Kamal Haasan urges Centre, TN govt to prevent power outages

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Kamal Haasan urges Centre, TN govt to prevent power outages

With the shortage of coal leading to power cuts in various states, the Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) leader and Superstar, Kamal Haasan has urged the Central and the state government to ensure that there is no power cut in Tamil Nadu.

In a statement on Sunday, the actor-turned-politician said both Central and the state government must work together to make sure that there was no shortage of coal in Tamil Nadu.

Kamal Haasan expressed concerns over reports that the state has coal reserves only for four days, adding that there is still coal storage for 14 days.

The actor-turned-politician urged the DMK government to take up the matter with the Central government as industrialists in the state have already expressed concern about the possibilities of power cuts in the days to come if the coal supply is not maintained properly.

Under the previous DMK government from 2006-2011 there were unprecedented power cuts leading to several industries in the state shifting base to other states. The government must remain alert that such things do not recur in the state, Haasan added.

The MNM Chief said the industrial towns of Coimbatore, Tiruppur, and Sivakasi had faced innumerable difficulties during the 2006-11 period due to power cuts and said common people faced the brunt of this as jobs were lost following industries shifting base.

The state government must coordinate properly with the Central government to maintain a steady flow of coal and to remain alert about its depletion, Haasan added.

The economy of the state was slowly recovering, adding that if power cuts are again witnessed, the state would face a huge loss.

Man dragged on road for showing black flag to Nishad Party chief in UP

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Man dragged on road for showing black flag to Nishad Party chief in UP

A youth was beaten up for protesting against Sanjay Nishad, president of Nishad Party and showing a black flag.

Sanjay Nishad was in Deoria on Sunday to attend a welcome programme after being elected member of the legislative council, when a youth named Mahindra Nishad began shouting slogans and showing a black flag.

Workers of the Nishad Party immediately pounced upon the youth and beat him up.

The video of this entire incident went viral on social media.

Mahindra was dragged through the market and forced to sit in a car. After some time, he was handed over to the police.

However, the police let him go because no complaint had been lodged against him.

Sanjay Nishad blamed the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party for the incident and claimed that the youth had been instigated by them.

The youth was demanding inclusion of the Nishad community in the Scheduled Caste category — a demand that Sanjay Nishad has also been raising.

“There is no problem. The young man has been misled. He belongs to my community and I will hug him and forgive him,” he said.

Telangana urges Centre to undertake caste census of BCs

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Telangana urges Centre to undertake caste census of BCs

The Telangana Legislature on Friday passed a resolution urging the Central government to conduct a caste wise census of backward classes while holding general census for 2021.

Both houses of the state legislature passed the resolution unanimously.

Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, who moved the resolution in the Assembly, said that in view of the uplift of poorer sections of the society, it was necessary to maintain accurate statistics for taking up various welfare measures for benefiting poorest of the poor.

Speaker Pocharam Srinivas Reddy announced passing of the resolution unanimously.

The Legislative Council also unanimously adopted government resolution demanding the Central government to take up caste-wise census for backward classes in 2021.

The resolution was passed three days after the Chief Minister gave an assurance in the Assembly. He had urged the Centre to enhance the reservation quota of Scheduled Castes and also undertake caste census.

Rao had accepted the suggestion of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader Akbaruddin Owaisi for caste census and wondered why the Centre was not coming forward to undertake this.

“All kinds of nonsense is spoken in the absence of statistics. Unless you have the facts and figures, you can’t make the proper plans for upliftment of any section,” he had said.

Puducherry CM gives ex-gratia to kin of Covid victims

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Puducherry CM gives ex-gratia to kin of Covid victims

Puducherry Chief Minister N. Rangasamy on Friday distributed an ex-gratia amount of Rs 50,000 each to the families of Covid-19 victims here.

The Puducherry government in a statement said the government has issued an order in compliance with the guidelines formulated by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and on the directive from the Supreme Court of India. On the basis of these, an application form has been formulated for quick disbursement of the ex-gratia amount of Rs 50,000 to the family of each victim.

According to the statement from the Puducherry government, 1845 families will benefit from the government initiative. This includes 1,445 people from Puducherry, 248 from Karaikal, 45 from Mahe, and 107 from Yanam.

