Page 2230 - Politics
BJP has become 'party of the dead': Yashwant Sinha
Former Union minister Yashwant Sinha on Wednesday slammed the BJP saying it has become a "murdo ki party" (party of the dead), where only two leaders were ruling the roost, while the others were "scared" to challenge them. He ruled out the possibility of a change in the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) leadership after its losses in the recently concluded assembly polls. Sinha was here to speak at J S Karandikar Memorial Lecture organised at the Pune Union of Working Journalists on 'Current Political Scenario in India and Media'. After his address, he fielded questions from the media and others. Responding to a question, he said, "There will not be any change in the leadership (of the BJP) because everybody is scared." "Some people in the BJP would often criticise the Congress and dub it as 'murdo ki party', but today the BJP has become 'murdo ki party'...Only two people hold all the power in the party," he said in an apparent reference to party chief Amit Shah and Prime Minister ...
It is for AICC to take action against Srikant Jena: Biswal
The Disciplinary Committee of Odisha Congress Wednesday decided that it was for the All India Congress Committee (AICC) to take action against senior party leader and former Union minister Srikant Jena for his certain statements. "We have discussed on the statements and activities of Jena. Since he (Jena) is a AICC member, the AICC can only take necessary action against him. Therefore, we have decided to leave the decision on AICC," said Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) Disciplinary Committee chairman and former Chief Minister Hemanada Biswal. Earlier, AICC on December 6 had replaced Jena as the chairman of the OPCC Manifesto Committee with senior leader Ganeswar Behera. Jena was removed from the post for indiscipline, Biswal said. Jena, however, claimed that he had not indulged into any indiscipline other than criticising mines mafia.
10 Rajasthan seats see less than 1,000 victory margins
The electoral battle in Rajasthan, where the Congress-led alliance got a slender majority, saw at least 10 close contests with winning margins of less than 1,000 votes, with the narrowest winning margin being of only 154 votes.
Ligue 1 matches postponed due to French Yellow Vest crisis
France's top tier football league announced on Wednesday the postponement of two games of Ligue 1 at the request of regional authorities due to the Yellow Vest political crisis sweeping across the western European country.
Fifteen Youth Cong office-bearers won in three state polls
Fifteen out of 25 Youth Congress office-bearers, including chiefs of state units in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, won the seats they contested in the Assembly elections in the three states. The Indian Youth Congress (IYC) leaders exultant over the results feel performance of the outfit will increase share of youths in its list of candidates for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. "We won most of the seats that were given to us. I have full faith the party leadership will pay attention to our performance and consider more Youth Congressmen in the Lok Sabha elections," IYC president Keshav Chandra Yadav said. He said all the 25 Youth Congress members who contested the Assembly polls in the three states gave tough fight and while 15 managed to win, those who could not, lost by narrow margins. The Youth Congress figures more prominently in the scheme of things after Rahul Gandhi became the Congress president, IYC vice-president Srinivas BV said. "Earlier, less number of Youth ...
Sitharaman to meet her Russian counterpart Thursday
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman with meet her Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu on Thursday during which they will discuss ways to strengthen defence ties between the two nations, officials said. Shoigu's visit to India assumes significance as India had in October signed a deal to buy Russian S-400 air defence missile system. The two countries have also signed a deal to build two frigates in Goa for the Indian Navy. Russia's state-owned arms exporter, Rosoboronexport, has also emerged as the lowest bidder for India's USD 3 billion tenders to source short-range air defence missile systems.
