Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced to formulate a ‘Purvodaya’ plan, targeted at five states Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh. Though contours of the plan are not available yet, it is largely for infrastructure and human resource development.”The states in the eastern part of the country are rich in endowments and have strong cultural traditions. We will formulate a plan Purvodaya for the Allround development of the eastern region covering Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. This will cover human resource development, infrastructure, and generation of economic opportunities to make the region an engine to attain Viksit Bharat,” Sitharaman said. The focus on five states highlights the electoral importance of these states for BJP.
Category: Politics
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Congress questions motive behind lifting ban on Govt staff joining RSS activities
New Delhi: The Congress has questioned the government decision to lift a 1966 ban on the government servants attending the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) activities. The Opposition party also questioned the timing and motive of the government decision.
“Modiji has lifted a 1966 ban on government servants attending RSS activities, after 58 years. We know how BJP is using RSS to institutionally take over all constitutional and autonomous bodies. By lifting the ban on government employees from participating in RSS activities, Modiji wants to politicize government offices and employees on ideological basis. This will be a challenge to the sense of neutrality of public servants in government offices and the supremacy of the constitution. constitution,” said Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.
Party spokesperson Jairam Ramesh insinuated that the decision was part of PM Narendra Modi’s way of humoring the RSS leadership.
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Friction in Bihar NDA comes to fore; ED raid on IAS officer shocks political circles
New Delhi: Differences of opinion among the ruling NDA partners in Bihar are turning out to be a cause of concern for the BJPled grouping. Even, the recent Enforcement Directorate raids on premises linked to an IAS officer considered close to Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar have come as a rude shock for the state’s political circles.
Allies, however, officially maintain that the NDA is, and will remain, united.
While Kumarled JDU, a prominent BJP ally, has strongly opposed the Uttar Pradesh government’s order asking eateries along the Kanwar route to display the names of their owners, Bihar BJP leaders have demanded a UPtype directive in the NDAruled state. BJP MLA Haribhushan Thakur Bachol said that there was no harm in displaying the name. “If you have a business, what’s the harm in displaying your name? The Bihar government should also implement the UP governmenttype order on kanwar route in Bihar,” Bachol told ET.
A day earlier, JDU leader KC Tyagi had told ET that despite a large kanwar route in Bihar, the state has never issued such a diktat.
At a recent event in Patna on Saturday, Union minister and Hindustani Awam Morcha chief Jitan Ram Manjhi took a dig at Kumar. Manjhi said that when he broke off with Kumar’s JDU and formed his own party in 2015, Kumar ridiculed him. “He (Kumar) said that ‘I don’t have money and I cannot run the party’. Today, my party is not just functioning, but running at a great speed,” he said during his speech at the event. Manjhi also recalled how Kumar asked him in 2023 to merge his party with JDU or leave NDA. “I thank BJP and Narendra Modi. I not only joined NDA, but my son Santosh Kumar Suman became an MLC and minister with three departments, much more than what JDU offered me earlier,” he added. Manjhi later clarified that he was thankful to Kumar and will never utter a word against him in future.
On the issue of special status for Bihar, JDU is not only maintaining its earlier stand but constantly raising the demand before the central government. BJP, on the other hand, maintains that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has always given more to Bihar.
“Whatever will be required for the development of Bihar, Prime Minister Modi will give it to the state. He has given special package to Bihar in the past and Bihar is very much his priority,” Bihar deputy chief minister Samrat Choudhary told ET.
After raids on premises linked to Bihar’s principal secretary (energy) Sanjeev Hans, a senior JDU minister rang up one of the deputy chief ministers of Bihar and warned that such raids were not good and might create differences among the partners, according to JDU sources. Both deputy chief ministers in Bihar are from BJP.
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Himanta Biswa Sarma: ‘Rahul Gandhi learned mathematics from Pakistan’: Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma mocks Congress leader
Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma on July 20 mocked Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi for celebrating after securing 99 seats in the LS Elections. He mocked that Rahul Gandhi learned mathematics from Pakistan as in India, 240 is greater than 99. “BJP won 240 seats, and Rahul Gandhi told PM Modi in the Parliament that Modi lost. Then I thought, from where did Rahul Gandhi learn this mathematics? The mathematics in India says that 99 is less than 240. He must have learned it from Pakist6an, Bangladesh…,” he said.
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YSRCP to protest in New Delhi on July 24 to highlight ‘lawlessness, anarchy’ in Andhra
YSRCP chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Friday said the party will hold a peaceful protest in New Delhi on July 24 to draw the nation’s attention towards “the lawlessness and anarchy that have plagued” Andhra Pradesh since TDP’s N Chandrababu Naidu became CM. Reddy said appointments have also been sought from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Droupadi Murmu and Home Minister Amit Shah to apprise them of the “deteriorating” lawandorder situation in the state due to the alleged atrocities of the TDPled government.
