Page 425 - Politics
US corporate sector welcomes re-election of PM Modi
US corporate sector Thursday congratulated Narendra Modi on his "commanding victory", saying the Prime Minister has the potential to transform India and forge opportunity for all Indians. Prime Minister Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) appears set to post an emphatic victory in the Lok Sabha election, bringing Modi back into office for a second term. "Congratulations to" Modi and the BJP "for a commanding victory," said Nisha Desai Biswal, president of US India Business Council (USIBC). The Prime Minister "has the potential to transform India and forge opportunity for all Indians," she said, adding that the USIBC looks forward to work with the BJP government. Commending Modi on his electoral success, Biswal said the first five years of Modi's government saw good progress on reforms. The establishment of a national Goods and Services Tax, passage of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, and a variety of legal and regulatory reforms catapulted India's Ease of Doing Business ranking ..
Raja lauds Stalin for steering SPA to win in LS polls
Senior CPI leader D Raja Thursday lauded DMK leader M K Stalin for steering the Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA) to a remarkable show in the Lok Sabha polls, saying it was possible due to the latter's foresight. He called up Stalin and had a convesation in this regard, the CPI National Secretary told PTI. Raja said he congratulated the DMK chief and extended good wishes for Stalin's future. "It was because of his foresight and accommodating all allies reasonably, that the DMK combine could win the confidence of the people and win their votes," he said. Raja said he extended his good wishs to Stalin as the DMK chief was going shoulder more responsibility in the future. The DMK-led SPA was virtually on the verge of a sweep in Tamil Nadu, with the ruling AIADMK leading in just one of the 38 Lok Sabha seats.
US lawmakers congratulate Modi, say looking forward to work with India
Top American lawmakers Thursday congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his impressive victory in the general elections, saying they were looking forward to continue working with his government to strengthen the Indo-US ties Prime Minister Modi led his Bharatiya Janata Party towards a huge victory for a second term in office. "As co-chair of the Senate India Caucus, I want to congratulate the Indian people on today's historic election - the largest democratic election in history," Senator Mark Warner, Co-Chair of the powerful Senate India Caucus in his congratulatory message to Modi. "I look forward to continuing our work with PM Modi's administration to strengthen our important alliance with India," said Warner, who is also Vice Chairman of the powerful Senate Intelligence Committee. Congressman Tom Souzzi congratulated Modi on his re-election and said the India-US relationship was going to be very important over the next 50 years. "Congratulations" to Prime Minister Modi "on ..
PM Modi retains Varanasi seat with 4.80 Lakh margin
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday won the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat defeating his nearest rival Shalini Yadav of Samajwadi Party by a margin of nearly 4.80 lakh votes. Modi won the Varanasi seat by 4,79,505 votes, an Election Commission update on poll results said here. In the 2014 general elections, Modi had won by a margin of 3,71,784 votes against his nearest rival, Aam Admi party supremo Arvind Kejariwal. While Prime Minister Modi got 6,74,664 votes, Shalini Yadav got 1,95,159 votes. Congress candidate Ajay Rai secured third position, polling 1,52,548 votes. PM Modi's votes share stood at 63.62 per cent against Yadav's 18.4 percent and Rai's 14.38 per cent. There were 26 candidates in the fray from Varanasi, but a total of 4,037 electors voted for none and pressed the NOTA (non of the above) button on EVM.
J-K: BJP, NC set to win 3 seats each; Mufti suffers humiliating loss
The BJP is set to retain its three Lok Sabha seats in Jammu and Kashmir, with PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti suffering a humiliating loss in her hitherto south Kashmir bastion. National Conference president Farooq Abdullah and Union Minister Jitendra Singh were among the prominent faces to make it to the 17th Lok Sabha. The biggest electoral upset in the state was witnessed in Anantnag with National Conference candidate and former High Court judge Hasnain Masoodi defeating former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti. In the low-turnout contest, Masoodi, a political greenhorn, fought off a stiff challenge from Congress state president G A Mir, defeating him by a margin of 6,676 votes. Mufti got only 30,500 votes. In Udhampur seat of Jammu region, Singh is set to win as he is leading by a huge margin of 3.49 lakh votes over Congress' Vikramaditya Singh, the son of Jammu and Kashmir's last prince Karan Singh. He had defeated former Union minister and Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad in 2014. The ...
