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Cong slams Centre for withholding funds for K’taka

Jairam Ramesh says that the Finance Commission had recommended Rs 5,495 crore in special grants, plus Rs 6,000 crore for specific projects, to be transferred to Karnataka…reports Asian Lite News

The Congress on Monday accused the Modi government of withholding funds that should “rightfully” go to Karnataka, saying the people of the state are being made to pay the price just because they exercised their democratic right to elect a Congress government.

Congress general secretary in-charge, communications, Jairam Ramesh alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is constantly trying to “throttle” the finances of India’s states.

His remarks came after Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah alleged in a post on X that Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is consistently denying the written word.

“The Modi government and its remote-controlled ministers will cross every line to violate the spirit of federalism, to sidestep the recommendations of Constitutional bodies, and to unleash their political vendettas. This time, the price is being paid by the people of Karnataka,” said Jairam Ramesh.

“The interim report of the 15 FC (Finance Commission) for 2020-21 sanctioned Rs 6764 crores for three states, viz Karnataka (Rs 5495 crores), Telangana (Rs 723 crores) & Mizoram (Rs 546 crores),” Siddaramaiah said.

“These grants were recommended not because of any special love for these states. These were recommended to ensure that no state receives a lower share in devolution in absolute numbers than the previous year,” he said.

“In the final report, the 15th Finance Commission also recommended Rs 6,000 crore for Karnataka, Rs 3,000 crore for revival of water bodies and Rs 3,000 crore for the Peripheral Ring Road for Bengaluru,” he said.

The Ministry of Finance refused to accept these two recommendations, thus denying the rightful share for Karnataka, Siddaramaiah said.

“Smt @nsitharaman avare, we are not asking for funds to our 5 Guarantees. We have adequate provision for those in our budget, thank you,” the chief minister said.

“Since you don’t seem to have any faith in or commitment to the federal polity enshrined in our Constitution, you don’t seem to understand the concept of rightful share of the states. Kannadigas demand their share. They are not begging,” Siddaramaiah said.

Tagging Siddaramaiah’s post, Ramesh said the Modi government and its “remote-controlled ministers” will cross every line to violate the spirit of federalism, sidestep the recommendations of constitutional bodies and unleash their political vendettas.

“This time, the price is being paid by the people of Karnataka, just because they exercised their democratic right to elect a Congress government,” he alleged.

Ramesh also pointed out that the Finance Commission had recommended Rs 5,495 crore in special grants, plus Rs 6,000 crore for specific projects, to be transferred to Karnataka.

Even though Karnataka contributes Rs 4.3 lakh crore each year in taxes, the finance minister, incidentally a member of the Rajya Sabha from Karnataka, has rejected these recommendations and withheld almost Rs 12,000 crore in funds that should rightfully go to the state, he claimed.

“While CM Modi enjoyed talking about states’ problems and complaining about the share of funds going to Gujarat, PM Modi constantly tries to throttle the finances of India’s states,” Ramesh alleged.

“A few months ago, a top NITI Aayog official revealed that the Modi Sarkar had tried to intimidate the 14th Finance Commission into lowering the recommended share of taxes to the states,” he claimed.

On one side there is the ‘Bharat Jodo’ ideology of the Congress and on the other side, this “self-serving petty politics of the BJP”, Ramesh said.

FM rubbishes K’taka’s claim

Earlier, Nirmala Sitharaman had rubbished the Karnataka government’s claim that the Centre was not releasing its due share of special grants’ as recommended by the 15th Finance Commission. She denied that there was any recommendation by the Finance Commission.

Sitharaman’s statement came a day after Karnataka filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court requesting a direction to the Centre to immediately release grants under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) to the state, which is reeling under acute drought.

In February, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, his deputy D K Shivakumar, Congress MLAs and other Congress leaders at the central level staged a demonstration in New Delhi alleging that the Centre was apathetic towards Karnataka’s woes and was not releasing its due share of funds.

“I want to make it a point to tell you in detail that every penny that is due to Karnataka, every paisa that is due to Karnataka, is given, and given on time,” Sitharaman said.

According to the FM, tax devolution has increased under Prime Minister Narendra Modi between 2014 and 2024 by 258 per cent, which is 3.5 times more compared to the 10 years during the previous UPA rule.

In these 10 years of BJP rule, the grants-in-aid have also increased to 273 per cent, which is 3.7 times more than what it was the previous 10 years, she claimed.

The Finance Minister said that between 2004 and 2014, the money received by Karnataka per year was Rs 81,795 crore, which went up to Rs 2,93,226 crore from 2014 to 2024.

