English हिन्दी
Connect with us

India News

PMO running all ministries, ministers have no work: Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie

Published

on

PMO running all ministries, ministers have no work: Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Former ministers in the first NDA government led by Atal Behari Vajpayee, Arun Shourie and Yashwant Sinha on Saturday, August 11, questioned the manner in which NDA-II government under Narendra Modi is functioning.

During a discussion on ‘Save Democracy – Save Constitution’ here, they alleged that decisions relating to different ministries were being taken “single-handedly” by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) while the ministers had no clue about them, they alleged.

“All ministries are running from the Prime Minister’s Office. Other ministers have no work. If someone (the other ministers) is saying he is busy, he is lying,” Sinha said. “While the PM is only the first among equals in his minister’s council, this isn’t the case with the Modi government. This is the famous Gujarat model of governance.”

Arun Shourie, another BJP veteran and former Union minister, said that the Modi government was a government of two men — BJP president Amit Shah and Modi himself. Shourie alleged that the CBI was directly reporting to Shah.

Earlier, in a press conference on August 8, they had pointed out that till Prime Minister Narendra Modi left for France in 2015, neither the then Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar nor foreign secretary S Jaishankar were aware of the changed Rafale deal announced a couple of days later.

They were addressing a meeting of the Rashtra Manch — an outfit founded by Sinha earlier this year to bring together politicians and voices across party lines to take on Centre — in Mumbai. Five former Union ministers — Sinha, Shourie, Shatrughan Sinha (BJP), Dinesh Trivedi (Trinamool Congress), and Ravinder Manchanda (Samajwadi Janata Party) — and two sitting MPs, Sanjay Singh (AAP) and Majeed Memon (NCP) shared the dais, said media reports.

Sinha reiterated his allegations that the controversial Rafale deal was a “Rs 35,000-crore” scam. “Bofors scam was Rs 64 crore. This is a Rs 35000 crore scam.”[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1533987824293{padding-top: 10px !important;padding-right: 10px !important;padding-bottom: 10px !important;padding-left: 10px !important;background-color: #FF8C00 !important;border-radius: 10px !important;}”]BJP president Amit Shah on Friday brushed off allegations of corruption levelled by former Union ministers Arun Shourie and Yashwant Sinha in the Rafale deal, saying credence should be given to the defence minister’s statement and not what those “who did not get jobs”.

“Will you give credence to the defence minister’s statement or those who did not get jobs?” Shah said during an interview at a book launch in the national capital.

Neither Shah nor any member of Modi Cabinet has, however, countered any of the specific allegations levelled about the alleged scam in Rafale deal.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Sinha alleged that Home Minister Rajnath Singh, who is the No. 2 man in the Cabinet, had been kept in the dark about the BJP’s move to yank support from Mehbooba Mufti’s PDP in Jammu and Kashmir. He also claimed that Singh wasn’t aware of the Naga peace accord in 2015.

“The External Affairs Minister (Sushma Swaraj), similarly, is not kept in the loop on foreign policy matters. She has become a Twitter mantri. Arun Jaitley (finance minister) had no idea about demonetisation. Defence minister was not aware of the Rafale deal when it happened,” said Sinha.

The Prime Minister’s Office is controlling all ministerial decisions while ministers are sitting idle, he alleged.

Shourie said there was a threat to the Constitution and democracy. “Undoubtedly, the Constitution and democracy are in danger. 72 lynchings have happened so far, 54 witnesses have turned hostile in Soharabuddin (fake encounter) case… CBI is being misused…(these) are live examples of the new normal and there seems no hope that the things will change,” Shourie alleged.

The veteran journalist said that the media is fearful because “their advertisements could get blocked”.

Claiming that the Shah-Modi duo was aware that the “ground was slipping away from them” and that “they will do everything to cling onto power”, Shourie said Opposition parties “must come together in the 2019 polls”.

“…The country will be in peril if they (BJP) came back to power… Leaders of all Opposition parties must not stand on prestige issues, forgo the past and the future, and join hands for a one-to-one contest,” he said.

MP and actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha said he won’t quit the BJP on his own.”However, if they want to throw me out, then I will not challenge their wisdom,” he said.

“People ask me why do you criticise the BJP so much despite being its member. I tell them I belong to the people of India first. I try to give honest feedback to my party and its leadership,” he said.

NCP leader Majid Memon, TMC leader Dinesh Trivedi, AAP MP Sanjay Singh and others also spoke on the occasion.

Trivedi said, “Spirit of India has vanished today and even Supreme Court judges are seeking justice… Parliament is not working in a rightful manner… I would say all the four pillars have been compromised.”

Former high court judge Abhay Thipse, who joined the Congress after retirement, said that previous government never transferred judges unnecessarily.

“Today, judges fear to take a strong decision and stand. People and press are also fearful nowadays. There were caste biases earlier also but now fringe elements have got confidence to rule the roost,” he said.

AAP leader and Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh alleged that the Modi-led government was the biggest threat to democracy.

“It is the height of foolishness that the UP government is showering rose petals on kanwariyas from helicopters,” Singh said. Kanwariyas who were indulging in vandalism were not real pilgrims, he said.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

India News

Tihar jail extortion case: MHA sanctions CBI inquiry against AAP leader Satyendar Jain

Satyendar Jain and former Tihar Jail DG Sandeep Goel were accused of running an extortion racket from Tihar and demanding protection money from high profile inmates

Published

on

In another setback for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the Ministry of Home Affairs accorded sanction for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry against Satyendar Jain, jailed AAP leader, for allegedly extorting Rs 10 crore from conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar as protection money. 

