BJP President Amit Shah on Thursday rejected opposition charge that the land bill was anti-farmer and asked parties not to oppose it for political reasons.
He expressed confidence the land bill and the Goods and Services Tax bill would pass muster in the current budget session of Parliament.
Ten Pakistani Taliban militants were on Thursday sentenced to 25 years in jail by an anti-terrorism court for their 2012 gun attack on Malala Yousafzai, the teenage child rights activist who last year won the Nobel Peace Prize.
The ATC in Swat District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province announced the judgment after trial of the accused, finding ten guilty and handing down 25 years imprisonment to each of them, a district official from Swat said.
The Hyderabad High Court on Thursday declined to admit appeals filed by Satyam founder B Ramalinga Raju and others against their conviction in the multi-crore accounting fraud at the erstwhile IT firm, observing it is not maintainable before it and told them to move sessions court.
Raju, the scam kingpin, and nine others had filed appeals in the HC, praying it to set aside of a trial court order convicting them in the Rs 7000-crore scandal that came to light in 2009.
Assuring all possible help to neighbouring Nepal, President Pranab Mukherjee today said India strongly feels for Nepalese people and hopes that the situation there will soon return to normalcy.
The President conveyed this to Deep Kumar Upadhyay, who had come to Rashtrapati Bhavan to present his credentials as the new Nepalese Ambassador to India.
President Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday accepted the credentials of Nepal Ambassador Deep Kumar Upadhyay at a ceremony in the Rashtrapati Bhavan, assuring the envoy that New Delhi will do ‘whatever possible’ to help the people of his country, in wake of the massive earthquake that devastated the Himalayan nation.
According to a press release by the Rashtrapati Bhavan, President Mukherjee said that Upadhyay is assuming office at a difficult time for his country, noting that the earthquake has uprooted a large number of people with huge casualties
Taking pot shots at Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi’s much hyped ‘padyatra’, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday said he should instead undertake a ‘ pashchataap yatra’ (repentance march).
“Today when Rahul Gandhi is trying to get a political posturing out of his yatras, the serious suggestion would be Mr Rahul Gandhi and Congress should be in a repentance mode,” BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra told ANI.
“During the 15-year tenure that the Congress and NCP had a government in Maharashtra, the farmer suicide rate was highest in Maharashtra in the whole country,” he added.
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday ridiculed Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi ‘s criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said that India is being seen as a global leader under the latter’s competent leadership.
Jaitley also used the occasion to take a jibe at the Congress vice-president’s recent 56-day sabbatical.
Jaitley dismissed the Gandhi scion’s “suit-boot ki sarkar” remark, claiming that the ruling government was of “sooj-booj” (reason and common sense).
Israel has returned 15 fishing boats it seized in recent years off the Gaza Strip, the army said, months after it fought a devastating conflict in the blockaded coastal territory.
Palestinian fishermen said it was the first time Israel had given vessels back, and demanded the return of dozens more.
“The naval branch (navy) returned to Gaza 15 fishing boats which deviated from the Strip’s permitted fishing zone and were seized over the years,” an Israel Defence Forces statement said late yesterday.
Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma on Thursday said five days away from cricket following their victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad was good for the team as it helped them refresh and focus on their plans in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
“Five days’ break was really important and very much necessary. These few days we really had good time. We were completely out of cricket. Then we got back here yesterday and trained hard and even today as well, we will do the same,” Rohit said ahead of their match against Rajasthan Royals at the Wankhede Stadium here on Friday.
Opener Mohammad Hafeez struck his maiden double ton on Thursday as Pakistan reached 537-5 in reply to Bangladesh’s 332 at stumps on the third day of the first Test in Khulna.
Resuming at the overnight position of 227-1, Pakistan extended their advantage through a robust 227-run partnership between Hafeez and Azhar Ali for the second wicket. Ali was primed for his century as he scored 83 before he was bowled out by Shuvagata Hom.
Veteran batsman Younis Khan (33) then teamed up with Hafeez as the duo scored 62 runs for the third wicket before the former was removed by Taijul Islam.
Disappointed with some of his performances during the ongoing IPL season, Sunrisers Hyderabad wicketkeeper batsman K L Rahul said he would look to improve in the coming matches so that the national selectors take note.
“Disappointing that I had starts but have not been able to convert those starts into bigger performances. There were very good opportunities for me to win matches for my side and it’s disappointing that I could not win the game for the team,” Rahul told PTI in an interview.
Kolkata-based battery maker Exide Industries Ltd (EIL) on Thursday said its profit before tax during fiscal 2014-15 rose by 10.43 percent at Rs.798.5 crore against Rs.723.1 crore during the previous year.
The turnover of the company, for the period under review rose by 15.26 percent at Rs.6,874.2 crore against the turnover of Rs.5,964.2 crore registered during the corresponding period of last year.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday called up Prime Minister Narendra Modi to express condolence over the deaths in India due to the quake and appreciated India’s rescue operations in Nepal.
