Page 2428 - Politics
Former Rajya Sabha MP Baishnab Charan Parida passes away
Former Rajya Sabha member from Odisha, Baishnab Charan Parida passed away at a hospital here Thursday following a prolonged illness, family sources said. He was 77 and is survived by wife, a son and a daughter, they said. Parida, who was undergoing treatment at a private hospital here, breathed his last Thursday morning. A prominent politician, writer, columnist and a social activist, Parida was elected to Rajya Sabha in July 2010 on a BJD ticket and his term ended on July 1, 2016. A host of distinguished persons including Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik condoled the demise of Parida and conveyed deep sympathy to the bereaved family. Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan also expressed grief over the passing away of the senior leader and described him as an experienced politician and social worker who made valuable contribution for promotion of Odia language. Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee president Niranjan Patnaik also condoled Parida's demise. "Deeply saddened
Cong seniors meet rebels, convince them to withdraw nominations
Ahead of the rallies of United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Congress president Rahul Gandhi in Telangana, a group of senior party leaders met rebels here to convince them to withdraw their nominations and continue working for the party. Sonia will address a poll rally on November 23.The senior party leaders including Jairam Ramesh, Ahmed Patel, D K Shivakumar, and others met the rebels on Wednesday. After the meeting, they said that all the rebels would withdraw their nominations soon. They assured them of justice in the party and also promised them suitable responsibilities if the Congress is voted to power in the state.Jairam Ramesh met rebel T. Jangaiah Yadav, who has filed his nomination as an independent candidate from Medchal assembly constituency after the Congress party did not give him the ticket. In the meeting, which was held on Wednesday night, Ramesh assured Yadav of support and respect from the party.Talking to media persons, Ramesh said, ...
Dissolved Assembly to avoid 'unholy alliance' controlling J-K: Guv Malik
A day after dissolving the Jammu and Kashmir State Assembly, Governor Satyapal Malik said that he did not want the formation of a government by the 'unholy alliance'."These are the forces that are against democracy at the grass root level. Once they felt that situation was slipping out of their hands they formed an unholy alliance to form the Government," Malik told ANI.Refuting allegations of favouring the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Centre, Malik said, "I am not on the side of any party. I am with the people in the Valley and want good for them."On Wednesday, arch rivals PDP, NC along with Congress confirmed that they stitched up an alliance to form the government in Jammu and Kashmir, which had been under Governor's Rule since June when the BJP ended its ruling alliance with the PDP.Hours later, the Governor dissolved the Assembly. PDP president and former Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti, said that she tried to fax the letter to the Governor, claiming to form the government, but ...
Russian military intelligence chief dead
General Igor Korobov, the head of Russian military intelligence agency GRU, has died at the age of 63, a Defence Ministry official said on Thursday.
J&K Governor feels democracy is outdated: Chidambaram
Taking umbrage to the sudden dissolution of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, former Union Minister and Congress veteran P. Chidambaram on Thursday claimed that for BJP-appointed Governor Satya Pal Malik, parliamentary democracy was "outdated".
Bainimarama sworn in for second term as Fiji PM
Bainimarama sworn in for second term as Fiji PM
Modi, Rahul among top names to start Telangana campaign
Top Congress and BJP leaders are all set to plunge into the electioneering in Telangana for the next month's Assembly polls even as the ruling TRS has had a head start.
Australia proposes stripping native-born extremists of citizenship
Australia unveiled a radical plan Thursday to strip convicted terrorists of their citizenship even if they are native-born Australians. Acting after a series of Jihadist-inspired plots and attacks in the country, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said his government needed expanded powers to withdraw citizenship from anyone found guilty of terrorist activity. "People who commit acts of terrorism have rejected absolutely everything that this country stands for," Morrison told a hastily organised press conference. "This is something that can't be tolerated, and for those who would engage in this sort of activity, and they have citizenship elsewhere, or we have reason to believe they do, they can go." Australia's current Citizenship Act allows authorities to revoke citizenship from people jailed for six years or more for terrorist activities, but only if they are already dual nationals. Morrison called these limits "unrealistic" and said the law should be broadened so that anyone convicted ..
