A debt-ridden executive of a reputed private bank and his two accomplices have been arrested for allegedly stealing Rs 49 lakh from the account of a dead NRI since November last year, police said today.
The bank employee carried out the theft by transferring the amount to a fake account opened by his accomplice in another bank.
Accused Mahendra Gurav (32), a customer service manager with ICICI Bank’s Dadar branch, his friends Rajesh Jamkar(39) and Ballu Gate alias Sandeep Kale (32) were apprehended after the ICICI Bank notified the Matunga police following an internal probe during which the fraud came to light, police said.
Police have recovered Rs 15.5 lakh while a fake account having Rs 11 lakh has been frozen.
According to Matunga police, Gurav, who had been facing financial crisis, was searching for a dormant account when he stumbled upon an NRI account of Gobind Kaur, a senior citizen who had settled in the UK. She had the account with the bank’s Chandigarh’s branch.
Gurav procured cheque leaflets for the account and the specimen signature. He then contacted Jamkar, who asked Kale to open an account with a co-operative bank in Matunga. Gurav then issued four cheques with Kaur’s fake signatures between November 11 and December 27.
With the help of the cheques, about Rs 49.28 lakh was transferred to Kale’s account that had been fraudulently opened. Cash had also been withdrawn from the fake account as and when required by the accused, police said.
Kaur’s family in the UK was unaware of the fraud till the Chandigarh branch of ICICI Bank contacted her family, which said Kaur had passed away on December 3.
A mail was sent on January 1 this year to Dadar branch Deputy Manager Rekha Lad about the fraud from the bank’s Chandigarh branch. An internal probe was subsequently carried out, following which the bank complained to police on January 4.
It gave details of the co-operative bank in Matunga where the four cheques were cleared.
Based on the inputs from both banks, DCP (zone IV) Dattatray Karale formed a special team and nabbed Kale when he came to withdraw money on January 4. Kale then led the police to Gurav and Jamkar the same day.
The state Anti Corruption Bureau, city police’s Economic Offences Wing and the Collector of Raigad district today submitted their final probe reports against the Maharashtra minister and NCP leader Sunil Tatkare in the alleged money laundering and land grabbing.
The high court had in October last year directed the agencies to complete their investigations within three months.
Following this, the ACB, EOW and Collector Raigad submitted their final reports in sealed envelopes to a division bench of Justices S J Vazifdar and G S Patel.
The agencies were directed to conduct probe after a public interest litigation was filed by BJP leader Kirit Somaiya.
Somaiya had sought CBI probe into alleged money laundering and land grabbing by various companies floated by Tatkare and his relatives.
The investigating agencies had time and again faced the ire of the high court for failing to conduct a fair probe against the minister and his family.
The high court had in the last hearing, while asking the agencies to submit their final reports, said if it was not satisfied with the manner in which the probe was conducted then it would be compelled to consider handing over the investigation to an independent agency like the CBI.
The bench today said it would peruse the reports and posted the matter for hearing on January 24.
Somaiya has listed 51 companies formed by Tatkare, which have his family members and friends as directors, and alleged that they purchased benami lands in Maharashtra and indulged in money-laundering, causing loss to the public exchequer.
Tatkare, who holds water resources portfolio in Maharashtra cabinet, has termed the petition as “false, malicious and politically motivated” in his reply affidavit.
Prashant Bhushan came under attack over his comments on Kashmir with both the BJP and Congress strongly opposing his annotations on what they called a sensitive national subject. While Bhushan blamed the media for twisting his comments, Arvind Kejriwal distanced himself from his remarks. Later,Bhushan said that Jammu and Kashmir was an integral part of India and there was no question of challenging its accession to the country.I, As an Indian personally feel, instead of fighting over Kashmir, Kashmiri people should be given a chance to decide their own future. It’s their democratic right.. You and I should not decide which constitution is best for them…Both India and Pakistan wants the land of Kashmir, they don’t want the people of Kashmir. They just don’t care about people. People are being killed both by army and militants and they are blaming each other.