The Puducherry district collector Purva Garg in the statement said the District Disaster Management Authorities of the respective districts would distribute the relief to the families. The ex-gratia payment will be made through Aadhar linked Direct Benefit Transfer. The transfer would be executed on submission of an application by the concerned family along with the details of the death, the statement said.

A Covid-19 Death Ascertaining Committee cum Grievance Redressal Committee with the Puducherry district collector as Chairman with Dr. J. Ramesh, Chief of Government Pharmacy, Dr. J. Kavitha, Associate Professor, and Dr. M. Vivekanandan, Professor, JIPMER as their members.

The claims, according to the statement, will be settled within 30 days of submission of application.

The district collector in the statement said the eligible claimants can get the application forms from the concerned taluk offices and the completed application forms could be submitted to the taluk offices in their jurisdiction.

Order probe into Lakhimpur Kheri violence by sitting judge: Priyanka

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Order probe into Lakhimpur Kheri violence by sitting judge: Priyanka

Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday demanded a probe by a sitting judge of the Supreme Court or a high court into the Lakhimpur Kheri violence.

She also said that Union Minister Ajay Mishra Teni, whose son is among those booked, should resign to ensure an impartial probe.

“In my view and that of the victims’ families as well, the case should be probed by a sitting Supreme Court or high court judge, and not the retired judge,” she said.

The state government, on Thursday, had appointed retired high court judge Pradeep Srivastava to probe the Lakhimpur violence.

Priyanka Gandhi visited a temple on the first day of Navratri and said that she was fasting. She said that she had prayed for the welfare of all.

Meanwhile, as she left for Bahraich on Thursday to meet the family of another deceased farmer, Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav and Bahujan Samaj Party MP Satish Chandra Mishra made their way to Lakhimpur to meet the families of those who had lost their lives in Sunday’s violence.

Akhilesh Yadav questioned the delay in the arrest of Ashish Mishra, son of Union Minister Ajay Mishra Teni and said that it was futile to expect any justice from the BJP government.

BKU spokesperson, Rakesh Tikait, while talking to reporters in Rampur, said that if Ashish Mishra was not arrested by October 12, when the post death rituals of the deceased persons will take place, the BKU would launch a massive agitation.

BJP announces candidates for 3 LS, 16 Assembly bypolls

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BJP announces candidates for 3 LS, 16 Assembly bypolls

The BJP on Thursday announced candidates for the bypolls of three Lok Sabha and 16 Assembly constituencies for different states.

In a statement, BJP national General Secretary, Arun Singh said, “Central Election Committee of BJP has approved names for Lok Sabha and Assembly by-polls.”

The BJP has announced Mahesh Gavit as party candidate from Dadar and Nagar Haveli Lok Sabha constituency.

From the Khandwa Lok Sabha constituency in Madhya Pradesh, BJP has given ticket to Gyaneshwar Patil. Brigadier Khushal Thakur is BJP candidate from the Mandi Lok Sabha constituency in Himachal Pradesh.

For the Assembly bypolls, the BJP announced 16 candidates.

Punthala Suresh will contest from the Badvei Assembly constituency in Andhra Pradesh on a BJP ticket. The party has nominated Govind Kanda as party candidate from Ellenabad Assembly seat in Haryana.

For three Assembly constituencies in Himachal Pradesh, BJP has given ticket to Baldev Thakur (Fatehpur), Ratan Pal Singh (Arki) and Neelam Saraik (Jubbal Kotkhai).

Ramesh Bhusanuru and Shivaraj Sajjanar are fielded from Sindgi and Hangal Assembly constituency of Karnataka respectively.

For three Assembly constituencies in Madhya Pradesh, the BJP has announced Dr Shishupal Singh Yadav (Prithvipur), Pratima Bagri (Raigaon) and Sulochana Rawat (Jobat) as it’s candidates.

BJP has fielded Ashok Mondal from the Dinhata Assembly constituency in West Bengal. Niranjan Biswas (Santipur), Joy Saha (Khardaha) and Palash Rana (Gosaba) Assembly seats of West Bengal.

Earlier, on Monday the BJP had announced three candidates for the Assembly bypolls of Assam. On Sunday, the party announced candidates for the Assembly bypolls of Maharashtra, Mizoram and Telangana.

