Page 2376 - Politics

Congress fired bullets at Telangana youths: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday accused the Congress of firing bullets at Telangana youths and called upon the people of the state to ensure that the Congress did not win even a single Assembly seat.Addressing an election rally here, Prime Minister Modi said, "These elections are all about not sparing those who have fired bullets at the innocent youth of Telangana. For two decades they have suppressed the voice of Telangana and have killed youths of the state. We must take an oath that not a single candidate of Congress should get elected in the state assembly polls."Targeting Telangana's caretaker Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, Prime Minister Modi said, "The people should not vote for the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS). This election is also about saying goodbye to K Chandrashekar Rao who has done nothing for the state in the last 5 years. He is subservient to the Congress party."He said that the people of Telangana should not let Congress enter into the state while ...

Rahul didn't mention his 'gotra', but of Nehru's: Raje

Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje said Tuesday the 'gotra' mentioned by Rahul Gandhi while offering a puja was that of former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru and not of the Congress president. A priest, who presided over the puja offered by Rahul during his visit to the Pushkar lake in Ajmer district on Monday, had claimed that the Congress chief's 'gotra' was 'Dattatreya' and he is a Kashmiri Brahmin. The Bharatiya Janata Party had been questioning the Congress chief over his temple visits during elections and even asked what his 'gotra' was. Addressing a rally in Ajmer's Nasirabad town, Raje said: "Rahul Gandhi did not mention his 'gotra', the 'gotra' mentioned was that of Nehruji. He should have mentioned the 'gotra' of his father (Rajiv Gandhi) and grandfather (Feroze Gandhi)." Raje also accused former chief minister Ashok Gehlot on insulting women. "Gehlot's remark (on her) is not only my insult, but the insult of all women," she said. Gehlot had recently said Raje greeted

Had asked Sidhu to reconsider Pak visit: Amarinder

Amid criticism over his cabinet colleague Navjot Singh Sidhu's visit to Pakistan for the inauguration of the Kartarpur Sahib corridor, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said Tuesday he had asked him to reconsider it. But Amarinder said he acceded to Sidhu's request for permission as he did not believe in stopping anyone from undertaking a "personal visit". The Chief Minister said Sidhu was campaigning in Madhya Pradesh when he told him to reconsider his decision. Sidhu told me he had already committed himself to going. When I informed him of the stand I had taken on the issue, he said it was his personal visit but he would get back to me. But I did not hear from him, Amarinder said. He added the cabinet minister had sent him a request for going and he approved it. "I do not stop anyone from going anywhere on a private visit. It is not an official visit," said the CM. Notably, Sidhu Tuesday crossed over to Pakistan through Attari-Wagah border to take part in the ground-breaking ...

Pilot terms BJP manifesto 'disappointing'

Rajasthan Congress president Sachin Pilot on Tuesday termed the BJP manifesto released today as disappointing and said that it is a copy of the 2013 manifesto of the party.

Iran vows to fight Trump's Israel-Palestinian deal

Iran is determined to fight against US Donald Trump's anticipated Israel-Palestinian peace plan, parliament speaker Ali Larijani said Tuesday according to semi-official news agency ISNA. Trump has dubbed his administration's long-awaited plan the "ultimate deal", which has already unsettled the Palestinians although no details have yet been disclosed. Speaking in Tehran, Larijani said the "deal of the century" was a "plot" between Iran's arch foe Israel and the United States to establish the Jewish state's domination in the Middle East. "We will stand against the regime of Israel and won't let this deal take place in the region," Larijani said at an annual conference on Islamic unity. "If Americans are imposing sanctions on Iran today and are putting pressure on Iran, the reason for it is because Iran has stood against Israel," he added, quoted by ISNA. Earlier this year, Washington pulled out of the landmark international nuclear accord with Iran and reimposed crippling sanctions on .

Kisan Sabha to hold Singur to Raj Bhavan march

Thousands of farmers will attend the foot march programme to be organised by the All India Kisan Sabha(AIKS), the CPI(M) farmer wing against the alleged agrarian crisis in the state, a senior AIKS leader claimed Tuesday. Around 10,000 farmers and agricultural workers will kick start the 'Singur to Raj Bhavan Abhijan', on November 28, to highlight the series of crises engulfing the agrarian sector in West Bengal, the leader claimed. "They will be joined by 40,000 others from various parts of the state, who will also conduct rallies and campaigns throughout November 28 & 29 to draw attention to the serious problems faced by farming communities here," state secretary, Kisan Sabha, Amal Haldar said. Reacting to the programme of AIKS, TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee said the allegations against the government are completely baseless as government has taken enough steps for the development of the farmer community of the state Haldar accused the TMC government of ..

