'The prime minister has not yet expressed anything regarding Manipur. Is Manipur a part of India or not? If it is, why hasn't the Prime Minister of India spoken about it'
Manipur Chief Minister Nongthombam Biren Singh is facing renewed scrutiny over his handling of the ethnic violence that erupted in the state in May 2023. Leaked audio tapes allegedly featuring Singh, in which he is purportedly heard discussing how the violence was instigated with his approval, have sparked fresh controversy. The Kuki Organisation for Human Rights Trust (KOHUR) has demanded a court-monitored investigation into the authenticity of the tapes, leading to a Supreme Court ruling ordering the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) to verify the tapes' authenticity and submit a report. Singh's tenure has been marked by controversies, including allegations of instigating conflict and questions regarding his governance. Despite a public apology in December 2023 for the violence, the leaked audio tapes have further intensified criticism of his leadership.
'The level of violence that took place and also occurred at different points, the way stones were collected, the way weapons were brandished, the way shots were fired, it does not appear to have happened all of a sudden'
Speaking on the motion, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee condemned the role of the BJP and the Union government in tackling the situation in the strife-torn state.
During the Zero Hour of the Lok Sabha, BJP MP Anurag Thakur tried to corner the Leader of Opposition and Congress MP, Rahul Gandhi, by alleging that he has not spoken about ensuring the safety of minorities in Bangladesh.
President's rule was imposed in Manipur on Thursday, with the state assembly put under suspended animation following the resignation of Chief Minister N Biren Singh. The decision came after months of ethnic violence that claimed over 250 lives. Singh's resignation was attributed to his handling of the violence and allegations of instigating conflict. The imposition of President's rule was met with a sense of hope by the Kuki-Zo community, who expressed distrust of the Meitei leadership.
"Who is Aurangzeb? Why should we allow his glorification in our state? He is a blot on our history," the deputy chief minister said in his closing remarks.
'There's no transparency in work (of the Wakf Board), in property transactions (of the Waqf).'
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday accused NIA officials of attacking villagers in Purba Medinipur district, the BJP hit back at her saying that the attack on the NIA officials is Sandeshkhalli 2.0 orchestrated by the state.
Members from various opposition parties, including the Congress, sought to raise the Manipur issue immediately after the House convened and some of them shouted slogans.
'It will be the end of the Congress after the Lok Sabha election.' 'Many Congressmen and even Communists will move to the BJP.'
As the 240-seater prime minister attempts to moderate his image of hardline hero, he has made room for others to elbow in and that is what is happening. And that it what will continue to happen from inside the BJP, notes Aakar Patel.
The report indicates that the miscreants forcibly entered her house and physically assaulted her. Shockingly, they also snatched her infant daughter and callously threw her away, the commission said.
Opposition parties in India have criticized the imposition of President's rule in strife-torn Manipur, accusing the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of failing to address the ethnic violence and using the measure to cover up internal conflicts within the party. They demanded a clear roadmap for restoring peace and questioned the government's lack of transparency and inaction on the issue. The violence, which erupted in May 2023, has left over 250 people dead.
The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) has condemned the imposition of President's rule in Manipur, calling it "undemocratic" and "most unfortunate." The Meitei body alleges the President's rule is a ploy to push the state into further turmoil and that the central government is using it as a means to shift the blame onto the BJP's alleged incompetency rather than addressing the real issues at hand. COCOMI also criticized the BJP legislators for failing to choose a new leader and demanded an immediate and time-bound process to elect a new leader and restore a government at the earliest.
Twenty people have been arrested in connection with the post-poll violence incidents in the state, the police said.
The Congress general secretary said that the country was in trouble and voices of dissent were emanating from different corners.
"I had said on the soil of Bahraich that glorification of foreign invaders should be stopped and that the national heroes must be honoured. And 1,000 years ago, such a tale of courage and bravery was written by Maharaja Suheldev on this very soil of Bahraich," Adityanath said.
'The kind of situation we are seeing...we don't believe that this can happen in a settled democracy like India'
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Wednesday that violence and clashes were taking place in those areas where the BJP won the elections.