“Nobody’s boasting that we’ve given this much or anything, but to be wrongly alleged, accused that you’re not giving money due to Karnataka, I’m sorry, please look at the figures, look at the dates when the money was received and then tell us something which is specific and right, so that I can respond and I will respond,” Sitharaman declared.

ALSO READ-Congress releases 5th list; fields Pratap Singh from Jaipur

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BJP got 84% of electoral bonds bought by top 10 individuals

The top donor, ArcelorMittal’s chairperson Lakshmi Niwas Mittal, bought bonds worth Rs 35 crore, all of which were donated to the BJP…reports Asian Lite News

The top 10 individual donors bought electoral bonds worth Rs 180.2 crore between April 12, 2019 and January 11, 2024, and of this, Rs 152.2 crore or 84.5% was donated to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), according to the latest tranche of data released by the Election Commission on Thursday.

The second biggest recipient was the Trinamool Congress (TMC) which got Rs 16.2 crore or about 9% of the money. The third biggest was the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) with Rs 5 crore.

The top donor, ArcelorMittal’s chairperson Lakshmi Niwas Mittal, bought bonds worth Rs 35 crore, all of which were donated to the BJP.

The second top individual donor was Laxmi Das Vallabhdas Merchant, who donated all his Rs 25 crore to the BJP in November 2023.

According to his Linkedin profile, Merchant is the Group Controller of Reliance Industries Ltd, and has been at the company for more than 33 years.

Of the top 10 individuals, Mittal, Merchant, KR Raja JT, Inder Thakurdas Jaisinghani, Rahul Jagannath Joshi and his son Harmesh Rahul Joshi, Raju Kumar Sharma, Saurabh Gupta, and Anita Hemant Shah donated only to the BJP.

Jaisinghani is the chairperson and managing director of Polycab India, the country’s largest manufacturer of wires and cables. The Joshi father-son duo are directors on the boards of multiple freight companies.

IndiGo’s Rahul Bhatia donated Rs 16.2 crore to the TMC, and ₹3.8 crore to the Nationalist Congress Party. Separately, IndiGo and related entities donated Rs 31 crore to the BJP in May 2019, and Rs 5 crore to the Congress in April 2023

Rajesh Mannalal Agrawal, the CEO of Ajanta Pharma, donated a total of Rs 13 crore –  Rs 5 crore each to the BJP and the BRS, and Rs 3 crore to Congress. Ajanta Pharma separately donated Rs 3 crore to the BJP and Rs 1 crore to the Congress.

Another significant individual donor, Biocon’s Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, ranked 12th in the list of individual donors and donated Rs 6 crore –  Rs 4 crore to BJP, and Rs 1 crore each to the Janata Dal (Secular) and Congress.

In the Supreme Court, the SBI said it had revealed the names of the purchasers of the bonds, the denominations and the specific number of the bonds, the names of the parties that encashed the bonds, the last four digits of the bank account numbers of political parties, the denominations and numbers of the bonds encashed.

The affidavit said the complete bank account numbers and KYC details of the political parties and the purchasers of electoral bonds were not being made public because it might compromise the security of the account. However, they are not necessary for identifying the political parties, the filing said.

“SBI has now disclosed all details and that no details (other than complete bank account numbers and KYC Details) have been withheld from disclosure,” the affidavit said.

The disclosed information include: The details of purchasers, serial numbers, URN numbers, journal dates, dates of purchase, dates of expiry, the names of the purchasers, prefixes, bond number, denominations, issuing branch codes, issuing teller and status. The second list has details such as the details of redemption by political parties, serial numbers, dates of encashment, names of the political party, last four digits of the account number, prefixes, bond numbers, denominations, pay branch codes, and pay teller.

The Supreme Court had on Monday told the SBI to not be selective in its disclosure of details regarding electoral bonds and reveal all details, including the alphanumeric number corresponding to each bond.

The chairman of SBI was told by the court to file an affidavit by 5 pm on Thursday, affirming that the bank had disclosed all the details regarding the electoral bonds.

The court said its February 15 judgment mandated SBI to disclose “all details”, including the date, of purchase/redemption, names of purchaser/recipient, and the denominations, and the use of the word “including” means that the details specified in the judgment were illustrative and not exhaustive.

The court also directed the EC to upload on its website the details received from the SBI forthwith upon its receipt.

The Supreme Court had on February 15 struck down the electoral bond scheme, calling it unconstitutional and manifestly arbitrary.

SBI on March 4 moved the Supreme Court, seeking an extension till June 30, 2024, to furnish information about electoral bonds to the Election Commission (EC).

