Page 2358 - Politics
Congress is a Private limited firm: Amit Shah
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah on Thursday launched a scathing attack on Congress and called it a private limited firm belonging to the Gandhi-Nehru family.Addressing a public rally here, Shah said, "Today Congress party has become a party which needs to be seen with a telescope on the map of India. Congress party is not a democratic party, it is just a private limited firm belonging to the Gandhi-Nehru family."Shah is today addressing a number of rallies in the poll-bound state of Rajasthan. During his poll addresses Shah is outlining the various schemes being implemented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Central government such as Ujjwala Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana among others.He also commended the state government for implementing various public friendly initiatives such as smart kitchens under Annapurna scheme and loan waivers to around 74,000 state farmers.Earlier in the day, he had also lambasted Congress president Rahul Gandhi for questioning Prime .
Modi govt can't even do witch hunt properly: Delhi Govt reacts on Satyendra Jain prosecution permission
Minutes after the union Home Ministry granted sanction to prosecute Satyendra Kumar Jain, Minister in Delhi Government in a case registered by Central Bureau of Investigation for acquiring assets disproportionate to his known sources of income, Delhi Government spokesperson Nagender Sharma said that Narendra Modi government cannot even do witch hunting properly.While reacting on the Ministry of Home Affair's (MHA) sanction to prosecute Jain, Sharma on Thursday took to social media micro-blogging site Twitter to say: "Modi government's discredited caged parrot CBI which is gasping for survival registers a fake case against Satyendra Jain and Modi government's MHA says it has given prosecution sanction. Modi regime cannot even do witch hunting properly."Earlier in the day, official sources revealed that MHA has granted permission to prosecute Satyendra Jain in a case registered by CBI on August 24, 2017, for acquiring assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.
85.2 % voting in Jammu, 33.7 % in Kashmir: Panchayat polls
In the fifth phase of polling for the Panchayat elections in Jammu and Kashmir 71.1 per cent voter turnout was recorded. While the Jammu division witnessed 85.2 percent voter turnout the voting percentage remained abysmally low at 33.7 per cent in the Kashmir division.The voting percentage remained lowest in district Pulwama with 0.5 per cent voter turnout. On the other hand, the highest percentages of votes were polled in Resai district with 89.1 per cent electorates exercising their franchise.Regions like Kupwara, Bandipora, Baramulla, Ganderbal, Budgam and Anantnag saw low voter turnout of 42.5 percent, 34.6 percent, 32.9 percent, 20.3 percent , 34.8 percent and 10.1 percent respectively.While the regions like Doda, Ramban, Udhampur, Jammu, Rajouri and Poonch witnessed 83.3 per cent, 85.2 per cent, 82 per cent, 88.9 per cent, 82.8 per cent and 84.5 per cent respectively.The Panchayat elections are being held in the nine phases in the state with the sixth phase of polling scheduled .
China expresses concerns over US warships in Taiwan Strait
China said Thursday that it had expressed concerns to the US over the passage of a pair of Navy warships through the Taiwan Strait, days ahead of a planned meeting between President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters that Taiwan was the "most important and sensitive issue" in relations between the sides. "We have expressed our concerns to the US," Geng said at a daily news briefing. "The Taiwan issue has a bearing on China's sovereignty and territorial integrity. It is the most important and sensitive issue in China-US ties," Geng said. China's defence ministry also said it had closely followed the warships' passage. Monday's passage of the guided missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur and guided missile cruiser USS Antietam marked at least the third time this year that the Navy has sailed through the strait that separates Taiwan from mainland China. The 160 kilometer-wide waterway is split down the middle between ...
Centre approves Baramulla-Kupwara rail link
In a significant initiative to expand connectivity in Jammu and Kashmir, the central government has approved extension of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail link up to Kupwara in north Kashmir, officials said. "I am glad to inform you that railways has prioritised the extension of rail link from Baramulla to Kupwara and has sanctioned an updated survey for the new link," Anil Srivastava, Advisor (Transport) NITI Aayog said in his communication to J-K Chief Secretary B V R Subrahmanyam. According to the communication, the Baramulla-Kupwara rail link project would be taken up under umbrella work by the railways. The demand for extension of rail link from Baramulla to Kupwara was forcefully projected by the governor's administration before NITI Aayog CEO, Amitabh Kant during his visit to Baramulla and Kupwara districts last month. Subrahmanyam said the governor's administration has also made a strong case for the Jammu-Rajouri-Poonch rail link and is expecting significant forward ...
