Page 2722 - Politics
Israeli fire wounds 32 Palestinians in Gaza beach protest
Gaza's Health Ministry says 32 Palestinians have been wounded by Israeli fire during a mass protest along the beach near the Israeli frontier. Protesters threw flaming tires over the fence Monday, while fishing boats hoisted Palestinian flags. Israeli forces responded with tear gas and live fire. The ruling Hamas militant group has been staging border protests for the past six months in hopes of easing a crippling Israeli-Egyptian blockade. It has intensified the protests in recent weeks as Egyptian-mediated cease-fire efforts have faltered. Over the weekend, Israel halted Qatari-donated fuel shipments to Gaza's power plant in response to the escalated protests. Since March, 155 Palestinians participating or attending the protests were killed. Israel says it is defending its border. An Israeli soldier was fatally shot in July.
Politicians, activists call for ouster of BJP govt at march for missing JNU student Najeeb Ahmed
Fatima Nafees, the mother of missing Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Najeeb Ahmed, Monday said no one from the government came to her aid even after she challenged them to support her cause, on a day the CBI filed a closure report in the case of her son's disappearance. She was speaking at a protest march organised from Mandi House under the aegis of the "United Against Hate" campaign, during which politicians and activists urged people to oust the Bharatiya Janata Pary (BJP) government in the 2019 Lok Sabha election. Nafees said 2019 will bring something new and give us happiness. "Has the 56-inch chest shrunken to 26 inches? I had heard about 'sabka sath sabka vikas'. It is all jumlebaazi (gimmickry) and false promises. I had challenged the government to come and join me, but nobody came. Where is sabka sath?" she said, taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's slogan and the "56-inch chest" quote. Nafees claimed that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) never ...
Omar accuses Mehbooba of showing 'fake sympathy'
After former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti described slain Hizbul Mujahideen commander Manan Wani a "victim of relentless violence", National Conference (NC) vice-president Omar Abdullah Monday accused her of showing "fake sympathy", saying it worked in the past but would not work now. "How short Ms Mufti's memory is! She forgets that she was the architect & beneficiary (it kept her allies in good humour) for her entire period in office. She is in no position to criticise anyone for 'relentless violence'," he wrote on Twitter. Omar was responding to Mehbooba's tweets in which she called for withdrawal of cases against Kashmiri students studying in the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and described Wani as "a victim of relentless violence in Kashmir". "Pushing youth to the wall will be counter productive. Centre must intervene in withdrawing cases against students &AMU authorities must revoke their suspension. The respective State governments outside JK should .
Patel's order banning RSS should be displayed at base of Statue of Unity: Cong
Without naming the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), senior Congress leader Anand Sharma Monday said Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's 1948 order banning the organisation should be placed at the foot of his gigantic 'Statue of Unity', to be inaugurated soon in Gujarat's Narmada district. Speaking to media here, he noted that the move would tell people what the first home minister of the country thought of "them" (RSS). "They (RSS-BJP) do not have heroes of their own....So they are making the Statue of Unity of Sardar Patel and that too, has been made in China," the Congress leader said. "There is a written order by Patel in 1948 about banning, following the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi...the same order should be placed at the base of the statue, so that the country will get to know Patel's thoughts about them," he said. Though the senior Congress leader did not name the RSS, he apparently referred to the ban on the organisation following Gandhi's assassination, which was later ...
Investigators enter Saudi Consulate where writer vanished
A team of investigators entered the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Monday for what Turkish officials called a joint inspection of the building where Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi disappeared nearly two weeks ago. The team arrived by unmarked police cars at the consulate and said nothing to journalists waiting outside as they entered the building. Police then pushed back journalists from the front of the consulate, where they've been stationed for days, setting up a new cordon to keep them away. The makeup of the investigative team that entered the diplomatic compound was not immediately clear. International concern continues to grow over the writer's Oct. 2 disappearance. American lawmakers have threatened tough punitive action against the Saudis, and Germany, France and Britain have jointly called for a "credible investigation" into Khashoggi's disappearance. A Foreign Ministry official had earlier said the team would visit the diplomatic post Monday. The official spoke on ...