The court dismissed the plea, directing SBI to share all the details with the EC by March 12 and asked the EC to publish it by March 15.

SBI had said it would require time to match the details of the donor with the political party they had donated to, but the Supreme Court clarified it need not do any such matching and would have to submit the details that are readily available with it.

ALSO READ-Congress Accuses BJP of Freezing Bank Accounts

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‘Pawar Politics’ Over Baramati Seat

Without mincing words, Shriniwas A. Pawar described Ajit Pawar as “ungrateful, incompetent and thankless without regards for the family elders”…reports Asian Lite News

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) President Ajit A. Pawar faces an onslaught from an unexpected quarter — his elder brother, guide and mentor, industrialist Shriniwas A. Pawar — sending ripples in political circles.

Shriniwas A. Pawar, who had supported Ajit A. Pawar during his 2019 rebellion, has now turned his back on the younger sibling, leaving the latter virtually a loner in Pune politics as the battle for Baramati turns brutal.

Catching many unawares, Shriniwas A. Pawar suddenly stepped out to oppose not only Ajit Pawar, but also his wife Sunetra, who is the likely NCP candidate for Baramati, locking horns with her ‘nanand’ Supriya Sule, the daughter the Nationalist Congress Party (SP) patriarch Sharad Pawar.

Without mincing words, Shriniwas A. Pawar described Ajit Pawar as “ungrateful, incompetent and thankless without regards for the family elders”.

“It was hurting when he (Ajit) said that our uncle (Sharad Pawar, 83) has no political future now, he should just retire, sit at home, chant bhajan-kirtan and adopt a mentoring role. Just because someone has aged, you are being disrespectful to him in the hope of getting benefits for next ten years by allying with someone,” said Shriniwas A. Pawar sharply.

“You may be surprised why I am talking against ‘Dada’ (brother) when I have always backed him in the past. I clearly told him that he is an MLA and he should voluntarily give the (Baramati LS) seat to our uncle Pawar Saheb, who has done a lot for us… Clearly there is no one more incompetent than Ajit,” said Shriniwas A. Pawar.

He further reminded Ajit Pawar that it was Sharad Pawar who had made him a Deputy CM four times, plus given him many ministerial assignments and other political positions, and he was fortunate to have such a ‘great uncle’.

Shriniwas A. Pawar’s wife, Sharmila also took the stand and criticized her brother-in-law Ajit A. Pawar, questioning “were you ever defeated in any elections due to Sharad Pawar’s support,” while interacting with villagers on their campaign trail for Supriya Sule.

This is the same Shriniwas A. Pawar who had once sheltered the wayward Ajit A. Pawar when he deserted the (undivided) NCP to abruptly take oath with Bharatiya Janata Party’s Devendra Fadnavis as CM and himself as Deputy CM in a dawn ceremony in November 2019, but the two-man regime crashed in barely 80 hours.

When swords were out for Ajit A. Pawar at that time, he was found ensconced in the home of Shriniwas A. Pawar, and emerged out after the huge fracas subsided, though he was shunted to the political doghouse for weeks before being rehabilitated by Sharad Pawar as a Deputy CM.

This is the second jolt for Ajit A. Pawar in barely a fortnight after his nephew — Yugendra Shriniwas Pawar — also stood opposite him and has supported the NCP(SP)’s nominee Supriya Sule.

Sharmila Shriniwas Pawar chided her brother-in-law (Ajit A. Pawar) saying: “This is a delicate and agonizing time for the entire Pawar clan, something like this is unprecedented, nobody wants to oppose you, but we have many elders in the family and shall overcome this moment. Our identity is owed to Sharad Pawar and even his opponents take his name with respect. We have to make him victorious.”

Shriniwas A. Pawar said that he did not wish to share many other things about Ajit A. Pawar, but desired that he should live with respect and dignity.

Reacting, NCP (SP) National General Secretary Dr Jitendra Awhad said that it was the “pain and indebtedness of Shriniwas A. Pawar that has come to fore as Ajit A. Pawar committed a ‘paap’ (sin) against Sharad Pawar”.

Responding to the sibling onslaught, NCP Thane chief and two-time MP Anand P. Paranjpe said that entire Baramati supports Ajit A. Pawar, and “everything will be clear after the elections”.

ALSO READ-Denied ticket, Harsh Vardhan quits politics

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Congress, BJP stalwarts to clash in 7 Rajasthan seats 

Congress with BJP flag.

