Archives for June 2024

In yet another setback to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, a city court on Wednesday dismissed his application for interim bail on medical grounds in the money laundering case linked to the alleged excise policy scam.

Special Judge Kaveri Baweja directed the Tihar jail authorities to take care of his medical needs in judicial custody.

The judge also extended Kejriwal’s judicial custody till June 19.

The court is scheduled to take up on June 7 his application seeking default bail in the case.

During the hearing on Saturday, the ED had opposed the application, saying he campaigned throughout the Lok Sabha elections but “now when he has to surrender, he suddenly claims to be ill”.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener surrendered on Sunday at the Tihar jail as the tenure of his interim bail granted by the Supreme Court expired on June 1.

The case relates to alleged corruption and money laundering in the formulation and execution of the Delhi government’s now-scrapped excise policy for 2021-22.

The judge had observed that the application was for grant of interim bail on medical grounds and not for the extension of the interim bail granted by the Supreme Court.

The top court had on May 10 granted 21-day interim bail to the chief minister to enable him to campaign during the Lok Sabha polls. It had directed him to surrender on June 2, a day after the last phase of the seven-phase poll got over.

Kejriwal campaigned in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Delhi and Maharashtra after being released on interim bail.

During the hearing of his application, Kejriwal’s counsel told the court that he was ill and needed treatment.

The ED’s counsel opposed the application, citing his campaign during the Lok Sabha polls and his “sudden” claim about being ill.

“Kejriwal campaigned throughout his interim bail period and now he suddenly claims he is ill. Kejriwal suppressed facts and made false statements, including about his health.

“A person who is saying that his condition is serious….look at his conduct. From the day he was released, he is campaigning everywhere and not like one minute or two minutes, it’s for hours. At that time, nothing happens to his health. But when he has to surrender, he is suddenly ill,” he said.

The ED alleged that Kejriwal wanted to “cheat” the court.

“If any tests are required, we’ll provide all facilities in jail. If required we will take (Kejriwal) to AIIMS or any hospital,” it said.

The ED’s counsel said, “A person who claims on TV that I may die, kidney failure etc, didn’t go for a basic test since May 25. The entire system cannot be taken for a joy ride. It is a game being played by the litigant with the system. The prayers may not be granted.”

Seeking the relief, Kejriwal’s counsel told the court that despite his ill health, the AAP leader campaigned because that was the purpose for which the interim bail was granted by the Supreme Court.

“Stress due to the campaign increased his sugar level. Today, when I (Kejriwal) go back to jail without tests being done, I am subjecting myself to risks. This is only to ensure the fact that the treatment given to me is in conformity to the ailment I have. I am not asking for interim bail for two months or three months. What is the prejudice that it will cause to them?” the counsel said.

The court has, meanwhile, sought ED’s response by June 7 on Kejriwal’s another application seeking regular bail in the case.

Addressing the media after the nearly two-hour meeting which was seen as the alliance keeping its options open and not staking claim at government formation for now, he said the opposition leaders resolved to continue their fight against the “fascist rule” of the BJP led by Narendra Modi even as they thanked the people for their overwhelming support to the INDIA bloc.

“We will take appropriate steps at the appropriate time to realise people’s desire not to be ruled by the BJP’s government,” Kharge said while reading out a statement adopted by all the alliance constituents after the deliberations at his residence.

He said the decision has been taken by all constituents of the INDIA bloc in one voice.

The Congress president had convened the meeting to discuss the political situation and the election results, explore any possibility of government formation and whether to reach out to their old partners Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu.

He also said that the opposition would continue to work together and would definitely stand by the promises made to the people and keep them.

“The constituents of the INDIA bloc thank the people of India for their overwhelming support. The people’s mandate has been a befitting reply to the BJP and their politics of hate, corruption and deprivation,” Kharge said.

“This is a mandate in defence of the Constitution of India, and against price rise, unemployment and crony capitalism and also to save democracy,” Kharge added while announcing the decision of the alliance partners.

