Page 661 - Politics
'Mahamilawati' parties do not want to acknowledge India's strength: PM
Launching a fresh tirade against the opposition alliance, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday said 'mahamilawati' parties do not want to acknowledge India's growing strength in the international arena. He said that the country has seen four types of government - 'naampanthi' (dynastic rulers), 'vampanthi' (left), 'damanpanthi' (rulers using money and muscle power) and now 'vikaspanthi' which talks of development. Addressing a poll rally here, the prime minister also charged that the Congress was interested only in the welfare of its own leaders and their close family members. Taking a swipe at the opposition alliance, he said, "What shall I say about the 'mahamilawati' parties that do not want to acknowledge India's growing strength in the international arena?". He said the opposition parties relate the surgical strikes with Lok Sabha polls, "but, everything should not be seen through the prism of elections." Charging the opposition parties with dabbling in corruption when in power in
'No chance' of Congress getting majority in LS polls; BJP to be less than 160: Sibal
There is "no chance" of the Congress getting a majority on its own in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections, senior party leader Kapil Sibal has said but asserted that the UPA led by the party is intact and the coalition could be in a position to form the next government.
'Pseudo-nationalist' will never understand sacrifices of Rajiv Gandhi: Ahmed Patel
A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi called former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, "Bhrashtachari number 1" (corrupt number 1), senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel said those who are 'pseudo-nationalist' and 'do politics of dividing people' will never understand Rajiv Gandhi and his sacrifices."Those whose nationalism is pseudo and whose politics is based on dividing people will never understand Rajiv Gandhi and his sacrifice for the nation," tweeted Patel.In a veiled reference, Patel also termed Prime Minister Narendra Modi, "pseudo nationalist." He said: "India will not forgive such people who have insulted, hurt and abused our martyrs. History is going to record the name of this pseudo nationalist in black ink for all his sins against the nation."On Saturday, Modi while addressing an election rally in Uttar Pradesh said, the life of Congress president Rahul Gandhi's father Rajiv Gandhi ended as 'Bhrashtachari number 1.' "Your father was termed 'Mr Clean' by his courtiers, but his .
Lok Sabha polls: 7 seats up for grabs in MP on Monday
Union minister Virendra Singh Khatik and BJP MP Prahlad Patel are among the 110 candidates whose fate would be decided in polling to be held across seven seats in Madhya Pradesh on Monday. This will be the second phase of polling in Madhya Pradesh, the first phase having been held on April 29. Total 15,240 polling booths have been set up across the seven constituencies - Tikamgarh, Damoh, Khajuraho, Satna, Rewa, Hoshangabad and Betul - where 1.19 crore people, including 18,822 service voters, are eligible to exercise their franchise, an election official said. Of the 110 candidates, 14 are in the fray in Tikamgarh, 15 in Damoh, 17 in Khajuraho, 21 in Satna, 23 in Rewa, 11 in Hoshangabad and nine in Betul, an Election Commission official said. Khatik is the BJP candidate from Tikamgarh while Patel, the former Union minister and sitting MP, is the party's nominee from Damoh. They are pitted against the Congress' Kiran Ahirwar and Pratap Singh Lodhi, respectively. The ...
Kerala CEO in all-out war against bogus voting
In a move to check bogus voting, Kerala's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Teeka Ram Meena on Sunday directed his officials to verify the webcams in 43 polling booths in the Kasargode Lok Sabha constituency, even as the ruling CPI-M has declared war on the CEO.
After Jaitley, Puri may face uphill task in Amritsar
After witnessing an embarrassing defeat of its high-profile candidate Arun Jaitley in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP this time fielded Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri from Punjab's Amritsar.
We need a clearer policy against political violence (Column: Spy's Eye)
The General Election this time has been marked by a significant amount of violence in the run-up to the polls in several parts of the country. The bitterness amongst the contesting parties in states like West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra precipitated clashes between rival workers testing the efficacy and impartiality of the local police. The institution of the State Electoral Officer did not seem to be strong enough in monitoring the performance of the district police officials and taking action against those who showed serious dereliction of duty.
