Page 102 - Politics
Over 700 terrorists killed in J-K in last three years: Govt
More than 700 terrorists have been killed in Jammu and Kashmir over the last three years, the Home Ministry said on Tuesday. A total of 113 terrorists were killed between January and June 16 this year, 257 were killed in 2018, 213 in 2017 and 150 in 2016, taking the total number of those killed during the period to 733, it said. As many as 112 civilians have also lost their lives during this period in the state. Of them, 15 had died in 2016, 40 in 2017, 39 in 2018 and 18 between January and June 16, this year. "The government has adopted a policy of zero tolerance towards terrorism. Security forces are taking effective and continuous action in countering terrorism. This has resulted in corresponding change in the number of such incidents, including casualties," Minister of State for Home Affairs G Kishan Reddy said in a written reply to Lok Sabha. "Security forces keep a close watch on persons who attempt to provide support to terrorists and initiate action against them," he added.
EAM Jaishankar files his nomination at Gujarat Assembly for Rajya Sabha By-elections
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday filed his nomination for the bye election to Rajya Sabha from Gujarat.Along with him, the other BJP candidate Jugalji Mathurji Thakor also filed his nomination papers before the Assembly Secretary, who is the Returning Officer for the elections to the two seats vacated by Amit Shah and Smrti Irani after their recent election to Lok Sabha.The two candidates were accompanied by Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and state BJP President Jitu Vaghani among others.On Monday, Jaishankar, a former Foreign Secretary, had formally joined the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) in the presence of the party's Working President, J P Nadda. Soon after, the BJP announced his candidature along with Thakor for the by-elections.On May 30, Jaishankar was sworn in as External Affairs Minister and he has to get elected to one of the Houses of Parliament within six months to continue as a minister.
UK F-35 fighters fly missions from Cyprus over Syria, Iraq
Britain's defense secretary says the country's most advanced military aircraft, the Lightning F-35B, has flown its first missions over Syria and Iraq as part of the ongoing operations against the Islamic State group. A statement released Tuesday quoted Defense Secretary Penny Mordaunt as saying that the jets' first operational mission from a British air base in Cyprus where they have been undergoing training since May 21 is "a significant step into the future for the U.K." British military officials had said there were no plans for the aircraft to conduct combat missions during their stay at RAF Akrotiri. But it was decided that they were ready to make their operational debut because of their "exceptional performance." Officials said the aircraft didn't fire any weapons when flying alongside Typhoon jets.
Will reply to HC on appt of ex-LoP, 2 others as ministers: CM
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday said a reply would be submitted to the Bombay High Court which has sought a response from Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, and two other ministers in the state government on a plea challenging their appointment. The high court on Monday sought the response of Vikhe Pateil, the former leader of opposition in the state Assembly, NCP-turned Shiv Sena leader Jaydutt Kshirsagar, and RPI(A) leader Avinash Mahatekar who were recently appointed as ministers in the Fadnavis-led government. "Let the respondents (ministers) also get a chance to object or respond to the petition," the court said while posting the matter for further hearing after four weeks. Speaking on the issue in the state Assembly, Fadnavis said, "A response would be given to the high court after we receive thenotice. This is notice before admission. The High court did not find any urgency in the matter and hence, it has given four weeks to reply. Fadnavis was ...
Dayanidhi Maran attacks AIADMK government for its complacency in tackling water crisis
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader Dayanidhi Maran attacked the AIADMK goverment in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday accusing it of "complacency" in dealing with the water crisis in Chennai and other places in Tamil Nadu."There was a severe water crisis in 2004 when the erstwhile Chief Minister Karunanidhi decided to set up a desalination unit and UPA government sanctioned Rs 1,000 crores for a desalination plant to be implemented in Chennai. But AIADMK is complacent. Yesterday DMK President M K Stalin staged a protest for the people," he said."Pre-monsoon rain is the lowest in the last 65 years. Water supply in the four reservoirs supplying water in Chennai has dropped below one per cent. We are going through a severe water crisis," he added.The DMK on Monday held a protest against the Tamil Nadu government over the acute water crisis in Chennai with its workers carrying empty plastic pots in their hands.Stalin, who led the protest, said, "The pot is here but where is the water. The ...
