Page 1144 - Politics
Tej Pratap resigns as patron of RJD students wing
RJD leader Tej Pratap Yadav, the elder son of party president Lalu Prasad, Thursday resigned as the 'sanrakshak' (patron) of the party's students wing, signalling all was not well within the family. "I am resigning from the post of Chhatra Rashtriya Janata Dal Sanrakshak. Those who think I am ignorant are ignorant themselves. I am well aware of who is worth what," he tweeted. The sudden development comes as a major embarrassment to the party which has been beset by speculations of fierce rivalry between Tej Pratap and his younger brother Tejashwi Yadav. The announcement also comes amid rumours that Tej Pratap would be causing a split in the party. However, later talking to a couple of regional news channels, the RJD supremo's elder son denied speculations of him planning a drastic step on account of perceived rivalry with Tejashwi Yadav, who has been declared as the political heir apparent of Lalu Prasad. Speaking at a news conference, Tej Pratap noted that he wanted to press for the
Manoj Tiwari's 'Twitter Chaupal' to reach out to voters
Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari Thursday interacted with people through social media which he named "Twitter Chaupal" and answered questions on a range of issues, including full statehood and the Centre's welfare schemes. During his "Chaupal", Tiwari hit out at Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for his government's "failure" in fulfilling pre-poll promises. The BJP MP said under the Swachh Bharat Mission, 9.5 crores toilets have been constructed to ensure respectable life of the country's women. He said under the 'Ujjwala' scheme, 6.5 crore gas connections have been provided to empower the women and the works done by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is being talked about in every 'chaupal' of the country. Replying to a question on pollution levels in Delhi, Tiwari said there is such a "negative government" ruling Delhi which is not ready to admit its mistakes, according to a statement. He alleged that the AAP government has "no will power" to take steps to control pollution. Environment cess of
Kashmiri Pandits hail action against Malik, JKLF
An organisation of Kashmiri Pandits on Thursday welcomed the decision to ban Yasin Malik-led Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) and said those responsible for the "Hindu genocide" in the state should be tried expeditiously.
Yeddyurappa asks EC to appoint central observers for Mandya,
The BJP's Karnataka unit Thursday requested the Election Commission to appoint central observers in Mandya, Hassan and Tumkur Lok Sabha seats, as it suspects that Chief Minister H DKumaraswamy would misuse the state machinery to suit the electoral needs of his son, nephew and father. Unit chief B S Yeddyurappa in a letter to the Chief Election Commissioner has pointed out that there are precedents of the election commission appointing special central observers in addition to the present official set up in highlyvolatile constituencies. "In the wake of heat being generated in the elections in these three constituencies owing to high profile contestants, my sincere request is the commission should appoint central observer to each of the constituencies to guide and supervise ground level officials in conducting elections impartially," Yeddyurappa said in his letter. "I hope the CEC will take cognizance of my request and post senior officials as observers in these three ...
Rahul Gandhi to address two election rallies in AP on March 31
Congress President Rahul Gandhi would hit the campaign trail in Andhra Pradesh on March 31, addressing two election rallies, a senior AICC functionary said Thursday. He would address meetings in Vijayawada and Kalyanadurg in Anantapur district in the state, where the Congress is contesting the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections on its own, AICC Secretary In-Charge of party affairs in Andhra Pradesh C D Meyyappan told PTI. The Congress chief would arrive in Vijayawada from New Delhi in the forenoon on March 31 and address the rally at Makineni Basavapunnaiah Stadium there. He would then fly to Bengaluru for an election meeting in the Karnataka capital and return to Andra Pradesh to address the rally in Kalyandurg, from where state Congress chief N Raghuveera Reddy is seeking election to the assembly, Meyyappan said. The state would have simultaneous single phase polling to the 175-member assembly and 25 Lok Sabha seats on April 11 with a multi-cornered contest involving ...
