The Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena will launch two mobile vegetable vans in the city on Thursday.
District party leader Rajan Gawand told that the new scheme has been initiated with an aim to provide an opportunity of employment to the needy.
City unit chief of MNS Neelesh Chavan said the vegetables at these mobile vans would be reasonably priced.
Party district unit’s women wing chief Sejal Kadam said the project will be extended as per the demand and later they would undertake the sale of fish also from these outlets.
The party leaders said they will go in for necessary permissions from the FDA and civic authorities to operate these mobile centres.
Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon (SCMM) has officially tied up with United Way Of Mumbai as their charity partner. They have already raised Rs.16 crore for 269 NGOs and the figure is expected to cross Rs.20 crores. Over 10 years the charity drive associated SCMM has seen phenomenal growth.
Mumbai Marathon has helped raise over 100 crores towards charity in the past ten years and has touched the lives of a lot of individuals.
This year there the money is being raised with the support of 171 companies, fielding 265 teams, 2620 charity fund raisers and above 24,000 donors.
DIlip Jayram, CEO, Procam International, promoters of SCMM says, “It gives us at Procam International an immense sense of satisfaction and fulfillment to acknowledge the unique charity facet of the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon.The efforts and emotions of India Inc and the participants are creating ripples which have been harnessed by 269 NGOs”.
Singer Shaantanu Mukherji says, “For the 11th edition, I along with Salaam Bombay Foundation are raising funds to fulfil a 1000 dreams of students who are pursuing their academics. We are raising funds to empower young minds and also give them enough strength to stay away from tobacco and other forms of substance abuse. I am running to create a stronger and healthier future for the next generation.”
Krishna Hegde, MLA from Vile Parle has written to Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan asking him to provide amnesty scheme for buildings without Occupation Certificate (OC) up to the year 1-1-1995 and regularize these buildings. Hegde even suggested a bill/ ordinances in this regard.
Speaking in support of the letter Hegde said, “Even today buildings violating norms are being regularized by the BMC by charging a penalty. The Government is bound to protect slums constructed before 1-1-1995 and similar rules will apply for building residents too.”
Congress MP Priya Dutt supporting Hegde’s demand said, “Lakhs of residents staying in these buildings are paying exorbitant charges for water and other basic amenities. In Haryana and Bangalore amnesty schemes have been bought by the State Governments and residents’ issues have been sorted”
Over 5000 buildings in Mumbai possess no Occupation Certificate. Hegde had written to the Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan regarding the same on 12th December 2013.
BJP’s Hindutva Poster Boy and PM candidate, Narendra Modi has stuck to hardcore governance, he shade his Hindutva image for the upcoming general elections. At last, BJP and its leaders have realised that going on Hindutva agenda in public is not going to help them much. This is the main reason and also the clean image of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee who ruled the BJP for six years, three months and 13 days after independence. Party which miserably became dormant, was suddenly revived by Modi and his Gujarat Model. He has spoken a lot about it; he also announced that the BJP’s new slogan would be “sab ke saath aur sab ka vikas” (With all, and for everyone’s development).
Modi’s attempt to revive hardline Hindutva in UP for gains in the forthcoming polls is a double-edged sword, which may end up doing more harm than good to the party and ignoring Hindutva issue can also sabotage party interest, as people see him as saviour of Hindu religion. They are giving more emphasis on development than Hindutva because it kept the party ‘alive’ in most adverse circumstances. People want good governance, they want corruption free India, and they are looking out for an option. In such crises, the Hindutva agenda may limit BJP votes. In 2012 assembly elections, BJP won 47 seats in UP, of which 25 had Muslim population above 20 per cent. Similarly, in 2009, BJP won 10 Lok Sabha seats, of which eight were Muslim dominated. Also, in 2012, Modi campaigned only in Ayodhya and talked about development but party lost the seat it held since 1991.
However, BJP cannot sideline this crucial issue; this party is nothing without Hindutva. Hence, Hindutva is to amalgamate party’s core vote and other issues including anti-incumbency against the state and central governments which will bring surplus. During Babri Masjid demolition, Hindu crusaders promoting “Hindutva” or Hindu jingoism, belonged to different nonpolitical groups such as – the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Vishva Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal. These are the groups which participated in demolition of the Babri Masjid, a 16th-century mosque in Ayodhya. The followers of Hindutva believe that this disputed land in Ayodhya is the birthplace of Lord Rama.
