RS election in Guj: NCP will vote for BJP's Rajput

Agencies
August 8, 2017

Ahmedabad, Aug 8: Giving some anxious moments to the ongress on the eve of Rajya Sabha election in Gujarat, NCP MLA Kandhal Jadeja today claimed the party high command has decided to support BJP candidate Balvantsinh Rajput.

MP Supriya Sule, daughter of the party founder Sharad Pawar, however, said that NCP MLAs in Gujarat would back the Congress.

The NCP has two MLAs in Gujarat -- Kandhal Jadeja and Jayant Patel, its state unit president. Jadeja told reporters in Gandhinagar that the party has asked both of them to give their first preference votes to Rajput.

"As per our party's directive, we have to give our vote to BJP's Balvantsinh Rajput. He will be our first preference," said Kandhal, who has openly admitted in the past that he was very close to senior leader Shankersinh Vaghela, who recently quit the Congress.

"I just received a phone call from my party leaders who asked me to vote for Rajput," said Jadeja. Jayant Patel and NCP's in-charge for Gujarat, Praful Patel, were not available for comments. Asked to comment on reports that the party MLAs have been asked to vote for BJP, Sule said, "To the best of my knowledge it's Congress (that NCP MLAs would vote for)."

Yesterday, Praful Patel had said his party, which shared power with the Congress at the Centre during the UPA regime and also had a pre-poll alliance with it in Gujarat in 2012 Assembly elections, had not taken any decision.

However, referring to some unconfirmed reports, Congress' candidate Ahmed Patel today claimed that NCP had taken the decision to vote for him.

The election to three Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat has turned into a high-stake battle. BJP president Amit Shah and Union minister Smriti Irani are in the fray; the ruling party has also fielded Rajput, a former Congress MLA, as a third candidate.

Going by its strength in the assembly, the BJP is certain to win two seats but would require additional votes to ensure the victory of the third candidate. The Congress was recently jolted by Vaghela's exit, cross-voting in presidential election and resignation of half a dozen party MLAs.

A confident Ahmed Patel, after meeting the Congress MLAs who have returned from Bengaluru, had said he has the support of more MLAs than required for the win. "Apart from these 44 (Congress) legislators, two of NCP, one of JD-U would give their vote for me," he had said. Patel, political secretary to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, needs 45 votes to win.

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News Network
September 16,2024

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Mangaluru: Police have arrested five miscreants belonging to saffron outfits for pelting stones at a masjid at Katipalla near Surathkal on the outskirts of the city last night. 

The arrested have been identified as Bharat, Chennappa, Nitin, Manu and Sujit all residents of Surathkal and surrounding areas. Among them, Bharat is said to be a rowdy sheeter. 

The miscreants, who came on two motorbikes late on Sunday night, pelted stones at Masjidul Huda, located at 3rd block of Katipalla on the eve of Miladunnabi.  

Confirming the incident, City Police Commissioner Anupam Agrawal said that investigation is in progress and a case has been registered at Surathkal police station.

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News Network
September 17,2024

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New Delhi, Sept 17: Atishi will be the new Chief Minister of Delhi. The decision came after a legislative party meeting was chaired by Arvind Kejriwal at his Delhi residence earlier today.

Kejriwal is expected to tender his resignation later today, and will also meet Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena at 4.30 pm.

On September 13, Arvind Kejriwal was released from Tihar Jail, where he had been lodged for his alleged involvement in the Delhi liquor policy case. Nearly two days after his release, on Sunday, Kejriwal said he would resign as the Chief Minister within 48 hours.

He also sought early polls in Delhi, and vowed not to sit in the chief minister’s chair until people gave him a “certificate of honesty”.

On Monday, the AAP held a series of meetings as Kejriwal sought feedback from members of the political affairs committee, the party’s highest decision-making body, on his successor in one-on-one meetings at his official residence.

Names of Delhi ministers Atishi, Gopal Rai, Kailash Gahlot and Saurabh Bharadwaj were making the rounds as contenders, news agency PTI had quoted party insiders as saying and added that Kejriwal’s wife Sunita Kejriwal and Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel were also the probables.

Mangolpuri MLA Rakhi Birla, who is also the deputy speaker in the assembly, and Kondli legislator Kuldeep Kumar were also potential candidates, they added.

Earlier, sources with the AAP had told PTI that the surprise candidate could also be a member of the minority community as the party has witnessed its support among the community wavering since the 2020 Delhi riots.

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News Network
September 9,2024

Mangaluru, Sept 9: An action committee has voiced concerns about the construction of a new toll plaza near Sooralpady Masjid on the Mangaluru-Moodbidri-Karkala National Highway 169, 17 km from Nanthoor. Amidst ongoing construction, the Action Committee Against Surathkal Toll Gate claims irregularities and poor site selection.

Committee convener Muneer Katipalla noted that only 50% of the Nanthoor-Moodbidri-Karkala highway upgrade is complete after seven to eight years. The Nanthoor-Vamanjoor stretch remains unfinished, causing traffic issues, while dangerous hillside cutting near Kettikal has forced residents to relocate. Additionally, a flyover near Kaikamba threatens a local market.

Katipalla also criticized the construction of a bypass road, alleging it benefits real estate investors and inflates the project cost, which could increase toll fees. The proposed toll plaza, situated 36 km from Talapady toll gate and 35 km from Brahmarakotlu toll gate, violates distance regulations and is too close to local amenities, raising public objections.

There is growing concern that toll collection might begin before the project's completion, with locals frustrated by unaddressed grievances. Social activist Bava Padarangi, DYFI leader Srinath Kulal, and other community leaders attended the site visit.

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