Tribal who was stripped in LS poll fray

GUWAHATI: The tribal girl Lakshmi Oraon, a tea garden worker who was stripped by hoodlums here in November last year, has decided to fight the
next parliamentary polls from Tezpur in north Assam.

Lakshmi will contest on a Assam United Democratic Front (AUDF) ticket — a political party that was floated to take on the Congress before the 2006 assembly election in the state. With this, the AUDF would be sniffing at the opportunity of making inroads into some 20 lakh tea garden workers in the state — a sizeable chunk by an reckoning.

"I seek your (public) help in fighting the election. With your cooperation, I can fight this election," Lakshmi said at the public meeting. AUDF confirmed that Lakshmi will be fighting the Lok Sabha polls from Tezpur and said she was now a member of the party.

"Our party has decided to give a ticket to Lakshmi Oraon to fight the Lok Sabha polls from Tezpur. We are hopeful that our party can make and entry into the tea garden community," AUDF president, Badaruddin Ajmal said.


Source : Times Of India

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There's nothing called Hindu terror: Advani

RAIPUR: Senior BJP leader L K Advani has alleged that the majority community is being linked to terrorism to get votes of
minorities.

"In last one month, a new term 'Hindu terrorism' has come into existence. This was pure vote-bank and minority- appeasement politics. We never linked terrorism with any religion. But now, this is being done to get votes," he said.

There should not be any attempt to defame any community for votes, Advani said while addressing an election meeting here ahead of the second phase of polling in Chhattisgarh on Thursday.

Comparing the BJP-led NDA administration with the Congress-headed UPA government on terror front, the former deputy Prime Minister said terrorists were never spared and were killed during the NDA rule.

But now not a single terrorist has been caught or convicted. Afzal Guru, convicted in the 2001 Parliament attack case, has not yet been hanged, the ex-home minister said.

Advani alleged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has 'devalued' the top post as head of the party (Congress) is now getting more importance than the head of the government. "This system exists in Communist regime. But it is not good in a democracy."

The BJP's prime ministerial candidate challenged the UPA government to show one major achievement during its over four years of rule. "I have seen elections since 1952. Every government used to have something to claim as its achievement but the UPA government has none", he added.

Source : Times Of India

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About Raj Thackrey and North Indian

Whole country seemed condemning Mr. Raj Thackrey for his mobilisation of Marathi people against "North Indians". Here is what I got from internet:

"Mr. Raj Thackrey has done a great service to the country. What Indian government could not do for 60 years, Mr. Raj Thackrey has done in months! That is Giving North Indians the tag they deserved always, that is "North Indian"! For the first time in India, people from North Indian states are being labeled ( also actively published in north Indian TV Channels/News papers) as "North Indians". Previously Indians from Southern states were South Indians, from North East are North East Indians, but Indians from North Indians ? Well they were "only" Indians! Now that has changed! Nobody is simple Indian anymore, you are either North Indian, south Indian or Odiya or any Other Indian as per your place of birth, your face, skin color! The great pride of North Indians being labeled as "Indians" has been destroyed forever and brought down them to be equal to South Indian or Other Indian from Other parts of India! Raj Thackrey has made all Indians equal now! Nobody is more Indian! Everybody is either South Indian, North Indian or Odiya or any other Indians! Previously Only North Indians were Indians, rest were either South Indians, Bengali etc.. Not any more! Raj Thackrey should be given BHARAT RATNA for bringing all Indians to same level now!
So, Mr. Raj Thackrey should be given "Bharat Ranta" for doing this extra oridinary service to the country in terms of national integration and equality among Indian citizens! But as usual in this country, do-gooders get jail term and Mr. Raj Thackrey also got he same! "

Quite thought provoking!

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JD(U) MPs resign to protest MNS attacks

NEW DELHI: Politicking over the attacks on examinees from Bihar appearing for a railway recruitment test in Mumbai and the shooting of a Patna
youth, Rahul Raj, took a new turn with JD(U) Lok Sabha MPs handing in their resignations and putting RJD, LJP as well as BJP in a fix.

