Page 2386 - Politics
Campaign for land rights brings together Dalits, tribals in Gujarat capital
Around 10,000 landless people comprising mostly Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes staged protest demonstrations on Monday against the state government for not implementing various laws relating to land rights for them.
JNU Teachers' Association on day-long strike, admin calls it unlawful
The JNU Teachers Association began their hunger strike on Monday against the varsity's two circulars on rescheduling the academic calendar and compliance of faculty attendance, saying "threatening" them for biometric attendance is a violation of their right to privacy. Through a circular, issued in mid-November, the JNU administration has said seven years in the university were necessary for availing sabbatical leave by a faculty member. In another circular issued on November 13, it announced that proposals for seminar participation, conference travel, project meetings, fellowships, including those scheduled during vacations, would be allowed if teachers comply with the directions of the university, the JNU Teachers' Association (JNUTA) said. JNUTA wants the circulars be withdrawn immediately. "Threatening teachers for biometric attendance is a violation, in letter and spirit, of the Right to Privacy provided by the judgments of the Supreme Court. These diktats seek to burden ...
Constitution is source of our Indianness: CJI Gogoi
Chief Justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi on Monday said that the Constitution of India is a source of "Indianness," which "successfully united an immensely diverse people." "Our Constitution is the one and only source of our Indianness," he added while addressing a gathering on the occasion of the Constitution Day.The Chief Justice said, "The Constitution has successfully united immensely diverse people into one nation. It has done so without compromising cultural variation, notwithstanding the differences of creed, caste, and religion. The Constitution is the very basis of national identity. It is a source of our Indianness. There is and there can be no other."The CJI also contradicted a number of criticisms regarding the Constitution that were made 70 years ago. "Sir Ivor Jennings felt it was too long and predicted there would be rigidity. With the greatest respect, the time has proved that Sir Ivor Jennings was wrong," CJI Gogoi said.He also spoke about Rudyard Kipling's ...
Sidhu pays obeisance to Kartarpur Sahib at Indo-Pak border
Punjab Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu on Monday morning paid obeisance to Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan from the Indian side of the international border.He viewed the historic gurdwara through binoculars and bowed to "thank the almighty for paving the way for the opening of the holy corridor."Sidhu has drawn much flak from within the Congress party over his decision to visit the ground-breaking ceremony of Kartarpur Sahib Corridor on Wednesday. Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has already turned down Pakistan's invitation citing state-sponsored cross-border terrorism by Islamabad.Sidhu reached Dera Baba Nanak via Amritsar from Madhya Pradesh on Monday morning. "Ardas (prayers) of 13 crore 'Guru Nanak Naam Leva Sangat', which have been praying for the past 70 years for a darshan of gurdwaras on Pakistan side has borne the fruit," said Sidhu.He said that it is a gift to the entire "sangat" on the occasion of the 550th Parkash Purab celebrations of Sri Guru Nanak
There are scores of Vijay Mallya's in TDP: BJP
After Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MP Y S Chowdary was summoned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in alleged bank loan fraud case; Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP GVL Narasimha Rao on Monday said that incident shows that there are number of Vijay Mallya's in Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu's party.Addressing the media here, Rao said the declarations made by the Enforcement Directorate expose the "corrupt faces of the TDP.""The scale of this entire scandal runs into Rs 1000 crore. The real corrupt face of the TDP has been exposed from the revelations made by the ED. The scale of this scam is so huge that it seems like; Chandrababu Naidu has so many Mallya's in his team," the BJP leader asserted, adding that Naidu has a number of tax evaders and corrupt people in his party.He further asked the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister to first keep a check on the leaders of his party and then raise fingers on others.After conducting raids at the offices and residence of Chowdary, ED
Maldives President to visit India next month
A month after Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended his swearing in, Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih will visit India, marking a new thrust in the relations between the two countries.
MP: Shah holds road show in Indore on last day of campaigning
Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah Monday conducted a road show in Indore on the last day of campaigning for the Madhya Pradesh assembly elections, scheduled for November 28. Shah embarked on a chariot-shaped vehicle at Chikmanglur Square which passed Khatipura, Rajwada, Sarafa Bazaar and other commercial areas, before reaching its final destination at Sitalmata Kapda Bazaar, a distance of three kms. Shah was accompanied by BJP general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya and state unit BJP president Rakesh Singh during the two-hour-long roadshow. On the occasion, the BJP chief appealed to voters to vote the saffron party back to power for a fourth consecutive term in the central state. Indore, which is known as the commercial capital of Madhya Pradesh, is considered as a stronghold of the BJP. In 2013 assembly elections, the ruling party had won all five seats in the city. A total of 230 seats will go to polls on November 28 and results will be counted on ...
