Page 48 - Congress

Morbi bridge collapse: Act of God or act of fraud, Digvijaya asks PM Modi

Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Sunday asked if the collapse of the suspension bridge on Machchhu river in Gujarat's Morbi district, in which at least 60 persons have died, was an "act of God or an act of fraud". Singh, who issued several tweets on the incident, was playing on the phrase that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had reportedly used at a rally while lampooning the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal after the Vivekananda Road flyover collapsed in Kolkata on March 31, 2016, killing many. "Modi ji, is the Morbi bridge accident an Act of God or Act of Fraud? Singh tweeted while quoting a 2016 news report. He said the bridge was under repair for six months but collapsed five days after it was reopened. In Gujarat, where the Bharatiya Janata Party has been in power for 27 years, the Narmada canal broke during the first day's testing at village Bidra in Kutch district in July this year, while an overbridge in Bhuj, which took 8-9 years to build, had to be repaired

Prez Murmu, PM Modi express grief over deaths in Gujarat bridge collapse

Several top leaders including President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday expressed grief after a bridge collapsed in Gujarat's Morbi city on Sunday claiming at least 60 lives. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and party leader Rahul Gandhi appealed to all party workers in the state to extend every possible assistance in the rescue work. Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar prayed for the safe rescue of all. "Distressed to hear about the tragic incident in Morbi, Gujarat. I pray for the safe rescue of all and the speedy recovery of those injured. My thoughts are with the affected families," the Vice President Secretariat said in a tweet quoting Dhankhar. Prime Minister Modi announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the families of each of those who died in the incident, his office said. Expressing sadness, Modi, in a tweet said he has spoken to Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and officials. "Relief and rescue operations are going on in full swing and al

MP polls: A possible Cong-JAYS tie-up, Bhim Army moves liven up politics

Apart from this, in a recent development the Bhim Army is trying to make inroads into state politics

Cong to launch 'Parivartan Sankalp Yatra' in poll-bound Gujarat from Oct 31

The Congress will take out a massive 'Gujarat Parivartan Sankalp Yatra' in five zones of the poll-bound state from Monday, during which 145 public meetings and 95 rallies will be held along the route covering more than 5,400 km. The yatra will be launched from Vadgam, Bhuj, Somnath, Vadgam, Fagvel and Jambusar on October 31 to mark the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and the death anniversary of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, party leaders said. Senior party leaders, including Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, his Chhattisgarh counterpart Bhupesh Baghel, former Madhya Pradesh chief ministers Digvijaya Singh and Kamal Nath, Congress MLA Sachin Pilot, among others, will launch and join the yatra, they said. "The Congress' 'Parivartan Sankalp Yatra' will be launched in five zones of Gujarat, and 145 public meetings and 95 rallies will be organised throughout the journey. The yatra, which will cover 5,432 km, aims to establish direct contact with 4.5 crore ...

For top leadership of Congress, Mallikarjun Kharge is just the man for job

The task for Mallikarjun Kharge is cut out. He has assumed charge as Congress president at a time when the party is at its weakest. Can he engineer a resurgence?

Robert Vadra hails 'Bharat Jodo Yatra', likens Rahul to Shirdi's Saibaba

The country will witness a change due to Rahul Gandhi's 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' as thousands of people are getting connected to it and are seeing him as the hope for the future, the Congress leader's brother-in-law and businessman Robert Vadra said here on Sunday. Vadra, who was in Shirdi town of Maharashtra's Ahmednagar district to offer prayers at the famous Saibaba temple, also said that Rahul Gandhi's thinking is similar to that of the spiritual leader's (Saibaba) who preached unity, though he did not elaborate. On the ongoing 'Bharat Jodo Yatra', he said, "Rahul Gandhi is visiting a number of places and meeting thousands of people. These people are joining him in large numbers. Change will come in the future as Rahul Gandhi is the new hope for people." "The government (led by Bharatiya Janata Party at the Centre) will talk about our failures. They will make fun of the party (Congress), but Rahul, Priyanka (Gandhi Vadra) will not stop. We are among the people together and will work

Jairam Ramesh calls Kiren Rijiju 'distorian' over the Nehru J-K debate

Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday said he spoke to a BJP ideologue about Union minister Kiren Rijiju's criticism of Jawaharlal Nehru on the Kashmir issue and was told that Nehru being vilified is one thing, but erstwhile ruler Hari Singh being exalted as a benevolent hero "takes the cake". Rijiju had stated that Nehru's "blunders", which included enacting Article 370 and taking the dispute with Pakistan to the United Nations, caused much tragedy, drained the country's resources and cost thousands of lives of soldiers and civilians in militancy. "I spoke to a BJP ideologue this morning about Kiren Rijiju, the latest entrant to the club of Distorians," Ramesh said in a tweet. "He (the BJP idealogue) sent me the following message: The strange thing is, Nehru being vilified is one thing, Hari Singh being exalted as some sort of upright & benevolent hero takes the cake," the senior Congress leader said without naming the "BJP ideologue". Hari Singh was the last ruling ...

