Shah congratulates Delhi Police for ‘fair probe’ of Delhi riots

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Shah congratulates Delhi Police for ‘fair probe’ of Delhi riots

Union Home Minister Amit Shah Wednesday congratulated the Delhi Police for a fair investigation into the Delhi riots.

“I congratulate Delhi Police for the role it played during the Covid pandemic and the Delhi riots, particularly for the fair and strict investigation of the riots,” the Home Minister said at the 75th Raising Day parade of Delhi Police.

He said that the Delhi Police has done the job of presenting the rioters before the Courts with strictness and justice.

Communal riots broke out in the national capital in February 2020, during which over 50 people were killed. Since then the Delhi Police has been investigating the riots and has detained and produced several accused people before the Courts.

A total of 695 cases are being investigated by North-East District police while 62 cases such as murders were transferred to the Crime Branch, where three dedicated Special Investigation Teams investigated the cases under continuous monitoring of superior officers.

On January 20, a Delhi Court sentenced a man for 5 years, convicted for burning down the house of a 73-year-old woman. it was the firstAjail term in Delhi riots cases.

KCR to meet Uddhav Thackeray on Feb 20 to discuss anti-BJP front

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KCR to meet Uddhav Thackeray on Feb 20 to discuss anti-BJP front

As part of his efforts to forge an anti-BJP alliance at the national level, Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao will be meeting his Maharashtra counterpart Uddhav Thackeray in Mumbai on February 20.

Thackeray spoke to Chandrasekhar Rao over the phone on Wednesday and invited him to Mumbai.

According to the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO), the Maharashtra chief minister extended his full support to the efforts of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) chief to fight “anti-people” policies of the BJP government at the Centre and for federal justice.

The Shiv Sena leader was all praise for KCR’s fight and told him that to protect the country from “divisive” forces, he has raised his voice at the right time. “You continue the fight for the rights of the states and to protect the unity of the country. March ahead with the same spirit. You will have our full support. In this regard, we will extend all possible help to you to mobilise public support,” the CMO quoted Thackeray as saying.

Inviting KCR to Mumbai, Thackeray requested him to agree to be his guest. “On this occasion, we will discuss the future course of action,” Thackeray said.

KCR has already announced his plans to play a key role in forging a national alliance against BJP. He had told reporters on Sunday that he would soon visit Mumbai to meet Thackeray. He said he would also meet West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee soon.

The Maharashtra chief minister is the second leader to speak to KCR over the phone in two days. Former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) leader Deve Gowda had called up the TRS chief on Tuesday seeking KCR’s support to the fight launched by him against the “religious polarisation” of politics by the BJP government at the Centre.

Deve Gowda congratulated KCR for fighting against the communal politics in the country. “Rao Saab, you are fighting very well. Everyone should fight against the communal elements. To protect our country’s secularism, culture, and diverse culture we will be with you and support you. Continue your fight and our total support will be there for you,” the CMO quoted the former Prime Minister as saying.

KCR told Deve Gowda that he would visit Bangalore in this regard and meet him personally.

Union minister challenges KCR for debate on performance of Modi govt

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Union minister challenges KCR for debate on performance of Modi govt

Union Minister for tourism and culture G. Kishan Reddy on Tuesday challenged Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao for a debate on the performance of the Narendra Modi government during the last seven years.

Kishan Reddy said he was ready for an open debate with the chief minister at Gun Park in the presence of senior journalists.

Addressing a news conference here, the BJP leader took strong exception to KCR’s allegation that the Modi government has done nothing in the last seven years. Claiming that the government has many achievements to its credit during the period, he said he was ready to prove this during the debate.

Kishan Reddy, who is a member of the Lok Sabha from Secunderabad, hit back at KCR for what he calls objectionable language against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He alleged that the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) chief was spewing venom against the Prime Minister out of frustration. “The language used by KCR is unbecoming of a chief minister,” he said.

On KCR’s assertion that he will drive out the BJP from the country, the BJP leader remarked that no force on earth can do this. He said the BJP would continue to remain a strong political force even if it loses power tomorrow.

The central minister condemned KCR’s statement demanding proof of surgical strikes carried out on Pakistan in 2016 after the terrorist attack on the Army camp at Uri.

Kishan Reddy said the chief minister’s remarks were detrimental to the security and integrity of the country. “He has insulted the martyrs, demoralized our brave Army, and hurt the sentiments of families of those who made the supreme sacrifice,” he said, adding that even Pakistan does not use such language.

He claimed that Pakistan and all the countries confirmed surgical strikes. He said even the terror group which was targeted admitted that they came under attack.

