Page 1168 - Politics
Goa: MGP central committee to meet after defection of 2 MLAs
The MGP's central committee will meet here at 2:30 pm Wednesday to discuss the scenario following the defection of two of its Goa MLAs to the ruling BJP, its working president Narayan Sawant said. During the early hours of Wednesday, two of the three Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) MLAs-- Manohar Ajgaonkar and Dipak Pawaskar-- gave a letter to officiating Speaker Michael Lobo, merging their party's legislative wing with the BJP. The third MGP MLA is Deputy Chief Minister Sudin Dhavalikar who has not signed the letter. "There are several issues on the agenda. It includes the prevailing situation after two of our MLAs left the party," Sawant said.
PDP offers legal assistance to JKLF, Jamaat-e-Islami to contest ban
Mehbooba Mufti-led People's Democratic Party has offered legal support to the recently-banned outfits of Jamaat-e-Islami (J-K) and Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF).Addressing a gathering here on Tuesday, senior PDP leader Muzaffar Hussain Beig said, "We are ready to offer Jamaat-e-Islami and Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front legal assistance, whether in Jammu and Kashmir High Court or Supreme court, provided they trust us."Last week, former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti had criticised the central government's decision to ban JKLF, which had kidnapped her sister Rubaiya Sayeed in 1989."YasinMalik renounced violence as a way of resolving J & K issue a long time ago. He was treated as a stakeholder in a dialogue initiated by then PM (AtalBihari) Vajpayee ji. What will a ban on his organisation achieve? Detrimental steps like these will only turn Kash (sic) into an open-air prison," Mehbooba had tweeted on the day when the central government had banned JKLF.Centre .
How Pakistan failed to do a Balakot-type strike on India on February 27
A day after the Indian Air Force (IAF) carried out aerial strikes on a Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terrorist camp in Balakot, the Pakistani Air Force tried to carry out a similar attack against Indian military targets but failed to do so."On February 27, the Pakistani Air Force with its package of more than 20 planes led by the American F-16s along with the French Mirage-IIIs and Chinese JF-17, fired 11 H-4 1,000 kg bombs from ranges of around 50 kms inside their territory at military targets at three locations but failed to hit any of them," government sources revealed to ANI.The H-4 bombs fired by the Mirage-IIIs of the Pakistan Air Force are classified as stand-off weapons which can be launched from a distance to aid in quicker evasive manoeuvres of jets that fire them, similar to the Spice-2000 bombs used by the Indian Air Force in the Balakot strikes. H-4 bombs are made by Pakistan with the assistance of South Africa."The H-4s are not very accurate and missed their targets. In one of .
Here's how this Jagdalpur hospital is helping enhance voter awareness
Ahead of the ensuing Lok Sabha elections, a unique voter campaign has come to light at a hospital here, where forms at the outpatient department (OPD) are being stamped with a slogan appealing to voters to exercise their right in the impending polls.As part of this campaign, the OPD in government hospitals are providing prescriptions and other forms to patients with a stamp that reads 'vote daalne jana hai, apna farz nibhana hai' (you must cast your vote and fulfill your duty)"The officials are making the voters aware of their voting rights and the date of polling is also mentioned on the slip. This hospital has been chosen by the authorities as it witnesses around 400 to 600 patients every day," said a local Jitendra Bangar who came for treatment in the hospital."Every patient coming to the Maharani Hospital of Jagdalpur and health centres from the district headquarters is being encouraged to vote. After reading the message written on slips, people are saying that they will ...
British MPs to vote on Brexit options
British MPs will on Wednesday hold votes on various Brexit options even as Prime Minister Theresa May comes under pressure to announce a departure plan to get support for her unpopular divorce deal. Three years after a referendum in which Britain voted to leave the European Union, the country is gripped by painful uncertainty over how -- or even whether -- it should put an end to its 46-year membership. May's deal negotiated with Brussels has already been voted down overwhelmingly by parliament twice but the government is widely expected to present it for a third time on Thursday to ensure an orderly Brexit. EU leaders said Britain could leave the EU on May 22 if the deal is adopted this week, or face a potential no-deal Brexit as early as April 12. In a bid to find Brexit alternatives, lawmakers took the unprecedented step on Monday of seizing control of Wednesday's parliamentary business. MPs will hold a series of "indicative votes" -- indicating their preferences on a piece of ...
Soon know if Rahul will contest from Wayanad: Chennithala
Whether Congress President Rahul Gandhi will contest from the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat in Kerala will become clear on Wednesday, a senior Congress leader here said.
