Darjeeling- Top leaders of both the Hill Trinamul Congress (TMC) and the All India Gorkha League (AIGL), have blamed Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha (GJMM) chief Bimal Gurung for the resignation of two Hill MLAs from the party.
While Kalimpong MLA Harka Bahadur Chettri quit the party on 18 September, Dewan quit the party as well as the state Assembly on Monday.
Pratap Khati, the spokesperson for the AIGL alleged that Gurung is not sincere with the demand for a separate state of Gorkhaland and that an intellectual person as Trilok Dewan must have realized it.
“Sensible people are resigning from the party. Other intellectual persons will also step down in the coming days. This proves that there is no writ of Bimal Gurung within the party,” he said.
Binny Sharma, the top leader of the Hill TMC, said, “At least now the people have started realizing the truth–what and who Bimal Gurung is. Now they know that they were in the wrong place. The GJMM was created out of a mere fit of emotional wave.”
Asked whether the two former MLAs of Kalimpong and Darjeeling will be joining the TMC, Sharma said, “Nothing like that. But if they want to join, they are most welcome.”
Trilok Dewan himself claimed on Monday that there is no democracy in the GJMM, and further said that the two MLAs’ resignation from the party should be taken as a wake-up call by the GJMM. According to Dewan, although he had been appointed the Chief Advisor of the party, he was never consulted on important decisions.
“I was like a souvenir that was there only for show. I had no role to play in the party,” he said on Monday.
He further claimed that Gurung is always surrounded by “undesired elements.”
Asked how the GJMM will now function in his absence and in the absence of Chettri, he said Gurung will now be “devoid of high level intellectual inputs.”
“He will not get intellectual inputs while dealing with the state government or playing political games. He will only get local inputs,” said Dewan.
The General Secretary of the GJMM and Executive Member of the GTA, Roshan Giri, said he will comment on the resignation only after receiving a formal letter from Trilok Dewan.
Leader of the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF), NB Chettri did not wish to comment when asked about the resignations.
Meanwhile, CRPF personnel were seen patrolling Trilok Dewan’s house below Chowrastha in Darjeeling on Monday. Darjeeling Superintendent of Police (SP) Amit P Javalgi said the police are keeping track of the developments. “We will talk to Trilok Dewan once he returns, and if he requests us for police protection, we will do the needful,” he said.”
The demise of Sheikh Rashid bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, eldest son of UAE Vice-President, Prime Minister and ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum on Saturday at the young age of 33 was quite sudden. He was born on November 12, 1981 and completed his schooling in Dubai, before graduating from the Sandhurst Military Academy in United Kingdom in 2002.
As a well-known sports figure in UAE, he went on to become the President of the UAE Olympic Committee in 2008 and had won several accolades before that. He had won 2 Gold medals in the 2006 Doha Asian Olympics 120 km Endurance individual mixed and 120 km Endurance Team Mixed events. Serving for two years as President, he resigned from the position in 2010. He was also the owner of Zabeel Racing International where it’s said he had about 428 wins.
Apart from his immense interest in sports and he was also an ardent Manchester United fan and the owner of United Holdings Group, Dubai and was a principal partner of several companies like Noor Investment Group, Noor Islamic Bank and Dubai Holding Company.
The 33-year-old Sheikh was voted as one of the 20 Hottest Young Royals in the world by Forbes magazine in 2011 and estimated his net worth in 2010 at $1.9 billion. He was also voted as one of the 20 Most Eligible Royals in the world in 2010 by Esquire magazine and was voted as one of the 20 Sexiest Arab Men for the 5th time in 2010.
He was Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s second child, among his 24 children and on his death a three-day mourning period has been called for in Dubai.
In the latest update to the back and forth of open letters written between eminent journalist Rajdeep Sardesai and Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis, the former IBN head has responded yet again.
On Tuesday, Fadnavis had responded to an open letter written by Rajdeep Sardesai.
Following are the excerpts of what Rajdeep wrote in his blog.
On beef and meat bans:
Rajdeep Sardesai said that Fadnavis government acted in a unilateral fashion and that it had affected the livelihood of a huge section of the population, predominantly that of the minority community. Regarding the meet ban, Rajdeep writes that while the earlier Congress government also issued notification, it was driven by a spirit of volunteerism. But, he said, that only this year the BJP-backed Mira- Bhayandar Municipal Corporation sought to implement the ban strictly and that emboldened other BJP councillors to enforce it in Mumbai also. According to the senior journo, the saffron party backed down only when it understood the enormity of public outrage regarding the issue.
