Page 383 - Politics
Puducherry Industries Minister 'indisposed'
Puducherry Industries and Revenue Minister M O H F Shah Jahan developed chest pain Friday at his residence and was hospitalised here. Director of medical services K V Raman told PTIthe Minister was 'better' and was shifted to a private hospital in Chennai Saturday for 'advanced' check-up and diagnosis. Raman said Shah Jahan had improved and there was nothing to 'worry.' Chief Minister V Narayanasamy and his cabinet colleagues, newly elected Congress MP (Lok Sabha) V Vaithilingam, deputy speaker V P Sivakolundhu and legislators were among those called on him here to enquire about his health.
Manoj Tiwari pays courtesy visit to poll rival Sheila Dikshit
Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari on Saturday paid a courtesy visit to his Congress counterpart Sheila Dikshit, whom he defeated on the North East Delhi seat in the general election, at her residence here. Tiwari visited the 81-year-old Dikshit at her East Nizamuddin residence after learning about her ill-health, said Delhi BJP media co-convener Neelkant Bakshi. During the 20-minute meeting, he enquired Dikshit about her health. "The two leaders acknowledged that political rivals can have friendly and harmonious relations and Tiwari told Dikshit he treated her like his mother," Bakshi said. Dikshit was defeated by 3.66 lakh votes by Tiwari from North East Delhi seat. During a press conference, Tiwari had admitted he was "scared internally" to face the three-time Delhi chief minister and Congress veteran in the poll. Dikshit took charge of Delhi Congress president in January and led the party in the general election. Under her leadership, Congress candidates managed to get more votes ...
People wanted Modi, Palaniswami govts to continue: OPS
Tamil Nadu deputy chief minister O Panneerselvam Saturday said the outcome of Lok Sabha elections and assembly bypolls proved people wanted continuation of the Narendra Modi and AIADMK governments at the Centre and the state respectively. "People at the All-India level wanted Narendra Modi to continue as the Prime Minister and people in Tamil Nadu wanted the Amma (Jayalalithaa) regime to continue. This is what the poll verdict says," he told reporters here. He was referring to the AIADMK winning nine assembly seats in the bypolls to 22 segments which virtually ensured continuation of the K Palaniswami government till 2021 and the BJP-led NDA getting over 350 seats in the Lok Sabha polls. The NDA, however, managed to win only one Lok Sabha seat out of the 38 that went to polls in Tamil Nadu with the DMK-led alliance sweeping the rest.
Health Secretary Hancock joins race to succeed UK's May Health Secretary
The race to succeed British Prime Minister Theresa May hasn't officially begun but the field of contenders is quickly growing. Health Secretary Matt Hancock said Saturday he is seeking to replace May, joining several others who have announced they will run. May announced Friday she plans to step down as Conservative Party leader June 7 and remain as a caretaker prime minister while the Conservative Party chooses a new leader in a contest set to officially kick off the following week. Her successor will have to try to complete Brexit a task that May failed to deliver during her three years in office. While she succeeded in striking a divorce deal with the European Union, the plan was defeated three times in Parliament by lawmakers across the spectrum. The issue remains in political deadlock. The best-known contestant for what will be a very difficult task is flamboyant former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, who has said he will take Britain out of the EU on Oct. 31 even if no deal ..
BJP vote share up 18.4% in Karnataka LS seats
An upbeat Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) increased its vote share by 18.4 per cent in Karnataka's 28 Lok Sabha constituencies where polling was held in two phases on April 18 and April 23, a poll official said on Saturday.
Jagan elected YSRC legislature party leader, stakes claim to form govt
Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, who led his party to a thumping victory in both Assembly and Lok Sabha polls in Andhra Pradesh, staked claim to form the government in the state after he was elected leader of the YSRC legislature party on Saturday. Armed with the resolution unanimously electing him as the YSRCLP leader, he met AP and Telangana Governor ESL Narasimhan at the Raj Bhavan in Hyderabad and staked claim to form the government. He reached Hyderabad by air from Vijayawada and met the Governor around 4.30 PM, official sources said. Earlier, at the meeting of the newly elected MLAs at the YSR Congress office in Vijayawada, a resolution was adopted electing Reddy as the legislature party leader, the party sources said. Thanking the MLAs for electing him as the legislature party leader, Reddy said, "In 2019, people voted for us out of faith and belief, in 2024 they should give us a bigger mandate because of our performance." He also sought the support of the MLAs to help him earn the ...