“We don’t need KCR’s certificate. There is no need to give proof to him. People know this,” he said

The central minister dismissed KCR’s allegation that there is communal disharmony in the country under Modi rule. He claimed that during the last seven years incidents of communal riots have come down while the activities of ISI and terror groups were under control.

Kishan Reddy alleged that KCR is frustrated due to the defeat of TRS in Huzurabad by-election and urged intellectuals and people to understand this. He said the TRS chief could not digest the defeat in the bypoll and hence was making baseless allegations against the BJP government.

The BJP leader said that the TRS leader does not like anybody criticising or questioning him. “He wants people to be his servants and continue his dynastic rule,” Kishan Reddy said.

NHA collaborating with ministries to strengthen AB-PMJAY implementation

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NHA collaborating with ministries to strengthen AB-PMJAY implementation

The National Health Authority (NHA) has collaborated with various ministries implementing welfare schemes to strengthen the different aspects of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) scheme implementation including inter alia beneficiary awareness campaigns, beneficiary database (SECC 2011) enrichment etc.

The beneficiary database enrichment under AB PM-JAY would mean adding additional parameters to the database for ease of search.

The NHA is mandated with the implementation of PM Jan Arogya Yojana and a total of 10.74 crore beneficiary families have been identified from the Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) of 2011 basis 6 deprivation and 11 occupational criteria across rural and urban areas, respectively under the scheme.

The NHA is working on integrating the SECC 2011 beneficiary database with NFSA, which will enable beneficiaries to seek information regarding their entitlement under the AB PM-JAY using their ration card number. The health authority is also working on a proposal to use Fair Price Shops or Ration shops for providing information related to the scheme and entitlement under the scheme to eligible beneficiaries.

Aadhaar being a common identity across the majority of government databases will enable this integration.

“In this direction, Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) issued Operational Manuals (OM) on October 27, December 6, and 14, 2021. These OMs have enabled sharing of Aadhaar among different departments of the government. As per the OM, different departments of the Central government administering Section 7 can be treated as a single entity under the Aadhaar Act, 2016,” said the NHA in a statement.

The Department of Food and Public Distribution has also issued OM wherein states and UTs were requested to provide necessary assistance and cooperation for sharing of the NFSA ration card data along with the corresponding Aadhaar with NHA.

The NHA said that the onus of ensuring the compliance of various provisions and regulations regarding data protection, data storage, data privacy, etc, and in particular, seeking consent will lie with the user departments i.e., in this case, NHA.

States and UTs are providing necessary assistance in this regard and none of the states or UTs has expressed any reservation to NHA in sharing the data, said NHA in a statement.

KCR’s daughter, Cong leader engage in war of words over T’gana

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KCR’s daughter, Cong leader engage in war of words over T’gana

A day after Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao came out openly in defense of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, there was a war of words between the former’s daughter K. Kavitha and Congress MP Manickam Tagore on who should get the credit for the formation of Telangana state.

Kavitha, a member of the Telangana state legislative council, tweeted that Telangana was not a gift and it was achieved by the people’s movement under the leadership of Chandrasekhar Rao.

Kavitha stated this in response to a tweet by Congress leader Manickam Tagore, who is in charge of the party affairs in Telangana.

Tagore had described Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) as a chameleon and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as communal. He termed them as two sides of the same coin. The Congress leader said the party will continue to work for a Telangana which millions of Telangana youth wanted which Sonia Gandhi wanted. “In 7 years it never happened to make that happen, we need to defeat the chameleon TRS & communal BJP. Both are 2 sides of the same coin. Congress can & will,” he wrote.

“Just setting the record state Manickam Ji once and for all. KCR Garu and TRS Party led the people’s movement for Telangana, it was not a gift. It was a fight and truth won,” responded Kavitha.

The Congress MP then hit back at Kavitha reminding her that Telangana wasn’t a one leader movement. “It was a people’s movement. Everyone stood hand in hand and fought for it. But it was Sonia Amma’s resolve that made a million dream’s possible. Recently Modiji blamed Congress for the creation of Telangana. Don’t forget,” he said.

Tagore also reminded Kavitha that her father called Sonia Gandhi ‘Amma of Telangana’ but changed his words and supported BJP in all the anti-people decisions like land bill, GST, demonetization, Rafale, and CAA for seven years.

“Again yesterday, he changed his stand, How can we believe he won’t change his stand again?” the Congress leader asked. “Congress will never change its stand on BJP as communal politics,” he added.

KCR at his news conference on Sunday had slammed Assam Chief Minister Hemanta Biswa Sarma for his offensive remarks against Rahul Gandhi for demanding proof of surgical strikes and demanded his dismissal.

The TRS chief also defended Rahul Gandhi over the Rafale deal and announced that he will approach the Supreme Court over the massive corruption.

