3 Punjab AAP MLAs Claim They Were Offered Crores To Join BJP

Soon after AAP's lone Lok Sabha MP from Punjab and an MLA joined the BJP on Wednesday, three AAP legislators from the state claimed that they received calls offering them money to join the BJP.

The Aam Aadmi Party alleged that the BJP had "again started Operation Lotus" in Punjab and was trying to break Arvind Kejriwal's party. There was no immediate reaction from the BJP on the allegations.

AAP legislator from Jalalabad Jagdeep Kamboj Goldy claimed that he received a call from one Sewak Singh from an international number on Tuesday with an offer to join the BJP.

Mr Kamboj told reporters that he asked the MLA to join the BJP and said, "'We will give Rs 20-25 crore'. I said I do not need it." Similar claims were made by Balluana MLA Amandeep Singh and Ludhiana South legislator Rajinder Pal Kaur Chhina.

They asserted that they would not leave the party.

Mr Kamboj alleged that the BJP was scared of Arvind Kejriwal and AAP. "Where they fail to win people's mandate, they try to buy MLAs, MP and other AAP leaders at any cost," he charged.

"Arvind Kejriwal is the leader who fought against corruption in politics and always did politics of work. But false cases have been registered and many AAP leaders have been sent to jail without any proof," he said.

They are trying to break the Aam Aadmi Party, he claimed.

"If they want to do horse trading, what is the need for an election system in the country? Punjab is a revolutionary state. After Delhi, the people of Punjab elected change.

"They can try all they want" but they won't be able to buy the ideology of Arvind Kejriwal and Bhagwant Mann, said Mr Kamboj.

Ludhiana South legislator Chhina too claimed she got a call from one Sewak Singh. It was a call from an international number, she said.

He told me to join the BJP, she alleged.

Balluana MLA Amandeep Singh said he got a call on Tuesday and the person said he was calling from Delhi. "He asked me to join the BJP and offered Rs 45 crore," alleged Amandeep Singh.

The Aam Aadmi Party levelled the allegations on a day its lone Lok Sabha member Sushil Kumar Rinku joined the BJP along with party MLA Sheetal Angural, dealing a blow to the party already facing a crisis following the arrest of its leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

Mr Rinku, the MP from Jalandhar in Punjab, and Angural, who was elected to the state Assembly from Jalandhar West, joined the BJP in the presence of Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri and its national general secretary Vinod Tawde.

The parliamentarian had quit the Congress to join AAP last year to fight the bypoll to the Jalandhar Lok Sabha seat.

The BJP is likely to field him in the Lok Sabha polls as the party has been inducting a number of influential leaders of different parties in Punjab to emerge as a strong force in the state with 13 constituencies.

Three-term Congress MP Ravneet Singh Bittu from Punjab joined the BJP on Tuesday and asserted that people have made up their mind to elect Prime Minister Narendra Modi to power again.

Mr Bittu is the grandson of former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh who was assassinated in a terror attack while still in office.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

from NDTV News-India-news https://ift.tt/ixsBbnW
via IFTTT

Read More

Arvind Kejriwal's Wife Reaches Probe Agency Office To Meet Him

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's wife, Sunita Kejriwal, reached the office of the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) on Tuesday evening to meet the AAP chief.

The Rouse Avenue Court on Friday remanded Mr Kejriwal to six days of ED custody in the money laundering case related to the alleged liquor policy scam case till March 28, following his arrest on March 21.

Earlier on Saturday, March 23, Sunita Kejriwal met CM Kejriwal at the ED's office.

Meanwhile, the BJP has been demanding that Mr Kejriwal relinquish the chief minister's post after his arrest in connection with the liquor policy case. However, the AAP has maintained that he will run the government from ED custody.

Earlier in the day, Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj said that CM Kejriwal has issued a second order from the ED custody, asking him to address the shortage of medicines and diagnostic tests at mohalla clinics and hospitals in the national capital.

Mr Kejriwal was arrested on March 21 by the Enforcement Directorate in relation to the excise policy case.

The case pertains to alleged irregularities and money laundering in framing and implementing the Delhi Excise Policy 2022, which was later scrapped.

While Mr Kejriwal was not named in the FIRs registered by the ED or the Central Bureau of Investigation in the Delhi excise policy case, his name first found a mention in the ED's chargesheet, wherein the agency claimed that he allegedly spoke to one of the main accused, Sameer Mahendru, in a video call and asked him to continue working with co-accused and AAP communications-in-charge Vijay Nair.

