State Other Financial News

Congress questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statement that he has «never done Hindu-Muslim» politics in elections and that the day he would do so he would be unworthy of public life. Spokesman Jairam Ramesh said Modi had «brazenly used communal language» during his campaign speeches and that Congress had complained to the Election Commission about it. «Even by his own pathetic standards, Mr Modi's latest claim that he does not do Hindu-Muslim politics shows the new depths he reaches daily in lying. Since April 19, 2024, it is a matter of public record that cannot be erased from our collective memory — even if Mr Modi erases it from his own — that the outgoing PM has blatantly and brazenly used communal language, symbols and allusions. We have brought this to the attention of the Election Commission of India as well. Action should have been taken, but sadly it has not,» he said.

Mumbai once had the dubious distinction of being Asia's largest slum. Then, an embarrassed Mumbai Municipal Corporation claimed Orangi in the Pakistani port city of Karachi has inherited that rather ignominious moniker. However, Dharavi still is home to a very large number of people — more than half a million — jostling for meagre resources on a relatively tiny patch of land — of about 550 acres. And, the area remains central to the outcome of the parliamentary polls in the Mumbai South Central seat. Dharavi is populated largely with 50 to 70 square foot homes, interspersed with leather and plastic recycling and pottery and other small-scale units. Successive state governments for several decades have been promising to redevelop Dharavi, which is part of the Mumbai south central constituency.

Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) is part of India and it will be taken back, Union home minister Amit Shah asserted on Wednesday. Shah said this while speaking at a rally in Serampore, West Bengal. On Wednesday, he addressed another rally at Aska in Odisha. PoK recently witnessed protests where the «azaadi» slogans were raised, Shah said in Serampore.

Shiv Sena candidate, Arvind Sawant, sprang a surprise by defeating Congress MP Milind Deora from Mumbai South constituency by about 128,000 votes. Sawant was said to be a lightweight, and Deora's defeat came in the backdrop of the «Modi wave». In 2019 Deora was expected to give a tougher fight, but Sawant won again, this time by about 100,000 votes. Deora is now in the Shiv Sena but the party has fielded its Byculla MLA Yamini Jadhav, setting up a contest between the two factions of the erstwhile party, as Sawant is the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) candidate. The Mumbai South constituency presents a paradox — with tall skyscrapers housing billionaires and millionaires while sharing space with slum dwellers and mill workers who live in 90 square feet and 250 sq ft homes respectively.

Odisha facing simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly polls, top leaders of all major political parties are making a beeline for the state. In the fourth phase, polling for four LS and 28 assembly seats of the state was completed. The remaining 17 seats and 119 assembly seats are scheduled to vote over the next three phases. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has already held five election rallies and a roadshow in Bhubaneswar. He has taken Navin Patnaik's challenge head-on during his speeches. Modi will visit the state on May 20. During the trip, he would address two public meetings in Angul and Cuttack. He will also hold a roadshow in Puri, supporting BJP candidate Sambit Patra. Before Modi's trip, Union home minister Amit Shah and BJP national president JP Nadda will campaign in Odisha. Taking a cue from the PM's speech, Shah has been launching a direct attack on Navin Patnaik. Addressing a rally in Aska LS constituency on Wednesday, Shah accused Patnaik of pasting his own pictures on rice bags sent by the Centre and distributing it in his own name. Shah addressed this rally in Hinjili, the assembly constituency from where CM Patnaik is contesting.

Modi's assertion that the NDA's tally is going «400-paar» (400-plus) this Lok Sabha elections, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge Wednesday said thankfully he is not talking about «600-paar» because there are only 543 parliamentary seats. Addressing a rally at Sarai Umar in the Harchandpur assembly segment here, Kharge also said he has signed all the «promises made by our party» and they will be fulfilled if the INDIA bloc forms government. «It's not like 'Modi ki guarantee' which is never fulfilled.» He launched a scathing attack on the PM, alleging his government is «cut off from the poor», and is working just for the interest of a handful of industrialists. People will bid goodbye to this dispensation and the opposition coalition will come to power after the results are announced in the first week of June, Kharge said. «Modi and the BJP have been talking about '400-paar',. fortunately they are not speaking about '600-paar' as there is a constitutional limit on the strength of Lok Sabha at 543 seats,» Kharge said.

