Page 1794 - Politics
BJP accuses Prajwal Revanna of using govt car for personal use
The BJP's Karnataka unit Tuesday accused former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda's grandson Prajwal Revanna of using a government car for personal use and described the act as an insult to tax payers. JDS leaders were not immediately available for comment. The BJP posted a video of Prajwal Revanna, who is also JD(S) general secretary , purportedly travelling in a car, with a sticker 'Karnataka Government' pasted on it. " Someone's tax money, Deve Gowda's grandchildren are having fun," BJP said in a tweet in Kannada. "Super CM Sri.H D Revannas son uses govt (sic) cars for personal use. A classic example of what dynasty rule can do to any state. These acts by former PM Sri.Deve Gowdas family members is an insult to the tax payers," it said. Reports suggest that the incident happened at Deve Gowdas parliamentary constituency of Hassan, where Prajwal met party workers. While Prajwal doesn't hold any government position, his father H D Revanna, Gowda's elder son and senior JDS ...
China falls in corruption rankings despite Xi's anti-graft campaign: report
President Xi Jinping's high profile anti-graft campaign has not made much of a dent as China's ranking on perceived corruption has fallen to 87, below India's 78, according to the annual index by global watchdog Transparency International. Xi, who took over power towards the end of 2012 and is currently in his second five-year term as president, has made fighting corruption in the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) and the military a major objective of his rule. Over 1.3 million officials at various levels including former security czar, Zhou Yongkong, and over 50 top generals of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), including two vice chairmen of the Central Military Commission (CMC) - the overall high command of the Chinese military - have been sacked and punished. The campaign was also carried out amid allegations that Xi effectively used it to consolidate his power base within the party and the military. China slipped by 10 ranks to 87th place in Transparency International's 2018
Maha Cong discusses probable candidates for 26 LS seats
The Congress in Maharashtra Tuesday began discussions on a list of probable candidates for 26 Lok Sabha constituencies in the state, which includes Manikrao Thakre, Milind Deora and Rohidas Patil. A two-day meeting of the party's state election committee started here Tuesday. The list will be sent to the party's central scrutiny committee which will forward it to the All India Congress Committee for finalisation, a party source said here. The state unit will suggest three names for every seat, he said. Names of former legislative council deputy chairman Manikrao Thakre (for Yavatmal-Washim constituency) and senior leader Rohidas Patil (for Dhule) figure in the list, sources claimed. The list names Milind Deora for Mumbai South constituency, sources said. For Mumbai North-Central, there are three names in the list: Mohammed Arif Naseem Khan, Kripashankar Singh and Priya Dutt. Dutt, a former MP, has announced she will not contest this time, though Congress leaders are ...
Syria-Iran deal to counter 'economic war' from West: Assad
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad Tuesday hailed an economic deal with key ally Iran as a bulwark against what he described as an "economic war" waged by the West. Assad spoke the day after the allies signed a string of agreements including a long-term "economic cooperation" deal ahead of reconstruction in the war-torn country. "These deals... will help consolidate Syrian and Iranian resilience against the economic war waged against them by some Western states," the presidency quoted him as saying. Assad called for "intensifying common efforts to stave off these countries that keep trying to weaken both countries", it said. The United States has reimposed sweeping sanctions on Iran, while it and the European Union have also blacklisted several Damascus officials and Syrian businessmen. The 11 deals and memoranda of understanding signed on Monday covered fields including the economy, culture, education, infrastructure, investment and housing. They were signed during the visit of Iran's .
TMC issues defamation notice to Amit Shah for remarks against Mamata Banerjee
Senior TMC leader Chandrima Bhattacharya Tuesday issued a defamation notice to BJP national president Amit Shah for his remarks against West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. At a rally in East Midnapore district's Kanthi, Shah launched a scathing attack against the TMC government in West Bengal and alleged that Banerjee's paintings were bought by chit fund owners for crores of rupees. Bhattacharya, who is also the minister of state for health in West Bengal government, accused Shah of trying to malign the TMC supremo's image by "uttering lies". "I have issued a defamation notice against BJP national president Amit Shah for his defamatory and malicious remarks against Mamata Banerjee," she said. "I want to ask him on what basis he had made those comments against our party leader. He has to either give evidence in support of his statements or apologise publicly for his comments. If he doesn't do it we will take legal steps against him," she said.
