Page 2420 - Politics
Ravi Shankar Prasad hits back at Manmohan Singh
A day after former prime minister Manmohan Singh expressed concern over the autonomy of state institutions under the present Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Centre, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad hit out at the senior Congress leader asking how much 'democracy' was left within the Congress Party."Does someone who is not from the Gandhi family ever become national president of Congress? Manmohan Singh should answer how much democracy is left within the Congress party. It was in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government led by Manmohan Singh that Supreme Court had remarked that the Central Bureau of Investigation was the government's caged puppet," Prasad told media here.Furthermore, Prasad alleged that it was former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi who incited an atmosphere of violence after the murder of his mother Indira Gandhi that led to the anti-Sikh riots in 1984. He also said that no justice was done in the Congress rule but it was only after the National Democratic ...
Over 1,800 in fray for Telangana polls
AOver 1,800 candidates remained in the fray for the next month's Assembly elections in Telangana as the deadline to withdraw nominations ended Thursday, officials said.
HC reserves order on pleas against CBI probe into idol theft cases
The Madras High Court Thursday reserved orders on petitions challenging a Tamil Nadu government order transferring the probe into idol theft cases to CBI as it orally observed that the decision amounted to contempt of court since a court-appointed team was investigating the matter. A special division bench comprising Justice R Mahadevan and Justice PD Audikesavalu, dealing with idol theft cases, reserved the order after state Advocate General Vijay Narayan stoutly defended the August 1 G.O transferring the cases to the Central Bureau of Investigation. The court had on August 8 stayed the G.O in its interim orders on the petitions filed by advocate Elephant Rajendran and social activist Traffic Ramaswamy, seeking to quash the order transferring the case. Taking a serious view of the theft of antique idols, the court had in July last year directed the transfer of all pending cases in the state to a court in Kumbakonam, in Thanjavur district, from where a number of idols had been stolen,
Governor had right to take decision: Prasad on J&K political situation
Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said Thursday that Jammu and Kashmir Governor had every right to take appropriate decision in view of the "uncertain" political situation in the state. Governor Satya Pal Malik's decision Wednesday to dissolve the J&K Assembly has created a political furore. Talking to reporters here, Prasad said, "The political situation in Jammu and Kashmir is sensitive and uncertain. In such a situation, the Governor has every right to take appropriate decision." He, however, did not reply when asked about Malik's claim that horse-trading was underway in the state. It would not be appropriate to react on this issue, he said. Taking potshots at PDP, National Conference and Congress, Prasad said, "In Jammu and Kashmir, these three parties suddenly changed their stand in the darkness of night. These parties came out with a claim to form government. Can any political party be a bigger opportunist than them?" Prasad refuted Congress president Rahul Gandhi's ...
Desperate to move crude, Alberta may buy trains alone if Canada balks
WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - Alberta is willing to buy trains itself and help clear a backlog of crude oil in the Canadian province if Ottawa decides not to share costs, Premier Rachel Notley said on Thursday.
Congress engaged in dividing communities, says Smriti Irani
Union minister and BJP leader Smriti Irani on Thursday accused the Congress of dividing communities and creating a rift among "brothers". Irani's statement came in the backdrop of circulation of a purported video in which Madhya Pradesh Congress president Kamal Nath is allegedly asking a group of Muslims to ensure his party gets 90 per cent of votes in their booths. In another video that surfaced early this month, Nath was purportedly seen urging Muslims to be wary of the RSS agenda. The Congress leader had termed this video as fake. Addressing an election rally here, Irani said "A Congress leader sitting among Muslim brothers was heard saying that come with us and he will deal with Hindus...Congress leader doesn't know that when one brother meets another, he doesn't ask his caste and religion." The BJP leader did not name Nath. Irani alleged the Congress wanted to create a rift among "brothers" and division on communal lines. She taunted the Congress for not declaring its
MNF candidate's total assets jump 797 pc in five years: Report
Mizo National Front (MNF) candidate Lalrinliana Sailo, who switched over from the Congress a month ago, has declared that his total assets ballooned by a whopping 797 per cent in the past five years, according to a report by two civil society organisations on Thursday. Analysing the assets of contesting candidates for the November 28 Mizoram Assembly election, the Mizoram Election Watch (MEW) and Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) have found that Sailo has declared total assets of Rs 3,22,85,100 in his affidavit for the forthcoming elections. He had total assets of Rs 36,01,219 as per the affidavit filed by him during the 2013 Assembly polls. While the MNF leader has declared his source of income as "politician", that of his spouse is mentioned as "monthly salary from Government of Mizoram", the report said. Sailo, a former health minister, resigned from the state Assembly on October 3 this year and also stepped down as the member of the All India Congress Committee (AICC), ...
