Page 1780 - Politics
EVM issue: Oppn meeting likely on Friday
Opposition parties are likely to meet on Friday to discuss their future course of action on the EVM tampering issue. Sources said the Congress has asked opposition leaders to meet on Friday to discuss a joint strategy on the issue of EVMs, as some parties have questioned the efficacy of EVMs and demanded that the Election Commission revert to the old system of ballot paper. Various opposition parties have been claiming that only 2-3 countries across the world are using EVMs and the rest have reverted to the ballot paper system following complaints of EVM malfunctioning. The Congress, while supporting the demand for reverting to the ballot paper system, has maintained that since there is very less time left for Lok Sabha elections, the Election Commission should ensure counting of paper trail in 50 per cent booths across the country to ensure that there is no doubt in the minds of the voters. The sources said that the meeting is likely to happen after the budget is presented on ...
Jind bypoll: Counting to be held on Thursday
Counting of votes for the Jind assembly seat by-election will take place on Thursday, election department officials said here on Wednesday.
TRS to take up pending issues in Parliament: CM's daughter
TRS would take up the Telangana government's request for transfer of certain defence land here and other pending issues during the budget session of parliament beginning Thursday, party MP and Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao's daughter K Kavitha said Wednesday. She took a dig at Congress President Rahul Gandhi's promise of minimum income guarantee for every poor person if his party comes to power at the Centre in coming elections, saying the party had given 'Garibi Hatao' (remove poverty) slogan during his grandmother Indira Gandhi's tenure. Kavitha said no decision had been taken on the request for transfer of the defence lands, required by the state government for a new Secretariat complex. "We will also meet Prime Minister and ask him about all our pending problems... we have been asking for defence lands for a long time," she told reporters at Pothangal in Nizamabad district. Warning of stern action by the state government against manpower agents who cheat ...
Juncker: British vote raises risk of disorderly Brexit
EU leader Jean-Claude Juncker warned Wednesday that the British parliament's decision to demand changes to the Brexit withdrawal deal had increased the risk of a messy "no deal" divorce. "Yesterday's vote increased the risk of a disorderly withdrawal," the president of the European Commission told MEPs. "We need to be ready for all scenarios, including the worst." Speaking at a debate on the crisis for European lawmakers, the EU Commission president reiterated the EU position that the withdrawal agreement already signed last year with Prime Minister Theresa May can not be re-negotiated. And, while he said he would "work day and night" to head off the danger of a no-deal divorce, Tuesday's debate in the House of Commons had not changed anything and Europe remains united in support of the agreement. He insisted that the so-called "Irish backstop", opposed by eurosceptic British MPs, must remain in the deal as an insurance against the return of a hard border on Ireland and against ...
After 'Hindu girl' row, Ananth Kumar Hegde's 'hybrid breed' attack on Rahul Gandhi
Union minister Ananth Kumar Hegde, whose comments have often triggered controversies, on Wednesday called Congress president Rahul Gandhi a "hybrid breed", saying how can son of a "Muslim" father and Christian mother be a Brahmin. He also hit out at Gandhi for his repeated allegations targeting the Narendra Modi government over the Rafale deal. Addressing an event in Uttara Kannada district, Hegde said: "...they have no sense about religion. See how much they lie, father is a Muslim, mother a Christian, son is Brahmin. How did it come?" "You cannot get such hybrid breed in any laboratory in the world, it is available in our country's Congress laboratory only," he said, attacking Gandhi. A priest at the Pushkar lake in Rajasthan, who presided over the puja offered by Gandhi during the poll campaign there, had said that the Congress president's gotra was 'Duttatreya' and he was a Kashmiri Brahmin. Hegde's comments come days after he said at an event at Madikeri that a hand that touches .
Next select committee meets on Friday to choose CBI chief: Kharge
Congress Leader Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday said the next meeting of the Select Committee headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be held on Friday to choose new CBI Director.
US, China begin trade talks
The US and Chinese officials returned to the negotiating table Wednesday to finalise a bilateral trade agreement which would address President Donald Trump's major concerns with regard to China in particular the massive trade deficit and theft of intellectual properties. US Trade Representatives Robert Lighthizer is leading the American delegation, while the Chinese team is headed by Vice Premier Liu He. The two delegations were seen talking to each other in a friendly atmosphere. "Now the dinner between the two presidents, if you were to the right you became famous, if you were to the left, you weren't in the picture," Lighthizer said, referring to the dinner between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Argentina on December 1 on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit. The two leader, during the summit, set March 1, 2019 as the deadline to find a solution to the bruising trade war under which Trump has imposed over USD 250 billion worth of Chinese exports. Trump threatened to slap ...
