Page 84 - Politics

Without ideology or loyalty: Arvind Kejriwal and his pursuit of power

Rajendra Pal Gautam, Tahir Hussain and Amanatullah Khan have joined a long list of colleagues who have been left high and dry by Kejriwal. They were, in the end, mere props in his pursuit of power

Situation in Vizag still tense, Jana Sena's Pawan Kalyan confined to hotel

The situation in the port city of Visakhapatnam remained tense for a second day on Sunday as the police barred Jana Sena Party (JSP) leader and actor Pawan Kalyan from holding meetings or rallies

Embrace change, show courage, says Tharoor in final appeal to Cong electors

Calling on electors to show courage to "embrace change", Congress' presidential polls candidate Shashi Tharoor on Sunday asserted that in the change he envisions, the party's "values and loyalties" will remain the same with only the ways of achieving the goals undergoing a transformation. In his "last appeal" to the over 9,000 Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) delegates who constitute the electoral college to pick the next AICC chief, Tharoor noted that from his conversations over the last few days he gathered that many of them may have concerns or hesitation about change. While Tharoor has pitched himself as the candidate of change, Kharge is considered the favourite and the 'unofficial official candidate' with a large number of senior leaders backing him. "It is natural to have concerns about change in any organisation of the scale and size like ours, that's why I want to address this directly," Tharoor said in his video appeal which he posted on Twitter. "In the conversations tha

Tharoor's 'netagiri' jibe at Kharge camp on eve of Congress president polls

Congress presidential poll candidate Shashi Tharoor on Sunday took a veiled dig at the Kharge camp saying some colleagues were "indulging in 'netagiri' and telling party workers" that they know whom Sonia Gandhi wants elected. If anyone has "fear or doubt" in their mind, the party has made it clear that it will be a secret ballot, he said and urged the Congress delegates to listen to their hearts while voting to elect the new party president. "I also asked Sonia Gandhi how she views the elections. She said that it is very good for the party, and you fight with full courage ('himmat'), and we will stay neutral. She had said that there will be no official candidate from their side," Tharoor told reporters at the Uttar Pradesh Congress headquarters. The Thiruvananthapuram MP, who is contesting against veteran leader Mallikarjun Kharge in the Monday election, emphasised on "decentralisation" in the organisation so that "'all decisions are not taken in Delhi. He said that there should b

Gujarat wants 'new engine government' not 'double engine' one: Kejriwal

Taking a dig at the BJP-led Central government, Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said Gujarat doesn't want a "double-engine government" but a "new engine" government. Addressing a rally in Bhavnagar city in the poll-bound state, Kejriwal said if Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) comes to power, it will withdraw on priority all "false cases" registered against people from various communities, groups and government employees for agitating against the BJP government in the last 27 years. In a veiled swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's events in Gujarat where he launched projects worth crores, Kejriwal said he cannot announce such a huge package but will ensure benefits worth Rs 30,000 to households through his "guarantees". "They say 'double engine ki sarkaar' (a double-engine government). This time, Gujarat does not want a double-engine, it wants a 'new engine.' The double engine is very old, both engines are 40-50 years old. A new party, new faces, new ideology,

Scindia to execute power show during Amit Shah's Gwalior visit on Oct 16

The political gallery in Madhya Pradesh is set to witness a power show of Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia when Union Home Minister Amit Shah arrives in Gwalior on October 16

The Congress president's election: All you need to know about its history

As Mallikarjun Kharge and Shashi Tharoor battle it out, here is a concise history of the Congress party's presidency

SP members to commemorate Mulayam's legacy; seek Bharat Ratna for leader

After the demise of Samajwadi patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, party workers are seeking steps to commemorate his memory

Cong prez poll: Office-bearers barred from voting in assigned states

The Congress' Central Election Authority (CEA) has barred the party general secretaries and other office-bearers from voting in their assigned states in the party's presidential poll

Shiv Sena split unfortunate, but Muslims won't used as punching bag: AIMIM

All India Majalis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader Imtiaz Jaleel said while the division in the Shiv Sena was "unfortunate", the positive thing for the Muslim community is that it will no longer be used as a "punching bag" by that party as well as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). In the tug-of-war between the two Sena factions led by Uddhav Thackeray and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde would need Muslim votes, he said. Jaleel, who is AIMIM's MP from Aurangabad, made these statements while speaking to a Marathi News channel. "Shiv Sena was formed for the rights of Marathi people. Split in the party is unfortunate. I am also a Marathi although my party is different. I have nothing to do with Eknath Shinde or Uddhav Thackeray. But the BJP succeeded in splitting the Marathi people, which no one could do," he said. "But Muslims will no more be a punching bag here and this is a positive thing for Muslims. Earlier, BJP and Shiv Sena used Muslims as a punching bag...we see their earlier

Imran Khan claims someone else pulled strings of power during his tenure

Former Pakistan prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chairman Imran Khan claimed that someone else pulled the strings of power during his tenure and that he was all but a figurehead

