The Left parties' unhappiness over the functioning of the United Progressive Alliance government and especially its economic policies came to the fore on Monday with the Revolutionary Socialist Party deciding to withdraw from the UPA-Left coordination committee.
The 48-second video purportedly shows some seven to eight paramilitary and police personnel entering the Old Reading Hall and beating students with lathis.
Farmer leaders said unions do not allow any political party to use their stage and accused the government of diverting the issue.
Pakistan will buy sugar and cotton from India, newly appointed Finance Minister Hammad Azhar announced on Wednesday, lifting a ban on their import from the neighbouring country imposed in the wake of heightened tension over Kashmir in 2019. The decision was taken at the meeting of the economic coordination committee (ECC), which was chaired by Finance Minister Azhar.
Addressing reporters at the Singhu border where they have been protesting for almost two weeks to demand a rollback of the law, the farmer unions also reiterated that they will intensify their agitation and start blocking all highways leading to the national capital.
The Mayawati-led BSP will fight 20 of the 117 assembly seats in Punjab, while the rest will be contested by the SAD.
Ahead of the United Progressive Alliance-Left coordination committee meeting on the Indo-US nuclear deal, the government on Saturday expressed hope that the differences with the supporting allies on the issue will be resolved. External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee told reporters in Chandigarh that he was engaged in talks with the Left on the deal to sort out the matter.
The ten trade unions are National Trades Union Congress, All India Trade Union Congress, Hind Mazdoor Sabha, Centre of Indian Trade Unions, All India United Trade Union Centre, Trade Union Coordination Centre, Self Employed Women's Association, All India Central Council of Trade Unions, Labour Progressive Federation and United Trade Union Congress.
Mutton is retailing here at Rs 600 a kg, from Rs 500 a kg about a month before. Price of broiler chicken is Rs 150-160 a kg, as compared to Rs 130 a kg earlier.
As cracks began to appear in their ongoing agitation against the agri laws, farmer unions on Wednesday cancelled their planned march to Parliament on February 1 when the Budget would be presented.
As and when Jet Airways applies for slots, these would be allocated among all airlines according to guidelines, without any claim of historicity in favour of any airline. Slots would be given to Jet only from the available remaining pool.
Thorat, 66, has been a farmers' leader and has been involved in the cooperative movement in Maharashtra. He is also a former revenue minister
"The question of entering into Delhi is a law and order matter and will be determined by the police," the bench said.
"Having given our anxious consideration to this aspect of 'likelihood' of threat and terror, we are of the view that the foundations of our nation stand on surer footing than to be likely to be shaken by a protest, however vicious, organised by a tribe of college students or other persons, operating as a coordination committee from the confines of a University situate in the heart of Delhi," a bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Anup Jairam Bhambhani said in a 133-page judgement.
The high court directed Pinjra Tod activists Narwal and Kalita and Tanha to surrender their passports and not to offer any inducement to prosecution witnesses or tamper with the evidence in the case.
The AIKS, a key member of the "Samyukta Kisan Morcha" that is spearheading the "Dilli Chalo" agitation against the three farm laws, asserted that no farmer organisation approached the court in the first place and asked for its intervention in the matter.
Describing Khanduri as "able and efficient' administrator, Singh said under his leadership the government would be able to live up to the expectations of the people.
Over 3,500 police personnel have deployed as the farmers began their march from the Ramlila Maidan to Parliament at 10.30 am.
In a blow to the Congress in poll bound Kerala, Senior leader P C Chacko on Wednesday announced his resignation from the party, alleging group interest in deciding party candidates for the assembly elections.
Most of the farmers have brought at least two trolleys with each tractor with one of them carrying ration and other essentials and the other being used to accommodate the protesters.
Police said the border has not been sealed but they are checking all vehicles entering the national capital.
The government and the farm unions had reached some common ground on Wednesday to resolve the protesting farmers' concerns over rise in power tariff and penalties for stubble burning, but the two sides remained deadlocked over the main contentious issues of the repeal of three farm laws and a legal guarantee for MSP.
Weak demand from the poultry sector has resulted in a sharp decline in feed prices too, with both soybean and maize prices falling by nearly 25 per cent in the past two months. The poultry market consumes around half of soybean and maize production in India.
After Rahul Gandhi's attack on the controversial ordinance on convicted lawmakers, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today sought a meeting of United Progressive Alliance's Coordination Committee to discuss the measure threadbare.
'The question often being asked is whether the demand for petrol and diesel is price inelastic?' asks Arun Balakrishnan, former chairman and managing director, Hindustan Petroleum.
Details of the coordination panel, including its role, is likely to be announced in the evening.
He will seek to finalise a coordination committee between the alliance and Left parties by Sunday.
'On one side you have the farmers of India and on the other side are few corporate families.' 'Unfortunately, those holding the levers of power today are more sympathetic towards these corporate families and helping them benefit at the cost of poor farmers.'
The HAL said its offer was reasonable, fair and in conformity with the wage agreements finalised by other Defence PSUs.
We are ready to talk but will not accept any condition now," said a farmer's leader.
Where do the four members of the Supreme Court appointed panel to interface with farmers stand on the Modi government's farm laws?
Addressing a press conference at Singhu Border in New Delhi, farmer leader Balbeer Singh Rajewal said that farmers never demanded the Supreme Court form a committee to resolve the impasse, alleging the central government was behind this development.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting that lasted for little over two hours, Tomar said the government is still hopeful that union leaders will come with alternatives to discuss in the next round of talks on January 15.
The Supreme Court Wednesday refused to entertain pleas seeking time-bound probe, including by an apex court-appointed commission, into the tractor rally violence in the national capital on the Republic Day saying the government is already inquiring the matter and the Prime Minister has stated that law will take its own course.
For over three months, the three Delhi border points at Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur have transformed into townships occupied by thousands of farmers from different parts of the country, mainly Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh.
The central government will hold an all-party meeting this week to finalise a strategy to resolve the Maoist problem decisively in the wake of the audacious attack in Bastar that killed 27 people, including three prominent Congress leaders.
Two pleas were filed in the Supreme Court on Wednesday over the tractor rally violence on Republic Day, with one seeking the setting up of a commission, headed by a retired apex court judge, to inquire into the incident, while the other urged it to direct the media not to declare farmers as "terrorist" without any evidence.
Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh has hit out at Bharatiya Janata Party President Rajnath Singh for calling the former a 'super chief minister'.
'This four-member committee cannot supersede the four-five member ministerial committees, 25 top-level government bureaucrats, with whom we have had nine rounds of discussions each of which lasted for more than six-seven hours.'
Congress Legislature Party leader and Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) coordination committee chief Siddaramaiah said no one would leave the Congress and there was no disgruntlement either.
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