Piyush Goyal, who is the BJP's candidate from Mumbai North, on Wednesday hit out at leaders of opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) for labelling him as an outsider, saying they are «helpless» and making ridiculous arguments. «There can be nobody more Mumbaikar than me,» Goyal told PTI during a road show here in response to questions on the «outsider» barb hurled at him by the opposition. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut and Congress leader Varsha Gaikwad, who dubbed Goyal as an «outsider», had said voters of Mumbai North would send «Pedder Road's parcel back to Pedder Road» in the Lok Sabha elections for the parliamentary constituency on May 20. Goyal had mentioned his residential address as Malabar Hill, a locality in the vicinity of Pedder Road, an affluent neighbourhood in South Mumbai. «That is a very ridiculous argument. Not even worth responding to. I am a born Mumbaikar. Lived in Mumbai all my life, worked in Mumbai all my life,» Goyal said.

Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday arrested Jharkhand Minister and Congress leader Alamgir Alam in connection with a huge cash recovery from the household help of his personal secretary and state administrative service officer Sanjeev Kumar Lal. The Congress leader on Tuesday grilled by ED officials for over nine hours in connection with a money laundering case. Alam, the state's Rural Development minister, arrived at the ED office around 11 am and came out of the office around 8.30 pm. The probe agency had last week arrested Alam's personal secretary and state administrative service officer Sanjeev Kumar Lal (52) and the latter's domestic help Jahangir Alam (42), following the seizure of more than Rs 32 crore cash from a flat linked to them.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of compromising on the issue of infiltration and appeasing minorities, BJP chief J P Nadda on Wednesday said during the decade-long reign of the TMC in the state, one scandal after another has plagued West Bengal. Speaking at an election rally in support of the party's Purulia candidate Jyotirmoy Mahato, Nadda said while the fragmented INDIA bloc parties were rooting for a 'majboor' (weak) government at the Centre to fulfill their selfish motives, people of West Bengal have already made their choice clear for a 'majboot' (strong) government. Nadda also accused Banerjee of converting Bengal into a safe haven for terrorists. «Mamata Didi's government is going soft on the issue of infiltration besides pursuing the policy of minority appeasement,» Nadda said.

Kangana Ranaut, the BJP candidate from Mandi Lok Sabha seat, said on Tuesday. The national award-winning actor, who filed her nomination papers for the June 1 election in the constituency, said in an interview with PTI videos that her win would be the «biggest turning point» of her life. Referring to the remarks of her rival Vikramaditya Singh, the Congress candidate from Mandi seat, Kangana said that elections should be fought on issues but if he uses derogatory words then he should be ready to hear the same sort of language. «Going by my past record, I can challenge anyone, no matter how many fights I had but I was always targeted first.

Election Commission of India on Tuesday said that “appropriate action on complaints/counter complaints” by the BJP and the Congress on allegedly “divisive statements” by top star campaigners —PM Modi and Rahul Gandhi — is under its “examination/ consideration”. “A few complaints of INC and BJP against each other are pending alleging violation of MCC inter alia broadly in the genre of divisive statements by top star campaigners on communal, caste, regional language divide, or on sanctity of Constitution of India….Notices have been issued to presidents of both the parties in case of these pending complaints. Response from both parties has been received. Appropriate action on complaints/ counter complaints is under examination/consideration of the Commission,” EC said.

Supreme Court Tuesday refused to entertain a plea seeking disqualification of Prime Minister Narendra Modi from contesting any election for six years. The plea sought disqualification on the ground that the PM has sought votes in the name of «God and place of worship» during the ongoing Lok Sabha polls. A division bench of justices Vikram Nath and Satish Chandra Sharma asked the petitioner to approach the relevant authorities.

Aam Aadmi Party on Tuesday said the party's Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal was harassed by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal's personal assistant and strict action would be taken against him. Over 24 hours after Maliwal made calls to the police and alleged that she had been assaulted by Kejriwal's assistant Bibhav Kumar on Monday morning, the party finally broke its silence and condemned the incident. Addressing a press conference on Tuesday, AAP senior leader Sanjay Singh said it is a «condemnable incident». «Yesterday, Swati Maliwal had gone to meet Arvind Kejriwal at his residence. While she was waiting to meet him in the drawing room, Bibhav Kumar came and misbehaved with her. This is a highly condemnable incident. Kejriwal has taken cognizance of it and will take strict action in the incident,» Singh said. This is the first statement from the party. AAP had maintained silence over the incident on Monday.

Karnataka unit of the BJP will see a big explosion of pent-up anger and frustration among its leaders after the results are announced next month, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said on Tuesday, predicting a major electoral setback for the saffron party and a consequent blame-game in the state. All those BJP leaders, who were denied renomination to contest the Lok Sabha polls, stayed away from active campaigning for the success of official candidates. Their anger will explode after the elections as they were worried about their own political future under the leadership of BY Vijayendra, the CM said in a press statement. The BJP opted for fresh faces in about a dozen constituencies, an exercise that led to deep anguish among sections of leaders. Former State president KS Eshwarappa even rebelled and contested as an independent in Shivamogga for denying ticket to his son in the neighbouring Haveri.

