Namit Das pays musical tribute to Kishore Kumar, Madan Mohan

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Namit Das pays musical tribute to Kishore Kumar, Madan Mohan

Actor Namit Das has been working on a few interesting covers of Indian melodies with his band.

The latest song that was performed by him and his bandmate, Anurag Shanker, is “Zarurat hai zarurat hai” originally sung by Kishore Kumar and composed by Madan Mohan for the 1962 film “Man Mauji”.

“We chose ‘Zarurat hai zarurat hain’ as our third quarantine cover because it’s a song that I’m really fascinated with not because of the 90s pop version, but because it has been composed by Madan Mohan and a very few people know this,” said Namit.

“People remember him (Madan Mohan) as a music director who composed ghazals and was inclined towards creating poetry. Fun and light-hearted songs are not associated with him. But here is a song full of fun and it was sung by the king of playful music, Kishore Kumar. Anurag added a twist to the arrangement of the song. We thought it will be peppy and it will give happiness that is much needed at such times,” he added.

The actor-singer said that the cover is a tribute to Kishore Kumar and Madan Mohan.

On the acting front, Namit awaits the streaming of Mira Nair’s series, “A Suitable Boy”, and the digital series “Mafia”.

‘I’m Indira’s granddaughter, nothing can stop me from telling truth’

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‘I’m Indira’s granddaughter, nothing can stop me from telling truth’

A day after the Uttar Pradesh child rights body slapped a notice on Priyanka Gandhi, the Congress leader slammed back saying she is “Indira Gandhi’s granddaughter” and nothing will stop her from telling the truth.

The UP State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (UPSCPCR) on Thursday sent a notice to Gandhi regarding her Facebook post in which she criticized the Kanpur shelter home incident where 57 girls tested positive for COVID.

Priyanka Gandhi also said that the government was wasting time threatening her as they would not have much of an effect on her.

In a series of tweets in Hindi, the Congress’ eastern Uttar Pradesh in-charge said, “My duty as a public servant is to the people of UP, and that duty is to put the truth before them. And not to peddle any government propaganda. The UP government is wasting its time by threatening me…”

“Do whatever you want to do. I will keep bringing the truth to the fore. I am the granddaughter of Indira Gandhi, not an informal BJP spokesperson from an opposition party,” she said in another tweet.

The Commission has asked the Congress leader to issue a corrigendum to her post within three days or face action under the Child Protection Act (Section 13).

The notice sent by Chairman of the Commission, Vishesh Gupta, said that the UPSCPCR had taken suo-moto cognizance of her post in which she had compared the Kanpur shelter home to the Muzaffarpur (Bihar) shelter home incident.

Gupta said that while 57 girls had tested positive for coronavirus and were being treated as per the protocols, the report that one of the girls had tested positive for HIV was also baseless and wrong.

Gupta further said that comparing the Kanpur incident with Deoria in UP and Muzaffarpur in Bihar was completely “baseless and unjustified”.

“Two girls were already pregnant when they were brought to the shelter home a few months ago and it was wrong to insinuate any sexual exploitation in the shelter home,” the letter added.

The letter further said that Priyanka Gandhi’s remarks on social media have caused considerable anguish to the concerned inmates.

Earlier this week, the District Magistrate of Agra, Prabhu Narain Singh, had asked Priyanka Gandhi to apologize for her post in which she had stated that 28 deaths had taken place in Agra within 48 hours.

The Congress leader has been critical of the state government in the recent past as she has highlighted the issue of irregularities in the teacher recruitment examination, handling of migrant workers, and others. She had also locked horns with the state government in mid-May over the issue of providing 1,000 buses to the state government for transporting the stranded migrants.

BJP attacks Sonia, says PM relief fund misused in UPA rule

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BJP attacks Sonia, says PM relief fund misused in UPA rule

The BJP on Friday continued with its attacks against Congress interim Chief Sonia Gandhi on the issue of the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation (RGF) receiving donations from the Chinese Embassy here, as ruling party president J. P. Nadda accused her of diverting the money of the citizens during the UPA rule into a family-run foundation.

Nadda said it was not only brazen fraud but a big betrayal to the citizens of the country. While targetting Sonia Gandhi, he said one family’s hunger for wealth has cost this nation immensely and demanded Congress’ imperial dynasty to apologize.

“The PMNRF (Prime Minister National Relief Fund), meant to help people in distress, was donating money to the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation in UPA years. Who sat on the PMNRF board? Sonia Gandhi. Who chairs RGF (Rajiv Gandhi Foundation)? Sonia Gandhi. Totally reprehensible, disregarding ethics, processes, and not bothering about transparency,” Nadda said in a series of tweets.