Satyendar Jain and former Tihar Jail DG Sandeep Goel were accused of running an extortion racket from Tihar and demanding protection money from high profile inmates allegedly. The development follows as Delhi chief minister and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal is in Enforcement Directorate (ED) custody in connection with the alleged liquor policy scam.

Earlier, Delhi Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena sanctioned the CBI inquiry into extortion charges against Satyendar Jain. In a letter seeking the LG’s nod to probe the extortion charges, the CBI in November last year wrote that Satyendar Jain was accused of running a high-profile extortion racket from Tihar Jail and demanding Rs 10 crore as protection money from Sukesh Chandrashekhar to enable him to live peacefully and comfortably in jail.

The aforesaid allegations were made by the conman who said Satyendar Jain extorted money in various tranches during 2018-21, either personally or through his accomplices to enable Chandrashekar to live comfortably in different jails of Delhi namely Tihar, Rohini and Mandoli.

AAP leader Satyendar Jain was arrested in May 2022 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. Jain’s last bail plea was dismissed by the Supreme Court on March 18 this year and the top court asked him to surrender in connection with the money laundering case. The AAP leader was given an interim medical bail on May 26, 2023 after he fell in the jail bathroom. Jain underwent a spinal operation during his bail period.

Beside Satyendar Jain, AAP leaders Manish Sisodia, Sanjay Singh, and Vijay Nair are also in Tihar Jail.

Continue Reading

India News

Rahul Gandhi warns ED, CBI of strong action whenever government changes

The Congress leader’s statement follows after the Income Tax department’s fresh notices asking the party to pay Rs 1,823.08 crore.

Published

on

Rahul Gandhi on Friday accused central agencies of working at the behest of the BJP-led government at the Centre and warned them that strict action will be taken against these institutions when the government changes.

The senior Congress leader asserted that if the institutions had done their jobs properly there would have been no problem. He added that these agencies should think that some day the BJP government will change and after that there will be action. He further said that it is his guarantee that the action will be so strong that no institution will dare to do such things again.

Taking to social media platform X, Rahul Gandhi wrote that when the government changes, action will definitely be taken against those who destroyed the democracy. Mentioning that it is his guarantee, Rahul Gandhi said that such actions will be taken that no one will dare to do all this again.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s statement follows after the income tax department’s fresh notices asking the party to pay Rs 1,823.08 crore. The party has accused the ruling BJP of indulging in tax terrorism to financially cripple the opposition party ahead of Lok Sabha polls.

While addressing a press conference at the AICC headquarters along with Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh, party treasurer Ajay Maken alleged that the BJP is in serious violation of income-tax laws. He said the I-T department should raise a demand of Rs 4,617.58 crore from the saffron party for such violations.

Ajay Maken said that the income-tax returns filed by Congress for eight years have been reopened on baseless and manufactured grounds to levy illegal I-T demand orders totalling thousands of crores of rupees. He stated that the timing of the I-T department’s action in February and March, days before and even days after the Lok Sabha election were announced on March 16, speaks for itself about the mala-fide nature of these actions.

Furthermore, the opposition party will hold nationwide protests over the weekend against fresh income tax demand of over Rs 1,800 crore, which it has described as an egregious attack on democracy and imposition of tax terrorism amid the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Continue Reading

India News

Jammu and Kashmir: 10 killed as taxi rolls into gorge at Ramban, PM Modi announces ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh

Ramban deputy magistrate said that it was pitch dark and raining heavily when the accident occurred near Battery Chashma around 1.15am.

Published

on

In an unfortunate incident, ten passengers were killed when a taxi veered off the road amid heavy rain and fell into a gorge in Ramban district on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway early on Friday.

Baseer-ul-haq, Ramban deputy magistrate said that it was pitch dark and raining heavily when the accident occurred near Battery Chashma around 1.15am. He added that while the vehicle, believed to be a Chevrolet Tavera, has not been traced yet, 10 bodies have been recovered from the steep slope from where it went down 500 metres.

Police along with quick reaction teams, the local tehsildar, assistant commissioner, revenue, and other officials were at the spot supervising rescue work. Reports said that two identity cards were recovered from two bodies. 

The bodies were identified as taxi driver Balwan Singh, 47, of Amb Gharota in Jammu district, and Vipin Mukhiya, of Bhairagang in West Champaran district of Bihar. The identified bodies were taken to Ramban district hospital. Police asserted the taxi was on its way to Kashmir from Jammu.

Expressing grief over the accident in Ramban, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from PMNRF, which would be given to the next of kin of each deceased. Furthermore, the injured would be given Rs 50,000.  PM Narendra Modi also extended condolences to the bereaved families and prayed for a quick recovery of the injured. 

Taking to social media platform X, President Droupadi Murmu said that the news of many people getting killed after a vehicle fell into a ditch in Ramban area on Jammu-Srinagar National Highway is very sad. She also offered condolences to the bereaved families.

Earlier, Jammu and Kashmir police shared on social media platform that a passenger taxi rolled down a deep gorge on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway near Battery Chashma in Ramban area. It added that Police, SDRF and civil QRT Ramban reached on spot, rescue operation is going on.

Continue Reading

Trending

-->

© Copyright 2022 APNLIVE.com