Page 4 - P Chidambaram

LS polls: Cong will get more seats than in 2019 elections, says Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Saturday asserted that his party would get more seats in the ensuing elections than in 2019 and predicted that the INDIA bloc would secure a resounding victory in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. In an interview with PTI, Chidambaram also said that neither Hinduism nor the Hindus were under any threat and it was the BJP's "calculated strategy" to paint the entire Opposition as "anti-Hindu" to project Modi as the "saviour of Hindus". He also described West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee as a "key player" in this election and said that her ability to hold the fort in the state will strengthen the INDIA bloc. "I cannot speak for all the states. I can confidently predict that the INDIA bloc will record a resounding victory in Tamil Nadu. In Kerala, the two fronts (UDF and LDF) will share the 20 seats, leaving nothing to the BJP. In Karnataka and Telangana, the Congress governments are popular and Congress will get many more seats than

'From liberal officer to RSS mouthpiece': P Chidambaram attacks Jaishankar

Congress veteran P Chidambaram on Monday took a dig at External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar over the Katchatheevu island row

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Indian economy in distress but BJP doesn't understand, says Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday claimed that the Indian economy is in "severe distress" and alleged "the so-called doctors of the BJP" do not care. In a post on X, the former finance minister said the BJP claims that the Indian economy is in robust health in 2023-24, but has no explanation why net foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows have dropped by 31 per cent. FDI is a measure of the confidence that foreign investors have in a country, the government and its policies, he pointed out. Such confidence has declined sharply in 2023-24, Chidambaram said. "BJP gives certificates to itself. The good certificate must come from foreign and Indian investors. Indian investors have expressed no confidence in the policies of the BJP government during the last three years," he said. That is why the finance minister had to admonish them and, when that failed, beg them to increase their investments, the Congress leader said. He further said that foreign investors have reali

Congress has concrete plan to tackle unemployment, says Chidambaram

Congress leader P Chidambaram on Wednesday attacked the BJP-led central government over Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran's reported remarks that the government cannot solve all social and economic problems, and asserted that his party has a concrete plan to tackle unemployment which will be revealed in its manifesto. Nageswaran reportedly asserted on Tuesday that it was incorrect to think that government intervention could solve every social and economic challenge, contending that a diagnosis was easier than a solution when it concerned problems like unemployment. In a post on X, former finance minister Chidambaram said, "The most startling confession has been made by the Chief Economic Adviser. He said that 'Government cannot solve the problem of unemployment'. Shocking." "If that is the official stand of the BJP government, we must boldly tell the BJP 'vacate your seat'," he said. The Congress has a concrete plan to tackle the issue of unemployment and it will be ...

Sleight of hand: Chidambaram takes dig at govt over cut in fuel prices

Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday took a swipe at the government after petrol and diesel prices were cut by Rs 2 per litre, saying this was the same kind of "sleight of hand" witnessed in increasing the LPG price and then reducing it before elections. Petrol and diesel prices were cut by Rs 2 per litre each as state-owned oil companies ended a nearly two-year-long hiatus in rate revision. The revised price will be applicable from 6 am on Friday, March 15, the oil ministry said on Thursday evening. Reacting to the development, Chidambaram said, "I had said at a media briefing last week that prices of petrol and diesel will be reduced. It was done today. "Will the government say that the prices will not be increased after the elections (if the BJP comes to power again)?" the former finance minister asked. Price of LPG cylinder was increased by Rs 700 by the BJP government and then reduced by Rs 100 on the eve of elections, he said. "The same kind of sleight of hand has been

Amending Constitution as BJP wants will be end of democracy: Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday claimed that if the Constitution is amended according to the BJP-RSS agenda, it will be the end of parliamentary democracy, federalism, rights of the minorities, and English being one of the two official languages. Chidambaram's remarks came over BJP MP Anantkumar Hegde's statement that his party needs a two-thirds majority to amend the Constitution. In a post on X, Chidambaram said, "The BJP's intention to amend the Constitution was never a secret. Dozens of BJP leaders in private conversations have said that India must be a Hindu Rashtra, that Hindi must be the sole official language of India and the central government must be strong and prevail over the state governments." Sometimes, members like Hegde spill the beans, and quickly deny their words, the former Union minister said, adding that "this is an old ploy". The purpose is achieved and the RSS/BJP cadres are enthused that the BJP continues to nurture the idea of amending the .

