Page 41 - Politics

INDIA alliance formed to finish off Sanatan Dharma: Ravi Shankar Prasad

Addressing a press conference at party headquarters in the national capital, the BJP leader accused the Opposition alliance of vote bank politics.

DMK trying to divide people on religious lines: BJP after TN min's remarks

The BJP Tamil Nadu unit has slammed State Higher Education Minister K Ponmudy for his remarks that the opposition INDIA alliance was forged as an "opposition to Sanatan ideology," saying the DMK was trying to divide people on religious lines for electoral gains. Parties like the Congress and Left were aiding DMK, the BJP alleged. Ponmudy's remarks show the "cat is out of the bag," the saffron party's TN Vice-President Narayanan Thirupathy said in a social media post. He was responding to a viral video of Ponmudy, a senior DMK leader, at a recent anti-Sanatan Dharma conference here that the multi-party INDIA bloc has been created against Sanatan ideology. "This INDIA (bloc) is an alliance created in opposition to Sanatan ideology. There may be differences of opinion (among its constituents) but there is no divergence in opposing Sanatan. Those (parties) in this (grouping) want to create equality, safeguard minorities, protect gender equality," Ponmudy was heard saying in the ...

CM Zoramthanga compares plight of displaced people to MNF's struggle

Zorathanga compared the current plight of displaced persons to the challenging times faced by the Mizo community when the demand for a separate state was made

Political events of all parties to get security in Naxal areas: C'garh CM

A day after the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party sought protection for its Parivartan Yatra, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Saturday said that all political events will get full security in the Naxal-affected areas of the state ahead of elections. The BJP on Friday submitted a letter to the state's Director General of Police seeking protection for its Yatra which is scheduled to start from the Naxal-affected Dantewada on September 12. It did not have faith in the Congress government in the state, it said, claiming that BJP leaders were being targeted and killed in the Bastar region. Assembly elections are due in the state by the year-end. Asked about it on the sidelines of an event here, Baghel said, Complete security will be provided to all political parties. We have lost our leaders in Jhiram Ghati in 2013. "During the recent meeting of the unified command (of security forces), we have clearly directed that all the political programmes should be provided full ...

Attacking Sanatan Dharma 'fashion' for 'frustrated fraternity': Naqvi

Hitting out at DMK leaders' remarks on Sanatan Dharma, senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Saturday said that attacking the 'Sanatan Dharma' has become a "fashion" for the "frustrated fraternity" but their "bankruptcy will backfire". Participating in the BJP's nationwide 'Meri Maati, Mera Desh' campaign here, Naqvi said 'Sanatan Dharma' is the soul of Bharat and those who are trying to attack that soul, will be destroyed. "If someone attacks the Sanatan Dharma, the oldest faith on Earth, it reflects their mental illness," Naqvi was quoted as saying in a statement from his office. Attacking the 'Sanatan Dharma' has become a "fashion" for the "frustrated fraternity" but the "blasphemous bankruptcy" of the "Sanatan bashing brigade" will backfire, the former Union minister said. Naqvi said Bharat has witnessed hundreds of foreign invasions which not only looted resources but also attacked "Sanatan values and Bharatiya culture" and identity. The foreign invaders succeeded in looti

Public turned against BJP: Samajwadi Party MP after party wins Ghosi bypoll

"The victory of Samajwadi Party in Ghosi is a blessing of the people. I thank the voters of Ghosi and also the administration there for conducting fair polls," Samajwadi Party secretary general said

AAP releases first list of 10 candidates for Madhya Pradesh assembly polls

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Friday announced the first list of 10 candidates, including nominees for two seats in Bhopal district currently held by the ruling BJP, for the upcoming Madhya Pradesh assembly polls. With this, the AAP has become the third political party, after the BJP and the Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), to release its first list of candidates for the year-end polls whose schedule is yet to be announced. The Arvind Kejriwal-led outfit had earlier announced it will field candidates in all the 230 assembly seats in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled state. The list includes candidates from Bhopal district's Govindpura seat, Sajjan Singh Parmar, and Dr Ravikant Dwivedi from Huzur in the state capital, a party release said here. Both Govindpura and Huzur segments are currently represented by BJP MLAs Krishna Gaur and Rameshwar Sharma, respectively. The list also includes the names of candidates from Sewda (Sanjay Dubey), Dimani (Surendra Singh) Tomar, ..

