Page 1909 - Politics
Oppn accuses govt of weakening case to help dance bar owners
The Congress and NCP slammed the BJP-led Maharashtra government Thursday after the Supreme Court quashed certain restrictions on dance bars, claiming the government's "nexus" with bar owners weakened its case. The two parties alleged that the Devendra Fadnavis government deliberately took a soft stand on the issue in the apex court, a charge the BJP denied. The Supreme Court on Thursday paved the way for reopening of dance bars in Maharashtra by setting aside some provisions of a 2016 law imposing restrictions on their licensing and functioning. "It is the nexus of BJP leaders, the chief minister and bar owners' association which has led to the order," NCP national spokesperson Nawab Malik alleged. "We will go to the people with this issue and we will again ban dance bars after our party comes to power," he said. Malik alleged that meetings were held between Fadnavis and bar owners' association at the latter's official residence 'Varsha', leading to "weakening" of the ...
NIA hands over case documents to jailed separatist Aasiya Andrabi
The NIA Thursday handed over copies of electronic and documentary evidence to pro-Pakistani separatist and Dukhtaran-e-Millat head Aasiya Andrabi in a case against her for allegedly waging war against the country. The National Investigating Agency (NIA) supplied the documents, flied along with the charge sheet, to Andrabi and her two associates -- Sofi Fehmeeda and Naheeda Nasreen -- on the court's directions. The agency also informed special judge Rakesh Syal that a report from Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL), Chandigarh was awaited and would be handed over to her later. The accused were produced before the court. The three are currently lodged in Tihar Jail under judicial custody. The court has now put up the matter for further hearing on March 5 for scrutiny of documents. The three were arrested by the Jammu and Kashmir Police in April and the case was later transferred to the NIA in July. According to the NIA, Andrabi, Fehmeeda and Nasreen were using various social ...
Cong's Hariprasad takes 'swine flu' dig at Shah, BJP hits back calls him 'mentally ill'
Senior Congress leader B K Hariprasad Thursday mocked BJP president Amit Shah for his swine flu condition, triggering a tsunami of angry reactions from the BJP which hit back saying flu is curable but "mental illness" of leaders of the opposition party is difficult to treat. The Congress sought to distance itself from its Rajya Sabha MP Hariprasad, who in Bengaluru said Shah contracted swine flu since his party made an alleged bid to destabilise the Congress-JDS government in Karnataka. Congress spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi said the party could never think of wishing illness to any BJP leader, while drawing attention to its president Rahul Gandhi's wishes for good health to Union minister Arun Jaitley, who is in the US for health check-up. Speaking at a Congress protest in Bengaluru against the alleged attempt by the BJP to dislodge the Congress-JDS government in Karnataka by luring the ruling coalition MLAs, Hariprasad in Kannada said,"As a few legislators have already come back,
114 take oath as Telangana MLAs; P Srinivasa Reddy to be
Senior TRS MLA and former minister Pocharam Srinivasa Reddy is set to be elected unanimously as Speaker of the newly-elected Telangana Assembly, whose first session commenced Thursday. Reddy's name was proposed for the Speaker's post by Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, main opposition Cogress MLA M Bhatti Vikramarka and others, official sources said. He would be declared elected Speaker Friday as only his nomination was filed for the post, they said. Rao had Wednesday reached out to Congress, AIMIM and BJP to make the Speaker's election unanimous. While AIMIM, a friendly party of TRS, and BJP agreed to the proposal immediately, Congress gave its nod subsequently. The TRS won 88 seats in the 119-member assembly, over two-third majority, in the December7 last elections. Reddy, born in 1949, had served as the Agriculture Minister in the previous TRS government. Earlier Thursday, the assembly began its first session with pro-tem Speaker Mumtaz Ahmed Khan of AIMIM in the ...
Opposition parties getting together for selfish reasons:
Senior BJP leader and Bihar Health Minister Mangal Pandey Thursday alleged the opposition parties are getting together for "selfish reasons." "You can see alliance in Uttar Pradesh (between BSP and SP). They embraced despite having a history of street battle between them. ... but power hungry Mayawati got into alliance," Pandey, who is also the BJP's Lok Sabha polls in-charge of Jharkhand told a press conference here. "In Jharkhand or in any other part of the country, the birth of these Gathbandhan parties took place on the basis of anti-Congress (plank). And now they are getting together only for selfish reasons and power hunger," he said. Pandey said the Mahagathbandhan or Gathbandhan show that the opposition leaders "have admitted" that they could not fight the BJP-led NDA government alone in the forthcoming general elections. He termed the alliance of the oppositon parties as "opportunistic alliance". Pandey said the BJP-led NDA government honours its alliance ...