Security of BSP MLA strengthened following threat calls
The Jharkhand government Tuesday strengthened the security of Bahujan Samaj Party MLA Kushwaha Shivpujan Mehta. The BSP MLA Tuesday informed the Jharkhand Assembly Speaker Dinesh Oraon that he has been receiving phone calls demanding extortion and threat to life. Additional Director General of Police (Operation) M L Meena told reporters that a case has been lodged and investigation has begun to trace the threat calls made to the BSP MLA. The ADGP also informed that the security of the BSP MLA has been strengthened.
Study: Corruption levels linked to health of democracies
Countries like Hungary and Turkey are growing more corrupt as they become more autocratic, and threats to the American system of checks and balances have knocked the US out of the top 20 "cleanest" countries, according to a closely watched annual survey released Tuesday. Watchdog group Transparency International said its Corruption Perceptions Index for 2018 showed more than two-thirds of countries scoring below 50, on its scale where 100 is very clean and zero is very corrupt. With a score of 71, the US lost four points over 2017 and dropped out of the top 20 nations for the first time since 2011. "A four point drop in the CPI score is a red flag and comes at a time when the US is experiencing threats to its system of checks and balance, as well as an erosion of ethical norms at the highest levels of power," the Berlin-based organization said. "If this trend continues, it would indicate a serious corruption problem in a country that has taken a lead on the issue globally this is a ...
BJP targets Mamata Banerjee after attack on its workers in West Bengal
The BJP today alleged that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has unleashed "terror" on its workers after the "huge" rally of party president Amit Shah in the state left her "very worried". BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra claimed the state's ruling Trinamool Congress had targeted vehicles carrying BJP workers after Shah's rally. The TMC on the other hand claimed that BJP workers had attacked a local TMC party office in Kanthi and vandalised it. Irked TMC supporters had then retaliated and clashes broke out, they said. Sources in the two parties said three persons were injured in the clashes that broke out following Shah's rally at Kanthi in East Midnapore district . No confirmation was available from the police. "A very worried Mamata Banerjee has unleashed terror on BJP workers and ordinary people. It is clear that she has lost the mandate," Patra claimed at a press conference, alleging that "Talibani forces" are at work in the state at the TMC's behest. Attacking the chief ...
Opposition need not project PM face, UPA did well without one: Pawar
NCP supremo Sharad Pawar on Tuesday said there was no need to think about the prime ministerial candidate of the proposed grand alliance of opposition parties before the Lok Sabha polls. The previous Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government had done well, though the coalition had not projected anybody as its leader before the 2004 general election, he said. Pawar was among the opposition leaders who attended a mega rally organised by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata earlier this month. "There is no need to think about the prime ministerial candidate now," the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief told reporters here. "We (UPA) had not declared a candidate before the 2004 election. But we managed to give a successful government for 10 years," he said, when asked who would be the grand alliance candidate for the top post. "What we are trying to do in the grand alliance is to stand behind a strong party in each state. For instance, in Tamil Nadu, ...
'Parrikar clearly stated that he has nothing to do with new
: Targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Rafale deal, Congress President Rahul Gandhi Tuesday claimed that former Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had clearly stated that he has nothing to do with the 'new deal.' "Friends, the ex-defence minister Mr Parrikar clearly stated that he has nothing to do with the new deal that was orchestrated by Mr Narendra Modi to benefit Anil Ambani," he told a booth-level party workers meeting here. His statement came hours after he met Parrikar, now Goa Chief Minister, at the state assembly complex in Panaji. The Congress President,however, did not clarify whether the issue was discussed duringhis meeting with Parrikar, who is suffering from a pancreatic ailment. Gandhi made the remarks a day after he alleged that the "Goa audio tapes", cited by the Congress to attack the Centre on the Rafale issue, were authentic and that Parrikar was in possession of "explosive secrets" that give him power over Prime Minister Narendra ...
