Page 2633 - Politics
National Herald case: BJP accuses Gandhi family of plundering MP
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday accused the Gandhi family of plundering the people of Madhya Pradesh. BJP leader Sambit Patra hit out at United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Congress president Rahul Gandhi, claiming that the structure built on the land allotted to Associated Journals Limited (AJL) is "a monument of corruption"."This press conference is being held at a distinguished location. The importance of this place is, that the building (City Centre) behind us was allotted to Associated Journals Limited (AJL), and was mandated for printing National Herald. This building shows how the Gandhi family plundered the people of Bhopal and Madhya Pradesh," the BJP leader said while addressing a press conference here.Furthermore, Patra, in an interview with ANI, said that Rahul Gandhi will have to give an answer for every penny.On September 10, the Delhi High Court had rejected Rahul and Sonia Gandhi's plea challenging the Income Tax (IT) notice seeking .
Parrikar to chair cabinet, investment board meetings
Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar will chair two official meetings at his private residence here next week. He will chair a cabinet meeting at his residence on October 31, an official in the chief minister's office said Saturday. Since he was discharged from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi and returned to the state on October 14, Parrikar has been recuperating at his residence. Agenda of the cabinet meeting, to be held at 5 pm on Wednesday, was yet to be decided, the official said. He will also chair a meeting of the Investment Promotion Board (IPB) at his residence on October 30 where certain investment proposals would be discussed, the CMO official said. Parrikar, 62, is suffering from a pancreatic ailment.
Mattis condemns Khashoggi killing, calls it security concern
US Defence Secretary James Mattis on Saturday condemned the killing of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi as "intolerable" and called it a national security concern for nations in the Middle East.
Govt to look into demand for more mayoral powers: Maha CM
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis Saturday said that his government will look into the demand to give more financial and administrative rights to mayors of civic bodies. Fadnavis was addressing a function here on sustainable development organised by the Maharashtra Mayors' Council. The Council's president, Mumbai Mayor Vishwanath Mahadeshwar, raised a demand that mayors be given financial and administrative rights and powers be decentralised as most of these are currently with the municipal commissioner. While Fadnavis said that the state government would look into the issue, he also asked mayors to get acquainted with the powers they already have. "The rights of a mayor may be limited but if they get acquainted with the the rights already with them, they can make appropriate use of it. The various forums in a municipal corporation give a lot of collective power to mayors," he said. Speaking on sustainable development, which is the theme of the Mayors' Council
Kashmiri people should stand with Govt, not with separatists in fight against terrorism: Jaitley
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley Saturday said the people of Kashmir ought to stand with the government and not with the separatists in the fight against terrorism. "I think it is absolutely essential for all of us ...that in this battle, we need the Kashmiri people on our side. It's a battle for sovereignty, it's a battle against separatists and terrorists and the key is also held by the people," he said. "And therefore our approach has to be guided by the fact that those people are on our side, and not with the separatists," he said while delivering the first Atal Bihari Vajpayee Memorial Lecture here. He regretted that at a time when the country is dealing with troubles being fomented from across the border, some local groups have joined them and the worst sufferers are Kashmiri people themselves. "How do we resolve the situation ? Governments have said that we are ready for the most logical option. We are willing to talk to people, we are willing to even interact and involve regional
Army chief says stone pelters in JK overground workers of terror groups, must be dealt with sternly
Stone pelters in Jammu and Kashmir are overground workers of terror groups and should be dealt with sternly, Army Chief Gen. Bipin Rawat said Saturday, a day after a 22-year-old jawan was killed in stone pelting in Kashmir, even as he warned Pakistan to desist from supporting cross-border terrorism. Sending a tough message to Pakistan, Gen. Rawat said if Islamabad continues to support cross-border terrorism, then the Indian Army can resort to "other actions" too. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event to mark the Infantry Day, the Army chief, however, did not elaborate on what could be the possible action he was talking about. The Army had carried out "surgical strikes" on terror launch pads across the Line of Actual Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir on September 28, 2016, following a string of terror attacks on military installations in India by Pakistan-based terror groups. The Army chief also asked Pakistan to desist from aiding and abetting terrorism in Jammu and ...
