Days after Congress President Rahul Gandhi denied his party’s links in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, Delhi BJP spokesperson Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga on Tuesday put up posters here describing the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi as the “father” of mob lynching.

Bagga told IANS, “I have put up the posters across the city to remind Rahul Gandhi that his father was the director and producer of mob lynching in the country in 1984.”

Rahul Gandhi said in London on Friday that the Congress was not involved in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in which nearly 3,000 Sikhs were killed, mostly in the national capital, after the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

The Congress condemned the BJP posters.

Congress spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi said: “We have a despicable poster outside the BJP office denigrating a deceased Prime Minister (Rajiv Gandhi) who lost his life in service to the nation. Reflects BJP’s petty mindedness.”

(Ians)

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Tuesday accused the Modi government of giving a step-motherly treatment to flood-hit Kerala and demanded that the calamity be declared a “national disaster”.

The former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister said in a statement that despite the magnitude of the crisis, Kerala was not given adequate help by the central government.

This was done because the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was playing politics even in such testing times for Keralites, she said.

The BSP leader said that Kerala was suffering huge losses, both of life and property, in the worst floods in nearly a century.

But despite demands for more funds and help, the central government was turning a blind eye to the crisis. “The BSP condemns in the harshest words such petty politics by the central government and the BJP.”

Giving up on its biased approach, the NDA government should instead provide more assistance, funds, relief and help in the rehabilitation process in the state, she said.

“At a time when millions of individuals are doing something or the other to help those in crisis in Kerala, the union government should also come forward with a positive mindset.”

She said it was unfortunate that while the union government was not declaring the Kerala floods a national disaster, it was not even approving the levying of a cess under state GST as sought by the Kerala government.

Mayawati directed her party cadres and office bearers, specially in south India, to extend all possible help to those affected by the floods in Kerala which have claimed hundreds of lives, caused widespread destruction and left thousands without homes.

(IANS)

Union Minister for Statistics and Programme Implementation D V Sadananda Gowda, predicted that the JD(S)-Congress coalition government in Karnataka, will collapse in two to four weeks. Speaking to reporters in Mangaluru on Tuesday,

Gowda said: “Siddaramaiah, H D Kumaraswamy and Deve Gowda can never be together. Bowing to pressure from the high command, Siddaramaiah had agreed to the coalition. All attempts are being made to destabilise the government. Siddaramaiah is daydreaming of becoming chief minister again,” he said.

“There is no way in which BJP can support Congress. BJP aims to free India from Congress. Siddaramaiah needs JD(S) to become CM again. That won’t happen if the current coalition government falls. Siddaramaiah is poor in calculations,” Gowda remarked

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday congratulated Rae Bareli resident Sudha Singh for winning a silver medal at the 3000 meter steeplechase competition at the ongoing Asian Games-2018 in Indonesia.

Extending his greetings to her, the Chief Minister announced a Rs 30 lakh reward for the sports person and added that she will also be given a gazetted officer’s job in the state government.

Yogi stated that with her hard work and dedication, Singh has brought laurels for the state and the country and that the whole state was feeling honoured with her achievement.

Indian long distance runner Sudha Singh on Monday clinched a silver in women’s 3000 m steeplechase event in the Asian Games at Jakarta by clocking 9 minute 40.03 seconds to win her second Asian Games medal.

The second season of KBD Juniors kabaddi tournament will be hosted across 12 cities and will see the participation of 288 schools, it was announced here on Monday.

The tournament will have 24 schools per city, and 3,500 students between the age group of 11 to 12 years battle it out to make it to the grand finale.

The 24 schools in each city are divided into 8 groups of 3 teams who will play against each other. From each group, the team finishing first will then make it to the round of city finals, which will take place during the home leg of each city as part of Season VI of VIVO Pro Kabaddi and then the National finals.

The city qualifiers will be hosted between end of August and early September.

(IANS)

Former chief minister (CM) of Karnataka and chairman of coordination committee, Siddaramaiah’s circumstantial statement about his desire to become CM if the people support him appears to have opened up the proverbial Pandora’s Box. Several people and party leaders have lapped up the statement of Siddaramaiah with glee and begun to issue statements, some of which have developed into spar between leaders.

