Punjab is the second state after Kerala to have passed such a resolution.

NEW DELHI: After the Amarinder Singh-led Punjab government on Friday passed a resolution in the state Assembly against CAA, other Congress-ruled states such as Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh may follow suit. While all 13 non-BJP ruled states have opposed the CAA-NRC, only two have passed a resolution against the Act. Punjab is the second state after Kerala to have passed such a resolution.

Congress-ruled states such as Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh are discussing similar resolutions. According to sources, Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot has already discussed the matter with the party high command. Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel and Madhya Pradesh CM Kamal Nath have already expressed their opposition to the CAA-NRC. “Chhattisgarh government may bring in a resolution in the upcoming budget session and things are under consideration,” said a top leader from the state. 

Govt will soon table law making the language mandatory in schools.

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra government is set to bring in a legislation for making Marathi compulsory in all schools, irrespective of their Boards, in the state. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has asked officials to table a proposal making Marathi a mandatory language in non-state Boards such as the CBSE and the ICSE. According to the officials, they had issued a circular making Marathi a compulsory language, but many schools did not adhere to this order. “But there is no rule or act making the Marathi language a compulsory subject. It could be one of the reasons why the schools under central boards did not following our guidelines,” said an official.

Vishwajeet Kadam, MoS for Marathi language, confirmed that the government is committed to making Marathi compulsory in all boards. “If you are staying in Maharashtra, then you should speak and write Marathi. We will ensure that all schools must follow the state directives. If they fail to do so, then strict action will be taken against such schools,” Kadam said.

An official confirmed that the government wants to bring a law in this regard. “On the lines of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and West Bengal, the Maharashtra government also wants to pass the law for making Marathi mandatory in primary schools,” said an official, who is working on this proposal.

Sources said the move will help the Shiv Sena to formulate and consolidate its Marathi vote bank in the civic elections scheduled in 2022. “The BMC election is prestigious for the Sena. The BJP is trying to forge an alliance with the MNS that may damage the Sena’s Marathi votes. Therefore, this pro-Marathi stand is being taken to deny the space and agenda that can be taken by the Raj Thackeray-led MNS,” said a Shiv Sena leader.  

It was alleged that Pawar, then VIDC chairman, and officials of the corporation colluded with contractors while issuing tenders for projects, causing a loss to the exchequer.

NAGPUR: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has filed an affidavit in the Nagpur Bench of Bombay High Court in reply to petitions against him in the multi-crore irrigation scam, terming the allegations as “mala fide”.

The NCP leader also said in the affidavit filed on Tuesday that there is no requirement for the present investigation to be handed over to the CBI or the ED.

The Director-General of the Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau in an affidavit filed in the High Court in December last year had stated the ACB’s inquiry found no involvement of Pawar in the alleged scam in the 12 projects undertaken by the Vidarbha Irrigation Development Corporation (VIDC).

It was alleged that Pawar, then VIDC chairman, and officials of the corporation colluded with contractors while issuing tenders for projects, causing a loss to the exchequer.

The petitioner, Atul Jagtap of Janmanch who has filed 4 PILs in the alleged scam, had filed an application in the HC seeking CBI enquiry into the matter.

The hearing of which is still going in the court and the next hearing is scheduled this week.

On Tuesday, Pawar, in his reply, said the present affidavit is a common reply to the present civil application (Jagtap) and similar other applications which are identical in nature.

“I raise an objection regarding locus standi of Jagtap and maintainability of the present applications as the petitioner has no locus to make the prayers as contained in the said applications. The four PILs filed by Jagtap are not maintainable in as much as Jagtap is himself a contractor and filed tenders in respect of various projects which were involved in the present alleged.

“The present civil applications may not be entertained by the HC as they are actuated by personal motives mala fide intentions, business rivalry or not in the nature of public interest,” he said.

“I deny all allegations concerning me or imputing me in toto. I say that I have not indulged in any corrupt, motivated or mala fide act while discharging my duties as a minister. I state that I have as a minister or as ex-officio chairman of the VIDC, have followed all the rules and have discharged my public duties with a clear conscience and without fear, favour or illegal motives,” Pawar said in the affidavit.

“I further deny the contention that the present investigation is required to be handed over to the CBI or the Enforcement Directorate and state there is not even a farthing of either pleadings or evidence to show the exceptional case as to why the investigation requires to be transferred and for statements and averments made in such vague and careless manners, the prayers made in application deserve to be rejected,” Pawar stated.

The hearing on the present application by petitioner Jagtap is expected this week.

The city is going to the polls on February 8 as the tenure of the Delhi Assembly is ending next month.

