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Manish Sisodia to be Deputy CM of Delhi

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AAP leader Manish Sisodia. Photo: IE

AAP leader Manish Sisodia. Photo: IE

New Delhi: Senior AAP leader Manish Sisodia, a close confidant of party chief Arvind Kejriwal, is all set to be the Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi.

The decision to make Sisodia the Deputy CM was taken at a meeting of AAP’s Political Affairs Committee (PAC) last night at Kejriwal’s residence in Kaushambhi, party sources said.

Sisodia is being given the responsibility so that Chief Minister-designate Kejriwal can focus on building the party at the national level, they said.

Sisodia is credited with strengthening AAP at the grassroot level after it lost all the seven parliamentary constituencies in the Lok Sabha elections last year.

He was minister of Education, PWD, Urban Development and Local Bodies in the 49-day AAP government that had resigned on February 14 last year on the Lokpal issue.

Kejriwal, Sisodia and other cabinet ministers will take oath of office at Ramlila ground on Saturday.

Sisodia had won from Patparganj constituency defeating BJP’s Vinod Kumar Binny who was expelled from the party last year.

He had worked as a journalist with Zee News and All India Radio for a long time. He later quit journalism to participate in the agitation for Right To Information.

He was one of the founding members of the Janlokpal agitation and part of the team which chalked out its first draft. When Anna Hazare was arrested and sent to jail during the agitation, he too was sent to prison.

(PTI)

Kiran Bedi blames 'fatwa' for her defeat in Krishna Nagar

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File Photo.

File Photo.

New Delhi: Kiran Bedi today appeared to blame a “fatwa” by Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid Syed Ahmed Bukhari, appealing Muslims to support AAP, for her defeat in BJP’s traditional stronghold of Krishna Nagar in East Delhi and sought a probe into it by the Election Commission.

She said the Election Commission should inquire the issue to know whether the Shahi Imam’s appeal to Muslims a day before the polls had any impact on the electoral outcome.

“I want the Election Commission to inquire this. (Then only) it will be clearly known whether fatwa had an impact on the voters or not,” she said.

Bedi claimed that though she was leading in the vote count, her vote share started dropping when counting of votes in a Muslim-dominated area of her constituency was taken up.

“I was told that during the vote count in Krishna Nagar, I was leading but when the counting of votes of the area, where fatwa might have an impact, was carried out, it started to drop,” Bedi said, adding “I lost by 2000 votes when the counting reached that area.”

A day ahead of the polls on February 7, Bukhari appealed to Muslims to vote for AAP but the party promptly rejected the offer.

Though it was an appeal by Bukhari, several BJP leaders called it “fatwa”.
Bedi said a “complete study” should be done whether there was an impact of the “fatwa” on the freedom of choice in voting.

“Fatwa means a diktat, a directive, it also means a hukumnama in a way. EC should examine whether fatwas issued last minute before the elections are good for democratic process or not,” added Bedi.

AAP’s S K Bagga defeated Bedi by a margin of 2,277 votes in Krishna Nagar which had stood by BJP even during the 15 years of Congress rule under Sheila Dikshit.

(PTI)

Spurred by Delhi success, AAP eyes Bengaluru civic polls

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Photo: TCN

Photo: TCN

Bengaluru: After its overwhelming victory in Delhi Assembly elections, Aam Aadmi Party is eyeing to make its mark in the country’s IT capital through city civic polls.

“Yes we are preparing for BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) elections. We will be contesting all the seats,” AAP’s senior functionary V Balakrishnan told PTI.

He said “planning is already on. Through ‘Bombat Bangalore’ similar to ‘Delhi Dialogue’ that we had in Delhi we will be interacting with people in all the wards. Based on the interactions we will be preparing agenda for each of the wards.”

There is uncertainty about BBMP elections that is slated for April as the government is mulling about bifurcation of the civic body.

Stating that there is a string of similarity between Bengaluru and Delhi, Balakrishnan said “whether it is bad governance, garbage issues, power problem, water and road related issues, the issues are similar. So I think there will be greater acceptance for AAP as an alternative in Bangalore.”

Halting the Modi juggernaut, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had yesterday scored a landslide victory in the Delhi Assembly election by winning 67 of the 70 seats after steamrolling BJP leaving it with only three seats and decimating Congress which drew a blank.