Kashmir problem began with the world since 1947, the year of the partition of India. Indian part of the Kashmir is about 45 percent of the original Kingdom of the Jammu and Kashmir, about 35 percent is now in Pakistan, and China has occupied the other 20 percent in 1962. The UN and the U.S want both sides to keep on the discussions, but the important question is on what basis the discussion can take place. The unresolved status of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute has pushed India and Pakistan to three wars in addition to three minor ones. Problems started in 1947 when British were leaving India after the partition and the Muslims had demanded a separate homeland for themselves, to be called as Pakistan. When Pakistan became independent, they attacked the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir in the guise of tribal Pathans on 20th October 1947. Since the Maharaja by that time had not decided to join the Indian Republic, the Indian Army did not intervene. In one of its greatest mistake in the history, the Indian Government under Jawaharlal Nehru did not think of protecting the Kashmir borders, till The Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir asked India for help and finally joined India on 26th October, 1947.
However, by that time Pakistan had already occupied almost half of the Kashmir. The UN Security Council resolution of April 1948 had suggested a plebiscite for the people of Kashmir, but only after it would be vacated by Pakistan; India would be allowed to maintain some forces to maintain the law and order. Pakistan never vacated the area and as a result, the referendum never went through. During the last 56 years, a lot of demographic changes took place. The most notable one is the expulsions of the non-Muslim communities both from the Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) and also from the Srinagar valley of the Indian held Kashmir. Non-Muslims were driven out from the Pakistan occupied areas of Baltistan, Skardhu, Hunza and Gilgit, the four semi-independent kingdoms associated with the state of the Jammu and Kashmir; there are large-scale infiltrations of Muslims into traditional Buddhist area Ladakh and the Hindu area of Jammu.
Now, under attack for reportedly advocating a referendum on Army deployment in Jammu and Kashmir, Bhushan said the deployment of armed forces in large numbers in the state must be done with people’s wishes. He said he had told two television channels that there was considerable alienation “among the people of Kashmir which is primarily because of the human rights excesses by the security forces”.
Bhushan said it was his view that the deployment of armed forces “in huge numbers within Kashmirnot for external defence or to prevent infiltration but for the security of the people … should not be done without the consent of the people of Kashmir.
Prashant Bhushan tried to correct his intended statement by saying that the referendum should be done to give a choice to Kashmiris if they want to join with India or Pakistan! Somewhere down the line, he has realised that it will be severely objected and tried to correct himself by saying that the referendum is to be done for the army’s presence. Kashmir is destined to be with India and let Bhushannot make hasty points like this and waste everyone’s time and also spoil AAP’s prospects. This is the second time he is confusing the situation. First was prior to AAP forming government about joining hands with BJP. It is notable that Prashant Bhushan, extraordinary defender of the Human rights, has raised this issue on a referendum on the deployment of the army in Kashmir. It all depends on the collective experience of and opinion of the People of Kashmir on the previously deployed Special Forces and their attitude, approach, and activities in the region. Even before the AamAadmi was floated, it has been the suggestion of Bhushan to go for referendum. Better, we stop politicising it and look into the rationale behind the suggestion. Meanwhile,Kejriwal should concentrate on issues which he is liable to. Whole of India stands behind Kashmir and if anyone tinkers with it, then we would show him his real place. Any rational person with limited knowledge of history should refrain from such kind of statements. Even people of J &K are happy and don’t want the same situation to be crated in valley .Also, countries like USA is finding it very hard to deal with terrorist attacks though it is very far away from bordering area of Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The AFSPA is an imperialist law that was used by the Empire to hold people in subjugation. That law was totally adopted by independent India. Technically it is used by the Armed Forces exactly in the manner that was used by the Armed Forces during the British regime. At times there are excesses which are beyond this draconian law and then it is terrible. But if I am an infantry man, I would not like to be deployed in the disturbed areas without the AFSPA. The insurgent is well armed and you can be taken on from any direction anytime. As a neutral I would propose a less draconian law that does not hurt the law-abiding citizens while protecting the soldier on duty.
The need of hour is to resolve the issue and find solution for painful state of Kashmir than politicising the issues.
There was a time, when every now and then Mumbai, the economic capital of this country witnessed serial bomb blasts. With these blasts, many families got affected. Some parents lost their son, some her husband, some lost their father, brother, sister. People got scared, numb and sometimes rebellious, when water reached above the head. However, there is something which makes this maximum city unique and that is its spirit.