Uttar Pradesh sees over 60% polling till 5 p.m., Uttarakhand 59%, Goa 75%

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Uttar Pradesh sees over 60% polling till 5 p.m., Uttarakhand 59%, Goa 75%

Uttar Pradesh saw a 60.31 percent turnout, till 5 p.m., in the second phase of Assembly polls on Monday, while there was 59.37 per cent polling in Uttarakhand and 75.29 per cent in Goa in their single-phase elections.

The final figures would be available after some time.

As per the Election Commission data, North Goa registered 75.33 per cent polling while South Goa registered 75.26 percent till 5 p.m.

In Uttar Pradesh, Saharanpur saw the highest turnout, so far, at 67.05 percent, while Shahjahanpur was the lowest at 55.20 percent.

Amroha district registered 66.15 per cent, Bareilly 57.68 per cent, Bijnor 61.44 per cent, Badaun 55.98 per cent, Moradabad 64.52 per cent, Rampur 60.10 per cent, and Sambhal 56.88 per cent.

In Uttarakhand, Almora district registered 50.65 per cent, Bageshwar 57.83 per cent, Chamoli 59.28 per cent, Champawat 59.97 per cent, Dehradun 52.93 per cent, Haridwar 67.58 per cent, Nainital 63.12 per cent, Pauri Garhwal 51.93 per cent, Pithoragarh 57.49 per cent, Rudraprayag 60.36 per cent, Tehri Garhwal 52.66 per cent, Udham Singh Nagar 65.14 per cent and Uttarkashi 65.55 per cent.

The EC clarified that the data made available is an approximate trend as data from some polling stations takes time.

Uttarakhand is holding single-phase polling for all its 70 Assembly seats together, with 82,66,644 voters to decide the fate of 632 candidates.

In Goa, as many as 11,56,464 voters will cast ballots to decide the fate of 301 candidates for its 40 seats.

In Uttar Pradesh, nearly 2.02 crore voters will decide the fate of 586 contestants in 55 Assembly constituencies across the nine districts are: Saharanpur, Bijnor, Moradabad, Sambhal, Rampur, Amroha, Badaun, Bareilly, and Shahjahanpur.

Digital learning should not lead to digital divide: V-P

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Digital learning should not lead to digital divide: V-P

Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Monday said that digital learning should not lead to a digital divide. He said that it is important to ensure that there is no digital divide.

He called for increased access to the internet especially in rural areas and remote places to “keep inclusivity at the heart of the educational experience”. “The mantra should be – embrace, engage, enlighten and empower”, he said.

He said that school closures affected girls, children from disadvantaged backgrounds, those living in rural areas, children with disabilities, and children from ethnic minorities more than their peers.

Addressing a gathering after inaugurating the Sports Centre at the National Institute of Technical Teachers Training & Research (NITTTR) in Chennai on Monday, Naidu expressed concern about the impact of the pandemic on education.

The Vice President also inaugurated the NITTTR Open Educational Resource (OER). Calling it an important step in improving inclusivity through distance education, he observed that it would help teachers improve their knowledge base and teaching methodology.

Calling for corrective action from the governments, Naidu suggested that one of the important measures is to upgrade the skills of teachers in e-learning.

Naidu further stressed the need to create teachers who are “learners and creators of knowledge – teachers who touch lives and seek to uplift the human condition”. “We need inspirational, transformational leaders in our classrooms, especially in rural India”, he added.

Talking about India’s demographic dividend, he said that teachers have greater responsibility in molding India’s huge youth population into responsible citizens. “Education does not mean just degrees,” he said and opined that the true purpose of education is enlightenment, empowerment, and wisdom.

The Vice President lauded the role of teachers as ‘Covid warriors’ for doing their best to ensure the academic continuity of their students during the pandemic.

Referring to the National Education Policy 2020 as a visionary document, the Vice President said that it seeks to transform the education ecosystem in our country.

Emphasizing the need to promote and preserve Indian languages, Naidu appreciated AICTE for starting technical courses in Indian languages.

Calling upon NITTTR to take the lead in producing outstanding teachers through well-structured and scientifically designed training programs, he appreciated its efforts in training more than 60,000 learners in the past two years.

Telangana Cong leaders lodge police complaint against Assam CM

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Telangana Cong leaders lodge police complaint against Assam CM

The Congress party in Telangana on Monday filed complaints against Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for his derogatory comments on party leader Rahul Gandhi.

Congress leaders at various police stations in the state lodged complaints against Sarma, demanding his arrest.

State Congress chief Revanth Reddy and other leaders lodged a complaint at Jubilee Hills police station against the Assam chief minister over his offensive comments. He demanded that the police book a criminal case against Sarma and arrest him.

