Page 1179 - Politics
BJD to form alliance with BJP after polls, says CPI(M)leader
Senior CPI(M) leader Janardan Pati on Tuesday claimed that the BJD would have to form an alliance with the BJP after elections, as the ruling party was unlikely to win adequate number of seats to return to power in Odisha. Senior leaders of the BJD, when approached for their reaction to the CPI(M) leader's assertion, refused to comment on the matter. Pati, who is contesting the Lok Sabha polls from Bhubaneswar seat with support from the Congress, stated that the BJD president and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, during a recent election meeting at Nayagarh, had given indications about his party's possible tie-up with the BJP. On Sunday, Patnaik said that the BJD will play a "decisive role" in formation of the next government at the Centre, sparking speculations that the party was open to a post-poll alliance with a national party. "This (Patnaik's statement) is sufficient to conclude that the BJD will provide support to BJP for government formation at the Centre. In ...
Where history meets politics over coffee
This is where Jawaharlal Nehru and V P Singh dropped by, where a young Amitabh Bachchan rode up on his cycle for conversation and maybe some coffee. Six decades later, history still meets politics everyday at the Indian Coffee House where debate brews with every event on the news horizon. With its arched facade and high ceiling, it looks more like a church than a coffee house at first glance. Inside, however, the conversation flows over endless sips of coffee with old-timers saying this is the one place in these polarised times where those with opposing views can speak freely. If elections are the flavour of the season, then so is it in this coffee house that dates back to 1957 and still attracts scores of customers who sit for hours over endless sips of steaming coffee and debate over politics. With election frenzy on a steady rise, the Indian Coffee House is abuzz with discussions on the Samajwadi Party-Bahujan Samaj Party alliance in Uttar Pradesh, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's foray ...
Goyal challenges Naidu for debate on NDA govt's aid for Andhra Pradesh
Railway Minister Piyush Goyal Tuesday threw an open challenge to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu asking the latter to come for a debate in New Delhi on what all the Narendra Modi government did for the state in the last five years. Maintaining that Naidu accepted a special economic package in lieu of special category status for the state, the Union minister said Andhra Pradesh might lose a special grant of Rs 17,500 crore if the SCS was granted. "This is an open challenge to Chandrababu Naidu. Let him come to New Delhi. I am ready for a debate on this," Goyal said. The railway minister visited Vijayawada in Amaravati to release the state BJP's election manifesto which, among other things, promised a transparent, corruption-free and responsible administration besides empowering all sections politically. Seeking to expose the chief minister's "double standards" on the SCS issue, Goyal gave a presentation on the Centre's special assistance to the state. "After getting ..
Aspiring Cong candidate accuses state leader of dropping her
An aspiring Congress candidate Tuesday alleged that her name figured in the AICC approved list of nominees for assembly election in Arunachal Pradesh, but she failed to submit nomination as the state leadership did not provide her required documents. Marina Kenlang claimed that state party president Takam Sanjoy refused to provide her two papers - Form A and Form B - which a candidate need to prove that he or she is indeed nominated by a political party. As a result, she could not file her nomination for Changlang North assembly constituency on Monday, the last date of submitting papers, Kenlang said. Sanjoy, however, said Kenlang's name was there in the initial list released by the AICC on Saturday but it was later changed and Tingkhap Taiju replaced her in the "final list". Taiju filed his papers for the constituency Monday. Kenlang claimed, "There were two contenders for Changlang North and my name was on top. During his recent visit to Itanagar, AICC president Rahul ..
BSP state general secy, 16 others join Congress in Jammu
BSP state general secretary A S Mottan and 16 others, including retired officers, sarpanches and social activists, joined the Congress here Tuesday in the presence of Jammu and Kashmir Congress chief and former tourism minister Gulam Ahmed Mir. Mottan was accompanied by his supporters, who joined the Congress too at an event at the party's headquarters in Shahidi Chowk. Mir admitted them into the Congress fold and expressed hopes that the party will be benefitted as a result of the new joining. Mottan has contested the assembly elections twice on BSP tickets from the R S Pura assembly constituency. He is also the president of the J&K Batwal Sudhar Sabha.
Nirupam says will continue to take on BJP-Shiv Sena alliance
A day after being removed as president of the Mumbai Congress, party leader Sanjay Nirupam Tuesday said he will continue to take on the ruling BJP-Shiv Sena alliance in Maharashtra and highlight its "failures". The Congress Monday appointed former Union minister Milind Deora as Mumbai Regional Congress Committee (MRCC) chief, replacing Nirupam, who has been fielded by the party from the Mumbai North West parliamentary constituency. Addressing a press conference here, Nirupam said being a resident of the constituency for over 25-30 years, he always wanted to represent its people in the Lok Sabha. The former MP expressed confidence about his victory from Mumbai North West, which will vote on April 29. The seat is currently represented Shiv Sena MP Gajanan Kirtikar. Speaking about his campaign, Nirupam said, "The Mumbai North West constituency has its own set of problems. We are planning to draft a separate and special manifesto for this particular constituency." "We will ...
