Mumbai, BJP leader Sanjay Joshi, bete noire of the Gujarat chief minister, on Thursday resigned ahead of the party national executive meeting beginning here, a move seen as an effort by the party president to buy peace with Narendra Modi. "Joshi, who was invitee member of the national executive, has in a letter to party president Nitin Gadkari said that he is relinquishing his post in the larger interest of the party," BJP sources said hours before the inauguration of the two day conclave. The move by Gadkari is significant as the shadow of Modi could have hung over the conclave as speculation had mounted over the Gujarat strongman's absence amid no official word from Gandhinagar. Modi had also not attended the last meeting of the National Executive held in Delhi in December apparently peeved over the induction of Joshi into Uttar Pradesh election campaign by Gadkari. He had also not campaigned in the UP polls. As per official programme, Modi will be in Udaipur in Rajasthan today to attend the birth centenary celebrations of Maharana Pratap and will be returning to Ahmedabad. As per his associates in Gandhinagar, Modi could make it to Mumbai tomorrow in view of the ...
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Lucknow, In an apparent move to expand its base beyond the geographical and political boundaries of Uttar Pradesh, the Samajwadi Party is preparing to contest the Gujarat assembly elections, scheduled to be held later this year. The larger plan is to contest assembly elections in all the four states, where elections are to be held before the 2014 Lok Sabha polls to test the political waters in these states and also push for a national status for SP, which is still a state party. Eyeing on a substantial migrant population from Uttar Pradesh settled in the industrial belts of Bharuch and Vapi in south Gujarat apart from Ahmedabad and Vadodra in central Gujarat, SP national president Mulayam Singh Yadav is expected to address a meeting of the party workers in Ahmedabad on June 7. The party is expected to make the final announcement of its plans to contest the assembly elections in Gujarat at this meeting. According to party insiders, a host of senior SP leaders including chief minister Akhilesh Yadav will also hold meetings thereafter. South Gujarat general secretary of Samajwadi Party, Gulab Singh met Mulayam recently in Delhi, and it was decided that SP supremo will visit ...
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Ahmedabad, A metropolitan court here has handed over a copy of SIT report to Zakia Jafri, wife of Ehsan Jafri who was killed in the Gulbarg society massacre during the Gujarat riots in 2002. Reacting to the development, Zakia's son Tanveer Jafri said, "Getting the report is a big win for us." SIT has given its report with 22,000 annexure and 25 CDs to Jafri. After handing over the SIT report to Zakia Jafri, the court has kept May 10 to discuss whether there is any deficiency in supplying copy of the report and relevant documents. Zakia had approached court to get a copy of the ...
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New Delhi, Congress Party on Sunday sounded a critical note over Bihar Chief Nitish Kumar shaking hands with his Gujarat counterpart Narender Modi, saying that various political outfits ought to clarify on their stand with respect to each other. "Whether or not they want to shake hands is a matter between Nitishji (Nitish Kumar) and Narendra Modiji, but it is true that all political parties must be clear about where they stand," said Congress spokesperson Rashid Alvi. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), however, spoke in defence of the meeting, saying both leaders are symbols of governance. "Neither Nitish Kumar nor Narender Modi does politics after taking a certificate from Lalu Prasad Yadav. So, I think, he should get over this wrong impression that a person would take a certificate or permission from him to meet. As far as Nitish and Modi are concerned, both are symbols of governance," said BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi. "Without doubt, the development model that both leaders have created in their particular states is a source of inspiration for all states. So, meetings like this cannot be considered a matter of political debate, and neither should it be seen like ...
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New Delhi, With an eye on the Gujarat assembly election due at the end of the year, Congress is preparing to chip away at chief minister Narendra Modi's development plank by challenging the "vibrant Gujarat" slogan. Congress on Tuesday attacked the CM's style of governance and his development model, saying Modi's slogans lacked substance. "The entire concept of vibrant Gujarat is nothing but a very big myth," AICC spokesman Manish Tewari told TOI. He added that the myth needed to be discarded in the interest of the people of Gujarat. Slamming the BJP government in the state, Congress said the truth was far from what was being claimed on human development indices, growth and even inflow of FDI in the state. "The focus will be on exposing the truth," Tewari said. Congress's state unit is reworking its strategy, attacking Modi's development claims instead of concentrating on slamming him for the 2002 communal riots. Congress's new game plan saw leader of opposition in Gujarat Shaktisinh Gohil's pointing to a CAG report that criticized Gujarat government for bad management and corruption in internal security. "Before giving any advice to the central government, the CM ...