Rani Jhansi Grade separator to be thrown open for public on Tuesday
Rani Jhansi Grade separator, the ambitious flyover project in north Delhi which had missed several deadlines, will be thrown open to public on Tuesday by Union minister Harsh Vardhan. North Delhi Mayor Adesh Gupta had last week inspected the flyover and said it would be commissioned on October 16. The 1.6-km-long flyover, near St Stephen's Hospital to Filmistan Cinema, was originally scheduled to be completed by 2010. "The grade separator will be inaugurated Tuesday by Union Minister of Science and Technology Harsh Varhan in the presence of Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and others," a senior NDMC official said Monday. The ambitious project will ease the traffic flow between ISBT Kashmere Gate and Karol Bagh. The North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) had earlier said the project would be completed by November 30. Its commissioning will help in improving the overall traffic movement in this part of central Delhi, Gupta said. Union Minister of State for ..
Karnataka CM's wife in Assembly by-poll fray
Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy's wife Anitha on Monday filed her nomination to contest the Assembly by-poll from Ramanagara constituency, about 50 km southwest of here.
Trump says 'rogue killers' may be behind Khashoggi disappearance
ANKARA/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday "rogue killers" may have been behind the disappearance of prominent Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and despatched Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to meet King Salman over the case.
Bain Capital co-chairman pulls out of Saudi conference - source
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stephen Pagliuca, co-chairman at U.S. private equity firm Bain Capital, will not attend a high-profile conference in Saudi Arabia, a source familiar with the matter said on Monday.
PM should tell if he supports defamation case against Ramani: Congress
The Congress on Monday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to clarify whether he supports the criminal defamation case filed by his Minister M.J. Akbar against a woman journalist who accused Akbar of sexually harassing her.
Generate 'tsunami' in MP to win non-BJP states, says Shah
BJP president Amit Shah Monday gave a call to "uproot" the Congress from Madhya Pradesh in next month's state Assembly polls to generate a "tsunami", the ripple effects of which will be felt in West Bengal and other states currently not ruled by the saffron party. Addressing party workers here in the state, which goes to the polls on November 28, Shah said winning over 200 of the 230 Assembly seats in Madhya Pradesh was not enough. He said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had a strong hold over Madhya Pradesh, where it was in power since 2003, and if the Congress was hoping to rule the state, then the opposition party was just engaging in "daydreaming". "Our target is not to cross just 200 seats, but to uproot the Congress from the state to generate a tsunami that will have its effects in states like West Bengal," Shah said, addressing the BJP's "Mera Booth Sabse Mazboot" convention. Last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had given the "Mera Booth Sabse Mazboot" (my polling booth ...
Amid criticism, stone laid for 'Museum of Prime Ministers' at Teen Murti
Amid severe criticism from Congress leaders, the foundation stone for the "Museum of Prime Ministers" was laid on Monday by Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma and Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri at the Teen Murti estate here.
Naidu to visit Brussels for 12th ASEM summit
Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu will be on a three-day visit to Belgium later this week to attend the 12th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) summit, the first multilateral dialogue that he will attend after taking office, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said Monday. Naidu will lead an Indian delegation to the summit, scheduled to be held on October 18-19 in Brussels. "The bi-annual event is considered the highest platform for dialogue and cooperation between Asia and Europe in the areas of trade, investment, security and tourism. This will also be the first multilateral summit that the vice president will be attending after taking office in August," the MEA said in a statement. The theme of this year's ASEM summit is 'Global Partners for Global Challenges'. The 2018 summit, hosted by the European Union, will be chaired by the President of the European Council. A number of heads of states and heads of government are expected to participate in the summit, it said. "ASEM Agenda for 2018 .
EU says still time for Brexit deal as failure looms
Frustrated European ministers on Monday insisted there was still time to reach a Brexit deal despite the latest failed round of divorce talks, but the EU warned it was stepping up preparations for failure. Meeting in Luxembourg, foreign ministers from the bloc's 28 members admitted that no agreement will be struck this week at an EU leaders' summit that had earlier been billed as the "moment of truth". EU Brexit pointman Michel Barnier met his British counterpart Dominic Raab in Brussels on Sunday, but they failed to agree to a draft Brexit divorce arrangement, as EU leaders prepare to arrive on Wednesday for the summit. Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney, whose country would suffer the biggest economic impact after the United Kingdom from a "no-deal" Brexit, said the latest stumble was "frustrating and disappointing". And in Brussels, European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas said the bloc's own "no deal" preparations were being stepped up. "While we are working hard for .
