Hyderabad, Sep 23 (PTI) The Centre is trying to privatise power and agriculture sectors which will have disastrous impact on farmers and others, Telangana Minister for IT and Industries K T Rama Rao has alleged.

Speaking to reporters in Siricilla on Thursday, he said if the Electricity (Amendment) Bill brought in by the Central government turns into an Act, farmers would lose free power, Scheduled Caste members, Scheduled Tribe persons, poultry farmers, washermen, barbers, weavers, and others will have to bid goodbye to power subsidies.

Rama Rao reiterated Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s stand against the reforms in agriculture and power sectors, and reminded the state government’s resolution passed in the state assembly against the Bill.

“Telangana is a state where farmers cultivate lands relying on power supply. The state has 26 lakh pump sets. What would be the fate of farmers if free power is not supplied?” he asked.

Crops are grown across 1.35 crore acres in Telangana. An additional 50 lakh acres of land was cultivated from 2015 to date. It has been possible because of schemes like Rythu Bandhu, Rythu Bhima, and strengthening of the irrigation sector, he pointed out.

“While crop cultivation in Telangana ushered in festive spirit, the central government’s decisions are causing distress to our farmers… But Union Minister Piyush Goyal mocked us asking us to practice eating broken rice,” he charged at the Centre.

The way fuel prices have surged, power tariffs too will increase in future if private companies start distributing electricity. Procurement of grains might be privatised from next season, he predicted, adding that an attempt is being made to benefit private companies. PTI 

Chandigarh,(PTI) Police on Thursday used a water cannon to prevent BJP workers from heading towards the residence of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann here after they tried to force their way through barricades while protesting against the AAP government.

The Punjab BJP had announced to ‘gherao’ the official residence of the chief minister as it accused the six-month old Aam Aadmi Party government of failing on all fronts.

Punjab BJP chief Ashwani Sharma and other senior party leaders including Jeevan Gupta and Subhash Sharma were participating in the protest.

Police had put up barricades to stop the protesters from moving towards the chief minister’s residence. When the BJP workers tried to force their way through barricades, police used a water cannon. Later, the BJP leaders were detained by police.

Talking to reporters, Ashwani Sharma said the BJP will expose the AAP government for having allegedly failed on all fronts in the state.

“The government failed to keep its poll promises like Rs 1,000 per month for women. It also failed to address public issues,” he said.

Sharma alleged that the Mann government was only trying to “please” Arvind Kejriwal and not resolving burning issues like drugs, corruption and deteriorating law and order in Punjab.

“Holding a protest is our democratic right and no water cannon can stop the BJP from raising public issues,” he said.

Earlier, Sharma alleged that the AAP government failed to live up to the expectations of people.

He claimed that people are now repenting for voting for the AAP for redressal of their issues as the government is running away from its responsibilities. PTI 

Mumbai: Mumbai’s civic body has denied permission to the two warring factions of the Shiv Sena from holding a Dussehra rally in the city’s iconic Shivaji Park on 5 October.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has disallowed the celebrations on the inputs of a senior police officer who fears a law and order situation, a civic official told ThePrint.

The Dussehra rally at Shivaji Park has been held annually since the inception of the Shiv Sena in 1966 – except for the two years of Covid in 2020 and 2021.

But now, since the party has split between founder Bal Thackeray’s son Uddhav Thackeray and current Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, a scramble has ensued to claim the celebrations.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Sena petitioned the Bombay High Court on Wednesday for permission to hold the rally in the Dadar-area park. The hearing was slated Thursday.

However, since the BMC said a firm “no” on Thursday, the party has now challenged that decision, and will now be heard on Friday noon.

The BMC letter to both factions read: “While both the opponent applicants have applied for permission to hold the Dussehra rally at the Shivaji Maharaj Park Maidan, if any one of the applicants is granted permission to hold the rally, this may create a serious problem of law and order in the sensitive area of Shivaji Park.”

Thackeray faction’s Anil Desai had applied for permission on 22 August, followed by a request from the Eknath Shinde faction on 30 August through local MLA Sada Sarvankar.

Speaking to the media on this matter, Thackeray loyalist Anil Parab said, “The court will take a decision and we will accept it. But we are confident that we will get the permission. Since 1966, there has never been a law and order issue. And we have followed every rule.