On September 28, the Election Commission of India (ECI) announced the poll schedule to fill vacancies in three Parliamentary Constituencies in Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli.

The ECI also announced the scheduled bypolls to fill 30 vacancies in Assembly Constituencies of various States. As per the schedule, polling will be held on October 30 and the counting of votes will take place on November 2.

NDA puts up Manjhi, Sahani to counter Lalu in Bihar bypolls

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NDA puts up Manjhi, Sahani to counter Lalu in Bihar bypolls

In a bid to counter Lalu Prasad, the NDA has put forward Jitan Ram Manjhi, the president of the Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) and Mukesh Sahani, president of the Vikassheel Insan Party (VIP), to attack Lalu Prasad and his family during the upcoming by-elections in the state.

The voting for the two seats of Kusheshwar Sthan and Tarapur is to be held on October 30 and the results will be out on November 2.

For the NDA, the JDU has fielded two candidates who will face the heat from the RJD. Bihar assembly election 2020 was contested without Lalu Prasad as he was serving a jail term in the fodder scam. Now in the by-election, he is out on bail and the RJD has announced his entry into the election campaign with a bang for these two seats.

As Lalu Prasad is a popular leader of Bihar especially among backward classes, Muslims, Yadavs and other most backward castes, it would be a tough challenge for the NDA to emerge victorious. Now, it has put Manjhi and Sahani forward to counter Lalu Prasad.

Jitan Ram Manjhi, the former chief minister of Bihar said: “When you were undeclared chief minister of Bihar during Rabri Devi government, I requested you to give respect to mountain man Dasrath Manjhi. You had given an unfortunate reply and said that a person belonging to the Mushar caste cannot sit on the chair.”

“It is due to the fear of Jitan (Jitan Ram Manjhi), you have given respect to a person of Mushar caste in this by-election,” Manjhi said referring to the RJD ticket given to Ganesh Bharti who belongs to the same caste to contest from Kusheshwar Sthan (SC) in Darbhanga.

Mukesh Sahani also attacked Lalu Prasad and his family. He said that Tejashwi Yadav stabbed him in the back just before the assembly elections of 2020.

“When Lalu Prasad was in jail, he had contacted me on phone and asked me to join the Mahagathbandhan,” Sahani said.

Rave party: NCP claims non-NCB personnel involved in ship raid

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Rave party: NCP claims non-NCB personnel involved in ship raid

In a stunning claim, a senior Nationalist Congress Party leader on Wednesday alleged that two private persons including a Bharatiya Janata Party ‘Vice President’ were involved in the Narcotics Control Bureau raid on a luxury ship Cordelia Cruise on October 2.

NCP national spokesperson and Maharashtra Minorities Affairs Minister Nawab Malik slammed the “fraud” NCB operations,in which BJP leader Manish Bhanushali and “private detective” Kiran P. Gosavi were seen dragging out the accused. including superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan and Arbaaz Merchant.

While a bearded and bespectacled Bhanushali, sporting a maroon shirt, was seen dragging out Merchant, the bald Gosavi was shown pulling Aryan Khan out of the International Cruise Terminal late on Saturday, shocking the country and rattling the entertainment industry.

Malik said that Bhanushali had posted photos with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP President J.P. Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Leader of Opposition in Maha Assembly Devendra Fadnavis, plus current and former central and state ministers, and other senior BJP leaders.

“The BJP and the NCB must come clear who are these two persons and why were they seen in the so-called ship raid. Both these persons are fakes and the NCB raid was a fraud intended only for grabbing publicity. What is the BJP’s connections with both of them,” he demanded.

Malik reiterated that since the past one year after the death of Sushant Singh Rajput, the NCB is only targeting high-profile film personalities, raids are carried out with an eye on hogging publicity, defaming the Maha Vikas Aghadi government and instilling fear in the minds of Bollywood people.

In response, BJP’s Leader of Opposition in the Council Pravin Darekar promptly denied Malik’s contentions and said that he was making the allegations out of frustration as his son-in-law Sameer Khan was nabbed by the NCB in January. 2021.

Light two diyas on Diwali: Modi to PM Awas Yojana beneficiaries

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Light two diyas on Diwali: Modi to PM Awas Yojana beneficiaries

Addressing a three-day urban conclave in Uttar Pradesh’s state capital Lucknow on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked the beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana to light two ‘diyas’ in their houses on Diwali this year.

