Batting for speedy inclusion of Rafale fighter jets in the Indian Air Force’s arsenal, the Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa has today claimed that Pakistan will have no answer to the augmented capabilities of Indian Air Force, once Rafales are deployed along the Indo-Pak border.
Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa: When the #Rafale comes in, the deterrence of our air defence will increase manifold,and they (Pak) will not come anywhere near the LoC or the border,with the kind of of capability that we will posses, for which presently they(Pak) don’t have an answer pic.twitter.com/mVnM62kQyz
“When Rafales come in, our air defence capabilities will enhance manifold, and Pakistan will be deterred from lingering around the border and the LoC with the kind of capabilities we will possess, for which they don’t have an answer,” BS Dhanoa said.
Despite the controversy surrounding the Rafale deal, various stakeholders have lauded the Modi government for an absolutely essential deal pertaining to National security. Former Air chief marshal Anil Yashwant Tipnis had stated that the government-to-government deal for the acquisition of 36 Rafale fighters from Dassault Aviation was a masterstroke. With BS Dhanoa’s endorsement, the central government scored a major shot in the arm for strengthening the air defence by procuring Rafale fighter aircraft.
Indian Air Force’s last major acquisition was the Russian built Sukhoi Su-MKI30 fighters which were termed as fourth-generation fighter jets. Whereas the Rafale jets can be considered as 4.5 to 5th generation fighter aircraft. The Rafale jets are miles ahead of Su-MKI30swith much smaller radar and infra-red signatures, making it difficult to detect. Performance-wise Rafale outshines its contemporaries inmost of the parameters such as operational capabilities, safety features and ease of operation/ training/ maintenance.
Congress and its president Rahul Gandhi have tried all their might to scuttle the deal by purveying lies about the deal and allegations of corruption against the Modi government, despite CAG and Supreme Court dismissing their claims.
The trailer of the much awaited movie ‘The Tashkent Files’ by Vivek Agnihotri is finally out. The movie which seeks to answer the question, “Who killed Lal Bahadur Shastri?” will be released on the 12th of April, 2019.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgWylHdfIdo]
The film revolves around former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri’s sudden, mysterious death in Tashkent, day after he signed the historical Tashkent Agreement. As the male voiceover in the trailer says the second Prime Minister of the world’s largest democracy goes to Tashkent, signs a war treaty, and then dies. The circumstances were suspicious but not even an inquiry commission was set up.
The movie appears to link Shastri’s death to the mysterious disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. Mithun Da says, “What good news was Shastri ji about to bring? That Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose is alive!”
Critically acclaimed actor, Pankaj Tripathi of Mirzapur fame, also appears to have a prominent role in the movie. The movie boasts of a formidable cast with Vinay Pathak, Mandira Bedi, Pallavi Joshi and Naseeruddin Shah all set to play critical roles.
The Tashkent Files touts the mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of Lal Bahadur Shastri as the ‘biggest coverup’ of Independent India. The movie is also deeply embedded with political themes in the current era as Pankaj Tripathi says enigmatically, “A Prime Minister is poisoned, the Parliament is attacked, blasts occur at Mumbai but Ssshhh! Don’t say anything. Secularism!” At another point, Vinay Pathak says, “Capturing Lutyens Delhi means capturing the entire country.” Towards the end of the trailer, a character can be heard saying, “This is the land of Truth and Ahimsa, this is the land of Gandhi and Nehru.” To which, an actor in the movie replies, “Why not Shastri ji’s?”
The trailer creates a dark atmosphere of suspense and mystery surrounding Shastri’s death and is likely to pique people’s curiosity. The cast of the movie, studded with brilliant actors, is a further enticement for movie-goers.
Agnihotri is likely to taste commercial success with his current venture, an area where he hasn’t scored very well with his past ventures. The Tashkent Files also appears to be directed much better than Agnihotri’s earlier movies. Lal Bahadur’s tragic death in mysterious circumstances provides a great story for a thriller and if the trailer is anything to go by, it appears Agnihotri and the actors have done justice to the project.
