Karnataka BJP president says State, Centre did good relief work
Karnataka BJP president Nalin Kumar Kateel on Saturday said the both the governments at the State and Centre have done a ‘good’ job in handling relief work during the floods, amid criticism from the Opposition Congress and JD(S).
The Member of Parliament from Dakshina Kannada constituency Mr. Kateel asked Opposition parties to cooperate with the State government in providing relief to those affected by the calamity instead of indulging in ‘politics’.
“The State government has not failed in relief work, our Chief Minister Yediyurappa has done things that no government in the past was able to do. He has taken decisions which no government has taken so far,” he said.
“Relief work has been taken up quickly...our government has done a good job in handling flood relief,” Mr. Kateel said.
Ashok Tanwar resigns from Congress
In a blow to Congress ahead of Haryana Assembly polls, its former state unit chief Ashok Tanwar resigned from the primary membership of the party on Saturday.
Tanwar announced his resignation on Twitter and posted a four-page resignation letter addressed to Congress president Sonia Gandhi in which he said “Congress is going through existential crises, not because of its political opponents but because of serious internal contradiction.
“I after several months of consideration tender my resignation from the primary membership of the Congress party, which I nurtured from my sweat and blood. My fight is not personal but against the system which is destroying the grand old party,” the letter said.
The reasons of his resignation are well known to all Congressmen, Mr. Tanwar said, adding that he has taken the decision after having long deliberations with party workers.
Mr. Tanwar has revolted against the party leadership alleging irregularities and corruption in ticket distribution for October 21 Haryana Assembly polls and had openly protested outside the Congress chief’s 10 Janpath residence on Wednesday.
He has been miffed with the party ever since he was removed as the Haryana Congress chief.
Modi govt. doubled developmental projects for Mizoram: Shah
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said the BJP-led government at the Centre has doubled the developmental projects in Mizoram than what the UPA had done.
Mr. Shah was speaking at the inauguration of the North East Handloom and Handicraft Exhibition, organised by the North East Council, in the Mizoram capital.
Speaking on the occasion, he said that the state has great potential in bamboo cultivation and its residents can become self-sufficient through the manufacture and sale of handicraft items.
Mr. Shah, also the NEC chairman, assured Chief Minister Zoramthanga of working towards the development of the state.
Mr. Zoramthanga expressed hope that with assistance from the Centre, Mizoram, that has a high potential for growth, will have the highest Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) in the country.
After inaugurating the exhibition, Mr. Shah is scheduled to meet Mr. Zoramthanga and then speak with leaders of the NGO Coordination Committee on the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB).
Opposition parties slam Sena, BJP for ‘slaughter’ of trees in Aarey
The opposition NCP and Congress in Maharashtra targeted the Shiv Sena and BJP on Saturday, saying the ruling parties have failed to save trees in Aarey Colony.
In a veiled dig at Yuva Sena chief Aaditya Thackeray, the Nationalist Congress Party asked where were the “fake environment lovers” when the hacking of trees began late Friday night.
“The Aarey tree felling is nothing but hitting Mumbaikars by first rendering them helpless. The @ShivSena bedeviled for the last 25 years. Now, it is holding common Mumbaikars to ransom in alliance with BJP,” NCP chief spokesperson Nawab Malik tweeted.
The Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd started cutting trees late Friday night to make way for its car shed, hours after the Bombay High Court dismissed four petitions filed by NGOs and activists challenging the decision to allow felling of trees in the prime green lung of the city.
“Where were fake environment lovers who championed the ban on plastic when the tree felling started?” Mr. Malik asked on the micro-blogging site, tagging Thackeray and BJP.
Another NCP leader, Dhananjay Munde, condemned the “slaughtering” of trees and accused the state government of “muzzling” the voices of people who protested against it.
The Congress, on the other hand, asked the Sena if its alliance with the BJP was more important than saving the trees.
“This is the time @ShivSena. You are in the government, can stop this. The Mahayuti (mega alliance) is more important or the mega loss of trees?” Maharashtra Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant tweeted.
Banners had been placed in Worli, from where Thackeray is contesting the October 21 assembly polls, in which the Shiv Sena leader is seen asking in Gujarati “Kem chho Worli?” (How are you Worli?).
Referring to the banners, Mr. Sawant asked Mr. Thackeray to at least say, “Kem chho #AareyForest”.
CPI(M) mulls bringing in age ceiling in its decision making bodies
In an effort to bring in fresh faces the CPI (M) is planning to introduce an age ceiling for the members in its decision making bodies from state committees to central committees and eventually Polit Bureau too.
The idea was discussed during the three day central committee (CC) meeting that concluded on October 4. CC's final report will be sent to the state committees to deliberate further and come up with a concrete proposal on the issue among other things.
Ramps for differently-abled visitors in Kolkata
Birbhum: An artist gives finishing touches on an idol of Goddess Durga in his workshop, ahead of Durga Puja festival in Birbhum district of West Bengal, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2019. (PTI Photo) (PTI9_28_2019_000203A)
Accessibility to Durga puja pandals will no longer be a problem for the differently abled as a number of organisers in Kolkata have set up ramps to facilitate their movement.
As part its efforts to create a sense of all- inclusiveness, Samajsebi Sangha, one of the big-ticket pujas in south Kolkata, said plywood ramps have been set up at both entry and exit points.
“Every year, we make arrangements for the convenience of differently abled visitors. They should also get to be a part of the celebrations,” Arijit Moitra, the general secretary of Samajsebi Sangha, said.
Moitra said young volunteers of the puja committee will be also present near the ramps to assist them for any need.
At Alipore Sarbojonin, another south Kolkata puja, the ramps have been extended to the main road for the wheelchair- bound visitors, one of its organisers, said.
“Apart from that, we have also launched a campaign to educate revellers about safe driving,” he said.
Bhawanipore 75 Pally organisers said arrangements have been put in place for round-the-clock medical assistance, besides wheel chair, rest room, toilet and drinking water facilities.
Nation is turning authoritarian: Rahul Gandhi
Former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi on Friday said the country is moving towards an ‘authoritarian state and anyone who criticises Prime Minister Narendra Modi or his government is put in jail.’
Mr. Gandhi, who is away in his constituency of Wayanad in Kerala to express solidarity with the protests against the night ban on traffic passing through the Bandipur Tiger Reserve, made these remarks in response to a question on an FIR being filed against nearly 50 celebrities for writing an open letter to Mr. Modi on mob lynching.
Friction in Maharashtra unit after BJP drops big names from final list
The cracks within the Maharashtra unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to the fore on Friday after the party announced the final list of candidates for the Assembly elections on October 21.
The party dropped half a dozen ministers resulting in discontent among the supporters of the shunted. While the party has ignored the old guard, it seems to have given ample opportunity to the dynasts with over 18 tickets to sons and daughters of the incumbent.
The fourth and final list took the BJP tally to 150 as opposed to the Shiv Sena’s 124. The Cabinet ministers who have missed out on a ticket are Vinod Tawde, Prakash Mehta, Eknath Khadse, Chandrashekhar Bawankule, Vishnu Savara and Dilip Kamble. The party also dropped its chief whip Raj Purohit.
BJP banks on national security again for the upcoming polls
The ruling BJP’s campaign for the Haryana Assembly election, slated for October 21, is again focused on issues surrounding national security, be it the abrogation of Article 370 or the Balakot airstrike against terror camps.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah in their recent rallies in Haryana, set the tone as they drew special attention to the issue of abrogating provisions of Article 370, claiming that the BJP-led government had accomplished what the successive governments had failed to do in 70 years.
