Page 2 - Gujarat Government

Guj poll result HIGHLIGHTS: Massive victory for BJP, Patel to be CM again

Gujarat election result 2022: Exit polls have predicted a landslide win for the ruling BJP, while AAP could see a 'positive sign'. Stay tuned for Gujarat Assembly election result LIVE updates

Gujarat election results 2022: Here is what happened in five key seats

Gujarat Assembly Election Results 2022: According to the Election Commission's counting, BJP is leading in the state and is likely to cross the majority mark comfortably. Here are five key battles to

Gujarat opposes SC bail pleas of some convicts in Godhra train burning case

The Gujarat government has opposed in the Supreme Court the bail pleas of some convicts of the 2002 Godhra train burning case, saying they were not mere stone-pelters and their acts prevented people from escaping the burning coach. On February 27, 2002, 59 people were killed when the S-6 coach of Sabarmati Express was burnt at Godhra, triggering the riots in the state. The matter came up for hearing on Friday before a bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justice P S Narasimha. The apex court, while asking the state to specify the individual roles of the convicts, observed that bail pleas of those who were accused of stone pelting could be considered as they have already spent 17-18 years in jail. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the state of Gujarat, said these convicts threw stones on the train which prevented people from escaping the burning coach. "It is not a case of mere stone pelting," he told the bench. Mehta told the bench that appeals filed by the conv

BJP not filling up 500k posts as most will go to Dalits: Kharge in Gujarat

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday claimed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dispensation in Gujarat was not filling up five lakh posts in government and semi-government departments and institutions because half of them will go to aspirants from Dalit, tribal and other backward caste communities. Kharge, addressing an election rally in the Scheduled Tribe (ST)-reserved Assembly constituency of Bhiloda in Aravalli district ahead of the second phase of polling on December 5, alleged the BJP-ruled state has seen a 17 per cent rise in cases of atrocities against Dalits and adivasis. He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and local leaders talk about a "double engine" government, a term often used by the BJP to highlight benefits of having the same party in power at the Centre and states, and questioned why this "engine" failed, leading to Gujarat having three chief ministers in six years. The BJP has brought in an army of five party chief ministers, 40 central ministers and 15

Gujarat Assembly elections 2022: BJP's prestige battle to defend its turf

Not just as the home state of PM Narendra Modi, but also as a major producing and exporting state known for its trade and enterprise, Gujarat holds a special place for all political parties

Gujarat is Gangotri of culture of developmental politics, says J P Nadda

BJP president Nadda lauded the work done by the Gujarat govt over the years and said that the Gujarat model is not just a model of development but is the source of 'culture of developmental politics'

Gujarat elections: 1,112 nomination forms valid for second phase on Dec 5

A total of 1,112 nomination forms were found to be valid for the second phase of Gujarat Assembly elections scheduled to be held on December 5, an official said on Saturday. The scrutiny of nomination papers for the 93 seats, where elections will be held in the second phase was taken up on Friday, he said. "A total of 1,515 forms were received for the second phase, out of which 1,112 were held valid," a statement from the office of the state's chief electoral officer said. The first phase of the election for 89 seats will take place on December 1. Counting of votes for all 182 Assembly elections will take place on December 8. In the 2017 Assembly polls, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had won 99 seats, followed by 77 by the Congress. However, the opposition party suffered defections with as many as 20 legislators resigning over the last five years, many of them winning bypolls on BJP tickets.

Gujarat: Morbi Civic body blames Ajanta Manufacturing for bridge collapse

The charges were made in an affidavit filed before the Gujarat High Court by Morbi Nagar Palika in-charge Chief Officer Naran Muchhar

File reply or pay Rs 1 lakh fine: Gujarat HC warns Morbi civic body

A first division bench comprising Chief Arvind Kumar and Justice A.J. Shastri pulled up Morbi Nagar palika for not filing a reply despite the court keeping a special hearing

Multi-agency searches at many locations in Guj for suspected tax offences

In a multi-agency operation led by the Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS), officials are carrying out searches at around 200 locations in the state linked to more than 100 firms, and questioning people for suspected tax evasion and similar offences, sources said. Apart from the ATS, officials of the state Goods and Services Tax (GST) department and Ahmedabad crime branch are involved in the mega operation, they said. According to the sources, the searches are being carried out in several districts of the state, including Ahmedabad, Bhavnagar and Jamnagar, against 122 firms. The authorities are questioning around 74 suspects in this connection and the operation is likely to expose large-scale tax-related offences, they said. Several cases of issuance of bogus bills to commit input tax credit (ITC) fraud have been detected in the state in recent times, the sources said.