The JD(U) MPs' move to hand in their papers was immediately attacked by RJD leader Lalu Prasad and LJP chief Ramvilas Paswan as "mere drama" while the BJP chose not to react to the development. The senior UPA ministers said the resignations were patently insincere and accused JD(U) leader and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar of breaking a cross-party consensus on the issue.

JD(U)'s move, aimed at catering to the growing anger in Bihar against MNS attacks on people from the state, also forced the BJP to review the situation at the meeting of the party's parliamentary board.

But it was Lalu who, incidentally was the first to threaten resignations, appeared most peeved with JD(U)'s populist ploy. The railway minister said that if the Bihar CM was really concerned about the travails of north Indians in Mumbai, he ought to quit his post along with JD(U) MLAs. He said Nitish had gone back on a pledge to work with all other parties from Bihar on the issue of harassment faced by people from the state in Mumbai at the hands of MNS led by Raj Thackeray.

Yet, the RJD boss appeared on the defensive as his MPs and MLAs have submitted their "resignations" to him rather than to presiding officers of the respective legislatures, as required. Having initiated the resignation move in response to JD(U)'s announcement that its MPs would quit, the railway minister is having to answer what he intends to do with the resignations submitted to him.

Paswan pointed out that no significance could be attached to the JD(U)'s move as the current LS had more or less run its course. But he was cagey about whether he and his MPs would follow suit. "I don't believe in this kind of politics. Is Nitish not responsible for conditions that force people to leave Bihar looking for jobs?" he said.

As things stand, resignations of LS MPs, are a low cost option for the CM but is likely to cause disproportionate discomfort to the UPA. Lalu is already out of power in Bihar and quitting LS means sacrificing his Cabinet berth and losing his clout at the Centre. This would also lead to the government losing its majority as RJD has 24 MPs.

Paswan is as annoyed with Lalu as with JD(U) as he feels the RJD leader has needlessly upped the ante for everyone. The dilemma for Paswan is that after having demanded Raj's arrest under NSA, he is now being asked whether his commitment to the Bihari cause will see him offer the resignation of LJP MPs.

Source : Times Of India

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BJP releases list of 95 candidates for Rajasthan polls

NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) late on Sunday evening released a list of 95 candidates for the Rajasthan assembly polls.


The polls for the 200-seat state assembly are scheduled December 4.

The list includes chief minister Vasundhara Raje, who will contest from Jhalrapatan, the constituency from which she won in the last elections.

In its first list of candidates for the Rajasthan polls, the BJP has dropped the names of 12 sitting legislators and repeated 24 members. The rest of the candidates are new faces.

The candidates include 15 women, 10 candidates from Scheduled Tribes and 19 from the Scheduled Castes.

The next list will be announced on November 13.

Source : Times Of India

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Is Chiranjeevi eyeing CM chair?

A recent video footage in which actor-turned-politician Chiranjeevi interacts with youngsters has hinted that the neo-politician hopes for the Chief Minister's post.

"People say I joined politics with some vested interest. I may say no, but everybody has some hope inside. However, I am unable to gauge what that hope is," Chiranjeevi seen saying in the latest 9-minute-20-second video footage of suspected "sting operation".

At that point, the video showed his audience pitching in with the suggestion that becoming the Chief Minister was his "hope."

However, in the public domain
, Chiranjeevi had so far been beating around the bush over his political ambitions.

"I am into politics not for the sake of securing power or position but only to serve the people. I am their servant," Chiranjeevi had been proclaiming ever since he declared his intention to quit the tinsel town and jump onto the political bandwagon.

Within the four walls and amidst his close associates, Chiranjeevi, however, appeared to be clearly stating that he has indeed marked the Chief Minister's position as his target.

"Don't simply brush this thing aside, when people say Chiranjeevi wants to become the CM. Just cut the topic," the megastar said.

Of course, but he went on to say that the well-being of the society at large could be his "hope".

Sitting in the conference room at his Praja Rajyam Party office in Hyderabad with bureaucrat-turned-politician T Chandrasekhar, Chiranjeevi was in a jolly mood all through as he apparently spoke his heart out to a group of people.

Who his audience were, however, was not clear. One version was that they could be Information
Technology professionals (going by what one of them spoke about the forum called Do IT), while another was that they were a group of coordinators appointed by the Praja Rajyam to ensure co-ordination between Chiranjeevi fans and the party workers in each district.

