Page 2546 - Politics
India to join talks with Afghan Taliban at non-official level
India on Thursday confirmed that it will attend, albeit at a non-official level, a multilateral meeting in Moscow on Afghanistan on Friday where the Afghan Taliban will also be present.
Madhya Pradesh polls: Congress fields former BJP veteran Sartaj Singh
The Congress on Thursday released its fifth list of 16 candidates for the Madhya Pradesh assembly elections fielding former Union Minister and BJP veteran Sartaj Singh.
3 councillors join BJP in J-K
Three councillors in Lakhanpur Municipal Council and Nagariparole Municipal Council along with their followers joined the BJP Thursday in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district. Those who joined the BJP included Surmu Din of Lakhanpur Municipal Committee, Bimla Devi of Nagariparole Municipal Committee and Shashikanta, said state vice president Harinder Gupta. On October 29, four of five Congress councillors and two independents from Kathua district had joined the BJP.
Parsekar demands Goa BJP President's resignation
Former Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar on Thursday demanded the resignation of state Bharatiya Janata Party President Vinay Tendulkar "in the interest of the party".
India to participate in Moscow talks with Taliban at 'non-official level'
India on Thursday said it will participate in the meeting being hosted by Russia on Afghanistan at a "non-official level" in Moscow where representatives of the Taliban will be present. The Moscow-format meeting on Afghanistan will be held on November 9 and representatives of the Afghan Taliban radical movement will take part in it, the Russian Foreign Ministry had said last week. In response to queries regarding India's participation in the meeting, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said, "We are aware that the Russian Federation is hosting a meeting in Moscow on 9 November on Afghanistan." "Our participation at the meeting will be at the non-official level," he said. India supports all efforts at peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan that will preserve unity and plurality, and bring security, stability and prosperity to the country, he said. "India's consistent policy has been that such efforts should be Afghan-led, Afghan-owned, and Afghan-controlled and ...
Commercial taxes department gets new name in J&K
The Jammu and Kashmir government has renamed commercial taxes department (CTD) as state taxes department (STD), and created 215 additional posts to strengthen the division. An order was issued by the Principal Secretary of the finance department Navin Choudhary, stating that sanction is given for renaming of "Commercial Taxes Department" as "State Taxes Department". Apart from this, sanction has also been given for creation, abolition and up-gradation of posts in the State Taxes Department, he said. The government also sanctioned creations of 215 new posts, including four deputy commissioners, one assistant commissioner, four system analysts, one estates officer and 14 state tax officers, Choudhary added. The government also approved sanction of re-designation of 10 posts of assistant commissioners, commercial taxes as assistant commissioner, state taxes (Enforcement) with their areas of jurisdiction.
Rahul wishes Advani on 91st birthday
Congress president Rahul Gandhi Thursday wished BJP veteran L K Advani on his 91st birthday. "Birthday wishes to Lal Krishna Advani ji. I wish his good health, long life, and happiness of mind," Gandhi tweeted. Top BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party president Amit Shah, also greeted Advani, recalling his contribution to national politics, and also in building the party and propagating its ideology.
Goa mining: Parrikar holds meeting to resolve issue
Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar Thursday held a meeting with officials and stakeholders to explore ways to restart mining operations in the coastal state. Mining in Goa came to a standstill in March after the Supreme Court quashed 88 leases and banned the extraction of fresh iron ore. "Chief Minister @manoharparrikar holds immediate meetings with senior government officials and other stakeholders to explore all possible options to resume mining operations in Goa at the earliest," the Chief Ministers Office (CMO) tweeted this evening. Parrikar had earlier written to the Centre in September seeking legislative means, including amending existing mining laws. to resolve the issue. Parrikar, who is suffering from a pancreatic ailment, returned to the state on October 14 after being admitted in the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi.
Yemen's President appoints new Defence Minister
Yemen's internationally-backed President Abdu-Rabbu Mansour Hadi on Thursday appointed a new Defence Minister to lead the country's armed forces.
