Page 1863 - Politics
Indian Army to brief Defence Ministry on restructuring plans
Initiated by Army Chief Gen Bipin Rawat, the reorganisation aims to turn the Army into a lean and mean fighting force."Senior Army officers of Lieutenant General rank will make a presentation to the senior level officers of the Defence Ministry about the studies done by the different directorates of the Army," sources in the Army said here.The Defence Ministry and the Army Headquarters have ordered separate studies to facilitate restructuring and resizing of 1.2 million-strong Army to save money for modernisation of the forces.The matter has also been discussed at the level of the Chairman, Chiefs of Staffs Committee.The three services chief also held a meeting recently to discuss tri-services issues.The mammoth drill of reorganising the Army is based on four comprehensive studies led by the army's topmost generals.The plan is expected to change the complexion and direction of the 1.2 million- strong force and transform it into a deadlier fighting machine fully prepared for future ...
Syed Shuja's EVM tampering allegation serious, must be probed: Kapil Sibal
Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal on Tuesday reiterated the claims made by 'cybersecurity expert' Syed Shuja in London and called for a free and fair investigation in the issue."There is a man who has made some serious allegations backed by an email which has been sent to me by Ashish Ray. He has stated that he has got political asylum from the United Kingdom government. Stating that he was working on a project along with 12 other people, he has alleged that immediately after elections they were called to a guest house where 11 people were shot," said Sibal."We have only one request that a proper investigation must be done. If a person is alleging that 11 people have been murdered then an FIR should be filed in this case. If someone has got political asylum in a country, it must be seen as to what the reason behind it is," added Sibal while raising his demand for free and fair investigation on these allegations.Sibal who was also present at the London event yesterday claimed that he .
EC files police complaint against man who claimed 2014 polls were rigged
The Election Commission on Tuesday lodged a complaint with the police against Syed Shuja who has claimed that the 2014 Lok Sabha elections were rigged by hacking the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
BJP will win 30 out of 40 seats in Bihar in Lok Sabha polls: Union minister R K Singh
Union minister R K Singh Tuesday exuded confidence that the BJP will win 30 out of 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar, saying the opposition parties joined hands to brave the saffron party's storm. Singh, the Union power minister, said household and village electrification would be a matter of public discourse in the upcoming polls because the government has met the tall order. "In Bihar, BJP will win 30 out of 40 Lok Sabha seats in the next elections," Singh said at an interaction with media persons. "Everyone knows that if they contest separately, they will be blown off. It is like all the people holding hands to stand to brave the (BJP) storm (in elections) and (if they contest) by themselves they all will be blown off," the minister said. Singh is a BJP lawmaker from Bihar. He steered the household electrification scheme Saubhagya and other power sector reforms. He said,"They all know that if they contest elections together then only few of them will be able to survive (in elections). I .
Shah's Malda speech shows BJP's nervousness: TMC
The Trinamool Congress described BJP chief Amit Shah's speech in Malda on Tuesday as being "low on facts and poor in taste", saying it seemed the saffron party had become nervous and realised that its days were numbered. "After listening to the BJP president's speech in Malda, it's obvious that they are very nervous. They know their days are numbered. They are politically-scared. Their speeches are low on facts and poor in taste," TMC spokesperson Derek O'Brien said. "They (BJP) don't understand the ethos of India. They don't understand the ethos of Bengal. They are heading towards one big zero (in West Bengal in the general election)," he said. "Some are saying they are desperate, some are saying they have gone mad... or is it a combination of both?" the TMC leader asked. Earlier in the day, Shah kick-started the Bharatiya Janata Party's Lok Sabha polls campaign in West Bengal with a rally in Malda, where he vowed to overthrow the Mamata Banerjee government and said Bengali refugees .
BJD will perform extremely well in upcoming LS, assembly polls: Patnaik
BJD president and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik claimed Tuesday that the ruling party would perform "extremely well" in the upcoming Lok Sabha and assembly elections. "I am sure that the Biju Janata Dal will do extremely well in the forthcoming elections," Patnaik told reporters at the state secretariat here. His statement came two days after BJP's national general secretary Bhupender Yadav claimed that the saffron party would form government in Odisha on its own. BJP's secretary Suresh Pujari had claimed that the party would sweep the polls in the western district and bag all the 40 assembly seats in the region. Patnaik, four-time chief minister, will lead his regional party to the elections with the anti-incumbency factor. The BJD, however, has overcome the anti-incumbency keeping in view the results of by-elections and local body polls. The term of the present Odisha Assembly will end on June 11. At present, the BJD has 118 MLAs in the 147-member Odisha Assembly. The ...