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Ahmebabad, A special court in Anand has pronounced its verdict in the Ode massacre case of post-Godhra riots, wherein 23 persons belonging to minority community were burnt to death. The court has convicted 23 people in the case and has acquitted 23 for want of evidence. The quantum of punishment for the convicted will be announced later. An agitated mob of about 2,000 gathered near Pirawali Bhagol in the Ode town of Anand district on March 1, 2002 and set a house on fire in which a small group of Muslims had taken shelter. Altogether 23 persons, mostly women and children, were killed in the incident. Since the victims were not content with the investigation carried out by Gujarat police, the case was taken up along with other major cases by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) before the Supreme Court which formed a special investigation team (SIT) to conduct further probe in the case. After the investigation was over, special judge S Y Trivedi charged 47 persons with murder, conspiracy, rioting, unlawful assembly, attempt to murder and destruction of evidence. One undertrial passed away during the proceedings. A red corner notice has been issued against ...
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New Delhi, Narendra Modi's penchant for turning any praise from the Centre into a political weapon against Congress has the Centre tread with care. Rural development ministry has granted CM Modi an additional Rs 100 crore for good work in "drinking water and sanitation" but exercised caution to underline that Gujarat is among the seven states who are being rewarded. The letter from RD minister Jairam Ramesh to Modi mentions that Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Meghalaya, Punjab, Tripura and Tamil Nadu have utilized 60% of their funds under 'national rural drinking water programme', prompting the Centre to make additional allocations for the coming year. In contrast, the letters to other CMs are direct, stating "since your state has performed well, I have decided to give an additional allocation of Rs 98.20 crore (Tamil Nadu)". The reward is part of RD's drive to distribute "unspent" money in the current financial year among performing states instead of returning them to the finance ministry. Sources said the precaution taken in correspondence with Gujarat was typical of Congress's compulsions as well as Modi's guile, made more sensitive by December polls. With an ...
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Gandhinagar, Two BJP MLAs accused of watching obscene pictures on an ipad in the Gujarat Assembly have been given a clean chit by the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) here. The FSL on Friday submitted a report of scrutiny of the ipad, in a sealed cover, to Assembly Speaker Ganpat Vasava. Vasava read out the conclusions in the House. Accordingly, there were no obscene videos or pictures on the ipad. Vasava said the allegations in media reports that MLAs Shankar Chaudhary and Jetha Bharvad were watching obscene pictures had turned out to be false. He said he will be handing over the FSL report to the privilege committee of the house, which is investigating the entire issue. According to the FSL report, the ipad contained communications by the MLA, some reports, over 4,000 pictures and 11 video clips, but none of the pictures or clips were obscene. The ipad had been submitted to the Speaker immediately after the uproar in the house on March 21. The Speaker also condemned the opposition Congress for disrupting the House proceedings for the last three days over the issue, saying Congress had dishonoured the house by stalling proceeding during the question hour and the ...
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New Delhi, The Supreme Court on Tuesday questioned the Gujarat government for initiating a probe against social activist Teesta Setalvad for her alleged role in a case of illegal exhumation of the bodies of the 2002 riot victims, saying it is a "spurious" case to victimise her. "This is a hundred percent spurious case to victimise the petitioner (Setalvad)," said a bench of justices Aftab Alam and Ranjana Prakash Desai. While criticising the state government for beginning the probe against Setalvad, it added, "this type of case does no credit to the state of Gujarat in any way." "This case is hundred percent spurious. In other cases against petitioner, there may be something," the bench said. Besides this case, the Gujarat government has also lodged criminal proceedings against her in other riot-related cases. The bench was of the view that it was not correct on the part of the Gujarat government to go ahead with the case. It asked senior advocate Pradeep Ghosh, who appeared for the Gujarat government, to go through the First Information Report (FIR) of the case and advise the government not to proceed with it. "You advise your client not to proceed with this ...
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Ahmedabad, Chief ministers of Tripura and Uttarakhand on Sunday joined the anti-NCTC chorus, taking to 12 the number of opposing states, even as their Gujarat counterpart Narendra Modi accused the UPA of "attacking" the country's federal structure. With the Centre being accused of taking a "unilateral" decision, information and broadcasting minister Ambika Soni said the campaign against terror should be fought jointly and not be politicized. The Centre had no desire to infringe on the states' rights, she said. The Left Front-ruled Tripura's CM Manik Sarkar wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the proposal to set up the National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC), saying the "unilateral" order would only create "misunderstanding". He said it was "unfortunate and surprising" that the NCTC order which dealt with security, an issue closely related to states, had been issued without proper consultations. "Considering that 'Public order' and 'Police' is a state subject under the Constitution of India, this action of the MHA amounts to encroachment of the states' powers." The Tripura CM said that the need of the hour was for the states and the Centre to cooperate, but ...
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Ahmedabad, A local court on Wednesday deferred a decision on Zakia Jafri'a plea that she should be given a copy of the special investigation team (SIT) report on the 2002 Gujarat riots cases. The court said that it can not admit Zakia's plea till all the documents are submitted in the case. Zakia's plea would be taken up once the SIT submits its full report. Zakia Jafri was seeking the SIT report in the Gulbarg Housing society massacre case. The probe panel is expected to submit the entire report by March ...
