Page 67 - Indian National Congress

Elated to witness successful launch of XPoSat, says Mallikarjun Kharge

Earlier, on Monday, Isro successfully put the X-ray Polarimeter Satellite in its desired orbit

BJP exploiting 'Pulwama and Lord Ram' for electoral gains: Cong's Sudhakar

Sudhakar remarked, "The inauguration of Ayodhya Ram Mandir is a stunt. People are not fools. We have been fooled twice. I am confident that we won't be fooled for the third time "

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra slams Centre over high petrol, diesel prices

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday slammed the Centre over high prices of petrol and diesel, alleging that the government's priority was only to fill the pockets of a few billionaires. In a post in Hindi on 'X', the Congress general secretary said crude oil has become cheaper by 29 per cent in the international market in the last 19 months. "Oil companies have earned Rs 1.32 lakh crore profit in six months. The burden of their huge earnings is being passed on to the people of the country," she alleged. Inflation is at its peak in the country due to the high prices of petrol and diesel, Gandhi said. "Poor and middle-class people are not able to run their families but they have not got any relief. The government's priority is only to fill the pockets of a few billionaires," she alleged.

Cong cries foul over BJP nominee for Karanpur poll's induction as Raj min

Surendra Pal Singh, the BJP's nominee for the January 5 poll to the Karanpur assembly seat, was inducted as a minister in the Rajasthan government Saturday, drawing flak from the Congress which accused the ruling party of violating the model code of conduct. Apart from Singh, 21 BJP MLAs were sworn in as ministers by Governor Kalraj Mishra at a ceremony in the Raj Bhawan here. While 12 leaders have been sworn in as cabinet ministers, five have been made ministers of state (independent charge) and five ministers of state. Singh took oath as Minister of State (independent charge). Hitting out at the BJP for inducting Singh into the council of ministers, the Congress' Rajasthan unit chief Govind Singh Dotasra said his party will bring this matter to the Election Commission's notice and demand action. Polling to the Karanpur Assembly seat of Rajasthan was adjourned following the death of a Congress candidate. The election will now be held on January 5 and results will be declared three

Will decide if Sonia, Kharge will attend Ram temple consecration: Cong

The Congress on Friday said it will take a decision at an "appropriate time" on whether party president Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress parliamentary party chairperson Sonia Gandhi will attend the consecration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on January 22. Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh told reporters here that Gandhi and Kharge have been invited to the ceremony. "Chairperson Congress parliamentary party Sonia Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge have been invited to the inauguration of the Ram temple. A decision will be taken at an appropriate time, and communicated at an appropriate time," he said. Congress' leader in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has also been invited to the ceremony. The consecration ceremony will be held on January 22 and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and more than 6,000 people are expected to attend it.

Celebrities fought legal battles in HC; Court upheld 'Agnipath' in 2023

High-profile legal battles involving political luminaries, Bollywood celebrities and corporate bosses unfolded in the Delhi High Court in 2023 and kept it abuzz with activity. Amid the unrelenting cut and thrust of these battles, the Delhi High Court also gave the thumbs up for the Modi government's Agnipath scheme, launched in June 2022 for recruiting soldiers, sailors and airmen for a four-year period. The scheme, which envisaged an overhaul of India's fighting machine, making it sturdier with the induction of young people aged 17.5 and 21 years, was reviled by its detractors, got resounding endorsement from supporters, and upheld by the court. The high court also saw skirmishes involving media entities over alleged violation of Indian laws. From the Gandhis of the Congress to a host of beleaguered Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders like former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Raghav Chadha and Satyendar Jain knocked on its door for relief in matters that ranged from allege