New Tunisia protests against Saudi crown prince's visit

Hundreds of Tunisian protesters marched through the capital Tunis in opposition to a planned visit Tuesday by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, urging justice over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The demonstrators shouted "Go away assassin!" and held placards with slogans including "The people want Bin Salman to be judged", "No to the killer of Yemeni children" and "You're not welcome". It was the second protest in as many days against the de facto Saudi ruler, who was expected to fly into Tunis from Egypt on Tuesday for talks with President Beji Caid Essebsi as part of a regional tour. It comes as Khashoggi's murder leads to increased scrutiny of Saudi Arabia's role in Yemen's devastating war. "It's inhuman to see an Arab leader killing his brothers in Yemen, and the murder of a journalist is the icing on the cake," said Basma Rezgui, a teacher brandishing a red-stained saw. Saudi Arabia has faced intense global criticism over the killing of insider-turned-critic ...

Raje slams Rahul Gandhi for not revealing his father's 'gotra'

Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje on Tuesday slammed Congress national president Rahul Gandhi for not revealing the 'gotra' of his father and grandfather.

Tiwari slams Kejriwal for calling special session

Delhi BJP President Manoj Tiwari Tuesday slammed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, alleging that the latter summoned a special session of the Vidhan Sabha over non-issues while ignoring problems faced by Delhi like pollution, water crisis and poor condition of hospitals. Addressing workers at a monthly meeting held at the Delhi BJP office, Tiwari alleged that Kejriwal called the special session for his personal motive and was wasting the hard-earned money of the people of Delhi. Organisation general secretary Siddharthan said all members of the Delhi BJP were working together with enthusiasm to make the party stronger. "We should promote Namo Merchandise campaign among each and every person in our related areas so that we can clear the path of selecting Narendra Modi as PM in the upcoming 2019 elections. Delhi BJP workers should consider their responsibilities and should make their party proud," he said. Union Minister Vijay Goel, along with Pradesh general secretaries Kuljeet ...

Bill to enable non-councillor city mayor get Governor's nod

West Bengal Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi on Tuesday gave his assent to a Bill enabling a non-councillor to become the mayor of Kolkata Municipal Corporation, a top Raj Bhavan official said. After a discussion with state advocate general, the governor gave his assent and the requisite papers were sent to the department, the official told PTI. The state assembly had passed the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (Second Amendment) Bill 2018 on November 22. The amendment was introduced to appoint Firhad Hakim, the state urban minister, as the mayor after incumbent Sovan Chatterjee resigned from the position on Thursday last. Hakim is not yet an elected councillor. According to the Bill, a non-councillor could be appointed as mayor Kolkata Municipal Corporation, but the person has to get elected as a councillor of KMC within six months. The existing law allowed only an elected councillor to occupy the post of the Mayor.

Netanyahu hails opening of Czech House in Jerusalem

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu inaugurated a Czech House in Jerusalem on Tuesday alongside Czech President Milos Zeman, with both hoping it would serve as a prelude to moving the country's embassy. Czech House, promoting tourism and trade, has been portrayed as a first step toward moving the European country's embassy from Tel Aviv to the disputed city of Jerusalem, as US President Donald Trump did in May. But the Czech government has also said it will respect the common position of the European Union, which opposes such a move. "In the near future, I firmly believe, and deep in my heart I do believe, we shall overcome," Zeman said at the inauguration ceremony during a state visit to Israel. "There will be... not only the embassy but also a nice Czech tavern with good Czech beer." Netanyahu compared the Czech Republic's support of Israel as similar in spirit to that of his country's most important ally, the US. "No one in Europe understands so readily and immediately the ...

We neither believe in, nor practise communal politics: Cong on its Telangana poll manifesto

The Congress Tuesday said it neither believed in nor practised communal politics, but had only reflected the sentiments of the people of Telangana by incorporating promises towards a particular community in its manifesto for the poll-bound state. Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said it was the responsibility of the opposition party to ensure that the sentiments on the ground were reflected in their articulation of the manifesto. "The Congress party has never done communal politics. The Congress party does not believe in communal politics. If there has been one all-enveloping umbrella which has accommodated flowers of every shade and hue, it is the Indian National Congress. So, on our pluralistic or secular credentials, we neither need a certificate from anybody nor do we need to answer for that," he said. "If a manifesto in a particular state has a particular formulation, that formulation is primarily reflective of the sentiments of the people of that state and as a responsible, ..

Kartarpur Corridor: Cong cautions govt over dealing with Pakistan

The Congress Tuesday said it would not like to come in the way of the Kartarpur Corridor created by Pakistan to facilitate Sikh pilgrims from India to visit Gurdwaras across the border, but cautioned the Centre in dealing with the neighbouring country. Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said the Kartarpur Corridor issue was "extremely sensitive" even as he said Pakistan had not acted against the perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks even after a decade. "Kartarpur corridor has been a long standing demand of the Sikh community in Punjab and other places which goes back almost 25 years...if there is something happening on Kartarpur, we would not like to stand in the way but in our dealing with Pakistan, you have to be extremely careful and extremely calibrated," he told reporters. "The difficulty with the NDA government has been that they have swung from sublime to the ridiculous in their policy towards Pakistan over the past 53 months," he said. The 4-km-long Kartarpur ...