On Rakesh Maria’s transfer:
Rajdeep Sardesai writes that he refused to believe the argument posed by Devendra Fadnavis that Maria’s was a routine transfer. He said that none of the police officers whom he has interacted with bought this reason. He raised a couple of pertinent questions relating to the transfer and asks why was Maria given the charge of probing the Sheena Bora murder case shortly after he was transferred from the post of Police Commissioner. Rajdeep also asks if the Mumbai police had clinching evidence and why the case had been suddenly transferred to the CBI.
Sedition circular:
According to Devendra Fadnavis, the Maharashtra government had just dutifully translated in Marathi a previously issued circular and the entire issue was blown out of proportion.
However Rajdeep Sardesai questions this theory and ask why the Maharashtra government didn’t simply withdraw the circular. Now that Bombay High Court has asked the government to reply on the circular, according to Rajdeep this round has been won by those who are worried about potential misuse of the circular.
Farmers plight:
Devendra Fadnavis said that farmers plight due to the drought was owing to faulty policies of the state government for the last 15 years. According to Rajdeep, while long term plans may result in change in the future, as of now there was very little improvement on ground.
Further, Rajdeep hit out at the pseudo-liberal, leftist jibe by Fadnavis, saying that he was merely trying to do his duty for the last three decades.
Union Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma has been in the eye of the storm since he made a handful of comments about ‘Indian culture’.
He had said about former APJ Abdul Kalam: “Aurangzeb Road ka naam bhi badal kar ek aise mahapurush ke naam par kiya hai jo Musalman hote hue bhi inta bada rashtravadi aur manavtavadi insaan tha (We have renamed it after someone who was a humanitarian and a nationalist despite being a Muslim).”
He also said: “Western culture is not bad but it may not be good for us. Here, 15-year-old children don’t leave their parents. A 14-year-old girl wanting a night out maybe all right elsewhere but not in India.”
Speaking about the RSS’ role in governance he had said: “If at all saffronisation has been done, it has been done by the 125 crore people of the country who gave us a huge mandate. They knew what is RSS, what is BJP. They have given us a mandate to run the country.”
Here’s how Twitter reacted to the Mahesh Sharma’s comment
ashok varkey @akaesh Sep 19
@VishalDadlani dude ,I suggest you send your female family members out every night for a week & see what the neighbours say …that is
View other replies
VISHAL DADLANI @VishalDadlani Sep 19
The women in my family are strong & independent. No one “sends” them anywhere/”lets” them do anything. They make their own choices! @akaesh
CK says Nation First @I_m__CK Sep 19
@VishalDadlani Take example of any middle class fmly n exp livin wid them.Evry parent stops gals of goin out in night.U calling all rapists?
An influential section of the Patel community on Sunday said they are opposed to a planned rally against Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he visits the US this week while another group in the Silicon Valley said they would hold protests against him over the handling of the recent reservation agitation in Gujarat.
In a media statement, the group of Patels, said they believe that the agitation in India is politically motivated and these protests do not represent the voice of the entire Patidar (Patel) community.
“We Patels in the US are not taking any sides. Our intention is to make everybody aware that not every Patidar is against Prime Minister Modi. We do not support people who are tarnishing the reputation of our community and great country of India,” said Danny Patel, CEO of Peach State Hospitality.
There are about 150,000 Patels living in the US and those supporting the rally against Modi at the UN are a minuscule number who are misrepresenting the community, said the statement.
“Modi is coming here to further a bigger vision that he holds for India and instead of supporting his vision some people are trying to thwart his vision for petty political gains which the majority of us feel is not right,” said Ravi Patel of Sree Hotels.
“Patidars in the US are an industrious and peace loving community that has the progress of India close to their hearts,” the statement added.
“As members of the overseas Patidar community, we condemn it. This is an exercise in political mudslinging and we do not want to be a part of it,” said Baldev Thakor, president of Maya Hotels and a Patel community member.
“We wholeheartedly support Modi in his initiatives to take the country to greater heights,” he added.
Meanwhile, another section of the Patel community held a meeting in Silicon Valley to organise the protest rally against Modi when he visits California next week.
“While we are honoured to have the Prime Minster of India and fellow Gujarati Narendra Modi in Silicon Valley next week, we must not ignore the facts that gross violations of human rights and brutality by Gujarat police has occurred and the state and central governments have failed to serve and protect innocent civilians,” they said in an emailed statement to community members.
“Please note that this is not against or pro any political party. This is not against Modi. However, as the Prime Minister of India, we need Modi to recognise that those who are responsible for unconstitutional brutal actions must be punished. We demand justice,” they said.
