Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune held phone talks with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron after months of diplomatic tension…reports Asian Lite News
According to a statement issued by the Algerian presidency, the two sides “discussed bilateral cooperation and the prospects of convening the higher intergovernmental committee” which had been scheduled for last April, but was postponed due to the mounting diplomatic tension between the two sides, reports Xinhua news agency.
According to the statement, the French president Penewed the invitation for his Algerian counterpart to attend the sixth European Union – African Union summit, which will be held in Brussels on February 17 and 18.
French President Emmanuel Macron
The French-Algerian ties have been characterized by diplomatic riffs in recent months since Algeria recalled its Ambassador to France and closed its airspace to French military planes in October 2021.
The move was a response to a French decision in September 2021 to reduce the number of visas provided to Algerian officials by 50 per cent as well Macron’s critical remarks on Algeria.
At Rs 4,847.78 Cr, BJP has the highest assets among thetop 7 parties, Bahujan Samaj Party a distant second with declared assets worth Rs 698.33 crore, reports Asian Lite News
The total assets declared by seven national and 44 regional parties during FY 2019-2020 amounted to Rs 6,988.57 crore and Rs 2,129.38 crore respectively, of which, the highest assets were declared by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at Rs 4,847.78 crore (69.37 per cent) among the national parties.
This was followed by the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which declared assets worth Rs 698.33 crore (9.99 per cent) and Indian National Congress (INC) that declared assets worth Rs 588.16 crore (8.42 per cent), an analysis by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) has found.
Among the 44 regional political parties, the top 10 parties declared assets worth Rs 2,028.715 crore or 95.27 per cent of the total assets declared by all the regional parties for the FY 2019-20.
The highest assets were declared by Samajwadi Party (SP) at Rs 563.47 crore (26.46 per cent), followed by Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) worth Rs 301.47 crore and All India Anna Dravid Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) worth Rs 267.61 crore.
Fixed Deposits / FDR constituted the largest share of Rs 1,639.51 crore (76.99 per cent) of the total assets declared by regional parties in the FY 2019-20, the analysis said.
“The national and the regional parties failed to adhere to the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) guidelines that direct parties to declare details of the financial institutions, banks or agencies from whom loans were taken. The guidelines specify that the parties should state the ‘terms of repayment of term loans’ on the basis of the due date such as a year, 1-5 years or payable after 5 years,” observed ADR analysts.
Details of fixed assets received as donations by the parties should be declared such as the original cost of the asset, any additions or deductions, depreciation is written off, cost of construction, etc. “The same should also be declared of fixed assets purchased by the political parties – not all political parties declared this information,” the analysis said.
None of the parties declared details of loans given by the parties in cash/ kind, especially if it constitutes more than 10 per cent of the total loans.
The assets declared by political parties fall under six major heads: Fixed assets, loans & advances, FDR/ deposits, TDS, Investments, and other assets.
Among the national parties, the BJP and BSP declared the highest assets under FDR/Fixed Deposits, Rs 3,253.00 crore and Rs 618.86 crore respectively while Congress declared the highest assets under FDR/Fixed Deposits, Rs 240.90 crore for the FY 2019-20.
Among the regional parties, the highest assets were declared under FDR/Fixed Deposits by SP (Rs 434.219 crore), TRS (Rs 256.01 crore), AIADMK (Rs 246.90 crore), DMK (Rs 162.425 crore), Shiv Sena (Rs 148.46 crore) and Biju Janata Dal, BJD (Rs 118.425 crore) among others, the ADR said in a release.
The total liabilities declared by the seven national and 44 regional political parties for the same duration amounted to Rs 134.93 crore. The national political parties declared the total liabilities of Rs 74.27 crore, Rs 4.26 crore under Borrowings and Rs 70.01 crore under Other Liabilities.
The Congress declared the highest total liabilities of Rs 49.55 crore (66.72 per cent) followed by All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) declaring Rs 11.32 crore (15.24 per cent). The regional political parties declared the total liabilities of Rs 60.66 crore, Rs 30.29 crore was declared under Borrowings and Rs 30.37 crore under Other Liabilities. Amongst them, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) declared the highest total liabilities of Rs 30.342 crore (50.02 per cent) followed by DMK which declared Rs 8.05 crore (13.27 per cent).
The ICAI guidelines on auditing of political parties, which have been endorsed by the ECI in order to improve transparency in the finances of political parties, remain guidelines only and have not been actively taken up by the political parties as a mandatory procedure to disclose details of their income, the ADR said. It added, “These guidelines were meant to standardise the format of financial statements of parties apart from improving disclosure of income, expenditure, assets and liabilities of the unique association, political parties.”