He said, “People of India donated their hard-earned money to the PMNRF to help their fellow citizens in need. To divert this public money into a family-run foundation is not only a brazen fraud but also a big betrayal of the people of India.”

While attacking the Gandhi family, the BJP President said, “One family’s hunger for wealth has cost the nation immensely. If only they have devoted their energies towards a more constructive agenda. The Congress’ Imperial Dynasty needs to apologize to the unchecked loot for self-gains.”

On Thursday, a controversy erupted after a startling revelation that the government of the Peoples Republic of China and the Chinese Embassy in India has been funding the RGF led by Sonia Gandhi. She is the Chairperson of the RGF, and its board includes former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, former Congress President Rahul Gandhi, former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram and Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, among others.

However, the Congress responded to the BJP’s allegations and said, “the BJP should stop living in 2005” and alleged that the ruling party is adopting “diversionary tactics” to avoid answering questions on the Chinese transgressions in Ladakh.

On Thursday evening, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said, “Please stop living in 2005 and start answering questions in 2020”. Firing a salvo at the BJP, Surjewala asked: “Why is the government mum about the Chinese presence in the eastern Ladakh area? In the national interest, the nation wants to know the answer to these questions instead of diversionary tactics of the present BJP government.”

Surjewala said, “I can ask Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government, is it not true that the only Chief Minister (as Gujarat CM) who visited China four times is none less than Prime Minister Modi, the only Prime Minister who visited China five times is Prime Minister Modi, the only Prime Minister who called the Chinese premier three times is Prime Minister Modi.”

Positive cases are reporting in large number in Hyderabad

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Positive cases are reporting in large number in Hyderabad

A week back, Telangana CM KCR has ordered to increase of Corona tests in Hyderabad as the city is posting some big numbers. Accordingly, the government has spiked up the tests and as a result, the positive cases are reporting in large number which nearly touched 900 in a single day.

However, now the tests have received breaks. Due to piled up samples in the labs, there is a delay in testing the samples and delivering the results. This has forced the medical authorities to put a temporary break to Corona tests for Thursday and Friday. The tests would recommence again on Saturday.

Meanwhile, the only BJP Raja Singh is surrounded by Corona victims. Already his two gunmen were tested positive of the virus and today, his car drivers got infected. Alerted by this Raja Singh is taking precautions in people and others who are trying to reach him.

Bhuma Akhila Priya planned to launch a movie production house

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Bhuma Akhila Priya planned to launch a movie production house

Former Tourism Minister of Andhra Pradesh and late Bhuma Nagi Reddy’s political successor Bhuma Akhila Priya is said to be contemplating to invest in the movie industry.

If sources are anything to go by, Bhuma Akhila Priya and her husband Bhargav had planned to launch a movie production house. While all the plans were afoot, the sudden and unexpected lockdown imposed across the country seem to have affected these plans.

With the film industry being the worst-hit due to Covid-19, and it’s estimated that it would take a while for the revival of the industry, Bhuma couple seems to be in dilemma now. Only when the situation comes to normalcy, Bhuma couple’s movie production plans would be known.

We have to wait and watch whether the Bhuma couple would still go ahead with the movie production plan or would they drop their idea and switch towards any other business. If Bhuma Akhila Priya enters into the movie business, it will surely become a sensation in Tollywood and political circles.

Congress holds cycle rallies in MP against fuel prices’ hikes

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Congress holds cycle rallies in MP against fuel prices’ hikes

Congress leaders and supporters on Wednesday took out cycle rallies in Bhopal and Indore to protest against the increase in fuel prices, including former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijaya Singh who led the protest in state capital Bhopal.

Digvijaya Singh, elected to the Rajya Sabha on June 19, led his party leaders for a cycle march from the Roshanpura intersection to Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s residence in Bhopal.

“Today, when the people are facing a grim crisis due to COVID-19 and inflation is rising and people are dying of hunger, the central government has increased the petrol and diesel prices for the 18th consecutive day.”

“As (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi ji says ‘people must look for opportunity in a disaster’. Even the corona disaster is an opportunity for the Centre to earn money,” he added.

At Indore, former Higher Education Minister Jitu Patwari, MLAs Sanjay Shukla, and Vishal Patel, city Congress president Vinay Bakliwal along with other leaders and supporters pedaled from the Nehru statue at Madhumilan square to the Gandhi statue at Regal square and submitted memorandums to the President and Prime Minister through the Divisional Commissioner.

“The BJP had come to power by making claims of bringing down the inflation rate. Narendra Modi had said that he will bring the rate of dollar and rupee at par but instead he has leveled the prices of diesel and petrol,” Patwari said.