Ashok Chavan offers to step down as Maharashtra Cong chief
Maharashtra Congress chief Ashok Chavan on Saturday offered to resign from his post following the debacle of the party in the Lok Sabha elections.Speaking to ANI, Chavan said, "We all ought to submit our resignation to the Congress President. As for me, I have submitted my resignation and now it is up to Rahul Gandhi to take a call on whatever reshuffle and changes he wants to make. We fully authorise the Congress President to take a call on this."On being asked who should take responsibility for Congress' dismal performance in the general elections, Chavan said, "Rahul Gandhi is not to be blamed for what happened in the Lok Sabha polls. He is the leader of our party and I do not endorse that he is responsible for this debacle in polls. It is the collective responsibility of all people like us, who are heading the party in various states."Chavan also said he will soon meet Gandhi to discuss the performance of the party in Maharashtra.In the recently-conducted polls, Chavan lost to ...
Trump arrives in Japan with N. Korea, Iran on agenda
US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump landed in Japan on Saturday, kicking off a highly anticipated state visit -- with the President to become the first foreign leader to meet the newly-crowned Emperor Naruhito.
BJP milked nationalism for LS poll victory: Manjhi
After being routed by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the Lok Sabha polls, Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) chief and former Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi here on Saturday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of marketing the army for election victory.
Race to replace Theresa May as PM begins in UK
The race to succeed Theresa May as the new British Prime Minister has begun with Tory leadership contenders clashing over Brexit.
Modi, Shah to be felicitated by Gujarat BJP on Sunday
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah will be felicitated by the Gujarat unit of the party here Sunday following the massive victory in the Lok Sabha election. During his first visit to his home state after the poll results, Modi will seek the blessings of his mother Hiraba Modi at her residence here. State BJP president Jitu Vaghani said Modi and Shah will reach Ahmedabad Sunday evening and will visit the party office in Khanpur area where they will be felicitated. "Our own Narendrabhai, who belongs to the entire country and the world, will visit his home state tomorrow along with our national president, who successfully managed the world's largest political party in a way that it made inroads in states where it was not present and won the election massively," Vaghani said. "Both Modi and Shah will reach Ahmedabad airport at 5pm, and will be received by party leaders, supporters and heads of various religious and social organisations. Modi will garland Sardar ...
Nearly 80% candidates lost security deposit in LS polls in J-K
Barring the Ladakh parliamentary constituency, majority of the contesting candidates lost their security deposit in five other Lok Sabha constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir where 51 of them even failed to get one per cent of the valid votes. The BJP retained three parliamentary seats of Jammu, Udhampur and Ladakh, while the National Conference swept the polls in the Kashmir valley, winning all the three seats of Srinagar, Anantnag and Baramulla. A total of 79 candidates were in the fray for the six parliamentary seats, but 63 of them lost their security deposit of Rs 25,000 and Rs 12,500 (for schedule tribe and scheduled caste candidates) as they failed to get the minimum required one-sixth (16.67 per cent) of the total polled valid votes, according to official data by the Election Commission of India. The Ladakh parliamentary seat which was won by 33-year-old BJP leader Jamyang Tsering Namgyal -- the youngest among the six winners from the state -- was the only constituency where ...
Jagan meets Andhra Governor, stakes claim to form government
YSR Congress Party leader Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Saturday met Andhra Pradesh Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan and formally staked claim to form the government.
Ramaphosa takes oath as South Africa's president
Cyril Ramaphosa, the head of the African National Congress, was sworn in for a five-year term as South Africa's president on Saturday after being elected unopposed by Parliament following the sixth general elections this month. Ramaphosa, 66, swore allegiance to the Constitution in the presence of thousands of dignitaries and citizens at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in the capital, Pretoria - after being voted unopposed in a process overseen by Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng as the country's leader in the National Assembly this week. Several heads of state, former heads of state and heads of international and regional organisation attended the swearing in ceremony. It is the first time that a President's inauguration was open to the public and not just invited guests. The ANC, facing factionalism and public outcries about inaction against senior officials accused of corruption, won the May 8 general election but its share of the vote fell. The ANC secured 57.5 per cent of the parliamentary .
