Page 288 - Politics
Khimhun sworn in as Arunachal Pro-tem Speaker
Phosum Khimhun of the Bharatiya Janata Party on Sunday took oath as the Pro-tem Speaker of the Arunachal Pradesh Assembly.
Netanyahu fires two key ministers ahead of Israeli polls: official
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired two prominent ministers Sunday ahead of general elections set for September, the second time the country will go to the polls this year, an official said. An official from Netanyahu's office confirmed on condition of anonymity that Education Minister Naftali Bennett and Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked had been fired, without providing further details. Both are right-wing rivals to Netanyahu and had broken off from his Likud party years earlier. Their New Right party failed to win enough votes in April 9 elections to clear the threshold to join parliament. It is not clear if they will run again in the polls set for September 17. The pair issued a statement saying they were being replaced and thanking the Israeli public, but did not provide details. Ministers remain in their posts immediately after Israeli elections, until the formation of the next administration. Netanyahu failed to build a coalition after the April polls and opted instead
Odisha CM resigns from Bijepur constituency, retains Hinjili
Odisha Chief Minister and BJD president Naveen Patnaik Sunday resigned from Bijepur Assembly constituency and retained the Hinjli seat. Patnaik sent his resignation as legislator from Bijepur constituency in Bargarh district to Assembly Speaker S N Patro, Biju Janata Dal (BJD) general secretary Bijay Nayak said. The BJD supremo had contested the recent Assembly elections, held along with Lok Sabha polls, from Hinjili in Ganjam district as well as Bijepur in west Odisha and emerged victorious from both the constituencies. The chief minister had contested from two assembly constituencies for the first time. While retaining his membership from Hinjili, where he tasted electoral victory for the fifth consecutive time, Patnaik conveyed gratitude to the people of Bijepur for extending support to him. Patnaik, who steered the BJD to a landslide victory in the assembly polls, had defeated his nearest BJP nominee Pitambar Acharya in Hinjili constituency by 60,160 votes. In Bijepur, the BJD ...
US says prepared to talk to Iran 'with no preconditions'
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday his country was ready to talk with Tehran "with no preconditions", but with no indication lifting sanctions over Iran's nuclear programme is on the table. The top US diplomat, who is considered a hawk on the Iran file, appeared to soften the US stance somewhat following weeks of escalating tensions with Tehran. "We are prepared to engage in a conversation with no preconditions," Pompeo said in Switzerland, which in the absence of US-Iranian diplomatic ties represents Washington's interests in the Islamic Republic. "We are ready to sit down with them," Pompeo told a joint news conference with his Swiss counterpart Ignazio Cassis at the impressive medieval Castelgrande castle in Bellinzona, nestled in the Alps in Switzerland's Italian-speaking Ticino region. He was reacting to comments made by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Saturday insisting that his country would not be "bullied" into talks with the United States, and that any ...
China, Pak both involved in infiltration but Pak does it more: Shripad Naik
China and Pakistan are both involved in infiltration, but Pakistan does it more and the government is finding ways to tackle it, Minister of State for Defence Shripad Naik said on Sunday."I thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi for showing his trust in me and giving me the responsibility of MoS in the Defence Ministry. PM Modi is taking measures to end terrorism in our country. We will work to strengthen his hands. We will work to spread peace and tranquillity in the country," he told ANI.Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant "welcomed" the decision of the Prime Minister to give the portfolio to Naik."Naik was a senior Cabinet minister in Goa and so he will definitely do well in the important portfolio," Sawant said."PM Modi and Naik know the requirement of Goa. Mining is an important issue for the state and I hope it is taken into consideration soon," the chief minister added.
Pejawar Mutt seer seeks strong law for cow protection
The Pejawar Mutt head Sunday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to promulgate a strong law for cow protection that can be implemented across India within a year. Swami Vishwesha Teertha, one of prominent religious seers of South India,, who shares a good rapport with Modi and was among the special invitees during his swearing in ceremony in New Delhi on May 30, emphasised that the government with full majority must pay special attention towards the protection of cows. "Government has to pay special attention towards protecting the cows.. He has full majority.. He should make up his mind within a year to promulgate a strong law for cow protection that can be implemented across India," said Pejawar seer at a public event in the temple town of Udupi. The 89-year-old seer with a huge following rued that the government took measures to protect lion and tiger and not the cows. He sought to know whether cows were inferior to lions and tigers. Condemning those who send cows to .
