Page 1358 - Politics
Rahul hands over 'chadar' to be offered at Ajmer Sharif Dargah
Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Monday handed over a 'chadar' to be offered at the Ajmer Sharif Dargah on the occasion of Urs of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti. Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot and senior leader Salman Khurshid were present on the occasion. Last week, Union Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi had also presented a 'chadar' on behalf of Prime Minister Modi at the Ajmer Sharif Dargah. Urs in Ajmer commemorates the death anniversary of Sufi saint Moinuddin Chishti.
Plea in SC seeks ban on roadshows, bike rallies during polls
A former DGP of Uttar Pradesh and an environmentalist have urged the Supreme Court to direct the Election Commission to ban roadshows and bike rallies during polls, saying they violate EC's instructions and cause damage to the environment. The plea, filed by former director general of police Vikram Singh and environmentalist Shaivika Agrawal, was mentioned for urgent listing on Monday before a bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and justices Deepak Gupta and Sanjiv Khanna. The bench, however, refused to accord urgent listing. In their plea, the petitioners have said roadshows and bike rallies during election period cause air and noise pollution and traffic jams which result in inconvenience to the general public. The plea, drawn by advocate Virag Gupta, said instructions issued by the Election Commission with regard to roadshows and political processions mandate that vehicles must be registered and a convoy cannot have more than 10 vehicles. As per EC's instructions, it added,
Cong to sound LS poll bugle from Modi's home state at CWC meet
The Congress is set to give final shape to its strategy for Lok Sabha elections at its working committee meeting in Ahmedabad on Tuesday and will sound the poll bugle from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state, party leaders said. The day-long meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the party's highest decision-making body, assumes significance as it comes barely two days after declaration of poll schedule for the general elections. Sources said the Congress is seeking to give a strong political message to the entire nation from the land of Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel, with the party leadership scheduled to hold a prayer meeting Sabarmati Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad, followed by the CWC meet at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel national memorial there. The CWC meeting is being held in Gujarat after a gap of 58 years. It was last held in the state at Bhavnagar in 1961. The party will also hold a public meeting in Adalaj in Gandhinagar district of Gujarat with the slogan of "Jai .
Goa: GSM announces nominees for two assembly bypolls
The Goa Suraksha Manch (GSM) floated by former state RSS chief Subhash Velingkar Monday announced candidates for upcoming assembly by-elections to two of three seats. Bypolls to Shiroda, Mandrem and Maspusa constituencies will be held along with the Lok Sabha polls in the state on April 23. Goa has two Lok Sabha seats--South Goa and North Goa. Swaroop Naik and Santosh Satarkar will contest from Mandrem and Shiroda seats, respectively, announced GSM president Atmaram Gaonkar. Both the seats were held by Congress MLAs Dayanand Sopte and Subhash Shirodkar, before they resigned last year and joined the ruling BJP. Another seat, Mapusa fell vacant due to the death of sitting BJP MLA Francis D'Souza. Gaonkar said the announcement about Mapusa seat will be made shortly. Earlier in the day, the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), an ally of the ruling BJP, announced to contest bypolls to all the three Assembly constituencies.
HC prohibits use of flex, other non-biodegradable materials
The Kerala High Court Monday prohibited the use of flex and other non-biodegradable materials for campaigning throughout the state ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. A division bench, comprising Chief Justice Hrishikesh Roy and Justice A K Jayasankaran Nambiar, gave the interim order while considering a plea seeking a ban on the use of flex and other ecologically harmful materials for the upcoming polls. In his petition, Shyaam Kumar from Aattingal in Thiruvananthapuram district sought the urgent intervention of the court to prohibit their use in the state in the ongoing election campaign. He submitted that such ecologically harmful materials would be widely used in the election campaign if there was not an urgent intervention of the court. Political parties and the candidates have already started the campaign for the elections to the 17th Lok Sabha, being conducted in seven phases across the country from April 11 to May 19.
TMC to field 10-12 new faces in LS polls: sources
At least 10-12 new faces are likely to find a place in the Trinamool Congress candidate list for Lok Sabha polls, party sources said Monday. The new faces will be fielded from the seats the party had won and also from those it had lost during the 2014 election, they said. In addition, the party will also evaluate the performance of its sitting MPs, both inside Parliament and outside, before giving them a ticket, the sources said. "At present, we have 34 MPs and out of them two have been expelled and new candidates will contest from those two constituencies," a senior TMC leader said. "We will also pitch in new candidates in two other seats where celebrities are MPs at present. New faces would replace the old candidates, except for a few, in all the eight seats that the party had lost in 2014," the leader said. The TMC, which has 34 MPs out of a total of 42 seats in the state, lost two of its lawmakers recently Soumitra Khan of Bishnupur defected to BJP and Anupam Hazra of Bolpur was .
