-
Bengaluru
High 29°
Low 20°weather
-
10gm Gold -
27,605
10gm 24 kt -27,605
1kg Sliver - 57,386
Bullion Rate
NITISH KUMAR SET FOR EASY WIN IN TRUST VOTE TODAY
PATNA, JUNE 19- Nitish Kumar, Chief Minister of Bihar, is set to comfortably win a trust vote. Despite earlier warnings of voting against him, the BJP, who Mr Kumar ended a 17-year alliance with on Sunday, has decided to boycott the vote by walking out of the Assembly. And the Congress, which has been signalling an interest in partnering with Mr Kumar, is likely to support him.
Mr Kumar's own party, the Janata Dal United or JD(U), has 118 legislators; it needs just four more votes to win the vote. (Live Blog)
Sources in the Congress say that their decision to vote with Mr Kumar today is not the foundation of a new alliance. But as Mr Kumar's relationship with the BJP hurtled towards a split, the Congress has been unsubtle in its overtures.
On Monday, the Prime Minister praised the chief minister as "a secular leader." Mr Kumar said the compliment has given him "peace of mind."
The Congress says its support for Mr Kumar in today's vote is based on the fact that he attributed his split with the BJP to the growing stature of Narendra Modi, who the JD(U) and Congress describe as a divisive leader. Mr Modi was at the helm when riots lacerated Gujarat in 2002, leaving hundreds of Muslims dead. Mr Modi and the BJP have rejected charges that he didn't do enough to protect them.
Earlier today the BJP, smarting from being dumped by Mr Kumar, had decided to vote against him. But that put it in the uncomfortable position of voting on the same side as Lalu Yadav, the former chief minister of Bihar with who its shares a hostile political relationship.
SUSHIL KUMAR MODI MADE LEADER OF BJP IN BIHAR LEGISLATICE COUNCIL
NEW DELHI, JUNE 19- BJP Parliamentary Board on Tuesday appointed former Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi as leader of the party in the Legislative Council and Nand Kishore Yadav as the head of the party in the state Assembly.
Yadav will be the Leader of the Opposition in state Assembly as BJP is now the main opposition after JD(U) snapped ties with it.
He was the road and highways minister in the JD(U)-BJP government led by Nitish Kumar.
JD(U) walked out of the NDA on June 16 on the issue of appointment of Narendra Modi as head of BJP Election Campaign Committee.
Sushil Modi will be the chief of the BJP Vidhan Mandal (comprising of all party legislators from both the Houses).
BJP sources said members of the Parliamentary Board, party's highest decision-making body, were consulted on phone by the central leadership on this issue and their consent taken.
SALMAN KHURSHID TO VISIT IRAQ TODAY FOR TALKS OIL IMPORT LIKELY TO BE TOP ON AGENDA
NEW DELHI, JUNE 19- External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid will embark on a two-day visit to Iraq on June 19 during which he will hold talks with top Iraqi leadership on issues of mutual interest including import of oil.
Khurshid, the first senior Indian leader to visit the oil-rich Arab country in last 23 years, will meet his Iraqi counterpart Hoshiyar Zebari and discuss bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest.
Khurshid is expected to discuss the issue of import of oil from Iraq, which has emerged as India's second largest crude oil supplier, replacing sanctions hit Iran. In recent years, India's import of oil from Iraq has seen a significant rise. Iraq has the world's third largest proven oil reserves. Till recently, Iran was India's second-biggest crude oil supplier after Saudi Arabia, meeting about 12 per cent of the country's needs.
Salman Khurshid to visit Iraq today for talks; oil import likely to be top on agenda
But India has reduced its dependence on Iranian oil in the wake of US and EU sanctions on the import of oil from the Islamic Republic. India imported about 13.3 million tonnes of crude oil from Iran in 2012-13 fiscal, down from 18.1 million tonnes shipped in the previous financial year. Early this month, the United States exempted India and eight other countries from financial sanctions for six-month for significantly reducing their dependence on Iranian oil.
