Page 11 - National Politics

Affiliates of RSS, BJP gear up for LS polls with interim Budget plans

The interlocutors are conscious that the exercise on February 1 will only be an Interim Budget, and a full Budget will be presented sometime in July

Rahul Gandhi urges West Bengal to lead fight against injustice nationwide

Amidst differences in opposition bloc INDIA over seat sharing with TMC in Bengal for Lok sabha polls, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday called on the Bengal and Bengalis to spearhead the battle against prevailing injustices in the nation. Gandhi's statement, delivered during the ongoing 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' in North Bengal, followed closely after Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee's announcement that her party would contest the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections independently in the state. Expressing gratitude for the warm reception in West Bengal, Gandhi remarked, "Bengal holds a special place. Bengal led the ideological fight during the Independence struggle. It is the duty of Bengal and Bengalis to lead from the front to combat injustice, foster unity, and curb hatred in the present circumstances." He emphasised, "If you don't rise to the occasion, people will never forgive you. It is not about any single individual; it is about Bengal showing the way and leadin

Kharge to launch Uttarakhand's Congress poll campaign from Dehradun

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge will arrive here on Sunday to address a public meeting and launch the party's campaign in the state for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. "He is going all over the country. We are grateful that he has chosen Uttarakhand to give his call for a change," senior party leader and former chief minister Harish Rawat said. "Justice is what Rahul Gandhi's Nyay Yatra is all about. The party president's programme is a part of it," he said. "All sections of society are asking for justice, be it women, unemployed youths or farmers." Kharge's meeting will be held in the Bannu School ground in the Race Course area. The party had sought the district administration's permission to hold the public meeting on the Parade ground but it was not allowed as the venue has been renovated as part of the Dehradun Smart City project and no major public programmes are being held to protect it. The Congress alleged that it was the BJP government's conspiracy to sabotage the party's

People may not consider it appropriate: Cong on Nitish's imminent switch

With Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's return to the BJP-led NDA imminent, Congress' Bihar in-charge Mohan Prakash on Saturday said this time the people of the state may not consider this an appropriate step and will give their verdict in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. He also exuded confidence that the Congress MLAs would not switch and stay united, asserting that "no one will be able to take even a twig away from the Congress". Bihar is witnessing a political storm with the JD(U) president appearing to be inching towards his second political volte face in less than three years that will also impact the opposition INDIA bloc and its fight against the BJP in the general elections. Asked about the Bihar political developments, Prakash said, "There's no 'shunyata' (vacuum) in politics. The people of Bihar are more politically aware than in other states and they will decide on this matter in the polls." On Kumar's imminent switch from the 'Mahagathbandhan' camp to that of the BJP, he

Political parties defending those who break rules of House is not good: PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said political parties backing members who break the rules of the House and defending their conduct does not augur well for Parliament and state legislatures. In an online address to the 84th All India Presiding Officers' Conference (AIPOC) here, Modi said young elected representatives should be given more opportunity in legislative committees, so that they can participate more in policy-making. "There was a time when, if any member in the House broke the rules and action was taken against that member, senior members of the House would talk to him so that in future he did not repeat the mistake and break the rules of the House. "But these days some political parties stand in support of such members and defend their mistakes. The situation is not good for Parliament or state legislature," Modi said. He also said that work was underway on 'One Nation, One Legislative Platform' through the E-Vidhan and Digital Sansad initiative. In the last te

BJP meeting underway in Bihar as political uncertainty in state continues

Leaders of the BJP in Bihar gathered here on Saturday to discuss the political situation in the state, amid indications that former ally, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, was planning yet another volte face. We have come here to deliberate on the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. The current situation in Bihar will also be taken up for discussion, state BJP president Samrat Choudhary told reporters ahead of the party meeting at its Veerchand Patel Marg office. The meeting is also being attended by the party's MPs. The BJP has the largest number of 17 MPs in Bihar, where the total number of Lok Sabha members is 40. The JD(U), headed by Kumar, has 16 while another NDA ally LJP, now split up between the uncle-nephew duo of Pashupati Kumar Paras and Chirag Paswan, has six. Earlier, the party's state in-charge Vinod Tawde had slammed the Congress for driving Kumar, the JD(U) president, towards a break up with the INDIA coalition of which he was widely regarded as the architect. Party leaders have s

SC grants protection from arrest to Umar Ansari in Violation of MCC case

The Supreme Court on Thursday granted protection from arrest to Umar Ansari, son of gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari, in a criminal case registered against him during the 2022 assembly elections for alleged violation of the model code of conduct. A bench of Justices Hrishikesh Roy and P K Mishra issued notice to the Uttar Pradesh government on his plea challenging the Allahabad High Court order. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Ansari, submitted that the main accused has been granted regular bail in the matter. The Allahabad High Court on December 19 last year had rejected the anticipatory bail application of Ansari, and said that looking at the facts and circumstances of the case, the offence is made out. An FIR was lodged on March 4, 2022 at Kotwali police station in Mau district against Abbas Ansari (SBSP candidate from Mau Sadar seat), Umar Ansari and 150 unknown people. It was alleged in the FIR that on March 3, 2022 at Pahadpura ground, Abbas Ansari, Umar

