Bengaluru, May 31 : Former Karnataka Minister and BJP MLA Renukacharya was on Friday remanded to Police custody by Special Court for Peoples Representatives in the City today.
The senior BJP leader was handed over to the Police custody as he had failed to appear before the Court despite being served with non bailable warrant against him in connection with violation of Model Code of Conduct case registered in Shivamogga Rural Police Station.
Renukacharya had come to the court to plea for recall of NBW against him.
However, the judge taking strong exception to his absence on the earlier occasions, asked Police to take him to custody.
BJP High Command instructs State unit not to indulge in pulling down the Coalition Govt in Karnataka: Yeddyurappa
Bengaluru, May 31 : Opposition leader in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly B S Yeddyurappa, who is also BJP State President, today said that the party Central leaders have instructed the State unit not to indulge in any activity, including ‘Operation Lotus’ to pull down the Congress-JDS Coalition government.
“We have been directed by the Central leaders not to initiate any step that leads to fall of this government. We will try in any way and as Opposition party we will point out mistakes. Let them undertake welfare measures including waive off farmers loan as announced,” he added.
Yeddyurappa alleged that CLP Chairman Siddaramaiah, who is also Coalition Government Coordination Committee Chairman, is playing tricks by making some of his party MLAs to be in contact with BJP and blame the party as indulged in ‘Operation Lotus’. “BJP senior leaders, after learning about his tacticks, has instructed to indulge in such step which brings bad name to the party at the national level,” he added.
“We are not power hungry. Now our government has come in the Centre and it is not upmost important to capture power in Karnataka. Let them function well,” he added.
West Indies outplay Pakistan by 7 wickets
Nottingham, May 31 : Chris Gayle 50 off 34, Oshane Thomas 4/27 and Jason Holder 3/42 outplayed Pakistan by 7 wickets with 218 balls remaining in the 2nd match of the ICC Cricket World Cup here on Friday.
Earlier, West Indies won the toss and opted to field inviting Pakistan to bat.
Making his first World Cup debut Oshane Thomas scalped 4/27 and Jason Holder 3/42 rattled Pakistan batting line-up for a low total of 105.
Chasing a target of 106 runs, West Indies scored 108/3 in just 13.4 overs.
Karnataka Cabinet: No reshuffle, only expansion says sources
Bengaluru, May 31 : The Coalition partners in Karnataka–Congress and JDS, who had an intensive parleys in the last couple of days over working out strategies to save the one-year-old government, have decided not to reshuffle the Cabinet but to fill the three existing vacancies in the cabinet, by inducting two Independent MLAs.
According to highly placed sources in the Congress, after two days of interaction by both the party leaders, it was decided not to disturb the present set up in the Cabinet, and go for filling up of the vacancies by inducting two independent MLAs, to the cabinet.
“The cabinet is likely to be expanded by inducting two Independent MLAs, in a day or two”, sources said.
Following severe drubbing in the just concluded Lok Sabha elections, in which the coalition partners had won only one seat each out of 28 Lok Sabha seats, series of meeting between the JD(S) and the Congress leaders were held in their bid to save the government.
Both the parties had also convened Legislature party meeting and pursued the respective party MLAs, not to rock the boat, as the Opposition BJP is allegedly making all its efforts to topple the state government.
The Senior party leaders, had come to the conclusion not to go for dropping any existing Ministers but to induct those who are sitting on the fence, to save the Government, after the incumbent ministers are not keen to make way for others, sources said.
The decision not to go for reshuffle of the cabinet, was taken up following lack of enthusiasm shown from the ministers to opt out from the cabinet, sources added.
PM Modi pays homage to Gandhiji, Sardar Patel; presides over first Cabinet meet
New Delhi, May 31 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi and country’s first Home Minister Sardar Vallabhai Patel.
“Remembering India’s greats. At the Prime Minister’s Office in South Block, Narendra Modi pays tributes to Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel,” a PMO tweet said.
Mr Modi also presided over the first meeting of his Cabinet in the South Block office here.
Flanked by new Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on his right and new Home Minister Amit Shah on his left, Mr Modi was in a jovial mood while interacting with his ministerial colleagues.
The Cabinet meeting was attended among others by Ram Vilas Paswan, Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Arvind Sawant – all from NDA constituents.
Before the meeting began, on their arrival at the South Block, several Ministers posed for snaps before the awaiting camerapersons.
The new Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani, who humbled Congress president Rahul Gandhi in his family bastion Amethi, grinned more than once and also shook hands with the photo journalists.
