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Ex-Army Chief VK Singh joins BJP
Rakhi Sawant backs Modi
Kalyan Singh rejoins BJP
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Rajnath woos ex-servicemen with welfare panel
BJP ex-chief Bangaru Laxman dies in political wilderness
Tata Camelot: Ministry gets three weeks to respond to 3 pleas
Subrata Roy lodged at guest house
Woman burnt to death after attending Rahul’s event
Prez signs Telangana Bill
Two from N-E assaulted in Delhi
‘RAW official’, his family found dead in Delhi
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Ex-Army Chief VK Singh joins BJP
New Delhi, March 1 “I saw the BJP as nationalist party,” the former Army Chief said, explaining his reason for joining the saffron party. “We, who have served on the borders, decided to work with nationalist forces. So we have decided to join the BJP to bring a government which is stable, strong and is able to take decisions in national interest,” he said amid cheers and slogans proclaiming him as “Defence Minister”. VK Singh was the first serving military chief to drag the government to court and now becomes one of the few top-ranking officers to turn into a politician. Though he was seen sharing the dais with BJP’s PM candidate Narendra Modi at Rewari, he had so far been ruling out joining the political party, saying that he was firmly behind activist Anna Hazare in his crusade against corruption. Sources say that Anna may be seen canvassing for the BJP now that the General has formally joined the saffron party. VK Singh may be fielded from Rajasthan -- the state he was born in. Two seats are being considered, one being Jhunjhunu. However, his known critic Lt-Gen Raj Kadyan (retd) is
the AAP candidate from there. Sources say the BJP is considering a “safer seat” in Rajasthan though the option of Bhiwani is also an option. He comes from the Bapora village in the district. Being a Rajput, he will find support in Rajasthan and adjoining areas. Among the constituencies in Haryana adjoining Rajasthan is Mahendergarh — a seat which is likely to be contested by Sudha Yadav.
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Rakhi Sawant backs Modi
New Delhi: Bollywood item girl Rakhi Sawant came to the BJP office in Delhi on Saturday to support Narendra Modi. She said she wanted tie ‘rakhis’ on the wrists of ex-servicemen present there and have a cup of tea — referring to Modi’s “Chai pe Charcha” campaign.
On whether she would join the BJP, Rakhi said she had not thought about it. “I have just come here. It is my house. I am the BJP’s daughter. I have come here to have tea. I don't know if I will join the BJP. It is up to the senior leaders,” she said. Later, BJP president Rajnath Singh said, “I was so touched when Rakhi Sawant came without any invitation. She touched my feet and said she wanted to tie ‘rakhis’ to the country’s brave soldiers.” Last year, Mallika Sherawat had sung a birthday song for Modi. Earlier this year, Salman Khan flew kites with him in Ahmedabad during Uttarayan festival.
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Kalyan Singh rejoins BJP
Lucknow, March 1 Singh who represented Etah as an Independent MP in the 15th Lok Sabha said he submitted his resignation from the seat on February 25 following which he was now free to join the BJP. Kalyan Singh had been attending Modi’s rallies in the state for some time. In January 2013, he formally merged his Rashtriya Kranti Party (RKP) with the BJP. But he did not join the party formally at that time fearing disqualification from the Lok Sabha. Ahead of the 2009 election, Kalyan Singh had struck an alliance with the Samajwadi Party which supported him from Etah as an Independent candidate. His son Rajveer had even joined the SP and had been made its national general secretary. After the disastrous results of the alliance, which made the Muslims abandon the Samajwadi Party, Kalyan Singh slowly moved back to his old party. He was the Chief Minister at the time of the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya in
1992.
