Page 327 - Congress

Illusory statement of highest improbity: Rijiju on Sonia's democracy remark

Law Minister Kiren Rijiju on Tuesday dubbed as an "illusory statement of the highest improbity" the remarks of Congress leader Sonia Gandhi on democracy and independence of institutions. Rijiju's jibe came after the former Congress president accused the Narendra Modi government of "misusing every power". Gandhi said her party will take its message directly to people and join hands with all like-minded parties to defend the Constitution. In an Op-Ed in "The Hindu", Gandhi also accused Prime Minister Modi and his government of "systematically dismantling" the legislature, the executive and the judiciary, saying their actions demonstrate a "deep-rooted disdain" for democracy. Rijiju took to Twitter to hit back at Gandhi. "Smt Sonia Gandhi is lecturing about Democracy? Congress Party talking about independence of Judiciary is : An illusory statement of the highest improbity," he said.

As Pilot sits on fast, Gehlot releases video of 2030 vision for Rajasthan

As senior Congress Sachin Pilot began his daylong fast against his own party-led government in Rajasthan on Tuesday, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot released a video portraying his vision to take the state to the top by 2030. "I have decided that I have to make Rajasthan the top state by 2030. To realise this dream, the last four budgets and this year's 'Bachat, Rahat and Badhat' budget, I have made schemes no other state has," the chief minister was heard saying in the video. Despite a warning issued to him by the Congress, Pilot, a former deputy chief minister of Rajasthan, began his daylong fast at the Shaheed Smarak here on Tuesday, demanding action in cases of alleged corruption related to the previous BJP government in the state led by Vasundhara Raje. In his video, Gehlot was heard speaking about various schemes of his government, including the Chiranjeevi Health Insurance Scheme, subsidised LPG cylinders and accident insurance of Rs 10 lakh among others. The chief minister said

Explained: Why is Sachin Pilot holding a day-long protest in Rajasthan

Congress has issued a stern warning to Pilot and said that the fast would amount to 'anti-party' activity

Cong to ally with like-minded parties to defend Constitution: Sonia Gandhi

Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday said with the Narendra Modi government bent on "misusing every power" and elections approaching in several key states, her party will take its message directly to people and join hands with all like-minded parties to defend the Constitution. In an Op-Ed in "The Hindu", Gandhi also accused Prime Minister Modi and his government of "systematically dismantling" the legislature, the executive and the judiciary, saying their actions demonstrate a "deep-rooted disdain" for democracy. She also alleged that the prime minister "ignores" the rising tide of hatred and violence, egged on by BJP and RSS leaders, and has not once called for peace or harmony or acted to reign in the offenders, let alone bring them to justice. "Religious festivals seem to have become occasions to intimidate and bully others -- a far cry from when they were occasions for joy and celebration. Instead, there is intimidation and discrimination only on account of their .

BJP is democratic party, not a dictatorship like Congress: Bommai

Bommai said that this is the reason BJP is thinking well and talking in detail before releasing the first list of candidates for the Karnataka Assembly Elections

AAP hails national party status, TMC MP says party will overcome loss

In significant decisions that have ramifications for national polity, the EC recognised AAP as a national party and withdrew this recognition from NCP, CPI and Trinamool Congress

RS chairman should be impartial, not always praising govt: Cong on Dhankhar

The Congress on Monday hit back at Jagdeep Dhankhar over his remarks that people should leave their "political spectacle" behind while embarking on a foreign visit, saying the Rajya Sabha chairman should be impartial and not always praise the government. Speaking at a World Homeopathy Day function here, Dhankhar said as India lays the foundation for the centenary of its independence in 2047, every attempt that seeks to attack the country's dignity should be blunted. He said people should leave their "political spectacle" behind while embarking on a foreign visit, in an apparent reference to a row over Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's remarks made during a recent visit to the United Kingdom. Responding to Vice President Dhankhar's tweet advising that people should leave their "political spectacle" behind while embarking on a foreign visit, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a tweet in Hindi, "First you give this advice to those who started this practice in 2015. Then give

Cong says Pilot's fast against graft amounts to 'anti-party' activity

With Sachin Pilot firm on holding a fast to press his party-led government in Rajasthan for action against graft, the Congress Monday night issued a stern warning to him and said any such action on his part would amount to anti-party activity. Sources close to Pilot said he would go ahead with his daylong fast on Tuesday to press for action against corruption during the previous BJP government in Rajasthan. Taking strong objection to the proposed dharna by Pilot, All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge of the state Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said any such protest against its government clearly amounts to anti-party activity and goes against the party's interest. Pilot on Sunday alleged that the Ashok Gehlot-led government failed to investigate cases of alleged corruption during the BJP rule in Rajasthan and announced his plan to hold a day-long fast on April 11 to press for action. The move by Pilot to open a new front against Gehlot amid the factional fighting is seen as an .

