Page 290 - Congress

Congress let Kartarpur Sahib go, PM Modi reunited it: Rajnath Singh

Singh was in Chandigarh to attend Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) public outreach 'Sampark Se Samarthan' to mark the completion of nine years of the Modi government at the Centre

People want restoration of dignity: Cong dubs Shah's visit to J-K cosmetic

The Jammu and Kashmir Congress on Saturday termed as cosmetic the two-day visit of Union Home Minister Amit Shah to the Union Territory and said people want "restoration of their honour" and holding of the much-delayed assembly polls. J-K Congress working president Raman Bhalla said the frequent visits of central ministers to the region is a futile exercise and claimed that not a single public demand has been fulfilled even as the Jammu and Kashmir administration is directly working on the directions of the BJP. The home minister's visit (to Jammu and Kashmir) is cosmetic as he refuses to acknowledge the ground realities. These visits are an eyewash and a strategy to divert public attention from the government's failure, he said while addressing a function to welcome new entrants into the party fold at Bishna near here. The central government should send its ministers with some funds in hand so that they can redress the public issues in a real sense. This public outreach campaign ..

Siddaramaiah uses 'inauspicious' south door of his office in Vidhana Soudha

For years, the 'inauspicious' south door of the Chief Minister's office in Vidhana Soudha remained shut but on Saturday Chief Minister Siddaramaiah got the door opened as he decided to make an entry and exit from there. The 'rational' Chief Minister, who arrived at the Vidhana Soudha to hold a meeting with senior officials regarding Anna Bhagya scheme, noticed the south door closed. When he inquired with the officials about it never being opened, they told him that south door was considered inauspicious and hence it was never ever opened. Siddaramaiah stood right in front of the door for a while and then directed the officials open it. After entering his office, he explained his interpretation of 'Vaastu.' "A good Vaastu is the one where you get a healthy mind, clean heart and concern for people. It should have natural light and fresh air coming in," the Chief Minister said. According to an official, no other Chief Minister in the past had ever dared opening the south door. "To m

Peace not possible under him: Cong demands immediate removal of Manipur CM

The Congress on Saturday said peace in violence-hit Manipur is not possible under Chief Minister N Biren Singh and demanded that the prime minister replaces him immediately. Presenting an eight-point charter of demands on behalf of the Congress at an all-party meeting convened by Home Minister Amit Shah in Parliament building, former chief minister of Manipur Okram Ibobi Singh said it was unfortunate that he was not allowed more time to put across his views towards the end of the meeting. Singh, who represented the Congress, said the meeting should have been chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi "who has not said a single word on Manipur in the past 50 days". "This all-party meeting would have been better had it been chaired by the prime minister and held in Imphal. This would have sent a clear message to the people of Manipur that their pain and distress are also a matter of national anguish," he said, while demanding that all rebel groups must be disarmed immediately without any

Kerala Cong observes black day, holds protest against Sudhakaran's arrest

Congress Party workers also staged protest marches across the state on Friday night against the arrest

Former CM Okram Ibobi to represent Congress at Manipur all-party meet

Former Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh will represent the Congress at the all-party meeting convened by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday. The Congress has been demanding the prime minister to call an all party meeting in Manipur to broker peace in the violence-hit state. The Congress has been seeking a meeting with the prime minister since June 10 before he left for the US tour. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said 52 days after Manipur started burning the Home Minister has finally seen it fit to call an all-party meeting on Manipur at 3 pm today. "This meeting should actually have been chaired by the PM who has kept silent all this while. It should have been held in Imphal as a demonstration of national anguish. The BJP has failed the people of Manipur miserably," Ramesh said in Twitter. "Even so the man who brought Manipur back on the path of peace and development as Chief Minister for three terms between 2002 and 2017 Okram Ibobi Singh ji will represe

Kerala Cong chief arrested, out on bail in cheating case; party protests

KPCC chief K Sudhakaran was on Friday arrested by the Crime Branch in a cheating case in which the prime accused is controversial antique dealer Monson Mavunkal, and later released on bail. Sudhakaran later told reporters that he was arrested after several hours of questioning by the Crime Branch. "They questioned me. After that, they recorded my arrest and then I was released on bail. I have faith in judiciary. I will face the case in court," he told reporters here. Following his arrest, the national leadership of Congress came down heavily on Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan by equating him with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. AICC general secretary in-charge, communications, Jairam Ramesh said while the rest of the opposition in the country was on one track, Vijayan was acting as "Mundu Modi". "Rest of the Opposition is on one track nationally, while Pinarayi Vijayan is busy proving what has all along been known that he is Mundu Modi. This unwarranted harassment of Kerala P

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It'll be BJP vs 15 in 2024 LS polls: Oppn parties resolve to stay united

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said he attended the meeting without "memory" of past likes or dislikes and prejudices

Congress to support ruling NPP in Meghalaya sans BJP: State party chief

Days after opposition Congress supported the ruling National People's Party in a tribal council, Congress MP Vincent H Pala said the party is ready to support the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance government minus the BJP. Pala, who is also the Meghalaya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) chief, said his party with 5 MLAs would be very happy if it can convince the NPP (with 28 MLAs) in the House of 60 to sever ties with the BJP (with 2 MLAs). We will be very happy if we can convince the NPP to sever ties with the BJP. Minus the saffron party, we are ready to support and work together with the NPP in the state, Pala told PTI on Friday. The Congress members of the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council got the approval of the party before extending support to the NPP, he said. The Congress, with 5 MDCs, had supported the NPP in ousting the United Democratic Party (UDP)-led United Democratic Alliance (UDA) executive committee in the KHADC. We are ready to work with anybody except the BJP

