Page 39 - Politics

Women reservation benefit only possible in 2034, says Kapil Sibal

Hitting out at the Modi government, former Union law minister Kapil Sibal on Sunday said the earliest the women's reservation can come into effect is 2034 Lok Sabha elections, alleging it was brought with an eye on the upcoming state and Lok Sabha polls. The Rajya Sabha MP made the remarks in his new 'Dil Se' initiative under which he will engage fortnightly in a conversation with a journalist on important issues. In the first episode he posted on social media, Sibal took questions on the women's reservation bill, the row over BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri's derogatory remarks against BSP MP Danish Ali, and his views on the new Parliament building. Asked about Bidhuri's remarks, Sibal said the BJP MP must be "expelled" from parliament. "I have not seen this in my 30-year-long career in parliament. Never seen such foul language, such venom and I was even surprised and shocked by the person presiding, who said I would look at the record and then delete it. I just don't understand this," Siba

Centre has 'mismanaged' economy across all sectors, says Congress

The Congress on Sunday alleged that the government has mismanaged the economy across all sectors and since it is "too inept" in fixing issues such as unemployment and price rise, it is distorting the data instead. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said now that the special session of Parliament is over, it is clear that the Modi government was trying to "distract and divert" the nation from some critical issues "the Adani scam, the caste census and especially the rising unemployment, growing inequality and the economic distress". In a statement, he said no matter how much the Modi government hides the data, the reality is that the vast majority of people are suffering. He claimed that some of the facts reported last week are being "brushed under the carpet". He said RBI's latest bulletin of September 2023 shows the "complete failure" of the Modi government to execute a recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. "Forty-three per cent of people were in the labour force in February

B-team of BJP in Ktaka has officially become ND's part: Cong on JD(S) move

After the JD(S) joined the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), the Congress on Friday said the "B-team of the BJP" in Karnataka has officially become part of the coalition. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said their assertion made during the recent Karnataka assembly poll campaign in this regard has been vindicated today. "What the Congress had repeatedly said throughout the Karnataka election campaign has been officially vindicated today. The B-team of the BJP in the state - JD(S) - has officially become part of the NDA, that too a day following the most nakedly communal attack by a BJP MP on a former senior JD(S) leader in the Lok Sabha," Ramesh said on X. Ramesh was referring to BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri's objectionable remarks against Danish Ali, who is now in the BSP. In a boost to the BJP in Karnataka ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Janada Dal (Secular) decided to ally with the party following a meeting of its leader H D Kumaraswamy with Home Minister Amit Shah and pa

NCP split: Ajit faction submits disqualification plea against Sharad's MLAs

The Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party has submitted a petition to Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar seeking disqualification of 10 MLAs affiliated to party founder Sharad Pawar. The petition was filed on Thursday by Anil Bhaidas Patil, who is the chief whip of the Ajit Pawar faction. The 10 MLAs named in the petition are Jayant Patil, Jitendra Awhad, Rajesh Tope, Rohit Pawar, Anil Deshmukh, Prajakt Tanpure, Balasaheb Patil, Sunil Bhusara, Sandeep Kshirsagar and Suman Patil, said Anil Bhaidas Patil. Incidentally, the Sharad Pawar faction has already filed disqualification petition against 40 MLAs who allied with Ajit Pawar. The NCP has 53 MLAs in the 288-member Maharashtra Assembly, with legislators like Nawab Malik and Suman Patil maintaining a neutral stance. On July 2, the NCP suffered a split after Ajit Pawar and eight MLAs, including Chhagan Bhujbal, Hasan Mushrif and Dilip Walse Patil, joined the Eknath Shinde government. Ajit Pawar was sworn in

Canada must take action against anti-India elements active on its soil: BJP

The BJP on Tuesday termed as baseless and ironical Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations against India in connection with the killing of a Khalistani terrorist in Canada and demanded that the Canadian government take effective action against all anti-India elements active on its soil. The ruling party's reaction came after Canada expelled a senior Indian official on Monday following Trudeau's allegations of "potential" Indian links to the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the chief of the banned Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) and one of India's most-wanted terrorists who carried a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh on his head. Nijjar was shot dead by two unidentified gunmen outside a gurdwara in Surrey in the western Canadian province of British Columbia on June 18. India has rejected as "absurd" and "motivated" Trudeau's allegations and expelled a senior Canadian diplomat in retaliatory action. The BJP said it is unfortunate that some Canadian political figures have openly expressed the