Delhi govt unearths Rs 262 crore cyber-tax fraud: Sisodia
The Delhi government has unearthed a cyber-tax fraud totalling Rs 262 crore committed by over 8,700 traders who were found showing fraudulent tax deposits into 13 banks since 2013, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said Wednesday. Sisodia, who also holds the finance portfolio, said that the Trade and Taxes Department has registered a complaint with the Delhi Police's Economic Office Wing (EOW) for registration of FIRs into the matter. "Delhi govt Tax authorities hv unearthed a big cyber-tax fraud. More than 8000 registered dealers hv been found showing fraudulent tax deposits into 13 banks. The matter has been handed over to EOW, Delhi Police. AAP govt believes in zero tolerance to any corrupt practice (sic)," Sisodia tweeted. Earlier in the day, the deputy chief minister said that during the scrutiny of suspected fraud transactions, it was noticed that such kind of fraud had been continuing since 2013 and it was going on until it was detected by the department. "The government has
Eight ministers, Speaker among 28 BJP MLAs who lost in C'garh
Twenty-eight sitting MLAs of the incumbent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) including eight ministers and the Assembly Speaker have bitten the dust in the Assembly elections in Chhattisgarh. Home Minister and tribal leader Ramsevak Paikra lost to Congress' Premsai Singh Tekam by 44,105 votes. Sports and Youth Welfare Minister Bhaiyyalal Rajwade was trounced by Congress' Ambika Singh Deo in Baikunthpur seat by 5,339 votes. Urban Administration Minister Amar Agrawal was defeated by Congress' Shailesh Pandey by 11,221 votes in Bilaspur. Public Works Department Minister Rajesh Munat suffered defeat at the hands of Congress' youth leader Vikas Upadhyay by 12,212 votes in Raipur City West constituency. Two prominent ministers from Bastar region, Mahesh Gagda (Bijapur) and Kedar Kashyap (Narayanpur), also tasted defeat. Kashyap was defeated by Congress' Chandan Kashyap by a margin of 2,647 votes while Gagda lost to Congress' Vikram Mandavi by 21,584 votes. Cooperative Minister ...
Chhattisgarh Leader of Opposition wins, busts jinx
When Congress leader T S Singh Deo won the Ambikapur assembly constituency in Chhattisgarh, he not only comfortably retained the seat, but also broke a jinx in the process. He busted the jinx that the sitting Leader of Opposition does not get re-elected to the Chhattisgarh assembly. T S Singh Deo, the Leader of Opposition in the outgoing assembly, Tuesday defeatedBJP's Anurag Singh Deo by 39,624 votes to retain Ambikapur. In the past, three leaders of opposition, who had contested theassembly pollsafter serving their term, had failed to get re-elected. In 2003, when the first assembly elections were held in the state after its formation in 2000, the then Leader of Opposition Nandkumar Sai of the BJP had lost to former Chief Minister Ajit Jogi from the Marwahi seat. Jogi is the first Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh. Subsequently in 2008 polls, the then Leader of Opposition Mahendra Karma of the Congress had lost his Dantewada seat. The same happened in the 2013 polls when .
Pre-poll clashes leaves 2 ruling party workers dead in Bangladesh
Two workers of the ruling Awami League party were killed and dozens others injured in political clashes in Bangladesh, police said Wednesday, as tension soared before the December 30 general elections in the country. Scores of people were also injured in the clashes between the campaign workers of the two main political parties, the Awami League (AL) and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), on Tuesday, they said. Incumbent Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of the Awami League is seeking a third consecutive term as formal electioneering began on Monday. Her rival and ex-premier 73-year-old Khaleda Zia, who is the chairperson of the main opposition BNP, is currently serving jail terms in two graft cases involving charities named after her slain husband Ziaur Rahman. Awami League and BNP workers clashed on Tuesday in the districts of Noakhali and Faridpur, leaving two campaigners of the ruling party dead, police said. According to police, the ruling party campaigner was beaten to death by .
Pellet removed from youngest victim's eye
Doctors on Wednesday successfully removed the pellet lodged in the right eye of an 18-month-old girl, Hiba Nisar, the youngest pellet victim in Kashmir who was injured after getting hit inside her house last month. "We have removed the pellet which was lodged in the right eye of the infant girl. We cannot say for sure that her ability to see with the affected eye will be restored, but we are making our best efforts," a doctor, who was part of the team that performed the operation, said. The procedure to remove the pellet from Hiba's eye took a marathon two-and-half hours, the doctor said. Hiba got the unwanted tag of being the youngest pellet victim in Kashmir on November 25 when she was hit by pellets inside her house during clashes between protesters and security forces in Shopian district. The picture of Hiba with a bandage on her right eye has gone viral on social media. According to the infant's mother, Marsala Jan, Hiba was playing inside her house when clashes broke out between
Modi ignored election hype during vote count, went about routine work: Officials
The assembly elections to five states were seen as a litmus test for Narendra Modi's popularity, and as the counting of votes began Tuesday morning there was an air of suspense over the outcome -- will it be a setback for BJP? Will the party continue its winning streak in the Hindi belt and prove some of the exit polls wrong? But in the midst of all the tension, the prime minister paid no attention to the hype around the elections and attended to his routine work and scheduled engagements, preparing his speech that he had to deliver on Wednesday at a health conference, and attending the first day of Parliament's winter session. "For the prime minister, Tuesday was a busy working day like any other day," said an aide of the prime minister. Modi reached Parliament at 10.30 AM, and in his customary interaction with media called for healthy debate and discussion on all subjects of concern to the people. He attended the Lok Sabha, which was adjourned for the day after obituary references .
