Politics

Rajkot, January 24: Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) today launched a door-to-door campaign in Gujarat which it said was aimed at countering the “false” propaganda against the Nagpur-headquartered organisation.

Some people are trying to defame the Sangh by linking it to anti-national activities and terrorism. The campaign will highlight the Sangh’s pro-national activities and expose its opponents “false” claims, RSS region leader Jayanti Bhadeshiya said here.

Jammu/Pathankot, January 25: In a day of high drama, three top BJP leaders were prevented from leaving Jammu airport and later arrested to thwart the party’s controversial flag-hoisting in Srinagar on Jan 26. Even as the BJP dug in its heels, its top ally, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar expressed open disapproval of the move.

Allahabad, January 25:Stepping up its offensive against the ruling BSP in Uttar Pradesh, Congress activists today took out a procession here in protest against the “deteriorating law and order situation”.

The protest, led by UPCC president Rita Bahuguna Joshi, began at the busy Civil Lines crossing in the city where the Congress workers raised slogans against “lawlessness prevailing under BSP rule in Uttar Pradesh” and smeared a poster of Chief Minister Mayawati with black colour.

New Delhi, January 24: Controversial Central Vigilance Commissioner P J Thomas on Monday told the Supreme Court that the corruption charges levelled against him to question his appointment as CVC was a fall out of a political battle in Kerala and that he was a person of “high integrity”.

He also contended that there was no violation of any norms in his appointment as the CVC and that he had no role in the controversial allocation of 2G spectrum in 2008.

New Delhi, January 24: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) senior leader L.K. Advani Monday night spoke to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to complain about BJP leaders not being allowed to leave Jammu airport to address meetings in connection with the party’s Ekta Yatra.

BJP sources said Advani spoke to prime minister to register his protest over the way authorities in Jammu prevented Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley, both Leaders of Opposition in two Houses of Parliament, from leaving Jammu airport.

Lucknow, January 24: Actress-turned-Rajya Sabha member Jaya Bachchan is in the dock for allegedly giving a false affidavit about the properties she and her megastar husband Amitabh Bachchan owned. A court here has summoned her for allegedly concealing facts.

Lucknow District Judge Shivanand Misra Monday issued notice to her to explain why she should not be criminally prosecuted for concealing certain properties owned by her husband in the affidavit she filed with her nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha membership.

Jammu, January 24: Senior BJP leaders Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley and Ananth Kumar were Monday night taken into custody by Jammu and Kashmir Police from the airport here to thwart their planned flag-hoisting at Srinagar on Jan 26, police said.

The three were whisked away to an undisclosed location.

They had earlier landed at Jammu airport to participate in the BJP youth wing’s ‘Ekta Yatra’ to hoist the national flag in Srinagar on Republic Day.

The BJP leaders were prevented from leaving the airport and they squatted on the tarmac.

Bangalore, January 24: Stepping up his attack on Governor HR Bhardwaj for his sanction to prosecute him, Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa Monday firmly demanded that he should be recalled and said the BJP was contemplating filing a defamation case against him for his outbursts against the government.

Leveling a fresh charge against the Governor, Yeddyurapa said, “We have information that all the petitions submitted to him against the government were drafted in Raj Bhavan.”

New Delhi/Jammu, January 24: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Monday vowed to press ahead with plans to hoist the national flag in the heart of Srinagar even after its leaders Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj were barred from leaving the Jammu airport, forcing them to squat on the tarmac.

Tension gripped the Jammu airport area following the move, bringing in hundreds of BJP activists and many leaders in the state to the main gates of the heavily guarded complex. Authorities hurriedly shut its gates.

New Delhi, January 24: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Tuesday alleged that its three senior leaders were prevented from moving out of Jammu airport to join the Rashtriya Ekta Yatra of the party’s youth wing, at the behest of the central government.

“Our three leaders cannot enter the city (Jammu). Leaders of opposition of the two houses (of parliament) are there. It is an unfortunate thing to take place in independent India. BJP condemns rampant use of state power,” BJP spokesman Ravi Shankar Prasad said here.

Ahmedabad, January 24:Gujarat Congress leader Shaktisinh Gohil today alleged Chief Minister Narendra Modi used to get phones of politicians, including those from BJP and Opposition, tapped, a charge rejected by the ruling party.

The Leader of Opposition in Assembly distributed to media a copy of what he claimed the register of a senior IPS officer in support of his charge of telephone tapping by Modi.

The register belonged to ex-Additional DGP R B Sreekumar.

New Delhi/Srinagar, January 24: Determined to hoist the tricolour at Lal Chowk in Srinagar on Republic Day, BJP today accused Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Omar Abdullah government of “surrendering” to separatists and displaying “disproportionate and panic reaction”.

Firing a salvo at Singh, senior leader L K Advani said BJP was “not trying to score a political point” but was instead challenging the separatists who had vowed to block the party’s plan to hoist the tricolour. “And the State is surrendering to them,” he said.

Thiruvananthapuram, January 23: Practical problems are being worked out to enroll non-residents Indians (NRIs), specially in the Middle East, on the electoral rolls, Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi said here Sunday.

