Page 688 - Politics
Pakistan military too must take right decisions: US
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan is saying the "right things", but his military leadership too needs to take the "right decisions", the Trump administration has said, hours after the UN Security Council designated JeM chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist. Nearly 18 months after President Donald Trump ordered cutting off security aid to Pakistan, a senior US administration official told reporters that the US is trying to change Pakistan's policy of supporting terrorist groups. Noting the US' recognition of the ISI's links with its home-frown terrorist groups, the official said the US does not want to get involved in the country's internal politics and expects the Pakistan military to correct the situation. "We support the civilian government. We support the nascent democratic system there. We support the fact that Prime Minister Khan says right things and appears to be trying to make some changes within Pakistan. But only time will tell if he is successful in doing that," he ...
Families should keep their children away from Priyanka: Smriti Irani
Union Minister Smriti Irani on Thursday hit out at Congress leader, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and said that cultured families should keep their children away from her.Irani slammed Gandhi days after a video went viral in which a group of children were heard raising objectionable slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the presence of Gandhi."She makes children abuse. She asked children to abuse the Prime Minister. You cannot use children for political campaigns. What will children learn out of this. I will ask all cultured families to keep their children away from Priyanka Gandhi. I am happy that the family which claims to be cultured stands unmasked," Irani told Simta Prakash, ANI in an exclusive interview.Echoing similar sentiments against Priyanka's "awara pashuon kay naam bhi hain" barb against Prime Minister Modi and Uttar Pradesh chief Minister, Irani said, "This is her real face. She is disrespecting a prime minister and a state chief. She denigrated Gorakhnath math ...
Priyanka Gandhi to hold road show in Delhi on May 5
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who is currently busy campaigning for her brother and Rahul Gandhi and her mother Sonia Gandhi in Uttar Pradesh, will campaign for her party's candidate and former Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit in the national capital.
Nicolas Maduro open to 'adopt a plan' to improve Venezuela's condition
In an effort to pacify boiling Venezuelans, President Nicolas Maduro on Wednesday (local time) announced that he is ready to "adopt a plan" to introduce change in the country's administration "to improve everything.""I declare Saturday, May 4, and Sunday, May 5, the days of the great national dialogue, actions, and proposals of all representatives of the people's authority. So that they would tell the Bolivarian government and Nicolas Maduro what is necessary to be changed," TASS quoted Maduro as saying."I want to adopt a plan to change and improve everything, to correct mistakes," Maduro said.Violent clashes erupted in the south American nation after the self-declared president Juan Guaido announced the beginning of "Operation Freedom" to oust the defiant Maduro regime.According to local media, Guaido took the bold step after few of the Maduro-loyal army personnel defected towards Gauido. In the clashes, the main opposition party of Venezuela has claimed that 78 people have sustained
BJP treated Azhar as guest, now wants votes in his name: Mayawati
Hitting out at BJP, Mayawati, the BSP supremo alleged that the ruling party was trying to use Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar, who was blacklisted by the United Nations on Wednesday, to garner votes."Earlier, the BJP government made Masood Azhar a guest and later freed him abroad. Now at the time of elections, they are trying to gather votes on his name. It is condemnable," Mayawati, who was also the former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, told ANI in an exclusive interview.Mayawati was referring to the release of Azhar in exchange of hostages of hijacked Indian Airlines plane IC-814. The Indian Airlines plane was hijacked during its flight from Kathmandu to Delhi in December 1999 and was taken to Kandahar in Afghanistan.The BSP supremo's comments on Azhar assumes significance as it comes close on the heels of the United Nations (UN) designating him as a 'global terrorist' after China also joined efforts to blacklist him.Azhar, the head of Pakistan-based JeM, had claimed ...
Alka Lamba skips Kejriwal's roadshow, says she was insulted by AAP
Disgruntled AAP MLA Alka Lamba said she skipped the road show of party chief and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in Chandni Chowk on Wednesday as she was "insulted" by her party. In a tweet, the Chandni Chowk MLA vented her anger and claimed she was asked to walk behind Kejriwal's car while other MLAs were with him in the car. AAPcandidate Pankaj (Gupta) ji's phone came to me and he invited me for the CM's road show. I was ready, then another message was sent that I would not be present with Kejriwal in his car but have to walk behind his car while other MLAs would be present with him. I cannot stand this and I decided not to participate in the road show, she said in the tweet. Kejriwal held the roadshow in Chandni Chowk on Tuesday with AAP Chandni Chowk candidate Pankaj Gupta. It saw participation of large number of supporters. Lamba has been at odds with the AAP for quite sometime now. Earlier last month, Lamba engaged in a bitter Twitter spat with AAP's Greater Kailash MLA ...
