News Analysis India

Tag: BJP

  • BJP gets ready for Jammu & Kashmir election with JP Nadda’s visit

    Express News Service

    SRINAGAR:  With the Delimitation Commission set to submit its report on delimitation of Assembly and Lok Saba seats in Jammu & Kashmir to the government in May, BJP president JP Nadda has asked party leaders and workers to gear up for the first-ever Assembly polls in the Union Territory.

    Nadda met selected leaders of Jammu & Kashmir BJP during his one-day visit on Monday and discussed the political situation after the scrapping of Articles 370 and 35A and bifurcation of Jammu & Kashmir into two UTs.

    Sources said that the BJP chief asked leaders and workers to gear up for Assembly polls, which is likely in October-November after completion of the delimitation exercise.

    “Increase your public outreach programmes and inform people about the developmental and welfare schemes launched by the Modi government pre and post Article 370 revocation. A BJP worker never takes rest and works the whole year for the masses. We have to remain attached to people. That cannot be done only at the time of elections,” the BJP chief told party leaders.

    Nadda, who could not chair the core group meeting of the party, asked leaders to hold such meetings every fortnight to discuss in details the political situation and party affairs. A senior leader said that Nadda’s visit has rejuvenated the workers and now, the party would increase its activities across the UT.

    “We are always in election mode. We are ready for the polls as and when announced. Booth-level leaders and workers have been active,” he said.

  • BJP has nothing to do with Nathuram Godse: Gujarat Minister Purnesh Modi

    By PTI

    GANDHINAGAR: The BJP or the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has nothing to do with Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin Nathuram Godse, Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi asserted in the legislative Assembly on Tuesday, seeking to rebutt Congress accusations that they had a soft corner for Godse.

    The minister’s assertion came in the backdrop of constant accusations from the opposition Congress that the ruling BJP was soft on Godse.

    Earlier in the House, senior Congress MLAs Punja Vansh and Shailesh Parmar criticised the BJP over several issues and cited some recent incidents, which they claimed, showed that Mahatma Gandhi’s killer is being given importance in Gujarat under the saffron party’s rule.

    Accusing the central Congress leadership of creating a false narrative of “saffron terrorism” (Bhagwa Aatankwad), Modi said the RSS creates patriots and instills a sense of patriotism among citizens.

    “I want to make it clear that the BJP has nothing to do with Godse. The RSS was banned thrice in the past. First, when Godse assassinated Mahatma Gandhi (in 1948), then during the Emergency (1975-77) and lastly in 1992 after the demolition of Babri Masjid. But, the ban was lifted on all the three occasions because the government of the day realised that the RSS works for the society,” said the minister, who handles the Road and Building portfolio.

    He said the BJP does not believe in politics of appeasement.

    “The RSS creates patriots and instills a sense of patriotism among citizens. It was Congress which had conspired to create a false narrative of saffron terrorism. Unlike the Congress, which failed to nab accused in terror cases in the past, the Narendra Modi government did not hesitate to conduct a surgical strike (across the LoC) because the BJP does not believe in appeasement politics,” said the minister in the House.

    Taking part in the discussion, Vansh and Parmar (Congress) slammed the BJP and its government over certain incidents related to Godse.

    They referred to a recent incident wherein an elocution competition with “My Role Model – Nathuram Godse” as one of the topics was organised for school students in Valsad by the district office of the state youth services and cultural activities department of the Gujarat government.

    Later, the state government suspended the officer who had finalized the subjects for the elocution competition.

    In November last year, members of the Hindu Sena, a right-wing outfit, had installed a bust of Godse in Jamnagar.

    Later, Jamnagar city Congress leaders demolished it.

    “The BJP has double standards. While it talks about Mahatma Gandhi, it fails to act against those who put up Godse’s bust. Instead, action was taken against those who destroyed it. I demand that the government take stern action against those who indulge in such acts of eulogizing Godse,” said Vansh, speaking on the motion of thanks to Governor Acharya Devvrat for his address to the Assembly.

    Parmar also slammed the BJP government over the issue of past terror attacks, seeking to know why the State Intelligence Bureau failed to collect prior inputs about these strikes.

