Page 1180 - Politics
BJP made me an offer: Sushilkumar Shinde
In a sensational claim, senior Congress leader Sushilkumar Shinde on Tuesday said he recently got an offer to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Gurgaon Muslim family assailants felt they were immune to law: Yogendra Yadav
Expressing shock at "brutal attack" on a Muslim family in Gurgaon, Swaraj India leader Yogendra Yadav Tuesday said the assailants were confident that they will not by punished for their misdeed. Yadav visited the victim family Monday at Bhoop Singh Nagar here and demanded from the Gurgaon administration and Haryana government to ensure that the family feels safe and the culprits are brought to book. "This type of violence can only happen when perpetrators have full reassurance that whatever they do, nobody will confront them," he said. A mob had barged into the home of Mohammad Sajid in Gurgaon's Bhoop Singh Nagar and thrashed him and his family, allegedly telling them to go to Pakistan. The attack was triggered by a game of cricket on Holi. The family Tuesday said they have stopped sending their children to school. Swaraj India's national vice president and spokesperson Anupam termed the incident a result of the hate-filled politics "being practised in the country today". "The ...
Kejriwal accuses Centre of blocking Lokpal Bill for four years
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday accused the Central government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi of blocking the Lokpal Bill for the last four years.Responding to Home Minister Rajnath Singh's allegation that AAP government has not done anything to improve the ease of life, Kejriwal said: "For the last four years, the Central government has been blocking the Lokpal Bill."Replying to Singh's query if CCTV cameras were installed in the city, Kejriwal tweeted: "Modiji stopped the CCTV cameras for three years in Delhi. Manish Sisodia and Satyendra Kumar Jain were on a one-week long hunger strike and finally succeeded in putting up the CCTV cameras. Delhi is getting free water."His tweet further reads: "Savings done by AAP: Electricity 2500 Rs, water 1000 Rs, medicine 2500 Rs, school fees did not increase 5000 Rs (two kids) which totalled to saving of to 11000 Rs. Loss done by Modi-ji: Gas 1000 Rs, Metro 2000 Rs (two people), Petrol/Diesel 5000 Rs, Price rise 8000 Rs ...
Keep co-op society officials out of election duty: DMK
The DMK on Tuesday urged the Election Commission to ensure that officials of co-operative societies/banks are not involved in election-related work in Tamil Nadu.
BJP ally MGP cites 'conspiracy', threatens to quit Goa govt
The Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party, support of whose three MLAs is crucial for the stability of BJP-led dispensation in Goa, Tuesday said a "conspiracy" was being hatched by "our rivals" that might force it to move out and align with the Congress to form a new government. The party has three MLAs in the 40-Member Goa Assembly and its senior leader and Marcaim legislator Sudin Dhavalikar is the deputy chief minister in the Pramod Sawant government. Speaking to PTI, MGP president Dipak Dhavalikar alleged one of his party's officer-bearers was "made to issue a letter" to the governor and speaker declaring authority over entire legislative affairs of the outfit. Dhavalikar said the MGP central committee would meet Wednesday to chalk out its future course of action, which, he claimed, can decide the fate of the state government. "There is a larger conspiracy under which one of our senior officer bearers, general secretary Lavoo Mamlatdar, was made to issue a letter to the governor and ...
Lalu Prasad's RJD losing ground in Jharkhand
There was a time when prominent leaders of the UPA in Jharkhand would often visit RJD chief Lalu Prasad but now the party has been left fending for itself in the state.