DMK president Stalin congratulates PM Modi
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) president MK Stalin on Thursday congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his victory in the Lok Sabha polls and hoped that he would provide a progressive government based on principles of democracy and inclusivity."I congratulate Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his victory. We hope and wish he will provide a progressive government based on the principles of democracy and inclusivity," he said in a tweet.Stalin also thanked the people of Tamil Nadu for giving a "resounding victory" to the DMK-Congress alliance in the state."With folded hands, we accept the resounding victory given to the DMK-Congress alliance by the people of Tamil Nadu. During the next five years, we will work hard to fulfill the promises made and protect the interest of our state," Stalin said in another tweet.DMK-Congress alliance was leading on 31 seats in the state at the time of filing of this story. Out of these 31 seats, the DMK has won three seats.Meanwhile, Congress star .
People taught lesson to JDS, Congress leaders, says Yeddyurappa
Former Chief Minister and BJP leader BS Yeddyurappa on Thursday said the people have taught Congress and JD(S) leaders a lesson for their needless criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi."Definitely, Congress and JD(S) leaders were speaking nonsense against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. People have taught a lesson to Congress and JD(S) leaders. We thank the 6.5 crore people of Karnataka," said the former CM while speaking to ANI.When asked about how confident BJP is of forming a government in the state as well, he said: "We will wait and see tomorrow what development takes place now. I don't want to comment now because it is an all-India party. We will take the permission of the Central leadership and then we will see what we can do."On being asked about Karnataka giving BJP so many seats, Yeddyurappa said: "We are winning over 300 seats on our own. It is a big achievement. The people of the country appreciated PM Modi's achievements and have given full support to the BJP."BJP has ..
Rahul says issue of resignation between him and working committee
Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Thursday took full responsibility for the defeat of the party in the Lok Sabha elections and said the issue of his resignation was a matter between him and the Congress Working Committee.
Punjab: Congress wins 8 seats, Akali Dal-BJP 4
Punjab's ruling Congress won eight of the 13 Lok Sabha seats, one of the few states where it did well, while the BJP and its ally Akali Dal bagged two seats each. Bhagwant Mann, the AAP's only hope, retained his seat.
Imran, Xi among foreign leaders to congratulate Modi
As he retained power with a resounding electoral victory, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday received congratulatory messages and phone calls from a host of foreign leaders, including his Pakistani counterpart Imran Khan and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
After 15 years, Jharkhand elects women MPs
After 15 years, Jharkhand elected two women parliamentarians in the 2019 Lok Sabha poll. Both women defeated stalwarts of Jharkhand politics.
Stampede-like situation erupts at BJP headquarters as supporters go berserk
Celebrations at the BJP headquarters in the national capital Thursday witnessed a stampede-like situation after a large crowd went berserk on the arrival of party president Amit Shah. Just minutes before the arrival of Shah, who is leading in Gandhinagar by over 5.5 lakh votes, at the BJP headquarter to join the festivities, the crowd began running towards the entry gate from where his jeep was expected to enter the premises and hurt several others present there. As soon as Shah arrived, a swarm of supporters with Modi painted on their faces and saffron stoles around their necks began hooting and running towards him while jostling several journalists and breaking big potted plants decorated inside the huge party office. Due to the commotion at the venue, several people got injured and some even fell down. The security guards could not control the excited supporters. The results for the Lok Sabha polls are underway with the BJP winning 74 seats so far and leading in 227 seats out of ...
BJP top gun Pon Radhakrishnan handed stunning defeat by
: Five BJP Lok Sabha candidates in Tamil Nadu, including Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan appeared set for a crushing defeat with the victory margins crossing a lakh of votes in four segments and nearing that mark in one constituency. Congress candidate and millionaire business man H Vasanthakumar pushed Pon Radhakrishnan to second spot in Kanyakumari constituency by a massive margin of 2,46,136 votes. Kumar, who owns a popular consumer durable retail chain in Tamil Nadu, had declared a total asset of Rs 412 crore in his nomination papers. Radhakrishnan had won from Kanyakumari in the 2014 LS polls, defeating his nearest rival Vasanthakumar by 1,28,662 votes. Tamil Nadu BJP's articulate chief Tamilisai Soundararajan too is set to bite the dust in the port city of Tuticorin since the margin between her and the DMK candidate Kanimozhi has jumped to over 3,39,000 votes. Senior leader H Raja, known for his controversial remarks is behind Congress candidate and son of P ...
