Page 61 - Indian National Congress

2008 global financial crisis wasn't as serious as Covid-19: FM Sitharaman

A nearly 60-page White Paper was tabled in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha by Sitharaman on Thursday

BJP's 2-point programme to spread injustice, hatred, violence, says Rahul

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday hit out at the BJP, alleging that the ruling party's two-point programme is to encourage injustice and spread hatred and violence. Gandhi was addressing a public meeting at Rengalpali village in Chhattsigarh's Raigarh district after his 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' entered the state from Odisha. He also targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi, claiming he was not an OBC by birth as his caste "ghanchi" was included in the Other Backward Classes list in 2000 in Gujarat by the then BJP government there. "The BJP's two-point programme is to encourage injustice and spread hatred and violence," Gandhi claimed. One year ago, the Bharat Jodo Yatra covered about 4,000 km from Kanyakumari to Kashmir (in 2022-23) against the BJP's act to spread hatred and create an atmosphere of violence. Now the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra has been started to seek justice for the people, he said. Reiterating his party's pitch for caste census, Gandhi said, "If Modi ji says ther

T'gana was a rich state, previous govt made it debt-ridden: Governor

The people of Telangana gave a rich state to the previous government but it handed over a debt-ridden state to the present regime, Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan said on Thursday. The governor, who addressed the joint session of the legislature on the opening day of budget session, said the government is committed to restoring financial discipline and transparency. The White Paper on Finance released during the last session of the assembly has "laid bare the incompetent and reckless manner" in which the previous government had managed public finance, she said. "The people of Telangana had handed over a rich state to the previous government and after ten years, they have handed over a debt-ridden state to us," she said. The immediate challenge is to improve the state's financial situation without burdening the people. The budget gives the government an opportunity to start the path of restoration, responsibility and accountability in the management of public finance, sh

PM Modi lauds ex-PM Manmohan Singh in RS farewell speech for retiring MPs

Prime Minister Narendra Modi while bidding farewell to the retiring members in Rajya Sabha on Thursday lauded the "immense contribution" of his predecessor Manmohan Singh

PM Modi not born in OBC family, misleading people: Cong's Rahul Gandhi

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was not born in an Other Backward Class family, and he is misleading people by identifying himself as an OBC. Gandhi, while making a brief speech here on the third and concluding day of his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' in Odisha, said Modi was born in a family that belonged to the general caste. Modi ji has been misleading the people by saying that he is an OBC. He was born in a family of the Teli caste, which was included in the OBC list during the BJP government's tenure in Gujarat in 2000. Therefore, Modi ji is not an OBC by birth, the Congress MP asserted. Gandhi also alleged that the prime minister does not shake hands with OBCs, but hugs billionaires. Clad in a white t-shirt, the former Congress president resumed the yatra on Thursday from the Old Bus Stand here and moved towards Kissan Chowk in an open jeep. He was accompanied by AICC leader Ajoy Kumar and OPCC president Sarat Pattnayak. The yatra

Nyay Yatra to go on two-day break after Odisha-leg: Jairam Ramesh

The Odisha leg of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, being spearheaded by Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, is scheduled to be completed on Thursday, party leader Jairam Ramesh said

UPA ruined Indian economy, 'White Paper' to highlight deficiencies: BJP

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Jayant Sinha said on Wednesday that the Indian economy was ruined by the end of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) tenure in 2014, adding that the 'White Paper' likely to be presented by the Centre in Parliament would highlight the deficiencies in each sector that existed at that time.The government announced in the Union Interim Budget presented on February 1 that it would release a 'White Paper' to compare the economic performance of the Congress-led UPA government's 10 years with that of the BJP-led NDA government's 10 years.Speaking to ANI, Jayant Sinha said, "It is necessary that we present before the people that how a change has set in into the economy. There were deficiencies in every sector. If the economy is shining today and going ahead rapidly, it is due to our policies & work in these 10 years."Highlighting the economic mismanagement by Congress and the UPA during its tenure, Jayant Sinha, who was also the Minister of State (MoS) ...

