Page 75 - Congress

Rajya Sabha: Rs 500 notes found at Abhishek M Singhvi's seat, probe on

Congress leader Abhishek Singhvi has denied knowledge of the currency notes allegedly found in a routine check, investigation underway

Willing to lead INDIA bloc if I get opportunity: WB CM Mamata Banerjee

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday expressed dissatisfaction with the functioning of the opposition INDIA bloc, signaling her intent to take charge of the alliance if given the opportunity. The Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo said she could manage the dual responsibility of running the opposition front while continuing her role as the chief minister of Bengal. "I had formed the INDIA bloc, now it is up to those leading the front to manage it. If they can't run the show, what can I do? I would just say that everyone needs to be taken along," she said in an interview with Bengali news channel News 18 Bangla. Asked why she is not taking the charge of the bloc, given her credentials as a strong anti-BJP force, Banerjee said, "If given the opportunity I would ensure its smooth functioning." "I don't want to go outside Bengal, but I can run it from here," she said. The INDIA bloc, formed to counter the BJP, comprises over two dozen opposition parties. However, interna

BJP-RSS 'biggest tukde-tukde gang': Cong slams traitor jibe at Rahul

The Congress on Friday slammed the BJP for acussing Rahul Gandhi of conspiring to destabilise India and calling him a traitor, saying the truth is that BJP-RSS is the "biggest tukde-tukde" gang of this country and is spreading the "poison of communalism". The opposition party said the truth is that the work of destabilising the economy is being done by the people of BJP. The BJP on Thursday had claimed a link between Rahul Gandhi and international forces, including an investigative media platform, trying to destabilise India and that the Congress leader was a "traitor of the highest order". Patra claimed that billionaire investor George Soros and some US-based agencies, investigative media platform Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), and Gandhi occupy three sides of a "dangerous" triangle trying to destabilise India and stoke public disaffection for a regime change. "I have no hesitation in saying he (Gandhi) is a traitor of the highest order," he ...

Sonowal seeks apology from Congress for its 'total failure' in Northeast

Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Friday sought an apology from the Congress for its "total failure" in bringing development in the Northeast. He also said that the Northeast has now become a place of peace and prosperity under 10-year rule of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Addressing a press conference here, Sonowal said during the long rule of Congress governments -- both at the Centre and in the eight state governments of the Northeast -- the region remained backward with little or no development. "It was a total failure of the Congress. The Congress should seek forgiveness from the people of the Northeast. I demand an apology from the Congress," he said. However, under the Narendra Modi government, the Northeast has seen all round development with construction of roads, highways, bridges, airports, railway lines, ports, AIIMS, higher education institutions among others. "Because of the initiatives taken by the prime minister and Home Minister Amit Shah, most of the insurgen

Political business: Fadnavis' Maha return, Sukhbir Badal dodges death

Devendra Fadnavis' return to Maharashtra throne, assassination attempt on Sukhbir Singh Badal in Punjab and more in this week's political news wrap

Proud of my brother, nothing above country for him: Priyanka slams BJP

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra lashed out at the BJP on Friday over its leader Sambit Patra calling Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi a "traitor". She asserted that nothing is above the country for her brother. She said the accusation was nothing new coming from such people as those who called former prime ministers traitors. "Those who can call Jawaharlal Nehru, who spent 13 years in jail during the Independence struggle, a traitor, those who can call Indira Gandhi, who broke Pakistan into two, a traitor, and those who can call Rajiv Gandhi, who was martyred for the country, a traitor, then if they are doing the same with Rahul Gandhi then there is nothing new in it," Priyanka told reporters outside the Parliament building. "I am proud of my brother, for my brother, nothing is above the country," she said as she participated in the opposition's protest over the Adani issue. Referring to his Bharat Jodo Yatra, Priyanka said her brother walked 4,000 kms from Kanniyakumari to

