News Analysis India

Tag: Jaipur

  • Kamla Beniwal: Congress veteran and former Gujarat governor Kamla Beniwal dies, condolences pour in

    Veteran Congress leader and former governor of Gujarat Kamla Beniwal died at a private hospital in Jaipur on Wednesday. She was 97.

    Beniwal was admitted to the hospital after a brief illness. One of her family members said the funeral will be held on Thursday.

    Apart from Gujarat, she also served as governor of Tripura and Mizoram. A seven-time MLA, Beniwal also remained the deputy chief minister of Rajasthan, apart from holding other positions in the state government and the Congress party. AllUttar PradeshMaharashtraTamil NaduWest BengalBiharKarnatakaAndhra PradeshTelanganaKeralaMadhya PradeshRajasthanDelhiOther States Rajasthan Governor Kalraj Mishra, Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma, former chief minister Ashok Gehlot and other leaders condoled the demise of Beniwal. Mishra expressed grief on the demise of Beniwal and prayed for peace to the departed soul. In a post on X, the chief minister wrote, “The news of the demise of Dr Kamla Beniwal, former governor of Gujarat and former deputy chief minister of Rajasthan, is extremely sad. My condolences are with the bereaved family.” Speaker of Rajasthan assembly Vasudev Devnani said recalled Beniwal was a “good administrator and public representative”.

    Devnani, in a statement said, the Congress leader participated in India’s Independence struggle and had a “long experience in the field of politics”.

    “Dr Kamla was elected as MLA seven times. She was also the chairperson and member of various committees of the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly,” he added.

    Former chief minister Gehlot said he was deeply shocked by the news of the demise of Beniwal.

    “Her personality was multi-faceted and she did exemplary work in every field, apart from politics,” he said.

    Gehlot said that Beniwal was a senior colleague in his cabinet in his first term as the state’s chief minister and he got to learn a lot from her during the period.

    “She was an efficient administrator, dynamic speaker and a strong leader. Her commitment and loyalty towards the Congress ideology is an example,” he said.

    Gehlot added that as the governor of Gujarat, Beniwal further enhanced the dignity of that post by protecting constitutional values.

  • Leadership change in Rajasthan: Congress to meet at Gehlot’s residence today

    By ANI

    NEW DELHI: Congress legislative party meeting will be held at Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot’s residence in Jaipur on Sunday evening in which a resolution will be passed relating to the change of leadership in Rajasthan.

    The resolution will be passed that decision on change of face in Rajasthan will be taken by the Congress interim chief Sonia Gandhi.

    Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot is also likely to resign from his post before filing his nomination for the Congress President poll.

    All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge of Rajasthan Ajay Maken, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge will be present in the meeting which is scheduled to be held at 7 pm on Sunday.

    Earlier on Saturday, Ajay Maken had a meeting with Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi.

    AICC general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal said the Congress president had appointed Mallikarjun Kharge and Ajay Maken as observers for the Rajasthan CLP meeting to be held on Sunday at 7 pm in Jaipur.

    “Congress President has appointed Mallikarjun Kharge as Observer along with Ajay Maken, Gen. Secretary AICC, Incharge of Rajasthan, to attend the meeting of Congress Legislature Party (CLP) of Rajasthan Legislative Assembly slated to be held on 25th September at 7 pm,” Venugopal said in a tweet.

    Filing of nominations for the post of Congress president began on Saturday with a contest between Ashok Gehlot and former Union Minister Shashi Tharoor on the cards.

    The nominations will be filed till September 30 and results declaring the new Congress chief will be announced on October 19. This will be the first time in 25 years that Congress will see a non-Gandhi chief after Sonia Gandhi replaced Sitaraman Kesri as party chief in 1998.

    The last time the party had a non-Gandhi chief was in 1997 when Sitaram Kesri defeated Sharad Pawar and Rajesh Pilot.

    Chairman of Central Election Authority Madhusudan Mistri will be available in Congress headquarters in the national capital to take the nomination papers as returning officer of the election.

    Gehlot had earlier made it clear that there will be no candidate from the Gandhi family this time.