Giving a major shock to the Congress Party ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, senior Congress leader Rashid Alvi has opted out if the election race. Alvi, whose name was announced by the Party for the Amroha Parliamentary constituency in Uttar Pradesh, has withdrawn his candidature.
AICC Press Release, Source: ANI
Congress has replaced Alvi with another candidate Sachin Chaudhary who will now contest election from the Amroha seat. Alvi while withdrawing his candidature reportedly cited some personal reasons. However, according to some reports, Alvi was reluctant to contest from the Amroha seat fearing his defeat. Bharatiya Janata Party has fielded sitting MP Kanwar Singh Tanwar from the Amroha seat while the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has fielded Danish Ali, who was general secretary of Janata Dal-Secular (JDS) before joining BSP, as its candidate.
Replacing Rashid Alvi with Sachin Chaudhary can also be part of a strategy to ensure that minority vote is not divided between the Congress and BSP candidates. Many people doubt a secret understanding between mahagathbandhan and Congress party, and this could be an example of the same.
Rashid Alvi who has also served as the spokesperson of the Congress Party, has been a member of Lok Sabha from the Amroha Parliamentary constituency between 1999-2004. He has also been elected as the member of Rajya Sabha for two terms from Andhra Pradesh. Alvi had joined the Congress Party after he was expelled from the BSP in 2004 by its Chief Mayawati on the allegations of taking bribes for allotting party tickets.
With the first phase of 2019 Lok Sabha elections around the corner, political parties are busy announcing candidates for the polls so they can start campaigning on the ground. The Congress has also released its star campaigners list comprising 40 candidates in Uttar Pradesh.
Star campaigners list of Congress in Uttar Pradesh ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha elections
As the Lok Sabha elections commence on April 11, 2019, Congress, with very little time in hand to woo voters, has narrowed down on these 40 names in Uttar Pradesh who, according to the grand old party, will be the faces of the party to seek votes.
Gujarat youth leader Hardik Patel, former deputy CM of Bihar and Rashtriya Janata Dal head, Tejashawi Yadav, the much controversial Punjab Minister, Navjot Singh Sindhu, former PM Manmohan Singh, UP Congress President Raj Babbar, and many others along with the members of the Gandhi dynasty, Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra have been fielded as the star campaigners of the party.
Though undoubtedly the Congress has put together the best men in its army to enthrall the voters before the Lok Sabha elections, let us discuss the names in the list and the achievements and incidents that have made them grab headlines.
Rahul Gandhi:
The out on bail, party supremo himself has an extremely intriguing achievement list. Only recently, OpIndia broke the story about Rahul Gandhi and his dubious land deals. Moreover, the National Herald scam is one of the most notable legal cases in Indian history, as Congress President Rahul Gandhi and his mother Sonia Gandhi are directly accused of it. Both are currently on bail.
Apart from having his name attributed to various scams, Rahul’s temperament has often been exposed in the way he conducts himself. His penchant for lying and distorting facts have often laid exposed.
With a remarkable frequency, Rahul Gandhi has spread one lie after another about the Rafale deal, often repeating the lies over and over again. It has led to speculations that it might have had something to do with the fact that he has links with arms dealers who were lobbying for the Rafale jet’s competitors.
Rahul had recently claimed that Narendra Modi had been filming in the aftermath of the Pulwama terror attack while he had canceled all his appointments. His futile claims were, however, defined when we reported that it was not the PM but he himself who was spotted dancing shortly after the Pulwama terror attack. As the prince has almost made up his mind to fight this election on the basis of falsehood, he has been concocting one lie after the other or rather repeating the same lies over and over again to woo his voters.