People of Wayanad looking for actions, not excuses: Priyanka Gandhi

Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Friday asserted that disasters should not be about politics and said the people of landslides-hit Wayanad are looking towards the state and central governments with hope and "don't need excuses". She asserted that the people of Wayanad need urgent help to be able to rebuild their lives with dignity. "Disasters should not be about politics. Efforts to support the victims of such disasters must prioritise humanity and compassion," the Wayanad MP said on X. "The people of Wayanad are looking towards the State and Central Governments with hope, they don't need excuses, they need urgent help to be able to rebuild their lives with dignity," the Congress general secretary said. She said India stands strongest when every level of government works together to heal wounds and rebuild lives. The Centre and State must step up and fulfil its responsibility to the people of Wayanad, she asserted. Priyanka Gandhi also shared what she said was Home Minister A

Several Oppn MPs take out protest march in Parliament on Adani issue

Several Opposition MPs led by the Congress on Friday held a protest march inside Parliament complex on the Adani issue, wearing black masks that read "Modi Adani bhai bhai". The protest saw several leaders from some of the INDIA bloc parties marching, holding a copy of the Constitution and raising slogans against industrialist Gautam Adani. RJD, JMM and left parties' MPs were among those who joined the protest. TMC and Samajwadi Party, which did not participate in demonstration, have so far stayed away from any such denunciation of Adani. The decision has been seen by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as a "division" in the opposition bloc. Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, the newly elected MP from Wayanad , were among those present in the march. Priyanka later alleged that the government was scared of holding a discussion on the Adani issue and wondered why was it so. The Congress and several other opposition parties hav

Privilege notice against BJP's Patra submitted for 'traitor' barb at Rahul

Congress MP Hibi Eden has submitted a notice to move a privilege motion against BJP MP Sambit Patra for his remarks calling Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi "traitor of the highest order", asserting that the usage of "completely defamatory and unparliamentary words" has clearly violated constitutional norms. In his letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Eden said, "I wish to raise a motion of privilege and bring to your attention the completely unparliamentary conduct of Sambit Patra, MP Lok Sabha, against the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi." In a press conference held on December 5, Patra has referred to the Leader of Opposition as "traitor of the highest order" while making unfounded allegations against the LoP, he said. "The usage of such words against the LOP, while being defamatory and unacceptable in public life, is also a complete breach of parliamentary privilege of the LoP," Eden argued. "I wish to highlight that the position of the Leader of Opposition is

Manickam Tagore gives adjournment motion to discuss Adani's indictment

Tagore alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government are prioritising Adani's profits over the welfare of the Indian people

News updates: Nykaa Fashion CEO Nihir Parikh quits with immediate effect

Catch all the major news updates from across the world here

Maha CM oath ceremony highlights: Devendra Fadnavis becomes Maharashtra Chief Minister for 3rd time

Devendra Fadnavis oath taking ceremony live: Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde had indicated that he was reluctant to join the new government as deputy CM. Catch all the latest live updates here

Jharkhand Cabinet expansion: 11 MLAs from JMM, Cong, RJD become ministers

Eleven MLAs, including six from JMM, were sworn in as ministers in the Hemant Soren government in Jharkhand on Thursday. Governor Santosh Kumar Gangwar administered the oath to the ministers at Ashok Udyan of the Raj Bhavan here. The six JMM legislators, who took oath as ministers, are Sudivya Kumar, Deepak Birua, Ramdas Soren, Chamra Linda, Yogendra Prasad and Hafijul Hasan. Congress MLAs Deepika Pandey Singh, Shilpi Neha Tirkey, Irfan Ansari and Radhakrishna Kishore were sworn in as ministers, while RJD's Sanjay Prasad Yadav also found a berth. JMM leader Hemant Soren took oath as the chief minister on November 28. Six new faces have been inducted into the Hemant Soren government, while Deepika Pandey Singh, Irfan Ansari, Deepak Birua and Ramdas Soren have got ministerial positions for the second time and Hafizul Hasan for the third. The swearing-in ceremony began with Stephen Marandi taking oath as the pro-tem speaker of the assembly. Marandi, a senior JMM MLA, was appointed