Registered unrecognised political parties doubled in 2010-2021
The number of registered unrecognised political parties increased more than twice between 2010 and 2021 and disproportionately during the year of parliamentary elections, poll rights group Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) said.
Either newly registered parties or those which have not secured enough percentage of votes in assembly or general elections to become a state party, or those which have never contested elections since being registered are considered unrecognised parties.
In a new report, the ADR said from 1112 parties in 2010, the number spiked to 2,301 in 2019 and now in 2021, the number rose to 2,858.
“It is important to note that the number of such parties increases disproportionately during the year of Parliamentary elections especially. Between 2018 and 2019, it increased by over 9.8 per cent while between 2013 and 2014, it increased by 18 per cent,” the report said.
The ADR said the annual audit reports of only 230 or 8.23 per cent registered unrecognised parties and the annual contribution reports of only 160 or 5.72 per cent of the total 2,796 registered unrecognised parties are available in the public domain for 2019-20.
Of the 889 registered unrecognised parties analysed belonging to five states going for polls in 2022, the annual audit reports are available on the state CEO websites for only 90 or 10.12 per cent of such parties belonging to Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Uttarakhand while they are unavailable for the unrecognised parties of Manipur and Goa for 2019-20.
“The annual audit reports of 10.69 per cent or 82 out of 767 parties of UP, 9.09 per cent or 6 out of 66 parties of Punjab and 5.41 per cent or 2 parties of 37 parties of Uttarakhand are available in the public domain,” it said.
During 2019-20, only 25 of these 90 registered unrecognised parties submitted their audit reports without any delay, while the remaining 65 parties submitted their audit reports after the due date, with a delay ranging from 1 day to 318 days, the report said.
The 90 registered unrecognised parties of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab analysed in this report, whose audit reports are available, declared a total income of Rs 840.25 lakh while the total expenditure declared was Rs 876.76 lakh for 2019-20. During 2019-20, these unrecognised parties spent Rs 36.51 lakh more than their total income for that year.
The Jan Raajya Party of Uttar Pradesh declared the highest income of Rs 338.01 lakh while the total expenditure declared by the party was Rs 332.16 lakh for 2019-20.
Anarakshit Samaj Party and Apna Dal (Soneylal) of Uttar Pradesh declared the second (Rs 157.68 lakh) and the third-highest income (Rs 76.05 lakh) during this period, it said.
Fadnavis said that efforts to bring in both the rebels are back, but added that there is limitation to such outreach…reports Asian Lite News
Goa’s late Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s son, Utpal, was not denied a ticket, in fact he was offered two other constituencies as options to contest from, the BJP’s poll in-charge for the coastal state Devendra Fadnavis said on Saturday. Speaking to reporters in Mapusa town, Fadnavis also said that there were limitations to the party’s outreach efforts to bring back into the fold rebels like Utpal Parrikar and former Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar.
“Utpal Parrikar has not been denied a ticket. We have given Utpal Parrikar the option to contest in two constituencies. One of them was a traditional BJP bastion, but he wanted to contest from the Panaji (assembly) constituency in particular. He rejected both assembly constituencies. We are sad that he is not with us,” Fadnavis said. Utpal Parrikar quit the BJP last week after he was denied a ticket to contest from the Panaji Assembly constituency, which was represented by his father from 1994 to 2019, when he died in office. Utpal Parrikar has claimed that he took the decision because of the tainted background of the BJP’s official candidate Atanasio Monserrate, who is being probed for raping a minor girl in 2018. Another major rebellion faced by the BJP is the one by Parsekar, who also quit the BJP and has filed his nomination papers as an independent candidate, after his claim for a ticket was also rejected in favour of sitting MLA Dayanand Sopte, who joined the saffron Party from the Congress in 2019.
Fadnavis said that efforts to bring in both the rebels are back, but added that there is limitation to such outreach. “It is always our wish, that if someone from our family is separated, then they should come back to the family. Such efforts are on. But if someone has decided that they do not want to come back, then there are limitations to our efforts too, but if someone does decide to return to the family, then we will certainly welcome them and bring them closer,” he said. Elections to 40 seats of the state legislative Assembly are scheduled to be held on February 14.
Poll dotted by dynasty raj
The dynasty phenomenon has appeared to have aged like fine wine in Goa ahead of the February 14 Assembly polls. And just like wine offers red, white and rose variants, the upcoming elections appear to have broken down the dynasty concept to sons and daughters, spouses and sundry.
