Page 2723 - Politics
Chinese troops briefly came to Indian side in Dibang Valley in Arunachal
A group of Chinese Army personnel briefly came to the Indian side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Arunachal Pradesh's Dibang Valley in July but returned after Indian security personnel objected to it, official sources said. They said it was "not a transgression" and that the Chinese army personnel came to the Indian side due to varying perception of the Line of Actual Control -the de facto border between the two countries. The sources said the incident took place around July 25. A source in Itanagar said Lok Sabha MP from Arunachal Ninong Ering wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the incident, quoting media reports and inputs given by locals in Dibang valley. In the letter, he suggested that the government should take up the issue of "Chinese transgressions" in Arunachal Pradesh with Beijing. A group of Chinese Army personnel intruded around 300 metres into the Demchok area in eastern Ladakh and pitched four tents in the area in July. They came to the Indian ...
Pro-opposition Bangladesh rights activist accused of 'treason' by military faces police probe
Bangladesh on Monday ordered police to investigate charges against a leading pro-Opposition rights activist accused of "treason" by the military for his "motivated and completely untrue" comments regarding the country's army chief. "Dr Jafarullah Chowdhury has been accused of treason....the Detective Branch (of police) has been entrusted with the task of investigating the case," Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) additional commissioner Abdul Baten said. The treason charge against 75-year-old Chowdhury, a doctor and founder of non-government Ganashasthya hospital and medical college, was brought after the army overnight filed a general diary case against him, days after his comments on a TV talk show. "The general diary was converted into a treason case on Sunday following approval of the Home Ministry," Baten said. Chowdhury in his comments on October 9 had alleged Army Chief General Aziz Ahmed had earlier faced a court martial as a huge quantum of military weapons went missing, or were
Kejriwal challenges Centre to show him Rafale deal file
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Monday challenged the BJP-ruled Centre to show him the file of the Rafale deal, in return of his government's 400 files checked by a central committee. "I just need to be shown four files, including the one on the Rafale deal, for four days. I will send (them) to jail for life," the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief said at the launch of his party's donation campaign here. He also attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over alleged corruption, while claiming that the AAP's rule in the national capital was "the most honest" in the country in the last 70 years. Asking his "honest" party workers and people to face both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress supporters with confidence, Kejriwal took a jibe at Modi, saying the chests of the people of Delhi puffed up to 60 inches, and not merely 56 inches, as they were filled with pride. He also said had the AAP attempted dishonest means to get money, it could have amassed Rs 2,000 crore by demanding ...
Dealers in national capital to shut petrol pumps on Oct 22
Delhi Petrol Dealers Association (DPDA) Monday said all 400-odd petrol pumps in the national capital will remain closed on October 22 in protest against the Delhi government's refusal to cut VAT on petrol and diesel. "There are about 400 petrol pumps in Delhi which also have linked CNG pumps with them. Both will remain closed in protest from 6.00 am onwards on October 22 and remain closed till 5.00 am on October 23, 2018," the association said in a statement here. It said the Union government on October 4 slashed the petrol and diesel price by Rs 2.50 by reducing excise duty and asking state-owned oil firms to bear subsidy. This was matched by several states which reduced local sales tax or VAT. Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, which border the national capital, have reduced VAT, the association said. "But Delhi government refused to reduce VAT on fuel both petrol and diesel resulting in fuel becoming more expensive than bordering Haryana and Uttar Pradesh." In comparison to Delhi, petrol ..
Cong leaders become Hindu only during elections: Javadekar on Tharoor
Union Minister for Human Resource Development, Prakash Javadekar on Monday criticised Congress Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor for his remark on Ram Temple and said, latter's statement ascertains that Congress leaders become Hindu only during elections.Javadekar told ANI, "I was astonished to listen to Shashi Tharoor when he said that a true Hindu cannot wish for construction of Ram Temple at Ram Janmabhoomi. This absurd thinking can be part of Shashi Tharoor or Rahul Gandhi's thought but it is not the view of the country.""This is a matter of country's faith. I believe this is not only a religious issue but whole of the country really wishes that Ram Temple must be constructed at Ram Janmabhoomi. This shows how cut off they are from reality and how they only become Hindu during elections," he added.He further underscored the Bharatiya Janata Party's stand on this issue and said, "The fight to construct temple is not new. It is going on for 500 years since the temple was ...
