Polling in Tripura recorded an 89.96 % turn out. This is not exactly a record turn-out. It means 10 % of 25.73 lakh or 2.5 lakh people (approximately) never turned up to vote. Considering that Tripura is one of the few states with high voter literacy and since both the Left Front and the BJP have undertaken considerable booth management exercises, the turn-out is rather dismal. Be that as it may, Tripura&rsquo;s fate is now sealed. We have to wait till March 3 for the verdict.&nbsp;

But until yesterday, Manik Sarkar, Tripura&rsquo;s chief minister till date and for the last 20 years confidently claimed that the Left Front would return to power even as BJP stalwarts in Tripura countered his claims and say the voters will decide whether they want to be stuck with a non-delivering socialistic paradigm or a development-oriented government that people have been deprived of for several decades. Prime Minister Modi made a special appeal to the voters of Tripura to come out and vote for the BJP which promises &#39;Change&#39;.

The BJP has made a clutter of promises from the universal health insurance to farm loan waiver and smartphone for youths to direct funding for ADC &ndash; 2018 and above all implementation of the 7th Pay Commission and enhanced daily wages to Rs 340 per day. Countering the BJP claims, working president of the Congress Party (which is now reduced to a complete non-entity and which might not get even a single seat this time), Pradyot Debbarma says the BJP is promising the moon but will find it hard to deliver. &ldquo;They are talking about the 7th Pay Commission here but have not implemented the same in Assam, Madhya Pradesh and other BJP-ruled states. The daily wages under MNREGA in Assam where BJP is ruling is Rs 170, so how can they pay Rs 340 in Tripura?&rdquo; The problem is that the Congress offers nothing better except to counter the BJP&rsquo;s claims.&nbsp;

This, in fact, is the problem with the Congress Party in the poll-bound states of Meghalaya and Nagaland. The Party has no vision for the region and the states. It has just been lambasting the BJP and voters are actually tired of these political slugfests on a daily basis. Rahul Gandhi, the AICC President, came to campaign in Tripura only on the penultimate date, 48 hours before polling. This has not enchanted people to vote for Congress.&nbsp;

In fact, the rise of the Left Parties in Tripura is proportionate to the failure of the Congress Party to win hearts and minds. From a movement initiated by enlightened youth in the 1940s the CPI which later morphed into the CPI (M), went on to form the first Left Front government in alliance with two other parties - the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) and All India Forward Bloc in 1978. The Congress aligned with Tripura Upajati Juba Samiti (TUJS) &ndash; a party of the indigenous people of Tripura and defeated the Left Front in 1988. But this coalition was short-lived. By the next election in 1993, the Left Front returned to power.

Much has been said about Manik Sarkar&rsquo;s honesty and him being the poorest chief minister of Tripura but this claim is busted by the Rose Valley chit fund scam where Sarkar&rsquo;s ministers were singed. The Company is alleged to have looted Rs 35 crore of public deposits, according to State Finance Minister Bhanulal Saha. No action taken against the accused has created disaffection in the depositors.

&nbsp;Moreover, the failure of the Left Front to address unemployment; its failure to attract industries for employment generation and a general sense that even the Digital India drive that has enabled the country to connect with the world, has not worked for Tripura and you have an anatomy of failed governance.

&nbsp;Then there is the infamous ruling by the Supreme Court where 10,323 government teachers were terminated because the state Education Department flouted the rules under which the teachers under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan had to be recruited which required a certain qualification and three years of experience. The state created over 12 thousand non-teaching posts where they might have been rehabilitated but again the Supreme Court prevented the Government from going ahead with this plan. Hence, the 12,000 odd jobless people are bound to retaliate against the Government. Or that is what is expected in normal circumstances.

The Medical College started in Tripura, has not been functioning well and the BJP has called out all the scams that it has documented meticulously. To start industries in a Left-ruled state has always been a challenge because of the rent-seeking mafia. Hence industries that opened up with much fanfare quickly shut down because there was no scope for their enterprise to bloom in Tripura.

Tripura has about 8 lakh of unemployed youth and jobs in the government sector have stagnated. Government employees are still stuck with the 4th Pay Commission. Dissatisfaction is writ large on their faces. Meanwhile, the BJP has come in with a basketful of promises and hopes to cash in on this feeling of large-scale disaffection. The BJP used its students&rsquo; wing- the ABVP and the disciplined RSS machinery. They were able to build grassroots contact.

To add to this extensive exercise the BJP also flew in its central ministers. Prime Minister Modi flew in twice to Tripura. Amit Shah, the BJP President, organised mega rallies. Other senior ministers flew in and out of Tripura. So did the ministers from neighbouring Assam and Manipur, both BJP ruled states. It is alleged that the BJP also had the moolah which Manik Sarkar&rsquo;s Party could not afford. Political observers said, &ldquo;Never before have we seen four private planes parked at Agartala airport&quot;. Central ministers were literally flying in and out of Tripura.&nbsp;

So eager is the BJP to win this Left bastion that it has pulled out all the stops. It remains to be seen if this effort would pay dividends. The BJP has been pitching for change in Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland.&nbsp;

What change party brings,&nbsp;will be revealed when and if the BJP comes to power? Until then the voters of Tripura must wait and watch. So to the two main political rivals!&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

The BJP has come in with a basketful of promises and hopes to cash in on this feeling of large-scale disaffection in Tripura.

Polling in Tripura recorded an 89.96 % turn out. This is not exactly a record turn-out. It means 10 % of 25.73 lakh or 2.5 lakh people (approximately) never turned up to vote. Considering that Tripura is one of the few states with high voter literacy and since both the Left Front and the BJP have undertaken considerable booth management exercises, the turn-out is rather dismal. Be that as it may, Tripura’s fate is now sealed. We have to wait till March 3 for the verdict. But until yesterday, Manik Sarkar, Tripura’s chief minister till date and for the last 20 years confidently claimed that the Left Front would return to power even as BJP stalwarts in Tripura countered his claims and say the voters will decide whether they want to be stuck with a non-delivering socialistic paradigm or a development-oriented government that people have been deprived of for several decades. Prime Minister Modi made a special appeal to the voters of Tripura to come out and vote for the BJP which promises 'Change'. The BJP has made a clutter of promises from the universal health insurance to farm loan waiver and smartphone for youths to direct funding for ADC – 2018 and above all implementation of the 7th Pay Commission and enhanced daily wages to Rs 340 per day. Countering the BJP claims, working president of the Congress Party (which is now reduced to a complete non-entity and which might not get even a single seat this time), Pradyot Debbarma says the BJP is promising the moon but will find it hard to deliver. “They are talking about the 7th Pay Commission here but have not implemented the same in Assam, Madhya Pradesh and other BJP-ruled states. The daily wages under MNREGA in Assam where BJP is ruling is Rs 170, so how can they pay Rs 340 in Tripura?” The problem is that the Congress offers nothing better except to counter the BJP’s claims. This, in fact, is the problem with the Congress Party in the poll-bound states of Meghalaya and Nagaland. The Party has no vision for the region and the states. It has just been lambasting the BJP and voters are actually tired of these political slugfests on a daily basis. Rahul Gandhi, the AICC President, came to campaign in Tripura only on the penultimate date, 48 hours before polling. This has not enchanted people to vote for Congress. In fact, the rise of the Left Parties in Tripura is proportionate to the failure of the Congress Party to win hearts and minds. From a movement initiated by enlightened youth in the 1940s the CPI which later morphed into the CPI (M), went on to form the first Left Front government in alliance with two other parties - the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) and All India Forward Bloc in 1978. The Congress aligned with Tripura Upajati Juba Samiti (TUJS) – a party of the indigenous people of Tripura and defeated the Left Front in 1988. But this coalition was short-lived. By the next election in 1993, the Left Front returned to power. Much has been said about Manik Sarkar’s honesty and him being the poorest chief minister of Tripura but this claim is busted by the Rose Valley chit fund scam where Sarkar’s ministers were singed. The Company is alleged to have looted Rs 35 crore of public deposits, according to State Finance Minister Bhanulal Saha. No action taken against the accused has created disaffection in the depositors. Moreover, the failure of the Left Front to address unemployment; its failure to attract industries for employment generation and a general sense that even the Digital India drive that has enabled the country to connect with the world, has not worked for Tripura and you have an anatomy of failed governance. Then there is the infamous ruling by the Supreme Court where 10,323 government teachers were terminated because the state Education Department flouted the rules under which the teachers under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan had to be recruited which required a certain qualification and three years of experience. The state created over 12 thousand non-teaching posts where they might have been rehabilitated but again the Supreme Court prevented the Government from going ahead with this plan. Hence, the 12,000 odd jobless people are bound to retaliate against the Government. Or that is what is expected in normal circumstances. The Medical College started in Tripura, has not been functioning well and the BJP has called out all the scams that it has documented meticulously. To start industries in a Left-ruled state has always been a challenge because of the rent-seeking mafia. Hence industries that opened up with much fanfare quickly shut down because there was no scope for their enterprise to bloom in Tripura. Tripura has about 8 lakh of unemployed youth and jobs in the government sector have stagnated. Government employees are still stuck with the 4th Pay Commission. Dissatisfaction is writ large on their faces. Meanwhile, the BJP has come in with a basketful of promises and hopes to cash in on this feeling of large-scale disaffection. The BJP used its students’ wing- the ABVP and the disciplined RSS machinery. They were able to build grassroots contact. To add to this extensive exercise the BJP also flew in its central ministers. Prime Minister Modi flew in twice to Tripura. Amit Shah, the BJP President, organised mega rallies. Other senior ministers flew in and out of Tripura. So did the ministers from neighbouring Assam and Manipur, both BJP ruled states. It is alleged that the BJP also had the moolah which Manik Sarkar’s Party could not afford. Political observers said, “Never before have we seen four private planes parked at Agartala airport". Central ministers were literally flying in and out of Tripura. So eager is the BJP to win this Left bastion that it has pulled out all the stops. It remains to be seen if this effort would pay dividends. The BJP has been pitching for change in Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland. What change party brings, will be revealed when and if the BJP comes to power? Until then the voters of Tripura must wait and watch. So to the two main political rivals! (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: Tripura is disappointed with Left but can BJP do better?

Peter Tauber, secretary-general of German Chancellor Angela Merkel&#39;s conservative CDU party, will step down from his post for health reasons, party sources said Sunday.

Tauber, 43, will announce his decision on Monday, the sources said, with a successor to be named at an extraordinary party congress on February 26.

Although Tauber is seen as a close associate of Merkel&#39;s, infighting within the CDU (Christian Democratic Union) led the chancellor to designate another party stalwart to draft the party&#39;s electoral platform last year.

Tauber&#39;s intestinal illness prevented him from taking part in the protracted negotiations to form a government following last September&#39;s inconclusive elections.

He underwent surgery for his condition last month.

The CDU and the Social Democrats (SPD), both weakened by the elections, finally reluctantly renewed their left-right &quot;grand coalition&quot; or &quot;GroKo&quot; last week.

The deal is still subject to a ballot by the SPD&#39;s deeply divided base of 470,000 rank-and file members.

Some within the CDU have criticised the deal, which saw the SPD clinch the finance portfolio, as too generous.

Tauber, 43, will announce his decision on Monday, the sources said, with a successor to be named at an extraordinary party congress on February 26

Peter Tauber, secretary-general of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative CDU party, will step down from his post for health reasons, party sources said Sunday. Tauber, 43, will announce his decision on Monday, the sources said, with a successor to be named at an extraordinary party congress on February 26. Although Tauber is seen as a close associate of Merkel's, infighting within the CDU (Christian Democratic Union) led the chancellor to designate another party stalwart to draft the party's electoral platform last year. Tauber's intestinal illness prevented him from taking part in the protracted negotiations to form a government following last September's inconclusive elections. He underwent surgery for his condition last month. The CDU and the Social Democrats (SPD), both weakened by the elections, finally reluctantly renewed their left-right "grand coalition" or "GroKo" last week. The deal is still subject to a ballot by the SPD's deeply divided base of 470,000 rank-and file members. Some within the CDU have criticised the deal, which saw the SPD clinch the finance portfolio, as too generous.

Top official in Merkel's CDU to step down: Party sources

The BJP today alleged that the multi-crore PNB scam involving billionaire jewellery designer Nirav Modi happened during the UPA rule and the Congress was spreading lies to mislead the public.

The BJP, which fielded Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to counter the <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/demonetisation-catalyst-for-modis-friends-and-cronies-to-loot-indian-banks-rahul-gandhi-33192" target="_blank">Congress&#39;s charges</a>, claimed that it was under the NDA government that the alleged scams committed during the UPA rule were being unearthed.

The Congress has alleged that the scam took place in 2017 under the Modi government when letters of understanding were signed by Punjab National Bank in favour of the companies of Nirav Modi and his partner and uncle Mehul Choksi.

Sitharaman said Nirav Modi may have been able to run away from the country, but the government is taking action against him, and claimed that it will &quot;surely nab him&quot;.

&quot;The original sin took place during the Congress regime. It multiplied, it took traction under the Congress regime,&quot; she told reporters.

&quot;We are not conspiring to help scamsters flee the country, but the BJP government is catching them instead,&quot; she said.

Accusing the Congress of spreading lies on the issue, the minister said, &quot;As always, the Congress party indulges in such scandalous affairs, misuses positions in government, tweaks system to help themselves and quietly cover up everything that they do.&quot;

Sitharaman said the Narendra Modi government came to power with a clear commitment of unearthing scams and corrupt practices.

Instead of explaining as to why the scam happened during the UPA rule, the Congress instead is making allegations against the BJP.

&quot;I am sorry, the Congress party&#39;s allegations against this government and in misleading people is just not going to happen.

&quot;Concerted repeating of lies for misleading people may be a strategy the Congress likes to adopt. But I am sorry the facts are facing you and it is for them to answer,&quot; she said.

To a question on the offenders fleeing the country during the NDA regime, Sitharaman said, &quot;They have fled but this doesn&#39;t mean we will not catch him. But they are facing the heat. Investigation is happening.&quot;

&quot;They are probably running away but I am not saying that we are sparing them. We will surely nab them. We are the ones to nab them,&quot; she said.

She alleged that the person who was approving the LoUs was quietly allowed to retire and the BJP which is taking action is being accused instead.

&quot;We have taken action. We have sent notices, confiscated their properties and the process is still on, but allegation is on us. Shocking that the Congress party (is doing this) despite being reduced to 44 in Lok Sabha,&quot; she said.

Sitharaman also alleged that it was Congress leader Rahul Gandhi who attended a promotional event hosted by Nirav Modi.

She also claimed that the Nirav Modi-run Fire Star Diamond International has taken on lease a property of Adwait Holdings in which Congress leader Abhishek Singhvi&#39;s wife is a director.

&quot;What is important that the premises has been used by Fire Star Diamond International,&quot; she alleged.

Sitharaman also claimed that a government director of Allahabad Bank, who in 2013 had raised objections to the financial restructuring of Gitanjali Gems, was asked to resign and his dissent was not even recorded.

BJP spokesperson GVL Narasimha Rao said the Congress&#39;s murky links to Nirav Modi&#39;s company were coming out of the closet.

&quot;Abhishek Manu Singvi&#39;s wife purchased very pricey diamonds and jewelry worth crores and made payments of over Rs 4.8 crore as unaccounted cash. Singhvi has had wide relations with Nirav Modi both as a property lessee for Rs 30 lakh rent per month after 2015 and now show massive purchases of jewelry in 2014,&quot; he alleged in a statement.

Everyday, a new Congress leader&#39;s name gets linked to Nirav Modi, Rao said.

&quot;Firstly, Rahul Gandhi was reported to promote business events of Gitanjali Gem&#39;s owner in New Delhi days before Allahabad Bank approved fraudulently a loan of Rs 1,550 crore despite objections from a government-appointed director in the bank. P Chidambaram sacked the same director for objecting loan sanction to Gitanjali Gems.

&quot;All these developments clearly show that Rahul Gandhi, Chidambaram and Abhishek Manu Singvi have to answer for their dubious actions and association with Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi,&quot; he said.

Central probe agencies CBI and ED yesterday continued their crackdown in the Rs 11,400-crore bank fraud case involving Nirav Modi and family, registering a fresh case against Choksi.

The CBI has alleged that the new FIR pertains to 143 LOUs worth over Rs 4,886 crore fraudulently issued to three companies of Choksi -- Gitanjali Gems, Nakshatra and Gili -- during the period 2017-18, officials said.

The agency had earlier registered a separate case involving Rs 280-crore fraud, which has now been expanded to cover LoUs worth Rs 6,498 crore issued to accused companies of Nirav Modi and Choksi.

