Page 126 - Politics
BJP set to clinch a Rajya Sabha seat from Odisha with BJD backing
The BJP Friday named Ashwini Baishnab, a former bureaucrat, as its candidate for the Rajya Sabha bypolls in Odisha, with the state's ruling Biju Janata Dal also announcing its support to him, making his victory virtually certain. The development indicates growing warm vibes between the two parties after the BJP ran a strong campaign against the BJD in the recent Lok Sabha and assembly polls, emerging as the main challenger to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik's party. "The party has decided that Ashwini Baishnab will be the Bharatiya Janata Party's candidate for the upcoming bypolls to the Rajya Sabha from Odisha," the BJP said. Minutes later, Patnaik told reporters in the state that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah had spoken to him and his party will back Baishnab. With 112 members in the 146-seat state assembly, the BJD was in a position to win the bypolls to all three seats. The BJP has 23 seats. Baishnab had served under the then prime minister Atal Bihari ...
BJP MP raises issue of reciting 'Vande Mataram' in Lok Sabha
A BJP MP Friday alleged that the Congress did not oppose Samajwadi Party MP Shafiqur Rahman Barq's assertion that reciting 'Vande Mataram' was against Islam. Participating in a discussion on a private member's resolution, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey alleged that Congress president Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi were seen thumping the desk when Barq made the remarks in the House. While taking oath as a member of Lok Sabha, Barq said he would not recite 'Vande Mataram' in Parliament as "it is against Islam". On Dubey's allegation, Leader of Congress in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said that the Gandhis were not thumping the desk and that the allegation was not true. It was Congress that popularised "Vande Mataram" in the country, he said. Vande Mataram is a Bengali poem written by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee in 1870s. It was composed into song by Rabindranath Tagore.
INLD expresses surprise over not being invited to meet on 'one nation, one election'
The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) has sent a letter to the Centre for "failing" to invite it to the meeting called by the prime minister to discuss 'one nation, one election' issue. The INLD, which is led by former Haryana chief minister O P Chautala, said that in the past too this issue was discussed and the party was invited to participate in the exchange of views or asked to submit its views in writing. "Being a responsible political party we have without fail responded to such communications. However, this time INLD learnt of such a meeting with the Prime Minister from the media and was surprised to note that even though other regional and state parties were invited, the INLD had not been extended the same courtesy," a party statement quoting the letter said here Friday. The INLD reminded that the subject equally concerns the states and therefore, by extension it means that regional parties are an equal stakeholder in this proposed change. The INLD further pointed out that in the
Amit Shah expresses grief over Bhatpara killings, constitutes three-member committee
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has constituted a three-member committee that would visit West Bengal's Bhatpara on June 22 and submit a report after visiting the violence-hit area.Amit Shah, the BJP president, on Friday, expressed grief over the killing of two party workers in Bhatpara, which witnessed violent clashes between two groups yesterday."BJP President Amit Shah has expressed his grief over the killings of two party workers in Bhatpara," the party said in a statement.The committee would consist of the party's Members of Parliament- Surinderjeet Singh Ahluwalia, Satya Pal Singh and Vishnu Dayal Ram.Two people were killed and several others were injured on Thursday after clashes broke out between two groups suspected to be affiliated to ruling Trinamool Congress and the BJP in Bhatpara area, Barrackpore of West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district.During the violence, the two groups hurled crude bombs at each other and gunshots were also fired. In response, police resorted to .
Indian, Chinese troops perform yoga after ceremonial meet in Ladakh
A ceremonial Border Personnel Meeting (BPM) took place inside the Indian huts in Chushul and Daulat Beg Oldie sectors of Eastern Ladakh on Friday.The Indian delegation was led by Brigadier VK Purohit and for China, it was led by Senior Colonel Ying Hong Chen.After the meeting, both delegations did yoga on the occasion of the International Yoga Day, according to the official sources.Earlier on May 21, a Border Personnel Meet was held between the armies of India and China.The meeting had taken place opposite Eastern Ladakh at the DBO - TWT Meeting Point.
