India News

Speakers in APN show: Politicians who polarise people should be punished

Published

9 years ago

April 29, 2017

Politicians who polarise people should be punished

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]APN’s Aap ki rai discusses why BJP leaders end up making communally charged statements

At a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath have been reiterating their unhappiness at BJP leaders stoking outrage by making frequent communal statements, certain elements in the party seem to be set upon creating trouble for the party leadership by issuing controversial statements. On Saturday (April 29), Swami Prasad Maurya, the Uttar Pradesh Minister for Cooperatives, has said that Muslims chose triple talaq to satisfy their “lust” by changing wives.

Maurya, who is in Basti, was quoted as saying by ANI, “Koi havas poora karne ke liye lagatar patni badle, bachon-patni ko bheek mangne pe majboor kare ise koi acha nahi kehega. (Just for lust, if someone changes his wife or forces children to beg then no one would appreciate it).

Similarly, another minister Satyadev Pachauri was caught using derogatory language for a physically disabled contractual employee during a surprise inspection at the Divyang Empowerment Department in Lucknow. He was quoted telling his official, “You have kept a loola-langda on contract. What will he do? This is the reason behind lack of hygiene in Lucknow.” Interestingly Yogi government has recently renamed the Viklang Kalyan Vibhag (Handicap Welfare Department) to Divyang Jan Sashaktikaran Vibhag (Divyang Empowerment Department).

Meanwhile in Moradabad, VHP leader Sadhvi Prachi was recently quoted asking Muslim women to leave their religion and say “I love you” to Hindu men, so they can escape triple talaq.

APN ran a half-hour Aap ki rai (your opinion) program on Saturday, to find out people’s views on the frequent communally surcharged controversial statements. It was more focused on Maurya’s comment on lust.

APN’s Himanshu Dikshit anchored the show. Opinions of political adversaries of the BJP were also included: Juhi Singh of Samajwadi Party, Surjendra Rajput of Congress and Tariq Anwar of Nationalist Congress Party criticised the statements and advised the BJP leadership to behave responsibly.

Shaista Ambar of All India Muslim Women’s Personal Law Board (AIMWPLB) asserted that Swami Prasad Maurya should seek apology, be immediately removed from the cabinet and jailed at the earliest. She said Maurya insulted all women by using abusive language. She said that if Maurya does not apologise, she may approach the Supreme Court. Maulana Khalid Rasheed Firangi Mahli, Member of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), also criticised the irresponsible behaviour of BJP leaders for using abusive language.

A large number of viewers called APN studio to express their opinion on how to curb leaders from making irresponsible statements. Callers from Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Haryana participated in the show.

Pritam from Varanasi and Jaibhar from Chandigarh expressed suspicion that the abusive statements were part of a BJP conspiracy. Jaibhar was of the opinion that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath were not taking action against the fringe elements. He considered the BJP leadership might be internally encouraging such statements.

Nand Kishore from Madhya Pradesh alleged that these statements were part of vote politics. In his opinion, such ministers should be immediately removed from the cabinet.

Ahmed from Barabanki, Saleem from Bihar, Suhail from Faridabad, Waris from Lakhimpur Kheri and Israr from Kolkata were unanimous in demanding stern action against such irresponsible elements who were trying to polarise people. They asked Prime Minister Modi, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and other senior BJP leaders to take stern action for maintaining harmony in the country.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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Delhi-NCR sees second spell of rain and thunderstorms in four days

Delhi-NCR experienced another spell of rain and thunderstorms on March 18, with IMD forecasting more showers over the next few days.

Published

5 hours ago

March 18, 2026

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Delhi and parts of the National Capital Region witnessed another spell of rain, thunderstorms, and strong winds on Wednesday evening, marking the second such weather event in the past four days.

The sudden change brought relief from unusually high temperatures recorded earlier this month. According to officials, the temperature at Safdarjung — the city’s base weather station — was recorded at 24 degrees Celsius at 7 pm.

The India Meteorological Department had earlier issued an alert predicting light to moderate rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning on March 18. Several areas across the capital experienced gusty winds along with brief but intense showers.

More rain likely over next two days

The weather department has forecast partly cloudy skies for March 19 and 20, with chances of light rain or thundershowers occurring once or twice during the day. On March 21, skies are expected to remain cloudy with the possibility of light showers continuing.

Conditions are likely to stabilise from March 23 onwards, with forecasts indicating a return to partly cloudy to clear skies across the region.

