Page 20 - National Politics

PM Modi has purified politics by freeing it from disease of dynasty: Naqvi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has purified Indian politics by making it free from the "disease of dynasty", senior BJP leader and former Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said on Tuesday. In a swipe at the Congress, he also said Modi has brought the politics out of a "family cradle" by his commitment to progress and prosperity of poor. After offering prayers at Dargah Najaf-e-Hind in Uttar Pradesh's Najibabad, Naqvi said Modi is destroying the "termite of corruption, communalism and casteism" to make "Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat". Modi's nationalistic willpower has ensured the country's safety, dignity and self-reliance, he said, adding that the prime minister has always played the role of a "troubleshooter" by taking the country out of several calamities. Under the leadership of Modi, "democratic decency" has defeated "dynastic arrogance" He also claimed that the Congress has become a "non-performing asset".

Tharoor may contest for Cong prez poll, to take final call soon: Report

Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor is exploring the possibility of running for the post of Congress president though he is yet to take a final call on it, sources said. They said he has not made up his mind but could take a call on it soon. While Tharoor declined to comment on whether he would throw his hat into the ring, he has written an article for the Malayalam daily Mathrubhumi in which he called for a "free and fair" election. In the article, he has said ideally the party should have announced elections also for the dozen seats on the CWC itself which are supposed to be elected. "Allowing members of the party drawn from the AICC and PCC delegates to determine who will lead the party from these key positions, would have helped legitimize the incoming set of leaders and give them a credible mandate to lead the party," said Tharoor, who was among the group of 23 leaders who wrote to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi in 2020 seeking organisational reforms. "Still, electing a fresh

Mamata says ousting BJP from power in 2024 will be her 'last fight'

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday asserted that ousting the BJP from power at the Centre in 2024 will be her "last fight". The 67-year-old feisty TMC boss, however, did not clarify her remark. "The BJP has to be defeated in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The fight for Delhi to oust the saffron party from power at the Centre will be my last. I promise to oust the BJP from power," she said while addressing a rally here. Without giving further clarification, she said, "The BJP has to be defeated at any cost." "Saving West Bengal is our first fight. I promise we will remove the BJP from power at the Centre in 2024. If you try to intimidate us, we will respond," Banerjee said. Banerjee, while referring to former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi losing elections in 1989 despite winning more than 400 seats in 1984, said, "Everybody has to taste defeat." "Indira Gandhi was a strong political leader, but she had also tasted defeat. The BJP has around 300 MPs, but Bihar is gone, a

'I dare BJP to arrest me; allegations of rise in assets baseless': Mamata

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday dared the BJP to have her arrested, even as she dubbed the allegations of a rise in assets of her and her relatives exponentially in the last few years as "baseless". Claiming that central agencies and "ill-gotten money of the BJP" are being used to dislodge elected state governments run by parties opposed to the saffron camp, the Trinamool Congress supremo vowed to defeat the BJP in the next Lok Sabha polls. She slammed the opposition for allegedly unleashing a malicious campaign against her and her party leaders following the arrest of two senior leaders by the ED and CBI in different cases, Banerjee said had she not been in politics, she would have asked her people to tear off the tongues of those liars. Addressing a rally of her party's student wing, Banerjee said a malicious campaign has been unleashed against senior TMC leaders such as Abhishek Banerjee, Firhad Hakim and herself. "Someone told me they have filed a case ...

People should take pledge to make 'BJP- mukt Bharat' in 2024, says KCR

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao on Monday tore into the NDA government at the Centre saying people should take a pledge to make a "BJP-mukt Bharat" in 2024 even as he said a government of farmers will be coming at the national level in future. Speaking at a public meeting at Peddapalli, 165 km from here, Rao, popularly known as KCR, describing Prime Minister Narendra Modi as "Golmal PM", said whatever he and the Centre say are "blatant lies". "We all should take a pledge and be prepared to create BJP-mukt Bharat in 2024. We should march forward with that slogan. Then only we can save this country, otherwise there is no scope to save this nation," he said. Attacking the Telangana BJP president Bandi Sanjay, who recently landed in a controversy after a video purportedly showing him fetching the footwear of Union Home Minister Amit Shah when the latter came out of a temple here, Rao said there are some "sanyasis" who are very eager to carry footwear by pledging Telangana'

Asia Cup 2022: Opposition leaders slam Jay Shah over 'tricolour video'