He said that people are already facing losses in business, and jobs are drying up, the economy has slowed down and people are harried. “By raising petrol and diesel prices by over Rs 8-11 in the last 18 days the government has placed an additional burden on the public,” Patwari claimed.

Bakliwal said that crude oil in the international market was priced about $45 per barrel but the government was unnecessarily increasing the prices. “Prices of fuel during the Manmohan Singh-led Congress government didn’t go beyond Rs 70 even while prices in the international market at that time were $135 per barrel.”

Why is UP’s Covid death rate so high if cases not rising: Priyanka

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Why is UP’s Covid death rate so high if cases not rising: Priyanka

Hours after UP’s ruling BJP warned her of “action”, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday continued her attack on the Yogi Adityanath government, asking if the cases of coronavirus were not increasing in the state, then why is its mortality rate is so high.

In a tweet in Hindi, Priyanka Gandhi, who is the in-charge for the eastern Uttar Pradesh said: “Out of 15 districts with the highest death rate, four districts are of Uttar Pradesh. In Jhansi, one out of 10 Covid-19 patients is dying, in Meerut, one out 11 COVID patients is dying, one out of 14 patients in Agra and Etah is dying. If the number of Covid-19 patients is not increasing, then why the death rate is still high.”

She also attached two pictures that showed the top 15 districts in India with the highest mortality rate and in another image the highest mortality rate in 10 districts of Uttar Pradesh.

Her remarks came a day after she rued the death of 28 Covid-19 patients in UP’s Agra within 48 hours of admission into hospital.

Earlier in the day, Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya warned Priyanka Gandhi of ‘action’ if she continues to resort to cheap politics and does not respond to a notice served by the Agra District Magistrate for posting wrong figures of COVID deaths.

“The Congress General Secretary is resorting to cheap politics since Covid-19 cases started emerging in UP. The claim of deaths made by her in Agra due to Covid-19 is false. The district administration has served her notice and if she fails to reply then we will take action,” he said.

He said that earlier, Congress indulged in “bus politics” and when their state party president Ajay Lallu was sent to jail, Priyanka Gandhi did not even bother to meet him.

KCR has finally restored full salaries and pensions to the government employees

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KCR has finally restored full salaries and pensions to the government employees

After three months of cut in salaries and pensions, Telangana CM KCR has finally restored full salaries and pensions to the government employees and retired employees respectively. With the latest decision, all the government employees, all India service officials and elected public representatives who were getting half or lesser wages since March 2020 would get full wages from June 2020.

Earlier the government had taken the decision to pay only 50 percent salaries to the state government employees and 75 percent pensions to the retired employees as the state was staring at a financial crisis owing to the nation-wide imposed lockdown following the Corona Virus pandemic.

With lockdown was recently lifted and unlocking is taking place in a phased manner, the economic and business activity in the state has picked up over the last month. The state government’s financial position is said to have improved to an extent. In this backdrop, CM KCR has taken the decision to pay full salaries to the employees with effect from June. The decision was taken on Tuesday after CM’s meeting with the finance department officials.

It can be noted that a few employees and pensioners had filed a petition in the High Court against the deferring of salaries, pensions and hearings are in the progress. The decision to restore full salaries and pensions have come as a huge sigh of relief to all the government employees and pensioners.

BJP announces candidates for 2 MLC seats in Bihar

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BJP announces candidates for 2 MLC seats in Bihar

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has announced the names of two candidates for the biennial Legislative Council elections in Bihar, fielding former ministers Samrat Chaudhary and Sanjay Prakash.

This information was released by party General Secretary Arun Singh on Wednesday at the direction of BJP national President J.P. Nadda.

The names of the two candidates were announced after the BJP Central Election Committee meeting.

Samrat Chaudhary, a former minister in the Bihar government, belongs to the Kushwaha community.

The polling will be held on July 6 for the nine vacant seats of the Bihar Legislative Council.

According to the Election Commission, nomination papers can be filed till June 25, and they will be scrutinized on June 26. The date for withdrawing the nomination papers is June 29.

UP Dy CM warns Priyanka Gandhi of ‘action’

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UP Dy CM warns Priyanka Gandhi of ‘action’

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya has warned Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra of ‘action’ if she does not respond to the notice sent to her by the Agra District Magistrate for posting wrong figures of the corona deaths.

Keshav Prasad Maurya accused Priyanka Gandhi of resorting to ‘cheap politics’ amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“The Congress general secretary is resorting to cheap politics since Covid-19 cases started emerging in UP. The claim of deaths made by her in Agra due to Covid-19 is false. The district administration has served her notice and if she fails to reply then we will take action,” the Deputy Chief Minister said.