Mallikarjun Kharge:
A Congress loyalist who has been fielded as a star campaigner by his party has been accused of corruption charges. Kharge has been accused of amassing property in excess of 50,000 crores. The wealth has been amassed during his tenure as revenue minister as per the complaint. He is also accused of lying under oath while filing his election affidavit. The investigations on the corruption charges have not made progress as the Karnataka government under Siddaramaiah had clipped the wings of the Lokayukta.
Raj Babbar:
Another feather on the Congress’ cap has often made it to the headlines for his controversial remarks. Raj Babbar had sparked controversy during a press conference held in Raipur when he had said Naxals had launched a “revolution” which cannot be stopped through guns, and the menace should be resolved through talks.
Further, crossing all levels of basic humanity, the Congress leader had dragged the Prime Minister’s aged mother into his party’s dirty quirks. Exhibiting his party’s ideologies Raj Babbar had also called the Prime Minister ‘Manhoos’ (ominous) over the rising fuel prices.
Ghulam Nabi Azad:
The controversial leader who has been captured swaying between ‘Muslim appeasement‘ and Rahul Gandhi’s garb of ‘soft Hindutva’ hit the heights of flippancy claiming that the Army operations kill more civilians than terrorists in Kashmir. Azad also claimed that the NDA government was planning a massacre in Kashmir.
Following Congress’ etiquettes, Azad had also tried to de-emphasize Modi Government persistent efforts to bring back fugitive Nirav Modi to India, by saying that Nirav Modi’s arrest was an attempt by the NDA government to win the Lok Sabha Elections. Moreover, Ghulam Nabi Azad, furthering his party rhetorics had gone on to insult PM Modi by using the ‘Vansh’ jibe against him.
Kamal Nath:
Congress’s loyalist Kamal Nath as widely known for continuing the Congress’ legacy of divisive caste politics. There have been several reports suggesting that Kamal Nath has been directly involved in developing the ‘Hindu-Terror’ narrative and playing communal politics.
Moreover, the deep-seated caste politics which runs in the ‘United Opposition’ had been further exposed when last year in his letter to Rahul Gandhi, he had asked him to attend an event to mark the death anniversary of a prominent OBC leader to score political brownie points. His name also has been involved in the 1984 Sikh genocide. He is accused of leading a violent mob to attack Gurudwara Rakabganj on November 1, 1984, where a Sikh father and son duo were killed.
Bhupesh Baghel:
Congress leader and Chhattisgarh CM elect Bhupesh Baghel who is currently out on bail in a sex CD case had also stoked controversy after he unfurled an old flag of pre-1947 Indian National Congress instead of hoisting the National flag of the country on the occasion of the 2019 Republic Day.
The unfurling of a political flag at a National event by a person serving the highest office of the state attracted huge criticism as it was an alleged attempt to demean the National symbols of the country.
Navjot Singh Sidhu:
Navjot Singh Sidhu has proudly been a part of several controversies and has hit several lows in his political association with the grand old party. In recent months, Navjot Singh Sidhu has been making extremely controversial and disgraceful remarks for which his party has been facing severe criticism. First, when he traveled to Pakistan for Imran Khan’s swearing-in ceremony and hugged the Pakistan Army’s chief followed by his enthusiasm during the Kartarpur inauguration.
Then, Sidhu posed with a Khalistani terrorist for a photograph during his Kartarpur visit. It wasn’t all, Sidhu lied blatantly that Rahul Gandhi had sent him to Pakistan after asserting it himself that he went there at the Congress President’s behest. Moreover, Siddhu appears to head the list of leader’s who, following Congress’ great tradition, deride the Indian government and security forces while glorifying Pakistanis.
Recently, breaking his own records of indecency, Punjab Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu could be heard saying in one of his rallies “Chowkidar Chor Hai” (The Watchmen is a thief, while referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi) and went on to add, “Chowkidar ka Kutta bhi chor hai” while appearing to refer to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Imran Masood:
Former Uttar Pradesh MLA from the Congress party, Imran Masood, who had allegedly threatened to “chop Narendra Modi into pieces” ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections who was declared to be a part of the Congress party’s Election committee in Uttar Pradesh ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections has now also been floated as a star campaigner for the Congress party.
