American airstrikes in Yemen killed a top al-Qaeda leader responsible for the deadly USS Cole bombing in 2000 in which 17 US sailors had lost their lives, the Pentagon said.
Seventeen American sailors were killed and at least 40 others injured in the terrorist attack on the US Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Cole on October 12, 2000, while it was being refuelled in Yemen’s Aden harbour.
Jamal al-Badawi, a “legacy al-Qaeda operative in Yemen” involved in the USS Cole bombing, was wanted by the US for his role in the attack.
Spokesman of the US Central Command Capt Bill Urban said: “Jamal al-Badawi was killed in a precision strike in Marib governate on January 1”.
“US forces confirmed the results of the strike following a deliberate assessment process,” Urban said.
President Donald Trump praised the US military for “delivering justice for the heroes lost and wounded in the cowardly attack on the USS Cole”.
“We have just killed the leader of that attack, Jamal al-Badawi. Our work against al-Qaeda continues. We will never stop in our fight against Radical Islamic Terrorism!” the president said.
Badawi was indicted by a federal grand jury in 2003, charged with 50 counts of various terrorism offenses, including murder of US nationals and murder of US military personnel.
Badawi was also charged with attempting with co-conspirators to attack a US Navy vessel in January 2000.
With both the Maharashtra Assembly and General Elections approaching closer and amidst the visit of Amit Shah and CM Fadnavis, Latur BJP gets splitted over the rumoured intimation of seat selling. Formerly known as a Congress stronghold, the constituency that got attracted towards BJP with the then Modi-wave, now marking the saffron party being divided into two groups — one who believes in the rumours and the other which evaluates that the rumours are being spread by the most inefficient and non-performing cadres to seek attention of the high commands. While it seems, even in the context of party’s declining vote share and fading popularity in recently released assembly poll results in five major states, neither of the party members are ready to settle in saving the larger perspective of their party.
On the condition of anonymity, a veteran BJP Osmanabad leader asserted, “Nothing is new about this news. BJP is in image-building mode right now; rather, they are known for selling and bargaining seats for their own benefits. National development and vision are for namesake and name one political party that’s clean!”
He later added, “Everyone does politics for the money, so do the BJP. Most of the candidates right now in BJP are taken from the corrupt Congress and the NCP; thus, practices are similar.”
Maharashtra will vote for Lok Sabha elections in three phases and the polling dates are April 10, 17, and 24. Prime Minister Modi will informally launch BJP’s election campaign in Maharashtra by addressing a rally in Solapur on January 9. While both the regional and national political parties are launching themselves into the election campaigning mode, the entire saga of rumours around BJP selling its seats in Latur took a viral turn after a few news media houses released their survey reports on possible BJP leaders (candidates) not getting tickets in the upcoming polls owing to their inefficiency and non-performing records. The list included: Jalgaon MP AT Nana Patil, Anil Shirole, Ahmednagar MP Dilip Gandhi, Nandurbar MP Heena Gavit, MP Kirit Somaiya, MP Poonam Mahajan, Raksha Khadse, Wardha MP Ramdas Tadas, Solapur MP Sharad Bansode, the Union Minister of State for Defence and Dhule MP Subhash Bhamre, and BJP Latur MP Sunil Kumar Gaikwad.
This smacked BJP when allegedly its own members in the disappointment of losing candidature started spreading rumours that the visit of Amit Shah in Latur is to enquire about the allegations of seats being sold to others. In such a crucial period of the election year, this would surely be a cause of worry for the party’s national leadership.
Amin Tamboli, Ek Tera Saath (NGO) President said, “Latur is such a belt which has been Congress’s fort for long, but no development has taken place so far. The people have been swayed by the Modi wave and selected BJP candidates. However, even they haven’t delivered anything so far as the biggest of the problems — the water crisis — still persists. There are instances of ticket-selling for the seats of MPs and MLAs. The parties look for powerful and affluent people and sell them the tickets. It’s not justified to blame the media as the media knows their job well.”