Chinese road project on their side of LAC under observation: Indian Army
The Indian Army is keeping an eye on a road construction project being undertaken by the Chinese Army across the Line of Actual Control in the Demchok sector in Ladakh."The road construction is across LAC in the Chinese held areas and the construction activity is not new and is under observation" Army officials said.The officials were responding to reports that the Chinese Army is building a road on the Indian side of the LAC in a manner similar to what happened during the Doklam crisis a couple of years ago opposite Sikkim border.The officials said India has also undertaken similar construction on its side of the Line of Actual Control in the Eastern Ladakh sector."There are robust border mechanism to resolve issues, should they emerge. A similar construction is under progress in our area as well," the officials said.During the Doklam crisis, India had opposed the construction of roads by the Chinese passing through Bhutanese territory up to a location from where they would have been
PM Modi greeted by British, German counterparts on electoral win
Amidst high-octane developments on her home-front, UK Prime Minister Theresa May on Saturday called up Prime Minister Narendra Modi to congratulate him on his sweeping electoral win at the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.This comes after the British leader announced her intent to step down from her post as the Tory leader on June 7 after her latest Brexit deal was ridiculed across political lines. Before this, her previously negotiated Withdrawal Agreement with the European Union (EU) was rejected thrice by the British Parliament.German Chancellor Angela Merkel also made a congratulatory call to Modi on Saturday. The Prime Minister had met Merkel during a stopover in Berlin in April last year. Apart from this, all three leaders had attended the G-20 summit in Argentina towards the end of 2018.Wishes have been pouring in for Modi ever since it became clear that the party along with its allies had secured a thumping majority in the general elections.Scores of world leaders, right from Japan in the
Chamling says he is ready to discharge role of opposition
After serving Sikkim as chief minister for over 24 years, Pawan Kumar Chamling on Saturday said he respects the mandate of the people and is ready to discharge the role of an opposition leader. Chamling was the chief minister since December 1994. His party, the Sikkim Democratic Front, has been defeated by the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) in the recently held assembly election. "I'm a soldier of democracy. I will stay wherever the people keep me. This time they want me to be in the opposition and I respect that mandate," he said in a Facebook post. "Now I shall show what opposition is and what its real role is," the outgoing chief minister said. He interacted with senior officials and thanked them for their cooperation in running the government for around 25 years. Bagging 15 seats in the 32-member assembly, the Sikkim Democratic Front has lost to the SKM which secured 17 seats in the recently held election.
US ambassador raises concerns during rare Tibet visit
The US ambassador to China urged Beijing to engage in substantive dialogue with exiled Tibetan Buddhist leader the Dalai Lama during a visit to the Himalayan region over the past week. An embassy news release Saturday said Terry Branstad also expressed concerns about Chinese government interference in Tibetan Buddhists' freedom to organize and practice their religion. It said Branstad also raised long-standing concerns about the lack of consistent access to the Tibetan Autonomous Region. The rare visit to the TAR and neighbouring Qinghai province ran Sunday through Saturday. China tightly restricts access to Tibet by foreigners, especially journalists and diplomats. In response to those restrictions, the U.S. Congress last year passed an act that would deny entry to the United States for those involved in formulating or enforcing such policies.
CWC unanimously rejects Rahul's offer to step down as Cong president after poll debacle
A crucial meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) on Saturday unanimously rejected Rahul Gandhi's offer to resign as party president after the Lok Sabha poll debacle and authorised him to overhaul and restructure the party at all levels. The meeting deliberated on the reasons behind the Congress's defeat in the elections for four long hours with various leaders urging Rahul Gandhi to continue to provide leadership to the party. "Congress President Rahul Gandhi in his address to the CWC offered his resignation as the party president. The CWC unanimously and with one voice rejected the same and requested the Congress President for his leadership and guidance in these challenging times," said the resolution passed by CWC. The CWC "unanimously" called upon the Rahul Gandhi to lead the party in its ideological battle and to champion the cause of India's youth, the farmers, the SC, ST, OBCs, the minorities, the poor and the deprived sections, it said. Top Congress leaders from ...
Botswana ex-leader Khama quits ruling party
Botswana's former president Ian Khama on Saturday quit the governing BDP which has ruled since independence more than half a century ago, citing deep differences between him and his successor. It is the first time in Botswana that an ex-president has abandoned the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP). Khama told thousands of supporters in his rural home town of Serowe that he made a "mistake" in choosing Mokgweetsi Masisi as the president. "I came here today to tell you I am parting ways with the BDP. I am throwing away my BDP membership card," said Khama as he trashed his card. "I don't recognise the BDP anymore". Thousands of people who thronged the meeting at the town's showgrounds also threw away their BDP membership cards. The 57-year-old BDP has ruled Botswana uninterrupted since independence in 1966, Kjhama said he did not have a party yet but will support the opposition Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) fight the BDP. Khama and his successor have fallen out publicly, ...