“We will be holding a peaceful protest in New Delhi on the 24th of this month (July) the coming Wednesday. This is to draw the nation’s attention to the lawlessness and anarchy that have plagued Andhra Pradesh in the 45 days since the (N) Chandrababu Naidu regime has come to power,” Reddy said in a post on social media platform X.
YSRCP MLAs, MPs and MLCs will take part in the New Delhi protest. The former chief minister alleged that the new regime of the TDP, BJP and Janasena is “trying to kill democracy in the state” and vowed that the YSRCP will not stand for it.
According to Reddy, 36 political murders and 300 murder attempts occurred within two months of Naidu coming to power. He claimed that 37 individuals have also died by suicide due to alleged harassment by the TDP and said the conditions demand President’s rule in the state.
On Friday, the YSRCP chief went to Vinukonda in Palnadu district to visit the family of slain party activist Sheik Rashid who was murdered in the middle of a road on Wednesday night. The YSRCP has alleged that the murder suspect, Sheik Jilani, is an active member of the Chandrababu Naiduled TDP a claim denied by the ruling party. Talking to reporters outside Rashid’s home, Reddy alleged that the police lied about the murder claiming there was no political motive behind it but only “personal grounds”.
He termed Rashid’s murder a “deliberate act to instill fear across the state” and accused the police of failing to take action against the perpetrators and instead allegedly targeting the victims.
Demanding an apology from Naidu, Reddy said the state government must protect those who did not vote for the TDP.
Further, the opposition party alleged that Reddy’s convoy enroute to Vinukonda was halted at 15 places, causing it significant delays, adding that only a limited number of vehicles were permitted.
Incidentally, Reddy was also forced to change his car as the bulletproof vehicle allotted to him malfunctioned on Mangalagiri highway.
“The TDP government allocated an old bulletproof vehicle to YSRCP president YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. During his visit to Vinukonda, the bulletproof vehicle broke down. The air conditioning in the vehicle was not working. Jagan immediately switched to a private vehicle,” said YSRCP. in a press release.
Moreover, the party alleged that the NDA government suddenly downsized Reddy’s security from the eve of his Vinukonda visit.
However, TDP rebutted these allegations by claiming that the former CM’s security detail is 1,000 guards strong.
“This is more than the security of even the president of the USA. In the interest of rationalizing security and prioritizing regular police work to benefit the common citizens, it has been reduced,” a TDP source told PTI.
According to TDP, Reddy’s convoy consisted of 10 Toyota Prado vehicles, with each one costing Rs 2 crore but now those cars have been set aside for visiting foreign dignitaries.
Observing that even Naidu doesn’t use Toyota Prado cars, the TDP source highlighted that Reddy has been allotted Tata Safari cars same as the ones used by the TDP chief as a leader of opposition.
“In fact, when Naidu comes to Delhi, he still uses a convoy of Tata Safari cars,” the source added.
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Third eye: Ajit Pawar’s plan, Yogi’s prestige issue & relief for K’taka BJP
Keeping powder dryNearly 20 officebearers, including corporators, belonging to Ajit Pawarled NCP joining Sharad Pawar’s NCPSP is seen by many in Maharashtra politics as a curtain raiser before the real prepoll strike by the 83yearold never saydie Maratha Strongman. Sharad Pawar choosing PimpriChinchwad for triggering the first exodus is seen as deliberate as the area is widely seen among the strongest turf of Ajit Pawar. The upcoming strikes could see many senior leaders of Ajit Pawar’s party, including MLAs and some state ministers, crossing over. Given that Ajit Pawar is an acknowledged political acrobat, what he will plan for himself and where that will land BJP before polls is also being animatedly discussed.
Not Just ByelectionsAssembly byelections are not taken very seriously by any government that has a safe majority in the House. However, after BJP’s lackluster performance in UP in the recent Lok Sabha polls, chief minister Yogi Adityanath has made it a prestige issue to wrest all the 10 MLA seats going for bypolls. Some ministers and senior leaders given charge of the seats are spending a lot of time at ground zero. CM himself may campaign which is not the norm in bypolls.
Moment of ReliefAfter the election of BJP leader Kota Srinivas Poojary to Lok Sabha, Karnataka’s legislative council has been without the leader of Opposition. BJP leaders do not think the ‘indecision’ will end soon as it took six months to name an Opposition leader in the assembly last year. The ruling Congress, battling a slew of scams, of course is not complaining.
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Rush of UP BJP netas to Delhi adds to speculation about rift
Amid reports of disenchantment and anger among BJP workers of Uttar Pradesh after the party’s poor performance in the Lok Sabha polls, the party’s top brass has been holding meetings with its state leaders, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself meeting the party’s UP chief on Wednesday. The meeting between the two lasted for more than an hour.