The accusations of rumour mongering mostly targeted MP Sunil Gaikwad. At the time when a large part of his own constituency people considers him inefficient and corrupt, Gaikwad spoke to AV and expressed, “I am least bothered about the rumours around; the rumours have not shattered me much and rather it came to me as a surprise! My only focus is on the election campaigning and was also on receiving Amit Shah in Latur. I believe in my dedication and hard work and I have full faith in my leadership.”
The anticipated BJP members who are in the queue for the Latur seat are Sudhakar Bhalerao, Dr. Anil Kamble, Sanjay Deorole, Dr. Sunil Gaikwad, and Sudhakar Singheria; among them, the first four names are considered the top contenders. Shah’s visit to Latur holds high significance and is worth noticing as the party President has met all the intellectuals and party workers to take feedback from Lok Sabha in-charges. BJP wants to leave no stone unturned for 2019 to repeat the mandate in their favour as in 2014. However, its own cadre using the same platform to defame the party looks unfortunate!
When our Editor spoke to Latur Zilla Parishad Vice President (BJP) Ramchandra Tiruke, he said, “Seat selling or seat bartering never happens in BJP and will never happen in future. The candidates are selected on their merits and if they fail to perform, the party gives the chance to other deserving candidates. If some insecure MPs are spreading rumour out of frustration, that’s not good for the party. At the same time, it shows how much loyal the cadre is.”
“BJP is not a party that was formed overnight by one member. This is a national party with collective efforts. Thousands of cadres are working day and night to save the party’s vision. Amit Shah’s visit to Latur is a routine meet ahead of the 2019 polls. He is meeting four LS constituencies and is here to educate the BJP workers towards connecting with the voters to make 2019 polls successful for the party. Unfortunately, this is translated wrongly,” he further added.
When asked on how to deal with these rumour mongers within the party, Tiruke replied, ‘Ignoring them is the only way’. He also said, “If the entire drill is to attract attention and if that is not given, they will understand such stunts won’t work. Moreover, one who is spreading rumours is the most vitiating person who has the least respect for the party and for his own position.”
On the other hand, Congress, which is in its comeback form, is going to launch actor and producer Riteish Deshmukh from his hometown in Latur constituency. Marking a huge transition from a Bollywood hero to a politician, Riteish, son of former Maharashtra Chief Minister late Vilasrao Deshmukh and younger brother of Congress Latur MLA Amit Deshmukh, is eyeing to win back the once stronghold seat for the party.
Journalist Satish Tadale stated, “If the parties start selling their seats, especially if it’s the ruling party, it is harmful to the democracy. The BJP was elected because the people wanted a change and an incorrupt government. Before commenting on the media, the Latur politician should also consider that he himself was a part of the media industry.”
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Amidst Shah and CM Fadnavis’ visit to Latur, the local BJP is rattled over the rumoured news of seat selling. The BJP workers are divided into two groups — one believes that the news is true and the other considers the rumour is set by the most inefficient and non-performing cadres to seek the attention of the high commands. However, none of them is ready to settle in for the larger perspectives of the party.
As we all know, Maharashtra will vote for Lok Sabha elections in three phases. The polling dates are April 10, 17, and 24. The time is just flying; so, the party high commands are making their trips to the State with the agenda of reaching to the masses. After Shah, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will blow election bugle from Latur to feel the pulse of people and the party workers for the crucial 2019 Lok Sabha polls. In such a climacteric moment, the nuisance created by its own worker, should not impact the party’s prospects. The divide in BJP on the local level is not good for the party because the leaders and the cadres should understand the fact that it’s not easy for the party to keep everyone happy all the time; one has to gain and the other one has to take that decision of the party in a positive note. By spreading the gossips on groups and media, the member who is creating a bad impression of BJP, won’t be spared and respected in future.