An LoU is a letter of comfort issued by one bank to branches of other banks, based on which foreign branches offer credit to buyers. PTI P

The BJP said it was unearthing the scams committed during UPA rule

The BJP today alleged that the multi-crore PNB scam involving billionaire jewellery designer Nirav Modi happened during the UPA rule and the Congress was spreading lies to mislead the public. The BJP, which fielded Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to counter the Congress's charges, claimed that it was under the NDA government that the alleged scams committed during the UPA rule were being unearthed. The Congress has alleged that the scam took place in 2017 under the Modi government when letters of understanding were signed by Punjab National Bank in favour of the companies of Nirav Modi and his partner and uncle Mehul Choksi. Sitharaman said Nirav Modi may have been able to run away from the country, but the government is taking action against him, and claimed that it will "surely nab him". "The original sin took place during the Congress regime. It multiplied, it took traction under the Congress regime," she told reporters. "We are not conspiring to help scamsters flee the country, but the BJP government is catching them instead," she said. Accusing the Congress of spreading lies on the issue, the minister said, "As always, the Congress party indulges in such scandalous affairs, misuses positions in government, tweaks system to help themselves and quietly cover up everything that they do." Sitharaman said the Narendra Modi government came to power with a clear commitment of unearthing scams and corrupt practices. Instead of explaining as to why the scam happened during the UPA rule, the Congress instead is making allegations against the BJP. "I am sorry, the Congress party's allegations against this government and in misleading people is just not going to happen. "Concerted repeating of lies for misleading people may be a strategy the Congress likes to adopt. But I am sorry the facts are facing you and it is for them to answer," she said. To a question on the offenders fleeing the country during the NDA regime, Sitharaman said, "They have fled but this doesn't mean we will not catch him. But they are facing the heat. Investigation is happening." "They are probably running away but I am not saying that we are sparing them. We will surely nab them. We are the ones to nab them," she said. She alleged that the person who was approving the LoUs was quietly allowed to retire and the BJP which is taking action is being accused instead. "We have taken action. We have sent notices, confiscated their properties and the process is still on, but allegation is on us. Shocking that the Congress party (is doing this) despite being reduced to 44 in Lok Sabha," she said. Sitharaman also alleged that it was Congress leader Rahul Gandhi who attended a promotional event hosted by Nirav Modi. She also claimed that the Nirav Modi-run Fire Star Diamond International has taken on lease a property of Adwait Holdings in which Congress leader Abhishek Singhvi's wife is a director. "What is important that the premises has been used by Fire Star Diamond International," she alleged. Sitharaman also claimed that a government director of Allahabad Bank, who in 2013 had raised objections to the financial restructuring of Gitanjali Gems, was asked to resign and his dissent was not even recorded. BJP spokesperson GVL Narasimha Rao said the Congress's murky links to Nirav Modi's company were coming out of the closet. "Abhishek Manu Singvi's wife purchased very pricey diamonds and jewelry worth crores and made payments of over Rs 4.8 crore as unaccounted cash. Singhvi has had wide relations with Nirav Modi both as a property lessee for Rs 30 lakh rent per month after 2015 and now show massive purchases of jewelry in 2014," he alleged in a statement. Everyday, a new Congress leader's name gets linked to Nirav Modi, Rao said. "Firstly, Rahul Gandhi was reported to promote business events of Gitanjali Gem's owner in New Delhi days before Allahabad Bank approved fraudulently a loan of Rs 1,550 crore despite objections from a government-appointed director in the bank. P Chidambaram sacked the same director for objecting loan sanction to Gitanjali Gems. "All these developments clearly show that Rahul Gandhi, Chidambaram and Abhishek Manu Singvi have to answer for their dubious actions and association with Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi," he said. Central probe agencies CBI and ED yesterday continued their crackdown in the Rs 11,400-crore bank fraud case involving Nirav Modi and family, registering a fresh case against Choksi. The CBI has alleged that the new FIR pertains to 143 LOUs worth over Rs 4,886 crore fraudulently issued to three companies of Choksi -- Gitanjali Gems, Nakshatra and Gili -- during the period 2017-18, officials said. The agency had earlier registered a separate case involving Rs 280-crore fraud, which has now been expanded to cover LoUs worth Rs 6,498 crore issued to accused companies of Nirav Modi and Choksi. An LoU is a letter of comfort issued by one bank to branches of other banks, based on which foreign branches offer credit to buyers. PTI P

PNB scam: 'Original sin' took place under Congress, says BJP

The BJP on Saturday alleged that the multi-crore PNB scam involving billionaire jewellery designer Nirav Modi happened during the UPA rule and the Congress was spreading lies.

The BJP fielded Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to counter the Congress charge that the scam took place in 2017 under the Modi government when the letters of understanding were signed by the Punjab National Bank in favour of Nirav Modi.

She said Nirav Modi may have been able to run away from the country, but the government is taking action against him.

&quot;We are not conspiring to help scamsters flee the country, the BJP government is catching them instead,&quot; she told reporters.

She accused the Congress of spreading lies on the issue.

Sitharaman also alleged that it was Congress leader Rahul Gandhi who attended a promotional event hosted by Nirav Modi.

She also cited the example of a government director of Allahabad Bank, who in 2013 had raised objections to the financial restructuring of Gitanjali Gems, saying he was asked to resign and his dissent was not even recorded.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Fire Star Diamond I&#39;nal Pvt Ltd is one of the companies that <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NiravModi?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NiravModi</a> runs. They&#39;ve taken on lease property which belongs to Advait Holding Ltd in Trade Point Building in Lower Parel. From 2002 Anita Singhvi is one of the shareholders. You know who&#39;s wife she&#39;s:Defence Minister <a href="https://t.co/irTcVza1PT">pic.twitter.com/irTcVza1PT</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/964808562341040130?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 17, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
And also has Avishkar Manas Singhvi, possibly his son. But wife of one of the senior Congress leaders is here as a property shareholder, she is a director by designation: Nirmala Sitharaman, Defence Minister <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PNBFraudCase?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PNBFraudCase</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NiravModi?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NiravModi</a> <a href="https://t.co/0dwT4gynmE">pic.twitter.com/0dwT4gynmE</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/964808565465780231?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 17, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Responding to&nbsp;Sitharaman&#39;s allegations, Congress&#39;Abhishek Singhvi said&nbsp;Nirmala Sitharaman and&nbsp;her colleagues are liable for civil and criminal defamation for making ignorant and patently false allegations.

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I intend to file a civil and defamation case against the Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her colleagues who are spreading the defamatory allegations, I also intend to take action against the sections of media who are spreading the same: Abhishek Singhvi, Congress <a href="https://t.co/oaRjbQEwSW">pic.twitter.com/oaRjbQEwSW</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/964833033441464322?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 17, 2018</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

&quot;I reserve my rights to take all such appropriate legal action against the latter and all parts of media which carry such allegations,&#39;&#39; Singhvi added.

Adwait Holding owns a commercial property at Parel, as it does elsewhere, which was rented by Firestone many years ago. Neither Adwait nor my family has any interest with Modi or Firestone. Firestone vacated Parel Kamla Mills premises in December 2017, Singhvi added.&nbsp;

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Neither my wife, sons nor me have anything whatsoever to do with <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Gitanjali?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Gitanjali</a> or <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NiravModi?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NiravModi</a> companies. The company was a tenant of a Kamla Mills property owned by Adwait holdings in which my wife &amp; sons are a director: Abhishek Singhvi
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/964813860774535175?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 17, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Central probe agencies CBI and ED yesterday continued their crackdown in the Rs 11,400-crore bank fraud case involving Nirav Modi and family, registering a fresh case against his maternal uncle Mehul Choksi,

The CBI has alleged that the new FIR pertains to 143 LOUs worth over Rs 4,886 crore fraudulently issued to three companies of Choksi -- Gitanjali Gems, Nakshatra and Gili -- during the period 2017-18, officials said.

The agency had earlier registered a separate case involving Rs 280-crore fraud, which has now been expanded to cover LoUs worth Rs 6,498 crore issued to accused companies of Nirav Modi and Choksi.

An LoU is a letter of comfort issued by one bank to branches of other banks, based on which foreign branches offer credit to buyers.

Sitharaman alleged that it was Congress leader Rahul Gandhi who attended a promotional event hosted by Nirav Modi.

The BJP on Saturday alleged that the multi-crore PNB scam involving billionaire jewellery designer Nirav Modi happened during the UPA rule and the Congress was spreading lies. The BJP fielded Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to counter the Congress charge that the scam took place in 2017 under the Modi government when the letters of understanding were signed by the Punjab National Bank in favour of Nirav Modi. She said Nirav Modi may have been able to run away from the country, but the government is taking action against him. "We are not conspiring to help scamsters flee the country, the BJP government is catching them instead," she told reporters. She accused the Congress of spreading lies on the issue. Sitharaman also alleged that it was Congress leader Rahul Gandhi who attended a promotional event hosted by Nirav Modi. She also cited the example of a government director of Allahabad Bank, who in 2013 had raised objections to the financial restructuring of Gitanjali Gems, saying he was asked to resign and his dissent was not even recorded. Fire Star Diamond I'nal Pvt Ltd is one of the companies that #NiravModi runs. They've taken on lease property which belongs to Advait Holding Ltd in Trade Point Building in Lower Parel. From 2002 Anita Singhvi is one of the shareholders. You know who's wife she's:Defence Minister pic.twitter.com/irTcVza1PT — ANI (@ANI) February 17, 2018 × And also has Avishkar Manas Singhvi, possibly his son. But wife of one of the senior Congress leaders is here as a property shareholder, she is a director by designation: Nirmala Sitharaman, Defence Minister #PNBFraudCase #NiravModi pic.twitter.com/0dwT4gynmE — ANI (@ANI) February 17, 2018 × Responding to Sitharaman's allegations, Congress'Abhishek Singhvi said Nirmala Sitharaman and her colleagues are liable for civil and criminal defamation for making ignorant and patently false allegations. I intend to file a civil and defamation case against the Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her colleagues who are spreading the defamatory allegations, I also intend to take action against the sections of media who are spreading the same: Abhishek Singhvi, Congress pic.twitter.com/oaRjbQEwSW — ANI (@ANI) February 17, 2018 × "I reserve my rights to take all such appropriate legal action against the latter and all parts of media which carry such allegations,'' Singhvi added. Adwait Holding owns a commercial property at Parel, as it does elsewhere, which was rented by Firestone many years ago. Neither Adwait nor my family has any interest with Modi or Firestone. Firestone vacated Parel Kamla Mills premises in December 2017, Singhvi added. Neither my wife, sons nor me have anything whatsoever to do with #Gitanjali or #NiravModi companies. The company was a tenant of a Kamla Mills property owned by Adwait holdings in which my wife & sons are a director: Abhishek Singhvi — ANI (@ANI) February 17, 2018 × Central probe agencies CBI and ED yesterday continued their crackdown in the Rs 11,400-crore bank fraud case involving Nirav Modi and family, registering a fresh case against his maternal uncle Mehul Choksi, The CBI has alleged that the new FIR pertains to 143 LOUs worth over Rs 4,886 crore fraudulently issued to three companies of Choksi -- Gitanjali Gems, Nakshatra and Gili -- during the period 2017-18, officials said. The agency had earlier registered a separate case involving Rs 280-crore fraud, which has now been expanded to cover LoUs worth Rs 6,498 crore issued to accused companies of Nirav Modi and Choksi. An LoU is a letter of comfort issued by one bank to branches of other banks, based on which foreign branches offer credit to buyers.

PNB scam: Sitharaman drags in Abhishek Singhvi, who says 'I'll sue you'

A day after the massive Punjab National Bank scam came to light wherein the bank has alleged fraud at one of its Mumbai branches through illegal clearances of payments to be made abroad against imports, by facilitating buyer&rsquo;s credit to the beneficiaries, both Congress and BJP blamed each other for the scam.&nbsp;

The State-owned bank said yesterday that it had detected a Rs 11400 crore scam&nbsp;in which the billionaire jeweller Nirav Modi has allegedy defrauded the bank of Rs 280 crore by allegedly acquiring fraudulent letters of undertaking from one of its branches for overseas credit from other Indian lenders.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/who-is-nirav-modi-the-billionaire-jeweller-at-centre-of-rs-11000-crore-scam-32970">Who is Nirav Modi, the billionaire jeweller at centre of Rs 11,400 crore scam</a>

The bank has also lodged two complaints with the Central Bureau of Investigation against Nirav Modi and others. On January 31, the CBI registered a case against Modi, his wife, brother and a business partner, for allegedly cheating PNB of over Rs.280 crore in collusion with then Brady House branch&rsquo;s Deputy Manager Gokulnath Shetty and single-window operator Manoj Kharat. The bank alleged that the bank officials had fraudulently issued eight LoUs totalling 4.42 crore dollars (equivalent to Rs.280.70 crore) for Hong Kong-based Allahabad Bank and Axis Bank.

Hitting out at the ruling BJP, Congress Spokesperson Randeep Surjewala pin the scam on ruling BJP dispensation saying how can Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi dupe the entire banking system through forged Letters of Understanding under the nose of Modi govt? Who is responsible for biggest bank loot scam unleashed by chhota Modi?&nbsp;

On 26 July 2016, PM was handed with all papers regarding Nirav Modi &amp; one of his relative. It was said that complaint had 42 FIRs. Prime Minister office (PMO) acknowledged the complaint, they also sent registrar of companies to take some action. But in the end, the govt couldn&#39;t do anything, Surjewala added.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi also took a dig at Prime Minister Modi and alleged how the billionaire diamond merchant used his clout and proximity to the ruling dispensation to loot the country.&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Guide to Looting India 
by Nirav MODI 
 
1. Hug PM Modi 
2. Be seen with him in DAVOS 
 
Use that clout to: 
 
A. Steal 12,000Cr 
B. Slip out of the country like Mallya, while the Govt looks the other way. 
 
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/From1MODI2another?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#From1MODI2another</a>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/964054481200656384?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 15, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

&nbsp;

However, the Union Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman speaking in Shillong blamed the previous UPA government for the scam.

&#39;&#39;Whatever is coming out is the result of the previous UPA govt, action will be certainly taken on it,&#39;&#39; she said.&nbsp;

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On 26 July 2016, PM was handed with all papers regarding <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NiravModi?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NiravModi</a> &amp; one of his relative. It was said that complaint had 42 FIRs. PMO acknowledged the complaint, they also sent registrar of companies to take some action. But in the end the govt couldn&#39;t do anything: R.Surjewala <a href="https://t.co/cF60hY0QRX">pic.twitter.com/cF60hY0QRX</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/964066322521952256?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 15, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
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Meanwhile SP Shukla, Minister of State for Finance, also blamed the UPA government for the scam by saying that they were not in the government. &nbsp;

&#39;&#39;We were not in govt in 2011, if Congress is making allegations, were they sleeping from 2011-14? They should&#39;ve probed it. This government is taking cognizance of matters &amp; probing them. Congress&#39; was a govt of scams and they established these scamsters,&#39;&#39; he said.&nbsp;

Addressing the media, PNB Managing Director said that the Government of India is monitoring the situation and they were getting full support in nabbing the culprits.&nbsp;

PNB has capability and capacity to come out of this. This is a standalone incident. It has taken place only in one of our branches, Mehta added.&nbsp;

According to Mehta, the scam&nbsp;started in 2011. &quot;We detected it in the third week of January,&nbsp;2018 and promptly investigated it for 3-4 days, we went to CBI on 29 Jan and an FIR was booked on 30,&#39;&#39; Mehta said.&nbsp;

&#39;&#39;We detected the fraud on January 3. We got to know that two of our employees did some un-authorised transactions. The bank initiated criminal action against our staff members, &#39;&#39; Mehta said.&nbsp;

The scam was first detected by the bank&#39;s officials in 2011.&nbsp;

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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CORRECTION?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CORRECTION</a>: It started in 2011, we detected it in the third week of January (2018) &amp; we promptly investigated it for 3-4 days, we went to CBI on 29 Jan &amp; FIR was booked on 30: PNB MD <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PNBScam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PNBScam</a> <a href="https://t.co/oVsDJ2l3We">pic.twitter.com/oVsDJ2l3We</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/964079755950804994?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 15, 2018</a></blockquote>
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According to PTI this could be the biggest banking fraud in India as its quantum was bigger than an estimated 9,000 crore scam at erstwhile Satyam Computers.

In 2015, Bank of Baroda -- another public sector bank -- had brought to light a scam in which two Delhi-based businessmen cheated it of Rs 6,000 crore (slightly less than USD 1 billion at that time.

The State-owned bank said yesterday that it had detected a USD 1.77 billion scams

A day after the massive Punjab National Bank scam came to light wherein the bank has alleged fraud at one of its Mumbai branches through illegal clearances of payments to be made abroad against imports, by facilitating buyer’s credit to the beneficiaries, both Congress and BJP blamed each other for the scam. The State-owned bank said yesterday that it had detected a Rs 11400 crore scam in which the billionaire jeweller Nirav Modi has allegedy defrauded the bank of Rs 280 crore by allegedly acquiring fraudulent letters of undertaking from one of its branches for overseas credit from other Indian lenders. Also read: Who is Nirav Modi, the billionaire jeweller at centre of Rs 11,400 crore scam The bank has also lodged two complaints with the Central Bureau of Investigation against Nirav Modi and others. On January 31, the CBI registered a case against Modi, his wife, brother and a business partner, for allegedly cheating PNB of over Rs.280 crore in collusion with then Brady House branch’s Deputy Manager Gokulnath Shetty and single-window operator Manoj Kharat. The bank alleged that the bank officials had fraudulently issued eight LoUs totalling 4.42 crore dollars (equivalent to Rs.280.70 crore) for Hong Kong-based Allahabad Bank and Axis Bank. Hitting out at the ruling BJP, Congress Spokesperson Randeep Surjewala pin the scam on ruling BJP dispensation saying how can Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi dupe the entire banking system through forged Letters of Understanding under the nose of Modi govt? Who is responsible for biggest bank loot scam unleashed by chhota Modi? On 26 July 2016, PM was handed with all papers regarding Nirav Modi & one of his relative. It was said that complaint had 42 FIRs. Prime Minister office (PMO) acknowledged the complaint, they also sent registrar of companies to take some action. But in the end, the govt couldn't do anything, Surjewala added. Congress president Rahul Gandhi also took a dig at Prime Minister Modi and alleged how the billionaire diamond merchant used his clout and proximity to the ruling dispensation to loot the country. Guide to Looting India by Nirav MODI 1. Hug PM Modi 2. Be seen with him in DAVOS Use that clout to: A. Steal 12,000Cr B. Slip out of the country like Mallya, while the Govt looks the other way. #From1MODI2another — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) February 15, 2018 × However, the Union Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman speaking in Shillong blamed the previous UPA government for the scam. ''Whatever is coming out is the result of the previous UPA govt, action will be certainly taken on it,'' she said. On 26 July 2016, PM was handed with all papers regarding #NiravModi & one of his relative. It was said that complaint had 42 FIRs. PMO acknowledged the complaint, they also sent registrar of companies to take some action. But in the end the govt couldn't do anything: R.Surjewala pic.twitter.com/cF60hY0QRX — ANI (@ANI) February 15, 2018 × Meanwhile SP Shukla, Minister of State for Finance, also blamed the UPA government for the scam by saying that they were not in the government. ''We were not in govt in 2011, if Congress is making allegations, were they sleeping from 2011-14? They should've probed it. This government is taking cognizance of matters & probing them. Congress' was a govt of scams and they established these scamsters,'' he said. Addressing the media, PNB Managing Director said that the Government of India is monitoring the situation and they were getting full support in nabbing the culprits. PNB has capability and capacity to come out of this. This is a standalone incident. It has taken place only in one of our branches, Mehta added. According to Mehta, the scam started in 2011. "We detected it in the third week of January, 2018 and promptly investigated it for 3-4 days, we went to CBI on 29 Jan and an FIR was booked on 30,'' Mehta said. ''We detected the fraud on January 3. We got to know that two of our employees did some un-authorised transactions. The bank initiated criminal action against our staff members, '' Mehta said. The scam was first detected by the bank's officials in 2011. #CORRECTION: It started in 2011, we detected it in the third week of January (2018) & we promptly investigated it for 3-4 days, we went to CBI on 29 Jan & FIR was booked on 30: PNB MD #PNBScam pic.twitter.com/oVsDJ2l3We — ANI (@ANI) February 15, 2018 × According to PTI this could be the biggest banking fraud in India as its quantum was bigger than an estimated 9,000 crore scam at erstwhile Satyam Computers. In 2015, Bank of Baroda -- another public sector bank -- had brought to light a scam in which two Delhi-based businessmen cheated it of Rs 6,000 crore (slightly less than USD 1 billion at that time.