    Speaking to ANI Gehlot said, “I have requested him (Congress MP Rahul Gandhi) multiple times to accept everyone’s proposal of becoming the Congress President. He clarified that no one from the Gandhi family should become the next chief.”

    Till now, Gehlot has made it clear publically that he will contest the elections, while another name that is most likely to give him a contest is Shashi Tharoor who is also in the fray and had met Madhusudan Mistri.

    Sources close to former union minister Manish Tewari had also said that he is also considering the possibility of contesting the polls.

    The crux of the story that emerges is that the Congress party is all set to witness a tripartite or more contest.

    Earlier, Madhusudan Mistri said that more than 9,000 delegates will be voting in the polls. Anybody can contest and 10 delegates will be needed to support his or her candidature. The last date for filing a nomination is September 30.

    NEW DELHI: Congress legislative party meeting will be held at Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot’s residence in Jaipur on Sunday evening in which a resolution will be passed relating to the change of leadership in Rajasthan.

    The resolution will be passed that decision on change of face in Rajasthan will be taken by the Congress interim chief Sonia Gandhi.

    Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot is also likely to resign from his post before filing his nomination for the Congress President poll.

    All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge of Rajasthan Ajay Maken, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge will be present in the meeting which is scheduled to be held at 7 pm on Sunday.

    Earlier on Saturday, Ajay Maken had a meeting with Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi.

    AICC general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal said the Congress president had appointed Mallikarjun Kharge and Ajay Maken as observers for the Rajasthan CLP meeting to be held on Sunday at 7 pm in Jaipur.

    “Congress President has appointed Mallikarjun Kharge as Observer along with Ajay Maken, Gen. Secretary AICC, Incharge of Rajasthan, to attend the meeting of Congress Legislature Party (CLP) of Rajasthan Legislative Assembly slated to be held on 25th September at 7 pm,” Venugopal said in a tweet.

    Filing of nominations for the post of Congress president began on Saturday with a contest between Ashok Gehlot and former Union Minister Shashi Tharoor on the cards.

    The nominations will be filed till September 30 and results declaring the new Congress chief will be announced on October 19. This will be the first time in 25 years that Congress will see a non-Gandhi chief after Sonia Gandhi replaced Sitaraman Kesri as party chief in 1998.

    The last time the party had a non-Gandhi chief was in 1997 when Sitaram Kesri defeated Sharad Pawar and Rajesh Pilot.

    Chairman of Central Election Authority Madhusudan Mistri will be available in Congress headquarters in the national capital to take the nomination papers as returning officer of the election.

    Gehlot had earlier made it clear that there will be no candidate from the Gandhi family this time.

    Speaking to ANI Gehlot said, “I have requested him (Congress MP Rahul Gandhi) multiple times to accept everyone’s proposal of becoming the Congress President. He clarified that no one from the Gandhi family should become the next chief.”

    Till now, Gehlot has made it clear publically that he will contest the elections, while another name that is most likely to give him a contest is Shashi Tharoor who is also in the fray and had met Madhusudan Mistri.

    Sources close to former union minister Manish Tewari had also said that he is also considering the possibility of contesting the polls.

    The crux of the story that emerges is that the Congress party is all set to witness a tripartite or more contest.

    Earlier, Madhusudan Mistri said that more than 9,000 delegates will be voting in the polls. Anybody can contest and 10 delegates will be needed to support his or her candidature. The last date for filing a nomination is September 30.

  • Congress stages demonstration in Jaipur over Rahul’s questioning by ED

    By PTI

    JAIPUR: The Congress staged a symbolic gherao of the Rajasthan Raj Bhavan here on Thursday and demonstrated against the alleged repressive policies of the Centre and the Enforcement Directorate’s questioning of party leader Rahul Gandhi in a money laundering case.

    Congress state president Govind Singh Dotasra claimed that the ED’s case against Gandhi was false and part of the Centre’s conspiracy to divert people’s attention from real issues facing the country.

    Congress leaders and workers staged a sit-in at the Civil Lines gate near the Raj Bhavan.

    “This false case has been registered against Rahul Gandhi to divert people’s attention from the country’s problems, including unemployment,” Dotasra said in his address to the protesters. He said party workers would protest at all district headquarters in the state on Friday.