All through the meeting, Chiranjeevi referred to them just as "youngsters" and dropped no hint about their antecedents.

"I have no belief in the senior politicians who joined my party." He was categorical in asking the "youngsters" to keep a tab on the senior politicians in every district and report back to the party headquarters if anything went wrong in any district.

"In a way you have to be the spies or rather agents," the Praja Rajyam Chief told them.

He, however, cautioned the youngsters to ensure that nobody smelt anything suspicious about their (spying) acts. Chiranjeevi assured the youth joining the Praja Rajyam party that he was not the kind to "use, exploit and dump" them and their "sacrifices" would not go waste.

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Will Cong take LS poll call before assembly results?

NEW DELHI: Amid indications that the Centre was mulling Lok Sabha polls in February, the moot question is whether Congress would announce its
intentions before the assembly results on December 8 if it indeed decides in favour of advancing the grand battle.

For UPA to hit the hustings in February, it is learnt that the Centre would have to announce it in the first half of December. While Parliament is to meet again, December 8 is when the results of polls in MP, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Delhi and Mizoram would be declared.

It is being speculated if Congress, deciding on early polls, would wait for its fate in the bulk of BJP-held states to make public its intentions. The Centre, which involves the Congress leadership as well as allies, is veering around the view that February could be a better time to visit the voters.

The ruling combine is averse to facing the budget session and would prefer a vote-on-account early. Also, the economic downturn has led to fears that it could turn worse in coming months and the uncertainty is too strong to gamble on. While it is only the markets and the slowdown which are visible at the moment, the worst fears revolve around possible job cuts and lay-offs, developments which can impact the voter mood.

Besides, there are a host of imponderables like terrorism and inflation on account of which Centre would not want to lose a relatively better moment for the elections. February is seen as the time when the economic crisis would not be much worse than it is now while the new fiscal could be different.

A halt in terror incidents, as is being seen for a month now, would dampen BJP's bid to make it a big-ticket issue while a stabilizing priceline is adding to Centre's confidence. But the timing of announcement of early polls gains importance, with its coming either side of December 8 set to be interpreted differently. If Congress waits for assembly results and then pitches for an early LS test, after a failure to wrest the BJP-ruled states, it is set to be seen as a sign of panic.

A decision before the assembly results would, however, demonstrably delink the Lok Sabha from the outcome of states. If Congress manages to upset the BJP in a few crucial states after having anyway called for Lok Sabha elections early, it would be seen as approaching the polls as a victor.

Insiders reveal while assembly results would impact the mood of the party — and the Congress has a lot riding on these polls as it is expected to reverse the string of defeats with anti-incumbency against BJP here — the decision on Lok Sabha would still be an independent one because of a different set of reasonings. It is about crisis, and aversion to budget session in the uncertainty of alliance politics.

For the planners, February is suitable because while it does advance the polls by a couple of months, it would also pre-empt the concern over availability of schools and teachers — two crucial tools in the conduct of the mega exercise.


Source : Times Of India

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EC transfers officials ahead of Chhattisgarh election

RAIPUR: The Election Commission has ordered the transfer of three officials, including two collectors, ahead of the Assembly elections in
Chhattisgarh.

The election commission ordered the transfer of Divisional Commissioner(DC) of Bastar district, Ganesh Shankar Mishra, Collectors, Sonmani Bora(Raipur) and R Pisda (Kanker), official sources said here.

The secretary of state health department, RS Vishwakarma will take over as the DC whereas the secretary agricultural department, Vikas Sheel and Woman and Child welfare department coordinator, Shahla Nigar will replace the collectors.

Mishra would serve as the secretary of the health department, Pisda as the Woman and Child welfare department coordinator and Bora as the joint secretary in the ministry.

As there were a lot of complaints against the officials, they were transferred, sources said.

Members of various political parties had met the Chief Election commissioner(CEC), N Gopalaswamy and alleged that some officials in the state election commission were working as agents for the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP). They also gave him a CD on the same.

The CEC also expressed concern on the delay in executing election-related activities in the district, in a meeting held with authorities.