Congress was first to propose quota for Marathas: Chavan
The Congress in Maharashtra sought to take credit for legislative nod for reservation to the Marathas Thursday and said it also marked the culmination of a long struggle by the community. The state Assembly unanimously passed a bill proposing 16 per cent reservation in government jobs and education for the Marathas under socially and educationally backward category. Maharashtra Congress president Ashok Chavan said the decision reflected success of the struggle launched for quota by the community, which constitutes over 30 per cent of the state's population. "The Sakal Maratha Samaj raised the demand for Maratha reservation through 58 morchas (marches) across Maharashtra. The passage of the Maratha reservation act in the legislature today is a success of their struggle. I congratulate the Maratha community on their victory," Chavan told reporters. The Sakal Maratha Samaj was one of the outfits that spearheaded the quota agitation. "The Congress governments decision to ...
Ex-diplomat Zurabishvili elected Georgia's first woman president
- Georgia's newly elected President Salome Zurabishvili on Thursday hailed her victory as a step forward for women and a move closer to Europe for the ex-Soviet republic. With all votes counted, the country's election commission said the French-born ex-diplomat, backed by the ruling Georgian Dream party, had taken 59.52 per cent of the second-round vote. Her rival Grigol Vashadze, from an alliance of 11 opposition parties led by exiled ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili's United National Movement (UNM), took 40.48 per cent. The opposition denounced the election as a fraud. But while raising some serious concerns, foreign observers said the vote was "competitive" and well-run. "It is now important to show that this country has chosen Europe," Zurabishvili said told journalists after her win. "For that purpose, Georgians have elected a European woman president." "It feels great," she said, pointing out that she was one of a small number of women presidents in the world. The election was ..
Over 48 lakh tweets on assembly polls recorded in Oct-Nov
Micro-blogging platform Twitter Thursday said it has recorded over 48 lakh tweets related to ongoing assembly elections in five states during October and November. "With elections currently ongoing in the states of Chattisgarh, Mizoram, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Telangana, Twitter saw more than 48 lakh tweets in relation to assembly elections over the past two months (October 1 - November 28, 2018)," Twitter said in a statement. It added that the conversations have continued to peak with over 2.5 lakh tweets posted in 36 hours between November 27-29. "While conversations in India grew with the state elections, people across the world also leveraged Twitter to see what's happening in India," it said. The top hashtags, in term of conversation volume, were #bjp, #congress, #rajasthan, #madhyapradesh and #telangana. Other popular hashtags included #telanganaelections2018, #votebjpsecuremp #madhyapradeshelections, #rajasthanelections2018, #mizoram, #bjp4mp #bjp4telangana and ...
May says UK's Brexit future lies in MPs' hands
Prime Minister Theresa May said Thursday it was up to MPs to decide whether Britain leaves the European Union next March with no deal despite the potentially catastrophic impact. Speaking to a parliamentary committee, May was asked several times whether she would personally allow a disorderly Brexit to happen if -- as looks increasingly likely -- MPs vote down the deal she has struck with the EU. "Knowing you for 20 years, I just don't believe that if your deal goes down, you are the kind of person who would contemplate taking this country into a no-deal situation. Am I wrong?" asked opposition Labour MP Yvette Cooper. May answered: "It will be a decision for parliament... I've negotiated what I believe truly to be a good deal for the UK." She also rejected calls for either a second referendum on Brexit or to delay Britain's departure if the deal is rejected in the December 11 vote. "We would simply find ourselves in a period of more uncertainty and division," she said, adding: "It is
Karna assembly session likely to be stormy
The ten-day assembly session beginning from December 10 at 'Suvarna Soudha',the legislature complex in Belagavi, is likely to be stormy as the opposition BJP has planned to highlight the alleged injustice to farmers inside and outside the assembly, the party said Friday. A 'mega' farmers' rally would be held outside the Suvarna Soudha, modelled on the Vidhana Soudha, the state secretariat in Bengaluru, the party said. Inside the assembly, the Bharatiya Janata Party would highlight its findings on the government's "failure" to carry out relief work in the drought and flood-hit regions, state unit chief B S Yeddyurappa told reporters after the legislative party meeting. Prior to the assembly session, six teams, comprising party leaders, would fan out to various parts of the state to review the damage due to drought and flood and government's "failure" to provide relief to the affected people, he said. "On December 10 at 1 pm, more than a lakh farmers will stage a ...
Of what use is Kartarpur corridor if Pak continues to support terrorism: Puri
Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri said Thursday of what use will be the Kartarpur corridor if Pakistan continues to support cross-border terrorism against India. Puri, who represented the Indian government at the groundbreaking ceremony of the corridor, said while Kartarpur was a "corridor of hope and goodwill" it cannot be insulated from the ground reality. The corridor links Darbar Sahib in Pakistan - the final resting place of Sikh faith's founder Guru Nanak - with Dera Baba Nanak shrine in India's Gurdaspur. "The fact of the matter is that the ground reality is characterised by one state using terror as an instrument of policy against a neighbouring state," he said here on the sidelines of the Cement Manufacturers Association of India's annual convention here. Puri, the Union minister of state of Housing and Urban Affairs (independent charge), also said,"Now what use of the corridor would be, if these kind of acts of terrorism or elements which are committed to creating trouble ...