When we talk about history of Mumbai, then we start it from 1992, when communal riots rocked the peaceful city post Babri Masjid demolition. We talk about the rise and fall of gangs after the riots and gang wars. The city which is considered as a dream fulfilling city, the city which has changed the fate of many, the city of superstars, the city which has survived the massive attacks on internal harmony and even external disruptions. The very city wants to know for how long, we have to tolerate this.
People are coming in this city from all over the nation and because of that, large number of manpower is available here. That makes me to feel proud of myself as a Mumbaikar. With more people as manpower, more corporates show interest, with more corporates coming in, we have more employment competition, thereby increasing the quality of the companies and the employment available here. But, there is always the other side too. As a city of dreams, it does not guarantee the best but also shows what could otherwise be a nightmare. With many stories left untold, there are innumerable scams which exist in the city. One of which is ‘property scams’. We may never know the entire surface or even get to see the tip of this iceberg but, there are many buildings which are illegally constructed, which comes out as a fraud in later years. When you go to buy a property, you are always asked for the ‘percentage’; with one policy, no one shall be spared! Even people working in government sectors like income tax department are aware of this and are happily paying it. The shame of this act of gathering and paying ‘black money’ (to be blunt) is no more a shame. We join the ‘forces’ against the country’s administration asking for justice for so much of black money but when it comes to buying a house for our own, we need to sort that ‘cash’ out. This fact is so outspoken that even an estate agent / broker will ‘arrange’ percentage negotiation for it. 60 – 40 per cent is the standard ratio which is prevalent in Mumbai. It means, if your house costs Rs. 1 lakh, you end up paying 60 per cent as white and 40 per cent as black or cash. It is a known fact for every government official but still it is not considered as ‘black money’.This is a bias attitude towards builders.
Collapse of Mumbra housing society has exposed the scam of ‘illegal construction’. Well, you might want to know, where this will lead to. When the house was illegally built, it was not the responsibility of the builder or the people governing that area but the person who are selling that area. So, when is that person coming up? What will be the final judgement after following the protocols robotically? All are scott-free. At the maximum, the builders will be charged for culpable homicide because they were not ‘intending’ to kill the people whose bodies lie under the unfortunate debris. The construction where people actually lived is tagged as illegal, thus the sufferers are ‘abandoned’. Follow up on this will not be covered in news, and current affairs all that these people are waiting for is, ‘thanda honey do’. We are Indians, we like spice with everything we eat! But, too much spice which we enjoy might end up in bleeding. Such eye-opening is required.
We have one habit to be blind towards reality. People were affected, families cried and their dreams were shattered. After few days, one more incident, then another news from reporters and another edit from my table. The need for change is what everyone asks for whereas the only thing they need to realise is, they have changed themselves.The lazy attitude and slow paced investigation from municipality levels are resulting in such incidence. If illegal buildings have electricity, drainage system and even water supply then how can these ‘illegal’ structures be left unnoticed? Who is responsible for this?
The political equations have changed and so the politics too. Especially, NDA led by BJP has only one goal and that is anyhow bringing Narendra Modi to power. All those corrupt leaders who were thrown out and senior leaders those walked out of party are returning back to BJP. BS Yeddyurappa returned to the BJP and merged his Karnataka Janata Party (KJP), a year after he walked out of the party alleging betrayal. A 70-year-old belonging to Karnataka’s strong Lingayat community returned back to the party unconditionally and will not contest the Lok Sabha elections, due by May this year. His comebacks will definitely strengthen BJP in Karnataka “ten-fold”. When he walked out of party, in the very next assembly election, BJP has faced major defeat in Karnataka. Yeddyurappa’s rejoining was expected ever since Narendra Modi was named BJP’s presumptive PM in September last year. In November, two days before Modi’s rally in Bangalore, posters featuring Yeddyurappa and Modi together surfaced in the city. The 70-year-old politician, a known Modi loyalist, had declared that the Gujarat chief minister should be the prime ministerial candidate over party veteran LK Advani, who led a section in the BJP that insisted Yeddyurappa resign as Chief Minister over charges of corruption. The case against him is still pending. A powerful leader from the influential Lingayat community, Yeddyurappa won the BJP its first government in south India six years ago.