The Congress leaders urged the police to book the Assam chief minister under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 153A and 505 for promoting enmity between different groups.

Revanth Reddy called Sarma’s remarks an insult to the motherhood of every woman. He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and BJP president J.P. Nadda should respond and sack Sarma immediately.

Reddy, who is also a member of Parliament was accompanied by senior leader Mohammed Ali Shabbir, Anjan Kumar Yadav, Sampath Kumar, and others.

The Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee chief said the police merely issued an acknowledgment. He said the police should register a First Information Report (FIR) and take criminal action against Sarma.

On a call given by Revanth Reddy, Congress leaders in various districts lodged police complaints against the Assam chief minister.

The MP demanded that the state police send a special team to arrest Sarma. He said if no action was taken on their complaints in 48 hours, the Congress party will stage protests in front of the offices of police commissioners and superintendents of police.

On Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao condemning his Assam counterpart’s offensive remarks, Revanth Reddy said he should go beyond mere condemnation and act by asking police to take action against Sarma.

Voter turnout in 1st 2 hrs: UP 9.45%, Uttarakhand 5.03% & Goa 10.86%

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Voter turnout in 1st 2 hrs: UP 9.45%, Uttarakhand 5.03% & Goa 10.86%

The voting percentage on Monday till 9 a.m. in the second phase Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh was 9.45 percent, 5.03 percent in Uttarakhand, and 10.86 percent in Goa.

As per the Election Commission data, North Goa registered 10.79 percent while South Goa registered 10.93 percent voting in the first two hours of polling which began at 7 a.m.

In Uttar Pradesh, Amroha district registered 10.83 percent, Bareilly 8.31 percent, Bijnor 10.01 percent, Budaun 9.18 percent. Moradabad 9.86 percent, Rampur 8.27 percent, Saharanpur 9.70 percent, Sambhal 10.76 percent, and Shahjahanpur registered 9.17 percent.

In Uttarakhand, Almora district registered 4.19 percent, Bageshwar 2.31 percent, Chamoli 3.49 percent, Champawat 4.51 percent, Dehradun 5.55 percent, Haridwar 6.36 percent, Nainital 5.50 percent, Pauri Garhwal 2.51 percent, Pithoragarh 4.55 percent, Rudraprayag 5.41 percent, Tehri Garhwal 4.36 percent, Udham Singh Nagar 6.64 percent and Uttarkashi district registered 2.68 percent.

The EC has put out a disclaimer that the data made available are an approximate trend as data from some polling stations takes time.

Uttarakhand is holding a single-phase polling for all its 70 Assembly seats. A total of 82,66,644 voters will decide the fate of 632 candidates. There are 11,697 booths across the states, of which 776 are critical and 1,050 vulnerable booths.

In Goa, as many as 11,56,464 voters will cast ballots in the single-phase polls to decide the fate of 301 candidates at booths spread over 1,600 polling stations.

For Uttar Pradesh, it is the second phase of voting where nearly 2.02 crore voters will decide the fate of 586 contestants in nine districts comprising 55 Assembly constituencies. The nine districts are Saharanpur, Bijnor, Muradabad, Sambhal, Rampur, Amroha, Budaun, Bareli, and Shahjanpur.

Now, NOTA option in urban polls in Odisha

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Now, NOTA option in urban polls in Odisha

None of the above (NOTA) options will be used for the first time in the upcoming election to the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in Odisha.

State Election Commission (SEC), Odisha has issued an order to implement the new provision on Friday.

“The State Election Commission, in the exercise of powers vested in it under Article 243-ZA of the Constitution, directs that the option NOTA (none of the above) will be provided to the electors for the general elections to Urban Local Bodies,” read the order.

The words NOTA will be printed in the last panel after the last candidate and the NOTA symbol will be printed on the symbol column, it said.

There is no provision of providing NOTA option to the electors under the Odisha Municipal Act, 1950 and the Odisha Municipal Corporation Act, 2003 and the Rules framed thereunder.

However, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has provided the option of NOTA to the electors for elections to legislative assemblies and Lok Sabha. So considering that, the SEC has decided to provide the NOTA option to the voters during the ULB poll, official sources said.

Elections for 107 Municipalities/NACs and three Corporations Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, and Berhampur are likely to be conducted soon after the Panchayat poll in Odisha. The delimitation of wards, reservation seats, and all other formalities required to conduct the ULB election has already been completed.

Recently, the Commission has also enhanced the spending limit of the candidates contesting for the post of Councillors, Corporators, Chairpersons, and Mayors in the civic bodies.

