Page 401 - Politics
BJP will never make inroads in Kerala:Chennithala
: The massive sweep of the Congress led United Democratic Front (UDF) in Kerala proves that the BJP will never make inroads in the state, senior party leader Ramesh Chennithala said here Friday. In a 'meet the press' organised by the Press Club of Thiruvananthapuram, after the Congress party's stellar performance in the state in the Lok Sabha polls, he said the UDF's "secular attitude" had kept the saffron party at bay. The UDF had won 19 of the 20 LS seats in the state. Chennithala alleged that the Centre's step-motherly attitude and the three years of LDF government's "misrule" had helped the Front emerge victorious, apart from Rahul Gandhi's candidature. "We have proved that the BJP will never make inroads in Kerala. It was the secular attitude and policies of the United Democratic Front (UDF) that kept the saffron party at bay... Three factors led to the landslide victory of UDF in Kerala. The first one is the step-motherly attitude of Narendra Modi government and the
Despite BJP sweep in Karnataka, coalition govt to remain intact
The Congress in Karnataka on Friday said there is no threat to the JDS-Congress coalition in the state after the BJP nearly swept the Lok Sabha polls leaving just one seat to coalition partners.This was declared by Congress leaders after the informal meeting of the Cabinet in which Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy was also present."Today, honourable Chief Minister had called an informal Cabinet meeting to take stock of the situation after the Parliamentary election results, both countrywide as well as our state elections," said G Parameshwara, Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka.He said that the coalition will continue in the state under the leadership of Kumaraswamy."We have discussed this at length. This mandate has been given to the national elections and not the state elections. We will continue in the state and our coalition will continue under the leadership of the Shri Kumaraswamy ji and all our MLAs are with us," he said.The deputy chief minister also said that the government was
BJP finishes Election 2019 with 300-plus tally, leaves oppn trailing far behind
Sealing its phenomenal electoral victory with a 300-plus win, the BJP on Friday began discussing the process of government formation while the Congress dealt with the fallout of defeat with a spate of resignations from its top state leaders. As the counting of votes for 542 Lok Sabha seats neared its end, the Narendra Modi-led party had 302 seats in its kitty and was leading in one, a super-sized victory that had its leaders excitedly looking forward to a second successive term in government. The massive counting exercise began Thursday morning with early trends establishing the BJP's conclusive lead, making it evident that Modi's message, packaging muscular nationalism, security and Hindu pride, had worked wonders. With the BJP riding a Modi wave that took it past its 2014 tally of 282, the opposition was left way behind with the Congress winning only 52 seats, two less than it needs for a Leader of Opposition post in the lower house and marginally more than the 44 it got in the last
I'm no weatherman but what I predict happens: Paswan
BJP ally Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief and Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan on Friday said that he is not a "mausam vaigyanik" (weatherman), as his rivals describe him, but he understands the pulse of the people and what he predicts after observation, actually happens.
EU says May resignation changes nothing in Brexit talks
The European Union said on Friday that Prime Minister Theresa May's resignation does nothing to change its position on the Brexit withdrawal deal that its members agreed with Britain. EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker noted May's decision "without personal joy," a spokeswoman said, adding that the council of EU leaders has "set out its position" on the Brexit deal.
Day after BJP's massive victory, all eyes now on govt formation
As the BJP swept to power with a spectacular performance for a second term, all eyes are now on government formation, amid speculation that several new faces including party president Amit Shah may be brought into the new cabinet. Many party leaders are of the view that Shah will join the Modi Cabinet and be given one of the four key ministries -- Home, Finance, External Affairs and Defence. With Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj having health issues, there have been talks whether they will be part of the new dispensation or not. Jaitley, a Rajya Sabha member, had unsuccessfully contested the Lok Sabha election from Amritsar in 2014, while Swaraj, who had won from Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh, opted out from the electoral battle this time on health ground. The two leaders have not commented on whether they would like to join the government or not. In the run-up to the results, Shah had also sidestepped queries on him joining the government, saying .
Left has suffered severe defeat: CPI-M
The CPI-M and the Left have suffered "a severe defeat" in the Lok Sabha elections, the CPI-M has said, adding that the BJP-led NDA's sweeping victory "signal a consolidation of the rightwing offensive unleashed" after 2014.
3 turncoats win in Telangana
It was not a bad strike rate for turncoats in Telangana as three of the five who switched parties shortly before the announcement of the Lok Sabha polls were able to secure victories. BJP's Soyam Bapu Rao who contested from Adilabad won by a margin of more than 58,000 votes over his TRS rival Godam Nagesh. Bapu Rao was with the Congress before the polls. The victory of Bapu Rao, a leader of the Adivasi movement aimed at removing Lambadas from the list of Scheduled Tribes, came as a surprise even for some BJP leaders. Madhucon Group promoter Nama Nageswara Rao who contested unsuccessfully as a Telugu Desam Party candidate in the Assembly polls in December, won on a TRS ticket this time from Khammam. He defeated former Union Minister Renuka Chowdary of the Congress by over 1.68 lakh votes. Nageswara Rao was TDP's Lok Sabha floor leader between 2009 and 2014. Venkatesh Netha Borlakunta who unsuccessfully contested on a Congress ticket in the last Assembly polls won the ...
