Page 992 - Politics
Defiant Sudan protesters seek army talks
Sudanese protesters on Monday called on the army to hold talks on forming a transitional government, as thousands braved a deadly crackdown for a third day to urge the military to back them. The east African country has been rocked by more than three months of protests that erupted over a hike in bread prices before transforming into nationwide demonstrations against President Omar al-Bashir's iron-fisted 30-year rule. At the biggest rally so far, thousands of protesters have since Saturday been camped out around the army headquarters in Khartoum which also houses Bashir's residence and the defence ministry. They are calling on the military to protect them and to back calls for Bashir to resign. "When the army is here, we have no fear," protesters flashing victory signs chanted as military vehicles with soldiers fanned out around the complex, onlookers said. Riot police have fired tear gas at the protesters, but they have failed to dislodge them. Officials say 38 people have died in ..
EU asks Libya's strongman Haftar to halt Tripoli offensive
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini on Monday strongly urged Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar to halt his offensive on Tripoli and return to UN-sponsored talks to avoid a civil war. Dozens of people have been killed since Haftar, the strongman behind a rival administration in eastern Libya, launched an assault last Thursday on Tripoli, home to the UN- and EU-backed unity government. "I make a very strong appeal to Libyan leaders and in particular to Haftar to stop all military activities in this moment and to return to the negotiation table under UN auspices," Mogherini said after talks with EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg. Mogherini said the foreign ministers did not take any formal written conclusions on Libya but were united around a common interest. "There is a clear consensus on the call to stop immediately all military actions inside Libya being it from Libyans, or hopefully not or never from external actors." The EU has supported efforts by the UN-backed unity ...
BJP manifesto has strong nationalist vision: Jaitley
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday said that Narendra Modi government has made India the world's fastest-growing economy while hitting out at the Congress, saying BJP's election manifesto was not prepared with a "tukde-tukde" mindset.
'Schemes in Cong manifesto based on taxing middle class'
Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri Monday alleged that the Congress manifesto for the Lok Sabha elections makes no reference to the middle class and the schemes proposed by the party are based on taxing them. "One, there is no reference to the middle class in the Congress manifesto and after that, they want the middle classes to be taxed," he told reporters here. The minister of state for housing and urban affairs alleged that a Congress economists had stated that resources to implement the party schemes like increasing educational and health expenditure would come by taxing the middle class. On the other hand, the BJP's manifesto released Monday dwelt on making the country achieve rapid progress and help the middle class grow, Puri, who was here to campaign for the party, said. Puri claimed that the economy would be a USD 10 trillion economy by around 2030, with a massive reduction in poverty. He also said there was a fundamental difference between the Congress manifesto .
Cash, liquor & abusive substances worth more than Rs 3 crore
Nagaland Chief Electoral Officer, Abhijit Sinha Monday said cash, liquor and other abusive substances worth more than Rs 3 crore have been seized in the state after the model code of conduct came into effect. Election to the lone Lok Sabha seat in Nagaland and the byelection to the Aonglenden Assembly constituency will be held on April 11. Addressing media persons the CEO said till date unaccounted cash of Rs 92 lakh and all seizures amounting to Rs 3,03,33,284 have been seized. Sinha said campaigning for both the seats will come to an end at 4 pm on Tuesday, restricting all political public rallies and displaying election matter intended or calculated to influence or affect the result of an election by means of cinematograph, television or other similar apparatus. Any person who contravenes this provision shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both, he informed. The District Election Administration and Police
Poll campaigning to end in U'khand Tuesday
The campaigning for the Lok Sabha polls in Uttarakhand, which saw the BJP and the Congress's top brass, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and Rahul Gandhi addressing big rallies over the past fortnight, will come to an end Tuesday. As in the past general elections, this time again the Congress and the BJP are locked in straight contests in all the five Lok Sabha seats of the state, where political parties have thrown all their might into campaigning as it nears its end holding public meetings and roadshows to garner votes for themselves. The BJP, which had won all the five seats from the state in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, is claiming that it will retain all of them, but poll watchers opine intense campaigning by PCC president Pritam Singh, who is contesting from Tehri and AICC general secretary Harish Rawat, who is trying his luck from Nainital, have left the BJP worried. The BJP has renominated sitting MP from Tehri and daughter-in-law of the erstwhile Tehri royal ...
Ghaziabad: Ex-Army chief locked up against surging SP-BSP-RLD
The BJP is banking on issues of development and national security as it takes on the infallible SP-BSP-RLD combine in Ghaziabad, where a resurgent Congress in urban areas has made it a keen contest. Spread over Loni, Muradnagar, Sahibabad, Ghaziabad and Dhaulana assembly segments, the constituency has 27 lakh voters, up from the 23 lakh in 2014 when the Bharatiya Janata Party's V K Singh rode high on the "Modi wave" and won with a thumping majority. The former Army chief, who was labelled as an "outsider" because of his Haryana origin and still fighting that tag, had raked in 7.58 lakh votes, 56 per cent of the total votes polled. He alone had pulled nearly two lakh more votes than the 14 other candidates and NOTA combined. Among the 12 candidates in the fray are the Singh (67), Congress' Dolly Sharma (33), an MBA with political lineage; and the Samajwadi Party's Suresh Bansal (70), a former MLA backed by the Bahujan Samaj Party, Rashtriya Lok Dal and the Aam Aadmi Party. Prime ...