Hardik Patel:
Hardik Patel rose to grab headlines during the Patidar agitation. He is convicted by a Gujarat court on the charges of vandalism and rioting. Patel has also found himself in multiple controversial CDs, something that was recently allegedly celebrated by the official website of Gujarat Congress. With a long list of criminal charges against him, it looks like Patel fits remarkably well with other Congress leaders.
Tejaswi Yadav: Bihar’s former deputy CM and Lalu Yadav’s son has lately been the functional voice and face of RJD. As RJD and Congress are in a pre-poll alliance, he also features in the list of star campaigners for Congress in UP. Tejaswi Yadav and his family are under probe over the IRCTC scam.
Yadav had clung to the state government bungalow rather tightly even after losing the post of the deputy CM. However, his attempts were thwarted and he was ordered to vacate the bungalow recently. The Yadav family is also facing probe for benami properties.
The list is, however, never-ending, as most of these candidates flaunt a controversial, and in many cases, criminal past. Congress’ culture and its ecosystem are such that it proudly backs all these individuals who either have a shady past or have been part of criminal or controversial activities. From playing caste-based politics, concocting narratives to insulting the Prime Minister of the country, Congress has been indulging in all these dirty tricks to regain power.
Today Rahul Gandhi announced that if the Congress party comes to after the Lok Sabha elections, his government will implement the Minimum Income Guarantee Scheme. The Congress president gave some details of the scheme, which assures a minimum income amount for poor families of the country.
Rahul Gandhi said that an income line of Rs 12,000 has been set for the scheme, and it will cover 20% poorest families of the country. The government will pay Rs 72,000 per year to the eligible families under this scheme, and the amount will be credited directly to the bank account of beneficiaries.
An income line of Rs 12,000 means that government will ensure this amount as monthly income for eligible families, and the government will bridge the income gap of eligible families so that their monthly income becomes Rs 12,000 per month. This means, if monthly income of a family is Rs 9,000, the government will pay them Rs 3,000, if the monthly income is Rs 7,000, government will pay them Rs 5,000, and so on. As the scheme will pay Rs 72,000 per year, this means maximum amount to be paid per month will be Rs 6,000, although this was not mentioned by Rahul Gandhi in the press conference.
The Congress president mentioned that at 20% of the population, 5 crore families, or 25 crore people, of India will be benefited by this scheme. That means, at Rs 72,000 per year, there will be a total outgo of Rs 3.60 lakh crore per year under the Minimum Income Guarantee Scheme.
Although the scheme will only bridge the gap between actual income and Rs 12,000 per month, which means actual outgo can be less than 72,000 per family in a year, the fact is 20% of families will qualify for the highest level of income funding. Because a much higher proportion of households in India earn less than Rs 6,000 per month. According to Rangarajan Committee report, 29.5% of India’s population are below the poverty line. The poverty line has defined as Rs 32 per day in rural areas and Rs 47 per day in urban areas. This means people below the BPL in rural areas earn below Rs 960 per month, and people in urban areas earn below Rs 1,410 per month. Therefore, all of 20% population or 5 crore families will qualify for the highest amount of Rs 72,000 per year under the scheme.
If implemented as promised, this will be the second largest head of expenditure of the union government. The estimate of total expenditure for the 2019-20 budget is Rs 27.84 lakh crores, which means the total budget for the scheme will be 13% of the budget. This will be more than the 11% allocated for the defence expenditure in the 2019-20 budget, but less than the interest payment which leads the government expenditure at 24%. The amount for the scheme will also be around 2% of India’s GDP. The amount needed for the scheme will be the 6 times the budgeted amount for MGNREGA scheme, which is a big social welfare scheme. The MGNREGA budget for 2018-19 was Rs 55,000 crore, which was raised to Rs 60,000 for the 2019-20 budget.
