP's Jammu and Kashmir unit vice-president -- and the Bharatiya

Congress leaders, PM Modi greet Sonia Gandhi on her 77th birthday

Modi's wishes come at a time when the Congress just lost three Hindi heartland states in the recently concluded Assembly polls, and the crucial Lok Sabha elections are just six months away

Congress holds Assembly election review meet for Rajasthan, Mizoram

Top Congress leadership on Saturday held separate meetings to review the party's performance in the assembly polls in Rajasthan and Mizoram. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge convened the review meeting at the All India Congress Committee headquarters in Delhi where former party chief Rahul Gandhi and other senior leaders were also present. While the review meeting for Mizoram was held earlier, the leaders from Rajasthan including former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and other senior leaders attended the review met for Rajasthan. AICC in-charge for Mizoram Bhakt Charan Das later said, "We discussed every aspect of the Mizoram election, including the organizational structure of the state at the grassroots level and state level, as well as the various events that occurred during the elections." "We also deliberated on our future plans. All these matters were carefully and intensively discussed," he said.

LIVE: Top Congress brass reviews poll defeats in Chhattisgarh, MP

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Telangana CM in Delhi Revanth Reddy; likely to resign as Lok Sabha member

Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Friday arrived in the national capital and is likely to tender his resignation from Lok Sabha. Official sources said Reddy is likely to meet Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to offer his resignation. He represents the Malkajgiri Parliamentary constituency in Telangana. The sources said Reddy is also likely to meet party general secretary K C Venugopal and discuss issues ahead of the first assembly session in Telangana besides implementation of six guarantees promised by the party during the poll campaign. Reddy was sworn in as chief minister of Telangana on Thursday along with a deputy chief minister and other ministers. His swearing in was attended by top Congress leadership including party chief Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chiefs Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, besides chief minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah.

Every penny 'looted' will have to be returned: PM Modi 'guarantees'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday took a swipe at the opposition on the issue of corruption, asserting it is "Modi's guarantee" that they will have to return every penny "looted" from people. In a post on X, Modi tagged a news report of the Income Tax department recovering Rs 200 crore in cash from various locations of a business group allegedly linked to Congress MP from Jharkhand Dhiraj Prasad Sahu, as he attacked the opposition party. "Countrymen should look at these piles of currency notes and then hear the addresses of its (Congress) leaders on honesty. Every penny looted from people will have to be returned. This is Modi's guarantee," he said in a post with several emojis. The news report also showed a picture of several almirahs stuffed with currency notes. With the Lok Sabha elections approaching, the prime minister has turned up the heat on opposition parties in his X posts of late. In a recent post, he had cited a news clip to take a swipe at opposition leaders and