Page 2700 - Politics
Pak PM Imran Khan to visit Saudi for a 2nd time?
Prime Minister Imran Khan will visit Saudi Arabia on October 23, his second to the cash-rich kingdom in just over a month, a media report said Thursday as Pakistan tried to keep its economy afloat. Quoted unnamed sources, Geo News reported that Khan will visit Saudi Arabia for a day before his maiden visit to China from November 3. He is expected to hold talks on economic cooperation with Saudi officials during his visit, it said. Khan, who assumed office in August, last toured Saudi Arabia on September 18 and met King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. After that, he visited the United Arab Emirates for talks with Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi. The report also said that a top-level delegation from the United Arab Emirates will visit Pakistan soon to discuss expanding economic cooperation. The news about the possibility of Prime Minister Khan visiting Saudi Arabia for a second time came after he told senior editors on Wednesday that Pakistan may not ...
Akal Takht jathedar backs Punjab Bandh call
Akal Takht jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh on Thursday extended support to a call for a Punjab Bandh on November 1 given by various Sikh outfits. The bandh has been announced to protest the genocide of Sikhs during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and the incidents of sacrilege. Singh said the Akal Takht, Sikh's highest temporal seat, has called on the community to unite on one platform to get the long-denied justice. Nearly 3,000 Sikhs were killed in the riots in 1984 following the assassination of former prime minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards when the Congress government was in power at the Centre. Singh also urged all the Sikh political outfits to extend support to the bandh to mount pressure on the state government to get justice. He said the bandh will not be successful if all do not unite for the cause. Singh also trashed rumours about his resignation. "My health may not be good but it doesn't mean that I am going to resign in the near future," he said.
Trump threatens to close Mexican border, deploy military to stop illegal immigrants
President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to close the US' southern border with Mexico and deploy the military to stop the flow of illegal immigrants from Central America. In a series of tweets, Trump also threatened to stop all American financial assistance to countries like El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala from where illegal immigrants flow in, and blamed the opposition Democratic party for supporting such illegal migration. "I am watching the Democrat Party-led (because they want Open Borders and existing weak laws) assault on our country by Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, whose leaders are doing little to stop this large flow of people, INCLUDING MANY CRIMINALS, from entering Mexico to US," Trump said in his first tweet. "In addition to stopping all payments to these countries, which seem to have almost no control over their population, I must, in the strongest of terms, ask Mexico to stop this onslaught - and if unable to do so I will call up the US military and CLOSE
India seeks to further deepen ties with Maldives
India is looking forward to further deepen its partnership with the Maldives following the just concluded presidential election in the Indian Ocean archipelago nation, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday.
Meghalaya secessionist leader enters India, surrenders
Meghalayas most wanted separatist leader and Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) General Secretary Cheristerfield Thangkhiew surrendered before Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong on Thursday at the Police Headquarters.
German Navy Chief meets Indian Admiral
Chief of the German Navy, Vice Admiral Andreas Krause met Admiral Sunil Lanba on Thursday as part of his four-day visit, dubbed by the government as a "significant milestone in Indo-German Naval relations".
Former Uttarakhand, UP Chief Minister N.D. Tiwari dead
Former Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand Chief Minister N.D. Tiwari died on Thursday -- on his 93rd birthday -- at a private hospital in the national capital following prolonged illness, doctors said.
Cong releases first list of 12 candidate for 1st phase of Chhattisgarh polls
The Congress on Thursday released its first list of 12 candidates for the first phase of assembly elections in Chhattisgarh on November 12. AICC general secretary Mukul Wasnik, in a statement, announced the candidates for seats in southern Chhattisgarh, which is infested by Naxals. Among the candidates fielded by the party are Devati Karma from Dantewada-ST seat, Lakheshwar Baghel from Bastar-ST seat and Shishu Pal Sori from Kanker-ST. The party also decided that its leader Rekhchand Jain will contest from Jagdalpur assembly seat. These seats are highly sensitive and affected by Naxal violence. A total of 18 assembly seats will go to polls in the first phase of polling on November 12. The second phase of polling for the remaining seats 72 will be held on Novmber 20 and results will be out on December 11.