Lal Thanhawla files nomination from two seats
Mizoram Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla on Thursday filed nominations to contest the November 28 state polls from Champhai South and Serchhip assembly seats, officials said. The last day for filing of nominations is Friday. The Congress leader would be contesting from his home turf Serchhip as well as the Champhai South constituency located on Mizoram's border with Myanmar. He could not file his nomination papers from Serchhip on Tuesday due to a massive protest for removal of the state's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) SB Shashank. The agitation was held in front of the office of the returning officer. While Thanhawla personally appeared before the returning officer in Champhai on Thursday, his representative filed the papers on his behalf in Serchhip, the officials said. The five-time chief minister would be pitted against Zoram People's Movement's (ZPM) chief ministerial candidate Lalduhoma, Mizo National Front (MNF) nominee C Lalramzauva, a senior advocate, and People's Representation .
Rs 250-cr heroin seized from truck in J&K
The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has seized 50 kilograms of heroin, worth Rs 250 crore in the international market, from a truck in Jammu and Kashmir's Ramban district, an officer said Thursday. Acting on a tip-off, a Delhi-bound truck coming from north Kashmir's Kupwara district was intercepted by the NCB sleuths at a toll plaza near Jammu on Monday, said NCB Zonal Director Virender Yadav. Fifty drug pouches stuffed under apple crates were found. The truck driver has been arrested, Yadav said, adding that the seized heroin's value was Rs 250 crore in the international market. The NCB has seized 161 kg of heroin valuing Rs 800 crore from Jammu alone this year.
BJP Uttarakhand general secretary loses party post over sexual harassment charges
The ruling BJP Thursday confirmed the removal of Sanjay Kumar, who was embroiled in a sexual harassment controversy, from the post of the state party general secretary (organisation). "Kumar had written to the party's central leadership, seeking to be removed from the post and his request has been accepted," pradesh BJP president Ajay Bhatt told reporters. Last week, a BJP worker had accused Kumar of sexually harassing her, causing much embarrassment to the party. A buzz about the senior leader's removal from the post had been doing the rounds since November 3 but party leaders were tight-lipped about it.
Meghalaya Guv hails Modi for Statue of Unity
Meghalaya Governor Tathagata Roy Thursday hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for inaugurating the statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in Gujarat and said had the nationalist leader been made the prime minister after Independence there would not have been any Kashmir problem. Roy inaugurated a book 'Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel A Statesman Extraordinary' here. Patel's 240 m statue, considered ther tallest in the world and called the Statue of Unity, has been in the centre of controversy since its inauguration by Modi on October 31 this year. "I do not see any problem if a prime minister tries to show his respect and honour to a former deputy prime minister. I think that by inaugurating the tallest statue of Patel, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has done a commendable job," Roy told newsmen here. "He (Patel) was denied the post of the country's first prime minister and on the persistence of Gandhiji he was made the deputy prime minister. And he was the architect behind several
MP polls: Snubbed senior BJP leader joins Cong, gets ticket
Senior BJP leader and former Union minister Sartaj Singh Thursday switched over to the Congress after his name did not figure in the ruling party's third list for the November 28 Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls. Singh, two-time MLA from Seoni-Malwa who wept openly after the BJP snub, was immediately named as the Congress' nominee for the Hoshangabad Assembly seat in the opposition party's fifth list comprising 16 candidates. Singh holds sway in the Hoshangabad region and had defeated late Congress stalwart Arjun Singh from there in 1998. "I am grateful to the Congress for nominating me from Hoshangabad. I had been with the saffron family for 58 long years. The BJP denied me a ticket. I want to be in the midst of the people so I am contesting elections," Singh told PTI over phone. "I don't want to sit at home and confine myself to counting prayer beads," he added. With the fifth list, released Thursday evening, the Congress has now announced names for 225 seats in the ...
NDA misusing institutions, needs to be removed: Deve Gowda
It is the responsibility of all secular leaders to rally together and oust Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in coming Lok Sabha polls for allegedly misusing the government institutions, former Prime Minister and Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) chief H. D. Deve Gowda said here on Thursday."It is the responsibility of all secular leaders to rally together and oust Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government the coming Lok Sabha elections for misusing the national institutions," he said, while addressing mediapersons after meeting Andhra Pradesh (AP) Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu."The NDA rule, under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi Sahab has created so many problems, including destabalising certain constitutionally created institutes. Now, it is the responsibility of all secular parties, including the Congress, to come together to replace the NDA government," he said. He also lauded Naidu for his efforts in taking up the matter with the heads of .