While the BJP won 240 seats and the Congress emerged as the second largest party with 99 seats, the NDA has the majority number with 293 seats and is holding a parallel meeting on government formation. The opposition alliance has 234 seats.

While the BJP on its own fell short of a majority, it may, as things stand, form the government on the back of its allies. With support from Naidu’s TDP and Nitish Kumar’s JD(U), which won 16 and 12 seats in Andhra Pradesh and Bihar, respectively, and other alliance partners, the NDA has crossed the halfway mark.

The TDP and JDU have already dismissed suggestions of defecting to the opposition alliance and have clearly stated that they will remain with the NDA. Sources, however, said the Congress and some other party leaders are already trying to woo them and have been in touch.

June 5: The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) Bombay and Delhi are among the top 150 universities in the world, while the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) retained the top rank globally for the 13th time, according to the QS World University Ranking, 2025 announced on Wednesday.

While IIT Bombay has climbed from 149 last year to 118, up by 31 ranks, IIT Delhi improved its rank by 47 points to bag the 150th position globally.

According to the coveted ranking published by the London-based higher education analyst, Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), the University of Delhi stood out for the employability of its graduates and has been ranked 44th globally in the category of “employment outcomes”.

Boasting 46 universities in this edition of the rankings, the Indian Higher Education system is the seventh most represented globally and the third in Asia, trailing only Japan (49 universities) and China (Mainland) (71 universities).

India has one more university within the top 150 rankings, IIT Delhi (150th) and two more entries in the world’s top 400 with the University of Delhi (ranked 328th) and Anna University (ranked 383rd) making their debut in this tier.

“India’s Employment Outcomes score is 10 points below the global average of 23.8, reflecting the need to bridge the gap between job requirements and graduates’ skills and to create more opportunities for new graduates.

“Additionally, India’s sustainability score is also about 10 points below the global average and highlights the need to prioritise and strengthen sustainability initiatives within the higher education system,” a senior QS official said.

The QS highlighted that despite the achievements, India faces challenges in internationalisation.

“The country lags in the International Faculty Ratio and International Student Ratio indicators, underscoring the need for greater international collaboration and exchange. India’s score for the proportion of international students is a mere 2.9, significantly below the global average of 26.5.

“Similarly, the average score for the proportion of international faculty is 9.3, indicating a need to increase the diversity and representation of international faculty members in Indian universities. Additionally, India’s faculty and student ratio score is considerably lower than the global average, suggesting a need for a strategic focus on faculty recruitment and retention,” the official added.

IIT Kharagpur (IIT-KGP) has achieved the fourth spot in India as it went from 271 in the 2024 rankings to 222 this time. IIT KGP is followed by IIT Madras which climbed 58 ranks (285 to 227) this year. IIT Madras has taken the position of IIT Kanpur this time, which has slipped to the sixth position, even after climbing from 278 to 263 this year.

One of the biggest improvements has been made by the University of Delhi (DU) which jumped 79 ranks — from 407 last year to 328 this year. The central university has improved its rank from ninth last year to seventh this time.

According to Jessica Turner, QS Chief Executive, the growing prominence of Indian higher education is evident, with 46 universities now ranked and 61 per cent improving their positions.

“The bold implementation of India’s National Education Policy (NEP) demonstrates the nation’s commitment to modernising its education system and addressing challenges and leveraging opportunities. Taking this significant step towards fostering a learning environment that prepares students for future challenges is crucial.

“Emphasising sustainability, global engagement, and employability will be vital in shaping India’s higher education landscape. These elements will define future institutions and ensure their relevance and success,” Turner added.

The QS noted that in terms of “Employer Reputation”, India’s average scores align closely with the global average, indicating a positive perception of the quality of education and graduates’ capabilities.

“However, the “Academic Reputation” score show room for improvement, suggesting that India’s universities could enhance their engagement within the global academic community.

“To enhance its global standing, India should focus on attracting international students and faculty, fostering international collaborations, evolve the curricula to include emerging skills and competencies, and prioritising sustainability efforts. By addressing these areas, India can further elevate its higher education system and solidify its position on the international stage,” it said.