Nair was among the first people to be arrested by the CBI in the case, in 2022. Subsequently, former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh were arrested in connection with the case.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

from NDTV News-India-news https://ift.tt/HMweOdj
via IFTTT

Read More

अमेरिका में ब्रिज हादसा : शिप की इंडियन क्रू टीम ने बचाई कइयों की जान, टकराने से कुछ मिनट पहले भेजा था SOS

अमेरिका के मैरीलैंड राज्य के बाल्टीमोर शहर में एक कंटेनर शिप (मालवाहक जहाज) के टकराने से 3 किलोमीटर लंबा 'फ्रांसिस स्कॉट की' ब्रिज ढह गया. सिंगापुर के झंडे वाला यह कंटेनर शिप श्रीलंका की राजधानी कोलंबो जा रहा था. शिप में क्रू टीम के सभी 22 मेंबर भारतीय थे. ये सभी इस हादसे में सुरक्षित हैं. मैरीलैंड के गवर्नर ने कंटेनर शिप के क्रू टीम को हीरो बताया है. न्यूज एजेंसी AFP के मुताबिक, मैरीलैंड के गवर्नर वेस मूर ने कहा, "ये लोग हीरो हैं. उन्होंने ऐन वक्त पर अलर्ट कॉल (SOS कॉल) दिया, जिससे कई लोगों की जान बच गई."

AFP की रिपोर्ट के मुताबिक मैरीलैंड के गवर्नर वेस मूर ने कहा, "सिंगापुर के झंडे वाला कंटेनर शिप 8 समुद्री मील (9 मील प्रति घंटे) की रफ्तार से आगे बढ़ रहा था. ब्रिज से टकराने के कुल मिनट पहले इसने अलर्ट कॉल जारी किया था. इससे लोगों की जान बचाने में मदद मिली, क्योंकि हमने तुरंत ब्रिज पर ट्रैफिक को रोक दिया." ये शिप मैनेजमेंट कंपनी सिनर्जी मरीन ग्रुप की थी. शिप के ब्रिज के टकराने से किसी भी तरह का प्रदूषण भी नहीं हुआ.

पुल है या फिर रोलरकोस्टर, सीधे खड़े इस ब्रिज पर सरपट भागती हैं गाड़ियां, अनुभवी ड्राइवरों की भी हो जाती है हालत खराब

हादसा अमेरिकी समयानुसार सोमवार रात करीब 1:30 बजे (स्थानीय समयानुसार सुबह 11 बजे) हुआ.  ब्रिज से टकराने के बाद शिप में आग लग गई. माना जा रहा है कि शिप के ब्रिज से टकराने के बाद कई गाड़ियां और करीब 20 लोग पेटाप्सको नदी में गिर गए थे. इस शिप का नाम 'डाली' था. इसका मैनेजमेंट सिनर्जी मरीन ग्रुप के हवाले था. कंपनी ने कहा कि क्रू टीम के सभी मेंबर का पता लगा लिया गया है, कोई भी जख्मी नहीं है.

हादसे के फुटेज में कंटेनर शिप के 'फ्रांसिस स्कॉट की' ब्रिज से टकराने से ठीक पहले रोशनी बुझती हुई दिखाई दे रही है. ब्रिज का एक हिस्सा शिप पर ही गिर गया था. रेस्क्यू टीम ने कहा कि वे अभी भी कम से कम 7 लोगों की तलाश कर रहे हैं. 2 लोगों को सुरक्षित निरकाल लिया गया है.

अमेरिका: कंटेनर शिप की टक्‍कर से ढहा 3 KM लंबा ब्रिज, क्रू टीम के सभी 22 सदस्य थे भारतीय

बाल्टीमोर के मेयर ब्रैंडन स्कॉट ने कहा कि हादसे के समय कुछ स्टाफ ब्रिज पर मेंटेनेंस का काम कर रहे थे. उन्होंने इस हादसे को किसी एक्शन फिल्म की तरह बताया. ब्रैंडन स्कॉट ने कहा, "हमें इस हादसे के प्रभावित लोगों की मदद करनी होगी. उनके बारे में सोचना होगा."

