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Archives for August 2015

Siddaramaiah owns responsibility for BBMP debacle

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Siddaramaiah

Bengaluru: Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday August 25 accepted defeat in the BBMP election, and owned entire responsibility for the debacle.

Soon after realising that Congress had suffered defeat in the BBMP polls with BJP marching into the three figure mark out of a total of 198 seats, Siddaramaih said that Congress expected a simple majority in the BBMP, as BJP had ‘done nothing’ for the development of Bengaluru in the last five years of BBMP rule.

The CM called a press meet at his residence ‘Krishna’ soon after it was clear that BJP was heading towards victory.

When asked if he would resign as CM, he said this was not a referendum, so there was no need for anyone to resign. “Soon after the Lok Sabha elections, BJP lost badly in Delhi, but did Narendra Modi resign?” he questioned.

However, he said that the state government will fully co-operate with the BJP-led BBMP and provide all the required grants for the development of Bengaluru city.

Answering a query on cabinet expansion, he said it would happen soon, but did not give any time frame.

As per the current trends, out of 198 BBMP seats, BJP is leading / won in 100 seats, Congress in 76, JD(S) in 14 and others 8.

(Agencies)

BJP adamant on contesting 170 seats in Bihar

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bjp-bihar

Bhagalpur: A day after two of its allies said seat sharing in Bihar must conclude within a week, a BJP leader announced on Tuesday that his party will contest 170 of the 243 assembly seats.

“The BJP will contest nearly 170 seats, there is no question of anything less than that,” Ashwani Kumar Choubey, an MP and a former minister, said here.

Choubey was replying to statements from leaders of the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) and the Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) that the BJP must contest only 102 seats and leave the remaining 141 to its three allies.

“There is no one in the country to advise the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi about seat sharing within the NDA,” said Choubey, a votary of Hinduvta politics.

The third BJP ally, the Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) of former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, on Tuesday said the BJP should contest only 122 seats.

“They must distribute the remaining seats among its three allies to defeat the grand alliance of JD-U, RJD and Congress,” HAM leader Brishen Patel said.

Patel asked the LJP and RLSP to “behave gently” to ensure the defeat of the Nitish Kumar-Lalu Prasad combine.

The LJP and the RLSP on Monday expressed unhappiness over the delay in finalisation of seats among the BJP and its allies in the assembly elections.

“We want the seat sharing arrangement to be over and done before the election are announced in the first week of September,” LJP state president Pasupati Kumar Paras said at a press conference also attended by RLSP state presidnet Arun Kumar.

“It will provide enough time for candidates to campaign,” he said.

The LJP and RLSP are unhappy over the BJP slogan – “Abki bar Bhajpa sarkar”.

According to them, it was wrong to raise such a slogan as the next government in the state would be formed by the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

Paras said the BJP was delaying seat sharing though the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Janata Dal-United (JD-U) had announced their seat sharing and virtually given ticket to their candidates.

RLSP chief Upendra Kushwaha says his party wants to contest from 67 seats. He said the LJP should get 74 seats.

BJP president Amit Shah announced earlier this year that his party wanted to contest and win 185 of the 243 seats.

The RJD and the JD-U have decided to contest 100 seats each, leaving 40 to the Congress and three to the Nationalist Congress Party.

(Agencies)

UK petition to arrest Netanyahu for Gaza war crimes reaches over 80,000 signatures

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Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu © Sebastian Scheiner / Reuters

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu © Sebastian Scheiner / Reuters

by RT

A petition calling on the UK government to arrest Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu for war crimes in Gaza when he arrives in London has garnered more than 80,000 signatures. But David Cameron’s government says no way: Netanyahu has diplomatic immunity.

The petition, posted on the UK government’s website, has already been signed by some 81,000 Brits. Its initiator, Damian Moran, claims that under international law, the Israeli prime minister can be detained when he comes to the British capital in September “for the massacre of over 2,000 [Palestinian] civilians” during the 51-day offensive by the Israeli Defense Force in Gaza last year. The number of signatures has doubled in the last two weeks.

If the petition garners 100,000 signatures by February 7, 2016, the UK parliament is required by law to debate it. However, Moran, the petition’s author, said he “doesn’t expect him [Netanyahu] to get arrested because of the universal jurisdiction laws.” He added: “It is a clear message to him that there’s a massive amount of people who don’t want him here.”