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Rajnath woos ex-servicemen with welfare panel
New Delhi, March 1 “It is a shame that brave men have to die in such accidents,” he said, referring to the recent submarine accident. He welcomed former Army Chief VK Singh and other senior retired officers into the party fold and attacked the government over ceasefire violations by Pakistan, including the beheading of two Indian soldiers and intrusions by China. “The country needs a strong government with Narendra Modi at the helm to ensure that no one can mess with the country,” he said. He said the Congress-led coalition had not looked after the Armed Forces and its personnel. He stressed the need for indigenous production of weapons. The BJP chief questioned the government over the timing of the “one-rank, one-pension” decision, saying it came too late clearly with an eye on the upcoming elections. He claimed that the BJP had been in favour of the decision and had raised the issue in Parliament several times. Rajnath Singh also promised a war memorial. Those who joined today included Lt General P Chaudhary, Lt General AK Chopra, AVM Bordoloi and Commodore Awasthi.
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AAP’s 3rd list out; Savita Bhatti is candidate from Chandigarh
With this, the seats for which candidates have been announced by AAP has risen to 70. For the Chandigarh Lok Sabha seat, stage and TV artiste Savita Bhatti, wife of late comedian Jaspal Bhatti, has got through from among a total of 31 aspirants. The seat is currently held by Congress’ Pawan Bansal. Besides Chandigarh, candidates for one seat in Bihar, two each in Delhi and Kerala and seven each in Madhya Pradesh and Odisha were declared in the third list. AAP is relying on JNU Prof Anand Kumar for the north-east Delhi seat which is held by former Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president Jai Prakash Agarwal while from north-west Delhi social activist Mahendra Singh is the party’s bet against Congress’ Union minister Krishna Tirath (assuming she would contest this time). In Congress-ruled Kerala, the party has pitted former IPS officer Ajit Joy from Thiruvananthapuram, a seat currently held by Union Minister of State for HRD Shashi Tharoor. The common feature between them is their UN connection. While Tharoor is a former UN Under-Secretary General, Joy had been with the United Nation’s Office on Drugs and Crime which he quit to join AAP during the last Delhi Assembly elections. For Thrissur in Kerala, presently represented by Joint Parliamentary Committee chairperson PC Chacko, the party has chosen Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award-winning Malayali novelist Sarah Joseph who has been at the forefront of women’s movement in the state and is the founder of Manushi - organisation of thinking women. The party’s choice for Bihar’s Darbhanga constituency from where former cricketer BJP’s Kirti Azad is the MP is Dr Prabhat Ranjan Das. In Madhya Pradesh, social activist Shailendra Singh Kushwaha will contest from Guna, seat of Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, while Rachna Dheengra -- known for her work for the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy victims -- is the AAP candidate from Bhopal.
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BJP ex-chief Bangaru Laxman dies in political wilderness
Laxman, who was ailing for some time, suffered a fatal heart attack at a private hospital here this evening. He is survived by his wife, Susheela Laxman, who was a BJP MP of the 14th Lok Sabha, three daughters and a son. BJP president Rajnath Singh condoled his death. Bangaru Laxman was elected to the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Council in 1985 before entering the Rajya Sabha in April 1996. In October 1999, he was inducted into the NDA government led by Atal Behari Vajpayee as Minister of State for Planning and Programme Implementation and was later appointed MoS in the Railway Ministry. His promising political career was cut short after he was caught accepting a bribe of Rs 1 lakh from a purported arms dealer in a sting operation by 'Tehelka' for pushing a fictitious defence deal for award of a contract for acquisition of thermal binoculors for the Army. He was convicted by a CBI court in April 2012 and sentenced to four years imprisonment. He was currently on bail.