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‘Gandhigiri’ by Chhatra JD(U)

While Raj Thackeray and his Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) workers, in attacking Bihari students and examinees in Mumbai, have shown little
respect for the rule of law and court, a group of Chhatra JD(U) workers resorted to symbolic act of Gandhigiri to bring sanity and order.

Since names matter in all symbolic acts, they, led by their state president Arvind Kumar Nishad, entered the premises of Maharashtra Bank in Patna on Exhibition Road, and for tokenism, recalled the non-violent path pursued by Mahatma Gandhi.

But soon politics got better of him, as Nishad said that it was because of RJD supremo and railway minister Lalu Prasad that Bihari students had been suffering violence at the hands of the inspired followers of Raj Thackeray, or those of his ilk! As if it was not enough, he demanded immediate resignation of Lalu from the Union cabinet!

Farcical drama went on. For, Chhatra JD(U) general secretary Ritesh Kumar and Shashi Ranjan got reminded of Gandhigiri, again! Their purpose: to send a message to the people of Maharashtra that people of all states and Union Territories constitute one entity -- sons and daughters of India. Besides, they felt that it was due to "personal selfish interest" that "some people" take to sloganeering regarding regionalism, language and parochialism for their "kshudra rajniti (narrow politics)."

If not Raj Thakceray and his MNS workers, then the Chhatra JD(U) president Nishad was certainly listening to them, because he was in hearing distance from them on the premises of Maharashtra Bank!

Meanwhile, since realism was on the mind of the Yuva JD(U) president and party MLA Sunil Kumar, he appealed to the Bihari students, already in rage against the violence suffered in Mumbai, not to indulge in arson and stone pelting, and instead, cooperate with the Bihar government for the maintenance of peace and harmony.

However, it was not clear if the present round of violence suffered by the Bihari students in Mumbai, or elsewhere in the country would be the last one, or would not be repeated.

Source : Times Of India

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Cong chief, Modi fight over MNS issue

PATNA: The state Congress chief Anil Kumar Sharma has crossed swords with Bihar deputy CM Sushil Kumar Modi for the latter’s claim with respect to
the attacks on Bihari and north Indian students in Mumbai that Congress was responsible for it.

On the other hand, CPI, expressing concern over the happenings in Mumbai and its fallout in Bihar reflected in the arson caused and committed by students returning from Mumbai, said that Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray had taken to fascist methods, which poses a serious danger to both democracy and the country’s unity.

CPI state council member Jabbar Alam said that Raj Thackeray and his organisation have been undermining Constitution and law of the land. It amounted to bulldozing his way to bring about a fascist rule by crushing public opinion, he added.

Sharma, criticising Modi, said that his claim was condemnable, and also asserted that BJP, in fact, was responsible for the entrenchment of Shiv Sena and its chief Bal Thackeray as well as Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and its chief Raj Thackeray in the affairs of Maharashtra, even as they believed in and practised narrow politics based on caste, religion, regionalism and chauvinistic ambitions.

According to Sharma, BJP entered into an opportunistic alliance with Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray and also helped in paving the way for the rule of this party on Maharashtra. He called it “misdeeds and hunger for power” of the BJP.

Sharma even said that Shiv Sena and MNS volunteers, as well as “goondas and anarchical elements” indulged in attacks on Bihari and north Indian students, which was anti-national in spirit.

He said that BJP has been claiming to practise “nationalist politics,” but it was merely a “sham,” since what the Bihari students suffered in Mumbai
was a mere fallout of the misguided alliance and politics pursued by the BJP to grab and capture power.

According to state Congress working president Samir Kumar Singh, Sharma, in an appeal to the Centre, has demanded ban on SIMI, Indian Mujahideen, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal, Shiv Sena, MNS and all other organisations of their ilk.

Sharma has also demanded enactment of an Act by Parliament for closing opportunities to any political party or organisation that indulge in obscurantism and raise such narrow, chauvinistic issues based on caste, religion and regionalism to capture power.

He said that Shiv Sena has been practising such politics. Despite that, BJP entered into an alliance with it during the polls for the Mumbai Municipal Corporation and state assembly adding that Modi had made himself ridiculous in the state.

Source : Times Of India

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