Stormy day in Lok Sabha, oppn corners govt on various issues
As has been the precedent in previous sessions, it was a stormy day in the Lok Sabha Wednesday with the opposition protesting and raising slogans against the government over various issues. The opposition stormed into the Well of the House and shouted slogans against the government. This time around, NDA ally Shiv Sena also joined protests seeking a law for a grand Ram temple in Ayodhya. Members of the treasury benches shoutrf back at the opposition till the House was adjourned twice -- first for nearly an hour and then for the entire day. The results of the assembly elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh seem to have bolstered the Congress members, who were at the forefront of the protests, seeking a probe by a joint parliamentary committee into the alleged Rafale aircraft deal. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, senior BJP leader L K Advani, Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge besides others were present in the ...
MP MLAs ask Rahul to pick Congress legislature party leader
Newly-elected Congress MLAs in Madhya Pradesh Wednesday asked Congress president Rahul Gandhi to nominate the new legislature party leader. At a meeting here in the evening, they unanimously passed a resolution authorising Gandhi to name the CLP leader. "The resolution was moved by senior MLA Arif Aqueel and seconded by other MLAs. They passed it unanimously, authorising the Congress president to nominate the legislature party leader," state Congress media cell chairperson, Shobha Oza told reporters. The meeting lasted for about two hours, she said. Senior Congress leaders A K Antony and Bhanwar Jitendra Singh attended the meeting as the central observers. Oza said Gandhi will be conveyed the decision of the newly-elected MLAs, after which he will name the CLP leader. The observers are also talking to the MLAs to seek their views, she said. All the four independent MLAs, elected in the November 28 poll, were also present in the meeting, she said. The Congress Wednesday ...
Pondy CM takes part in CPI(M)-led protest against Centre,
Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy took part in a protest held by the CPI(M) here Wednesday,demanding immediate recall of the Lt Governor Kiran Bedi over her "style of functioning" and against the Centre. Narayanasamy and PWD Minister A Namassivayam, who were attending a private function in the vicinity of the agitation were informed of it, following which they reached the spot with a few party functionaries and joined the protest. During the protest, slogans were raised against the Lt Governor for "trampling" principles of democracy and "standing in the way" of smooth functioning of democratically-elected government in the Union Territory. The protesters also condemned the "injurious policies" adopted by the NDA government at the Centre, which "affected" the economy. The Congress government in Puducherry has been at loggerheads with Bedi on several issues. Last year, the Congress and DMK MLAs had demanded that the Centre recall Bedi, accusing her of having a ...
MP Advocate General quits after BJP's defeat in polls
Madhya Pradesh Advocate General P K Kaurav resigned Wednesday following the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) defeat in the Assembly elections. Kaurav sent his resignation to the Principal Secretary, Law Department, official sources said. "I have resigned from the post of advocate general following the change of government in the state," he said in the letter. Kaurav had been appointed as advocate general by the BJP government in June 2017.
Sidhu meets Amarinder, downplays differences
Punjab cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu on Wednesday met Chief Minister Amarinder Singh here and tried to downplay the reported differences between them.
State Assembly results rejection of communal polarisation: JIH
Prominent Muslim body Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) on Wednesday said that the results of latest state Assembly elections, in which the BJP has been dethroned in three states, show that people have rejected communal politics.
Traditional village heads take out a rally in Nagaland
Hundreds of traditional village heads in Nagaland Wednesday took out a rally here demanding an early settlement of the vexed Naga political problem. Hundreds of goan burahs (traditional village heads) under the aegis of Nagaland Goan Burah Federation (NGBF) took out a rally carrying placards which read "we want early solution" and "Nagas demand early solution to the Naga political problem." They marched till Raj Bhavan and submitted a representation to the prime minister through the state Governor PB Acharya. "In the land of the Nagas, the peoples anticipation and desire for an honourable and acceptable political solution, through political dialogue with Naga political groups namely, working committee (WC) comprising of multiple Naga groups and NSCN (IM) is very high," the GB Federation stated through the memorandum. NGBF president Shaleem Konyak, generation Shikuto Zalipu and Kohima District GB Association president Vineipra Pieny appended the memorandum.
Rahul to decide on CMs in MP, Rajasthan
The newly-elected Congress MLAs in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan on Wednesday left it to Congress President Rahul Gandhi the issue of deciding as to who would be the Chief Ministers in the two states.