Page 862 - Politics
Yogi visits Ayodhya amid EC ban, BSP complains to poll panel
Yogi Adityanath Wednesday prayed at temples in Ayodhya and visited a Dalit family, prompting the BSP to complain to the EC that the Uttar Pradesh chief minister had violated the EC order barring him from campaigning. The Election Commission had on Monday barred Adityanath from campaigning for 72-hours starting 6 am on Tuesday for his communal remarks. The BSP, however, claimed that a crowd of about 500 people had gathered at the village where the chief minister had lunch with the Dalit family that had benefited from a central government housing scheme. In his complaint to the poll panel, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Faizabad district president Mahendra Pratap Anand alleged that the chief minister had campaigned in the village which was a violation of the ban order imposed on him by the poll panel. During his visit to the home of 60-year-old Mahaveer in the Muslim-dominated locality of Sutahti, adjacent to the Ram Janambhoomi-Babri Masjid site, Adityanath had a chapati with some bottle ...
Peru ex-president Garcia dies after shooting himself: party official
Former Peru president Alan Garcia died in hospital on Wednesday after shooting himself in the head at his home as police were about to arrest him in a graft investigation, a party official said. "Alan Garcia has died, long live Apra," said Omar Quesada, the general secretary of Garcia's American Popular Revolutionary Alliance (Apra) party.
LS polls: Party organisation key factor in Agra
Organisational strength does make a difference for any political party, agree both the Congress and the BJP in Agra, where the ruling party has won the Lok Sabha polls in 2009 and 2014 and is now hoping for a hat-trick. The party, however, has replaced its sitting MP Ram Shankar Katheria with S P Singh Baghel, while the Bahujan Samaj Party has fielded Manoj Kumar Soni, and the Congress Preeta Harit, a former IRS officer. "Our organisation is very big and strong. We have our dedicated workers from the top level to the district and booth level and that makes a difference," said Shyam Bhadoria, Agra and Fathepur Sikri unit president of the BJP. He said Katheria won the Lok Sabha elections twice, while BJP's Bhagwan Shankar Rawat had won three consecutive terms (in 1991, 1996 and 1998) in Agra. "We have dominated this seat earlier and will return to power this time also," he said. He dismissed the mahagathbandhan (mega alliance) of the Samajwadi Party (SP), the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) ..
Ex-ED additional director joins Cong
Former Enforcement Directorate additional director Shamsuddin Wednesday joined the Congress in the presence of senior party leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad and Bhupinder Singh Hooda at the AICC headquarters here. Before joining the ED, where he served for over two decades, Shamsuddin, who holds a PhD in law from Aligarh Muslim University, taught in various universities in India and abroad. Shamsuddin, who hails from Sohna in Haryana, said he will work to strengthen the Congress and ensure the victory of its candidates in the Lok Sabha elections. Azad said he was confident that with Shamsuddin's entry, the party would be further strengthened. Hooda also welcomed him into the party fold.
People of naxal-affected areas in J'khand seeing devp for the
Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das Wednesday said that people of some Naxal-affected areas in the state are experiencing development for the first time under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "The people of Pesrar in Lohardaga district, Saryu in Latehar district and Saranda in West Singhbhum district have got electricity, roads, never seen till four and a half years ago," he told reporters here. Das said since his government came to power 30 lakh households in Jharkhand have got electric connections. People of Lohardaga will see a prime minister for the first time since Independence when Narendra Modiji visits the constituency ahead of the April 29 election there," Das said. The people of the country want the return of the Modi government as they are for security and development and know that after coming to power in 2014 Modi had taken strong decisions, besides making efforts for the welfare of farmers, women, villages, poor and the youth. Union ...
Trump veto proves US behind Yemen war: Huthi rebels
Yemen's Huthi rebels on Wednesday slammed President Donald Trump's veto of a Congress resolution directing him to end support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen as proof Washington was behind the conflict. The veto "proves that the United States is not only involved in the war on Yemen but also was behind the decision to go to war," Huthi spokesman Mohammed Abdelsalam tweeted. "Others followed that decision and execute the wishes and ambitions of the United States," Abdelsalam added, referring to Saudi Arabia and its allies. Abdelsalam, who heads a rebel delegation involved in ongoing UN-led peace talks, held the US responsible for "massacres, crimes and the unjust siege of Yemen". Yemen and Mexico are the only two countries to have been targeted by a Trump veto. The president overrode a congressional resolution that aimed to reverse the border emergency he declared in order to secure more funding for his wall between the United States and Mexico in March. Congress' Yemen resolution was .
