The villagers of Kadadgadde island at Lingasguru Taluk in Raichuru district have boycotted the poll and are gheraoing the Tehshildar and the poll process has literally been stalled.In fact there was no change in situation till 12 pm when reports last came in.
Three staff members of the Panchayat cast their votes on being insisted by the Taluk officer which was resisted by the villagers.The island over the Krishna river has basic infrastructure problems and repeated appeals by the residents have made no impact on the administration.
The villagers have put thorn shrubs on the road leading to the village and have obstructed the path from outsiders entering the village.
In fact the Tehshildar rushed to the village at around 9 am and tried to convince the villagers to vote but they refused to budge and also protested against his action to instruct the Panchayat officials to vote.
Hindusthan Samachar/Manohar Yadavatti
Rajasthan: Class 8 reference book calls Bal Gangadhar Tilak ‘father of terrorism’
Jaipur: In what appears to be a case of poor choice of words, a Class 8 reference book described freedom fighter Bal Gangadhar Tilak as the “Father of Terrorism”.
Printed by a Matura-based publisher, the book is used by private English-medium schools affiliated to the Rajasthan Board of Secondary Education (RBSE).
The Rajasthan State Textbook Board publishes books in Hindi, leaving students no other option but to use reference books.
“Tilak demonstrated a path towards national movement, therefore, he is called as the father of terrorism,” reads page 267 of chapter 22 of the book.
The description is part of sub-topic “Incidents of National Movement during 18th and 19th century”.
“Tilak clearly believed that we cannot achieve anything just by pleading the British officers. Through Shivaji and Ganpati festivals, Tilak aroused unique awareness in the country. He instilled the mantra of freedom among the masses, due to which he became a thorn in the eyes of the British,” the book reads.
Officials at the Student Advisor Publication Private Limited, which publishes the book, said the mistake had been rectified in the revised edition.
“The translators made the mistake. It had come to our notice and was corrected in the revised edition last month. The first edition was published last year,” Rajpal Singh, a production official at the publisher’s office, told PTI.
(PTI)
B S Yediyurappa 100 per cent confident of BJP’s victory
B S Yeddyurappa said that BJP will form the new government in the state on May 17.
BSY said, “After casting his vote today, he said I am 100 per cent confident of BJP’s victory this election,”
“On 15th I will be flying to Delhi and meet PM Modi and invite him for the swearing in ceremony which is most likely to happen on 17th, he said.
Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge said that BJP is day dreaming to form the government in Karnataka. “We are confident. BJP will not win more than 60-70 seats maximum, forget getting 150. They are just dreaming of forming the Government,” Kharge told news channel.
Women and senior citizens outsmart others in polling
The polling process for electing 222 legislators for Karnataka state Assembly has begun and women and senior citizens have been found in big numbers early in the morning to exercise their franchise.
The polling percentage till 09 am has been reported as follows:Bengaluru-10 percent,Bengaluru Rural-10,Kolar-10,Ramnagar-10,Koppal-11,Mandya-6.5,Chamrajnagar-5.5.Kodagu-13,Tumakuru-12,Chitradurga-10,Chikkamagaluru-11,Uttara Kannada-12,Udupi-15,Bidar-14 and Hasan-16.
Polling process has been delayed at several polling stations due to technical snags in VPAT devices.However the polling process continued after the snag was rectified.
Dr.Shivakumar Swamiji of the Siddaganga Mutt near Tumakuru exercised his franchise at the polling booth near the Mutt.The 111 years old seer of the renowned Lingayat Mutt has never missed to exercise his franchise so far.
Hindusthan Samachar/Manohar Yadavatti
India deserves Permanent membership in UNSC in line with its global role
India, Peru celebrate 55 years of diplomatic ties and resolve to improve trade relations to tap full potential
Peru has said that India deserves Permanent membership in UNSC in line with its global role. Top leadership of Peru has acknowledged that their country has a lot to learn and benefit from the success story of India.
They resolved with India to significantly enhance trade relations as the two countries are celebrating 55 years of diplomatic ties.
Vice President Venkaiah Naidu held extensive talks with President, Prime Minister and senior Ministers of Peru in Lima on Friday on a range of issues indicating specific areas for enhanced engagement.
He spoke at length about India’s strength in supply of quality and cost effective generic medicines, Information Technology, defence equipment, Science and Technology, Space applications etc.
During the delegation level talks, the Peruvian Prime Minister Cesar Villanueva Bardales, leading a delegation of four ministers and senior official noted that India is acknowledged as a leader in pharma sector and Peru could take benefit of the same.
Health Minister of Peru Ms. Silvia Pessah Eljay suggested that Indian Government may do needful to enable Indian Pharma companies set up generic medicines production facilities in Peru. Peruvian side agreed to consider suggestion of Naidu for hassle free registration of Indian pharma companies for supply of medicines.
Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism of Peru Rogers Valencia Espinoza, while speaking of the potential of bilateral trade between the two countries said Peru was keen about concluding a Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with India.
He mentioned that two rounds of discussions were already in this regard and the third round is to be held in Delhi in August this year. He stressed on the need to conclude this agreement at the earliest for mutual benefit.
Peru’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Nestor Popolizio Bardales stressed that India deserved to be a Permanent member of the United Nation’s Security Council in line with its size, role and responsibilities in the global scheme of things. He reiterated Peru’s support to India in this regard.
Referring to the success of Information Technology Centre in Peru set up by India, the Peruvian side more such centres in other parts of the country.
Earlier, during his talks with the President of Peru, Vice President Naidu said that 55 years of diplomatic ties between the two countries is an important landmark and it was time to assess the achievements so far to chart out a clear course of action to realize the full potential.
Peruvian President said his country is closely watching India’s progress in different sectors including its transition from an agrarian economy to being an IT leader with strong capacities in Science and Technology, space sector etc. He informed Naidu that concerned ministers were asked by him to make time bond action plans for progressing on identified areas of cooperation.
Sharing Naidu’s concern about terrorism, President of Peru noted that while terrorists come out with new strategies, the global community to act together to counter terrorism in all it’s different forms and shapes.
After the delegation level talks, India and Peru signed an Agreement on Cooperation in New and Renewable Energy. Peru is a founder member of the International Solar Alliance, established with India taking the initiative.
Peru’s External Affairs Ministry organized a special programme in Lima commemorating the 55 years of diplomatic ties with India. Peruvian youth performed Bharat Natyam which was appreciated by Vice President Venkaiah Naidu.
Hindusthan Samachar/Shri Ram Shaw
India U-16 football team to clash with Serbia today
India’s Under-16 national football team will face hosts Serbia on Saturday (May 12).
India started the four-nation international tournament in Serbia on Wednesday, with a 2-1 victory over Jordan.
After conceding in the second minute of the match, India made a strong comeback in the 17th minute, thanks to a terrific finish by Ridge.
Rohit Danu scored India’s second goal nine minutes later which eventually proved to be the difference between the two teams.
Hindusthan Samachar/Shri Ram Shaw
Delhi Daredevils to clash with RCB at Kotla today : IPL
In IPL Cricket, Kings Eleven Punjab will take on Kolkata Knight Riders in Indore at 4 PM and Delhi Daredevils will meet Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi at 8 pm on Saturday (May 12).
On Friday night, Rajasthan Royals defeated Chennai Super Kings by four wickets in a thrilling encounter in Jaipur to keep their playoff hopes alive in the tournament.
Opting into bat, Chennai posted 176 for 4 wickets in stipulated 20 overs. In reply, Rajasthan Royals overhauled the target in 19.5 overs riding on Jos Buttler unbeaten 95 in just 60 balls.
Hindusthan Samachar/Shri Ram Shaw
Chandigarh airport to remain shut till May 31
The Chandigarh International Airport was closed for all air traffic on Saturday until May 31 to carry out runway expansion and repairs, officials said here.
“No civil and military flights will operate from Chandigarh from May 12 to May 31,” a Chandigarh International Airport Ltd (Chial) spokesman said.
The 20-day closure would affect over 100,000 passengers, especially during the summer vacation season.
This is the second phase of runway repair. It involves improvements and extension of runway ends from the existing 9,000 to 10,400 feet.
The first phase was carried out from February 12 to 26.
The expansion would enable operation of wide-bodied aircraft that will help air carriers to connect Chandigarh with destinations in Europe, the US and Australia.
The airport is a frontier base for the Indian Air Force (IAF) which has a transport unit based here catering to the forward areas in Jammu and Kashmir, particularly the Ladakh region.
During the closure, the IAF has relocated all its aircraft to other bases in north India.
The Chandigarh base was established in 1961 as a major air logistics node of Indian troops deployed in Jammu and Kashmir.
It is home to fighter squadrons deployed for the air defence of the Punjab sector. With time, the base grew in size and operated heavy and medium lift air mobility aircraft like the AN-12, AN-32, IL-76, Mi-26 and C-17 Globe Master, a Defence Ministry spokesman said.
The Chandigarh airport handles nearly 30 commercial flights daily, including those to Dubai, Sharjah and Bangkok. The city is linked to Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Srinagar, Jaipur and a few other cities in the domestic circuit.
Rise of regional leaders in Congress
Irrespective of the outcome of the Karnataka elections and notwithstanding Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s desire to retire after the polls, a feature of the contest in the southern state is his emergence as a major state-level leader.
As a result, the battle is being perceived as being mainly between Siddaramaiah and Narendra Modi if only because the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief ministerial candidate, B.S. Yeddyurappa, has been almost completely overshadowed by the Prime Minister’s intensive campaign since May 1.