Hazare to launch hunger strike from Wednesday on Lokpal
Social activist Anna Hazare has announced that he would launch a hunger strike from Wednesday over the "non-fulfillment" of assurances by the Centre and the Maharashtra government on the appointment of Lokpal and passage of Lokayukta Act in the state respectively. In his letter to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, dated January 28, Hazare said he would launch the agitation in his village Ralegan Siddhi in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra. Meanwhile, the Fadnavis Cabinet Tuesday decided to bring the office of Maharashtra Chief Minister under the jurisdiction of Lokayukta. Maharashtra Minister Girish Mahajan, who has been acting as an emissary between the government and the activist, urged Hazare to cancel the agitation, claiming that almost all the demands made by the activist have been fulfilled. Hazare, however, said he would not call off the agitation till the Lokayukta Act becomes a reality. Apart from the appointment of Lokpal at the national level and Lokayukta in
TN a heaven for George Fernandes during emergency
George Fernandes found refuge in Tamil Nadu during the infamous emergency in 1975 and worked form a house here. "Tamil Nadu was like a sanctuary to several leaders from North India during the emergency and Kalaignar (M Karunanidhi) was the Chief Minister during that period," DMK spokesperson K S Radhakrishnan said recalling Fernandes' stay here then. Fernandes, who died Tuesday, was very close to late Karunanidhi, he said. Karunanidhi opposed the emergency and the DMK government led by him was dismissed on January 31, 1976. "During the emergency period, Fernandes worked without attracting anyone's attention from a house near Foreshore Estate and when he went to Kolkata by train from Chennai, he was arrested," Radhakrishnan told PTI. When Karunanidhi was arrested in 2001 during the AIADMK regime, Fernandes, who was then the convener of the National Democratic Alliance, had visited the DMK patriarch at the Central Prison here and then Union Minister Murasoli Maran at a ...
HC quashes Mizoram govt's prolonged liquor ban order
The Aizawl bench of the Gauhati High Court Tuesday quashed the order of the Mizoram government banning sales of liquor from December 21 to March 1, and instructed it to allow vendors to sell alcohol as per the validity of their licences. The sitting judge, Justice Michael Zothankhuma, found the orders of the Commissioner of Excise and Narcotics department declaring the "dry days" for an extended period as "arbitrary" and set the order aside. The judge ordered the state government to allow the owners of the three bonded warehouses to import liquor on the basis of permits and the retail vendors to sell liquor as per the validity of their licences issued under the Mizoram Liquor (Prohibition and Control) Act, 2014. The government's contention that the prolonged dry days were declared due to observance of the Republic Day on January 26 and 'Chapchar Kut', the most prominent traditional festival of the Mizos on March 1, was not accepted by the court saying that the state government could ..
Fissures in UP cabinet, minister skips meeting at Kumbh
Uttar Pradesh minister Om Prakash Rajbhar Tuesday stayed away from the state cabinet meeting held at the Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj, alleging the issues raised by him were "ignored" by the government. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and almost all his senior ministers took a dip at the Sangam following the unique cabinet meeting at the venue of the Kumbh Mela itself. "I did not go to the cabinet meeting as the issues I have been raising are sidelined and other issues are taken up," Rajbhar said. On whether he would participate in the future cabinet meetings, the minister said it would depend on the course of action adopted by the Adityanath government on the matter raised by him. The Backward Classes Welfare and Department of Disabled People minister has been demanding that a part of the Other Backward Class (OBC) quota in government jobs and higher educational institutions be earmarked for the most backward castes and 'Mahadalits'. The Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) chief also ...
Himachal Cong calls Rahul Gandhi's income guarantee proposal 'unique'
Congress president Rahul Gandhi's minimum income guarantee (MIG) proposal for the poor is a unique plan, the party's Himachal general secretary, organisation, Rajneesh Kimta said Tuesday. Talking to mediapersons here, Kimta said, "If Congress is voted to power in the upcoming Parliamentary elections, the MIG scheme will be implemented for the poor." Earlier, late prime minister Indira Gandhi had launched a poverty eradication programme and former prime minister Manmohan Singh had implemented MGNREGA during Congress governments, he recalled. "Senior party leader Kuldeep Singh Rathore has been touring the state after assuming charge as Himachal Congress president. He has already toured eight districts in three Parliament segments," Kimta said. The party has got new direction and strength which will ensure victory in all four HP Lok Sabha seats, he added.
