Page 1107 - Politics
AAP distributes letters from Kejriwal on statehood issue to Delhi Metro commuters
The Aam Aadmi Party Sunday launched a campaign in the national capital under which party members distributed letters from Chief Minster Arvind Kejriwal to Delhi Metro commuters on the issue of full statehood. The campaign was launched at the Rajiv Chowk station of the Delhi Metro and would soon cover all other metro stations in the city, AAP Delhi convener Gopal Rai said. AAP volunteers will be distributing these letters outside the metro stations said commuters can read them to understand the importance of full statehood for Delhi, the senior leader said. Rai claimed that the people of Delhi pay Rs 1.5 lakh crore as Income Tax and receive only Rs 325 crore from the Centre. "Once Delhi becomes a full state, it would get Rs 60,000 crore, which can be used in so many development projects," he said. Meanwhile, the Delhi unit of the Congress Saturday lodged a complaint with the chief electoral officer against chief minister and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, accusing him of misusing his ...
Where terrorists are bred will be new battlefront: Modi
Attacking Pakistan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that he has decided that henceforth the "battlefront" against terrorism would be in the land "where terrorists are bred".
Congress' 'Parivartan Yatra' in Haryana got tremendous public response: Ghulam Nabi Azad
Congress general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad Sunday exuded confidence of his party winning all 10 Lok Sabha seats from Haryana, saying there was tremendous public response to its 'Parivartan Yatra'. He claimed that people were "fed up" with the BJP governments at the Centre and in Haryana and were waiting to teach them a lesson in the polls. Speaking here on the concluding day of the party's six-day long 'Parivartan Yatra', which had started from Gurgaon and criss-crossed the state covering all 10 LS constituencies and 60-70 out of 90 assembly segments, Azad said the party stands united and every party worker and supporter is solidly behind it. The general secretary in-charge of Haryana also said he was sure that the Congress will stage a comeback in the state assembly as well, which are due later this year. He called on party workers to take the message of unity to every voter in the state. During the 'Parivartan Yatra', all the senior leaders from the state, including former chief ...
Sudan national held with 29-kg sandalwood
A Sudanese national was apprehended at the Delhi airport on Sunday for allegedly attempting to smuggle 29 kg of white sandalwood pieces, officials said. The accused, A A Rahman Ali Elzain, was intercepted by the Central Industrial Security Force when he arrived at the Indira Gandhi International Airport around 7.30 am. Twenty-nine kg of white sandalwood, which is banned for export, was seized from Elzain and he was handed over to the customs authorities, the officials said. The passenger was supposed to take a flight to Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, the officials added.
CM, BJP leaders take part in PM's 'Chowkidar' campaign
BJP leaders and workers including Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis participated in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Main Bhi Chowkidar' event from seven locations in the city Sunday. The event was beamed across the country at 500 places, where participants could listen to Modi and interact with him through video-conference. Fadnavis participated from the Uttar Bhartiya Sangh Sabhagraha in suburban Bandra. Member of the state Legislative Council and BJP leader R N Singh, who heads the Uttar Bhartiya Sangh and also runs a security agency providing private security guards, was also present there along with the chief minister. City BJP chief Ashish Shelar, Mumbai North Central MP Poonam Mahajan and Vile Parle MLA Parag Alavani were also among those present with the chief minister. Other locations where party workers participated in the event were Malad, Andheri, Dadar, Chembur, Marine Lines and Ghatkopar. Meanwhile, commenting on the Main Bhi Chowkidar campaign, ..
Move to rename cities assault on Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb: Mehbooba
Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti Sunday termed the move to rename cities as an election gimmick, saying it was an "assault" on the Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb (cross-culture) that the country is rooted in. The former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister was reacting to Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik's letter to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to rename Sultanpur as Khush Bhawanpur. "The move to rename cities is an election gimmick & an assault on the Ganga Jamuna tehzeeb culture that our country is rooted in. Also, why are governors getting involved in such matters? Far from their constitutionally defined role of being impartial & apolitical," Mufti tweeted. Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb is an Urdu term used for the culture of the central plains of Northern India, especially the doab region of the Ganga and Yamuna rivers, which is regarded as a fusion of Hindu and Muslim elements.
Congress fields Mir from J&K, Muraleedharan in Kerala
The Congress on Sunday announced its Jammu and Kashmir unit chief Ghulam Ahmed Mir as its candidate from the state's Anantnag constituency and former Kerala Chief Minister K. Karunakaran's son K. Muraleedharan from Vadakara in the southern state.
Will request BJP's sister organisations to not support Modi, Shah: Mamata
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Sunday urged BJP's sister organisations to not support Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his party chief Amit Shah during the national polls. Addressing an election rally here organised by Chandrababu Naidu's TDP, Banerjee said the BJP won't get a single seat in Bengal and the party won't cross the 125-mark in the 543-member Lok Sabha. "BJP has sister organisations, I would like to request them that if you love the country, please don't support Narendra Modi and Amit Shah," the West Bengal chief minister said. "This is a special election. There are not many people to fight for the country, please vote for Chandrababu Naidu. Modi and Shah bully everyone," she added. Taking on the BJP, the Trinamool Congress chief said the BJP will not get a single seat in Bengal. "In 2014, Modi got 21 out of 119 seats in Andhra, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal that was your best time," Banerjee said, adding that the BJP will not get more than 125 .
