The Air India Express Employees Union (AIXEU) has termed the alleged issuance of charge-sheet by the airline's management to around 200-odd cabin crew members for reporting sick during last month's strike as unfortunate and unfair labour practice. In a letter to Air India Express chief Alok Singh on Sunday, the Union also warned the Tata Group-run airline's management that such actions could be detrimental to the interests of the company and its passengers. According to Union sources, the charge-sheet was issued to around 200 cabin crew members on June 5, with a deadline of 72 hours to file a response. Around 200 cabin crew members of Air India Express went on strike on May 7, to protest against the alleged mismanagement in the airline, resulting in cancellation of hundreds of flights. Consequently, the airline management terminated the services of 25 cabin crew members and warned the others to join work or else face the same action. Three days later, the strike was called off aft
From being an RSS worker once to being hand-picked as chief minister in 2014 to being replaced with his confidante ten years later, 70-year-old Manohar Lal Khattar has seen it all. He joined the Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh as a permanent member in 1977 and stayed with it for 17 years before he was made a member of the BJP in 1994. In 2014, he became the MLA for the first time and was tapped to become the chief minister of Haryana by the BJP. Ten years later, in March 2024, he was replaced by his confidante Nayab Singh Saini, to allow him a chance to become a Member of Parliament. Contesting his first Lok Sabha polls from Karnal, Khattar defeated Congress's Divyanshu Budhiraja by an impressive margin of over 2.35 lakh votes. According to some accounts, Khattar is considered close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who he worked with in the 1990s in party organisation. Khattar, a bachelor, worked for almost 40 years as an RSS pracharak. In 1996, Khattar started working with Modi, wh
A die-hard RSS loyalist and long-time BJP worker, Pralhad Joshi is a fifth time member of Parliament from the saffron party's bastion of Dharwad in Karnataka. Said to be close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP leader Amit Shah, he held portfolios of Coal, Mines and Parliamentary Affairs in the previous Cabinet. As Parliamentary Affairs Minister, he played a key role in the functioning of both the Houses and in the passing of many crucial bills of national importance, during the 17th Lok Sabha. He spearheaded a series of initiatives and policy interventions which led to "unlocking the true potential" of the Coal & Mining sector towards self-reliance, a senior BJP leader said. Joshi, who had also served as BJP Karnataka president, came to the limelight as 'Rastradwaja Horata Samiti Sanchalak', when the party organised a movement to hoist the tricolour at Idgah Maidan in Hubballi that had created a huge law and order situation, and also "Save Kashmir Movement" in early ...
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Thursday hit out at senior BJP leader and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, calling him the "villain" in Maharashtra politics, and accused him of destroying many families and resorting to political vendetta. Raut's remarks come a day after Fadnavis offered to step down from post of deputy CM after the BJP's Lok Sabha seat tally in the state came down from 23 to 9, and said he wants to work "full time" for the party ahead of the assembly elections due later this year. Raut also asserted that if Narendra Modi tries to become the prime minister for the third time "forcibly", his government will not last and that the RSS was working to look for an alternative. Talking to reporters in Delhi, the Rajya Sabha member said, "If there is any villain in Maharashtra politics, then it is Devendra Fadnavis. The BJP's drubbing in the Lok Sabha polls is due to Devendra Fadnavis." "Fadnavis has destroyed many families and resorted to politica
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday said the ongoing Lok Sabha election is aimed at saving the country's Constitution, which he claimed the BJP and RSS want to change. Addressing a public meeting at Jobat town in Alirajpur district under the Ratlam-Jhabua Lok Sabha seat in Madhya Pradesh, Gandhi also said the Congress government will ensure the 50 per cent cap on reservation is removed in the interest of the people. The former Congress president again batted for a caste census, claiming it will reveal everything about the status of people and change the direction of politics in the country. "This election is being held to save the country's Constitution. The BJP, RSS want to change it, but the Congress and the (opposition) INDIA alliance are trying to save it," Gandhi said. He said the BJP gave the slogan of "400 paar" (aiming to win more than 400 Lok Sabha seats) with an intention to change the Constitution. "Leave alone 400 seats, the BJP will not get more than 150 seats this