GOC of 16 Corps reaches out to people of Hill Kaka, once hub of terrorists
The General officer commanding (GoC) of 16 Corps Lt Gen Paramjit Singh Thursday reached out the people of Rajouri district's Hillkaka belt, once operation hub of the Pakistan terrorists in 2003, a defence spokesman said. Lt Gen Singh first visited Hill Kaka andpaid homage to the soldiers who laid down their lives, andinteracted with people who provided assistance during'Operation Sarp Vinash', an operation undertaken by the Indian Armyto flush out terrorists who had made bases in Hill KakaPoonch-Surankote area of Pir Panjal range in Jammu and Kashmir duringApril-May 2003, the spokesperson said. In the ensuing operation, the Indian Army had killed64 terrorists belonging to various jihadist outfits. A medical camp was also organised Thursday at Hill Kaka and during interaction with the villagers, Lt Gen Singh distributed communication equipments to the remote hamlets of the region for emergencies during winter. Sports equipmet to include cricket kits, football kits and nets were ...
Trump renews threat to close US border with Mexico
US President Donald Trump on Thursday renewed a threat to close the US-Mexico border if the situation there gets out of control and warned it would hurt Mexico's trade with the United States. "If we find that it gets to a level where we are going to lose control or where people are going to start getting hurt, we will close entry into the country for a period of time until we can get it under control," he told reporters. "The whole border. I mean the whole border. Mexico will not be able to sell their cars into the United States where they make so many cars," he said.
Congress playing into the hands of anti-nationals: JK BJP
Reiterating that the congress is playing into the hands of anti-national forces along with the NC and the PDP, Jammu and Kashmir unit of the BJP Thursday said Governor Satya Pal Malik foiled their "sinister design" by dissolving the state assembly. The governor dissolved the assembly Wednesday night, hours after the PDP staked claim to form government with the backing of rival NC andthe Congress. "Congress is playing into the hands of anti-nationals. The Congress along with the NC and the PDP conspired against the democratic forces. The governor has foiled their sinister design," BJP state president Ravinder Raina told reporters here. BJP senior leader Kavinder Gupta had Wednesday accused the three parties - the Congress, PDP and NC - of forging an alliance to form a government in the state on "directions of Pakistan." Following the BJP charges, J&K Pradesh Congress Committee president G A Mir Thursday asked the BJP to either apologise or make public the evidence on its ...
MNS won't allow Mayor's bungalow at Shivaji Park gymkhana: Raj
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray said Thursday that his party will not allow the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) to raze the civic gymkhana at Shivaji Park to make way for a new Mayor's bungalow. Thackeray met BMC commissioner Ajoy Mehta in this regard earlier in the day. He also reiterated his opposition to the plan to build a memorial of late Shiv Sena chief and his uncle Bal Thackeray at the site of the existing Mayor's bungalow, saying it will set a wrong precedent. The MNS chief said it was "most unfortunate" that the authorities could not find any other land for the memorial of the late leader "who toiled for installing a Shiv Sena Mayor" in the existing bungalow. According to media reports, plans are afoot to construct memorial of the Sena founder at the site of the existing sea-facing Mayor's bungalow. The BMC is reportedly planning to build a new Mayor's bungalow on a neighbouring plot where a civic gymkhana (sports club) ...
Sri Lanka's Parliament to meet again on Friday
Sri Lanka's Parliament would meet again on Friday, amidst a power struggle set off by President Maithripapala Sirisena's controversial move to sack prime minister Ranil Wickeremesinghe and appoint Mahinda Rajapaksa in his place. The first business on Friday would be to appoint a select committee comprising representatives from all political parties to conduct parliamentary affairs. Both Wickremesinghe and Rajapaksa claim to be the prime ministers. Wickremesinghe says his dismissal is invalid because he still holds a majority in the 225-member Parliament. "We should have the majority in the committee with ex-officio members," said Mahinda Smarasinghe, a minister. Rajitha Senaratne, a former minister, said that since ousted prime minister Wickremesinghe's United National Front (UNF) coalition had the majority they should have the most number of representatives. So far President Sirisena's United People's Freedom (UNF) has nominated seven members to the 15-member committee. The Marxist ..