Iran says US sanctions rupture 'path to diplomacy'
Iran said Tuesday US sanctions on its leaders represent the "permanent closure" of diplomacy with Washington, after President Donald Trump tightened the screws on a nation he has threatened with "obliteration". "Imposing fruitless sanctions against Iran's supreme leader and the commander of Iran's diplomacy is the permanent closure of the path to diplomacy with Trump's desperate government," ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said in a tweet. Washington imposed new sanctions against supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Monday ahead of blacklisting Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif later this week, its latest salvo in a tense standoff that has raised fears of a regional conflict. "Trump's government is destroying all established international mechanisms for keeping global peace and security," he added. Tehran and Washington broke off diplomatic relations in 1980 over the hostage crisis at the US embassy in Tehran following Iran's Islamic revolution. US President Donald Trump also ...
Dutch probe into huge outage of emergency phone line
The Netherlands on Tuesday investigated the source of a massive telephone network breakdown that disabled the country's emergency numbers. The disruption late Monday started with the KPN national network and then spread to linked providers across the country, lasting for four hours before it was fixed. Police, firefighters and ambulance workers took to the streets so they could be contacted if necessary and the government issued alternatives to the 112 emergency hotline on social media. Justice and Security Minister Ferd Grapperhaus summoned KPN's management on Tuesday to explain the breakdown and ensure that it will "not happen again." Grapperhaus tweeted that they must "carefully figure out how this malfunction could have arisen". The Dutch national counterterrorism coordinator will also be involved in the meeting, local media said. Hacking was however not believed to be the cause of the breakdown, senior KPN official Joost Farwerck told the Nieuwsuur programme on Monday ...
Tamil Nadu govt "most corrupt", AIADMK a BJP slave: DMK
The DMK on Tuesday launched a blistering attack in the Lok Sabha on the Tamil Nadu government, calling it the "most corrupt" and the state's ruling party AIADMK a "slave" of the BJP. Speaking during a debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address, DMK's Dayanidhi Maran asked the BJP to "introspect" as to why people of Tamil Nadu rejected it during the recent Lok Sabha polls and said the saffron party's strength lies in "opposition's weakness". His sharp condemnation of the AIADMK, which has only one member in the House, drew protests from BJP members, who quoted rules to claim that Maran cannot use "offensive" words against a state government or raise such an issue while speaking on the President's address. When Maran retorted saying that it is the duty of master to take care of slaves, a jibe at the BJP's alliance with the AIADMK, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Arjun Ram Meghwal objected to his remarks. The DMK member accused the BJP of misusing
Jaishankar files nomination papers for Rajya Sabha poll
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar Tuesday filed his nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha poll from Gujarat, scheduled on July 5. Jaishankar reached Ahmedabad Monday evening, hours after he officially joined the BJP in the presence of BJPs working president J P Nadda in Delhi. Jaishankar, 64, had served as the Foreign Secretary in the previous Modi-led government. He was inducted into the Union cabinet in Modi's second term. Gujarat BJP OBC cell president Jugalji Thakor also filed his papers for the second Rajya Sabha seat from Gujarat. The two seats were vacated after BJP leaders Amit Shah and Smriti Irani were elected to the Lok Sabha last month. As per norms, a minister who is not a member of Parliament has to be elected to either House within six months of his or her swearing in. Thakor is from Mehsana district and belongs to the dominant Thakor community in the state. Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and state BJP chief Jitu Vaghani were present as Jaishankar and ...
Bolton says Iran silence on US talks offer 'deafening'
US National Security Advisor John Bolton on Tuesday described as "deafening" Iran's apparent silence on an offer to negotiate with Washington. "The president has held the door open to real negotiations," Bolton said in a statement. "In response, Iran's silence has been deafening," he added during a visit to Jerusalem. The United States imposed sanctions Monday on Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and others, which the Iranian foreign ministry said meant a "permanent closure of the path to diplomacy" with the US administration.