Govt plea on Ayodhya land: BJP sees it as step towards building Ram temple
Weeks before the national elections, BJP leaders on Tuesday sought to present the central government's move to return undisputed land in Ayodhya to its original owners, including Ram Janambhoomi Nyas, as a step towards starting "work" on building a Ram temple in the holy city of Uttar Pradesh. With the RSS-led Hindutva organisations pushing for a law to build the temple at the disputed site, a BJP leader said the government's plea in the Supreme Court is an attempt to redress the "deep sense of anguish of Ram devotees and the BJP cadres". The comments came hours after the Centre asked the Supreme Court to allow it to return the "non-disputed" surplus land acquired around the disputed structure in Ayodhya to the Nyas and other original owners. The leader recalled that the biggest applaud the BJP president Amit Shah's speech in the party's recent convention had received from thousands of delegates was when he reiterated the party's commitment to the temple construction. Prime Minister ..
Bhagwant Mann to take charge as AAP's Punjab chief again
Aam Aadmi Party's Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann will take charge as chief of its Punjab unit on Wednesday, a party spokesman said. The occasions will happen in presence of Delhi deputy chief minister and party's in-charge of Punjab affairs Manish Sisodia, he said. Last Friday,Punjab unit of the AAP unanimously rejected the Mann's resignation as state party chief, which he tendered last year following party supremo Arvind Kejriwal's apology to former Akali Dal minister. Mann resigned after Kejriwal's apology to SAD leader Bikram Singh Majithia drew flak from state unit leaders. In his apology, Kejriwal had said he learnt that his allegations against Majithia were unfounded.
Pak facilitating peace talks US and Taliban: Qureshi
Pakistan is facilitating the ongoing peace talks between the US and the Taliban as a shared responsibility and in good faith, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi told Russia's Special Representative on Afghanistan. Qureshi held talks with Zamir Kabulov, Russia's Special Representative on Afghanistan, in Islamabad during which he appreciated the growing international consensus on the need to settle the decades old conflict through political process. "Pakistan is facilitating the ongoing talks between the US and the Taliban as a shared responsibility and in good faith," Qureshi told Kabulov. Qureshi also hoped that the talks will result in an intra-Afghan dialogue leading to lasting peace in the country. Highlighting the role of neighbours and the regional countries in the peace process, he lauded the important contributions Russia had made in the Afghan peace process including through Moscow Format of Consultations. Appreciating close coordination and regular engagements on regional .
George Fernandes was a fearless leader: Raghubar Das
Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das Tuesday hailed former Defence minister and socialist leader George Fernandes as a fearless leader and strong voice for the poor. Fernandes died at New Delhi on Tuesday at the age of 88. He was suffering from Alzheimer's disease, which had forced him out of the public eye for several years. In his condolence message, Das said Fernandes had provided the best leadership to the country, was a fearless leader and strong voice for the poor. Fernandes took important initiatives for the Indian Army for its betterment when he was the Defence minister, Das said. Former chief ministers Shibu Soren and Hemant Soren also expressed their sorrow at the death of Fernandes. In his condolence message, former Jharkhand minister Ramchandra Kesri said that he lost a leader "with whom he had worked for a long time.
Stop thinking of conquering Bengal, concentrate on defending BJP govt at Centre: TMC to Shah
The Trinamool Congress leadership on Tuesday told BJP president Amit Shah to stop thinking of "conquering Bengal" and instead concentrate on defending the party's government at the Centre. The TMC was reacting to Shah's diatribe against the TMC government and his vow to uproot it at a rally in Kanthi in East Midnapore district. Hitting out at the BJP national president, senior TMC leader and state minister Suvendu Adhikari said, "Amit Shah is daydreaming. The BJP should first concentrate on defending its government at the Centre. The people of this country have already made up their mind to vote them out." "They (BJP) should stop lecturing others on democratic values and people's rights. Had they provided good governance, they would not have been voted out in three Hindi heartland states (Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh in the December Assembly polls)", he said. Reacting to Shah's allegation that TMC supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's paintings were ...