“This is not a specific Dadar problem. A law and order problem can take place in BKC too where Matoshree (Uddhav Thackeray’s residence) is located. What if we say this? These are all excuses.”

Minister Deepak Kesarkar, however, defended MLA Sada Sarvankar’s request to hold the rally. “What is the harm? He is the local MLA, and has applied till now. So, what’s this question of law and order,” the minister told the media.

Incidentally, the choice of an alternate venue for the Dussehra rally is the same for both sides – the MMRDA ground in the Bandra Kurla Complex. The Shinde faction, however, beat the Thackeray group in this case as they applied first.

On Wednesday, Sena president and former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray assured party workers that Dussehra celebrations would take place at Shivaji Park.

The Dussehra show of strength is crucial for Thackeray ahead of the city civic polls likely in January or February next year.

New Delhi,  (PTI) Stepping up the preparations for upcoming assembly polls, the full Election Commission will be visiting Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat beginning Thursday to assess the readiness of the poll machinery in the two states.

Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and Election Commissioner Anup Chandra Pandey will be on a three-day visit to Himachal Pradesh beginning Thursday. They will meet top state government officials to review preparations and ensure that measures are in place for smooth conduct of elections.

On Monday, Kumar and Pandey are likely to visit Gujarat to take stock of the preparedness.

The tenures of the Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat assemblies will end on January 8, 2023 and February 23, 2023 respectively and the poll authority can hold elections anytime within six months of the expiry of the five-year term of any House.

It is usual for the Election Commission to visit poll-bound states before the announcement of polls.

In 2017, Himachal Pradesh went to polls on November 9, while Gujarat exercised its franchise in two phases — December 9 and 14.

BJP has been in power in Gujarat since 1998 and the main opposition Congress came close to defeating it in the previous assembly elections in 2017.

However, over the past five years, several Congress leaders have quit the party to join the BJP and AAP appears to have stolen the march in campaigning for the upcoming elections, seeking to expand its presence in the country.

In Himachal Pradesh, BJP had defeated the Congress in 2017 to come to power. Congress is gearing up to challenge the BJP in the largely bi-polar hill state, where AAP is trying to get a foothold. PTI

Guwahati, Sep 22 (PTI) Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Thursday said freedom of speech is a “non-negotiable and uncompromising” asset of India, and any deviation from it will be a “compromise” on the sovereignty and wholesomeness of the country.

Inaugurating the ‘Lokmanthan 2022’ here, he also said the category of “pseudo intellectuals” are on the rise in India, and they need to be curtailed.

“The freedom of expression in India is non-negotiable and we cannot compromise on it. If we depart from this, we will compromise with the sovereignty and wholesomeness of the country,” Dhankhar said.

The legislature has an important role to play in democracy, the vice president said, but expressed regret that nowadays issues are being discussed on the streets instead of the floor of the assembly.

“Another concerning trend that needs to curtailed is the problem of pseudo intellectuals. Can public space be allowed to be dominated by this category of people with the help of media-created eclipses?” Dhankhar said.

He also said the role of intellectuals is very critical, and they must engage in proactive dialogue, debate and discussion.

“They must reflect the challenges India is facing. They should play on the front foot with a straight bat. I cannot imagine how intellectuals remain silent seeing violation of human rights,” he added. PTI 

Dharamsala,(PTI) Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama has been honoured with the Alice and Clifford Spendlove Prize in Social Justice, Diplomacy and Tolerance, his office said on Thursday.

He is the 15th recipient of the award, founded by Merced native Sherrie Spendlove in 2005 at University of California, Merced.

“In naming the Dalai Lama the latest recipient of the Spendlove Prize, UC Merced recognises a global spiritual leader committed to expressing the importance of happiness, compassion, warm-heartedness, self-discipline, friendship and human solidarity amongst our diversity,” said Professor Nigel Hatton, with the Department of Literatures, Languages and Cultures.

Every year, the Spendlove Prize honours an individual who can serve as a role model and inspirational figure for students, faculty and the community surrounding UC Merced.

The prize has an annual value of USD 15,000 (Rs. 12,09,921).