Balakrishnan, former CFO of IT major Infosys, was also coordinator of a group called “Well wishers of AAP” that had organised Rs 20,000-per person fund-raising dinner with Kejriwal in the city before Lok Sabha polls.

AAP that made its political debut in Karnataka aiming big has performed very dismally with its vote count in the state lesser than NOTA and votes secured here lesser than its membership base in the city.

Among different states, Karnataka had raised the maximum funds for the party during the Lok Sabha polls and the state stood third in the funds collected for the last Delhi polls.

Kejriwal was in the city for a fund raising event on January 11 as part of the preparations for the recent Delhi polls.

Balakrishnan also said that the city should have a CEO like full-term Mayor for the city.

“I think what Bengaluru needs is a directly elected Mayor, right now the the Mayors’ tenure is just one year. This has led to a situation where a single person won’t have control over the affairs of BBMP as it keeps on changing,” he said.

“Five years tenure for a Mayor is the way to go and he should function as a CEO of the city,” he added.

(PTI)

Kejriwal discusses Delhi's statehood with Rajnath; AAP receives IT notice

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Delhi CM designate Arvind Kejriwal meets Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

Delhi CM designate Arvind Kejriwal meets Home Minister Rajnath Singh. Photo: ANI

New Delhi: A day after registering a landslide victory in the Delhi assembly election, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal Wednesday discussed the issue of full statehood for Delhi with Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

Kejriwal, accompanied by party leader Manish Sisodia, had about an half-hour meeting with the home minister at the latter’s official residence.

“We have discussed various issues with the home minister, including the issue of full statehood for Delhi,” Sisodia told reporters.

He also said that the union minister assured them of the central government’s full support, saying that “the party line would not come in between working of the two governments”.

Earlier in the day, the AAP leaders called on union urban development minister Venkaiah Naidu at his office and discussed various issues concerning the national capital.

During this meeting, the issues related to granting of full statehood to Delhi and granting land by Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for building schools, parking and play grounds were discussed.

The AAP leaders also spoke about regularisation of unauthorised colonies in the city.

Kejriwal, to be sworn in as chief minister Saturday at the Ramlila Ground for the second time, is scheduled to meet President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan later Wednesday.

Aam Aadmi Party, Congress served IT notice over funding

The Income Tax Department has served a notice on Aam Aadmi Party seeking an explanation on charges of receiving funds from dubious sources as alleged by a splinter group — a charge that had already been denied by the party.

A similar notice has also been served on the Congress, a party spokesperson said.

The department, that functions under the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) of the ministry of finance, has asked the party to furnish its reply by Feb 16 — two days after Arvind Kejriwal is scheduled to take oath as Delhi chief minister following a stunning win in the assembly polls.

In the run-up to the elections, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had alleged that the AAP was caught red-handed in receiving dubious funds from companies that did not have any business, and accused its leadership of adopting diversionary tactics to deflect attention.

He said such donations amounted to Rs.2 crore through cheques of Rs.50 lakh each from four firms.

The Aam Aadmi Party had protested such allegations. “Mr. Finance Minister. Stop throwing muck. Act. Arrest me if i am guilty,” Kejriwal tweeted. “Fin min (finance minister) says we took hawala money. Hawala money in cheques? I dare Fin min to arrest me if we took hawala money.”

He had also written to Chief Justice of India H.L. Dattu and urged him to set up a special probe team to probe investigate not just his party, but also the BJP and the Congress for the Delhi elections.

The Congress party said it has also received a similar missive from the IT Department.

“Yes, we have been served a notice. It is clearly a sign of political vendetta. Let me ask: Why has a similar notice not been served on BJP? Why single us and the AAP out. BJP has also spent crores of rupees on elections,” a party spokesperson told IANS.

At a press conference here last week, the AAP Volunteer Action Manch (AVAM), a breakaway group of the party, had questioned the sources of funding for the Kejriwal-led party and alleged some of it could be sourced to what it described as “fraud” companies.

It said claimed the money donated on the midnight of April 15 last year.

(IANS)

President asks Governors to ensure communal harmony in states

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Governors Conference

New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday warned that any deviation from the Constitutional principles and provisions would weaken the democratic fabric of the country and “jeopardise” social, economic and political well being of citizens.