Khurshid is also expected to call on Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki, and Chairman of Council of Representatives and Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq. India remains committed to support the ongoing post-war reconstruction and development efforts in Iraq, said a statement from the Ministry of External Affairs. This forthcoming visit is expected to add an impetus to our bilateral relations and elevate our ties to a higher level for the mutual benefit the people of India and Iraq, the statement added.
DELHI: SHOPKEEPER RUNS SCHOOL FOR STREET CHILDREN UNDER A METRO BRIGE
NEW DELHI, JUNE 19- As the Delhi Metro from the Yamuna Bank station rumbles on every day, something extraordinary takes place under its tracks. Children from the neighbouring slum gather here to let their imagination take over. And helping their dreams take shape is a West Delhi shopkeeper Rajesh Kumar.
Rajesh said, "I would regularly see children idly playing in the dirt in the area. I asked their parents why weren't they sending them to school. I got no answer, so I decided to start teaching these children from then. We didn't have much, so with whatever I could get I started teaching them here."
Rajesh started this project in 2008. From two students, his classroom now boasts of 50 young minds. Local shopkeepers, rickshaw-drivers and daily wage-earners have started sending their children to his classroom.
MONSOON FURY IN NORTH INDIA: 131 DEAD 70,000 STRANDED KEDARNATH TOWN RUINED
NEW DELHI, JUNE 19- The famous Kedarnath shrine was virtually submerged in mud and slush where 50 people died in the unprecedented flash floods that claimed over 131 lives in Uttarkhand and Himachal Pradesh and left over 70,000 pilgrims for Himalayan shrines stranded.
The Kedarnath Temple is pictured amid flood destruction in the holy Hindu town of Kedarnath, located in Rudraprayag district in Uttarakhand. AFP
The shrine, one of the four holy dhams, in Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand bore the brunt of torrential rains. About 500 people, including several pilgrims, are said to be missing in the area.
Military helicopters carried out emergency food drops on Wednesday for thousands of people stranded by flash flooding from early monsoon rains in north India, officials said.
Thousands of houses have been swept away in the flash floods and authorities are using helicopters to evacuate people and drop essential food supplies.
Kukhimath sub divisional magistrate Rakesh Tewari told reporters after his return from Kedarnarth that 50 bodies are lying in areas adjacent to the shine.
FOR KANIMOZHI'S RAJYA SABHA ELECTION DMK SEEKS CONGRESS SUPPORT
NEW DELHI, JUNE 19- The Rajya Sabha elections, scheduled for next month, are forging new alliances in Tamil Nadu.
DMK parliamentary leader T R Baalu today met Congress president Sonia Gandhi to formally seek the support of the Congress for their leader Kanimozhi.
The move assumes significance as it is the first meeting between the two parties since the DMK formally withdrew support to the UPA government in March this year.
The DMK, headed by M Karunanidhi, finds itself struggling for partners to get Kanimozhi, the 45-year-old daughter of its president, re-elected. Her term expires next month.
The party had been hoping to win the support of legislators from the DMDK, headed by actor-politician Vijayakanth, which fielded its own candidate on Monday.
The Congress can offer five state legislators in the 235-member Assembly but it is seen as an unpalatable ally by most parties in the state because of the perception that the Centre led by it had not taken a strong enough stand against Sri Lanka's alleged war crimes at the United Nations session in Geneva earlier this year.
The DMK, which has 23 legislators, need 11 more to ensure a second term for Kanimozhi.
The math in the Rajya Sabha elections has parties worried about horse-trading. The emerging voting pattern in these elections could also indicate the political re-alignment in Tamil Nadu for the national elections due by May.
LIVE: PRIME MINISTER ASKS FOOD MINISTER TO ENSURE SUPPLIES TO FLOOD- HIT UTTARAKHAND
HARIDWAR, JUNE 19- The Uttarakhand flood situation discussed at the Congress Core Group meeting today. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has directed the Food Minister to ensure that food supplies reach those affected.