Can PM promise LPG prices will not rise if BJP wins? asks Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader and former Union Minister P Chidambaram said on Saturday that he welcomed the Centre's announcement to reduce the LPG cylinder price by Rs 100 but said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should assure that the price will not be increased if his party comes to power again. Also, he sought to know if there was any budgetary provision for over Rs 5.90 lakh crore projects including Rs 17,300 crore projects for Tamil Nadu announced by the prime minister in a fortnight's time from February 22. Speaking to reporters at Satyamurthy Bhavan, the Congress state headquarters here, Chidambaram said his party leader Rahul Gandhi has given five guarantees to the nation ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, and that these will translate into poll assurances in the party's election manifesto. The guarantees include: An assurance on recruitment to eliminate the unemployment problem in the country by filling up nearly 30 lakh vacancies in the Central government, Right to Apprenticeship Law fo

BJP's return will cause existential crisis to regional parties: Chidambaram

Veteran Congress leader and former Union finance minister P Chidambaram on Friday said he cannot predict the future of the INDIA bloc as he is not part of the negotiating committee of the national alliance, but said that the return of Narendra Modi and the BJP to power would cause an existential crisis to state-specific regional parties. He said the Ram temple in Ayodhya could be a factor in the upcoming elections but "whether it will be a decisive one, only time will say". "I cannot say anything about the future of the bloc because I'm not part of the national alliance's negotiating committee and also not part of INDIA bloc meetings. My information is only secondhand or even thirdhand. But I sincerely hope that all the remaining parties understand that the return of Mr Modi and the BJP to the Centre will cause an existential crisis to the state-specific regional parties," Chidambaram told PTI in an exclusive interview here. The veteran Congressman was recently in the city for a ...

Congress slams govt on White Paper on economy, terms it 'white lie paper'

Chidambaram said the appropriate answer to the so-called white paper is the hard-hitting document titled '10 Saal, Anyay Kaal, 2014-2024'

Fiscal deficit was 4.5% in UPA's terminal year, says P Chidambaram

Noting that much has been made of the fiscal correction made by the government, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Sunday said the fiscal deficit was 4.5 per cent in the UPA's terminal year 2013-14 while it is 5.8 per cent under the NDA in 2023-24. The former finance minister asserted that there is no place for a "bullhorn" in economics. In a post on X, Chidambaram said much has been made of the fiscal correction made by the NDA government and the fiscal deficit of 5.8 per cent in 2023-24. "Since memories are short, I may jog the memories of the learned commentators. Under the UPA, the Fiscal Deficit in 2007-08 was 2.5 per cent. In the terminal year of UPA (2013-14) the Fiscal Deficit was 4.5 per cent. In the terminal year of NDA (2023-24) the Fiscal Deficit is 5.8 per cent," he said. There will be ups and downs in any regime, the Congress leader noted. "If the NDA points to the pandemic years (2020-21 & 2021-22), the UPA can point to the years of the International Financial

Karti Chidambaram appears before ED third time in less than one month

Congress MP Karti Chidambaram appeared before the Enforcement Directorate here on Friday, his third deposition in less than a month, for questioning in a money laundering case linked to alleged issuance of visas to some Chinese nationals in 2011, sources said. The 52-year-old legislator from Sivaganga Lok Sabha seat in Tamil Nadu was questioned in this case on December 23 last year and January 2 and the central agency recorded his statement under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Karti went to the ED headquarters in Delhi for the third time on Friday morning. It is understood that his deposition was in connection with the Chinese visa linked PMLA case this time too. The MP had called the summons in this case a "routine affair and things that happen routinely especially when elections come near". "These are all exercises in futility. We will go through them," he had told reporters while deposing earlier this month. The money laundering case, filed un