Kerala poll body warns parties against use of Sabarimala issue in campaigning
The State Election Commission (SEC) Monday warned political parties in Kerala not to use the Sabarimala temple matter as a campaign issue. Kerala Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Teeka Ram Meena told the media here that "citing or invoking" religious propaganda on the "Sabarimala issue" would be a clear violation of the model code of conduct. "Inviting religious feelings, using any kind of Supreme Court judgement, invoking or soliciting the votes in the name of religion or by inciting religious feelings is a clear violation of the model code of conduct," he said. The CEC also said the commission would not allow any kind of violation that puts a particular political party at an advantage over another. "Citing or invoking or doing something of religious propaganda on the Sabarimala issue by invoking the name of Sabari God, etc., will be a clear violation of the model code of conduct," Meena said. He added that the Sabarimala issue was a controversial matter as far as Kerala was ...
Tibetan activists stage protest march to mark their National Uprising Day
Hundreds of Tibetan activists staged a protest march on Monday to mark the 60th anniversary of their National Uprising Day. They marched from Khan Market to the office of United Nations India in Lodhi Road and submitted a memorandum, Madhur Verma, Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) said. Around 400 activists participated in the rally, the officer said. Tibetan Uprising Day is observed on March 10 to commemorate the 1959 Tibetan uprising against the presence of the People's Republic of China in Tibet.
Won't allow Bangladeshi soil to be used by any terror outfit: Hasina assures Modi
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday assured her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi that her government would never allow the country's soil to be used by any terrorist organisation under its "zero tolerance policy". Dhaka was firmly committed to stamp out terrorism from the South Asian region through bilateral, regional and multilateral cooperation, she said after jointly inaugurating four projects in Bangladesh with Prime Minister Modi through video-conferencing. Terming the spread of radicalism as a "grave threat" not only to the two countries but to the entire region, India and Bangladesh last year resolved to step up anti-terror cooperation. "We remain steadfast in our resolve to root out the scourge of terrorism from our region and beyond through bilateral, regional and multilateral cooperation," Hasina said. The Bangladesh premier said her government would never allow Bangladesh soil to be used by any terrorist organisation under its "zero tolerance policy" against ..
Barnier says Brexit talks now between UK govt and MPs
The EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier on Monday told AFP the negotiations to break a Brexit deadlock were now between British Prime Minister Theresa May and the UK members of parliament. "We held talks over the weekend and the negotiations now are between the government in London and the Parliament in London," Barnier told AFP as he arrived at EU headquarters in Brussels to discuss Britain's exit from the bloc with envoys from the other 27 member states.
Oppn parties question staggering of LS polls in Bihar, allege
Opposition parties in Bihar on Monday questioned the Election Commissions decision to spread Lok Sabha polls in the state over seven phases and alleged that voting has been staggered with a view to enabling extensive electioneering by the ruing NDAs main crowd-puller - Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The state has only 40 Lok Sabha seats and as per the schedule announced on Sunday, only four parliamentary constituencies each will go to polls in the first couple of phases followed by five each in the next three phases. Votes will be cast in the remaining 17 in the last two phases. It is strange that the number of phases over which voting will be held in Bihar is the same as that of the neighboring Uttar Pradesh where the number of seats is twice as many. In West Bengal too, which has only 42 seats, polling will be held in seven phases, RJD national vice-president Shivanand Tiwary said here. He said even in a state like Karnataka, where voting was held in a single phase ...
Around 1.39 crore voters in electoral roll in Delhi presently; 2 lakh added since Jan this year
Ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, Delhi's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Ranbir Singh on Monday said around two lakh people have been added to the electoral roll in Delhi in the last two months, taking the total number of eligible voters to 1.39 crore at present. Singh, however said nearly 90,000 voter applications are presently being processed and asked the first-time voters to apply as soon as possible to get their names enrolled in the electoral list. The general elections will begin on April 11 and will be held over seven phases, followed by counting of votes on May 23. The elections in Delhi are due on May 12. Singh told reporters that the last date for filing nominations for Lok Sabha polls in the national capital is April 23. He said the notification would be issued on April 16 and the last date for filing nomination would be April 23. "Scrutiny will take place on April 24 and and last date for withdrawal of nomination would be April 26," he said. There are nearly 1.39 ...