With an eye on the Lok Sabha elections, BJP raked up the Ayodhya Ram temple issue in a bid to boost the party’s morale in Uttar Pradesh where good performance in the past had helped it capture power at the Centre. Amit Shah, aide of Narendra Modi, has been given charge of Uttar Pradesh to play religious card and win the voters’ heart. Amit Shah promised grand Ram Mandir, if BJP comes to power in Utter Pradesh. The Ram Temple issue has helped the party to boost its electoral prospects in the past and Shah’s visit appears to be an attempt to raise this issue again in the coming elections. Meanwhile, Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Praveen Tagodia said that his party would support BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi only after he clarified his stand on the Ram Temple issue. The other organisations are adamant over Ram Temple in Ayodhya. It is clear that the Hindutva movement encourages the marginalisation of religious minorities in India, and is thus an anti-democratic force in the country. What is not clear is that the Hindutva’s revisionist ideas of Hinduism – especially their strict ideas about what qualifies as proper Hindu belief – threaten the tolerant and multifaceted nature of the religion itself.
On the other side, religious leaders like Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Swami Nityananda, Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev, Swami Narayan Trust etc are supporting Modi. To stop religious conversations, bring back glory to Hindu religion. Modi may not publicly promote Hindutva agenda but somewhere people believe that he is Hinduism’s saviour. The political implications of Hindutva are immense indeed, as much of the electorate has shifted its focus from voting for the best political party to voting for the party that seems to best promote a narrow version of Hinduism. BJP has grown from a small, marginal party to become a one of the major parties to challenge the Indian National Congress. The BJP even headed the national coalition government from 1998 to 2004. A secular country with an immense variety of religions, India faces the real possibility of being ruled again by a political party with a religious radical agenda.
Within the BJP, the older generation subscribes to economic nationalism and has close ties with the RSS. The RSS, which is seen by some as an “Indian version of fascism” and has been connected to instances of religious violence against Muslims, Christians and Sikhs. The younger generation, who will soon lead the party, includes much of the new middle class and tends to be more pragmatic and supportive of free trade economic policies. However, we have to see whether these emerging leaders will move the BJP away from Hindutva & the RSS and reinvent the BJP as a normal political party on the footprint of the Congress Party. Such a transformation could be good for the BJP as well as the development of a thriving multi-party system in India. However, if the new leaders continue to maintain strong ties with the RSS, then the future of the BJP remains bleak. There are many Hindu political activists today who are committed to doing away with the broad and tolerant parts of the Hindu tradition in favour of a fairly crude view, which they hope to impose on all Hindus. Both Hinduism and Indian society are harmed, when Hindus shy away from the spiritual elements of Hinduism and instead use the religion as a means to cheap and prejudiced material and political ends. However, the Indian public still by and large maintains its sense of national Indian identity that transcends religious divisions. Hopefully, Indian politicians and political parties will cease to advance religious goals and protect the integrity of both Hinduism as a religion and India as a nation.
The janta durbar held by AAP created lots of chaos as people thronged to the street in large numbers thereby disrupting the function. Kejriwal was severely criticized for the manner in which his party held the junta darbar. This incident only goes to show that the party lacks maturity when it comes to providing governance. Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung should view all these aspects and decide whether the party is fit to govern. It is suspected that Congress had appointed Najeeb as LG to cushion the perceived anger after execution of Afzal Guru. They might have thought about appointing a Muslim from Jamia Milia, as the LG of Delhi to be in their good books.
He must dismiss the AAP government and ask the BJP to take over because Dr Harshwardhan is an experienced and capable leader. Arvind Kejrival must understand (otherwise he is not fit to be CM) that once he invites people with grievances, their expectations will rise and they will keep coming up with fresh complaints ( demands) and there is no end to it.
Congress support to AAP is very dubious especially when Kumar Biswas is targeting Rahul Gandhi in Amethi. It will be extremely difficult for people to understand this sort of funny arrangement and the Congress will be practically wiped out from national scene. Do they want to commit suicide? Forget about Congress, we have to think about the nation.
“Aam Aadmi” should be replaced by “Aam Bhartiya” or “ Common Indian Citizen” by BJP. They must begin membership drive and visit door to door to educate the masses about the dangers of rank populism. BJP and RSS must shed the highbrow approach and embrace the AB ( Aam bhartiya) to put him/her on the right track by teaching them that we need to work for national wealth generation and it’s equitable distribution. They must teach the masses about values of obedience and discipline. There is no point in RSS asking BJP to pull up its socks as the former must take initiative first. Simply sporting a moustache to pass off as a “ Bavarian” is gross misleading and unproductive.
RSS must concentrate of instilling good values. BJP must concentrate on development, good administration, wealth generation, controlling inflation, providing items of day to day consumption on stable prices and measures to curb unbridled growth of population. The saffron party must speak about concrete steps being taken supported by actual demonstration.