K'taka govt to agitate in Delhi against Centre, to protest at Jantar Mantar

Stepping up the attack on the BJP-led government at the Centre, the ruling Congress in Karnataka led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will stage a protest in New Delhi on Wednesday, alleging "injustice" to the State in tax devolution and grants-in-aid over the past few years. The protest by all Congress legislators and MPs from the state, including Ministers that comes ahead of the ensuing Lok Sabha polls will begin at 11 am tomorrow at Jantar Mantar in the national capital. The protesters would demand Centre set right the losses allegedly incurred by the Karnataka to the tune of Rs 1.87 lakh crore, during five years under the 15th finance commission. Incidentally, CPI (M) veteran and Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, along with his Cabinet colleagues will stage a protest in the national capital against the Centre's alleged negligence towards the southern state. Elsewhere, in Kolkata TMC supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will stage a protest on Friday agains

Congress should rethink on party's face: Sharmistha Mukherjee on Rahul

Citing the last two Lok Sabha polls, Sharmistha Mukherjee said that if the Congress is continuously losing under the leadership of a particular person, it needs to rethink its strategy

Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra: Rahul Gandhi-led march to enter Odisha today

The Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra is scheduled to enter Odisha on Tuesday. Biramitrapur, a small industrial town in Sundergarh district through which the yatra will enter the state from Jharkhand, has been decked up with banners, cut-outs and hoardings of Gandhi. Senior state Congress leaders have gathered in Rourkela steel city, around 35 km from Biramitrapur, and there is a palpable enthusiasm among the people to have a glimpse of Rahul Gandhi, who is referred to as "former PM Indira Gandhi's grandson" by locals, the party's Sundergarh district president Rashmi Padhee said. Although the Biramitrapur assembly seat is now represented by the BJP, it had earlier elected Congress and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha candidates. Gandhi is expected to reach Biramitrapur in the afternoon. After according a grand welcome to him, the state Congress will take charge of the yatra. It will move for around 10 km before a night halt in the Bija Bahal area. The next day, Gandhi will resume his

Cong's Tewari moves adjournment motion in LS to discuss India-China border

Congress Lok Sabha MP Manish Tewari has moved an adjournment motion in the Lower House seeking a discussion on the border situation with China on Tuesday

Highlights: PM to launch BJP's campaign for LS from MP's Jhabua on Feb 11

News updates: From CM Champai Soren's floor test in Jharkhand assembly to Iran leveraging UK bank account to covertly move money, catch all the latest updates from around the world here

Cong govt's protest in Delhi against 'njustice', not BJP: CM Siddaramaiah

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday said the protest by the Congress government in New Delhi on February seven is against the 'injustice' by the Union government in tax devolution and grants-in-aid to the State, and not against BJP. Listing out "injustice" caused to the state, he urged the opposition BJP to join the agitation in the interest of the state, as the struggle was not against it. "On February 7, all the Ministers and all MLAs of both the Houses of the legislature, also MPs, are going to agitate against the Government of India for injustice caused to Karnataka state by the 15th Finance Commission and several other issues concerning the state including grants from the Centre," Siddaramaiah told a press conference here. He said the agitation would be held at Jantar Mantar in the national capital as he urged BJP MPs from the state to also participate in it. "The struggle is not between Congress and the BJP or against the BJP, it is against injustice caused to ...

Telangana to switch to 'TG' as new abbreviation, replacing 'TS': Govt

Telangana will also adopt a new state anthem - 'Jaya Jaya Ho Telangana', penned by noted lyricist Andre Sri, a cabinet meeting headed by CM Reddy decided on Sunday

Cong holds meeting for shortlisting LS polls candidates in Chhattisgarh

The screening committee for shortlisting candidates for the Lok Sabha polls in Chhattisgarh met here on Sunday with AICC in-charge of the state Sachin Pilot asserting that winnability is the main criteria for the selection of nominees. Besides Pilot, former Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel and state unit chief Deepak Baij, among others, attended the meeting. After the meeting, Pilot said names of candidates for all the 11 Lok Sabha seats were discussed and asserted that winnability would be the main criteria for selection. "The sentiment in all 11 seats is in favour of the Congress. We have made a list of all the candidates who are eligible to win and are discussing the same," the Congress general secretary said. "In Chhattisgarh, we could not win the assembly elections but our vote margin was only 1-1.5 per cent (less than the BJP). People have been watching the reports of the central government for the last 10 years. The government has failed on every front," he said.