Tharoor hails Congress' decision to have secret ballot for party prez polls

Congress's presidential election candidate Shashi Tharoor on Wednesday welcomed the decision of the party's Central Election Authority to have a secret ballot in the polls for the grand old party's top post, and said it would enable all delegates to be able to vote as per their wish. He also said that this presidential election was important for the party to fight the upcoming Lok Sabha election with courage and confidence. "The system of election as declared by the (Congress) Central Election Authority (CEA) chairman Madhusudan Mistry is very good. He talked about the secret ballot...Voting will be carried out secretly and nobody gets to know who voted for whom...People can vote as per their wish," Tharoor told reporters during his election campaign here. He was referring to Mistry's press conference held in Delhi earlier in the day, where he said that the Congress's presidential polls will be held by a secret ballot and no one will get to know who voted for whom in order to ensure

Nitish slams Amit Shah, says 'he has no knowledge of our country's history'

Nitish Kumar has slammed Amit Shah and said that he does not have any knowledge about Jayaprakash Narayan (JP) movement or socialist leaders like Ram Manohar Lohia

SP lost its guiding light with Mulayam's death, his insights will be missed

Samajwadi Party founder Mulayam Singh Yadav's death might not have any direct political impact on the party, but its President Akhilesh Yadav will now have to work without his "shield and shadow." Besides, the party is sure to miss Mulayam Singh's emotional bonding with every camp and also his expert guidance in crucial times, according to political observers and party insiders. Akhilesh Yadav, his son, became the party president in 2017 after a feud with uncle Shivpal Yadav. Even though he is already at the helm of affairs and has his team in place, Mulayam Singh has left behind him a void which will be hard to fill, they believe. According to political observer JP Shukla, Mulayam had stopped running the everyday affairs of the party long back, but his blessings were sought before every major decision by the party chief. "Mulayam had founded the party but he had not interfered in the party's functioning for the past several years. His name was a shield for Akhilesh in whatever ...

What's good for Rahul Gandhi isn't necessarily good for the Congress

While Congress can go on and on about how voters are economically worse off today, social issues matter more in politics. The BJP understands this and has its messaging electorally right

Iraq's regional Kurdistan parliament extends legislative term for 1 year

The lawmakers of Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region have voted to extend the current four-year legislative term of the regional parliament for one more year

Goa's leader of opposition Yuri Alemao to initiate 'people's movement'

Goa Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao on Friday said his first task (as LoP) will be to initiate a people's movement against the "anti-people policies" of the government.

Ex Pak PM Imran Khan apologises before Judge Zeba Chaudhry's court

Pakistan's ousted prime minister Imran Khan on Friday appeared before a sessions court here to personally apologise to Additional Sessions Judge Zeba Chaudhry, the female judge he had allegedly threatened at a public rally. During a rally in Islamabad on August 20, Khan had threatened to file cases against top police officials, election commission and political opponents over the treatment meted out to his aide Shahbaz Gill, who was arrested on charges of sedition. He had also taken exception to Judge Chaudhry, who had approved Gill's two-day physical remand at the request of the Capital Territory Police, and said she should "prepare herself as action would be taken against her''. Hours after the speech, Khan, 69, was booked under the Anti-Terrorism Act for threatening police, judiciary and other state institutions at his rally. Khan and his lawyers appeared in Judge Chaudhry's court.

UK PM Liz Truss defends decisive action of mini-budget amid market turmoil

British Prime Minister Liz Truss on Thursday defended her government's controversial mini-budget which has triggered widespread economic turmoil and insisted that it was the decisive action needed for long-term growth. In her first round of interviews with local BBC radio stations around the country since the tax-cutting and high government, borrowing measures were tabled by Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng in the House of Commons last week, the recently elected leader insisted "controversial and difficult decisions" needed to be taken to improve the situation in the UK. Truss was keen to keep the focus on the largely welcome action taken to freeze fuel bills for households and businesses amid spiralling global energy costs in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. "We had to take decisive action to help people through this winter and next winter, said Truss. I understand that families are struggling with their fuel bills and we had to take urgent action to get our economy growing and g

BJP leader Subramanian Swamy meets Sri Lanka's Rajapaksa brothers

Senior BJP leader Dr Subramanian Swamy on Thursday met Gotabaya Rajapaksa here, becoming the first foreign visitor to call on the ousted Sri Lankan president, following his return to Colombo after fleeing the country amidst unprecedented protests against his government's mishandling of the island nation's economy. Swamy, a close friend of the Rajapaksa family who is in Sri Lanka to attend a conference of the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University on national security, also met with Gotabaya's brother Mahinda Rajapaksa on Wednesday evening and attended the Navratri pooja at his residence, sources said on Thursday. "Swamy, a close friend of the Rajapaksa brothers attended the Navaratri pooja held at Mahinda Rajapaksa's official residence last night before calling on Gotabaya Rajapaksa this morning," sources said. Swamy has become the first foreign visitor to call on Gotabaya since he returned early this month after his self-imposed exile after facing a violent nationwide prote