Video footage of BCCI secretary Jay Shah appearing to turn down an offer to wave the national flag after India beat Pakistan in a thrilling cricket match at the Asia Cup in Dubai on Sunday has sparked a controversy, with Opposition leaders taking a dig at him. However, Shiv Sena's Priyanka Chaturvedi defended Shah in a tweet, saying "staying neutral as ACC (Asian Cricket Council) president doesn't at any point mean being disrespectful to any nation's flag, especially your own. So trolls, sit down". Chaturvedi's tweet came minutes after she herself attacked Shah on Twitter, saying the tricolour in hand is a symbol of the resolve and loyalty of Indians to the nation and to "dismiss it in this way is an insult to the country's 133 crore population". Several Congress leaders slammed Jay Shah, who is Union Home Minister Amit Shah's son. Tagging the video footage of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) appearing to turn down an offer to wave the flag, Congress general secreta

Countdown to elect new Cong chief begins, party says will stick to schedule

As the countdown began for the election of Congress president, the party's election authority on Sunday said it would stick to the schedule of electing a new chief by September 20. Chairman of the party's Central Election Authority Madhusudan Mistry said it was up to the Congress Working Committee (CWC) to approve the final date for the election, which could be any day between August 21 to September 20. However, sections in the party did not rule out delay in the internal poll process, considering the reluctance of Rahul Gandhi in contesting for the top post, lack of a 'Plan B' and the current focus of the Congress on organising 'Bharat Jodo yatra' next month. The CWC had decided that elections for block committees and one member each of the Pradesh Congress Committee will be held from April 16 to May 31; district committee chiefs and executive will be elected between June 1 and July 20, PCC chiefs and AICC members between July 21 and August 20 and AICC president between August 21 a

Developments in Bihar positive sign for national politics: Akhilesh Yadav

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said on Thursday that the political shift in Bihar is a "positive sign" and hoped a strong alternative to the BJP is formed in the 2024 Parliamentary polls. He also claimed that the BJP's allies in Uttar Pradesh are not happy with it and will also break free from the saffron party in the future. JD(U)'s Nitish Kumar recently dumped the BJP and joined hands with Lalu Prasad's Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), the Congress and other parties to form a new government in Bihar. In an interview to PTI at the party headquarter here, Yadav said his party is focusing on strengthening and restructuring its organisation and will be holding a national convention this year. The SP chief also accused the Election Commission of "dishonesty" and blamed it for his party's defeat in the assembly polls as well in the bypolls to Azamgarh and Ramgarh seats. When asked about the developments in Bihar, the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister said, "It (Bihar development)

Nadda to meet Bihar party leaders for strategy in state after BJP's ouster

Days after its old ally JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar severed alliance and formed a government with RJD, BJP chief JP Nadda is scheduled to meet party's leaders from Bihar unit

Attacking freebies: BJP's strategy against regional parties

Successful regional parties are mostly run by charismatic leaders who rely significantly on populist welfare schemes and caste combinations

PM using traumatic partition events as fodder for political battles: Cong

Congress alleged that the real intent of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to mark August 14 as Partition Horrors Remembrance Day is to use the traumatic events as fodder for his current political battles

Twist to BJP vs Tamil Minister row, man at centre of controversy quits

The BJP on Sunday expelled its Madurai-based functionary P Saravanan, who had an argument with Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan

UP parties welcome Bihar development, no sign of such realignment in sight

Opposition parties in UP have welcomed the coming together of the warring JD(U) and RJD in Bihar, but gave no indication of a similar realignment of forces against the BJP in the politically crucial

Congress insiders non-committal on Nitish becoming Opposition's PM face

Originally propped up by the BJP in the 1990s over the mandalisation of politics, Nitish has come a long way and is now posing a challenge to the Congress itself on the issue of leadership

Subhas Sarkar accuses WB govt of 'not allowing' him to hoist national flag

MoS Subhas Sarkar alleged that he was "not allowed" by the Bengal govt to hoist the national flag at a correctional home in Paschim Medinipur district as part of the Centre's 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav'

BJP bowled bouncer to Jharkhand, lost govt in Bihar: Bhupesh Baghel

In a veiled attack on the BJP, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Wednesday claimed that attempts to topple the Jharkhand government boomeranged and resulted in loss of government in Bihar

Wait and watch: Pashupati Paras on Nitish becoming Bihar's CM again

As Nitish Kumar took oath as Bihar's Chief Minister for the eighth time after severing ties with the BJP, Paras said that in politics, new equations are made every day

K'taka minister refutes claims of CM Bommai's replacement, challenges Cong

Accusing the Congress of unnecessarily raking up the issue of Karnataka Chief Minister replacement to cover up the rift within, senior BJP leader challenged the party to name its CM candidate for 2023

Welfare schemes are not freebies, says Telangana CM's daughter Kavitha

Telangana MLC Kalvakuntla Kavitha said welfare schemes for poor people are not freebies but "waiving loans of duping agencies are actual freebies"

Vice-President Election 2022: Voting, result date and other details

The vice-president of India is elected by an electoral college consisting of the members of the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha. Here is a list of Indian VPs so far