A third seat is that of Jodhpur where the BJP has fielded Gajendra Singh Shekhawat against the Congress’ Karan Singh Uchiarada. It is Rajput Vs Rajput here…reports Asian Lite News

As the election dates have been announced for the Lok Sabha polls, there are seven seats in Rajasthan that are being discussed animatedly as the Congress and the BJP have fielded their stalwarts here.

While the BJP has so far announced candidates for 15 seats, the Congress has fielded candidates for 10 seats. Overall, there are 25 Parliamentary constituencies in the state

The names of the remaining candidates are eagerly awaited. The BJP has called its core group committee meeting in Delhi on Monday while the Congress’ next list is also expected soon.

Amidst all these developments, the most talked about seat in the state is Churu where the BJP has fielded Paralympic Devendra Jhajharia against the Congress’ Rahul Kaswan. Kaswan is an ex-BJP MP who left the saffron party after being denied a LS ticket.

For Jhajhariya, these elections mark a fresh innings for him. Now, the seat has become a prestige issue for the BJP as well as the Congress.

Another seat is Bikaner where it is a Meghwal Vs Meghwal contest.

The BJP has again fielded Arjun Meghwal, who has been a MP for two consecutive terms, and is the Union law minister while also being a strong Dalit face of the state. The Congress has fielded Govind Meghwal, who was a cabinet minister in the Ashok Gehlot government in the state. He is counted among the big Dalit leaders of the Rajasthan Congress. This has made the fight interesting here.

A third seat is that of Jodhpur where the BJP has fielded Gajendra Singh Shekhawat against the Congress’ Karan Singh Uchiarada. It is Rajput Vs Rajput here.

The BJP has retained its trust in Shekhawat, a trusted face of the psrty’s central leadership, for the third time. Jodhpur is the home constituency of former CM Ashok Gehlot, however the Congress has fielded a Pilot loyalist Karan Singh Uchiarada against Shekhawat. Karan Singh has worked in different positions in the Congress. This contest between two Rajput leaders is being watched by the voters with keen interest.

The next seat is Chhittorgarh where BJP state president CP Joshi has been fielded against the Congress’ former state minister Udailal Anjana.

The BJP won the assembly elections under Joshi’s tenure as the state BJP chief who is the MP from Chhittorgarh as well. Being the home turf of the state BJP chief is what makes this seat crucial. Joshi’s differences with Chittorgarh MLA Chandrabhan Singh Akya is an open secret now. Akya left the BJP after being denied a ticket and contested the assembly polls as an Independent and won. Since then, he has verbally attacked Joshi for playing a key role in the denial of a ticket to him. There were discussions if Akya preferred to contest the LS polls against Joshi again. However on Sunday, Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma played an intermediary role and helped the two leaders to patch up, making things easy for the BJP.

The Congress has placed its bets on Udailal Anjana, who was a cabinet minister in the Gehlot government, to counter Joshi. Anjana has also been a MP from this area. So it’s a fight between a former Congress MP and BJP MP.

Another interesting fight is in Alwar where the BJP has fielded Union minister Bhupendra Yadav against Lalit Yadav

The BJP has fielded Yadav who has been a Rajya Sabha MP twice but is contesting the Lok Sabha elections for the first time. The Congress meanwhile has fielded its MLA Lalit Yadav against him. Lalit is a first-time MLA from Mundawar. Party sources said that the Congress is trying to bring in new leadership here. Former Alwar MP Karan Singh resigned from the Congress after being denied a ticket and joined the BJP. So what roles the rebels will play here is being watched closely.

Another seat which is being discussed in the political corridors is Jalore-Sirohi where the Congress has fielded former CM Ashok Gehlot’s son Vaibhav Gehlot against the BJP’s Lumbaram Chaudhary.

Vaibhav had contested the LS polls from Jodhpur in 2019 but was defeated by Shekahwat. Now he has been fielded from Jalore Sirohi and hence this seat has become a prestige point for Ashok Gehlot too, said party workers.

The BJP has denied a ticket to three-time MP Devji Patel from Jalore-Sirohi and has fielded Lumbaram Chaudhary who is contesting the LS polls for the first time.

Another seat attracting eyeballs is Udaipur where two ex-bureaucrats are locking horns.

The BJP has fielded Mannalal, a former transport officer, after cancelling the ticket of its MP Arjun Mean in Udaipur. Mannalal has served in organisations like the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Vanvasi Kalyan Parishad and has grassroots experience. The Congress has fielded former Udaipur collector Tarachand Meena. Both the candidates are outsiders.

The Congress has sprung a surprise by fielding Meena from here as his VRS will only take effect from March 20.

