Page 2255 - Politics

Utilise Winter Session for public interest: PM to political parties

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday said all political parties who have to face the electorate in May next year will utilize the Winter Session of Parliament for public interest and not political benefit. In his brief address to the media outside the Parliament House on the first day of the session, the PM also said the government has always strived to discuss all issues. "There should be an open discussion. There should be a debate, there should be a sharp debate. But at least there should be one," he said. Referring to the Lok Sabha elections due next year, he said he is confident that all political parties "who have to face the electoral test in May (next year), while keeping in mind the people, will utilise the session for public interest and not political interest." Modi hoped that the session would be constructive and members would participate in debates on key issues concerning the public. He hoped that members would sit for longer duration to resolve key issues concerning the

Surjit Bhalla resigns from PM's Economic Advisory Council

Economist Surjit Bhalla, a vociferous supporter of Narendra Modi on demonetisation and other economic issues, has resigned as a part-time member of Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council (EAC-PM), the second high-profile resignation to be witnessed in the Modi dispensation in the last two days.

It is ding-dong battle in MP

Contrary to exit poll predictions that gave the Congress a clear edge in Assembly elections, the Congress and the ruling BJP were involved in a nail-biting contest for power on Tuesday.

US returns war trophy bells to Philippines

Church bells seized from the Philippines by US troops as war trophies over a century ago were returned on Tuesday, in a bid to turn the page on a difficult chapter between the historical allies. Giving back the three so-called Balangiga bells meets a decades-old demand from the former US colony at a time when the two nations' ties have been rattled by President Rodrigo Duterte's pivot to China. "Returning these bells is the right thing to do," US Ambassador Sung Kim said at a sober handover ceremony on a Manila airfield, where a cheer went up when the bells were pulled from wooden crates. "It is my great honour to be here at the closing of a painful chapter in our history," he told the crowd that included people who had lobbied for years to bring the bells home. The bells will be sent back later this week to the church in the central town of Balangiga where they were looted by US soldiers avenging a surprise attack that killed 48 of their comrades on September 28, 1901. In reprisal, ..

Outcome of assembly polls not mandate against Modi govt: Union

With election trends showing reverses for the BJP, Union minister Shripad Naik Tuesday said the outcome of assembly polls in five states is dependent on "local factors" and it is not a verdict on the performance of the Narendra Modi government. He also called for "introspection" and said the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) has accepted the verdict of the people. As per trends, the Congress was comfortable ahead of the ruling BJP in Chhattisgarh and has an edge over it in Rajasthan. Both parties were locked in a neck and neck race in Madhya Pradesh while the Congress appeared to be losing power in Mizoram to Mizo National Front. "This is not a mandate against Narendra Modi-led government but it is due to the local factors that the results have come out this way", Naik, the MP from North Goa, told PTI over phone from Delhi. He also said that the anti-incumbency factor seems inevitable in states where governments have been in power for three-four terms. "But there are some ...

Govt likely to make announcement on RBI soon: Finance Secretary

The government is likely to make an announcement regarding Urjit Patel's successor as Reserve Bank of India's Governor later in the day, Finance Secretary A N Jha said. RBI has been rendered headless following Patel's unexpected resignation, with immediate effect, Monday. Patel, who is the first governor since 1990 to step down before his term ends, in a brief statement, cited "personal reasons" for the decision. The decision to quit comes four days ahead of a crucial meeting of the board of the central bank that could have discussed issues of simmering differences with the government. It is expected that the board meeting may be deferred as there is no regular governor. Speaking to reporters, Jha said, some communication from the government on RBI is expected. Patel's three-year term was to end in September 2019, and he was eligible for a second term like most of his successors, barring a few like his outspoken predecessor Raghuram Rajan. A Kenyan national who acquired an Indian ...

Chhattisgarh polls: Raman Singh leads, five ministers trail

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh was leading by 1,200 votes over Congress nominee and former prime minister late Atal Bihari Vajpayee's niece Karuna Shukla in Rajnandgaon Assembly seat, as per the latest poll trends. However, five ministers in Singh's cabinet were trailing after the end of fourth round of counting, a poll official said. Three ministers were leading, he added. State minister Rajesh Munat was behind Congress' Vikas Upadhyay in Raipur City West Assembly seat, Amar Agarwal was trailing behind Shailesh Pande of the Congress in Bilaspur segment, while Brij Mohan Agarwal was behind Congress' Kanhaiyya Agrawal in Raipur city south segment. Besides, minister Kedarnath Kashyap was closely behind Narayan Kashyap of the Congress in Narayanpur segment while Dayal Das Baghel was trailing behind Congress' Gurudayal Singh Banjare in Navagarh segment. Another minister Mahesh Gagdha was also trailing behind Congress' Vikram Mandavi in Bijapur segment. Minister Prem

Celebrations at TRS headquarters

Celebrations broke out Tuesday at the Telangana Bhavan, the headquarters of ruling TRS, as the party appeared on course return to power in the assembly elections. The Telangana Bhavan wore a festive look with a large number of TRS activists dancing to drum-beats, bursting crackers and distributing sweets, hailing the 'victory' of the K Chandrasekhar Rao-led outfit. As per the latest trends after the counting votes began this morning, the TRS was leading in 91 seats, leaving way behind the Congress, which forged an alliance with TDP, the Telangana Jana Samithi and CPI for the polls. Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, his son K T Rama Rao, his nephew T Harish Rao and several of his cabinet colleagues in the caretaker government were leading in their respective constituencies. The TRS contested the elections on its own after the Rao government opted to dissolve the assembly in September more than eight months ahead of its tenure.