NHIDCL terminates IL&FS' contract for Zojila tunnel project
State-owned NHIDCL has terminated the contract awarded to troubled IL&FS group for building the strategic Zojila tunnel to provide all-weather connectivity between Srinagar, Kargil and Leh. IL&FS Transportation in a filing said the contract was terminated on January 15. The National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd (NHIDCL) is likely to invite fresh bids for the tunnel project in Jammu & Kashmir, according to officials. "The contract awarded for construction, operation and maintenance of 2-Lane Bi-Directional Zojila Tunnel awarded by NHIDCL in the state of Jammu & Kashmir has been terminated effective January 15, 2019," IL&FS Transportation said in a BSE filing. The company is part of the crisis-hit IL&FS group which has defaulted on debt repayments due to financial mismanagement. The total debt of the group was pegged at Rs 94,215.6 crore as of October 8. The government in October superseded the board of IL&FS and appointed new ...
Asiya Andrabi produced in NIA court, electronic evidence given to counsel
Dukhtaran-e-Milat chief Asiya Andrabi and her two associates, Sofi Fahmeeda and Naheeda Nasreen, arrested on charges of allegedly waging war against India, were produced in special NIA court on Thursday.In today's hearing, her counsel was given electronic evidence while the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) report from Chandigarh is still awaited.Scrutiny of the documents has also started in the case.Next hearing of the date has been fixed for March 5.According to NIA charge sheet, Asiya and her associates were using various media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and TV channels including channels in Pakistan to spread "insurrectionary imputations and hateful messages and speeches against India."The three were arrested in July on the charges of waging war against India and sedition charges were also filed against them for spreading hate speeches.Dukhtaran-e-Milat, a banned outfit under the First Schedule to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, was ...
Odisha: Congress MLA Johesh Singh suspended for Anti-party activity
Odisha Congress Disciplinary Committee on Thursday suspended MLA Johesh Singh for indulging in anti-party activities.The disciplinary action was initiated against Singh for reportedly praising Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.The move comes a day after Odisha Congress working president and MLA Naba Kishore Das tendered his resignation to the party president Rahul Gandhi expressing his interest to join BJD.Das, who was appointed as working president of the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC), said in his resignation letter that he does not have any complain against PCC president Niranjan Pattnaik."But the people and the voters of my area want me to contest 2019 election as a BJD member as they want to see development in our area. Hence, I have decided to join hands with Naveen Patnaik, the Chief Minister of Odisha," read the resignation letter."All the valuable suggestion of my people, I shall place it before the Chief Minister on his visit to Jharsuguda on January 24," it read.In his
India lacks clarity on its ties with Pakistan: FO
Pakistan on Thursday described its relationship with India as "difficult" and said New Delhi lacked clarity in its policy on ties with Islamabad which is slowing down progress on resolving bilateral issues. Foreign Office spokesperson Mohammad Faisal said that Prime Minister Imran Khan's letter to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi in September 2018 laid down a clear roadmap for starting negotiations with India but it agreed to it one day and reneged the next day. India has made it clear to Pakistan that cross-border terrorism and talks cannot go hand-in-hand. He also accused India of lacking clarity in policy on Pakistan. "If there is lack of clarity, confusion or haze in policy, it is on the Indian side and only they can shed light on it." He also said India's vague policy was clear when it sent ministers for the opening ceremony of the Kartarpur Corridor and claimed next day that the visit was personal. "We have a clear policy, as articulated by the Prime Minister's letter. We ...
India has "no role" in Afghanistan: Pak FO
India has no role in Afghanistan, the Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson said Thursday, asserting that Islamabad played a key role in arranging direct talks between the Taliban and the US to find a peaceful solution to the longstanding Afghan problem. Speaking at the weekly briefing, Mohammad Faisal said Pakistan always maintained that the solution to the conflict in Afghanistan lies in an Afghan-led and Afghan owned peace process. "In pursuance of that (policy), we have facilitated direct talks between the US and the Taliban," he said. He said Pakistan was convinced that an intra-Afghan dialogue will lead to peace and stability in the war-torn country. "In our view, intra-Afghan dialogue is crucial for success and sustainability of peace process in Afghanistan. Pakistan will continue to support and facilitate Afghan peace process in good faith and as part of a shared responsibility," he said. Responding to a question on India's role in the country, Faisal said "India has no role ..
Liquor vendors challenge prolonged dry days imposed by MNF govt
Owners of three bonded warehouses and wine retail vendors Thursday challenged the prolonged dry days declared by the Mizo National Front (MNF) government and submitted a petition in the Aizawl Bench of the Gauhati High Court. One of the petitioners, Francis Sailo, said the petition was admitted by the high court and the next hearing has been fixed on Tuesday next week, when an interim order is expected. The high court instructed the state government, through the government advocates, to produce the minutes of the meeting of council of ministers held on December 18 last year and on January 10, on Tuesday. The owners of the bonded warehouses and wine shop vendors said that they were losing huge amount of money due to the dry days imposed by the state government from December 21 to January 14, which was extended to March 15. The petitioners said that at least Rs 40 crore worth liquor were in the bonded warehouses and godowns of the liquor shops, while around 100 liquor carrying trucks ...