13% of budget is a major portion, and this means either the government will have to drastically increase its revenue, or have to cut expenditure in other sectors. Or the government may opt for deficit budgeting, which is favoured by the Congress party, but the amount is too large to be funded by borrowing only. Although Rahul Gandhi said that all calculations have been done and the scheme has been found to be viable, he didn’t explain how. But by all estimates, this scheme will create a large hole in the finances of the government.
A tragic picture of a Syrian child lying lifeless at the sea shore as his family tried to escape his war-torn country had sent the entire Western world in collective guilt, because they thought they were not doing enough to help people who are persecuted in their own land. Leaders like Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau had averred that more and more refugees were welcome in his country. Many in Europe too called for higher intake of migrants and refugees in their respective countries.
Even before this incident that made news and shook conscience of the international community in September 2015, many countries and societies have been welcoming refugees from Syria to places far off as Burma, from where Rohingya Muslims have travelled thousands of kilometres to seek refuge and a new life.
But how come frequent news of persecution of Hindus in Pakistan fails to shake the conscience of the west? Why don’t they feel compelled to offer humanitarian help and asylum to Hindu families, whose young daughters are abducted, forcibly converted to Islam, and married off to their kidnappers?
Latest such incident is of two girls, 13-year-old Raveena and 15-year-old Reena, who were kidnapped from their home in Pakistan’s Sindh on the eve of Holi. The kidnappers then circulated a video where the girls were shown being married off to unknown men following Islamic rituals. It was claimed that these young girls had agreed to convert to Islam and marry of their own will.
Shortly after this news came in, another video went viral where two other girls from Pakistan’s Multan were pleading for help to save them from Islamic fundamentalists:
Two hapless Hindu girls from Multan, Pakistan who were allegedly abducted, issuing an appeal to protect them from fundamentalists This reports comes after abduction and forcibly conversion of Reena and Raveena in Sindh, Pakistan . @ImranKhanPTI@fawadchaudhry@SushmaSwarajpic.twitter.com/emKOxE0t2x
— Ravinder Singh Robin ਰਵਿੰਦਰ ਸਿੰਘ راویندرسنگھ روبن (@rsrobin1) March 24, 2019
Hindus in Pakistan are one of the most persecuted communities in the world, if not the most persecuted, but except for some organisations in India, which are branded “fascist” organisations, no one seems to care for them.
While the indifference in India for Hindus of Pakistan can be explained due to general contempt for Hindu people and culture that Indian ‘liberal’ society has, which also commands and controls the activism in the country, what explains the indifference of the West towards plight of Pakistani Hindus?
Even the aforementioned events have failed to shake up the conscience of the global community, which can’t stop overcompensating for the New Zealand mosque shootings.
Similar questions had once troubled Dr. Omendra Ratnu, a Jaipur based doctor who founded Nimittekam, an organisation devoted to helping Pakistani Hindus who cross over to India and seek citizenship here.
However, Dr. Ratnu doesn’t blame it on the ‘westerners’ or the foreigners alone for this attitude.
“Global Hindu leadership has failed us Hindus,” Dr. Ratnu says. “We can’t keep blaming others if our leadership doesn’t make an extra effort for our brothers and sisters in Pakistan.”
But Dr. Ratnu is quick to add that he is not blaming the political leadership.
“Narendra Modi government has been the best thing to have happened to us, so far as the issue of Pakistani Hindus is concerned,” he says, “God bless this person and I pray that he (Modi) comes back. Because with an unfavourable government at Delhi and a global Hindu leadership that is not trying enough, I dread that in 10 years, there will be no Hindu left in Pakistan.”
Dr. Ratnu informs that thousands of Pakistani Hindus have been granted Indian citizenship since Prime Minister Modi came to power. His organisation Nimittekam alone has helped over 200 Pakistani Hindus to get citizenship.