Tarachand is known to be the blue-eyed boy of former CM Ashok Gehlot and was directly appointed the Chittorgarh Collector. Eight months later he was appointed the Collector of Udaipur district. Now, his candidature has left everyone surprised.

Meanwhile, Rajasthan BJP vice president Narayan Pancharia claimed that there is no tough contest on these seats and the BJP will sail through smoothly on all these seats,

“Our party manifesto includes suggestions to see Bharat on top of the world charts by 2047. We are working to see a developed India and the voters are trusting us,” he said.

On the other hand state Congress chief Govind Singh Dotasra said, “Electoral bonds, fake promises of the BJP like reducing petrol and diesel prices in the state to the same rate as that in the neighbouring state has exposed the lies of the saffron party. Voters will teach them a lesson,” he added.

As the attacks and counter -attacks continue, the discussions on these seven seats are garnering attention in political circles while the wait continues for the remaining candidates to be announced.

ALSO READ-BJP got Rs 6,986.5 crore through poll bonds

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Rahul Gandhi calls for ‘combined consciousness’

Making a call of empathy for each other, the Congress leader said that there is no ‘combined consciousness’ in the people of the country…reports Asian Lite News

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi made a call for ‘combined consciousness’ while addressing Nyay Sankalp Sabha in Mumbai after the conclusion of his 63-day long Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra.

While addressing the Nyay Sankalp Sabha in Mumbai on Sunday, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi said, “If India is a country of ‘Mohabbat’ then why is hatred being spread? We say that the BJP spreads hatred, but there has to be a basis for this hatred. The reason for hatred is injustice. In this country, every day injustice is being done against the poor, farmers, Dalits, women, & youth.”

“Papers are being leaked, farmers are not getting MSPs, labourers are not getting minimum wage, and small workers are crushed with GST. At every step, people came to me and spoke about the injustice happening to them,” the Congress leader said, recollecting his journey at the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra.

Making a call of empathy for each other, the Congress leader said that there is no ‘combined consciousness’ in the people of the country.

“People are able to see the injustice happening to them, but they neglect the injustice happening to the fellow citizens. Unless you see the injustice happening to your fellow countrymen, no movement can be started,” he said.

“There are a maximum of 5 per cent of people who get justice. For them, the courts, government, and all other institutions work for them. But if we look at the other 90 per cent of the population, they have been suffering due to injustice,” he added.

“In the Bharat Jodo Yatra, I was not alone, lakhs of people were walking with me. The strength of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra was not Rahul Gandhi, but all of the other people that stood by me. All of us need to fight together,” the Congress MP stated.

The Congress leader characterised the clash between two ideologies by asserting, “The BJP adheres to centralised political control. According to the BJP and RSS perspectives, only one individual possesses wisdom, while farmers, labourers, and the youth are deemed lacking in knowledge. However, I believe that a farmer in our nation is just as knowledgeable as a scientist.”

Day after concluding the 63-day long Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, days ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, along with the party’s general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and actor Swara Bhaskar, held the ‘Jan Nyay Padyatra’ from Mani Bhavan Sangrahalaya to August Kranti Maidan in Mumbai, on Sunday. (ANI)

CWC to meet on March 19 to give nod to manifesto

The Congress Working Committee (CWC) will discuss the party’s manifesto for the Lok Sabha elections at its meeting on March 19 and give the final shape to it.

The Congress’ central election committee (CEC) chaired by party chief Mallikarjun Kharge is also likely to meet on March 19 to 20 to finalise the remaining candidates of the party for the seven-phase polls beginning April 19.

AICC general secretary Jairam Ramesh said that the CWC, its top decision-making body, would meet on March 19 and give its nod to the draft manifesto which carries the five ‘guarantees’ for justice.

He said the party will fight the elections on the issue of ‘five nyay’ (justice) — ‘Bhagidari Nyay’, ‘Kisan Nyay’, ‘Nari Nyay’, ‘Shramik Nyay’ and ‘Yuva Nyay’ — with 25 guarantees, five for each nyay, which have already been announced by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former president Rahul Gandhi.

“These are the guarantees by the Congress party and not by a single person,” he remarked in an obvious jibe at the prime minister who has been claiming to provide “Modi ki guarantee”.

Sources said the party’s CEC would also discuss and finalise the party candidates. The Congress has so far announced a total of 82 candidates in two separate lists — first list of 39 candidates and the second of 43.

