Page 193 - Politics

SGPC demands return of artefacts "taken away" during Op Bluestar

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) Thursday demanded the return of the artefacts, allegedly taken away by the Army during Operation Bluestar in 1984. Addressing the media here, SGPC chief secretary Roop Singh said the holy scriptures, artefacts and historical books, which were part of the Sikh Reference Library, were taken away by the Army during the operation. When asked that a section of media had reported that the Centre had returned the artefacts to the SGPC, Singh claimed that only a few copies of historical books were returned. He said still a large quantity of material and handwritten copies of the Guru Granth Sahib were with the Centre. The SGPC Thursday held a meeting with the officials who served the Sikh body in the past 35 years to verify facts related to the issue. Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal had met Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the issue on June 6, demanding that the artefacts be returned.

Huawei continues sport sponsorship deal in Australia

Huawei renewed its sponsorship deal with an Australian rugby league team for another two years and said Thursday it hopes the country will lift its ban on the Chinese communication giant's involvement in the nation's 5G networks. Huawei has been the major sponsor of the Canberra Raiders, the capital city's only team in the National Rugby League competition, since 2012. The Raiders were Huawei's first sponsorship contract with a sports team anywhere in the world. But whether that sponsorship would be continued beyond the current three-year contract came under question when the Australian government banned the world's biggest telecom gear producer in August from participating in the next generation 5G rollout on security grounds. Huawei Australian chairman John Lord said the renewed sponsorship ideal was a sign of his company's "deep commitment to long-term engagement in the Australian market." "I, John Lord, and the board of Huawei hope that further down the track there may be room in .

Twitter deletes accounts linked to foreign governments

Twitter says it has deleted nearly 4,800 suspect accounts linked to Iran that the company says secretly pushed that government's agenda. Twitter is adding those accounts and their tweets to a public database it launched last year to track its battle against government-linked misinformation. It is also adding a smaller number of deleted accounts linked to Russia, Venezuela and the Catalonia region of Spain. Twitter says the removals are meant to prevent election interference while preserving valid political speech. The company confirmed last month it had removed about 2,800 of the Iranian accounts that were using fake personas. Twitter launched the database in October. Anyone can download the datasets, which has some information redacted. Researchers can request access to get the unredacted documents.

Macron ally drops bid to lead EU liberal group

French President Emmanuel Macron's champion in last month's European elections on Thursday abandoned her bid to seize the leadership of parliament's liberal group. Nathalie Loiseau, France's former minister for Europe, was chosen by Macron to lead his new centrist party in the European parliament and push his reform agenda. But her performance in the campaign was judged lacklustre -- Macron himself stepped in as figurehead -- and her arrival in Brussels was seen as a disaster. An off the record briefing with French reporters was leaked and widely reported, revealing Loiseau making indiscreet personal attacks on rival centrists. The French still make up the largest national contingent in the liberal caucus, formerly known as ALDE but now renamed "Renew Europe" for the new parliament. But Loiseau's office told AFP that rather than pushing to head the group -- the parliament's third largest -- she would seek to secure influential posts for her group.

Trump gets harpooned for 'Prince of Whales' spelling error

There he blows again. President Donald Trump's erratic spelling habits on Twitter spouted again Thursday when he wrote about having recently met with the "Prince of Whales." That would be Charles, prince of Wales, whom he met last week at World War II commemorations in Britain. The error prompted a wave of hilarity online, with one Twitter critic asking if the president had made the mistake "on porpoise." Trump, who is an enthusiastic user of social media and has some 61 million Twitter followers, quickly corrected the original tweet. But his new version did not change another inaccurate reference, this time to the "Queen of England." Elizabeth II, who hosted Trump at a state dinner in London, is actually queen of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, of which England is only one part.

Din in SDMC House over desilting; AAP's LoP alleges 'corruption' in silt rem oval work, seeks probe

The BJP-led SDMC House Thursday witnessed heated exchanges between councillors from the ruling party and the AAP over desilting of drains in South Delhi ahead of the monsoon, even as the leader of opposition alleged a "corruption" in the silt removal work and sought a "vigilance probe" into it. The issue occupied the majority of time during the proceedings of the South Delhi Municipal Corporation House at the Civic Centre here, with BJP councillor Poonam Bhati and Leader of House Kamaljeet Sehrawat claiming that the desilting work is getting hampered because of lack of funds, and sought release of municipal funds from the Delhi government for this financial year. AAP councillor and Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the House Praveen Kumar, however, countered the ruling party and claimed, "As per data shared by the SDMC officials, around 98 per cent of silt removal work has already been carried out." "So, why are the BJP councillors saying, work is not getting executed," he asked. Mayor ...

