Launching a direct attack on Narendra Modi over his repeated assertion that there have been no riots in Gujarat in the last ten years, Samajwadi Party’s Muslim face and Uttar Pradesh Minister Azam Khan on Monday said that Muslims vote out of fear for him in his state.
“How can there be riots in Gujarat? How will they (Muslims) not vote for Modi – otherwise, wouldn’t they be burnt with Tezaab (acid). Where will they go then? If they have to live in Gujarat they will have to vote (in favour of Modi).”
“He (Modi) will turn the whole country into Gujarat,” Khan, the Minister of Minorities and Urban Development, added.
It is not the first time that Khan has trained his guns on Modi over the 2002 Gujarat riots.
“An assassin of humanity cannot become Prime Minister of India,” he had said, while accusing Modi of pursuing divisive politics.
With the deadlock between Rashtriya Janata Dal and Congress on seat sharing in Bihar continuing, sources in Congress say that party Vice President Rahul Gandhi is interested in forming an alliance with Janata Dal (United).
“Rahul feels that RJD may be a liability, while Nitish is a better option,” the sources said.
Congress top leadership is reportedly upset with RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s muscle flexing after Lok Janshakti Party supremo Ram Vilas Paswan chose BJP over RJD and Congress.
However, the sources tell that party chief Sonia Gandhi is against the idea of stitching an alliance with Nitish Kumar’s JDU.
Lalu had on Sunday after his party’s parliamentary board meet said that he was open to talks with the Congress over seat sharing. Sources say the logjam between RJD and Congress is over Madhubani and Motihari Lok Sabha seats.
Lalu had offered 11 seats out of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar to the Congress. The Congress, however, feels that the constituencies offered by RJD are not winning seats as the party had no organisation there.
Janata Dal (United) is now part of a Third Front and will fight in alliance with CPI and CPI(M).
Days after his party returned to the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance, Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Ram Vilas Paswan on Monday said that he wants to see the Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi becoming the prime minister of the country.
“I congratulate Narendra bhai for coming to Bihar again after he was welcomed by blasts in Patna. You (crowd) are here not only to welcome Modi, but to strengthen the NDA and bring a change in nation under his leadership. I want to see Narendra bhai as the future PM.”
The LJP chief made these remarks while addressing a huge gathering of supporters during the “Hunkar Rally” called by the BJP where he also shared the dais with its BJP leaders, including Narendra Modi.
Drawing comparisons between the governments in Gujarat and Bihar, the LJP chief praised Modi’s model of governance and said, “Winds of change are blowing in India.”
Paswan also categorically rejected Modi’s criticism over communal riots in Gujarat by saying, “Riots happened in Gujarat 12 years ago, nothing has happened there since then, but here in Bihar, it happens every year.”
Taking a dig at former allies Congress and the RJD led by Lalu Prasad Yadav, Paswan said, “Both Nitish ji & Lalu ji used to praise me. They said they would like to see me as Chief Minister of Bihar, now I have entered an alliance so have become bad for them.”
“I was a friend earlier, suddenly I turned into villain after forging an alliance with the BJP, ” Paswan said on his criticism for joining hands with the BJP after 12 years.
Justifying his party’s decision to re-enter the NDA fold twelve years after quitting it over the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat, the LJP chief said, “No one follows coalition dharma the way BJP does.”
The senior Dalit leader also sought people’s good wishes for his son Chirag Paswan, who is supposed to have played a key role in the alliance between the LJP and the BJP in Bihar.
“My son Chirag has come to seek your blessings,” Paswan said.
Ending years of struggle by a son and his mother for honour in the society, senior Congress leader Narayan Dutt Tiwari has finally accepted Rohit Shekhar has his biological son.
Tiwari called Shekhar and his Mother Ujjawala to his residence, Sunday night, and accepted him as his son.
“Main hriday se manta houn ki tum mere bete ho (I accept from my heart that you are my son),” he said.
Tiwari said that he will make it public that Shekhar is his son.
Shekhar had taken Tiwari to court in 2008 wanting to be publicly acknowledged as his son. Rohit said that he was born out a affair between Tiwari and his mother Ujjawala.
Shekhar, in his suit, has sought a decree declaring Tiwari as his biological father. What followed was a protracted legal tussle which eventually led to the court forcing Tiwari to give his DNA sample. The test had proved that he was biologically linked to Tiwari.
Sahara Chief Subrata Roy is being brought to Delhi by road by the Uttar Pradesh Police following his arrest to be produced before the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
The Sahara chief was arrested on Friday after he failed to appear before the apex court in a contempt case arising out of non refund of Rs. 20,000 crore to investors by two of his companies.
Last week on Wednesday, the SC had issued a non-bailable warrant against Roy.
However, after much high-end drama and his appeal for cancellation of the NBW, the Sahara chief was arrested on Friday by the UP police and kept at the UP forest department guest house located in Kukrail area.
According to reports, he is being taken to Delhi by road by the UP police and will be produce before the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
Under custody since his arrest, the SC had ordered him to appear before it on March 4 (Tuesday).
Union minister Farooq Abdullah denied describing the people of his Jammu and Kashmir state as “mahachors (biggest thieves)” of electricity. A newspaper report on the alleged comment has angered political parties in the state but the minister claims he was misquoted.
“I had never said that Kashmiris are mahachors,” Mr. Abdullah said. “There is a lot of pilferage of power. Many of our people are stealing electricity. But I never said anything about Kashmiris being thieves.”
The opposition shouted slogans in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly and demanded an apology from Mr. Abdullah, leader of the ruling National Conference and father of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.