Will continue to play mediatory role for peace in Afghanistan and region: Pak tells US
Pakistan on Sunday told the US that it will continue to play the role of a mediator for establishment of peace in war-torn Afghanistan and in the region. Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Aftab Khokhar, during his meeting with the visiting US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad, also said,"Islamabad encourages all sides to seize the moment to end the prolonged conflict through political settlement". Khalilzad, who is leading US President Donald Trump's push to broker a peace deal with Taliban, arrived in Pakistan on Sunday. He is on a 17-day long peace mission during which he will visit Afghanistan, Belgium, Germany, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in efforts to end the long-running Afghan war. The US envoy will resume peace talks with Taliban in Doha, where the terror group has a political office. He has met with Taliban six times to broker a deal under which the US will pull out troops who were first deployed following the .
Odisha CM vacates Bijepur Assembly seat
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Sunday vacated the Bijepur Assembly seat and retained the Hinjili constituency.
No language will be imposed, says Foreign Minister Jaishankar
Foreign Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday said the Central government "respects all languages" and "no language will be imposed," while stating that all stakeholders - general public and state governments - would be consulted before taking a final call on the three-language norm."The National Education Policy as submitted to the Minister HRD is only a draft report. Feedback shall be obtained from the general public. State governments will be consulted. Only after this, the draft report will be finalised. GoI respects all languages. No language will be imposed," said Jaishankar in a tweet.In another tweet in Tamil, Jaishankar said: "It is only after the recommendation of the people, the Union government will take forward the Education Draft policy. The government will promote all Indian languages. There is no intention of the government to impose any language in any part of the country."Education Secretary R Subrahmanyam on Saturday had also clarified that no policy decision has been ...
India lodges strong protest with Pak for intimidating guests at Iftar party
India on Sunday lodged a strong protest with Pakistan over the "gross intimidation on an unprecedented scale" of Pakistani guests who were invited to an Iftar event organised by the Indian High Commission a day earlier.In a statement, the high commission here emphasised to Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs that the "disappointing chain of events of June 1 at the Serena hotel not only violate basic norms of diplomatic conduct but are against all notions of civilised behaviour"."Stopping diplomats and officials of the High Commission of India in Pakistan from discharging their diplomatic functions by intimidation and coercion is entirely counter-productive of our bilateral relationship," it said.Earlier on Sunday, Indian High Commission Ajay Bisaria had told ANI, "We apologise to all our guests who were aggressively turned away from our Iftar party last evening."The statement said that "a concerted campaign" was launched by Pakistan's security agencies in the days preceding the ...
Jaishankar signals continuation of Swaraj's social media outreach
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday responded to tweets by several Indians abroad seeking help, signalling continuation of his predecessor Sushma Swaraj's social media outreach in assisting people in distress. Swaraj leaves a legacy of an easily-accessible External Affairs Minister who helped the diaspora in distress through Twitter. In a series of tweets, Jaishankar responded to calls for help by several Indians abroad, assuring them that Indian missions in respective countries were trying to address their issues. When one Mahalakshmi tweeted seeking help to her family members whose passports were lost in Italy during a trip, Jaishankar said, "Our Embassy in Rome/ Consul General in Munich will extend all assistance. Please be in touch with them @IndiainItaly @cgmunich." The new external affairs minister also responded to a Twitter user's request for help in finding her husband in Kuwait and bringing him to India. She said her husband is not responding to court summons ...
Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad to take charge of his Ministries tomorrow
Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad will take charge of the Ministry of Law and Justice at 10.30 am and of Ministry of Electronics and IT at 2.30 pm on Monday, June 3.Union Minister Arjun Munda too will assume the charge as Union Minister of Tribal Affairs tomorrow at 11 am at Shastri Bhawan.On the other hand bigwigs like Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh took charge as Home Minister and Defence Minister on Saturday.A number of ministers including Nirmala Sitharaman, who got the crucial finance portfolio, Piyush Goyal, Dharmendra Pradhan, Prakash Javadekar and Ramvilas Paswan took charge of their ministries a day after they were sworn-in on Thursday.In the second government headed by Narendra Modi, 24 Cabinet Ministers besides the Prime Minister, 9 Ministers of State with Independent Charge and 24 Ministers of State were sworn-in.Riding high on the planks of muscular nationalism and anti-Congress, BJP, which had won 282 seats in 2014, improved its tally by notching up 303 seats. Along with ..
IAF chief Dhanoa to visit Sweden
Indian Air Force chief, Birender Singh Dhanoa will embark on a four day official visit to Sweden from June 3 to 6, an official statement said on Sunday.
SDF lost Assembly elections due to "complacency": Chamling
Former Chief Minister and Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) supremo Pawan Kumar Chamling Sunday said the party lost the recently held Assembly elections due to "complacency". SDF's loss was not because of Sikkim Krantikari Morcha's (SKM) "strength" but because of it's own "complacency", Chamling told party leaders and workers at the central executive committee (CEC) meeting here. "The SDF's alternative is SDF. SKM can never be our alternative," he said and urged the party cadres not to get disheartened at the loss of political power in Sikkim. Like a wounded tiger, the SDF party workers must work harder and more passionately to regain its position as the ruling party which has been lost to the SKM for the time being, Chamling, who was Sikkim's chief minister for a record five terms, said. He claimed that the SDF has not been rejected by the electorate in the Assembly elections, but had its role reversed. "Our party has not been totally rejected by the electorate in Sikkim, .