PNB scam: Congress, BJP begin blame game

A day after the Punjab National Bank flagged off fraudulent transactions worth over Rs 11,000 crore in its Mumbai branch, Congress launched a scathing attack against Narendra Modi govt on Thursday.&nbsp;

Addressing a press conference, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said it had become a norm for the Narendra Modi government to let businessmen and corporates run away with public money.&nbsp;

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/who-is-nirav-modi-the-billionaire-jeweller-at-centre-of-rs-11000-crore-scam-32970" target="_blank">Who is Nirav Modi, billionaire jeweller at centre of Rs 11,400 crore scam</a>

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/pnb-fraud-after-nirav-modi-3-other-big-jewellers-come-under-the-scanner-32902?src=ilaw" target="_blank">After Nirav Modi, 3 other big jewellers come under the scanner</a>

Surjewala said whistleblower Hari Prasad had written to the Prime Minister&#39;s Office as early as July 2016, alerting the government about the &quot;biggest bank loot scam in 70 years&quot; in independent India.

He said the Nirav Modi was part of a delegation travelling with Prime Minister Modi to Davos despite &quot;the complaint against him&quot;.

Congress communications in-charge Randeep Surejewala raised questions on whether Nirav Modi had been tipped off following which he left the country.

&quot;Who is Nirav Modi? The new Modi Scam? Was he tipped off like Lalit Modi and Vijay Mallya to escape by someone within the government,&quot; he asked.

&quot;Has it become the norm for letting people run away with public money? Who is responsible,&quot; Surjewala tweeted.&nbsp;

Congress president Rahul Gandhi took a jab at PM Modi with a tweet titled &quot;Guide to Looting India&quot;, in which he alleged that Nirav Modi had wielded his influence with the PM to get away with the Rs 280 crore fraud.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Guide to Looting India 
by Nirav MODI 
 
1. Hug PM Modi 
2. Be seen with him in DAVOS 
 
Use that clout to: 
 
A. Steal 12,000Cr 
B. Slip out of the country like Mallya, while the Govt looks the other way. 
 
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/From1MODI2another?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#From1MODI2another</a>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/964054481200656384?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 15, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Congress poses five major questions to Modi govt:&nbsp;

1: &quot;Who is responsible for the scam by Nirav Modi?

2: Were all the departments under the Modi government asleep, and why?

3: Punjab National Bank (PNB) chief had told the government that these men would escape. Despite this, how did these men escape?

4: How did the government not spot the biggest banking scam so far?

5: Who is the person who has given security to this scam? How did the risk management system of the banking sector not work?

&quot;These questions need to be answered by the prime minister,&quot; added Surjewala.

The shares of Punjab National Bank fell this morning by 9 per cent.&nbsp;The company suspended at least 10 employees in connection with the fraud.

Surjewala said whistleblower Hari Prasad had written to the Prime Minister's Office as early as July 2016

A day after the Punjab National Bank flagged off fraudulent transactions worth over Rs 11,000 crore in its Mumbai branch, Congress launched a scathing attack against Narendra Modi govt on Thursday. Addressing a press conference, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said it had become a norm for the Narendra Modi government to let businessmen and corporates run away with public money. Also read: Who is Nirav Modi, billionaire jeweller at centre of Rs 11,400 crore scam Also read: After Nirav Modi, 3 other big jewellers come under the scanner Surjewala said whistleblower Hari Prasad had written to the Prime Minister's Office as early as July 2016, alerting the government about the "biggest bank loot scam in 70 years" in independent India. He said the Nirav Modi was part of a delegation travelling with Prime Minister Modi to Davos despite "the complaint against him". Congress communications in-charge Randeep Surejewala raised questions on whether Nirav Modi had been tipped off following which he left the country. "Who is Nirav Modi? The new Modi Scam? Was he tipped off like Lalit Modi and Vijay Mallya to escape by someone within the government," he asked. "Has it become the norm for letting people run away with public money? Who is responsible," Surjewala tweeted. Congress president Rahul Gandhi took a jab at PM Modi with a tweet titled "Guide to Looting India", in which he alleged that Nirav Modi had wielded his influence with the PM to get away with the Rs 280 crore fraud. Guide to Looting India by Nirav MODI 1. Hug PM Modi 2. Be seen with him in DAVOS Use that clout to: A. Steal 12,000Cr B. Slip out of the country like Mallya, while the Govt looks the other way. #From1MODI2another — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) February 15, 2018 × Congress poses five major questions to Modi govt: 1: "Who is responsible for the scam by Nirav Modi? 2: Were all the departments under the Modi government asleep, and why? 3: Punjab National Bank (PNB) chief had told the government that these men would escape. Despite this, how did these men escape? 4: How did the government not spot the biggest banking scam so far? 5: Who is the person who has given security to this scam? How did the risk management system of the banking sector not work? "These questions need to be answered by the prime minister," added Surjewala. The shares of Punjab National Bank fell this morning by 9 per cent. The company suspended at least 10 employees in connection with the fraud.

PNB scam: Congress poses five questions to Prime Minister Narendra Modi

China is coercing its neighbours to reorder the Indo-Pacific region, the Pentagon told Congress in its annual budget proposals for the fiscal 2019, beginning October 1 this year.

Trump administration today released their proposal for the fiscal year 2019 budget. Fiscal years are different from calendar years. The budgetary proposal covers October 1, 2018, through September 30, 2019.

&quot;China is leveraging military modernisation, influence operations and predatory economics to coerce neighbouring countries to reorder the Indo-Pacific region to their advantage,&quot; the Pentagon said in its annual defence budget for the fiscal 2019.

As China continues its economic and military ascendance, asserting power through an all-of-nation long-term strategy, it will continue to pursue a military modernisation programme that seeks Indo-Pacific regional hegemony in the near-term and displacement of the US to achieve global preeminence in the future, it said.

The most far-reaching objective of this defence strategy is to set the military relationship between the US and China on a path of transparency and non-aggression, it said.

According to the Pentagon, the central challenge to the US prosperity and security is the reemergence of long term, strategic competition by what the National Security Strategy classifies as revisionist powers.

&quot;It is increasingly clear that China and Russia want to shape a world consistent with their authoritarian model&nbsp;gaining veto authority over other nations&#39; economic, diplomatic and security decisions,&quot; it said.

The Pentagon said Russia seeks veto authority over nations on its periphery in terms of its governmental, economic and diplomatic decisions to shatter the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and to change European and Middle East security and economic structures to its favour.

The use of emerging technologies to discredit and subvert democratic processes in Georgia, Crimea and eastern Ukraine is concern enough, but when coupled with its expanding and modernising nuclear arsenal the challenge is clear.

&quot;Rogue regimes such as North Korea and Iran are destabilising their regions by pursuing nuclear weapons or sponsoring terrorism,&quot; the Pentagon said.

North Korea seeks to guarantee regime survival and increased leverage through a mixture of nuclear, biological, chemical, conventional and unconventional weapons and a growing ballistic missile capability to gain coercive influence over South Korea, Japan and the US.

In the Middle East, Iran is competing with its neighbours, asserting an arc of influence and instability while vying for regional hegemony, using state-sponsored terrorist activities, a growing network of proxies and its missile programme to achieve its objectives, the Pentagon said.

According to the budgetary proposals, competitor states, especially China and Russia have narrowed Department of Defence&#39;s military technological advantages, demanding the US find new and innovative ways to fight in the future.

&quot;China is now a strategic competitor, using predatory economics to intimidate its neighbours while militarising features in the South China Sea. Russia has violated the borders of nearby nations, and pursues veto power over the economic, diplomatic and security decisions of its neighbours,&quot; it said.

Concurrently, North Korea&#39;s actions and rhetoric continue despite the United Nation&#39;s censure and sanctions.

Iran continues to sow violence and remains the most significant challenge to the Middle East stability.

Despite the defeat of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria&#39;s (ISIS) physical caliphate, threats to stability remain as terrorist groups with long reach continue to murder innocent people and threaten peace, the Pentagon added.

China is coercing its neighbours to reorder the Indo-Pacific region, the Pentagon told Congress in its annual budget proposals for fiscal 2019, beginning October 1 this year

China is coercing its neighbours to reorder the Indo-Pacific region, the Pentagon told Congress in its annual budget proposals for the fiscal 2019, beginning October 1 this year. Trump administration today released their proposal for the fiscal year 2019 budget. Fiscal years are different from calendar years. The budgetary proposal covers October 1, 2018, through September 30, 2019. "China is leveraging military modernisation, influence operations and predatory economics to coerce neighbouring countries to reorder the Indo-Pacific region to their advantage," the Pentagon said in its annual defence budget for the fiscal 2019. As China continues its economic and military ascendance, asserting power through an all-of-nation long-term strategy, it will continue to pursue a military modernisation programme that seeks Indo-Pacific regional hegemony in the near-term and displacement of the US to achieve global preeminence in the future, it said. The most far-reaching objective of this defence strategy is to set the military relationship between the US and China on a path of transparency and non-aggression, it said. According to the Pentagon, the central challenge to the US prosperity and security is the reemergence of long term, strategic competition by what the National Security Strategy classifies as revisionist powers. "It is increasingly clear that China and Russia want to shape a world consistent with their authoritarian model gaining veto authority over other nations' economic, diplomatic and security decisions," it said. The Pentagon said Russia seeks veto authority over nations on its periphery in terms of its governmental, economic and diplomatic decisions to shatter the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and to change European and Middle East security and economic structures to its favour. The use of emerging technologies to discredit and subvert democratic processes in Georgia, Crimea and eastern Ukraine is concern enough, but when coupled with its expanding and modernising nuclear arsenal the challenge is clear. "Rogue regimes such as North Korea and Iran are destabilising their regions by pursuing nuclear weapons or sponsoring terrorism," the Pentagon said. North Korea seeks to guarantee regime survival and increased leverage through a mixture of nuclear, biological, chemical, conventional and unconventional weapons and a growing ballistic missile capability to gain coercive influence over South Korea, Japan and the US. In the Middle East, Iran is competing with its neighbours, asserting an arc of influence and instability while vying for regional hegemony, using state-sponsored terrorist activities, a growing network of proxies and its missile programme to achieve its objectives, the Pentagon said. According to the budgetary proposals, competitor states, especially China and Russia have narrowed Department of Defence's military technological advantages, demanding the US find new and innovative ways to fight in the future. "China is now a strategic competitor, using predatory economics to intimidate its neighbours while militarising features in the South China Sea. Russia has violated the borders of nearby nations, and pursues veto power over the economic, diplomatic and security decisions of its neighbours," it said. Concurrently, North Korea's actions and rhetoric continue despite the United Nation's censure and sanctions. Iran continues to sow violence and remains the most significant challenge to the Middle East stability. Despite the defeat of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria's (ISIS) physical caliphate, threats to stability remain as terrorist groups with long reach continue to murder innocent people and threaten peace, the Pentagon added.

China coercing neighbours to reorder Indo-Pacific region: Pentagon

The Trump administration&rsquo;s infrastructure proposal released on Monday would speed up the permitting of U.S. natural gas pipelines, including by cutting Congress out of the process for allowing them to cross national parks.

The proposal fits into President Donald Trump&rsquo;s broader plan to boost U.S. oil and gas development by slashing red tape, something that has cheered industry but raised concerns among environmentalists and Democratic lawmakers.

&quot;At its core the proposal plans to steamroll as many projects to get to yes as fast as possible whether or not there is a robust environmental review,&quot; said Brett Hartl, government affairs director of the Center for Biological Diversity.

The $1.5 trillion infrastructure proposal would give the interior secretary the authority to approve natural gas pipelines that cross the country&rsquo;s national parks, changing the requirement that Congress authorize such projects.

The plan also aims to speed up the time that a state has to issue water permits - &ldquo;section 401&rdquo; certificates required under the federal Clean Water Act - needed for the construction of interstate natural gas pipelines.

The changes would deliver &ldquo;projects in a less costly and more time effective manner by creating a new, expedited structure for environmental reviews and delegating more decision-making to States and enhancing coordination between State and Federal reviews,&rdquo; the proposal says.

The proposals are part of a larger infrastructure plan designed to encourage spending on improvements by states, localities and private investors but which faces an uphill battle in Congress.

The Trump administration is seeking to tackle what it calls a duplicative environmental review process for major infrastructure projects by trying to amend bedrock environmental laws like the decades-old National Environmental Policy Act, Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act.

The administration said it wanted environmental reviews for major projects to take no longer than 21 months &ndash; instead of years - and direct one federal agency rather than several different agencies to conduct the review.

The changes could have significant impact on the permitting process for pipelines, including in places where there has been significant public opposition like the U.S. Northeast.

New York state, for example, has denied section 401 certificates for the Constitution Pipeline interstate natural gas pipeline and slowed down the process to issue a certificate for the Millennium Pipeline project, putting the state at odds with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Permit delays or denials for pipelines are a longtime frustration of oil and gas companies that are required to spend money on legal fees to challenge states that oppose them.

The infrastructure proposal was released yesterday.

The Trump administration’s infrastructure proposal released on Monday would speed up the permitting of U.S. natural gas pipelines, including by cutting Congress out of the process for allowing them to cross national parks. The proposal fits into President Donald Trump’s broader plan to boost U.S. oil and gas development by slashing red tape, something that has cheered industry but raised concerns among environmentalists and Democratic lawmakers. "At its core the proposal plans to steamroll as many projects to get to yes as fast as possible whether or not there is a robust environmental review," said Brett Hartl, government affairs director of the Center for Biological Diversity. The $1.5 trillion infrastructure proposal would give the interior secretary the authority to approve natural gas pipelines that cross the country’s national parks, changing the requirement that Congress authorize such projects. The plan also aims to speed up the time that a state has to issue water permits - “section 401” certificates required under the federal Clean Water Act - needed for the construction of interstate natural gas pipelines. The changes would deliver “projects in a less costly and more time effective manner by creating a new, expedited structure for environmental reviews and delegating more decision-making to States and enhancing coordination between State and Federal reviews,” the proposal says. The proposals are part of a larger infrastructure plan designed to encourage spending on improvements by states, localities and private investors but which faces an uphill battle in Congress. The Trump administration is seeking to tackle what it calls a duplicative environmental review process for major infrastructure projects by trying to amend bedrock environmental laws like the decades-old National Environmental Policy Act, Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act. The administration said it wanted environmental reviews for major projects to take no longer than 21 months – instead of years - and direct one federal agency rather than several different agencies to conduct the review. The changes could have significant impact on the permitting process for pipelines, including in places where there has been significant public opposition like the U.S. Northeast. New York state, for example, has denied section 401 certificates for the Constitution Pipeline interstate natural gas pipeline and slowed down the process to issue a certificate for the Millennium Pipeline project, putting the state at odds with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Permit delays or denials for pipelines are a longtime frustration of oil and gas companies that are required to spend money on legal fees to challenge states that oppose them.

Trump infrastructure plan to speed up pipelines, cut environmental reviews

Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Friday attended the Republic Day Parade and took the designated seat in the sixth row, prompting an angry reaction from his party that accused the government of setting aside tradition and indulging in &quot;cheap politics&quot;.

Gandhi was seated in the sixth row, along with Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad.

&quot;The Modi government&#39;s cheap politics is for all to see. The Congress president was deliberately made to sit in the sixth row, after initially assigning him a fourth-row seat, at the Republic Day celebrations by the arrogant rulers, who set aside all past traditions. For us the celebration of the Constitution is foremost,&quot; Congress&#39; communications in-charge Randeep Surjewala said in a tweet posted in Hindi.

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मोदी सरकार की ओछी राजनीति जग ज़ाहिर! 
 