Cong trying to bring hijab in schools of Devbhoomi: BJP

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Cong trying to bring hijab in schools of Devbhoomi: BJP

Days before polling in Uttarakhand, the BJP has claimed that Congress is trying to bring hijab in schools of ‘Devbhoomi’.

The ruling BJP has already claimed that the ‘Muslim University’ controversy has been intentionally created by Congress to polarise the minority votes ahead of February 14 Assembly polls.

The BJP claimed that Congress is trying to make hijab a part of school uniform in ‘Devbhoomi’. National secretary Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) and in-charge of party youth wing in Uttarakhand, Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga told to interview that if the Congress party came to power in Devbhoomi, hijab will be worn in schools.

“If the Congress comes to power in Uttarakhand, they will do what they are trying to do in Karnataka. Hijab will be worn in the schools in Devbhoomi. We will not allow such an act in Devbhoomi and the Congress party must be kept away from Devbhoomi,” he said.

Bagga further said that whatever Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Harish Rawat do, hijab will not be allowed in the schools of Devbhoomi Uttarakhand.

Bagga further claimed that seeing the defeat in Assembly polls in Uttarakhand Congress party and his leader Rahul Gandhi and Harish Rawat is indulging in politics of appeasement.

“To get Muslim votes in Uttarakhand, Congress and its leadership is doing everything to appease them,” he said.

Earlier, the BJP had alleged that Congress has created controversy over Muslim universities to polarise minority votes. Uttarakhand Congress vice-president Akil Ahmad claimed former chief minister Harish Rawat assured that a Muslim university would be set up in Uttarakhand.

The Congress party and former Chief Minister Harish Rawat have denied Ahmad’s claims, the BJP has said that the opposition party is trying to ‘polarise Muslim voters’ in certain Assembly segments by promising to set up a Muslim University in the state for the community.

BJP Rajya Sabha member from Uttarkhand Naresh Bansal had said that Congress is treating the Muslim community as a ‘vote bank’ and by promising a university they are trying to appease the minority community.

Pay Rs 1,788 cr penalty amount to rubber producers: farmers’ group to PM

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Pay Rs 1,788 cr penalty amount to rubber producers: farmers’ group to PM

The All India Kisan Sabha, a farmers’ group aligned with Left parties, on Thursday demanded Prime Minister Narendra Modi provide Rs 1,788 crore, equal to the penalty amount imposed by regulator CCI on tyre corporates, as a grant to rubber farmers to set up a tyre manufacturing unit.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) had imposed a penalty of Rs 622.09 crore on MRF, Rs 425.53 crore on Apollo Tyres, Rs 252.16 crore on CEAT Ltd, Rs 309.95 crore on JK Tyre, and Rs 178.33 crore on Birla Tyres and the Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association (ATMA), after it, in August 2018, having held them guilty of contravention of the provisions of Section 3 of the Competition Act, which prohibits anti-competitive agreements including cartels, during 2011-12. The tire manufacturers had approached the Supreme Court, which dismissed their petition recently.

The tire manufacturers had exchanged price-sensitive data amongst themselves through ATMA and had taken collective decisions on the prices of tires, which the CCI had termed as a gross violation with the intention of amassing profit by cheating both the rubber producers as well as the consumers.

“In this context, we demand Government of India to provide a grant of Rs 1,788 crore, equal to the sum of the monetary penalty imposed by the CCI on the above said five major private tire manufacturing corporate companies to producer cooperative of rubber farmers to establish world-class tire manufacturing unit under associated ownership,” General Secretary of AIKS, part of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha agitating against the now-repealed farm laws, Hannan Mollah said in his letter to the Prime Minister.

Terming that this is a classic example of “how the corporate companies under the Free Trade Agreements and neo-liberal policies being actively pursued by your government are looting and plundering the farmers as well as the people – as the consumers”, Mollah said: “We want to strongly point out that supporting the farmers to develop farmers’ producer cooperatives to establish crop-based agro-processing industries and marketing networks under their associated ownership is the only possible alternative to this corporate loot.”

He also reminded that the BJP in its 2014 election manifesto had promised to implement better remunerative price (MSP@C2+50 percent) for all crops if it was elected, but failed to keep that promise yet.

“You have also promised to double the income of farmers by 2022. However, considering the inflation, farmers’ income has declined in real terms during this period,” he said, and added, “Hence I hope you will take this open letter in its true spirit and take a decision with determination in favor of protecting the interests of the Rubber farmers across India.”

UP polls phase-1: 20.03% voting till 11.00 am

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UP polls phase-1: 20.03% voting till 11.00 am

The first phase of polling for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections on Thursday saw 20.03 percent voting till 11.00 a.m., according to the Election Commission of India (ECI).

“Phase I has seen 20.03 percent polling till 11.00 a.m.,” said the ECI statement.

