Page 2652 - Politics

Massive relief for TN govt as HC upholds sacking of 18 rebel

In a huge relief to the AIADMK government, the Madras High Court Thursday upheld the June 14 order of the then Chief Justice Indira Banerjee disqualifying its 18 rebel MLAs loyal to sidelined leader TTV Dhinakaran. An adverse judgement could have triggered a political realignment in Tamil Nadu and brought the ruling party perilously close to losing majority in the state assembly whose effective strength is 232. Two seats are vacant. The 18 AIADMK MLAs were disqualified on September 18 last year under the anti-defection law after they met the governor and expressed loss of confidence in Chief Minister K Palaniswami. A division bench of the court comprising Banerjee and Justice M Sundar had delivered a split verdict on June 14. Banerjee had upheld Speaker P Dhanapal's order disqualifying them, while Sundar had passed a dissenting judgement. The Supreme Court had then appointed Justice M Sathyanarayanan to hear the matter. Justice Sathyanarayanan Thursday said there was no .

Like-minded parties will support Rahul as leader of united alliance against BJP-led NDA: Amarinder

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh expressed confidence that all "like-minded parties" in the Opposition which have the best interest of the nation at heart will support Congress chief Rahul Gandhi as the leader of an united alliance against the BJP-led NDA in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Singh also said the Congress party, under the leadership of Rahul, will return to power in 2019 as the people are "completely disillusioned" with the BJP and want a "positive change". Singh, who is in Israel on a five-day visit, said India needed a young and dynamic leader to bring it out of the current mess and put it back on the global map. "Rahul has all the qualities needed to be a great prime minister and he is the perfect man to lead the country, as I have always maintained," Singh told PTI in an interview when asked if he really feels Rahul is the right man for the job of running the country. Singh is heading a high-level delegation to Israel to strengthen Punjab's cooperation with it in the ..

In a huge relief to the AIADMK

In a huge relief to the AIADMK government, the Madras High Court Thursday upheld the June 14 order of the then Chief Justice Indira Banerjee disqualifying its 18 rebel MLAs loyal to sidelined leader TTV Dhinakaran. An adverse judgement could have triggered a political realignment in Tamil Nadu and brought the ruling party perilously close to losing majority in the state assembly whose effective strength is 232. Two seats are vacant. The 18 AIADMK MLAs were disqualified on September 18 last year under the anti-defection law after they met the governor and expressed loss of confidence in Chief Minister K Palaniswami. A division bench of the court comprising Banerjee and Justice M Sundar had delivered a split verdict on June 14. Banerjee had upheld Speaker P Dhanapal's order disqualifying them, while Sundar had passed a dissenting judgement. The Supreme Court had then appointed Justice M Sathyanarayanan to hear the matter. Justice Sathyanarayanan Thursday said there was no ..

Madras HC upholds disqualification of 18 AIADMK MLAs

Justice M. Sathyanarayanan, Supreme Court-appointed third judge of the Madras High Court, on Thursday upheld the validity of Tamil Nadu Speaker's September 18, 2017 order disqualifying 18 Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs) belonging to the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) in the state.The 18 MLAs had pledged support to rebel party leader TTV Dhinakarn, who later went on to form his own faction Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK)."It is not a setback for us. This is an experience. We will face the situation. The future course of action will be decided after meeting with the 18 MLAs," TTV Dinakaran said while addressing the media after the court verdict.In August last year, a total of 19 AIADMK MLAs had submitted a letter to then Governor CV Rao withdrawing support to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami. As a retort, chief government whip S Rajendiran asked Speaker P Dhanapal to disqualify the MLAs stating that their actions amounted to voluntarily ...

Cong to hold protests on Friday outside CBI offices across nation: Surjewala

The Congress will hold protests on Friday outside all CBI offices across the country, demanding an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and reinstatement of CBI director Alok Verma who was sent on leave. Top Congress leaders will be part of the protest outside the Central Bureau of Investigation headquarters in the national capital, while state leaders, including state party chiefs, will take part in similar protests, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said. He said the party will ask the prime minister to apologise to the nation for "illegal and unconstitutional" sending on leave of the CBI director. The party will also seek reinstatement of Verma. A late-night order on Tuesday from the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi sent Verma and Special Director Rakesh Asthana, who were at loggerheads, on leave. Besides sending Verma and Asthana on leave, the government also transferred several CBI officials and appointed M Nageswar Rao as

IB heading CBI way: Congress

The Congress on Thursday attacked the Centre after four 'suspected' Intelligence Bureau men were nabbed from outside the residence of Alok Verma, the CBI director who was sent on leave a day ago, saying the 'IB is heading the CBI way'.