Kejriwal meets Andhra Pradesh CM
In the run-up to the next year's Lok Sabha elections, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Saturday met his Andhra Pradesh counterpart N Chandrababu Naidu and discussed national issues. Kejriwal said Loktantrik Janata Dal (LJD) chief Sharad Yadav was also present for a while. The meeting took place at the Andra Pradesh Bhavan here. "Had a gud meeting wid Sh Chandrababu Naidu ji. Sh Sharad Yadav ji was also present for a while. Discussed national issues.Present BJP govt is a threat to the nation n to the Constitution. People across India will need to join hands to save India n the Constitution (sic)," the Delhi chief minister tweeted. The Lok Sabha polls are scheduled to beheld next year.
C'garh polls: 190 candidates in fray for 18 seats in 1st phase
Battle lines have been drawn for the first phase of Chhattisgarh Assembly polls to be held on November 12 wherein 190 candidates, including Chief Minister Raman Singh, will be in the fray for 18 seats. After the deadline for withdrawal of nomination papers ended on Friday for the first phase of polls, 190 candidates remained in the fray. Eighteen constituencies spread across eight naxal-affected districts will go to polls in the first phase, a public relation officer of the office of state Chief Electoral Officer said on Saturday. "As many as 421 candidates had filed their nominations for the first phase, but papers of only 231 aspirants were found valid in the scrutiny. Of them, 41 candidates withdrew their nominations, leaving 190 in the fray," he said. The son of former leader of opposition late Mahendra Karma, Chhavindra Karma, who had filed his nomination as an independent candidate from Dantewada (ST) seat from where his mother Devti Karma is a Congress nominee, withdrew from ...
If not for alternate ideologies, Cong would've converted India into a kingdom: Jaitley
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday asserted that the Congress party would have converted India into a kingdom if the second decade post-independence wouldn't have witnessed the rise of alternate political ideologies.Jaitely was addressing a gathering at 5th India Ideas Conclave. In the first edition of Atal Bihari Vajpayee Memorial Lecture, Jaitley spoke on 'Challenges before Democracy'."Post-independence the dominant party of Indian politics for at least four decades was Indian National Congress. After the second decade in power, the party developed dynastic tendencies. But the party was still very large and dominant and that's the period when we saw the domination spread all over the country, state after state. Conventional non-congress parties, the communist shrunk to one particular region, the Lohia socialist were belligerent in their opposition but poor at organisation and therefore they frittered away. India needed an alternative ideological and political poll," said the .
Personal ambitions leading to degeneration of Congress ideology: Jaitley
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday said the personal ambitions of the Congress leadership had led to the "degeneration of its ideology" and that its dynastic tendencies would have turned India into a kingdom rather than even a dynastic democracy had it not been for the BJP.
Khashoggi killers 'will be prosecuted in Saudi Arabia': Saudi FM
Saudi Arabia will prosecute the suspects in the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Riyadh's foreign minister said Saturday in response to a call by Turkey for their extradition. "On the issue of extradition, the individuals are Saudi nationals. They're detained in Saudi Arabia, and the investigation is in Saudi Arabia, and they will be prosecuted in Saudi Arabia," Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said at a regional defence forum in the Bahraini capital. Jubeir's comments come the day after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for the extradition of 18 Saudi nationals authorities say were involved in the murder of Khashoggi, a Saudi government critic killed in his country's consulate in Istanbul this month. After denying knowledge of Khashoggi's whereabouts for nearly three weeks, Riyadh admitted Khashoggi's murder had been "premeditated" but denied the involvement of the kingdom's powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. "We will overcome it," Jubeir told the defence ...
Israel accuses Syria, Iran of orchestrating Gaza rocket fire
The Israeli army accused the Syrian government on Saturday of ordering Palestinian militants in Gaza supported by Iran to fire dozens of rockets into southern Israel, and threatened to retaliate wherever it chose. The barrage of rockets, which began late Friday and continued into Saturday, triggered extensive retaliatory strikes by Israeli aircraft against Gaza that risked escalating into a wider conflict. The new flare-up came hours after six Palestinians died in renewed clashes on the Gaza-Israel border even as the territory's Islamist rulers Hamas said Egypt was seeking to negotiate a return to calm. "The rockets that were launched against Israel... we know that the orders, incentives were given from Damascus with the clear involvement of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force," army spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus said, referring to the Guards' foreign operations unit. At least 39 rockets have been fired at southern Israel by the Islamic Jihad group since late
Sri Lankan President Sirisena suspends parliament
Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has suspended the Parliament till November 16 amid constitutional crisis in the nation.According to the Colombo Page, the Presidential Secretariat has issued the relevant Extraordinary Gazette notification. "The President has prorogued the Parliament with effect from 12 noon on Saturday," said Cabinet spokesman Rajitha Senaratne, as quoted by Al Jazeera.This comes after the now-ousted Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe requested the Speaker to call an emergency Parliament session on Monday, so he could prove his majority in the house.Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena sacked Wickremesinghe on Friday night replacing him with his predecessor Mahinda Rajapaksa following the collapse of the governing coalition between Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and United National Party (UNP).Terming his ouster "unconstitutional", Wickremesinghe asserted that he still holds the Prime Minister's office and is ready to prove that he retains the ...