'Lalu understands that his words can be used by rivals to consolidate Hindu votes which may damage the prospects of his party's social support base.'
Using the Mahabharat reference as a leitmotif, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Monday claimed that an atmosphere of fear prevails all around with a group of six trapping the entire country in a 'chakravyuh' he promised would be broken by the INDIA bloc.
The Congress on Sunday termed N Biren Singh's resignation from the post of Manipur chief minister as 'belated' and said people of the state were now awaiting a visit by 'our frequent-flier Prime Minister' Narendra Modi.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi met with the families of victims of violence in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh, and offered them all possible help to ensure justice. The incident in Sambhal, which resulted in four deaths, occurred during a court-ordered survey of a Mughal-era mosque on November 24. The Congress blamed the violence on the BJP's hate politics, while the Uttar Pradesh government had earlier denied permission for Rahul Gandhi and his sister Priyanka Gandhi to visit the victims' families.
Mahmudabad, head of the political science department at the private university, was arrested on Sunday after two FIRs were lodged on stringent charges, including endangering sovereignty and integrity, for his social media posts related to Operation Sindoor, police and his lawyer said.
The AFSPA, often criticised as a draconian law, gives armed forces operating in disturbed areas sweeping powers to search, arrest and open fire if they deem it necessary.
A sitting MLA and Bharatiya Janata Party candidate allegedly broke an electronic voting machine (EVM) and attacked a polling officer inside a booth during voting in Odisha which recorded a voter turnout of over 60.97 per cent in six Lok Sabha seats and 42 assembly segments, officials said.
As part of the protest, BJP workers burned tyres, blocked roads, and closed shops in Nandigram, alleging that Trinamool Congress-backed criminals were responsible for the killing of Rathibala Arhi, a saffron party worker in Sonachura village.
'There are 7,000 guns which are in the hands of the armed militia of the Kuki and Meitei communities.'
Government spokesperson and Information and Public Relations Minister Sapam Rajan said that the government is making efforts towards this end.
A strong demand was made in the Lok Sabha to eliminate online betting and gambling applications. YSRCP member Maddila Gurumoorthy urged the government to set up a dedicated task force to take action against betting and gambling apps. He also asked the government to draft regulations for such applications and launch awareness campaigns about the dangers of online betting. Other issues raised included deposit insurance coverage for bank depositors, representation of Scheduled Castes in the Kerala government, challenges faced by nurses, and the need for paramilitary forces in Jharkhand during upcoming Hindu festivals.
Days after violence erupted over a survey of a Mughal-era mosque in Sambhal, an imam of another mosque was fined Rs 2 lakh for allegedly using a loudspeaker at high volume. The incident occurred in the Anar Wali Masjid, prompting authorities to take action. The imam, identified as Tahzeeb, was fined and granted bail, with orders to refrain from similar conduct for six months. The incident comes amid ongoing tensions in Sambhal following the November 24 violence during a court-ordered survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid, which resulted in four deaths and several injuries. The incident has become a major political controversy, with Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra raising the issue in Parliament.
Violence rocked parts of West Bengal over the filing of nominations for the July 8 panchayat poll as activists of the ruling Trinamool Congress and opposition parties clashed prompting the police to use force to disperse the mob.
Among those killed were eight from TMC, and one worker each of the BJP, the CPI-M, the Congress and the ISF.
'Gyanendra back on the throne would be bad news for the Nepali people. He may not have learnt from his experience, but we have.'
Union Home Minister Amit Shah should tell from where do Kuki militants get rifles and ammunition, it said.
The SEC, which held a meeting on Sunday evening, went through reports of vote-tampering and violence which affected polling in many places, and passed the order, an official said.
"Religion should remain within the four walls of your home. A Hindu identifies as a Hindu only when Muslims take to the streets or during riots; otherwise, Hindus are divided by caste," he said.
Six Bharatiya Janata Party MLAs, including Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, were suspended from the West Bengal assembly over staging protests in the House in view of unrest in Sandeshkhali.
The alleged entry of 'plainclothes police personnel' on the university campus on Monday also did not go down well with a section of the students and teachers.