In contrast, Siddaramaiah has kept pace with Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s electioneering with both public appearances and a regular recourse to tweets which are characterised by humour as well as biting sarcasm.
For the Congress, this rise of a regional leader marks a return to the immediate post-1947 period when the party had a number of top-ranking local leaders despite the presence of towering personalities at the Centre like Jawaharlal Nehru, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and others.
The co-existence of influential leaders at both the Centre and in the states gave way in Indira Gandhi’s time to a concentration of power in Delhi with the regional leaders reduced to being mere supplicants rather than representing considerable authority as, for instance, B.C. Roy once did in West Bengal or Pratap Singh Kairon in Punjab or Govind Ballabh Pant in Uttar Pradesh or Morarji Desai in Bombay.
The reason for the marginalisation of the regional leaders was largely ascribed to Indira Gandhi’s disinclination to allow any charismatic local Congressman to acquire a sizable base in his home province and become a rival centre of power.
The diminution of the stature of local leaders was accompanied by the increasing dominance of the party’s first family, which reached its highest point during the Emergency when Indira was deemed synonymous with India by the Congress president, D.K. Barooah.
Arguably, this pattern of politics with only one focal point has begun to change in the Congress. The first sign of this transformation was in Punjab last year where Amrinder Singh emerged as the No.1 figure both before and after the party’s electoral success. That he did so despite having once made disparaging remarks about Rahul Gandhi showed how the “high command” had matured since Indira Gandhi’s time or had come to terms with its own diminishing status.
Now, the battle in Karnataka has given an opportunity to Siddaramaiah to acquire a stature similar to Amrinder Singh’s. Moreover, there is no tension this time between Delhi and Bengaluru as in Punjab earlier when there was even speculation about Amrinder Singh leaving the Congress.
It will be futile to deny that the increasing visibility of the state-level leaders is related to the dimming of the dynasty’s aura. At the same time, the BJP’s ascendency has apparently made the Congress realise that the earlier style of politics with a concentration of power at the Centre will not work.
Just as the Congress is trying to change the perception of being a “Muslim party”, to use Sonia Gandhi’s words, it is also becoming accustomed to the idea of giving a free hand to the local satraps. The leeway given to Amrinder Singh was the first step and now it is Siddaramaiah’s turn to operate as he pleases.
It goes without saying that this new approach will do a world of good to the party. Fortunately, it has in Sachin Pilot and Jyotiraditya Scindia young, personable and energetic leaders in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh who are capable of delivering the goods in the assembly elections later this year.
It is the Congress’s misfortune that several prominent state leaders like Y.S. Rajshekara Reddy, Madhavrao Scindia and Rajesh Pilot died early. Otherwise, the process of a more even distribution of power between the Centre and the states might have begun earlier.
At the moment, the party is trying to evolve a balance between the younger generation and the elderly leaders if only to make the handing over of the baton a smooth affair. Nowhere is this effort more evident than in Madhya Pradesh where the party has always had more than a normal share of heavyweights.
Thus, the 71-year-old Kamal Nath, who was once close to Sanjay Gandhi, has been nominated as the party’s chief in the state while 47-year-old Scindia has become the head of the campaign committee. What this balancing act means is that the question of who will become the Chief Minister in case the Congress wins has been left open.
It is the same in Rajasthan since the former Chief Minister, 68-year-old Ashok Gehlot, has been elevated to the position of a General Secretary of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) in charge of the organisation and the training of cadres while the 51-year-old Sachin Pilot remains the chief of the party’s state unit.
There is little doubt, however, that the generational shift evident in Rahul Gandhi’s ascent to the Congress president’s post is paving the way for the younger leaders to gain more prominence. But it remains to be seen whether their rise will put an end to the unequal relations as in Indira Gandhi’s time between the high command and the state units.
Modi, Rahul encourage youth to vote in Karnataka
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday encouraged the people of Karnataka, particularly youths, to come out and cast their votes in large numbers in the assembly election.
“Urging my sisters and brothers of Karnataka to vote in large numbers today. I would particularly like to call upon young voters to vote and enrich this festival of democracy with their participation,” Modi tweeted before the election began at 7 a.m.
Gandhi, in his tweet in Kannada, also urged the voters to participate in the election for the state’s 15th Legislative Assembly where the three major contesting parties are Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda-led Janata Dal (Secular).
“The voter turnout is a sign of dynamic democracy. I welcome all my young friends who are voting for the first time in Karnataka. People from Karnataka will be able to celebrate the largest festival of democracy with a great number of celebrations,” Gandhi tweeted.
A total of 15.42 lakh voters, aged 18-19, have registered to cast their ballot for the first time. Over 5.06-crore electorate, including 2.56-crore men, 2.5-crore women and over 5,000 who identify themselves as the third gender are exercising their franchise.
Voting in 222 of 224 constituencies in state will continue till 6 p.m. and the result will be declared on May 15.