He pointed out that earlier, Congress indulged in bus politics and when their state party president Ajay Lallu was sent to jail, Priyanka Gandhi did not even bother to meet him.

He further said, “The Gandhi family should apologize for making baseless allegations on the Covid-19 situation and LAC face-off.”

Maurya also hit out at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for his statements on the Galway clash.

“Rahul Gandhi is raising questions on the courage shown by our forces along the LAC. Congress is the main opposition party in our country, but it behaves like a supporter of China and Pakistan. When all the other parties supported the government and Army in the meeting called by the PM, Sonia Gandhi was in disagreement. I think the entire Gandhi family should apologize for the language used and the baseless allegations they are hurling at us,” he stated.

It may be recalled that the Agra District Magistrate Prabhu Narain Singh had sent a notice to Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Tuesday asking for a corrigendum within 24 hours for her tweet which claimed that 28 deaths took place due to Covid-19 in Agra in 48 hours.

According to the official, such ‘false information demotivates the corona warriors’.

However, after the notice, Priyanka Gandhi once again questioned the coronavirus situation in Agra by posting a tweet and sought Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s response.

In a tweet, Priyanka claimed that the death rate in Agra was higher than Mumbai and Delhi.

Targeting Agra District Magistrate for sending her the notice, Priyanka Gandhi said “An officer should focus on fixing the loopholes and ensuring better facilities rather than blaming others for the negligence.”

TMC suspends panchayat member over distribution of cyclone relief funds

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TMC suspends panchayat member over distribution of cyclone relief funds

A panchayat samity member in West Bengal’s South 24-Parganas district was suspended from Trinamool Congress after he apologized in public on Tuesday in front of hundreds of angry villagers over the disbursement of relief to the Amphan-affected.

At Mathurapur village, angry villagers held Swapan Kumar Ghatu and questioned him on cyclone relief funds in the presence of police and block development officials.

That allegedly accepted his ‘mistake’ and publicly sought forgiveness by pulling his ears. According to district Trinamool Congress sources, the panchayat samity member has been suspended from the party for an indefinite period.

Meanwhile, the district administration has initiated the process to scrutinize the list of Amphan-affected villagers eligible for relief. The district administration will also review the list of those who have already received aid from the state for cyclonic disaster.

“If necessary, we will ask for a refund from villagers who were not affected by the cyclonic storm,” sources said.

Courtroom Mahabharata on Kejriwal, Modi spat continues (Ld)

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Courtroom Mahabharata on Kejriwal, Modi spat continues (Ld)

Almost a month after the Delhi government approved the appointment of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and other Central government counsel as Special Public Prosecutors in a case relating to the Delhi riots, the Delhi High Court was again witnessing to another battle of words between the lawyers of the Centre and the state as to who will represent the Delhi Police.

The Delhi government had last month appraised the high court that as per a communication dated May 29 issued by the Deputy Secretary, Home, Mehta, Additional Solicitors General Maninder Acharya and Aman Lekhi besides government counsel Amit Mahajan and Rajat Nair were appointed as special public prosecutors to represent Delhi Police in one of the riot cases.

On Monday, while the high court was hearing the bail application of Jamia Millia scholar and Jamia Coordination Committee member Safoora Zargar through video conferencing, Delhi government’s Standing Counsel (Criminal) Rahul Mehra clashed with the SG and Lekhi.

Objecting to the appearance of the two senior law officers on behalf of Delhi Police in the case, he stated that unlike another matter pertaining to the Delhi riots in which requisite approval was sought by the Delhi Police to be represented by the SG and his team, no such procedure was followed in the present case.

“I am an officer of the court and I am not supposed to be a mouthpiece of the police. They know that my approach in such a case would be more humanitarian and not according to their whims and fancies,” Mehra submitted.

In response, Lekhi said: “A client chooses the advocate, the lawyer can’t impose himself on the client.”

While the matter ended with the court posting the hearing on Tuesday, the fight also entered another courtroom where a separate matter connected to the said riots was being heard.

The next incident occurred before the court of Justice Suresh Kumar Kait, who was hearing an application filed by the police seeking cancellation of bail granted to Rajdhani school owner Faisal Farooqui who was among 18 people who were arrested in a case of rioting and for burning down an adjacent school in the area on February 24.

When the matter began, Mehta appeared for the Delhi Police, but, simultaneously Mehra too also entered his appearance and submitted before the court that the Central government has no power to file the present petition.