ALSO READ-EC advises Rahul Gandhi to be cautious in public utterances

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BJP releases second list of 72 candidates

Banto Kataria from Ambala, Ashok Tanwar from Sirsa, Chaudhary Dharambir Singh from Bhiwani-Mahendargah, Rao Inderjit Singh Yadav from Gurgaon, and Krishanpal Gurjar from Faridabad…reports Asian Lite News

The Bharatiya Janata Party released the second list of Lok Sabha polls on Wednesday, consisting of 72 candidates, including three former Chief Ministers Manohar Lal Khattar, Trivendra Singh Rawat, Basvaraj Bommai as well as four Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari, Anurag Thakur, and Piyush Goyal, Pralhad Joshi.

The BJP has fielded former Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar for the Karnal Lok Sabha seat. Manohar Lal Khattar had earlier resigned from the position of Haryana Chief Minister on Tuesday.

In Himachal Pradesh, Union Minister Anurag Thakur will contest from the Hamirpur constituency. Suresh Kashyap has been fielded from Shimla seat.

In Karnataka, the party has fielded Union Minister Pralhad Joshi from Dharwad. Tejaswi Surya will contest from the Bangalore South constituency. Former Karnataka Chief Minister Basvaraj Bommai has been given a ticket from the Haveri Lok Sabha seat, while PC Mohan will contest from Bangalore Central.

In Maharashtra, the BJP has decided to field Union Minister Nitin Gadkari from the Nagpur seat. Piyush Goyal will contest from Mumbai North. Pankja Munde has been fielded from Beed.

The BJP also announced the candidature for two seats in Uttarakhand.

The party has fielded former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat from the Haridwar seat while Anil Baluni, who is the National Chief Spokesperson of the Bharatiya Janata Party is set to contest from the Garhwal seat.

Also, BJP announced that Harsh Malhotra will contest from East Delhi constituency, a seat which was held by former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir. Yogendra Chandolia will contest from North West Delhi.

Meanwhile, Kalaben Delkar will contest from Dadar and Nagar Haveli.

In the second list, the BJP has announced the names of candidates for seven Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat.

In Gujarat, the party has fielded Hashmukhbhai Somabhai Patel from Ahmedabad East, Dhawal Patel from Valsad, Mukeshbhai Chandrakant Dalal from Surat, Ranjanben Dhananjay Bhatt from Vadodara, Nimuben Bambhania from Bhavnagar, Bhikhaji Dudhaji Thakor from Sabarkantha and Jashubhai Bhilubhai Rathwa from Chhota Udaipur.

Six names have been announced from Haryana.

Banto Kataria from Ambala, Ashok Tanwar from Sirsa, Chaudhary Dharambir Singh from Bhiwani-Mahendargah, Rao Inderjit Singh Yadav from Gurgaon, and Krishanpal Gurjar from Faridabad.

BJP has fielded Raghvendra from Shimoga and V Sommana from Tumkur in Karnataka.

In Madhya Pradesh, the BJP has fielded Vivek ‘Bunty’ Sahu from the Chhindwara seat where he will face Congress leader Nakul Nath. Shankar Lalwani will contest from Indore.

In Maharashtra, Anup Dhotre will fight the polls from the Akola seat on the BJP ticket, and Kapil Moreshwar Patil from Bhiwandi.

In Telangana, Godam Nagesh will contest from Adilabad, DK Aruna from Mahbubnagar, and Saida Reddy will contest from Nalgonda.

From Tripura East, Maharani Kriti Singh Debbarma will contest on BJP ticket.

Earlier, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday had released its first list of 195 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will contest the Lok Sabha elections from Varanasi again.

Meanwhile, Congress has so far announced names for 82 Lok Sabha seats.

The BJP-led National Democratic (NDA) won a total of 303 seats, leaving the grand-old party behind at 52 seats.The Lok Sabha polls are slated to be held in April-May this year. (ANI)

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Cong invites Pawar to join Rahul’s yatra 

The Yatra entered the state days after the party witnessed some high-profile exits like former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan who joined the BJP, and former Union minister Milind Deora who joined the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena…reports Asian Lite News

Congress leaders on Tuesday gave an invitation to NCP (SCP) chief Sharad Pawar to join Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra and the public meeting to be held at Shivaji Park on March 17.

The Yatra will reach Chaityabhoomi on March 16, where Sharad Pawar will also be present.

It is noteworthy that the Yatra entered Maharashtra from the district of Nandurbar on March 12.

Congress MP Jairam Ramesh earlier revealed, “Between 12-17 March, the final leg of the Bharat Jodo Jodo Nyay Yatra. Members of the INDIA alliance will be present… The motive behind the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, ‘Panch Nyay’, I think the guarantees that we gave, we have been successful in that”.