The Commission also put a disclaimer saying these are approximate figures as data from some polling stations takes time to be incorporated.

Agra saw 20.42 percent, Aligarh 17.91 per cent, Baghpat 22.24 percent, Bulandshahar 21.63 per cent, Gautam Buddha Nagar 18.43 saw per cent, Ghaziabad 17.26 per cent, Hapur 22.78 per cent, Mathura 20.39 per cent, Meerut 18.92 per cent, Muzaffarnagar 22.56 per cent and Shamli 22.84 saw per cent, the EC statistics showed.

Of the total 403 seats in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly, voting for 58 seats of phase I of the seven-phase elections is being held on Thursday.

There are a total of 634 candidates in the fray, 73 of them women.

As many as 2.28 crore voters (1.04 of them female) will exercise their franchise at 26,027 polling booths across 10,853 polling stations in 11 districts.

‘New India is China-nirbhar?’ Rahul queries PM on ‘Statue of Equality’

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‘New India is China-nirbhar?’ Rahul queries PM on ‘Statue of Equality’

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has used the ‘Statue of Equality as ammunition for his latest salvo against the Prime Minister and his ‘New India’ and ‘Atma Nirbhar’ slogans. The Prime Minister had on Saturday dedicated to the nation the 216-foot tall statue of Swami Ramanujacharya at Hyderabad.

Drawing attention to the giant statue manufactured in China and assembled in Hyderabad, Rahul tweeted, “Statue of Equality is Made in China. ‘New India’ is China-nirbhar?”

According to sources, a China-based company had been issued the contract in 2015 for manufacturing the five-metal alloy statue. After completion of the production phase in China, it shipped in 1600 components which were assembled over a year and a half at the venue on Hyderabad outskirts.

The giant statue of the medieval saint and social reformer has been inaugurated as part of the 1000th birth anniversary celebrations of Ramanujacharya, by Hindu seer Chinna Jeeyar Swami.

The statue is considered the world’s second-largest statue in sitting position.

SC grants pre-arrest bail to Bengal CM’s poll agent in murder case

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SC grants pre-arrest bail to Bengal CM’s poll agent in murder case

The Supreme Court on Wednesday granted pre-arrest bail to S.K. Supiyan, the election agent of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in a murder case probed by the CBI.

Pronouncing the judgment, Justice Abhay S.Oka said the court is granting pre-arrest bail to Supiyan, but imposed several conditions. The detailed judgment in the matter will be out later in the day.

On February 4, a bench comprising Justices L. Nageswara Rao and Abhay S. Oka reserved the judgment after hearing arguments on the plea moved by Supiyan against the Calcutta High Court order, which refused to entertain his bail plea. Last month, the top court had granted him interim protection from arrest in the matter.

The CBI, in its affidavit opposing the pre-arrest bail plea of Supiyan in connection with the alleged murder of a BJP supporter after poll results were declared, said he hatched a criminal conspiracy to teach a lesson to Hindus, who voted for BJP resulting in loss of the Trinamool Congress candidate in the Nandigram Assembly constituency. The agency claimed that Supian allegedly carried out violent attacks on local villagers, causing the death of one Debabrata Maity.

The affidavit said: “As per the records of the investigations conducted so far all of this was done by the petitioner to send a political message that any political opposition would be punished with death, grievous injuries, and with extreme mental trauma. It is submitted that the aforesaid acts of the commission constitute heinous offenses against the society and destroy the very fabric of the body polity of the state”.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Supiyan, argued that his client’s name was not mentioned either in the FIR registered by the authorities in May last year, or in the complaint and also, he was not named in the chargesheets filed by the CBI.

Mamata Banerjee, who had contested from Nandigram, lost the election to her former aide-turned-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Suvendu Adhikari. The Calcutta High Court had ordered a CBI probe into various incidents of killings and sexual assault, which occurred in the state after election results were declared.

PM Modi dares Cong to change ‘national’ to ‘federal’ in its name INC

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PM Modi dares Cong to change ‘national’ to ‘federal’ in its name INC

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday continued his tirade against Congress in the Parliament, reiterating his oft-repeated point of how dynastic parties are the biggest threat to democracy and suggested the grand old party change its middle name from ‘national’ to ‘federal’.

PM Modi was speaking in the Rajya Sabha in reply to the Motion of Thanks to the President’s speech and continued his barbs against Congress as he had done on Monday in the Lok Sabha.

After stating how Congress had doubted the country’s ability to deliver on vaccination for all, welfare measures for the poor by his government, etc, Modi said in a direct attack on Congress how one can never learn lessons in democracy from “those who trampled over democracy in 1975.”