LS adjourned for the day after mourning Vajpayee's death

The Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day on Tuesday after paying tributes to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and four other former and incumbent MPs who passed away during the intersession period.

MNF crushes Congress, set to win Mizoram

The Mizo National Front (MNF) is all set to capture power in Mizoram after a decade, having established leads in 21 of the 40 assembly constituencies, while the ruling Congress is ahead only in places, poll officials said here on Tuesday.

Cong will be able to form govt with full majority in Rajasthan: Gehlot

AICC general secretary and Rajasthan's former chief minister Ashok Gehlot said Tuesday that the Congress will be able to form the government in the state with full majority. He said the Congress gave a tough fight to the BJP in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state Gujarat in assembly polls there last year. "The Congress will form the government. This is the mandate of public, which is in favour of the Congress party. We will get the clear majority and will also take along other parties or candidates who quit the BJP for us," Gehlot told reporters here. "Congress president Rahul Gandhi cornered Modi and BJP president Amit Shah in the Gujarat assembly polls. Since then they are not able to stand again. They technically won the Gujarat assembly elections but it was their defeat," he said. The former chief minister said the public is suffering under the BJP rule. The Congress is leading in 100 seats, BJP in 78 seats while independents are leading in 11 seats, BSP in three seats, CPM .

Thai junta lifts ban on political campaigning ahead of 2019 elections

Thailand's junta has lifted a ban on political campaigning ahead of 2019 elections, an order published by the Royal Gazette said Tuesday, more than four years after it was introduced following the kingdom's latest coup. One of the military's first acts after seizing power in May 2014 was to outlaw political activity of all kinds as it headed off opposition in a country notorious for its rowdy -- and often deadly -- street politics. But the ban was officially lifted on Tuesday, with a return to polls slated for February 24. "Political parties should be able to campaign to present their policies," an order in palace mouthpiece the Royal Gazette said. The junta "has decided to amend or abolish the laws" which could inhibit campaigns before elections. Restrictions began to be eased in September, allowing political parties to recruit new members and elect leaders. But campaigns and street rallies remained banned. Tuesday's order opens the way raises the prospect of a return to street ...

Close fight in Madhya Pradesh; Cong leads in 111, BJP in 106

The BJP and the Congress are in a close fight in Madhya Pradesh as trends in all 230 Assembly seats show the opposition party having a slight edge over the ruling faction. The Congress was leading in 110 seats while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was ahead in 107 constituencies. The latest leading position shows Congress at 111, BJP 106, BSP 5, Bahujan Sangharsh Dal 1, Gondvana Gantantra Party 2, Samajwadi Party 2 and Independents at 3 seats. The BJP under the leadership of Shivraj Singh Chouhan is seeking a fourth term in office while the Congress is making a determined bid to unseat him. The 2013 state Assembly's partywise position was :- BJP-165, Congress-58, BSP-4 and Independents-3.

Madhya Pradesh polls: 9 ministers in Chouhan cabinet trailing

Nine ministers in the Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led BJP government in Madhya Pradesh are trailing in the Assembly polls as per the latest trends, an election official said Tuesday. State minister Narottam Mishra was trailing by a margin of 3,114 votes from Datia seat while Rustam Singh was at the third position in Morena constituency. Besides, Balkrishna Patidar was trailing in Khargone by a margin of 44 votes, while Lal Singh Arya was lagging behind by a margin 3,039 votes from Gohad seat in Bhind district. Minister Om Prakash Dhurve was at the third place in Shahpura seat of Dindori district while Antar Singh Arya was trailing by 3,626 votes in Sendhwa seat in Barwani district. Minister Deepak Joshi was behind by 4,219 votes in Hatpipliya seat in Dewas district, while Vijay Shah was also trailing by a margin of 1,304 votes in Harsud seat in Khandwa. Minister Rampal Singh was trailing by 1,193 votes in Silvani seat in Raisen district. Former prime minister late Atal Bihari ..

