A decision on Law Minister Ashwani Kumar's continuance in the Union cabinet will depend on the view taken by the Supreme Court on Wednesday when it examines the Central Bureau of Investigation affidavit on the coal blocks allocation report, the Congress said.
Setting a tough condition before the government, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday said it will not allow the passage of any bill in Parliament till Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal and Law Minister Ashwani Kumar resign or are sacked. The opposition party also made it clear that it will not allow the passage of either the National Food Security Bill or the Land Acquisition Bill.
With the prime minister wanting to send the message that he has not been part of any cover-up in the coal scam, Ashwani Kumar's case is looking more and more dismal, reports Sheela Bhatt
Ashwani Kumar, Union Minister of State for Science and Technology, said that the BJP was inviting lawlessness and anarchism in the country by doing negative politics over the issue of coal block allocation.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh addressed a number of issues while talking to reporters on the sidelines of the defence investiture ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Saturday.
The revelation by CBI director Ranjit Sinha that the law minister and other officials had vetted a status report on coal-gate which was submitted to the SC may result in a severe grilling for Ashwani Kumar when the SC hears the case on April 30. Rakesh Bhatnagar reports.
With CBI admitting that it had shared its status report on coal block allocation scam with Law Minister Ashwani Kumar, the Bharatiya Janata Party has demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh alleging that he was using the law ministry to save himself from the probe in the case.
Setting off a political bombshell, Central Bureau of Investigation Director Ranjit Sinha on Friday submitted before the Supreme Court that the agency's status report on coal allocation scam was "shared" with Law Minister Ashwani Kumar "as desired by him" and that senior officials of PMO and Coal ministry had also seen it.
Central Bureau of Investigator Director Rajit Sinha is likely to inform the Supreme Court that the probe agency's report on the controversial coal mine allocation was shared with Union Law Minister Ashwani Kumar but will make it clear there was no dilution of the document.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday demanded the resignation of Law Minister Ashwani Kumar over allegations of government's interference in CBI's probe into coal blocks and suggested that the Supreme Court should appoint a Special Investigation Team to bring out the truth.
Amid reports of alleged interference in the Central Bureau of Investigation's probe into the coal scam, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Arun Jaitley on Saturday demanded the constitution of a special investigation team to probe the scam.
Former CBI Director Ashwani Kumar and Congress veteran S C Jamir were on Saturday appointed as governors of Nagaland and Odisha respectively.
Eight new faces were inducted in Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's council of ministers on Monday, with Sisram Ola and Oscar Fernandes making a re-entry after a gap of four years.
The plea said there should be a total ban on such populist measures to gain undue political favour from voters as they violate the Constitution and the ECI should take suitable deterrent measures.
Making a stinging criticism of the Central Bureau of Investigation and senior officials of the coal ministry and the Prime Minister's Office, the Supreme Court on Wednesday hauled them up for changing the "heart" of the coal-gate probe report but appeared to have given a breather for Law Minister Ashwani Kumar and the government for the time being.
A day ahead of filing a crucial affidavit in the Supreme Court on coal scam which has rocked the United Progressive Alliance government, Central Bureau of Investigation Director Ranjit Sinha on Sunday affirmed that the agency's probe into the matter was "clean and clear" and that no accused or suspect had been let off.
The Allahabad high court on Wednesday gave the Central Bureau of Investigation over three months' time to complete investigation into the murder of two Chief Medical Officers (CMOs).
Amid clamour for death penalty for rapists, Law Minister Ashwani Kumar on Monday said that the society as well as jurists were divided on the issue and government was open to persuasion by either side.
Government is working on a proposal to change the present mechanism of appointment of judges by a collegium of judges.
A discussion on reviving Indian economy at the World Economic Forum turned into a war of words between Law Minister Ashwani Kumar and Bajaj Auto chairman Rahul Bajaj over the functioning of government.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday said that Bollywood actor Aamir Khan is welcome in the state to create awareness and popularise generic drugs among people.
The setback promises to have far-reaching ramifications within and outside the party as it is likely to fuel voices that have challenged the Gandhi family's leadership and also those who have been a votary of a non-Congress front to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Union Law Minister Ashwani Kumar on Sunday said that the law as it currently stands is not in favour of disclosing the identity of the rape victim.
The Lucknow bench of Allahabad high court on Wednesday expressed dissatisfaction with the Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the murder of two chief medical officers in Lucknow and said that nothing substantial was done in the last two-three months.
In a letter to Rajasthan Governor Kalraj Mishra, senior Congress leaders and former law ministers Ashwani Kumar, Kapil Sibal and Salman Khurshid said the Governor's office, as envisaged under the country's constitutional scheme, is above and beyond the constraints and compulsions of partisan politics, 'so that its holder can act freely and fairly to uphold the Constitution'.
State Health Minister Ashwani Kumar Choubey said, "In 2005, the IMR was 61 per 1,000 births; now it has come down to 44 per 1,000. It is a big positive development. The state has recorded a sharp fall in the IMR in last six years, thanks to consistent efforts and steps taken by the government."
Encephalitis, a mosquito-borne disease, has killed 18 children in Bihar's Muzafarpur and Gaya districts, while more than three dozen are still fighting for their lives, health officials said on Monday.
Among the major states, Orissa recorded the steepest fall in poverty from 2004-05 to 2009-10.
The Congress picked Charanjit Singh Channi as the next chief minister of Punjab, making him the first Dailt to hold the post in the state, a day after Amarinder Singh resigned following a bitter power tussle in the party.
in Patna Another silent development is taking place in Bihar, the state has significantly reduced the infant mortality rate (IMR)from 61 to 48 and is only 1 point below the national average of 47,officials on Monday said.
The government on Wednesday said it will review the methodology for measuring poverty based on the findings of the NSSO Survey 2009-10.
An overwhelming number of new appointees across the party's organisational structure -- from the highest decision-making body CWC (Congress Working Committee) to the special committee formed to assist interim party chief Sonia Gandhi -- are known as Rahul Gandhi's confidantes.
Dismissing reports that he had seen the CD purportedly showing former state finance minister Raghavji in a compromising situation, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Monday said the evidence in the case has not been tampered.
In a surprise development, S Jaipal Reddy was on Wednesday made the petroleum and natural gas minister in the reshuffle and expansion of the Cabinet, which saw the elevation of three ministers to the Cabinet rank and induction of three new faces.Praful Patel, Shriprakash Jaiswal and Salman Khursheed were promoted as Cabinet ministers while Congress leaders Beni Prasad Verma (Uttar Pradesh), Ashwani Kumar (Punjab) and K C Venugopal (Kerala) were the new inductions.
Passengers claim that robbers looted purses, cash, carry bags, gold chains, mobiles and many more items from multiple passengers
Commenting of the wrong surgery that the patient underwent, Bihar Health Minister Ashwani Kumar Choubey said that it was not a big thing. M I Khan reports.
Indian Police Services officer Amar Pratap Singh was on Tuesday appointed the new Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation for two years succeeding Ashwani Kumar.
As the debate over the issue of leadership raged, another group of leaders put their weight behind the Gandhi family on Sunday, calling for Sonia Gandhi to stay or Rahul Gandhi to take charge again.
Advocating the need for speeding up inquiries against officials with "doubtful integrity", Central Bureau of Investigation Director Ashwani Kumar on Wednesday blamed the "weak" criminal justice system for encouraging corrupt practices.
The CBI on Tuesday said it has not questioned any RSS functionary during its ongoing probe into Mecca Masjid and Ajmer blast cases.
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