The UK government was required to provide an official answer to the petition as soon as it gathered 10,000 signatures. It replied: “Under UK and international law, visiting heads of foreign governments, such as Prime Minister Netanyahu, have immunity from legal process, and cannot be arrested or detained.”   “We recognise that the conflict in Gaza last year took a terrible toll,” the government statement added. “[A]s the Prime Minister said, we were all deeply saddened by the violence and the UK has been at the forefront of international reconstruction efforts.”   The UK recognizes Israel’s right to “take proportionate action to defend itself,” within the “boundaries of international humanitarian law” and British government condemns the “terrorist tactics” of Hamas, who “fired rockets on Israel, built extensive tunnels to kidnap and murder, and repeatedly refused to accept ceasefires,” the statement said. Like any state, Israel has the right to ensure its own security, as its citizens also have the right to “live without fear of attack,” it added, stressing that the UK is a close ally of Israel’s and the two countries enjoy an “excellent bilateral relationship.”

Israel’s embassy in London dismissed the petition as a “meaningless publicity stunt.”

The military action, Operation Protective Edge, was launched on July 8, 2014 against Hamas-ruled Gaza, and resulted in deaths of over 2,000 Palestinians, including 551 children. Sixty-six Israeli soldiers died in the operation.

Karnataka MLA among 5 dead in Andhra Pradesh train accident

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train

Hyderabad: Five people including a Karnataka legislator were killed early on Monday morning when a granite-laden truck rammed into an express train at a level crossing in Andhra Pradesh’s Anantapur, the second fatal accident this month involving the railways.

Around 25 people are said to have been injured in the accident, which occurred at around 2.25am at Madakasira, more than 450 km from capital Hyderabad.

Official sources said Karnataka MLA Venkatesh Nayak and the driver of the truck are among the five people killed when four coaches of the Bangalore-Nanded Express derailed under the impact of the collision with the truck.

The driver of the truck, who was allegedly in an inebriated condition, was driving at a very high speed and failed to notice the closed gates at a level crossing.

Union railway minister Suresh Prabhu expressed condolences.

Immediate medical relief has been sent and injured are being treated, Prabhu tweeted.

The railway ministry tweeted that the accident was caused due to the negligence of the lorry driver.

Earlier this month, at least 35 people died when two trains derailed within minutes of each other while crossing a small bridge near Harda town in Madhya Pradesh.

India has the world’s fourth largest railway network that ferries more than 23 million passengers every day, but infrastructure is poorly maintained and accidents are common.

In 2012, a government report said almost 15,000 people were killed every year on the railways, describing the deaths as an annual “massacre” due mainly to poor safety standards.

(Agencies)

Record number of refugees enter Hungary from Serbia

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More than 2,000 refugees crossed frontier on Monday, just days before Hungary completes a border fence.

After crossing Serbia, refugees enter Hungary to continue their journey to western and northern EU countries [EPA]

After crossing Serbia, refugees enter Hungary to continue their journey to western and northern EU countries [EPA]

by Al Jazeera

A record number of refugees streamed into EU member Hungary from Serbia, police said, just days before Hungary completes a border fence.

A total of 2,093 potential asylum seekers, the highest ever daily total, crossed the border near the Hungarian town of Roszke, a police statement said on Monday.

They were part of a wave of around 8,000 refugees whose journey to the European Union had been blocked last week when Macedonia declared a state of emergency and closed its borders after being overwhelmed by the huge influx of people, amid Europe’s worst refugee crisis since World War II.

Many refugees said they had passed through Serbia after travelling through Macedonia’s border with Greece.

“We were stopped in Macedonia for two days, the riots were terrible, police used guns and tear gas, I saw an old woman beaten, her money and papers taken,” a 29-year-old IT engineer from Mosul in Iraq told the AFP news agency.

Al Jazeera’s Djordge Kostic, reporting near the border with Hungary, said an estimated 1,500 refugees are currently staying at 28 shelters set up by the UN and Russian-Serbian aid organisation in the city of Kanjiza.

He said the refugee situation at Kanjiza is “better organised” than in other parts of Serbia.

“There water, food, toilet and shower stalls provided to them. They even have Wi-Fi,” he said.

From there, the refugees can proceed to Horgos, about 12-km away, where they can take the train to Hungary, our correspondent said.

Meanwhile,Al Jazeera’s Aljosa Milenkovic, reporting from Presevo on the Serbia-Macedonia border, said more refugees were likely to come, “putting to test the region’s ability to cope with the large number of people transiting through”.

The latest movements came as German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Fracois Hollande called for a unified system for the right to asylum, and the setting up of reception centres in Greece and Italy.

The issue is set to top the agenda at a summit of Balkan leaders on Thursday, which Merkel will attend.