Togadia to form party on Feb 9
Antarrashtriya Hindu Parishad President Praveen Togadia on Tuesday said he will launch a new political party on February 9 in New Delhi.
Large business team to accompany Ramaphosa to India
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who will be the Chief Guest at the Republic Day celebrations, will be accompanied by a high-level delegation, including a 50-member business team, when he travels to India on January 25-26.
JK guv accuses political parties of politicising R-day order
Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik Tuesday accused political parties of politicising an order mandating government employees to attend the Republic Day celebrations and said he stood by the order which was being issued since 2009. Malik said there was nothing wrong in the order. "I stand by this. This is not a new order. It has been issued since2009. This was there before me. Every year the same order is issued, not even with a change of comma or full stop," he said. "I have the orders from 2009 to 2018 with me", he said. As per the order issued by the state administration on January 15, employees were warned that failure to attend the function will be construed as dereliction of duty and disobedience. "It is the duty of every government servant to attend the (Republic Day) function which commemorates an important turning point in the history of our nation," stated the order issued by Deputy Secretary Chander Prakash. "All the officers and officials of the state government ...
Trinamool tried to stop people from attending Shah's Malda rally: BJP
The BJP Tuesday said attempts were made by the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal to prevent people from attending its president Amit Shah's rally in the state, claiming that wind of change is blowing there. "Why is Mamata Banerjee scared? She called herself a fighter, who fought against the Left rule in the state. So why she is scared in fighting the BJP," Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said at a press conference. Shah addressed a rally in Malda, and Prasad said vehicles carrying the BJP's workers and supporters were stopped by the ruling party in an attempt to prevent them from attending it. Targeting Banerjee, he said the Congress used to make similar attempts to foil political programmes of opposition leaders before and during the Emergency but everybody knows what happened. The Congress was defeated in the general election in 1977, which was held after the Emergency was lifted. "Mamata Banerjee should know. She was then in the Congress. Wind of change is blowing across .
AP CM says EVMs turning out to be big threat to democracy
Pitching for reverting to the ballot paper system, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu Tuesday claimed hackers had "proved" that electronic voting machines (EVMs) could be tampered. Naidu, the president of the Telugu Desam Party, said the EVMs were turning out to be a "big threat" to democracy and advised his party rank and file to be alert in view of the claims by "hackers". In a teleconference with his party leaders, he demanded that the Election Commission seek opinion of all political parties and revert to the paper ballot system immediately. His comments come a day after a self-proclaimed Indian cyber expert claimed in London that the EVMs could be hacked and that the 2014 parliamentary election was "rigged". Reacting to the claim, the EC asserted it firmly stood by "empirical facts about foolproof nature" of its machines and said it was examining as to what legal action "can and should" be taken in the matter. Naidu said leaders of 22 parties would meet the ...
Modi will return to power: SNDP
A leading leader of the Hindu Ezhava community in Kerala, Vellapally Natesan, said on Tuesday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will return to power in the coming Lok Sabha elections.