Netanyahu back in Israel, consults with military
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned home from Washington on Tuesday, heading straight into military consultations after a night of heavy fire as Israeli aircraft bombed Gaza targets and the strip's militants fired rockets into Israel. Schools in southern Israel were cancelled following the violence that threatened to escalate into a major conflict just two weeks before the Israeli elections. The fighting subsided by the morning, though the situation remained tense. The military massed forces on the Gaza border and imposed restrictions on civilian public gatherings after dozens of rockets were fired toward communities in the area, including one that struck a house in the town of Sderot. Overnight, the Israeli air force pounded militant sites of Gaza's Hamas rulers and the smaller Islamic Jihad group. The targets included a multistory building in Gaza City that Israel said had served as a Hamas military intelligence headquarters and the office of Hamas leader Ismail ...
Battle lines drawn in Uttarakhand 5 Lok Sabha seats
The battle lines for the Lok Sabha elections in Uttarakhand have been drawn with the filing of nominations coming to an end on Monday.
Not beneficial for country if people vote emotionally: BJP
The BJP wanted people to vote on the basis of performance of the government and not on emotional issues, a senior party leader said here Tuesday. Addressing reporters, BJP national vice president Vinay Sahasrabuddhe also said that voting on the basis of whipped up emotions did not augur well for the country. "The party feels performance of the government should be the political discourse. We want people to start thinking and talking about government performance and not about any sentimental issue. "It is not beneficial for the country if people vote on the basis of emotional issues and (vote) on the basis of performance of government," he said. Sahasrabuddhe's statement came amid allegations by the Congress and other Opposition parties that the BJP was using martyrdom of soldiers killed in the Pulwama terror attack, and subsequent Balakot aerial strike to shape the poll narrative around populist nationalism. Sahasrabuddhe termed Congress president Rahul Gandhi's minimum .
Impact of parties other than big four to be limited in Maha
Several minor parties unable to get themselves assimilated into the two grand alliances in Maharashtra, led by the BJP-Shiv Sena and Congress-NCP combines respectively, might not have much of an impact in the April-May Lok Sabha polls, believe analysts. Maharashtra has 48 Lok Sabha seats, the second highest after Uttar Pradesh's 80, and will see four phase voting on April 11, 18, 23 and 29. Among these, the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, has already opted out of the Lok Sabha polls, planning to concentrate on the Assembly polls later this year to stay relevant in state politics. The Aam Aadmi Party is also in two minds about jumping into the Lok Sabha battle with its state chief Sudhir Sawant claiming he was waiting for orders from Delhi (central leadership) on poll participation in Maharashtra. The Bahujan Samaj Party and the Samajwadi Party, like their Uttar Pradesh counterparts, have tied up in Maharashtra and the latter's state in charge Ashok Singh ...
Try for common symbol to AMMK candidates: SC to EC
The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the Election Commission to make "all endeavour to ensure" allotment of a common symbol, from among 198 free symbols, to the 59 candidates of the T.T.V. Dhinakaran-led Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK) party.
Modi to address rallies from Mar 28
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to launch his party's campaign for the Lok Sabha elections after the poll schedule was announced with six rallies in as many states on March 28 and 29. BJP sources said he will address rallies in Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, Rudrapur in Uttarakhand and Jammu in Jammu and Kashmir on March 28, followed by public meetings in Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Telangana the following day. All the constituencies where Modi will speak are going to polls in the first phase on April 11. Assembly polls are being held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha elections in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. Modi has not started his campaign since the Election Commission announced the seven-phase general election schedule on March 10. However, he had already addressed either rallies or meetings of party workers, including through video conferences, in 100 constituencies before the poll schedule was announced, the BJP had said.
Trump: media is 'Enemy of the People'
President Donald Trump on Tuesday branded the mainstream media the "enemy" and the "opposition party" after the Mueller report cleared him of collusion, accusing journalists of covering the Russia probe unfairly. "The Mainstream Media is under fire and being scorned all over the World as being corrupt and FAKE. For two years they pushed the Russian Collusion Delusion when they always knew there was No Collusion," Trump tweeted. "They truly are the Enemy of the People and the Real Opposition Party!" Trump has previously used "enemy of the people" -- echoing a Stalinist phrase used to describe political enemies -- to describe the media, which he has always said does not give him accurate coverage. This time, Trump is referring to the two-year probe led by special prosecutor Robert Mueller into Trump's opaque links with Russia and suspicions that his 2016 presidential campaign colluded with Russian agents in attempts to influence the election in his favor. According to a brief summary ...
BJP denies ticket to Ananth Kumar's wife in Bangalore South; fields youth leader
In a surprise move, the BJP Tuesday fielded party's youth wing leader Tejaswi Surya from its bastion of Bangalore South from where the widow of union minister Ananth Kumar, a six-time MP from this prestigious Lok Sabha constituency, was denied the ticket. Ending the suspense with just hours left for the deadline for filing of nominations for the first phase of polls in Karnataka, the BJP central leadership announced past midnight last night the name of 28-year-old Surya, a lawyer and a member of the party's national social media campaign team. Surya is the general secretary of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha(BJYM), the youth wing of the BJP. It was widely expected that the BJP would field Tejaswini given her active participation in scripting her husband's victories from the seat six times, but Surya emerged as the dark horse. Surya filed his nomination papers Tuesday. The Karnataka BJP core committee had proposed only Tejaswini's name, according to Padmanabhanagar MLA and former deputy ..
