The proposal to allow foreign airlines to buy upto 49 per cent stake in domestic carriers originally mooted by the Commerce and Industry Ministry, has received a green signal from the Finance Ministry and the Civil Aviation Ministry.
Backing Union Home Minister P Chidambaram, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi on Friday slammed the demand for his resignation in the wake of a high court order rejecting his plea for dismissal of a petition challenging his election to Lok Sabha, saying it would not be proper to make such a demand without charges being established beyond doubt.
Joining the chorus against the steepest ever hike in petrol price, key United Progressive Alliance partner Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam on Friday announced a state-wide agitation on May 30, demanding a substantial reduction in the increase. The unprecedented increase of Rs 7.5 per litre of petrol has already sparked "spontaneous" protests by people against the government across the country, the party said.
Key United Progressive Alliance ally Trinamool Congress on Thursday night termed the developments in the Rajya Sabha while debating the Lokpal Bill as "orchestrated chaos" and a "black day" for democracy.
The guidelines regarding the decision to allow 51 per cent FDI in the multi-brand retail will be issued by next week.
Strongly opposing major reforms announced by the Centre, key United Progressive Alliance constituent Trinamool Congress on Friday set a 72-hour deadline to the government to withdraw decision on multi-brand retail and diesel price hike.
With President Pranab Mukherjee accepting the resignations of seven Cabinet ministers late on Saturday evening, the reshuffle is expected to see the induction of at least 12 ministers, most of them being younger in age. There will be a conscious effort to ensure that Cabinet has a younger profile
Key United Progressive Alliance ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Friday said naming of A P J Abdul Kalam in the Presidential race has led to chaos and reaffirmed its support to the Congress' candidate.
Close on the heels of the Ambedkar cartoon row, a cartoon on the anti-Hindi agitation in Tamil Nadu in the 1960s in a NCERT class XII text book has kicked up another controversy in the state, with key United Progressive Alliance ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam demanding its removal and other parties joining the chorus.
The senior Paswan sought an appointment and waited for more than three months but Rahul Gandhi did not relent, said Chirag Paswan, who at that time too was keen to leave the UPA and join the National Democratic Alliance.
Mamata Bannerjee, a key United Progressive Alliance constituent, has put the cat amongst the pigeons by demanding that the UPA set up a co-ordination committee to discuss important issues and decisions before they are made and implemented. She said the recent petrol price hike was undertaken without her consent.
The drafting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee report on 2G scam could be delayed with key United Progressive Alliance ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam insisting on calling former Telecom Minister A Raja as a witness.
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The cap on FDI in retail has been totally removed, while the limit in insurance sector has been enhanced to 46 per cent.
Tension prevailed on Monday on Tamil Nadu's borders with Kerala over the Mullaperiyar dam issue, with the police baton charging over 4,000 people who tried to forcibly enter Kerala even as key United Progressive Alliance ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam attacked the Centre, asking it to "at least now" take a timely decision to resolve the escalating row between the two states.
Defending Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Sunday that he found "nothing wrong" in the key United Progressive Alliance ally's statement that the killing of top Maoist leader Azad was not correct.
Against the backdrop of the finance ministry note on 2G spectrum pricing, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, a key United Progressive Alliance ally, on Thursday maintained that the stand taken by jailed former telecom minister A Raja on the issue has been 'vindicated'.
The controversial Government affidavit on Below Poverty Line cap was condemned by Opposition today as an "insult and betrayal" of the poor and also slammed by a key United Progressive Alliance ally Nationalist Congress Party.
With the attacks on the Congress allies increasing, whether it be Sharad Pawar in the IPL goings on or A Raja, the Union telecom minister who is alleged to be the beneficiary in the allocation of 2G spectrum, the government has had to put up a brave face in addition to mobilising its artillery to defend its ministers.
Opposition leaders, including Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj, met Speaker Meira Kumar and said if the government does not discuss the issue tomorrow itself, they would move an adjournment motion in the House.