SP-BSP alliance will decide new Prime Minister of country: Akhilesh Yadav
Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday said the SP-BSP alliance will play a key role in forming the government at the Centre and in deciding who will be the next Prime Minister of the country."I want to tell this to the BJP people that in coming days, SP-BSP alliance will decide which new government will be formed at the Centre and who will become the new Prime Minister," said Yadav.He also claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi does contrary to what he claims. "He is 180 degrees Prime Minister and he does just the opposite of whatever he says. He is the PM of only 1 per cent of the population. So he has issues with those who are in favour of social justice and are taking the nation towards a change," said Yadav.Yadav claimed that the BJP is not going to form the government again and hence are using central agencies at their disposal to target opponents. He said: "Their count is disturbed. They know they won't be able to form the government, so they are taking help of .
PM Modi has adopted a divide and rule strategy to save BJP's honour: Mayawati
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has adopted a "phoot daalo, raj karo" (divide and rule) strategy to create a rift in the SP-BSP-RLD alliance and save BJP's honour in the next three phases of Lok Sabha polls, Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati said on Sunday.Mayawati told ANI, "He tried everything in his might to destroy the 'mahagathbandhan'. In keeping with his 'phoot daalo, raj karo' strategy, he said several erroneous things at his election rally in Pratapgarh yesterday. He wants the SP-BSP-RLD to fight with each other. His motive is to mislead our party workers."Continuing her tirade, the BSP supremo said, "Our party works keeping in mind the eradication of BJP from the country on May 23, when the results of the Lok Sabha elections will be announced."She also accused the Congress and BJP of being "chips of the same block". "People of the country know that we have not allied with the Congress party because we believe that both BJP and Congress are 'ek thali ke chatte batte' (chips of .
KSK: SP, BSP, Congress will become history: Rajnath's son
Uttar Pradesh BJP state General Secretary and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh's son Pankaj Singh said that the SP, BSP and Congress were fighting for their survival and after the elections these parties would only remain in the history.
Australia's opposition leader campaigns on health, climate
Australia's opposition party officially launched its election campaign on Sunday, putting health care and climate change at the forefront of its bid for election within two weeks. Center-left Labor Party leader Bill Shorten promised to spend billions of dollars providing free dental care for pensioners, reducing waiting times at hospital emergency departments and eliminating costs for cancer patients. "Cancer makes you sick. But in a rich country like ours, it shouldn't make you poor," Shorten told supporters at a convention center in Brisbane city. Shorten also highlighted Labor's pledge to reduce Australia's greenhouse gas emissions by 45% below 2005 levels by 2030. The conservative coalition government has committed to reduce emissions by 26% to 28% in the same time frame and warns that Labor's more ambitious target would wreck the economy. Shorten said half the Liberal Party-led coalition "simply don't believe climate change is real and the other half just don't care." Curbing ...
EC issues notice to Pragya Singh Thakur over 'campaigning despite 72-hour ban'
Bharatiya Janata Party Bhopal candidate Pragya Singh Thakur has been sent a notice by District Election Officer here over a complaint of her campaigning during the 3-day period when she was barred by the EC from campaigning."I'm a Sanyasi. My life's base is spiritualism, Indian cultural symbols and values. If somebody stops me from practising this, I will leave it to their wisdom," said Thakur on the matter.The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Wednesday debarred Thakur from campaigning for three days in the Lok Sabha polls in the wake of her remark that she is proud of Babri Masjid's demolition. The remark was found violative of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) by the poll body.The district election officer sought a reply from Thakur on the notice.
Politics-shy Tiger Woods to be honored by Trump at White House
During his illustrious career, Tiger Woods has treated politics as he would a menacing sandtrap -- avoiding it if at all possible. He has hit the links in bipartisan fashion, teeing off with Democrats Bill Clinton and Barack Obama and Republicans George H.W. Bush and Donald Trump. A black superstar in a white-dominated sport, Woods has also generally avoided commenting about race relations in the United States. But on Monday, Woods will find himself on the biggest political stage there is -- the White House. And he will be the guest of honor of a president seen by many Americans as racially polarizing. Trump, an avid golfer and the owner of several golf courses, is to present the 43-year-old Woods with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor. Though the outspoken Republican has been engaged in a bitter feud with black NBA stars and American football players, he has never expressed anything but unbridled admiration for Woods. He spoke to Woods, whose ...