In a first decision of the BJP-led NDA government since it took charge, Prime Minister himself announced that changes were approved in ‘PM’s Scholarship Scheme under the National Defence Fund’.
According to an official release, the major changes includes enhanced scholarships for wards of police personnel martyred in terror or Maoist attacks.
Calamity: Residents asked to check safety paramaeters before construction
Madikeri, May 31 : People whose houses were destroyed in last year’s landslips in Kodagu and are keen to reconstruct on the original site or a place of their choice, have been advised to ascertain if the place is safe for reconstruction.
The District administration held an interactive meeting with 54 such families who were not keen to move into the houses constructed by the government as part of its rehabilitation efforts.
The families were keen to build the houses at their place of choice or the original site. The government is chipping in with Rs 9.85 lakh per house which is also the cost of each unit constructed by the government, according to an official release here on Friday.
Additional Deputy Commissioner P Shivaraj said many families had lost their houses during the calamity last year, all of whom were being rehabilitated. ”But there are 54 families who wanted to build the houses on their own for which Rs 2 lakh per family had been released in the first phase.”
He said the construction should be as per the specifications of the government and the beneficiaries should first ascertain if the site was suitable for construction. The balance amount would be released in phases based on the progress of work and the construction should be completed within four moths.
Assistant Commissioner T Javare Gowda said the house should be at least 5.75 squares and the plot should be in the name of the beneficiary.
He said the construction should follow the specified quality norms and clearance from the respective Gram Panchayats would be procured within a week.
However, the residents seeking to construct their own houses categorically stated that it would not be possible to complete the construction within the next four months as specified by the officials. With the onset of monsoon just a week away construction work was bound to be affected and hence the residents sought additional time for completing the construction.
Woman power of Modi 2.0
New Delhi, May 31 : Ms Nirmala Sitharaman will be the new Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs in the Narendra Modi Government 2.0.
In all, six women got berths in the Modi Government.
In the previous government, Ms Sitharaman ? a Rajya Sabha member — has been serving as the Defence Minister since 2017. She also held the portfolio of Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs in the past.
Earlier, there were speculations that BJP president Amit Shah might get the Finance portfolio after Arun Jaitley chose to stay out of the new government citing health reasons.
Besides, Smriti Irani will be the new Women and Child Development and Textiles Minister. She made the news after defeating Congress president Rahul Gandhi from his stronghold seat Amethi. Prior to this, she was a member of Rajya Sabha twice.
Ms Harsimrat Kaur Badal gets the same Ministry of Food Processing Industries, she was holding in the previous government. She is a member of BJP ally Shromani Akali Dal from Bathinda seat in Punjab.
Another woman who gets a berth in the Modi Government is Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti. She is Minister of State in the Ministry of Rural Development. Earlier, she was given the charge of Minister of State for Food Processing Industries in November 2014.
Ms Renuka Singh Saruta will be Minister of State in the Ministry of Tribal Affairs while Ms Debasree Chaudhuri will assist Ms Irani. She is junior minister for the the Women and Child Development.
First decision of Modi Govt; changes approved in PM’s Scholarship Scheme under National Defence Fund
New Delhi, May 31 : In a first decision of the BJP led NDA government on Friday after it took charge, changes were approved in PM’s Scholarship Scheme under the National Defence Fund.
According to an official release, the major changes includes enhanced scholarships for wards of police personnel martyred in terror or Maoist attacks.
In line with the Prime Minister’s vision for India’s safety, security and the well-being of those who protect the nation, the very first decision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on assuming his office is approval to a major change in the ‘Prime Minister’s Scholarship Scheme’ under the National Defence Fund.
The Prime Minister has approved the changes under which the rates of scholarship have been increased from Rs 2000 per month to Rs 2500 per month for boys and from Rs 2250 per month to Rs 3000 per month for girls.
The ambit of the Scholarship Scheme is extended to the wards of State Police officials who are/were martyred during terror/naxal attacks.
The quota of new scholarships for wards of state police officials will be 500 in a year.
The Ministry of Home Affairs will be the nodal Ministry in this regard
We unintentionally killed 1,300 civilians in air strikes on Islamic State: US-led coalition
The US-led coalition said Friday it had unintentionally killed more than 1,300 civilians in air strikes during its fight against the Islamic State groupin Iraq and Syria since 2014.
The figure is far lower than the death tolls given by groups which have monitored the conflicts in the two countries.
“The coalition conducted 34,502 strikes between August 2014 and the end of April 2019,” it said in a statement.
During this period, it “assesses at least 1,302 civilians have been unintentionally killed by coalition strikes”.
