Page 2813 - Politics
Cong ministerial aspirants pile pressure ahead of expected Karnataka cabinet expansion
With the much-awaited expansion of the H D Kumaraswamy ministry in Karnataka expected to take place next week, aspirants from the JDS' coalition partner Congress have started lobbying for ministerial berths. Amid reports that the state Congress leaders would leave for Delhi in a couple of days to finalise the list, aspirants have even resorted to pressure tactics. Supporters of Congress MLA from Bhadravathi B K Sangamesh Wednesday demonstrated near former chief minister and Congress legislature party leader Siddaramaiah's residence here, demanding a ministerial berth for their leader. They urged Siddaramaiah and other party leaders to consider Sangamesh who is the lone party MLA from Shivamogga district that is considered the stronghold of state BJP chief B S Yeddyurappa. According to party sources, several aspirants who have been mounting pressure on the party's state leadership here are also likely to go Delhi soon to pursue their demand. This would be the second expansion of the ...
AIADMK govt will not allow projects affecting people:
Amid opposition to some new hydrocorbon projects in Tamil Nadu, senior AIADMK leader and Lok Sabha Deputy speaker M Thambidurai Wednesday asserted the party government would not allow any industry that "affects" the people of the state. Thambidurai was reacting to questions from reporters on Vedanta Limited and state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) recently bagging hydrocarbon exploration projects reportedly in some pockets of the state. "...permission, including land, for the project has to be given by the state government. If it affects people, permission for the project will not be given by the AIADMK government," he said. As opposition DMK flayed the Centre for awarding the oil exploration contracts in Cauvery delta region, Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam had Tuesday said the government would not allow any project that 'affects' people. The main opposition DMK has announced a protest against the "fascist BJP government" for awarding the ...
BSP to go alone in Rajasthan, MP Assembly polls; Keeps suspense over Lok Sabha
In a big blow to the prospects of grand alliance, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Wednesday announced her decision to go solo in the upcoming Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls this year. However, the BSP chief maintained suspense over alliance for Lok Sabha elections, with Congress and the Mahagathbandhan floated by it in the Lok Sabha polls in 2019."There will be no alliance with the Congress. The BSP will fight the upcoming Assembly elections in poll-bound states Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh on its own," Mayawati told ANI in an exclusive interview.She blamed Congress for trying to wipe out the BSP by giving it few seats in major states where they were negotiating for the alliance. "In Rajasthan, the Congress was offering us only nine seats out of 200 assembly seats, in Madhya Pradesh 15-20 (out of 230 seats in the state), in Chhattisgarh only 5-6 seats out of 90. We have noticed that whenever we have contested an election in alliance, all our votes get ...
Congress questions Information Commissioners' appointments in MP
Madhya Pradesh Congress President Ajay Singh on Wednesday dubbed the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government's decision to appoint five state Information Commissioners as "unconstitutional".
Bangladesh scraps unpopular quota scheme for government jobs
Bangladesh on Wednesday abolished a controversial quota system for civil service jobs that had been the target of major street protests that paralysed parts of the country earlier this year. The cabinet announced the end of the decades-long policy that reserved more than half of all government jobs for the offspring of veterans from Bangladesh's war of independence and disadvantaged ethnic minorities. Cabinet secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam said quotas set aside for top-tier public service positions would be scrapped entirely, but some reservations for lower-level positions would remain. Recruitment for the most sought-after jobs would be determined by examination only, he said, adding a government decree to that effect would be issued later in the week. The contentious quota scheme was the subject of enormous rallies in April that brought Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority democracy of 160 million, to a standstill and saw more than 100 injured. Tens of thousands of students demanded ...
Maldives president-elect gains control of Parliament
The president-elect of the Maldives has scored another victory by securing a majority in Parliament after the Elections Commission restored 12 lawmakers who were earlier deemed to have lost their seats. Ibrahim Mohamed Solih won last month's presidential election and is to be sworn in next month. The restoration of the lawmakers Wednesday in line with a Supreme Court order is a sign that Solih is consolidating his victory against outgoing strongman Yameen Abdul Gayoom, who appears to be losing his grip on state institutions. Solih's opposition coalition will now have 43 members in the 85-member Parliament while Yameen's party will have 40. The Elections Commission announced last year that the 12 lawmakers had lost their seats after they joined the opposition when the ruling party split.
UN court tells US to ease Iran sanctions in blow for Trump
The UN's top court ordered the United States Wednesday to lift sanctions on humanitarian goods for Iran in a stunning setback for US President Donald Trump. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague handed Iran a major victory, saying that the stinging economic sanctions put Iranian lives at risk. The ruling is likely to rile Trump, who reimposed the sanctions in May after pulling out of Iran's international nuclear deal to the dismay of his allies. But it was unclear whether the judgment will be anything more than symbolic, because both Washington and Tehran have ignored them in the past. The ICJ judges ruled that the sanctions on some goods breached a 1955 "Treaty of Amity" between Iran and the US that predates Iran's Islamic Revolution. "The court finds unanimously that... the United States of America... shall remove by means of its choosing any impediments arising from the measures announced on 8 May to the free exportation to Iran of medicines and medical devices, ...