Over 2 lakh people to attend PM's first campaign rally in Jammu
Over two lakh people will attend the rally in Jammu and Kashmir's Akhnoor, from where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will kick-start the BJP's election campaign in the state, party state president Ravinder Raina said Tuesday. The BJP will retain all three Lok Sabha seats of Jammu, Udhampur and Ladakh despite the coming together of "traitors" in the state, Raina asserted. The senior leader said the party would talk to its former minister and Dogra Swabhiman Sangathan (DSS) founder Choudhary Lal Singh, who has filed nomination papers from the Jammu parliamentary constituency, for withdrawal of his candidature in the larger interest of the Dogra unity and strengthening of nationalist forces. "The prime minister has accepted our invitation and is addressing the first election rally at Akhnoor in the outskirts of Jammu on March 28. We are confident of winning all the three seats of Jammu, Udhampur and Ladakh with bigger margins than the 2014 Lok Sabha polls," Raina told reporters here. Jammu
Cong's minimum income scheme a poll gimmick: Adityanath
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Tuesday termed the Congress' minimum income scheme a poll "gimmick" and accused it of obstructing the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya along with the SP and BSP. "Earlier too the Congress party had given the slogan of 'garibi hatao'. The announcement of a minimum (annual) wage of Rs 72,000 (too) is nothing but a gimmick," said Adityanath, addressing a "Vijay Sankalp Rally" here. On Ram temple, Yogi said, "The Congress, Samajwadi Party and BSP are the biggest hurdles in construction of the Ram temple. An army of advocates was brought to the fore by the Congress (to obstruct the construction)." Kapil Sibal moved an application in the Supreme Court to see that the hearing in the case does not take place before 2019 elections, he added. "There is a family which starts remembering Lord Ram when elections draw closer but sit in temples in the posture of offering namaz," the chief minister said, apparently referring to an incident involving
BJP picks Surya over Tejaswini for Bangalore South
The BJP on Tuesday named its Karnataka Yuva Morcha General Secretary Tejaswi Surya as its Banagalore South Lok Sabha seat candidate, shattering late Ananth Kumar's supporters' hopes of seeing his widow contest from the prestigious seat.
Trump administration escalates legal battle against Obamacare
The administration of US President Donald Trump has escalated its battle against Obamacare by fully siding with a court ruling that found the health care law unconstitutional. Texas-based Judge Reed O'Connor issued his ruling in December following a lawsuit brought by conservative states, but later ordered a stay while an appeal lodged by Democratic attorneys general was being heard. Trump's Department of Justice (DOJ) had previously taken the position that it would not defend the law's protections for people with pre-existing conditions, though other parts could stay. But on Monday night the DOJ issued a letter saying its stance had now changed and it agreed with O'Connor's ruling in its entirety. "The Department of Justice has determined that the district court's judgment should be affirmed," it said, adding: "The United States is not urging that any portion of the district court's judgment be reversed." Opposition Democrats, who have seen the law survive previous legal and ...
J-K HC seeks Centre's response on plea opposing ban on JeI
The Jammu and Kashmir High Court has issued a notice to the Centre and sought its response by April 22 on a petition challenging the recent ban on the Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) in the state. Acting on a petition by Mehraj Azeem (61), a former member of the Jamaat, a single bench of Justice Tashi Rabstan on Monday directed the Union Home Secretary to file response and objections to the petition by the next date of hearing on April 22. The notice was accepted by Assistant Solicitor General Tahir Majeed Shamshi, who was present in the court. The Centre in a notification issued on February 28 banned Jamat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir for five years under anti-terror law on grounds that it was "in close touch" with militant outfits and is expected to "escalate secessionist movement" in the state. However, the petitioner's counsel, Syed Musaib, said the government did not follow the procedure while issuing the notification and the Jamaat was banned without giving it a chance to represent its case
LS polls: Tawde ridicules Congress over defections
Maharashtra BJP leader and Education Minister Vinod Tawde Tuesday took potshots at the Congress in view of rumblings in the Opposition party in the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections. Tawde's dig came against the backdrop of sudden ouster of Mumbai unit Congress president Sanjay Nirupam on Monday and recent exit of some party leaders in rest of the state in favour of the ruling BJP. "The Mumbai president of Congress had to give up his position to secure a ticket for Lok Sabha elections. On the other hand, (Maharashtra Congress president) Ashok Chavan was trying to field his wife for Lok Sabha, but the party forced him to contest," Tawde said, a day after Congress president Rahul Gandhi replaced Nirupam with former MP Milind Deora. Nirupam has been given the ticket to contest from Mumbai North West Lok Sabha constituency. Taking a dig at Congress, Tawde said, "these developments show the sacrifice bing made by leaders for their party. It will be better if Congress starts ..
Goa Minister slams coalition ally for taking on BJP
Amid brewing discontent in Goa's ruling coalition, Art and Culture Minister Govind Gaude on Tuesday said that leaders of the ruling alliance party, the MGP, play the role of 'jokers' in a pack of cards.
Rathore's 7 queries to Rahul ahead of Rajasthan visit
Ahead of Congress President Rahul Gandhi's visit to Rajasthan on Tuesday, Union Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore demanded answers to seven questions, including loan waivers and the Balakot airstrike.