Iran's Rouhani says US 'lying' about talks offer
Iran's President Hassan Rouhani said Tuesday that new US sanctions against senior Iranian officials including top diplomat Mohammad Javad Zarif showed Washington is "lying" about offering to negotiate. "At the same time as you call for negotiations you seek to sanction the foreign minister? It's obvious that you're lying," Rouhani said in a meeting with ministers broadcast live on TV. His comments came after US National Security Advisor John Bolton said Washington had "held the door open to real negotiations" but that "in response, Iran's silence has been deafening.
SC refuses to entertain Cong's plea against separate bypolls for 2 Gujarat RS seats
The Supreme Court Tuesday refused to entertain a plea by the Gujarat Congress challenging the Election Commission's decision to hold separate bypolls to two Rajya Sabha seats in the state. A vacation bench comprising Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice B R Gavai, however, granted liberty to the Gujarat Congress to file 'election petition' after conclusion of polls to the two Rajya Sabha seats vacated by Union Ministers Amit Shah and Smriti Irani. An election petition is a procedure to call into question the election results of parliamentary, Assembly or local elections. The two Rajya Sabha seats fell vacant after Shah and Irani got elected the Lok Sabha from Gujarat's Gandhinagar and Uttar Pradesh's Amethi, respectively. The plea was filed by Congress MLA and Leader of Opposition in Gujarat Assembly Pareshbhai Dhanani. The Election Commission had clarified that the vacancies for bypolls to all Houses, including the Rajya Sabha, are considered "separate vacancies" and separate ...
On RTI, EC refuses to share dissent notes on Modi's election speeches
The Election Commission (EC) has refused to disclose dissent notes of its member Ashok Lavasa in connection with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speeches during campaigning for Lok Sabha elections, in response to an RTI seeking the same.The EC stated that disclosing the notes would endanger the life or physical safety of the individual.Section 8(1) (g) of the RTI Act, 2005 pertains to information, the disclosure of which would endanger the life or physical safety of any person or identify the source of information or assistance given in confidence for law enforcement or security purposes.The EC's refusal to disclose Lavasa's dissent notes comes just weeks after the poll body rejected by a 2-1 majority Lavasa's demand that dissenting views on model code violations during elections should be made part of orders and decided it will be only included in internal files."In the meeting of the full Commission held today, regarding the issue of MCC, it was inter alia decided that proceedings of
FATF chief hints at blacklisting of Pak for terror financing
Outgoing Financial Action Task Force (FATF) president, Marshall Billingslea, has hinted about the possibility to blacklisting Pakistan after the international financial watchdog's meeting in Paris."Pakistan had 'significant' work to do. With regard to an action plan agreed in June 2018, they are 'lacking in almost every respect'," Billingslea said at a press briefing.He added, "Pakistan was cautioned in February at the plenary that they had missed almost all of their January milestones. They were urged to not fail to meet the milestones in May. Unfortunately, Pakistan has yet again missed its May milestones."FATF has come down heavily on Pakistan for its "lack" of compliance with the 26-point action plan prepared for Islamabad to demonstrate its sincerity in fighting terrorism.Billingslea said that if Pakistan fails to implement the action plan, FATF will consider the next course of action. The FATF president said that Pakistan is far behind and there is much that the country must do .
Venezuela's former spy chief says Maduro could yet fall
Venezuela's former intelligence chief, Cristopher Figuera, who fled the country after backing a failed uprising against President Nicolas Maduro in April, has told the Washington Post the regime could still fall. "I'm proud of what I did," he said in an interview published online late Monday. "For now, the regime has gotten ahead of us. But that can quickly change." The highest-profile defector against the Maduro regime, Figuera was sacked after supporting the April 30 uprising by opposition leader Juan Guaido and spent two months in hiding in Colombia before his arrival in the United States on Monday, according to the Post. Venezuela is caught in an economic crisis and a political standoff between Maduro and Guaido, who declared himself interim president earlier this year, securing recognition from the US and more than 50 other countries. Maduro, re-elected last year in elections widely seen as rigged, has so far retained the support of the powerful military. The former head of ...