Two alliance leaders to take oath as ministers in Kerala's CPI(M)-led govt

Ramachandran Kadannappally of Congress (S) and K B Ganesh Kumar of Kerala Congress (B) are set to take the oath as ministers in Kerala's CPI(M)-led LDF government on Friday afternoon, officials said here. The swearing-in ceremony for the minister-designates will take place at 4 pm at Raj Bhavan, with Governor Arif Mohammed Khan administering the oath of office to the new ministers, officials said. Earlier, the Governor approved the state government's proposal for the induction of two new ministers into the state cabinet. On Sunday, the LDF announced a cabinet reshuffle and said that the new ministers would be sworn in on December 29. Following the understanding among the partners in the LDF, Antony Raju of the Democratic Kerala Congress and Ahammad Devarkovil of the Indian National League resigned as Transport Minister and Ports Minister, respectively. When the second LDF government assumed power in the state in May 2021, partners in the CPI(M)-led alliance had agreed to allocate

Tharoor talks about youth in politics; hints at 2024 being his last contest

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a Congress programme here on Thursday, Tharoor, however, said there was no finality about it since it is politics

Congress appoints communication coordinators for states, ahead of LS polls

The Congress appointed communication coordinators for states on Wednesday, ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Party spokesperson Gourav Vallabh has been appointed as the communication coordinator for Karnataka, Radhika Khera has been given the responsibility for Chhattisgarh, Mathew Antony will look after northeastern states and Mahima Singh will look after Assam. The other communication coordinators are B R Anil Kumar (Andhra Pradesh), Alok Sharma (Bihar), Harshad Sharma (Goa), Sachin Sawant (Gujarat), Ajay Upadhyay (Haryana), Amrit Gill (Himachal Pradesh), Jyoti Kumar Singh (Jharkhand), Arshpreet Khadial (Jammu), Parvez Alam (Kashmir and Ladakh), Lavanya Ballal Jain (Kerala), Charan Singh Sapra (Madhya Pradesh), Surendra Singh Rajput (Maharashtra), Bobbeeta Sharma (Odisha), Anshul Avijit (Punjab), Ritu Choudhary (Rajasthan), Bhavya Narasimhamurthy (Tamil Nadu and Puducherry), Sujata Paul (Telangana), Chayanika Uniyal (Uttarakhand), Abhay Dubey (Uttar Pradesh) and Anshuman Sail

K'taka Rakshana Vedike (NG) activists damage signboards in Bengaluru

The Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (Narayana Gowda faction) on Wednesday targeted business establishments in Bengaluru and damaged their signboards and name plates which did not use Kannada. The activists took out rallies in various parts of the city, especially in the business hubs such as MG Road, Brigade Road, Lavelle Road, UB City, Chamarajapet, Chickpet, Kempe Gowda Road, Gandhi Nagar, St Marks Road, Cunningham Road, Residency Road and Sadahalli Gate near Devanahalli. The activists said the business establishments were "undermining the official language of Karnataka, which is Kannada." Many malls, shops, commercial buildings, companies and factories, especially multinational companies, faced the ire of KRV activists. They destroyed and defaced signboards and name plates which were not in Kannada. Later, the agitating members including the KRV convener T A Narayana Gowda, were taken under preventive custody by police. Speaking to reporters, Gowda said the name plates and signboards

LS polls: Party Prez Kharge, Rahul hold meeting with Cong leaders in Andhra

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, party leader Rahul Gandhi and other central leaders of the party held a meeting with leaders of its Andhra Pradesh unit to discuss strategy for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. The meeting comes amid a series of meetings being held by the Congress high command with its state leaders ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. Taking to X, the Congress president called it an important strategy meeting where leaders shared their thoughts on strengthening the party for the general elections. "Everyone believes that ground situation has drastically changed after government formation in Karnataka and Telangana. Every leader and worker is going to work hard and re-establish the bond which the people of Andhra Pradesh once shared with the Congress party," Kharge said. Andhra Pradesh has 25 Lok Sabha seats, of which 22 are presently with the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP), while the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) has three seats.