Top guns blazing as campaigning peaks in Telangana
Campaigning in Telangana for the December 7 Assembly elections has reached a crescendo with top guns of major parties hitting the roads.
Will form coalition with anyone wanting to work for betterment of Sikkim: Bhaichung Bhutia
Ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, former Indian football captain Bhaichung Bhutia, who launched the Hamro Sikkim Party in April, said Thursday his outfit will form a coalition with anyone wanting to work for the betterment of his state. Bhutia said that the HSP is currently in touch with national as well as regional parties which want progress of Sikkim. "We are talking to all the parties right now. Whichever parties -- national or regional -- are wanting to work for the betterment of Sikkim, we are ready to form a coalition...," Bhutia told PTI when asked about his party forming a coalition with the Bharatiya Janata Party or any other party in the Lok Sabha polls. The general elections are scheduled to be held next year in the country. Bhaichung had contested the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and the 2016 West Bengal Assembly elections as a Trinamool Congress candidate, but had lost the polls and quit Mamata Banerjee's party in February. The former Indian football captain had then floated the HSP
Thousands at Zimbabwe's first anti-govt rally since crackdown
Thousands of anti-government demonstrators marched through Harare on Thursday under close surveillance by armed police in the first rally since a deadly crackdown on an election protest in August. Singing and waving placards denouncing President Emmerson Mnangagwa's rule, the protesters gathered in the centre of the Zimbabwean capital to hear speeches ahead of a march. The event, which was held with police approval, was organised by the main opposition MDC party, which says it was cheated of victory in the July 30 election, eight months after long-time leader Robert Mugabe was ousted. In a mass demonstration two days later, six people died when security forces opened fire on the protesters, undermining Managagwa's efforts to present the election as a fresh start for the nation after years of repression under Mugabe years. "Mnangwagwa must go," read one banner at Thursday's protest alongside others reading "You stole my vote, please give it back" as well as slogans demanding justice ...
Punjab International Trade Expo in Amritsar from Dec 6
The annual Punjab International Trade Expo will be held in Amritsar from December 6 to 10, a senior officer said Thursday. The PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI), Chandigarh with the assistance of the Punjab government will organise the Expo, Punjab's Additional Chief Secretary Vini Mahajan said. She said this trade expo would go a long way in strengthening the economic and cultural ties between Punjab as well as the other states/countries. The expo would be attended by the governments of Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, North-Eastern states and Himachal Pradesh, and union ministries of Textile, Ayush, and Khadi and Village Industries Commission, she said. Also, there are chances of participation by Thailand, Turkey, Egypt, Afghanistan, South Africa and other global partners, she said.
Taiwan confirms passage of 2 US warships through its strait
Taiwan's Defence Ministry on Thursday confirmed the passage of two US Navy warships through the Taiwan Strait, the third time in a year that American military ships have sailed between Taiwan and China.
Auti of Sena, two others in fray for Deputy Speaker election
Shiv Sena MLA Vijay Auti, Congress' Harshvardhan Sapkal and independent MLA Bachhu Kadu filed nomination papers for election to the post of Deputy Speaker of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly on Thursday. Assembly officials said that nominations can be withdrawn by 10.30 AM Friday, and thereafter the election, if needed, will be held at noon. Autiis the MLA from Parner, Sapkal is the legislator from Buldhana while Kadu is independent MLA from Achalpur. The Sena with its 63 MLAs and ally BJP's 122 MLAs is in a comfortable position to win the election in the 288-member lower house.
Washington confirmed Putin-Trump meeting at G20: Kremlin Spokesman
Washington has confirmed the meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump on the G20 sidelines, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Thursday."Washington confirmed the meeting, so I don't know how to answer your question," Peskov said when asked how the Kremlin assessed the fact that Washington did not confirm the meeting, and whether there were any concerns that Trump could cancel the meeting at the last moment."Putin and Trump will first briefly talk tete-a-tete and later, about an hour will be devoted to expanded talks. No plans for separate Putin-Theresa May meeting at G20, but if sides wish, they could talk on sidelines," said Peskov.
Killing of RLSP leader triggers protest
A day after a local RLSP leader was shot dead by criminals in Bihar's East Champaran district triggering protests, party leader and Union Minister Upendra Kushwaha on Thursday targeted Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Centre should first act against Amit Shah: Chandrababu
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday said the Central government should first take action against BJP chief Amit Shah for financial irregularities.