Congress mocks Yoga Day, insults forces: Shah fumes at Rahul's "New India" tweet
Hitting out at Congress President Rahul Gandhi for "New India" tweet, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday said the party has mocked Yoga Day and "insulted" the forces."Congress stands for negativity. Today, their negativity was seen in their clear support to the medieval practice of Triple Talaq. Now, they mock Yoga Day and insult our forces (yet again!) Hoping the spirit of positivity will prevail. It can help overcome toughest challenges," he tweeted.Gandhi came under fire after he shared the pictures of Army's dog squad doing yoga postures done by their trainers, with a sarcastic jibe -- New India -- on the top of his post.Taking a dig at Gandhi, actor and BJP MP Paresh Rawal tweeted, "Yes it's a NEW INDIA Rahul ji where even dogs are smarter than you."BJP MP from Bengaluru South Lok Sabha Constituency Tejasvi Surya said the Congress leader's tweet has insulted the army."Ok. He still hasn't learnt his lessons. In one go, he has insulted our army, brave Jawans, the incredible ...
Indian and Chinese armies hold ceremonial border personnel meeting on Yoga Day
Indian and Chinese armies held a ceremonial border personnel meeting (BPM) in Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir on the occasion of International Yoga Day on Friday. "A ceremonial border personnel meeting (BPM) on the occasion of International Day of Yoga was conducted today at the Indian BPM huts in Chushul and DBO sectors of Eastern Ladakh," a defence spokesman said here. He said the delegations were lead by Brigadier V K Purohit of the Indian side and Senior Colonel Ying Hong Chen from the Chinese side. The ceremonial border personnel meeting was marked by saluting the National Flag of India by both the delegation members, the spokesman said, adding it was followed by the conduct of yoga by both the delegations and thereafter reading of ceremonial address which composed of exchange of greetings, wishes and vote of thanks. Both the delegations interacted in a free, congenial and cordial environment, he said. The delegation parted amidst feeling of friendship and commitment towards ..
PM Modi to attend G-20 next week; financial stability, black money, terrorism to top India's agenda
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Japan next week to attend the G-20 summit where issues such as financial stability, WTO reform, black money, and terrorism will be on top of the agenda for India. Modi will attend the 14th G-20 Summit in Osaka, Japan, from June 28-29. The summit will also be attended by Heads of State or government of member countries, EU and other invited nations and international organizations, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said. MEA Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar announced that former Union minister Suresh Prabhu would be India's Sherpa at the 14th meeting of the world's top economies in Osaka, Japan. "This would be the sixth time that Prime Minister Modi would be participating in the G-20 summit. Apart from participating at the summit, the prime minister will also have bilateral meetings. He will also have plurilateral meetings which would be announced closer to the date," he said. Modi's likely meeting with US President Donald Trump, the first since ...
Dogs smarter than you in New India: Paresh Rawal's retort to Rahul
Actor and BJP leader Paresh Rawal didn't spare Congress President Rahul Gandhi for his take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of 'New India' on International Yoga Day.Rahul had shared the pictures of Army's dog squad imitating yoga postures of their trainers, with a sarcastic jibe - "New India" - alongside the adorable photos.[{5abc30bd-6f74-4800-b3b3-d6b366a2ba7a:intradmin/rahul_gandhi_47n5uFG.jpg}]Paresh Rawal had sarcastic response to Rahul's tweet, which many on the micro-blogging website felt was in bad taste."Yes it's a NEW INDIA Rahul ji where even dogs are smarter than you Rahul Gandhi," the former BJP MP wrote.[{3bc84677-446a-4440-aba2-bbd6e48eda1c:intradmin/shjbv.JPG}]The photos posted by the Gandhi scion were posted by the Twitter handle of Defence spokesperson on Friday.All the defence forces took part in the celebrations of International Yoga Day at various locations across the country on Friday.Battling the bone-numbing cold, the Indian Army personnel performed ...
TDP MPs request Naidu to reject merger with BJP
Five Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MPs on Friday met Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu and urged him to reject the claim of four of their dissident members of a merger with the BJP.The delegation told Naidu that the TDP would move an application for disqualification of the MPs and asked him not to treat the defecting MPs as part of the BJP Parliamentary Party."This is to bring to your kind attention that there is no merger of TDP with the BJP," the five MPs said in their submission to Naidu."Since there has been no organisational merger between the TDP and the BJP, their resolution for the merger of the TDP Legislature Party in the Rajya Sabha with that of the BJP should be rejected at the outset," the TDP MPs said.Later talking to reporters, they said the Rajya Sabha Chairman had no independent power to decide whether there had been a split or merger under the anti-defection law and such a decision could be taken only when the question of disqualification arises.In their application to .