Though the PM meets the BJP’s organization leaders at the party meetings and events. But, it is not very often that Modi holds oneonone meeting with a state unit chief of the party.
A senior leader from UP said this meeting shows the concern in the BJP’s top brass over the situation in the state and rumblings within its ranks, especially between the government and organizational workers. In the meeting with Modi, Chaudhary is learned to have presented the report. formed by the BJP’s UP unit on the party’s poor performance in the LS polls.
After Chaudhary’s meeting, senior BJP leader and Union home minister Amit Shah also met Modi at the latter’s residence.
On Tuesday, UP deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, who has been camping in the national capital after the Lok Sabha results, met party president JP Nadda at the BJP headquarters here on Tuesday. Maurya came to Delhi days after his remarks in the BJP’s state executive meeting that the organization is bigger than the government, seen as a veiled attack on Adityanath.
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Random, multiple checking to remove fear of bias: EC
New Delhi: Candidates who have applied for EVMVVPAT memory verification after the recent Lok Sabha and assembly polls will be able to check any machine from any polling station in an assembly segment and opt for a mix and match of EVM units, the Election Commission of India (ECI) announced on Tuesday.
Releasing the technical protocol for the Checking & Verification (C&V) for EVMVVPATs, as directed by the SC in its April 26 order, the ECI said that aggrieved candidates will be allowed to choose from a vast number of random tests/combination of machines and sequences for a thorough analysis to dispel all doubts about the machine and its software.
“The ‘randomness’ and ‘enormity’ of test vectors and expanded choicebased approach instead of controlled environment C&V process of burnt memory eliminates the possibility or apprehension of any bias or hidden functionality in the firmware, by showing intended outcome(s) under parameters selected by the candidate and at every stage of the C&V process,” EC has stated in its July 16 communication to all political parties and CEOs.The SC had ordered that two runnersup candidates in a constituency can seek verification in about 5% EVMs per assembly constituency/segment of a parliamentary constituency within seven days of counting day. Eight applications have been received from aggrieved candidates of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and three from assembly poll contestants.
The ECI protocol issued on Tuesday said that candidates will be able to choose EVMs from any polling station from within the assembly segment/ constituency and also be able to mix and match EVM units from any polling station in an assembly constituency to make a set ie a combination of BU(s), CU and VVPAT.
Candidates will further be able to choose any sequence or pattern to cast any number of votes for mock poll, subject to the maximum limit of 1,400 votes, the ECI protocol states.EVM units selected by candidates for C&V will first undergo ‘selfdiagnosis’ to ensure that spurious or unauthorised units do not get connected with ECIEVMs at any stage and thus burnt memory of all units undergo full C&V, the protocol states.
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Coochbehar: Trinamool leader says no govt schemes for those who voted for BJP
Kolkata: Trinamool leader Biswajit Ray’s comments in Coochbehar’s Mathabhanga on Monday sparked a controversy after he said that the people who did not vote for his party will be deprived of the Lakshmir Bhandar scheme benefits. This is the second incident in two days after Dipak Bhattacharya, Trinamool president of DinhataII block, had made a similar comment. Lakshmir Bhandar scheme was the game changer for the ruling Trinamool Congress in the Lok Sabha polls.
During a workers’ meeting, Ray, who is Trinamool’s vicepresident from Mathabhanga (City), had said, “The benefits of Lakshmir Bhandar should be stopped for those who voted for BJP.” A day before that, Bhattacharya, Trinamool president of the Dinhata 2 block, had said, “Narendra Modi did not provide Lakshmir Bhandar. Those who voted for the BJP, should not get the assistance. It should be stopped.”
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Third Eye: Not at all surprised, Celebration in the muck, Next course of action
The Congress leadership was disappointed but not surprised with some party MLAs crossvoting during Friday’s Maharashtra Legislative Council election. According to party leaders, most of these MLAs are loyalists of erstwhile Congress veterans Ashok Chavan and Baba Siddiqui, who quit to join BJP and NCP, respectively, before LS polls. Many of these MLAs are expected to quit Congress to close the assembly polls as they have stayed back so far only to save their House membership.
Jayant Patil of Peasants and Workers Party, who lost the Maharashtra Legislative Council election after the Opposition benches crossvoted for the ruling side, claimed that the entire legislature was upset over his loss. But not so Alibaug Shiv Sena MLA Mahendra Dalvi, his political rival, who could not hide his happiness. Dalvi and his supporters were seen rolling in the muck to celebrate Patil’s loss and were ironically shouting slogans such as ‘humse jo takrayega mitti main mil jayega’.
Amid spotlight over the cancellation of UGCNET and delay in publishing CUET results, the higher education regulator University Grants Commission has its hands full ahead of a full commission meeting later this month. While the commission has held some informal discussion on the issues, the meeting will be one to watch out for, especially the future course of action.