Social media do's and don'ts for candidates, parties
With the Election Commission outlining stringent guidelines for social media usage during elections, political parties and candidates won't be able to post unverified advertisements, photographs of defence personnel, hate speeches and fake news on their accounts.
Will reveal my plans on March 18, says actress Sumalatha on contesting from Mandya
All set to take the political plunge, multi-lingual film actor Sumalatha said Monday she will reveal on March 18 whether she would contest the coming Lok Sabha election from Mandya constituency in Karnataka. Sumalatha, widow of celebrated Kannada actor Ambareesh, who was a three-time MP from Mandya, has disturbed the political equation with her insistence on contesting from the seat, upsetting calculations of ruling coalition partners Congress and JDS. "I believe that till the last minute anything can happen. Till it is officially announced, there is nothing to say this won't happen. I will let you know on March 18," Sumalatha told reporters in Mandya. She urged people to not give credence to speculation that Congress leaders were persuading her to not contest from Mandya. "Please don't heed to rumours about me unless I reveal it to you, given the fact that Mandya is one of the prestigious Lok Sabha seats, not only in Karnataka, but in the entire country," the actor added. She ...
Tulsi Gabbard says unsure if Syrian Prez Assad is war criminal
Democratic presidential hopeful Tulsi Gabbard, the first Hindu lawmaker in the US Congress, has said she is unsure whether Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is a war criminal. Gabbard, who met Assad in 2017, has previously drawn criticism for voicing skepticism that his regime was behind the chemical weapons attacks on civilian people. "I think that the evidence needs to be gathered and, as I have said before, if there is evidence that he has committed war crimes, he should be prosecuted as such," Gabbard said at a CNN town hall on Sunday. Gabbard also said last month that Assad is "not the enemy of the United States because Syria does not pose a direct threat to the US". Asked if she is unsure whether Assad is a war criminal, Gabbard said, "Everything that I have said requires that we take action based on evidence. (If) the evidence is there, there should be accountability". She said there had been reports showing that chemical weapons have been used in Syria, both by the Syrian ...
First-past-the-post election system outlived utility: Ex-CEC
India's first-past-the-post electoral system has outlived its utility and needs to be changed, former Chief Election Commissioner T S Krishnamurthy said Monday. This system, in which the candidate who receives the most votes wins, should be replaced by any other that political parties want after arriving at a consensus, Krishnamurthy, who oversaw the 2004 Lok Sabha elections as CEC, said. But he lamented that no party is taking any interest in any electoral reform. "I don't know what authority they have got to question (the electoral system) unless and until they come out with some plans; nobody talks about electoral reforms," Krishnamurthy said in a telephonic interview to PTI. Political parties in India are the weakest link in our democracy, he claimed and said they should get together, take initiative, and come out with some proposals for electoral reforms. "So far all the electoral reforms have come through courts. Of course, duly supported by the Election ...
Pawar quits LS race, family's third-gen to join politics
While Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) President Sharad Pawar on Monday decided to opt out of the Lok Sabha polls, the party may nominate his grand-nephew Parth Pawar from Maval constituency.
Sabarimala issue declared taboo in election campaign
The Sabarimala row, over the entry of all women to the famed shrine, has been declared a taboo subject by the Chief Electoral officer in Kerala who said on Monday that it should not be used in the election campaign.
BJP may deny ticket to half-a-dozen sitting MPs (Dangal-2019)
A day after the Election Commission announced seven-phase Lok Sabha elections, more than half-a-dozen sitting BJP MPs, including Union Ministers in Bihar, are unsure about getting the party ticket this time.
Pak-US ties set to take new turn: Qureshi
Pakistan's relations with the US are set to take a new turn due to Islamabad's behind-the-scenes role in facilitating the US-Taliban peace talks to end the 17-year-old brutal war in Afghanistan, according to Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi. Speaking to the media at an event here on Sunday, Qureshi said positive results were expected from the US-Taliban peace talks in Doha facilitated by Pakistan. He said because the Financial Action Task Force [FATF] had placed Pakistan in the grey list for not doing enough to combat terrorism and terror financing, Washington's relationship with Islamabad was not "that great". In June last year, the FATF had placed Pakistan on the grey list of countries whose domestic laws are considered weak to tackle the challenges of money laundering and terrorism financing. The Paris-based global body working to curb terrorism financing and money laundering has asked Pakistan to reassess the operation of banned terrorist outfits in the country. "But, because