India facing threat to secularism, PM going against Constitution: TN CM

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Friday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of functioning against the Constitution of India and stated that the country's secularism and unity are under threat. After he came to power, the Prime Minister said that the Indian constitution was his 'veda' and even bowed before Parliament. "But now he is going against the Constitution. People should realise this and oppose it," Stalin said while addressing a meeting at the Kerala Media Academy here. "There's a threat to India's unity in diversity and secularism, and an attempt is being made to destroy social justice. Through this, they (the BJP) are attempting to destroy India. We strongly oppose this," Stalin who is the president of the DMK, said. For some, the mention of the word 'Dravidam' is causing "irritation," he said, and added that the people of both the states, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, belong to the same Dravidian family. He appealed to the people of both states to function like a ...

CPI(M) alleges large-scale rigging, demands fresh polls on 2 Tripura seats

The CPI(M) on Friday alleged "large-scale rigging" in the byelections to Tripura's Boxanagar and Dhanpur assembly constituencies and demanded fresh polls, questioning the BJP's victory from the two seats. In a statement, the CPI(M) polit bureau said the results of the byelections in Boxanagar and Dhanpur, as declared by the chief electoral officer, "vindicate the apprehensions raised by the Left Front and justifies the demand for countermanding them and holding fresh polls under strict supervision". "In (the) Boxanagar constituency, the BJP won securing 89 per cent of the votes polled and 71 per cent in (the) Dhanpur constituency. This is unprecedented in the state's history of elections," the CPI(M) said. It further alleged, "After having lost the Boxanagar seat to the CPI(M) in the February elections, it is impossible for the BJP to secure 89 per cent (of the) votes except through large-scale rigging." According to the Election Commission, the BJP's Tafajjal Hossain won the ...

Opposition agrees with government's position on Ukraine: Rahul Gandhi

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said on Friday that the Opposition by and large agrees with the BJP-led government's current position on the Russia-Ukraine conflict and that by virtue of being a large country, it is natural for India to have a range of bilateral relationships across the world. During a press conference at the Press Club in Brussels, he was asked by a Ukrainian news agency about the cautious approach taken by the Modi government on the Russia-Ukraine conflict and if such an approach was dictated by the supply of oil from Russia to the country. He was asked to spell out the Opposition's view on the government's stance on this conflict in Europe, which is expected to dominate the G20 Summit agenda as well. I think the Opposition by and large, would agree with India's current position on the conflict, Gandhi responded. We have a relationship with Russia. And I don't think the Opposition would have a different view than what the government is currently proposing, he ...

Finland's govt survives no-confidence vote over 2 right-wing ministers

Finland's centre-right government that includes nationalist and anti-immigration lawmakers survived a no-confidence motion from three opposition parties on Friday over two ministers from the right-wing populist Finns Party at the center of a racism scandal that has rocked the Nordic country. Lawmakers voted 106-65 in favour of the Cabinet of Prime Minister Petteri Orpo. Debate ahead of the vote focused on writings from 2008 and 2016 by Finance Minister Riikka Purra, leader of the Finns Party, and Economic Affairs Minister Wille Rydman, a member of the same party, which were deemed racist. The opposition, particularly the Social Democratic Party, criticized Orpo's government for not distancing itself enough from Purra's and Rydman's writings and not doing enough to tackle discrimination and racism in Finland, a country of 5.5 million that became NATO's 31st member in April. The issue has crippled the government, which took office less than three months ago after Orpo's conservative

Former UP Deputy CM Dinesh Sharma elected to Rajya Sabha unopposed

Former Uttar Pradesh deputy chief minister Dinesh Sharma has been declared elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from the state as the BJP leader was the only candidate to file nomination for the September 15 by-election, officials said on Friday. The by-election was necessitated due to the death of incumbent MP Hardwar Dubey, who was also from the BJP. The term of the seat is till November 2026. "Dinesh Sharma has been declared elected unopposed," Assistant Returning Officer Ajit Sharma told PTI. Barring Sharma, no other candidate had filed nomination papers, he said. After being elected unopposed, Sharma, in a statement, expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP national president J P Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, UP BJP chief Bhupendra Chaudhary and BJP's central and state leadership. He added that he will try to live up to the trust reposed in him by the party leadership. "Now the onl

Congress engaged in uniting Bharat, BJP trying to break it: Kharge

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday asked why the BJP has triggered the India-Bharat row and accused it of trying to break the country. He asserted that the Congress is engaged in uniting Bharat. If the BJP hates the word India', then why it has named schemes like Startup India', Digital India', Skill India' and Make in India', asked Kharge. He was speaking at Bharose Ka Sammelan', an event organised here in poll-bound Chhattisgarh by the Congress government, at Thekwa village of Rajnandgaon district. Kharge said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should see the work of the Bhupesh Baghel government in the state to know how it can be done in five years. We have formed an alliance INDIA for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and now BJP is saying the country's name India should be changed to Bharat. There is both India and Bharat in the Constitution itself. Then why are they triggering a dispute over it, Kharge said. Kharge said the BJP claims that the Congress is against calling In

