Page 365 - Congress

Gehlot vs Pilot: Congress won't shy from 'tough decisions', says Ramesh

Amid the power tussle between Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his former deputy Sachin Pilot, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday said if needed, the party will not shy away from taking tough decisions to strengthen the organisation in that state. For the Congress, its organisation in Rajasthan is most important, Ramesh, the party's general secretary in-charge of communications, told reporters in Indore during the Bharat Jodo Yatra. Gehlot on Thursday told a TV channel that Pilot is a 'gaddar' (traitor) and cannot replace him, drawing a sharp response from his former deputy who said such "mud-slinging" would not help, in an escalation of their rift days ahead of the entry of Rahul Gandhi's 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' into the desert state. Gehlot also said Pilot had revolted against the Congress in 2020 and alleged that he tried to topple the state government. Pilot had hit back at Gehlot to say it was unbecoming of his stature to use the kind of language to attack him

Not upset or angry with anyone in party: Congress leader Shashi Tharoor

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Sunday said he was not upset or angry with anyone in the Kerala unit of the party and has no reservations in speaking to anyone as "we are not in kindergarten to refrain from talking to each other". Speaking to media in the port city of Kochi, where he came to attend a state-level conclave of the All India Professionals' Congress, the Thiruvananthapuram MP said he has not spoken against anyone in the party or acted against its directives and has no clue why such a controversy has been created. "I am not upset or angry with anyone. I have not blamed or accused anyone. There are no complaints or issues from my end. I have no problem seeing everyone as one and neither do I have any reservations about speaking to anyone," he said before the event. On being asked whether he would be speaking to Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the state assembly V D Satheesan and Kerala PCC (KPCC) president K Sudhakaran at the event, Tharoor said that the latter was not well an

Case registered over video of pro-Pak slogans during Bharat Jodo Yatra

The Madhya Pradesh Police have registered a case in connection with a purported video pertaining to pro-Pakistani slogans raised during the Congress's Bharat Jodo Yatra, an official said on Sunday. While the Congress alleged it was a doctored video with which the Bharatiya Janata Party was trying to defame the foot march led by Rahul Gandhi, the ruling BJP claimed the opposition party deleted the clip after a pro-Pakistani slogan was heard in it. Khargone's Superintendent of Police Dharmveer Singh Yadav said the case was registered at Sanawad police station against unidentified persons under Indian Penal Code Sections 153 (B) (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national-integration) and 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) in connection with the video related to pro-Pakistani slogans. Yadav did not share any other detail and said further investigation into the case was underway. MP Congress Committee's media department chairperson KK Mishra in a statem

Cong seeks to bolster hold on key MP region; BJP launches counter campaign

The politically crucial Malwa-Nimar region of Madhya Pradesh played a key role in propelling the Congress to power in 2018 after a gap of 15 years and the party is utilising the Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra to strengthen its position in the belt a year ahead of the Assembly polls. The yatra's focus on Malwa-Nimar during its Madhya Pradesh leg will help the party revive its organization at the grassroots level and also allow it to reap electoral benefits, according to a section of Congress leaders and political observers. Mindful of the political significance of the region, which accounts for 66 of the total 230 Assembly seats, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), too, has stepped up its efforts to consolidate its position in Malwa-Nimar and retain its hold on power in the state. Gandhi's cross-country march reached Baroda Ahir village, the birthplace of tribal icon and revolutionary Tantya Bheel in Pandhana tehsil in Khandwa district on November 24, a day after the yatra .