कांग्रेस अध्यक्ष श्री राहुल गांधी को गणतंत्र दिवस के राष्ट्रीय पर्व पर अंहकारी शासकों ने सारी परंपराओं को दरकिनार करके पहले चौथी पंक्ति और फिर छठी पंक्ति में जानबूझकर बिठाया। 
 
हमारे लिये संविधान का उत्सव ही सर्व प्रथम है। <a href="https://t.co/8bRi017G8J">pic.twitter.com/8bRi017G8J</a>
&mdash; Randeep S Surjewala (@rssurjewala) <a href="https://twitter.com/rssurjewala/status/956789223910137856?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2018</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

Congress sources said the party presidents, including Sonia Gandhi who handed over the party reins to Rahul Gandhi in December last year, had always been seated in the front row at the Republic Day Parade.

&quot;It&#39;s sad if those in power think somebody&#39;s stature is decided by where that person is seated,&quot; Khurshid said.

Speaking on the sidelines of the Jaipur Literature Festival, Khurshid said India values protocols, but beyond protocols &quot;there is something called good manners&quot;.

&quot;Rahul Gandhi is not just a Congress MP anymore. He is also the president of India&#39;s largest opposition party. And if the ruling party doesn&#39;t understand that position, it is unfortunate,&quot; he added.

Former prime ministers H D Deve Gowda and Manmohan Singh were seen seated in the front row in the picture, followed by Union ministers Smriti Irani and Thawarchand Gehlot.

Government sources, meanwhile, said that as per the protocol, the Leader of Opposition is accorded a seat in the seventh row.

India on Friday celebrated its <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/10-asean-chief-guests-in-attendance-india-displays-military-might-cultural-diversity-30823">69th Republic Day</a> with a grand display of the country&#39;s military might and rich cultural diversity in the presence of leaders from all the ASEAN nations, in a historic first and unprecedented strategic outreach to the powerful bloc.

This was for the first time that leaders from 10 countries attended the annual celebrations as chief guests, and the overwhelming presence of the ASEAN leadership is seen as a reflection of India&#39;s growing stature as a major power in the region where China has been expanding its footprint.

Last year, Sonia Gandhi was assigned a seat in the front row and was seen sitting along with BJP president Amit Shah. The BJP president was seated in the front row in the function on Friday.

Congress sources said the party presidents, including Sonia Gandhi who handed over the party reins to Rahul Gandhi in December last year, had always been seated in the front row at the Republic Day Parade.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Friday attended the Republic Day Parade and took the designated seat in the sixth row, prompting an angry reaction from his party that accused the government of setting aside tradition and indulging in "cheap politics". Gandhi was seated in the sixth row, along with Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad. "The Modi government's cheap politics is for all to see. The Congress president was deliberately made to sit in the sixth row, after initially assigning him a fourth-row seat, at the Republic Day celebrations by the arrogant rulers, who set aside all past traditions. For us the celebration of the Constitution is foremost," Congress' communications in-charge Randeep Surjewala said in a tweet posted in Hindi. मोदी सरकार की ओछी राजनीति जग ज़ाहिर! कांग्रेस अध्यक्ष श्री राहुल गांधी को गणतंत्र दिवस के राष्ट्रीय पर्व पर अंहकारी शासकों ने सारी परंपराओं को दरकिनार करके पहले चौथी पंक्ति और फिर छठी पंक्ति में जानबूझकर बिठाया। हमारे लिये संविधान का उत्सव ही सर्व प्रथम है। pic.twitter.com/8bRi017G8J — Randeep S Surjewala (@rssurjewala) January 26, 2018 × Congress sources said the party presidents, including Sonia Gandhi who handed over the party reins to Rahul Gandhi in December last year, had always been seated in the front row at the Republic Day Parade. "It's sad if those in power think somebody's stature is decided by where that person is seated," Khurshid said. Speaking on the sidelines of the Jaipur Literature Festival, Khurshid said India values protocols, but beyond protocols "there is something called good manners". "Rahul Gandhi is not just a Congress MP anymore. He is also the president of India's largest opposition party. And if the ruling party doesn't understand that position, it is unfortunate," he added. Former prime ministers H D Deve Gowda and Manmohan Singh were seen seated in the front row in the picture, followed by Union ministers Smriti Irani and Thawarchand Gehlot. Government sources, meanwhile, said that as per the protocol, the Leader of Opposition is accorded a seat in the seventh row. India on Friday celebrated its 69th Republic Day with a grand display of the country's military might and rich cultural diversity in the presence of leaders from all the ASEAN nations, in a historic first and unprecedented strategic outreach to the powerful bloc. This was for the first time that leaders from 10 countries attended the annual celebrations as chief guests, and the overwhelming presence of the ASEAN leadership is seen as a reflection of India's growing stature as a major power in the region where China has been expanding its footprint. Last year, Sonia Gandhi was assigned a seat in the front row and was seen sitting along with BJP president Amit Shah. The BJP president was seated in the front row in the function on Friday.

Rahul Gandhi gets sixth row seat at Republic Day parade, Congress furious

BJP leader Subramanian Swamy has produced an IT order in court against the Young Indian company majorly owned by Sonai and Rahul Gandhi.&nbsp;The order&nbsp;has reportedly cancelled Young India&#39;s tax exemption certificate and asked the company to pay tax on income gain of Rs 414 crore.&nbsp;

The Gandhis could be slapped with a&nbsp;fine of&nbsp;between 100-300 per cent of the concealed amount along with criminal prosecution.&nbsp;

The court has ordered to keep the documents submitted by Subramanian Swamy in sealed cover until next hearing.&nbsp;

The hearing is&nbsp;adjourned until March 17.

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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NationalHerald?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NationalHerald</a> case adjourned till 17th March, Court orders the documents submitted by Subramanian Swamy to be kept in sealed cover till then.
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/954645842496913408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Subramanian Swamy had filed a complaint against Congress President Rahul Gandhi, former party president Sonia Gandhi, Congress treasurer Motilal Vora, party leaders Oscar Fernandes, Suman Dubey and Sam Pitroda in 2012.

In the complaint, he alleged that the Congress granted an interest-free loan of Rs 90.25 crore to the owner of National Herald-Associated Journal Limited (AJL). It further stated&nbsp;that Congress had mismanaged the loan which remained outstanding. Sonia and Rahul were made directors of the company, Young India, in 2010. The company acquired all the shareholdings of the AJL amounting to Rs 5,000 crore.&nbsp;

In their response to&nbsp;Subramanian Swamy&#39;s complaint in connection with the National Herald case,&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/sonia-rahul-respond-to-national-herald-case-call-for-its-dismissal-24572" target="_blank">Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi stated in November</a> that the application filed by the BJP leader was not bonafide.

Calling the complaint a &quot;lifeless case&quot; they said that the application was filled with the sole object of &quot;delaying the proceedings&quot;.

They also said that it was filed with the &quot;most casual manner&quot; and it failed to call witnesses and documents within a&nbsp;specified period of time.&nbsp;

The mother-son duo called for an immediate rejection of the complaint.

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The court has ordered to keep the documents submitted by Swamy in sealed cover until next hearing

BJP leader Subramanian Swamy has produced an IT order in court against the Young Indian company majorly owned by Sonai and Rahul Gandhi. The order has reportedly cancelled Young India's tax exemption certificate and asked the company to pay tax on income gain of Rs 414 crore. The Gandhis could be slapped with a fine of between 100-300 per cent of the concealed amount along with criminal prosecution. The court has ordered to keep the documents submitted by Subramanian Swamy in sealed cover until next hearing. The hearing is adjourned until March 17. #NationalHerald case adjourned till 17th March, Court orders the documents submitted by Subramanian Swamy to be kept in sealed cover till then. — ANI (@ANI) January 20, 2018 × Subramanian Swamy had filed a complaint against Congress President Rahul Gandhi, former party president Sonia Gandhi, Congress treasurer Motilal Vora, party leaders Oscar Fernandes, Suman Dubey and Sam Pitroda in 2012. In the complaint, he alleged that the Congress granted an interest-free loan of Rs 90.25 crore to the owner of National Herald-Associated Journal Limited (AJL). It further stated that Congress had mismanaged the loan which remained outstanding. Sonia and Rahul were made directors of the company, Young India, in 2010. The company acquired all the shareholdings of the AJL amounting to Rs 5,000 crore. In their response to Subramanian Swamy's complaint in connection with the National Herald case, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi stated in November that the application filed by the BJP leader was not bonafide. Calling the complaint a "lifeless case" they said that the application was filled with the sole object of "delaying the proceedings". They also said that it was filed with the "most casual manner" and it failed to call witnesses and documents within a specified period of time. The mother-son duo called for an immediate rejection of the complaint.

National Herald case: Subramanian Swamy submits IT order against Rahul, Sonia Gandhi

Giving a clarification&nbsp;on the media reports that stated that Congress leader Shashi Tharoor was detained on airport for carrying a pistol, CISF sources have said that the Tharoor was misinterpreted.

The sources said that Shashi Tharoor was not detained for possession of pistol at Jaipur airport. He was waiting for his sister. Someone had asked him what he was waiting for, he said &quot;my sister&quot;, misheard as &quot;pistol&quot;.

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Shashi Tharoor wasn&#39;t detained for possession of pistol at Jaipur airport. 
He was waiting for his sister. Someone asked him what he was waiting for,he said&quot;my sister&quot;,misheard as&quot;Pistol&quot;,individual informed security, which sought clarification, matter later closed: CISF sources <a href="https://t.co/VLLeE31KwR">pic.twitter.com/VLLeE31KwR</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/956536995676790784?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 25, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Shashi Tharoor, the Congress leader who&nbsp;remains&nbsp;in&nbsp;media highlights&nbsp;every other day, was again&nbsp;in the news&nbsp;for carrying a&nbsp;pistol in a flight.&nbsp;

Reports said that he carried a pistol along with him while travelling on a plane on Thursday afternoon.&nbsp;

Tharoor boarded the Jet Airways flight to fly from Chandigarh&nbsp;to Jaipur to attend the Zee Jaipur&nbsp;Literature Festival.&nbsp;

After reaching Jaipur he was made to wait for 35 minutes in the arrival area.

The airline staff thoroughly investigated the pistol that Tharoor was carrying before handing it over to him.&nbsp;The pistol was brought by escorts and was given to him after long paperwork, report stated.&nbsp;

Ideally, the pistols are given to the airline authorities before boarding the plane and are returned to them after they reach their destination.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Earlier reports said he carried a pistol along with him while travelling in a plane on Thursday afternoon

Giving a clarification on the media reports that stated that Congress leader Shashi Tharoor was detained on airport for carrying a pistol, CISF sources have said that the Tharoor was misinterpreted. The sources said that Shashi Tharoor was not detained for possession of pistol at Jaipur airport. He was waiting for his sister. Someone had asked him what he was waiting for, he said "my sister", misheard as "pistol". Shashi Tharoor wasn't detained for possession of pistol at Jaipur airport. He was waiting for his sister. Someone asked him what he was waiting for,he said"my sister",misheard as"Pistol",individual informed security, which sought clarification, matter later closed: CISF sources pic.twitter.com/VLLeE31KwR — ANI (@ANI) January 25, 2018 × Shashi Tharoor, the Congress leader who remains in media highlights every other day, was again in the news for carrying a pistol in a flight. Reports said that he carried a pistol along with him while travelling on a plane on Thursday afternoon. Tharoor boarded the Jet Airways flight to fly from Chandigarh to Jaipur to attend the Zee Jaipur Literature Festival. After reaching Jaipur he was made to wait for 35 minutes in the arrival area. The airline staff thoroughly investigated the pistol that Tharoor was carrying before handing it over to him. The pistol was brought by escorts and was given to him after long paperwork, report stated. Ideally, the pistols are given to the airline authorities before boarding the plane and are returned to them after they reach their destination.

Shashi Tharoor wasn't detained for possession of pistol: CISF Sources

The ruling BJP and opposition Congress today won nine posts of presidents of local bodies each in Madhya Pradesh.

The elections to 19 local bodies were held on January 17.

One seat was won by an independent, a State Election Commission officer said here.

BJP candidates for president&#39;s post won at Peethampur Municipality and Nagar Parishad of Dahi, Kukshi, Dhamnod, Pansemal, Rajpur, Palsud and Omkareshwar. The BJP also won, unopposed, the post of president of Sendhwa Municipality.

Congress won the president&#39;s post at the municipalities of former chief minister Digvijay Singh&#39;s stronghold Raghogarh, Barwani, Manawar and Dhar, besides nagar parishads at Anjad, Khetia, Sardarpur, Rajgarh and Dharmapuri.

The president&#39;s post in Jaithari Nagar Parishad was won by an independent candidate.

Across these 19 local bodies, BJP won 194 seats of corporators while the Congress won 145. Independent candidates claimed 13 seats.

Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan attributed his party&#39;s disappointing performance to rebel candidates.

Rebel candidates marred the BJP&#39;s chances in many places, Chouhan told reporters at Mandsaur.

Leader of Opposition Ajay Singh said the Congress has snatched seven local body seats from the ruling BJP.

&quot;These results have shown that people are disillusioned with the BJP government. The BJP failed despite misusing government&#39;s money in fighting the elections,&quot; he alleged.&nbsp;

Across these 19 local bodies, BJP won 194 seats of corporators while the Congress won 145. Independent candidates claimed 13 seats

The ruling BJP and opposition Congress today won nine posts of presidents of local bodies each in Madhya Pradesh. The elections to 19 local bodies were held on January 17. One seat was won by an independent, a State Election Commission officer said here. BJP candidates for president's post won at Peethampur Municipality and Nagar Parishad of Dahi, Kukshi, Dhamnod, Pansemal, Rajpur, Palsud and Omkareshwar. The BJP also won, unopposed, the post of president of Sendhwa Municipality. Congress won the president's post at the municipalities of former chief minister Digvijay Singh's stronghold Raghogarh, Barwani, Manawar and Dhar, besides nagar parishads at Anjad, Khetia, Sardarpur, Rajgarh and Dharmapuri. The president's post in Jaithari Nagar Parishad was won by an independent candidate. Across these 19 local bodies, BJP won 194 seats of corporators while the Congress won 145. Independent candidates claimed 13 seats. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan attributed his party's disappointing performance to rebel candidates. Rebel candidates marred the BJP's chances in many places, Chouhan told reporters at Mandsaur. Leader of Opposition Ajay Singh said the Congress has snatched seven local body seats from the ruling BJP. "These results have shown that people are disillusioned with the BJP government. The BJP failed despite misusing government's money in fighting the elections," he alleged.

Madhya Pradesh civic polls: BJP, Congress win equal number of local body president's posts

The US&nbsp;military has put countering China and Russia at the centre of a new national defence strategy unveiled on Friday, the latest sign of shifting priorities after more than a decade and a half of focussing on the fight against Islamist militants.

In presenting the new strategy, which will set priorities for the Pentagon for years to come, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis called China and Russia &quot;revisionist powers&quot; that &quot;seek to create a world consistent with their authoritarian models.&quot;

The &quot;National Defense Strategy&quot; represents the latest sign of hardening resolve by President Donald Trump&#39;s administration to address challenges from Russia and China, at the same time he is pushing for improved ties with Moscow and Beijing to rein in a nuclear North Korea.

&quot;We will continue to prosecute the campaign against terrorists that we are engaged in today, but great power competition, not terrorism, is now the primary focus of US&nbsp;national security,&quot; Mattis said in a speech presenting the strategy document, the first of its kind since at least 2014.

It sets priorities for the US&nbsp;Defense Department that are expected to be reflected in future defence spending requests. The Pentagon on Friday released an unclassified, 11-page version of the document, which did not provide details on how the shift towards countering China and Russia would be carried out.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, speaking through an interpreter at a news conference at the United Nations, said the United States was using a confrontational approach.

&quot;It is regrettable that instead of having a normal dialogue, instead of using the basis of international law, the US&nbsp;is striving to prove their leadership through such confrontational strategies and concepts,&quot; Lavrov said.

&quot;We&#39;re open for dialogue, we&#39;re prepared to discuss military doctrines,&rdquo; he added.

There was no immediate response from China.

Elbridge Colby, deputy assistant secretary of defence for strategy and force development, said at a briefing with reporters that Russia was far more brazen than China in its use of military power.

Russia annexed Ukraine&#39;s Crimean peninsula in 2014 and intervened militarily in Syria to support its ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Still, Moscow was limited by its economic resources, Colby said.

China, on the other hand, was described as economically and militarily ascendant. China has embarked on a far-reaching military modernization that Colby said was in &quot;deep contravention to our interests.&quot;

Experts praised the document&#39;s targeting of the largest national security threats rather than the longer lists of risks in some previous strategies. But without knowing the budget commitments, it was difficult to assess if it was a sound strategy.

&quot;If we don&#39;t actually see where the money is, you know, there is the danger that it could become all words,&quot; said Mara Karlin, a fellow at the Brookings Institution think tank and a senior defence official in the Obama administration.

The document also listed North Korea among the Pentagon&#39;s priorities, citing the need to focus US&nbsp;missile defences against the threat from Pyongyang, which beyond its nuclear weapons has also amassed an arsenal of biological, chemical, and conventional arms.

The document said that international alliances would be critical for the US&nbsp;military, by far the world&#39;s best-resourced. But it also stressed a need for burden-sharing, an apparent nod to Trump&#39;s public criticism of allies who he says unfairly take advantage of US&nbsp;security guarantees.

Trump has called the NATO alliance &quot;obsolete&quot;, but Mattis said the United States would strengthen its traditional alliances while building new partnerships and listening more to other nations&#39; ideas.