India or Bharat? Panic reactions, distraction tactics, says Rahul Gandhi

Gandhi also said such controversies seem to play out every time his party raises concerns of "crony capitalism"

U'khand bypoll: BJP maintains lead in Bageshwar, Dhami congratulates people

The counting of votes for the Bageshwar assembly by-election started today at 8 am in the presence of Election Observer Rajesh Kumar at Degree College Bageshwar

'Full-scale assault' on democratic institutions of India: Rahul Gandhi

There is a "full-scale assault" on the democratic institutions of India and there are concerns in the European Union (EU) quarters over this attempt to stifle the country's democratic structures, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said on Friday. Interacting with reporters at a media briefing in Brussels, Gandhi, who is on a European tour starting with Belgium, addressed a broad range of topics including the Russia-Ukraine conflict to say that the Opposition agrees with the government's current position on the issue. On India hosting the G20 Summit, Gandhi said it was a good thing and pointed to the lack of an invitation for Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge to the event as reflective of a type of thinking from the government that did not value the leader of 60 per cent of India's population. There is an increase in discrimination and violence in India and there is a full-scale assault on the democratic institutions of our country, that everybody knows, said Gandhi. The BJP has ...

TMC wrests West Bengal's Dhupguri assembly seat from BJP in bypoll

The ruling TMC wrested the Dhupguri assembly seat in West Bengal's Jalpaiguri district on Friday from the BJP in a by-election, officials said. TMC candidate Nirmal Chandra Roy, a college professor, won the seat by over 4,000 votes. His nearest rival was BJP's Tapasi Roy, the widow of a CRPF jawan killed in a terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir in 2021, they said. CPI(M) candidate Ishwar Chandra Roy, who was backed by the Congress, was at a distant third spot, they added. TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee said the people of Dhupguri embraced politics of development over hatred and bigotry. "Saluting every AITC worker for their tireless efforts in connecting with the people. We're committed to leaving no stone unturned in ensuring Dhupguri's all-round development," he posted on X. The counting was held amid tight security at the Jalpaiguri II campus of North Bengal University. The polling for the by-election was held on September 5. A voter turnout of 78 per cent

WB assembly passes resolution to observe Bengali new year as State Day

The West Bengal assembly Thursday passed a resolution by an overwhelming majority to observe 'Poila Baisakh' or Bengali New Year as the State Day, even as the opposition BJP demanded that June 20, 1947when the state's legislature had agreed to partition Bengal be commemorated as foundation day. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who spoke at length to explain the motion said the decision to observe the Bengali New Year, a day when most people in Bengal gift each other new clothes and businesses start a new ledger, said the day would be celebrated irrespective of any approval from the governor with whom she has crossed swords over appointment of university officials. The resolution was passed by an overwhelming 167 members or 73 per cent of those voting and present, favouring it. Sixty-two MLAs of the BJP, who want to observe June 20 as the State Day, voted against it. The lone ISF MLA in the house abstained from the motion. The resolution under Rule 169 was tabled in the assembly, ...

Cong holds marches in Jammu to mark Bharat Jodo Yatra's first anniversary

The Congress on Thursday held marches across the Jammu region to mark the first anniversary of the Kanyakumari-to-Kashmir Bharat Jodo Yatra, carrying forward the "message of love, religious harmony and brotherhood". In Jammu, the main yatra was led by Rajni Patil, the Congress' Jammu and Kashmir in-charge. She was accompanied by the party's Jammu and Kashmir unit chief Vikar Rasool Wani and leader Manoj Yadav. Last year's cross-country march witnessed Rahul Gandhi and several Congress leaders traverse over 4,000 kilometres and interact with a cross-section of society. Gandhi launched the yatra on September 7, 2022, in Kanyakumari. It ended on January 30 this year as Gandhi capped his ambitious 145-day journey in Srinagar. The yatra replicated the Bharat Jodo Yatra and began with Patil hoisting the Tricolour. The march moved from Miran Sahib towards Satwari Chowk amid slogans of "Bharat jodo, nafrat chhodo". Similar yatras were held by all Congress district units, led by senior ...

A Raja likens Sanatan Dharma to HIV; BJP says reflects oppn's 'Hinduphobia'

"Let any number of Stalins come, they cannot eradicate Sanatan Dharma," Eknath Shinde said, talking to the media in Thane after attending Dahi Handi (Janmashtami) celebrations