The Jaipur based doctor got interested in the issue of Pakistani Hindus after some refugees started visiting his clinic and shared their stories. He was moved by the plight, especially of young girls, and decided to actively help them. One special case he remembers was the case of Rinkle Kumari, a Pakistani Hindu girl, similarly abducted and converted, in 2012. Unfortunately she couldn’t be saved and was married off to her kidnapper.
Dr. Ratnu informs that Rinkle’s family had moved to India after they lost their case in Supreme Court of Pakistan. Rinkle’s mama (maternal uncle) was devastated and he desired to leave the sub-continent and go to US, as no Hindu leader here could help them.
Shaken, Dr. Ratnu decided to do whatever he could to help Pakistani Hindus, and he decided to form an organisation. Nimittekam is run entirely via voluntary donations and it even employs some Pakistani Hindu refugees. He says that he waited for Narendra Modi took over the reins of Delhi in 2014 so that his organisation gets a favourable environment to operate in.
“Modi government took a very important decision that perhaps not many know, when it gave rights to the District Collector of Jaipur, Jaisalmer, and Jodhpur to grant Indian citizenship to Pakistan Hindus. This saved a lot of time and trouble one had to earlier undergo due to bureaucracy in Delhi. For this single step itself, I want Modi to come back,” Dr. Ratnu says.
The Nimittekam founder further pointed out how External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj tweeted about plight of Pakistani Hindus after the news of two minor Hindu girls abducted and converted went viral on social media. India has officially sought a response from Pakistan.
“This is why I said I don’t blame the political leadership. Modi government is doing fine job on this and I’m sure they will do only better,” Dr. Ratnu explained, “Sushmaji’s tweet and India’s note to Pakistan is a very important development as it puts the plight of ordinary Pakistani Hindus on international map, something that our global Hindu leadership couldn’t do.”
Dr Omendra Ratnu has been trying to raise the issue of Pakistani Hindus on as many platforms as he can
Back in 2017, Dr. Omendra Ratnu had managed to get an appointment with some US State Department officers in order to understand this indifference of global community towards plight of Pakistani Hindus.
“I was shocked and shattered to know that no one had gone pleading the case of Pakistani Hindus earlier” Dr. Ratnu recalls his encounter with the US State Department officers.
“They (US State Department officers) were unaware about the inhuman atrocities that Hindus are put through in Pakistan. They were surprised to know when I told them how a silent genocide was happening in Pakistan and about frequent abductions of young Hindu girls. We need to make the international community aware of what the demons in Pakistan are up to,” he says.
Dr. Ratnu thanks Hindu American Foundation for helping him have this meeting with the US State Department, and wishes that such meetings should happen on an institutional level with a focused agenda of helping Pakistani Hindus get similar benefits and rights as persecuted people from Syria, Afghanistan, or elsewhere get in western nations.
“What is happening to Hindus in Pakistan is unprecedented. As per estimates around three abductions and forced conversions happen every day, and in many cases, authorities don’t even register FIRs as the perpetrators claim that Hindu girls are accepting Islam of their own choice.”
“Can anyone explain how come only young Hindu girls in 10 to 16 years of age group get fascinated by Islam and not boys? There is demonic thought of capturing the womenfolk and using them to further increase their own population. It’s a pity that the world is not talking about it. It is as bad as what ISIS did to Yezidis.”
Apart from failure of Hindu leadership and Indian ‘liberal’ obsession of equating anything pro-Hindu with Hindutva, which makes sure that the plight of Pakistani Hindus are not talked about much as people feel ashamed ‘communal’ and to raise this issue, Dr. Omendra Ratnu cites a well thought of strategy adopted by Pakistani fundamentalists to further make sure their planned genocide against Hindus is not noticed. He calls it RULLS (Random Unceasing Low Level Scattered) violence.
“Because it’s random and scattered, people think there is no organised violence, and because it’s low-level, it generally escapes attention. We have to create awareness so that the atrocities are spotted,” he says.