“When one family prevails over others in a political party, it is the political talent that suffers. Dynastic politics is the biggest threat to our democracy. I would suggest all parties, especially starting with Congress, to let go of dynastic politics,” Modi said.

Recalling remarks by Congress leaders, Modi said some members asked, if there was no Congress, what would happen? and went on a longish tirade: “I would like to state, if there was no Congress, there would have been no Emergency. If there was no Congress, there would have been no caste politics. If there had been no Congress, there would have been no Sikh massacre. If there was no Congress, Kashmiri Pundits would not have been thrown out of their homes.”

Modi took on the word ‘federalism’ as mentioned by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in his speech in the Parliament and said, “People talk of federalism, but they have forgotten, when Congress was in power, they did not allow India’s development. Now when they are in opposition, they are obstructing development.”

Continuing with the pronoun ‘they’ (Woh in Hindi as the Prime Minister spoke in Hindi) without taking any particular person’s name, Modi said, “Now they are objecting to the idea of the nation. If they find the very idea of ‘nation’ as unconstitutional, why is their party called Indian National Congress? Why not change ‘national’ to ‘federal’?”

Earlier on Monday in the Lok Sabha, PM Modi had launched a scathing attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party stating that the party had not lost its arrogance even when it had been out of power for so long. He also said that Congress seems to have decided to not come back to power for 100 years, and he too is prepared for it.

Nitish govt to conduct census of people who gave up liquor

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Nitish govt to conduct census of people who gave up liquor

The Nitish Kumar government has decided to conduct a census of those people who have managed to give up liquor since the Prohibition Act was imposed in Bihar in April 2016.

“As per the previous survey, 1.64 crore people have left liquor. Now, we have decided to conduct the same to find out the exact number of people who left the liquor,” Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said on Monday evening.

“We have directed the liquor prohibition department as well as police and district administrations to continue their action against liquor mafias. They should take help of drones, motorboats, sniffer dogs, etc., to detect manufacturing units and dismantle them as much as possible,” Kumar said.

The government is facing criticism for imposing the liquor ban in the state, especially a large number of people who died due to consumption of poisonous liquor.

Three liquor tragedies happened in January this year in which 37 people died and over 50 lost their eyesight.

“The consumption of milk, sweets, vegetables, fruits have significantly increased in Bihar, which is an encouraging sign for us,” he said.

“We have directed the officials to speed up prosecution against the liquor operators,” the Chief Minister said.

“Liquor ban was imposed in Bihar in April 2016. Following that, some other states also want to implement the same.”

KTR warns Centre of big agitation over move to privatise Singareni

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KTR warns Centre of big agitation over move to privatise Singareni

Alleging a conspiracy to privatize Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL), Telangana’s Industry Minister K.T. Rama Rao on Monday warned the BJP government at the Centre of an agitation that will be much bigger than the farmers’ protest over three farm laws.

Stating that the coal of Singareni is a big asset for Telangana, he warned that the people of Telangana will give a befitting reply to BJP for their act of privatizing the public sector undertaking.

“Employees of Singareni and the people of Telangana will show their power in Delhi if the BJP continues its attempts to privatize the company. This agitation will be much bigger than the agitation staged against the three farm laws,” said Rama Rao, who dashed off a letter to union coal minister Prahlad Joshi.

KTR, as the state minister is popularly known, expressed anger over the Centre asking the SCCL to participate in the auction for JBROC-3, KK-6, Shravana Pally OC, Koyagudem coal mines instead of allocating them directly to the company.

“The Centre is supposed to allocate coal mines to strengthen the Singareni which is running in profits. Instead, they are asking the company to take part in an auction for mines. This is nothing but creating hurdles for Telangana and its development,” said KTR.

KTR, who is the son of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, stated that SCCL is not just a coal mine but a gold mine that is giving employment to thousands of youth of Telangana.

He said that the Telangana leaders will stand by the Singareni employees in this fight against BJP.

KTR stated that Singareni supplies coal to about 2,000 industries in Telangana and privatization of Singareni will hamper the growth of the industrial sector in Telangana.

The minister opined that the Centre is not auctioning just the four mines of Singareni, but is auctioning the lives of Singareni workers in the open market. He expressed concern that if privatized, Singareni will completely disappear soon.

KTR also questioned the Centre as to why the coal mines were not allocated to Singareni directly like the Lignite mines allocated to Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation in Gujarat.

“Under the BJP governance, there is one rule for Gujarat and another rule for Telangana! Is Telangana not a part of India?” he asked.

KTR said that this was not just discrimination against the Singareni organization, it is discrimination against the Telangana state and its people.