Imran Khan terms Saudi bailout package big relief

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has described a $6 billion Saudi bailout package as a "big relief" for the country and vowed to mediate between Riyadh and Yemen to end their ongoing conflict.

HC upholds TN Speaker's decision disqualifying 18 TN MLAs

The Supreme Court appointed third judge, Justice M. Sathyanarayanan of the Madras High Court, on Thursday upheld the Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker's decision disqualifying 18 AIADMK legislators in 2017.

AIADMK hails HC verdict on MLAs disqualification

The ruling AIADMK in Tamil Nadu Thursday hailed the Madras High Court verdict upholding the disqualification of 18 party MLAs saying it was a "just order." Party spokesperson P Valarmathi expressed joy over the verdict and said the K Palaniswami government has now proved its 'stability.' "We are very happy...this is a just order," Valarmathi told PTI. When asked about the disqualified MLAs' plea to hold by-elections in their constituencies, she said the AIAFMK was ready and expressed confidence that the ruling party will emerge victorious in all the 20 seats. Besides the constituencies of the disqualified MLAs, the Tiruvarur and Thiruparankundram seats had fallen vacant following the death of late DMK chief M Karunanidhi and AIADMK's A K Bose respectively. Justice M Sathyanarayanan had earlier Thursday upheld the June 14 order of the then Chief Justice disqualifying the 18 rebel AIADMK MLAs, in a huge relief to the Palaniswami government. The 18 MLAs were disqualified ..

Saudi crown prince deplores 'repulsive' Khashoggi murder in first comments

Saudi Arabia's crown prince denounced the "repulsive" murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and vowed justice will prevail, in his first public comments on the case, without addressing US accusations of a monumental cover-up. Speaking at an investment conference in Riyadh, due to end on Thursday, the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman pledged there would be "no rupture" in ties with Ankara, after the killing in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul triggered a diplomatic crisis. "The incident was very painful for all Saudis, it's a repulsive incident and no one can justify it," he said in Arabic, during an address to the Future Investment Initiative forum on Wednesday. "Those responsible will be held accountable... in the end justice will prevail." The prince, faced with mounting international censure, appeared relaxed as he shared the stage with Lebanon's prime minister-designate Saad Hariri and Bahrain's Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad. Three weeks since Khashoggi, a Saudi citizen living in ...

CNN, WH engage in war of words over explosive packages

The White House has accused the CNN of dividing America as the news network criticised the Trump administration for a "total and complete lack of understanding" of the seriousness of its attacks on the media following the discovery of an explosive package sent to CNN's New York City office. White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders on Wednesday hit back at CNN after the network's chief Jeff Zucker criticised her and President Donald Trump for showing a "total and complete lack of understanding... about the seriousness of their continued attacks on the media." "The President, and especially the White House Press Secretary, should understand their words matter. Thus far, they have shown no comprehension of that, Zucker said as the network's New York bureau was evacuated for five hours on Wednesday following the discovery of an explosive device sent there. The package turned out to contain an explosive device similar to ones addressed to former President Barack Obama, Bill and Hillary ...

HC upholds order disqualifying 18 rebel AIADMK MLAs

The Madras High Court today upheld the June 14 order of the then Chief Justice disqualifying 18 rebel AIADMK MLAs, in a huge relief to the K Palaniswami government. Justice M Sathyanarayanan heard the pleas of the rival parties after a bench of then Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice M Sundar gave a split verdict on June 14. The 18 disqualified MLAs are loyal to the sidelined AIADMK leader TTV Dhinakaran, who has now formed his own party --the AMMK. Justice Sathyanarayanan said there was no infirmity in the order of the Assembly Speaker P Dhanapal, which was upheld by Banerjee. "All the material that were availble at the time of passing of the order by the Speaker alone have been taken into consideration and this court cannot go into the subsequent events," he observed while upholding their disqualification. The 18 AIADMK MLAs were disqualified on September 18 last year under the anti-defection law after they met the governor and expressed loss of confidence in ...