Declaring that the Prime Ministerial candidate of the Third Front would be decided after the elections, Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati hosted a dinner for the leaders of the grouping and resolved to defeat the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance and the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Deomocratic Alliance.
Key United Progressive Alliance ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and opposition Bharatiya Janata Party were on the same page on Sunday in their criticism of the Centre and the Congress over the handling of the Telangana statehood issue, which has spawned a crisis in Andhra Pradesh.
Hints at taking support from Opposition if allies continue to show reservations
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday opposed the fresh hike in fuel prices, saying it will put the common man in great difficulty.
Sonia held discussions with Nationalist Congress Party president Sharad Pawar, Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Lalu Prasad and Lok Janshakti Party chief Ram Vilas Paswan in an effort to break the logjam over the issue that has created a face-off between the Congress and the Left parties. The leaders of the UPA constituents conveyed to Sonia that they back the nuclear deal, but do not favour early polls, particularly because of high inflation.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Communist Party of India, on Tuesday asked the government to launch prosecution against those whose culpability had been indicated by the Nanavati Commission on the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.\n
Manmohan Singh on Saturday promised to convene a meeting of the UPA-Left parties coordination committee on his return from his foreign tour to discuss contentious issues like FDI and presence of World Bank experts in the Planning Commission.
Hazare in a statement accused Kejriwal of betraying the trust of crores of countrymen and rued that political ambitions destroyed the 2011 anti-corruption movement.
Describing India as a voice of the 'Global South' (comprising about 125 countries), he said the countries of the Global South trust India to take up their cause and positions in the world.
With less than a year left for the general elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party top brass on Tuesday deliberated upon its strategy in run up to the polls during which it intends to highlight the "failures" of the government as well as the scams that afflicted the United Progressive Alliance's nine-year tenure in power.
Singapore's long-ruling People's Action Party (PAP), led by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, has secured a landslide victory in the country's general election. The PAP won 87 of 97 seats, with voters endorsing the party's focus on stability and economic security amidst global uncertainties. Wong expressed gratitude for the strong mandate and vowed to tackle concerns about the cost of living and housing. The results mark a significant win for the PAP, which has been in power since Singapore's independence in 1965.
'Don't play the American game... India is too big for a US game.'
Sitaram Yechury strived to have the country's Left movement shed its doctrinaire approach to India's socio-cultural complexities and stitch electoral and social alliances to fight the Sangh Parivar.
"How can you expect Vaiko to accept my appeal to continue in the DPA when he has not respected the statement of his own mother," Karunanidhi asked.
Moderate turnout was recorded in the first four hours of polling across five assembly constituencies across Punjab, West Bengal, Gujarat and Kerala where bypolls are underway on Thursday.
In a significant move, the Centre on Wednesday announced that caste enumeration will be part of the next population census, with the inclusion of caste details for the first time since independence hailed by the Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies as a historic step to help design truly equitable and focused policies.
Against the backdrop of dramatic twists and turns in the Presidential race, key National Democratic Alliance ally Janata Dal-United on Thursday refrained from making its stand clear on the issue saying the United Progressive Alliance should first settle it within itself.
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, a key ally of Congress-led United Progressive Alliance, on Wednesday announced it would contest coming local body elections in Tamil Nadu on its own, saying alliances were required only for Lok Sabha and assembly polls.
Giving a major boost to the United Progressive Alliance's Presidential candidate, key National Democratic Alliance constituent Shiv Sena on Tuesday described Pranab Mukherjee as the "right candidate" for the top post and sought unanimous support for him. "Let bygones be bygones. Let us unanimously support Pranab Mukherjee and show the world that "hum sab ek hai" (we are all united)," Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray said.
Strong reservations from key ally Janata Dal-United over pitting a candidate against United Progressive Alliance nominee Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday forced the National Democratic Alliance to defer its decision on the Presidential election.
After a meeting at BJP leader LK Advani's residence, from which the BJP's oldest ideological ally the Shiv Sena kept away, NDA convenor Sharad Yadav merely said more discussions were needed to arrive at a right decision
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