The BJP appears to have displaced the Congress this time, when it comes to adopting the Family Raj doctrine, although the party appears to have preferred couples more than direct political descendants, when it comes to ticket allocation. The BJP has picked two couples, Vishwajit and Divya Rane from Valpoi and Poriem Assembly constituencies, respectively. The party has also nominated the Monserrates, Atanasio and Jennifer, as its candidates from Panaji and Taleigao seats for the Valentine’s Day poll.
The one couple which could not make the cut in the BJP are the Kavlekars. While Deputy Chief Minister Chandrakant Kavlekar got the BJP ticket from the Quepem Assembly seat, his wife Savitri, who was also vying for a BJP ticket from the neighbouring Sanguem Assembly constituency, has had to contend with being an independent candidate. The Trinamool Congress follows the BJP, allotting tickets to two couples, Kiran Kandolkar and his wife Kavita from the Aldona and Thivim Assembly constituencies, while the Congress has settled for just one marital pair, Michael and Delilah Lobo from the Calangute and Siolim Assembly constituencies.
Sons of powerful political sires have however found less favour with the BJP this time, as compared to wedded couples. The notable omission is late Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s son Utpal, whose claim for the ticket to the Panaji seat was rejected in favour of Atanasio Monserrate. Union Minister of State for Tourism Shripad Naik’s son Siddesh also could not make it to the BJP’s ticket roster. While Utpal has filed his nomination papers as an independent candidate, Siddesh has backed off from the brink of rebellion after he was offered the post of a secretary in the party’s state unit.
Late Deputy Chief Minister Francis D’Souza’s son Joshua however appears to have made the cut in the BJP, with the party offering him a ticket to contest the Mapusa assembly seat. Francis D’Souza was undefeated in Mapusa from 1999, before the BJP’s most prominent Catholic face died in 2019.
The Alemaos appear to be the luckiest clan when it comes to cornering the most number of tickets in these polls. While the Trinamool Congress has fielded the father-daughter duo of Churchill and Valanka from the Benaulim and Navelim Assembly constituencies, respectively, in South Goa, Yuri Alemao, Churchill’s nephew, has secured a ticket from the Cuncolim Assembly constituency. Yuri’s father Joaquim incidentally has also been a Congress legislator in the past. The Dhavalikar brothers, Sudin and Deepak, are the only sibling pairing to contest the February 14 Assembly elections from the Marcaim and Priol constituencies representing the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party.
The state’s most forested sub district of Sattari represents the sundry classification of the dynasty concept. The candidates contesting the two constituencies of Valpoi and Sattari would be more at home sitting at a family dinner rather than featuring as election combatants. The Poriem Assembly constituency in Sattari has been represented by former Chief Minister Pratapsingh Rane for over 50 years. Goa was poised to witness a contest between Pratapsingh Rane on a Congress ticket against his daughter-in-law Divya Rane, who has been fielded by the ruling BJP. Pratapsingh Rane withdrew from the contest at the goading of his son and Divya Rane’s husband Vishwajit, Health Minister in the outgoing government who is contesting from the Valpoi assembly constituency on a BJP ticket.
The Congress’ last minute replacement of Pratapsingh Rane in Poriem is yet another Rane– Ranjit Rane, who is the son of former MLA Jaysingrao, who belongs to the Rane clan.
The state Congress president also said that as announced by the party two years ago, no defector has been given a ticket by the Congress…reports Asian Lite News
The Congress has fielded 80 per cent new and young faces for the February 14 assembly elections, out of which 18 are first-time contestants, Goa Congress President Girish Chodankar said on Thursday.
Speaking to reporters at a press conference in Panaji, Chodankar also said that the party had stuck to its promise to the people of Goa of having no truck of any kind with defecting legislators who have switched from the Congress to the ruling BJP since 2017.
“Our list of candidates has 70 to 80 per cent new and young faces. Only six percent candidates are former MLAs. 31 candidates are new and young faces. 18 of them are first time contestants,” Chodankar told reporters.
The state Congress president also said that the party was contesting around 37 out of the 40 state assembly constituencies, adding that the party had far made the names of 34 candidates public. “The other names of candidates will be released soon,” Chodankar said.
He also said that only six candidates declared so far are former MLAs.
“Four candidates are in the age group of 30 to 40 years. 18 candidates are in the age group of 40 to 50 years and 10 candidates are between the ages of 50 and 60 years. We have fielded only five candidates who are above the age of sixty years. The average of Congress candidates is 48 years, which is young,” Chodankar said.
The state Congress president also said that as announced by the party two years ago, no defector has been given a ticket by the Congress.
“People wanted the Congress not give tickets to defectors and the party should field new, young faces. Congress took a firm decision on the demands of the people that Congress will not give tickets to defectors,” he said.