Chief Ministers of MP and Rajasthan have started on this path and they must continue with it. They must provide safe drinking water and electricity are affordable rates and seek help on these issues from Israel, Germany and Japan. They must have a collaboration, with foreign countries and invite them for training and assisting our youth. Gandhiji could not guide us on path of progress because of his untimely death. Let this son of Gujarat be incarnation of Bapu to take his vision forward. Stop talking about AAP or Congress start speaking about Modi Bapu for achieving progress.
After Aam Aadmi Party MLA Vinod Kumar Binny attacked the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government by accusing it of deviating from the “promises” made to the people ahead of the election, the Chief Minister hit back today saying that his government was duty bound to fulfill all promises made to the people of the national capital.
He, however, admitted that it was taking time to keep the promises made. “It has not even been 10 days since the government was formed, I know it is taking time to fulfill poll promises,” Kejriwal said.
Kejriwal, who was gheraoed by contractual teachers demanding regularisation of their jobs, assured them that the government will look into their demands. “I will look into the demands of the teachers working contract on Thursday,” he said.
Meanwhile, in a major embarrassment to the AAP, Binny, who had publicly displayed his unhappiness after failing to get a place in the Cabinet, today, said that there has been a “lot of difference” between what AAP had promised during the election campaign and what is being done now.
“There is a lot of difference between what AAP promised and how the government is now working. I will divulge all these things in a press conference on Thursday to ensure accountability and transparency in the party,” the Laxmi Nagar MLA told reporters.
Binny had showed his displeasure when he was left out of the government in December. When his response was sought on Binny’s attack on the government, Kejriwal said the MLA first demanded that be made a minister and then wanted to contest the Lok Sabha polls.
The Chief Minister retaliated saying, “There’s nothing I can do about what he is saying. First, he had come for ministership, we refused. After that, he wanted to contest the Lok Sabha polls. He came to my house to ask for the ticket. The party has decided that all sitting MLAs would not be given tickets for the Lok Sabha polls.”
However, Binny said that he was not upset over not becoming a minister and wanted to raise issues in public interest.
“I am not upset over anything. The party is deviating from the main issues. Hence, it is important for us to make them realise that we are in the party for its cause and the issues it raised,” the MLA said.
The Aam Aadmi Party’s Kumar Vishwas, who plans to challenge the Congress party from the Gandhi family’s bastion in Uttar Pradesh, said it would be unfortunate if Rahul Gandhi became India’s prime minister.
Vishwas’s remarks came as Gandhi suggested in a rare interview published on Tuesday in the Dainik Bhaskar that he was ready to be prime minister if the Congress returns to power in the 2014 general election due by May.
“I don’t think that India has the misfortune of him (Rahul Gandhi) ever becoming prime minister,” Vishwas said in a telephone interview from Amethi district. “The direction in which the country is headed right now … things will only get worse (if Gandhi becomes PM).”
The poet-turned-politician is likely to contest from Amethi, a constituency from where Gandhi has won the last two parliamentary elections. An official announcement by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is a formality, Vishwas said.
“People who have made it this far on the basis of their family name … how can they lead this country?” he said.
Amethi has been a stronghold of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty with Gandhi’s parents (Rajiv and Sonia) and uncle (Sanjay) having represented the seat in parliament. “This is a prince-versus-pauper battle … my fight is not against Rahul Gandhi, it is against this dynasty rule,” the 43-year-old Vishwas said.
Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP, or “common man party”, is planning to contest national polls this year, riding on an anti-corruption wave that helped them form a government in the capital city of New Delhi after Gandhi’s party threw its support behind AAP.
Despite the AAP’s success in the capital, opinion polls say that the Bharatiya Janata Party under Narendra Modi might displace the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance in 2014. A slowing economy, rising food prices and corruption scandals have hurt the ruling coalition’s reputation.
The AAP, which is working on its national manifesto, on Monday overturned the previous Congress government’s decision to allow foreign investment in Delhi’s retail sector, a move that could dampen investor sentiment and hurt the UPA’s efforts to revive the economy.
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Wednesday kick started her party’s campaign for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections by targeting her political rivals, including the incumbent Samajwadi Party government in Uttar Pradesh.
Addressing a huge gathering of party supporters at the Ramabai Ambedkar Maidan, the BSP chief said, “This year I have decided not to celebrate my birthday like previous years because of the communal riots in Muzaffarnagar, which led to the killing of several innocent people.”
Making a direct attack on her political opponents, Mayawati said, “You must know how all other parties are conspiring against the BSP. That is why we’re at this rally.”
The BSP chief told her supporters how Congress and the BJP have tried to suppress her voice at times but she never compromised on her principles and values.
“I did not succumb to political pressure or give in to the BJP’s demands when they withdrew support to my government,” Mayawati said at the Lucknow rally.