Congress chief Kharge to campaign for 4 days in Gujarat ahead of polls

With the Gujarat elections round the corner and the first litmus test of Mallikarjun Kharge as Congress president, the grand old party is seeking to boost its poll prospects in the state

Congress never condemned terror attacks due to vote bank politics: Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said terror attacks were rampant when Congress was in power and terrorists from Pakistan used to kill Indian soldiers but the then ruling party never condemned them due to "vote bank" politics. Paying tributes to the victims of the November 26, 2008 (26/11) Mumbai terror attack, Shah said it is impossible to carry out such an attack under the watch of the Narendra Modi government. "Today is the anniversary of the 26/11 attack. On this day (in 2008), Pakistani terrorists killed 164 persons in Mumbai. I pay my humble tributes to the departed souls. Though such attacks were rampant during the Congress rule, it is not possible to carry out a 26/11 type terror attack today because Narendra Modi is the prime minister," Shah said while addressing a poll rally in Talaja town in Bhavnagar district for a BJP candidate. Voting on Talaja and 88 other seats will be held on December 1 in the first phase of the two-phase Gujarat Assembly elections. "Sonia

Voters' data row: Congress welcomes EC decision, demands FIR against Bommai

Congress Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala on Saturday welcomed the swift action by the Election Commission in ordering review of deletions and additions in voters' list

Congress' Bharat Jodo Yatra resumes from Mortakka village in Madhya Pradesh

The party's general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, along with her husband Robert Vadra, also participated in the yatra with party MP Rahul Gandhi and others

Centre led by PM Modi involved in Karnataka voters' ID scam: Congress

"Large amount of money has been transferred from the account of a company run by the Central government. Along with stealing of voters' data, the tax money of the common people has been looted"

BJP taught lessons to rioters in 2002, established peace in Gujarat: Shah

According to the Union Home Minister, earlier incidents of riots and violence were common in Gujarat as the Congress party encouraged it

The 'traitor' trait in the Congress

Paul Brass's research on the Congress factions in Uttar Pradesh in the 1960s and 1970s holds true even today. Factions in the party are active and alive, and not merely in UP

PM Modi 'very firm' on China, says Jaishankar rejecting oppn criticism

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been "very firm" on China and he should be judged by the strong deployment of our forces on the Sino-India border, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Friday, rejecting the Opposition's criticism of the prime minister's recent handshake with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Jaishankar said while dealing with China, there is the reality that it is the second biggest economy in the world, India's proximate neighbour but also one with whom it has had a difficult history, conflict and a very major boundary dispute. Speaking at the Times Now summit, Jaishankar said the right way of dealing with China is to be firm when one has to be firm. "If you have to move troops up to the border to deal with what they are trying to do, we should do that. On issues where they do not support or undermine our interests, to be frank about it, to be public about it where required. I don't say public about it all the time but where diplomacy requires it is often ...

EC suspends poll officials in Karnataka amid allegations of voter fraud

The Election Commission on Friday directed officials for a review of the deletions and additions in the electoral rolls of three Assembly seats in Karnataka and ordered the suspension of two additional district election officials after allegations of "electoral fraud" in the state. The poll authority also directed the chief electoral officer to share a list of all deletions and additions made to the electoral rolls of the Shivajinagar, Chickpet and Mahadevapura Assembly seats after January 1, 2022 with all the recognised political parties so as to enable them to file claims and objections. The Election Commission directives came a day after the Congress petitioned the poll authority, seeking a detailed investigation into the "voter information theft fraud" in Karnataka. The Congress had alleged that 27 lakh names were deleted and 11 lakh voters added to the voters' lists of the three Assembly constituencies, claiming that the employees of a private company had collected voters' data

'Gehlot calling Pilot traitor unexpected, leadership to resolve crisis'

Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Friday said Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot using the term "Gaddar" (traitor) for party colleague Sachin Pilot was "unexpected". The party needs both the warring leaders, and the crisis in the Rajasthan unit will be resolved keeping in mind the interests of the organization and not individuals, he added. Ramesh, the Congress's media head, was speaking during Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra here. Gehlot, in a TV interview on Thursday, said Pilot was a "Gaddar" and cannot replace him as Rajasthan CM, drawing sharp response from his former deputy who said such "mud-slinging" would not help. Gehlot also alleged that Pilot had rebelled against the Congress in 2020 and tried to topple the party's government in Rajasthan. "Gehlot is a senior and experienced leader of the Congress. But the term used by him in an interview (for Pilot) is unexpected and even I am surprised," Ramesh said. "The party needs both Gehlot and Pilot. There are some .