    “Where was the state IB when innocent citizens were killed in the 2008 serial bomb blasts in Ahmedabad, the Akshardham terror attack and the Godhra train carnage? All these raised questions about how the IB had failed to give inputs to the government,” said Parmar.

  • Maharashtra: Case against unidentified person for throwing footwear at Fadnavis’ convoy

    By PTI

    PUNE: Police have registered a case against an unidentified person for allegedly hurling a slipper at the convoy of Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly Devendra Fadnavis in Pune, an official said on Tuesday.

    The incident took place on Sunday when Fadnavis had come to inaugurate the Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee garden at Purna Nagar in Pimpri Chinchwad area, he said.

    Minutes before the arrival of former chief minister Fadnavis, some BJP and NCP workers clashed at the venue, prompting police to resort to a mild lathicharge.

    As per the police, when Fadnavis reached the venue, a person from the crowd allegedly hurled a slipper at the convoy.

    “We have registered a case against an unidentified person under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code,” an official from Chikhali police station said.

    The NCP workers had come to the spot alleging that the BJP leader was inaugurating the garden though its work was incomplete.

  • BJP MLA’s remarks against Muslims lead to opposition walkout in Bihar Assembly

    By PTI

    PATNA: The Bihar Assembly on Monday witnessed repeated clashes between MLAs of the BJP, which is part of the ruling NDA in the state, and the opposition over issues relating to the Muslim community.

    The question hour saw BJP MLAs on their feet demanding fencing of ‘shamshan ghats’ (cremation grounds) on government expenses, provoked by an RJD legislator raising the issue of ‘kabristaans’ (burial grounds).

    RJD MLA Shamim Ahmad had said delay in fencing of burial grounds often left these vulnerable to mischief from anti-social elements, and requested that legislators be allowed to facilitate the work from their local area development funds.

    Minister Bijendra Kumar Yadav rose to reply on behalf of the government and submitted that district-level committees headed by respective collectors were in place to identify “sensitive” burial grounds.

    He, however, said so far the government has not considered the option of allowing legislators to get the job done through their respective funds.

    The House plunged into turmoil as some BJP MLAs rose in their seats, demanding that the government also similarly undertake fencing of the ‘shamshaan ghats’ and temples.

    “This is the type of communalism for which the BJP is known. Raking up ‘shamshan’, Pakistan at the drop of the hat,” rued RJD MLA Nehaluddin outside the House later.

    Haribhushan Thakur Bachaul, the BJP MLA who was recently in news for suggesting that Muslims should be stripped of voting rights if they refused to sing ‘Vande Mataram’, told reporters “we raised the issue of ‘shamshan’ and mandir because these to need to be secure. We will continue doing so.”

    Post-lunch, the House got down to debate on the second supplementary budget, but chaos followed again after BJP MLA Kumar Shailendra used an “unparliamentary” word for Muslims.

    Opposition MLAs trooped into the well raising slogans in protest.

    Former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, who is with the ruling NDA, said it was indeed objectionable to use disparaging words about a community.

    Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary concurred and urged Speaker Vijay Kumar Sinha that the remark be expunged from the proceedings of the House.

    The Speaker said suitable action will be taken in the matter, though the opposition remained dissatisfied and staged a walkout.

    The debate carried on with the opposition in absentia, and the second supplementary budget was passed by voice vote.

  • Despite fractured predictions of exit polls, BJP, Congress confident of forming government in Manipur

    By IANS

    IMPHAL: Despite fractured predictions by most of the exit polls on Monday, the two dominant political parties in Manipur – the ruling BJP and the main opposition Congress – are confident of forming the government in the northeastern state after the declaration of Assembly election results on March 10.

    Manipur witnessed a hung Assembly in the previous polls in 2017, and this time too most of the exit polls’ predictions indicate another hung house.

    Claiming that his party is confident to form the government in Manipur, state Congress spokesman K.H. Debabrata said that the ruling BJP has used militants and other unethical methods to retain power, but the people of the state have given their verdict against the ruling party.

    “The BJP government and its leaders turned Manipur into ‘Moneypur’. During the elections, the BJP leaders utilised underground militants, goons and muscle power. The BJP government at the Centre and in the state gave Rs 16 crore to the militants just before the polls to influence the voters,” the Congress leader told IANS.