Opposition rally will be the death knell for BJP : Mamata
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Thursday said the mega opposition rally being hosted by the Trinamool Congress here on January 19 would sound the "death knell" for the BJP in the Lok Sabha polls and regional parties would be the deciding factor. She also claimed that the BJP's seat count in the general election will not cross more than 125. The number of seats that the state parties will win will be much more than the BJP's, she further claimed. "The federal parties, that is the regional parties, will be the deciding factor after the elections," she told newsmen here. "The rally will sound the death knell for BJP ... Obviously they (BJP) will not cross more than 125 seats," she said in reply to a question. "Every political party has a vision ... This will be a grand alliance of people," Banerjee said about the rally. She visited the Brigade Parade grounds here, the venue of the rally, to check the arrangements. Asked whether the rally would be like the one she held in 1993 .
Govt curtails Rakesh Asthana's tenure in CBI with immediate effect
The tenure of CBI's Special Director Rakesh Asthana, who was sent on forced leave by the government, has been curtailed with immediate effect, according to an official order issued Thursday. The tenures of three more officers -- Joint Director Arun Kumar Sharma, Deputy Inspector General Manish Kumar Sinha and Superintendent of Police Jayant J Naiknavare -- have also been curtailed, it said. The development comes days after Alok Verma was shunted out of the post of CBI director and appointed Director General of Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards. Verma had refused to take up the new post, saying he had already superannuated from the police service.
Two-day convention of BJP SC Morcha to begin from Jan 19
The two-day national convention of the BJP's Scheduled Caste Morcha will begin from January 19 in Nagpur. Nearly 5,000 workers, including 250 from Rajasthan, will take part in the convention across the country, BJP MP Satyanarayan Jatia told reporters at a press conference here. Information related to the work done by the Centre for the welfare of scheduled castes will be provided to participants in the convention, he said. He exuded confidence that the BJP will once again form the government at the Centre by taking along all communities. "The Congress is continuously heading towards downfall so it is doing alliance that does not even match its ideology," Jatia said.
UK Parliament to vote on May's Brexit 'Plan B' on Jan 29
The UK Parliament will vote on Prime Minister Theresa May's "Plan B" for Brexit on January 29, the Leader of House of Commons said on Thursday.
Rajasthan forms committee to prepare new industrial policy
Rajasthan Industries Minister Parsadi Lal Meena Thursday constituted a five-member committee to prepare a new industrial policy for the state. The focus of the new policy will be on balanced development of industries in the state and employment creation, Meena said. The Congress, in its manifesto, had promised to prepare a new industrial policy in the state and the department has constituted a committee for the implementation of the promise, he said. The committee will present the draft of industrial policy in 30 days, Meena said in a statement. The members of the committee have been asked to seek suggestions from industrial organisations to frame the new policy, Additional Chief Secretary Subodh Agarwal said.
Jharkhand announces a bonus of Rs 150 per quintal on paddy
Jharkhand government Thursday announced a bonus of Rs 150 per quintal on paddy, over the Centres minimum support price of Rs 1,750 for Kharif crops for 2018-19. The Centre has already announced a minimum support price of Rs 1,750 per quintal of paddy. A total Rs 52 crore has been approved by the Cabinet, presided by Chief Minister Raghubar Das, in this connection, an official release said here. The state Cabinet also approved the MoU between the statement government and the Airports Authority of India for the development of the airport at East Singhbhums Dhalbhumgarh and other airports in the state. The Cabinet also approved a joint venture to run them, the release added.
Karnataka Congress MLAs meet to be show of strength
Buoyed by the return of its "prodigal" MLAs and failure of "Operation Lotus" against the JD(S)-Congress coalition, Karnataka's ruling Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting here on Friday is expected to be a show of strength, capping the political drama of the last few days.
Rajasthan Congress gets back at BJP with cow, Sanskrit & farmers
As cow, Sanskrit and farmers formed the core subjects of the Congress government during Governor Kalyan Singh's speech in the first session of 15th assembly on Thursday, the BJP accused the ruling party of hijacking its pet issues.
Congress suspends Sundergarh MLA for anti-party activities
The Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) Thursday suspended Sundergarh legislator Jogesh Singh for anti-party activities, a day after its working president Naba Kishore Das resigned from the party. "Sundergarh MLA Jogesh Singh has been suspended for repeatedly giving statements against the party to the media and tarnishing image of Congress," OPCC discplinary committee convenor Ananta Sethi said. Stating that the action has been taken against the Sundergarh MLA with approval of the AICC, Sethi said Singh was served a show-cause notice on Wednesday to reply within 24 hours, but he failed to respond. Sethi also claimed that the party had expelled Naba Kishore Das from the party before he resigned on Wednesday. The development comes barely a week before Congress president Rahul Gandhi's scheduled visit to Odisha on January 25. Meanwhile, Singh said: "I have not indulged in any anti-party activities as alleged. Is it an anti-party activity to praise the chief minister ...