&quot;We will be willing to be persuaded by them, recognising that not all good ideas come from the country with the most aircraft carriers,&quot; Mattis said.

The Pentagon is also working on a policy document on the country&#39;s nuclear arsenal. While Mattis did not specifically address that review, he said the priority is deterrence.

&quot;How do we maintain a safe and effective nuclear deterrence so those weapons are never used? It is a nuclear deterrent, it is not a war fighting capability unless it is the worst day in our nation or the world&#39;s history,&quot; Mattis said.

Mattis had harsh words for the US&nbsp;Congress and its inability to reach agreement on budgets.

The US&nbsp;military&#39;s competitive edge has eroded &quot;in every domain of warfare&quot; he said, partly because of inconsistent funding. A bill to fund the government only through Feb. 16, approved on Thursday night by the House of Representatives, appeared on the verge of collapse in the Senate.

&quot;As hard as the last 16 years of war have been, no enemy in the field has done more to harm the readiness of the U.S. military than the combined impact&quot; of spending caps and short-term funding.

In sheer spending terms, the United States&#39; military outlay per year is still far more than China and Russia. The United States is spending $587.8 billion per year on its military, China $161.7 billion and Russia $44.6 billion.

In presenting the new strategy, which will set priorities for the Pentagon for years to come, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis called China and Russia 'revisionist powers' that 'seek to create a world consistent with their authoritarian models'

The US military has put countering China and Russia at the centre of a new national defence strategy unveiled on Friday, the latest sign of shifting priorities after more than a decade and a half of focussing on the fight against Islamist militants. In presenting the new strategy, which will set priorities for the Pentagon for years to come, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis called China and Russia "revisionist powers" that "seek to create a world consistent with their authoritarian models." The "National Defense Strategy" represents the latest sign of hardening resolve by President Donald Trump's administration to address challenges from Russia and China, at the same time he is pushing for improved ties with Moscow and Beijing to rein in a nuclear North Korea. "We will continue to prosecute the campaign against terrorists that we are engaged in today, but great power competition, not terrorism, is now the primary focus of US national security," Mattis said in a speech presenting the strategy document, the first of its kind since at least 2014. It sets priorities for the US Defense Department that are expected to be reflected in future defence spending requests. The Pentagon on Friday released an unclassified, 11-page version of the document, which did not provide details on how the shift towards countering China and Russia would be carried out. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, speaking through an interpreter at a news conference at the United Nations, said the United States was using a confrontational approach. "It is regrettable that instead of having a normal dialogue, instead of using the basis of international law, the US is striving to prove their leadership through such confrontational strategies and concepts," Lavrov said. "We're open for dialogue, we're prepared to discuss military doctrines,” he added. There was no immediate response from China. Elbridge Colby, deputy assistant secretary of defence for strategy and force development, said at a briefing with reporters that Russia was far more brazen than China in its use of military power. Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimean peninsula in 2014 and intervened militarily in Syria to support its ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Still, Moscow was limited by its economic resources, Colby said. China, on the other hand, was described as economically and militarily ascendant. China has embarked on a far-reaching military modernization that Colby said was in "deep contravention to our interests." Experts praised the document's targeting of the largest national security threats rather than the longer lists of risks in some previous strategies. But without knowing the budget commitments, it was difficult to assess if it was a sound strategy. "If we don't actually see where the money is, you know, there is the danger that it could become all words," said Mara Karlin, a fellow at the Brookings Institution think tank and a senior defence official in the Obama administration. The document also listed North Korea among the Pentagon's priorities, citing the need to focus US missile defences against the threat from Pyongyang, which beyond its nuclear weapons has also amassed an arsenal of biological, chemical, and conventional arms. The document said that international alliances would be critical for the US military, by far the world's best-resourced. But it also stressed a need for burden-sharing, an apparent nod to Trump's public criticism of allies who he says unfairly take advantage of US security guarantees. Trump has called the NATO alliance "obsolete", but Mattis said the United States would strengthen its traditional alliances while building new partnerships and listening more to other nations' ideas. "We will be willing to be persuaded by them, recognising that not all good ideas come from the country with the most aircraft carriers," Mattis said. The Pentagon is also working on a policy document on the country's nuclear arsenal. While Mattis did not specifically address that review, he said the priority is deterrence. "How do we maintain a safe and effective nuclear deterrence so those weapons are never used? It is a nuclear deterrent, it is not a war fighting capability unless it is the worst day in our nation or the world's history," Mattis said. Mattis had harsh words for the US Congress and its inability to reach agreement on budgets. The US military's competitive edge has eroded "in every domain of warfare" he said, partly because of inconsistent funding. A bill to fund the government only through Feb. 16, approved on Thursday night by the House of Representatives, appeared on the verge of collapse in the Senate. "As hard as the last 16 years of war have been, no enemy in the field has done more to harm the readiness of the U.S. military than the combined impact" of spending caps and short-term funding. In sheer spending terms, the United States' military outlay per year is still far more than China and Russia. The United States is spending $587.8 billion per year on its military, China $161.7 billion and Russia $44.6 billion.

US military puts China, Russia at centre of new national defence strategy

Congress president Rahul Gandhi will on Thursday meet senior party leaders over strategy for upcoming budget session of Parliament.

He is expected to finalise the Congress&rsquo; strategy to corner government in the parliament.

First part of budget session is to be held from January 29 to February 9.

The session assumes importance as the Prime Minister Narendra Modi led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government will present its last budget in its tenure on February 1.

The second part of the Budget session will be held from March 5 to April 6.

He is expected to finalise the Congress’ strategy to corner government in the parliament.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi will on Thursday meet senior party leaders over strategy for upcoming budget session of Parliament. He is expected to finalise the Congress’ strategy to corner government in the parliament. First part of budget session is to be held from January 29 to February 9. The session assumes importance as the Prime Minister Narendra Modi led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government will present its last budget in its tenure on February 1. The second part of the Budget session will be held from March 5 to April 6.

Rahul to finalise budget session strategy tomorrow

The Congress on Saturday announced the list of selected candidates for the upcoming assembly elections in Tripura and Meghalaya.

Out of the total 113 candidates announced so far, 56 of them have been selected as candidates in the Tripura elections, while another 57 candidates were selected in the Meghalaya elections.

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INC COMMUNIQUE 
 
Announcement of the list of Congress candidates for the ensuing elections to the Legislative Assembly of Tripura. <a href="https://t.co/f7XgP0Khn7">pic.twitter.com/f7XgP0Khn7</a>
&mdash; INC Sandesh (@INCSandesh) <a href="https://twitter.com/INCSandesh/status/957214756770738176?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 27, 2018</a></blockquote>
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INC COMMUNIQUE 
 
Announcement of the list of Congress candidates for the ensuing elections to the Legislative Assembly of Meghalaya. <a href="https://t.co/oUgcft3Eaa">pic.twitter.com/oUgcft3Eaa</a>
&mdash; INC Sandesh (@INCSandesh) <a href="https://twitter.com/INCSandesh/status/957214497881509888?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 27, 2018</a></blockquote>
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The Congress has not yet announced the list of candidates for the Nagaland assembly elections.

Polling in Tripura will take place on February 18 and Meghalaya and Nagaland on February 27 respectively.

The counting for all three states will be held on March 3.The terms of the Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura legislative assemblies will end on March 6, March 13 and March 14 respectively.

Out of the total 113 candidates announced so far, 56 of them have been selected as candidates in the Tripura elections

The Congress on Saturday announced the list of selected candidates for the upcoming assembly elections in Tripura and Meghalaya. Out of the total 113 candidates announced so far, 56 of them have been selected as candidates in the Tripura elections, while another 57 candidates were selected in the Meghalaya elections. INC COMMUNIQUE Announcement of the list of Congress candidates for the ensuing elections to the Legislative Assembly of Tripura. pic.twitter.com/f7XgP0Khn7 — INC Sandesh (@INCSandesh) January 27, 2018 × INC COMMUNIQUE Announcement of the list of Congress candidates for the ensuing elections to the Legislative Assembly of Meghalaya. pic.twitter.com/oUgcft3Eaa — INC Sandesh (@INCSandesh) January 27, 2018 × The Congress has not yet announced the list of candidates for the Nagaland assembly elections. Polling in Tripura will take place on February 18 and Meghalaya and Nagaland on February 27 respectively. The counting for all three states will be held on March 3.The terms of the Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura legislative assemblies will end on March 6, March 13 and March 14 respectively.

Congress announces candidate list for Tripura, Meghalaya

Taking a lesson from the continuous losses, Congress President Rahul Gandhi is now devising strategies to revive his party from the series of defeat experienced over the past years.&nbsp;

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Rahul Gandhi has come up with strategies for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in 2019.&nbsp;

According to the new plan, the Congress party will hand over the party&#39;s responsibilities on the shoulders of five veteran Congress leaders.&nbsp;

The country will be divided into five sections and each section will be assigned to a specific leader.

Different leaders will be given the responsibility of managing South India, North India, East India, North East and West India.&nbsp;

AK Antony will head the South India region, Gulam Nabi Azad may head Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Jammu and Kashmir.

Oscar Fernandes may get North East, Bengal and Odisha while Kamalnath may get Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Goa.&nbsp;Ashok Gehlot may get Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi.

Besides this, the newly appointed Congress President will also sit in the office for two days in a week to have a good rapport with party workers.&nbsp;

He will hold Janta Darbar every Saturdays. The last day of every month will also hold Congress Working Committee meeting.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

According to the new plan, the Congress party will hand over the party's responsibilities on the shoulders of five veteran Congress leaders

Taking a lesson from the continuous losses, Congress President Rahul Gandhi is now devising strategies to revive his party from the series of defeat experienced over the past years. × Rahul Gandhi has come up with strategies for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in 2019. According to the new plan, the Congress party will hand over the party's responsibilities on the shoulders of five veteran Congress leaders. The country will be divided into five sections and each section will be assigned to a specific leader. Different leaders will be given the responsibility of managing South India, North India, East India, North East and West India. AK Antony will head the South India region, Gulam Nabi Azad may head Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Jammu and Kashmir. Oscar Fernandes may get North East, Bengal and Odisha while Kamalnath may get Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Goa. Ashok Gehlot may get Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi. Besides this, the newly appointed Congress President will also sit in the office for two days in a week to have a good rapport with party workers. He will hold Janta Darbar every Saturdays. The last day of every month will also hold Congress Working Committee meeting.

Rahul Gandhi's new plan to win 2019 elections

Hitting at Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s &quot;hug diplomacy&quot; Congress President Rahul Gandhi tweeted saying that the PM calls himself ordinary but will only embrace special people.&nbsp;

He tweeted &quot; The one&nbsp;who calls himself ordinary, will only embrace the special ones&quot;

He further wrote asking the prime minister to embrace farmers, labourers and soldiers.

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खुद को बताते हैं जो बहुत &lsquo;आम&rsquo; 
&lsquo;खास&rsquo; को ही गले लगाना उनका काम 
मोदीजी, ऐसी भी क्या मजबूरी 
गले लगाने वालों में 
किसान मजदूर और जवान का होना भी है ज़रूरी<a href="https://t.co/GXAg36cOIU">https://t.co/GXAg36cOIU</a>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/955409039134932992?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 22, 2018</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

Gandhi&#39;s tweet came after PM Modi said he did not have much knowledge about protocols as he was a common man.&nbsp;

Modi said that his open nature was appreciated by world leaders as well.&nbsp;

Earlier also,&nbsp;the Congress had trolled Narendra Modi for his hug diplomacy by releasing a video on social media.

He tweeted 'The one who calls himself ordinary, will only embrace the special ones'

Hitting at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "hug diplomacy" Congress President Rahul Gandhi tweeted saying that the PM calls himself ordinary but will only embrace special people. He tweeted " The one who calls himself ordinary, will only embrace the special ones" He further wrote asking the prime minister to embrace farmers, labourers and soldiers. खुद को बताते हैं जो बहुत ‘आम’ ‘खास’ को ही गले लगाना उनका काम मोदीजी, ऐसी भी क्या मजबूरी गले लगाने वालों में किसान मजदूर और जवान का होना भी है ज़रूरीhttps://t.co/GXAg36cOIU — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) January 22, 2018 × Gandhi's tweet came after PM Modi said he did not have much knowledge about protocols as he was a common man. Modi said that his open nature was appreciated by world leaders as well. Earlier also, the Congress had trolled Narendra Modi for his hug diplomacy by releasing a video on social media.

PM calls himself 'common man', Rahul takes a dig at Modi

Ahead of the 69th Republic Day in India, Congress President Rahul Gandhi extended wishes to people by tweeting a letter.

He tweeted &quot; On the eve of our 69th Republic Day, I&#39;m writing this #LettertotheNation, to remind ourselves of the commitments we made in our Constitution.

I wish each of you a very Happy Republic Day!

Jai Hind&quot;

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On the eve of our 69th Republic Day, I&#39;m writing this <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LettertotheNation?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LettertotheNation</a>, to remind ourselves of the commitments we made in our Constitution. 
 
I wish each of you a very Happy Republic Day! 
 
Jai Hind. <a href="https://t.co/VaJ3WOeBqx">pic.twitter.com/VaJ3WOeBqx</a>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/956564180915466240?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 25, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Through his letter, he reminded the citizens of the Indian Constitution and the commitments that it offers.

The letter was issued by All India Congress Committee.&nbsp;

He tweeted 'On the eve of our 69th Republic Day, I'm writing this #LettertotheNation, to remind ourselves of the commitments we made in our Constitution'

Ahead of the 69th Republic Day in India, Congress President Rahul Gandhi extended wishes to people by tweeting a letter. He tweeted " On the eve of our 69th Republic Day, I'm writing this #LettertotheNation, to remind ourselves of the commitments we made in our Constitution. I wish each of you a very Happy Republic Day! Jai Hind" On the eve of our 69th Republic Day, I'm writing this #LettertotheNation, to remind ourselves of the commitments we made in our Constitution. I wish each of you a very Happy Republic Day! Jai Hind. pic.twitter.com/VaJ3WOeBqx — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) January 25, 2018 × Through his letter, he reminded the citizens of the Indian Constitution and the commitments that it offers. The letter was issued by All India Congress Committee.

Rahul Gandhi extends Republic Day wishes, tweets letter

The Gujarat poll outcome has instilled the belief in Congress workers that the BJP can be defeated, senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel said today and exuded confidence that the party would emerge victorious in the 2019 general elections under Rahul Gandhi&#39;s leadership.

Patel, who had won the Rajya Sabha election from Gujarat last year in a close contest, also said the poll verdict in Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s home state was a &quot;moral victory&quot; for the Congress as the BJP, which had talked about getting 150 seats, was wrapped up under 100.

&quot;Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed so many meetings and used all sorts of tricks from bringing Pakistan...To even saying that someone in Pakistan wants me to be the chief minister, but failed to polarise the voters,&quot; Patel told PTI in an interview.

&quot;Gujarat poll results have boosted the morale of Congress workers, not only in Gujarat but all over India, and given them the belief that the BJP can be defeated,&quot; the 68-year-old leader said.

The Assembly election outcome would definitely help the Congress party in the 2019 elections, he said.

&quot;The way Rahul Gandhi has campaigned in Gujarat, his hard work and the way he drew huge crowds were very encouraging and helped us win the seats we finally did,&quot; said Patel.

The BJP won 99 seats in the 182-member Assembly, its tally dipping from 115 in the last elections.

Had the BJP not &quot;used their gimmicks&quot;, they would have been defeated in Gujarat, Patel claimed.

He said the Congress was constantly improving and would do well in the upcoming state elections this year.

The &quot;young and dynamic&quot; party president, Rahul Gandhi, would lead the Congress to victory in the 2019 polls, he held.

Asked if Gandhi, who took over as the party chief last month, would build a new team, Patel said, &quot;The Congress president is consulting seniors; he is using youngsters also.&quot;

&quot;He has a slot for everyone. He knows where to utilise whose expertise,&quot; the veteran Congress leader said.

On whether the Congress would stitch up an alliance for the 2019 elections, Patel said the ultimate goal was to defeat divisive and communal forces.

&quot;We are prepared to take the support of like-minded parties, but it is too early to talk of alliances. Congress president and senior leaders will decide later,&quot; said Patel, who served as Sonia Gandhi&#39;s political secretary for about 15 years during her time as Congress chief.

Asked if the Congress was going through its worst phase electorally, Patel said, &quot;When Soniaji had taken over, the Congress was (in power) in a few states; similarly under Rahul ji, we will get more states. It&#39;s a question of time.&quot;

On the BJP projecting itself as championing the cause of Muslim women and the Mehram issue, Patel said women could proceed for haj without mehram (male guardian) because of a change in rules in Saudi Arabia.

Talking about the triple talaq bill, which has been passed by the Lok Sabha and is awaiting the Rajya Sabha nod, he said the Congress had demanded that the bill be forwarded to a select committee, so that all its provisions could be scrutinised.

Asked if the Congress was guilty of causing too many disruptions in Parliament in recent times, Patel said the party was only raising &quot;genuine&quot; issues.