The protesting lawmakers waved copies of a newspaper report that had quoted the senior Mr. Abdullah as saying, “Kashmiri chor nahi, mahachor hai” (Kashmiris are not just thieves but the biggest thieves). He reportedly said this while releasing a report related to his New and Renewable Energy department that described Jammu and Kashmir as a “non-performer”.
Accusing the newspaper of trying to plant confusion in the minds of people, Mr. Abdullah said, “I had said that it is unfortunate that we buy power for nearly 2-3 thousand crores, but we are not able to get that money back because there is a lot of pilferage of power. Many of our people are stealing power.”
In the assembly, Minister Ali Mohammad Sagar defended Mr. Abdullah saying he never meant to deride all Kashmiris. “He only meant the junior staff is instrumental in power theft,” Mr. Sagar said, but failed to silence the PDP-led opposition.
“He has insulted all the people of Kashmir. He must apologise,” said PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti.
DMK hit out at Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for the Centre’s “indifferent” approach toward Sri Lankan Tamils issue and came down on his reported plans to meet the island nation’s President Mahinda Rajapaksa for bilateral talks at the upcoming BIMSTEC summit.
“At a time when Tamils, Tamil outfits and even India are seeking a resolution for an independent probe into war crimes in Sri Lanka, Singh is holding talks with Rajapaksa ignoring the sentiments of Tamils and Tamil Nadu,” DMK Chief M Karunanidhi said writing in the party organ “Murasoli”.
The DMK patriarch’s remarks assumed significance against the backdrop of continuing moves by Congress to revive the poll truck with his party for the Lok Sabha elections.
The DMK, which snapped its ties with Congress on Sri Lankan Tamils issue during March last year, has been expressing openly that it might not revive electoral ties with UPA.
“I, cannot understand why the Centre and the Congress Government are doing like this,” Mr. Karunanidhi said, expressing his ire over the Singh-Rajapaksa meeting at Nay Pyi Taw.
In a major embarrassment to the Congress government at the Centre, Justice KT Thomas has quit as the head of the Lokpal Committee Search Panel, reports said on Monday.
According to reports, Justice Thomas, who was the head of the panel to search nine members of the Lokpal or national anti-corruption ombudsman, has sent his resignation letter to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) expressing his inability to continue with his job.
Justice Thomas’ withdrawal from the Lokpal Committee Search Panel comes nearly a week after noted jurist Fali Nariman refused the government’s invite to be a part of the committee.
Nariman said that he believes the selection process is flawed and unlikely to find the most deserving candidates.
Justice Thomas, who retired from the Supreme Court in 2002, was chosen to head the committee by a panel that included the Prime Minister and Sushma Swaraj, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.
“I have decided to withdraw from the search committee after I studied the rules. The selection committee itself can find out the persons from the list of central government, what the search committee is expected to do and forward the list to the government,” Thomas said in his letter to PMO.
Earlier, the BJP had objected to one of the Prime Minister’s nominees for the panel – PP Rao – accusing him of being pro-UPA 2.
Of the advertised posts for members in the Lokpal, four are for judicial and the remaining for non-judicial. The PM-led selection committee has as members Lok Sabha Speaker, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Chief Justice of India or a judge of the apex court nominated by him and an eminent jurist, who could be nominated by the President or any of the members.
The Defence Ministry has ordered a bribery investigation over the purchase of jet engines from Rolls-Royce by the state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in a deal worth at least $1.2 billion or Rs. 7426.8 crores.
The Central Bureau of Investigation will look into more than Rs. 500 crores in alleged kickbacks in the deal that was signed in 2011, a ministry official told Reuters.
No comment was immediately available from Rolls-Royce’s office in India.
Suspicions of corruption in India’s defence procurement programme have for years delayed the modernisation of India’s armed forces, forcing a heavy reliance on outdated Soviet-designed equipment.
The air force has been dogged by a series of crashes of its Russian-built MiG fighter jets, while an accident aboard a Soviet-made submarine that killed two officers last week provoked the resignation of Admiral DK Joshi as the naval chief.
The probe into the HAL deal follows the arrest in Britain last month of Indian-born businessman Sudhir Choudhrie and his son in a bribery investigation by the Serious Fraud Office into Rolls-Royce’s dealings in China and Indonesia.
Both men denied any wrongdoing and have been released on bail, their spokesman said last month.
A 70-year-old man was murdered by contract killers allegedly hired for Rs. nine lakh by his two sons who suspected him of having an extra-marital affair.
The victim, Om Prakash, was beaten to death on February 18. His sons Rajesh and Neeraj were arrested last night in Indirapuram area.
The brothers told the police that they were unhappy with Om Prakash for having an extra-marital affair and an extravagant lifestyle. They said their mother was also upset with Om Prakash’s habits.
Police have also arrested Rajesh’s brother-in-law Sunil in connection with the murder.
“Rajesh and Neeraj told police that Om Prakash had an extra marital affair and used to live a lavish life. He recently sold a plot for Rs. 80 lakh, but he didn’t give them a single penny which angered them,” said a senior police official.
Neeraj and Rajesh then hatched a plan to kill him.
“To kill their father, they hired a contract killer, Devendra, for Rs nine lakh and also involved Sunil in the plan. On February 18, when Om Prakash was going to Mainpuri district after collecting rent, Devendra, along with his two accomplices, brutally attacked him with iron rods and fled from the spot,” he said.
Launching a direct attack on Narendra Modi over his repeated assertion that there have been no riots in Gujarat in the last ten years, Samajwadi Party’s Muslim face and Uttar Pradesh Minister Azam Khan on Monday said that Muslims vote out of fear for him in his state. 