Suspended AAP MP Harinder Singh Khalsa joins BJP
Sitting MP from Punjab Harinder Singh Khalsa, who was suspended from the AAP, and former RJD leader in Jharkhand Girinath Singh joined the BJP Thursday. Fatehgarh Sahib MP Khalsa joined the BJP in the presence of Union Finance minister Arun Jaitley, while Union Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman welcomed Girinath into the party fold. Girinath, who had been MLA in Jharkhand, said it is 'ghar wapsi' (homecoming) for him as his father was a member of the 'Jan Sangh' -- the BJP's predecessor. Khalsa, who belongs to the SC community, had won the 2014 Lok Sabha polls on the Aam Aadmi Party's ticket from Fatehgarh Sahib in Punjab, but was suspended from the party in 2015. He started his political carrier with the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), the Bharatiya Janata Party's ally in Punjab.
Trinamool doesn't need to indulge in mudslinging: MP Dev
Popular Bengali actor and Trinamool Congress MP Dev alias Deepak Adhikari, who is contesting to retain his Ghatal Lok Sabha seat, said on Thursday that his party did not need to indulge in mudslinging as the state government has undertaken numerous development works.
Former CPI-M MP Lakshman Seth joins Congress
Expelled CPI-M leader and a prime accused in the 2007 Nandigram violence, Lakshman Seth, on Thursday shifted to the Congress.
Pak committed not to allow any militant group to operate in country: Imran Khan
Pakistan will not to allow any militant group to operate in the country or use its territory for any militant activity within or outside the country, Prime Minister Imran Khan asserted Thursday, amidst mounting international pressure to rein-in terror outfits like the JeM. Chairing the first meeting of the National Internal Security Committee here at the Prime Minister Office, Khan said the implementation of the National Action Plan (NAP) to combat terrorism and extremism was the foremost priority of his government. The meeting took place on a day when a delegation of the Asia-Pacific Group (APG) on money laundering, a regional affiliate of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), was in Islamabad to assess if Pakistan has made enough progress on global standards against financial crimes to warrant its exclusion from the watchdog's grey list. Prime Minister Khan said the formulation of the NAP was reflection of the will of the nation and a consensus document agreed upon by all ...
BJP has created strife between various communities, alleges
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Thursday alleged that the BJP-led NDA government caused the highest damage to the business community in the country in the last five years besides creating strife between various communities. Kejriwal came to Vijayawada to take part in a series of election campaign meetings, along with his Andhra Pradesh counterpart N Chandrababu Naidu, in support of the ruling Telugu Desam Party. Addressing a meeting of north Indians, Kejriwal claimed businesses closed shop, unemployment grew and farmers were left in distress under Prime Minister Narendra Modis rule. "Above all, Modi created animosity between communities. We have to defeat Modi for peace to prevail in the country," he said. Kejriwal alleged the Modi government caused the highest damage to the business community in the last five years. "Demonetisation, GST and other policies destroyed businesses.Industries were ruined," he pointed out. Noting that the coming elections were important ...
Nine candidates in fray for 2 Lok Sabha seats in Meghalaya
Nine candidates are in the fray for the two Lok Sabha seats in Meghalaya, after two withdrew their nomination on Thursday, the last date for withdrawal of candidature, Chief Electoral Officer F R Kharkongor said. Two candidates Kenedy Khyriem and Justice Kharbasanti withdrew their nomination from the Shillong Lok Sabha seat, Kharkongor said. Six candidates in the fray for the Shillong constituency are Vincent Pal of Congress, United Democratic Party's Jemino Mawthoh, BJP's Sanbor Shullai and three Independents T H S Bonney, Samuel Hashah and Romeo Phira Rani. The three candidates in the Tura Lok Sabha seat are Agatha Sangma of ruling NPP, Mukul Sangma of Congress and BJP's Rikman G Momin. Elections to the two Lok Sabha seats in Meghalaya will be held on April 11. The chief electoral officer said five and three general observers for Shillong and Tura respectively has arrived apart from a police observer for both the constituencies in Meghalaya. Two expenditure observers .