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It’s finally official. The taxpayer in Gujarat will pay for Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s Sadbhavana Mission, his campaign of fasts for communal harmony and brotherhood with a strong political flavour. The Indian Express has learnt that the General Administration Department planned for expenses related to the Mission as early as in November, passing two government resolutions instructing all department heads, district collectors and authorities to debit these costs as “accidental expense” under the government’s exigency account number “8000”. The Government Resolution says, “The bill should mention in red ink — ‘Contigency fund sanctioned under government memorandum’... The expense will be later on transferred to supplementary budgetary demands under the head of ‘Sadbhavna Mission related programme (un-planned) expense’ and will be placed in the upcoming budget session for the approval of the assembly. District Collectors will be liable to answer any audit queries pertaining to their districts.” The budget session of the Gujarat Assembly begins on February 23. The government did not respond to attempts to know how much was being spent and ...
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New Delhi, The Supreme Court on Friday admitted an appeal filed by the Gujarat government challenging the state governor's decision to "unilaterally" appoint Justice (Retd) R A Mehta as the Lokayukta. A bench of justices B S Chauhan and J S Khehar said it would examine the matter at length as vital question of constitutional law is involved. The bench said it will hear the matter at a stretch of three days from February 20. The Gujarat government has challenged the state HC order upholding the appointment of Justice Mehta as the Lokayukta on the ground that it was unconstitutional and done without its consent. The Gujarat HC had on January 18 upheld the Lokayukta's appointment while sharply criticizing CM Narendra Modi for his "pranks" that had sparked a "constitutional mini crisis". In the petition filed on January 19, the state government sought stay of the HC judgement , order of Governor Kamla Beniwal by which the warrant of appointment of Justice Mehta as Lokayukta was passed. In the petition filed through advocate Mahesh Agarwal, the Gujarat government said that substantial questions of law have arisen, including that of absence of advice by the council of ministers on ...
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Ahmedabad: The Gujarat high court will not direct the Nanavati-Mehta commission to summon chief minister Narendra Modi and question him about the 2002 Gujarat riots. Civil rights organization Jan Sangharsh Manch (JSM) had filed an application demanding that Modi be called by the commission for cross-examination. A bench of Justices Akil Kureshi and Sonia Gokani rejected the application and upheld the November 2009 order by a single judge. The bench observed that the decision to summon any person was left to the quasi-judicial body's discretion. JSM wanted that Modi, three of his secretaries, politicians and senior cops be cross-examined on the basis of the call records that IPS officer Rahul Sharma had submitted. The call details show that the secretaries were in constant touch with those accused in the 2002 riots even as the violence was on. JSM has alleged complicity of the chief minister's office in the 2002 riots. The Nanavati-Mehta commission, formed by the state government to investigate the riots, had rejected JSM's plea in 2009 saying it had not found substantial evidence to summon Modi. The secretaries-Tanmay Mehta, OP Singh and Sanjay Bhavsar-too were not ...
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Ahmedabad, The Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International (SVPI) airport is all set to upgrade it armoury to battle the feathered menace. To eliminate bird-hit problems, the airport has upgraded the 'zone guns' it procured in 2010 for keeping the sky over the runway free of birds. The 'zone guns' create a loud shot-like sound to scare away the birds. The volume of the noise and interval between detonations for the guns can be adjusted. The new guns will have more options with the kind of sounds and its reach. Besides firecrackers, Ahmedabad airport authorities currently use two laser guns costing Rs 1.5 lakh each and seven zone guns, a six-shot launcher and a LPG cylinder-operated device which generates loud noise at regular intervals. It spends Rs 30 lakh annually to check bird hits. "We have been able to bring down the number of bird hits with the use of the guns and regularly cutting grass and keeping the area around the airport clean. However, the incidents haven't stopped and to manage it effectively we will get six new zone guns from Delhi," said airport officials. Officials said many birds are now used to the sound created by the existing guns, but the new ones are ...
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CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu has adopted Gujarat's strategy of introducing chess in all schools in an apparent bid to improve cognitive skills of students. The unique initiative, to be launched next academic year, is aimed at exposing students, especially those from "educationally backward" districts, to the rudiments of the game. A senior education department official said the state was following up on the announcement made by chief minister J Jayalalithaa in August 2011 to start the practice in government and aided schools. The inspiration was the "chess in schools" programme run by the World Chess Federation, whose president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov had met Jayalalithaa earlier in the year. "It (the chess programme) will give children in the seven to 17 age group an opportunity to test their skills. Training will be given to physical education teachers and one or two others in each school so they can train the children," said additional chief secretary T S Sridhar. ...
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