Nepal has formally adopted a new constitution, nearly a decade after the country ended a long-running civil war.
Members of parliament applauded as President Ram Baran Yadav signed the document in the capital Kathmandu.
Earlier on Sunday police fired on protesters in the south, where some members of ethnic minorities oppose the constitution. At least one person died.
The document defines the majority Hindu nation as a secular republic divided into seven federal provinces.
It was agreed by parliament last week, after years of political wrangling.We believe that the adoption of the new constitution has now opened the path for development of the country,” Mr Yadav told the assembly.
Firecrackers went off in Kathmandu in celebration, and some Nepalese spoke of their relief that the country could now move on.
Student Shyam Sharma told the Associated Press news agency that he hoped politicians could “focus on other important issues like developing the country, improving the economy”.
But others across the country are not happy.
Before the signing, clashes broke out between the security forces and a crowd of Madhesi people who had defied a curfew to demonstrate in the town of Birgunj, Parsa district, in southern Nepal.
One person was killed and a number of people were injured.
“They attacked with stones and glass bottles. Some of the security forces have been injured as well as the demonstrators. The situation here is tense,” Parsa’s chief district officer Kesheb Raj Ghimire told the AFP news agency.
At least 40 people have been killed amid protests by the Madhesi and Tharu ethnic groups in the south in recent weeks.
They are concerned that changes to the borders and election rules will further marginalise them.
The demand for a new charter was raised by Maoists rebels whose 10-year civil war ended with a peace deal in 2006.
In 2008, the Maoists won elections to a constituent assembly, leading to the abolition of the 240-year-old monarchy. But amid squabbling, the assembly failed to draw up a new constitution.
The NDA in Bihar on Wednesday suffered a jolt as a LJP MP resigned from the party post of general secretary and two BJP MLAs who were denied ticket met Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Lok Sabha member Ramakishore Singh tendered his resignation as national general secretary of LJP as well chief whip of its parliamentary party, Singh said in a press statement here.
He also quit as party in-charge of Rajasthan, the statement said.
The LJP MP, who has been a long time associate of LJP chief and Union Minister Ramvilas Paswan, quit allegedly on being sidelined from decision making process of the party in the seat-sharing in the NDA. LJP got 40 seats in the coalition and this has left even senior party leaders miffed.
Recently, Chirag Paswan, son of party chief and its Parliamentary Board head, had commented that Singh would be mollified. But, things did not improve and he quit party posts.
Singh had defeated RJD leader and former union minister Raghubansh Prasad Singh at Vaishali in the last general election.
Meanwhile, peeved over denial of ticket, two BJP MLAs–Aman Kumar and Ajay Mandal–met Chief Minister Nitish Kumar this afternoon amid indication that they would join the grand secular alliance in the elections.
Coming out of the CM’s residence, Aman Kumar, MLA from Pirpainty (SC seat) in Bhagalpur district, told reporters that even the chief minister expressed surprise over denial of ticket to him.
“Since BJP has left me in the cold I have to go to some party. I enjoy good relations with CM Nitish Kumar,” he added.
Another BJP MLA Ajay Mandal, representing Nathnagar Assembly seat in the same Bhagalpur district, also met Kumar.
New Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull promised to focus on stability and improving a faltering economy as the public woke up on Tuesday to their fourth leader in two years.
The Liberal Party voted in a secret ballot late on Monday to oust Tony Abbott as the leader of the senior party in a ruling conservative coalition in favour of Turnbull, a multi-millionaire former tech entrepreneur who is popular with the electorate.
“I’m filled with optimism and we will be setting out in the weeks ahead … more of those foundations that will ensure our prosperity in the years ahead,” Turnbull told reporters as he headed to parliament on Tuesday before being sworn in.
Abbott was deposed barely two years into his three-year term after months of opinion polls that showed his popularity with the public near rock bottom as Australia’s $1.5 trillion economy struggles to cope with the end of a once-in-a-century mining boom.
Turnbull had previously been unpalatable to his party’s right wing because of his progressive views on climate change, same-sex marriage and making Australia a republic.
However, Abbott’s dismal performance and over-reliance on slogans to sell his major policies, including a hardline approach to refugees, wore down internal opposition to Turnbull.
Abbott, in his last address as prime minister on Tuesday, pledged to make the leadership transition as smooth as possible but also expressed concern that “a revolving door prime ministership can’t be good for our country”.
Australia has in recent years been convulsed by backroom machinations and party coups that have shaken public and business confidence in government.