In Madhya Pradesh, Congress's challenge to reverse its fortune among Dalits amid Mayawati's threat
Banking on the inroads it made in Dalit-dominated constituencies in Madhya Pradesh during last year's state elections, the Congress is hopeful about four such seats won by the BJP in 2014, amid a powerplay with Mayawati's BSP. The Congress made significant gains in the four Scheduled Caste-reserved Lok Sabha seats of Bhind, Tikamgarh, Dewas and Ujjain, all held by the BJP, winning 17 of the 32 Assembly segments that make them up. The BJP, on the other side, could manage only 13 seats but hopes to make a comeback in this elections. One each were won by the Samajwadi Party and the BSP. However, the BSP which is supporting the Kamal Nath-led Congress government in the state is not happy after its Guna candidate, Lokendra Singh Rajput, switched over and vowed allegiance to Jyotiraditya Scindia last week. Mayawati, who has a considerable sway in certain pockets of the state, has threatened the Congress, saying it will have to pay a "heavy price" for the Guna episode. Lok Sabha seat-wise ...
Extremist forces in Kashmir cannot demoralise BJP workers with violence: Shah
BJP President Amit Shah Sunday condoled the killing of party leader Ghulam Mohammed Mir and said extremist forces in Kashmir cannot demoralise its workers with violence. Militants shot dead BJP's district vice-president Gul Mohammed Mir in his house in Anantnag district on Saturday night. In a tweet, Shah said, "I am saddened by killing of Ghulam Mohammed Mir, BJP leader from Anantnag. His contribution in strengthening the BJP in the valley was immense". "Extremist forces in the valley can't demoralise BJP karyakartas with violence.My condolences with the bereaved family," Shah tweeted.
Trump defends far-right personalities, attacks Facebook
US President Donald Trump has once again come out in support of right-wing personalities deemed "dangerous" by Facebook who have been banned on social media platforms, including conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and long-time Trump adviser Roger Stone.
Tourist killed as boulder falls on vehicle
A 43-year-old tourist from Maharashtra was killed Sunday and three others injured when a boulder hit their vehicle along the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, police said. The vehicle, carrying a group of 12 tourists, was on way to Jammu from Kashmir Valley and the incident occurred near police station Ramsoo in Ramban district around 0430 hours, the official said. Sunil Vishnupanth Kathe, his wife Manisha (39), Vilas Anand Kumar (43) and Mayuri Kumber (17) were injured when the boulder from the hillock fell on their vehicle while they were crossing a landslide-prone area, he said. He said the injured were immediately evacuated to hospital where Kathe was declared brought dead. His body is being handed over to his family for last rites after completion of legal formalities. The condition of rest of the injured was stated to be stable, the official said. Meanwhile, authorities have provided special passes to vehicles carrying 'Durbar' move employees to ply on the highway in view of ...
Modi to hold two public meetings in MP on Sunday
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to hold two public meetings in Madhya Pradesh's Gwalior and Sagar cities on Sunday.
PM Modi condemns killing of BJP leader Gul Mohammad Mir
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday condemned the killing of BJP leader Gul Mohammad Mir, who was shot dead by the terrorists yesterday at Nowgam village in Anantnag district of south Kashmir.PM Modi took to the micro-blogging website to express his condolence and said: "Strongly condemn the killing of Shri Ghulam Mohammed Mir. His contribution towards strengthening the party in J & K will always be remembered. There is no place for such violence in our country. Condolences to his family and well-wishers."Police said the 60-year-old sustained serious bullet injuries in the chest and abdomen and was rushed to a local hospital where the doctors on duty declared him 'brought dead'. National Conference leader and former chief minister of the state, Omar Abdullah also condemned the killing. "Ghulam Mohd Mir, office bearer of the BJP in South Kashmir has been shot and killed in Nowgam, Verinag. I condemn this dastardly act of violence and pray for the soul of the departed, Allah ...
Barrackpore: Trinamool's Trivedi faces strong challenge from BJP's Arjun
Battling his erstwhile "election-manager" and now BJP's 'Bahubali' candidate Arjun Singh, former Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi of West Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress faces an uphill task in the state's Barrackpore as he seeks a hat-trick of wins from the Lok Sabha constituency.