Blinded by anti-Modi sentiment, Cong stopped thinking in nation's interest: PM
The Congress is blinded by its "anti-Modi approach" and has stopped thinking in the nation's interest, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said here Thursday, raising issues of national security and terrorism and questioning the party's statements following the Balakot strike. Addressing a rally in Akhnoor on the outskirts of Jammu, his first in the state after national elections were announced on March 10, Modi claimed the speeches of Congress leaders receive applause in Pakistan. The prime minister began his speech by greeting people in the local Dogri language and went to exhort them to vote for his party's Jammu-Poonch candidate Jugal Kishore. Modi said he was surprised at the Congress' reaction to his government's endeavour to teach a lesson to the enemies of the country. "What has happened to the Congress party....the anti-Modi approach adopted by them has blinded them to the extent that they have stopped thinking in the interest of the nation," Modi said. When India conducted the air .
Article 35A was surreptitiously inserted in Constitution by Jawaharlal Nehru: Arun Jaitley
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday said that Article 35A, which restricts non-permanent residents to buy property in Jammu and Kashmir was surreptitiously inserted by former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru into the Constitution.He alleged that the said article was used to discriminate between citizens living in the state on the basis of declaring some as permanent residents while leaving out the others."Article 35A surreptitiously inserted by Pt. Nehru's government in the Constitution in 1954 vide Presidential order is responsible for discrimination by the J and K government between two categories of citizens on the basis of declaring some as permanent residents while leaving out the others," tweeted Jaitley.The Union Miniser also called it a 'historic blunder' in his blog."The seven-decade history of the State of Jammu and Kashmir confronts changing India with several questions. Was the Nehruvian course, which the State had embarked, a historical blunder or was it the ...
NCP to contest all 26 seats in Gujarat
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on Thursdat announced it will contest on all 26 Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat.NCP is contesting 22 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra out of 48.For Maharashtra, the Congress and the NCP on Saturday announced their seat-sharing pact for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls with the two parties agreeing to contest 26 and 22 seats respectively.All the 26 constituencies of Gujarat will go for polling during the 3rd phase of elections on April 23.While Maharashtra will vote for Lok Sabha Elections 2019 in four phases. The polling dates for Maharashtra will be on April 11, 18, 23 and 29. The votes will be counted for all the constituencies on May 23. The results of the Lok Sabha Elections 2019 will be announced on the same day.The 17th Lok Sabha election to be held in seven phases beginning April 11. The final phase of voting will take place on May 19. The counting of votes will be done on May 23.The last date for withdrawal of candidature for the first phase is March 28 ..
Congress, NC, PDP responsible for problems in J-K: Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held Congress, National Conference (NC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) responsible for the problems faced by people in Jammu and Kashmir."Congress, NC and PDP are responsible for the problems Jammu and Kashmir faces today. It is because of them that Kashmiri Pandits faced so much trouble. Sadly, national security is not a priority for them, they only care about power," Modi said while addressing a rally in Akhnoor, along the International Border.Highlighting India's surgical strike and an airstrike in Pakistan, Prime Minister Modi said, "Those who run 'aatank ki factory' across the border are scared today. This has happened for the first time when terrorists are thinking 100 times before planning an attack in India."He added, "What is beyond comprehension is Congress' attitude (towards the stand India took against Pakistan). Is it the same Congress that Sardar Patel was part of? Is it the same Congress that Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose was ...
Opposition hits out at PM Modi's 'sarab' remarks
Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for dubbing the SP-RLD-BSP alliance in Uttar Pradesh as- Sarab- an acronym coined by taking the first letters of the three parties.During a rally in Meerut on Thursday, the Prime Minister said: "Take 'sa' from Samajwadi Party, 'ra' from Rashtriya Lok Dal and 'b' from Bahujan Samaj Party, it would make Sarab," he said at a public rally in Meerut."Shouldn't we rescue ourselves from sarab for the good health of UP ?" Modi told the audience.Slamming the Prime Minister for his statement, Akhilesh Yadave took to his official twitter handle to state that Modi had mixed up 'sarab' (a mirage) and 'sharab' (liqour)"Today the teleprompter has revealed the truth that those who promote hate don't know the difference between 'sarab' and 'sharab'. Sarab also means a mirage and it is a blurry dream the BJP has been showing for five years... Now, when elections are ...