Callousness, greed responsible for bridge collapse, not tech: IIT-D experts

Experts say that reliable and modern technology is available in the country to build bridges and flyovers

Morbi bridge collapse: Search and rescue operation officially complete

At least 135 people were killed and over 100 injured after a cable suspension bridge in Morbi town collapsed on Sunday, plunging people into the Machchhu river

Morbi bridge collapse a factor in delay in Gujarat poll announcement: CEC

The Morbi suspension bridge collapse was one of the reasons for the delay in announcement of the Gujarat assembly elections, the Election Commission said on Thursday. Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar told a press conference that the commission would also examine whether the release of the inquiry report into the Morbi tragedy, which left 135 people dead, would disturb the level playing field in the two-phase elections scheduled for Gujarat on December 1 and December 5. The Morbi assembly seat, currently represented by Brijesh Merja of the BJP, goes to polls in the first phase on December 1. "The Model Code of Conduct guidelines have been prescribed specifically. If any decision disturbs the level playing field, then the commission will look into it," Kumar said responding to questions on whether the release of the inquiry report into the bridge collapse would violate the model code. He indicated that the elections could have been announced a couple of days earlier, but

Gujarat Assembly elections to be held in 2 phases, results on Dec 8

EC rubbishes Opposition parties' charge that it delayed announcing dates

PM should pull up Gujarat govt to come clean on investigation process: Cong

The Congress on Thursday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to pull up the Gujarat government to come clean on what it said was a "sloppy investigation process" in the Morbi bridge collapse incident. In a Twitter post, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge levelled a series of allegations. "Rusted cable of the bridge was NOT repaired. Bridge opened on Oct 26 without fitness certificate and official consent. Contractor was not qualified for the job. Municipality Chief knew that the bridge was open a day before the tragedy," he said. "Over 130 dead and no action been taken against the contractors and municipal officials? Is this negligence too an act of god," Kharge questioned in another tweet. "The PM should pull up his Govt to come clean on this sloppy investigation process," he added. The bridge collapsed on Sunday evening, claiming 135 lives.

Morbi bar association not to represent accused in bridge collapse

The Morbi Bar Association on Wednesday said its members won't represent the accused in the suspension bridge collapse that claimed 135 lives. Members of the association on Wednesday held a protest march, a day after passing a resolution to not fight cases for the accused in the bridge collapse tragedy. Morbi Bar Association and Rajkot Bar Association have decided to not take their case and represent them. Both the bar associations have passed this resolution, senior advocate A C Prajapati said. All the lawyers of the association are deeply saddened by the tragedy. This is a moral call. We won't represent any accused in the bridge collapse case after the death of so many innocent people, another lawyer said. The association's decision was opposed by lawyer Hamza Lakdawala, who said it was acting like a khap panchayat. Bar associations exists to uphold the rule of law and to ensure that advocates can discharge their professional duties without fear of victimisation. They stand for

Contractors who repaired Morbi bridge unqualified: Prosecution tells court

The contractors who carried out repairs of the ill-fated suspension bridge at Morbi in Gujarat were not qualified to carry out such jobs, the prosecution told a court here. While the bridge flooring was replaced, its cable was not replaced and it could not take the weight of the changed flooring, the prosecution, citing a forensic report, told the magistrate's court on Tuesday. The collapse of the bridge on Sunday evening claimed 135 lives. Chief Judicial Magistrate M J Khan remanded four of the arrested accused -- two managers of the OREVA Group and two sub-contractors who had repaired the bridge -- in police custody till Saturday. The court remanded five other arrested men, including security guards and ticket booking clerks, in judicial custody as police did not seek their custody, prosecutor H S Panchal said. Police had on Monday booked nine persons under Indian Penal Code Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder). The four accused remanded in police custody wer

Morbi bridge collapse in Gujarat result of massive corruption: Kejriwal

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said the Morbi bridge collapse in Gujarat was a result of massive corruption and prayed for those who lost their lives in the incident. The suspension bridge on the Machchhu river in Gujarat's Morbi city collapsed Sunday evening, killing 134 people, a senior police official had said. He also demanded that the Gujarat government should tender its resignation in the wake of such a big incident and the assembly polls be held immediately. "The Morbi bridge collapse was a result of massive corruption and I pray for the victims. Why was a watchmaking company which had no experience of bridge construction allowed to do so?" he said during a press conference. The AAP supremo also said that the BJP is struggling in Gujarat because the Aam Aadmi Party is there to challenge it in the upcoming polls.

Morbi bridge collapse: SC to hear plea on Nov 14 seeking judicial probe

The plea was mentioned by advocate Vishal Tiwari before a bench headed by Chief Justice of India U.U. Lalit

Gujarat launches new electronics policy, to generate 1 mn job opportunities

The Gujarat government on Saturday launched a new Electronics Policy to generate 10 lakh new employment opportunities in the Electronics System Design & Manufacturing (ESDM) sector in the state. The 'Gujarat Electronics Policy 2022-2028' has been designed to make Gujarat a national hub of ESDM by offering a host of subsidies and incentives to the investors, said an official release. Those wanting to invest in the ESDM sector in Gujarat will be given up to 20 per cent capital expenditure (capex) assistance with a ceiling of Rs 200 crore under the policy, the release said, adding that eligible investors will be entitled to get 100 per cent reimbursement on stamp duty and registration fee paid to the government. While eligible entrepreneurs are exempted from paying any electricity duty, the state government will provide a power tariff subsidy of Rs 1 per unit for a period of five years. Other incentives include interest assistance of up to 7 per cent on a term loan for a period of ...