“There will be no wrecking, no undermining, and no sniping,” Abbott told reporters.
TURNBULL A BIGGER THREAT
Turnbull’s ascension is seen by many political analysts as restoring stability because he presents a more formidable foe for the opposition Labor Party at elections due in about a year.
“If the election was held yesterday, the opposition would have won. If it was held today they would lose,” said Peter Chen, a senior lecturer in government at Sydney University.
“Malcolm Turnbull is much more of a threat to the leader of the opposition than Tony Abbott was,” Chen said. “It looks like, unless things really change, the government will get a second term in office.”
There is also continuity in the form of Foreign Minister Julie Bishop
hop, who won the party room vote to retain her additional position as deputy party leader.
However, significant changes are expected when Turnbull, who had been toppled as Liberal Party leader by Abbott in opposition in 2009, unveils his ministry later this week.
Current Treasurer Joe Hockey, who has been battling a backlash against a deeply unpopular budget, and Defence Minister Kevin Andrews, who is overseeing a A$50 billion ($35.70 billion) submarine tender, are both expected to be replaced.
Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Kate Carnell welcomed the promise of more collegiate and co-operative government, urging Turnbull to undertake reforms to boost productivity and competitiveness.
Australia’s revolving door leadership also plagued the Labor Party when it was in power.
Labor’s Kevin Rudd, elected prime minister with a strong mandate in 2007, was deposed by his deputy, Julia Gillard, in 2010 amid the same sort of poll numbers that Abbott faced. Gillard was in turn deposed by Rudd ahead of the 2013 elections won by Abbott.
New Delhi: Jitan Ram Manjhi has persuaded the BJP to part with a few more seats than the senior partner had brought to the negotiation table, but it still does not match Ram Vilas Paswan’s 40.
After multiple meetings, BJP chief Amit Shah announced how his party and its three regional allies will divide seats in Bihar: The BJP will contest 160 of the 243 seats, Mr Paswan’s Lok Jan Shakti Party will contest 40, Upendra Kushwaha’s Rashtriya Lok Samata Party will contest 23 seats and Jitan Ram Manhji’s newly minted Hindustani Awaam Morcha (Secular) also called HAM, will contest 20.
Mr Shah said a few people from Mr Manjhi’s party will also contest as BJP candidates, rejecting reports of squabbles over seats. “There is no tug of war in the NDA over seat sharing,” Mr Shah said as he announced what is being seen as a neat face-saver for all sides after a fairly aggressive tussle over the weekend.
Jitan Ram Manjhi, who briefly served as Bihar chief minister a few months ago as a member of Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal United, was adamant that his party must be given as many seats to contest as Mr Paswan’s party. He argued that he has greater influence among the deprived Dalits and Mahadalits, a sizeable chunk of voters in Bihar, where caste and community have played a major role in deciding elections.
The BJP had offered 15 seats to Mr Manjhi. He wanted 40. The middle path was found this morning and Mr Shah was flanked at his press conference today by a smiling Mr Manjhi and Mr Paswan.
The BJP has rationed seats among its allies in a way that it can contest enough to have a chance at winning a majority, at 122 seats, on its own.
It takes on an alliance led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who is seeking a third term. Mr Shah said today that the BJP’s coalition will decide who will be chief minister only after the elections, which will be held in five phases beginning next month.
Votes will be counted on November 8.
BJP’s student wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad swept Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) elections on Saturday, winning posts of President, Vice-President,Secretary and Joint Secretary defeating Congress-affiliated National Students’ Union of India (NSUI).
AAP’s student wing Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS) participated in the student polls for the first time. The votes split between CYSS and NSUI seem to have given ABVP an edge in the polls.
Here is a breakdown of how the university voted-
President
Name Party Votes
Satendra Awana ABVP 20, 439
Pradeep Vijayran NSUI 14, 112
Sheetal Bhopal AISA 7, 464
Kuldeep Bidhuri CYSS 8, 375
Vice President
Name Party Votes
Sunny Dedha ABVP 19, 671
Garima Rana CYSS 12, 101
Prerna Singh NSUI 7, 888
Sudhanshu Shekhar AISA 6, 838
Secretary
Name Party Votes
Anjali Rana ABVP 14, 944
Amit Sehrawat NSUI 10, 334
Rahul Raj Aryan CYSS 7, 153
Ravi Kumar AISA 6, 182
Joint Secretary
Name Party Votes
Chhatr Pal Yadav ABVP 16, 243
Deepak Chaudhary NSUI 10, 178
Abhinav Kumar AISA 10, 045
Hitanshi Chauhan CYSS 8, 205
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