Cong leading in 100 seats in Rajasthan, BJP in 78

The Congress was leading in 100 seats leaving behind the BJP which was ahead in 78 seats in Rajasthan, poll officials said Tuesday. The CPM was leading in two seats, the BSP in two seats and independents in 12 seats and others on four seats, they said. Several ministers, including state Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria and Transport Minister Yoonus Khan, were trailing in the initial round of counting. Besides them, Social Justice Minister Arun Chaturvedi (Civil lines), Water Resources Minister Rampratap (Hanumangarh) Agriculture Minister Prabhu Lal saini (Anta), UDH Minister Srichand Kriplani (Nimahera), Gopalan Minster Otaram Devasi (Sirohi seat), Cooperative Minister Ajay Singh (Degana) are trailing. Ministers who are leading are -- Health Minister Kalicharan (Malvia nagar), Panchayti Raj Minister Rajendra Rathore (Churu), speaker Kailash Meghwal (Shahpura), Education Minister Vasudev Devnani (Ajmer north) area. Chief minister Vasundhara Raje is leading in Jhalrapatan constituency .

Cong leads in R'than, Chhattisgarh and MP; TRS races ahead in Telangana, MNF in Mizoram

The Congress was leading in the BJP-ruled states of Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh and was locked in a close fight in Madhya Pradesh while the TRS forged ahead in Telangana and the MNF in Mizoram, trends indicated on Tuesday as votes for elections in the five states were counted. The Rahul Gandhi-led party became the focal point of attention as the morning progressed and trends showed it could possibly steal a march over rival BJP in the Hindi heartland states of Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. In Madhya Pradesh, the picture changed minute to minute, in an electoral exercise being seen as a semi-final to 2019. "Trends show Congress marching ahead to victory in Rajasthan, MP and Chhattisgarh. We are confident the trend will continue across the country," Congress leader Sachin Pilot said in Jaipur. With election trends showing reverses for the BJP, senior BJP leader and Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the polls were fought on the basis of the performance of state governments, rejecting the ...

Rajnath refuses to accept defeat, as trends give Congress an edge

Even as election trends gave an edge to the Congress in three states, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday refused to accept that his party the BJP was going to lose.The trends showed that the Congress was surging in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh, which are being presently ruled by the BJP."These are early trends. We hope to perform well," Rajnath said.In Rajasthan, the opposition Congress took an early lead in, with the party ahead in 52 seats while the ruling BJP was behind with 39 seats, according to the latest trends available for the Assembly results.In Chhattisgarh, early trends have suggested that the Congress is leading on 13 seats, BJP leading on 4 seats, Janata Congress on one seat.Elaborate security arrangements have been made for counting of votes in all five states.

State polls: TRS maintains leads in Telangana

The ruling TRS on Tuesday continued to surge ahead of the Congress and the BJP with leading in 12 seats, according to the Election Commission of India.Both the Congress and the BJP till 10:30 am have bagged only one seat each. In the state, 119 Assembly seats are at stake.The major players in the southern state are the TRS, All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen (AIMIM), BJP and a grand alliance called 'Praja Kutami', that comprises of Congress, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), the Telangana Jana Samithi (TJS) and the Communist Party of India (CPI).A total of 1,821 candidates were in the fray for the Assembly elections in Telangana. The state recorded a voter turnout of over 73 per cent.The ruling TRS is confident of winning the polls. While the Congress-led alliance, on the one hand, is aiming to dethrone the TRS. The BJP, on the other hand, is striving to make inroads in the southern state.

Economist Surjit Bhalla resigns from PM's Economic Advisory Council

Economist Dr Surjit S Bhalla on Tuesday announced that he has resigned as a part-time member of EAC-PM (Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister).Bhalla, who was amongst the economists who had hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for demonetisation in 2016, was appointed to EAC-PM last year."I resigned as part-time member PMEAC on December 1st," Bhalla informed on Twitter. He was appointed as a member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Economic Advisory Council in 2017, soon after it was formed.Bhalla has several feathers on his cap. He is a senior India analyst for New York-based macroeconomic policy advisory firm- the Observatory Group, besides being a Chairman of Oxus Research and Investments.He served as executive director of the Policy Group, India's first non-government funded think tank. Since 1999, he has been on the governing board of India's largest think tank, National Council of Applied Economic Research.According to the information on EAC-PM's website, Bhalla has ...

Celebrations in Congress camp as party leads in 3 states

With early trends in three of the five state assembly elections showing a tilt towards the Congress, its workers and supporters burst into celebrations at various party offices as well as its headquarters in New Delhi.The workers distributed sweets and raised slogans as the trends reflected that the party may make a comeback in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.In Chhattisgarh, Congress is ahead of the BJP on 21 seats while the BJP is leading on five. Congress' Karuna Shukla, niece of former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, is giving a tough fight to the incumbent Chief Minister Raman Singh Rajnandgaon constituency.In Madhya Pradesh, where the BJP has been in power since 2003, the Congress as per early trends, showed an improvement by leading with a substantial margin."These are trends, but I am fully confident that we will get full majority," said Kamal Nath, the party's Madhya Pradesh Chief.In Rajasthan the Congress is leading on 91 seats while the BJP is at 71.Meanwhile, in ...