Highlights of the day: Ladakh shuts down as thousands march for statehood

Updates: Catch all the latest updates from around the world

Kavitha objects to T'gana govt move to invite Priyanka to launch scheme

BRS leader K Kavitha on Saturday took exception to Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy's statement that Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra would be invited to launch the ruling party's Rs 500 gas cylinder scheme. Kavitha, daughter of former Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, sought to know in what capacity Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was being invited to the event. "Has she (Priyanka Gandhi Vadra) won even as a sarpanch in any village in the country or as MLA or as MLC? Does she have any (government) protocol in our state?" asked the BRS MLC while addressing reporters. If Vadra is invited to government programmes, her party would protest by releasing black balloons, she said. Making a veiled reference to MLAs of ruling JMM-led alliance in Jharkhand camping in Hyderabad ahead of the trust vote to be faced by the Champai Soren government, Kavitha wondered of it is not a waste of public money as a minister accompanied the MLAs with escort to a luxury resort after they ..

Congress' Nyay Yatra: Rahul Gandhi to visit Baidyanath Dham in Deoghar

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday will visit the famed Baba Baidyanath Dham in Deoghar on the second day of his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Jharkhand. The Yatra, which began in Manipur on January 14, entered the state from West Bengal through the Pakur district on Friday afternoon. After a night halt at Littipara in Pakur, the Yatra resumed from Sarkanda Chowk in Godda district on Saturday morning, Congress spokesperson Rakesh Sinha told PTI. Gandhi will visit the ancient temple in Deoghar dedicated to Lord Shiva around 2.30 pm and offer prayers, he said. Later, he will lead a roadshow in the district and also address a public meeting. The Yatra will then proceed to Dhanbad where the participants will camp for the night. The night halt has been planned at Halkata in Tundi block of Dhanbad, Sinha said. The Yatra will travel 804 km, covering 13 districts of the state over eight days in two phases. In all, it will travel 6,713 km in 67 days, passing through 110 districts in 15

BJP tried to 'steal popular mandate' in J'khand but was stopped: Rahul

The BJP tried to destabilise the Jharkhand government elected by the people but the INDIA bloc stood up against its "conspiracy" and did not let it "steal the popular mandate", Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said on Friday as his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra entered the eastern state. Gandhi was accorded a warm welcome here with newly appointed Chief Minister Champai Soren also present on the occasion. Addressing the gathering, Gandhi alleged the BJP has "money power and probe agencies" but he and the Congress are not scared of them and will keep on fighting against the ruling party's "divisive ideology". The former Congress president said that while the earlier Bharat Jodo Yatra was against the "divisive agenda" of the RSS and the BJP, the current yatra is seeking justice for the people of the country. The BJP once again tried to steal and destabilise a government which had been elected by the people of Jharkhand, Gandhi said. The Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA)

JMM leader Champai Soren takes oath as chief minister of Jharkhand

JMM legislature party leader Champai Soren on Friday took oath as the chief minister of Jharkhand. He was administered the oath of office by Governor C P Radhakrishnan at the Raj Bhavan here. Along with Champai Soren, senior Congress leader Alamgir Alam and RJD leader Satyanand Bhokta took oath as state ministers. The oath-taking ceremony was held at the Durbar Hall of the Raj Bhavan and senior leaders of the JMM-led alliance were present on the occasion. The 67-year-old tribal leader was sworn in as the 12th chief minister of the state. He became the sixth CM from Jharkhand's Kolhan region which comprises East Singhbhum, West Singhbhum and Seraikela-Kharsawan districts. Champai Soren was appointed to the chief minister's post on Thursday after he urged the governor to accept his claim to form the government at the earliest as there was "confusion" in the state which was without a chief minister since the resignation of Hemant Soren on Wednesday, deepening a political crisis. Cha