    Union Minister and BJP’s Manipur election in-charge Pratima Bhowmik said there is no doubt that the BJP is coming to power in Manipur for a second term with absolute majority.

    “People of Manipur have become fed up with the Congress. Their mis-governance for many years encouraged the militant outfits to grow. Blockades and bandhs (shut down) were regular affairs during the Congress regime. Hence, the people of the state this time rejected the party whole-heartedly,” Bhowmik said.

    Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh had earlier told IANS that the BJP would get at least 40 seats in the 60-member house.

    Another Manipur in-charge of the BJP and the party’s national spokesperson, Sambit Patra, tweeted: “The BJP is set to come back with a firm majority in the states we were in the govt – Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur. Our focus area was majorly empowerment – of women, youth, poor and needy and farmers among other sectors.”

    The leaders of the National People’s Party (NPP), BJP’s estranged ally, and Janata Dal (United), are also claiming that they would play a vital role in government formation. The two parties fielded 38 candidates each this time.

    NPP general secretary for Manipur, Sheikh Noorul Hassan, said that in the previous Assembly elections, the party had secured four seats, but this time it will bag more than 20 seats to become a formidable political force in Manipur.

    The BJP had secured 21 seats in the 60-member Assembly in the last polls in 2017 and wrested power for the first time after stitching together a coalition government with the support of four NPP MLAs, four Naga People’s Front (NPF) members, the lone Trinamool Congress MLA and an Independent member.

    However, this time the BJP, NPP and NPF are contesting separately and have fielded candidates against each other.

    Congress, which governed the state for 15 consecutive years (2002-2017) and emerged as the single largest party by securing 28 seats in 2017, this time formed a Manipur Progressive Secular Alliance (MPSA) after forging a pre-poll alliance with four Left parties and Janata Dal-Secular.

    Political observers said the outcome of the Assembly elections would have important ramifications for Meghalaya and Nagaland, the two northeastern states which along with Tripura would go to the polls early next year.

  • Voting begins for last phase of UP polls; 613 candidates in fray on 54 seats

    By PTI

    LUCKNOW: Voting for the seventh and the last phase of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections began on Monday morning, with 613 candidates in the fray on 54 seats, including those falling in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s parliamentary segment Varanasi.

    The fate of Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party president Om Prakash Rajbhar and several state ministers will be decided in this round, in which 2.06 crore people are eligible to vote.

    Voting will be held from 7 am to 4 pm on the Chakia (Chandauli), Robertsganj and Duddhi (Sonbhadra) seats while in the rest of the segments, it will continue till 6 pm.

    The districts going to the polls in this phase are Azamgarh, Mau, Jaunpur, Ghazipur, Chandauli, Varanasi, Mirzapur, Bhadohi and Sonbhadra.

    Once considered a stronghold of the Samajwadi Party, the region saw the BJP making inroads in 2017 by winning 29 seats.

    The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) got six seats and the SP 11.

    For the SP, its patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav made a rare appearance in Jaunpur to drum up support for Lucky Yadav, the son of his long-time associate the late Parasnath Yadav.

    Lucky Yadav is in the fray from the Malhani seat.

    Mulayam had earlier campaigned for his son Akhilesh Yadav in the Karhal Assembly segment of Mainpuri.

    Besides state Tourism Minister Neelkanth Tiwari (Varanasi South), other ministers in the fray in the last leg of the elections are Anil Rajbhar (Shivpur-Varanasi), Ravindra Jaiswal (Varanasi North), Girish Yadav (Jaunpur) and Ramashankar Singh Patel (Marihan-Mirzapur).

    Dara Singh Chauhan, who had resigned from the Yogi Adityanath cabinet and had joined the SP, is contesting from Ghosi in Mau.

    Om Prakash Rajbhar (Zahoorabad), Dhananjay Singh (Malhani-Jaunpur) as the JD(U) candidate, and Abbas Ansari, the son of gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari, from Mau Sadar seat, are contesting in this phase.

    Campaigning in this phase reached its crescendo with Prime Minister Narendra Modi leading the BJP’s poll blitzkrieg in Varanasi and its adjoining districts.

