Page 2356 - Politics
BJP does not have strength to change Constitution: Shinde
The BJP does not have the strength to change the Indian Constitution, despite fears being expressed in political circles, former Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said on Thursday.
Trump says close to doing something with China on trade
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he was close to making a deal with China on trade but is not sure he wants to do it and likes where things stand now.
Twitter records over 48 lakh tweets related to Assembly elections
Twitter on Thursday said it recorded over the past two months more than 48 lakh tweets in relation to the Assembly elections in five states -- Chhattisgarh, Mizoram, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Telangana.
Farmers' mega protest on Friday In Delhi; No police permission yet
Thousands of farmers from across the country on Thursday reached the Ramlila ground in the national capital for a mega protest march to Parliament Street on Friday demanding higher crop prices and farm loan waiver.
KCR is 'small Modi', cheating people: Naidu
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu Thursday dubbed ruling TRS supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao as "small Modi", alleging he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi were 'cheating' people. "There is one big Modi in Delhi and small Modi here in the form of KCR (as Rao is popularly known). People are scared of the duo. Both are cheating people," he said referring to "unfulfilled" electoral promises made by them. Addressing a road show here as part of campaigning for the Congress-led four-party People's Front for the December 7 Telangana assembly polls, he also claimed whoever posed questions to Modi would be subjected to searches by the CBI or the Income Tax department or the Enforcement Directorate. Prime Minister Modi was destroying constitutional bodies. "A situation is emerging where there is no democracy. I cannot keep quiet. That is why me and Congress decided to work together to save democracy," Naidu, whose party is part of the front, claimed ...
Will take efforts to form non-Cong, non-BJP govt at Centre:
TRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao Thursday said he would take efforts for the formation of a non-Congress, non-BJP government at the Centre to realise increase in reservations to Muslims and STs in Telangana. "I tell one thing to our tribal children, Muslim children. You know that if I take up anything, I will be stubborn. When I started for Telangana, nobody had confidence. But, Telangana came," he pointed out. "Today, STs reservation, Muslims reservation also.. I will achieve your reservation by getting a non-BJP, non-Congress government installed in Delhi next term by winning all MP seats," Rao said at party campaign rallies. He criticised the NDA government for not accepting the proposal though the state government and Assembly sent resolutions seeking increase in reservations. "Narendra Modi says I will not increase. Is India your 'jagir' (fiefdom)," he said. Noting that the population of STs and Muslims increased (in the overall population) in Telangana following ...
Like Rafale, demonetisation a crime against India, guilty will be punished: Rahul Gandhi
Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Thursday alleged that demonetisation "like the Rafale deal was a crime against India and a huge scam", and said the guilty will be investigated and punished. The Congress chief also questioned why former chief economic adviser Arvind Subramanian did not resign when he "disagreed" with the demonetisation decision and said former defence minister Manhar Parrikar did the same in the Rafale deal. "Demo like Rafale (deal) was a crime against India and a huge scam. Parrikar distanced himself from Rafale to save his skin. Mr Subramanian is doing the same with Demo. I wonder why he didn't resign when he disagreed so much? Don't worry India, the guilty will be investigated and punished," he said on Twitter. Gandhi tagged a news report which questioned whether the chief economic adviser ever supported the note-ban decision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In another tweet in Hindi earlier, Gandhi took a swipe at Modi's "achche din' (good days) promise and ...
Bringing ordinance only option for building Ram temple, govt should show urgency: VHP
The government should show the same urgency in bringing an ordinance for the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya as it did to amend the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, senior VHP leader Alok Kumar said Thursday. He also said passing an ordinance in Parliament was the "only option" left to facilitate the temple's construction. The VHP will organise a massive rally at the Ram Leela ground here to press for a law for the temple's construction. This rally will be held on November 9, two days before Parliament's Winter Session begins, the organisation's international working president said. Kumar expressed hope that the BJP-led NDA government will bring the Bill in the Winter Session, as, he claimed, the saffron party was part of the Ram Janambhoomi movement in 1992. "They (BJP) fought with us, shoulder-to shoulder, during the 1992 Ram Janambhoomi movement, and the construction of temple is part of the party's manifesto. I am hopeful that the government will bring law in the ...
Centre approves Baramulla-Kupwara rail link
In a significant initiative to expand connectivity in Jammu and Kashmir, the Central government on Thursday approved the extension of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail link up to Kupwara in north Kashmir.