The Congress and the Shiv Sena (UBT) are part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), which also includes the NCP (SPawar) in the state. Smaller parties like the Swambhimani Vikash Parishad (SWP) and the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) are also likely to join the Congress-led alliance in the state. The state sends 48 legislators to the Lok Sabha.

The Yatra entered the state days after the party witnessed some high-profile exits like former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan who joined the BJP, and former Union minister Milind Deora who joined the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.

Later, Ashok Chavan was elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha.

Earlier, Baba Siddiqui a prominent minority face of the Congress in Mumbai quit the party and joined the Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) following which, Zeeshan Siddiqui his son was removed from the post of Mumbai Youth Congress President.

The Congress’s ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’, after the party’s ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’, aims to cover 6,700 km through 15 states, with Lok Sabha polls around the corner.

The Lok Sabha polls are likely to be held in April-May this year. (ANI)

ALSO READ-Congress, DMK seal seat-sharing deal in TN, Puducherry

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‘Modi wants youth to chant Jai Shri Ram, starve to death’

Earlier in the day the BJP launched an all-out attack against the Congress’ ally DMK for a speech made by former Minister A Raja in Madurai…reports Asian Lite News

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and accused his government of misleading the youth, saying that the PM wants the young generation to only chant ‘Jai Shri Ram and starve to death’.

Addressing a gathering in Madhya Pradesh’s Shajapur during his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, the Congress MP also advocated for the caste-based census and said that conducting the survey will ensure social justice for the people.

“Our policy is very clear– that is a revolutionary step towards social justice that is only caste-based census…the Congress has done only revolutionary work. It fought for the country’s independence when they (BJP) went lost, where they were at that time. Be it, the green revolution, white or digital, all the revolutionary works have been done by Congress…but the PM wants our youths to be glued to their phones for the whole day, chant Jai Shri Ram and starve to death (bhukhe raho aur mar jao),” he said.

Earlier in the day the BJP launched an all-out attack against the Congress’ ally DMK for a speech made by former Minister A Raja in Madurai.

Amit Malviya, the head of Bharatiya Janata Party’s IT cell, criticised A Raja, accusing him of advocating for the Balkanisation of India and making derogatory comments about Lord Ram, Manipuris, and the idea of India as a nation.

Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra resumed from Madhya Pradesh’s Rajgarh district on Tuesday morning. Gandhi started the yatra from Sarangpur in the presence of a large number of party workers.

He was in an open Jeep, greeting the party workers who were carrying the party flag. Notably, the Congress MP is also slated to visit the Mahakaleshwar temple in Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain, one of the Jyotirlinga temples, during his yatra.

This marks Gandhi’s second visit to the temple during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, with the last one taking place on November 29, 2022.

Notably, the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra entered the state on March 2 and will stay in the state till March 6. The Congress’s ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’, after the party’s ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’, aims to cover 6,700 km through 15 states, with Lok Sabha polls around the corner.

The Lok Sabha polls are expected to be held in April-May this year. (ANI)

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Cong finalises seat-sharing pact

Congress General Secretary says party has finalised its seat sharing with all other parties of the INDIA bloc except in West Bengal and Jammu & Kashmir…reports Asian Lite News

Congress General Secretary in-charge Communications Jairam Ramesh has said that the Congress party has finalised its seat sharing with all other parties of the INDIA bloc except in West Bengal and Jammu & Kashmir.

The Congress leader made the remark while addressing a press conference in Madhya Pradesh’s Shajapur district on Tuesday, when he arrived here with the Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra.

On being asked about where the INDIA alliance stands as Lok Sabha elections are draws closer, the Congress leader said, “INDIA alliance started in Patna on June 23, last year. After that, the second meeting was held in Bengaluru on July 17 and 18. The third meeting of the alliance was held in Mumbai on August 31 and September 1 and the fourth meeting was held in Delhi on December 19 last year. There were a total of 28 parties in the alliance. After the formation of the INDIA alliance, suddenly the Prime Minister tried to revive the dead NDA alliance. We would be aware that when the India alliance was announced, the talk of NDA had started. Where does NDA come from? Take out two ‘I’ from INDIA, Imandari (honesty) and Insaniyat (humanity) and it becomes NDA.”

He also took a dig at Bihar CM Nitish Kumar who recently switched sides to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), which is a part of INDIA bloc saying he (Nitish Kumar) is a master of ‘Palti’ (switching sides).