Pak Finance Secretary latest to be sacked amidst IMF bailout talks
Pakistan's Finance Secretary Mohammad Younus Dagha was sacked Thursday, becoming the latest senior official to go amidst the cash-strapped Imran Khan government's tough negotiations with the IMF for a bailout package. Dagha was removed as the secretary finance on Thursday, a notification issued by the Cabinet Secretariat/Establishment Division said. A separate notification announced the transfer of Naveed Kamran Baloch, who was posted as cabinet division secretary, to the role of finance secretary. A high-level source told Dawn newspaper that Dagha developed differences with Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance Dr Hafeez Shaikh over the negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). "Dagha felt that the adviser had negotiated a bad deal for Pakistan," the source said. The differences emerged in the last round of meetings with the IMF. "The team led by former finance minister Asad Umar, of which Dagha was an important part, had softened the IMF programme in significant ...
Sanders: 'Insane' to talk infrastructure after Pelosi remark
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders says "it's insane" to think infrastructure talks can continue as if House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had not accused President Donald Trump of a "cover-up." Trump stalked out of a meeting with Democratic leaders Wednesday, demanding an end to congressional investigations before working together on legislation. The move came shortly after Pelosi met with her members in an attempt to tamp down talk of launching an impeachment process. Afterward, she accused Trump of engaging in a "cover-up." Sanders said Thursday on CNN, "It's real simple, you can't go down two tracks." Trump tweeted that Democrats are a "do-nothing party!" Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer fired back on MSNBC that the Republican president is "an erratic, helter-skelter, get-nothing-done" leader.
Saudi Arabia downs explosive-laden drone from Yemen: coalition
Saudi Arabia on Thursday shot down a bomb-laden drone deployed by rebels in neighbouring Yemen to attack an airport in the kingdom, the Riyadh-led coalition fighting on the side of Yemen's government said. "An explosive-laden drone sent by the terrorist Huthi militia to target Najran airport" was intercepted and destroyed by the Saudi air force, coalition spokesman Colonel Turki al-Maliki was quoted by state media as saying.
Union minister Arjun Ram Meghwal wins from Bikaner
Union minister Arjun Ram Meghwal won the Bikaner seat by defeating his cousin and Congress rival Madan Gopal Meghwal, who had taken voluntary retirement from the Indian Police Service (IPS) to contest the Lok Sabha election. Arjun Ram, who won the seat for the third time, defeated his cousin by 2,64,081 votes. While he polled 6,57,743 votes, Madan Gopal received 3,93,662 votes. The seat has been a BJP stronghold. Bollywood actor Dharmendra had won from Bikaner in 2004 followed by Meghwal in 2009 and 2014. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Arjun Ram defeated the INC candidate by a margin of 3,08,079 votes. In 2009, he emerged victorious from this seat by defeating the INC candidate by a margin of 19,575 votes. BJP veteran Devi Singh Bhati had protested Arjun Ram's candidature from Bikaner, terming him an agent of the Congress and even submitted his resignation from the party.
DMK wins Thattanchavady Assembly bypoll in Pondy
The DMK, an ally of the ruling Congress in Puducherry Thursday wrested the Thattanchavady seat from the opposition AINRC in the Assembly bypoll. K Venkatesan of the DMK was declared elected. He polled 10,906 votes while his nearest rival P Nedunchezhian of AINRC (nephew of the opposition leader and AINRC founder N Rangasamy) garnered 9,367 votes. The by-election was necessitated after the disqualification of sitting AINRC MLA Ashok Anand following his conviction by a CBI court in a disproportionate assets case in October last. Venkatesan is an oil merchant and afresh face in the poll battle. Thattanchavady had been the pocketborough of the former Chief Minister and AINRC founder N Rangasamy. With the win, the DMK's strength in the territorial Assembly rose to three.
People have scripted history : Raghubar Das
Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das Thursday said that it is the people who scripted history in the country's politics by giving a huge mandate to retain an incumbent government at the Centre. In Jharkhand BJP is leading in 11 Lok Sabha seats, while its ally Ajsu party is leading in one. Mahagathbandhan allies Congress and JMM are leading in one seat each. Congratulating BJP workers across the country for their hard work to ensure NDAs win, Das, a senior BJP leader, said the people rose above caste and religion and voted for development, which is an auspicious indication for the country. The chief minister said only democracy and not vansavad' (dynasty) will work now. The people have given an increased mandate to an incumbent government on the basis of its programmes and leadership. Under the skillful leadership of Narendra Modiji and Amit Shahji, security and development had been the issues in the elections, Das said reacting to the results and trends for NDA in the .
Twitter records 400 mn tweets in 2019 LS polls
Twitter India on Thursday said conversations around the 2019 Lok Sabha elections grew 600 per cent from 2014 to reach 396 million tweets between January 1 and May 23.