Modi hits out at Omar Abdullah over his separate PM statement
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday hit out at National Conference leader Omar Abdullah over his reported statement seeking a separate Prime Minister for Kashmir and asked the Congress and Mahagatbandhan leaders to make clear their stand.
Addressing an election rally in Hyderabad, Mr. Modi said there were media reports that Mr. Abdullah has stated there should be a separate Prime Minister for Kashmir.
“Two Prime Ministers for Hindustan? Do you agree with it? Congress has to answer and all the ‘Mahagathbandhan’ partners have to answer. What are the reasons and how dare he say that”, he said.
Mr. Modi said he also wants to ask Trinamool Chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and NCP supremo Sharad Pawar whether they agreed with Omar Abdullah’s statement.
“I want to ask Bengal Didi who shouts a lot, do you agree with it? answer the people. U-turn (Chandrababu) Babu with whom Farooq Abdullah campaigned recently in Andhra Pradesh. Do you think Naidu should get votes?
NCP’s Sharad Pawar and former Prime Minister H D Devegowda, whose son is Karnataka CM, should also answer.
Would you like to go with them (Mahagathbandhan) or break away from them?”, Mr. Modi said.
On the vexed Kashmir issue against the background of BJP leaders favouring abrogation of Article 370, Abdullah had mentioned about J&K having a separate Prime Minister years ago and whether it needed to be restored to protect the state’s identity.
BSP's second list for U.P. out
The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) released its second list of six candidates for Uttar Pradesh, including three reserved constituencies.
Those fielded are fresh names, replacing those who lost in 2014. The second list touched areas of central UP and Bundelkhand, parts of which go to the polls in the fourth phase on April 29.
In Shahjahanpur, the BSP has fielded Amar Chand Jauhar who is associated with the education business, in place of Umed Singh Kashyap who stood second in 2014 with 2.89 lakh votes.
NDA govt took several measures to help middle class, says Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday asserted that the NDA government had taken various measures for the middle class, the benefits of which were already visible.
Addressing a rally, Mr. Modi said inflation had been contained and measures like reduction in interest rates of home loans and increase in the income tax exemption level had all benefitted the middle class.
“Today is April 1, the beginning of the new financial year and the interest exemption of ₹5 lakh announced in the budget will come into effect,” Mr. Modi said amidst applause from the crowd.
He said after the NDA regime under Atal Behari Vajpayee, it was his government that had the privilege of bringing prices under check after the erstwhile Congress government had failed in this direction.
“Home loan interest rates have become less...the EMI has become less .... the Pradhan Mantri Aawaas Yojana has enabled the middle class to have access to cheaper homes,” Mr. Modi said.
Had not the NDA government taken these anti-inflationary measures, the kitchen budgets of households would have gone out of control, the Prime Minister said.
Among other things, health bills, electricity bills, and mobile bills have become cheaper, he said.
Left parties accept Congress challenge in Wayanad, says Yechury
The decision of the Congress president Rahul Gandhi, to contest from Wayanad was against the interests of the people of the country, the CPI(M) general secretary, Sitaram Yechury, has said.
Mr Yechury was addressing a public meeting held in connection with the election campaign of the Left Democratic Front candidate, Veena George, in Pathanamthitta on Monday.
According to him, Mr Gandhi’s decision to contest from Wayanad where the presence of BJP was very weak has given a wrong message to the people at a time when democratic forces across the country have launched a united mission to defeat the BJP and protect the secular, democratic credentials of India.
"If the Congress aimed at defeating the LDF, the Left parties have accepted that challenge," he said. Mr Yechury said the LDF would register a landslide win in Kerala in the ensuing polls.
The CPI(M) leader said he had never advised the Congress president at any point of time to contest from South India, adding that the latter was free to contest from anywhere in the South. "Had Indira Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi sought the left parties’ advice before contesting from South India, earlier?" he quipped.
Mr Yechury said the mission of the Left parties in the ensuing general elections was to win maximum number of Lok Sabha seats and establish a secular Government at the Centre, ousting the BJP from power.
AAP writes to EC against ‘NAMO TV’ launch
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) wrote to the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday complaining against the recently-launched “Namo TV”, asking the poll panel if political parties having TV channels was in adherence to the Model Code of Conduct.
The Arvind Kejriwal-led party asked the ECI if the BJP had sought approval for the launch of the channel, which has Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s photograph on its logo and runs all his speeches.
“Can permission be granted to a party to have its own TV channel even after the Model Code of Conduct is enforced? If no permission was given by the ECI, then what action has been taken?,” the AAP said in its letter to the poll panel.