कंटेनर शिप के मालिकाना हक वाली कंपनी ने एक बयान में कहा, "बाल्टीमोर में जो कुछ हुआ, उससे हम डरे हुए हैं. हमारी संवेदनाएं उन सभी प्रभावित लोगों के साथ हैं. हम पुष्टि कर सकते हैं कि चार्टर शिप कंपनी सिनर्जी ग्रुप द्वारा ऑपरेटेड कंटेनर जहाज 'DALI' Maersk क्लाइंट का माल लेकर जा रहा था. जहाज पर कोई Maersk चालक दल और कर्मी नहीं थे."

ये कैसा डिजाइन? पुल और फ्लाइओवर को आपस में जोड़ना था, पर दोनों की ऊंचाई में 6 फीट का फासला, BMC का उड़ा मज़ाक

from NDTV India - Latest https://ift.tt/F3muEgM
via IFTTT

Read More

Court Appoints Committee To Look Into Preservation Of Great Indian Bustard

The Supreme Court has recently appointed an expert committee to look into the preservation of the Great Indian Bustard which is "non-negotiable" and "need for sustainable development in the context of meeting the international commitments of the country towards promoting renewable sources of energy".

A bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra passed the order observing while dealing with a matter relating to protecting the Great Indian Bustard (GIB).

The court has sought a report from the committee by July and listed the matter for the second week of August 2024.

"We are of the view that it will be appropriate if an expert committee is appointed so as to balance both the need for the preservation of the GIB, which is non-negotiable and the need for sustainable development, more particularly, in the context of meeting the international commitments of the country towards promoting renewable sources of energy," the court in its March 21 order stated.

During the course of the hearing, the Court has underscored the importance of taking proactive measures to protect the GIB.

"There is no dispute in regard to the fact that the GIB is seriously endangered as a species. At the same time, it has emerged in the course of the hearing that there is no adequate basis to impose a general prohibition in regard to the installation of transmission lines in an area as wide as over 88,000 square kilometres," the court order read.

The committee includes the Director, Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun; Hari Shankar Singh, Member, the National Board for Wildlife; Niranjan Kumar Vasu, Ex-Principal Chief Conservator of Forest; B Majumdar, former Chief Wildlife Warden and Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, Maharashtra; and Devesh Gadhavi, Deputy Director, The Corbett Foundation, among others.

The committee will determine the scope, feasibility and extent of overhead and underground electric lines in the area identified as priority area in the reports of the Wild Life Institute of India in the States of Rajasthan and Gujarat.

The committee will also look into the need for adopting conservation and protection measures for the GIB, as well as other fauna specific to the topography and desert features and identify the measures to be adopted in the priority areas to ensure the long-term survival of the GIB.

It will also look into the identification of suitable alternatives in the context of sustainable development in the matter of laying long future power lines, which should balance the protection of conservation and the protection of the Great Indian Bustard together with the arrangement of power lines in a manner that would facilitate the fulfilment of the international commitments made by India for developing renewable sources of energy.

"The injunction which has been imposed in the order dated April 19, 2021, in respect of the area described as the potential area shall accordingly stand relaxed subject to the condition that the Expert Committee appointed by this Court may lay down suitable parameters covering both the priority and potential areas," the court said.

The Committee shall be at liberty to impose any additional measures, both in regard to the priority and potential areas, if it considers it appropriate, including considering the efficacy and suitability of installing bird diverters on existing and future power lines, the court clarified.

Earlier, a three-judge bench had directed the concerned authorities to convert the overhead cables into underground powerlines.

The court's order had come on a plea seeking to protect two species of birds, including the Great Indian Bustard.

According to the petition, the existence of overhead power lines is stated to have become a hazard due to which the said species of birds in collision are getting killed.

According to the petitioners, overhead power lines are the biggest threat to the survival of the GIBs.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

from NDTV News-India-news https://ift.tt/NaPEFxu
via IFTTT

Read More

Hemant Soren's Sister-In-Law Is BJP's Pick For Jharkhand's Dumka Seat

The BJP announced the names of three candidates in Jharkhand, including Sita Soren - former JMM MLA and sister-in-law of former Chief Minister Hemant Soren - from Dumka (ST) constituency.

The party on March 2 announced that sitting MP Sunil Soren, who had defeated JMM president Shibu Soren in the 2019 polls by a margin of 47,590 votes, will seek re-election from Dumka.