Agricultural minister in the coalition government, N H Shivashankara Reddy, said at Chamarajanagar on Monday August 27 that if the coordination committee decides in favour of Siddaramaiah, he and others in the party would be bound by such a decision. He said that if Congress had gained majority, Siddaramaiah would have been the automatic choice for the post of the CM and therefore, if the coordination committee decides so, Siddaramaiah will replace Kumaraswamy. Basavakalyana MLA, B Narayana Rao, said that Siddaramaiah becoming chief minister is a foregone conclusion.

The statement of the former CM has fuelled speculations and discussions about change in the chief minister. Some JD(S) leaders have been trying to calm down the situation by issuing statements.

Siddaramaiah said that the coordination committee is not entitled to discuss about who should be the chief minister and that party legislators decide this issue. JD(S) state president, H Vishwanath, too made a statement similar to that of the CM. Vishwanath also added that the coordination committee is meant to build and not break, and that Kumaraswamy will be the CM for the full term of five years.

Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president, Dinesh Gundu Rao, said that Siddaramaiah was instrumental in the formation of the coalition government and there is no need to attach special meanings to his statement. Water resources minister, D K Shivakumar, said that the coalition government is not an earthen pot to break as and when one wished.

BJP MLA, Umesh Katti, noted that minister, Zameer Ahmed, had said in the past that the coalition government led by Kumaraswamy had entered registered marriage. “But this government has not entered any marriage. The parties concerned are engaged in illicit relationship. Because of immoral relationship and internal fights, this government will crumble within a week,” Katti predicted.

(IANS)

Nitin Gadkari, Minister for road transport and highways, convened a meeting in New Delhi at Transport Bhavan, on Monday, August 27 with regard to the persistent problems of the Shiradi road.

Nalin Kumar Kateel and four legislators from Karnataka took part in this meeting, where Nitin Gadkari gave strict instructions that Shiradi Ghat roads should be opened within a week. He also said that Pumpwell flyover, which has been languishing over the last several years must be completed within four months.

Kateel was accompanied by Sullia MLA, Angara, Beltangady MLA, Harish Punja, Puttur MLA, Sanjeev Matandoor, and city (north) legislator Bharat Shetty.

The problem of delay in completing highway 66 four-lane work from Kundapur to Talapady was also discussed in the meeting, sources said.

The representatives raised the topic of the need to stop toll booths at Brahmarakootlu in BC Road and at Surathkal at the entrance of NITK, and widening of the highway for four km on national highway between BC Road and Hassan.

The minister has also agreed to depute a team to assess the damage suffered by the National Highways in the district due to heavy rains.

(PTI)

In a major relief for Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, a special Lokayukta court for legislators and MPs ordered to drop the inquiry against him in the Arkavathy Layout denotification case. The case dates back to the earlier tenure of HDK as CM in 2007.

Kumaraswamy had appealed to the court to revoke the inquiry citing lack of evidence against him in the case. He had petitioned that there was no proof that showed he had denotified the land for illegal personal gratification.

The case filed under the Prevention of Corruption Act alleged that the CM had denotified a land acquired by the Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA) at Thanisandra near Hennur measuring three acres and eight guntas without following proper norms and abused his powers as CM.

The court accepted the BDA and Urban Development Department’s submissions that the denotification was completed after taking permissions from all the authorities concerned to arrive at the verdict.

M.K.Stalin on Tuesday was elected as the DMK President unopposed at the party’s General Council meeting held here.

Stalin, 65, becomes the second President of one of the oldest political party in the country, a post held by his late father and five times Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.Karunanidhi for 49 years.

The election for party President was necessitated after Karunanidhi died here on August 7.

DMK General Secretary K.Anbazhagan said that 1,307 party officials seconded Stalin’s candidature.

Senior leader Duraimurugan was also elected unopposed as the party’s Treasurer.

The General Council, before announcing the news, condoled the deaths of Karunanidhi, former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, former Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee, former UN General Secretary Kofi Annan, party cadres who died in shock after hearing Karunanidhi’s death, the anti-Sterlite copper smelter plant protesters who were killed in the police firing in Tuticorin in May and also the victims of the floods in Kerala.

(Ians)