    State ministers Pratap Singh Khachariawas and Ashok Chandna also addressed the protest demonstration.

    Congress leader Rahul Gandhi appeared before the ED on Wednesday for the third consecutive day of questioning in the National Herald money laundering case. He has been summoned for questioning for the fourth time on Friday.

    The probe pertains to alleged financial irregularities involving Young Indian Private Limited, promoted by the Congress, that owns National Herald. The newspaper is published by Associated Journals Limited (AJL) and owned by Young Indian.

  • Mobile internet services suspended in Jaipur tehsil ahead of RS polls

    By PTI

    JAIPUR: Mobile internet services have been suspended for 12 hours starting 9 pm on Thursday in Jaipur’s Amber tehsil where the Congress and other supporting MLAs are staying ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls.

    The divisional commissioner issued the order to suspend the services stating security threat to the protected people staying and moving in the area.

    The MLAs are staying at Hotel Leela in the teshil since evening after being shifted from Udaipur.

    They will go to the assembly building for the Rajya Sabha elections on Friday morning from this hotel.

    Taking a dig at the Congress, BJP state president Satish Poonia tweeted the order saying, “Internet shutdown in Amber due to fear of paper leak.”

  • World’s ‘third-largest’ cricket stadium coming up in Jaipur

    By PTI

    JAIPUR: The world’s third-largest cricket stadium is going to be built in Jaipur, and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and BCCI president Sourav Ganguly on Saturday laid the foundation stone of the project virtually.

    BCCI secretary Jay Shah also joined the event virtually. Before the foundation stone laying ceremony, Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) officials performed a ‘bhoomi pujan’. This stadium is being built on the Jaipur-Delhi bypass, as per an official statement.

    RCA president Vaibhav Gehlot said a target has been set to complete the construction in three years. It will be the second-largest cricket stadium in India and the third-largest in the world, he said, adding that it would seat 75,000 spectators.

    “Today is a golden day for Rajasthan cricket. Former RCA president C P Joshi dreamt of the association having its own stadium in Jaipur. The atmosphere of professional cricket is being created in Rajasthan,” Chief Minister Gehlot said.

    A stadium each will be built in Jodhpur and Udaipur as well, the statement said. Seven out of the 10 big stadiums in the world are in India, and this new stadium of Rajasthan will be in the third place, it added.

    BCCI president Ganguly said that a lot of resources have been developed in the last 10 years. “Today, BCCI is the leading cricket board in the world. Even if we talk about junior cricket or Ranji, the Sawai Man Singh stadium here is the best, but now it is a matter of happiness that we are building the third-largest stadium in the world,” he added.

  • ‘Bike ambulance’ to deliver medicines at home to COVID patients in Jaipur

    By PTI

    JAIPUR: The Health Department has started a ‘bike ambulance’ facility in Jaipur city to deliver medicines at home to those infected with coronavirus.

    This initiative has been taken keeping in mind the convenience of the infected living in ‘home isolation’.

    Such infected people can now get medicines by calling the number ‘108’ while sitting at home, an official said.

    According to an official statement, 25 bike ambulances have been set up police station-wise in Jaipur city.

    Through this, medicines will be made available to the patients, especially the coronavirus infected patients, at their homes through bikes and ambulances on calling 108 helpline.

    Of the 9,881 new cases reported in the state on Thursday, 2,785 were in Jaipur.

    A total of 45,565 cases are currently under treatment in the state.

  • Srinagar joins UNESCO network of creative cities; gets praise from PM

    By PTI

    SRINAGAR/NEW DELHI: Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, has joined the UNESCO’s network of creative cities, the world body announced on Monday, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailing the inclusion as a “fitting recognition” for the vibrant cultural ethos of the old city.

    It has been designated as a creative city of craft and folk arts, it said.

    Worldwide, 49 new cities have joined the UNESCO’s Creative Cities Network (UCCN) following their designation by UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay, in recognition of their commitment to placing culture and creativity at the heart of their development and to sharing knowledge and good practices, the UNESCO said in a statement.