Responding to the same, Mehta submitted that he has received instructions from the Central government to file the present petition and to appear before this court. However, Mehra disputed this and the Solicitor General, “out of disgust” submitted before the court that in such a situation, he seeks permission to withdraw his name from the present case.

The court then renotified the matter for a later hour in the day to resolve the issue.

In the second half, Lekhi entered his appearance in place of Mehta, and APP Amit Chadha appeared in place of Mehra, who was appearing in another court.

Chadha told the court that the controversy will be resolved during the course of the day and jointly sought an adjournment, following which the court also posted the matter for Tuesday.

This isn’t the first time the counsel of both governments is at loggerheads. In March, the never-ending tussle between the Centre and the Delhi governments was in full display inside the high court over the same issue.

The debate had led to a heated argument between Mehra and Additional Solicitor General Maninder Kaur Acharya when the former submitted that he is the designated counsel to represent Delhi Police in the case.

Mehra had also said that he has not been issued any written intimation about Acharya in this regard. “I deserve this much dignity. If you route it through my office, I would cooperate. In three cases, I withdrew on request.”

As at this, the ASG commented: “He has a bit of a politician in him”, Mehra, objecting strongly to the statement, replied: “I am an officer of the court. I won’t make such statements. ASG should take back her words.”

The bench asked the two lawyers to calm down and said: “Put your house in order by the next date of hearing.”

On February 27, Lt Governor Anil Baijal appointed Mehta, Acharya, and few others to represent Delhi Police in the matters relating to the violence that erupted on February 23.

While this year, it was the Delhi riots that became the cause of “Mahabharata” between the Modi and Kejriwal government, back in 2016, former JNUSU President and left leader Kanhaiya Kumar and his case regarding the seditious remarks became the reason of the rift.

As soon as the hearing on Kanhaiya Kumar’s bail plea commenced before a bench of Justice Pratibha Rani, Mehra opposed the appearance of then ASG Mehta, ASG Sanjay Jain, and others. Mehra said that he was a senior standing counsel appointed by the full court reference of the High Court and if there was no notification empowering the ASGs to appear in the matter, they cannot represent the state.

“If they don’t have the notification, they can’t stand on their legs before this court,” Mehra said. ASG Jain had then responded: “Once the ASGs are appearing in this matter, you have no business to interfere in it.”

Mehra, then in rage, said: “They have crossed the ‘Laxman Rekha’ and I will not allow this unless the court passes an order. I am appointed by the full court reference of this court. As a senior standing counsel, I am not allowed to argue in the matter and they are here on LG’s unofficial order.”

Santoshi is going to be appointed as the Deputy Collector

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Santoshi is going to be appointed as the Deputy Collector

Colonel late Santosh Babu’s wife Santoshi is going to be appointed as the Deputy Collector. Telangana state government, which announced Group-1 cadre post to Col. late Santosh Babu’s wife along with Rs 5 crore compensation to family and a land site, is all set to fulfill its promises without any delay.

According to media reports, Santosh Babu’s wife Santoshini will be posted as the Deputy Collector. None other than CM KCR is going to meet Santoshini and hand over the appointment letter, compensation cheque of Rs 5 crore.

The government has also allotted 500 square yards of land at Shaikpet to Col Santosh Babu’s family. KCR will be visiting martyred Santosh Babu’s family at Suryapet and would offer his condolences to the family personally.

Col. Santosh Babu had bravely fought with Chinese troops at the LAC at the Galwan Valley in Eastern Ladakh and attained martyrdom on Monday night. Santosh Babu hailed from Telangana’s Suryapet. He had served as the Commanding Officer of 16 Bihar regiment.

Santosh was the only son to retired SBI bank chief manager Upender and Manjula. In the 15-year-career, Santosh had received a commendation from the army-chief after he had fought terrorists earlier in Kupwara in Kashmir. He was survived by his parents, his wife Santoshi, nine-year-old daughter Abhigna and four-year-old son Anirudh.

Telangana BJP chief held over protest against govt’s handling of COVID

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Telangana BJP chief held over protest against govt’s handling of COVID

Bharatiya Janata Party’s Telangana unit chief Bandi Sanjay and other leaders were arrested by the police here on Monday as they tried to lay siege to the directorate of health to protest what they call the state government’s failure to contain the spread of COVID-19.

Sanjay, also a Member of Parliament Afrom Karimnagar, was leading the protest at the directorate office in Koti as part of the state-wide agitation called by the BJP.

Raising slogans of ‘KCR down down’ and ‘save Hyderabad from coronavirus’ the leaders gathered at the office. They were also demanding the resignation of Health Minister Eatala Rajender.

The police placed several BJP leaders under house arrest in Hyderabad and other districts to foil the protest.