Dharna by Pilot would amount to anti-party activity, says Congress

Taking strong objection to the proposed dharna by former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot, the Congress on Monday evening said any such protest against its sitting government would amount to anti-party activity. Pilot on Sunday alleged that the Ashok Gehlot-led government failed to investigate cases of alleged corruption during the BJP rule in Rajasthan and announced plans to hold a day-long fast on Tuesday to press for action. Sukhjinder Randhawa, the Congress general secretary in-charge for Rajasthan, said he talked to Pilot during the day and told him to raise issues at party platforms instead of going public against its own government. "I personally called Sachin Pilot and asked him to raise such matters at party platforms instead of going public like this," he told PTI when asked if he had discussed Pilot's proposed fast with him. Randhawa said any such action or fast is not justified and all matters should be raised within the party platforms and not publicly like

Govt using new software to spy over people opposed to it: Congress

The Congress on Monday accused the government of using a new software to spy over people opposed to it and damage India's political and democratic system. Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera alleged that the Modi government first used Cambridge Analytica (CA), then Pegasus, then Israeli Contract Hackers led by "Team Jorge" and now it is vying for a new spyware to "meddle in Indian political system and Democracy". "Just like Pegasus, Cambridge Analytica and the recently exposed 'Team Jorge' - the Modi government has now bought a new spyware to snoop, spy and surveil individuals and institutions? These institutions include - Opposition parties, NGOs, media houses, civil-rights activists, judiciary, Election Commission, and every other Institution which protects any semblance of democracy," he told reporters. "If Modi ji is spending so much on malware and spywares to snoop and spy on institutions - why can't he tell the nation that to whom does the Rs 20,000 Crore in Adani's shell ...

$2.6-bn stake sale money went to group firms: Adani counters Rahul Gandhi

Billionaire Gautam Adani's group on Monday listed out details of the USD 2.87 billion stake sales in group firms since 2019 and how USD 2.55 billion of this was ploughed back into business, as it looked to counter Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's claim of Rs 20,000 crore coming in to the conglomerate through 'shell companies'. While investors such as Abu Dhabi-based global strategic investment company, International Holding Company PJSC (IHC) invested USD 2.593 billion in group firms such as Adani Enterprise Ltd and Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL), promoters sold stake in Adani Total Gas Ltd and AGEL to raise USD 2.783 billion. "These funds were reinvested by promoter entities to support the growth of new business and in portfolio companies such as Adani Enterprises Ltd, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd, Adani Transmission Ltd and Adani Power Ltd," the group said. The statement was issued rebutting reports in an international publication, which apparently was the basis of ...

Clear that you are now limited to being a troll: Scindia to Rahul Gandhi

Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Monday accused Rahul Gandhi of being a "troll" after he sought to link him with the Adani row, and asked the Congress leader to answer three questions posed to him instead of levelling "unfounded" allegation and diverting people's attention from main issues. "It is clear that you are now limited to being a troll," Scindia, once a confidant of Gandhi, said in response to the Congress leader's swipe on Saturday on leaders who have quit his party in recent years as he kept up his offensive against the government over the Adani issue. "They hide the truth, that's why they mislead everyday! The question remains the same - whose Rs 20,000 crore benami money is in Adani's companies?" Gandhi asked in a tweet in Hindi and attached an image with the names of the leaders with that of Adani. He cited the names of Ghulam Nabi Azad, Scindia, Himanta Biswa Sarma, Kiran Kumar Reddy and Anil K Antony in his tweet. Hitting back, Scindia asked why does not Gandh

Won't back down from truth no matter how many desert him: Priyanka on Rahul

In an affectionate social media post for Rahul Gandhi on Siblings Day, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Monday said she is proud of her brother who faces injustice with dignity and won't back down from the truth no matter how many turn their "turn their knives in his back". Siblings Day is celebrated in various parts of the world on April 10. In a post on Instagram, the Congress leader posted a photograph of her working with Rahul Gandhi in snowed-in Srinagar at the end of the Bharat Jodo Yatra earlier this year. "So there's a Sibling's Day too! Well, to my only sibling, who has the courage to stand for goodness and compassion despite all sorts of filth being thrown at him, who faces injustice with dignity, who won't back down from speaking the truth no matter how many desert him or turn their knives in his back or how much power is used to silence him," she said in her post. "I am proud of you and always will be," she added. The closeness between the Gandhi siblings is evident with both