Jammu: Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee president Vikar Rasool Wani on Wednesday said the third term of the BJP-led NDA government will be a “guest for a while” as “dictators do not take everyone along”.

He reiterated his party’s demand for immediate restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir and holding of assembly elections to restore democracy in the Union Territory.

“If NDA government comes to power for the third term, write down that it will be a guest for a while as dictators do not take everyone along. The BJP’s slogan of ‘sabka saath, sabka vikas and sabka vishwas’ is untrue and it stands exposed for using central and state agencies like the ED, CBI and police against opposition leaders to put them in jail. (Delhi Chief Minister Arvind) Kejriwal and (former Jharkhand chief minister) Hemant Soren are glaring examples,” Wani told reporters here.

He claimed that India has not seen such a “dictator” in its history and Congress, which ruled the country for most of the time, always respected opposition and the regional parties unlike the BJP which is using its strength and money power to bring down governments and break regional parties as was evident in Maharashtra.

“Dictators do not run a government for long… If anyone runs the country and brings economic prosperity and strengthens the military, it is Congress which believes in taking every section of the society along in true sense,” Wani said.

He said the first priority of the Congress is restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir and safeguarding its culture, land and jobs besides holding assembly elections to hand over popular government to the people who are disappointed with the bureaucratic rule.

The Congress leader thanked the people who voted for INDIA bloc candidates in the Lok Sabha elections and said despite both Congress candidates losing against BJP rivals from Udhampur and Jammu parliamentary seats, the results showed the party getting nearly 10 lakh votes.

“We fought this election with our hands tied to our backs due to the freezing of our party accounts. There was no dearth of money with our rival party (BJP) and they utilized the money power to buy support. We are highly thankful to our workers who used their own resources and we put up a good fight in both the seats,” he said.

He said the Lok Sabha results showed that Congress is on revival mode, winning more than double seats compared to 2019 elections, dashing BJP’s dream of ‘Congress Mukt’ Bharat.

“All the promises made by BJP to the people of J-K proved false. The people are disappointed as inflation and unemployment have risen to the highest levels. If our government is formed at the centre, we will try to address all the issues concerning the public,” he said, adding Congress believed walking alongside the public was shown by Rahul Gandhi who took out two foot marches in the country to spread the message of love and stand against divisive politics.

He said Modi factor played in the win of both the BJP candidates in Udhampur and Jammu but “we are sure that the outcome of the assembly elections will be different and Congress will sweep the polls in Jammu province.”

On the victory of former MLA Engineer Rashid against former chief minister Omar Abdullah from Baramulla Lok Sabha seat, Wani said he was not expecting such an outcome as “we together campaigned in the constituency as Abdullah’s National Conference is part of INDIA bloc.”

“Rashid is in jail for the last five years and a wave emerged in his favour. Now that he has won from the seat, we congratulate him,” he said, adding that many people voted in the constituency after decades.

Ranchi: The BJP, which had dominated the last three Lok Sabha elections in Jharkhand, faced a significant setback on Tuesday in the state’s five tribal constituencies – Khunti, Singhbhum, Lohardaga, Rajmahal, and Dumka.

The ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)-led alliance won all five seats, performing particularly well in Singhbhum, Rajmahal, and Dumka.

Despite the BJP’s campaign focusing on corruption, including ED and CBI raids on former Jharkhand CM and JMM executive president Hemant Soren, as well as law and order issues, the JMM succeeded in galvanising tribal sentiments by highlighting perceived injustices against Soren.

The Congress secured victories in Khunti and Lohardaga constituencies. In Khunti, Union minister and incumbent MP Arjun Munda suffered a resounding defeat, losing to Congress’s Kalicharan Munda by 1.49 lakh votes, according to the Election Commission.

Similarly, in Lohardaga, Congress’s Sukhdeo Bhagat defeated BJP’s Samir Oraon by 1.39 lakh votes.

In Singhbhum, JMM’s Joba Majhi won by a substantial margin of 1.68 lakh votes, defeating BJP’s Geeta Kora, the wife of former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda, who had joined the BJP just before the Lok Sabha elections.