    Prime Minister Modi congratulated people of Jammu and Kashmir on the achievement.

    Delighted that beautiful Srinagar joins the @UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) with a special mention for its craft and folk art. It is a fitting recognition for the vibrant cultural ethos of Srinagar. Congratulations to the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
    — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 8, 2021
    “Delighted that beautiful Srinagar joins the @UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) with a special mention for its craft and folk art. It is a fitting recognition for the vibrant cultural ethos of Srinagar. Congratulations to the people of Jammu and Kashmir,” he tweeted.

    Srinagar joins Chennai and Varanasi – UNESCO Cities of music; Jaipur – UNESCO city of crafts and folk arts; Mumbai – UNESCO city of film and Hyderabad – UNESCO City of gastronomy, UNESCO New Delhi Office said in a statement.

    The network now numbers 295 cities reaching 90 countries that invest in culture and creativity – crafts and folk art, design, film, gastronomy, literature, media arts, and music – to advance sustainable urban development, the world body said.

    “A new urban model needs to be developed in every city, with its architects, town planners, landscapers and citizens. We are urging everyone to work with states to reinforce the international cooperation between cities which UNESCO wishes to promote,” said UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay.

    UNESCO New Delhi Director Eric Falt offered words of praise to all those who worked on the candidacy of Srinagar.

    “I would like to offer my warm congratulations to India and especially to Srinagar. This a great recognition of the vitality of the arts and crafts sector in Srinagar,” he was quoted as saying in the statement.

    By joining the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN), cities commit to sharing their best practices and developing partnerships involving the public and private sectors as well as civil society in order to strengthen the creation, production, distribution and dissemination of cultural activities, goods and services, the world body said.

    They also pledge to develop hubs of creativity and innovation and broaden opportunities for creators and professionals in the cultural sector, it said.

    Newly-designated creative cities such as Bohicon, Doha and Jakarta will join forces with existing member cities including Brazzaville, Dubai, Mexico City and Montréal to develop innovative urban policies and solutions that place people and sustainability at the centre of the development process, echoing the urban solutions launched by the UNESCO Cities Platform on the occasion of the World Cities Day 2021, the UNESCO said.

    The collaborative spirit of the UCCN’s members is reflected in the publication UNESCO Creative Cities’ Response to COVID-19 in 2020, it added.

    This year, too, the Network is collecting and disseminating information about the culture and creativity-based responses to COVID-19 that have been taken by members of the Network, which UNESCO will publish as part of its continued support to cities’ recovery from the pandemic, the statement said.

    The erstwhile unified state of Jammu and Kashmir was bifurcated into union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh in 2019.

    Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha also took to Twitter to hail the city’s inclusion in the list.

    “Srinagar included in @UNESCO Creative Cities Network in the crafts & folk art category. It is ultimate recognition for artisans & weavers of J&K. Congratulations to entire J&K team, @Junaid_Mattu Ji, @AtharAamirKhan & thanks to @EduMinOfIndia, @MinOfCultureGoI for all the support,” he tweeted.

    “Grateful to Hon’ble PM @narendramodi for always giving special priority to J&K. Dossier of exceptionally rich art & craft legacy of Srinagar was meticulously prepared & submitted in June this year by @SMC_Srinagar with help of Kashmir INTACH,” Sinha also tweeted.

    Earlier in the day, Mayor of Srinagar, Junaid Azim Mattu, made a series of tweets on the city joining the list, and also thanked people who were involved in the application process.

    “What a proud moment for Srinagar! After sustained, collective efforts – Srinagar is now on the International Arts & Crafts Map and very prominently! Encouragement from the Hon’ble PM makes it even more special!,” he tweeted.

  • Miscreants hack woman to death, sever her legs to take away anklets: Jaipur Police

    By PTI

    JAIPUR: A 55-year-old woman was hacked to death in a rural area of Jaipur district on Tuesday with the unidentified assailants also severing her legs just to take away her silver anklets, police said.

    The woman’s body lying in a pool of blood in a forested area of Khatepura village under the Jamwaramgarh police station was found by villagers in the afternoon, Circle Officer Lakhan Meena said.

