Page 21 - Politics

'Imran's party to sit in Pak Oppn as he rules out joining coalition'

Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party will not join hands with rival PML-N or the PPP to form a coalition government and would sit in the opposition despite having a majority in the newly elected Parliament, party leader Barrister Gohar Ali Khan has said. Independent candidates, mostly affiliated with Khan's PTI, secured the most parliamentary seats in last week's general election. However, PTI does not have enough seats in the 266-member National Assembly to form a government on its own. We don't feel comfortable with both (Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Pakistan Peoples Party) of them. There will be no talks with anyone to make a government or to make a government together with them. It is better to sit in the opposition than to make a government [with them], but we think we have the majority, Gohar Khan told Dawn News. The Election Commission of Pakistan has announced that independent candidates, a majority of them supported by the PTI secured 101 seats, followed by ...

PPP's Bilawal Bhutto withdraws from Pakistan's prime ministerial race

Pakistan Peoples Party chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Tuesday withdrew from the race for the prime minister, saying that his party would support Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz's candidate for the premier's slot without being part of the government. The decision of Bilawal came hours after Pakistan's former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday reaffirmed that Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif will become the prime minister for a record fourth time. Addressing a press conference after the meeting of Pakistan Peoples Party's (PPP) high-powered Central Executive Committee (CEC), held under his leadership, Bilawal said that his party failed to get a mandate to form a government in the federation.

SP renominates Jaya Bachchan for RS polls in UP, releases candidates' list

The Samajwadi Party (SP) on Tuesday renominated Jaya Bachchan to the Rajya Sabha, and announced the candidature of former MP Ramjilal Suman and retired IAS officer Alok Ranjan for the polls to the Upper House of Parliament from Uttar Pradesh. They filed their nomination papers for the elections at the Uttar Pradesh assembly complex, where SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, party general secretary Shivpal Singh Yadav and other party leaders were present. Returning Officer and Special Secretary of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly Braj Bhushan Dubey said that all three candidates have submitted their nomination papers in two sets each. The scrutiny of the papers will be held on February 16 from 11 am onwards, he said. Bachchan's fourth term as a Rajya Sabha member is ongoing and the actor-turned-politician has been renominated for a fifth term. Suman is a four-time MP from Firozabad. He became an MP in 1977 on a Janata Party ticket, in 1989 on a Janta Dal ticket, and in 1999 and 2004 on an SP ...

CAA rules before LS polls, citizenship to beneficiaries soon after: Shah

The rules for implementing the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) will be issued before the coming Lok Sabha polls and the process to grant Indian nationality to the beneficiaries will start soon after, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said here on Saturday. Under the CAA, the Modi government wants to grant Indian nationality to persecuted non-Muslim migrants - Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians - from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan who had come to India till December 31, 2014. "The CAA is a law of the country and its notification will definitely be issued. It will be issued before the polls. The CAA will be implemented before the elections. No one should have any confusion about it," Shah said at the ET NOW Global Business Summit 2024. He said granting Indian citizenship to persecuted minorities of the neighbouring countries was a promise of the Congress leadership too. "When the Partition happened - Hindus, Buddhists, Christians - all wanted to come to India

Centre's alleged 'injustice' in devolution of taxes to southern states

Complaints from the south of the Vindhyas gained intensity as the debate over the lower devolutions added to the perception of a "North-South divide"

Pakistan polls: MQM-P denies discussions with PML-N on forming next govt

MQM-Pakistan Convener, Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui said the polls have created a challenging situation in Pakistan and stressed that all parties must play their part in moving the country out of crisis

2024 LS polls should be fought on people-centric issues: Sachin Pilot

Congress leader Sachin Pilot on Saturday said the upcoming Lok Sabha elections should be fought on issues related to the people and that he has requested the party high-command to allow people with clean image to enter the fray. He said the opposition INDIA bloc wants to do engage in issue-based politics. "I want this election to be fought on issues. The problems people are facing in their everyday lives, a roadmap to resolve the problem. It should be discussed," he told reporters in Tonk. Pilot said the panel of candidates for 25 Lok Sabha seats in the state has been prepared in the recent party's screening committee meeting in Delhi. The former Rajasthan deputy chief minister also said the final decision on this will be taken by the central election committee of the party. "It is expected that a decision will be taken soon," he said. Pilot said he has requested the party that in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, new people and those with clean image should be given a chance as this