Deve Gowda roots for Naidu as PM; not aspiring for any post,
Dropping hints that Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu could possibly be the opposition choice for the Prime Minister's post to replace Narendra Modi, JDS supremo H D Deve Gowda Monday said the country was looking towards the TDP president's leadership. When the country was at such a critical juncture, Naidu has "accepted the challenge" and "why cannot he become the PM of the country," Deve Gowda asked. The JD (S) leader addressed two election rallies at Tiruvuru and Pamarru in Krishna district this evening in support of the Telugu Desam Party for the April 11 general elections in the State. The former prime minister started his address at the first rally in Tiruvuru referring to TDP chief Naidu as "honourable Prime Minister" and then corrected it to "would-be Prime Minister." Quick in his reaction, Naidu said, "I am not an aspirant for any post." Another anti-BJP ally, DMK chief M K Stalin had last month stuck to his Rahul Gandhi for PM pitch during an ...
PM promised to hike import duty on apples but did nothing: HP Cong
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised to increase the import duty on apples before the last Lok Sabha elections but he did nothing about it in the last five years, Himachal Congress president Kuldeep Singh Rathore alleged Monday. Accusing BJP governments at the Centre and the state of ignoring the apple growers' interests, Rathore said Modi had made the promise while addressing a rally in Solan five years ago. The prime minister had promised to increase the import duty on apples to benefit the apple growers of Himachal Pradesh but his government opened ports instead to import apples, he alleged. The import of apples in large quantity reduced the rates of domestic apples, adversely affecting the apple growers in the state, he said. Talking to mediapersons, Rathore also accused Jai Ram Thakur-led BJP government of withdrawing an ambitious Rs 1,134 crore World Bank-funded project, launched by previous Congress government in 2016 to enhance the income of apple growers. "The apple ...
BJP minority morch prez agrees with UP CM's virus comment
Coming out in support of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's'Virus' comment against the Indian Union Muslim League, BJP Minority Morcha national president Abdul Rasheed Ansari Monday said "things which are not good for the nation can be called a virus". Adityanath had tweeted that the IUML is a virus and the Congress was affected by it. "Muslim League is a virus. If someone is affected by this virus, he cannot survive and today the main Opposition party Congress is affected by it. Think, if they win what will happen? This virus will spread in the entire nation," Adityanath had tweeted. He had also brought in the 1857 movement for freedom and its hero Mangal Pandey. "In 1857, the entire country fought against Britishers with Mangal Pandey, then this Muslim League virus came and spread in such a way that the country was divided," he said. "The same threat is looming over the country again. Green flags are once again furled. Congress is suffering from Muslim ...
Zarif calls for US forces to be put on Iran 'terror' list
Iran's top diplomat Mohammad Javad Zarif on Monday urged President Hassan Rouhani to place US forces in the region on Tehran's list of "terrorist" groups, the foreign ministry said. The foreign minister requested the move against US Central Command (CENTCOM), which has forces stationed from Central Asia to Egypt, shortly after Washington announced it was designating Iran's Revolutionary Guards a terrorist organisation.
Black money, jobs missing from BJP's 'jhansa patra': Congress
Tearing into the BJP's election manifesto for the Lok Sabha polls, the Congress on Monday dubbed it a "jhansa patra" (document of deceit) and said important issues like jobs, GST, black money and demonetisation are missing from the whole announcement exercise.
I-T searches on premises of MP CM's aides continue on Monday
The Income Tax Department's searches against close aides of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath and others continued on the second day Monday, officials said. Sources said the searches continued Monday at the premises of Nath's former Officer on Special Duty (OSD) Pravin Kakkad in Indore and Bhopal, besides those of his aide Ashwani Sharma. According to eyewitnesses, a cash van was seen coming out of Sharma's residence, in Platinum Plaza Apartment in New Market area of Bhopal, in the evening under the protection of Central Reserve Police Force personnel. Instead of local police, CRPF personnel were guarding the premises where the raids were conducted in Madhya Pradesh. Income Tax Department sources said the search of bank lockers and other assets continued Monday at Indore. Sources said a woman from the Kakkad household was taken to the bank by officials, while his son was taken to the family's office. Kakkad, a former Madhya Pradesh police officer, was appointed OSD to Nath ...
Aspirations of Delhiites will be fulfilled: Manoj Tiwari on BJP manifesto
The aspirations of the people in the national capital will be fulfilled and traders of the city will be benefitted by the BJP poll manifesto which was released Monday, the party's Delhi unit chief Manoj Tiwari said. Eyeing another stint in power, the BJP on Monday made a string of promises, including expeditious construction of a Ram temple, a firm hand in dealing with terrorism and doubling farmers income in the next three years and making India the third-largest economy globally by 2030. Tiwari highlighted his party's poll promises for traders who have been hit by the sealing drive undertaken by BJP-run civic bodies in the national capital under the guidance of a Supreme Court-mandated monitoring committee. "All the small GST-registered traders will get accident insurance of Rs 10 lakh. Traders Credit Card would be brought in for registered traders like the Kisan Credit Card for farmers," he said. He also mentioned BJP's promise of pension to small traders and a national trade ...