‘Look, there are practical problems in enrolling them because close to 90 percent of NRIs are in the Middle East and it is not practically feasible to ask each of them to go and register in the Indian embassies there. It could well throw normal life out of gear in those countries if we ask all Indians to go to the embassies to register,’ Ravi told reporters.

Chennai, January 23: Taking on the Central and state governments over continued attacks on Tamil Nadu fishermen allegedly by Sri Lankan Navy, AIADMK chief J Jayalalithaa today said India’s lack of stern warning to Colombo has resulted in such recurring incidents.

She also slammed her arch rival and Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, when she said that he was just “watching” the killing of the fishermen and “not acting”.

“Such attacks have become routine and this is mainly due to the fact that Indian Government had failed to issue a stern warning to Sri Lanka,” she said in a statement here.

Lucknow, January 23: Prominent Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband’s new head Maulana Ghulam Mohammed Vastanvi, who had recently praised development works in Gujarat, has said that Chief Minister Narendra Modi cannot be be given a “clean chit” in the 2002 riots.

“Those who were involved in Gujarat riots should be punished,” the cleric told reporters last evening at the seminary after taking charge as Vice Chancellor and added that he has never praised the BJP leader.

Banglore, January 23: A combative B S Yeddyurappa today ruled out his resignation over the grant of sanction for his prosecution by Governor H R Bhardwaj, as BJP enforced a bandh in Karnataka against his action following which a criminal complaint was filed against the Chief Minister.

Coming under attack from BJP, the Governor justified his action saying there was a “prima facie” case against the chief minister in the petition filed by two lawyers in alleged land scams and corruption charges.

The Governor’s action also fuelled a political slugfest between the Congress and BJP.

Mumbai, January 23:Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray today said there was a terror threat to the party workers’ rally being organised here tomorrow on the occasion of his birthday.

“Police have got information that taking advantage of the crowd, terrorists are planning another attack like 26/11 on my birthday,” 84-year-old Thackeray was quoted as saying in party mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ today.

Hoshiarpur (Punjab), January 22: The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) youth wing was firm on its stand on hoisting the national flag at Lal Chowk in Srinagar on Republic Day despite Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s appeals of not disturbing peace in the “sensitive” Jammu and Kashmir, a party leader said Saturday.

The Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) had initiated Rashtriya Ekta Yatra from Kolkata Jan 12 and it will culminate Jan 26 with the hoisting of national flag at Srinagar’s Lal Chowk, its president Anurag Thakur said.

New Delhi, January 22: The Bharatiya Janta Party Friday dismissed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s appeal to refrain from “promoting divisive agendas” on Republic Day, saying they were “dismayed” by his statement, terming it as support for those “voicing anti-India sentiments”.

“It is not an occasion to score political points, to embarrass the state and local administrations, to create situations that could lead to entirely avoidable problems, or to promote divisive agendas,” Manmohan Singh said while stressing that Republic Day is “a solemn occasion”.

Kolkata, January 22: Suspected Maoists gunned down a Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader in West Bengal’s West Midnapore district, police said Saturday.

“Rabi Mahato, a CPI-M leader of Ramgarh near (Maoist hotbed) Lalgarh, was dragged out of his house by a group of armed men Friday night. His bullet-ridden body was recovered Saturday morning,” said a senior police officer.

Ranchi, January 22: Jharkhand Excise Minister Gopal Krishna Patar alias Raja Peter Saturday sought additional security from the state government following threats from Maoists and his opponents.

“The security which has been provided to me is not enough. I have raised the security issue with the concerned authorities several times. I fear Maoists’ and opponents’ threats,” Raja Peter told reporters here.

He also expressed displeasure at not getting accommodation in state capital Ranchi.

“I have yet to get the house which was allotted to me,” he said.

New Delhi, January 22: Chidamabaram flays BJP for its attack on Karnataka Governor H.R. Bhardwaj granting sanction to prosecute the chief minister and said the governor’s decision was in accordance with the law.

In a signed statement, he asked the Karnataka Government and BJP to maintain law and order, saying the party’s move to take to the streets against the governor’s decision is not acceptable.

Chandigarh, January 22: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Saturday said it had the right to hoist the national flag anywhere in the country, with party MP Anurag Thakur even asking Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to join in the party’s plan to unfurl the tricolour at Lal Chowk in Srinagar Jan 26.

“We are living in a free nation and we have the right to hoist our national flag anywhere in the country. So what is the problem in hoisting the tri-colour at Srinagar’s Lal Chowk in Kashmir Valley?” said Thakur here.

Mumbai, January 22: Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray Saturday said there was a terror threat to the party workers’ rally being organised here on Sunday on the occasion of his birthday.

“Police have got information that taking advantage of the crowd, terrorists are planning another attack like 26/11 on my birthday,” 84-year-old Thackeray was quoted as saying in party mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ today.

Banglore, January 22: Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa is likely to file a petition before the High Court on January 24 challenging Governor H R Bhardwaj’s sanction to prosecute him under the provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act.

“We are already working on a framework. We will go to court. The Chief Minister is likely to file a petition before the High Court on Monday”, Minister for Law S Suresh Kumar told media here.

He said the Governor is yet to furnish a copy of his order giving sanction to prosecute Yeddyurappa, despite pleas.