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Derek O'Brien applauds SC judgement on the appointments of the CEC and ECs

The "Extremely Compromised EC" can now become "Extremely Competent EC", TMC MP Derek O'Brien said on Thursday, reacting to a Supreme Court ruling on the appointments of the Chief Election Commissioner and election commissioners. The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that the appointments of the Chief Election Commissioner and election commissioners will be done by the President on the advise of a committee comprising the Prime Minister, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Chief Justice of India. "HUGE. So Extremely Comprised (EC) can again strive to become Extremely Competent (EC)," O'Brien said in a tweet. A five-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Justice KM Joseph, also made an appeal to the Parliament and the Union of India to constitute a separate and independent secretariat for dealing with the expenditure of the Election Commission of India to cut it from any financial obligation to the government.

Trinamool Congress second richest party after BJP, Congress at third: ADR

Trinamool Congress has emerged as the second richest party after BJP in terms of income in financial year 2021-22, as per a report

Penalty for littering garbage on roads in Kolkata hiked 100 times

Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has decided to increase the penalty for littering garbage on the streets of the city by 100 times in the near future

TMC only alternative to BJP: Mohua Moitra hits back at Rahul Gandhi

The TMC MP's remarks came in response to Rahul's claim on Wednesday that the ruling party in West Bengal was contesting the Meghalaya Assembly polls to 'help' the BJP win

Presence of many parties to help NPP win: Meghalaya Dy CM Prestone Tynsong

Star campaigners of various parties who are coming to Meghalaya are not well-versed in the affairs of the state and the presence of several players in the electoral field will help the NPP win the February 27 election, Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong said. On the charges of corruption in the Conrad Sangma government by the BJP which snapped ties with the National People's Party (NPP) ahead of the assembly polls, Tynsong told PTI in an interview that the party did not complain of anything during the five years. With several opposition parties such as the BJP, Congress, Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the United Democratic Party (UDP) contesting in at least 48 seats in the election to the 60-member assembly, the NPP thinks the situation will help it. Asked whether the division of opposition votes will be of help to the NPP, Tynsong said, It will definitely be an advantage. As election fever grips Meghalaya, big leaders from various parties -- Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Unio

2023 panchayat polls for Trinamool Congress is a springboard for 2024

Notification for the panchayat elections has been stayed by the Calcutta High Court until February 27

West Bengal's debt per capita stands at an estimate of more than Rs 60,000

With a population of around nine crore and cumulative debt of Rs 5.86 lakh crore, debt per capita in West Bengal stands at a conservative estimate of more than Rs 60,000. When the ruling Trinamool Congress assumed office in 2011, the total debt of the state stood at Rs 1.97 lakh crore. In the budget for 2023-24 presented in the state assembly on Tuesday, the West Bengal government has proposed to raise money from the market to the tune of Rs 79,000 crore, compared to the 2022-23 revised figure of Rs 75,000 crore. Noted economist Ajitava Ray Chaudhuri said, "The present generation has contracted such a debt stock which has to be repaid by the future generation". "If a such high debt is backed by equivalent assets created, the burden on future generation will be lower," Ray Chaudhuri said. The state's tax revenue for the year 2023-24 is also projected to be Rs 89,000 crore, in contrast to Rs 79,500 crore in the revised figure for 2022-23.

Freebies won't lead to sustainable growth: Top economist on Bengal budget

The West Bengal Budget for 2023-24 was "full of announcements, which can be misleading", said senior BJP leader and noted economist Ashok Lahiri, underscoring that extending freebies will not lead to sustainable growth. The TMC government is known for spending money on 'revdi' politics, handing out freebies which ultimately does not lead to sustained growth, he noted. Infrastructure holds the key in West Bengal, but the roads here are in shambles, he alleged. "The revenue expenditure in the current fiscal was Rs 8,000 crore more than what they had budgeted. Accordingly, the government had to spend much less on capital account. If not much is spent on capital account, how will roads, bridges and ports be built? Lahiri, also a member of the Fifteenth Finance Commission, underlined. "The road infrastructure in West Bengal is in shambles. The NH-34, which connects Kolkata to Siliguri, does not look like a national highway, but resembles the streets of Bow Bazaar at times. Similarly, th

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Teachers' scam: ED identifies lottery angle for conversion of money

Enforcement Directorate (ED) probing the multi-crore teachers' recruitment scam in West Bengal has reportedly procured some vital clues that hint towards the arrested youth TMC leader, Kuntal Ghosh.

Pralhad Joshi seeks apology after Mahua Moitra uses offensive word in Parl

She allegedly used some unparliamentary language regarding BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri as per the eyewitnesses. After which, BJP MPs started a ruckus in the Lower House

Rajnath, Yogi to hold rallies, Mamata to join road show in Tripura today

Senior BJP leaders Rajnath Singh and Yogi Adityanath will address two election rallies each in Tripura on Tuesday. West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee will also hold a road show in the northeastern state where elections to the 60-member assembly will be held on February 16. During the day, Singh, the country's defence minister, will address two rallies of the ruling BJP at Kailashahar in Unakoti district and at Badarghat in West Tripura. Adityanath, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, will also hold two rallies at Bagabassa in North Tripura district and at Kalyanpur in Khowai. Banerjee's roadshow is scheduled to begin at noon in the state capital Agartala. Security arrangements have been tightened in the northeastern state in view of the scheduled visit of the political leaders. Notably, Union Home Minister and Senior BJP leader Amit Shah had on Monday held two rallies and a road show in the poll-bound Tripura. Shah had alleged that Tipra Motha has a "sec