NIA questions Mirwaiz; asked to appear again tomorrow; Geelani's son asked to join probe
The NIA Monday questioned Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umer Farooq for nearly eight hours in connection with a case related to funding of terror groups and separatist organisations in Jammu and Kashmir, officials said here. He was asked to appear before the agency again Tuesday, the officials said, adding Naseem Geelani, son of pro-Pakistan separatist Syed Ali Shah Geelani, was also summoned on Tuesday. After avoiding the first two summons, the Mirwaiz finally appeared before the National Investigation Agency (NIA) after he was assured of being provided security upon his arrival in the national capital. The Mirwaiz was accompanied by other separatist leaders, including Abdul Gani Bhat, Bilal Lone and Maulana Abbas Ansari. During the questioning, the Mirwaiz was asked several questions related to the funding of his party Awami Action Committee as well as Hurriyat Conference, the officials said, adding that the replies were not satisfactory. He had been asked to appear before ...
12 candidates vie for 2 LS seats in Goa
Six candidates each remain in the fray for Goa's two parliamentary constituencies while 16 candidates will battle it out for three state Assembly by-elections to be held along with the Lok Sabha polls on April 23.
Vice Adm Verma moves tribunal after being overlooked for Navy Chief's post
Vice Admiral Bimal Verma on Monday moved the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) questioning why he was overlooked as the next Navy chief despite being the senior-most in the line of command, official sources said Monday. In a petition to the AFT here, Verma, Commander-in-Chief of the Andaman and Nicobar Command, sought to know why the government ignored his seniority and appoint Vice Admiral Karambir Singh as the next Navy chief. His petition is likely to be taken up Tuesday. The government last month named Vice Admiral Karambir Singh as next chief of the naval staff, succeeding Admiral Sunil Lanba who retires on May 30. The government made the selection following a merit-based approach and did not go with the tradition of appointing the senior-most eligible officer to the post. Vice Admiral Verma is senior to Singh and was among the contenders for the top post. While appointing the Army Chief in 2016, the government did not follow the long-held tradition of going by the seniority. Rawat was
BJP releases manifesto; Modi says nationalism our inspiration
Pitching nationalism as its inspiration, the BJP manifesto for the high-stakes Lok Sabha polls promised Monday NRC in different parts of the country to push out infiltrators and zero tolerance to terror while reiterating its pet causes --construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya and scrapping of Article 370, 35A dealing with special status to Jammu and Kashmir. Releasing the manifesto, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party president Amit Shah along with senior union ministers also promised slew of welfare schemes for farmers and others, a Rs 100 lakh crore infrastructure investment and easing of the tax burden for the middle class in next five years. "Nationalism is our inspiration, empowering the poor is our philosophy and good governance is our mantra", Modi said, asserting that a BJP government will lay a strong foundation for a developed India by 2047, when India completes 100 years of independence. Announcing 75 milestones for India to achieve at its 75 years of freedom in 2022, the
Rajnath's outreach to Muslims: BJP doesn't discriminate against anyone on basis of religion
In an apparent attempt to reach out to Muslims in the country, Home Minister Rajnath Singh Monday said the BJP does not discriminate against anyone on the basis of religion. Singh made the remark days ahead of the first phase of the Lok Sabha polls on April 11 when several Muslim dominated constituencies in the western Uttar Pradesh besides those in Jammu and Kashmir and West Bengal go to polls. "We do not discriminate against anyone on the basis of (one being a) Hindu or Muslim. For us, all Indian citizens are equal," he said, addressing an election rally here. The home minister also said the NDA government's policy has been for 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas (Collective Efforts and Inclusive Growth)' and it wants to take along people of all religion in the development process. Singh also said Kashmiris living anywhere in the country will be given full protection by the government as well as the BJP. He said advisories have been sent to all state governments to provide security to ...
Sulking ex-Cong MP Kaypee meets Pb CM Amarinder Singh over candidature
Senior Congress leader Mohinder Singh Kaypee, who was sulking over being denied ticket, met Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh here on Monday and sought a review of the party's decision regarding the candidature from Jalandhar seat. The miffed Congress leader had had threatened to contest in Jalandhar as Independent and claimed that he was being given feelers by the BJP. Kaypee's meeting with Amarinder Singh on Monday was held amid efforts being made by Congress leaders to mollify him. In the meeting, he was accompanied by cabinet minister Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa and MLA Raj Kumar Verka. "I have met CM Amarinder Singh this evening... I have sought review of the decision of allotting ticket to Chaudhary Santokh Singh," Kaypee said, adding he was asked to meet Congress' in-charge of Punjab affairs Asha Kumari on Tuesday. Over the past couple of days, senior Congress leaders from Punjab, including state minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and Raj Kumar Verka had met Kaypee ...