Former US President Jimmy Carter and Nobel laureate Rigoberta Menchú Tum are among the distinguished Spendlove laureates. PTI 

 Bhopal, Sep 22 (PTI) Four activists of the Popular Front of India were arrested from Madhya Pradesh in a multi-agency operation led by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), officials said on Thursday.

Three of them have been arrested from Indore, a senior police official said.

They were nabbed from Sadar Bazaar and other areas, the official said without giving more information.

The police did not share details of the fourth arrest.

In near simultaneous raids across the length and breadth of the country, a multi-agency operation spearheaded by the NIA on Thursday led to the arrest of 106 activists of the Popular Front of India (PFI) in 11 states for allegedly supporting terror activities in the country, officials said.

The maximum number of arrests were made in Kerala (22) followed by Maharashtra and Karnataka (20 each), Tamil Nadu (10), Assam (9), Uttar Pradesh (8), Andhra Pradesh (5), Madhya Pradesh (4), Puducherry and Delhi (3 each) and Rajasthan (2).

According to the officials, the arrests were made during the raids which have been termed as the “largest-ever investigation process till date”. Formed in 2006, the PFI claims to strive for a neo-social movement ostensibly for the empowerment of marginalised sections of India. It is, however, often accused by law enforcement agencies of promoting radical Islam. PTI

Kolkata, Sep 22 (PTI) A senior Trinamool Congress leader on Thursday said NCP president Sharad Pawar likely consulted Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee before making a statement about her being ready to bury differences with the Congress, to form an alliance of opposition parties ahead of the 2024 general elections.

Speaking to reporters in Mumbai on Wednesday, Pawar had said Banerjee, who is also the TMC supremo, is ready to bury her differences with the Congress in the national interest and come together to form an anti-BJP front before the Lok Sabha polls.

“It is a good statement. Sharad Pawar is a very senior leader of the country, and I don’t think he has made the remarks without consulting our party chief,” TMC leader Sougata Roy told PTI.

The party’s chief spokesperson, Sukhendu Sekhar Ray, however, declined to comment on Pawar’s remark.

“How can I comment on what Sharad Pawar has spoken about?” said Ray.

The relationship between the Congress and TMC hit an all-time low last year, after the latter had slammed the grand old party as “incapable and incompetent”, which had gone into a “deep freezer.” In a jolt to the opposition unity, the TMC had also decided to abstain from the vice-presidential election, as it did not agree with the process the candidate was decided upon without keeping the party in the loop. PTI 

 New Delhi, Sep 22 (PTI) The Bharatiya Janata Party spent over Rs 340 crore in the assembly polls in five states held earlier this year, while the Congress shelled out more than Rs 194 crore for its campaigning in these states, according to the election expenditure reports of the two parties.

According to the report filed by the BJP and put in public domain by the Election Commission, the party spent more than Rs 340 crore on its campaigns for the Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Goa and Punjab assembly elections held early this year.

The BJP’s spending report showed that it spent over Rs 221 crore in Uttar Pradesh, over Rs 23 crore in Manipur, Rs 43.67 crore in Uttarakhand, more than Rs 36 crore in Punjab and Rs 19 crore in Goa.

According to the report filed by the Congress, it spent over Rs 194 crore for campaigning and related expenditure in the five states.

The BJP and Congress are recognised national parties.

Parties contesting Lok Sabha and assembly polls are mandated to file their election expenditure reports before the EC in a stipulated time frame. PTI 

 Bijapur, Feb 26 (PTI) Six Naxals were arrested from separate places in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district and explosives were seized from four of them, police said on Saturday.

Sonu Korsa (35), Munna Hapka (37), Mangal Korsa (26) and Sonu Hapka (27) were apprehended from Padeda-Cherpal area under Bijapur police station limits, while Korsa Sannu (30) was held from a different location in the same area, Additional Superintendent of Police Pankaj Shukla said.

“These arrests took place on February 24 when a joint team of District Reserve Guard (DRG) and local police was out on an anti-Naxal operation. One more ultra, identified as Sukhram Karam (30), was arrested on Friday at a police check post (MCP) set up between Awapalli and Murdanda,” he said.

Two tiffin bombs, detonators, detonating cord, electric wire, Maoist literature were seized from the four held in Padeda-Cherpal area, he added. PTI