Page 811 - Politics
Parliament needs to take decision: Sheila Dikshit on AAP's full statehood demand for Delhi
Former Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Sheila Dikshit on Monday said that the Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) full statehood demand for Delhi can only be fulfilled through Parliament."We also tried this. But I feel that the Aam Aadmi Party does not understand that this won't be done just because they are asking for it. Parliament needs to take a decision on this. Till the time, Parliament won't do anything, nothing can be done," Dikshit told ANI here.Dikshit, who was the Chief Minister of Delhi from 1998 to 2013, has been fielded by the Congress party from the North East Delhi seat in the ongoing Lok Sabha election."I will do my best to fulfil the responsibility given to me. I have contested from here earlier. I know the people here and they know me. We had started Metro from here. Our reputation is of working for the people," she said."Nothing is stable in politics. We have to face the challenges in front of us," she added when asked about contesting against BJP and AAP.All the ...
SC dismisses plea seeking ban on loan waiver schemes
The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a petition seeking to stop political parties from offering loan waivers and other monetary schemes in their election manifesto.A bench headed by Justice SA Bobde dismissed the plea filed by advocate Reena N Singh on April 18.The petition had said that political parties were offering loan waiver schemes in their election manifesto to come to power by ignoring the negative effects on the economy.The Centre and state governments should not be permitted to reduce or waive loans, it had said.The plea had sought that the central and the state governments should formulate an agricultural policy which could make the industry profitable and also help the farmers to become financially prosperous.
Rahul regrets Rafale remarks, accepts 'court never said' it
Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Monday expressed regret to the Supreme Court over his remarks on the apex court's Rafale order, and accepted that the "court never said these words" as he had earlier attributed his "Chowkidar Chor Hai" remarks to the top court.
Congress names 6 candidates in Delhi LS polls
The Congress on Monday released the list of candidates on six out of the seven parliamentary constituencies in Delhi for the May 12 Lok Sabha polls, signalling a non pre-poll alliance with the national capital's ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
Cong fields ex-CM Sheila Dikshit from North-East Delhi, Ajay Maken from New Delhi
Ending months of speculation over a possible tie-up with AAP, the Congress on Monday fielded three-time Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit from North-East Delhi and former Union minister Ajay Maken from New Delhi, as it announced names of candidates for six Lok Sabha seats in the national capital. The Congress also fielded J P Agarwal from Chandni Chowk, Arvinder Singh Lovely from East Delhi, Rajesh Lilothia from North-West Delhi and Mahabal Mishra from West Delhi. Dikshit, who took over from Maken as the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee chief earlier this year, was last a member of Parliament from 1984-89 from Kannauj. She was the chief minister of Delhi for three terms between 1998 and 2013. Dikshit will take on BJP's sitting MP Manoj Tiwari and Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) Dilip Pandey. Interestingly, senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal has not been named from the Chandni Chowk seat from which he has been fighting from since 2004. After two terms, Sibal had lost to Union minister Harsh .
LS polls: Congress releases list of 6 candidates, fields Sheila Dikshit from North East Delhi
The Congress party on Monday released a list of candidates for six out of seven Parliamentary constituencies ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in the capital.Former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit will contest from the North East Delhi seat.Besides her, the Rahul Gandhi-led party has fielded JP Agarwal from Chandni Chowk, Arvinder Singh Lovely from East Delhi, Ajay Maken from New Delhi, Rajesh Lilothia from North West Delhi and Mahabal Mishra from West Delhi.The announcement of candidates came after talks of alliance between the AAP and the Congress failed after weeks of flip flops between the two parties. Congress reportedly wanted an alliance only in Delhi whereas the AAP wanted an alliance in Haryana as well.All seven parliamentary seats in Delhi will go to polls in a single phase on May 12. Counting of votes will take place on May 23.On April 21, the Congress had released the list of five candidates for the Lok Sabha elections in Haryana, scheduled to be held in the sixth phase
Sonia Gandhi shed tears for terrorists killed in Batla House encounter: Amit Shah
BJP president Amit Shah on Monday fired a fresh salvo at UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi stating that she had shed tears for terrorists killed in Batla House encounter but not for the police personnel who lost his life in the incident."When Batla House encounter happened, Sonia Gandhi shed tears on the killing of terrorists, however, she did not cry for the police personnel who lost his life in the incident. Congress must answer this," Amit Shah said here.Officially known as Operation Batla House, Batla House encounter took place on September 19, 2008, against Indian Mujahideen (IM) terrorists in Batla House locality in Delhi's Jamia Nagar.Two suspected terrorists, Atif Ameen and Mohammad Sajid, were killed while two other suspects, Mohammad Saif and Zeeshan, were arrested.The seven-phased Lok Sabha polls began on April 11 and will continue till May 19. The counting of votes will take place on May 23.
