Page 48 - Indian National Congress

Cong wants to implement religion-based quota to preserve vote bank: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday hit out at the Congress, saying the "vote bank hungry" party wanted to implement reservation on the basis of religion. Addressing a poll rally in Ambikapur, the headquarters of Surguja district in Chhattisgarh, PM Modi also said the Congress wanted to impose inheritance tax in the country and snatch the rights of people's children. Some forces want a "weak" government of the Congress and "INDI" alliance in the country as they thought that if India becomes 'atmanirbhar' (self-reliant), their shops will be shut, he said. "Today when I have come to Surguja, I want to present the Muslim League thinking of the Congress in front of the country. When their manifesto was released, on the same day I had said, and saying today also that the Congress manifesto has the imprint of Muslim League," Modi said. When the Constitution was being drafted, it was decided under the leadership of Babasaheb Ambedkar that there would be no reservation on the basis o

LS polls: War of words between Cong, BJP leaders intensifies in Kolhapur

Congress leader Satej Patil and BJP Rajya Sabha MP Dhananjay Mahadik engaged in a war of words in Kolhapur in western Maharashtra on Tuesday after Patil warned the opposition not to obstruct his party's workers while they campaigned. If opponents created obstructions, he will confront them with a stick, Patil reportedly said. Mahadik responded by asking whether Patil wanted start riots by using such language. "I want to tell the opponents not to mess with us while we campaign. You do your campaign but do not try to mess with us," the Congress leader said. Mahadik told reporters that nobody was obstructing people from other parties. "Using the language of stick, does he want to start riots here," the BJP MP asked, claiming that Patil was already sensing defeat of his party. In Kolhapur, Shahu Chhatrapati Maharaj of Congress is pitted against Shiv Sena's current MP Sanjay Mandlik.

PM Modi's 'infiltrators' remark: What did ex-PM Manmohan Singh say in 2006?

Lok Sabha elections 2024: During a rally in Rajasthan, PM Narendra Modi claimed that former PM Manmohan Singh believed that Muslims had 'first claim on resources' and wealth of the nation

Highlights of the day: Delhi records maximum temperature of 37.2 degrees Celsius

From the events of the ongoing general elections to EV-maker Tesla's dwindling market-cap, catch all the latest news from around the world here. Stay tuned

LS elections 2024: Two Punjab Cong leaders including national secy join BJP

Two Punjab Congress leaders, including its national secretary Tajinder Pal Singh Bittu, joined the BJP here on Saturday as the ruling party at the Centre bolsters its ranks in the state ahead of the Lok Sabha polls there. Bittu announced his resignation from the Congress hours before joining the BJP. He and Karamjit Kaur Chaudhary, the wife of late Congress veteran Santokh Singh Chaudhary, joined the BJP in the presence of Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and its national general secretary Vinod Tawde. Chaudhary had last year unsuccessfully contested the Lok Sabha bypoll in Jalandhar following the death of her husband, who was the sitting MP. At a press conference, Tawde said their induction into the BJP will boost the party, especially in Punjab where the polls are scheduled for June 1. Bittu told reporters that he had been feeling "suffocated" in the Congress after being with the party for over 35 years. "Three-four power centres work in the Congress and all of them seek to func

Lok Sabha polls are a battle between PM Modi and Rahul Gandhi: Ajit Pawar

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Saturday said this Lok Sabha election is not about family relations but a battle between Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Ajit Pawar's wife Sunetra, the NCP's candidate from the Baramati Lok Sabha constituency in Pune district, officially launched her campaign by offering prayers at the Hanuman temple at Kanheri on Saturday. Ajit Pawar, his sons Parth and Jay, and several local party leaders were present for the campaign launch. On Thursday, Sunetra and her sister-in-law three-term Lok Sabha member Supriya Sule filed their nomination papers for the NCP and NCP (SP) respectively. Ajit Pawar has also filed nomination papers for the seat, which an NCP functionary described as a backup plan in case his wife's nomination does not stand scrutiny or if any discrepancy is found. Addressing the gathering, Ajit Pawar said, "We are launching the official campaign after praying to Lord Hanuman. The election is not a

INDIA bloc to prevent BJP from scrapping Constitution, says Rahul Gandhi

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday accused the ruling BJP at the Centre of trying to "scrap" the Constitution, but vowed that the opposition bloc INDIA would foil its attempt. Addressing an election rally at Bhagalpur, his first in Bihar, Gandhi also scoffed at claims of the BJP that it will win more than 370 seats in the Lok Sabha elections, asserting that "their tally will not go past 150". "The INDIA bloc is fighting to save democracy and the Constitution which the BJP-RSS combine is trying to scrap," Gandhi said. The former Congress president also alleged, "Whatever the country's poor, Dalits and tribals have got, it is because of the Constitution. If the Constitution is scrapped, all things will come to an end." Gandhi charged the Narendra Modi government with being pro-super rich, claiming that "under its rule, merely 22 people hold wealth that is equivalent to what 70 per cent of the population has. We want to change that". He also spoke about promises made by the ...

