Page 1807 - Politics
Ahmed Patel paid bribes to Cong MLAs during RS poll: Rajput to HC
Congress leader Ahmed Patel paid "gratification" to his party's MLAs who were not inclined to support him in the Rajya Sabha election, BJP leader Balvantsinh Rajput told the Gujarat High Court Monday. Patel had won the election by defeating Rajput in August last year. Rajput had then moved the high court seeking to quash the election acuusing the Congress leader of indulging in "corrupt practise of bribery and undue influence". In an affidavit before Justice Bela Trivedi, Rajput alleged that Patel spent Rs 18 lakh "on the entertainment of these Congress MLAs during their stay in Bangalore". "Members of Congress party were not inclined to support him (Patel)," he said, referring to media reports. "They (44 Congress MLAs) were also paid huge amounts by respondent no. 1 (Patel) or his agent or at his direction to concerned parties as gratification for casting their first preference vote for him which they accepted," the BJP leader further alleged. Congress MLAs in Gujarat had been flown .
Rahul's minimum income guarantee promise not meant to be implemented: BJP
The BJP on Monday said Congress president Rahul Gandhi's claim of ensuring minimum income guarantee if his party was voted to power was like "hundreds of other announcements" of the opposition party that were not meant to be implemented and asserted that people had seen through the opposition party's games. "The people of India know the reality of the Congress and have seen through its games," Union minister and senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said, following Gandhi's announcement at a public meeting in Chhattisgarh. He said the Congress governments did not waive farm loans in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, despite promising to do so before the Assembly polls in these states, and added that Gandhi's announcement was a "same kind of sop". "Gandhi's claim to provide minimum income guarantee for the poor is like hundreds of Congress announcements which are not meant to be implemented. His party remained in power for 58 years at the Centre and made thousands of
BJP min Hegde makes controversial Muslim remark; Rahul says, 'unfit' to be minister
A day after his "the hand that touches a Hindu girl" should be eliminated remark, Union minister Ananth Kumar Hegde on Monday called the Karnataka Congress chief "a guy who ran behind a Muslim lady", eliciting a retort from Congress president Rahul Gandhi who said the BJP leader was "unfit" to be a minister and should be sacked. Hegde attacked Karnataka Congress president Dinesh Gundu Rao, whose wife is a Muslim, after he criticised the minister for the provocative statement and questioned him about his achievements. During a meeting of Hindu Jagaran Vedike - a youth organisation of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Hegde had said, "If a hand has touched a Hindu girl, then that hand must not exist." Condemning Hegde's remark, Rao tweeted "What are your contributions for Karnataka's development? All I can say for sure, its deplorable that such people have become ministers and have managed to get elected as MPs." In a counter-attack on twitter, Hegde said,"I shall definitely answer this guy ...
IS in Syria confined to four square kilometres: commander
The Islamic State group's once-sprawling "caliphate" has been reduced to a four-square-kilometre pocket of territory in eastern Syria, a senior Kurdish commander said Monday. With support from a US-led military coalition, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are in the final stages of an assault launched more than four months ago against the jihadists' last bastion. A dwindling number of IS fighters, led mostly by Iraqi commanders, are now defending only a handful of hamlets in the Euphrates Valley, SDF commander Heval Roni said. "Geographically speaking, there are only four square kilometres left under IS control, stretching from Baghouz to the Iraqi border," he told AFP in the Baghouz area. "There are some high-ranking IS leaders among them... but we don't know who exactly," said Heval Roni, who heads SDF operations in the area. The SDF is a Kurdish-led force that also includes Arab fighters from the region and which has spearheaded the fight against IS in Syria since it was formed in
JD-U meets AGP, AASU on Citizenship Bill
Janata Dal-United (JD-U) leaders met their counterparts in the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and All Assam students Union (AASU) here on Monday and expressed their opposition to the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016.
Will not 'beg' for alliance: Fadnavis warns Shiv Sena
Hours after the Shiv Sena flexed muscles and proclaimed itself as the 'Big Brother' in Maharashtra politics, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday hit back saying the BJP will not 'beg' for an alliance with the Sena.