A court in Thane in Maharashtra on Saturday posted the hearing in the defamation case filed against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to June 29. When the matter came up for hearing during the day in the magistrate's court in Bhiwandi, an adjournment was sought on the ground that a writ petition filed by the applicant was pending in the High Court and no order had been delivered on it as yet, Gandhi's counsel advocate Narayan Iyer told PTI. After hearing both parties, the magistrate posted the matter for hearing on June 29, Iyer said. The defamation case was filed by local RSS member Rajesh Kunte claiming Gandhi in a speech had linked the organisation to the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday launched the second phase of his Lok sabha poll campaign here by attacking the ruling BJP and RSS saying India did not get the freedom from the British only to be colonised by the ideology of the Sangh Parivar. He said the BJP and Prime Minister Modi see only one nation, one language and one leader and this is a fundamental misunderstanding of our country. While addressing party workers and voters in this high range constituency as part of the campaign, the Wayanad MP also exuded confidence that the grand-old party would come back to power both in the state and at the Centre. India is like a bouquet of flowers and each one has to be respected because it promotes the beauty of the entire bouquet, the Wayanad MP said. "This idea that India should have only one leader is an insult to every single young Indian," he said. Citing the example of language, he said it is not something that can be imposed from the top and that it comes out from inside
Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday hit back at the BJP leadership, alleging that their "ideological ancestors" supported the British and the Muslim League against Indians in the freedom struggle. Kharge's reaction came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi attacked the Congress, charging that its poll manifesto bore the imprint of the Muslim League and utterances of its leaders showed hostility towards national integrity and Sanatan Dharma. In a post on X, Kharge said, "Modi-Shah's political and ideological ancestors supported the British and the Muslim League against the Indians in the freedom struggle." "Even today, they are invoking the Muslim League against the 'Congress Nyay Patra', guided and shaped according to the aspirations, needs and demands of common Indians," he added. BJP chief JP Nadda had also accused the Congress of appeasement in its manifesto and asked the party to explain why it was against the majority. In his post, Kharge alleged, "Modi-Shah's ideologic
Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge on Saturday claimed the BJP, according to an internal survey of the RSS, will not win even 200 seats in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls and won't cross even eight seats in the state. Accusing Union Home Minister Amit Shah of "lying", for his recent statement alleging delay on the part of the state government in submission of a proposal to the Centre seeking drought relief, he said Shah should have been the "Minister of misinformation". "RSS' internal survey says they (BJP) won't get even 200 seats. RSS is saying it. In the state, they won't cross even eight seats. How will they win, in fourteen to fifteen seats there is internal fighting (in BJP)," Kharge claimed. Speaking to reporters here, he said several senior BJP leaders are even speaking about the need to cleanse the party. "They (some BJP leaders) are saying that the BJP (in the state) is polluted because of one family. They are saying they want to reinstall the original BJP. Are we (Congres
Congress veteran P Chidambaram on Monday took a dig at External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar over the Katchatheevu island row
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has written to the Election Commission and police seeking action against a man who it said was maligning the name of the organisation. In a letter written on Friday, the secretary of RSS Nagpur Mahanagar said local resident Janardhan Moon had organised a press conference here in which he made an "absolutely false" claim that the organisation was supporting the Congress in the Lok Sabha polls. Moon had earlier tried to register a "sanstha" by the name 'RSS' but this was rejected by the assistant registrar of societies and his petitions challenging this rejection had been dismissed by the Bombay High Court, the letter said. It sought action against Moon for personation, cheating by personation, spreading rumours to create enmity and other offences and also wanted a directive to Youtube to delete a video of the press conference in which he is making such claims. "Janardhan Moon has no registered sanstha as RSS but only with a view to mislead he is ...