India to participate in Russia-led meet on Afghanistan at "non-official level"
India on Thursday confirmed that its participation at the crucial meeting initiated by Russia on the conflict with Afghanistan will be at a "non-official level".The meeting is scheduled for November 9.Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson, Ravish Kumar said that New Delhi will continue to support all efforts for peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan.In response to a query regarding India's participation in the meeting, Kumar said, "We are aware that the Russian Federation is hosting a meeting in Moscow on 9 November on Afghanistan. Our participation at the meeting will be at the non-official level.""India supports all efforts at peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan that will preserve unity and plurality, and bring security, stability, and prosperity to the country. India's consistent policy has been that such efforts should be Afghan-led, Afghan-owned, and Afghan-controlled and with the participation of the Government of Afghanistan," he added.Russia has invited 12 ...
Poster war in Chhattisgarh not only among parties but also between Naxals and Election Commission
As a pitched political battle unfolds between the ruling BJP and its main challenger Congress in Chhattisgarh, another war is literally on display between the Naxals and the election authorities on walls and hoardings across the state's Naxal-hit areas. At some places, the huge banners put out by the Election Commission asking people to celebrate 'vote pandum', which in local Gondi language means 'festival of vote', actually outnumber and outsize the posters of various political parties too. Besides, many polling booths are being decorated like temples. Officials said the posters have been put up to counter the Naxal propaganda asking people not to vote. The interiors of Dantewada and Sukma regions, which have been among the epicentres of Naxalism in the state, are full of posters put up by Naxals asking villagers to boycott the elections. As part of efforts to increase voting, the administration and electoral officers are also offering goodies to people, including to local women ...
Naidu meets Kumaraswamy, Gowda; says Cong will be a "main anchor" in anti-BJP front
Stepping up his efforts for an anti-BJP front in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, TDP supremo and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu Thursday met his Karnataka counterpart H D Kumaraswamy after which he said a grand alliance of various regional parties would be forged soon in which the Congress will be a "main anchor". Naidu's meeting with the top brass of the JD(S)--Kumaraswamy and his father and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda--came two days after the JD(S)-Congress coalition candidates defeated the BJP 4-1 in three Lok Sabha and two assembly seats in the bypolls. Setting the stage for the revival of an united front against the BJP, Naidu claimed the mood of the nation was against the BJP-led NDA and soon an alliance would be formed with various regional parties. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Naidu said the initial steps for the formation of the alliance was underway and that once the modalities were fixed, programmes would be chalked out later. "I have ...
All oppn parties should come together to save country:Naidu
Aiming to forge an anti-BJP front ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha election, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu Thursday said it was necessary for all opposition parties to come together to save the country and institutions from destruction from the Centre. Naidu alleged that every institution, including CBI and RBI, have been destroyed by the BJP-led NDA government. "It is our responsibility to join hands together to save and protect this great nation and also save democracy and the Constitution," he told reporters after meeting Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda and his Karnataka counterpart H D Kumaraswamy. Naidu hinted that the 1996 model of forming the government with Deve Gowda as prime minister with outside support of the Congress, could also be one of the experiments to form the government at the centre. "PM candidate, we will decide. All of us will join together. First our aim is to protect democracy and save nation. What I am saying is, Congress is the ...
Pope denounces governments that use media to defame critics
Pope Francis is denouncing the way some governments seek to discredit their critics through "whisper" campaigns, using the media to defame anyone who represents a threat. During his morning homily Thursday, Francis said such slander campaigns can infect relations in families, parishes and dioceses, as well as global politics. He said the damage done by the "sin of whispering" is particularly grave in politics "when a government isn't honest and seeks to sling mud at its adversaries with whispers, defamation, calumny." Francis didn't single out any country, but said dictatorial governments are known for taking control of the media to "diminish anyone who represents a threat." Francis this year is dedicating his annual peace message to urging greater responsibility in politics.