Uzbekistan ready to host peace talks between Taliban, Afghan government
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Sunday met Uzbekistan's Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov at the Presidential Palace here and offered to host the talk between Taliban and Afghan government.The two leaders also discussed various issues of bilateral interest including the peace process, infrastructure development, and economic ties between the two nations.During the talks, Kamilov, who is leading a delegation, expressed Uzbekistan's support to Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process, a move backed by the Afghan government in an effort to end the nearly two-decade-long civil war in the south Asian country."Uzbekistan is ready to host the talks if Taliban is ready to directly talk with the Afghan government," Kamilov was quoted by TOLOnews as saying.Underlining that ties between the two countries are cordial, Kamilov told Ghani that the implementation of joint infrastructural projects between Kabul and Tashkent will bolster bilateral cooperation.Recalling his visit to Samarkand in ...
Cong-JDS must work together to defeat BJP, former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah
Former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday urged the workers Congress and JDS to work together to defeat the BJP in the Lok Sabha polls."Today, the country is important and communal harmony is important. We must forget differences and work together to defeat the BJP," the former Chief Minister said at a meeting of Congress-JDS workers meet."In May this year, we formed the coalition government, which is being led by Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy. Through the coordination committee, we are giving an administration, which is pro-people, pro-women, pro-Dalits and pro-minorities," he said.The former Chief Minister claimed that this government has continued the schemes launched by his government."During my five-year tenure, the programmes that were launched have been continued even now. We had decided that if we have to remove the BJP, then we need to defeat it in all 28 seats," he said.Karnataka will go to polls during the second and third phases of Lok Sabha polling on April ..
AAP attacks Rahul for contesting LS polls from Kerala too
Senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Delhi Cabinet Minister Gopal Rai on Sunday hit out at Congress party president Rahul Gandhi for giving his consent to contest from Wayanad Lok Sabha seat in Kerala apart from Amethi in UP.Rai said: "Congress decision that Rahul Gandhi will contest from Wayanad in Kerala is surprising. All non-BJP parties want to get rid of Hitler kind dictatorial regime of Narendra Modi government."He said, "Instead of concentrating on removing a dictatorial and anti-federal regime, the Congress seems to be dividing votes where anti-BJP forces are strong."He said there appears to be a contradiction in the publicly stated strategy of the Congress of getting rid of Modi government and their intentions.Rai said: "Don't know why Rahul Gandhi wants to weaken the opposition. Is he afraid of Modi government? The constituency where BJP is a big challenge for Congress, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi are not fighting from there.""Even in Delhi, Congress has been in a ...
Taiwan blasts China for 'reckless' fighter jet incursion
Taipei hit out at China on Sunday for what it said was a "reckless and provocative" incursion by two fighter jets across a largely respected line dividing the two sides in the Taiwan Strait. The Defence Ministry said Taiwan scrambled its own aircraft on Sunday morning and broadcast warnings after two J-11 fighter jets crossed over the "median line" within the waters that separate the island from the mainland. "At 11 am, March 31, 2 PLAAF J-11 jets violated the long-held tacit agreement by crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Twitter. "It was an intentional, reckless and provocative action. We've informed regional partners and condemn China for such behaviour," the ministry added. China has ramped up the number of fighter and warship crossings near Taiwan or through the straits in recent years, rattling nerves on the island at a time when relations are at a low point. But it is highly unusual for them to cross the so-called median ...
Mahagathbandhan a non-starter, regional parties wary of Cong: S M Krishna
The 'mahagathbandhan' (grand alliance) has become a non-starter, with most regional parties refusing to join hands with the Congress, says BJP leader S M Krishna. The regional parties fear that they would not achieve their goals if they ally with the Congress, he said. A former Congress veteran who joined the BJP earlier this month, Krishna exuded confidence that the saffron party alone will win enough seats to form the government and those of its allies will be a bonus. "Mahagathbandhan was Mamata Banerjee's idea. Now what is the relationship between Mamata and Rahul Gandhi? The TMC and the Congress refuse to see eye to eye," Krishna told PTI in an exclusive interview. "In Uttar Pradesh, the SP and the BSP refused to take the Congress into the reckoning by giving it two seats. So, where is the 'gathbandhan'? When there is no 'gathbandhan', where is the question of 'mahagathbandhan'? It is a mockery," he said. "Most of the regional parties are wary of the Congress as they suspect they
Adityanath attacks Priyanka as she avoids visiting disputed Ayodhya site
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Sunday hit out at Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra after she avoided visiting the makeshift Ram Lalla shrine during her Ayodhya trip recently, terming it an "insult" for Hindus and asking the party to clarify its stand. Addressing an election rally here in support of BJP candidate and Union minister Mahesh Sharma, Adityanath said the country and the world see Ayodhya as Ram Janmbhoomi and there is no dispute on it after the 2010 Allahabad High Court judgement on it. "When she was asked as to why she did not visit the Ram Janmnbhoomi, she said it was a disputed site hence she did not go there," he claimed. "Vadra's remark on the Ayodhya site is an insult to any Hindu living in any part of the world," the monk-turned-politician declared to the gathering. "Brothers and sisters, there can be no bigger insult for us." "Last time they (Congress) had won 44 seats, this time they will get only four seats and get finished." Priyanka .