Navy chief meets German counterpart to boost military ties
Navy Chief Sunil Lanba held extensive talks with his German counterpart Andreas Krause on Thursday to strengthen military ties between the two countries, an official statement said. Besides Lanba, the German Navy chief held talks with the senior hierarchy of the Indian Navy, Army Chief Bipin Rawat, Defence Secretary Sanjay Mitra and Anil Khosla, the Vice Chief of Air Staff. "The visit by the Chief of German Navy is a significant milestone in Indo-German Naval relations and would strengthen military ties between the two countries," the statement said. Krause, who is on a four-day visit to India also laid a wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyoti and was accorded a traditional Guard of Honour.
N D Tiwari - a political marathoner who courted controversies (Obit)
A seasoned politician belonging to the pre-independence era, Narayan Dutt Tiwari was a political marathoner whose later life was mired in controversies that Indias public life had not seen before.
BJP leaders back Bhagwat's demand for Ram temple law, oppn says it is politically motivated
Several BJP leaders Thursday supported RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's push for a law to enable construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, saying legislation is a constitutionally valid option. Opposition and Muslim leaders, however, linked Bhagwat's call for legislation to allow a Ram temple where the Babri Masjid stood to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, saying his demand is politically motivated. AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said Bhagwat's remarks indicated that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the Bharatiya Janata Party believed in totalitarianism and not in the rule of law. BJP MP Subramanian Swamy said Bhagwat made a constitutionally valid demand and the government should bring an ordinance for construction of the temple. Shrikant Sharma, a minister in the Uttar Pradesh government and its spokesperson, echoed the view. He said the legislation to build the temple at Ayodhya will be in accordance with the Constitution Sharma said there have always been two options for constructing the ...
RLSP chief Kushwaha meets BJP's Bihar in-charge Bhupendra Yadav
Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) president and Union minister Upendra Kushwaha and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) general secretary Bhupendra Yadav Thursday held deliberations over a host of political issues, including the Lok Sabha election due next year, sources said. Yadav is the BJP's in-charge for Bihar and has been meeting with the party's allies to hammer out a seat-sharing formula acceptable to all. The RLSP is a BJP ally in Bihar and it had won three seats in the 2014 parliamentary polls. There has been speculation over whether Kushwaha will remain a part of the BJP-led alliance, mostly due to his long differences with Bihar Chief Minister and Janata Dal (United) chief Nitish Kumar, who was not with the saffron party in 2014 but joined hands with it in 2017. Kushwaha, the Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development, though has insisted that he would work for the return of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to power. The BJP, the Ram Vilas Paswan-led Lok Janshakti Party ...
UP to begin process to recruit 56,808 policemen on Nov 1
The Uttar Pradesh government will start on November 1 the process to recruit 56,808 people in the state police, officials said on Thursday.
Vice President Naidu meets King Philippe of the Belgians
Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu met King Philippe of the Belgians on Thursday and the two leaders expressed their commitment to boost bilateral investment, trade and people-to-people ties. Naidu, who is here to attend the 12th ASEM Summit, recalled the friendly ties between the two countries based on shared commonalities and commitment to rule of law, pluralism and federalism, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement. "Both sides expressed their commitment to boost investment, trade and people-to-people ties," it said. The Vice President called for the collective efforts of the global community to counter terrorism. He also shared his perspective on the successful flagship initiatives of the Government of India including innovative governance to address the complex challenges faced by India as the world's largest democracy and to simultaneously put the country on a faster, inclusive growth and development trajectory. Naidu thanked Belgium for its support for India's ...
Dushyant, Digvijay suspended from INLD, Chautala warns against indiscipline
Taking note of the allegations of indiscipline against two of his grandsons, Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) president Om Prakash Chautala Thursday suspended Hisar MP Dushyant Chautala and youth leader Digvijay Chautala from the primary membership of the party. The INLD chief also referred the matter pertaining to accusations of "indiscipline" against Dushyant and Digvijay to the party's disciplinary committee. The decision was taken at an executive committee meeting of Haryana's main opposition party held in Gurugram. "The matter of accusations of indiscipline against Dushyant Chauatala, Member, Lok Sabha (from Hisar), and his younger brother Digvijay Singh, national president of the now dissolved Indian National Students' Organisation (INSO), was referred to the disciplinary committee of the party. "The disciplinary committee has been asked to submit its report by October 25 and till then, both of them will remain suspended from the primary membership of the party," a release issued .