    Besides addressing election rallies, he also held a roadshow for three Assembly constituencies in his Lok Sabha segment.

    This phase also saw West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee descending on the pilgrim city to hold a joint rally with Akhilesh Yadav and his RLD ally Jayant Chaudhary.

    Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had been camping in Varanasi for about four days.

    She, along with her brother Rahul Gandhi, addressed election meetings, whereas BSP supremo Mayawati campaigned in the district and neighbouring areas.

    Seeking to override anti-incumbency, the ruling party raised issues like forced migration and law and order problems during the previous SP government, while Akhilesh Yadav targeted the BJP government on the issues of inflation, unemployment, stray cattle, and the farmers’ agitation against the Centre’s agriculture laws.

    The mowing down of four farmers in Lakhimpur Kheri was also highlighted by all opposition parties as Union minister Ajay Mishra’s son Ashish Mishra is an accused in the case.

    The state has 403 Assembly seats and the results of the elections will be declared on March 10.

  • Budget session of Chhattisgarh Assembly from March 7; BJP to target Congress govt on law & order issues

    By PTI

    RAIPUR: The budget session of the Chhattisgarh Assembly will begin from Monday and the state’s budget for 2022-23 will be tabled in the House on March 9, an official said on Sunday.

    The opposition BJP has decided to corner the ruling Congress over several issues, including the ‘deteriorating’ law and order situation in the state.

    On Monday, the session will commence with Governor Anusuiya Uikey’s address, followed by tabling of the motion of thanks on her address, the Assembly official said.

    The debate on the motion of thanks to the governor’s address is proposed for March 8, he said.

    Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, who holds charge of the state finance department, will present the state budget on March 9, he said.

    Till Saturday, 1,682 questions were received from the legislators, including 854 starred questions and 828 un-starred ones.

    Besides, 114 notices were received for the calling attention motion and 10 for the adjournment motion, the official said.

    There will be 13 sittings during the session, which will conclude on March 25.

    Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly Dharamlal Kaushik said the BJP was fully prepared to corner the state government during the session on several issues, particularly the “deteriorating” law and order situation.

    Expressing unhappiness over the ‘curtailed’ duration of the budget session, Kaushik claimed that for the first time such a short budget session is being held in the history of Chhattisgarh, which is a violation of the parliamentary tradition.

    “The session has been called only for 13 days. It should have been lengthier as there are a lot of issues that need to be raised in the House. The ruling Congress is trying to escape from the discussion,” he claimed.

    “We will try to raise all issues of public importance in such a short period. We will target the government over the rising crimes, including incidents of rape and loot. We will also raise the issue of the increasing illegal sale of narcotics and liquor in the state,” the BJP leader said.

    A delegation of BJP MLAs had met Assembly Speaker Charan Das Mahant on Saturday and requested him that the session should not be concluded ahead of its schedule, a leader from the saffron party said.

  • BJP adopted scientific ways for campaigns in five states: Amit Shah

    By Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: Claiming to be the world’s largest political party, the BJP senior leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said that the entire election campaigns across all the five states, including the country’s biggest state UP, were conducted for assembly elections in very” systematic and scientific” ways making a start amid the third wave of Covid-19.

    “Right from Prime Minister Narendra Modi Ji to even booth level workers of the party worked went down to the last people of society for knowing their aspirations and problems to solve them out through good governance”, Shah claimed, speaking to the media on the eve of the last phase of assembly elections here.

    Definition elections not mere a way to go in governance, Shah said the BJP goes in elections with a motif to share its ideologies, share the people’s problems and show that the party cares for each and every one of the country without any discrimination on caste and creed.

    “The way PM Modi ji has replaced politics of polarization and class with politics of performance has not just defined the BJP, but the entire nation’s politics for the future”, he claimed, adding that for the first time in UP, democracy is being seen flourishing till the bottom.

    “Now, we are seeing democracy flourishing for the first time in UP by freeing the state from casteism, dynasty and appeasement-all three ills of society”, he boasted.

    Shah further claimed that the BJP take all the people as one without dividing them into castes and  religion-wise.

    Speaking on the nature of election campaigns, Shah said:”In the history of independent India, this election was a somewhat new and strange type of campaign. But the BJP did campaigning in a very scientific way”.