Patel said that Gujarat poll verdict in PM Modi's home state was a moral victory for the Congress

The Gujarat poll outcome has instilled the belief in Congress workers that the BJP can be defeated, senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel said today and exuded confidence that the party would emerge victorious in the 2019 general elections under Rahul Gandhi's leadership. Patel, who had won the Rajya Sabha election from Gujarat last year in a close contest, also said the poll verdict in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state was a "moral victory" for the Congress as the BJP, which had talked about getting 150 seats, was wrapped up under 100. "Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed so many meetings and used all sorts of tricks from bringing Pakistan...To even saying that someone in Pakistan wants me to be the chief minister, but failed to polarise the voters," Patel told PTI in an interview. "Gujarat poll results have boosted the morale of Congress workers, not only in Gujarat but all over India, and given them the belief that the BJP can be defeated," the 68-year-old leader said. The Assembly election outcome would definitely help the Congress party in the 2019 elections, he said. "The way Rahul Gandhi has campaigned in Gujarat, his hard work and the way he drew huge crowds were very encouraging and helped us win the seats we finally did," said Patel. The BJP won 99 seats in the 182-member Assembly, its tally dipping from 115 in the last elections. Had the BJP not "used their gimmicks", they would have been defeated in Gujarat, Patel claimed. He said the Congress was constantly improving and would do well in the upcoming state elections this year. The "young and dynamic" party president, Rahul Gandhi, would lead the Congress to victory in the 2019 polls, he held. Asked if Gandhi, who took over as the party chief last month, would build a new team, Patel said, "The Congress president is consulting seniors; he is using youngsters also." "He has a slot for everyone. He knows where to utilise whose expertise," the veteran Congress leader said. On whether the Congress would stitch up an alliance for the 2019 elections, Patel said the ultimate goal was to defeat divisive and communal forces. "We are prepared to take the support of like-minded parties, but it is too early to talk of alliances. Congress president and senior leaders will decide later," said Patel, who served as Sonia Gandhi's political secretary for about 15 years during her time as Congress chief. Asked if the Congress was going through its worst phase electorally, Patel said, "When Soniaji had taken over, the Congress was (in power) in a few states; similarly under Rahul ji, we will get more states. It's a question of time." On the BJP projecting itself as championing the cause of Muslim women and the Mehram issue, Patel said women could proceed for haj without mehram (male guardian) because of a change in rules in Saudi Arabia. Talking about the triple talaq bill, which has been passed by the Lok Sabha and is awaiting the Rajya Sabha nod, he said the Congress had demanded that the bill be forwarded to a select committee, so that all its provisions could be scrutinised. Asked if the Congress was guilty of causing too many disruptions in Parliament in recent times, Patel said the party was only raising "genuine" issues.

Rahul will lead Congress to victory in 2019: Ahmed Patel

Two Indian-Americans from the Democratic party have thrown their hats in the ring for the US House of Representatives from the same Congressional seat in New York.

Omar Vaid and Mohan Radhakrishnan have announced to fight out the Democratic primary to earn the party&rsquo;s nomination for the November mid-term general elections to defeat the Republican incumbent Congressman Don Donavan in New York&rsquo;s 11th Congressional District. While New York is a heavily Democratic leaning State, the 11th Congressional District of late has emerged as a Republican stronghold.

US President Donald Trump had won the seat in 2016. Both Vaid and Mohan seek to unseat Donavan this time. But before that they need to win the Democratic party primary for which currently more than half a dozen candidates are in the race.

Son of two immigrant parents of Gujarati-Indian heritage, Vaid grew up as a Muslim in Illinois and Florida, according to his campaign website.

Being a Muslim-American, Vaid has spoken a lot about President Donald Trump&rsquo;s travel ban throughout his campaign and is focusing on a number of issues including the improvement of transportation, education, Medicare, lowering prescription drug costs, affordable housing, climate change, gun laws, veteran&rsquo;s benefits, women&rsquo;s rights, worker&rsquo;s rights and building strong unions, protecting social security, protecting net neutrality, unity and foreign policy, according to his website.

Vaid will be running against Michael DeCillis, Michael DeVito Jr., Zach Emig, Radhakrishna Mohan, Max Rose and Paul Sperling in the Democratic primary while Rep. Donovan will be challenged by former Rep. Michael Grimm in the Republican primary.

As a member of the Democratic Party, he believes diversity is an asset and that all voices must be included, it says.

A labour union leader, Mohan, is a 27-year resident of Staten Island, New York and an active member of the Community Board 1 of Staten Island.

An eminent community leader, he is a member of the Staten Island Hindu Temple Board. &ldquo;Our Democracy and country is going through a difficult time under the current administration and we should not let it go too far,&rdquo; he said.

Currently there are four Indian-Americans in the US House of Representatives. In addition to Ami Bera from California who is serving his third term, three others &mdash; Ro Khanna from California, Raja Krishnamoorthi from Illinois and Pramila Jayapal from Washington &mdash; were elected for the first term in 2016.

They have informally formed the Samosa Caucus. All of them are from the same Democratic Party. Senator Kamala Harris from California is of mixed Indian and American heritage.

Quite a significant number of Indian-Americans are running for US Congress from various parts of the country.

Krishnamoorthi is facing two Indian-Americans &ndash; Vandana Jhingan and Jitender Digankar &ndash; from the Republican party in his re-election bid. Among other Indian-Americans running for Congress are Aruna Miller from Maryland; Anita Malik and Hiral Tipirneni from Arizona; Chintan Desai from Arkansas; Sapan Shah from Illinois, Harry Arora from Connecticut, Abhijit Das from Massachusetts, Suraj Patel from New York, Sri Preston Kulkarni from Texas, Saira Rao from Colorado; Deep Saran from Virginia and Peter Jacob from New Jersey.

(With PTI inputs)

Omar Vaid and Mohan Radhakrishnan have announced to fight out the Democratic primary to earn the party’s nomination for the November mid-term general elections to defeat the Republican incumbent Congressman Don Donavan in New York’s 11th Congressional District

Two Indian-Americans from the Democratic party have thrown their hats in the ring for the US House of Representatives from the same Congressional seat in New York. Omar Vaid and Mohan Radhakrishnan have announced to fight out the Democratic primary to earn the party’s nomination for the November mid-term general elections to defeat the Republican incumbent Congressman Don Donavan in New York’s 11th Congressional District. While New York is a heavily Democratic leaning State, the 11th Congressional District of late has emerged as a Republican stronghold. US President Donald Trump had won the seat in 2016. Both Vaid and Mohan seek to unseat Donavan this time. But before that they need to win the Democratic party primary for which currently more than half a dozen candidates are in the race. Son of two immigrant parents of Gujarati-Indian heritage, Vaid grew up as a Muslim in Illinois and Florida, according to his campaign website. Being a Muslim-American, Vaid has spoken a lot about President Donald Trump’s travel ban throughout his campaign and is focusing on a number of issues including the improvement of transportation, education, Medicare, lowering prescription drug costs, affordable housing, climate change, gun laws, veteran’s benefits, women’s rights, worker’s rights and building strong unions, protecting social security, protecting net neutrality, unity and foreign policy, according to his website. Vaid will be running against Michael DeCillis, Michael DeVito Jr., Zach Emig, Radhakrishna Mohan, Max Rose and Paul Sperling in the Democratic primary while Rep. Donovan will be challenged by former Rep. Michael Grimm in the Republican primary. As a member of the Democratic Party, he believes diversity is an asset and that all voices must be included, it says. A labour union leader, Mohan, is a 27-year resident of Staten Island, New York and an active member of the Community Board 1 of Staten Island. An eminent community leader, he is a member of the Staten Island Hindu Temple Board. “Our Democracy and country is going through a difficult time under the current administration and we should not let it go too far,” he said. Currently there are four Indian-Americans in the US House of Representatives. In addition to Ami Bera from California who is serving his third term, three others — Ro Khanna from California, Raja Krishnamoorthi from Illinois and Pramila Jayapal from Washington — were elected for the first term in 2016. They have informally formed the Samosa Caucus. All of them are from the same Democratic Party. Senator Kamala Harris from California is of mixed Indian and American heritage. Quite a significant number of Indian-Americans are running for US Congress from various parts of the country. Krishnamoorthi is facing two Indian-Americans – Vandana Jhingan and Jitender Digankar – from the Republican party in his re-election bid. Among other Indian-Americans running for Congress are Aruna Miller from Maryland; Anita Malik and Hiral Tipirneni from Arizona; Chintan Desai from Arkansas; Sapan Shah from Illinois, Harry Arora from Connecticut, Abhijit Das from Massachusetts, Suraj Patel from New York, Sri Preston Kulkarni from Texas, Saira Rao from Colorado; Deep Saran from Virginia and Peter Jacob from New Jersey. (With PTI inputs)

Two Indian-Americans running for Congress in New York

The disqualification of 20 AAP MLAs was deliberately delayed due to the hidden alliance between Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the Congress party alleged.&nbsp;

&quot;The AAP has been helped by the BJP and the Election Commission of India (ECI) by delaying the decision for over three weeks. If decision would have come before December 22, these 20 MLAs would have been disqualified and the party would not have been able to send three MPs to Rajya Sabha,&quot; Congress leader Ajay Maken said while addressing a press conference here.

Twenty AAP MLAs, accused of holding the &#39;office of profit&#39;, were disqualified from the Delhi Assembly today after President Ram Nath Kovind gave his assent to election commission&#39;s recommendation in the matter.

&quot;Having considered the matter in the light of the opinion expressed by the Election Commission, I, Ram Nath Kovind, president of India, in exercise of the powers...do here hold that the aforesaid 20 members of the Delhi legislative assembly stand disqualified from being members of the said assembly,&quot; read a notification issued by the law ministry.

The election commission on Friday recommended to the president the disqualification of the 20 AAP MLAs on for holding &#39;&#39;office of profit&#39;&#39;.

Initially, the petition was directed at 21 MLAs, but one MLA, named Jarnail Singh, resigned last year to contest in the Punjab elections.&nbsp;

Twenty AAP MLAs, accused of holding the 'office of profit', were disqualified from the Delhi Assembly

The disqualification of 20 AAP MLAs was deliberately delayed due to the hidden alliance between Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the Congress party alleged. "The AAP has been helped by the BJP and the Election Commission of India (ECI) by delaying the decision for over three weeks. If decision would have come before December 22, these 20 MLAs would have been disqualified and the party would not have been able to send three MPs to Rajya Sabha," Congress leader Ajay Maken said while addressing a press conference here. Twenty AAP MLAs, accused of holding the 'office of profit', were disqualified from the Delhi Assembly today after President Ram Nath Kovind gave his assent to election commission's recommendation in the matter. "Having considered the matter in the light of the opinion expressed by the Election Commission, I, Ram Nath Kovind, president of India, in exercise of the powers...do here hold that the aforesaid 20 members of the Delhi legislative assembly stand disqualified from being members of the said assembly," read a notification issued by the law ministry. The election commission on Friday recommended to the president the disqualification of the 20 AAP MLAs on for holding ''office of profit''. Initially, the petition was directed at 21 MLAs, but one MLA, named Jarnail Singh, resigned last year to contest in the Punjab elections.

BJP, AAP 'hidden alliance' delayed disqualification of MLAs: Congress

Rahul Gandhi is back with yet another file of facts and is pushing Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for answers on Rafale jet deal.&nbsp;

The Congress president, on Friday, called out Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Twitter and said: &quot;You said the UPA never released prices of Defence purchases? To nail your lie, here are 3 Parliamentary replies by the UPA with full transparency on pricing. Now do ask our Raksha Mantri to tell India how much each RAFALE jet cost.&quot;&nbsp;

With that, he attached screenshots of documents - one dated 9 August 2010 titled &quot;Aircraft Carrier Admiral Gorshkov&quot; and another 4 March 2013 titled &quot;Upgradation of Aircraft&quot; - by the Ministry of Defence.&nbsp;

The documents mention several &lsquo;parliamentary replies&rsquo; on the prices of several defence purchases made during the UPA government.

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Dear Mr Jaitlie, 
 
You said the UPA never released prices of Defence purchases? 
 
To nail your lie, here are 3 Parliamentary replies by the UPA with full transparency on pricing. 
 
Now do ask our Raksha Mantri to tell India how much each RAFALE jet cost.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DealMeinKuchKalaHai?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#DealMeinKuchKalaHai</a> <a href="https://t.co/txb2Cc1BHh">pic.twitter.com/txb2Cc1BHh</a>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/961930076668473344?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 9, 2018</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

Earlier, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, defending the government&#39;s decision against making the break-up of the nearly Rs 58,000 crore deal public, said when UPA was in power, then defence ministers Pranab Mukherjee and A K Antony had on 15 occasions told Parliament that giving out such details would be against the interest of national security.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/allegations-against-rafale-deal-shameful-disservice-to-armed-forces-nirmala-sitharaman-24474">Allegations against Rafale deal &#39;shameful&#39;, &#39;disservice&#39; to armed forces: Nirmala Sitharaman</a>

He hit back at the Congress over the Rafale deal, accusing it of &quot;seriously compromising&quot; country&#39;s security by seeking details of armaments purchased along with the aircraft.

He also advised Congress chief Rahul Gandhi to &quot;learn&quot; from former defense minister Pranab Mukherjee &quot;lessons on national security.&quot;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/pm-modi-tweaked-rafale-deal-to-benefit-one-businessman-rahul-gandhi-24356">Rahul has </a>been targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the 2016 deal to buy 36 Rafale fighter jets. &quot;What is the price that the Prime Minister has spent on Rafale,&quot; Gandhi had asked on Tuesday.

Also read:<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/indian-cabinet-approves-purchase-of-36-rafale-fighter-jets-source-6629">&nbsp;Indian cabinet approves purchase of 36 Rafale fighter jets: Source</a>

Gandhi, raising the pitch on the Rafale jet deal, has asked for a discussion in parliament under a rule that makes it a must for the government to answer.

The Congress president alleges that there is &quot;something fishy&quot; about the deal to buy 126 fighter jets and that is the reason Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitaraman are <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/your-boss-silencing-you-rahul-gandhi-asks-nirmala-sitharaman-24541">silent on it.</a>

Gandhi, raising the pitch on the Rafale jet deal, has asked for a discussion in parliament under a rule that makes it a must for the government to answer

Rahul Gandhi is back with yet another file of facts and is pushing Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for answers on Rafale jet deal. The Congress president, on Friday, called out Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Twitter and said: "You said the UPA never released prices of Defence purchases? To nail your lie, here are 3 Parliamentary replies by the UPA with full transparency on pricing. Now do ask our Raksha Mantri to tell India how much each RAFALE jet cost." With that, he attached screenshots of documents - one dated 9 August 2010 titled "Aircraft Carrier Admiral Gorshkov" and another 4 March 2013 titled "Upgradation of Aircraft" - by the Ministry of Defence. The documents mention several ‘parliamentary replies’ on the prices of several defence purchases made during the UPA government. Dear Mr Jaitlie, You said the UPA never released prices of Defence purchases? To nail your lie, here are 3 Parliamentary replies by the UPA with full transparency on pricing. Now do ask our Raksha Mantri to tell India how much each RAFALE jet cost.#DealMeinKuchKalaHai pic.twitter.com/txb2Cc1BHh — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) February 9, 2018 × Earlier, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, defending the government's decision against making the break-up of the nearly Rs 58,000 crore deal public, said when UPA was in power, then defence ministers Pranab Mukherjee and A K Antony had on 15 occasions told Parliament that giving out such details would be against the interest of national security. Also read: Allegations against Rafale deal 'shameful', 'disservice' to armed forces: Nirmala Sitharaman He hit back at the Congress over the Rafale deal, accusing it of "seriously compromising" country's security by seeking details of armaments purchased along with the aircraft. He also advised Congress chief Rahul Gandhi to "learn" from former defense minister Pranab Mukherjee "lessons on national security." Rahul has been targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the 2016 deal to buy 36 Rafale fighter jets. "What is the price that the Prime Minister has spent on Rafale," Gandhi had asked on Tuesday. Also read: Indian cabinet approves purchase of 36 Rafale fighter jets: Source Gandhi, raising the pitch on the Rafale jet deal, has asked for a discussion in parliament under a rule that makes it a must for the government to answer. The Congress president alleges that there is "something fishy" about the deal to buy 126 fighter jets and that is the reason Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitaraman are silent on it.

Rafale deal: Rahul fires fresh salvo at Arun Jaitley, Nirmala Sitharaman

After hours of delay, the US Congress finally passed the much-awaited federal spending today.

The measure has been sent to President Donald Trump seeking him to end the country&#39;s second government shutdown in three weeks.

The House voted in support of the bill in 240 to 186. The bipartisan package will extend government funding until March 23 lifting the federal spending limits by nearly $300 billion for the next couple of years.

Congress had previously missed a midnight deadline after a conservative senator refused to allow an early vote on the bill.

With Trump signing the bill, government offices will reopen.&nbsp;

(With inputs from AFP)&nbsp;

Congress had previously missed a midnight deadline after a conservative senator refused to allow an early vote on the bill.

After hours of delay, the US Congress finally passed the much-awaited federal spending today. The measure has been sent to President Donald Trump seeking him to end the country's second government shutdown in three weeks. The House voted in support of the bill in 240 to 186. The bipartisan package will extend government funding until March 23 lifting the federal spending limits by nearly $300 billion for the next couple of years. Congress had previously missed a midnight deadline after a conservative senator refused to allow an early vote on the bill. With Trump signing the bill, government offices will reopen. (With inputs from AFP)

US: Congress passes spending bill, sends to Trump to end shutdown

The backlash between <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/modi-continues-attack-on-opposition-says-congress-mukt-bharat-was-gandhis-idea-32115">PM Modi</a> and Congress MP Renuka Chowdhury continues after PM Modi&#39;s remarks at the Rajya Sabha.&nbsp;

Chowdhury has since addressed the issue and said: &quot;This is highly objectionable, and I am going to file for privilege.&quot; The Congress also criticised Modi&#39;s remark calling him &nbsp;&quot;anti-women.&quot;

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This is highly objectionable, and I am going to file for privilege: Renuka Chowdhury, Congress on Kiren Rijiju posting a video of PM Modi&#39;s remarks on Renuka Chowdhury in Rajya Sabha yesterday. <a href="https://t.co/9d7gEL0IqC">pic.twitter.com/9d7gEL0IqC</a>
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PM Modi, on Wednesday, called<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/renuka-chowdhury-interrupts-modi-in-rajya-sabha-spat-follows-32123"> Chowdhury out for laughing</a> during his remarks on Aadhaar in Parliament.