“Got a call from PM Nawaz Sharif. He expressed condolences on the loss of lives in various parts of India due to the earthquake,” Modi tweeted.
He added that Sharif appreciated India’s efforts in the rescue operations in Nepal.
As Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi meets farmers in Vidarbha on Thursday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said his Government was ready to accept suggestions from him to improve the condition of peasants but he should avoid playing politics over farm issues.
“If Rahul Gandhi has come to Vidarbha to understand the problems of farmers, it is a good thing and we will accept his suggestions to improve their lives. But, if he wants to indulge in politics, we would ignore,” he told reporters in Mumbai.
All India Football Federation (AIFF) President Praful Patel was elected unopposed as Asian Football Confederation (AFC) vice-president, South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Region, at the AFC Congress here on Thursday.
The development gives India a significant representation in the AFC and Patel thanked all member associations for finding him “competent enough”.
Heated exchanges between opposition and BJP benches were witnessed in Rajya Sabha on Thursday after a Congress member alleged discrimination against dalits in Gujarat saying they were not being allowed to enter temples in some villages there.
Raising the issue during Zero Hour, P L Punia (Cong) said dalits in many Gujarat villages were being discriminated against and not allowed to enter temples. He also alleged that the dalits were also not being allowed to take water from the village well.
Government has sanctioned nine new ‘floating’ border posts to the BSF in order to enhance vigil and security along India’s riverine borders along Pakistan and Bangladesh, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Thursday.
While six of the border posts, self-sustained troops and weapon carrying vessels, will be deployed along the Sunderbans area along the Indo-Bangladesh border, three similar floating platforms have been sanctioned for the Border Security Force along the shallow sea and marshy area of Rann of Kutch in Gujarat.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Thursday slammed Minister of State for Home Haribhai Chaudhary for his controversial remarks on marital sex, terming them bizarre.
“I think the minister needs to be educated about the Verma Commission recommendations, which has suggested that marital rape be included in the Indian anti-rape laws. The logic is that rape occurs when the sexual act does not have the consent of the woman. The crucial issue here is consent, and a marriage certificate does not change that,” CPI (M) leader Brinda Karat told ANI.
Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said there was a general feeling among the farmers he met that they have been abandoned by the government.
“There is a feeling of being abandoned between the farmers. The farmers feel that they have been given up on. MSP, bonus are some concerns that they have,” said Rahul
“General feeling is that the way the farmers should be helped is not happening. We don’t have a huge capacity to help farmers,” he added.
To help restore mobile communications in earthquake-hit Nepal, the Vodafone Foundation has sent a portable “mobile network in a backpack” to the Kathmandu Valley.
The Instant Network Mini system can connect up to five mobile phone users to global telecoms networks concurrently within a radius of 100 metres and enable text messages to be sent to thousands of people to provide crucial information following a disaster.
BJP President Amit Shah on Thursday disapproved of the controversial remarks of Haryana Agriculture Minister OP Dhankar who had said farmers who commit suicide were “cowards” and asked party leaders to refrain from making such comments.
“I don’t agree with the remarks at all. I feel party leaders should avoid making such comments,” he said journalists when asked whether he and the party agreed with what Dhankar had said.
The Income Tax department has slapped 121 cases for prosecution of those entities whose names have appeared in the HSBC Geneva bank list even as undisclosed income to the tune of Rs 4,800 crore has been brought under tax net in these cases at the end of the last fiscal.
Sources said the cases have been filed in courts in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Goa before the closure of the just concluded financial year 2014-15 on March 31.
City-based Sundaram BNP Paribas Home Finance on Thursday said it would raise Rs.2,500 crore funds for business and also look at acquiring home loan portfolios of around Rs.100 crore during 2015-16.
The company is looking at garnering business of Rs. 100 crore from the rural housing segment this year.
In a statement issued here, the company also said that the National Housing Bank has sanctioned it a funding of Rs.1,000 crore.
According to Sundaram BNP Paribas Home Finance, the fresh fund raising will be through a mix of debt and deposits.
DailyObjects, an online portal selling designer smartphone cases, has collaborated with Ranbir Kapoor-starrer “Bombay Velvet”.
As a part of the association, DailyObjects has released an exclusive range of designer cases inspired by the film, which is directed by Anurag Kashyap.
Jointly produced by Phantom Films and Fox Star India, the movie also stars Anushka Sharma and Karan Johar.
Labourers in unorganised sector in Andhra Pradesh would be issued smart cards under the accident insurance scheme, the state government said today on the eve of the International Workers’ Day.
The registration process for the issuance of smart cards would begin soon. The card would help the labourers to reap benefits of government and union-promoted labour welfare programmes, an official release said.
Drivers and labourers can enrol their names online or at the nearest e-seva centres.
The smart cards would be issued with details of Aadhaar number, bank account and other details.