Two MGP MLAs joined BJP to provide stability to govt: Goa CM
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant Wednesday claimed the two MGP MLAs who broke away from the party and joined the BJP did so for the stability of the state government. During the early hours of Wednesday, two of the three Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) MLAs-- Manohar Ajgaonkar and Dipak Pawaskar-- gave a letter to officiating Speaker Michael Lobo, merging their party's legislative wing with the BJP. The third MGP MLA is Deputy Chief Minister Sudin Dhavalikar who has not signed the letter. "With two MLAs joining the BJP, our strength has gone up to 14 (in the 40-member Assembly). Both of them have joined the BJP to ensure stability of the government," Sawant told reporters after Ajgaonkar and Pawaskar joined his party. While Ajgaonkar is an MLA from Pernem in North Goa, Pawaskar represents Sanvordem. Ajgaonkar said he was feeling unsafe in the party after Lavoo Mamlatdar, senior general secretary of the MGP, was recently expelled by the party chief Dipak Dhavalikar. Mamlatdar ..
AIMIM to contest only Aurangabad LS seat in Maharashtra
: AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi has said his party would contest only the Aurangabad Lok Sabha constituency in Maharashtra and no other seat. "AIMIM has decided that it will be only contesting ONLY the Aurangabad parliamentary constituency in Maharashtra & will not be contesting Mumbai or any other seat," Owaisi tweeted. The party on Tuesday announced the candidature of Imtiaz Jaleel from Aurangabad. It is contesting Lok Sabha elections outside Telangana and Andhra Pradesh for the first time. The All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen has fielded its Bihar unit chief Akthter ul Imam from Kishanganj in the state in Lok Sabha polls. Owaisi is seeking re-election from Hyderabad.
Democrats fail to overturn Trump's emergency
As attention turns to issues for next year's election, the Democratic Party has failed in its bid to overturn President Donald Trump's emergency declaration. It has been unable to come up with the two-thirds majority in the House of Representative to nullify his veto of a Congressional resolution killing it.
BJP to reward ex-MGP MLA Pauskar with cabinet berth
Deepak Pauskar, one of the two MGP MLAs, who split and merged the legislative unit of their regional party and joined the BJP in the early hours of Wednesday, is likely to be sworn-in as a cabinet minister.
LS polls: Three-cornered contests likely in Telangana
With the process of filing nominations coming to a close, battle lines have been drawn in Telangana for the Lok Sabha elections in what appears to be mainly a three-cornered contest among the ruling TRS, Congress and the BJP. Telangana, with 17 Lok Sabha constituencies, goes to the polls in the first phase on April 11. Bolstered by its thumping win in the Assembly polls in December last, TRS has set itself a target of winning 16 seats, leaving the Hyderabad seat to its ally All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM). TRS working president K T Rama Rao has said in campaign meetings that neither the NDA nor the UPA is in a position to form a government on its own post-Lok Sabha elections. TRS can play a key role at the Centre and ensure a better deal for Telangana if it wins 16 seats, he had said. In addition to its own strength, TRS has the backing of Owaisi, which is expected to help the party get minority votes. The main opposition Congress is going it alone in the
EC pulls up railway, aviation ministries over usage of PM Modi's photo on tickets
The Election Commission on Wednesday questioned the Centre why railway tickets and boarding passes carrying photographs of Prime Minister Narendra Modi were not withdrawn.The notice of withdrawal of these tickets and boarding passes comes in the wake of the Model Code of Conduct being in force ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.The Ministry of Railways led by Piyush Goyal and Ministry of Civil Aviation headed by Suresh Prabhu have been asked to submit a reply within a span of three days.On March 15, Congress had approached the EC with a complaint against the BJP, saying it has put up hoardings of Prime Minister Modi at petrol pumps, railways stations and, airports even though the Model Code of Conduct is in force.Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah had also claimed that he was on a GoAir flight and received a boarding pass with the Prime Minister's photo on it."I was on a Go Air flight yesterday and also had a similar boarding pass with PM's photo on it," he had ...
Mayawati calls Congress, BJP 'birds of same feather'
Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati on Wednesday hit out at the ruling BJP and the Congress for their 'garibi hatao' promise calling it a bluff.
With denuclearisation in mind, foreign ministers of S Korea, US to meet on Mar 29
Top diplomats of South Korea and the United States are set to meet and hold talks in Washington DC on Friday (March 29), during which the topic of North Korea's denuclearisation is expected to figure.South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo are scheduled to meet after the former attends a UN ministerial meeting on peacekeeping in New York on the same day, South Korea's foreign ministry said on Wednesday.This will be the first meeting of the two foreign ministers after last month's summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Hanoi, Vietnam, ended in a stalemate with no agreement reached.Despite the breakdown of the second US-North Korea summit, Trump had maintained that the relationship with the elusive state continues to be "good".Ties between the US and North Korea have hit a roadblock over the ease of sanctions, where Pyongyang sought relief as a recognition of the steps taken towards ...