Anti-Congress people also joining Bharat Jodo Yatra: Ex-AICC Secy

Former AICC secretary Girish Chodankar said the 'Bharat Joda Yatra' led by former Congress president Rahul Gandhi from Kanyakumari to Kashmir is gaining support from 'non-Congress' people as well

People won't be misled, state has no power to make such laws: Cong on UCC

The Gujarat Congress on Saturday said people would not be misled by the BJP government's decision to form a committee for the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code. Calling it a "gimmick" ahead of Assembly elections, senior Congress leader Arjun Modhwadia said the state legislature has no power to make such laws. The Bhupendra Patel government earlier in the day announced that a committee headed by a retired High Court judge would be formed to study the modalities of implementing the UCC. "This gimmick is aimed at misleading the public who are suffering due to inflation and joblessness and a host of other problems because of the failure of the government. The power to implement the Uniform Civil Code lies with the Centre. Personal laws were passed by Parliament, and the Gujarat Assembly does not have the power to make this law," Modhwadia said at a press conference. "The BJP has been in power in Gujarat for the last 27 years and it has been in power at the Centre for eight yea

BJP regime in Himachal Pradesh govt of mafias, alleges Congress leader

The opposition Congress on Saturday released a "chargesheet" against the Jai Ram Thakur-led BJP regime in Himachal Pradesh, with a senior party leader terming it a "government of mafias". The Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly, Mukesh Agnihotri, alleged that a multi-crore pipe purchase scam took place in the IPH Department and jobs were "sold" during the Thakur government. A commission of inquiry will be constituted if the Congress is voted to power in the hill state, he added as he termed the BJP regime a "government of mafias". The chairman of the Congress campaign committee for the state Assembly polls, Sukhvinder Sukhu, said anyone, be it a minister or bureaucrat, will be put behind bars if found guilty of the "scams". Chairman of AICC media and publicity department Pawan Khera accompanied by AICC spokesperson Alka Lamba released a 23-page chargesheet in which several accusations have been levelled against the Thakur government. It has been alleged in the chargesheet t

Congress reminds BJP it was Patel who banned RSS; called it 'clear threat'

The Congress has said the BJP wants to use Sardar Patel to demean Jawaharlal Nehru. What it was not telling people is that it was Sardar Patel who had banned the RSS

Congress demands probe into gifts to journalists on Diwali in Karnataka

The Congress on Saturday alleged that Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai tried to bribe journalists by sending Rs 1 lakh cash gifts to them on Diwali and demanded the registration of a graft case as well as his resignation. The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee demanded a judicial inquiry into what it called "Chief Minister's Office (CMO) 'sweet box bribe' to journalists". According to sources in the CMO, Bommai has said he was unaware that "cash" was given to journalists. Addressing the media in New Delhi, senior Congress leader Randeep Surjewala said, "The Bommai government's bribegate is now out in the open and this time the responsibility lies at the doorstep of the chief minister himself." "This time, Mr Bommai has surreptitiously, overtly and in a conspiratorial fashion tried to bribe the entire journalistic fraternity by sending 1 lakh cash to every journalist in Karnataka. Hats off to our journalist friends who openly exposed the bribegate," said Surjewala, who ha

Bharat Jodo Yatra lead by Rahul Gandhi enters 4th day in Telangana

The Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra resumed from Dharmapur in Mahabubnagar town in Telangana on Saturday and is expected to cover a distance of over 20 km, Congress party sources said. This is the fourth day of the yatra in the state. Gandhi will address a Corner Meeting at Jadcherla X Road Junction in the evening, before halting for the day. The yatra kicked off at around 6.30 am with a number of party leaders joining Gandhi. Actress Poonam Kaur and students belonging to the Osmania University joined Gandhi during the march, sources said. The Gandhi scion-led yatra completed 23.3 km on Friday, before halting for the day at Dharmapur for the night, according to party sources. The yatra will cover 19 Assembly and 7 Parliamentary constituencies spanning a total distance of 375 km, before entering Maharashtra on November 7. The yatra will take a one-day break on November 4. The Wayanad MP will meet intellectuals, leaders of various communities, including personalities from the

BJP faces 27 years of anti-incumbency, AAP non-existent in Gujarat: Gehlot

Exuding confidence about his party Congress winning the ensuing Assembly elections in Gujarat, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Friday said the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is facing its "highest-ever" anti-incumbency in the state. Gehlot, a senior Congress observer for Gujarat polls, did not see the possibility of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) creating any impact in elections, saying the Arvind Kejriwal-led outfit has just created a hype in the media and it was "non-existent" on the ground in Gujarat. "The BJP has been ruling Gujarat for the last 27 years and I can say that anti-incumbency against the BJP is the highest this time. While people are opposing BJP's ongoing Gaurav Yatras, they are welcoming the Congress in the state during poll campaigning. "We (Congress) will definitely form a government this time. It is necessary to end the BJP's misrule," said the Rajasthan Chief Minister. He was talking to media persons in Vadodara city after addressing a poll rally in