“There were a total of 28 parties in the INDIA Alliance but of these a party leader (Bihar CM Nitish Kumar) switched sides. His history is of ‘Palti’ (switching sides). He is a master of Palti. Out of 28 parties, 27 were left and later one more party left INDIA bloc and joined NDA. So we became 26. But I want to say that 26 parties are strong parties,” he added.

The Congress leader further said, “Now out of 28 parties, 26 parties are with us and one or two more parties may join us in Maharashtra. We are strong and our seat-sharing formula in Jammu and Kashmir is being finalised. There has been some delay (referring to seat sharing issue) in West Bengal but the Congress Party has finalised the seat sharing with all the other parties. Only two states left are West Bengal and Jammu and Kashmir.”

When asked whether Congress is in touch with West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, Jairam Ramesh said that they were hopeful that some middle path would be worked out and were trying their best.

“Mamata Banerjee is part of the INDIA Group. The Left parties are also the Part of India group. Mamata Banerjee attended Patna, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi meetings of the INDIA Group. She has said that her priority is to defeat the BJP and strengthen India. That is also the priorities of the Congress party. We are hopeful that some middle path will be worked out. Let us see we are trying our best,” the Congress leader said.

Panel prepares draft manifesto 

The Congress panel tasked with preparing the party’s manifesto for the Lok Sabha polls has prepared the draft which will now be discussed by the Congress Working Committee.

Former Finance Minister P Chidambaram, who heads the manifesto committee, said the draft report will be presented to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.

“We have prepared the draft manifesto. Now it will go to the Congress Working Committee. They will finalize the manifesto then it will become the Congress party document. Tomorrow we will hand over this draft to the Congress President,” he said.

Congress is all set to launch its campaign for the Lok Sabha polls next week, aiming to cater to different age groups, said party sources on Friday.

According to the sources, the party has hired two large companies for publicity materials and hoardings.

For the first time, the party will do new experiments in its media strategy. In response to the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) centralised media campaigns, the Congress will launch localised campaigns at micro levels, said the sources.

Sources said Congress will also put up hoardings promising legal guarantee for Minimum Support Price (MSP) for farmers. Earlier, during the farmers’ ‘Delhi Chalo’ March, the party had said it would provide legal guarantee of MSP for farmers if voted to power.

The Congress has promised to conduct a nationwide caste census if voted to power.

To provide momentum to the election campaign, the Congress has appointed one lakh Booth Level Agents (BLA). The Lok Sabha polls are likely to be held in April-May this year. (ANI)

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PTI Threatens to Disrupt Assembly Unless They Get ‘Due Rights’

PTI leader Junaid Akbar said: “We do not recognise this assembly. We will neither legislate nor allow it [in the House].

Coming down hard on the ruling alliance, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Junaid Akbar warned that they would not let the National Assembly function until provision of their “due rights,” Geo News reported on Friday.

The PTI leader, who is also a Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) lawmaker, made the remarks during his fiery speech at the second session of the newly elected lower house of parliament.

Taking the floor, Akbar said: “We do not recognise this assembly. We will neither legislate nor allow it [in the House].

Notably, the Imran Khan-founded party has claimed that its mandate was “stolen” during the February 8 general elections. It has termed the polls “rigged” and accused the caretaker government of denying a ‘level playing field’ in the run-up to elections.

“A market [of horse-trading] was set up at the Sindh House and consciences [of lawmakers] were bought,” Akbar said firing a fresh salvo at the Pakistan Peoples Party. “Some were threatened, some were shown their videos.”

Highlighting the cases of alleged discrimination with the PTI, the lawmaker said that his party was stripped of its electoral symbol ‘bat’ in the garb of May 9 mayhem.

He also alleged that two assassination attempts were made on the life of the PTI founder.

Some 34 PTI supporters were killed on May 9 and FIRs were also lodged against the leadership of Khan-founded party, he added. “Sedition cases were registered against me and my friends.”

The May 9 riots were triggered almost across the country after the deposed prime minister’s arrest in the 190-million-pound settlement case. Hundreds of PTI workers and senior leaders were put behind bars for their involvement in violence and attacks on military installations, according to Geo News.

During the protests, the miscreants targeted the civil and military installations including — Jinnah House and the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi. The military termed May 9 “Black Day” and decided to try the miscreants under the Army Act.

(Photo: Instagram)

Talking about the alleged rigging in the February 8 general elections, the PTI leader said that those who suffered defeat as per Form 45 were sitting in the House.

He also vowed to hold the ruling alliance accountable for “violating” the constitution and harming the country.

The PTI urged the government and Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa to launch a fresh inquiry to ascertain the beneficiary of the May 9 violence, Geo News reported. (ANI)