To spread awareness on international level, Dr. Ratnu says that those Pakistani Hindus, who have now been granted Indian citizenship, should be taken around in the world and their stories should be told. Human rights organisations, international organisations etc. should be made to talk to them and listen to what horrors they were subjected to in Pakistan.
“Despite their minuscule population, Hindus contribute significantly to Pakistan’s taxes. If we create international awareness and put pressure on Pakistan, they can act against those kingpins like Miyan Mitthu who oversee such forced kidnappings and conversions of young Hindu girls,” Dr. Ratnu suggests a step to make sure the international community wakes up to the tragedy ongoing in Pakistan.
Central Intelligence agencies have alerted authorities about a possible terror attack in Goa as retaliation over the Christchurch Mosque Shootings. The Police said that Israeli tourists in the state might be attacked as “possible revenge” by Islamic terrorists.
“We have to keep a lookout and secure areas frequented by Israeli tourists as well as a prayer house they have in North Goa. The threat, according to the inputs, comes from a possible attack by Islamic State or the Al-Qaeda to avenge for the New Zealand mosque killings,” a senior police official is reported to have said on condition of anonymity.
As per reports, several dozen Israeli Jews are currently on long-duration visas in Goa and they often congregate to pray at Chabad House in North Goa.
The alert has been reportedly issued to other states and Union territories as well which have Jewish synagogues, Jewish residents or attract Israeli tourists. As per Times of India, a vehicle of a knife may be used in the attack. Increased vigil around the Israeli Embassy, the Consulate General at Mumbai and synagogues and have been recommended. Alert has been issued for Delhi and Mumbai too.
In recent times, terrorists affiliated with Islamic terror groups have used vehicles to kill people. Even in the Pulwama terror attack, a vehicle was used in the suicide bombing. In Europe, terrorists in trucks have run over pedestrians.
Although it might appear bewildering for Islamic terrorists to target Jews over an attack perpetrated by a White Supremacist, that the terrorist, Brenton Tarrant, visited Israel in late 2016 could be a possible reason. Pakistani media has harped on Tarrant’s Israel visit as well.
Tarrant had killed multiple people in a dastardly terror attack on the 15th of March. At least 49 people were killed in the terror attack.
As the elections are drawing closer, a flurry of leaders from the opposition camp abandoning their parties can be seen, in possible anticipation of imminent defeat. Maharashtra Congress received another major blow as the former cabinet minister, Pratik Patil has severed his relations with the party.
In the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, the Sangli seat, which was a Congress stronghold till 2014, has been given to Raju Shetty’s ‘Swabhiman Shetkari Paksha’ under the agreement of seat sharing in the United Progressive Alliance. This coalition included Congress, NCP, and other constituent parties. Now, Pratik Patil had alleged that some people in the party are trying to put an end to the legacy of Vasantdada Patil. “Under the current scenario, I cannot be a part of Congress,” he has declared.
In the last Lok Sabha elections, Congress candidate Pratik Patil lost to BJP’s Sanjay Patil. It was the first time that Congress was defeated in Sangli since 1962. Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chauhan has expressed his anguish over Pratik’s resignation. He asserted that it was pre-decided that Shetty’s SSP party will be fighting from the Sangli seat.
Pratik Patil, a former union minister, has not declared his future plans or next political move yet.
Meanwhile, in a major setback to the RJD, Annapurna Devi, the Jharkhand state president of Lalu Prasad Yadav’s party Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), has decided to join BJP. Annapurna is set to join the BJP in the presence of Amit Shah, National President of Bharatiya Janata Party, in New Delhi today.
Following the announcement, RJD has removed Annapurna Devi from the post of RJD’s Jharkhand state president on the order of party supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav. Gautam Sagar Rana has been instated as the state president of Jharkhand.
Denying any impact on the RJD, Gautam Sagar Rana has claimed that Annapurna’s absence is not going to affect the party. According to him, Annapurna Devi was in touch with the BJP for several months. With several rival leaders switching over and joining the BJP, it can be surmised that even they have given up on the fate of Mahagathbandhan and placed their faith on PM Modi’s reelection.