Maha govt to allot land for India-UAE-Saudi Arabia oil refinery in coming weeks: UAE envoy
The land for a proposed India-UAE-Saudi Arabia oil refinery in Maharashtra will be allocated in the coming weeks, a UAE envoy said Thursday as he sought to assuage New Delhi's concern over fuel deficit in view of US sanctions against Tehran. The remarks by emirates' envoy Ahmed Albanna on the allocation of land in Maharashtra's Ratnagiri district came at a time when the project was facing opposition from the locals as well political parties, including the Shiv Sena. In a media briefing this week, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale had said Prime Minister Narendra Modi will raise the issue of volatility in global oil prices at the G20 Summit in Argentina. Responding to a question on whether there will be a demand-supply mismatch, especially once the six-months' relief given by the US to cut down oil imports from Iran ends, the envoy said fuel prices were determined by demand by different markets globally. "Will there be a shortage? I don't think so. Yes India was given relief from US ...
Pakistan government brings out 100-day performance report
The Pakistani government led by Prime Minister Imran Khan rolled out its first 100 days performance report on Thursday and vowed to pursue reforms in every field and revitalize economic growth through its tenure till 2023.
CBI vs CBI case: SC to first examine if Govt can pass orders against probe agency chief
The Supreme Court Thursday said it would first consider whether the government has the power to divest the CBI director of his duties under whatever circumstances or whether the selection committee headed by the prime minister must be approached before moving against Alok Verma on corruption allegations involving him. The court took this stand after making it clear that for now it was not going into the allegations and counter-allegations involving Verma and CBI's No.2 officer and Special Director R K Asthana both of whom have been stripped of their powers and sent on forced leave following their bitter feud. Verma's two-year tenure ends on January 31 next. The top court also clarified it has not taken judicial note of Verma's reply given to the court in a sealed cover on the probe findings of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) against him. A bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and K M Joseph said the hearing on the issue relating to the powers of ..
PM Modi in Argentina for G-20 summit
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday arrived in Argentina's capital of Buenos Aires to attend the G-20 summit where he will discuss ways to meet the new and upcoming challenges of the coming decade with other world leaders, including US President Donald Trump. "After a 24hr journey, PM @narendramodi arrives in Buenos Aires for the #G20Summit. The next 48 hrs will witness PM's participation at the Summit as well as in many other plurilateral and bilateral meetings on the margins of the Summit," MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted. On the sidelines of the two-day 13th G-20 summit, Modi, Trump and Japanese Premier Shinzo Abe will hold a trilateral meeting amidst China flexing its muscles in the strategic Indo-Pacific region. The trilateral, which would be an expansion of the bilateral meeting between Trump and Abe, is part of the series of meetings the US president would have on the sidelines of the G-20 summit on November 30 and December 1. Modi will also meet Chinese President ..
Ministers confident Maratha quota Bill will pass judicial test
Maharashtra ministers hailed the passage of the Bill on Maratha reservation as historic and sounded confident it will stand judicial scrutiny even as the opposition attributed the measure to the long struggle by the community. The Maharashtra Legislature Thursday passed a Bill proposing 16 per cent reservation in education and government jobs for the Marathas, declared as socially and educationally backward class by the government. The quota will be in addition to the existing 52 per cent reservation in the state for SC, STs and OBCs. Minister for Revenue Chandrakant Patil, who headed the cabinet sub-committee on Maratha reservation, said the government is also committed to provide quota to the Dhangar community at the earliest. The Dhangar (shepherd) community has been pressing for reservation under the Scheduled Tribe (ST) category. "We will soon send our recommendations to the Centre so that they can be included in the ST category," he said. Minister for OBC and VJNT ..