Barring Puri, Alphons, babus-turned-politicians win for BJP
Most of the bureaucrats-turned-politicians barring two won their respective Lok Sabha seats representing the ruling BJP. Among those who emerged winners are Union ministers R K Singh, Satya Pal Singh and Arjun Ram Meghwal. But two former officers and now Union ministers -- Hardeep Singh Puri and K J Alphons -- were not that lucky. While Puri, a former officer of Indian Foreign Service, lost from Punjab's Amritsar to Congress's Gurjeet Singh Aujla by a margin of 99,626 votes; Alphons, a former IAS officer, came third in Kerala's Ernakulam. The seat was won by Congress's Hibi Eden. Both Puri, Minister of State (Independent charge) for Housing and Urban Affairs, and Union Minister of State for Tourism Alphons are Rajya Sabha members. R K Singh, a former IAS officer of Bihar cadre who retired as Union Home Secretary, won from Bihar's Arrah constituency by a margin of over 1.47 lakh votes. The sitting MP is Minister of State (Independent) for Power. His ministerial colleague Satya Pal ...
Stalin greets Naveen Patnaik, Jaganmohan Reddy
DMK President M K Stalin Friday greeted Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister-designate Y S Jaganmohan Reddy for their party's success in the assembly elections in the states. Patnaik, whose BJD retained power in Odisha, will head the state for a record fifth time, while YSRCP leader Reddy will lead the southern state for the first time. "I extend my heartiest congratulations to Naveen Patnaik for being re-elected as Chief Minister of Odisha for the fifth time," Stalin said in a tweet. "I have no doubt that the state of Odisha will prosper immensely from his political leadership and experience. @Naveen_Odisha," he added. Similarly, Stalin took to Twitter to laud his 'friend' Reddy for the Andhra leader's "fantastic performance". "I congratulate my friend and the Andhra Chief Minister-elect @ysjagan for his fantastic performance in the Parliament and Assembly elections." "Wish him a successful tenure as Chief Minister to take Andhra and ...
NCP fails to boost its Lok Sabha numbers
With NCP chief Sharad Pawar trying to stitch a motley alliance of anti-BJP parties at the national level, his own party wanted to improve its tally this time, but could win only five seats, one less than in 2014. In 2014, amid Modi wave, the NCP had won four seats in Maharashtra and a seat each in Bihar and Lakshadweep. Its best performance since its formation in 1999 came in 2009, when it had won nine seats. This time the party, which had joined forces with the Congress and some smaller parties in Maharashtra, could again win only four out of 19 seats it fought in the state. It managed to retain the Baramati and Satara constituencies, but failed to hold onto Kolhapur and Madha. However it added two new seats to its kitty, snatching Shirur and Raigad from the Shiv Sena. Elsewhere the NCP finished second. The Pawar-led party garnered 83.87 lakh votes (or 15.5 per cent of the total votes polled) in Maharashtra which sends 48 MPs to the Lower House. It also retained ...
Chinese Vice President Wang to visit Pak next week
Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan will visit Pakistan next week to hold talks with Prime Minister Imran Khan and other top leaders on a host of bilateral issues including the smooth development of the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Wang's visit from May 26 to 28 is in continuation of high-level exchanges between the two countries, which have acquired an increased momentum since Prime Minister Khan's visit to China in November 2018 and his participation in the Belt and Road Forum (BRF) in Beijing in April, according to Pakistan Foreign Office. During the visit, Vice President Wang would call on President Arif Alvi and have a separate meeting with Prime Minister Khan. The FO said Pakistan and China will sign MoUs/agreements and inaugurate projects to enhance bilateral cooperation in a broad range of areas. It said the visit of the vice president underscores the "vitality of the time-tested and all-weather relationship" between Pakistan and China. The FO said it
After LS poll rout, Karna cabinet reposes faith in Kumaraswamy
A day after suffering a rout in the Lok Sabha elections, the Karnataka cabinet Friday reposed its 'faith and confidence' in the leadership of chief minister H D Kumaraswamy, asserting the Congress-JD(S) coalition would continue. Briefing reporters after an informal cabinet meeting convened to take stock of the dismal show of the coalition partners, deputy chief minister G Parameshwara said the mandate on Thursday was for the government at the Centre and not for the state. Accusing the opposition BJP of trying to destabilise the government, Parameshwara said the ruling coalition would not allow them to succeed. "... we have reposed our faith and confidence in the leadership of chief minister Kumaraswamy. This is the decision taken by all the ministers today," said Parameshwara. Asserting that all their MLAs were with them, he said the coalition would continue under Kumaraswamy's leadership and that there was no threat to the government. Steamrolling the ruling Congress-JD(S) alliance,
Cong's Karnataka campaign panel chief resigns, bats for introspection
Taking the moral responsibility for the Congress party's humiliating defeat in the Lok Sabha polls, the party's campaign committee chairman H K Patil on Friday resigned from the post and batted for introspection."It is time for all of us to introspect. I feel it my moral duty to own up the responsibility, hence, I submit my resignation from the post," HK Patil said in a letter to the party president."Owning the responsibility for the loss in Lok Sabha Elections, I hereby resign as a Chairman of Karnataka Campaign Committee. I would like to thank shri @RahulGandhi ji, @kcvenugopalmp, @dineshgrao, @siddaramaiah for the opportunity to serve the party," he wrote on his Twitter handle.In Karnataka, Congress heavyweights including Rizwan Arshad, Krishna Byregowda, BK Hariprasad, Mallikarjun Kharge and HD Devegowda lost from their respective constituencies against the BJP candidates.On Thursday, Patil had congratulated BJP on its massive win in the Lok Sabha polls and had hoped that the new .