BJP’s gateway to the parliament is full of challenges as each of their moves are closely watched by other parties as well as the citizens of India, who are eligible voters. They need to take each step consciously. BJP’s merger with Yeddyurappa has left everyone fathoming about the dogma with which the saffron party is going to contest. BJP’s prime issue and agenda in forthcoming election is about giving alternate clean government in centre against scamster Congress Party led UPA I and UPA II. Now, BJP’s merged with tainted Yeddyurappa may work well in Karnataka but this move can be a setback to those who are supporting BJP for clean and corruption free politics. Rajnath Singh expresses no qualms in assertion of the party’s compromise with corruption, as the Lingayat’s votebank is decisive in Karnataka’s politics. On the other hand, political parties are not ready to merge before election due to the impulsive nature of the election results.
Lokayukta’s case against then Karnataka CM Yeddyurappa had received too much attention, not only in Karnataka but nationally, portraying him as a villain. The report of the thrashing of the same by the Hon’ble Karnataka High Court and indictment of the Lokayukta for the way they proceeded in this case against Yeddyurappa was never highlighted. With all his defects, he is a man who single handedly erected a political party. He deserves a fair treatment. There is no doubt Yeddy is most experienced and grassroot level politicians and BJP would have stood firm when he was in crises. Now, BJP is taking his support because they have no other option in Karnataka. Moreover, when people of Karnataka have shown that corruption is not an issue for them as they had given 10 per cent votes to his party KJP. Yeddy may not perform like he has performed five years ago but his additional 10 per cent votes can do magic in Karnataka.
BJP has real challenge here, it should ensure that Yeddyurappa does not gain any post easily and should work hard for it. Those in BJP who want to free India from the scam ridden Congress party and yet permitted the return of BSY to BJP will find it to their dismay. AAP is emerging as the third force in political space after 2014 general elections, which will spoil the game and dream of many political parties.
The need of the hour for BJP is to show the integrity of Harshvardhan, Major General Kandhuri and Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Shivraj Singh Chauhan. Probably the voter will feel as betrayed as they felt in when Kalyan Singh was reinducted into BJP. This action seems as repetitive. However, Chief Minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah with a Teflon clean image and proven administration skills has so far done a decent job at the helm of affairs.
I was feeling awesome by looking at the proceeding at Delhi Assembly, a common man’s voice reached there. AAP leader Manish Sisodia, while moving the vote of confidence said, “It is not the individual MLAs who are sitting here, it is the people of Delhi who are sitting here, each of the 70 MLAs sitting here represent Delhi’s people. The people of the country are watching what kind of decision will be taken here today”. Being a common man of this country, these were quite mesmerising words. The power of common man and the credit that they gave to people was unexceptional and extraordinary. The Aam Aadmi Party Government moved a confidence motion on the floor of the Delhi Assembly and urged members to rise above political affiliations and support alternative governance for the people of Delhi. There could be nothing more to see the political reform that is happening in Indian history of powers.
The people of Delhi gave mandate to AAP to form government. They are here to clean the politics of the country. They want to ensure that people in Delhi get clean drinking water and cheap electricity. They are here for the traders, farmers and youth of Delhi. They will improve the facilities for the people of Delhi, and that is what AAP ministers are committed to.
The main opposition, BJP voted against the confidence motion. Party leader Harsh Vardhan, in his speech, initiated a scornful assault on Kejriwal and his party for taking Congress support to form the government. He had even made strong statements like pledging not to enter into a coalition with Congress on a TV channel. Last week, even BJP’s former president Nitin Gadkari attacked and alleged AAP and Congress’ settlement deal but he failed to give evidence to support his statements.
Gadkari is the one who has to quit his position, when Kejriwal exposed his scams. BJP will never digest AAP and its success as they surprisingly emerged larger than life in Delhi, by denting Congress party. BJP thought, they will easily sail the Delhi boat as there is anti-Congress waves. They even think that anti incumbency favour them and they will defeat Congress but surprisingly AAP’s entry bittered their taste for power and their future. If Kejriwal works like this only then he can even dent Modi’s dream of becoming PM in the forthcoming General Elections. AAP is a good alternative to public. They have gone through hell to form the government. They worked continuously for more than the usual working hours. They not only formed the Government but also fulfilled promises that they made to public.