There are seven candidates and some of them are Sudhakar Bhalerao, Dr. Anil Kamble, Sudhakar Singheria, Dr. Sunil Gaikwad, and Sanjay Deorole; one of them have the possibility of getting that seat but that does not mean that the others, who could not make it, should engage in gossipmongering against BJP. Right now, the top contenders in the race are Sudhakar Bhalerao, Dr. Anil Kamble, Sanjay Deorole, and Dr. Sunil Gaikwad. These all four candidates have their share of achievements and strength here. Who will get the ticket solely depends on the BJP heads and that only time will declare. However, at this moment, the Shah-Devendra meet assumes significance as the BJP would be using the social media platforms to “aggressively” counter the Opposition’s propaganda against it. Shah met all the intellectuals and the party workers to take feedback from Lok Sabha in-charges. For 2019, BJP does not want to leave any stone unturned; as in 2014, the region had a smooth mandate by a huge margin. The irony is that the leaders of the party are aggressively using the same platform to defame its own party.
Well, this is one side of the story! If you look at the other side, BJP has tried to cover up the entire saga putting the blame on the news media and victimising some of its workers. Although the fact is that BJP is known for horse-trading and bargaining the seats for funds. That is the reason BJP has the richest members than the meritorious ones.
Following the preparations for the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections, BJP’s National President Amit Shah met dozens of ministers. Accordingly, this campaign has been preparing for the last eight days and the whole city looked saffron. Dr. Sunil Gaikwad, Dattatray Gunderao Bansode, Deepak Arvind Kamble, Deepratna Prabhakarrao Nilangekar, Sudhir Shripatrao Shinde were the stalwarts of the day. This was Amit Shah’s first-time visit to Latur. Shah was kept in a private three-star hotel; there was a special menu of local cuisine for his lunch and he was available to all the office bearers for the meeting. In a short time, Shah made his Shahi (lavish) visit and that was worth noticing. He could motivate the many and mend the maximum. Shah is known for his skills of convincing or you may say imposing. Overall, the rumours did not make much difference in his agenda, but he got cautioned about the vendetta. Though the meeting with the core group was very much prospective while booth-level workers were very much enthusiastic; they were preparing from the last 10 days for this meeting. There were party workers from Latur, Osmanabad, Hingoli, and Nanded districts on the preceding upcoming Lok Sabha elections. At the evening at Dayanand hall, Amit Shah and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis interacted directly with the dignitaries from all the sectors of the industries, in a separate meeting on who can play a key role in fund fetching. The campaign was organised in the district as per the Lok Sabha constituency and the Sixth Vidhan Sabha constituency, and the party has taken the initiative to win all the constituencies of the Congress. Latur was a Congress bastion which was taken over by BJP in 2014.
On the other hand, Congress believes that the BJP’s growing dominance in their stronghold Latur is a “temporary phase”. People of Latur will now judge BJP’s performance as it has won the Zilla Parishad (ZP) for the first time in 30 years and the Municipal Corporation after 10 years. Vilasrao Deshmukh too had lost an Assembly election from Latur once. However, he was elected again later. Recently, BJP has lost four crucial states. Congress is making its comeback; at such juncture, such rift in BJP can dent the party panoramas. If you look at the Municipal level, BJP doesn’t have its own candidates. Congress’s presence on root level cannot be ignored. Amit Deshmukh is an MLA from Latur and the other brother, Riteish, is a Bollywood actor. He will ensure that the Congress gets the highest number of seats in Latur district. Riteish Deshmukh, who has made his presence felt through his acting in several mainstream Bollywood movies, is now gearing up to add another feather to his cap. The actor is all set to venture into full-time politics by campaigning for the 2019 Lok Sabha general election’s reserved candidate of Congress. He has joined the Congress party and will be contesting the elections on its ticket. For the uninitiated, Riteish’s father, late Vilasrao Deshmukh was the Chief Minister of Maharashtra. Off late, the actor had started retweeting a lot of tweets from the official handle of Congress party President Rahul Gandhi. Riteish, who comes from a political family, is not new to the rigmarole of the elections and recently, he even helped his younger brother Dhiraj Deshmukh in his election campaign for Latur Legislative Council. Indian National Congress is aiming to project Riteish as the party’s campaign candidate for the next elections since he is highly popular in Maharashtra as an actor as well as the son of Vilasrao Deshmukh.