“I have learnt that 7.5 lakh diyas will be lit in Ayodhya during ‘Deepotsav’ and if all those people who have benefitted from the PM Awas Yojana light two diyas each outside their houses, we will have 18 lakh diyas because nine lakh people have got their houses under this scheme. Let us compete with the power of light,” Modi said.

“Even Lord Ram will be happy if you do this,” he added.

Speaking at the ‘New Urban India Conclave’, the Prime Minister said his government had not only increased the size of houses under the scheme but also ensured facilities like water and power.

“A house becomes a home when one has basic amenities. The previous state government did not give houses to the poor even though the Central government was providing all the money. After Yogi Adityanath became Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, he has already given nine lakh houses,” Modi added.

He said, “The opposition always wants to know what Modi has done. Today I am telling them that I have made three crore poor people into ‘lakhpatis’ (rich) through just the PM Awas Yojana.”

The Prime Minister stressed that the use of technology cannot only ensure development but also ensure a better and healthier life for the people.

“Lucknow is known for ‘pehle aap, pehle aap’ but this is the time to say ‘pehle aap’ to technology. Whether it is waste management, sewage treatment plants, electric buses or pre-fabricated houses — all this is possible only through technology,” he said.

By introducing LED lights on streets, an amount of Rs one lakh crore had been saved which is now being used in other welfare schemes, Modi added.

The Prime Minister spoke virtually with three women who had been given houses under the PM Awas Yojana and gave the keys of the houses to 75,000 beneficiaries.

He laid the foundation of 75 development schemes worth Rs 4,737 crore to mark 75 years of India’s Independence and dedicated them to the people. Modi also flagged-off 75 electric buses.

Earlier, the Prime Minister saw an exhibition put up for the urban conclave, highlighting the new development schemes.

Telangana CM demands caste census, increase in SC quota

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Telangana CM demands caste census, increase in SC quota

Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Tuesday urged the Centre to enhance the reservation quota of Scheduled Castes and also undertake a caste census.

Speaking in the Assembly, he demanded that the Centre should increase the SC quota beyond the existing 15 per cent in view of changed dynamics.

Replying to debate on Dalit Bandhu scheme launched by his government, he said that the population of SCs has increased since the enactment to provide them 15 per cent reservation.

KCR, as Rao is popularly known, pointed out that contrary to general perception that Dalits are only 15 per cent of the total population in Telangana, statistics show that they are 17.53 per cent.

He said in some districts, Dalits are more than 20 per cent of the population. Mancherial district has the highest population of Dalits at 25.64 per cent. He said out of 1.03 crore families in Telangana, nearly 18 lakh are Dalits.

The Chief Minister also urged the Centre to undertake caste census. He announced that the Assembly will pass a resolution in this regard and send it to the Centre.

KCR backed the suggestion of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader Akbaruddin Owaisi for caste census and wondered why the Centre was not coming forward to undertake this.

“All kinds of nonsense is spoken in the absence of statistics. Unless you have the facts and figures, you can’t make the proper plans for upliftment of any section,” he said.

KCR also pointed out that unlike other countries, India has no national identity card. “Even our neighbouring country Myanmar has issued identity cards. With great difficulty, we had Aadhaar but for some strange reasons, even this is not accepted as a national identity card,” he said.

The Chief Minister also underlined the need for categorization of SC reservation. He said he raised the issue many times during meetings with the Prime Minister and a resolution was passed in the Assembly and sent to the Centre. He advised BJP leaders of the state to make their government at the Centre accept this demand and offered to accord them warm welcome and felicitate on their return from the national capital.

Priyanka Gandhi remains under detention in Sitapur, UP

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Priyanka Gandhi remains under detention in Sitapur, UP

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra remains in detention at the PAC guest house in Sitapur even though other leaders like Akhilesh Yadav have been released.

According to sources, Priyanka has said that as soon as she is allowed to go, she will go to Lakhimpur Kheri to meet the families of the victims of Sunday’s violence.

A senior official said that they were waiting for orders from Lucknow before they allow Priyanka to go.