GFP leader Monserrate quits,announces to contest Panaji bypoll
Goa Forward Party (GFP) vice president Atanasio Monserrate Wednesday resigned from party membership, after he was denied ticket to contest from Panaji assembly byelection. Monserrate announced that he would contest as an Independent in the May 19 bypoll, which is necessitated by the death of chief minister Manohar Parrikar in March this year. The GFP, headed by Vijai Sardesai, is a constituent in the BJP-led state government. "I have resigned from GFP. They had asked me not to contest since the party is in alliance in the state government. I will contest as Independent candidate," Monserrate said. In the assembly elections held in 2017, Monserrate had lost to BJP's Siddharat Kuncolienkar by mere 1069 votes from Panaji constituency, which has been the bastion of Parrikar since 1992 when he got elected as MLA for the first time. Reacting to the development, Sardesai said, "I had made it clear that the party would not like to contest the bypoll. I had also said that if ...
Cong-AAP alliance finalised, only 'fine-tuning' now, says PC Chacko; AAP leader Sanjay Singh denies
Congress leader PC Chacko on Wednesday said that Congress-Aam Admi Party seat sharing discussion is in its final stage and is being only fine-tuned now."We had a discussion with AAP, the AAP-Cong alliance is at its final stage. Only fine tuning is left for Delhi and talks are on for some other state," he said.His comments come in the wake of a series of flip-flops by leaders of both parties over the past several weeks with Congress and AAP looking to seal an alliance in Delhi, Haryana, and Chandigarh for the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. Dushyant Chautala's Jannayak Janata Party (JJP).AAP leader Sanjay Singh, however, denied any talk finalisation saying "in order to stop BJP we were ready for an alliance with Congress, but Congress is not in a mood for any coalition. It is a matter of sadness, that even after so many efforts; Congress is not ready for any kind of compromise."According to sources, the stalemate is triggered by Sonipat seat in Haryana, which they say Bhoopinder Singh ...
Prakash Raj slams 'fake' posts of him backing Congress
Veteran actor Prakash Raj, who is contesting from Bengaluru Central seat as an independent candidate in the Lok Sabha elections, on Wednesday hit out at the Congress for posting photographs on social media platforms, which claimed he backed the grand old party."There was a candidate debate and I met Congress candidate (from Bengaluru Central) Rizwan Ahmed. Congress has made a photograph of it (him shaking hands with Ahmed), sent it on WhatsApp groups and said it's confirmed that Prakash Raj has joined Congress so you don't have to waste your vote on him. It was done by Mazhar Ahmed who claims to be Rizwan's PA," Raj told ANI in an exclusive interview.Raj said he telephoned and slammed the lack of ethics of the person, who made the "sick" claim that the photos were a forward."Will you stoop so much? Why don't they talk on issues, report card (on their governance performance) or a scientific temper with a vision for the problems we have in this country. It's sick and I am really angry ..
On surgical strikes, Gehlot says even Pak doesn't talk about what it does
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot Wednesday mocked the Narendra Modi government for boasting about a surgical strike across the Line of Control, saying even Pakistan doesn't talk about its own actions. Gehlot claimed that except a handful of ministers, the NDA government was made up of first-timers. They boasted about the surgical strike because they lacked experience. Surgical strikes have been conducted in the tenure of every prime minister but they are never talked about. There are several things that Pakistan also does but they never talk about it," Gehlot said. At the same press conference, Gehlot triggered a controversy by suggesting that Ram Nath Kovind became President because he is a Dalit. The Indian Army had conducted a surgical strike across against several terror launch pads across the LoC in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir in September 2016, ten days after a terror attack at an Army camp in Uri in which 19 soldiers had been killed. In February, the Indian Air Force struck .