Weather activity across India to intensify

The IMD has also indicated widespread weather activity across multiple regions of the country in the coming days. Rainfall is expected to intensify in several states, accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds.

In the northeastern region, heavy rainfall is likely over Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Meghalaya during the early part of the week.

Meanwhile, the western Himalayan region is also set to witness a shift in weather patterns. Himachal Pradesh is likely to receive heavy rainfall on March 19 and 20, while Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir may experience heavy showers around March 20.

India News

Centre pushes states to cut levies to boost PNG adoption

The Centre has asked states to reduce local levies and streamline approvals to accelerate PNG adoption and city gas infrastructure growth.

Published

7 hours ago

March 18, 2026

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The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has urged states and Union Territories to ease local levies and procedural barriers affecting City Gas Distribution (CGD) projects, in a bid to accelerate the adoption of piped natural gas (PNG) as a cleaner fuel alternative.

In a communication sent to Chief Secretaries, Petroleum and Natural Gas Secretary Neeraj Mittal highlighted that high right-of-way charges, road cutting fees, lease rentals and other local levies imposed by urban bodies are discouraging investments in CGD infrastructure.

High costs slowing expansion

The ministry pointed out that the CGD sector, particularly PNG supply to households and commercial establishments, does not receive direct subsidies. As a result, it depends heavily on viable returns, which are being impacted by excessive and inconsistent local charges across states.

It noted that these financial and procedural hurdles are slowing down infrastructure expansion and affecting the broader adoption of natural gas.

Gap between connections and usage

According to the government, while around 12.63 crore PNG connections have been recorded, only about 1.6 crore are currently active. The ministry stressed that improving ease of doing business at state and local levels could help bridge this gap and expand the consumer base.

Officials believe that rationalising levies may initially reduce local revenues but could lead to higher long-term gains through increased gas consumption and economic activity.

LPG shortage adds urgency

The push for PNG adoption comes amid supply constraints in liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), linked to ongoing tensions in the Middle East. Oil marketing companies are currently supplying only 20 per cent of normal commercial LPG demand to states.

To address this, the ministry has proposed increasing LPG allocation to 30 per cent for states that implement reforms supporting PNG and CGD expansion.

Reform-linked incentives for states

The Centre has suggested a set of measures that states can adopt to qualify for higher LPG allocations. These include:

Setting up empowered state and district-level committees for faster approvals
Introducing single-window clearance with deemed approvals within 24 hours
Implementing a dig-and-restore model using bank guarantees instead of restoration charges
Eliminating annual rental or lease charges for CGD infrastructure

The ministry said compliance with these reforms would be verified before granting additional LPG allocations.

Industry support measures

The communication also noted that GAIL and its subsidiaries have already allocated full gas supply to the commercial PNG segment to support businesses affected by reduced LPG availability.

The government reiterated that expanding natural gas usage aligns with its broader push for cleaner and domestically sourced energy.

India News

BJP seals Assam seat-sharing pact, Modi to hold 3 rallies in April

BJP has finalised its Assam seat-sharing plan with allies and is gearing up for an intense campaign led by PM Modi and Amit Shah.

Published

7 hours ago

March 18, 2026

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The Bharatiya Janata Party has finalised its seat-sharing arrangement for the upcoming Assam Assembly elections, firming up its strategy alongside National Democratic Alliance partners as campaigning gathers pace in the state.

Under the agreement, the BJP will contest 89 seats, while its allies — Asom Gana Parishad and Bodoland People’s Front — will field candidates in 26 and 11 constituencies respectively. The distribution has been decided after internal deliberations, with the focus now shifting to candidate announcements and campaign execution.

Campaign push led by top leadership

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to address three rallies in Assam during the final leg of the campaign. Tentative dates for the rallies are April 1, April 3 and April 6, with events likely to be held in key constituencies.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is also set to spearhead an extensive campaign across the state through March, aiming to energise party workers and strengthen voter outreach.

Candidate selection underway

The party’s Central Election Committee is currently meeting to finalise candidates. Sources indicate that approvals for most constituencies are expected soon, and the BJP may release its complete list of candidates within the next two days.

Ticket distribution remains a crucial exercise, with internal discussions highlighting its potential impact on local political dynamics. Party leaders have also touched upon the proposed delimitation exercise scheduled for 2027, which is expected to have long-term implications for Assam’s electoral landscape.