New Delhi, August 17: Congress today said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s proposal for judicial reforms were aimed at taking justice delivery system to the common man.
“The Prime Minister has given a comprehensive blueprint for all stake holders,” party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi told reporters here.
He said the party believes that “tears of Aam Admi cannot be wiped out unless he gets justice from within a short time”.
Patna, August 17: Veteran socialist leader and former Science and Techonolgy minister of Bihar, Sheonandan Jha, passed away today.
He was 90.
Jha breathed his last this morning at his Jhaja residence.
He had represented Jhaja assembly consitutency for five terms, the first being in 1967.
Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar condoled the death of Jha saying it was a personal loss.
In a condolence message issued from New Delhi, Kumar said Jha would be creamated with full state honours at Jhaja this evening.
New Delhi, August 17: The Centre today came under attack from BJP-ruled states over the issue of special anti-terror laws with their Chief Ministers accusing the Manmohan Singh government of being soft on terror.
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi led the charge at the Chief Ministers’ conference on Internal security slamming the Centre for returning the anti-terror bill GUJCOC to the state assembly recently after keeping it pending for a long time with directions to delete certain provisions.
Ahmednagar, August 17: The NCP should heed to suggestions for merger with Congress, Union Minister and senior Congress leader Vilasrao Deshmukh has said.
“NCP should heed to the suggestion for merger with Congress. There is no point haggling over issues like whether to have alliance (with Congress) and over the number of seats to be contested,” the senior Congress leader told reporters after a function here yesterday.
New Delhi, August 17: It is bad news for BJP leaders wishing to see L.K. Advani bow out as leader of opposition to pave the way for their own elevation. About a week after a lunch meeting between Advani and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, which led to much speculation on the issue of succession in the party, Bhagwat on Saturday denied having asked Advani to nominate a successor.
New Delhi, August 17: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi Monday accused the Congress-led central government of playing politics with terrorism and demanded to know why the state’s proposed anti-terror bill was returned.
In June the central government suggested amendments to the Gujarat Control of Organised Crime Act (GUJCOCA) that proposes to curb terrorism with tougher laws.
New Delhi, August 17: Congress is keeping NCP guessing on their pre-poll alliance in Maharashtra with no decision taken over it even today during a meeting of senior party leaders chaired by Congress President Sonia Gandhi here.
“No decision on alliance with NCP has been taken,” Mumbai Congress President Kripashankar Singh, who attended the crucial meeting said.
Currently, there are both pro- and anti-alliance views within the party with former state Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh batting strongly for no pre-poll truck with NCP.
New Delhi, August 17: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will meet and address the chief ministers on drought and price rise in New Delhi on Monday. The other agenda of the meeting is internal security.
The Prime Minister while addressing the concerns with all state chief ministers on the lack of rainfall and the spectre of drought will also ask them to help the Centre formulate a concrete course of action.
New Delhi, August 17: Senior BJP leader Jaswant Singh may have put the party in a fresh spot with his comments that Pakistan’s founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah was “demonised” by India even though it was Jawaharlal Nehru whose belief in a centralised system had led to the Partition.
Jaswant, whose book “Jinnah India, Partition, Independence”, will be released on Monday, also said Indian Muslims were treated as aliens.
New Delhi, August 17: The BJP Parliamentary board, which is in meeting at the veteran leader LK Advani’s residence on Sunday has reportedly put its collective weight behind party president Rajnath Singh’s decision that she should quit as the leader of opposition in Rajasthan’s Assembly.
Rajnath Singh has earlier expressed his confidence that Vasundhara Raje would follow the party decision and step down as the state party head, following her statement that she would abide by the party’s Parliamentary board decision.
New Delhi, August 17: A crucial meeting of the BJP Central Parliamentary Board on Sunday decided not to take disciplinary action against the former Rajasthan Chief Minister, Vasundhara Raje, for defying party orders, and instead allowed her to step down as Leader of the Opposition. For, it “believed that she would obey the party decision.”
The party is said to have taken into consideration Ms. Raje’s statement, earlier in the day, that she had not made any adverse comment about any party leader or thought of floating a separate party.
New Delhi, August 16: The BJP (Bhartiya Janata Party) Parliamentary Board is likely to meet Sunday over the issue of Vasundhara Raje’s refusal to step down as leader of opposition in the Rajasthan Assembly, party sources said.
Earlier in the day, party president Rajnath Singh convened a meeting of the BJP Central Election Committee (CEC) to discuss and finalise candidates for Arunachal Pradesh and some assembly by-elections in other states.
Hyderabad, August 16: Former Minister Tammineni Seetaram returned to the Telugu Desam Party in the presence of party president N Chandrababu Naidu at the latter’s residence here today.
Hailing from Srikakulam district, Seetaram had quit the TDP last year and joined the Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) floated by actor Chiranjeevi.
Having lost the Assembly election from his native Amudalavalasa this year and with the PRP too facing a rout in its first electoral battle, Seetaram was left with no other option except to return to his parent party.