Razor-wire fence

Hungary has registered more than 100,000 asylum seekers so far in 2015, over double the total for all of last year. In 2012, the figure was just 2,000.

The numbers have sharply increased to around 1,500 a day in August, after Hungary’s conservative government announced it would build a razor-wire fence along its southern border with Serbia.

In recent days, refugees have entered Hungary alongside a cross-border train track near Roszke, one of the few sections of the border with Serbia not yet blocked by three rolls of razor-wire, which the government says will completely seal off the border by August 31.

The fence is one of several measures making it more difficult for refugees to enter and stay in Hungary. The government is also tightening asylum laws, introducing penalties for illegal border-crossing, and the planned closure of permanent refugee camps.

About 102,000 “migrants” entered the EU via Macedonia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Montenegro or Kosovo between January and July this year, versus just 8,000 for the same period in 2014, according to EU border agency Frontex.

The number of refugees now making their way from Greece towards the EU is worrying many EU politicians and has left the Balkan countries struggling to cope with the humanitarian crisis.

Muslim youth beaten up in Mangalore for talking to Hindu girl

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mangalore-youth-muslim

Mangaluru: In a suspected case of moral policing, a 28-year-old Muslim man was assaulted by a group of people, suspected of belonging to a Hindutva group, for talking to a Hindu girl, police said.

The victim, Shakir, is a resident of Kulur and he worked in a supermarket at Attavar in the city, they said.

The group allegedly almost stripped him and tied him to an electric pole last evening before publicly flogging him for talking to the girl, who also worked with him in the same supermarket.

Shakir has been hospitalised, police added.

Cases of assault and attempt to murder have been registered against unidentified assailants, they said.

Investigations are ongoing, and four people belonging to a right-wing Hindu organisation have been detained for questioning, police said.

Sporadic incidents of moral policing, particularly cases involving different communities have been reported in Dakshina Kannada district, raising concerns over growing intolerance in the state.

(Agencies)

Modi hails BJP win in Bengaluru civic polls

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Narendra_Modi

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday hailed the BJP’s winning show in the Bengaluru civic polls, saying people’s faith in his party “is humbling and gladdening”.

“People’s continuous faith in the BJP is humbling and gladdening,” Modi tweeted as results showed the Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of the Congress in the election.

“We are fully committed to fulfilling (the) aspirations of 125 crore Indians,” he said.

The prime minister said after similar civic polls wins in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, the Bengaluru results “complete a hat-trick of wins for the BJP”.

“This is a win for politics of development and good governance.

“Thank you Bengaluru! My gratitude to (the) people and congratulations to Karnataka BJP leaders and workers for the great election results,” he added.

(Agencies)

BJP all set to regain power in Bengaluru, big setback for Congress

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bjp

Benagluru: As the BJP is all set to grab power in BBMP after winning 100 seats, the ruling Congress suffer their biggest setback after the 2013 elections.

Siddaramaiah has called for an emergency meeting of his close aids to discuss the situation.

The Bharatiya Janata Party won 100 seats, the Congress is in 75 and the JD( S) in 14 in the 198-member council of the greater Bengaluru Municipal Corporation. The final results are expected to be out by 2pm.

KPCC President, G Parameswar said that the Congress party accepts the people’s mandate. “We had approached the people with the blue print to develop Bengaluru city, but people has rejected Congress. This is not our party’s defeat as we are close to the victory line,” he added.

BJP chief Amit Shah tweeted, “I congratulate our karyakartas for victory in Bengaluru civic polls & also thank people of Bengaluru for showing faith in BJP”

The century-old BBMP was expanded in 2007 by including seven city municipal councils, one town municipal council and 111 surrounding villages to increase civic wards to 198 from 100.

Delimitation of the wards on the basis of the 2011 population census with 50 percent of them reserved for women have forced political parties to field wives or relatives of former corporators as contestants in many wards.

In all, 1,120 candidates, including 197, 198 and 187 from BJP, Congress and JD-S respectively, a dozen from regional outfits like Vatala Chaluvali Paksha, AIADMK and Socialist Democratic Party of India and 399 Independents, including many rebels contested in the bitterly fought civic election.

In the previous five-year term (2010-2015), the BJP ruled the BBMP for the first time by winning in 116 wards, as against 62 wards by the Congress, 14 by JD-S and eight by Independents.

(IANS)

China stocks suffer biggest one-day loss in eight years

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China market plummets more than eight percent as investors disillusioned with measures taken dump shares.

EPA/WOO HE

EPA/WOO HE

by Al Jazeera

China’s stock market has fallen by its biggest margin in eight years at the end of trading, defying the government’s multibillion-dollar effort to stop a slide that has wiped out the gains of this year’s price boom.