In a blow to the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, three-term MLA and elder daughter-in-law of party patriarch Shibu Soren, Sita Soren joined the BJP on March 20 citing "isolation" and "neglect" by JMM since the death of her husband Durga Soren in 2009.

Dumka will go to polls on June 1.

In the two other seats of Chatra and Dhanbad, Kalicharan Singh and Dulu Mahato will contest respectively, the party announced.

In Chatra, the BJP reposed faith in Kalicharan Singh denying a ticket to the sitting MP Sunil Kumar Singh who won by a margin of 3.77 lakh votes. In Dhanbad too, the party dropped sitting MP Pashupati Nath Singh who has been representing the seat since 2009 and fielded Baghmara MLA Dulu Mahato.

Mr Mahato became an MLA in 2009 on the ticket of Jharkhand Vikash Morcha (JVM) of former Chief Minister Babulal Marandi. The man who has more than two dozen cases against him joined BJP in 2014.

Voting will be held in Chatra and Dhanbad on May 20 and May 25 respectively.

The BJP in its first list of Lok Sabha election candidates had named 11 nominees from Jharkhand including four new candidates - former Congress parliamentarian Geeta Kora (Singhbhum ST constituency), Rajya Sabha MP Samir Oraon, Tala Marandi and Manish Jaiswal.

The seven other candidates, announced earlier, will seek re-election from their respective constituencies. They include Union ministers Arjun Munda (Khunti ST) and Annapurna Devi (Koderma).

There are 14 parliamentary constituencies in Jharkhand and as per the seat-sharing arrangement between the BJP and the AJSU Party, the Giridih seat has been left for the AJSU Party.

At present, Giridih is represented by AJSU Party's Chandra Prakash Chaudhary.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

from NDTV News-India-news https://ift.tt/AqwWgeF
via IFTTT

Read More

"Asom Gana Parishad Given 1 Seat With Winning Chance": Himanta Sarma

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday said that the BJP has kept its assurance of giving at least one Lok Sabha seat with 'winning chance' to its alliance partner Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) so that the regional party has representation in the lower House once again after 15 years.

He also said the BJP will lend complete support in ensuring victory of candidates belonging to its allies, while also exhorting the partners to give similar backing to its nominees.

The BJP, which leads a five-party coalition government in the state, is contesting in 11 seats, leaving two seats for AGP and one for United People's Party Liberal (UPPL), out of 14 seats in the state.

Two other allies, Ganashakti and Rabha Joutha Mancha, are not fielding candidates in the Parliamentary elections.

Addressing a meeting of party workers at AGP headquarters here, Mr Sarma said, "We had assured the AGP during talks on seat sharing that it will be given at least one seat with winning chance. We were aware that the AGP did not have an MP in the Lok Sabha since 2009."

The AGP is contesting in Barpeta and Dhubri constituencies, which have incumbent MPs from the opposition Congress and AIUDF respectively.

Though the chief minister did not specify the constituency with AGP's higher winning possibility at the meeting, he has stated previously that Dhubri is the only seat in the state that the ruling alliance may not bag.

"To win Barpeta and Dhubri, the AGP workers have to take upon themselves a special responsibility. The BJP leaders will also contribute their best as per strategy drawn out to help the candidates there," Mr Sarma said.

While assuring complete support from BJP leaders and workers to AGP and UPPL candidates, he also urged the AGP to return the gesture and ensure that its party machinery works for the allies in the other constituencies.

Claiming that the atmosphere nationwide was conducive for a third successive term for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mr Sarma said, "Every election is fought in a different context and background. This time, the election is on development, progress, on establishing Bharat as a 'vishwa guru' and Assam as among top states of the country." Earlier in the day, the chief minister had attended a meeting with BJP workers of the Barpeta constituency in Bongaigaon, and another with BJP, AGP and UPPL members in Kokrajhar. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

from NDTV News-India-news https://ift.tt/ipjhVBH
via IFTTT

Read More

Alcohol With Methanol Used To Make Toxic Liquor That Killed 20: Punjab Cops

Alcohol containing methanol content was used for making spurious liquor which left 20 people dead in Punjab's Sangrur district, police said on Saturday.

Police have arrested eight out of the 10 identified accused in connection with the Sangrur hooch tragedy, they said.

The death count due to the suspected consumption of spurious liquor in Sangrur district has climbed to 20, with six more people succumbing during treatment, officials on Saturday said.