In his opening remark at the 46th Governors Conference in Delhi, Mr. Mukherjee said Constitution was the only guiding document for providing framework for governance and asked Governors to ensure peace and communal harmony.

“Every Indian looks forward to the Constitution as the guarantor of liberties, freedom and equality. Any deviation from the principles and provisions embodied in the Constitution would weaken the democratic fabric of the country and jeopardise the social, economic and political well-being of our citizens,” he said.

The President said the Governors and Lt. Governors have the “primary responsibility” to ensure that the affairs of the States and Union Territories are conducted strictly in accordance with the letter and spirit of this hallowed document.

“Prevalence of peace and communal harmony must be ensured,” he said at the conference, which was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other Ministers.

(Agencies)

Facebook partners with Reliance Communications to launch Internet.org

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Internet.org

Mumbai: Reliance Communications, a part of the Anil Ambani-led group, Tuesday said it has been roped in by Facebook to offer free access to data and web sites to customers through the social networking site’s global digital inclusion initiative, Internet.org.

The Internet.org initiative will provide access to popular websites and services with zero data charge to make it easier for people to access the Internet across both the 2G and 3G platforms, Reliance executives said at a press conference here.

“Internet is the integral part of our well being. It is tool to transform lifestyle. Data is the raw material of the information age,” said Gurdeep Singh, chief executive officer, consumer business, Reliance Communications.

To start with these services will be available to Reliance customers in of Mumbai, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Chennai, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The services will then be extended to the rest of the country in a phased manner with more services and websites.

The company is already live with the he services in all these circles by, said Singh: “We are committed to go online pan-India within 90 days.”

The companies declined to share who will bear the cost of such data. “If we do good to people they will come back to us,” Singh said.

“Today, we’re excited to make the Internet available to millions of people in India through the launch of Internet.org and free basic services with Reliance,” said Chris Daniels, the vice-president of Internet.org at Facebook.

“This is a big step forward in our efforts to connect everyone in India to the Internet, and to help people discover new tools and information that can create more jobs and opportunities.”

Reliance customers can now explore Internet and reap its benefit in daily life, without having to worry about data charges. These set of services also come with free Facebook access, Singh said.

“It is not restricted to any handset, irrespective of screen size or operating platform,” he said.

“Through this partnership, we aim to increase Internet inclusion and encourage more Indians to go online. This will not only accelerate net penetration in India, but also open new socio-economic opportunities to users in areas like education, information and commerce.”

Saying that future belongs to the people with access to internet, he said that people with no access to internet will be “less comparative and agile.

Daniels said Facebook has helped Reliance in the project with technology and users experience.

Reliance customers can access these websites with zero data charges at www.internet.org, or in the Internet.org Android app. Most of the services will be available in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Gujarati and Marathi, to begin with.

Reliance Communications, an integrated telecommunications service provider with a pan-India presence, has a customer base of over 110 million, including over 2.6 million individual overseas retail customers.

(IANS)

Underworld element Bannanje Raja arrested in Morocco: Sources

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Bannanje Raja

Bengaluru: Notorious underworld element Bannanje Raja has been arrested in Morocco, said sources.

Sources claimed that Raja was arrested in Casablanca on Tuesday February 10 by a special investigative team of India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Raja, who was understood to have been operating out of Morocco, was nabbed based on inputs by Karnataka police, it is learnt.

He is wanted in a number of cases, including murders, extortions, loot, kidnapping and so on in various places, particularly Mangaluru and Bengaluru. A red corner notice too had been issued against him, and the state police had taken the help of CBI to trace him. He was also known to have fled to Dubai and arrested from there in 2009.

Reports about him hiding in Morocco came to light after a hotelier refused to give into extortion threats and filed a complaint. During investigation, the intelligence agency officials learnt that he had gone underground in Morocco and taken the name of ‘Hegde’.

It is learnt that Raja is not involved in any crimes within Morocco. The local Moroccan police have given 48 hours to submit information about the cases registered against Raja, sources said. The Bengaluru police are expected to leave for Morocco soon.

(Agencies)

Patna High Court declares appointment of Nitish as JD(U) Legislative Party head illegal

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nitish-kumar

Patna/New Delhi: In a major setback to former Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, Patna High Court on Wednesday stayed his election as Janata Dal (United)’s state legislature party leader.