Another source said that officials were wary of allowing Priyanka to move towards Lakhimpur unless the cremation of all the bodies of the victims is done.

The post mortem of the bodies is presently being done and the cremation is likely to take place on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Congress workers from adjoining districts have started collecting outside the PAC guest house.

Congress workers took out a candle march outside the PAC guest house and shouted slogans in support of Priyanka Gandhi.

Stalin seeks support from 12 CMs for abolishing NEET

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Stalin seeks support from 12 CMs for abolishing NEET

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has written to 12 counterparts across the country, seeking the support for scrapping the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), an official statement said on Monday.

In the letter written on October 1, he has asked his counterparts of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Delhi, Kerala, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Telangana, West Bengal, and Goa, to put up a united effort to restore the primacy of state governments in administering the education sector according to the Constitution.

In the letter, Stalin wrote: “Our considered position has always been that the move by the Union government to introduce NEET goes against the spirit of federalism and violates the constitutional balance of power by curbing the rights of state governments to decide on the method of admission in the medical institutions founded, established and run by them. In this regard, we consider that state governments need to assert their constitutional right and position in deciding the method of admission to their higher educational institutions.”

The state government statement also said that a delegation of DMK Parliamentarians will be handing over a translated copy of the Justice A.K. Rajan committee report studying the adverse impact of NEET on medical admissions in Tamil Nadu to the representatives of the state governments in Delhi.

The Tamil Nadu Legislature has recently passed the Tamil Nadu Admission to Undergraduate Medical Degree Courses Act, 2021, based on the recommendations of the Justice Rajan committee, which had studied whether NEET had affected backward students in the past few years.

The committee was also asked to look into the feasibility of implementing alternative admission procedures and the legal steps to be undertaken to implement such fair and equitable methods.

Stalin requested his counterparts in other states to extend support after studying the documents and ensure that students hailing from rural backgrounds and marginalised sections of society are not put to hardships in obtaining admission to higher educational institutions, the statement said.

Congress to protest at all District Collectors office in farmers’ support

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Congress to protest at all District Collectors office in farmers’ support

The Congress said that it will stage protests at all District Collectors’ offices across the country on Tuesday in support of farmers and to demand action against those responsible for the violence in Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri.

Addressing a press conference here on Monday party leader Rajeev Shukla said: “The party stands in support of farmers in the entire nation, and we demand that the Prime Minister and the UP Chief Minister should take strict action against those who have committed this crime and it should not look that government is against the farmers.”

The party also demanded that the government should release party General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra who has been detained by the UP Police while on her way to Lakhimpur Kheri, and also allow its two Chief Ministers – Punjab’s Charanjit Singh Channi and Chhattisgarh’s Bhupesh Baghel – to visit the site of incident as they have been denied permission to land in the state capital by the UP administration.

The Tikunia police in Lakhimpur Kheri lodged an FIR against Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Misra’s son Ashish Mishra and 15 others for murder and inciting violence in Lakhimpur Kheri, even as the death toll reached nine on Monday.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha claimed that Ashish Misra’s vehicle ran over farmers who were protesting against Uttar Pardesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya’s visit to a village in Lakhimpur Kheri.

Ajay Misra and his son, however, claimed that protesters attacked the convoy and killed a driver and three others, including two BJP workers.

Yogi to withdraw cases registered under Epidemic Act in lockdown

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Yogi to withdraw cases registered under Epidemic Act in lockdown

The Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh has decided to withdraw cases registered under the Epidemic Act for violation of pandemic guidelines during the Covid lockdown.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said keeping in view the larger public interest, cases relating to violation of the Act should be withdrawn.

He asked the home department to start proceedings in this regard. He also said tainted policemen would be identified and action taken against them.

It may be recalled that last month, the chief minister had also announced that the state government would withdraw cases filed against farmers for stubble burning.

A home department official said that Uttar Pradesh is the first state in the country to take back cases that were registered for violating Covid-19 protocol.

These cases were registered under the charges of Disaster Management Act, Epidemic Act, disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant for breaking Covid-19 protocol.

The chief minister has directed the officials to withdraw cases if they are not of serious nature, he said.

As per records, overall 91,002 cases were registered for violation of Covid protocol across all the eight police zones and four police commissionerate .