A party which Kejriwal used to refer as the most corrupt party, the party against which he contested elections, the party against which he said that if elected to power, he will send corrupt ministers to jail, and will unearth all unfair trades of that government, he has taken support of that Congress party due to compulsion.
BJP being the largest party was given a chance to form government, but they refused. Congress and BJP tried to create negative image of AAP among people by saying, AAP is betraying people by not forming the government. These two biggest national political parties always had shown their double standards. BJP accused AAP of running away from the responsibility of forming the government and when AAP picked up the gauntlet, BJP turned around to accuse them. It is clear to everyone that Congress is supporting AAP for its own interests in keeping BJP out of power in Delhi and in avoiding a re-election at the moment.
This suits AAP perfectly as it can prove its mettle in running a government. The rejection of the VIP culture has been welcomed by everybody but it is a pity that BJP is loathe to admit it. To oppose for the mere sake of opposing will not beget BJP any credibility. On one side, Congress has shown determination for working for common people by supporting AAP, and on the other side, BJP is scratching its own back with anger as pseudo wave of Modi has done nothing in Delhi. People of Delhi have gone with AAP, so Kejriwal must be careful to do work in favour of common people. Of course, future of changing politics with involvement of middle class people (most from lower middle class) are looking up to them. Anyways, lack of beacon-fitted cars, little grounded ministers make Delhi assembly session stand out. First time, it was a very uncommonly special glimpse. Look of the old Delhi Secretariat was totally different as the assembly complex was thronged by a large number of AAP supporters. In the past, when beacon-fitted cars swarmed the area and there was heavy security, gates were not opened to the common man.
One can say………..the common man has arrived in corridors of power and he is here to go a long way.
All of a sudden, the focus on Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress have been diverted to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and its head Arvind Kejriwal. If they do something then there is a problem, and if they don’t do anything then also there is problem. What other parties want them to do? They want AAP to surrender to corruption as they have done in these years and betrayed common public. We have not been able to achieve anything since Independence. Government has miserably failed to provide basic facilities for the people of the National Capital Region, (NCR) then think about those who stay in remote villages. Water conservation is not meant to prevent adequate supply to its citizens. It should be done by supplying ‘only’ used water to private industries, government agencies and avoiding misuse of extra water. We can conserve water by prohibiting these industries’ waste in fresh water bodies.
All these years, Congress Party was indulging in the slogan of ‘Garibi Hatao’. They launched Democratic Schemes in the names of Gandhi [not Mahatma] but their own family members. What happened? Nothing; we are chanting the same slogan from past 65 years and even today. If same things continue we may be chanting it for another 60 years. Congress has never aimed at changing and improving the lifestyle of poor people. Government bodies like Planning Commission have also failed to show the required commitment. When Congress and BJP failed in these years then why accuse and attack newly formed party? Let them perform and sustain. Give them chance and let see how they govern. People are there to teach them lesson if they flop or make losses.
I hope you people remember one of the members of Planning Commission, Mihir Shah. He had put forward a case against free water by arguing that the cost of supplying water is to be borne by the consumers. This argument is not new. Financial institutions around the world such as World Bank and ADB advice the full recovery of operation and maintenance cost of drinking water supply schemes from the beneficiaries of the scheme. From last ten years, there was no free water to the people of Delhi. What prevented Planning Commission’s economists to plug the 40-50% distribution losses that Delhi Jal Board incurred? For last 66 years, Planning Commission has kept planning and planning, allocated funds to provide adequate sewerage system in urban centers. What happened to those funds and who pocketed it? Don’t know. Why Planning Commission is just a mute spectator when people in slums are defecating in open despite crores of rupees allocated for toilet? By increasing the water charge, you can regulate the water usage of the majority. In our country, the number of wealthy upper middle class and mushrooming billionaires is on the surge. They would be ready to pay for extra water. This will lead to highly unjust distribution of available water. By providing clean water, the state can save money in the health care sector. An increased investment in drinking water definitely has a social benefit. Mihir Shah also elaborated on the leakages of water. The interesting fact is that the actual physical leakage is not measured by majority of water utilities. What they give as leakage is actually the unaccounted water, i.e. water that is not billed. The main cause of this is the unauthorised connections and corruption rather than actual physical leakage.