The coalition said it was still assessing 111 additional claims of civilians deaths and was ready to receive new allegations or fresh evidence to review.
The coalition has repeatedly said it does all it can to avoid civilian deaths.
Watch: Wounded and alone, children emerge from last Islamic State enclave in Baghouz
Airwars, an NGO which monitors civilian casualties from air strikes worldwide, estimates more than 7,900 civilians have been killed in coalition raids — well in excess of the total acknowledged by the coalition.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, says coalition strikes have taken the lives of 3,800 civilians in Syria alone.
IS jihadists seized large swathes of Iraq and Syria in 2014, declaring a “caliphate” in areas they controlled.
But several offensives with coalition backing chipped away at the “caliphate” until it was declared eliminated on March 23.
Ambushes and hit-and-run attacks have continued in both countries.
The coalition is continuing to work “to deny Daesh any physical space and influence in the region as well as deny Daesh the resources they need to resurge”, it said, using an Arabic acronym for IS.
Agencies
Prime Minister Narendra Modi knocks off seniority as a criterion for top 4 ministries
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s new Cabinet represents bold new ideas to run the country. It is best exemplified through the constitution of Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) which comprises Home, Defence, External Affairs and Finance Ministry.
Modi did not buy into the logic of political seniority for picking the top four members of CCS. The direct inductee, a former Foreign Secretary, S Jaishankar is the case in point.
He reflects Modi’s top concern of handling China and managing Indo-US relationship. Modi has put a micro manager at the helms of the affair as global politics is changing rapidly.
The Prime Minister promoted Nirmala Sitharaman and handed her Finance portfolio which requires a hands-on minister. Similarly, Amit Shah is a multi-tasker and de facto number two in the government. His elevation as the Home Minister was not a surprise but Modi has chosen him because, after ages, internal security and nationalism have become public issues and Modi would want robust handling of security matters in time to come.
The only political adjustment has been that of Rajnath Singh who has been shifted to Defence. The ministry does not need handling on a daily basis. It requires gentle guidance and thrust so that services can execute the national mandate. It is for this reason, he also remains number one minister in the order of precedence after Narendra Modi.
Rise and Rise of Nirmala Sitharaman
Her rise looks meteoritic, but she had caught Narendra Modi’s eye as a fiery spokesperson of BJP during UPA 2. Her entry into public life took place when she was made a member of NCW in 2003. She joined BJP in 2006 and went on to become one of the 6 spokespersons under the stewardship of Ravi Shankar Prasad when Nitin Gadkari was the party president. She has surpassed them all. Not only she was appointed a minister of state with independent charge for commerce in 2014 but went on to become the Defence Minister in 2017. She is not a mass leader but is one of those politicians, Prime Minister finds it easy to work with. She is a workaholic and keeps up with the razor-tight time table set by the Prime Minister.
After a long time, the Finance Ministry will have a hands-on minister. Her elevation as the Finance Minister has sealed her position in the party and government for a long time.
Less Noise and More work
This mantra underlines the making of the Cabinet. Despite being a giant killer, Smriti Irani was not given a heavyweight industry. She debuted as HRD minister in 2014 but had to be shunted to Textiles for the controversies generated by her. Same is the case with VK Singh who as MOS will have to report to Nitin Gadkari. In the previous dispensation, he had independent charge of Development of North Eastern Region General (DONER) and also looked after overseas affairs. He had the opportunity to travel to Yemen to evacuate Indians but today he only has one portfolio under his belt.
Continuity and Generational Shift
The Cabinet has been altered considerably but it doesn’t mean that it does not have the element of continuity. Senior ministers like Ravi Shankar Prasad, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Hardeep Singh Puri, RK Singh, Jitendra Singh, Nitin Gadkari, Piyush Goyal, Dharmendra Pradhan and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi have retained their old portfolios. Though some have got additional responsibility, but it is an acknowledgement of their performance. Modi is perhaps the first Prime Minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi who has successfully carried out a generational shift. Within five years, Modi has ensured that junior leaders like Nirmala Sitharaman, Smriti Irani, Prakash Javadekar, Dharmendra Pradhan, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Piyush Goyal become full-fledged Cabinet Minister. In fact, he has inducted fresh faces as MoS in the government and the example in such case is Anurag Thakur.
Lastly
Modi’s Cabinet is free from the strain of coalition politics. He is the ultimate arbiter of the who gets to work with him and who does not. The only flip side of such arrangement is that contrary opinions become less prevalent and, in the long run, disappear as no one wants to be seen objecting to the supreme leader. I’m sure that this small limitation can be overcome by the new administration.
Agencies