Commemoration of Brazil's military coup causes anger, unease
Far-right President Jair Bolsonaro's call to commemorate the anniversary of Brazil's 1964 military coup is causing discomfort in Latin America's largest nation, with social groups organizing protests and the federal prosecutors' office saying the call "deserves social and political repudiation." Bolsonaro, a former army captain who waxes nostalgic for the 1964-1985 dictatorship, on Monday asked Brazil's Defense Ministry to organize "due commemorations" on March 31, the day historians say marks the coup that began the country's military regime. The reaction was immediate. On Tuesday, federal prosecutors said that under international criminal law Brazil's dictators "had committed crimes against humanity." In a long and strongly worded statement, prosecutors said Bolsonaro's initiative sounded like an "apology for the practice of atrocities." Several civil groups announced that they were organizing protests throughout the country. A Brazilian lawyer reportedly filed a class action suit, .
Australia, Holland, Russia start talks over downed MH17
The Netherlands and Australia confirmed Wednesday that three-way talks with Russia have begun over the ongoing criminal investigation into the shooting down of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 in 2014. The two countries announced last year they were holding Russia responsible for providing the missile fired by pro-Russian forces in war-torn Ukraine that brought down the jet, causing the deaths of all 298 people aboard. The dead included 196 people from the Netherlands and 38 from Australia. Dutch Foreign Minister Stef Blok and his Australian counterpart Marise Payne said Wednesday that the first trilateral talks about state responsibility for the incident took place earlier this month, after diplomatic approaches were made earlier this year. "We cannot go into the content of this process because confidentiality is vital here," Blok said at a news conference in the Australian capital, Canberra. "But I can say this: We remain committed to achieving truth, justice and accountability." ...
US House fails to override Trump's veto on border emergency
The US House of Representatives on Tuesday (local time) failed to override the first veto issued by President Donald Trump on a resolution blocking his national emergency declaration that sought to fund the construction of a wall along the border with Mexico bypassing the Congress.The final vote count stood at 248 to 181, falling short of the 290 votes or two-thirds majority that was required for the legislation to be passed. Notably, several Republicans backed the veto issued by Trump.Slamming the "lawless" emergency declaration by Trump, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democrat Senator from Texas Joaquin Castro outlined the future course of action the party would take after the vote, The Hill newspaper reported."The President's lawless emergency declaration clearly violates the Congress's exclusive power of the purse, and the Congress will work through the appropriations and defence authorisation processes to terminate this dangerous action and restore our constitutional system of ...
Ahead of LS polls, Poonch locals demand construction of bunkers, development in border areas
With the general elections around the corner, residents of Poonch are hopeful of better roads, communication and, connectivity, as well as bunkers to safeguard them at times of continuous shelling."I request every citizen of my district to come out and vote. We have to choose such a candidate who not only comes during the elections but someone who can actually think of developing the area," a local named Maninder Singh told ANI."Our major demands include road connectivity and bunkers. As shelling and firing continue near the border we need not only community bunkers but personal bunkers too so that the residents can be safe even in adverse situations," Singh added.Acknowledging that development has taken place, Singh said there remains room for more."Elections are coming up on April 11, there are a lot of issues, though a majority of them have been resolved some issues are still pending. We are hopeful that after the upcoming parliamentary polls even these would be resolved," another .
Rahul sat in Somnath temple like he's offering Namaz, claims Adityanath
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath claimed that Congress president Rahul Gandhi, during his recent visit to Somnath temple, sat like he was offering namaz (one of the five pillars of Islam)."It's the people of Gujarat who exposed Rahul Gandhi. He went to Somnath temple and sat there as if offering namaz. Temple priest had to scold him that this is a temple, sit cross-legged," Adityanath said at a public rally here on Tuesday."Nakal mein bhi akal chahiye," he then quipped (presence of mind is required even to copy).He further claimed that the Congress' "new generation" visits temples only during elections, in an apparent reference to Rahul and his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, ahead of the latter's visit to Ayodhya."They (Rahul and Priyanka) go to temples only during elections. They do not have time to visit holy sites if elections are not around," the Uttar Pradesh chief minister said.At another public rally in the state, Adityanath claimed that the new scheme introduced by .
HC defers hearing on JVM's plea against merger till Mar 28
The Jharkhand High Court deferred the hearing on a writ petition filed by the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (Prajatantrik) against the state assembly Speaker's ruling of merging the party with the BJP. The bench of Justice S N Prasad on Tuesday set March 28 for further hearing on the petition. In February 2015, six JVM MLAs had given a letter to Speaker Dinesh Oraon stating that their party had merged with the BJP and that they should be allotted seats on the ruling BJP benches. The Speaker found the merger legal and allowed them to sit with the ruling party members. However, JVM president Babulal Marandi and his party's Legislature Party leader Pradip Yadav petitioned before the Speaker against the ruling and demanded disqualification of the six MLAs on the ground of defection. The Speaker held hearing from both sides and on February 20 this year ruled that the merger of the six MLAs with the BJP four years ago was legal and rejected the petition of JVM. The JVM had won eight seats in .