President Kovind unveils Gandhi statue in Sydney
On the second day of this three-day visit to Australia, President Ramnath Kovind unveiled a statue of Mahatma Gandhi at the Jubilee Park in the town of Parramatta, which is a bustling suburb of Sydney.The bronze statue designed by Indian sculptors Ram and Anil Sutar was presented to the Indian President by Andrew Wilson, the Mayor of Parramatta. Also present at the event was Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison.The unveiling of the statue is part of the celebrations of the 150th anniversary of the Father of the Natio, which is being observed in different parts of the world. The life-size statue, which is a gift from the Indian government, is identical to the one presented to the city of Brisbane in Australia in 2014.Moments after ribbon-cutting to unveil the statue, President Kovind presented a book titled 'Hind Swaraj' to Australian Prime Minister Morrison and Parramatta's Mayor Wilson. The book was penned by Gandhiji in 1909. In this opus, Gandhiji inscribed his nationalistic ...
Swaraj in Laos to attend Joint Commission Meeting
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is on a two-day visit to Laos. Swaraj is leading the Indian delegation for the 9th Joint Commission Meeting with Laos. The External Affairs Minister will co-chair the meeting on bilateral cooperation with her counterpart Saleumxay Kommasith, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Lao People's Democratic Republic.The Joint Commission meeting and other engagements of Swaraj are expected to further enhance the cooperation between the two countries in various areas. During the meeting, the two sides will review the entire gamut of bilateral cooperation covering areas of defence, development partnership, agriculture, trade, investment, education, culture, science, IT, energy, mining, transport, natural resources and environment.Swaraj will also call on Prime Minister of Laos, Thongloun Sisoulith. Her other engagements include an interaction with a section of Indian community in Laos.
Shutdown in Kashmir Valley over Hafizullah's killing
The Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL) headed by separatist leaders, Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Dr Mohammad Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik, called for a complete shutdown on Thursday to protest against the killing of Tehreek-e-Hurriyat leader Mir Hafizullah by unidentified gunmen in Anantnag.Due to the shutdown call, most of the shops and business establishments remained closed in Kashmir Valley. JRL has also planned peaceful protests on Friday after the prayers, informed the leaders. Security forces are on high alert across the Valley to foil any untoward incident and maintain law and order situation.Mir Hafizullah was shot by unidentified gunmen in Achabal area of south Kashmir on Tuesday."Indian rulers through their local collaborators have always played beastic role of eliminating political activists, who raise their voice against this unholy and unjustified forced occupation," said JRL in a statement issued to the press.JRL stated in the statement that Mir was a highly ...
Noted Pakistani feminist writer dead
Noted Pakistani feminist writer and poet Fahmida Riaz died here. She was 72.
Probably fresh instructions from across the border: BJP's Ram Madhav on NC-PDP alliance in Kashmir
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) General Secretary, Ram Madhav, said that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and National Conference (NC) came together to form the government in Jammu and Kashmir as they "probably had instructions from across the border to come together and form government."On Wednesday, arch rivals PDP, NC along with Congress confirmed that they stitched up an alliance to form the government in Jammu and Kashmir, which has been under Governor's Rule since June when the BJP ended its ruling alliance with the PDP.In an exclusive interview with ANI, Madhav said, "The PDP and NC boycotted local body polls last month because they had instructions from across the border. Probably they had fresh instructions from across the border to come together and form government."After keeping the state assembly in suspended animation, Governor Satya Pal Malik dissolved the assembly late on Wednesday.PDP president and former Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti, said that she tried to fax the ...