Opportunity to replace, redraft colonial criminal laws wasted: Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday criticised the three key bills brought by the government that seek to overhaul the criminal justice system, saying the opportunity to replace and redraft the colonial laws has been "wasted". The Lok Sabha on Wednesday passed three key bills -- the Bharatiya Nyaya (Second) Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha (Second) Sanhita and the Bharatiya Sakshya (Second) Bill -- that seek to overhaul the criminal justice system. In a post on X, former home minister Chidambaram said, "Has the government really dumped the British 'colonial' criminal laws? Consider the fact that 90-95% of IPC, 95% of CrPC and 99% of Evidence Act have been cut, copied and pasted in the three Bills: can any one deny or debate that fact?" "In fact, the government has immortalised Macaulay and Fitz Stephen who drafted the original IPC and Evidence Act," he claimed. The opportunity to replace and redraft the laws has been wasted, Chidambaram said. The three bills will

INDIA bloc's immediate task is to win Lok Sabha elections: P Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram has termed the party's debacle in the recently held Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan assembly polls as "unexpected" and "a matter of worry". In an exclusive interview to PTI, Chidambaram on Sunday said the BJP fights every election "as if it is the last battle" and that is what opposition parties "must realise". "BJP's victory in three states Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh is a major boost for the party ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The defeat of the Congress in Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan was unexpected. The results are worrying and I believe the party's leadership will address the weaknesses," the former Union finance minister said. The veteran leader, however, said the party's 40 per cent vote share in the four big states - Rajasthan, MP, Chhattisgarh and Telangana - where assembly elections were held recently "seems to be intact". Chidambaram said he is hopeful that the party's vote share might increase up to 45 per cent ahead

Ahead of electoral bond hearing, Chidambaram slams BJP on fund raising

With the Supreme Court set to commence hearing on a batch of pleas challenging the validity of the electoral bond scheme, Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday alleged that the BJP has made its intentions clear that it will raise its funds from big corporates in an "opaque, secretive and conspiratorial manner." The BJP hit back at Chidambaram for his remark, saying it is piteous that Congress opposes any attempts made to ensure a more transparent and democratic political funding system. Chidambaram's attack on the BJP came after the Centre contended that the electoral bond scheme for political funding of parties contributes to clean money. Attorney General R Venkataramani told the Supreme Court that citizens did not have the right to information regarding the source of funds under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution. In a post on X, Chidambaram said, "On the eve of the hearing of the Electoral Bonds case, the BJP has made its intentions clear. The BJP will raise its funds from b

Draft report on bills to replace criminal laws not adopted, meet on Nov 6

A parliamentary committee scrutinising three bills to replace existing criminal laws did not adopt its draft report as scheduled on Friday, taking into account the submission of some opposition members that they needed more time to study it. The Standing Committee is now expected to meet on November 6. Sources said some opposition members, including P Chidambaram of the Congress, had written to the committee's chairperson Brij Lal, seeking more time to study the draft report and file their views as it entailed three separate bills. Seeking a complete overhaul of colonial-era criminal laws, Home Minister Amit Shah had introduced in Lok Sabha during the Monsoon session three Bills to replace the Indian Penal Code (IPC), The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 with Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, respectively. The House later sent the bills to the committee for scrutiny.

Israel-Hamas war: Chidambaram urges India to find ways to start negotiation

The Gaza Health Ministry had claimed on Tuesday that an Israeli airstrike hit al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City killing at least 500 people, but Israel denied it was behind the attack

Can't deny that Hamas attack was because of Israel-Gaza war: Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday said it cannot be denied that the terrorist attack by Hamas was the cause of the Israel-Gaza war and asserted that the immediate task at hand was to stop the violence and his party had issued a statement and adopted a resolution in that context. In a post on X, Chidambaram said the Israel-Gaza war threatens to escalate and cause more deaths on both sides. "It cannot be denied that the terrorist attack by Hamas was the cause of this war. Hamas has earned the world's condemnation," he said. The former Union minister said that the massive retaliation by Israel against Gaza has intensified the violence. Apart from soldiers, hundreds of civilians including women and children have been killed, he noted. Violence does not solve anything and it certainly will not solve the decades-old enmity between Israel and the de facto rulers of Gaza, he said. "The immediate task at hand is to stop the violence. It is in the context of stopping the viol

Say goodbye to dysfunctional BJP govt: Congress' Chidambaram in Rameswaram

"Say goodbye to the dysfunctional BJP government that cannot control inflation, prices, and increase job opportunities," P Chidambaram said in his speech in Rameswaram on Saturday

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