EC full bench arrives to review poll-preparedness in Bengal
The full bench of the Election Commission led by Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora arrived here Wednesday evening to review the preparedness of the Lok Sabha election in the state, sources at the Chief Electoral Officer's office said. The poll panel will hold a series of meetings with all political parties, officials of the CEO's office and nodal officers of all state and Central police force on Thursday. On the same day, the team will also meet District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police of all the districts to review law and order and preparation for the polls, the sources said. The full bench would meet the chief secretary, home secretary, director general of police (DGP) and other senior officials of the state on Friday. It would also meet the expenditure officers of all central government departments, besides the officials of lead banks, railways and airports in the state. The bench led by the CEC will also hold a press conference before leaving here, the
Senate finance chair says tariffs on steel, aluminum should go
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley on Wednesday called on the Trump administration to lift tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada and Mexico before Congress begins considering legislation to implement the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) trade deal.
Saudi Crown Prince likely to visit India next month
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is planning to visit India next month in the wake of criticism by the international community over his handling of the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the country's mission in Turkey last year, media reported on Wednesday.
EVMs cannot be tampered with: CEC
Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora Wednesday said the Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) have been in use for nearly two decades and it cannot be tampered with. "I had earlier said, and I once again say that these machines cannot be tampered with," he told a press conference here when asked about the concerns raised over EVMs functioning. "No political party raised the issue during the meeting," said Arora, who met several stakeholders, including leaders of political parties during his team's two-day visit to Jharkhand. The EVMs are in use for nearly two decades, the CEC added. Asked whether there are any chances of simultaneous polls of the Lok Sabha and the Jharkhand Assembly, the CEC said there was neither formal nor informal information about it and he did not like to give an imaginary reply to the query. Referring to Tuesday's incident in which five ultras of the PLFI were killed during an encounter in Jharkhand, Arora said after reviewing the overall law and order machinery .
Assam to build museum to showcase heritage of Matak community
Assam Government will build a museum after the name of the first ruler of the Matak Kingdom -- Sarbananda Singha -- to showcase the cultural, social, and spiritual heritage associated with the community. Chief Minister Sarbanandna Sonowal announced the decision, after a meeting with five organisations belonging to the Matak community here on Wednesday. The museum will come up at Chabua in upper Assam. In the meeting, the organisations submitted a memorandum consisting of various demands, which the CM assured of fulfilling in phases. Sonowal said that granting ST status to the Matak community is in advanced stage of implementation, and the state government will prepare a road map for the preservation of its heritage sites. The chief minister also said that in acknowledgement of the role played by Rupahi Gavoru of the community, the Assam government would set up a woman skill development centre after her name.
Hazare on fast on graft, farm issues; refuses to meet minister
Social activist Anna Hazare Wednesday launched a fresh round of hunger strike in support of his demand for appointment of anti-corruption watchdogs at the Centre and in Maharashtra and resolution of farm issues as he declined to meet a state minister for talks. Hazare in the morning offered prayers at the Padmavati Temple in his native village Ralegan Siddhi in Ahmednagar district of western Maharashtra. The octogenarian activist, a veteran of many a fast in the past, then went in a procession, accompanied by students, youths and farmers, to the Yadavbaba Temple and sat near it to begin his indefinite hunger strike. Hazare is protesting "non-fulfilment" of assurances by the Centre and the Maharashtra government on the appointment of Lokpal and passage of the Lokayukta Act in the state. The Army man-turned-activist has also been demanding appointment of Lokayuktas in states where such statutory anti-corruption watchdogs do not exist. The anti-corruption crusader told PTI that he ...
Civilian flight operations likely to start from Hindon airbase in March
Civilian flight operations from Hindon airbase is likely to start from March, a government official said Wednesday. The Indian Air Force has already permitted use of the airbase for civilian flights under the regional air connectivity scheme UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik). Flights under the UDAN are expected to start operating from Hindon airbase from the first week of March, the official said. The move is also expected to help in reducing the load at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) in the national capital. UDAN seeks to connect unserved and underserved airports as well as make flying more affordable. Last week, the Civil Aviation Ministry announced awarding 235 routes under the third round of UDAN.