Pakistan must take 'concrete action' against terrorism: Modi tells Xi

Modi's comments came ahead of Chinese President Xi's meeting with Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, who is also in the Kyrgyz capital to attend the SCO summit

Taiwan's Tsai to seek re-election after defeating party challenger

Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen is set to seek a second term after she successfully saw off a primary challenge on Thursday from within her own party to stand as their candidate. The island goes to the polls in January to elect a new president, in a contest set to be dominated by relations with China. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) -- which Beijing loathes -- announced that Tsai had comfortably beaten former premier William Lai in a primary decided by opinion polls. "My most important responsibility now is to unite all forces... to protect Taiwan's democracy, to defend the fruits of reforms and to solidify our national sovereignty," Tsai told reporters. Tsai was elected in 2016 as the island's first female leader, defeating the China-friendly Kuomintang (KMT) party which oversaw an unprecedented thaw in cross-strait ties but began to unnerve many voters with its perceived cosiness to the mainland. Beijing promptly cut communication with her government, ramped up military ...

Trump defends secret talks with foreign govts

President Donald Trump scrambled Thursday to throw off critics homing in on his insistence that he has the right to use dirt dug up on political opponents by foreign governments. Trump's comment in an interview aired late Wednesday by ABC News television reignited controversy swirling since his 2016 election, when his campaign accepted offers of opposition research from Russia on his rival Hillary Clinton. "I think you might want to listen..., there's nothing wrong with listening," Trump said when asked what he would do if a country such as Russia or China offered him assistance. On Thursday, Trump hit back at a torrent of criticism by arguing that he talks with foreign figures "every day." "Should I immediately call the FBI about these calls and meetings? How ridiculous! I would never be trusted again," he tweeted. But Trump referred to conversations with allies like the leaders of France and Britain, and even Britain's Queen Elizabeth II. The issue raised by critics is different: ...

Trump briefed on Gulf oil tankers explosions: White House

US President Donald Trump has been briefed on the mysterious apparent attacks against two oil tankers near Iran, the White House said Thursday. "The president has been briefed on the attack on ships in the Gulf of Oman. The US government is providing assistance and will continue to assess the situation," spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said in a statement. The Norwegian Maritime Authority said three explosions were reported on the Norwegian-owned tanker Front Altair after it was "attacked," along with the Singapore-owned ship Kokuka Courageous. The incident, the second involving shipping in the strategic sea lane in only a few weeks, came amid spiralling tensions between Tehran and Washington, which has pointed the finger at Iran over earlier tanker attacks in May. Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, said the timing of the apparent attacks was "beyond suspicious".

Priyanka talks tough with Cong workers; says they have let the party down

Talking tough with her party men, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra Thursday told them that they let down the party in the Lok Sabha polls. Accompanied by her mother and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi who visited her constituency on a thanksgiving visit on Wednesday, Priyanka Gandhi pulled up party workers for failing to work for the Congress during the elections. "I will find out the names of the workers who did not work for the party in the elections," she said, adding those who had toiled honestly and sincerely for the party know that from the core of their heart. "But, those who did not, I will find out their names," she said. A visibly annoyed Priyanka Gandhi complained, "I am saying today from the bottom of my heart that you did not fight the elections sincerely." "This is the time of struggle. Those who are nervous, those who are willing to compromise and those who are not ready to give their heart to this struggle... for them I will leave no space in the Raebareli

Opposition parties in Bengal seek Mamata's resignation as Health Minister

The opposition parties in West Bengal slammed Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday for her alleged threats to the striking doctors and sought her immediate resignation as health minister. The BJP, the CPI(M) and the Congress claimed she is behaving like Hitler and not interested to solve the impasse. In the wake of disruption of medical services in several parts of the state over the past three days, Banerjee directed the agitating junior doctors to resume work and warned of action if the order is not followed. The doctors, however, decided to continue their stir. "Instead of expressing solidarity to the doctors, she is threatening them. He is behaving like an authoritarian, like a Hitler. This is shameful. She has failed both as the chief minister and the health minister. She should resign immediately," BJP leader Mukul Roy said. State BJP vice-president Jay Prakash Majumdar said Banerjee was indulging in blame game instead of solving the problem. "Is this a way to .

Iran leader rejects Trump talks despite Japan PM's mission

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Thursday categorically ruled out talks with US President Donald Trump, despite an unprecedented Japanese mission aimed at defusing tensions between Washington and the Islamic Republic. Iran "has no trust in America and will not in any way repeat the bitter experience of the previous negotiations with America," Khamenei said in comments published by his official website. They came after he met with Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe making an unprecedented visit to Iran -- the first by a Japanese premier since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. "We have no doubt in your good will and seriousness, but regarding what you said the US president told you, I don't consider Trump as a person worthy of exchanging messages with," Khamenei told Abe during their meeting. The visit coincided with a suspected attack on two oil tankers in the Sea of Oman, off the Iranian coast, with one of the ships owned by a Japanese company, which again sent tensions in the ..