Former BJP state chief K. Laxman, former minister Peddi Reddy, former MP P. Sudhakar, and member of State Legislative Council Ramchandra Rao were among the leaders kept under house arrest.

Police had also made tight security arrangements at state BJP headquarters to prevent the leaders from taking out any protest march.

Sanjay and some others, however, succeeded in reaching the directorate. Police shifted to their vehicles and whisked them away.

The BJP leader alleged that the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) government was using the police force to suppress a democratic protest. He alleged that there is a devil’s rule in the state.

Sanjay said they called for the protest to demand the government to increase the number of COVID-19 tests in the state, fill-up the vacancies in the health department, and start services at the newly established Telangana Institute of Medical Sciences (TIMS).

He alleged that due to the inefficiency of the TRS government that coronavirus was spreading fast in the state.

He said instead of responding to the points raised by BJP chief J.P. Nadda over COVID-19, the TRS leaders tried to divert people’s attention and make allegations to take political mileage.

Referring to the health minister’s counter-attack on Nadda questioning him about the situation in BJP-ruled states, the state BJP president said Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh had conducted five lakh tests each. “Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh have also conducted 3 lakh tests each. How many tests were conducted in Telangana,” he asked.

The BJP leader said the TRS government had been claiming that it procured 10 lakh PPE kits and 10 lakh N-95 masks but the doctors came out on streets to protest over lack of PPEs. He said the government failed to protect doctors, other healthcare workers, and policemen.

Telangana has been witnessing a big surge in COVID-19 cases. It Sunday recorded 730 cases, the highest single-day jump since March 2, when the first case was detected.

Yogi govt cracks down on Mukhtar Ansari’s economic empire

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Yogi govt cracks down on Mukhtar Ansari’s economic empire

The economic empire of the jailed mafia don-turned-MLA Mukhtar Ansari is now on the radar of the Uttar Pradesh Police.

Illegal slaughterhouses, vehicle stands, and other small businesses being run by members of the Mukhtar gang are now being subjected to raids.

The Mau police, last week, raided a slaughterhouse that was being operated illegally for the past 20 years. The police recovered 800 kg of meat and over 20 animals from this spot. The police also arrested Shakil Ahmed, Ikhlaq Ahmed, Javed Akhtar, Abdur Rehman, and Azmal Qureshi.

Mau Superintendent of Police (SP) Anurag Arya said that three other accomplices of the arrested slaughterhouse operators had been identified and a cash reward of Rs 25,000 had been announced. He said that they would be arrested soon.

A fish mafia, Parasnath Sonkar, owing allegiance to Mukhtar Ansari has also been arrested.

Varanasi zone Additional Director General of Police Varanasi Brij Bhushan said, “Under the ongoing drive against gangs involved in organized crime, a sharp vigil is being kept on the wealth being generated by them by indulging in illegal activities. The involvement of any gangster in such activities will invite prompt action.”

According to him, the process to book them all under the Gangster Act had also been started.

Last week, the Mau police had booked 11 Mukhtar gang members, including Surendra Singh, Saud Abbasi, Shivendra Kumar Singh, Samar Bahadur, Ashwini Kumar Singh, Jhinku Singh, Mahendra Chauhan, Makhanchu Yadav, Santosh Kumar, Mandhata Shukla, and Dheeraj Rai.

SP Arya said that initially in 2019, three FIRs were lodged against the members of this gang with the City Kotwali, Sarai Lakhani and Dakshin Tola police stations when it came to light that they had taken a contract of taxi stand from Nagar Palika for 2019-20., but we’re using it to extort money from all kinds of vehicles in the entire district.

A total of 11 members of the gang, including Suresh and Abbasi, were sent to jail while the contract of Rs 65.51 lakh was canceled.

However, when the process of floating fresh tender was initiated by Nagar Palika in November 2019 Dheeraj Rai, who also belongs to this gang, grabbed the contract by quoting the amount of Rs 75 lakh. Rai and his accomplice, Mandhata have also been sent to jail and booked under the Gangster Act.

The Mau police are also planning to take Mukhtar Ansari on remand in a five-month-old case lodged against him for recommending arms licenses to four, including a criminal who was later gunned down by the police.

Arya said that process to take Mukhtar on remand for interrogation in the case registered by the Dakshin Tola police, had also been initiated.

In 2001, Mukhtar had sent a letter on his official letter pad to the District Magistrate requesting the issuance of arms licenses to four persons. The applicants had applied for arms licenses on fake addresses, which were shown as verified.

The episode came to light in December 2019 when the addresses were being reverified. One of the arms license holders had even been killed in a police encounter.