The National Water Policy of 2012 says that water, in excess of a minimum required for humans and other living being and to the environment is a good economics. The planning commission in its approach paper for 12th plan encourages Public Private Partnership (PPP) and full cost recovery principle. Both refuse to accept access to drinking water as a basic human right.
Harshvardhan said, “Money meant for other welfare schemes will now be spent on increased subsidy. Instead, the government should have forced discoms to lower tariff.” Sheila Dikshit attacked the AAP saying government’s announcement presents a confusing picture. Everyone is issuing an opinion by making negative remarks. They should understand, a day after implementing the first promise of free water supply of 667 litres a day, Arvind Kejriwal got down to the business of providing relief to the citizens on the power front. After the decision, people consuming up to 200 units would have to pay Rs. 1.95 per unit against the current rate of Rs 2.70. For units above 201 and up to 400, the charges will be Rs. 2.90 per unit against the current Rs. 5. In effect, the 50 per cent subsidy will amount to 20 per cent in the case of the first 200 units and around 35 per cent for consumption between 201 and 400 units since Wednesday’s decision is applicable on rates revised in August last year. Sheila Dikshit government had given Rs. 1.20 subsidy on the rates for consumption of up to 200 units and 80 paise between 201 and 400 units. Simultaneously, Kejriwal also began work on bringing the three power distribution companies — BSES Yamuna Power Ltd, BSES Rajdhani Power Ltd and Tata Power Delhi Distribution Ltd — under the purview of the Comptroller and Auditor General.
We need to look at the gravity of corruption by government and its officials which forced people to throw the government. Power and water sector officials are highly corrupt and therefore it has resulted people to pay heavy bills. He had 2 options, either using the rider for freebies or reducing the rate without freebies. Those who use high units are really the ones who can afford to pay. So, this is a good step without any hassle to both. People reject Congress because of its excessive corruption which has resulted in unprecedented inflation for the common man. Common man had not borne the high inflation therefore they ousted Congress government. India has a long way to go; till it will shine and democracy will work. Democracy in this country is for all and not for the upper and middle class families.
Year 2013 has ended, but that year brought many shocking events for India as well as in my personal life too. Me and my team got some recognition; I got accreditation as a journalist from Maharashtra government. My studies gave me good openings. We, the NBC team really matured in this field with time. We received chance to explore new dimensions in media. We had our share of flops and gains, but we survived strong at the end. There were many shocking incidences which happened in my office also. One of our staff members married suddenly, some left and some joined us. Comparatively, the journey last year was very smooth. In the recent past, we really lived each moment enthusiastically.
If we look at Mumbai, then the city has witnessed many shocking incidences including Shakti Mill Compound Gang rape case. City saw first ever Narendra Modi’s rally. Maharashtra Assembly saw lot of ups and downs because of Adarsh scam and anti superstitious activist Narendra Dabholkar’s murder. Country had big events and incidences to share. Congress Party announced Rahul Gandhi as its Vice President and also a Prime Minister Post candidate. Rahul Gandhi neither has experience nor has shown the required ability to change the policies and performance of the Congress party or governments run by it or in coalition with other parties. The party claims their grand old party is built with leaders’ sacrifice. At the time of action, they were behaving with arrogance and self-gain. Now at the time of election, to retain power they are doing lip service and big talk. A new party may need some time to learn – not Congress. For corrupt nation, they are mainly responsible as being the rulers of this country for most of the time. Rahul’s performance as an elected representative was A DISASTER. People of this country are poor and illiterate and follow people blindly and worship them. There are selfishness in many people’s attitude and behaviour. Still, we have an age old culture and there are selfless people. Nehru family has earned nation’s money with the only qualification of their family name ‘Gandhi’. Now, the 4th generations is earning, is it not enough? Many Indians will be seeing 2013 as a thrilling year, as for most of them it is rotten year. 2013 brought many shocking news for us. The destruction in Uttarakhand which killed thousands, the Mumbai gang rape, Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal being accused of rape, godman Asaram and son being arrested for rape, and the Supreme Court verdict on gay sex; the list is apparently limitless.