Three Lok Sabha seats in Chhattisgarh set to vote Thursday
Three Lok Sabha constituencies in Chhattisgarh, all having Naxal presence, will go to the polls Thursday amid tight security to decide the fate of 36 candidates. Kanker, Rajnandgaon and Mahasamund Lok Sabha seats will vote in the second phase of polling in the state where around 60,000 security personnel will be on duty. There are 36 candidates in the fray in these seats, but the main fight is likely to be between the ruling Congress and the main opposition BJP. "All preparations have been done for conducting elections in Mahasamund, Rajnandgaon and Kanker seats in the second phase in the state on April 18," said a functionary at the office of state's Chief Electoral Officer CEO). A large part of the Kanker Lok Sabha constituency is Naxal-affected where security forces are maintaining extra vigil to ensure peaceful polling, he said. Some pockets of Rajnandgaon and Mahasamund are also struggling with the Maoist menace. The Kanker Lok Sabha constituency has eight assembly .
India, Vietnam hold naval exercise
Navies of India and Vietnam held a four-day maritime exercise off Cam Ranh Bay in Vietnam from April 13 with an aim to boost operational cooperation. Indian Navy's war ships Kolkata and Shakti participated in the annual exercise, comprising a harbour and a sea phase, the Indian Navy said. "The exercise was undertaken as a part of the ongoing overseas deployment of eastern fleet ships to South East Asian countries," it said. India and Vietnam share a robust defence cooperation, especially in the area of maritime security. "Conduct of the bilateral exercise on an annual basis would give a further fillip to the existing strong bilateral relation between the two countries," the Navy said. Enhancing military ties was also a key element of talks during the visit of Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang to India in March last year. In 2016, during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Vietnam, the relations between the two countries were elevated to the level of Comprehensive Strategic .
Cong tried to defame India by Hindu terror bogey: Shah
BJP president Amit Shah on Wednesday lashed out at the Congress saying it has tried to defame the country across the world by raising the bogey of "Hindu terror". Shah also slammed the ruling BJD over corruption, and asserted that those involved in chit fund scam will be jailed within 90 days, if the party is voted to power in Odisha. Congress chief Rahul Gandhi is not capable of countering Pakistan-sponsored terrorism and the country can be safe only under Narendra Modi's leadership, he claimed. "Can Rahul baba protect India? He and his party have tried to defame the country across the world by raising the bogey of Hindu terror," Shah said. The term "Hindu terror" was used by Congress leaders after the Samjhauta Express explosion in 2007 and the Malegaon mosque blast the next year. Addressing election meetings in Odisha's Dhenkanal and Baramba, the BJP chief said many innocent sadhus had been jailed in the Samjhauta Express blast case as the Congress sought to raise the
Brave summer heat and vote, says CEO
Chief Electoral Officer Satyabrata Sahoo Wednesday urged voters in Tamil Nadu to brave the summer heat and cast their votes and that all arrangements have been made for free and fair conduct of the April 18 Lok Sabha polls. "Though it may turn out to be a hot day, I request all voters to cast their votes. The entire election machinery is ready to hold free, fair and peaceful elections tomorrow," the CEO said. Elections to 38 Lok Sabha seats and bypolls to 18 assembly constituencies will be held Thursday. On the DMK's charge that the poll panel was targetting only opposition parties, Sahoo said more than 4,400 FIRs have been filed till date for various irregularities and action was being taken in all these cases. "The IT department takes up raids based on various reports submitted by officials such as general observers, DEOs (District Electoral Officers), Income Tax, expenditure observers. Wherever we have received information, we have taken action impartially," he ...
"We have nothing to do with raids by tax sleuths," says AMMK
Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam leader Thanga Tamilselvan said Wednesday his party had nothing to do with the Rs 1.48 crore cash seized by tax officials and alleged it was a drama enacted by the ruling AIADMK. The AMMK's Theni Lok Sabha candidate Thanga Tamilselvan said, "People know it, this is a drama planned and enacted by the AIADMK." He told reporters his party had nothing to do with the searches by the income tax department and the seized money. Speaking to reporters at Andipatti, he said the building complex where the searches were held was owned by a local ruling party leader. "Will even a fool store the money in a place owned by an AIADMK office-bearer?" he asked. He alleged the "money was stored by the AIADMK men." The AMMK leader said his party functionary Jayaraman's office functioned from the ground floor. "This is a well planned conspiracy and in a bid to implicate us (AMMK) our party workers have been arrested," he said. After holding searches for hours that ..