Cong dubs Women's Reservation Bill 'election jumla', huge betrayal of hopes

The Congress on Tuesday termed as "election jumla" and "huge betrayal of hopes of women" the women's reservation bill brought by the government, noting the Centre has stated that the reservation will be effective only after a Census and delimitation exercise is conducted post-enactment of the bill. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh wondered whether the Census and delimitation will be done before the 2024 elections, pointing out that the Narendra Modi government has not yet conducted the 2021 decadal Census. In a post on X, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "In a season of election jumlas, this one is the biggest of them all! A huge betrayal of the hopes of crores of Indian women and girls." "As we had pointed out earlier, Modi government has not yet conducted the 2021 Decadal Census making India the only country in G20 that has failed to carry out the Census. Now it says that the reservation for women will come into effect only following the first decadal Census

All-party meet: Oppn dub bill on EC appointments as anti-Constitution

Several opposition leaders on Sunday dubbed the bill on the appointment and service conditions of the chief election commissioner and election commissioners as "anti-Constitution" and "anti-democratic", sources said. They spoke against the bill at an all-party meeting convened by the government on the eve of the five-day Parliament session beginning Monday. The bill seeks to replace the Chief Justice of India with a cabinet minister in the panel for selection of the chief election commissioner and election commissioners, in a move that will allow the government to have more control in the appointment of members of the poll panel. The bill comes months after the Supreme Court in March ruled that a three-member panel, headed by the Prime Minister and comprising the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha and the Chief Justice of India, will select the CEC and ECs till a law is framed by Parliament on the appointment of these commissioners. According to the Chief Election Commissioner a

Spesial session: MPs to assemble for group photos on Parl legacy on Tuesday

All members of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha will assemble for group photographs on Tuesday morning and then participate in a function to commemorate the rich legacy of the Parliament of India and resolve to make Bharat a developed nation by 2047, before they move to the new building. According to a bulletin issued by the Lok Sabha Secretariat, all MPs have been called for a group photograph at 9:30 am on Tuesday. There would be three group photographs, first for all Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs, the second for Rajya Sabha MPs and the third for Lok Sabha MPs. Subsequently, all members of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha have been requested to assemble in the Central Hall of Parliament at 11 am for a function to commemorate the rich legacy of the Parliament of India and resolve to make Bharat a developed nation by 2047, the bulletin said. MPs are also being issued new identity cards to enter the new Parliament building. Catering facilities in the MP Dining Room, MP Guest Dining Room, Central

TDP raises Naidu's 'illegal' arrest issue during all-party meeting

The Telugu Desam Party at an all-party meeting convened by the government on Sunday raised the issue of its leader Chandrababu Naidu's arrest and said it will also bring it up in Parliament. After the meeting, held a day before the five-day Parliament session begins, TDP MP Ram Mohan Naidu said his party raised the issue of the "illegal arrest"."We will raise this issue in Parliament as well," he added. Former Andhra Pradesh chief minister Naidu's son Nara Lokesh had said on Friday that the arrest by the Andhra Pradesh Police in a corruption case was an attempt by a "known corrupt" chief minister to hamper the party's popular campaign to oust him from power. Naidu is currently lodged in a jail in Rajamahendravaram after being remanded in judicial custody by a court last Sunday for his alleged involvement in a multi-crore corruption scam. He was arrested on September 9 in connection with a fraud case involving alleged misappropriation of funds from the Skill Development Corporation,

Anurag Thakur slams 'INDIA' bloc for opposing 'one nation, one election'

Union Minister Anurag Thakur hit out at the opposition INDIA bloc on Sunday for opposing the "one nation, one election" concept and said it appears that the alliance neither has any ideology nor a leader. He described the alliance of opposition parties as an "amalgamation of egoists and opportunists" and alleged that it is "bent upon harming Sanatan Dharma". "Is it that the INDIA bloc does not want the time and money of the country to be saved by one nation, one election or is it afraid of facing the polls?" Thakur asked while talking to reporters here. The minister, who participated in various programmes organised by the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) here to mark Prime Minister Narendra Modi's birthday and distributed fruits among patients at the Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, said even after four meetings, the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) has not been able to project a leader or appoint a convenor. He said, "This amalgamation of egoists and ...