We saw how Rahul Gandhi attacked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the issue of ordinance to protect convicted lawmakers, which really left our jaws hanging. In June, the terrible magnitude of nature’s fury unfolded as a multi-day cloudburst centered in Uttarakhand, causing devastating floods and landslides, making it the worst natural disaster in India since the Tsunami in 2004. After the disaster had claimed more than 5,700 lives, a debate ensued on what really caused it. After this disaster, Muzaffarnagar riots took lots of life and it ended with making many people homeless. We had not forgotten (as human mentality is) Nirbhaya’s brutal gang rape of 2012, we heard a photo-journalist was gang-raped in Mumbai by five men, including a juvenile in a deserted Shakti Mills compound. Mumbai, the city, which has always boasted about the safety of women, got shivers after this rape incidence.
Tarun Tejpal one of the big name in investigative journalism, sexually assaulted a colleague in a lift after the ThinkFest in Goa. Tehelka, a big news agency collapsed to scratches, and lost all its integrity and credibility.
Starting with a 10-acre ashram, Asaram went on to acquire some 420 major or minor such institutions over a period of 40 or so years across the world. Before his arrest, he was raking in around Rs. 400 crore or more annually. In the process, he also snagged some 20 million followers worldwide. He and his son both are in police custody under the charges of rape. On the other side, Sadhvi Pragya Singh who was in jail from past six years is acquitted from all charges; NIA declared that Madhya Pradesh wrongly arrested her in Malegaon blast case and RSS pracharak Sanjay Joshi’s murder case.
Modi too got clean chit from 2002 riots. Modi emerged as big name and prime ministerial candidate of BJP, he not only shook the politics of this country but also successfully created waves against Congress. Congress, India’s oldest national party collapsed in no time. On the other side, Aam Aadmi Party has created threat to Congress and BJP by forming a government in Delhi.
In a blow to gay rights activists, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutional validity of the penal provision making gay sex an offence punishable with upto life imprisonment. The bench had reserved its order in March last year after granting day-to-day hearing of the case from February 15, 2012.
Other shocking incidents of the year include Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar-led Janata Dal-United ending its 17-year-old alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party, after the latter named Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi as its prime ministerial candidate. The move came as a major jolt to the National Democratic Alliance, which was left with only three constituents – the BJP, the Shiv Sena and the Shiromani Akali Dal.
There were many shocking deaths happened in Hindi film industry like Jiah Khan’s and Farooque Sheikh’s. Bollywood industry had given another shocking incident of separation between Hritik Roshan and his wife Susanne Khan. It was very difficult for public to believe this story. This entire year was quite interesting with good events and sudden shocks….
In 2014, India will go in for general elections, which is considered as one of the biggest democratic festival in the country. Year 2013 has passed…….
Let’s welcome 2014…..
As a chief of this organisation, I wish all my readers, a very happy and a prosperous New Year.
On Saturday, Arvind Kejriwal took charge as Chief Minister of Delhi with his young cabinet. There is chaos in other parties and they go restless. People of Delhi seem to be happy at the moment but political conspiracy against the newly formed government is going on. In such a situation, AAP should stay away from political remarks. If AAP is really ‘party with a difference’ then they should concentrate more on their commitments and promises that they had given pre poll to public. They should select Loksabha candidates correctly. This new party has good future if they avoid mistakes and think before any action. AAP has already decided to file its candidate from Amethi, the constituency which Rahul Gandhi is expected to contest from and has won twice with huge margins. Modi will probably contest from a seat in Gujarat or from Varanasi, where he will probably win comfortably.
Kumar Vishwas is small time leader and just entered politics; he should stop challenging seasoned politicians like Modi. Delhi people have chosen Kejriwal as its Chief Minister but they support Modi as the Prime Minister. Kumar Vishwas’s over confident statements may damage his own party in future. Kumar Vishwas, an Aam Aadmi Party leader whose name is doing the rounds as the candidate might file paper against Congress number 2 Rahul Gandhi in the Lok Sabha elections, has dared the BJP to make it a three-cornered fight by fielding Narendra Modi. If Modi really wants to end Rahul Gandhi’s reign in Amethi, he should contest from there or BJP president Rajnath Singh should contest from Amethi. Let Rahul Gandhi, Modi and Kumar Vishwas contest from Amethi and see who wins. As Kejriwal stood against Dixit and toed her out of power, Modi should contest from Amethi. It is a good suggestion but challenging such a big leader by small leaders like Vishwas is not fair.