Lucknow, August 16: Congress party today said it will hold statewide demonstrations in Uttar Pradesh on August 22 in protest against government’s “apathy” towards dealing with draught situation in the state and to demand CBI inquiry into the ransacking of party chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi’s residence last month.
In a bid to highlight state government’s insensitive approach towards drought situation in the state, UP Congress Committee will organise demonstration and dharna in all the district headquarters on August 22, party leaders said here.
Pune, August 16: A fortnight after the swine flu caused first death in Pune, Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan today visited the city to take stock of the situation arising out of the outbreak of the viral disease, which has claimed 12 lives here so far.
Chavan visited the quarantine wards of Naidu hospital and spoke to doctors and officials about the treatment being given to suspected and confirmed patients of Swine Flu.
The chief minister, who also visited National Institute of Virology (NIV), was accompanied by MP Suresh Kalmadi and other top officials.
—Agencies
Jaipur, August 16: The impending storm over the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) isn’t blowing over with former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje turning rebel.
Raje has already defied BJP President Rajnath Singh and refused to resign as Rajasthan’s Leader of Opposition.
Just a day after her show of strength wasn’t taken well by the BJP top brass, Raje on Saturday skipped the Independence Day function at the state party headquarters in Jaipur.
“I am surviving only on your support,” she told her supporters.
New Delhi, August 16: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Sunday said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s Independence Day speech was more of a ceremonial affair and had nothing concrete to offer to counter the several challenges facing the country.
“The prime minister’s speech was a ceremonial affair. He spoke impressive words, but we don’t see any impresseive action taken by the government on crucial issues such as price rise, drought, unemployment and so on,” BJP vice president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi told IANS.
Ranchi, August 16: Former MP Suraj Mandal rejoined Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) today, nearly nine years after being expelled from the party.
Mandal, who formed Jharkhand Vikas Dal (JVD) after his expulsion from JMM on December 6, 1999, said JVD in its executive meeting has decided to merge with JMM.
“I was associated in Jharkhand movement with Shibu Soren and now feel elated to return to JMM,” Mandal said as JMM president Shibu Soren welcomed his return before the media here.
Embracing him, Soren said, “We are old friends.
Jaipur, August 16: Contrary to former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje’s claim that she has not received any communication from the BJP central leadership to step down as Leader of Opposition in the assembly, the state unit today said party chief Rajnath Singh had conveyed to her to quit.
Party President Rajnath Singh personally spoke to Raje and asked her to step down, state BJP chief Arun Chaturvedi told PTI.
When asked about Raje denying that she had received any such communication, he said, “I cannot say anything about it.
New Delhi, August 16: Pro-active action against Naxals and security in the aftermath of Mumbai terror attacks will be reviewed at a meeting of chief ministers convened by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday.
Activities of Pakistan-based terror outfits and situation in Jammu and Kashmir as well as the Northeast will also come under the scanner at the day-long conference which is being organised by the Union Home Ministry.
New Delhi, August 16: Senior BJP leader Jaswant Singh has said Pakistan”s founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah was “demonised” by India even though it was Jawaharlal Nehru whose belief in a centralised system had led to the Partition. Jaswant, whose book “Jinnah – India, Partition, Independence”, will be released tomorrow, also said Indian Muslims are treated as aliens.
“Oh yes, because he created something out of nothing and single-handedly he stood against the might of the Congress party and against the British who didn”t really like him.
Gandhi himself called Jinnah a great Indian.
New Delhi, August 15: After a string of incidents like the one involving Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, who was detained at a US airport, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni on Saturday suggested that India should do a ‘tit-for-tat’ towards Americans.
“I am of the opinion that the way we are frisked, for example I too was frisked, we should also do the same to them,” Soni said.
Many examples like this have come from the US where frisking is done and “beyond permissible limits”, she said.
Kolhapur, August 15: With the foreign origin issue of Sonia Gandhi now set aside, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), could consider to merge itself with the Congress, AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh who is also in charge of Maharashtra said here today.
Digvijay Singh who came to Kolhapur to interview candidates for the ensuing assembly election told reporters that it is his personal opinion and he has talked about it with NCP chief Sharad Pawar.
NCP was formed on the issue of foreign origin of Sonia Gandhi. That issue is no more relevant, he pointed out.
Kottayam, August 15: There is a need to renew Centre-state relations and ensure that states are given more consideration in developmental activities, Kerala public works minister Mons Joseph said here today.
Speaking after unfurling the national flag at the police parade ground here, he said ideas, interests and problems of states, especially Kerala, were not taken into account while implementing Central government schemes, resulting in some states being more favoured than others, creating inequality.
Shimoga, August 15: A Block Congress President at Konandur in Shimoga district has allegedly been abducted from his residence by his co-brother, police said.
Police rushed to the area on receiving a complaint from his family members, said efforts were being made to trace Patamakki Mahabalesh.
Meanwhile, District Congress President Prasanna Kumar has also lodged a complaint with police on the abduction and urged that speedy action be taken to trace Mahabalesh.
—Agencies