Law minister Meghwal slams Congress for not giving Ambedkar his due

Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal on Thursday slammed the opposition Congress for not giving B R Ambedkar his due and allegedly ensuring his defeat in the first Lok Sabha elections. Addressing the media here, Meghwal credited Ambedkar with the creation of the Reserve Bank of India as well as the Finance Commission but lamented that the Congress "which talks of the Constitution, never gave Ambedkar the due he deserved. He claimed the Congress made supporters of Ambedkar vote twice on ballot papers, making it invalid which led to his defeat. He said Ambedkar wrote to the Election Commission about the way elections were held but the poll body did not act. Meghwal said Ambedkar's representation to the poll panel was now available. He said the Alipore Road residence of Ambedkar here was turned into a memorial by then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. "But the Congress did nothing," he claimed. The minister also credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the establishment of an ...

Venugopal files adjournment motion over stopping Rahul's Sambhal visit

Earlier today, Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi also moved an adjournment motion notice in Lok Sabha to discuss the stopping of Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi

Gaurav Gogoi seeks LS adjournment over stopping of Rahul's Sambhal visit

In his notice, Gogoi stated that by preventing LoP Gandhi from visiting Sambhal, the government "disregarded" the right of opposition to hold the government responsible

Not only India but idea of Nehru itself needs to be defended: Jairam Ramesh

Both detractors and admirers of Jawaharlal Nehru are living in his shadow and, since 2014, the story is one of governance through maximum criticism of the country's first prime minister, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said on Wednesday. Speaking at the launch of writer-scholar Aditya Mukherjee's "Nehru's India", the Congress general secretary said one of the biggest takeaways from the book was that "not only the idea of India but the idea of Nehru itself needs to be defended". "...needs to be defended from its old critics, from its new critics, and it has to be reinterpreted for a changing India. I just want to say that we all live in the shadow of Nehru. Many of us have assimilated Nehru and many of us contest Nehru. And even those who contest Nehru cannot run away from the shadow of Nehru," the Rajya Sabha MP said. The book, published by Penguin, focuses on Nehru's understanding of history and India's cultural past while offering a window into his understanding of communalis

News updates: US President-elect Donald Trump picks Jared Isaacman to head Nasa

News updates: Catch all the latest news updates from around the world here

Sitharaman accuses 'Congress-led MVA govt' of delaying key projects

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday accused the past "Congress-led government" of stalling key infrastructure projects in Maharashtra including the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train and Mumbai Metro car shed in Aarey Colony. The previous Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government of the Congress, undivided Nationalist Congress Party and undivided Shiv Sena also created hurdles when the Union government tried to resolve the issues plaguing Mumbai's suburban railway network, she claimed. Sitharaman was speaking at a meeting of the state BJP legislature party where Devendra Fadnavis was elected as its leader ahead of the swearing-in of the new BJP-led government. Sitharaman, along with Vijay Rupani, was present as a central observer. "Had the Congress-led government not been in power in Maharashtra during the MVA period, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train would have already commenced," she said. Sitharaman also questioned the delay in the Aarey car shed construction, part of the

INDIA bloc MPs hold protest in Parliament over Adani issue, seek JPC probe

Leaders of several INDIA bloc parties protested on the Parliament premises on Wednesday over the Adani indictment issue and called for a joint parliamentary probe into the matter. MPs of the Congress, AAP, RJD, Shiv Sena (UBT), DMK and the Left parties, among others, raised slogans in favour of their demand and held a banner reading "Modi-Adani are one" at Parliament's Makar Dwar. The TMC kept away from the opposition protest. Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi was not part of the protest. He left for the violence-hit Sambhal district in Uttar Pradesh along with a Congress delegation in the morning. The Lok Sabha Secretariat on Tuesday issued an advisory urging the MPs not to hold protests in front of Parliament gates, saying that such obstruction of movement could affect their safety and security. The opposition MPs held a protest at the same spot on Tuesday. The Congress and some other opposition have been demanding a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) probe ...