MP Congress spokesperson joins BJP, accuses Kamal Nath of 1984 riots

Madhya Pradesh Congress Spokesperson Narendra Saluja on Friday joined Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) in the presence of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan in the state capital Bhopal.Welcoming Saluja into the BJP family, Chouhan said his arrival will strengthen the party. "He is a leader who put his point on the basis of facts and logic. Now, he will be with Bhartiya Janata Party. I congratulate him. He should work hard for the party and contribute to the nation-building," Chouhan said.Saluja said, "I am grateful that the party has given me a place to serve. I have been working with Kamal Nath for the last five years. Many people have said that Kamal Nath was accused in the 1984 Sikh riots but I thought they have been speaking because of political differences.""But on November 8, when I accompanied him for a visit to Khalsa College, Indore on the occasion of Gurunanak Jayanti, the truth that came to the fore and it disturbed me a lot. It has opened my eyes. I cannot work with the ...

80% MLAs are with Sachin Pilot: Rajasthan minister Rajendra Singh Gudha

"We will leave our stake for the chief ministership if you do not find 80 per cent MLAs with Sachin Pilot... No better politician than him," said the State Minister

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra takes part in second day of Bharat Jodo Yatra in MP

Congress general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Priyanka Gandhi Vadra participated in the Bharat Jodo Yatra led by her brother Rahul Gandhi for the second consecutive day on Friday during its Madhya Pradesh leg. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's husband Robert Vadra and their son Rehan were also seen matching steps with Rahul Gandhi on the third day of the yatra's Madhya Pradesh leg. The yatra began in the morning from Kherda in Khargone district. Madhya Pradesh Congress media department chairman K K Mishra said that Gandhi will reach Omkareshwar, one of the 12 jyotirlings in the country, in the evening. Gandhi will offer prayers at the temple and also take part in the Narmada River aarti, he said. The yatra entered the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled Madhya Pradesh on November 23 from Burhanpur district after completing its Maharashtra leg. It will cover 380 km in 12 days in the Malwa-Nimar region of Madhya Pradesh before entering Rajasthan. A large number of tribals reside in thi

BJP had no role in Rajasthan Cong rebellion: Poonia denies Gehlot's claim

Rajasthan BJP president Satish Poonia on Thursday rejected as baseless Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's allegations that his party had a role in the rebellion by a group of Congress MLAs led by Sachin Pilot in 2020. Poonia also said the BJP had nothing to do with the present crisis within the state Congress. "Gehlot has been making these allegations for the last four years and there is no basis for these allegations and BJP has nothing to do with this episode," he told reporters. In an interview to NDTV, Gehlot alleged that Union Home Minister and senior BJP leader Amit Shah was involved in Pilot's rebellion, when some Congress MLAs loyal to him were holed up in a Gurugram resort for more than a month. He also alleged Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan visited the rebel MLAs often and claimed he had proof that an amount of Rs 10 crore was paid to each of those legislators, including Pilot. Gehlot said Pilot is a 'gaddar' (traitor) and cannot replace him as he had revolted against the

'Gaddar' Sachin Pilot can't be CM, says Gehlot as rift in Raj Cong deepens

Rajasthan CM claims that Pilot's 2020 revolt was 'funded by the BJP'

Time to generate income from electricity than getting it for free: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said it was time to generate income from electricity instead of getting it for free, in an apparent move to counter the Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress over their promise of free electricity in poll-bound Gujarat. Addressing an election rally in Modasa town of Aravalli district in north Gujarat, Modi said only he knows the art through which people will be able to earn money from electricity. The PM also slammed the Congress, saying it believes in the formula of "divide and rule" and focusses only on how to be in power. AAP national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has been trying to woo voters with a promise that just like the national capital and Punjab, his party would provide free electricity up to 300 units per month if voted to power in the Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled Gujarat. Kejriwal has on many occasions claimed he is the only politician in the country who has "mastered this magic of providing free electricity". T