&quot;SabhapatiJi meri aapse vinti hai Renuka Ji ko kuch mat kahiye. Ramayan serial ke baad aisi hansi sunne ka saubhagya aaj jaake mila hai. (Chairman sir, I request you to not say anything to Renukaji. After Ramayan serial, we have got the privilege of hearing this kind of laughter today),&quot; the PM had said.

&quot;We condemn PM Modi&#39;s derogatory remark in the Parliament against former Union Minister and RS MP Renuka Chowdhury. We also urge the RS Speaker Shri Venkaiah Naidu to not act in a partisan manner and accord due respect to a fellow member of the house. #ModiAntiWomen,&quot; the party&#39;s official handle tweeted.

Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu chided the members for their &quot;unbecoming&quot; behaviour and asked them to resume their places.&nbsp;

&quot;I have no option other than to adjourn the House,&quot; he said, suspending the proceedings till 1200 hrs.&nbsp;

Rajya Sabha proceedings were adjourned till noon after the Congress members created an uproar over Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s remarks against party MP Renuka Chowdhury.&nbsp;

 
&nbsp;

PM Modi had yesterday in Parliament called Chowdhury out for laughing during his remarks on Aadhaar.

The backlash between PM Modi and Congress MP Renuka Chowdhury continues after PM Modi's remarks at the Rajya Sabha. Chowdhury has since addressed the issue and said: "This is highly objectionable, and I am going to file for privilege." The Congress also criticised Modi's remark calling him "anti-women." This is highly objectionable, and I am going to file for privilege: Renuka Chowdhury, Congress on Kiren Rijiju posting a video of PM Modi's remarks on Renuka Chowdhury in Rajya Sabha yesterday. pic.twitter.com/9d7gEL0IqC — ANI (@ANI) February 8, 2018 × PM Modi, on Wednesday, called Chowdhury out for laughing during his remarks on Aadhaar in Parliament. "SabhapatiJi meri aapse vinti hai Renuka Ji ko kuch mat kahiye. Ramayan serial ke baad aisi hansi sunne ka saubhagya aaj jaake mila hai. (Chairman sir, I request you to not say anything to Renukaji. After Ramayan serial, we have got the privilege of hearing this kind of laughter today)," the PM had said. "We condemn PM Modi's derogatory remark in the Parliament against former Union Minister and RS MP Renuka Chowdhury. We also urge the RS Speaker Shri Venkaiah Naidu to not act in a partisan manner and accord due respect to a fellow member of the house. #ModiAntiWomen," the party's official handle tweeted. Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu chided the members for their "unbecoming" behaviour and asked them to resume their places. "I have no option other than to adjourn the House," he said, suspending the proceedings till 1200 hrs. Rajya Sabha proceedings were adjourned till noon after the Congress members created an uproar over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remarks against party MP Renuka Chowdhury.

'I am going to file for privilege', says Renuka Chowdhury after Modi's remarks

Sonia Gandhi has said that his son Rahul, who took over ar Congress president in December, is her boss too.

&quot;We have a new Congress president and on your behalf and my own I wish him all the best. He is now my boss too. Let there be no doubt about that,&quot; she said at the party&#39;s parliamentary party meeting on Thursday.

Sounding an upbeat note, Sonia told party MPs to work with dedication, loyalty and enthusiasm with Rahul Gandhi to strengthen the party.

Seventy-one-year-old Sonia served as Congress president for nearly two decades, but has taken a backseat now.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-meets-party-delegation-at-aicc-headqurters-32079">Also Read: Rahul Gandhi meets party delegation at AICC headquarters</a>

She also said that the process to revive the party&#39;s fortunes had begun and she would work with &quot;like-minded parties&quot; to ensure the BJP&#39;s defeat in the next elections.

&quot;We performed very creditably under tough circumstances in Gujarat and recent by-election results in Rajasthan were huge. This shows winds of change are coming. I am sure Karnataka too will underline resurgence of Congress,&quot; Sonia Gandhi said lauding party workers&#39; efforts in the recently-held Gujarat assembly elections.

Attacking the Centre, Sonia said that government indulges in &#39;maximum publicity, minimum government&#39; and &#39;maximum marketing, minimum delivery&#39;.

&quot;It has been almost 4 years since this government came to power. This has been a period in which institutions like Parliament, judiciary, media and civil society have come under assault. Investigative agencies have been let loose against political opponents,&quot; she said.

She had slammed <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/modi-continues-attack-on-opposition-says-congress-mukt-bharat-was-gandhis-idea-32115">PM Modi&#39;s hard hitting speech</a> in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday asserting there was <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/pm-has-not-said-anything-new-says-sonia-gandhi-32088">&quot;nothing new&quot; in what he said</a>.

&quot;People of India want to know what the PM will do about jobs,&quot; she said while taking a dig at PM Modi.

PM Modi <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/pm-modi-takes-on-opposition-during-parliament-speech-highlights-32083">during an address to Parliament</a> on the motion of thanks to the President on the Budget had said his government was faster than the UPA in implementing infrastructure projects.

The PM repeatedly attacked the Congress saying the party should rise above &quot;chest-thumping&quot;, adding that the Congress takes &quot;credit&quot; for NDA&#39;s projects.

Seventy-one-year-old Sonia served as Congress president for nearly two decades, but has taken a backseat now.

Sonia Gandhi has said that his son Rahul, who took over ar Congress president in December, is her boss too. "We have a new Congress president and on your behalf and my own I wish him all the best. He is now my boss too. Let there be no doubt about that," she said at the party's parliamentary party meeting on Thursday. Sounding an upbeat note, Sonia told party MPs to work with dedication, loyalty and enthusiasm with Rahul Gandhi to strengthen the party. Seventy-one-year-old Sonia served as Congress president for nearly two decades, but has taken a backseat now. Also Read: Rahul Gandhi meets party delegation at AICC headquarters She also said that the process to revive the party's fortunes had begun and she would work with "like-minded parties" to ensure the BJP's defeat in the next elections. "We performed very creditably under tough circumstances in Gujarat and recent by-election results in Rajasthan were huge. This shows winds of change are coming. I am sure Karnataka too will underline resurgence of Congress," Sonia Gandhi said lauding party workers' efforts in the recently-held Gujarat assembly elections. Attacking the Centre, Sonia said that government indulges in 'maximum publicity, minimum government' and 'maximum marketing, minimum delivery'. "It has been almost 4 years since this government came to power. This has been a period in which institutions like Parliament, judiciary, media and civil society have come under assault. Investigative agencies have been let loose against political opponents," she said. She had slammed PM Modi's hard hitting speech in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday asserting there was "nothing new" in what he said. "People of India want to know what the PM will do about jobs," she said while taking a dig at PM Modi. PM Modi during an address to Parliament on the motion of thanks to the President on the Budget had said his government was faster than the UPA in implementing infrastructure projects. The PM repeatedly attacked the Congress saying the party should rise above "chest-thumping", adding that the Congress takes "credit" for NDA's projects.

Rahul now my boss too, let there be no doubt: Sonia Gandhi

The Government of India on Wednesday gave detailed clarification on the Rafale deal controversy and said the opposition is misleading the country.

On Tuesday, the Congress posed eight questions to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the deal.

Congress President Rahul Gandhi alleged that the Prime Minister personally went to Paris and <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-alleges-scam-in-rafale-deal-32007" target="_blank">changed the deal</a>.

The Centre said it was issuing clarification over the 2016 Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) to procure 36 Rafale aircraft in fly-away condition from France because the opposition was misleading nation on a serious matter of national security.

&quot;In another effort to twist facts, the Government is asked why it did not conduct negotiations with a particular company representing a competing fighter aircraft. It seems to have been conveniently forgotten that the then Government itself had rejected that company&#39;s unsolicited offer made days after closure of the bid process, declared Rafale (DA) as the L1 bidder and had commenced negotiations with it in February 2012,&quot; the Centre said in a statement.

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<h5>In another effort to twist facts, the Government is asked why it did not conduct negotiations with a particular company representing a competing fighter aircraft. It seems to have been conveniently forgotten that the then Government itself had rejected that company&#39;s unsolicited offer made days after closure of the bid process, declared Rafale (DA) as the L1 bidder and had commenced negotiations with it in February 2012,&#39; the Centre said in a statement</h5>
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The Government of India further termed the demand to disclose details and value of the Rafale aircraft as &quot;unrealistic&quot;.

&quot;The demand that the Government disclose the details and value of the contract for the Rafale aircraft contracted in 2016 is unrealistic. [In keeping with confidentiality requirements, the UPA Government had also expressed its inability to disclose the price of various defence procurements, including in its responses to Parliament Questions],&quot; the statement said.

The Centre also said the Opposition&#39;s demand to disclose exact item-wise cost and other information will impact military preparedness and compromise national security.

&quot;The approximate acquisition cost of the Rafale aircraft has already been provided to the Parliament. Provision of exact item-wise cost and other information will reveal, inter alia, details regarding the various customizations and weapons systems specially designed to augment the effectiveness and lethality of the assets, impact our military preparedness and compromise our national security,&quot; said the Union Government.

It added that &quot;such details would also come under the ambit of the security agreement signed in 2008. Thus, in not revealing the item-wise details of the contract, the Government is merely following in letter and spirit the confidentiality provisions of a bilateral India-France Agreement of 2008 signed by the previous Government&quot;.

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government also said its deal is much better than that of previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government.

&quot;The deal secured by the Government is better in terms of capability, price, equipment, delivery, maintenance, training, etc., than that notionally negotiated by the then Government in a process it could not conclude in ten years. Moreover, the present Government completed these negotiations in just about one year,&quot; said the NDA government.

The government also stressed that 36 Rafale aircrafts were procured to meet the urgent need of the Indian Air Force strictly in accordance with the Defence Procurement Procedure.

&quot;The procurement of 36 Rafale aircraft to meet the urgent need of the IAF is strictly in accordance with the Defence Procurement Procedure in all aspects including mandating, conducting and monitoring of negotiations and seeking all necessary approvals, including that of the Cabinet Committee on Security, before entering into the IGA. The aircraft had already been evaluated successfully by IAF during 2009-10,&quot; said the statement.

On the issue of transfer of technology, the government said, &quot;It may also be noted that contrary to the impression sought, to be created by the Opposition, in the earlier proposal to procure Rafale, which ended in a stalemate, there was no provision for transfer of technology but only to manufacture under licence. The Government was unable to agree on the terms for even that in its negotiations with the vendor, resulting in the long-drawn exercise under the earlier Government ultimately turning futile.&quot;

Reacting to the Congress allegation on why an Indian private company with zero experience in aviation was chosen as an offset partner to manufacture Rafale jets, the MoD said no offset partners has been selected so far.

&quot;Further, no Indian Offset Partner for the 2016 deal for 36 Rafale Aircraft has been so far selected by the vendor (DA) because as per the applicable guidelines, DA is free to select the Indian Offset Partners and provide their details at the time of seeking offset credits, or one year prior to discharge of offset obligation,&quot; it said. (ANI)

Congress President Rahul Gandhi had on Tuesday alleged a 'scam' in the deal

The Government of India on Wednesday gave detailed clarification on the Rafale deal controversy and said the opposition is misleading the country. On Tuesday, the Congress posed eight questions to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the deal. Congress President Rahul Gandhi alleged that the Prime Minister personally went to Paris and changed the deal. The Centre said it was issuing clarification over the 2016 Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) to procure 36 Rafale aircraft in fly-away condition from France because the opposition was misleading nation on a serious matter of national security. "In another effort to twist facts, the Government is asked why it did not conduct negotiations with a particular company representing a competing fighter aircraft. It seems to have been conveniently forgotten that the then Government itself had rejected that company's unsolicited offer made days after closure of the bid process, declared Rafale (DA) as the L1 bidder and had commenced negotiations with it in February 2012," the Centre said in a statement. In another effort to twist facts, the Government is asked why it did not conduct negotiations with a particular company representing a competing fighter aircraft. It seems to have been conveniently forgotten that the then Government itself had rejected that company's unsolicited offer made days after closure of the bid process, declared Rafale (DA) as the L1 bidder and had commenced negotiations with it in February 2012,' the Centre said in a statement × The Government of India further termed the demand to disclose details and value of the Rafale aircraft as "unrealistic". "The demand that the Government disclose the details and value of the contract for the Rafale aircraft contracted in 2016 is unrealistic. [In keeping with confidentiality requirements, the UPA Government had also expressed its inability to disclose the price of various defence procurements, including in its responses to Parliament Questions]," the statement said. The Centre also said the Opposition's demand to disclose exact item-wise cost and other information will impact military preparedness and compromise national security. "The approximate acquisition cost of the Rafale aircraft has already been provided to the Parliament. Provision of exact item-wise cost and other information will reveal, inter alia, details regarding the various customizations and weapons systems specially designed to augment the effectiveness and lethality of the assets, impact our military preparedness and compromise our national security," said the Union Government. It added that "such details would also come under the ambit of the security agreement signed in 2008. Thus, in not revealing the item-wise details of the contract, the Government is merely following in letter and spirit the confidentiality provisions of a bilateral India-France Agreement of 2008 signed by the previous Government". The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government also said its deal is much better than that of previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. "The deal secured by the Government is better in terms of capability, price, equipment, delivery, maintenance, training, etc., than that notionally negotiated by the then Government in a process it could not conclude in ten years. Moreover, the present Government completed these negotiations in just about one year," said the NDA government. The government also stressed that 36 Rafale aircrafts were procured to meet the urgent need of the Indian Air Force strictly in accordance with the Defence Procurement Procedure. "The procurement of 36 Rafale aircraft to meet the urgent need of the IAF is strictly in accordance with the Defence Procurement Procedure in all aspects including mandating, conducting and monitoring of negotiations and seeking all necessary approvals, including that of the Cabinet Committee on Security, before entering into the IGA. The aircraft had already been evaluated successfully by IAF during 2009-10," said the statement. On the issue of transfer of technology, the government said, "It may also be noted that contrary to the impression sought, to be created by the Opposition, in the earlier proposal to procure Rafale, which ended in a stalemate, there was no provision for transfer of technology but only to manufacture under licence. The Government was unable to agree on the terms for even that in its negotiations with the vendor, resulting in the long-drawn exercise under the earlier Government ultimately turning futile." Reacting to the Congress allegation on why an Indian private company with zero experience in aviation was chosen as an offset partner to manufacture Rafale jets, the MoD said no offset partners has been selected so far. "Further, no Indian Offset Partner for the 2016 deal for 36 Rafale Aircraft has been so far selected by the vendor (DA) because as per the applicable guidelines, DA is free to select the Indian Offset Partners and provide their details at the time of seeking offset credits, or one year prior to discharge of offset obligation," it said. (ANI)

Opposition misleading country over Rafale deal: Government

The Congress on Tuesday carried out a &quot;pakoda&quot; protest in Chhattisgarh&#39;s Raipur in a bid to mock the Centre.&nbsp;

The Congress workers organised a &quot;Shikshit Berozgar pakoda Center&quot; in the state.&nbsp;This set up comes following Amit Shah&#39;s speech at the Rajya Sabha on Monday and Prime Ministers &quot;pakora&quot; comment last month - which started the whole fiasco.&nbsp;

The leaders were seen selling &#39;Arun Jaitley&#39; pakora and &#39;Raman&#39; pakora targeting the Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and the Chattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh.

The Congress on Tuesday slammed Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah over his statement on &quot;pakoda&quot; sellers and Goods and Services Tax (GST) at the Rajya Sabha.

Shah was quoted saying: &quot;A pakora seller is earning a living, not begging, who knows his next generation might rise to be a leader, after all, a tea seller has today become a Prime Minister.&quot;

Congress MP Ranjeet Ranjan hit back at this remark and said: &quot;It is very unfortunate that our country&#39;s youth who are talented and educated in various professions are sitting unemployed, and the ruling party is telling them to go and sell pakodas.&quot;

&quot;Never has any ruling party in the past made such a despicable and disgraceful remark,&quot; he added.&nbsp;

In a recent interview to a news channel last month, the Prime Minister had said a person selling &quot;pakoda&quot; outside and earning Rs 200 a day should also be considered as &quot;employed&quot;.

&nbsp;Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah on Monday hit out at the Congress for being unable to address the issue of unemployment.

While addressing his maiden speech as the member of Rajya Sabha, Shah said that the Congress ruled the nation for a decade but failed to tackle the issue of unemployment.

 
&nbsp;

The Congress on Tuesday slammed Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah over his statement on Pakoda sellers and Goods and Services Tax (GST) at the Rajya Sabha

The Congress on Tuesday carried out a "pakoda" protest in Chhattisgarh's Raipur in a bid to mock the Centre. The Congress workers organised a "Shikshit Berozgar pakoda Center" in the state. This set up comes following Amit Shah's speech at the Rajya Sabha on Monday and Prime Ministers "pakora" comment last month - which started the whole fiasco. The leaders were seen selling 'Arun Jaitley' pakora and 'Raman' pakora targeting the Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and the Chattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh. The Congress on Tuesday slammed Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah over his statement on "pakoda" sellers and Goods and Services Tax (GST) at the Rajya Sabha. Shah was quoted saying: "A pakora seller is earning a living, not begging, who knows his next generation might rise to be a leader, after all, a tea seller has today become a Prime Minister." Congress MP Ranjeet Ranjan hit back at this remark and said: "It is very unfortunate that our country's youth who are talented and educated in various professions are sitting unemployed, and the ruling party is telling them to go and sell pakodas." "Never has any ruling party in the past made such a despicable and disgraceful remark," he added. In a recent interview to a news channel last month, the Prime Minister had said a person selling "pakoda" outside and earning Rs 200 a day should also be considered as "employed". Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah on Monday hit out at the Congress for being unable to address the issue of unemployment. While addressing his maiden speech as the member of Rajya Sabha, Shah said that the Congress ruled the nation for a decade but failed to tackle the issue of unemployment.