NEW DELHI: Delhi’s ruling Aam Aadmi Party on Tuesday released the list of all candidates for the February 8 elections for the 70-member Assembly. Here are the names:

1. Narela – Sharad Chauhan

2. Burari – Sanjeev Jha

3. Timarpur – Dilip Pandey

4. Adarsh Nagar – Pawan Sharma

5. Badli – Ajesh Yadav

6. Rithala – Mahinder Goyal

7. Bawana – Jai Bhagwan Upkar

8. Mundka – Dharampal Lakra

9. Kirari – Rituraj Jha

10. Sultan Pur Majra – Mukesh Kumar Ahlawat

11. Nangloi Jat – Raghuvinder Shokeen

12. Mangol Puri – Rakhi Bidlan

13. Rohini – Rajesh Nama Bansiwala

14. Shalimar Bagh – Bandana Kumari

15. Shakur Basti – Satyendra Jain

16. Tri Nagar – Jitender Tomar

17. Wazirpur – Rajesh Gupta

18. Model Town – Akhilesh Pati Tripathi

19. Sadar Bazar – Som Dutt

20. Chandni Chowk – Prahlad Singh Sawhney

21. Matia Mahal – Shoaib Iqbal

22. Ballimaran – Imran Hussain

23. Karol Bagh – Vishesh Ravi

24. Patel Nagar – Raaj Kumar Anand

25. Moti Nagar – Shiv Charan Goel

26. Madipur – Girish Soni

27. Rajouri Garden – Dhanwati Chandela

28. Hari Nagar – Rajkumari Dhillon

29. Tilak Nagar – Jarnail Singh

30. Janakpur – Rajesh Rishi

31. Vikaspuri – Mahinder Yadav

32. Uttam Nagar – Naresh Balyan

33. Dwarka – Vinay Kumar Mishra

34. Matiala – Gulab Singh Yadav

35. Najafgarh – Kailash Gahlot

36. Bijwasan – B.S. Joon

37. Palam – Bhavna Gaur

38. Delhi Cantonment – Virender Singh Kadian

39. Rajinder Nagar – Raghav Chadha

40. New Delhi – Arvind Kejriwal

41. Jangpura – Praveen Kumar

42. Kasturba Nagar – Madan Lal

43. Malviya Nagar – Somnath Bharti

44. RK Puram – Parmila Tokas

45. Mehrauli – Naresh Yadav

46. Chhatarpur – Kartar Singh Tanwar

47. Deoli – Prakash Jarwal

48. Ambedkar Nagar – Ajay Dutt

49. Sangam Nagar – Dinesh Mohaniya

50. Greater Kailash – Saurabh Bharadwaj

51. Kalkaji – Atishi

52. Tugalakabad – Sahi Ram Pehelwan

53. Badarpur – Ram Singh Netaji

54. Okhla – Amanatullah Khan

55. Trilokpuri – Rohit Kumar Mehraulia

56. Kondli – Kuldeep Kumar (Monu)

57. Patparganj – Manish Sisodia

58. Laxmi Nagar – Nitin Tyagi

59. Vishwas Nagar – Deepak Singla

60. Krishna Nagar – S.K. Bagga

61. Gandhi Nagar – Naveen Choudhary (Deepu)

62. Shahdara – Ram Niwas Goyal

63. Seemapuri – Rajendra Pal Gautam

64. Rohtas Nagar – Sarita Singh

65. Seelampur – Abdul Rehman

66. Ghonda – S.D. Sharma

67. Babarpur – Gopal Rai

68. Gokalpur – Ch. Surendra Kumar

69. Mustafabad – Haji Yunus

70. Karawal Nagar – Durgesh Pathak

After media reports claimed that Singh was awarded a police medal on Independence Day last year. 

SRI NAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Tuesday said reports claiming that suspended officer Davinder Singh, who was arrested along with two Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists, was awarded a gallantry medal by the Union Home Ministry are not true even as the intelligence agencies continued to grill him to know if he was planning to ensure Hizbul deputy chief Naveed Babu’s escape to Pakistan. 

“During the investigation, it has been found that Singh was to take Naveed Babu and another militant to Chandigarh,” sources said. The interrogators are trying to ascertain if Singh intended to ensure the militants’ escape to Pakistan or “he was to drop them at someplace for carrying out an attack”. Sources said the officials were analysing the former DSP’s bank accounts and ascertaining his assets.

After media reports claimed that Singh was awarded a police medal on Independence Day last year. 
The J&K Police said, “It is to clarify that Dysp Davinder Singh is not awarded any Gallantry or Meritorious Medal by MHA (Ministry of Home Affairs) as has been reported by some media outlets/persons. Only gallantry medal awarded to him during his service is by the erstwhile J&K State on Independence Day 2018.”