Will introduce one GST slab instead of 5 if Cong comes to power: Rahul

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said if the party comes to power at the Centre, there would be a revisit of GST (goods and services tax). Addressing a gathering in Mahabubnagar District as part of his 'Bharat Jodo Yatra,' he alleged that the existing faulty GST regime and Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government's demonetisation in 2016 ruined small and medium businesses. When our government assumes power in Delhi, we will revisit GST and there will be only one tax (slab) not five (slabs), he said. He promised that if the Congress comes to power in Telangana, the Forest Rights Act would be implemented in toto for the benefit of adivasis. Dubbing Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, also known as KCR, as the 'rajah' of the State, Gandhi said KCR's motto is to grab land and money of the people of Telangana. He alleged that BJP and TRS work in tandem and the latter supports all the Bills introduced by the NDA government in Parliament. On the one hand, BJP is spreading hatre

EC doesn't have jurisdiction to regulate issues like freebies: Congress

The Congress on Friday said the Election Commission does not have the jurisdiction to regulate issues such as freebies, and urged the panel to focus on ensuring free and fair polls through proper implementation of Election Laws. The poll panel on October 4 had proposed amending the model code to ask political parties to provide authentic information to voters on the financial viability of their poll promises, a move that came amid the freebies versus welfare measures debate that had triggered a political slugfest. Such issues are part of the dialectics of a vibrant democratic system and depend on wisdom, discernment and analysis of the electorate which should never be taken to be less than acute, the opposition party said. "It is really something which is to be decided, be it pre-election or post-election, be it by way of electoral punishment or electoral acceptance and reward that the electorate decides the wisdom of such poll promises or campaign assurances and equally decides the

Kharge visits Ambedkar's memorial, Azad's 'mazaar'; pays them homage

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday visited the memorial and 'mazaar' of B R Ambedkar and Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, and paid tributes to the two freedom fighters and former Union ministers. After visiting Ambedkar's memorial here, Kharge also posted a quote of the former law minister and the chief architect of the Constitution on Twitter -- "Bhakti in religion may be a road to the salvation of the soul. But in politics, Bhakti or hero-worship is a sure road to degradation and to eventual dictatorship." "Visited Dr B. R. Ambedkar Memorial in Delhi today and paid floral tributes to Babasaheb," Kharge, who took over as Congress chief on Wednesday, said in a tweet and posted pictures of him paying homage to Ambedkar at the memorial. Kharge also visited the 'mazaar (grave)' of Azad here and paid floral tributes to India's first Education Minister. Ahead of his taking over as Congress chief, Kharge had visited Rajghat on Wednesday and paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi. He had also

Economic crisis in Himachal Pradesh under BJP rule, claims Congress

Himachal Pradesh Congress president Pratibha Singh on Thursday accused the ruling BJP of driving the state into an economic crisis and said the debt burden has reached at "Rs 70,000 crore". She also asserted that if her party is voted to power in the assembly polls, it would restore the old pension scheme for state government employees. "Himachal Pradesh is facing a debt burden of Rs 70,000 crore and the data of unemployed youth in the state has crossed the 10 lakh-mark under the BJP rule," Singh said while addressing a rally in Shimla district's Rampur for the November 12 elections. The Congress leader reiterated her party's poll promises of restoring the old pension scheme for state government employees, providing Rs 1,500 per month to every woman and free 300 units of electricity to domestic consumers.

PM enjoying power while Kashmiri Pandits continue to be refugees: Rahul

Hitting out at the Centre over the alleged exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from Kashmir, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is enjoying power while members of the minority community continue to be refugees in their own country. The BJP has ruined the good work done by the UPA, the former Congress chief said. As terrorists carried out a number of targeted killings recently, 10 Kashmiri Pandit families left their village, Choudharygund, in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district out of fear and reached Jammu, according to residents. Members of the minority community, who have since been camping in Jammu, ruled out any plan to return to the Valley. However, authorities in Shopian have attempted to put up a brave face by claiming no exodus of Kashmiri Pandits has taken place from the south Kashmir district. "There have been 30 targeted killings in Kashmir this year. The exodus of Pandits is increasing rapidly. The BJP has ruined the good work done by th

Congress demands white paper from Modi govt on 'plight of Kashmiri Pandits'

The Congress on Thursday attacked the BJP over the alleged exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from south Kashmir's Shopian district and demanded that the Modi government release a white paper on the plight of the minority community during its eight-year rule. The opposition party also hit out at the BJP-led Centre over the targeted killings of Kashmiri Pandits in Jammu and Kashmir and said the government must apologise for it. As terrorists carried out a number of targeted killings recently, 10 Kashmiri Pandit families left their village, Choudharygund, in Shopian out of fear and reached Jammu, according to residents. Members of the minority community, who have since been camping in Jammu, ruled out any plan to return to the Valley. However, authorities in Shopian have attempted to put on a brave face by claiming no exodus of Kashmiri Pandits has taken place from the district. Addressing a press conference at the AICC headquarters here, Congress' media department head Pawan Khera said tha