Amit Shah becomes 'first' passenger at new Kannur airport
BJP President Amit Shah on Saturday unofficially became the 'first passenger' to have walked through the brand new international airport here, which will open shortly to the public.
Georgians to vote in last direct election for president
Sunday's election will be the last time residents of the former Soviet republic of Georgia get to cast a ballot for president that's if any of the 25 candidates running gets an absolute majority. Opinion polls suggest that none of the candidates will exceed the 50 per cent needed for a first-round victory and that the country on the Black Sea will have to choose between Sunday's two top candidates in a November presidential runoff. Under constitutional changes that began in 2010, Georgia is transitioning to being a parliamentary country. After the upcoming president's six-year term ends, future heads of state will be chosen by delegates. The presidency's powers already have been substantially reduced, with the prime minister becoming the country's most powerful politician.
Sri Lankan turmoil cause of concern for TN fishermen: Stalin
DMK chief M.K. Stalin on Saturday said the political developments in Sri Lanka is a cause of concern not only for the Tamils there but also for those in Tamil Nadu, especially the fishermen.
Suspicious package sent to Indian-origin Senator Kamala Harris
Two new suspicious packages targeting Indian-origin Senator Kamala Harris and billionaire political activist Tom Steyer -- both Democrats -- have been recovered even as federal officials arrested a Florida man accused of sending pipe bombs to critics of President Donald Trump.
Sirisena suspends parliament till Nov 16 as political crisis deepens in Lanka
Sri Lanka President Maithripala Sirisena on Saturday suspended the parliament till November 16 after sacked Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe sought an emergency session to prove his majority, deepening the political crisis in the island nation. Sirisena's move is seen as an effort to allow former strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa to buy more time to seek majority in the parliament. Rajapaksa and Sirisena combine has only 95 seats and is short of a simple majority in the 225-member house. Wickremesinghe's United National Party (UNP) has 106 seats on its own with just seven short of the majority. The UNP claimed that President Sirisena sought to prorogue the parliament as Rajapaksa did not command a majority in the House. Parliamentary officials said the president prorogued the house till November 16. The parliament was earlier due to meet on November 5 to unveil the 2019 annual budget. The move to suspend the parliament came in the wake of an urgent request from Wickremesinghe to convene .
Rafale jet deal case: Centre submits details to SC in sealed cover
The Central Government on Saturday submitted the details of the decision-making process pertaining to the Rafale deal to the Court Secretary General in a sealed cover.A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi had sought the said information from the Centre without divulging the technical details and the prices of the Rafale fighter jets. The apex court will hear the matter next on October 29.On Wednesday, a fresh Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed in the top court in connection with the Rafale deal by advocate Prashant Bhushan, and former Union Ministers Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie, seeking a court-monitored Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe in the case.In 2012, during the United Progressive Alliance's (UPA) tenure, India planned to buy 18 off-the-shelf jets from France, with 108 others to be assembled in the country by the state-run aerospace and defence company Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government scrapped the UPA's ..
BJP committed to Palampur resolution, Ram temple in Ayodhya soon: Shukla
Expressing the commitment of BJP to Palampurresolution, party's state spokesperson Manish Shuklasaid here Saturday that Ram temple will be constructed in Ayodhya soon. At its Palampur (Himachal Pradesh) convention in 1989, the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) had adopted a resolution to build a temple at the birth place of lord Ram in Ayodhya. "Right from the order of Allahabad High court to other orders of lower courts, it has been established Ram temple existed where deity of lord Ram has been placed in Ayodhya, state BJP spokesperson Manish Shukla said while talking to reporters here. Shukla claimed that owing to efforts of BJP-lead central government, Supreme Court agreed for a day-to-day hearing from October 29 on Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute case. The title dispute hearing in the case will commence from October 29. "BJP is of the firm view that Ram temple existed at Ram Janmabhoomi Ayodhya since ages and would continue to remain in future also after the construction of .