Indian MPs participate in deliberations at IPU meeting in Geneva
Indian parliamentary delegation participated in the meeting of Asia pacific geopolitical group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Geneva, Lok Sabha secretariat said in a statement on Monday. The delegation led by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan is on a five day trip to Geneva in Switzerland to participate in the 139th assembly of the IPU from October 14-18. Discussions were held on a wide range of issues pertaining to the group and also those having a bearing on the IPU. Mahajan also provocatively participated in the group deliberations, the statement said. A coordination meeting of Asian Parliamentary Assembly (APA) was also held on the sidelines of IPU. Shiv Sena MP Anil Desai represented the Indian delegation in the meeting. While the two other members of the delegation Heena Vijaykumar Gavit and Pratyusha Rajeshwari Singh also participated in the various meetings of the forum of women parliamentarians. They dwelt upon in detail about gender equality in science and ...
Puri inaugurates ITO Skywalk, accuses Delhi govt of stalling the project for a year
Inaugurating the ITO Skywalk here Monday, Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri accused the Kejriwal government of stalling it for one year, and also creating hindrance in execution of several other projects including the Metro Phase-IV. Puri, who inaugurated the skywalk and a foot over bridge at ITO, alleged that a "false narrative" was being created around these projects and some people who have nothing to do with the project were trying to take credit. The Union housing and urban affairs minister claimed that when the Delhi government, which was supposed to provide 20 per cent of the project cost, did not give its clearance, his ministry decided to execute it on its own. The ITO Crossing and 'W' Point Junction are the two busiest crossings in the city as far as the pedestrian traffic is concerned. There are over 25 major offices and other institutions located in this area. Approximately, 30,000 pedestrians cross various roads around ITO Crossing and 'W' Point. The skywalk, which has ...
Journalist organisations ask MJ Akbar to step down in interest of 'fair probe'
In a joint statement, various journalist organisations have expressed disappointment over Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs MJ Akbar's decision to file a defamation case in Delhi's Patiala House Court against journalist Priya Ramani. They have asked Akbar to step down so that the matter can be probed in a fair manner."We are also deeply disappointed at the statement issued by MJ Akbar, Minister of State in the Ministry of External Affairs wherein he has threatened legal action against all those who have alleged they were harassed by him," read a statement by the journalist organisations including Indian Women's Press Corps, Press Club of India, Press Association and South Asian Women in Media."Akbar is a senior functionary of the government and his response should reflect the responsibility that is thus bestowed on him. There can be no dispute about the need for an impartial probe into all the complaints without fear of threat or intimidation to the complainants - and this .
Anti-women face of BJP govt exposed: BSP on MJ Akbar
The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) on Monday criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Central Government for not demanding Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs MJ Akbar's resignation after various women levelled sexual harassment allegations against him."In this whole MJ Akbar episode, the anti-women face of the BJP government has been exposed. By not asking the minister to resign, BJP is being arrogant and insensitive," read a statement from the BSP.Soon after the #MeToo campaign raged in India, at least seven women alleged Akbar of sexually harassing them in the 1990s, when he was working as the editor for various newspapers.Akbar has been facing flak over the allegations, with opposition parties demanding his resignation.However, the BJP leader didn't step down and filed a defamation case in Delhi's Patiala House Court against journalist Priya Ramani - one of the alleged victims.
Fuel prices: Modi resorting to poll gimmicks, says Congress
The Congress on Monday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for doing "electoral drama" ahead of elections in five states over rising prices of petrol and diesel and said that the government has fleeced the common people through "draconian taxation" of Rs 13 lakh crore.
HC directs Hry govt to ensure implementation of ESMA during roadways strike
The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Monday directed the Haryana government to ensure strict implementation of the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) during a two-day strike called by the state's Roadways Employees Union. Justice Rajan Gupta has passed these orders while disposing of a petition filed by some private transporters against the strike call given by the protesters. The roadways union has announced a two-day strike in the state on October 16 and 17 to protest against the state government's decision to hire around 700 private buses. The roadways union has been maintaining that the decision of hiring private buses is "unwarranted" and not in "public or employees interests". The private bus operators, in their plea, had argued that the roadways union leaders are liable to be punished for contempt of court, as they have been going on strike time and again despite the undertaking given before the high court earlier that they would not go on strike. During the hearing of ..