The plunge on Monday in China’s equities followed last week’s losses of 11 percent, and hammered stock prices across Asia, as fears grew that a slowdown in China could send the rest of the world into a recession.

The Shanghai Composite Index fell 8.5 percent to close at 3,209.91 points, its biggest one-day loss since an 8.8 percent decline on February 27, 2007. The index is down 38 percent from its June 12 peak.

Analysts blame the fall on both weak onshore performance and investors moving money out of yuan-denominated assets after a surprise devaluation in the Chinese currency earlier in August.

The further decline threatened to weigh anew on global markets after last week’s Chinese losses triggered a worldwide selloff.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell for the seventh straight day, dropping 5.2 percent to 21,251.57 points as Taipei stocks tumbled 583.85 points to 7,203.07 in morning trading, a drop of 7.49 percent.

More than $5 trillion has been wiped off the value of global equities markets since China’s shock devaluation.

Many investors had expected the People’s Bank of China would over the weekend cut the amount banks have to keep in reserves, which could boost stocks by increasing market liquidity and address weakness in China’s vast manufacturing sector.

No such move materialised, and the only policy support in evidence was an announcement formalising rules allowing pension funds to buy stocks, a policy initiative that had already been trailed.

Earlier measures taken

Beijing already carried out rounds of cuts to transaction fees and encouraged companies to buy back their own stock. Such buybacks usually result in increased valuations of outstanding shares by reducing net supply.

Rajiv Biswas, a senior director and economist for IHS Global Insight in Singapore, told Al Jazeera that Beijing needs to do more to prop up the economy.

“It doesn’t seem that they are prepared to really put in a big package of measures, but would rather put in dribs and drabs along the way. And that is not convincing anybody that the economy is about the turn around anytime soon,” he said.

“One of the problems is that they are directing their efforts towards stabilising the stock market. But we are not seeing enough initiatives to support the real economy,” Biswas added.

“It’s the real economy that investors in the country are not confident about. All the signs are showing that the economy is cooling.”

Al Jazeera’s Adrian Brown, reporting from Beijing, said that malaise on the markets could continue as investors awaited US gross domestic product or GDP figures set for release this week, and a decision on whether the US Federal Reserve would lift interest rates.

Monday’s falls followed heavy falls on Wall Street on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average posting its worst single-day session in four years and all benchmark indices losing more than three percent.

‘You Stink’: Beirut protesters now calling for revolution

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Thousands of protesters pour into Lebanese capital’s streets demanding government’s resignation.

Lebanese activists shout 'Revolution! Revolution!' as they are sprayed by riot police using water cannons Sunday evening in Beirut, Lebanon, Aug. 23, 2015. (AP photo)

Lebanese activists shout ‘Revolution! Revolution!’ as they are sprayed by riot police using water cannons Sunday evening in Beirut, Lebanon, Aug. 23, 2015. (AP photo)

by Common Dreams

Tens of thousands anti-government protesters clashed with police in central Beirut on Sunday evening just hours after Lebanese Prime Minister Tammam Salam hinted he might step down following violence triggered by the month-long ‘You Stink‘ trash protests.

Gunfire was heard as government riot police opened fire in an apparent effort to drive protesters away from central Beirut government offices, witnesses said.

Chants of “Revolution! Revolution!” were ringing through the crowds as police attacked Sunday night.

Thousands of protesters had camped overnight Saturday in the capital’s Riad al-Solh square waiting for Prime Minister Tammam Salam’s response to Saturday’s police violence.

Al-Jazeera reports that in a televised address Sunday morning, Salam said members of the security forces will be held accountable for the violence against protesters . Salam also called on an emergency parliament session on Thursday to deal with the country’s ongoing political crisis. “I have been, like many other fellow Lebanese, patient enough, but yesterday’s outcry should not be ignored,” he said. “I was never in this for a position in government, I am one of you. I am with the people. Do not pit this conflict [as] one camp against the other. Target all the politicians.”

Angered by Salam’s speech, the protesters chanted: “The people want the fall of the regime”.

Al Jazeera’s Jamal Elshayyal, reporting from Beirut, said the protests had drawn people from across Lebanon’s political divide.

“This is very much a grassroots movement that has come out on to the streets…there seems to be a very significant movement forming here in Beirut. “(The protests) were triggered by the trash crisis but the people we’ve been speaking to say that this is the straw that broke the camel’s back…they point to power shortages, water shortages, inherent corruption within the state.”


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