Cong says no politics on Parrikar meeting, claims ex-def minister in catch-22 situation on Rafale
The Congress on Wednesday said Rahul Gandhi was not playing any politics over his meeting with ailing former defence minister Manohar Parrikar and the BJP leader was caught in a "catch-22 situation" over the Rafale deal. Congress spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi defended Rahul Gandhi after Parrikar, who is Goa Chief Minister, wrote to the Congress president accusing him of using his courtesy visit to "feed political opportunism". "With all due respect to Manohar Parrikar ji, I think we should maintain the basic courtesies of reaching out to our opposition leaders at the time of their illness and in case Shri Rahul Gandhi who went on record to tweet for Shri Arun Jaitley's better health. So, I don't understand where politicisation comes into it," she told reporters when asked about Gandhi talking in public about his private visit to Parrikar. The Congress spokesperson said Parrikar has often been "caught unawares" on how to respond to entire the Rafale deal. "This is not once, twice or
BJP will repeat 2014 election performance in 2019 polls: Adityanath
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Wednesday predicted that the upcoming parliamentary elections will see the BJP repeat its performance in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and 2017 assembly elections in the state. Addressing a meeting of booth chairmen of the party's Awadh unit here, which was also attended by BJP president Amit Shah, Adityanath said, "This is a Kumbh of party workers. The victory flag of the 2017 and 2014 elections will be hoisted in 2019 as well." State BJP chief Mahendra Nath Pandey said Uttar Pradesh had become backward due to the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party alternatively coming to power in the state. "After the BJP came to power, Uttar Pradesh became the focus of national politics," he said. Pandey claimed that in the 23-party anti-BJP alliance, there are 13 claimants for the prime minister's post. He said the 2019 Lok Sabha elections will be a battle between public welfare and the opposition's dynastic politics. Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief ...
Was Rahul's courtesy meeting to Parrikar taped?
Two Goa BJP officials on Wednesday hinted that Congress President Rahul Gandhi's now controversial "courtesy visit" on Tuesday to meet ailing Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar may have been video recorded.
Peace and tranquility along border prerequisite for smooth ties with China: India
India has once again underlined the importance of maintaining peace and tranquility along the border with China as a prerequisite for "smooth" development of overall ties between the two countries. Both sides reviewed the situation along the border Tuesday during the 13th meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) on India-China Border Affairs, the Ministry of External Affairs said. It said the two sides reviewed the progress on implementation of various confidence building measures (CBMs) to enhance mutual trust and understanding. "The Indian side reiterated the importance of maintaining peace and tranquility in the border areas as a prerequisite to smooth development of overall bilateral relations," the MEA said. The WMCC was established in 2012 as an institutional mechanism for consultation and coordination for management of India-China border areas as well as to exchange views on strengthening communication, including between the border security ...
BJP twisting facts for political gains: Congress on Parrikar's letter to Rahul
While BJP tore into Rahul Gandhi's claim about former Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar's statement that Prime Minister changed the Rafale fighter jet deal without informing him, the Congress on Wednesday rose in defence of the party president and said the saffron party was twisting facts for political benefits.Talking to ANI, Congress spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi said Rahul had made the comment about Parrikar's lack of involvement in Rafale deal based on various interviews which Parrikar gave to media when he was the defence minister.Parrikar, the Goa Chief Minister had slammed Rahul Gandhi and said he felt let down that the Congress president used the courtesy visit to him for 'petty political games'.In a letter to the Congress President, Parrikar asserted that the Rafale issue was not even mentioned during the five minutes that Gandhi spent at his office yesterday."I find it extremely unfortunate that the BJP for their own political benefits is trying to connect a personal ...
People full of negativity raise questions over govt initiatives: PM Modi
People full of negativity have raised questions over different initiatives of the government without realising that small steps lead to big changes, asserted Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday while addressing a public rally here."In the last four-and-half years some people have asked all kinds of questions. I want to remind you all the statements that were made during this period - Does constructing toilets bring any change? Is it the work of the Prime Minister to get involved in the cleaning process? Does gas connection change lives? Does opening bank accounts make the poor rich?"Prime Minister Modi said while delivering a speech after dedicating the Salt Satyagraha Memorial to the nation.He added, "The country won't forget these dialogues. Such questions were raised by people who are full of negativity. They must know that big change comes only with small changes in little habits and things".In September 2018, Congress president Rahul Gandhi had termed Prime Minister Modi's .