The officer also said that maximum cases were registered in Gorakhpur police zone with 18,585 cases and the least were registered in Varanasi Commissionerate with 251.

The state government has formed two committees to screen corrupt and tainted policemen. First under the chairmanship of Director General, intelligence Devendra Singh Chauhan and the second under Additional DG (law and order) Prashant Kumar.

The first committee will screen the officers in the rank of additional superintendent of police and deputy superintendent of police. The second committee headed by ADG (law and order) will screen policemen of inspector and sub-inspector level.

In this committee, the ADG establishment and home secretary will be the members. These committees will give their report after examining the policemen posted in the same district for three years and if they have any kind of allegations against them.

Priyanka arrested, oppn leaders under house arrest as toll in Lakhimpur Kheri reaches 8

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Priyanka arrested, oppn leaders under house arrest as toll in Lakhimpur Kheri reaches 8

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has been arrested from Hargaon in Uttar Pradesh’s Sitapur district while she was on her way to Lakhimpur Kheri where violence had claimed eight lives on Sunday.

Other opposition leaders are also being stopped from proceeding towards Lakhimpur Kheri after Sunday’s incident, where the death toll has gone up to eight.

Priyanka Gandhi’s convoy was stopped in Lucknow and the police surrounded the Kaul House where she stays during her Lucknow visits.

However, Priyanka managed to hoodwink the cops and walked out of her residence form the side gate and after a short distance, she got into a waiting car and left for Lakhimpur Kheri with Congress leader Deependra Singh Hooda at the wheel.

As soon as Priyanka reached Hargaon in Sitapur district around 6.a.m on Monday, she was stopped. After a minor scuffle with women constable, Priyanka demanded to see her arrest warrant. The police personnel took her into custody and she was taken to the PAC office in the district.

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said, “I am not committing a crime by stepping out of the house. I just want to meet the affected families and share their grief. What wrong am I committing? And if I have done something wrong, then you (UP Police) should have an order, a warrant. You (UP Police) are stopping me, my car, but for what reason?”

Congress leaders who were accompanying Priyanka created a ruckus and staged a dharna to protest against her arrest.

UPCC president Ajay Kumar Lallu said that the arrest of Priyanka proved again that there was no democracy left in the political system.

“We are well within out rights to protest and we are not going to be cowed down by such repressive measures,” he said.

The death toll in Sunday’s violence has gone up to eight and the BJP claimed that the deceased included one driver and three BJP workers.

Bahujan Samaj Party MP Satish Chandra Mishra was not allowed to move out of his house in Lucknow at 3 a.m. when he tried to move towards Lakhimpur Kheri. Mishra demanded a written order which prevents him from moving out of his house.

The BSP general secretary, said, “We want to visit Lakhimpur Kheri. We are not being allowed to move citing law and order disturbance there. We demand written order if they want to house arrest us.”

The Uttar Pradesh police tweeted that the situation in Lakhimpur Kheri was under control and adequate deployment of forces had been done to prevent any ‘untoward incident’.

Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said in a statement issued late on Sunday night that he was ‘saddened’ by the violence in his state that left eight people, including four farmers, dead.

He promised strict action against those responsible following an investigation and made an appeal to maintain peace.

BKU leader Rakesh Tikait’s convoy was also stopped on its way to Lakhimpur Kheri. He had reached Puranpur in Pilibhit district.

Tikait said that he will hold a press conference later in the day.

He said BKU would stage demonstrations at all district headquarters on Monday to protest against the Sunday’s incidents.

Bhim Army chief Chandra Shekhar Ravan’s convoy was stopped near Khairabad in Sitapur. He has been detained at Sitapur police line.

Aam Aadmi Party MP Sanjay Singh was stopped in Sitapur on his way to Lakhimpur Kheri on the intervening night of Sunday and Monday. He was stopped during checking of vehicles in Laharpur area of the district.

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary and former minister, Om Prakash Rajbhar, are scheduled to leave for Lakhimpur Kheri on Monday. A heavy police force has been deployed outside their respective residences.

A senior police official, who spoke to IANS on condition of anonymity, said, “We are not going to allow any political leader to go to Lakhimpur Kheri and worsen the situation. We are trying our best to defuse tension and normalize the situation. We cannot allow some leaders to derive political mileage at the cost of the situation.”