Trump calls for unity, asks media to be responsible after suspicious packages sent to Democrats

US President Donald Trump has called for unity against the "threat of political violence" after suspicious packages were sent to his predecessor Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and CNN and asked the media to take the responsibility for setting a civil tone by stopping the "endless hostility" and "constant negative stories". Trump's remarks came after a series of explosive devices discovered throughout the day on Wednesday. The devices, which included pipe bombs, were sent to prominent Democrats and across the country and to CNN's New York office. Obama and Clinton, who was Trump's opponent in the 2016 presidential election, received threats. Packages were also sent to Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz, liberal philanthropist George Soros and California Democratic Congresswoman Maxine Waters. The president condemned the explosive devices sent to these leaders, declaring that such threats are "an attack on our democracy itself." "Any acts or threats of political violence are an ...

Delhi: Cops questioning 4 men lurking outside Alok Verma's residence

Four people caught lurking outside official residence of Alok Verma, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Director sent on leave, are being questioned by the Delhi Police.A Delhi Police official, requesting anonymity, said that the four men are Intelligence Bureau (IB) officials."We asked them to deposit their documents for identification. They came in two vehicles," the Police official added.After a spell of the internal fighting in the premier investigative agency of India, the Centre divested the CBI director Alok Verma and special director Rakesh Asthana from their roles and asked them to go on leave.Asthana and Verma were at loggerheads on several issues and accused each other of blocking investigation of several important cases.The CBI had recently filed an FIR against Asthana for allegedly accepting a bribe from a businessman, who was linked to Moin Akhtar Qureshi case. Asthana was heading the Special Investigation Team (SIT) that was probing Qureshi's case.Amid this tug ..

Japanese journalist freed in Syria returning home

A Japanese freelance journalist held hostage by Islamist militants for 40 months in Syria left for Japan from Turkey on Thursday after being freed and said he was happy to be going home.

Two men nabbed from outside Alok Verma's residence

Two suspects seen outside the residence of Alok Verma, the CBI director who was send on leave, have been held by his private security officers on Thursday.

Two Chinese helicopters violated Indian airspace: Sources

Two Chinese helicopters on September 27 crossed the Line of Actual Control (LAC)- the de-facto border between China and India, sources said.The transgression happened near Ladakh trig heights also known as Trade junction, which connects Ladakh with Tibet.The sources further suggested that the two choppers remained in the Indian territory for about 10 minutes before heading back.This comes weeks after Pakistan violated Indian airspace in Poonch sector of Jammu and Kashmir.Official sources said a white-colour chopper crossed into this side in Gulpur sector and hovered for sometime before turning back.It was alleged that inside the chopper were PoK Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider Khan, Tourism Minister Mushtaq Minhas, and the province's Education Minister Ifthikar Gilani. These allegations were later rejected by the PoK Prime Minister.

CNN criticises White House's attacks on media after NYC office evacuated

The CNN attack was in one respect a case of mistaken identity

Bombs reach top US porches: Trump calls for more civility in politics

US President Donald Trump has called on people to be more civil in politics, after a series of suspected explosives were sent to high-profile US figures just weeks ahead of the mid-term polls.

After feeling betrayed, Trump holds cards on Saudi prince

The killing of a journalist has abruptly transformed Saudi Arabia's crown prince from a partner to a liability in the eyes of Washington -- which nonetheless now enjoys more leverage over the ambitious heir apparent. President Donald Trump had enthusiastically endorsed Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's consolidation of power, with the 33-year-old forging a close, chatty relationship with Trump's son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner. But amid outrage after Saudi Arabia admitted that US-based journalist and palace critic Jamal Khashoggi was murdered inside the kingdom's Istanbul consulate, the president has sounded betrayed and taken the initial step of restricting visas to Saudis involved in the killing. Trump, in an interview with The Wall Street Journal published Wednesday, insulated 82-year-old King Salman from blame but pointedly did not shield the crown prince, known by his initials MBS. "The crown prince -- he's running things, and so if anybody were going to be in, it would be .