We are firmly with 'INDIA': AAP on decision to contest all Punjab seats

Aam Aadmi Party on Saturday emphasised that it was firmly with the INDIA bloc and asked the Congress for a quick decision on seat-sharing, even as it defended the move to go it alone in Punjab saying local units of both parties wanted to fight the Lok Sabha elections separately. AAP convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, while addressing a programme in Punjab earlier in the day, announced that his party will declare its candidates for all 13 Lok Sabha seats in the state and the lone Chandigarh parliamentary seat in the next 10-15 days. The local units of both Congress and AAP in Punjab favoured fighting election separately, the Aam Aadmi Party, which had earlier called for an alliance with the Congress in Delhi, Gujarat, Goa and Haryana, said in a statement. "So we have decided to honour that. Regarding other states, talks are ongoing," the statement said. "We are firmly with the alliance. Our shared goal is to defeat the BJP. Time is thus of paramount importance if the

ABVP, Left members clash during late-night meet on holding JNUSU poll

A scuffle broke out late Friday night between RSS-affiliated ABVP and Left-backed groups on the Jawaharlal Nehru University campus during a meeting on holding students' union polls, with both sides claiming some of their members were injured. While the warring groups blamed the other side for the ruckus, there was no immediate reaction from the JNU administration. The student groups clashed during the University General Body Meeting (UGBM) at the Sabarmati Dhaba on the campus to elect members of the Election Commission for the 2024 JNUSU polls. The Left-affiliated Democratic Students' Federation (DSF) alleged Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) members obstructed the UGBM by encroaching upon the dias and heckling council members and speakers. In videos shared by both the groups on social media, ABVP and JNU students' union members can be seen arguing, amid shouting and sloganeering as university security personnel try to control the situation. "In response to the JNU ...

Telangana govt allots Rs 53,196 cr to fulfill poll promise of 6 guarantees

The Congress government in Telangana presented its maiden budget on Saturday, a vote on account and earmarked Rs 53,196 crore for the implementation of its six poll 'guarantees' with the overall outlay being Rs 2,75,891 crore. Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka presented the budget in the Assembly and said 'the budget is to fulfill the Congress government's commitment of establishing 'Indiramma Rajyam' (welfare governance of former PM Indira Gandhi) in Telangana. Alleging that the previous BRS government left the state bankrupt, Vikramarka said the burden of unplanned loans was posing a challenge. "Yet, we will stand by the people with planned developmental goals," he said. "In this budget, we have proposed Rs 53,196 crore, for implementation of these schemes. Provision of additional funds will be made as required, once a complete assessment is made about the schemes," Vikramarka said. The six poll 'guarantees' of Congress include Rs 2,500 assistance per month to women

Five years of 17th Lok Sabha was of reform, perform, transform: PM Modi

Outgoing Lok Sabha took decisions for which many generations waited for long: PM Modi

SP made UP failed state in its tenure, BJP came, fixed it: CM Adityanath

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday hit out at leader of opposition Akhilesh Yadav and accused him of impoverishing the state in his tenure. "In the five years of your tenure you gave a failure state but we made a secure state. You looted millions and we will give the state one trillion," he said addressing Yadav in the UP Legislative Assembly. His statement was followed by a round of applause from the treasury benches. Adityanath also criticised Yadav for not accepting the invitation of the speaker to visit Ayodhya for the Ram Temple consecration last month. In his address, the CM said Yadav has problems with the fact that India has become the fifth largest economy in the world. "He has doubts that the country has become the fifth largest economy, he also has a problem that Uttar Pradesh becomes number one," he said. When Yadav interjected, Adityanath said, "You have already denied the offer of the speaker. You don't want to go to Ayodhya and you often go to

Congress mastered art of spoiling accomplishments: FM Sitharaman in RS

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday took a dig at the Congress saying the grand old party mastered the art of ruining accomplishments of the previous government as they did while managing inflation during the 10-year UPA regime. Replying to a short duration discussion on 'White Paper on Indian Economy' in the Rajya Sabha, she said there was mismanagement of the economy during 2004-2014 by the Congress-led UPA government. She said the Modi-led government toiled for 10 years to bring the economy back on track, taking India from 'Fragile Five' to 5th largest economy of the world. She said that India is soon going to become the world's third largest economy. Sitharaman said the inflation rate was below 4 per cent in the last year of Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, but it remained significantly high during the 10-year UPA regime. "Gur ko gobar karna inki mastery hai (Congress has mastery of ruining something that has been accomplished)," she said. The finance minister atta