11:00 am: Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna has said that there is not enough manpower for such a natural disaster.
10:31 am: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has tweeted, "Spoke to Uttarakhand CM Vijay Bahuguna ji. Assured him any help required in relief work and asked about people from Gujarat affected by floods."
10:00 am: Around 8,000 pilgrims are still stuck in Badrinath due to road blocks. ll communication lines at Badrinath are down. Over 3,000 Sikh pilgrims have been rescued from Hemkund Sahib and have taken shelter at the Army relief camp in Joshimath.
LK ADVANI DID NOT RESIGN BECAUSE OF NARENDRA MODI: RAJNATH SINGH
MUMBAI, JUNE 19- BJP president Rajnath Singh on Wednesday sought to project the rift within the party as a thing of past, stating all is well in the party.
Singh was responding to queries on the purported rift between senior party leader LK Advani and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.
Earlier, Singh had stressed that Advani had resigned from all party posts this month for reasons other than Narendra Modi, who was appointed election campaign committee chief at the Goa conclave.
Advani, who later took back his resignation, had decided to quit over "other reasons" and not elevation of Narendra Modi as the 2014 poll campaign panel chief, Rajnath Singh had said at an event organised by a leading English daily.
"There were other reasons for his unhappiness," Singh said but did not elaborate.
Rajnath also did not rule out Modi being projected as BJP s prime ministerial candidate for 2014 polls, saying the party will not ignore the pulse of the people".
Modi s elevation has caused rift not just within the BJP but also among allies, leading to trusted ally JD(U) quitting the main opposition alliance.
LK ADVANI UNWELL NOT MEET RSS CHIEF MOHAN BHAGWAT TODAY
NEW DELHI, JUNE 19- Senior BJP leader LK Advani has cancelled his meeting with Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh or RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat today because he is unwell. Mr Advani, who has also cancelled other meetings that he was supposed to attend during the day, is now expected to meet Mr Bhagwat tomorrow.
In the meeting with Mr Advani, Mr Bhagwat is expected to attempt to placate the senior BJP leader who had resigned earlier this month from all party posts to protest against Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's big promotion.
Yesterday, Mr Modi met Mr Advani for 45 minutes at his residence. The Gujarat Chief Minister reportedly "sought Mr Advani's blessings" and promised to consult senior leaders in his new role. But sources say Mr Advani continues to voice his grievance over Mr Modi's elevation as in charge of the BJP's election campaign.
Mr Advani reportedly told Mr Modi during their meeting that he was not opposed to his promotion, but would have preferred for the BJP to create two separate teams to handle the upcoming state and national elections.
That proposal was rejected by BJP's ideological mentor, the RSS, which earlier this month instructed the BJP to announce Mr Modi's appointment as the chairman of the election campaign committee.
SUPREME COURT AGRESS TO HEAR PIL ON US SURVEILLANCE OF INTERNET DATA
NEW DELHI, JUNE 19- The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to give an urgent hearing to a PIL on the issue of US National Security Agency snooping on internet data from India and seeking to initiate action against internet companies for allowing the agency to access the information.
Agreeing to hear the PIL filed by a former dean of law faculty of Delhi University Professor SN Singh, a bench of justices AK Patnaik and Ranjan Gogoi posted the case for hearing next week.
In his plea, Singh has alleged that such largescale spying by the US authorities is detrimental to national security and urged the apex court to intervene in the matter.
He has claimed that the internet companies are sharing information with the foreign authority in "breach" of contract and violation of right to privacy.
"As per reports, nine US-based internet companies, operating in India through agreements signed with Indian users, shared 6.3 billion information/data with National Security Agency of US without express consent of Indian users. Such largescale spying by the USA authorities besides being against the privacy norms is also detrimental to national security," the petition, filed through advocate Virag Gupta, has said.
Singh has submitted that it is a breach of national security as government's official communications have come under US surveillance as services of private internet firms are being used by them.