In another major development, union minister of state for home, Ajay Mishra Teni, whose earlier statement apparently triggered off trouble on Sunday, said that his son Ashish Mishra Monu was not present at the site where the violence took place.

The farmers had alleged that Monu had mowed down farmers while driving his SUV.

The police have taken Ashish Mishra to a safe house to ensure his safety and security.

Kamal Nath and Arvinder Lovely meet Sonia Gandhi

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Kamal Nath and Arvinder Lovely meet Sonia Gandhi

Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath and Congress leader Arvinder Singh Lovely met party interim president Sonia Gandhi in separate meetings at 10 Janpath on Friday evening.

According to sources, Kamal Nath apprised Sonia Gandhi to the current political situation in the state.

Kamal Nath also apprised the party president about the Congress’ strategy for the by-elections in the state.

The by-elections in Madhya Pradesh to Khandwa Lok Sabha and three assembly seats are to be held on October 30.

Meanwhile, BJP leader and Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra met Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia in Delhi in view of the upcoming elections.

Earlier on Thursday, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi.

Further, regarding the Arvinder Singh Lovely’s meeting with the Congress chief, it is being speculated that soon he can be given some new responsibility in the party.

Pakistan in talks with banned TTP for reconciliation

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Pakistan in talks with banned TTP for reconciliation

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has said the government is in talks with some groups of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), seeking a reconciliation, the Dawn reported.

“There are different groups which form the TTP and some of them want to talk to our government for peace. So, we are in talks with them. It’s a reconciliation process,” Khan said during an interview with the TRT World.

When asked if the government is asking them to lay down arms, the Prime Minister responded: “Yes, we forgive them and they become normal citizens.”

When asked why the TTP was carrying out attacks on Pakistani security forces when they were in talks with the government, Khan said it was just a “spate of attacks”.

“We might not reach some sort of conclusion or settlement in the end, but we are talking,” he added.

Responding to another query on whether the Afghan Taliban were acting as mediators between the TTP and Pakistan, Khan said: “Since the talks were taking place in Afghanistan, so in that sense, yes,” the report added.

VP asks start-ups to come up with innovative solutions to problems faced by elderly

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VP asks start-ups to come up with innovative solutions to problems faced by elderly

Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Friday urged the country’s young start-ups to come up with innovative and out-of-the-box solutions to the everyday problems faced by the elderly. Naidu said that taking care of the elderly should not be the responsibility of the government alone and each one of us should come forward and join this noble cause.

Addressing the gathering after presenting the National Award -Vayoshreshtha Samman-2021 here, the Vice President said that he would prefer to call the senior citizens ‘elders’ rather than ‘older persons’. He also launched the SACRED (Senior Able Citizens for Re-Employment in Dignity) portal to connect the senior citizens with job providers in the private sector.

Referring to the LASI report-2020, he said that more than 50 per cent of senior citizens are active and therefore, it is very important to provide gainful employment opportunities to them for a happy, healthy, empowered and self-reliant life. He urged the private sector to join the new portal and benefit from the skills and experience of the elders.

Naidu launched a National Helpline (Elder Line) during the award function. Noting that senior citizens are a highly vulnerable group, the Vice President lauded the helpline in bringing in an easy and efficient grievance redressal mechanism to protect them. He also appreciated SAGE (Seniorcare Aging Growth Engine) portal designed by the Ministry to encourage entrepreneurs in the area of elderly care.

The United Nations General Assembly had adopted a resolution to observe October 1, 1999 as the ‘International Day of Older Persons’ and since then, the first day of October every year is celebrated as the International Day of Older Persons, worldwide. On this occasion, the Government of India confers ‘National Award-Vayoshreshtha Samman’ on eminent senior citizens and institutions in recognition of their service to elderly persons.

Noting that the Covid pandemic has severely affected everyone including the senior citizens, Naidu called upon the civil society and voluntary organisations to act as a support system to the elderly and supplement the efforts of the Government and its agencies.

Observing that the elderly population in India is projected to reach about 14.9 per cent by 2036, Naidu recalled India’s rich tradition of respecting and caring for the elderly. “Under the joint family system, they enjoyed a place of reverence and influence, guiding and advising the younger generation on the strength of their knowledge, wisdom and long years of experience,” he said.