LIVE news: BJP national secretary Anupam Hazra removed from his post

Catch all the latest news updates LIVE from across the world

AICC dissolves MP Congress working committee post election debacle

The All India Congress Committee has decided to dissolve the Madhya Pradesh Congress working committee, party general secretary in-charge for the state Jitendra Singh said on Tuesday. "The All India Congress Committee has decided to dissolve the MP Congress working committee. The district in-charges and joint in-charges will continue to work till the next directive," Singh told reporters after holding a meeting with party leaders. Newly-appointed MP Congress president Jitu Patwari, Rajya Sabha member Digvijaya Singh, former Union ministers Kantilal Bhuria, Suresh Pachouri and Arun Yadav among others attended the meeting. The move comes against the backdrop of the party's debacle in the recently held assembly elections wherein the BJP retained power by winning 163 seats while Congress' tally came down to 66 in the 230-member House. In the wake of the party's defeat the AICC recently appointed Jitu Patwari as MP unit president replacing Kamal Nath.

Himachal CM dedicates newly-constructed Sanjauli-Dhalli tunnel to people

The newly-constructed Sanjauli-Dhalli tunnel, built at a cost of Rs 47.36 crore, was inaugurated by Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu here on Monday. Taking a jibe at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Sukhu said the construction work of the 154.22-metre tunnel was going on at a snail's pace under the previous government in the hill state and the Congress government expedited it and the structure was completed within a year. The state government has directed all departments to ensure a time-bound completion of every project, Sukhu was quoted as saying in a statement issued here. The existing Dhalli tunnel, which was constructed in 1852, served as a single-lane passage and had surpassed its design life, causing persistent traffic congestion. With the inauguration of the new tunnel, these issues would be addressed. Tourism, a key industry in Himachal Pradesh, stands to benefit significantly from the improved connectivity. The tunnel, strategically positioned on th

AIMIM chief Owaisi demands lifting ban on hijab from Cong govt in Karnataka

"They (Cong) have been functioning [in K'taka] for the past seven months...They simply have to release an order allowing people to wear whatever they want, stating that there will be no dress code "

Will talk with party heads in states where alliances can be formed: Baghel

Congress formed the five-member NAC earlier this week, with Wasnik as convenor and leaders including ex-Raj CM Gehlot, Baghel, former Union minister Salman Khurshid, and Mohan Prakash as members

Congress' new National Alliance Committee holds its first meeting

The recently formed National Alliance Committee (NAC) of the Congress held its first meeting here on Saturday, convener of the committee Mukul Wasnik said. The committee will now hold meetings with state leaders to decide on seat sharing, Wasnik said. The Congress on Tuesday announced a five-member NAC comprising senior leaders to negotiate with INDIA bloc allies for seat sharing for the 2024 parliamentary polls. The announcement was made after a meeting of the opposition INDIA coalition in the national capital. "We have taken stock of the situation. In the next few days, we will hold discussions with senior leaders in the state committees of Congress on how to go forward, what are the seats to be discussed. We will take their opinion, and decide the way forward," he said. While Wasnik did not give a date, he said decisions will be taken soon. "We will take a decision soon, elections are coming close. But it's not possible to say this date or that date," he said. Members of the N

Video of K'taka CM in luxury jet goes viral, draws sharp reaction from BJP

The opposition BJP came down heavily on the Congress government in Karnataka on Friday for flaunting rich fortune and luxury lifestyles' after a video went viral showing Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his cabinet colleague B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan in a private jet. In the video, Siddaramaiah is seen along with Housing Minister Khan and Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda, among others. Karnataka BJP President B Y Vijayendra said: If bigotry had a face, @INCKarnataka govt would be the Best of it! At a time, when whole of Karnataka is reeling under severe drought, farmers staring at the worst of crisis with loss of crops & no rainfall & hardly any development works taking off, all that @CMofKarnataka & his team of cabinet ministers could think of is flaunting their Rich Fortunes & Luxury Lifestyles over the poor damsels of the State!. By the way, they were traveling in this luxurious aircraft to seek funds for drought relief works! What a crude mockery of our distress! ..

Mamata Banarjee, INDIA alliance leaders back Kharge for Prime Minister post

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was the first to propose the name of the Congress President as the prospective PM face of the INDIA alliance

Amid MPs row, Sonia Gandhi-led Congress Parliamentary Party meet on Wed

This comes amid the political tensions escalating between the Opposition and the central government over the demand of Union Home Minister Amit Shah's statement over the Parliament security breach