Mukhtar Ansari, a five-term MLA, has been lodged in jail since 2005, in connection with the murder of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai. Though he was acquitted of the charges in this case by a special CBI court in Delhi in July last year, he remains behind the bars in other cases. He is presently lodged in the Ropar jail.

Mukhtar Ansari belongs to a very well-known political family in Uttar Pradesh. His grandfather Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed Ansari was once the national president of Congress. The Ansaris are believed to have considerable influence in about 20 Assembly constituencies in Ghazipur, Mau, Azamgarh, Ballia, and Varanasi.

His elder brother Afzal Ansari is a BSP MP.

Disinformation is no substitute for diplomacy: Manmohan to Modi

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Disinformation is no substitute for diplomacy: Manmohan to Modi

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying “disinformation” on the Chinese transgression will be a “betrayal” to the sacrifice made by the Indian soldiers at the LAC and it was neither a “substitute for diplomacy” nor “decisive leadership”.

Manmohan Singh was criticizing Modi’s statement at the all-party meeting on Friday and later clarification by the Prime Minister’s Office on the June 15 night’s violent face-off between the Indian and Chinese sides at Galway Valley on the Line of Actual Control that led to the death of 20 Indian soldiers, including a commanding officer.

The PM statement was used by the Chinese to get away from their misdeeds at the Galway Valley.

“The Prime Minister cannot allow them to use his words as a vindication of their position and must ensure that all organs of the Government work together to tackle this crisis and prevent it from escalating further,” said the former Prime Minister.

Manmohan Singh in a statement said: “We remind the Government that disinformation is no substitute for diplomacy or decisive leadership.”

“The truth cannot be suppressed by having pliant allies spout comforting but false statements,” added Manmohan Singh.

Singh said Prime Minister should be “mindful” of the implications of his words.

He said in Indian democracy that responsibility rests with the office of the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister must always be mindful of the implications of his words and declarations on our Nation’s security as also strategic and territorial interests.

The former Prime Minister said China is brazenly and illegally seeking to claim parts of Indian territory such as the Galway Valley and the Pangong Tso by committing multiple incursions between April 2020 till date.

“The Nation lost twenty brave soldiers in the Galway Valley, Ladakh on June 15th-16th, 2020. They laid down their lives in the ultimate act of sacrifice, valor, and duty to our country. Our Bravehearts defended the motherland till their last breath and for that we owe them, and their families, our eternal gratitude,” said the statement

“However, their sacrifice cannot be allowed to be in vain. At this moment, we stand at historic crossroads. Our Government’s decisions and actions will have serious bearings on how future generations perceive us. Those who lead us to bear the weight of a solemn duty.

“We cannot and will not be cowed down by threats and intimidation nor permit a compromise with our territorial integrity,” said Manmohan Singh.

“This is a moment where we must stand together as a nation and be united in our response to this brazen threat and the Prime Minister and the Government have to rise to the occasion, to ensure justice for Col. B. Santosh Babu and our jawans who have made the ultimate sacrifice and resolutely defended our territorial integrity.”

“To do any less would be a historic betrayal of the people’s faith,” said the statement from Manmohan Singh.

Opposition questioning our forces at such delicate time: Nadda (Ld)

TB Team
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Opposition questioning our forces at such delicate time: Nadda (Ld)

After training his guns at Rahul Gandhi for his “choice of words” against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP President J.P. Nadda on Saturday targetted Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, saying the opposition was “questioning” the Indian armed forces at “such a delicate time”.

“It has been our party’s history that we have always stood by the national leaders in times of crisis. But our Opposition, at such a delicate time, is questioning our forces and are trying to weaken the morale of the nation,” alleged the BJP President while addressing a virtual rally for party cadres of Telangana.

During the all-party meeting on the India-China standoff on Friday, Sonia Gandhi had questioned the Modi government about “intelligence failure”, saying, “In fact, even at this late stage, we are still in the dark about many crucial aspects of the crisis.”

Nadda also attacked Sonia Gandhi for Congress’ sharp offensive against the Modi government for the steep fuel price hike.

“Sonia Gandhi questioned the hike in petrol prices. Does she not know that it has been hiked in Rajasthan, Punjab, and Maharashtra also? Don’t her CMs listen to her,” Nadda said.

Nadda also raised the cause of Muslim women by mentioning the Triple Talaq Act.

“Nine crore Muslim women were still under the shackles of Triple Talaq. Working on SC’s direction and backed by the will power of Prime Minister Modi, we managed to free all Muslim women from the atrocity of Triple Talaq,” the BJP President said.

He added that Islamic countries like Pakistan, Afghanistan, Syria, and others did not have the practice of Triple Talaq, while India continued with it.