Odisha recorded a voter turnout of 73.97 per cent in the four Lok Sabha constituencies and 28 Assembly segments which went to the polls on May 13, an official said on Tuesday. A voter turnout of over 64.81 per cent was recorded till 6 pm on May 13. A revised figure of 73.97 per cent was released on Tuesday. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections the voter turnout in the four Lok Sabha and 28 Assembly segments was 74.18 per cent. Lok Sabha and Assembly elections are being held simultaneously in Odisha.

Farmers' loans will be waived and Minimum Support Price will be guaranteed, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said on Tuesday while addressing an election meeting in Jalaun, where he sought votes for party candidate Narayan Das Ahirwar. He also attacked the BJP alleging it did nothing for the state despite being in power for the past 10 years. «The people of Bundelkhand overwhelmingly voted for the BJP. For the last 10 years, they (BJP) have been the MPs and their government is there. The Uttar Pradesh government has been in power for seven years. This government did not give anything to the people of Bundelkhand, especially Orai, Jalaun and Kalpi. The government in Delhi (Centre) and the Uttar Pradesh government did nothing for the development of this place,» he said. «The people of Bundelkhand have made up their mind that they will teach a lesson to those who have cheated them,» he added.

Delhi High Court on Tuesday reserved its order on bail plea moved by Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodia in the excise policy case in both CBI and ED matters. The HC had granted more time to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to file their replies to the bail pleas filed by Sisodia on May 8. Last week, a lower court extended Sisodia’s judicial custody till May 21. Special Judge Kaveri Baweja extended the custody after he was produced before the court through video conference on the expiry of his judicial custody granted earlier.

Comedian Shyam Rangeela, who announced to contest against PM Narendra Modi, has alleged that officials are not letting him file nomination papers. Rangeela said that he is facing hurdles in his attempt to file nomination papers for the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha Elections. Rangeela, known for his mimicry and satirical acts, aimed to challenge Prime Minister Narendra Modi from the Varanasi seat by running as an Independent candidate. Despite repeated efforts since May 10, Rangeela claimed he was refused entry to the district magistrate's office on the day Prime Minister Modi filed his nomination. He also clarified that he wouldn't be assembling a team from Sriganganagar to contest the elections in Varanasi. Expressing his determination, Rangeela stated, «Winning or losing is a different matter, but I will contest the elections against the Prime Minister at any cost. I am not contesting elections to become famous, I am already very famous among the public.»

anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare launched a scathing attack on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, urging the public to reconsider their support for leaders involved in corrupt practices. Hazare emphasized the importance of voting for candidates with unblemished records, highlighting concerns over ethical integrity in politics. «Vote for those candidates who have clean images and don’t have ED after them. I condemn Arvind Kejriwal for his name emerging in the Delhi Liquor Scam. He did corruption because he was drowned in the addiction of money. Such people should not be voted again to power,» Anna Hazare said in a video to TimesNow Navbharat. Hazare reiterated his disappointment with Kejriwal's alleged involvement in the Delhi Liquor Scam, lamenting the deviation from their shared principles. He disclosed advising Kejriwal to uphold his integrity and principles, cautioning against the allure of monetary gain through unethical means.

Model Code of Conduct in the run-up to Lok Sabha polls, popular Telugu actor Allu Arjun on Tuesday said he went to the Nandyal district to support his friend and YSRCP constituency candidate S Ravi Chandra Kishore Reddy but isn't affiliated to any political party. On Saturday, the «Pushpa» star waved to a large crowd from a balcony with the YSRCP candidate and also posted a message on X in his favour. The Andhra Pradesh Police booked a case against the «Pushpa: The Rise» star on Saturday under IPC Section 188 the same day. Arjun said he remains neutral and supports «my people» including Janasena Party founder and actor-uncle Pawan Kalyan, regardless of their political affiliations.

New Delhi: A ruckus erupted in the MCD House here on Tuesday over the allegations of Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal that she was assaulted by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's PA, Bibhav on his instructions. BJP and Congress councillors stormed into the well of the House as soon as the proceedings began and started raising slogans against Kejriwal and demanding his resignation over the incident. They raised slogans such as «Kejriwal haye haye» and «Kejriwal istifa do». The opposition councillors also stood at the mayor's podium carrying posters with «Dalit Mayor Ko kursi par baithao, Dalit virodhi Kejriwal istifa do» slogans written on them.