EU ministers collide over timid eurozone reforms

EU finance ministers wrangled over watered-down economic reforms Thursday with France hoping the eurozone budget it has long been pushing for was finally within reach. Almost a decade after the debt crisis, French President Emmanuel Macron wants his partners to implement the changes in order to make the single currency area more resilient to shocks and to tackle the global dominance of the United States and China. But resistance to overhauling the eurozone has deepened, amid a budget row with populist-led Italy, and as richer northern countries grow reluctant to indulge the budget-busters to the south. This distrust and hesitance has plagued the eurozone since it was launched in 2002, a disunity that economists say limits growth and invites crisis. Ministers are discussing France's flagship reform of a eurozone budget that has been scaled back by opponents led by the Netherlands that fear a transfer of wealth to Italy, Greece or Spain. "We are not far from a consensus," French Finance

Turkey says US ultimatum on Russia missile deal 'inappropriate'

Turkey's defence minister on Thursday described as "inappropriate" an ultimatum from the US urging Ankara to abandon its controversial purchase of a Russian missile defence system. Acting US Defence Secretary Patrick Shanahan last week sent a letter telling Turkey that it had to renounce the S-400 system by July 31, or Turkish pilots training on the F-35 fighter jet programme would be expelled from the United States. The letter said agreements with Turkish firms subcontracted for manufacturing parts of the stealth warplane would also be cancelled. In a phone call, Defence Minister Hulusi Akar told Shanahan that the letter's wording was "inappropriate and not in line with the spirit of (NATO)", according to a ministry statement. They reportedly discussed the F-35 programme and agreed that talks would continue. Turkey's push to buy the S-400 system has strained relations between the NATO allies, with the US worried it could give Russia access to sensitive technical knowledge if operated

India, China to hold 70 events to mark 70 years of diplomatic ties

To mark the establishment of 70 years of diplomatic relations, India and China will both hold 70 programmes, 35 in each country, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said.This was conveyed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Bishkek."The Prime Minister proposed that there is a need to mark the occasion in a manner that reflects this new relationship to mark the 70th anniversary. He also said that India and China should hold 70 important events, that is 35 each in India and China. The two leaders have tasked their respective foreign ministers to discuss this matter at the second meeting of the high-level mechanism," Gokhale told reporters in a press briefing here.Modi and Jinping will have an informal summit in India later this year on the lines of the informal parleys that had in Wuhan in China last year.However, Gokhale said the date and venue of the summit is yet to be decided while media reports in ...

Pak-India ties at "lowest point", hope PM Modi will use his mandate to resolve all issues: PM Imran

Pakistan's relationship with India is probably at its "lowest point", Prime Minister Imran Khan has said even as he expressed hope that his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi will use his "big mandate" to resolve all differences, including the Kashmir issue. Khan and Modi are in the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek for the two-day Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit. In an interview to Russian news agency Sputnik before heading to Bishkek, Khan said the SCO summit provided him an opportunity to speak to the Indian leadership to improve ties between the two neighbours. Khan said the SCO summit provided Pakistan a "fresh outlet" to develop its relationship with other countries, including India. "At the moment, our bilateral relationship with India is, probably, at its lowest point," he said. Khan said Pakistan was open for "any kind of mediation" and seeks peace with all its neighbours, especially with India, asserting that the three "small wars" have damaged both the countries that ..

Kumaraswamy to expand cabinet tomorrow

The much awaited expansion of the H D Kumaraswamy-led cabinet in Karnataka, aimed at savingthe Congress-JD(S) coalition government, will take place Friday afternoon,with the induction of two new Ministers expected, official sourcessaid. Governor Vajubhai Vala will administer the oath of office and secrecy to new members joining the State Council ofMinisters at 1.00 PM at the Raj Bhavan. Of the total of 34 ministerial positions in Karnataka, Congress and JD(S) have shared 22 and 12 respectively according to the coalition arrangement. Currently, three posts are vacant, two from the JD(S) andone from Congress. "Only two new Ministers will be inducted into the cabinet tomorrow. One post will be kept vacant,"official sources said. Independent MLA Nagesh and the lone KPJP MLA R Shankar, who are supporting the coalition, would be sworn-in on Friday, from JD(S) and Congress' share respectively, to ensure that they don't side with the BJP, sources added. Shankar had served as ...

Bengal Governor's peace meet moots fair enforcement of law & order

A meeting called by West Bengal Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi on Thursday with four political parties to create a harmonious situation in the state reached a six-point consensus including a "fair enforcement" on law and order situation.

Shah likely to remain at helm during assembly polls in three states

BJP president Amit Shah is likely to remain at the helm during assembly elections in three states slated for later this year as the party's organisational poll is expected to stretch for several months before newly-elected members of its national council meet to elect Shah's successor. Shah has been inducted as home minister in the Narendra Modi government, triggering speculation that he may make way for a new party president. Party sources said the current office bearers will continue in their position till organisational elections are over, indicating that Shah will remain at the helm till then. Organisational polls will start only after the party's drive to enrol new members ends. The BJP is expected to announce the schedule of its membership drive in a few days with its leaders saying that it may be launched from July 6, the birth anniversary of its founder ideologue Syama Prasad Mookerjee. Assembly polls in Haryana, Maharashtra and Jharkhand are scheduled for later this. While ...