A meeting of Nationalist Congress Party office bearers will be held in New Delhi on Thursday to discuss the coming Presidential poll as the party leader P A Sangma faces possible disciplinary action for remaining in the race going against the party directive.
Set to form the next government in Tamil Nadu, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam supremo J Jayalalithaa on Friday said the top agenda for her government would be to restore "law and order" which had "totally deteriorated".
Giving the thumbs down to the three-year-old United Progressive Alliance government, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Wednesday said the country was in a "state of drift" and the situation was "almost" as if there was no government at the Centre. "The average citizen feels that there is no government at the Centre. The country is in a state of drift," the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief told reporters when asked to rate the UPA's performance.
Nationalist Congress Party leader and former Lok Sabha Speaker P A Sangma, who is being backed by the Biju Janata Dal and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam for the President's post, on Tuesday sought to reach out to political parties, saying he hoped they will respond "to the call of conscience of the tribal people of the nation."
Dr V Maitreyan, leader of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's parliamentary party, on Monday arrived in Delhi with ten Members of Parliament to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Home Minister P Chidambaram. The group of MPs will seek extra protection by personnel of the elite National Security Guards for AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa, as she has received two threats to her life last week.
The Supreme Court on Monday upheld the death sentence awarded to three All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam workers in connection with the 2000 Dharmapuri bus burning case, in which three college girls were charred to death. A bench comprising Justices G S Singhvi and B S Chauhan confirmed the death sentence awarded by the Madras high court in 2007. The trial court had also held the three workers guilty and awarded the capital punishment.
All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam supremo and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Saturday said her party was yet to decide on the ensuing presidential polls and nobody had approached her so far on the issue.
Communist Party of India-Marxist general secretary Prakash Karat said though All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief J Jayalalitha could not join the meeting of leaders belonging to the Third Front but she was very much in touch with them."In fact she approved of the six point charter that formed the basis of Sunday's discussion," Karat said while addressing a press conference at the release of the first part of party's election manifesto in New Delhi.
BJP national secretary Bandaru Dattatreya on Monday said the AIADMK's 'gameplan' of fielding the widow of deceased legislator S S Thirunavukkarassu at Kancheepuram and the son of murdered MLA K Sudarsanam had resulted in the party's victory.
In a reprieve to Jayalalithaa, a Commission of Inquiry has cleared the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief of land grab charges but indicted relatives of her close aide Sasikala for "glaring abuse of power" to obtain a title deed.
He would concentrate on the party's campaign work all over the state.
A united opposition stalled proceedings in the Rajya Sabha pressing the government to come clear on the name of a union minister alleged to have links with a Bangladeshi arms dealer.
Both the Houses of Parliament adjourned amid opposition demands for resignation of Telecom Minister A Raja for his alleged involvement in the reported scam in allocation of 2G spectrum on Monday.
Party sources said both leaders discussed the present political situation and shared issues of common perspective.
Three AIADMK functionaries were awarded the death sentence by a lower court in the Dharmapuri bus burning case in which three college girls were burnt to death in 2000.
Party leader Jayalalithaa said protests would also be held in states like Maharashtra, Delhi, Karnataka and Puducherry, where her party was functioning.
Justice K Suguna, while granting the interim stay, also ordered issue of notice, returnable by four weeks, to the secretary, State Legislative Assembly and chairman, Committee of Privileges and Stalin.
Home Minister P Chidambaram on Thursday came in the line of Opposition fire in Parliament over allegations that he had helped a Delhi hotelier which led to the disruption of both Houses. The Lok Sabha witnessed uproar during Zero Hour with Bharatiya Janata Party and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam members rushing into the Well, demanding that Chidambaram be sacked. In the din, the House was adjourned till 2 pm.
Senior Congress leader and former Union finance minister P Chidambaram has joined the popular micro-blogging site Twitter and says he is on board for sharing serious views.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Tuesday moved the Supreme Court challenging the Bengaluru trial court's order directing her to appear before it again on November 8 in a disproportionate assets case.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa continued her deposition in the Rs 66 crore disproportionate case against her before a special court in Bengaluru for the second day on Friday.
The ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam has bagged a Mayor's post and is leading in all ten corporations including Chennai as counting of votes polled during the two-phased Tamil Nadu civic polls on October 17 and 19 was taken up on Friday.
Indian National Lol Dal leader Om Prakash Chautala will host the meeting.
The EC has asked the Chief Electoral Officer of the state to instruct the Returning Officers of Bhuvanagiri and Pudukottai to file cases before respective Magistrates against the AIADMK leader, EC sources said.
Attacking the previous Karunanidhi regime, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Monday said the people of the state have won new freedom with the end of the "tyrannical family rule". In her first Independence Day address since coming to power in a landslide victory in the April 13 assembly elections, she said there had been no freedom for the people in the last five years and they had lived in fear.
It announced relief of Rs 3 lakh each to the bereaved families.
This is the second time Jayalalithaa is resorting to a fast on the Cauvery issue.
For the second time in her political career, Jayalalithaa, along with her supporters, would observe fast in front of Valluvar Kottam, a memorial for Tamil saint-poet Tiruvalluvar in the heart of Chennai.
In all, 31 persons were accused in the case. While one person had died during the course of the trial, two were acquitted.
'For the outside world, Jayalalithaa is portrayed as the leader. In fact, the party operations are controlled by another person,' says Mylapore MLA S Ve Shekher who was recently expelled from the AIADMK.
The three girl students of the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, were burnt alive on February 2, 2000 when their college bus was set ablaze by unidentified persons
Rediff.com has highlighted many stories about the controversy surrounding the EVMs and the growing opposition to their usage. In a letter to rediff.com, a representative of Election commissioner Dr S Y Quraishi's office has clarified the EC's position over the matter, which is threatening to blow up into a major issue of national concern.
Saratkumar joined the party on the eve of the May Assembly polls.
A delegation of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MPs will meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday to seek more supply of electricity for Tamil Nadu from the central pool.
In a disciplinary action, three other functionaries, also belonging to Theni party district like Raja were dismissed.
The leaders were understood to have discussed the possible formation of a non-Congress, non-BJP government at the Centre 'on a long-term basis'.
What matters here is whether the candidate is from All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam headed by J Jayalalithaa or if he is contesting on the late matinee idol MG Ramachandran's symbol 'two leaves', which still attracts people in southern Tamil Nadu like a magnet.
The 5 software companies are Cognizant Technologies, Megasoft, Benchmark Softtech, Proton Web and Advance Software.\n\n
As the Bihar assembly results swept in, Patna's Veerchand Patel Marg, the city's political artery, split into two starkly different worlds, with celebrations at the BJP and JD(U) offices and disappointment at the RJD headquarters.
The Bharatiya Janata Party and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to break his silence and personally clear the air on the allocation of the scarce S-band spectrum, dubbing it a "mega scam."