'BJP activist, several youths join Cong in JK's Kishtwar'
Several youth leaders including a "prominent" BJP activist joined the Congress Wednesday in the Kishtwar district of Jammu and Kashmir, a state Congress leader said. BJP's state media coordinator Sheikh Imran from Gugara joined the party along with other "prominent" youth leaders in the presence of state Congress vice president and MLA G M Saroori, he said. He said the new entrants reposed their faith in the Congress' programmes and policies, saying it alone can safeguard articles 370 and 35-A of the Constitution and ensure equitable development of the state's three regions. Welcoming them to the party fold, Saroori said, "The Congress has always provided a vibrant platform to youths to play their designated role in the state polity and help in shaping its politico-economic destiny". Describing the joining of the BJP state media coordinator as a "vindication of the Congress' pro-people policies, he said the time has come to unite and defeat communal forces which are befooling the ...
Ease sanctions on Iran, UN court tells US
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Wednesday ordered the US to ease sanctions it re-imposed on Iran after pulling out the 2015 nuclear deal.
'Modi's Operandi' for handing out defence contracts - be a defaulter of Rs 45000 cr: Rahul
Congress president Rahul Gandhi Wednesday took a swipe at the Modi government and Anil Ambani over the Rafale issue, saying that in order to bag India's biggest defence contracts one has to be a "defaulter of Rs 45,000 crore" and have "no relevant experience". Gandhi also cited a media report claiming that Swedish telecom equipment company Ericsson has petitioned the Supreme Court to prevent Ambani and two senior executives from his group from leaving the country after accusing them of willfully defaulting in previously promised payment of Rs 550 crore by alleged abuse of process of law. "Modi's Operandi for handing out India's biggest defence contracts -- 1. Be a defaulter of 45,000 crore. 2. Owe money to other companies who beg Supreme Court not to let you leave India. 3. Be called 'Bhai' by PM but have no relevant experience," Gandhi said in a tweet and tagged the media report. The opposition led by the Congress has been accusing the government of benefitting Anil Ambani's Reliance
BSP not to ally with Congress in MP, Rajasthan: Mayawati
Accusing the Congress of finishing her party, BSP chief Mayawati on Wednesday ruled out an alliance with the Congress in the coming Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Farmers end protest but will resume if demands not met (Third Lead)
The standoff between the agitating farmers and police at the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border ended last night after the protesters reached an agreement with the government and they were allowed to march to the Kisan Ghat, the memorial of farmer leader and former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh.
Goa Speaker rejects Cong notice for his removal
Speaker of Goa Legislative Assembly Pramod Sawant Wednesday rejected a notice moved last month by the Congress seeking his removal from the post, saying it is "not maintainable". In his order, the speaker said such a notice has to be issued either when House is summoned or a session is in operation. The Congress MLAs had not specified any reason for removal of the Speaker in their notice moved on September 21. Opposition leader Chandrakant Kavlekar had said, "We cannot discuss the grounds for giving notice right now. When it comes up for discussion on the floor before voting, we will disclose our grounds". The notice was moved at a time Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar is absent from office for a long period of time due to ill health. He is currently undergoing treatment for a pancreatic ailment at the AIIMS in Delhi. The Congress had earlier demanded a floor test claiming that there is no coordination among the alliance partners of the state government, and that the ...
NC instigating locals against KP migrants for their participation in local bodies polls: BJP
The Jammu and Kashmir BJP unit Wednesday accused the National Conference of instigating locals in the Valley against Kashmiri pandit migrants for their participation in local bodies polls. "Today, when some of them have gone to Kashmir to exercise their right in elections or contest polls, the NC is instigating locals that they are coming here to rule them. It is a lie being spread by the NC," state BJP spokesperson Brig Anil Gupta told reporters here. He alleged that the NC, which is the oldest political party in the state, has always been averse to the presence of Kashmiri pandits in the Valley. "Their behaviour towards the minority KPs is same as it was 25 to 30 years ago. They were forced out of the Valley by the NC. It did not protect them and gave them the tag of migrants," alleged Gupta. He said the NC was unable to "digest the success of BJP candidates" in the ongoing Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) election and was resorting to "false propaganda to provoke and mislead the ...