Modi can't remove 370, 35A despite huge victory: Farooq
National Conference President Farooq Abdullah on Friday said that no matter how powerful the electoral mandate of Prime Minister Narendra Modi might have been, he cannot remove Article 370 and 35A.
Five generals of BJP who made lotus bloom in Bengal
As the BJP made stunning inroads in the Trinamool Congress-ruled West Bengal, winning an unprecedented 18 out of 42 Lok Sabha constituencies, IANS takes a look at the top five generals of the saffron outfit in Bengal who helped the party cut deep into Mamata Banerjee's bastion.
Out of 11 women candidates in Haryana, only 1 manages to win
Of the 11 women candidates in fray for the Lok Sabha polls in Haryana, only BJP's Sunita Duggal could taste victory. Bureaucrat-turned-politician Duggal defeated state Congress chief Ashok Tanwar from the Sirsa (reserved) constituency. Other women candidates like Kumari Selja (Ambala) and Shruti Choudhary (Bhiwani-Mahendergarh) of the Congress, JJP's Swati Yadav (Bhiwani-Mahendergarh) and Raj Bala Saini (Sonipat) of the Loktantra Suraksha Party could not manage to win. In 53 years of its existence, Haryana has elected only five women parliamentarians. In the 2014 Lok Sabha election, not even a single woman candidate could manage to win in the state, which is known for its skewed gender ratio. Chandravati, a former Janta Party leader, became the first ever woman MP from the state in 1977. Selja, a Rajya Sabha MP, is the only woman to have been elected to the Lok Sabha thrice -- twice from Ambala and once from Sirsa. Shruti Chaudhary, grand daughter of former chief minister Chaudhary ...
Rahul wave,minority consolidation & Sabarimala help UDF sweep
: As Kerala witnessed a clean Congress-UDF sweep in the Lok Sabha polls, a host of factors, including the presence of Rahul Gandhi, minority consolidation and the alleged poor handling of the Sabarimala issue by the LDF government, seems to have helped the front. Giving a rude shock to the Pinarayi Vijayan government, the opposition UDF surprisingly won 19 out of the total 20 seats with a victory margin of at least one lakh votes in 10 constituencies. The LDF, which had to be satisfied with the lone seat of Alapuzha, where A M Ariff won by around 10,000 votes, faced further embarrassment as its traditional bastions --Alathur, Palakkad, Attingal and Kasaragod were wrested by the UDF. The CPI(M)-led LDF leaders, including Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan had exuded confidence till the eve of the vote counting that the Front could repeat its 2004 LS poll results, in which they had won 18 of the 20 seats. But when the votes were counted, the LDF suffered one of its biggest ..
Iraq urges Iran to respect nuclear accord
Iraq's top diplomat Friday called on Iran to respect the landmark deal covering its nuclear programme, which has been weakened by the US decision to withdraw from it and Tehran's backing away from certain commitments. "We think the JCPOA is a good agreement," said Iraq's Foreign Minister Mohammed Ali al-Hakim, referring to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action signed by Iran in 2015 with Russia, China, Germany, Britain and the United States. Under the terms of the deal, the UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, is charged with regular inspections of declared facilities in Iran such as uranium mines and centrifuge workshops for up to 25 years. The aim is to ensure that Iran is not holding undeclared stocks of nuclear material and is not enriching uranium past a certain level. "We encourage the Iranian government to stick to the JCPOA and stick to the spirit of the agreement and continue with it," he told reporters in Oslo during a press briefing at a ...
A day after poll rout, resignations fly in Congress
A day after Congress suffered a humiliating defeat in the Lok Sabha polls, party's Uttar Pradesh chief Raj Babbar, Karnataka's H.K. Patil, Odisha's Niranjan Patnaik and Amethi district head Yogendra Mishra sent in their resignations to the high command owning moral responsibility for the drubbing.