He added that with changing times and erosion of the traditional values, these days many young children do not have the privilege of enjoying the tender care, love, affection and guidance of the older generation as was available in joint families.

Referring to the various challenges to the well being of the elderly, Naidu said that the Government and Parliament are taking necessary initiatives to create the right policy framework for the care of the elderly.

Punjab CM Channi meets PM Modi, discusses farmers’ issues

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Punjab CM Channi meets PM Modi, discusses farmers’ issues

Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Friday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and discussed farmers issues. The meeting was held at the Prime Minister’s official residence at 7 Lok Kalyan Marg here.

It is learnt that Channi in his first meeting with the Prime Minister after becoming chief minister of Punjab requested that the Centre take back its decision to postpone paddy procurement by 10 days. The Centre has postponed the procurement of paddy by 10 days due to rain in Punjab and Haryana. Earlier the procurement was supposed to start from October 1 but now it will start from October 11.

“The chief minister has raised the issue of postponement of paddy procurement and requested to withdraw the order and immediately start the procurement,” sources said.

The sources said that the Punjab chief minister also discussed issues concerning the development of the state.

It is learnt that Channi discussed the three new farm laws against which farmers have been protesting for almost a year. “Punjab chief minister Channi has requested the Prime Minister to repeal the three new farm laws or find a solution to end the farmers’ protest,” sources said.

Last month, the Congress high command made Channi the chief minister of Punjab replacing Amarinder Singh. Channi reached the national capital on Friday afternoon around 3 p.m. and later went to meet the Prime Minister.

There is speculation that Channi will meet former Congress President Rahul Gandhi and other senior party leaders before returning to Punjab. Channi is likely to discuss the ongoing crisis in the Punjab Congress unit with the party central leadership after the resignation of Navjot Singh Sidhu from the post of state unit chief. Before coming to the national capital, Channi met Sidhu on Thursday.

Congress in pathetic situation now, says ex-Punjab CM

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Congress in pathetic situation now, says ex-Punjab CM

Taking strong exception to Harish Rawat’s no-holds barred attack on him, former Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Friday rejected the Congress Punjab in-charge’s claims and allegations, which he said were clearly prompted by the pathetic situation the party now found itself in the state after being on a winning spree for four and a half years.

“Three weeks before stepping down as CM, I had offered my resignation to Sonia Gandhi but she had asked me to continue,” said Amarinder Singh, adding the humiliating manner in which he was pushed into resigning just hours before the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting, that was clearly convened to oust him, was a matter of public record.

“The world saw the humiliation and the insult heaped on me, and yet Rawat is making claims to the contrary,” he remarked.

The ex-CM of Punjab recalled that Rawat himself had publicly stated after meeting him that he was satisfied by his government’s track record on the 2017 poll promises.

In fact, Rawat had categorically stated, as recently as September 1, that the 2022 elections would be fought under his (Amarinder’s) leadership and the high command had no intention of replacing him, he pointed out.

“So how can he now claim that the party leadership was dissatisfied with me, and if they were, then why did he deliberately keep me in the dark all this time?” he asked.

Ridiculing Rawat’s remarks that he seemed to be under pressure, the former CM said the only pressure he had been under for the past few months was that of his own loyalty to the Congress, because of which he continued to tolerate insult after insult.

“If the party did not intend to humiliate me then why was Navjot Singh Sidhu allowed to openly criticise and attack me on social media and other public platforms for months? Why did the party give the rebels, led by Sidhu, a free hand in undermining my authority? Why was no cognizance given to the uninterrupted spree of electoral wins I handed over to the party through the four and a half years I was in the saddle?” he asked.

Amarinder Singh asked why the Congress was allowing Sidhu even now to hold the party to ransom and continue to dictate terms.

“What is the pressure he exerts on the party leadership that they are so defenceless against him and are allowing him to have his way even at the cost of the Congress’ future in Punjab?” he asked.

Reacting to Rawat’s comment regarding his secular credentials, Amarinder Singh said even his worst critics and enemies could not doubt his integrity in this regard.

“But I am no longer surprised that a senior and seasoned Congress leader like Rawat is questioning my secular credentials. It is quite evident that I am no longer trusted and respected in the party that I have served loyally all these years,” he added.

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