Telangana CM to chair TRS State Executive Committee meeting on June 27
The State Executive Committee meeting of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) is scheduled to be held at the Telangana Bhavan in Hyderabad on June 27 at 2The meeting will be chaired by Telangana Chief Minister and TRS President K Chandrashekar Rao.All the Lok Sabha members, Rajya Sabha members, members of the TRS Legislature party (MLAs/MLCs), Corporation Chairpersons, elected ZP Chairpersons are invited for the meeting.During the meeting, issues related to the party membership driver and others will be discussed in detail.Besides, TRS Party membership enrollment books will be given to the MLAs, Legislative Assembly segment in charges on the Assembly Constituency wise.All the ministers, MPs, MLAs, MLCs along with the chief minister will take the party membership.
IUML gives adjournment motion notice in Lok Sabha over Jharkhand lynching
Lawmakers of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) have given an adjournment motion notice in the Lok Sabha over the recent mob lynching incident which took place in Jharkhand.IUML Members of Parliament Kunhalikutty and Mohd Bashir have moved the motion in the lower House.A 22-year-old man succumbed to his injuries on Sunday after being beaten up by a mob on suspicion of theft in Saraikela Kharsawanand district of Jharkhand.The deceased, identified as Tabrez, was arrested by the police before being admitted to a hospital.Tabrez's family has, however, alleged that the attack was communal and that he was made to chant 'Jai Shri Ram' and 'Jai Hanuman'.On Monday, Several leaders including former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi and Congress leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad and PL Punia criticised the Central government over the incident.Jharkhand Minister C P Singh, however, on Monday said that a trend of linking such incidents to the BJP and ...
Political leaders from across party lines pay tribute to BJP's Rajasthan chief Madan Lal Saini
Political leaders from across party lines paid floral tribute to BJP state president Madan Lal Saini at the party's state headquarters here on Tuesday. Saini (75) died on Monday while undergoing treatment at AIIMS in Delhi. He was diagnosed with infection in lungs and was admitted at a private hospital in Jaipur. On Saturday, he was shifted to Delhi owing to his deteriorating health and was being treated under the Hematology Department at AIIMS. Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, Congress state president and deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot, Transport Minister Pratap Singh Khachariawas and other Congress leaders reached the BJP's state headquarters and paid tribute to Saini. A large number of BJP leaders, including former chief minister Vasundhara Raje, deputy Leader of Opposition Rajendra Rathore, former state president of the party Ashok Parnami were among those who were also present in the party office. Accompanied by state Health Minister Raghu Sharma, Revenue Minister Harish ...
Convey predictable, consistent strategy to strengthen US-India ties: lawmaker to Pompeo
On the eve of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to New Delhi, a top US lawmaker has asked him to convey to the Indian government a "predictable, coherent and consistent" strategy that will help the bilateral relationship reach its full potential, insisting that the strength of ties cannot be boiled down to trade deficits and tariffs. Congressman Eliot L Engel, Chairman of House Committee on Foreign Affairs, in a letter to Pompeo on Monday said the Trump administration's policies have not only failed to advance the US objectives, but have also introduced significant friction in its partnership with New Delhi. "I am deeply concerned by the inconsistencies between the administration's rhetoric and actions toward India, which are further exacerbated by the lack of a confirmed assistant secretary more than two years into this administration's term," Engel said in his letter. He said tensions have increased over each side's tariff policies, starting with the US tariffs on steel and ...
PM Modi, Amit Shah remember those who opposed Emergency
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday remembered "greats who fiercely and fearlessly resisted the Emergency", imposed by the then prime minister Indira Gandhi in the 1970s."India salutes all those greats who fiercely and fearlessly resisted the Emergency. India's democratic ethos successfully prevailed over an authoritarian mindset," the Prime Minister tweeted with a short video.The one-minute-twenty-seven-second video features Modi's 2015 address in the Rajya Sabha about the Emergency period. "Cruelties were inflicted during the period, but the nation did not bow down," he said while adding that the whole country was turned into a jail.The video also had clippings of newspapers articles from that time. It also shows protesters being beaten up by the police and women protestors who took to the streets.Union Home Minister and BJP chief Amit Shah also paid homage to those who "suffered torture in their fight to restore democracy" during the period. In the photo posted alongside his ...