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on Wednesday said that a change in the demeanour of people should not happen because of police or ED raids, but should happen from the heart and with a conscience. He was speaking at the 101st anniversary event of Lokmanya Seva Sangh, a Mumbai-based organisation set up to build a socially vigilant, disciplined, cultured and progressive society. "Organisations should pick various subjects to ensure social transformation. I have listed a few of them. Change in demeanour can also happen because of police standing (in the street) or to avoid ED (Enforcement Directorate) raid. We don't want that. It (change in behaviour) should be from the mind, Bhagwat said. The transformation should happen in the mind, and the intellect should accept it, Bhagwat said. It should happen not because someone else doing it, but should happen with a conscience. I feel it is the responsibility of every institution to introduce such reforms in the society," he said. Bhagwat said an ..
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale on Sunday said the electoral bonds is an "experiment" and time will tell how beneficial and effective it has been. The RSS Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha (ABPS) on Sunday re-elected Dattatreya Hosabale for the post of 'Sarkaryavah' (general secretary) for three years. The Election Commission on Thursday released the electoral bonds data, with a number of billionaire tycoons and lesser-known entities being among the buyers. From steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal to billionaire Sunil Bharti Mittal's Airtel, Anil Agarwal's Vedanta, ITC, Mahindra and Mahindra, and lesser-known Future Gaming and Hotel Services were among the prominent buyers of the now-scrapped electoral bonds for making political donations. Asked about concerns being raised on the electoral bonds issue and claims that they were purchased to get favours, Hosabale said the Sangh has not yet discussed about it as the electoral bonds is an "experiment". "It ...
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has alleged that ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, attempts "to spread anarchy under the pretext of farmers' agitation have been restarted", and said "separatist terrorism" has raised its "ugly head" through it in Punjab. It also said the "atrocities committed against hundreds of mothers and sisters" at Sandeshkhali in West Bengal has shaken the conscience of the entire society. The Sangh also raised concerns over the ethnic conflict in Manipur, saying it created "mistrust" between the two sections of the society- Meitei and Kuki that caused "deep wounds". The RSS, the ideological fountainhead of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), made these remarks in its annual report 2023-24 presented by its general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale at the Sangh's annual 'Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha' conclave that started in Nagpur on Friday. The report's concluding part titled 'National Scene' talked about various incidents and developments in the ..
The RSS will complete the centenary of its founding on Vijayadashami in 2025, which will fall on October 2
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi visited the Swaraj Ashram in Surat on Sunday and paid tributes to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel during the last leg of his 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' in Gujarat. After covering seven districts of Gujarat in four days, the yatra ended in the state and it will resume from Maharashtra's Nandurbar district on Tuesday after a one-day pause, senior leader Jairam Ramesh told reporters here. Gandhi visited the Swaraj Ashram at Bardoli in Surat district and offered tributes to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. "For a few minutes, he went to the Swaraj Nivas which was set up by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in 1922. It was a moment of inspiration for the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra amid injustice being meted out to farmers from different states gathered at Delhi-Haryana border," Ramesh said. Gandhi later left for New Delhi from Vyara in Tapi district after completing the Gujarat leg of the yatra, a mass outreach programme ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, covering more than 400 kilometres in
Six contestants of the Miss World 2024 beauty pageant along with Julia Morley, chairman and CEO of the Miss World Organization, visited the memorial of Dr K B Hedgewar at Reshimbagh here and paid tributes to the RSS founder, its functionary said. They visited the Dr Hedgewar Smruti Mandir on Thursday, where they also paid tributes to the second chief of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) M S Golwalkar. The Instagram account of Miss World posted the pictures of six Miss World contestants visiting Dr Hedgewar Smruti Mandir to pay respects to him and learn about the humanitarian activities of the RSS. The post said it was an "inspiring experience" for the contestants and a "nice exchange of ideas".
Sandeshkhali has hit the headlines after a section of women there accused TMC leader Sheikh Shahjahan's aides of sexual harassment
Indira Gandhi targeting the RSS during the Emergency, Rajiv deciding to give up the mandate in 1989, and Vajpayee and Advani advancing elections - these errors changed the course of India's politics