Chhattisgarh: Congress organises 'pakora' protest, names 'pakoras' after Jaitley, Raman Singh

Former Maharashtra Chief Minister and state party unit chief Ashok Chavan noted that the Congress will join hands with &quot;like-minded&quot; parties in Maharashtra to take on the ruling BJP.

Chavan spoke at a party meeting which was attended by senior Congress leaders of the state.

&quot;The prevailing social situation in Maharashtra, the political situation and the fight against the government in future was discussed at the meeting,&quot; Chavan said.

&quot;The problems currently plaguing the state, the prevailing political situation and the upcoming Budget session of the Maharashtra Legislature were discussed at the meeting,&quot; Chavan added.

Chavan noted that the Congress and the National Congress Party (NCP) have decided to put up a fight on issues like &quot;deteriorating condition of farmers in the state, issues being faced by middle class and rising dictatorship like the attitude of the BJP-led government&quot;.&nbsp;

In a separate meeting, Congress and NCP leaders met at the official residence of Leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil in South Mumbai.

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

 
&nbsp;

Chavan spoke at a party meeting which was attended by senior Congress leaders of the state

Former Maharashtra Chief Minister and state party unit chief Ashok Chavan noted that the Congress will join hands with "like-minded" parties in Maharashtra to take on the ruling BJP. Chavan spoke at a party meeting which was attended by senior Congress leaders of the state. "The prevailing social situation in Maharashtra, the political situation and the fight against the government in future was discussed at the meeting," Chavan said. "The problems currently plaguing the state, the prevailing political situation and the upcoming Budget session of the Maharashtra Legislature were discussed at the meeting," Chavan added. Chavan noted that the Congress and the National Congress Party (NCP) have decided to put up a fight on issues like "deteriorating condition of farmers in the state, issues being faced by middle class and rising dictatorship like the attitude of the BJP-led government". In a separate meeting, Congress and NCP leaders met at the official residence of Leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil in South Mumbai. (With inputs from agencies)

Congress to join hands with 'like-minded' parties to fight BJP in Maharashtra: Ashok Chavan

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had coined the acronym &quot;TOP&quot; in Karnataka yesterday.&nbsp;

&quot;Farmers producing fruits and vegetables are our &#39;TOP&#39; priority. TOP&nbsp;means &#39;Tomato, Onion and Potato&#39;,&quot; Modi had said.&nbsp;&nbsp;

To which, Congress President Rahul Gandhi&#39;s aide Divya Spandana retorted: &quot;Is this what happens when you&#39;re on POT?&quot;&nbsp;

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Is this what happens when you&rsquo;re on POT? <a href="https://t.co/fwSATJoQoP">pic.twitter.com/fwSATJoQoP</a>
&mdash; Divya Spandana/Ramya (@divyaspandana) <a href="https://twitter.com/divyaspandana/status/960130115630854144?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2018</a></blockquote>
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The BJP was quick to take offence. (Pot is another word for marijuana.)&nbsp;

&quot;Will Rahul Gandhi maintain silence on Divya Spandana&rsquo;s comment while he sacked Mani Shankar Aiyar just because his jibe came close to Gujarat election and Karnataka is still some months away? Or sacrificing his close aide, responsible for his rise as a leader, takes some courage?&quot; Amit Malviya, the head of the BJP&#39;s IT cell, tweeted.&nbsp;

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Will Rahul Gandhi maintain silence on Divya Spandana&rsquo;s comment while he sacked Mani Shankar Aiyar just because his jibe came close to Gujarat election and Karnataka is still some months away? Or sacrificing his close aide, responsible for his rise as a leader, takes some courage?
&mdash; Amit Malviya (@malviyamit) <a href="https://twitter.com/malviyamit/status/960164205717581824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2018</a></blockquote>
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To which Spandana aka the actress Ramya retorted again that Malviya had not tagged her because he did not want people watching the videos she has of PM Modi on her timeline.&nbsp;

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You didn&rsquo;t want to tag me cos you didn&rsquo;t want people to watch the Modi video pinned on my timeline? Come on! Be a sport- 
And hey, POT = Potato ???? Onion Tomato ???? what were you thinking? ???? <a href="https://t.co/zOEthGQry8">https://t.co/zOEthGQry8</a>
&mdash; Divya Spandana/Ramya (@divyaspandana) <a href="https://twitter.com/divyaspandana/status/960178968853753856?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Spandana also added that &quot;hey, POT = Potato, Onion, Tomato, what were you thinking?&quot;&nbsp;&nbsp;

But Malviya was having none of that.&nbsp;

&quot;In Karnataka, more than 3,500 farmers have committed suicide under @siddaramaiah&rsquo;s watch, highest for any state in India but speaking for them is being on &lsquo;POT&rsquo;... Congress keeps it classy, again...&quot;&nbsp; he tweeted.&nbsp;

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In Karnataka, more than 3,500 farmers have committed suicide under <a href="https://twitter.com/siddaramaiah?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@siddaramaiah</a>&rsquo;s watch, highest for any state in India but speaking for them is being on &lsquo;POT&rsquo;... Congress keeps it classy, again... <a href="https://t.co/CywRWps9Qq">pic.twitter.com/CywRWps9Qq</a>
&mdash; Amit Malviya (@malviyamit) <a href="https://twitter.com/malviyamit/status/960140204370776064?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2018</a></blockquote>
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The internet however decided to see the fun side of it all.&nbsp;

Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah jumped onto the bandwagon, saying he would have &quot;POT for lunch&quot;:&nbsp;

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I think I&rsquo;ll have POT for lunch today.
&mdash; Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) <a href="https://twitter.com/OmarAbdullah/status/960334134760693760?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
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And others soon followed:&nbsp;

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Pic 1: TOP coach 
Pic 2: POT coach <a href="https://t.co/MGqRMzZdOv">pic.twitter.com/MGqRMzZdOv</a>
&mdash; Prity Singh (@pritsi2101) <a href="https://twitter.com/pritsi2101/status/960369868888457216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
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TOP for breakfast. POT for evening snacks.
&mdash; Tarique Anwer (@tanwer_m) <a href="https://twitter.com/tanwer_m/status/960388656526655488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

'Farmers producing fruits and vegetables are our 'TOP' priority. TOP means 'Tomato, Onion and Potato',' Modi had said Sunday in Karnataka

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had coined the acronym "TOP" in Karnataka yesterday. "Farmers producing fruits and vegetables are our 'TOP' priority. TOP means 'Tomato, Onion and Potato'," Modi had said. To which, Congress President Rahul Gandhi's aide Divya Spandana retorted: "Is this what happens when you're on POT?" Is this what happens when you’re on POT? pic.twitter.com/fwSATJoQoP — Divya Spandana/Ramya (@divyaspandana) February 4, 2018 × The BJP was quick to take offence. (Pot is another word for marijuana.) "Will Rahul Gandhi maintain silence on Divya Spandana’s comment while he sacked Mani Shankar Aiyar just because his jibe came close to Gujarat election and Karnataka is still some months away? Or sacrificing his close aide, responsible for his rise as a leader, takes some courage?" Amit Malviya, the head of the BJP's IT cell, tweeted. Will Rahul Gandhi maintain silence on Divya Spandana’s comment while he sacked Mani Shankar Aiyar just because his jibe came close to Gujarat election and Karnataka is still some months away? Or sacrificing his close aide, responsible for his rise as a leader, takes some courage? — Amit Malviya (@malviyamit) February 4, 2018 × To which Spandana aka the actress Ramya retorted again that Malviya had not tagged her because he did not want people watching the videos she has of PM Modi on her timeline. You didn’t want to tag me cos you didn’t want people to watch the Modi video pinned on my timeline? Come on! Be a sport- And hey, POT = Potato ???? Onion Tomato ???? what were you thinking? ???? https://t.co/zOEthGQry8 — Divya Spandana/Ramya (@divyaspandana) February 4, 2018 × Spandana also added that "hey, POT = Potato, Onion, Tomato, what were you thinking?" But Malviya was having none of that. "In Karnataka, more than 3,500 farmers have committed suicide under @siddaramaiah’s watch, highest for any state in India but speaking for them is being on ‘POT’... Congress keeps it classy, again..." he tweeted. In Karnataka, more than 3,500 farmers have committed suicide under @siddaramaiah’s watch, highest for any state in India but speaking for them is being on ‘POT’... Congress keeps it classy, again... pic.twitter.com/CywRWps9Qq — Amit Malviya (@malviyamit) February 4, 2018 × The internet however decided to see the fun side of it all. Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah jumped onto the bandwagon, saying he would have "POT for lunch": I think I’ll have POT for lunch today. — Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) February 5, 2018 × And others soon followed: Pic 1: TOP coach Pic 2: POT coach pic.twitter.com/MGqRMzZdOv — Prity Singh (@pritsi2101) February 5, 2018 × TOP for breakfast. POT for evening snacks. — Tarique Anwer (@tanwer_m) February 5, 2018 ×

Modi says TOP, Congress says POT, parties fight, Twitter laughs

Congress is standing at the exit gate in Karnataka. It has caused destruction here and Karnataka doesn&#39;t need a Congress culture, &nbsp;said Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing a major rally on Sunday in bengaluru ahead of the upcoming Karnataka assembly elections.&nbsp;

&#39;&#39;Your enthusiasm shows that the countdown of Congress to make an exit has begun,&#39;&#39; Modi added.&nbsp;

The recent budget has solved one problem of Karnataka. with an investment of 17,000 crores, construction work of 160 km long sub-urban railway network will be started in Bengaluru, Modi said and added that 15 lakh commuters of the city will be benefited by it.&nbsp;

The government has set a goal to build more than 9,000 kms long National Highway across the nation this year, he said and added that under Bharatmala Pariyojana, 35,000 km of roads will be constructed with an investment of Rs 5,25,000.&nbsp;

There will be chaos in Bengaluru if it doesn&#39;t get electricity for a day. However, there are 7 lakhs homes in Karnataka &amp; 4 crores homes in the nation which lives in dark even after so many years of independence: PM Modi in Bengaluru.

Modi also slammed the Karnataka government and accused the state government of not using the extra fund provided by the Centre.&nbsp;

&#39;&#39;I want to ask you if you have seen the correct use and impact of extra money provided by the Center to the state government,&#39;&#39; PM said.&nbsp;

Modi also praised BJP&#39;s chief ministerial candidate B S Yeddyurappa and said that if he comes to power the projects for farmers will work at its best because he has farmer&#39;s best interest at heart.&nbsp;

&#39;&#39;In this budget, the government has made a significant decision so that correct price of crops is given to farmers. If Yeddyurappa, son of a farmer, becomes CM of Karnataka, the projects for farmers will work at its best because Yeddyurappa has farmer&#39;s best interest at heart,&#39;&#39; Modi said.&nbsp;

Modi also praised BJP's chief ministerial candidate B S Yeddyurappa and said that if he comes to power the projects for farmers will work at its best because he has farmer's best interest at heart.

Congress is standing at the exit gate in Karnataka. It has caused destruction here and Karnataka doesn't need a Congress culture, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing a major rally on Sunday in bengaluru ahead of the upcoming Karnataka assembly elections. ''Your enthusiasm shows that the countdown of Congress to make an exit has begun,'' Modi added. The recent budget has solved one problem of Karnataka. with an investment of 17,000 crores, construction work of 160 km long sub-urban railway network will be started in Bengaluru, Modi said and added that 15 lakh commuters of the city will be benefited by it. The government has set a goal to build more than 9,000 kms long National Highway across the nation this year, he said and added that under Bharatmala Pariyojana, 35,000 km of roads will be constructed with an investment of Rs 5,25,000. There will be chaos in Bengaluru if it doesn't get electricity for a day. However, there are 7 lakhs homes in Karnataka & 4 crores homes in the nation which lives in dark even after so many years of independence: PM Modi in Bengaluru. Modi also slammed the Karnataka government and accused the state government of not using the extra fund provided by the Centre. ''I want to ask you if you have seen the correct use and impact of extra money provided by the Center to the state government,'' PM said. Modi also praised BJP's chief ministerial candidate B S Yeddyurappa and said that if he comes to power the projects for farmers will work at its best because he has farmer's best interest at heart. ''In this budget, the government has made a significant decision so that correct price of crops is given to farmers. If Yeddyurappa, son of a farmer, becomes CM of Karnataka, the projects for farmers will work at its best because Yeddyurappa has farmer's best interest at heart,'' Modi said.

Congress is standing at 'exit gate' in Karnataka: Modi

Rahul Gandhi&#39;s temple visits of late were not merely for &quot;demonstration effect&quot; but underline the fact that what was being done quietly in the past is now done openly, senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has said.

&quot;Many many Hindus, certainly my generation, grew up as believing and practising Hindus but never showed it outside as they didn&#39;t feel like doing so,&quot; the Lok Sabha member told PTI in an interview during the recently-concluded Jaipur Literature Festival here.

&quot;In those days, religion was seen as an intensely personal matter you practice what you like you don&#39;t have to show the outside world. And in any case, your religion had nothing to do with political affiliation; that was the assumption,&quot; the 61-year-old leader said.

However, Tharoor said now Hinduism and religion have been made the front and centre in the politics of the BJP and those supporting that are openly saying that they are the only good Hindus and everybody else is bad.

&quot;Why should we cede this narrative to them? To my mind, we may as well show publicly what we have been doing privately. This is not in my view merely for demonstration effect or appearances. It is merely that what used to be done quietly in the past is being done openly now,&quot; he said when asked about Gandhi&#39;s visits to temples during the Gujarat polls campaign. 
 
Tharoor also said he feels that Gandhi was symbolising a change in the Congress.

Noting that the Congress had performed well in Gujarat due to the effectiveness of Gandhi&#39;s campaign, he said that the Congress now has an &quot;energetic leader&quot; who does not hesitate to use wit and humour in a relaxed style, which in the past, was not associated with the party leadership.

&quot;So, when Gandhi issues a tweet after Donald Trump makes a pro-Pakistan statement, some ask what is this but many say &#39;what a refreshing style, let&#39;s listen to this guy&#39;. So in many ways I would say, our politics is changing and Rahul Gandhi is leading and symbolising that change,&quot; he said.

Tharoor also said that the Congress stands a good chance in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.

&quot;In fact, we are getting more and more rumours that the government may advance the elections because it thinks it would lose the elections if these are held in March-April 2019 due to the momentum the Congress is clearly beginning to get,&quot; he claimed.

He also termed the controversy of the film &#39;Padmaavat&#39; as very unfortunate.

&quot;The classical principle of freedom of expression is fundamental to any democracy. If you don&#39;t like what I have written in my book, don&#39;t read my book. If you don&#39;t like a film, don&#39;t watch it,&quot; Tharoor said. 
&quot;At the worst, you can even encourage others to boycott it. But you have no right to threaten violence, least of all to conduct violence,&quot; the MP from Thiruvananthapuram said.

However, Tharoor said now Hinduism and religion have been made the front and centre in the politics of the BJP and those supporting that are openly saying that they are the only good Hindus and everybody else is bad

Rahul Gandhi's temple visits of late were not merely for "demonstration effect" but underline the fact that what was being done quietly in the past is now done openly, senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has said. "Many many Hindus, certainly my generation, grew up as believing and practising Hindus but never showed it outside as they didn't feel like doing so," the Lok Sabha member told PTI in an interview during the recently-concluded Jaipur Literature Festival here. "In those days, religion was seen as an intensely personal matter you practice what you like you don't have to show the outside world. And in any case, your religion had nothing to do with political affiliation; that was the assumption," the 61-year-old leader said. However, Tharoor said now Hinduism and religion have been made the front and centre in the politics of the BJP and those supporting that are openly saying that they are the only good Hindus and everybody else is bad. "Why should we cede this narrative to them? To my mind, we may as well show publicly what we have been doing privately. This is not in my view merely for demonstration effect or appearances. It is merely that what used to be done quietly in the past is being done openly now," he said when asked about Gandhi's visits to temples during the Gujarat polls campaign. Tharoor also said he feels that Gandhi was symbolising a change in the Congress. Noting that the Congress had performed well in Gujarat due to the effectiveness of Gandhi's campaign, he said that the Congress now has an "energetic leader" who does not hesitate to use wit and humour in a relaxed style, which in the past, was not associated with the party leadership. "So, when Gandhi issues a tweet after Donald Trump makes a pro-Pakistan statement, some ask what is this but many say 'what a refreshing style, let's listen to this guy'. So in many ways I would say, our politics is changing and Rahul Gandhi is leading and symbolising that change," he said. Tharoor also said that the Congress stands a good chance in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. "In fact, we are getting more and more rumours that the government may advance the elections because it thinks it would lose the elections if these are held in March-April 2019 due to the momentum the Congress is clearly beginning to get," he claimed. He also termed the controversy of the film 'Padmaavat' as very unfortunate. "The classical principle of freedom of expression is fundamental to any democracy. If you don't like what I have written in my book, don't read my book. If you don't like a film, don't watch it," Tharoor said. "At the worst, you can even encourage others to boycott it. But you have no right to threaten violence, least of all to conduct violence," the MP from Thiruvananthapuram said.

Rahul's temple visits not for 'demonstration effect': Tharoor

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