Mayawati hits out at EC for not cancelling Pragya Thakur's nomination from Bhopal
Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati on Monday hit out at the Election Commission of India (ECI) for not cancelling Bhopal Malegaon blast accused and BJP candidate Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur's nomination over her remarks on Babri Masjid.Mayawati's response comes after Thakur on Sunday said that she is "proud" to accept that she was involved in the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya. " I have said it yesterday and I am not denying it that I had gone there. I have demolished Babri structure. He is my Ram ji and no one can stop me from making a grand Ram temple. The nation is Ram, Ram is a nation," she said."BJP candidate from Bhopal and Malegaon blast accused Sadhvi Pradnya claims that she is fighting a 'crusade' (dharmayudh). This is the real face of BJP and RSS which is constantly being exposed. But why is the Election Commission only issuing notices and not cancelling Thakur's candidature?" Mayawati wrote on her Twitter handle.Mayawati further tweeted and accused Prime ...
Congress releases list of six candidates for Delhi Lok Sabha seats
The Congress on Monday announced the names of six candidates for Delhi Lok Sabha seats , fielding former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit from North-East Delhi, Ajay Maken from New Delhi and J P Agarwal from Chandni Chowk. The Congress also fielded Arvinder Singh Lovely from East Delhi, Rajesh Lilothia from North-West Delhi and Mahabal Mishra from West Delhi. The announcement of candidates came after talks of alliance between the AAP and the Congress failed as the Rahul Gandhi led party wanted a tie up only in Delhi while the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) wanted the alliance to be forged in Haryana as well.
Security is everybody's concern (Column: Spy's Eye)
The campaign for the 2019 general election has witnessed an unprecedented degree of bitterness between the Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) but the credit that Prime Minister Narendra Modi got from the masses - cutting across caste and regional divides - for giving a tough reply to Pakistan seemed to have overshadowed other performance issues raised by the opposition.
Assam: Kokrajhar in search of peace, security, says UPPL-AIUDF candidate Brahma
Urkhao Gwra Brahma, a former Rajya Sabha member and the United People's Party (Liberal) candidate for the Kokrajhar Lok Sabha constituency, said peace and security are the "biggest matter of concern" in the area."People had expected that Bodoland People's Front (BPF) will maintain peace in the area. They were given 13 years, but their failure was seen in 2014 Lok Sabha election when Naba Kumar Sarania, an Independent candidate, won. Time and again there are issues with extremists here (baar baar ugravad ki samasya ho jata h). To finish this, no strong actions have been taken by the government," Brahma told ANI here."They feel that they can finish it off with police and the Army, but it has not ended since last 70 years. This is why peace is the biggest matter of concern here. That's why politics kept changing here since last 20 years. It's not about Bodo or non-Bodo, we seek votes from all," he added.Sarania won the Kokrajhar seat in 2014 by a huge margin of over three lakh votes over
US set to end sanctions waiver for Iranian oil imports
The United States is set to announce on Monday that all countries including India, which are currently importing Iranian crude oil, will either have to end their imports completely or be subjected to US sanctions.US Secretary of State Michael R Pompeo will announce on Monday that from May 2, the State Department will no longer grant sanctions waiver to any country that is currently importing Iranian crude or condensate, The Washington Post reported quoting two State Department officials on Sunday.In November last year, the State Department had issued 180-day waivers to eight countries to give them more time to find alternative sources of oil.The decision to end waivers has been viewed as US President Donald Trump's maximum pressure on Tehran to curtail its nuclear program and stop backing militant proxies across the Middle East.Three of the eight countries, including Greece, Italy and Taiwan, which received the U.S. waivers, have already reduced their Iranian oil imports to zero.The ..