Cong distances itself from Tharoor's remarks on Ram Temple
The Congress on Monday distanced itself from its leader Shashi Tharoor's remarks that no good Hindu would want the Ram Temple in Ayodhya by destroying somebody else's place of worship, saying he made them in his "personal capacity". Congress spokesperson R P N Singh said the party believes that the verdict of the Supreme Court on the Ram temple issue will be binding on everyone and the government will have to implement it. Tharoor has kicked up a row by saying that no "good" Hindu would favour a Ram temple in Ayodhya by demolishing somebody else's place of worship. His remarks drew stinging criticism from the BJP which dubbed his party and its chief Rahul Gandhi "anti-Hindu". Asked about Tharoor's remarks, Singh told reporters, "I have not heard his statement. He has clarified that whatever he said has said that in his personal capacity. "As far as the issue is concerned, we have a clearly stated position. We have stated that this issue is in court and the court will be hearing this ..
Former UP Congress leader Mani Shankar Pandey joins LJP
Former Congress leader from Uttar Pradesh Mani Shankar Pandey on Monday joined the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), and said the grand-old party has disregarded its workers in the state.
Trump dispatches Pompeo to Riyadh as Saudi King denies knowledge on missing journalist
Donald Trump Monday spoke with the Saudi King Salman over missing journalist Jamal Khashoggi and "immediately" dispatched his top diplomat to Riyadh to discuss the issue with the monarch who denied having any knowledge about the dissident who, the US president believes, could have been a victim of "rogue killers." "I just spoke to the king of Saudi Arabia who denies any knowledge of what took place with regard to, as he said, his Saudi Arabian citizen. I've asked, and he firmly denied that," Trump told reporters at the White House after talking with Salman over phone. Trump said he has asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to immediately get on a plane, go to Saudi Arabia, go to other places if necessary, which he probably will, but with regards to this, go to Turkey if necessary. Khashoggi, a 60-year-old Saudi journalist who became increasingly critical of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has not been seen since he walked into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2 to receive .
Reduction in inequalities will create peaceful society: Vice President
Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Monday said that reduction in inequalities will bring peace and harmony to mankind, which finds itself in a state of violence currently.
LJP chief Paswan appoints former Cong leader as his party's UP president
Union minister and Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) president Ram Vilas Paswan Monday appointed Manishankar Pandey, who had quit the Congress recently, as his party's Uttar Pradesh president. Welcoming Pandey, who also joined the LJP Monday, Paswan said his presence would strengthen his party in the politically most important state as it always "drew" support from different sections of society but could not build on it due to lack of a face. Pandey, a former MLC who said he has been in the Congress for over 45 years, also lashed out at the main opposition party's leadership, saying it had destroyed the organisation in the state as it was only interested in allying with regional parties to come to power at the Centre.
PM should clarify if he backs women journalists or defamation suit filed by Akbar: Cong
The Congress Monday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to clarify whether he stands with the women journalists who have accused M J Akbar of sexual harassment or he backs the defamation case filed by the Union minister. Congress spokesperson R P N Singh said it is "extremely unfortunate" that the prime minister is silent as it is his duty to stand up for the rights of the women of the country and speak up and clarify his stand on the issue. "We want to ask the prime minister as to what are his thoughts on this issue and what he has to say on the affected women. We ask the prime minister today, that he has to speak up. Where does he stand on these matters?," he asked. "We would like to ask the prime minister on which side does he stand? These are 14 women who have come out and with the harrowing experiences that they have gone through," he said. Singh said the women, who have alleged that they were sexually harassed by Akbar, are not connected to each other and extended full sympathy ..
Govt trying to resolve agitating teachers' problems: Amarinder
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh Monday blamed the fiscal crisis "inherited" by his government from the previous SAD-BJP regime for his inability in resolving the problems of agitating teachers and other ad hoc employees in the state. Amarinder said he had full sympathies with the teachers, but his hands were tied on account of the fiscal crisis "inherited by my government from the erstwhile SAD-BJP government." He said he was looking into the problems of the agitating teachers and other ad hoc employees and his government was trying its best to resolve them. He would try to resolve the problem by the winter session of the assembly, the chief minister said without elaborating. Reiterating his government's earlier offer to ad hoc teachers, as decided by his Cabinet, the chief minister said, "They have the option to either continue working on ad-hoc basis for the time being, in view of the financial crunch faced by the state government, or join at a basic pay." He said the ...