“Like Congress, the BJP also misused CBI to pressurise BSP in 2003 to forge an alliance at the national level,” Mayawati alleged.
In a direct attack on the Congress regime, the BSP leader said, “You all known that my party’s rising support base in UP and elsewhere has given sleepless nights to Congress and the ruling party misused Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to falsely implicate me in the Taj Corridor Case and Disproportionate Assets case.
“The Congress-led central government has misused CBI to harass me but I was determined that I will never budge before such fascists and communal forces and will continue to work for the downtrodden.”
Coming down heavily on her rivals, the BSP chief said, “No one thought that my party would get an absolute majority in the 2007 UP polls. In 2009 we won 20 out of 80 seats and were 2nd in 47 seats because all parties unitedly contested against BSP.”
The national icon of Dalits said that her rivals united to politically eliminate her when she set her sight on Delhi.
“In order to stop the daughter of a Dalit from becoming the Prime Minister, all parties despite being enemies of each other joined hands to stop us. But the Congress and BJP should know that they have no future without BSP’s support.”
Attacking the Samajwadi Party government in Uttar Pradesh, the BSP chief said, “Crime and criminals have risen in the state ever since the Samajwadi Party has come to power. There is a complete lawlessness everywhere in UP and honest officers in all government departments are being targeted and shunted.”
In another incident that shamed the national capital, a 51-year-old Danish woman was allegedly gang-raped by a group of men near New Delhi Railway Station late on Tuesday.
A Danish national, who was here on a tourist visa, had gone to visit a museum and while returning back to her hotel in Paharganj lost her way in the area when a group of men stopped her, robbed and gang-raped her.
The woman after returning to her hotel narrated her ordeal to her near ones, who further informed the police.
She was first looted at knife point, and then gang-raped by around six men, police said.
The Danish Embassy has also pitched in and asked the authorities for swift action in this case.
Delhi Police have detained several people in connection with the case and had been interrogating them. The officials’ suspect that the people, who are drug addicts and stay at roadside in the Paharganj area, might be involved in the crime.
The victim, who was supposed to leave for her country on Wednesday morning, has been asked by the police to stay back and assist in probe.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Narendra Modi has written a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh demanding action against Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde’s advisory on releasing “minority youth” detained wrongfully.
Modi, BJP’s PM candidate, who is very popular and active on social networking website twitter, today wrote: “Home Minister’s suggestion marks an unprecedented low for our country. PM should intervene & take necessary action.”
Referring to the Home Minister’s letter to chief ministers to review cases of terrorism against “members of minority communities,” Modi wrote, “A crime is a crime irrespective of birth marks of the criminal. Religious beliefs can’t determine guilt or innocence.”
“Wrote letter to Prime Minister on the Home Minister’s repeated statements on wrongful arrests of youngsters from particular communities. A crime is a crime irrespective of birth marks of the criminal. Religious beliefs can’t determine guilt or innocence,” the Gujarat Chief Minister posted on his twitter account.
Heaping praise on the judicial system, the BJP leader said, “Thankfully, our criminal justice system has never taken into account faith or religion of an accused.”
Modi accused the Congress-led government of playing votebank politics over security issues.
In a letter that has generated a political controversy, Shinde last week asked all state chief ministers to be “careful” while arresting minorities.
The Home Minister wrote to state chief ministers on detention procedures, asking them to form a panel to review cases of people jailed without trial. “Release minority youths if they are illegally detained,” Shinde wrote.
The Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena will launch two mobile vegetable vans in the city on Thursday. 
Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon (SCMM) has officially tied up with United Way Of Mumbai as their charity partner. They have already raised Rs.16 crore for 269 NGOs and the figure is expected to cross Rs.20 crores. Over 10 years the charity drive associated SCMM has seen phenomenal growth.
Krishna Hegde, MLA from Vile Parle has written to Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan asking him to provide amnesty scheme for buildings without Occupation Certificate (OC) up to the year 1-1-1995 and regularize these buildings. Hegde even suggested a bill/ ordinances in this regard. 
After Aam Aadmi Party MLA Vinod Kumar Binny attacked the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government by accusing it of deviating from the “promises” made to the people ahead of the election, the Chief Minister hit back today saying that his government was duty bound to fulfill all promises made to the people of the national capital. 
The Aam Aadmi Party’s Kumar Vishwas, who plans to challenge the Congress party from the Gandhi family’s bastion in Uttar Pradesh, said it would be unfortunate if Rahul Gandhi became India’s prime minister.
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Wednesday kick started her party’s campaign for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections by targeting her political rivals, including the incumbent Samajwadi Party government in Uttar Pradesh. 