Congress is fighting a battle to lose: Smriti Irani
The Congress party in Uttar Pradesh is fighting a battle to lose, says Union Minister Smriti Irani, as the battle of ballots intensifies in India's politically most important state where 80 Lok Sabha seats are up for grab."The Congress party in Uttar Pradesh is fighting a battle to lose. I am sure of my win. This will be a victory for the people of Amethi," Union Minister Irani told Smita Prakash, ANI in an exclusive interview."I am a normal party worker, even though I have been working for the government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. We gave a chase to the Congress president that he had to run even after the SP and the BSP pledged support on the seat," she said."It was the first time that party workers of a political outfit had to ask their chief to look out for another seat, as they felt Amethi was not a secure seat anymore. That tells you how good is the atmosphere for the BJP. This is not a fight against the BJP and the Congress. It is a genuine fight ...
US welcomes designation of Azhar as global terrorist
The United States has welcomed the designation of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar as global terrorist and has sought "sustained actions" from Pakistan against terrorism perpetrating from its soil."The United States welcomes the addition of Masood Azhar to the UN 1267 ISIL and al-Qaida Sanctions list. This listing requires all UN member states to implement an assets freeze, a travel ban, and an arms embargo against Azhar. We expect all countries to uphold these obligations," said the spokesperson for the US Mission in United Nations on Wednesday.In a major diplomatic breakthrough for India, the United Nations on Wednesday added Azhar to the United Nations 1267 ISIL and al-Qaeda Sanctions List.Asserting that JeM is a "serious threat to regional stability and peace" the US spokesperson said, "Jaish-e Mohammed is a United Nations-designated terrorist group, and Azhar, as the founder and leader of the JeM, clearly met the criteria for designation by the United Nations. JeM has ...
Vote-cutting: Priyanka says Congress fielded strong candidates
Facing heat over her "vote-cutting" remarks from the BJP and the Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday said that her party had fielded strong candidates against the BJP to win the Lok Sabha elections.
Amit Shah to address 3 rallies in MP today
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah will address three public gatherings in Madhya Pradesh on Thursday.
BJP, Cong united against UP alliance: Mayawati
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Thursday accused the BJP and the Congress of fighting the Lok Sabha elections together against her party's alliance with Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) in Uttar Pradesh.
Cong likely to be single largest party; non-BJP formation to get 'comfortable majority': Singhvi
Asserting that the Congress is likely to emerge as the single largest party after the Lok Sabha elections, senior party leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi says a non-BJP formation will get a "comfortable majority" and form the government at the Centre. Singhvi also claimed the BJP will face a deficit of 100-120 seats after suffering losses in various states and will not be able to compensate for the seats lost in those states. "I have no doubt a non-BJP multi-party group will be in power after May 23. The exact complexion and numbers of that need not be talked about now," he told PTI in an interview. Asked if there is a possibility of a hung Parliament this time, Singhvi said there will be a "comfortable majority" of a non-BJP formation. "I agree it is difficult to say that a single party will have a majority. There will be a very, very comfortable majority for pre-poll and post-poll alliance partners which are non-BJP, non-NDA," Singhvi asserted. On whether there is a possibility of the ...
Spotlight on BJP, Congress in UP's 5th phase
The 14 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh that will go to polls on May 6 in the fifth phase will put the spotlight on the top Congress and BJP leadership.