President, PM pay tributes to Kalam
President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi were among the dignitaries who paid tributes to former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam on his 87th birth anniversary on Monday.
North Korea is coming along very well: Trump
North Korea is coming along very well when it comes to its commitment to denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, US President Donald Trump said Monday, as he praised his administration for doing things in three or four months that nobody has done in 70 years. Trump and North Korea leader Kim Jong Un held a historic first summit in Singapore on June 12 at which Kim pledged to work toward denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula. His actions have fallen short, however, of Washington's demands for a complete inventory of its weapons and facilities and irreversible steps to give up its nuclear arsenal, which could threaten the United States. Still, Trump was upbeat on progress so far. "North Korea is coming along very well...I think a lot of good things will happen. It's complicated. You know we've done things in three or four months that nobody's done in 70 years," Trump told reporters at the White House before he left for Florida.
Uttarakhand civic polls to be majorly held via ballot papers
The upcoming municipal body elections in Uttarakhand will be held through ballot papers in 84 out of 92 municipal bodies on November 18.Thereby candidates can file nomination from their respective seats between October 20 and October 23. The results for the same will be announced on November 20.This comes after the Congress party over a month ago made an appeal to the Election Commission of India to bring back ballot papers for the 2019 general elections.Earlier in March, the Congress had asked the EC to allow voters to exercise their franchise by stamping the ballot paper in the 2019 elections, alleging tampering of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
India, China starts training Afghan diplomats
India, China have joined hands and launched a joint programme to train Afghan diplomats.A statement from External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj read out on Monday asserted that New Delhi is committed to partner with Kabul in its efforts to emerge a united, peaceful, secure, stable, inclusive and economically vibrant nation.At the inaugural event for training of Afghan diplomats at the Foreign Services Institute as part of joint programme with China, Swaraj said: "Guided by the vision of 'Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas', the Indian Government has embarked on an ambitious development partnership programme with commitment of over USD 3 billion. This has four broad pillars: building infrastructure; developing human resource; enhancing connectivity; and promoting trade and investment links. India-Afghanistan Friendship dam in Herat, Parliament building in Kabul, operationalisation of Chabahar port are prominent symbols of this partnership."Talking about India's New Development Partnership with ..
For third time, Meghalaya court defers verdict on ex-Bangladesh Minister
A lower court in Meghalaya on Monday deferred its verdict, for the third time, on former Bangladesh Minister Salahuddin Ahmed who was arrested three years ago for trespassing into India.
Merkel wants to regain voters' trust after Bavarian poll setback
German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday said she wanted to work towards regaining the lost trust of the electorate after her political allies lost their absolute majority in Bavaria's regional parliamentary elections.
Ride & read: 'Library on Wheels' starts on 2 inter-city trains
Commuters travelling in the coaches of monthly season ticket holders of two popular inter- city express trains can now borrow books free of cost from libraries set up on-board and return them before alighting. 'Library on Wheels', an initiative of the Central Railway (CR), was inaugurated Monday on Mumbai-Pune Deccan Queen and Mumbai-Manmad Panchvati Express trains, which run daily, an official said. The library was inaugurated on the occasion of the birth anniversary of former President A P J Abdul Kalam, which is also observed as "Vachan Prerna Din" (Inspire to Read Day). The expenditure of the "Library on Wheels" will be borne by the Rajya Marathi Vikas Sanstha, a body under the administrative control of the Maharashtra government, said CR chief spokesperson Sunil Udasi. The sanstha will depute one volunteer each on the trains who will distribute books among the season ticket holders free of cost and collect them before their alight at their final destination, he ...
TRS plan to write letters to voters on welfare schemes
The ruling TRS in Telangana is mulling a proposal to reach out to voters through letters by its president and caretaker Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, highlighting welfare schemes being implemented in the state. The party is considering whether to write the letters to people in general or the beneficiaries of welfare schemes, TRS sources said. The proposal, however, has not taken final shape, they said. The assembly elections will be held in Telangana on December 7. The party is confident that the schemes, including the 'Rythu Bandhu' investment support scheme for farmers, have benefited the people on a massive scale. The proposed letters are expected to talk about the impact of schemes on poverty alleviation, the sources said. They also said the TRS manifesto committee would meet Tuesday at the party headquarters here. The meeting would be attended by Rao. TRS feels its promises for the the polls should be taken to the people as its candidates are already ...