Global airlines reroute flights after Iran downs US drone
Major airlines from around the world on Friday began rerouting their flights to avoid areas around the Strait of Hormuz following Iran's shooting down of a US military surveillance drone there, as America warned commercial airliners could be mistakenly attacked. The Federal Aviation Administration warned of a "potential for miscalculation or misidentification" in the region after an Iranian surface-to-air missile on Thursday brought down a US Navy RQ-4A Global Hawk, an unmanned aircraft with a wingspan larger than a Boeing 737 jetliner and costing over USD 100 million. The US said it made plans for limited strikes on Iran in response, but then called them off. Australia's Qantas, British Airways, Dutch carrier KLM, Emirates, Germany's Lufthansa, Malaysia Airlines and Singapore Airlines said soon afterward that they will avoid the region as well. The FAA previously warned of a risk in the region, but Friday's warning threw into stark relief a danger that both the agency and analysts ...
European leaders remain attentive, cautious in US-Iran spat
European leaders are being guarded in their responses to the deepening tensions between the United States and Iran, urging both sides to step back from confrontation. Influential European countries have for months been steering a delicate path between Washington and Tehran, since the President Donald Trump's administration last year pulled out of a nuclear agreement with Iran which the European Union is keen to keep intact. That pact ensures Tehran's nuclear programme is restricted to civilian uses in exchange for economic assistance and was signed by Iran, the US, Russia, China, France Germany and Britain. It is at risk of collapse due to US sanctions against Iran, leaving Europeans diplomatically hamstrung by the antagonism between Washington and Tehran. European Council President Donald Tusk said Friday the bloc is urging restraint on both sides in the latest flare-up, after Iran shot down a US surveillance drone. He rejected suggestions that the EU should speak more loudly in the .
Modi to attend G20 summit in Japan
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the G-20 summit at Osaka in Japan from June 27 to June 29, announced the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Friday.Former Union minister Suresh Prabhu would be India's Sherpa at the meet, announced MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar.PM Modi is expected to hold several bilateral and multilateral meetings on the sidelines of the 14th G20 summit."For the 6th time, PM Narendra Modi will be participating in the G20 Summit in Osaka, Japan from June 27 to 29. Apart from participating at the Summit itself. PM will also have bilateral meetings. He will also participate in a few plurilateral meetings," said Raveesh Kumar.Ever since G20 was formed, India has been actively participating in the meetings. Although there are no binding commitments in the G20, it sets the agenda for multilateral trade relations. The G20 members represent two-thirds of the world's people and 85 per cent of its economy.India, Russia and China will hold a trilateral meeting on the
Raj CM Gehlot urges EC to review Model Code of Conduct
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Friday wrote a letter to the Election Commission, urging the poll body to review the system of Model Code of Conduct (MCC) by keeping in view the interests of public welfare.In a letter to Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora, Gehlot said that poll code, going forward, should be lifted from the places where elections have been already held, underlining that it obstructs the state governments to discharge their constitutional duties."It is also difficult for any elected state government to carry out even a small task even when MCC is in effect. It affects the law and order situation. The poll code should be reviewed keeping in view of public welfare," he said in the letter.The Model Code of Conduct came into effect on March 10, when the dates for the general elections were announced. It remained effective until May 26 after official results came.Gehlot said that the MCC had led to the stoppage of government work which caused problems for the
Puducherry power tussle: SC extends restrain order on Puducherry govt till July 10
The Supreme Court Friday extended its earlier order till July 10, restraining the Puducherry government from implementing any cabinet decisions having financial implications. A vacation bench of justices Deepak Gupta and Surya Kant said that the issue requires to be heard at length and therefore it is listing the plea before a regular bench. "These matters need to be heard on regular basis and we, therefore, adjourn for hearing on July 10, 2019, along with all interim applications. The interim directions to continue till the next date," the bench said. Puducherry government told the apex court that it has taken three cabinet decisions--distribution of free rice to all ration card holders in the Union Territory, renaming a department and auctioning of a sick factory. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the Puducherry government, said out of these three decisions taken, free distribution of rice to all ration card holders can be allowed as the scheme has been running for the last
Two weeks after cabinet reshuffle, Sidhu yet to take charge of power ministry
Two weeks after he was divested of his key portfolios in a cabinet reshuffle, Punjab minister Navjot Singh Sidhu is yet to take charge of the power ministry, said official sources. Meanwhile, a few posters mocking Sidhu surfaced in Mohali Friday. It has been asked in the posters as to when he would "quit politics" as he had said during electioneering in April that he would "quit if Congress president Rahul Gandhi lost from Amethi". "When are you quitting politics? Time to keep your word. We are waiting for your resignation," read a poster. It remains unclear who put up these posters on a roadside wall. In a cabinet reshuffle on June 6, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had divested Sidhu of the Local Government and Tourism and Cultural Affairs Departments and allotted him the charge of the power and new and renewable energy portfolio. In an apparent snub, Sidhu was also left out of the consultative groups formed by the chief minister two days after the cabinet reshuffle (June 8) to ...