Facing economic slowdown, PM not worried about unemployment: Youth Congress

The country is facing an economic slowdown but the prime minister is "not worried about employment for the youth", the Indian Youth Congress alleged on Sunday. Srinivas BV, the organisation's national president who led a protest at the Indian Youth Congress' office in central Delhi, said, "We mark this day -- September 17 -- as 'national unemployment day.' Scores of youngsters are unemployed across the country and yet the Centre and the prime minister refuse to acknowledge the problem." September 17 is the birthday of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who turned 73 this year. Srinivas further alleged that crores of people applied for central government jobs in the past nine years and "yet, a large number of youngsters are unemployed". "Every sixth graduate of the country is unemployed, 22 crore people applied for central government jobs in nine years. We appeal to Prime Minister Modi to pay some attention to the unemployed youngsters of the country and take some concrete steps for thei

All-party meeting: Regional parties push for women's reservation Bill

Several regional parties, including the BJD and the BRS, pushed for tabling of the women reservation bill in Parliament as the government held an all-party meeting on Sunday, a day ahead of the start of a five-day session. Congress MP Pramod Tiwari said his party will raise issues like price rise, unemployment, social conflict and the Manipur situation during the all-party meeting. He arrived at the Parliament House Complex to attend it. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, the deputy leader of the House in Lok Sabha; Union Minister Piyush Goyal, the leader of the House in Rajya Sabha; and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi represented the government in the meeting. BJD and BRS leaders said they will push for the tabling and passage of the women reservation bill in the five-day session. Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, former prime minister and JD(S) leader H D Deve Gowda, DMK's Kanimozhi, TDP's Ram Mohan Naidu, TMC's Derek O'Brien, AAP's Sanjay Singh, BJD's Sasmit Patr

India working towards providing solutions to global challenges: LS Speaker

Birla was addressing the Export Excellence Awards organised by CAPEXIL and sponsored by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India in New Delhi, today

Cong rejects 'One Nation, One Election', calls it assault on Constitution

The Congress on Saturday rejected the 'One Nation, One Election' idea, calling it an assault on the Constitution and federalism. Addressing a briefing on the deliberations of the first meeting of the reconstituted Congress Working Committee (CWC) here, party leader P Chidambaram said the BJP does not have the numbers to pass the required constitutional amendments for holding simultaneous polls. "One Nation, One Election is an assault on the Constitution... it is an attack on federalism," he said when asked about the issue. It will require at least five constitutional amendments and the BJP knows that it does not have the numbers to pass these, the senior Congress leader said. "Yet, if it (BJP) puts forward this mirage of 'One Nation, One Election' it is only to divert attention from the pressing issues and to create a false narrative. We reject this 'One Nation, One Election' idea," Chidambaram said. His remarks come days after the government set up an eight-member high-level ...

CWC meet: Bharat Jodo Yatra 2.0 from east to west 'under consideration'

The Congress on Saturday said Bharat Jodo Yatra 2.0 is "under consideration" with some CWC members requesting that it be undertaken from the eastern part of the country to the west. Addressing a briefing on the deliberations of the first meeting of the reconstituted Congress Working Committee (CWC) here, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram said members of the party's top decision-making body have requested to organise a "Bharat Jodo Yatra 2.0 from east to west". "That matter is under consideration," he said in response to a question about organising the second edition of the Bharat Jodo Yatra. Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi had undertaken the Bharat Jodo Yatra from Kanyakumari to Kashmir from September 7, 2022, to January 30 this year. The Congress leaders have said the 136-day march, covering 4,081 kilometres in 12 states and two Union territories, 75 districts and 76 Lok Sabha constituencies, left an indelible impression on people's minds. During the course of the yatra