Recently, former CM Ashok Chavan expressed his desire to quit from Congress. Former Leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Patil’s son Sujay Patil had quit Congress to join BJP. Even, once a close aide of Sonia Gandhi, Tom Vadakkan had left Congress to join the BJP. Many leaders in TMC have also quit to join the BJP in recent weeks.
As per reports, actor-turned-politician Jaya Prada may join the BJP to contest from the Rampur constituency against the Samajwadi Party strongman Azam Khan. The development comes after Amar Singh declared himself as ‘Chowkidar’ on Twitter and extended his support to PM Narendra Modi.
Jaya Prada had embarked on her political career with TDP before joining SP and had won the important Lok Sabha seat of Rampur in 2009. However, in a faction conflict in SP, Jaya Prada’s decision to side Amar Singh had resulted in her expulsion from the party in 2010. Later in 2014, she contested the Lok Sabha polls on an RLD ticket from Bijnor but lost in the elections.
In 2014, Rampur Lok Sabha seat saw a thrilling contest with BJP’s Dr. Nepal Singh emerging victorious against Samajwadi Party’s Naseer Ahmed. The 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Rampur may well be poised for a close fight in the eventuality of Jaya Prada taking on the SP stalwart Azam Khan.
Jaya Prada and Azam Khan had been at loggerheads since long. Recently, speaking at an event, Jaya Prada had revealed that Azam Khan had attempted an acid attack on her. She had also stated that due to Khan, she had once perceived a threat to her life and was under severe trauma.
The Samajwadi Party has ditched its alliance with Congress this time and has instead chosen to team up with Bahujan Samaj Party. In 2014, SP and BSP had managed to get only 5 and 0 seats, while the BJP had won a remarkable 71 seats to register a historic mandate in UP as well as the country.
Karti Chidambaram, son of senior Congress leader and former Union Minister P. Chidambaram, was given a Lok Sabha ticket by the Congress party from Sivaganga constituency at Tamil Nadu. He was given a ticket despite the fact that he is under investigation in the INX Media case and Aircel Maxis case.
It now appears that the decision to award Karti with a ticket has led to discontentment within the Congress party in the state. Sudarshan Nachiappan, Congress leader and former union minister, has said that the cadres are disappointed with the decision. He further asserted that the Chidambaram family has done nothing for the people of the constituency and giving Karti a ticket could harm the reputation of the party.
Congress leader from Tamil Nadu’s Sivaganga, Sudarshan Nachiappan: The
cadres from the constituency are disappointed. His (MP candidate Karti Chidambaram) family has done nothing for the constituency, instead they have accumulated wealth. This could damage Congress’s reputation. pic.twitter.com/IirWClSQzd
The disgruntled Congress leader also alleged that Chidambaram senior intervened personally to ensure that his son was given the ticket. He claimed that until then, he was the front-runner for the seat. “My name was in the list and was about to be announced along with others. That was why I was asked to be present in Delhi and later told to reach Chennai to file my nomination papers. But Mr. Chidambaram intervened and ensured that his son was given the seat,” Nachiappan told The Hindu.
He stated further, “Till Monday the investigating agency cannot arrest him. If the judge says the agency is free to take its own step what will happen to him? Has Congress not been able to find a good candidate in the entire country? Is Mr. Karti a freedom fighter? If the court decides against him it will also reflect on the party and Prime Minister Modi is ready to utilise the opportunity.”
The Chidambarams have been facing a host of cases and yet, it hasn’t prevented the Congress party from giving Karti a ticket. Karti’s wife Srinidhi and mother Nalini who have complaints registered against them under the Black money Act are facing allegations of possessing undisclosed foreign assets. A charge sheet has been filed by the Income Tax Department in this regard. Karti’s mother Nalini is allegedly also involved in the infamous Saradha Chit Fund scam as well.