Will PM deliver on his 'promise' to put Ashok Chavan in jail asks Congress

The Congress on Saturday took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, asking whether he would deliver on his promise to put the BJP's Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Chavan in jail. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh posed a few questions for Prime Minister Modi ahead of his rally in Nanded and Parbhani. "Today's questions for PM Modi as he heads to Nanded and Parbhani: Will the PM deliver on his promise to put BJP's Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Chavan in jail? What is the BJP's plan to deal with Marathwada's worsening drought and water scarcity? Why has the Indian Railways performed so poorly in Nanded division," Ramesh said in a post on 'X'. Elaborating on what he dubbed as "jumla details", the Congress leader said the prime minister should revisit his words from his campaign in Nanded on March 30, 2014, when he launched a ferocious attack on Chavan -- "now the latest labaarthi of the 'BJP Washing Machine Yojana'". "The PM declared Chavan an 'Adarsh candidate', and said that 'the Congress is

PM Modi running 'school of corruption' in country, says Rahul Gandhi

The former Congress chief claimed that the prime minister was teaching chapters on how the collection of donations is done through raids and how contracts are distributed after taking donations

Scindia, Digvijaya among candidates in fray for 3rd phase of LS polls in MP

A total of 144 candidates, including those of the ruling BJP and opposition Congress, have filed nominations for the elections to nine Lok Sabha seats in Madhya Pradesh, where polling is scheduled in the third phase on May 7, a top poll official said. Earlier, polling for only eight seats was scheduled to take place in the third phase, but due to the death of a Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidate in Betul (ST), election to this seat in the second phase was postponed. So, a total of nine seats will go to polls in the third phase. Guna, Vidisha and Rajgarh are some of the high-profile seats where polling will be held in the third phase. Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia and former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan are contesting elections from Guna and Vidisha, respectively, on the BJP tickets. The Congress has fielded former chief minister and its Rajya Sabha member Digvijaya Singh from the Rajgarh seat. Madhya Pradesh's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Anupam Rajan said the ...

PM Narendra Modi to campaign in Bengaluru and Chikkaballapura today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Bengaluru and neighbouring Chikkaballapura district for the Lok Sabha poll campaign on Saturday. He will address mega rallies both in Bengaluru and Chikkaballapura. Modi held mega rallies in Kalaburagi and Shivamogga last month. On April 14, he addressed a rally in Mysuru, during which he shared the dais with JD(S) patriarch and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, and later held a roadshow in Mangaluru. According to the state BJP, the Prime Minister is scheduled to address a mega public meeting at Chokkahalli village in Chikkaballapura district at 2 PM, covering Chikkballapur and Kolar Lok Sabha constituencies, and later at 4 PM he will participate in a massive rally in Bengaluru's palace ground, covering Bangalore North, Bangalore South, Bangalore Central and Bangalore Rural segments. Bangalore -North, South and Central have been BJP's bastions, while Rural is represented by Congress' D K Suresh, brother of Deputy Chief Minister D K ...

LS polls: Congress becoming outdated, losing relevance, says Rajnath Singh

Criticising the Congress for becoming 'outdated' and losing its relevance in the country's political spectrum, Defence Minister Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday said BJP does politics for the sake of the nation building and not merely for coming to power. Addressing a party gathering before Union Minister Kishan Reddy filed his nomination for Lok Sabha polls, Singh also attacked the Congress party alleging that former Reserve Bank Governor D Subbarao in his book wrote that there was pressure to present a rosy picture with regards to the economy during UPA rule. He claimed that due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's intervention the war between Russia and Ukraine was stopped for over four hours to facilitate India to evacuate its citizens. I want to say that the Congress has become completely outdated. Congress is continuously losing its relevance from Indian politics. Congress indulged in appeasement politics. When it comes to politics, BJP doesn't do politics on caste, creed, and ..

Veteran BJP leader and former Minister Malikayya Guttedar joins Congress

Former Minister and BJP leader Malikayya Guttedar on Friday joined the Congress. The six-time MLA from Afzalpur in Kalaburagi district has been upset with the induction of his brother Nithin Guttedar into the BJP. M Y Patil from Congress had won the seat in the 2023 Assembly election, in which Malikayya Guttedar had finished third behind Nithin, who contested as an independent. The 67-year-old Malikayya Guttedar had been criticising BJP veteran and former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and his son B Y Vijayendra who is BJP state president after his brother's move. Welcoming Malikayya Guttedar into the party fold, Deputy Chief Minister and state Congress chief D K Shivakumar claimed that many BJP leaders are willing to join the ruling outfit in the State. Kalaburagi is the home district of Congress President M Mallikarjun Kharge, who had won from the seat in the 2009 and 2014 Lok Sabha elections but lost in the 2019 polls. Kharge's son-in-law Radhakrishna Doddamani is contesting .