“We will not allow defectors any support even if they are fielded by our alliance partners,” he added.
Seventeen Congress MLAs were elected to the state assembly in 2017, out of which 13 defected to the Congress by 2021.
Other Congress MLAs like former Chief Ministers Ravi Naik and Luizinho Faleiro joined the Congress and the Trinamool Congress, respectively.
He also inducted the Chajjalwadi family into SAD along with a large number of Congress sarpanchs and block samiti members…reports Asian Lite News
With Assembly elections in Punjab around the corner, the President of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), Sukhbir Singh Badal, on Wednesday announced that former minister Bikram Singh Majithia would take on Pradesh Congress President Navjot Singh Sidhu from Amritsar (East) in addition to his candidature from the Majitha constituency.
Making the announcement in Amritsar, Sukhbir Badal also said that Satinder Singh Chajjwalwadi, the son of three-time legislator Ranjit Singh Chajjalwadi, would be the party nominee from Jandiala.
He also inducted the Chajjalwadi family into SAD along with a large number of Congress sarpanchs and block samiti members.
Giving details about the candidature of Majithia from Amritsar (East), Sukhbir Badal said: “Navjot Sidhu’s arrogance will be his undoing. He has been harping on his support among the masses. Now his support will be tested with ‘Majha da sher’ taking him on in his home constituency.
“He should get ready to fight the brave SAD workers. We will break his arrogance by ensuring he loses his security deposit.”
The SAD chief added: “We know he (Sidhu) has not done anything in his constituency for the last five years. He did not do anything in his constituency even as the local bodies’ minister. Amritsar East has drinking water and even sewerage issues which have not been addressed by Sidhu. Now the people of his constituency will hold him to count.”
Sukhbir Badal said the Congress government has targeted Majithia and even registered a false case against him as the latter has always raised the issues of the people.
“Majithia is known to fight for the people. This was not to the liking of the Congress government,” he added.
The saffron party is also enrolling social media ‘Yodha’ (warrior) to spread the achievements of the Pushkar Singh Dhami government and defuse propaganda of opposition parties in the state…reports Asian Lite News
Amid restriction by Election Commission on rallies and roadshows, the BJP is using different social media platforms in Uttarakhand to reach out to maximum voters before polling day. Apart from constituency specific groups on social media, the Uttarakhand BJP is also using its pages of district and block units on different social media platforms to reach out to voters.
It is learnt that the BJP has made over 10,000 WhatsApp groups in the state and other social media platforms like telegram. The party also actively uses its district and block units on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to reach out to people.
Amid restriction of public rallies and roadshows, the BJP is also holding virtual rallies in three to four assembly constituencies every day.
“Every day we are organising virtual rallies in three to four assembly constituencies. We have set up a studio in Dehradun from where senior leaders and one of our candidates address voters of a particular constituency. A link is sent to all the voters of that particular assembly seat on their mobile phones to join the rally,” Uttarakhand IT department convener Shekhar Verma said.
Polls
The saffron party is also enrolling social media ‘Yodha’ (warrior) to spread the achievements of the Pushkar Singh Dhami government and defuse propaganda of opposition parties in the state. The BJP has launched a campaign ‘Dev Bhoomi ke Digital Yodha’ to enrol volunteers and made an appeal to youth to join the campaign to become cyber ‘yodha’.
Polling for the 70-member Uttarakhand assembly will be held on February 14 and counting of votes will be held on March 10. The ruling BJP is leaving no stone unturned to retain power in the state. The BJP has set a target of winning over 60 seats. In the last assembly polls in 2017, the BJP won 57 seats.
The party on Monday had released the second list of 11 candidates, fielding senior Harish Rawat from Ramnagar in Nainital district…reports Asian Lite News
The Congress on Wednesday changed the seat of former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat for the February 14 Assembly election and he will now contest from Lalkuan, instead of Ramnagar.
The new candidate from Ramnagar is Mahendra Pal singh.
The Congress released its third list of candidates and made changes for three seats -Lalkuan, Ramnagar, and Kaladhungi where Mahesh Sharma is party’s new candidate.
The party on Monday had released the second list of 11 candidates, fielding senior Harish Rawat from Ramnagar in Nainital district.
In the second list, the party has given ticket to Anukriti Gusain Rawat, the daughter-in-law of Harak Singh Rawat, who recently rejoined the Congress from the BJP after being expelled by the saffron party. She will contest from Lansdowne.
There were discussions to field Harak Singh Rawat from Chaubhhatkal but finally Kesar Singh Negi has been given ticket.