BJP dividing country in name of caste, creed, religion: Rahul Gandhi

Soon after the Congress' 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' entered Arunachal Pradesh on Saturday, its leader Rahul Gandhi accused the BJP of "dividing the country in the name of caste, creed and religion". While interacting with the residents of Doimukh, he alleged that the BJP "instigates people to fight among themselves in the name of religion and language". The BJP works for the interest of a few businessmen, not for the interest of the people who are suffering a lot. The Congress, on the other hand, works to unite the people and for their betterment, Gandhi said from the top of a vehicle in which he was travelling as part of the yatra. The Congress leader said the 6,713-km-long 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra', which began from Manipur on January 14 and will culminate in Mumbai on March 20, is aimed at "raising the sufferings of the people of the northeast region". We gave statehood to Arunachal Pradesh and our party is always ready to raise the issues of the poor and to work for the betterment

ED threatening leaders who want to join Shiv Sena (UBT): Sanjay Raut

Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Saturday accused the Enforcement Directorate (ED) of threatening political leaders who want to join the Uddhav faction by sending them notices

SP, RLD announce alliance for Lok Sabha polls; latter gets 7 seats in UP

The Samajwadi Party and the Rashtriya Lok Dal on Friday announced their alliance for the Lok Sabha polls, with the RLD saying that the other party will leave seven seats in western Uttar Pradesh for its nominees. SP president Akhilesh Yadav and RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary announced the tie-up for the elections later this year on social media. "Congratulations to everyone on the alliance of RLD and SP. Let us all unite for victory," Yadav said in a post on X. Reposting this tweet, Chaudhary said, "Always ready to protect national and constitutional values. We expect all workers of our alliance to move forward together for the development and prosperity of our region." He also posted pictures of the two leaders shaking hands. An RLD spokesperson told PTI that the seat-sharing deal was finalised at a meeting between the two leaders. "The RLD will contest seven seats in western Uttar Pradesh," he said. But the spokesperson did not name the specific seats.

LIVE: Andhra CM Reddy disburses Rs 431 crore under Jagananna Thodu scheme

Catch all the latest LIVE updates from across the globe here

Eknath Shinde's was real Shiv Sena when new faction emerged: Maha Speaker

Speaker Narwekar's ongoing verdict comes on the deadline date set by the Supreme Court, for him to decide the fate of the rival Sena factions, which had filed a clutch of cross-petitions against each

Congress turns down Ayodhya invite, terms it BJP-RSS political project

Congress's response to Hindutva politics inconsistent in recent years. In 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Congress social media team highlighted the party's role in construction of the Ram temple

How not to fight Modi

Instead of getting diminished by incumbency, Mr Modi continues to grow stronger. The Opposition, mostly the Congress, has struggled to convince enough voters about the relevance of its issues and why

INDIA bloc faces Trinamool Congress test over chairperson, convenor posts

According to sources in the Congress and other constituents of the Indian National Development Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), the discussions on seat sharing have been smoother than expected

Aug 5, Jan 22, and more: There are new special days on India's calendar

In the last 9 years, the BJP govt has marked some anniversaries and events with more zeal than the previous Congress-led governments

When ethnicity & economy overlap

A new system and people's government was a good slogan for Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma but implementation may face challenges

Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra to include Arunachal Pradesh

Rahul Gandhi's 66-day Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra from Imphal to Mumbai will traverse 110 districts of 15 states, including Arunachal Pradesh

68 Rajya Sabha members including nine Union ministers to retire in 2024

Sixty-eight Rajya Sabha members, including nine Union ministers, are completing their tenures this year, triggering a race of sorts among leaders across political parties to eye a six-year term in the Upper House of Parliament. Of the 68 vacancies, elections have already been called for three seats in Delhi where AAP leaders Sanjay Singh, Narain Dass Gupta and Sushil Kumar Gupta will complete their tenures on January 27. Elections have also been called for the lone Rajya Sabha seat in Sikkim where SDF member Hishey Lachungpa will retire on February 23. As many as 57 leaders, including Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav, Health Minister Mansukh Madaviya and former prime minister Manmohan Singh, will complete their tenures in April. Uttar Pradesh will have the highest number of vacancies of 10 seats, followed by Maharashtra and Bihar (six each), Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal (five each), Karnataka and Gujarat

Congress renames Rahul Gandhi-led yatra as Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra

The Congress on Thursday renamed the Rahul Gandhi-led Manipur-Mumbai yatra starting on January 14 as 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' which will travel through 15 states, including Arunachal Pradesh. This was announced by Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh after a meeting of party general secretaries, state in-charges, state unit chiefs and Congress Legislature Party leaders chaired by party chief Mallikarjun Kharge at the Congress headquarters here. Earlier it was named Bharat Nyay Yatra. Ramesh said the Congress invites all INDIA bloc leaders to participate in this yatra and pointed out that invitations were being sent out for it. He said the yatra of over 6,713 km will be covered in buses and on foot. It will cover 110 districts, about 100 Lok Sabha seats and 337 assembly segments. Ramesh claimed the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra would prove to be as transformative for politics as the Bharat Jodo Yatra from Kanyakumari to Kashmir did.