BJP leader Subhas Chouhan quits saffron party
Senior BJP leader Subhas Chouhan on Tuesday resigned from the saffron party to register protest against denial of party ticket to him to contest the Lok Sabha polls from Bargarh seat in Odisha. He was the vice-president of the party's Odisha unit. Chouhan handed over his resignation letter to another BJP vice-president Samir Mohanty at the party's state headquarters here. "I have requested him to reconsider the decision," Mohanty said. The BJP has this time fielded the party's national general secretary Suresh Pujari from the Bargarh Lok Sabha. Chouhan, a RSS man since three decades, was denied a BJP nomination to contest from Bargarh Lok Sabha seat from where he had polled over 3.72 lakh votes in 2014. However, he lost to BJDs Prabhas Kumar Singh in 2014 elections by a margin of 11,178 votes. "This time, they did not allow me to contest from Bargarh Lok Sabha seat and struck off my candidature. Here, the party leadership is not considering the winnability of the ...
Party didn't humiliate B C Khanduri, removed from panel over his health: BJP
The BJP on Tuesday rejected Congress president Rahul Gandhi's charge that it had insulted senior leader B C Khanduri by removing him from the Parliamentary Standing Committee on defence, saying it was the BJP which made him the head of the panel. B C Khanduri was removed from the panel for health reasons, which is known to him, state BJP in-charge Shyam Jaju said at a press conference here. "It was the BJP which appointed Khanduri as chairman of the parliamentary committee on defence," Jaju said. The accusation was hurled at the BJP by Congress president Rahul Gandhi at a rally in Dehradun where B C Khanduri's son Manish Khanduri joined the Congress. Rahul Gandhi had cited Khanduri's alleged "humiliation by the party" as the reason why his son joined the Congress. Charging Gandhi with misrepresenting things, he said the allegation of BJP giving a raw deal to party leaders from Uttarakhand did not stick. To buttress his point, Jaju said the party's sitting MP from Nainital Bhagat Singh
EC functioning like puppet in hands of BJP, says CPI-M
: Tamil Nadu CPI-M secretary K Balakrishnan Tuesday accused the Election Commission of India of being a puppet in the hands of BJP. Cases were booked against opposition parties for violating code of conduct even if a candidate garlanded a statue, Balakrishnan told reporters here. The party would soon submit a memorandum to the chief electoral officer on the need to change the election officers working for long in the same post and appoint news ones for free and fair functioning, he said. On allotment of symbols to parties, he said the Election Commission was following double standards, he said adding that this proved that it was functioning like a puppet in the hands of the ruling party at the Centre. The Left leader hit out at BJP Tamil Nadu president Tamilisai Soundararajan contesting from Tuticorin for saying the police firing in the district over the Sterlite issue that left 13 dead was to save 1,000 people who had gathered there.
Advani, Joshi refused to contest polls: Vijayvargiya
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) General Secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya here on Tuesday said party's former Presidents Murli Manohar Joshi and Lal Krishna Advani themselves refused contest the Lok Sabha polls this time.
Actor-turned-politician Jaya Prada joins BJP
Former Samajwadi Party MP and actor Jaya Prada joined the BJP on Tuesday and may be fielded as the party's candidate from Rampur constituency to take on her bitter rival and SP nominee Azam Khan. A two-term Lok Sabha member from the SP, she is a close associate of Rajya Sabha member Amar Singh, who was expelled from the regional party and has since come close to Hindutva fountainhead Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi, she described him as a "brave" leader in whose hands the country is "safe". BJP sources said she may be fielded in the coming polls but a decision on the seat she will contest from is yet to be finalised. Speculation has gained ground that she will contest from Rampur as she has been elected from there twice. Noting that she started her political journey with the Telugu Desam Party and was its Rajya Sabha MP before joining the SP and being elected to Lok Sabha from Rampur, 56-year-old Jaya Prada told reporters that joining the BJP is a ...
In Ram vs Ram, a battle of prestige in Himachal Pradesh's Mandi
It may well be a Jai Ram versus Sukh Ram poll battle for the Mandi Lok Sabha seat in Himachal Pradesh in the ensuing general elections, even though neither of them is actually in the fray. Former Union Telecom Minister Sukh Ram and Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur's prestige will be at stake in Mandi seat, which is going to the polls along with three other parliamentary seats of the hill state on May 19. The BJP has already renominated its sitting MP Ramswaroop Sharma, whose candidature was openly supported by Thakur despite Sukh Ram's grandson Aashray Sharma vying for the BJP ticket from the seat. With Sukh Ram joining the Congress along with his grandson on Monday, the Congress will most probably give the ticket to Aashray Sharma, a senior Congress leader told PTI. Mandi being the chief minister's home district, ensuring Ramswaroop Sharma's victory will be a matter of personal prestige for Thakur. On the other hand, Sukh Ram too will leave no stone unturned to get his .