Taking a note of the soft corner among the Jats for RLD leader Jayant Chaudhary, Shah said, “Jayant has chosen the wrong house this time.”…reports Asian Lite News
In a bid to woo voters from the Jat community ahead of the Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday met Jat leaders and said that his relationship with the community goes back a long time.
Shah interacted with over 200 leaders from the Jat community in the national capital.
He said that both the BJP and the Jat community have similar views on important issues.
Describing Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav as an outsider, Shah asked the Jat leaders “why do you bring outsiders in a fight within the house?”
Taking a note of the soft corner among the Jats for RLD leader Jayant Chaudhary, Shah said, “Jayant has chosen the wrong house this time.”
Expressing gratitude to the Jat voters for always supporting the BJP, the Home Minister claimed that no one, except Prime Minister Narendra Modi, gave respect to farmer leader Mahendra Singh Tikait.
During the meeting, issues related to the situation in western Uttar Pradesh before 2017, Muzaffarnagar riots during the Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party government, the grand Ram Temple being built in Ayodhya during the Modi-Yogi government and Jat reservation were also discussed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiHXb6jJhic
Talking to the media after the meeting, Union minister and Lok Sabha MP from Muzaffarnagar, Sanjeev Balyan, said that the Jat community has always supported the BJP.
Some people also raised the issue of Jat reservation, to which the Home Minister said that it is also in his mind.
Balyan also claimed that no one in western Uttar Pradesh wants Akhilesh Yadav to be the next Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh.
The Tableaux proposed by Tamil Nadu and rejected in the third round by the Central government for the National Republic Day parade was used by the state government at Chennai parade during the 73rd Republic Day celebrations…reports Asian Lite News
The tableaux titled ‘Tamil Nadu in Freedom Struggle’ depicting V.O. Chidambaranar, ‘Mahakavi’ Subramania Bharathi, Rani Velu Nachiyar, and the Maruthu Pandiyar brothers who were executed by the East India Company were used in the Republic day parade in Chennai.
Chief Minister M.K. Stalin had earlier said that these tableaux will be displayed during the Tamil Nadu Republic Day parade and after this will be taken across the state to showcase to the people about the freedom fighters of the state.
Tamil Nadu Governor R.N. Ravi on Wednesday unfurled the national flag near the Gandhi square on Kamarajar salai in Chennai in the presence of Chief Minister, M.K. Stalin on the occasion of the 73rd Republic day celebrations in the state.
About 6,800 police personnel are on duty as part of the security and are deployed in various parts of Chennai city on the occasion.
Due to the surge in Covid cases, the general public has not been given entry to the Republic day functions at the Gandhi square. Parades by school and college students are also not taking place due to Covid.
The BJP women wing is organising ‘Mahila Chaupal’ and ‘Kirtan’ at block and village levels in Uttar Pradesh along with other reach out programmes in which they interact with the beneficiaries of government schemes and appeal to vote for the party in Assembly polls…reports Asian Lite News
Knowing the importance of women voters for winning the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls for the second consecutive terms, the BJP is holding a ‘Mahila chaupal’ and ‘kirtan’ across the state.
The saffron party believes that women voters will play a crucial and decisive role in next year’s poll as they constitute nearly half (46 per cent) of the total electorate of state and their participation has increased over a period of time. In the last 2017 Assembly polls, over 60 per cent women cast their vote, more than the men.
The BJP women wing is organising ‘Mahila Chaupal’ and ‘Kirtan’ at block and village levels in Uttar Pradesh along with other reach out programmes in which they interact with the beneficiaries of government schemes and appeal to vote for the party in Assembly polls.
BJP Mahila Morcha national vice president Rekha Gupta said that the party is reaching out to the women voters through ‘Mahila Chaupal’ and ‘Kirtan’. “We are organising a series of programmes to reach out to women voters and ‘Mahila Chaupal’ and ‘Kirtan’ are two of them. In chaupal, all the attendees are beneficiaries of the government schemes. Similarly, we are reaching out to women through kirtan mandali (group). These programmes are done at village and block levels,” Gupta said.
According to Gupta, office-bearers of the mahila morcha interact with the beneficiaries following the Covid protocols and guidelines led by the Election Commission. “We tell them the people are with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for tremendous work he has done in the last five years under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. We explain that no government has done so much work in this short span of five years. We appeal to them to elect the BJP government to take Uttar Pradesh to a new height of development under a double engine government,” Gupta said.
Women voters played an important role in the BJP victory in 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls and ensured the return of the Modi government at the Centre in 2019. Knowing that they will also play an important and decisive role in this poll, the BJP is leaving no stone unturned to win their support.
The Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls will be held in seven phases in February-March starting from February 10. Counting of votes will be held on March 10.