AAP skips press briefing, slams Cong silence over Delhi services ordinance

Stopping short of staging a walkout at the opposition meeting in Patna on Friday, the Aam Aadmi Party skipped the press briefing and came out with a statement condemning the Congress' silence over the Delhi central ordinance. Party founder Arvind Kejriwal, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Rajya Sabha MPs Sanjay Singh and Raghav Chaddha, who represented AAP at the meeting, were conspicuous by their absence at the press conference. However, on its official Twitter handle, the party came out with a statement asserting the centrality of the black ordinance, which not only aims to snatch democratic rights of an elected government in Delhi but poses a significant threat to India's democracy and constitutional principles. The statement noted that among the parties that attended the meeting in Patna, 12 have representation in the Rajya Sabha and except for the Indian National Congress all others have clearly expressed their stand against the ordinance and announced that they would ..

Opposition meet: Nitish calls for unity; next meeting in Shimla in July

Opposition parties agree to fight the BJP together in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections; Rahul Gandhi said that the voice of India is being attacked by the BJP-RSS and we are together against it

17 opposition parties decide to fight unitedly against BJP in 2024 LS polls

As many as 17 opposition parties on Friday resolved to fight the 2024 Lok Sabha elections unitedly to defeat the BJP and work with flexibility by setting aside their differences. Addressing a joint press conference after an almost four-hour-long meeting, during which leaders of 17 parties expressed their views, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar said the leaders will meet in the next few days to give final shape to their plan of fighting together. "We had a good meeting and several leaders expressed their views during the meeting. 17 parties have decided to work together and contest the Lok Sabha elections unitedly," he told reporters. Kumar, who hosted the first such meeting, said they were working in the national interest and accused the BJP of acting against the national interest as it was trying to change the country's history. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge announced that the next meeting of opposition leaders would be held in Shimla in Himachal Pradesh next month. "We

Leaders jailed by Indira Gandhi welcoming Rahul: JP Nadda on Oppn meet

BJP president J P Nadda on Friday said that leaders who were jailed by former prime minister Indira Gandhi during Emergency were now welcoming her grandson Rahul Gandhi. The BJP leader was referring to the opposition meeting in Patna which was organised by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and attended by his ally RJD supremo Lalu Prasad. Both were arrested during the Emergency when they were student leaders participating in the movement of Jay Prakash Narayan. Addressing a public meeting in Bhawanipatna in Kalahandi district, Nadda said, "Strange things are happening in politics today. Leaders jailed by former PM Indira Gandhi have now joined hands with her grandson Rahul Gandhi." He said Prasad was jailed for 22 months, while Kumar was behind the bars for 20 months during the period. "I saw Uddhav Thackeray reaching Patna to attend the opposition meeting. His father, 'Hindu Hriday Samrat' Balasaheb Thackeray was opposed to the Congress all along. Balasaheb had once said he will s

All-party Opposition meet ahead of 2024 elections today; all you must know

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar is hosting the crucial meeting in which most of the non-BJP parties are taking part as they plan to take on the BJP in the next year's general election

We are going to defeat BJP together: Rahul Gandhi ahead of Oppn meeting

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said all Opposition parties are going to defeat the BJP in the 2024 general elections unitedly. Accusing the BJP of working to "divide India and spread hate and violence", he asserted that a fight of ideologies is going on in India. On one hand, there is the Congress' 'Bharat Jodo' ideology and on the other the BJP and RSS' 'Bharat Todo' ideology, Gandhi said. "You know that hate cannot be countered with hate. It can be defeated only with love. The Congress is working for uniting the country and spreading love," he said. "That is why we have come to Bihar because the DNA of the Congress is in Bihar," Gandhi said. "All Opposition parties have come here and together we are going to defeat the BJP," the former Congress chief said, adding, "In Karnataka, the BJP leaders gave speeches and went everywhere but the result is there for you to see." "As soon as the Congress stood united, the BJP disappeared in Karnataka. I am saying it from this stage

Set aside differences, if we win Bihar we will win country: Kharge to Cong

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday urged party workers to set aside their differences and fight the 2024 general elections unitedly, asserting that "if we win in Bihar, we will win the country". Addressing party workers and leaders at the Congress office here, Kharge lauded Rahul Gandhi for undertaking the Bharat Jodo Yatra. "Bihar can never leave our ideology. If we win Bihar we will win in the country. Put aside all differences and stay united to save the country," he asserted. He added, "We thought of speaking with leaders of all parties to take a step forward. We, therefore, are here for the meeting.

'Why temple committee not clarifying...': Cong leader over gold plating row

The former minister said that there has been a tradition in all religions that people donate money to temples and that is how places of worship are built

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Oppn must move forward with common minimum programme: Bihar Congress chief

The issue of who would be the prime ministerial face of the Opposition alliance is not important as the leadership question can be tackled collectively after dislodging the BJP-RSS from power, Bihar Congress chief Akhilesh Prasad Singh said on Thursday, stressing the need for preparing a common minimum programme soon. Singh claimed that when Opposition parties unite and contest the general elections next year, the BJP will come down to less than 100 seats. His remarks come ahead of a crucial meeting on Friday of top leaders of Opposition parties to chart a roadmap for the formation of an anti-BJP front for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. In an interview with PTI, Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee president Singh said his party is the central pillar of Opposition unity and stressed that small differences between parties will be ironed out at meetings such as the one taking place here. "We hope that all will sit together and an amicable solution will be reached to move forward together," Si