    The woman was identified as Geeta Devi of Khatepura village, he said, adding she had gone to the forest to graze cattle when she was attacked by miscreants.

    The woman had also deep wounds on her head and neck, caused by some sharp-edged weapon with her severed legs lying near the body, he said.

    He said the silver anklets that she had been wearing were apparently taken away by the killers.

    The news of gruesome murder triggered an outrage in the state with BJP’s Rajya Sabha MP Kirodi Lal Meena targeting the state government over the incident.

    Meena said Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi must take note of crimes occurring in Rajasthan too.

    “Priyanka Gandhi, who is giving the slogan, Ladki Hoon, Lad Sakti Hoon (I’m a girl who can fight), should look at this incident which happened in Jamwaramgarh in Jaipur today,” he said.

    “Is she finding women unsafe only in Uttar Pradesh,” he asked.

    “The shameful fact is that Rajasthan tops the country in crime against women and the chief minister is busy eulogizing you (Priyanka Gandhi) by ignoring women’s safety,” he said.

  • Jaipur school teacher arrested over objectionable messages to girl students

    By PTI

    JAIPUR: A schoolteacher was arrested here for allegedly sending obscene messages to girl students, police said on Saturday.

    Nikhil Jose, an NCC teacher at a private school, was arrested on Friday night after screenshots of his obscene chats started circulating on social media.

    Obscene chats were found in his mobile phone and a case has been registered against him under sections of the IT Act, Ashok Nagar SHO Surendra Saini said.

    Jose reportedly in his defence said he came to know on Thursday that messages were being sent from his Instagram account.

  • Rajasthan: Panchayat election results thrill Congress as it wrests Jaipur, Jodhpur Boards from BJP

    Express News Service

    JAIPUR: The ruling Congress has marched well ahead of the BJP in the panchayat elections for six districts of Rajasthan. The Ashok Gehlot-led Congress has won 670 panchayat samiti seats and is likely to form the board in 4 of the 6 Zila Parishads that went to polls.

    The Congress has secured majority in Jaipur, Jodhpur, Sawai Madhopur, and Dausa districts while the BJP gained majority in Sirohi Zila Parishad.

    The BJP was also single largest party in Bharatpur Zila Parishad but fell short of a clear majority.

    Independents and BSP members will play a crucial role in the formation of the zila parishad board in Bharatpur.

    The Congress victories in Jaipur and Jodhpur are being seen as particularly impressive as the BJP was holding both of these earlier. With Congress securing a clear majority in both, most see the results as a major jolt to the opposition BJP.

    Rajasthan Congress chief Govind Singh Dotasra was quick to describe the results as very encouraging for his party and a big setback for the BJP.

    “The Congress party has won the elections with an overwhelming majority. Out of 1,562 wards of panchayat samiti, 670 Congress candidates were victorious. In Bharatpur too, 171 candidates of Congress ideology who contested the election without party symbol were the winners,” he said.

    He said the Congress would have its Pradhan in 60 of the 78 panchayat samiti where the elections were held and claimed the BJP could win a majority in only 14 panchayat samitis.

    Dotasra said the results were a validation of the work done by the Congress government led by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. He said that the party would leave no stone unturned in the development of Rajasthan.

    Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot also congratulated the winners and thanked voters for making the Congress party victorious in the elections.

    “I express my gratitude to all the voters for getting the Congress victory in the panchayat samiti and Zila Parishad elections held in six districts. Many congratulations to all the winning candidates and Congress workers,” he tweeted.

    CM Gehlot also claimed that the win in the Panchayat polls is a stamp of approval from the people of the state for the splendid manner in which the Rajasthan government managed to tackle the covid crisis.

    Though the results are being seen as a setback for the BJP, the party’s state president Satish Poonia is hardly inclined to concede defeat. He took to Twitter to congratulate BJP  candidates who won the elections. In a tweet, he thanked the people for supporting the BJP  in the elections and the party workers for their hard work. “Hearty congratulations to the candidates who won the Zila Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections,” he added.

    All political observers are now focused on the election for Pramukh and Pradhan which will be held on September 6. Elections for up-Pramukh and up-Pradhan will be held on September 7.