It also asked if BJP had approached the Media Certification Committee, established to certify the contents and cost of a telecast.
“If not, why show-cause was not issued for the violation of the MCC?,” asked the letter sent by the AAP’s legal cell.
It said the Supreme Court, in various cases, had held that there had to be a level-playing field for all the political parties and the EC was entrusted with the duty to maintain it.
“The intention behind these judicial precedents is to have equal opportunities for all political parties irrespective of money and muscle power, so that all political parties can reach out to the voters. But defying this very cardinal principle, the BJP has launched a 24-hour channel, ‘Namo TV’,” the letter said.
Congress questions assets information in Amit Shah’s poll affidavit, demands action against him
The Congress on Monday accused BJP president Amit Shah of providing “false information” related to his property in the affidavit filed by him for Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat and demanded that the Election Commission direct the Returning Officer to initiate action against him.
Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari alleged that Mr. Shah in his affidavit has “undervalued” his assets which is “very serious” as it is against the provisions of the Representation of the People Act.
Referring to a plot in Gandhinagar, the Congress leader claimed that as per the government guidelines the market value of the plot comes to ₹ 66.5 lakh, but Mr. Shah had declared its value at ₹25 lakh.
There was no immediate reaction available from the BJP or Mr. Shah’s office on the charges.
“We would like the Election Commission to take cognizance of this matter and direct the Returning Officer of Gandhinagar to take appropriate action under the law.
“Because this is no ordinary candidate, this is the president of the BJP and an alleged false declaration on an affidavit is a serious issue,” he told reporters.
Mr. Tewari alleged that when there is a laid down process, by which a clear market value of the property can be declared, the president of BJP for some reason has decided to declare only less than half its market value.
He also claimed that Mr. Shah’s assets have seen a jump of 300 per cent from 2012 to 2019, growing from ₹11.79 crore to ₹38.81 crore.
“At least, for some, ‘achche din’ have come, even if they have not come for 125 crore Indians,” he said referring to the BJP’s poll slogan for 2014 elections.
He said that Section 125-A of Representation of the People Act clearly says that ” a candidate who fails to provide full information or provides false information or conceals any information, will be punishable with fine and/or imprisonment“.
“The gravity of the situation lies in the fact that when there is a mechanism in place to ascertain the approximate current market value, the president of BJP has chosen to given it a pass and has deliberately and allegedly made an under-declaration,” he said.
BJP believes in policy of answering 'goli' [bullet] of terrorists with 'gola' [bomb]: Amit Shaw
The BJP believed in the policy of answering 'goli' [bullet] of terrorists with 'gola' [bomb], party president Amit Shah said on Monday at an election rally on the outskirts of Paralakhemundi in Gajapati district of Odisha that comes under the Berhampur parliamentary constituency.
''The country is safe in the hands of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Martyrs of the Pulwama terror attack had been avenged,” he said.
Citing the retaliatory air strike on terror bases in PoK, he said Prime Minister Modi was unlike ‘mauni baba’ Manmohan Singh.
Mr. Shah was also critical of Congress think tank Sam Pitroda’s desire to have talks with Pakistan. “Rahul Gandhi’s guru Mr Pitroda may be wanting talks, as it is the policy of their party. But the policy of our party is to give fitting reply in the form of 'gola' in return of 'goli' fired by terrorists”, he said.
He alleged that for vote bank politics the Congress had come out with the term,‘Hindu terror’, to tarnish image of Hindus. Citing the recent acquittal of all accused in the Samjhauta Express blasts case, he said the real culprits of this case have gone scotfree.
Congress should learn governance from BJP, says Rajnath
The Congress should learn from the BJP how a government should be run, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said. He asserted that India was among the fastest growing economies in the world and there was not a single charge of corruption against any Minister in the Narendra Modi dispensation.
Canvassing for BJP MP Ajay Tamta, who has been renominated in the Almora (reserved) Lok Sabha constituency, Mr. Singh accused the Congress of always doing politics over the issue of development.
“India, which ranked 11th in the list of world economies in 2013, has jumped to the sixth position and will stand 5th in the list over the next six months. If the pace of development continues, India will be the third biggest economy in the world by 2028,” Mr. Singh said at a rally.
“How a government is run is something the Congress should learn from the BJP. There has not been a single charge of corruption against any minister in the Modi cabinet in the last five years,” he said.
Referring to Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s proposed minimum income guarantee scheme aiming to lift five crore families out of poverty, Mr. Singh said, “The poverty alleviation slogan was first given by Jawaharlal Nehru and carried forward by Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi. It is being repeated by Rahul Gandhi who is promising to put Rs 72,000 into the account of every poor person. It is a fake promise like the slogan of poverty alleviation,” he said.