This time, BJP Vs Deshmukh of Congress would be an interesting battle altogether. Let’s see who makes it to the power corridors.
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Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday hit back at Congress President Rahul Gandhi after he accused her of lying in Parliament about procurement orders worth Rs 1 lakh crore for state-run aerospace major Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
In her counter offensive, Sitharaman said it was a matter of “shame” that the Congress president was misleading the country on the issue. She also tweeted details of contract awarded to HAL since 2014 when the BJP came to power.
“It’s a shame that the president of @INCIndia is misleading the nation. HAL has signed contracts worth Rs 26570.8 Cr (Between 2014 and 2018) and contracts worth Rs 73000 Cr are in the pipeline. Will @RahulGandhi apologise to the country from the floor of the house?” the Defence Minister tweeted.
Earlier, Gandhi alleged that she “lied” in Parliament that government orders worth Rs one lakh crore were provided to HAL, while demanding that she should either place the documents in support of her statement in the House or resign.
Gandhi’s attack came after a media report claimed that “not a single rupee of the said Rs 1 lakh crore has come to HAL, since not a single order, as claimed, has been signed till now”.
The media report cited senior HAL management officials in order to back its claim.
The Congress has been targeting the government, alleging that it denied the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) an offset contract under the Rafale fighter jets deal with France, a charge the government has denied.
The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government has accused the Congress of not supporting HAL during its rule and asserted that the government is now strengthening the defence public sector undertaking.
It’s a shame that the president of @INCIndia is misleading the nation.
HAL has signed contracts worth Rs 26570.8 Cr (Between 2014 and 2018) and contracts worth Rs 73000 Cr are in the pipeline.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav Sunday said that details of seat sharing with Mayawati’s BSP may be announced in a week, but kept cards close to his chest on the possibility of having any ties with the Congress.
The Samajwadi Party and the BSP have decided to fight the upcoming national elections together and have already worked out a seat sharing arrangement to take on the BJP, which along with its allies won 73 seats from the state in 2014.
“You will come to know about it (alliance) in a week or so,” Yadav said when asked as to when an official announcement will be made.
On the possibility of the Congress joining the alliance, Yadav said, “The two leaders of the ‘gathbandhan’ have to decide whether Congress will be there or not.”
Yadav declined to elaborate further, leaving the opposition parties guessing on whether the Congress will be accommodated.
Yadav had recently expressed displeasure against the Congress for not including its lone MLA in the new Madhya Pradesh ministry headed by Kamal Nath.
BSP leader Mayawati too has said it may withdraw its support to the Congress in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan if the cases against Dalits lodged during a protest last year are not withdrawn.
The SP and the BSP have, however, decided not to field candidates in Amethi and Raebareli, the Lok Sabha constituencies of Congress president Rahul Gandhi and UPA chief Sonia Gandhi.
Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), which has a presence in western UP, has also been accommodated in the alliance.
The politically crucial Uttar Pradesh sends 80 lawmakers to the Lok Sabha. The ruling BJP has dubbed the development as “opportunistic” and “anti-people”.
By joining hands, the opposition parties had defeated the BJP in three Lok Sabha bypolls in the state last year, the first show of strength after the 2017 Assembly elections which saw the saffron party storm to power in the state after a 14-year hiatus.
In the last parliamentary elections in 2014, the BJP won 71 seats in the state, securing 42.63 per cent of the votes. BJP ally Apna Dal bagged two more.
The Samajwadi Party had won five seats with a vote share of 22.35 per cent. The BSP did not win any seat while securing 19.77 per cent votes.
The Congress had registered wins in two seats, bagging 7.53 per cent of the votes.
An inter-department panel formed to look into the modalities of farm loan waiver in Rajasthan has decided to recommend Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot to waive all loans of farmers who have committed suicide.