Wrong to say Gehlot govt not acting against corruption: Pawan Khera

A day after Congress leader Sachin Pilot launched a fresh attack on the Rajasthan government over corruption, the party on Monday sought to downplay his remarks and said it is "wrong" to say that the Ashok Gehlot dispensation is not acting against graft. Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera said a probe against senior BJP leader from Rajasthan Gajendra Singh Shekhawat is on in the Sanjeevani scam and the Union minister has also filed a defamation case against Chief Minister Gehlot. "A probe is underway on how the BJP conspired to topple our elected government in Rajasthan and tried to buy our MLAs," he told reporters here when asked about Pilot's remarks that the Congress government in Rajasthan was not against graft cases during the previous BJP government in the state. "It is wrong to say that a probe is not on, as an investigation is being carried out and if anyone has a complaint, he should bring it to the notice of the AICC in-charge," Khera said. The Congress spokesperson also s

Congress gained power in Himachal by making false promises: Anurag Thakur

The Congress came to power in Himachal Pradesh by making false promises and the people of the state will give them a befitting reply in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Union Minister Anurag Thakur said on Monday. Thakur also asserted that the BJP would win all four Lok Sabha seats in the state. The BJP leader claimed that the state government was planning to take a loan of Rs 12,000 crore and alleged that it was the financial mismanagement of previous Congress regimes that had pushed the state into debt. Today, the public is feeling cheated and the state is lagging behind in every field, he alleged. Thakur also thanked the BJP workers who visited his residence to celebrate the birthday of his father and former Himachal Pradesh chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal. Thakur accepted their greetings on behalf of his father, who was in Jalandhar, and also expressed his gratitude. In a dig at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Thakur claimed that the AAP's condition was bad with its main .

BJP fears Rahul Gandhi's growing popularity: Himachal Pradesh CM Sukhu

Himachal Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Monday said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was disqualified from the Lok Sabha because the BJP fears his growing popularity. He hit out at Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur for his statements against the Congress party and Gandhi, saying time will tell who was right and who was wrong. The BJP is scared of the Congress and the growing popularity of Gandhi and that is why he was disqualified from the Lok Sabha within 24 hours of the court decision, Sukju told reporters after arriving in Nadaun, his hometown, here. About the Shimla Municipal Corporation elections, he said the Congress will win the polls with ease as the people are highly upset with the BJP's rule in the corporation. Earlier, Sukhu listened to the grievances of the people and resolved most of them on the spot.

Rahul must clarify Azad's charge on meeting 'undesirable businessmen': BJP

Senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday said Rahul Gandhi must respond to the charge made by former Congress veteran Ghulam Nabi Azad that he meets undesirable businessmen during foreign tours. "Ghulam Nabi Azad has made a serious allegation that whenever Rahul Gandhi goes on a foreign tour, he meets many 'unwanted businessmen', Prasad told reporters here. Azad, who floated the Democratic Progressive Azad Party after quitting the Congress, had reportedly said in an interview that the former Congress chief goes abroad and meets undesirable businessmen. "Who are these 'unwanted traders' and what are their interests? Is Rahul Gandhi trying to weaken India at the behest of anti-India businessmen and working against Modi ji (PM Narendra Modi)?," Prasad said.

Every day Azad falls to new depths to demonstrate his loyalty to Modi: Cong

The Congress Monday hit out at its former leader Ghulam Nabi Azad for his reported remarks that Rahul Gandhi allegedly has ties with "undesirable businessmen", saying these "contemptible statements" on the party leadership reflect his desperation to remain relevant. In an interview with Malayalam News channel Asianet News, Azad, referring to the Gandhi family, said, "The entire family has associations with businessmen, including him (Rahul). I can give you 10 examples of where he would go even outside the country, to meet people who are undesirable businessmen." Hitting back at Azad, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "With every passing day, Ghulam Nabi Azad falls to new depths to demonstrate his true character and his loyalty to Mr (Narendra) Modi." "His contemptible statements on the Congress leadership reflect his desperation to remain relevant. I can only say that he is PATHETIC," Ramesh said in a tweet. Coinciding with the launch of his autobiography, Azad has bee

Congress up in arms as user fee introduced to register complaints in Kerala

Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan said this move is a first of its kind in the state and "is a cruel one too"

The Pawar gambit: Why did the Maratha strongman come to Adani's defence?

It may be too early to say that the political chameleon from Maharashtra is changing colours again