In Rajmahal, JMM’s Vijay Hansdak won by 1.78 lakh votes, defeating BJP’s Tala Marandi.

In Dumka, JMM’s Nalin Soren narrowly defeated BJP’s Sita Soren by 22,527 votes in a closely contested race.

Sita, a three-time JMM legislator, had joined the BJP shortly before the elections, causing discontent among the party’s ranks. The BJP had initially announced sitting MP Sunil Soren as their candidate but later replaced him with Sita Soren.

In 2019, the BJP had won the Khunti and Lohardaga seats, while Singhbhum was won by Congress, Dumka by BJP, and Rajmahal by JMM.

A vigorous campaign was led by INDIA bloc leaders, including AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, and Kalpana Soren, the wife of jailed former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, credited with revitalizing the JMM.

Elections were held in Singhbhum, Khunti, and Lohardaga on May 13, while Dumka and Rajmahal voted on June 1. Of the 14 Lok Sabha seats in the state, six are reserved for SC and ST candidates. The opposition INDIA bloc leveraged the arrest of former CM Hemant Soren, a tribal community member, to play the victim card.

Insiders suggest that infighting within the BJP also contributed to their poor performance

In 2019, the NDA won 12 out of 14 seats in the state, with Congress and JMM each securing one seat.

Jharkhand Chief Minister Champai Soren credited the INDIA Bloc’s success in the tribal seats to overwhelming public support. He stated, “The way you have supported the Alliance candidates despite false allegations and propaganda is significant for us. They (BJP) tried to suppress our voice but failed.”

Samajwadi Party’s Awadhesh Prasad (left) and BJP candidate Lallu Singh

Lucknow: In a major upset in the Faizabad parliamentary constituency, where the temple town of Ayodhya is situated, Samajwadi Party candidate Awadhesh Prasad defeated sitting BJP MP Lallu Singh by a margin of 54,567 votes.

According to the Election Commission data, Prasad polled 5,54,289 votes while Lallu Singh got 4,99,722. The BSP’s Sachidanand Pandey managed to secure 46,407 votes.

In all, 13 candidates were in the fray in Faizabad.

Congress candidate Ujjwal Raman Singh

Prayagraj (UP): Congress candidate Ujjwal Raman Singh on Tuesday secured a win on the Allahabad Lok Sabha seat ending the party’s 40 years long dry patch when actor Amitabh Bachchan was elected.

According to the Election Commission, Singh won the seat by a margin of 58,795 votes against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Neeraj Tripathi. Singh got a total of 4,62,145 votes, while Tripathi received 4,03,350 votes.

Senior Congress leader from Allahabad Baba Abhay Awasthi said that after Bachchan, who was elected from the seat in 1984, the Congress has won the seat after 40 years.

He said before 1984, former prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri won the election from the Allahabad parliamentary constituency in 1957 and 1962. “After Shastri’s death in 1966, his son Harikishan Shastri won the 1967 election from here,” Awasthi said.

The Congress leader added that after 1984, many big leaders like Anil Shastri, Kamla Bahuguna, Satya Prakash Malviya contested elections from this seat on Congress ticket, but lost.

Since 2014, the seat has remained with the BJP with Shyam Charan Gupta winning the constituency in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and Rita Bahuguna Joshi in the 2019 polls.

Singh (51), son of Samajwadi Party’s stalwart leader and two-time MP from the Allahabad seat Rewati Raman Singh, has been an MLA from the Karchana seat of Prayagraj district.

After the Allahabad seat was given to the Congress under the INDIA bloc, Singh left the SP and joined the Congress, which announced him as its candidate from this constituency.

Tripathi (57), son of BJP leader and former West Bengal Governor late Kesari Nath Tripathi, was named as the BJP’s Allahabad candidate in April, replacing outgoing MP Joshi.

Earlier, Tripathi served as the additional advocate general for the Uttar Pradesh government.

The Allahabad constituency falls in Prayagraj district and went to polls on May 25. The seat has over 18 lakh registered voters.