Govt has nothing to do with Constitution Day celebrations, says CJI
The ending of the day-long function for celebrating Constitution Day on Monday saw Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi emphasise that the event was organised completely by the Supreme Court and the government had nothing to to with it. This clarification on the issue of organising the function came from Justice Gogoi after the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) president Vikas Singh said the government cannot be denied the "privilege" of holding the day long affair. Justice Gogoi said that after assuming the office of the CJI, he had told Prime Minister Narendra Modi that this year he was of the view that there should be only one function. The CJI took the credit for the Supreme Court in organising the day long programme at an evening function at the apex court where Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad was also present. "I would like to make one thing clear for the record. The constitution day function today in the Vigyan Bhawan was not organised by the government. The government had ..
Ex-CBI joint director to contest elections in AP
: Former CBI joint director V V Lakshminarayana, who recently indicated that he would start his political journey, Monday said he would contest the elections in Andhra Pradesh scheduled next year and soon announced his political agenda and policy matters. The former IPS officer who had served as joint director of CBI on deputation and probed into cases such as the Satyam scam, quid-pro-quo investments involving YSR Congress chief Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, among others, told reporters here that Lok Satta founder and former MLA Jayaprakash Narayan had met him and offered him to lead the party. Lakshminarayana, who had been touring the state for the past several months after voluntarily retiring from the post in the CBI, had last month released what he called the 'peoples manifesto' and highlighted need for 'zero-budget' politics. "How to go ahead, plan of action and procedures will be discussed with core teams and decision on the policy matters taken. I will soon inform you
'Grand alliance' releases common agenda for governance
: The opposition Congress, TDP, CPI and Telangana Jana Samiti (TJS), who formed a "grand alliance" for the December 7 assembly polls in Telangana, Monday released a common agenda for governance. The "grand alliance" would be known as the "people's front", the parties said. The agenda was released by Congress president in Telangana N Uttam Kumar Reddy, TDP's state unit president L Ramana, TJS president M Kodandaram and CPI's incharge state secretary Palla Venkat Reddy. The "agenda of aspirations of the "martyrs"' (those who sacrificed their life for separate Telangana) would form the political and ideological basis for the 'people's front' before the polls and coalition government post elections, the agenda said. The agenda said administrative changes would be made to end the "dictatorial" and "corrupt" rule of TRS. It said a judicial inquiry would be conducted into the design of major contracts and the award of contracts during the last four years. For the farm sector, ..
Newly-elected Maldivian prez to visit India on Dec 17: Maldives Foreign minister
Newly-elected Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih will be on his first foreign visit to India next month to further strengthen the bilateral ties with the country, Maldivian Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid said Monday. A ministerial delegation from Maldives, including Shahid, Minister of Finance Fayaaz Ismail, Minister of Economic Development Ibrahim Ameer and Minister of State for Foreign affairs Ahmed Khaleel, is currently on a visit to India. Shahid said the visit of Solih aims to strengthen the bilateral ties with India, which, he asserted has always come to the aid of the island nation whenever it needed. "The new Maldives government considers India such an important partner that President Solih would be making his first foreign visit to India next month on December 17," he told reporters at the Foreign Correspondents Club. "We want to assure India that we are back in business and we would not hide behind scourge of corruption," he said. Maldives Finance Minister Ismail said
Yameen tried to play India against China as a "puppet master": Maldives foreign minister
Maldives Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid Monday alleged that former president Abdulla Yameen had tried to play India against China as a "puppet master" and said the new government was looking into the deals made with China to assess the debt accumulation. Maldives knows the importance of India as it was an "important" partner, said Shahid who was on his first visit to India after assuming charge as the foreign minister of Maldives. The visit assumes significance as the ties between both the countries were severely strained under the previous government in the island nation. Maldivian Minister of Finance Ibrahim Ameer, who is also part of a delegation of minister visiting India, also said the new government had identified a number of projects undertaken with China that were bought at an "inflated price" and it was in the process of assessing how much debt was accumulated. The remarks of both the foreign and finance ministers of Maldives assume significance as reports suggest that China
Sri Lankan court to hear petition challenging Rajapaksa's premiership on Friday
A seven-member bench will hear on Friday a case challenging the authority of controversially appointed Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa who has lost two no-confidence motions, amidst the deepening political crisis in Sri Lanka that has crippled the government for more than a month. Sri Lanka's Court of Appeal on Monday fixed for support on November 30 the petition challenging Rajapaksa's premiership, Colombo Page reported. The island nation is witnessing a political crisis since President Maithripapala Sirisena's controversial move to sack prime minister Ranil Wickeremesinghe and install Rajapaksa in his place on October 26. Sirisena later dissolved Parliament, almost 20 months before its term was to end, and ordered snap election. The Supreme Court overturned Sirisena's decision to dissolve Parliament and halted the preparations for snap polls. Both Wickremesinghe and Rajapaksa claim to be the prime ministers. Wickremesinghe says his dismissal is invalid because he still holds a ...
