Bharatiya janata party

With the Supreme Court ordering Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar to appear before the Central Bureau of Investigation, the agency will finally be able to question the top cop in cases arising out of the Saradha chit fund scam probe. The CBI's move to send a team to Kolkata to question Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar has led a major showdown between the government of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the Centre. The CM has been sitting on a ‘Save the Constitution’ dharna since Sunday night, and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh terming the situation as a "constitutional breakdown". Here's all you need to know about the unprecedented chaos and confrontation between the state government and the Centre. Why is Mamata Banerjee sitting on a dharna The showdown began after CBI officials landed at Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar's Loudon House residence on Sunday to question him in connection with the Saradha chit fund scam. Last year, West Bengal had withdrawn … [Read more...] about Mamata vs CBI: All you need to know about the showdown

Sudhir Bisht recalls the battle of 1984 in which UP strongman Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna was felled by Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan. IMAGE: Bharatiya Janata Party national President Amit Anilchandra Shah greets former UP Congress chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi after she joined the BJP in October 2016. Photograph: Kamal Singh/PTI Photo In 1984, a much-respected former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh was fighting the Lok Sabha election from Allahabad. His name was Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna, the surname meaning a person having many gunas (qualities). True to surname, Bahuguna was a man of many qualities -- mostly good, but a few that earned him a rather unkind nickname, Natwarlal. I personally believe Bahugunaji was never a trickster, the chief quality of being a Natwarlal. But he changed his political colours often. Here again, I feel the ability to change colours is not a quality to be ashamed of in politics. It has become a 'must-have' feature to thrive in public life. Bahugunaji was … [Read more...] about Can Rita Bahuguna succeed where her father failed?

'...incarcerated in jails, ruining their entire families.' IMAGE: Dalit protesters block a train at Dadar, central Mumbai, January 3, 2018 during a Maharashtra bandh called to protest the Bhima Koregaon violence. Photograph: PTI Photo Dr Anand Teltumbde was one of the intellectuals and civil rights activists whose homes were raided by the Pune police on Tuesday, August 28. Professor Teltumbde was in Mumbai when a Pune police team searched his home in Panaji. "What reaction shall I give to you? There is nothing. We are not even remotely connected to the allegations that they have been levelling against us," Dr Teltumbde told PTI over the phone from Mumbai. "Whatever are my opinions, they are in the public domain. What reaction can I offer to you? I cannot even remotely think of such a kind of thing happening to me," Dr Teltumbde added. What the police were claiming about Maoist links of Left-wing activists is "nonsense", Dr Teltumbde said. "We are not in such kind of business. We are … [Read more...] about ‘If they open their mouths in protest, they are labelled as Maoists’

        Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar, 78, has emerged as the main opposition face in the campaign ahead of the October 21 Maharashtra polls. He spoke to Hindustan Times about the challenges the opposition alliance faces amid the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s focus on national issues. Edited excerpts:How would you react to those who say this is a one-sided fight?I do not understand that if it is a one-sided fight, why is the Prime Minister [Narendra Modi] addressing nine public meetings here? Why is the Union home minister [Amit Shah] addressing 20 meetings...? Why are they spending so much time here? The BJP leadership from across India; their members of Parliament are here and visiting every corner of the state. It shows the situation is not favourable for them. What we saw in [2019] Lok Sabha elections and what we are seeing in the Vidhan Sabha [assembly polls], there is a vast difference. Just like in Rajasthan or Madhya … [Read more...] about ‘BJP bringing up Article 370 to divert attention from real issues’: Sharad Pawar

Lucknow: Rattled by the unchecked cases of sexual attacks on women in Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has decided to set up a record 218 special fast track courts to exclusively deal with rape cases. Of these courts, 74 will be dedicated solely to cases brought under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, while 144 courts will look into resolution of cases related to crimes against women. The State Cabinet on Monday (December 9) approved the creation of 218 posts of additional sessions judges, while other staff posts are likely to be created within a few days. While cases of rape and child sexual abuse have been occurring routinely in this big and densely-populated state, the most recent case pertaining to the burning of a 23-year old rape survivor in Unnao last week which eventually claimed her life caused state-wide outrage, as it came within a few days of a similar incident in Hyderabad. While the Telangana Police had claimed to have shot dead the … [Read more...] about Rattled by crimes against women, UP govt sets up 218 fast track courts