BJP slams TMC's Abhishek Banerjee over his remark on Bengal Panchayat polls

TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee made a statement where he said, If anyone, be it from any party, has difficulty in filing a nomination for West Bengal Panchayat elections, I will process it for them

TMC releases manifesto for Tripura polls, vows Bengal model of development

The Trinamool Congress released its manifesto for the Tripura assembly elections on Sunday, promising 2 lakh new jobs, Rs 1,000 per month for school students in classes 4 to 8 and unemployed youths, and social welfare schemes on the lines of those in West Bengal. The manifesto was launched a day ahead of party chief Mamata Banerjee's visit to the state. The TMC is fighting 28 assembly seats in the February 16 election. Addressing a press conference, West Bengal education minister Bratya Basu said that if the party is voted to power in the state, it will create 2 lakh jobs in five years with 50,000 new jobs in the first year itself. "All vacant posts in the government departments will be filled up on mission mode," he said. "The TMC will provide assistance of Rs 1,000 per month to jobless youths, and 10,323 retrenched teachers will also get the benefit until their legal matter is resolved," he said. The TMC promised a skill university, student credit cards and easy loans for those

Mamata holds meeting of TMC's Birbhum unit, oversees poll preparations

West Bengal Chief Minister on Monday held an organisational meeting of the TMC's Birbhum district unit, and took stock of the party's preparedness ahead of the rural polls. The district unit's president Anubrata Mondal was last year arrested by the CBI for his alleged involvement in a cattle smuggling scam. Banerjee, who is on a tour of various districts from Monday, held a closed-door meeting in Bolpur, and inducted three new leaders in the district core committee, which was formed after the arrest of Mondal. During the meeting, the party supremo (Banerjee) oversaw the preparedness for the panchayat polls (due this year). She also inducted Kajal Sheikh, MP Satabdi Roy and MP Asit Mal into the district core committee, a TMC leader said. This was Banerjee's first visit to the district after the arrest of Mondal, a staunch loyalist of the party chief. His three-decade-long political career has been marked by controversies and strong-arm tactics. Mondal was arrested in August last y

Parliament's Budget session from Tuesday, Congress yet to show its hand

MPs feel that for the first time, the Congress is playing its cards close to its chest as no party leader is likely to be present at the meeting (they are unable to return from the Bharat Jodo Yatra)

Derek O'Brien says Twitter deleted post on BBC documentary critical of PM

TMC MP Derek O'Brien has alleged that a tweet by him on a BBC documentary which he claimed "exposed" Prime Minister Narendra Modi's stand on minorities has been deleted by Twitter. Posting a mail from the microblogging site which said his tweet was deleted on the request of the Indian government claiming it violated laws in India, O'Brien termed it as "censorship ". "CENSORSHIP. Twitter India HAS TAKEN DOWN MY TWEET of the #BBCDocumentary, it received lakhs of views. The 1-hour BBC documentary exposes how PM Narendra Modi HATES MINORITIES," the TMC leader alleged. He also posted the mail he received from Twitter. "Also see flimsy reason given. Opposition will continue to fight the good fight," the Rajya Sabha MP said in a tweet.

ED arrests TMC youth leader Kuntal Ghosh in teachers recruitment scam

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Saturday arrested Trinamool Congress youth leader Kuntal Ghosh for his alleged involvement in teachers recruitment scam, a senior official said

Trinamool Congress, BJP exchange barbs on Nandigram anniversary

The Trinamool Congress and BJP mourned the 2007 killing of 14 persons protesting a planned chemical hub here on Saturday by holding rival functions, exchanging political barbs. Interestingly both programmes, held at a distance of barely 100 meters were held under the banner of Bhumi Uchhed Protirodh Committee (BUPC or Land Disposition Protest Committee), which supported by Mamata Banerjee had put up a stiff resistance to the government's plans to acquire fertile land near the sea for a proposed chemical hub by MNCs. TMC state general secretary and spokesperson Kunal Ghosh chose to attack opposition BJP and its Nandigram lawmaker Suvendu Adhikari, an erstwhile TMC leader who defected to the saffron party ahead of the 2021 state election, while paying floral tributes at a memorial there. "CPI-M harmads (goons) who were behind the massacre have now turned saffron. Suvendu Adhikari has done a great disservice to the people of Nandigram by joining hands with those who were behind the .

Over 96% of TMC's income came from electoral bonds in 2021-22: Audit report

Over 96 per cent of income of the Trinamool Congress in 2021-22 came from electoral bonds, according to the party's annual audit report, which also showed that its income from these bonds rose from Rs 42 crore in 2020-21 to Rs 528.14 crore in 2021-22. An electoral bond is a financial tool for enabling donations to political parties. The report, which was released on Friday, stated that out of a total income of Rs 545.74 crore of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) in 2021-22, as much as Rs 528.14 crore came from electoral bonds. It also said that Rs 14.36 crore came from fees/subscriptions/collections from primary party members. The TMC showed Rs 42 crore income from electoral bonds in 2020-21, according to the report. The party's expenditure also rose after it won the assembly elections in West Bengal in 2021. The TMC's expenditure was Rs 132.52 crore in 2020-2021 which increased to Rs 268.33 crore in 2021-2022. The report was submitted to the Election Commission.