Amit Shah to address public meeting in Odisha Tuesday after
BJP president Amit Shah is scheduled to address a public meeting at Kulia in Cuttack distsrict Tuesday, barely three days after Congress chief Rahul Gandhi's visit to Odisha when he had fiercely attacked the saffron party as well Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Shah's meeting will cover four Lok Sabha segments-- Cuttack, Jajpur, Jagatsinghpur and Kendrapara. These four Lok Sabha seats have 28 assembly segments, said party spokesman Pitamber Acharya on Monday. He said workers from 2700 polling booths will be attending the meeting. The BJP president's visit is politically significant as he is expected to counter the allegations made by Congress president Rahul Gandhi at a public meeting at Tomando near Bhubaneswar on January 25. Gandhi had alleged that BJP and BJD continued to have secret alliance and befooling the people of Odisha. He also had charged that the BJP led NDA government was remote controlling Odisha government and its chief minister Naveen Patnaik. Shah's ...
Rahul promises minimum income guarantee for poor if Cong returns to power, calls it historic
Congress president Rahul Gandhi Monday promised his party would ensure "minimum income guarantee" for every poor person if it comes to power at the Centre, echoing the 'Garibi Hatao' ('Remove Poverty') slogan coined by his grandmother Indira Gandhi during the 1971 general elections that she won. Gandhi described as historic the Congress's decision announced by him while addressing a 'Kisaan Abhaar Sammelan' in Raipur to express gratitude to Chhattisgarh's people, particularly farmers, for voting the party to power in the state after 15 years. Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram also termed as "historic" Gandhi's announcement, saying it will mark a turning point in the lives of the downtrodden. The announcement comes four days ahead of the interim budget to be presented by the Narendra Modi government before the Lok Sabha polls due before June this year. It also follows the NDA government's decision to give 10 per cent quota to the economically backward section in the general category
Telangana govt geared for LS polls: CS to EC
The Telangana government Monday informed the Election Commission that it was fully geared to conduct the Lok Sabha elections in the state peacefully. The state administration had peacefully conducted the assembly polls in December and was ready to hold the coming Lok Sabha elections in "the same spirit", Chief Secretary S K Joshi said. All steps were being taken to conduct the Parliament election peacefully, he said during a video-conference held by the Election Commission with officials for different states on the preparedness for the Lok Sabha polls, according to an official release here. The Telangana government has won an award in providing facilities in polling stations to persons with disabilities, Joshi said. Electoral roll in the state would be published on February 22, he said. State Director General of Police Mahendar Reddy, who also took part in the discussions, said the assembly polls and two phases of Gram Panchayat elections have been peacefully conducted .
Rahul's basic income announcement to be turning point in lives of the poor: Chidambaram
Terming Rahul Gandhi's promise of a minimum income guarantee historic, former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram here said on Monday the Congress would explain in its election manifesto how it will implement the plan, which will mark a turning point in the lives of the poor.
High voter turnouts in 2 assembly seats in Haryana, Rajasthan
A high voter turnout was recorded in both Haryana's Jind and Rajasthan's Ramgarh assembly constituencies Monday, where the Congress and the BJP are locked in a battle of prestige. In the Jind assembly by-election, the turnout was recorded at over 70 per cent at 5 PM, the scheduled time for voting to end, officials said. The turnout was 78.9 per cent in Ramgarh, where the election was deferred following the death of BSP candidate Laxman Singh a few days before the December 7 assembly polls in the state, which installed a Congress-led government in place of a BJP-led dispensation. The officials said the turnout in both seats is likely to increase as there were people in queues in several booths after 5 PM. Final figures are expected later in the day or Tuesday morning, they said, adding counting of votes will take place on January 31. The election was multi-cornered in Jind in Haryana, ahead of parliamentary and assembly elections are due in later this year. All four major contenders in
Snapdeal backs India's e-commerce curbs, assures compliance
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Even as India's new e-commerce curbs sting global giants Amazon.com Inc and Walmart-owned Flipkart, their local rival Snapdeal is cheering the move.
Palestinian PM willing to quit if president Abbas wishes
Palestinian prime minister Rami Hamdallah offered to resign on Monday, as president Mahmud Abbas seeks to form a new government. The moves by Abbas are seen as part of attempts to further isolate his political rivals Hamas as a decade-long split in Palestinian politics deepens. Hamdallah has "put his government at the disposal of President Mahmud Abbas", the prime minister's spokesman Yussef al-Mahmud said in a statement. The premier later confirmed the offer during a visit to the southern West Bank city of Hebron, but denied a new government was an attempt to squeeze Hamas. "We hope that all Palestinian factions will participate in this (new) government and I appeal to the Hamas movement to participate," he said. It came after the central committee of Abbas's Fatah movement recommended late Sunday the formation of a new government that would comprise members of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO). The Islamist movement Hamas, which runs the Gaza Strip, is not part of the ...