Exact date of Yemen Peace Talks in Sweden unconfirmed: Office of UN Special Envoy
The exact date of the peace talks between the Yemeni government and Houthi rebels is unconfirmed, but they will take place in Sweden in Hoda El Turk, the spokesperson for the Office of the UN Special Envoy for Yemen, told Sputnik on Thursday.United Kingdom Ambassador to Yemen Michael Aron said earlier in the day that the consultations in Sweden would take place next week, adding that he had already booked his trip."It will be in Sweden, but we don't have an exact date," the spokesperson said.United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday that the consultations might be held in Sweden in early December, adding that the conflicting parties had not reached the agreement on attending yet.Earlier this year, an attempt to hold such talks in Geneva fell through, as the Houthi delegation did not show up, citing security concerns.Yemen has been torn apart by the violent conflict between the government, backed by a Saudi-led coalition, and the Houthi movement. The coalition
Bihar assembly passes 2nd suppl demand & Bihar Appropriation
The Bihar legislative assembly Thursday passed the Rs 10,463.18 crore second supplementary budget for 2018-19 and the Bihar Appropriation (No.4) Bill, 2018 with voice vote amid ruckus created by opposition members on Muzaffarpur shelter home scandal issue. Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi presented the second supplementary budget and the Bihar Appropriation (No.4) Bill, 2018 which were passed by voice vote in the post-lunch session on the penultimate day of the week-long winter session of the state legislature. The House passed the second supplementary budget to meet various outstanding expenditures of the state government as well as the Bihar Appropriation (No.4) Bill, 2018 to authorise for withdrawal of the above mentioned amount from the treasury. As per the break-up of second suppmentary budget, Rs 7601.27 crore would be spent on annual scheme while Rs 2767.78 crore has been earmarked for establishment and committed expenditure and Rs 94.12 crore has been ...
Will make RCEP beneficial to all participants: MEA official
India would ensure that the proposed free trade agreement RCEP is "beneficial, equitable and balanced" for all participating countries, a senior Ministry of External Affairs official said here Thursday. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) bloc comprises 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members. The government is presently negotiating the free trade agreement with the participating countries. "I can assure you that the progress has been very good. We are, of course, determined to ensure that we get a RCEP which is balanced, equitable and beneficial to all the participating countries," Anurag Bhushan, Joint Secretary (Asean- ML), Ministry of External Affairs said at a seminar here. The RCEP bloc comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, Laos and Vietnam and their six free trade agreement partners - India, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. The participating countries ...
Ram temple will be constructed through 'any means': UP BJP chief
Uttar Pradesh BJP president Mahendra Nath Pandey on Thursday said the party supports construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya and the shrine will be constructed through "any means". But he also claimed that the party had never contested elections on the Ram temple issue and its agenda has always been development. "We support construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya," Pandey said. He said the party stood by a proposal, passed during a meeting of its national executive council in Himachal Pradesh in 1989, for Ram temple construction. "The case is in court and we hope that the decision will be in our favour," he said, referring to the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute case. "However, the temple will be constructed through any means," the BJP leader told reporters. Speaking about Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's controversial remark about Lord Hanuman, Pandey said the statement should be seen in wide context. "The chief minister expressed his views about Hanuman, the one ..
Congress is Gandhi-Nehru family's private limited company: Amit Shah
BJP chief Amit Shah Thursday termed the Congress a private limited company of the Gandhi-Nehru family in which party workers are ashamed of chanting slogans for the country. He targeted the opposition party at a series of public meetings in poll-bound Rajasthan, where he also talked tough on illegal migration from Bangladesh. He said the BJP government will try to expel illegal migrants one by one and asked Congress chief Rahul Gandhi to clarify whether he wanted infiltrators to remain in the country. The Congress is not a democratic party. It is a private limited firm of the Gandhi-Nehru family, he said addressing an election rally in Kotputli in Jaipur district. The Bharatiya Janata Party president also addressed meetings in Karauli and Nadoti in Karauli district, and in Bassi near Jaipur. Shah referred to a reported incident in Bikaner where Congress workers chanting Bharat mata ki jai' were interrupted by 'Sonia Gandhi ki jai' slogans. They are ashamed of chanting slogans for the
Kerala wants Centre to expedite flood relief assistance
Kerala, which suffered a loss of Rs 31,000 crore during the floods in August, Thursday wanted the Centre to expedite the promised assistance to enable it to rebuild the state. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the state had received only Rs 2,683.18 Crore in its Distress Relief Fund and was finding it difficult to cobble resources for the 're-build Kerala initiative.' He said the state has to pay Rs 290 crore to the Centre towards the rations received and rescue assistance provided during the floods. "Air Force have asked the state to pay over Rs 33.79 crore as the charge incurred for the rescue efforts during the deluge," Vijayan told reporters here. He also said he was planning to send a letter to the Centre to expedite the assured assistance. Vijayan said he had also written to Union Home minister Rajnath Singh to convene a high power committee meeting to provide assistance to the state. This is because the assistance will be provided only after the ...