    He said that the BJP went before the people with a new resolve to make a new India after implementing all the schemes on the ground. “Goa is now in a good position with a lot of development and infrastructure works worth Rs 60000 crore done by the BJP government. In the same way, other states including UP, ruled by the BJP, have excelled well in development works”, Shah said.

    Lauding works of development done in Manipur, Shah said that the BJP will form the govt in Manipur again.

    “The state has transformed from blockades, bandhs, violence, drugs to organic farming, medical institutions and more. PM Modi and our CM of Manipur have worked hard to end the differences between hills and valleys”, he claimed.

  • Those defaming ‘red cap’ forced to wear a cap: Akhilesh Yadav’s swipe at PM Modi

    By PTI

    JAUNPUR: Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav Saturday took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying those who were “defaming” the SP’s red cap have been “forced by people” to wear a cap, although of a different colour.

    Yadav made the comment at an election rally here apparently referring to Prime Minister Modi donning a saffron cap during his roadshow in Varanasi on Friday.

    This is also being seen as a response to Modi’s attack on the Samajwadi Party last December when he had said in Gorakhpur that people with red caps — the SP’s poll symbol — are “red alert” for Uttar Pradesh.

    Yadav said on Saturday, “Those who have been defaming our caps have been forced by the people of Uttar Pradesh to wear a cap. It is another thing that they have changed the colour of their cap.”

    Yadav was addressing the 2022 Uttar Pradesh polls’ last election meeting in Malhani constituency in favour of the Samajwadi Party’s Lucky Yadav.

    The two-month-long campaigning in Uttar Pradesh ended this evening.

    The seventh and final phase of voting in the state will be held on March 7.

    Counting of votes will be held on March 10.

    Attacking the BJP and PM Modi over the saffron colour cap, Yadav said they keep changing their colour.

    Appealing to people to vote for Lucky Yadav, the former chief minister said, “I feel that people of Malhani are going to vote for the Samajwadi Party in a big way, and demolish the rivals.”

  • Stakes high for Congress in Manipur’s final round poll

    Express News Service

    GUWAHATI:  Manipur will go to the final phase Assembly polls on Saturday against the backdrop of sporadic incidents of violence.  The poling will be held in 22 constituencies, 11 of them straddling across two valleys and as many in the tribal-majority hills. After the first-phase election on February 28, opposition parties had accused the ruling BJP of using militant groups in peace mode to threaten voters and capture polling booths. 

    The fear of the gun looms large also in the second phase, particularly in the hilly constituencies of Tengnoupal and Chandel. After the first-phase polls in the hill district of Churachandpur, the militants had brutally beaten up five persons for voting in favour of a certain political party. Photos of their bruised bodies had gone viral.

    In 2017, the Congress had won 12 of these 22 seats — eight in the Imphal Valley and four in the hills. The BJP had bagged three seats — two in the Imphal Valley and one in the hills. The Naga People’s Front (NPF) had won four — all of them in the hills. The National People’s Party (NPP) had won two, both in the hills, while an Independent emerged victorious in the Jiribam (valley) seat.

    The Congress is confident of its prospects in the second phase. However, the political situation in the state has changed drastically over the past five years that saw half of the Congress’ 28 MLAs jumping ship, most of them embracing the lotus. “Eleven of the 12 Congress MLAs, who had won from these seats in 2017, are still with us. We are confident we can win 16 of the 22 seats this time. People across constituencies are supporting us,” Congress spokesman K Debabrata claimed.

    He alleged the BJP had taken the help of some militant groups, which signed suspension of operation agreements with the government, to harass and intimidate Congress voters in the first phase elections. “The militants should be confined to their designated camps but they came out and openly supported the BJP,” Debabrata alleged.

    The Congress and the BJP are expected to win bulk of the 22 seats. The BJP’s base has improved tremendously in the Imphal Valley as well as the hills since 201. Another factor likely to favour the BJP is that the Northeast voters usually vote for that party which is in power at the Centre. The NPF, which was born in Nagaland, is considered a powerhouse in 10 Naga-majority seats in Manipur hills where it has fielded candidates. The NPP, which leads Meghalaya government, is expected to win some seats in the valley.