Lok Sabha polls a formality to re-elect PM Modi: BJP
The BJP on Sunday asserted that the upcoming Lok Sabha elections is just a "formality" to re-elect Narendra Modi as the prime minister. The parliamentary election, beginning April 11, will be all about Modi's performance, leadership and how he wants to take India to the next level, BJP national spokesperson Nalin Kohli told reporters here. "This election is a formality to re-elect Prime Minister Modi, who works and cares for the poorest of the poor in the country, especially the north east region," he said at a function to welcome 71 Congress workers into the BJP fold. Kohli added that the Bharatiya Janata Party has "always had a special affection" for the north east. Manipur has two Lok Sabha seats -- Outer Manipur and Inner Manipur -- and both the constituencies are held by the Congress. Kohli exuded confidence that the BJP would wrest the two seats on the back of the central government's initiatives to develop the state and the region. The Outer Manipur constituency ...
Facing strains in coalition, Rahul appeals to his party and
With open fissures in the ruling alliance in Karnataka, Congress president Rahul Gandhi Sunday asked leaders and workers of his party and JDS to strive unitedly for the coalition victory in Lok Sabha polls, as defeating Prime Minister Narendra Modi was its target. Gandhi's unity appeal comes amid worries in the Congress-JDS alliance that dissidence within might hamper the electoral prospects despite the arrangement between them to face the electorate together in 28 Lok Sabha constituencies. "The Congress and JDS are fighting the election together inKarnataka. At the beginning itself I want to say that all workers and leaders of Congress should help JD(S) candidates completely and JDS workers and leaders will have to support Congress candidates," Gandhi said. "Both parties' aim is to defeat Narendra Modi and BJP," the Congress president said at a rally on the outskirts of Bengaluru, where he launched the Congress-JDS campaign, with JDS patriarch H D Deve Gowda, Chief ...
India gained prominence in world under Modi's rule, need such a strong PM: Sukhbir Badal
Asserting that India gained prominence in the world under Narendra Modi's rule, SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal Sunday said the country needed a "strong" prime minister with a mission of taking it forward and asked voters to make the right choice in "deciding the nation's fate". Addressing his first election rally at Balachaur under Anandpur Sahib Lok Sabha constituency, he termed Congress' Amarinder Singh the "most inefficient" chief minister of Punjab and accused him of stalling all development projects and social welfare schemes in the state. "You know the background of all parties and leaders and who can take our country and the state forward. Today, there is a need for a strong prime minister who has the mission to take country forward and has the courage and will to work for the welfare of the people," Badal said. He said that Narendra Modi during his 15-year rule as Gujarat chief minister took the state to new heights of development and now with him being the prime minister India
Ulema appeals no longer impact Muslim voters: Professor
There was a time when political parties waited for the Ulema (religious leaders) to support them and fetch the Muslim votes during an election, but in the last couple of years, influence of these appeals have reduced, according to a professor. Hilal Ahmed, associate professor at Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), told PTI that it is a misconception that Muslims vote on the Ulema's appeal. "Actually, Muslims voted according to their personal choice and everyday life, and the appeals do not affect them," Ahmed said. An Ulema is a body of Muslim scholars having knowledge of Islamic law and theology. Yusuf Naki, an advocate in the Delhi High Court, corroborated the claim, saying the appeal of the maulanas during elections does not affect anyone. "Now there is no effect of any appeals on Muslims. At least Muslims in Delhi do not vote for any maulana or imam's appeal," said Mohammad Umar, 39, who runs a chemist shop in Old Delhi. According to Ahmed, the appeals from the ...
'Chowkidar' is the spirit, not linked to uniform: Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday expressed his confidence in winning the general election and said that watchman is not an identity recognised by a uniform, but it is the spirit behind the word.
Modi led most most corrupt govt since Independence, ruined country in last 5 yrs: Kejriwal
AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal Sunday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the "most corrupt" government since Independence, and along with BJP chief Amit Shah "ruined" the country in the last five years. Addressing a rally here along with TDP president and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, he claimed that Modi-Shah duo "divided India on religious lines" in five years, what Pakistan could not do in 70. The rally was also attended by Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee. "We have come here to appeal to you to vote for Chandrababu Naidu again. He has laid the foundations of a modern Andhra Pradesh. If he gets five years more, he will expedite the process," Kejriwal said. The Delhi chief minister alleged that an emergency-like situation is prevailing in the country. "The Modi government unleashed central agencies on our institutions and our people. They (Modi and Shah) have ruined the country in five years. Pitted one caste against another and one ...