Recommending religion tag for Lingayats a "blunder":Shivakumar
In an embarrassment for the Congress, senior leader and Karnataka water resource minister D K Shivakumar has conceded that his party committed a "major blunder" by recommending religious minority status for the Lingayat community in the run-up to the May 12 assembly polls. Seeking pardon from people, he said politics in the name of religion was unacceptable. The previous Siddaramaiah government's gamble to play the Lingayat card with a religious minority tag turned out to be a costly misadventure electorally, leaving Congress poorer in terms of assembly seats. The open admission gives a potential weapon to the opposition BJP to attack the Congress ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. The saffron party had accused the previous Siddaramiah-led government of dividing society to draw political mileage. Shivakumar made the admission during the 'Dasara Sammelan', organised by the Rambhapuri Seer Veerasomeshwara Shivacharya Swamiat Gadag Wednesday. "Our government in Karnataka ...
Hry roadways employees' strike enters day 3, most buses stay off roads
The Haryana Roadways Employees' strike against the state government decision to introduce 700 private buses continued for third day on Thursday, during which most of the buses remained off roads causing inconvenience to commuters. The roadways employees union had Wednesday announced the extension of their strike by another two days, even as the state government had ordered suspension of several workers. The union leaders claimed that at least 3,800 buses out of a fleet of 4,100 remained off roads. The authorities plied buses at some places and services of drivers and conductors were sought from other government departments including the police. At few places in the state, policemen in uniform were seen driving the roadways buses. Hitting out at the state government, a union leader said "the government did not stop at invoking Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA), but suspended several roadways employees. So far, they have not invited us for any talks, which shows they are power ..
Death of lions: Cong alleges laxity, seeks answers from Guj CM
Alleging that the Gujarat government's lax attitude led to the death of 23 lions in Gir forest, Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly Paresh Dhanani Thursday sought explanation from Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on this "man made tragedy". In a letter written to Rupani on the issue, Dhanani sought action against those responsible for not devising a proactive action plan to deal with Canine Distemper Virus (CDV), believed to be the main reason for the deaths. He alleged that although the government knew that the disease has killed a large number of lions in Africa in the past, the vaccine for CDV, which was imported at the last moment, was not brought in advance. "The government knew that a vaccine is available to deal with CDV. However, we imported it (from the US) only after 23 lions succumbed to the infection. Such last minute arrangement led to this man-made tragedy. Why didn't we bring the vaccine well in advance?" asked Dhanani in the letter. "Lions could have ...
Terror and talks can't go together: MEA on Pakistan
Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Ravish Kumar in reference to Pakistan reiterated that terror and talks don't go together.In his weekly briefing here on Thursday, Kumar said that Islamabad needs to create a conducive atmosphere for the talks. He said, "The onus is on Pakistan to take credible steps and create conducive situations. Pakistan needs to take actions against terrorist infrastructure."In the backdrop of the three-day visit of Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, the spokesperson said that the latter has been called on by the Home Minister and the External Affairs Minister.The Sri Lankan Prime Minister is also scheduled to meet his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi on Saturday, Kumar added.Amid the now-rubbished media reports claiming that Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has accused India of hatching a plot to assassin him, Kumar said that the reports have been dismissed."It has been dismissed by three releases. Media reports are false. All shades
Chhattisgarh CM takes swipe at Rahul's visit
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh on Thursday took a dig at Congress president Rahul Gandhi's upcoming visit to the state, saying it will soon be known how fruitful the campaigning is."Everybody is welcome in Chhattisgarh. We will see how fruitful that is. We have seen the results of places wherever he held public rallies," Singh told the reporters here at the airport before departing for New Delhi.Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, former prime minister Manmohan Singh, cricketer-turned-politicians Navjot Singh Sidhu and Mohammad Azharuddin will campaign for the state assembly elections. The party has also released a list of 40 star campaigners for the elections which is scheduled in two phases, November 12 and 20.In 2013, out of the 90 assembly seats, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 49 seats, Congress bagged 39, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and an independent candidate won one seat each.