Cross-border firing quadruples along IB in Jammu, BSF suffers maximum casualties: Data
Incidents of unprovoked firing from the Pakistani side along the international border (IB) in Jammu have quadrupled this year as against 2017 and the figure was the highest in the past five years, according to official data. The latest data accessed by PTI also shows that the Border Security Force (BSF) suffered the maximum casualties this year -- 12 deaths and 40 injured. The data shows that till September this year, a total of 498 incidents of cross-border firing have taken place along the IB in Jammu as compared to 111 last year. The corresponding figures for the previous three years were 204 (in 2016), 350 (in 2015) and 127 (in 2014). Twelve BSF personnel have been killed in these incidents this year, including the brutal killing of Head Constable Narender Singh last month. Singh was shot dead and his throat slit when his team went towards the fence to cut thick and long elephant grass near their border post in Ramgarh sector of Jammu. A "record-high" number of 40 jawans have been
Digvijaya Singh says Nitish Kumar may abandon NDA before LS polls
Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh said Wednesday he foresees the possibility of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar doing yet another volte-face by walking out of the BJP-led NDA ahead of the next Lok Sabha election. The former Madhya Pradesh chief minister alleged that Kumar, who heads the JD(U), an NDA constituent, cannot survive without power and said he may walk out of the ruling alliance if Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity drops before the election. "It takes only 24 hours for Kumar to make a volte-face. Lok Sabha elections are six months away. Palti (U-turn) is possible," Singh, who is in Patna on a private visit, told a news channel. Asked whether the Congress would welcome Kumar as an ally, Singh said cryptically politics is the art of possibilities. Singh has served as Congress in-charge of Bihar before C P Joshi took over from him in 2013. The Rajya Sabha member's remark on the possibility of Kumar's switch to the Congress camp could also be a dig at Kumar, who ..
Graft charge against minister: Govt, DMK spar on prosecuting authority
The DMK,which has sought constitution of a special investigation team to probe graft charges against Local Administration Minister S P Velumani, Wednesday submitted in the Madras High Court that the governor is the competent authority to sanction prosecution in the matter. Countering the argument of Advocate General Vijay Narayan before Justice Jagadish Chandira that sanction for prosecuting the minister has to be obtained from the government, senior counsel N R Elango, appearing for the petitioner, DMK leader R S Bharathi, said it is not so. As the government itself is accused of corruption, the sanction for prosecution has to be obtained from the governor, Elango submitted. The advocate general then said he was ready to argue on who the sanctioning authority was. Vijay Narayan, appearing for the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption, argued that according to the latest amendment to the Prevention of Corruption Act, sanction for prosecuting a public servant has to be obtained .
Trump: Saudi king wouldn't last 2 weeks without US support
President Donald Trump says Saudi Arabia's king "might not be there for two weeks" without US military support, further increasing his pressure on one of America's closest Mideast allies over rising oil prices. As crude oil prices reach a four-year high, Trump repeatedly has demanded OPEC and Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, push prices down. However, analysts are warning prices could go up to $100 a barrel as the world's production is already stretched and Trump's sanctions on Iran's oil industry take effect in early November. Criticizing America's longstanding military relationships with allies has been a hallmark of Trump's presidential campaign and his time in office. Trump returned to that theme Tuesday night in Southaven, Mississippi, mentioning both Japan and South Korea. However, Trump's comments on Saudi Arabia implied the kingdom's Al Saud monarchy, which oversees the holiest sites in Islam, would collapse without American military support. "We protect Saudi ..
Jammu traders seek action against defacement of properties ahead of urban local bodies polls
Jammu traders expressed displeasure over defacement of properties by putting up posters in connection with the upcoming urban local bodies polls and asked the State Election Commission to look into the matter. The Jammu Chamber of Commerce and Industries (JCCI), a representative body of traders, highlighted the issue in a letter to Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Shaleen Kabra. "We would like to bring to your kind notice that we have received numerous complaints from the people not only from the business community but from public at large that the contesting candidates in the ongoing election process for the Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC) have literary defaced the whole city by pasting stickers on the walls and gates of private houses and on public property," JCCI president Rakesh Gupta said in the letter. The 75 wards of JMC along with 347 wards spread over various districts across Jammu and Kashmir are going to polls in the first phase of the four-phased elections on October 8. Out
CPI, CPI(M) choose separate paths in Telangana polls
The CPI and CPI(M), traditional Left allies in the country, have chosen separate paths for the coming assembly elections in Telangana. The CPI is part of the broad-based alliance of opposition Congress, TDP and Telangana Jana Samiti (TJS), which was formed to defeat the ruling TRS, while the CPI(M) will contest under the umbrella of the Bahujan Left Front (BLF). The BLF comprises 28 small parties, though many of them may not contest the state polls. The BLF's agenda is social justice and alternative policies to strengthen education, health and other sectors in the government, CPI(M) state secretary Tammineni Veerabhadram told PTI Wednesday. CPI(M) had one MLA in the recently-dissolved 119-member Telangana Legislative Assembly. The party is likely to contest 20 to 23 assembly segments, he said. The Left parties have traditionally been strong in Khammam, Warangal and Nalgonda districts of Telangana, . Veerabhadram said the BLF promises to keep health and education completely in the ...