People will never accept 'INDIA' bloc: Union minister Anurag Thakur

The public will never accept the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) of opposition parties, which is attacking the Constitution, suppressing the voice of the media and thinking of destroying Sanatan Dharma, Union minister Anurag Thakur said on Saturday. Addressing a public meeting in Bilaspur in Himachal Pradesh, Thakur said the leaders of the INDIA bloc have only changed their attire, but their behaviour and character remain the same. He described the opposition alliance as a front of highly-opportunistic and anti-people forces. "The public will never accept the INDIA bloc, which is attacking the Constitution, suppressing the voice of the media and thinking of destroying Sanatan Dharma," the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said. He said due to a low income and high expenditure, Punjab takes maximum loan from the Centre, adding that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in the state spends Rs 600 crore every year on advertising, but does not even spend a pen

Centre to hold all-party meet on Parliament's session eve on Sunday

Ahead of the Parliament session, the government will hold a meeting with leaders of all parties on Sunday to brief them and hear their views, amid an intense buzz on whether it will have some surprise item up its sleeve during the five-day sitting. The unusual timing of the session, which begins on Monday, has left everyone wondering, even though the main standout feature on the listed agenda is a special discussion on Parliament's journey of 75 years starting from the "'Samvidhan Sabha" (Constituent Assembly). The government has also listed the bill on the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner and other election commissioners to be taken up for consideration and passage during the session. The bill was introduced in Rajya Sabha during the last Monsoon session. The government enjoys the prerogative of tabling in Parliament some new legislation or other items that might not have been part of the listed agenda. Though there is no official word on any probable new legislation,

Kejriwal promises PESA implementation if voted to power in C'garh

Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday said his party would implement the Panchayat (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act in tribal-dominated areas of Chhattisgarh if voted to power in the upcoming assembly elections. Addressing a rally in the Bastar district headquarter Jagdalpur, around 300 km from here, Kejriwal slammed the BJP, saying celebrations were underway at the saffron party's headquarters in Delhi when the sad news of the martyrdom of Army officers in Anantnag trickled in. He also hit out at the BJP over the "India vs Bharat" debate and the 'one nation and one election' agenda. We guarantee that if AAP is elected to power in Chhattisgarh, PESA will be implemented within a month of the formation of the government in the interest of tribals and to protect their 'jal, jungle, and zameen' (land). All rights will be given to the gram sabha, the Delhi chief minister said. PESA empowers Gram Sabhas to manage the affairs as per local traditions and customs. The Sabhas

'INDIA' bloc's October rally in Bhopal cancelled, says Congess' Nath

Madhya Pradesh Congress president Kamal Nath on Saturday said the proposed rally of the opposition bloc INDIA in Bhopal in October has been cancelled, a move which Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan claimed was due to the "public anger" over remarks made by DMK leaders against Sanatan Dharma. Earlier this week, the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance, which includes the Congress and more than 25 other parties opposed to the Bharatiya Janata Party, had said it would hold a rally in Bhopal. "It is not going to happen. It has been cancelled," Nath told reporters on Saturday when asked about the rally. In reply to a question, All India Congress Committee general secretary in charge Randeep Singh Surjewala also said the party chief has yet not taken a decision about INDIA bloc rally in Bhopal. "We will confirm once a decision is taken," Surjewala added. After the meeting earlier this week at the residence of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) supremo Sharad Pawar, the ...

India's secular image dented by violence, BJP adding fuel to fire: Kharge

Noting the country is facing "serious internal challenges", Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday said incidents of violence were tarnishing the image of a progressive and secular India and alleged the BJP was adding "fuel to fire". In his opening remarks at the first meeting of the reconstituted Congress Working Committee (CWC) here, Kharge said the party demands an immediate start of the Census process along with a caste survey to secure the right to health, education, employment and food security for the deprived sections of society. He said 27 INDIA bloc parties stand together on fundamental issues of importance. After three successful meetings, the opposition alliance is forging ahead to combat the "anti-people and anti-democratic BJP government", the Congress chief said. Perturbed by this development, the BJP dispensation is resorting to vindictive action against opposition parties, he alleged. At the CWC meeting, Kharge said, "We also strongly condemn the ...