EC team meet Telangana political parties
: A 11-member team of election officials headed by Chief Election Commissioner Om Prakash Rawat, on a visit to poll-bound Telangana, Thursday held discussions with political party representatives on December 7 elections. The team, which arrived here today, held separate meetings with representatives of various political parties, a state government official said. Vinod Kumar, MP (TRS), M Shashidhar Reddy (Congress), and N Indrasena Reddy (BJP) were among those who met Rawat, an official press release said. On Friday, the team would hold a meeting with the district electoral officers, superintendents of police and senior government officials in all the districts of the state, the release said. This was the Chief Election Commissioner's second visit after the schedule for the poll was announced and the first visit after the notification for the election was issued. The team was expected to meet with the Chief Secretary SK Joshi and DGP Mahendar Reddy also. Elections are ...
Delhi Chief Electoral Officer Vijay Dev likely to be appointed as chief secy
Delhi Chief Electoral Officer Vijay Dev is likely to be appointed chief secretary of the national capital, sources said Thursday. A formal order of the appointment of Dev, a 1987-batch IAS officer, is expected anytime soon, they said. Dev has also been Chandigarh UT adviser. Incumbent Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash was recently transferred to the epartment of telecommunications of the central government. Prakash, who was allegedly assaulted at Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's residence in February, has been appointed as additional secretary in the telecom department.
Delhi Cabinet decides to convene special Assembly session to discuss attack on CM
The AAP government on Thursday decided to convene a one-day special session of Delhi Assembly on Monday to discuss the recent attack on Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and other issues. Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia told reporters that the decision has been taken in view of the "attitude" of the Centre and the Delhi Police over the incident involving the chief minister. The legislators will also discuss the alleged "mass deletion" of names in voters list in the city, Sisodia said. The special session is likely to be stormy as legislators of both the ruling AAP, which enjoys a brute majority, and BJP will seek to corner each other. In the past, the Kejriwal government has used such special sessions to launch pointed attacks at the BJP-led central government. "The Delhi Cabinet has decided to hold a one-day special session of Delhi Assembly on Monday to discuss recent attack on the CM and deletion of 30 lakh names in voters list across the city," Sisodia said. On Tuesday, a man ...
Trinamool's Firhad Hakim new Kolkata mayor, after Sovan Chatterjee quits
West Bengal Urban Development and Municipal Affairs Minister Firhad Hakim was on Thursday elected as the new mayor of Kolkata after his predecessor Sovan Chatterjee stepped down earlier in the day.
NC likely to gain if J&K goes to poll now: Survey
The National Conference may emerge as the single largest party if Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections are held now, a recent survey has shown.
Govt clears Kartarpur corridor project; Pak says will build stretches in its territory
A long-pending demand of the Sikh community to build a religious corridor linking India's border district of Gurdaspur with a historic gurudwara in Pakistan may finally be fulfilled with both the countries announcing that stretches would be developed in their respective areas. In a significant decision, the Union Cabinet cleared a proposal to develop a corridor from Dera Baba Nanak in Punjab's Gurdaspur district to the International Border to facilitate Indian pilgrims to visit Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur in Pakistan. Following the Cabinet decision, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said India urged Pakistan to build the corridor to Kartarpur Sahib on the Pakistani side to facilitate visit of the Indian pilgrims to the shrine -- the final resting place of Sikh faith's founder Guru Nanak. Hours later, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said Islamabad has conveyed to India its decision to open the Kartarpur corridor. The MEA sent a letter to ...
J&K Assembly dissolved: Congress targets Modi
The Congress on Thursday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for "using" Governor Satya Pal Malik to dissolve the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly "illegally and unconstitutionally".
Sohrabuddin case: Rahul targets Amit Shah, Iran hits back
Congress president Rahul Gandhi Thursday attacked BJP chief Amit Shah over a key CBI investigator's testimony in a Mumbai court on a alleged fake encounters case, following which Union Minister Smriti Irani accused him of being a "lie machine". Gandhi used a news report quoting the chief CBI investigator into the "fake encounters" of Sohrabuddin Shaikh and Tulsiram Prajapati alleging that Shah was a "key conspirator" in the case. He also took a swipe at the BJP, saying it is "completely appropriate" for the party to have such a person as its chief, who has been called a "key conspirator" in an investigative officer's testimony in court. "The Gita says you can never escape the truth and so it has always been. Sandeep Tamgadge has called Amit Shah a 'key conspirator' in his testimony. It's completely appropriate for the BJP to have such a man as its President," he said on Twitter. Irani hit back saying, "JhoothKiMachine" Rahul Gandhi is back in action. He knows that after following due .