Kumar was elected the leader of the JDU’s legislature party leader on Monday and he had met Bihar Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi to stake claim to form government.

The JDU had even expelled Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi from JDU with immediate effect on Monday itself before electing Kumar as the party’s legislature party leader.

Claiming the support of 130 MLAs, Kumar had even paraded them at Raj Bhavan. He had requested the Governor to invite him to prove his majority on the floor of the House.

Manjhi had also met the Governor on Monday and made a similar claim saying he be given an opportunity to prove majority on the floor of House.

While the Governor is yet to take a final decision in the matter, Kumar reached Delhi alongwith 130 MLAs on Tuesday in order to meet President Pranab Mukherjee.

(Agencies)

Four Muslim faces in newly-elected Delhi Assembly

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Amanatullah_Ishraq-Khan_Imran-Hussain_Asim-Ahmed-

New Delhi: Four Muslim faces were among the 67 AAP candidates who came out victorious in the Delhi Assembly polls.

Amanatullah Khan won from the Muslim-dominated Okhla constituency, defeating BJP’s Braham Singh by a record 64,532 votes.

Haji Ishraque popularly known as ‘Bhure Bhai’ emerged victorious from the Seelampur constituency in North East Delhi. He defeated BJP’s Sanjay Jain by a margin of 27,887 votes.

In the 2013 polls too, AAP had fielded a Muslim candidate from the constituency but managed fourth position only.

Matia Mahal assembly constituency saw AAP candidate Asim Ahmed Khan defeating Congress’ Shoaib Iqbal, who represented the seat consecutively five times. Khan defeated Iqbal by 26,096 votes.

Iqbal, who was earlier with JD (U), had joined Congress just ahead of the elections.

In Ballimaran, AAP candidate Imran Hussain emerged victorious with 57,118 votes. He defeated BJP’s Shayam Lal Morwal by 33,877 votes. Senior Congress leader Haroon Yusuf ended up being in the third position.

The AAP had given ticket to five Muslims in the Assembly polls, down from six in 2013.

Mustafabad is one of the three seats bagged by BJP. While Jagdish Pradhan, a non-Muslim face won the seat with 58388 votes, Congress’ Hasan Ahmed and AAP’s Mohd Yunus came second and third respectively.

Of the 673 candidates in fray for the 70-member assembly, 68 were Muslims – down from 108 in 2013 Assembly polls when the total number of contestants was 810.

(PTI)

AAP win shattered myth of Modi's invincibility: Yogendra Yadav

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AAP supporters holding posters of Arvind Kejriwal after party's victory in Delhi Assembly polls on 10 Feb 2015.

AAP supporters holding posters of Arvind Kejriwal after party’s victory in Delhi Assembly polls on 10 Feb 2015.

New Delhi: AAP ideologue Yogendra Yadav said the party’s landslide win has shattered the “myth of invincibility” around Prime Minister Narendra Modi and opened up “political possibilities”.

Speaking to NDTV news channel after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) won 67 of the 70 seats, Yadav said Modi had turned the Delhi assembly election into a “referendum (on his government) and said the whole world is watching”.

“He launched a personal attack on Arvind Kejriwal and now he cannot simply walk away and say it is a minor election,” he said.

“Can’t say if his (Modi’s) popularity has waned, but the myth of invincibility has suddenly been shattered. The idea of a juggernaut that would roll on and on and on has been halted, temporarily, and opened up political possibilities,” he said.

By political possibilities, Yadav said, “the complete sense of invincibility (around Modi) has been removed. Now I suspect that BJP leaders would be able to say a few things to the BJP, and the kind of pressure on the media would be relaxed a bit”.

“I always believe that the way to take on Modi is not to take on the old tried and tested political formula,” he added.

Asked about the AAP government having virtually no opposition in the assembly, he acknowledged that there was the “danger of hubris” (excessive pride or self-confidence).

He said the massive mandate has placed a “serious responsibility on the party. The people of Delhi have thrust a double responsibility on us. It is more than what we had dreamt. The people will expect more of us – to deliver on promises”.

Stating that the huge mandate was “scary”, he said it would give the AAP government the “responsibility of listening to voices of dissent, especially of the 32 percent who voted for the BJP and the others, and the responsibility of proving to be the carrier of an alternative politics”.

(IANS)

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