Kumaraswamy defends Cong-JDS coalition govt's performance

Lashing out at the BJP for criticising his government's performance, Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy Tuesday said the ruling coalition will hold its performance to the party chief Yeddyurappa's "face", during the winter session of the assembly from December 10. The chief minister also asserted his government's commitment in implementing farm loan waiver and effectively mitigating drought situation in the state. "I will discuss on what Yeddyurappa has said during the assembly session, no problem.He has said no work has taken place during this government," Kumaraswamy told reporters. He pointed out that when Yeddyurappa became chief minister in 2008-09, expenditure during the first few months (till October) was 42 per cent of the budget estimate. Kumaraswamy said during 2013-14 when the Siddaramaiah-led government came to power, expenditure was 44 per cent of the budget estimate; "now in2018-19, the expenditure is 43 per cent." "Let, Yeddurappa not fear whether we will ...

Sidhu says 'Kartarpur corridor' could erase enmity between India, Pakistan

Punjab Cabinet minister Navjot Singh Sidhu on Tuesday said the Kartarpur Corridor has the potential to erase enmity between India and Pakistan and bring peace in the subcontinent.

Ahead of polling, Rahul appeals to MP voters in open letter saying Cong will provide good governance

On the eve of polling, Congress president Rahul Gandhi has, in an open letter to the people of Madhya Pradesh, made a fervent appeal to them to support his party to help provide good governance in the central state. Gandhi alleged that Madhya Pradesh in the last 10-15 years is known across the country more for firing upon farmers asking for their rights, crime against women, various scams like Vyapam and Bundelkhand package scam, rising unemployment, sand mafia and for usurping rights of tribals. "Amid all these disappointment, a new hope among the people of Madhya Pradesh has arisen because of the Congress' promises to them. "Our promise of trust ensures that farmers' loans would be waived, electricity bills would be halved, women will get justice, industry would flourish, youth will get permanent jobs and tribals and the poor will look ahead with hope," he said in the letter. Gandhi said he believes that bringing farmers out of debt would means boosting the economy. "If the farmer ..

Pakistan's weapons ensure deterrence in 'belligerent neighbourhood': Prez Alvi

Pakistan's weapons are a deterrent to ensure that nobody looks at it with a "bad eye" as the country is facing a "belligerent neighbourhood", President Arif Alvi said on Tuesday. Alvi said Pakistan wanted "long lasting peace" in the region as he invited India to begin peace talks. Pakistan's weapons will be "for defence, never for offence", he said without mentioning the country's nuclear capabilities. Alvi was speaking at the opening ceremony of the 10th International Defence Exhibition and Seminar (IDEAS) 2018 in Karachi. "When the paradigm is not in our favour, we also have a deterrent to ensure the fact that nobody looks at Pakistan with a bad eye at all," he said. "We want peace, we have been striving for peace in a belligerent neighbourhood but we must stay strong.Our weapons are for peaceful intent," he said, without naming any country. He said all issues between Pakistan and India have to be resolved, adding that war is no option. "We are a peaceful country and we look forward

Police produce 'missing' poll contestant before court

A candidate from the Gajwel constituency, who had reportedly gone missing since filing his nomination papers on November 22 for the Telangana Assembly polls, was produced before the Hyderabad High Court Tuesday, a day after it had directed police to produce him. A division bench comprising Justice Raghvendra Singh Chauhan and Justice M Satyanarayana Murthy had on Monday directed police to produce K Dinesh Chakravarthy, contesting on a Samajwadi Forward Block Party ticket, before the court by 2.15 pm on Tuesday. Accordingly, police produced Dinesh. He informed the court that he had neither gone missing nor had anyone abducted him and added that he was safe. The candidate further said he had voluntarily withdrawn his nomination papers and that his party was aware of it. However, he added that there apparently was some communication gap over the matter. After hearing him, the court closed the case. The Samajwadi Forward Bloc party, represented by its national president L Muralidhar Rao, .

Krishnankutty sworn in as new Water Resources Minister

: Leader of Janata Dal Secular (JD-S) K Krishnankutty was Tuesday sworn in as the new Water Resources Minister of Kerala. State Governor P Sathasivam administered the oath of office and secrecy to Krishnankutty, Chittur MLA, who replaced Mathew T Thomas, a senior JD (S) leader in the cabinet. The JD(S) national leadership had during its meeting in Bengaluru last week decided to replace Thomas with Krishnankutty. The opposition Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) boycotted the swearing-in ceremony as part of its decision to intensify the agitation against the government on the Sabarimala issue. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his cabinet ministers were present at the brief ceremony. The JD(S), headed by former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, has three MLAs in the Kerala Assembly.

Hyderabad High Court sets aside TDP MLA's election

The Hyderabad High Court on Tuesday set aside the election of TDP MLA K. Eeranna to the Andhra Pradesh Assembly from Madakasira constituency.