Rahul Gandhi on two-day Amethi visit from Wednesday
Congress president Rahul Gandhi will arrive here Wednesday on a two-day visit to his parliamentary constituency, a party leader said. During his stay, Gandhi is scheduled to meet representatives of gram panchayats at Fursatganj. He will also take part in the swearing-in of newly elected Bar members in Gauriganj, his representative Chandrakant Dubey said. Gandhi will address a 'nukkad sabha' at Haliyapur and stay the night at Bhueymau guest house, where he will meet party workers on the second day of his visit before leaving for Delhi, Dubey said. Gandhi was scheduled to visit Amethi on January 4 but it was cancelled due to the Winter session of Parliament. His visit would have clashed with Union Minister Smriti Irani's Amethi trip, which was also scheduled for the same day and was being seen as the first major political face-off ahead of the general elections. Meanwhile, the proposed visit of UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi to her Lok Sabha constituency Rae Bareli has been cancelled, her
Israel, US test ballistic missile interceptor
The Israeli and US defence ministries said Tuesday they had successfully tested ballistic missile interceptors deployed at Israeli airbases. The tests came a day after the latest deadly exchange of fire between Israel and Iranian forces operating in Syria. The Arrow 3 interceptor system, designed to shoot down missiles above the atmosphere, was deployed at air force bases across Israel two years ago. An Israeli defence ministry statement said Tuesday that the system's radars had detected the target, a replica missile launched from central Israel. "At the right moment, the Arrow 3 interceptor was launched toward the target and successfully completed its mission," it said. Arrow 3 is intended to serve as Israel's highest-altitude missile interception system. Systems for intercepting incoming missiles at lower altitudes are either already deployed or close to becoming operational. In December, Israel's arch-enemy Iran confirmed that it had carried out a missile test, after Western powers
Guj Cong MLAs go into huddle to chalk out LS poll strategy
With the Lok Sabha elections just months away, Gujarat Congress MLAs Tuesday went into a huddle to chalk out the party's strategy and planned a series of events to drum up support, its leaders said. Party MLAs met in Gandhinagar to decide the course of action for the upcoming general elections, state Congress in-charge and MP Rajiv Satav told reporters. State Congress chief Amit Chavda said, "The party decided to organise programmes like Jan Vedana Yatra, Khat Parishad, Lok Charcha, and Parivartan Sankalp in the coming days to mobilise support ahead of the general elections." Most of the 76 Congress MLAs were present at the meeting held at the circuit house, where talks were held on the party's strategy for the upcoming budget session of the Assembly, he added. Party's leader of opposition Paresh Dhanani was also present at the meeting. Each Congress MLA has been asked to adopt two Assembly constituencies to prepare for the election. "We are going to focus on all 26 Lok ..
BJP using EVMs to suppress voice of opposition: Akhilesh
Latching on to the claim by a US-based cyber expert that the 2014 Lok Sabha elections were "rigged", Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav Tuesday questioned the use of electronic voting machines when even the more advanced nations were not using them. He said the Bharatiya Janata Party government was weakening democratic institutions. It is using them to suppress dissent and the voice of the opposition, he said. "Why does a country like Japan, which is very advanced in science and technology, is not using the EVMs? The question should be raised among the nation's 130 crore people, the SP chief said here. His remarks come after a self proclaimed cyber expert, a US-based Indian, claimed at a London press conference that the last Lok Sabha elections were "rigged" through the EVMs. Bahujan Samaj Party leader Mayawati, who is Yadav's alliance partner in the state, had also issued a statement criticising the EVMs, a day after the London press conference. She suggested that paper ballots
Kamal Nath may face Karnataka-like consequences: BSP MLA
Madhya Pradesh Bahujan Samaj Party MLA Rambai Singh has warned that the Kamal Nath-led Congress government in the state may face Karnataka-like consequences if she was not made a minister.
PM misusing public money for BJP propaganda: Congress
Accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of misusing public money and government podium to spread the BJP's propaganda and to attack the opposition, the Congress on Tuesday contested the "tall claims" of his government's achievements.
Goa BJP trying to dissolve Assembly: Congress
The Congress on Tuesday said the ruling BJP was planning to dissolve the Goa Assembly and its senior leaders criticised the fact that the House met for just 16 days in 2018, and now even the upcoming Budget Session has been limited to three days.
TDP suspends MLA Mallikarjuna Reddy
The ruling Telugu Desam Party in Andhra Pradesh Tuesday suspended its MLA and the Government Whip in the Assembly Meda Mallikarjuna Reddy from the party amid reports that he was ready to join the opposition YSR Congress. "Mallikarjuna Reddy is ineligible to continue in Telugu Desam," party president and Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu announced here. There was no place in the TDP for anyone who caused trouble to party workers, he said without elaborating. The announcement was made after Naidu held a meeting with party workers from Rajampet, the assembly constituency in Kadapa district represented by Reddy, in the backdrop of reports that he was set to join the YSR Congress. Reddy was the lone TDP MLA to be elected from Kadapa district in the 2014 assembly elections. He was made the government whip. For five years, he enjoyed everything. We made him the whip and his father Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam Board member. But, as elections are nearing, he left the party, ...