Cong, BJP acting against SP-BSP alliance: Mayawati
BSP chief Mayawati Thursday accused the BJP and Congress of having a tacit understanding and unitedly working against the SP-BSP alliance. Congressmen think it is not a problem if BJP candidates win elections but SP-BSP alliance candidates should not win polls, the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister alleged. "Like BJP, Congress has started talking absurd about the SP-BSP alliance. It is clear that both (Cong and BJP) have a tacit understanding and are contesting against our alliance unitedly," Mayawati said here. Addressing an election rally in Barabanki on Wednesday, Congress President Rahul Gandi had alleged that control of Mayawati and Akhilesh was in hands of PM Narendra Modi. "In the past five years, did the SP or BSP take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi directly? Did you hear any statement from Mayawati or Mulayam Singh Yadav? See, I am not scared of Narendra Modi. I don't care. If someone is scared, it is Narendra Modi. But the controller of Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav is in ..
Opposition alliance divided over PM candidate: Paswan
Lok Janshakti Party chief and Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan Thursday slammed the opposition alliance, saying no one knows who is their Prime Ministerial candidate as they are "divided" on the issue. He said the opposition alliance was speaking in different voices. "Who is prime ministerial candidate of opposition alliance? No one knows this while in BJP Narendra Modi is there. On the matter of PM, the opposition alliance is divided," Paswan said while addressing an election meeting here on Wednesday evening. "While SP-BSP are saying something, Congress says something different. Chandrababu Naidu and Mamata Banerjee are also dreaming of becoming PM. Despite not having an MP in Lok Sabha and not contesting polls Mayawati is also dreaming of becoming PM. How can she become PM?," he said. Paswan was here to support BJP candidate Virendra Singh Mast.
India, Pakistan trade fire on LoC in Poonch
Indian and Pakistani armies traded heavy fire on Thursday on the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district, Defence Ministry said.
Why does Imran want Modi to continue as India's PM, asks Chidambaram
The Congress is happy the process of designating JeM chief Masood Azhar a global terrorist has concluded successfully, senior party leader P Chidambaram said on Thursday, while also asking why Pakistani premier Imran Khan wants Narendra Modi to continue as India's prime minister. In a huge diplomatic victory for India, the UN Sanctions Committee on Wednesday designated Azhar a global terrorist after China lifted its hold on a proposal to ban him. Reacting to the development, Chidambaram said Azhar was released in 1999 by a BJP government after the hijack of an Indian Airlines aircraft. "After Masood Azhar masterminded the Mumbai terror attack in 2008, the process to name him as a global terrorist was started by a Congress/UPA government in 2009. "We are happy that the process has concluded successfully in 2019. But why does the Prime Minister of Pakistan want Mr Modi to continue as Prime Minister of India?" the former home minister said in a series of tweets. Azhar's designation as a .
Akhilesh moots Mulayam's name for PM post
Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav has put up his father and SP patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadavs name for the Prime Ministers post.
Ayodhya no longer an election issue: Senior UP Cong leader
Senior Uttar Pradesh Congress leader and Faizabad candidate Nirmal Khatri on Thursday claimed that the Ayodhya dispute was no longer an election plank in the Lok Sabha election and said the BJP was distancing itself from the issue. The former state Congress chief also hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his first Ayodhya visit in five years. "The issue of construction of a temple of Lord Ram seems to have vanished from the electoral landscape. The issue of Ram temple for the past few elections had no longer been an issue for the voters of Faizabad," Khatri told PTI in an interview. The 68-year-old underscored that had the Ayodhya issue been relevant, then he would not have won in 2009 from Faizabad, where the temple town is located. Khatri said the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid issue only existed in the national media and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won the 2014 election not due to it. "People of Faizabad understand that politics is being done in the garb of this issue and
Smaller parties in Delhi's election ring, not for victory but to make their points
The three biggies, BJP, Congress and AAP, might be occupying ad space and mind space as campaigning for Delhi's Lok Sabha elections gathers pace but a host of smaller parties have also put their hats in the poll ring -- not to win maybe but just to make people aware that alternatives can exist. While hoardings of the mainstream parties are splashed across the city, about 45 lesser-known parties such as Anjaan Aadmi Party, Aapki Apni Party, Bhartiya Insan Party and Ambedkar National Congress are also in the list of parties vying for Delhi's seven Lok Sabha seats, raising issues as varied as Dalit empowerment and vegetarianism. The similarities in some of the names are inescapable, and perhaps not just a coincidence. But there is also the Sanatan Sanskriti Manch, which is focused on making sure that justice is for all, and has fielded three candidates. These parties are aware they might not give the bigger political outfits any competition but their representatives said their mission is