The decision was taken at the first meeting of the committee chaired by Urban Development Minister Shanti Dhariwal on Saturday.
“The committee will recommend to the chief minister that agriculture loans of farmers who have committed suicide should be waived off totally be it from any bank and any amount,” Industries Minister Parsadi Lal Meena, a members of the committee, said.
He said that the decision will be taken at the level of the chief minister.
Meena said there were more than 70 farmers who have committed suicide in the state.
After forming government, Gehlot had announced to waive entire short term agriculture loan from cooperative banks and agriculture loans of up to Rs 2 lakh from nationalised and other banks for defaulting farmers on December 19.
The committee was later setup to decide the modalities of the farm loan waiver.
Next meeting of the committee is scheduled to be held on January 10.
A Dubai-bound Air Express flight from the city carrying 186 persons on board landed back under emergency conditions on Sunday after being airborne for over an hour due to a “hydraulic” failure, a source said.
“There was no harm to any passenger. The Boeing 737-800 plane landed safely at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport,” he said.
Air India spokesperson, however, was not available for comments.
“Full emergency was declared at 14.28 am for Air India Express flight AI 247 operating on the Mumbai-Dubai route following the pilot seeking a diversion back to the city due to hydraulic failure,” said the source.
The B737 plane had departed from Mumbai around 2 pm. The aircraft, which had 186 persons on board, landed safely back around 3 pm, the source said.
Farmers across the country under the aegis of the Left peasant wings would join the two-day nationwide general strike on January 8 and 9 called by central trade unions against the alleged repressive policies for workers adopted by the Narendra Modi-led BJP government.
“AIKS and Bhumi Adhikar Andolan will observe ‘gramin hartal’, rail roko and road roko on January 8 and 9, the day trade unions are observing nationwide general strike. This move is against the Modi government’s failure to address rural distress issues, to save rural farmers’ lands from the corporates. The farmers will extend all support to the ensuing general strike,” said Hannan Mollah, general secretary of the CPI(M)-affiliated All India Kisan Sabha.
Atul Kumar Anjaan of the CPI’s peasant wing said that the action committee of farmers in their meeting decided that when the workers, employees and common people are protesting against the Modi government’s policies, the farmers will also join them.
“The farmers will join road jam, demonstration, protest meetings throughout the country to make the nationwide strike a success and register their disenchantment with PM Narendra Modi and his policies,” said Anjaan.
Sen alleged that the proposed Trade Union (Amendment) Bill 2018 as cleared by the Cabinet is designed to impose conditions of slavery on the working people and totally abrogate trade union rights.
“It is not merely labour reform, it is an all-out degeneration in the life of productive people in the whole economy,” Sen said.
He alleged that under the regime of the Modi government a repressive atmosphere has been created for working class people.
“It is just not distress and destitution, there is an altogether a repressive atmosphere creating in the total uncertainty in the world of works,” Sen alleged.
He was also critical on the Modi government’s move to purchase rail locomotive and coaches from foreign company.
“Our movement is getting stronger every year. This is the 18th nationwide general strike against the government’s anti-worker policies. The main aim of our 12-point charter of demands is to revive the country’s economy, save the rights of working class,” Sen added.
Ten trade unions who have jointly called for the nationwide general strike are INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, AICCTU, UTUC, TUCC, LPF and SEWA.
Yuvraj Singh may be past that his prime but the veteran all-rounder on Sunday said he would give his “best shot” to get into the reckoning for the upcoming World Cup.
“Cricket has given me everything. When I leave the game, I want to be at my best. I do not want to go with any regret,” the 2011 World Cup winning hero, who is here for Punjab’s Ranji Trophy Elite Group B match against Bengal, said.
The 37-year-old, who was picked by Mumbai Indians for his base price of Rs 1 crore at the IPL auctions, has set his sights on the T20 extravaganza to make a bid for a comeback.