Previous govts cheated SC, ST, OBC in name of social justice: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday accused previous governments of cheating SC, ST and OBC communities in the name of social justice, and said he was working to fulfil the dreams of Jyotiba Phule, Dr BR Ambedkar and Chaudhary Charan Singh. Modi was addressing a poll rally here in support of the BJP candidate from the Amroha Lok Sabha constituency Kanwar Singh Tanwar. "Previous governments have only cheated people of SC, ST and OBC communities in the name of social justice," he said. "Modi is working day and night to fulfil the social justice dream of Jyotiba Phule, Ambedkar and Chaudhary Charan Singh," the prime minister added. Modi addressed the rally as polling was underway in eight western Uttar Pradesh Lok Sabha constituencies in the first phase of the general election in the country. The prime minister began his speech with an appeal to people to vote. "I appeal to all to exercise their right to vote given by the Constitution," he said. Modi emphasized that youngsters sh

Open 'Mohabbat ki Dukaan' in every corner of India: Rahul to voters

As polling began in the first phase of the Lok Sabha polls on Friday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi urged voters to strengthen democracy and open 'Mohabbat ki Dukaan' in every corner of the country by defeating hatred. "Today is the first phase of voting! Remember, each and every vote of yours is going to decide the future of India's democracy and its generations," Gandhi said in a post in Hindi on 'X'. "Go out and strengthen democracy by applying the balm of your vote on the wounds inflicted on the soul of the country in the last 10 years," he said. Open 'Mohabbat Ki Dukaan' in every corner of the country by defeating hatred, the Congress leader added. Gandhi also shared a graphic of the key Congress guarantees to the people, including the right to apprenticeship, a legal guarantee of MSP and a nationwide caste census. The 2024 Lok Sabha polls kicked off Friday with polling being held for the first phase scheduled in 102 seats spread across 21 states and Union territories. Among

Lok Sabha polls 2024: Choose strong, decisive govt, says Amit Shah

As voting in the first phase of Lok Sabha polls began Friday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah appealed to people to choose a strong and decisive leadership that has shown the determination to free the country from corruption, nepotism and appeasement while fulfilling its promises. Shah also said this vote was not only meant to determine the fate of a Lok Sabha or a candidate but also to shape a bright future for India. It is an important day, he added. "My appeal is to choose a strong and decisive leadership that has shown the determination to free the country from corruption, nepotism, and appeasement while fulfilling its promises," Shah wrote on 'X'. The minister also appealed to people to elect a government that has not only accelerated development but also ensured infallible security along the borders, provided health, housing, electricity and gas facilities to every poor person, and preserved, promoted and nurtured India's culture and cultural symbols. "I appeal to all the vote

Cong will win up to 20 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka, says CM Siddaramaiah

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday said the response from voters towards Congress is "very good" and the party would win up to 20 seats in the state in the coming Lok Sabha polls. The guarantee schemes launched by his government will not be stopped for any reason, Siddaramaiah asserted as he claimed that the Congress will return to power after completing the current term, and they would continue. "The response is very good from the voters in Karnataka, but I do not know about the other parts of the country. As far as Karnataka is concerned, we will win up to 20 seats this time," Siddaramaiah told reporters here. Karnataka has 28 Lok Sabha constituencies. In the 2019 parliamentary elections, the Congress and its then alliance partner JD(S), which were running a coalition government at the time, had won just one seat each, while the BJP secured 25, and had also ensured the victory of an independent supported by it. This time, the JD(S) is in an alliance with the BJP,

Lok Sabha Polls Phase-I: 102 constituencies in play, 8 ministers in fray

Here's a list of constituencies, incumbent parties, key candidates, and voter turnout in the 2019 General elections

INDIA bloc will win from Ghaziabad to Ghazipur: SP chief Akhilesh Yadav

Asserting that "winds of change" are blowing from western Uttar Pradesh, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday said there will be an INDIA bloc "clean sweep" from Ghaziabad to Ghazipur. He also urged the people to ensure that their votes are not divided and asked them to guard their booths to ensure a wipeout of the BJP. Yadav made the remarks during a joint press conference with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, their first during the Lok Sabha election cycle. "The first phase of the Lok Sabha polls in Uttar Pradesh are going to be held. The winds that are blowing from the west are going to change the environment of the whole of Uttar Pradesh and the country," Yadav said with Gandhi and other Congress leaders by his side. "Today we are sitting in Ghaziabad. There will be a clean sweep of the INDIA bloc over the BJP from Ghaziabad to Ghazipur," the Samajwadi Party chief said. He claimed that farmers are distressed as all the BJP's promises and claims have turned out to be

PM skipped upper Assam out of fear of facing tea garden workers: Congress

Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's election rally in Nalbari on Wednesday, senior Congress leader Pawan Khera claimed that the PM skipped upper Assam where polls are due in the first phase as he was "afraid" of facing tea garden workers for "not fulfilling" promises. Stating that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's 'Nyay Yatra' was not permitted in Guwahati in view of commuters' problems, Khera criticised Modi for holding a roadshow through the busy Guwahati-Shillong Road on Tuesday evening, claiming that it created problems for all, from patients to office-goers since the morning. Addressing a press conference here, Khera said, "We don't know why the prime minister is not coming to upper Assam. He is going to Nalbari where elections are in the third phase. Perhaps he is afraid of facing tea garden workers here as their daily wages are still at Rs 250 and four-laning of national highway is yet to be completed." Elections to five Lok Sabha constituencies - Dibrugarh, Jorhat, Kazirang