Tagging Singh as a “black sheep”, J&K LG G C Murmu’s Advisor Farooq Khan said the credit for identifying and nabbing him goes to the police. “In any organisation, there is a black sheep and he was the one in the police,” Khan said. Responding to a question about the impact of Singh’s arrest on the image of the police force, Khan pointed out that even the people who nabbed the DySP were policemen.

Police seized 3-4 envelopes from the MP’s residence and some of these contained letters in the Urdu language.

BHOPAL: Controversial BJP MP Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur on Monday night lodged a complaint with police, alleging that she received envelopes by post which had poisonous chemicals on them.

Police seized 3-4 envelopes from the MP’s residence and some of these contained letters in the Urdu language, they said.

“We got a complaint from the MP that she had received envelopes allegedly having some harmful chemicals in them and we are filing an FIR in the matter,” Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Bhopal Irshad Wali told PTI.

When asked about the presence of chemicals in the envelope, the DIG said that it will be clear only after the forensic team examines it.

Efforts to contact the BJP MP from Bhopal or her aides were not successful.

Meanwhile, a picture of a brown envelope, purportedly with Thakur’s address on it, was being circulated on social media with a message that it contained some poisonous chemical which was life-threatening.

City Superintendent of Police (CSP) Umesh Tiwari said a case has been registered against an unidentified person on charges of criminal intimidation and voluntarily causing grievous hurt at Kamla Nagar police station and added that the matter is under investigation.

Moving forward on holding elections for the post of BJP chief, the party has asked the eligible delegates to reach the national capital. 

NEW DELHI: Moving forward on holding elections for the post of BJP chief, the party has asked the eligible delegates to reach the national capital. 

Party leaders stated that working president J P Nadda would most likely be elected as the chief of the outfit unopposed. “The norms for filing of the nomination are such that there is hardly any possibility of any other candidate putting up a contest,” said a BJP functionary.

The party is aiming to meet the criteria of holding organisational elections in 50 per cent of the states by January 17.

“The party has, as of now, planned to hold the election meetings on January 19-20, with the first day for filing of the nomination papers. The party is aiming to elect its new president on January 20,” said a senior BJP functionary.

Union territories are counted as state units in the BJP, with the party aiming to speed up organisational elections. “The national council meeting of the BJP is likely to be held in February in which the elected president of the party will be endorsed by larger representatives of the outfit,” added the BJP functionary.
With the BJP being in the midst of contesting a tough electoral battle in Delhi, the election process of the party chief is likely to be a low-key affair.

The central election committee of the BJP is likely to meet on January 16 to finalise the candidates for the Delhi Assembly elections. Party chief Amit Shah continues to hold marathon meetings on shortlist candidates for the polls, with the thrust on putting up new faces who have been working on the ground for long.

“The CEC will meet on January 16, and the party will begin releasing names soon after to allow them enough time to file nomination papers. The party may hold back names for a few Assembly constituencies for last minute changes by taking into account candidates of the rival outfits,” said a senior BJP functionary.

The core group of BJP held a marathon meeting on Sunday night at Shah’s residence, which was further extended at the residence of party’s Delhi in-charge Prakash Javadekar. The meeting contiued at Shah’s  residence on Monday. 

“Before the CEC meets on Thursday, the core group will finetune the list of candidates…The party brass has also has gathered ground inputs on the winnability of the candidates,” said the BJP leader.

The sliding economy is an even greater threat to the country, the former finance minister said in a series of tweets.

NEW DELHI: Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Tuesday attacked the Modi government over the state of the economy, saying if unemployment rises and incomes decline, there is a danger of youth and students “exploding in anger”.

“The nation is engrossed with the anti-CAA, anti-NPR protests. Both present a clear and present danger,” Chidambaram said.

The sliding economy is an even greater threat to the country, the former finance minister said in a series of tweets.

“If unemployment rises and incomes decline, there is the danger of youth and students exploding in anger,” he said.

Chidambaram also attacked the government over the rising consumer price index (CPI) inflation.

Retail inflation jumped sharply to 7.35 per cent in December 2019, surpassing the RBI’s comfort level, mainly due to high food prices, government data showed on Monday.

The retail inflation based on Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 2.11 per cent in December 2018 and 5.54 per cent in November 2019.

“The circle of incompetent management is complete. Mr Narendra Modi’s government started in July 2014 with CPI inflation at 7.39 per cent. In December 2019, it was 7.35 per cent,” Chidambaram said.

“Food inflation stands at 14.12 per cent.Vegetable prices are up 60 per cent. Onion prices are over Rs 100 per kg. This is the ‘achhe din’ promised by the BJP,” he said.