“I’m trying my best. This is our final league Ranji Trophy match and let’s see if we can qualify. After this, we have the national T20 tournament and then we have the IPL. I will give my best shot and hope for the best,” Yuvraj said at the Jadavpur University Salt Lake Campus ground.
Yuvraj hailed the Virat Kohli-led India’s fine show in the Test series in Australia.
“Obviously their experience in batting is not that much what it used to be. But it’s fantastic effort from the guys. Especially, (Cheteshwar) Pujara, (Virat) Kohli, (Jasprit) Bumrah. It’s great to see Rishab (Pant) going down the order and scoring big runs. It’s great sign for Indian cricket for the future.
“Every time we toured Australia, it’s been a very tough tour. We had the opportunity to win the series, it was a draw. Then next time Australia won 2-1,” he said, recalling the 2003-04 and 2007-08 tours.
Yuvraj lavished praise on Pant who scored a Test hundred each in England and Australia within months from his debut.
“He came last year, he got picked for India. Everybody said he plays too many shots, he’s rash, he doesn’t have the mind. But after one year of being in and out, having a good IPL, the guy scored two hundreds overseas,” Yuvraj said.
In the same vein, Yuvraj reckoned that his 19-year-old state teammate, Shubman Gill, is an exciting prospect and should play for India post the 2019 World Cup.
“Definitely he’s someone who can represent India for a long time. He’s a very special talent. After a long time I have seen a young guy whose batting I would like to watch. After 2019 World Cup, he should make it to the side.”
“We have a very talented side. But I feel there is a lack of exposure in terms of playing outside. The more cricket you play outside in terms of playing in Chennai, Bangalore, Delhi, Hyderabad, your cricket will get better,” Yuvraj concluded.
A 14-year-old Nepalese boy was reunited in Maharashtra’s Raigad district with his family as part of the police’s Operation Muskaan initiative, an official said on Sunday.
The boy, identified as Siraj Mumtaj Ali Shaikh, a resident of Sinamangal in Kathmandu, had left that country on January 1 and had landed in Maharashtra and was spotted on Friday by railway police at Roha station, over 120 kilometres from here, the official said.
The teen told police his name and address and a mobile number belonging to his uncle, Maulana Haroon Shaikh, was also found in his luggage, he said.
On being contacted, Shaikh told police about Siraj’s disappearance from Tuesday and added that the teen’s elder brother Sarfaraz, who was staying in Satara, would come here to take him back.
The siblings were united on Saturday following which the runaway teen left for his native country, the official informed.
Operation Muskaan is an initiative of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs to rescue and rehabilitate missing children.
Under the project, the Government Railway Police and Railway Protection Force are required to provide care and protection to children found in trains and railway premises.
American airstrikes in Yemen killed a top al-Qaeda leader responsible for the deadly USS Cole bombing in 2000 in which 17 US sailors had lost their lives, the Pentagon said.
With both the Maharashtra Assembly and General Elections approaching closer and amidst the visit of Amit Shah and CM Fadnavis, Latur BJP gets splitted over the rumoured intimation of seat selling. Formerly known as a Congress stronghold, the constituency that got attracted towards BJP with the then Modi-wave, now marking the saffron party being divided into two groups — one who believes in the rumours and the other which evaluates that the rumours are being spread by the most inefficient and non-performing cadres to seek attention of the high commands. While it seems, even in the context of party’s declining vote share and fading popularity in recently released assembly poll results in five major states, neither of the party members are ready to settle in saving the larger perspective of their party.
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday hit back at Congress President Rahul Gandhi after he accused her of lying in Parliament about procurement orders worth Rs 1 lakh crore for state-run aerospace major Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
A Dubai-bound Air Express flight from the city carrying 186 persons on board landed back under emergency conditions on Sunday after being airborne for over an hour due to a “hydraulic” failure, a source said.
A 14-year-old Nepalese boy was reunited in Maharashtra’s Raigad district with his family as part of the police’s Operation Muskaan initiative, an official said on Sunday.