Congress announces 6 names for Delhi Lok Sabha polls
The Congress on Monday released the list of candidates on six out of the seven parliamentary constituencies in Delhi for the May 12 Lok Sabha polls in the national capital.
Refugees from Bangladesh will get citizenship here as promised in manifesto, says Amit Shah
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president Amit Shah on Monday said that the refugees who migrated from Bangladesh, be it Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, Jains, or Christians, will get citizenship as promised in BJP's 'Sankalp Patra'.Speaking at a press conference here, Shah said that the BJP in its manifesto has clearly stated that there will be zero tolerance against terrorism. Also, we have clarified our stand in BJP's manifesto regarding Article 370, Citizenship Amendment Bill and NRC."I request to people of Bengal to vote without fear; BJP workers are guarding them as protectors of democracy in the Lok Sabha Polls," he said.Hitting out at West Bengal chief minister, Shah said, "Mamata Banerjee is under pressure after the end of second phase polls. There is politics of appeasement in Bengal.""Mamata Banerjee did not allow my rallies in Bengal, now the people here are not coming out in to attend her rallies," he added.Commenting on BJP candidate from Bhopal, Pragya Singh Thakur, he .
I've promised Rahul all 13 seats, confident of delivering on that: Amarinder (IANS Interview)
On a day when nominations for the May 19 Lok Sabha elections on 13 seats in Punjab begins, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said that he is confident about delivering on his 'Mission 13' promise of winning all seats in the state.
In Modi vs all election, can you spot Rahul? (Column: Political Calculus)
The Great Indian Election circus has just begun.
Raj Thackeray gets nod for Mumbai rally
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Monday finally accorded permission to Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) for holding a public rally here at Shahid Bhagat Singh Maidan, Kala chowki on April 23.
People voting enthusiastically to make Modi PM again: Shah
Attacking the opposition for "failing to present" a clear cut policy on national security and its "inability" to put forward a single leader, BJP President Amit Shah on Monday said people across the country were voting with enthusiasm to make Narendra Modi the Prime Minister again for his decisive, capable, sensitive and strong leadership.
Ukraine comedian Zelensky wins presidency in landslide
A comedian with no political experience won a landslide victory in Ukraine's presidential election, drawing congratulations from global leaders while dealing a stunning rebuke to his country's political establishment. Volodymyr Zelensky, whose only previous political role was playing the president in a TV show, trounced incumbent Petro Poroshenko by taking 73.2 percent of the vote, according to nearly complete official results released early Monday. Poroshenko garnered just 24.4 percent, losing to the 41-year-old comedian and actor across the country, with 85 percent of ballots counted after Sunday's election. It was an extraordinary outcome to a campaign that started as a joke but struck a chord with voters frustrated by social injustice, corruption and a war with Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine that has claimed some 13,000 lives. The star of the TV series "Servant of the People" will now take the helm of a country of 45 million people beset by challenges and having run
JJP fields Digvijay Chautala against Hooda from Sonipat
Jannayak Janata Party on Monday announced its three Lok Sabha candidates for Haryana, including Digvijay Chautala from Sonipat against former Haryana chief minister and Congress candidate Bhupinder Singh Hooda. The party also announced Jai Bhagwan Sharma and Mehmood Khan as its candidates from Kurukshetra and Gurgaon, respectively. The JJP, which recently broke away from INLD after a family feud in the Chautala clan, is contesting the Lok Sabha election in Haryana in alliance with AAP. The party is founded by Ajay Chautala, father of Digvijay Chautala, and Dushyant Chautala. The AAP is contesting on three seats, while JJP is fighting on the remaining seven seats in the state.