Quoting an American think tank, the senior BJP leader said the number of poor people in India that stood at 16.5 crore in the year 2015 had now reduced five crore.
“It is all due to steps taken towards poverty alleviation by the Modi government in the last five years. Not only the American think tank but even the International Monetary Fund [IMF] has said that India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world today,” Mr. Singh said.
While the Manmohan Singh government constructed only 25 lakh houses in five years, the Modi dispensation got 1.30 crore houses built for the poor during its tenure. “While only 47 per cent houses were provided toilets in last 55 years, the Modi government constructed toilets for 98 per cent houses in the last five years only,” he claimed.
Mr. Singh praised Uttarkhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, saying he was the only one to envision a universal health scheme much before the Centre launched Ayushman Bharat. “Under the present Chief Minister, the State is growing speedily,” he said, adding that the development of hill States was possible only when the Centre has the same party in government as the State.
In Almora, BJP’s Ajay Tamta is pitted against Congress’s Rajya Sabha member Pradeep Tamta.
Thushar Vellappally to contest against Rahul Gandhi in Wayanad
Bharath Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS) leader Thushar Vellappally is the National Democratic Alliance's candidate against Congress president Rahul Gandhi in Wayanad.
It was earlier announced that Mr. Thushar would contest from Thrissur. He had even started his campaigning. However, BJP national president Amit Shah announced Mr. Thushar's name for Wayanad. A BJP candidate is expected to contest from Thrissur.
SAD announces three candidates
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) announced the names of three candidates in Punjab.
Prem Singh Chandumajra has again been fielded from Anandpur Sahib, while former Minister Surjit Singh Rakhra will contest from Patiala. Former IAS officer Darbara Singh Guru will contest from Fatehgarh Sahib (reserve).
Yeddyurappa in Belagavi
Amid rumours that the Katti brothers are upset over the BJP denying them a ticket, party president and former Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa arrived in Belagavi.
He was received by Ramesh Katti at the airport. He and his brother Umesh Katti were expected to meet Mr. Yeddyurappa at the UK 27 hotel.
Mr Yeddyurappa and the Katti brothers maintained that the purpose of the former's visit to the city was to help local workers prepare for the polls. - Rishikesh Bahadur Desai
Rahul sees 'partnership' between BJP and TRS
Congress president Rahul Gandhi accused the TRS (Telangana Rashtra Samiti) of having a “partnership” with the BJP and claimed that only his party can fight the BJP.
He said that Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, who heads the TRS, never criticised the BJP government at the Centre and supported it on issues like the GST and demonetisation.
“Mr. Modi gets help from Telangana. Remote control is in his hands”, Mr. Gandhi said at a rally in Zaheerabad.
Rahul Gandhi refused to forge alliance with AAP, says Kejriwal
Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal. File photo
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said Congress president Rahul Gandhi refused to forge an alliance with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the national capital for the coming Lok Sabha election.
Talking to reporters at Delhi airport, the AAP leader said he met Mr. Gandhi recently and that the Congress leader refused to join hands with the AAP.
When asked about Congress’ Delhi unit president Sheila Dikshit’s remarks that Mr. Kejriwal never approached her for an alliance, he said, “We have met Rahul Gandhi. Dikshit is not that important leader.”
Mr. Kejriwal has been urging the Congress to stitch an alliance in Delhi to keep the BJP away from power.
Minister Shinde confident of BJP-Sena win in Maharashtra
Maharashtra Minister Eknath Shinde has expressed the confidence that the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance will win the polls and asked the coalition workers to work for increasing the victory margin this time.
Addressing a meeting of Shiv Sena-BJP workers at Dombivli town in Thane district on Sunday night, he asked them not to be reckless or underestimate the rival candidates.
“Our victory is definite this time also. Our target should be to ensure maximum difference of votes between the winning and losing candidates,” said Mr. Shinde, who is also the guardian Minister of Thane.
Lauding Srikant Shinde, Sena MP from Kalyan in Thane, for the work done by him in his constituency in the last five years, the Minister claimed that the voters would elect him this time also.
Minister Ravindra Chavan said voters in the Dombivli segment of the constituency earlier supported the BJP and Shiv Sena and this time also they would ensure victory for the alliance candidate.
“This election is an important one and the party workers should ensure that our candidate wins by the maximum victory margin,” he said.
Mr. Srikant Shinde's main rival is Babaji Patil of the NCP. - PTI