Nadda also hailed the Prime Minister’s role during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, saying Modi was the first leader who called and initiated the G20 Summit to fight coronavirus.

“The whole world, be it UN, World Bank or WHO, praised Modi,” Nadda said.

He also referred to the various initiatives, including PM-KISAN Yojna, ‘Aatmanirbhar’s package, among others, which have been introduced to help different sections of the society.

Rajya Sabha polls: Congress urges EC to cancel two BJP MLAs’ votes

TB Team
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Rajya Sabha polls: Congress urges EC to cancel two BJP MLAs’ votes

The Gujarat Congress on Friday complained to the Election Commission of India against BJP MLAs Bhupendrasinh Chudasama and Kesarisinh and urged for canceling their votes in the Rajya Sabha biennial elections here during the day.

Voting for four Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat was held at the Assembly building here on Friday.

Congress complained that Bhupendrasinh’s Assembly seat victory was quashed by the Gujarat High Court and his Assembly membership no longer existed.

The party said Kesarisinh cast his vote through a proxy voter, despite being totally fit till Thursday. “If a proxy voter was required due to his failing health condition, Kesarisinh ought to have applied for the required permission from the Election Commission prior to the day of the filing of nominations for the Rajya Sabha elections,” Congress said.

The Congress urged the commission to cancel the votes of these BJP MLA and not count them when counting of votes was taken up during the day.

The BJP had fielded three nominees and the Congress two for the four seats. There was a fight between BJP’s Narhari Amin and Congress’ Bharatsinh Solanki, both of whom required 35 votes to win the election.

The BJP had 33 votes and Congress 30 votes as none of them had sufficient votes to ensure a clear-cut victory for their candidates. Both were relying on the votes of other parties like BTP, NCP, and independent voters.

Two Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP) MLAs said they would not vote till a written assurance about the welfare of tribals, Dalits, and migrants. This development put Congress to a disadvantage as it was heavily relying on such votes.

Rahul Gandhi had posted that soldiers were sent “unarmed to martyrdom”

Team TeluguBullet
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Rahul Gandhi had posted that soldiers were sent “unarmed to martyrdom”

Rahul Gandhi had posted that soldiers were sent “unarmed to martyrdom”. He was fact-checked by Foreign Minister S Jaishankar, who said soldiers always carry arms but the rules of engagement do not allow use firearms during face-offs.

Indian soldiers were assaulted with iron rods and clubs wrapped in barbed wire laced with nails in the fight with the Chinese in Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh, close to the Line of Actual Control. Many were thrown off a steep ridge and some of the soldiers fell into the river Galwan.

Mr Jaishankar told his China counterpart Wang Yi the incident would have a serious impact on the bilateral relationship and China must take corrective steps. But both ministers agreed that “neither side would take any action to escalate matters.”

Cong uses social media to corner BJP on China issue

TB Team
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Cong uses social media to corner BJP on China issue

To counter the BJP onslaught on the China issue, Congress has initiated a social media campaign in which party’s prominent leaders are posting videos supporting the Army and criticizing the government for mishandling the issue with different hashtags.

A Congress source said that after some media houses tried to blame the Army and the BJP tried to implicate the Congress, the party has gone on an overdrive to support the Army on all social media platforms.

“Congress is not a ‘cheerleading’ squad of the BJP government, it is the representative of the people who deserve to know why the first time in 45 years our soldiers have lost their lives in the Ladakh sector. INC always stands with armed forces who serve the Nation and not any particular government,” said Congress spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill.

He also posted one such video and said about the drive to corner the BJP. “Congress has always played a role of constructive opposition by supporting the government in an hour of crisis and at the same time holding it accountable in the public interest.”

Apart from Shergill, Congress General Secretary K.C. Venugopal also posted a video and said, “Our entire nation pays homage to the supreme sacrifice of our martyrs. The nation is asking some pertinent questions from the Government of India; will the PM & RM answer to the nation?”

Congress made videos of its spokespersons and leaders and used #TreacherousChina and #OurArmyOurPride among other hashtags and posted on social media.

The Congress said on its social media accounts, “Government of India must be far more firm in responding to Chinese aggression. India cannot let the ultimate sacrifice made by our armed forces to go in vain.”

Another spokesperson Sharmishtha in the video said, “At a time when the whole world is reeling under the deadly threat of COVID-19, China’s aggression towards this peaceful neighbor is not only unacceptable but cowardly”

“Did BJP’s ego & denial of the truth put our brave jawans at risk? The govt must answer, who is responsible for the martyrdom of our soldiers? tweeted the party.

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