Egypt schedules 3-day referendum on constitutional changes
Authorities on Wednesday scheduled three days of voting in a nationwide referendum starting Saturday on proposed changes to Egypt's constitution that could see President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi remain in power until 2030. Lasheen Ibrahim, chairman of the National Election Authority, said the vote will take place Saturday through Monday for voters in the country while Egyptian expatriates will vote Friday through Sunday, he said. The vote was designated for three days apparently to maximize the turnout. The announcement at a televised news conference in Cairo came less than 24 hours after the parliament, packed with el-Sissi's supporters, overwhelmingly approved the proposed changes that also set to further enshrine the military's role in politics. Ibrahim called on voters to line up at ballot boxes across the country to give their opinion about the constitutional amendments. "Great people of Egypt, the nation is calling upon you to continue to build democracy and give your opinion on ...
What else is expected of BJP: Cong on Sadhvi Pragya's candidature
The Congress on Wednesday took a dig at the BJP after it named Malegaon blast accused Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur as its Lok Sabha poll candidate from Bhopal, saying what else can be expected from the saffron party. Peoples Democratic Party leader Mehboob Mufti slammed the decision, which elicited enthusiastic reactions from Hindutva votaries and BJP leaders, saying had her party fielded a terror accused, then news channels would have gone berserk. "Imagine the anger if I fielded a terror accused. Channels would have gone berserk by now trending a mehboobaterrorist hashtag! According to these guys terror has no religion when it comes to saffron fanatics but otherwise all Muslims are terrorists. Guilty until proven innocent (sic)," she tweeted. In a terse reaction, senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said, "What else can we expect from the BJP." When asked further by reporters, Azad said it was the BJP's decision and he did not want to speak more, an indication of the Congress' ...
HC upholds cancellation of LS poll in Vellore seat by EC
The Madras High Court Wednesday upheld the Election Commission's decision cancelling the election in Tamil Nadu's Vellore Lok Sabha constituency. A bench of justices S Manikumar and Subramonium Prasad dismissed petitions filed by AIADMK-led alliance candidate in the constituency, A C Shanmugham, and an Independent, K Sugumar, seeking to set aside the order cancelling the election which was slated for Thursday. The EC had on Tuesday cancelled the polls in Vellore -- one of the 39 Lok Sabha constituencies in the state -- over allegations of excess use of money power. President Ram Nath Kovind had rescinded the notification to hold election to the seat based on an EC recommendation after "black money" worth Rs 11.53 crore, allegedly linked to DMK candidate Kathir Anand, was seized by the Income Tax Department on the intervening night of March 29-30. When the petitions were taken up for urgent hearing, the counsel for the EC submitted a report in a sealed cover to the court. Citing a ...
Congress has reinstated "goons" who misbehaved with me: Party spokeswoman
The Congress was left red-faced Wednesday after its spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi alleged that partymen, who had "misbehaved" and "threatened" her, were being let off. She lashed out at the party in public and accused it of giving preference to "lumpen goons" over those who had given their "sweat and blood" to the Congress. Chaturvedi, who is the Congress's communications department convener, said it is unfortunate and saddening that those who threatened her have got away without even "a rap on their knuckles". The Uttar Pradesh Congress had suspended some workers for misbehaving with Chaturvedi during a press conference in Mathura a few days ago. But, on Monday, the party issued a communication in which it rescinded all actions taken earlier against such workers who "misbehaved" with Chaturvedi in Mathura. "Deeply saddened that lumpen goons get preference in Congress over those who have given their sweat and blood. "Having faced brickbats and abuse across board for the party but ..
Mamata supports Kanimozhi, says Modi trying to threaten Opp
Trinamool Congress supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Wednesday came out in support of DNK leader Kanimozhi, whose residence was searched by central agencies. Banerjee accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of being a fascist, for unleashing a reign of fear and trying to threaten parties opposed to him. Kanimozhi is being harassed as DMK is opposed to BJP's divisive politics in south India, she told a poll rally at Kandi in Murshidabad district. Charging Modi with ruling the country by "unleashing a reign of fear", Banerjee said that the country has never seen a prime minister like Modi who is feared by everyone "instead of being loved and respected". "It is a shame that BJP is using central agencies against opposition leaders and parties to harass them. Yesterday the Income Tax(department) without any reason raided Kanimozhi's house. Just because DMK and its leader M K Stalin are opposed to Narendra Modi and BJP, they (DMK leaders) are being ...