— PTI Sting op did him in
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Tata Camelot: Ministry gets three weeks to respond to 3 pleas
New Delhi, March 1 A Bench comprising Justices RM Lodha and Shiva Kirti Singh yesterday adjourned the hearing in the case to March 28. Senior advocate Aryaman Sundaram, who appeared for the Sarin Memorial Legal Aid Foundation which has filed two of the petitions, said the environment ministry’s response -- which was vital -- was still awaited. At this, the Bench asked Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Mohan Jain how much time the ministry would take to finalise its views. As the ASG sought three weeks, the Bench asked the petitioner to file its rejoinder, if any, within three days thereafter. On October 7, the Supreme Court had issued notice, returnable in eight weeks, to Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh, besides the Centre, on the plea against the proposed construction of 1,794 residential flats. The company had then agreed to “maintain status quo” which the Supreme Court recorded in its order. A resident of Chandigarh, advocate Alok Jagga, who had approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court with a PIL on the issue, has also come to the Supreme Court. The petitioners have challenged the high court’s August 21, 2013 order, giving the green signal for the Tata project subject to the company getting all necessary clearances from the authorities concerned. The foundation has also filed a writ petition on the issue. According to the petitioners, the proposed project would destroy Chandigarh and the fragile ecology of the region, comprising the Sukhna Lake, Shivalik Range and Wildlife Sanctuary. Allowing the construction of 19 towers, with 7-28 storeys each, would prove to be catastrophic, the petitioners pleaded. The Bench has clarified that the status quo would cover even processing of the company’s applications for clearances. Green concern
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Subrata Roy lodged at guest house
Lucknow, March 1 The business tycoon is expected to stay at the forest resort till March 4 when he is to appear before the Supreme Court at 2 pm. In the VIP suite, the Sahara chief has been allowed to use his own bedding, eat home cooked food and meet his family and associates. A group of social activists today condemned the “lenient attitude” of the police towards the business tycoon. All India Peoples Front spokesperson and former IPS officer SR Darapuri said the police patiently waited for hours for Roy to appear before them. In other cases, they usually entered the premises to make an arrest. “Instead of keeping him at the Gomti Nagar police station, as prescribed by the law, Roy is being lodged at the Kukrail guest house of the Forest Department. Why are there different sets of rules when it comes to elite offenders,” he asked. VIP treatment
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Woman burnt to death after attending Rahul’s event
Guwahati, March 1 The woman was a ward member of a panchayat under the Titabor Legislative Assembly Constituency represented by Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi. The woman’s husband sustained over 60 per cent burn injuries and was admitted to the Assam Medical College Hospital in Dibrugarh. His condition is critical. The woman could not make any dying declaration before the police, the police said. After her death in a hospital on February 27, a section of media reported a day later that she was one of the two women who had kissed the Congress leader during the Jorhat interaction. Local reports quoting neighbours said she had picked up a fight with her husband Someswar Chutia over the reported kissing after which he allegedly set her on fire. Jorhat SP Amandeep Kaur said the incident should not be linked to Rahul’s interaction since the woman was not among the 600 women inside the interaction hall though she was in the crowd outside. “She never came close to Rahul Gandhi,” the SP asserted. Police rule out kiss link
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Prez signs Telangana Bill
New Delhi, March 1 Mukherjee also gave his nod to imposing President's rule in Andhra Pradesh as decided by the Cabinet on Friday. The Andhra Pradesh Assembly, whose term was to end on June 2, would now be in suspended animation. There will be 13
districts in the residuary Andhra Pradesh while Telangana will have 10 districts, including Hyderabad.
— IANS
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Two from N-E assaulted in Delhi
New Delhi, March 1 The victims hail from Ukhrul district of Manipur. The 24-year-old-woman is pursuing BEd from Delhi University. The incident took place around 10 pm last night in the Vijay Nagar area, close to Delhi University's north campus, when the boy was going to drop his cousin to her PG after dinner. A man allegedly made lewd gestures at the girl near a park at Buddha Colony. Northeastern students and other locals later protested outside the Model Town police station. “We have registered a case and arrested the accused,” said a senior police officer.
— PTI
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‘RAW official’, his family found dead in Delhi New Delhi, March 1 The body of Anany Chankravarty (52) was found hanging from a ceiling fan while those of his wife Jaishree (47), daughter Disha (12) and son Arnab (17) were found in a pool of blood in the bedroom, the police said. The bodies of Anany’s wife and his children bore injuries. According to sources, Anany was a technical officer in the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW).
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Jalna (Maharashtra) Bhubaneswar Thane Mumbai Amethi Haflong (Assam) New Delhi
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Former Army Chief General VK Singh, who was engaged in a bitter battle with the Congress-led government over his age, today made a formal entry into politics.
New Delhi, March 1
Hyderabad, March 1