Ram temple issue raked up to divert people's attention from
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar Monday said the Ram temple issue is being raked up in a bid to divert the attention of people from raging issues like lack of jobs and drought. Pawar also launched a veiled attack on Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Yogi Adityanath over his announcement to construct a grand statue of Lord Ram in Ayodhya. "There is an attempt to divert the attention of people from raging issues. Several districts in Maharashtra are currently facing a severe drought. There is scarcity of water, food and fodder for livestock," Pawar said after unveiling a 'constitution obelisk' here to mark the Constitution Day. The concept to build such obelisks is the brainchild of Supriya Sule, who represents Baramati Lok Sabha seat in Pune district. Sule is the daughter of Pawar. Pawar said the people of the country wanted employment, but are not receiving any help. "People are in distress and are looking for jobs but
Meghalaya govt orders judicial inquiry into Nov 8 attack on RTI activist
The Meghalaya government decided Monday to institute a judicial inquiry into the circumstances that led to the November 8 attack on RTI activist Agnes Kharshiing and her aide Amita Sangma allegedly by the coal mafias in East Jaintia Hills district. Both Amita and Agnes are recovering in the ICU of the North East Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences following the attack. "The cabinet has decided to institute an inquiry into the circumstances that led to the incident in East Jaintia Hills district (on November 8)," state Home Minister James P K Sangma told mediapersons. He said, "We are very concerned about the situation, which is why we have decided to go for a fact-finding inquiry." The process to institute the inquiry would begin from Tuesday and was likely to be headed by a retired high court judge, officials said. The home minister said the modalities of the inquiry would be worked out by the Political department in consultation with the Law ...
Tripura CPI(M) to intensify movement for "restoring democracy"
The CPI(M) will intensify its movement against the BJP-IPFT government in Tripura to "restore democracy and establish rule of law", the opposition party resolved in its 22nd state committee conference Monday. Political and ideological battle would be strengthened to win over people especially from the tribal communities, the newly elected state Secretary of the party Gautam Das said. The mass support base of the left party had declined in tribal areas, which came to light in the results of the assembly elections, CPI(M) politburo member Prakash Karat said in a statement here. "Our three strong fortresses Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura - are being targeted by the RSS and the BJP.... It is not enough to defeat them in electoral battles, but they should be isolated through ideological struggle," Karat said. After the party's uninturrupted 25-year rule ended in March at the hands of the BJP and the IPFT, the party is now in power only in Kerala. The Trinamool Congress ...
26/11 terror attack: Friendly Indo-Pak ties only way forward, say senior politicians
Senior leaders across the political spectrum, including former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, remembered the victims of 26/11 attacks in Mumbai on this day 10 years ago and agreed that friendly relations between India and Pakistan is the only way forward.
HC seeks DU's response on Sunny Chillar's plea against Ankiv Baisoya
The Delhi High Court on Monday asked Delhi University to make its stand clear on National Students' Union of India's (NSUI) Sunny Chillar's plea seeking action against Ankiv Baisoya, who had used forged certificates for securing admission into the varsity.
PM should resign if he cannot protect Delhi CM: Kejriwal
Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal Monday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to step down if he cannot ensure Delhi chief minister's security, days after a man flung chilli powder at him inside the Delhi secretariat. Speaking at the one-day special session of the Delhi Assembly, which was extended by a day till Tuesday, Kejriwal alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was behind the November 20 attack as it was "baffled" by the "good work" done by his government in the national capital. "Narendra Modi should resign if he cannot protect Delhi's Chief Minister," Kejriwal said in the House which had met to discuss the attack on him and the alleged deletion of names from the voters list. Referring to a phone call from Union Home minister Rajnath Singh after the incident outside his office, Kejriwal claimed, "I said either you are worthless or colluding". Speaking on a government resolution seeking amendments in the Constitution to bring the Delhi Police under the control of the ..
AASU seeks TDP's support to block Citizenship(Amendment) Bill
: A delegation of All Assam Students Union met Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu here Monday, seeking the TDP's support to block the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016. The AASU delegation told the Chief Minister that they had launched a movement against the proposed Bill as it would jeopardise the interests of the people of northeast states. The delegation comprised AASU President Dipanka Kumar Nath, general secretary Lurinjyoti Gogoi, chief advisor Dr Samujjal Bhattacharjya and Gauhati University professors Basanta Deka and Shikar Sarma, a release from the Chief Minister's office said. The members told the Chief Minister that the Centre tabled the Bill in Parliament and a joint parliamentary committee was later constituted to interact with various groups and individuals across the country. "We opposed the Bill during the (JPC) hearing. The Bill will make the Assam Accord invalid in the clearest possible terms. This should not be acceptable to any ...