BJP using 'Jai Sri Ram' as party slogan: Mamata
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and said that its leaders are using religious slogan, 'Jai Shri Ram' as their party slogan in a "misconceived manner".Mamata took to Facebook and wrote that "some BJP supporters are trying to spread hatred ideology through one section of media - so-called BJP media and so-called fake video, fake news, misinformation and disinformation to create confusion and to suppress truth and reality.""From Ram Mohan Roy to Vidyasagar to other great social reformers, Bengal has been a seat of harmony, progress and forward thinking. But now, the misconceived strategy of BJP is targeting Bengal in a very negative manner," she wrote.Banerjee went on to add that she has "no problem" with any particular slogan of political parties."Every political party has their own slogan. My party has Jai Hind, Vande Mataram. The Left has Inquilab Zindabad. Others have different slogans. We respect each other... Jai Sia .
Panun Kashmir urges Modi govt to hold dialogue for permanent rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandits
The Panun Kashmir has appealed to the Narendra Modi government to start a dialogue with its representatives on permanent rehabilitation of displaced Kashmiri Pandits. The party asked the government to put in place a comprehensive policy for permanent rehabilitation of the displaced community. "This can be done by creating a centrally administered Union Territory of Panun Kashmir to the East and North of river Jhelum in Kashmir Valley," Panun Kashmir chairman Ajay Chrungoo said Panun Kashmir convenor Agnishaker said creation of Panun Kashmir was critical for defeating terrorism and radcalisation in Kashmir.
For Maharashtra Opposition 'show-baazi' must go on (IANS Special)
Clobbered and bloodied in the Lok Sabha elections, the Maharashtra Opposition is now preparing to confront another major electoral challenge -- the Assembly polls -- and the prospects of their very survival in October.
All is well in NDA in Bihar, Nitish our leader: Paswan
All is well in the NDA in Bihar and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is our leader in the state, Union Minister and LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan said on Sunday, downplaying the JD(U) leader's decision not to join the Narendra Modi government at the Centre. "All is well in the NDA. Nitish Kumar is our leader. Too many conclusions must not be drawn. He (Kumar) has also said that he was, is and will remain in the NDA. Moreover, I am there to act as a cementing force," Paswan told reporters here when faced with a barrage of questions from journalists over the developments. Asked whether he would try to persuade Kumar to change his stance and agree to join the Modi government, Paswan said, "He (Kumar) is capable of taking his own decisions. Moreover, where is the problem when he has made it amply clear that he is fully with the NDA." The Lok Janshakti Party leader evaded queries on the latest expansion of the state cabinet, wherein no LJP leader was inducted even though its sole minister ...
Manoj Tiwari thanks Delhi voters for support in LS polls, says will remove AAP govt in 2020
Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari on Sunday held a roadshow in Northeast Delhi to thank voters for their support in the general election and said his party will dislodge the Aam Aadmi Party government here in 2020 assembly polls. Tiwari successfully defended his Northeast Delhi Lok Sabha seat against Congress veteran Sheila Dikshit and Dilip Pandey of the AAP in the May 12 election. He beat Dikshit by 3.66 lakh votes and the AAP candidate by nearly six lakh votes. Tiwari said by ensuring victory for BJP on all the seven seats of Delhi, people had expressed their trust in BJP. He apologised to the people of his constituency that they were not getting the benefits of Centre-run Ayushman Bharat health scheme since it has not been implemented by the Delhi government. "This is betrayal of the people of Delhi and the BJP workers have pledged to dislodge the Kejriwal government in the next assembly elections in 2020 and make the party victorious to ensure total development of Delhi," he ...
V-P welcomes camaraderie of AP, T'gana CMs; Hopeful of
Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu Sunday welcomed the camaraderie of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Chief Ministers Y S Jaganmohan Reddy and K Chandrasekhar Rao and expressed hope it would lead to resolution of outstanding issues between the two neighbouring states. Chief Ministers of the two states talking to each other with open hearts and trying to find speedy resolutions to the disputes which remained contentious for the past five years through negotiations is a move that should be welcomed. "If they could settle things without the need for the Centres intervention, it is all the more better, the Vice-President said in a post on his official Facebook page. Venkaiah Naidu, who hails from Andhra Pradesh, said he had expressed this desire even earlier but somehow it did work out "for whatever reason. He said the move by Reddy and KCR, as Rao is popularly known, to address the contentious issues together was a happy thing for people of the two Telugu states. Both the Chief ..