Cong claims Gadkari's remarks aimed at PM, BJP says Union minister exposed opposition
The Congress on Monday seized on Union minister Nitin Gadkari's comments that politicians failing to fulfil dreams they sell to people are beaten up by the public to claim that those were aimed at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, even as the BJP asserted that its senior leader was only exposing the opposition party. Speaking at a function in Mumbai on Sunday, Gadkari said politicians who sold dreams to people but failed to make them a reality got "beaten up" by the public. He also asserted that he was a doer and delivered on his promises. Opposition parties claimed that his remarks were aimed at Modi, who was accused by them of making lofty promises to come to power but failing to realise them. Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari cited a Hindi proverb -- "kahin pe nigahein, kahin pe nishana" (looking at something, aiming at something else) -- to claim that Gadkari's eyes were on the prime minister's chair and his target was Modi. "I do not think this should surprise anyone. If you see ...
UK leader under new pressure to secure EU Brexit concessions
Pro-Brexit British lawmakers were mounting a campaign Monday to rescue Prime Minister Theresa May's rejected European Union divorce deal in a parliamentary showdown this week. Lawmakers threw out May's Brexit deal two weeks ago and will debate and vote Tuesday on competing plans for what to do next about Britain's impending departure from the bloc. May insists her agreement can still win parliament's backing, if it is tweaked to alleviate concerns about a provision for the Irish border. The measure, known as the backstop, would keep the U.K. in a customs union with the EU in order to remove the need for checks along the frontier between the U.K.'s Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland after Britain leaves the EU. That border is crucial to the divorce deal because it will be the only land frontier between the U.K. and the EU after Brexit. Border checkpoints have disappeared since Ireland and Britain both became members of the EU single market in the 1990s and the 1998 Good Friday ...
Mamata provides financial aid to 4300 clubs in Bengal
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday sanctioned Rs 2 lakhs each to 4,300 clubs across the state and also announced financial aid of Rs 1 lakh each for 221 sports coaching centres.
Coalition govt made India strong, majority govt gave note ban and GST: Sibal
Congress leader Kapil Sibal Monday claimed that "coalition government" made India "great and strong", while a majority government gave people demonetisation and GST. He said, "1991 (economic) liberalisation, the 'dream budget' for the year 1997-98 by Chidambaram, 'Pokhran -2' (nuclear tests in 1998), 'Quadrilateral triangle' (national highway network) under (Atal Bihari)Vajpayee, the RTI, the Right To Education, Right to Food Act... all was done during a minority govt." "What did the majority government give you? It gave you demonetisation, it gave you GST and it gave you all those programmes which are not implemented," Sibal told a packed audience at the festival. The Congress leader warned people of the "repercussions" of having a "strong" leader, who, he said, believes in "imposing own ideas", "capturing power" and "curbing dissent". "For those who say that India needs a macho guy, a Davy Crockett or Tarzan sort of leader... well, the problem with such a leader is that he wants to .
Congress MP Mausam Noor joins Trinamool Congress ahead of Lok Sabha polls
In a jolt to the Congress in West Bengal ahead of the parliamentary polls, its Malda (North) MP Mausam Noor joined the Trinamool Congress on Monday in the presence of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Noor, niece of the late Congress leader ABA Ghani Khan Choudhury, met Banerjee at state secretariat 'Nabanna' and formally joined the party. Noor is a second-term MP of the Congress. The party had bagged four out of 42 seats in the state in the last Lok Sabha polls. "I am inspired by Didi (Mamata). I'll work under her guidance for the development of the state. We have to fight against the BJP and I am quite confident that the TMC will win all the 42 seats in West Bengal in the coming Lok Sabha elections," Noor told reporters.
Rahul promises minimum income guarantee for poor if voted to power
Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Monday made a major bid to woo the poor ahead of the Lok Sabha elections by promising a minimum income guarantee for every poor person if the Congress is voted to power.
Police officials of several northern states meet to discuss security during LS polls
Senior police officials of several north Indian states Monday discussed security arrangements to be made for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, an official said. They have planned to install CCTV cameras at interstate barriers to check criminal activities during the polls, said Himachal Pradesh SP (Law and Order) Khushhal Sharma. The decision was taken at a meeting held here for better coordination among police officials of Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttrakhand and UT Chandigarh for conducting the parliamentary elections in a peaceful manner. During the meeting, the issues related to sharing information about proclaimed offenders and interstate criminals, regarding drug smuggling, carrying illicit liquor and unaccounted money during elections were discussed at length, Sharma said. The officials have planned to create WhatsApp groups of SHOs and IGs and a separate app will also be developed for getting information of drug smugglers from the public keeping their identity ...