Eleven people are undergoing treatment at Patiala's Rajindra Hospital and six at the Civil Hospital in Sangrur.

The officials said the casualties have been reported from Gujran, Tibbi Ravidaspura and Dhandoli Khurd villages in Dirba and Sunam blocks.

A four-member special investigation team (SIT), led by Additional Director General of Police Gurinder Singh Dhillon, was set up on Saturday in connection with the incident.

Addressing the media here, ADGP Dhillon said three FIRs have been lodged so far in connection with this incident.

Out of 10, eight accused including two masterminds -- Harmanpreet Singh and Gurlal Singh -- have been arrested, he said.

Police have also recovered spurious liquor and other equipment used for manufacturing and labelling it from their possession.

Investigation revealed that alcohol with methanol content from a factory in Noida was procured by the accused.

Methanol is used in many industrial products, he said, adding that "It has a major content of methanol which is fatal".

Dhillon said both Harmanpreet and Gurlal, who had a criminal past, had planned it when they were in the Sangrur jail.

The SIT would supervise the uncovering of the backward and forward linkages, in this case, said police.

Deputy Inspector General (Patiala Range) Harcharan Bhullar, Senior Superintendent of Police, Sangrur, Sartaj Chahal, and Additional Commissioner (Excise) Naresh Dubey are part of the SIT.

Those arrested have been identified as Soma Kaur, Rahul alias Sanju and Pardeep Singh alias Babi, all residents of Chauwas in Cheema; Gurlal Singh of village Ubhawal in Sangrur, Harmanpreet Singh of village Taipur in Patiala, Arshdeep Singh alias Arsh of village Rogla; and Manpreet Singh alias Mani and Sukhwinder Singh alias Sukhi, both residents of village Gujjran in Dirba.

The SIT will thoroughly investigate the forward and backward linkages in this case to unearth the modus operandi and nexus to trace the source of spurious liquor which found its way to the villages and all the culprits involved in this case will be arrested, said police. PTI CHS VSD NB NBPolice have arrested eight out of the 10 identified accused in connection with the Sangrur hooch tragedy, they said.

The death count due to the suspected consumption of spurious liquor in Sangrur district has climbed to 20, with six more people succumbing during treatment, officials on Saturday said.

Eleven people are undergoing treatment at Patiala's Rajindra Hospital and six at the Civil Hospital in Sangrur.

The officials said the casualties have been reported from Gujran, Tibbi Ravidaspura and Dhandoli Khurd villages in Dirba and Sunam blocks.

A four-member special investigation team (SIT), led by Additional Director General of Police Gurinder Singh Dhillon, was set up on Saturday in connection with the incident.

Addressing the media here, ADGP Dhillon said three FIRs have been lodged so far in connection with this incident.

Out of 10, eight accused including two masterminds -- Harmanpreet Singh and Gurlal Singh -- have been arrested, he said.

Police have also recovered spurious liquor and other equipment used for manufacturing and labelling it from their possession.

Investigation revealed that alcohol with methanol content from a factory in Noida was procured by the accused.

Methanol is used in many industrial products, he said, adding that "It has a major content of methanol which is fatal".

Dhillon said both Harmanpreet and Gurlal, who had a criminal past, had planned it when they were in the Sangrur jail.

The SIT would supervise the uncovering of the backward and forward linkages, in this case, said police.

Deputy Inspector General (Patiala Range) Harcharan Bhullar, Senior Superintendent of Police, Sangrur, Sartaj Chahal, and Additional Commissioner (Excise) Naresh Dubey are part of the SIT.

Those arrested have been identified as Soma Kaur, Rahul alias Sanju and Pardeep Singh alias Babi, all residents of Chauwas in Cheema; Gurlal Singh of village Ubhawal in Sangrur, Harmanpreet Singh of village Taipur in Patiala, Arshdeep Singh alias Arsh of village Rogla; and Manpreet Singh alias Mani and Sukhwinder Singh alias Sukhi, both residents of village Gujjran in Dirba.

The SIT will thoroughly investigate the forward and backward linkages in this case to unearth the modus operandi and nexus to trace the source of spurious liquor which found its way to the villages and all the culprits involved in this case will be arrested, said police.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

from NDTV News-India-news https://ift.tt/qdFDluM
via IFTTT

Read More