Pakistan former PM Imran Khan's party says it aims to form government

Gohar Khan, the chairman of Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-Insaf (PTI) party who also acts as the former prime minister's lawyer, called on "all institutions" in Pakistan to respect his party's mandate

Ram temple symbolic of spirit of 'Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat': Om Birla

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Saturday moved a resolution on the Ayodhya Ram temple, describing its construction as a historic achievement, and said it will give the values of hope and unity to future generations. Reading out the resolution at the end of a nearly four-hour-long discussion on "the construction of historic Shri Ram Temple and Pran Pratishtha of Shri Ramlala" in the House, he said after centuries of wait, the Ram temple in Ayodhya has ushered in a new era of good governance and public welfare. The speaker noted that the temple is symbolic of the spirit of "Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat". Soon after the Supreme Court delivered its verdict, the statement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi "inspired society about peace instead of a feeling of victory or defeat", Birla said, referring to the court's 2019 judgement in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title case. He said that through this resolution, the members of the House appreciate the historic work accomplished in Ayodhya.

Oppn walks out of RS; CPI(M) refuses participation in Ram Temple discussion

Opposition parties on Saturday walked out of the Rajya Sabha opposing the BJP government's white paper on the economy, with the CPI(M) also refusing to participate in the discussion on the Ram temple in the House. The Left party said it will not become "party to communalise the political situation". Both Houses of Parliament -- the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha -- are holding a discussion on "the construction of historic Shri Ram Temple and Pran Pratishtha of Shri Ramlala". Members of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) were among those who walked out over the white paper brought by the government in Parliament to compare the state of the economy during the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) regimes. Participating in the discussion on the white paper in the Rajya Sabha, CPI(M) member John Brittas said, "Protesting against the discrimination shown to Kerala, we are walking out. "We are also n

BJP got Rs 1,300 cr via electoral bonds, over 7 times what Cong received

The ruling BJP received nearly Rs 1300 crore through electoral bonds in the 2022-23, which was seven times more than what the Congress got in the same period through the same route. The BJP's total contributions stood at Rs 2120 crore in the 2022-23 fiscal, of which 61 per cent came from electoral bonds, according to the party's annual audited report submitted to the Election Commission. In FY 2021-22, the party's total contributions were to the tune of Rs 1775 crore. The party's total income in 2022-23 stood at Rs 2360.8 crore, up from Rs 1917 crore in FY 2021-22. The Congress, on the other hand, earned Rs 171 crore from electoral bonds which was down from Rs 236 crore in FY 2021-22. The BJP and the Congress are recognised national parties. The Samajwadi Party, a recognised state party, had earned Rs 3.2 crore through electoral bonds in 2021-22. In 2022-23, it received no contributions from these bonds. Another state recognised party, the TDP, earned Rs 34 crore through electo

Why conferring Bharat Ratnas on Rao, Singh, and Swaminathan is significant

Along with Advani and Karpoori Thakur, award tally highest in a year

My govt would try to improve ties with neighbouring countries: Nawaz Sharif

In an indirect goodwill message to India, Pakistan's former premier Nawaz Sharif on Friday said that his government would try to improve relations with the neighbouring countries. Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) technically emerged the single largest party in the National Assembly despite the fact that the number of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf supported independent candidates was higher than any political party. "We would improve ties with the world and with our neighbours and try to solve all issues with them (neighbours)," the 74-year-old former three-time premier said. He asked his supporters if they agree with his point of view (regarding ties with neighbours), and hundreds of supporters present to hear him apparently backed him with a roar. While Sharif stopped mentioning India directly in his speech, the use of word "neighbours" could hardly be missed as Sharif in his previous tenures also tried to mend ties with India. However, terror attacks on Indian defence ..

Readying a detailed road map for third term, says PM Narendra Modi

He said he's preparing a detailed roadmap to make India third-largest economy