Polluted water in Mantralaya making staff ill, says Munde
NCP leader Dhananjay Munde Friday claimed several government officials had fallen ill after drinking polluted water in Mantralaya, the state secretariat. Munde, the leader of opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Council, raised the issue in the House and called for a thorough probe. "Several officials and staff working in Mantralaya suffered nausea and some had loose motion. This is happening because they consumed polluted water at Mantralaya. It is a serious matter and must be probed thoroughly," Munde said. Revenue Minister Chandrakant Patil, who is also leader of the House, said, "We have received complaints and have also sealed water outlets from where the officials consumed water." "BMC supplies water to Mantralaya. The tanks and filters are checked and cleaned from time to time. Polluted water was found only in one corner of Mantralaya. We will take appropriate action against those responsible," he said.
BJP sees red as PM's picture missing at Yoga Day function
BJP leaders took umbrage Friday over the missing picture of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a function organized by the Congress government in Madhya Pradesh to mark International Yoga Day. The function was held at the Lal Parade ground here. BJP leader and Bhopal Mayor Alok Sharma and others noticed that the banner which served as the backdrop for the stage did not have Modi's picture on it. They brought it to the notice of School Education Minister Dr Prabhuram Choudhary who was present. "Prime minister has played a key role in getting international recognition for Yoga, because of which the United Nations has designated June 21 as Yoga Day," Sharma later told PTI, saying the banner should have featured Modi. However, state Congress spokesperson Narendra Saluja played it down, saying "it is not compulsory to put up prime minister's photograph at government programs." State BJP spokesperson Rajnish Agrawal said the missing photograph of the prime minister at the event ...
China's Xi pushes economic reform at North Korea summit
Chinese President Xi Jinping offered encouragement for North Korea's focus on economic development in a speech in Pyongyang, turning to a topic Beijing has long pressed with its Communist neighbour amid wider concerns over the North's nuclear weapons program. In an address at a banquet Thursday night, Xi noted that the nation under leader Kim Jong Un had "initiated a new strategic line of economic development and improving people's livelihoods, raising socialist construction in the country to a new high tide," according to China's official Xinhua News Agency. Xi left North Korea early Friday afternoon, Chinese state media reported. An image posted on the mobile app of state broadcaster CCTV showed people waving at his Air China Boeing 747 on the tarmac at the airport in Pyongyang. Before leaving, Xi, accompanied by Kim and their wives, laid a wreath at a memorial to Chinese soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War. China's intervention in the conflict prevented a rout of North Korean
Malaysian PM vows ahead of ASEAN to help Rohingya bound for country
Malaysia's prime minister on Friday vowed to help Rohingya Muslims seeking refuge in Malaysia, reiterating the call for Southeast Asian leaders to "stop the oppression" of the stateless minority group expelled from Myanmar. Last year Mahathir Mohamad castigated Myanmar civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' (ASEAN) meet in Singapore for defending the military's crackdown on the Rohingya. His direct condemnation of Suu Kyi was a departure from the usually staid meetings of the 10-country regional bloc, whose members normally avoid confrontation. But the crisis has spun out across the region, with desperate Rohingya taking to boats bound for Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. In recent weeks scores of Rohingya have boarded vessels for Malaysia -- a Muslim-majority country believed to be more sympathetic to their plight -- raising fears of a renewed trafficking route. Mahathir on Friday, the eve of the ASEAN summit, vowed to continue helping ...