He pointed out that in the past seven years Singareni has increased the production from 450 lakh tonnes to 670 lakh tonnes. He also added that coal mining, revenue increase, profits, and expansion of the company also took place highlighting the growth of the company.

The minister said that the thermal power plant run by Singareni has the best Plant Load Factor (PLF) in the country. He added that the Singareni is providing coal not just within Telangana but also to various thermal power plants in Maharashtra and other south Indian states. Singareni is the only public sector undertaking in the country to contribute 29 percent of the profits, he said.

Minister KTR also stated that with the efforts of the Telangana government, Singareni workers, and management, the company was in news for making huge profits. But once the company gets privatized, the only news would be the company’s downfall, he said.

He alleged that the BJP is planning to push Singareni into losses and then privatize it. Similarly, in Andhra Pradesh, the iron ore mines required for the Vizag Steel Plant were not provided, which led to losses of the plant, and that plant will be privatized soon. About 27 requisition letters related to the Steel Plant were still pending with the Union government, he said.

KTR alleged that the BJP government at the Centre is conspiring to kill the Singareni also in a similar fashion by refusing to allocate the coal mines.

He claimed that since the Telangana state formation, about 16,000 jobs have been created by Singareni. He stated that the privatization of PSUs was a threat to the future of thousands of youth, Dalits, and tribals. He described the privatization of public sector enterprises by the Centre as a move against Dalits and Bahujans in the country.

This sector plays a key role in jobs creation and privatization of this sector is nothing but diluting the principles of BR Ambedkar and going against reservations. “We will not let this happen at any cost,” he said.

Privatization of Singareni will impact the dependent jobs for the families of existing employees, he said.

The employees will also lose all kinds of rights and opportunities and the employees will be removed gradually as the mines get closed in a phased manner, he added.

Priyanka takes swipe at Goa Cong leaders over ticket allocation to women

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Priyanka takes swipe at Goa Cong leaders over ticket allocation to women

Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra Monday took a gentle swipe at her own male party leaders in Goa while trying to highlight the significance of the party’s decision to allocate a large number of tickets in the assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh to women.

Addressing an election rally in South Goa district, Gandhi also said that introduction of more women in electoral politics would bring down the tone of hatred in electioneering, while also lending a touch of compassion to the manner in which politics is conducted in India.

Earlier, in the course of her speech, the Congress leader, while trying to impress upon the audience the importance of women’s participation in Uttar Pradesh politics, responded to a nod from one of the participants in the rally inviting the person to Uttar Pradesh.

“You are nodding. Come to Uttar Pradesh. And come (back) and work hard on convincing these men here,” Gandhi said while referring to senior Congress leaders on the dais which included former Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, All India Congress Committee official in-charge of Goa Dinesh Gundu Rao, state Congress president Girish Chodankar, Leader of Opposition Digambar Kamat, among others.

“The first and foremost (reason) is that as women and 50 percent of the population, it is our right to have 50 percent of the representation. It is not something anyone is doing us a favor. It is our right and we want to fight for our rights. but more than that politics today has become filled with hatred, it has become filled with anger. You hear speeches… 90 percent of the speech is negative,” she said. Vadra is the party’s general secretary in charge of Uttar Pradesh.

“I firmly believe that us women being the practical people that we are and having to handle so much, can actually bring that positivity and compassion in politics as well. It is my belief that all of us women should also be helped to stand up on our feet,” she also said.

Shah requests Owaisi to accept security cover

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Shah requests Owaisi to accept security cover

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday requested AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi to take the central security cover, accorded to him after evaluation of threat perception.

Making a statement in the Rajya Sabha on Monday over the incident of firing at the carcade of Owaisi on February 3, Amit Shah further said that two people have been arrested and the Union Home Ministry has sought a report from the Uttar Pradesh government.

“An FIR has been lodged in the Pilakhua Police station in UP and the local police is investigating the case with all seriousness and minutely. Two unidentified people had fired on the carcade. He came out safe but there were three bullet marks on the lower portion of the vehicle,” Shah said in his statement. The incident was seen by three witnesses, he added.

The Home Minister also said that Owaisi did not have a planned event in Hapur and the district authorities were not informed of his trip.

“We have assessed his security threat and decided to give him security. I request him to accept the security cover, Shah said, adding that in the past too, he was accorded with the central security but he refused,” he said.

“I request him to take Security cover provided by the Central Reserve Police Force in which he will have a bulletproof car and round-the-clock security cover in Delhi and in Telangana,” the Home Minister added further in his statement.

On February 4, the Centre had accorded the ‘Z’ category of security to the AIMIM Chief following a firing incident that occurred when he was returning to Delhi from Meerut. The firing incident took place at a toll plaza in Hapur in Western Uttar Pradesh on February 3, 2022.

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