Some people can't differentiate between a theatre set and 'SAT' used in space science: PM Modi
Launching a veiled attack at Congress President Rahul Gandhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Thursday, said some people cannot differentiate between a theatre set and the word 'SAT' used in space science."Some people cannot even differentiate between the word 'set' used in theatre and 'sat' a term popular in space science," he said addressing a public rally here.The Prime Minister's statement comes a day after Gandhi wished Modi a happy World Theatre Day."Well done DRDO, extremely proud of your work. I would also like to wish the PM a very happy World Theatre Day," the Congress chief wrote on his twitter handle on the World Theatre Day on Wednesday.Gandhi's tweet came hours after PM Narendra Modi made a televised announcement about the successful test-launching of an anti-satellite missile on .Attacking the Congress for its failure in eradicating poverty, the PM said at the rally, "Since I was eight years old, I have been listening to governments talking about 'Gareebi hatao'. ...
Give Israel North, South Carolina: Syria to USA over Golan Heights row
Syria strongly criticised the United States' decision to recognise Israel's sovereignty over Golan Heights at a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting here on Wednesday (local time)."You can give them North and South Carolina, for example, why not? South Carolina is a great piece of land...So, give Israel a couple of states if this administration really wants to have Israeli support," Sputnik quoted Syria's UN Ambassador Bashar Jaafari as saying at the meeting.He further accused the United States of trying to increase the chances of current Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu coming back to power following the upcoming elections, despite charges of bribery and fraud against him as well as trying to appease the Israeli lobby.Claiming that Golan Heights would eventually "come back" to Syria, Jaafari said: "Don't be misguided by thinking that one day this land will be yours due to hypocrisy or due to being a pawn in the electoral game where you bring each other support, so .
Modi launches BJP's LS campaign in UP, U'khand, J-K; says his govt decisive, hurls 'alcohol' jibe at SP-RLD-BSP alliance
Launching his party's Lok Sabha poll campaign in three states, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday kept the focus on national security, terrorism and how his "decisive" government showed the courage to conduct a surgical strike in all spheres -- land, sky and space. Modi addressed rallies in Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, Rudrapur in Uttarakhand and Akhnoor in Jammu and Kashmir--all part of Lok Sabha constituencies figuring in the first phase of the polls on April 11. Modi also tore into the opposition parties by coining an acronym SARAB (alcohol') from the initial letters of the Samajwadi Party(SP), Rashtriya Lok Dal(RLD) and Bahujan Samaj Party(BSP) alliance and urged people to stay away from SARAB' in the polls for the good health of Uttar Pradesh. The Hindi word for liquor is 'sharab'. The remarks by Modi, who also termed the SP-RLD-BSP alliance in UP 'mahamilavat' (adulterated), drew a furious reaction from the Congress and the SP. Congress demanded an apology from Modi while SP ..
PM did not declare marital status in nomination forms before 2014: Digvijaya Singh
Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Thursday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not declare his marital status in the poll nomination forms he filed before 2014.Addressing a gathering here, Singh said, "Why does he (Prime Minister) fear from saying the truth. I am not putting a personal allegation, but what is the reason behind him not revealing his marital status in all the forms he has filled to contest polls? He had given his marital status in 2014, why did he not tell the same before the year 2014? Why does he not tell his educational qualification? What is the difficulty in stating what degree he holds?"Sharpening his attack on the Prime Minister, he alleged that it is during the Narendra Modi regime that 27,000 jobs have been reduced per day after demonetisation."They had promised two crore jobs per year, however, after demonetisation 27,000 jobs per day have been reduced. I am not saying this, records are stating this."Modi's statements as Gujarat Chief Minister and ..