Arvind Kejriwal announced that he will fight from any seat where Sheila Dixit contests from. Why he wants to make the same mistakes those other candidates made in the past who after winning from the constituency are seen again. Instead, Kumar can choose any constituency from all over India and work for the people. Vishwas should follow his leader Kejriwal, he said he will fight wherever Sheila Dixit will context from. So he too, if he likes, can contest from both the places- one against Rahul and other against Modi. Modi should not care about these type of people. He carries his own charisma. Vishwas raised many questions about Modi and tried to gain some limelight but this type of behaviour may go against him.
Modi is BJP’s prime ministerial candidate and the general elections due by May are widely seen as a direct contest between him and Mr. Gandhi, though the Congress has not formally named its vice president as its PM candidate yet. Rahul contests elections from Amethi, a Gandhi bastion, in Uttar Pradesh. After his party’s spectacular debut in the Delhi elections, Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal had announced that his year-old party would also contest the national elections and could file Mr. Vishwas against the Congress leader. If Congress finds it difficult then Priyanka Vadra may come in active politics as savoir. BJP chief Rajnath Singh is the Lok Sabha MP from Ghaziabad, where Mr. Kejriwal lives.
AAP won 28 seats, the second highest on the tally, and agreed to form the government after single largest party, the BJP, declined. With 28 legislators, Kejriwal runs a minority government, with the external support of eight Congress MLAs. Narendra Modi has time and again trained his guns on the Gandhi family, bulk of his speeches are devoted to criticising the dynasty. Instead of taunting Rahul Gandhi as ‘shehzada’, why can’t he — if he has not decided his constituency — fight against Rahul? Or at least field a senior leader like Arun Jaitley or Nitin Gadkari from Rahul’s constituency? Why can’t he field Advani from Rae Bareli? Reality is that be it corruption or dynasty, BJP’s stance is mere lip service. They did not field a candidate against Dimple Yadav in Kannauj. AAP has so far refrained from targeting Modi. An internal survey of the party that was released days before the Delhi Assembly polls had revealed that a major chunk of the party’s support base in Delhi comprises people who want to see the Gujarat Chief Minister as the prime minister. It may be these findings that made Vishwas swiftly clarify that his challenge is not Modi but the BJP that raises the issue of dynastic politics when it suits them, but does not go on it heavily. BJP has many such challenges ahead and they have to select best candidates at all places. States like Maharashtra would be another challenge for BJP.
Moreover, AAP is crossing the lines of traditional votes of national parties. In such crises, sustaining with majority would be big challenge. If this time BJP fails then for next 20 years they will not returns to power, for sure.
Senior Congress leaders on Tuesday met Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi in New Delhi ahead of reports that the party is looking at a possible reshuffle ahead of the 2014 LokSabha elections. While the meeting was primarily to decide party’s strategy in the upcoming elections, the talk was also on whether Rahul will be anointed as a prime ministerial candidate or not, according to sources.
Sonia Gandhi’s secretary Ahmed Patel, JanardhanDwivedi and some ministers were present at the meeting. According to sources, some of the younger ministers like Jairam Ramesh may be sent back to the party before the elections. Ramesh has a clean image and is considered to one of the best backroom strategist.
Former sports minister Ajay Maken, who was sent back to the party, was also present at the meeting. According to sources, the government may see some major reshuffle before the January 17 AICC meeting where Rahul is likely to be projected as the prime ministerial candidate for the LokSabha elections.
Sources says Priyanka discussed Sonia and Rahul’s resolution and programme on January 17 and the decision on whether he will be named as the prime ministerial candidate will be taken at the Congress Working Committee on January 16.
A debt-ridden executive of a reputed private bank and his two accomplices have been arrested for allegedly stealing Rs 49 lakh from the account of a dead NRI since November last year, police said today. 
Senior Congress leaders on Tuesday met Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi in New Delhi ahead of reports that the party is looking at a possible reshuffle ahead of the 2014 LokSabha elections. While the meeting was primarily to decide party’s strategy in the upcoming elections, the talk was also on whether Rahul will be anointed as a prime ministerial candidate or not, according to sources.