Rahul wants to siphon off Rs 2 lakh crore of public money: Smriti Irani
Slamming the Congress and its president Rahul Gandhi for their proposed minimum income guarantee scheme, Union Minister Smriti Irani said that Rahul wants to siphon-off Rs 2 lakh crore from the present Rs 5 lakh crore given to the poor by Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led central government through direct benefit transfer."Rahul Gandhi declared that Congress party will not give Rs 5 lakh crore but will take Rs 2 lakh crore out of it. What will they do with that money? I want to ask Congress why it wants to misappropriate Rs 2 lakh crore?" Irani said.Lashing out at the Congress, she accused the party of looting the public exchequer since generations."This is the hand that has looted the wealth of the nation for many years, but they will not succeed this time as the child of a poor is standing as a chowkidar," she said adding, "this time Rahul's dream of misappropriating Rs 2000 crore will not get fulfilled".She even accused the Congress of standing with Pakistan instead of India after ..
China opposes US decision to recognise Israel's sovereignty over Golan Heights
A day after the US recognised Israel's sovereignty over the disputed Golan Heights, several countries including China have condemned the decision.CTGN quoted Chinese Foreign Ministry's spokesperson Lu Kang as saying "China opposes changing the status quo of Golan Heights through unilateral behaviour," calling for the avoidance of escalating regional tensions.Lu on Tuesday said: "The international community recognises Golan Heights as occupied." He further said that the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has passed several resolutions urging Israel to withdraw from Golan Heights.The US got global condemnation after US President Donald Trump signed an official decree in the presence of Israel's President Benjamin Netanyahu, to recognise Israel's sovereignty on the Golan Heights on Monday in Washington DC.Israel had formally annexed the territory in 1981 after capturing the region from Syria during the six-day war in 1967. The Israeli annexation has long been decried by the world ...
Cong releases video of 'BJP leader' exchanging money after note ban, Jaitley says fake sting
The Congress and other opposition parties on Tuesday released a video purportedly showing a "BJP leader" exchanging old notes after demonetisation on a commission of 40 per cent, but did not vouch for the authenticity of the 30-minute footage. Congress leader Kapil Sibal -- accompanied by senior leaders from his party as well those from the RJD, Loktantrik Janata Dal, National Conference and TDP -- alleged the video was filmed by some journalists in Ahmedabad. It shows a person, who Sibal claims is a BJP leader with proximity to the party's top leaders, exchanging money purportedly after December 31, 2016, the time given by the government to exchange old notes after it demonetised high value notes on November 8 that year. The amount of money exchanged is Rs 5 crore according to the conversation between the men in the grainy video and a commentary that runs through the footage. However, Sibal did not provide any other proof to support his claims. Finance minister and senior BJP leader
Priyanka to visit Amethi, Rae Bareli, Faizabad in next leg of campaign
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is likely to visit the party bastions of Amethi, Rae Bareli and Faizabad beginning Wednesday in her next leg of campaigning in Uttar Pradesh, party officials said. Earlier this month, she had taken river route to visit parts of eastern Uttar Pradesh, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi's constituency Varanasi. AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi is expected to visit Amethi, Rae Bareli and Faizabad from March 27, party spokesman Rajiv Bakshi said. She will arrive in Amethi, the parliamentary constituency of her brother Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday and hold a meeting with booth-level party presidents. Congress spokesman for Amethi unit Anil Singh said Priyanka Gandhi will interact with 1,965 party booth presidents at the AH Inter college in Musafirkhana. After the meeting, she will leave for Rae Bareli where she will hold a programme on Thursday. The AICC general secretary's visit to Faizabad has been rescheduled for March 29. She .
Posters of MP CM, Digvijaya on Holi tankers; case registered
A convener of an organisation has been booked for allegedly violating the model code of conduct by putting up posters of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath and Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on water tankers used to spray colours during 'Rangpanchami' festival here, police said Tuesday. The case was registered against a convener of social organisation 'Srijan', after it came to notice that posters of the two Congress leaders were put up on the tankers during the traditional Holi procession to mark 'Rangpanchmi' on Monday. An FIR was registered Monday night against Srijan's convener under section 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the Indian Penal Code on Monday night, a Sarafa police station officer said. Meanwhile, Srijan president and local Congress leader Kamlesh Khandelwal said posters of Nath and Singh were used since they are patrons of the organisation. "No political appeal was made in the traditional procession," he ...
Bengal: Congress names nominees for Assembly bypolls
The Congress on Tuesday announced the names of its candidates for the bypolls in two Assembly constituencies in West Bengal scheduled to be held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls in the state.