Afghan Taliban not serious about peace, says govt chief
The Taliban in Afghanistan have not yet shown any sign they are serious about ending their 17-year insurgency despite US efforts to push a fresh peace process, the country's de facto prime minister has said. Abdullah Abdullah, who serves as "chief executive" of the unity government in Kabul, struck a far more sceptical tone about the prospects of a deal than his political rival, President Ashraf Ghani, and his Western counterparts. Ghani said earlier this month it was "not a question of if, but when" an agreement would be reached with the Taliban, while the US envoy to the country even raised the possibility of a breakthrough before presidential elections in April. "Recently there are renewed efforts in terms of the international community and especially the US," Abdullah told AFP during a wide-ranging interview in Paris that also covered his own political ambitions. "We are not judging it too prematurely, but I would say that our experience as of now has been that they (the Taliban) .
US, South Korea scale back military exercise
The United States and South Korea have scaled down an annual joint military exercise scheduled for the spring of 2019 to facilitate nuclear talks with North Korea, US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said Wednesday. "Foal Eagle is being reorganised a bit to keep it at a level that will not be harmful to diplomacy," Mattis said, adding that it would be "reduced in scope." Foal Eagle is the biggest of the regular joint exercises held by the allies, and has always infuriated Pyongyang, which condemned it as preparations for invasion. But the drill -- one of the world's largest field exercises involving 200,000 South Korean and some 30,000 US soldiers -- was delayed and scaled down last year as diplomatic detente took hold on the peninsula. And following a historic summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore in June, US President Donald Trump announced that the US would stop holding joint exercises with the South, calling them expensive and "very provocative". Since then the two .
Civilian injured after terrorists fire at Army camp in Kulgam
At least one civilian sustained injuries on Thursday morning during an exchange of fire between terrorists and security personnel in Kulgam district on Jammu and Kashmir.The exchange of fire ensued after terrorists fired upon an Army camp in Khudwani area of the district. The injured has been admitted to the hospital. Security forces have cordoned the area. More details in this regard are awaited.
Haiti president emerges, appeals for calm after deadly protests
After deadly weekend protests calling for his resignation, followed by a general strike, Haitian President Jovenel Moise emerged late Wednesday to reaffirm his legitimacy and appeal for calm in a televised address. The strike shut down most of Haiti on Wednesday as tension and uncertainty gripped the Caribbean country following the protests and Moise's unexplained absence from public view. Haiti is the poorest country in the Americas and is still battling to overcome a years-old cholera epidemic and the aftermath of a major earthquake, alongside political turmoil. "During my five-year presidency no one, I emphasise no one, whatever the pretext, can threaten the interests of the country or put the nation in danger," said Moise, in power since February 2017. Making his first public comments since the weekend protests, Moise said dialogue must include all levels of society, and democracy "asks that the rules of the game be respected, according to the constitution." He gave his six-minute
Outgoing Facebook executive says he hired controversial PR firm
Facebook's outgoing Head of Communications and Policy Elliot Schrage has taken the full responsibility for hiring a Republican-owned political consulting and PR firm Definers Public Affairs that is alleged to have "dug up dirt" on competitors.
Farmers march to Azad Maidan in Mumbai for loan waiver
Thousands of farmers under the aegis of Lok Sangharsh Morcha on Thursday marched towards Azad Maidan here to press for their demands, which include farm loan waiver and land ownership.Farmers from across Maharashtra, beginning their march on Tuesday, reached Byculla Bridge in the city on Thursday morning. They are also scheduled to meet Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis later in the evening. They are also likely to take up the issue of the implementation of Forests Rights Act with the Chief Minister.Speaking to ANI, general secretary of the Lok Sangharsh Morcha Pratibha Shinde said, "We will definitely meet the Chief Minister and put forward our demands. Only after the meeting, we will be able to decide whether the government and we are on the same page or not. In the last six months, the government has not even done even two per cent of the works they promised to us."On Wednesday evening, Maharashtra's Water Resources and Irrigation Minister Girish Mahajan met the protesters and asked
New Fijian cabinet sworn in
A new Cabinet under the leadership of Fijian Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama was sworn in on Thursday after he secured a second term by winning the November 14 general elections.