Ex-head of BPL Mobile and currently a Rajya Sabha MP, Rajeev Chandrasekhar will be the new head of Ficci.
The Indian government has significantly altered its approach to the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP)-led agitation over the NEET paper leak, moving from dismissal to calibrated political engagement, including promises of fast-track courts, a new anti-paper leak law, and negotiations with key protest leaders.
Decisions of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) have been under scrutiny for a while.
"Too many scams are left unpunished. In the last 10 years, there have been some highly sophisticated economic crimes. There is an unfortunate belief that smooth talking the media and using complicated words can get them to bury the truth. I had to examine over 1,600 documents with complicated words just to come up with a simple 41-slides presentation. That is how things have become," Chandrasekhar told rediff.com after a presentation he made in the capital on Friday.
'When the prime minister and home minister promised their full support for the development of Kerala, why should we not be a part of them?'
Hours after the Waqf (Amendment) Bill was passed in Parliament, 50 individuals embroiled in land disputes in Kerala's Munambam joined the BJP, hoping for a resolution to their claims. The residents, who have been protesting for 174 days, allege that the Waqf Board is claiming ownership of their properties. BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar assured them of the party's support and a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to express gratitude. The BJP capitalized on the Catholic Church's support for the legislation, accusing the Congress and the Left of appeasement politics. The opposition, however, questioned the impact of the bill on the Munambam issue.
But BSNL operates in the dynamic telecom sector with high growth rates. BSNL's problems have more to do with management and interference from the DoT.
The Web portal of the Organiser, the RSS mouthpiece, published an article (withdrawn later) that the Christian community holds many acres of land, far more than Waqf property.'
'The entire US ecosystem built over decades at the bases in the Gulf region, especially the UAE, costing trillions of dollars have been decimated, dealing a mortal blow to the US Central Command's war capability,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The current situation in Kerala politics is perhaps best described as a case of the state's traditional two front politics now seeing a third front (the BJP) muscling in with the potential outcome being either a messy three front affair or a renewed endorsement of the two front pattern but with one of the old fronts compromised or quashed, observes Shyam G Menon.
A reward of Rs 5 lakh was handed over those who helped the police identify the vandals who defaced the Amar Jyothi Memorial in Mumbai.
Back in 2007, Member of Parliament Rajeev Chandrasekhar had raised the issue and questioned the government's decision to allot 2G spectrum without calling for tenders. Chandrasekhar had warned the prime minister about the non-transparent methods of Raja and the scam that was brewing. He also wrote to all political parties to create a consensus on the issue
Chandrasekhar's letter seeks to convey the impression that the Tata Group kept quiet when it stood to benefit from violations of norms.
The Lok Sabha contest in Thiruvananthapuram is shaping up to be a significant battle involving key candidates like Shashi Tharoor, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, and Panniyan Ravindran. This three-cornered fight highlights the political dynamics in Kerala's capital city, with each candidate bringing their own vision and promises for the region's development, notes Rajeev Srinivasan.
Member of Parliament Rajeev Chandrasekhar, while discussing the elections says in this interview with rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa that the BJP will look back at their term as a squandered opportunity because of personal ambitions and dissidence.
A petition has been filed with the United Nation Human Rights Council by the Flags of Honour Foundation, Captain Kalia's father Dr N K Kalia and Member of Parliament Rajeev Chandrasekhar, against war crimes and the torture inflicted on Captain Kalia and five jawans by Pakistani forces.
'The nuns were subjected to abusive language and all types of mental torture.'
Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Rajya Sabha member of Parliament who has been extremely vocal about issues such as this and also the 2G spectrum scam, feels that there is a need to create special sessions of Parliament twice a year apart form the normal sessions in which only issues pertaining to legislation and also issues of national interest agenda must be discussed.
Anna Hazare and his team may not have managed to see introduction of their version of Lokpal Bill in Parliament, but an Independent MP on Monday submitted in Rajya Sabha a Private Member's Jan Lokpal Bill aimed at checking corruption.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has accused the RSS of "majority communalism" over an article published in an RSS mouthpiece regarding the Catholic Church's property holdings in India. The article, which has since been removed from the website, called for the government to acquire the church's land, claiming it was illegally leased during the British era. Vijayan said the article reveals the "true mindset" of the RSS and its alleged plan to "target minority groups one by one and destroy them step by step." The Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala Assembly, V D Satheesan, echoed Vijayan's concerns, stating that the article shows the RSS's intent to target the Church's property. He also claimed that the article's publication coincides with the passing of the Waqf Bill in Parliament, suggesting a pattern of targeting religious communities. Meanwhile, the BJP state president, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, denied the article's accuracy and stated that the article was removed after it was found to be untrue. He also emphasized that owning land is not a crime, and countered allegations that the Congress and Waqf have illegally acquired land in Karnataka. Archbishop Joseph Pamplany of Thalassery, however, expressed confidence that the Church is not afraid of any "Church Bill", as its properties have been earned through hard work. He said the Church will take legal action if necessary.
Even as the dust settles on one election, glory in Thiruvananthapuram has come with a new question on the horizon: Who will be UDF's candidate in the next Lok Sabha election given Shashi Tharoor has said 2024 would be his last? It isn't a vacancy that can be easily filled, points out Shyam G Menon.
'You can say it was a moment that can be described as unimaginable or unbelievable.'
Ministers' resignation accepted, portfolios farmed out
Ever since, he has remained Thiruvananthapuram preferred MP, winning four elections on the trot, including the closely fought battle with Bharatiya Janata Party's Rajeev Chandrasekhar in 2024. This could well be his swansong from the capital segment.
Rajeev Chandrasekhar said in a post on X that his 18-year-long stint in public service has come to an end.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Thursday advised all the MPs to wear masks and follow the Covid protocol completely, in view of the increasing cases of COVID-19 in many countries across the world.
Gandhi said he was "waiting with open arms".
Kerala's election discourse operates surreptitiously. Its explicit face focuses on important national and local issues. At the same time, it seeks to secure apt communal equations to ensure votes, notes Shyam G Menon.
Amid outrage over a plan to give powers to its arm Press Information Bureau to police fake news on social media, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Tuesday said that the government will hold discussions next month with stakeholders before the proposal is implemented.
Member of Parliament Rajeev Chandrasekhar feels that the economy today is bankrupt due to big spending towards social welfare programmes such as NREGA.
Since most projects can be shifted to other states, the problem will be minimal, especially if industry can find ways to make farmers partners in their profits.
Sixty-eight Rajya Sabha members, including nine Union ministers, are completing their tenure this year, triggering a race of sorts among leaders across political parties to eye a six-year term in the Upper House of Parliament.
The digital platforms are responsible and accountable for ensuring the safety of 'digital nagriks', the minister said, adding that the government will respond to every instance of alleged misuse or alleged breach of users' privacy.
The BJP could ask at least a dozen of its 92 Rajya Sabha MPs, particularly those who have served more than one term, to contest the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
The Kerala unit of the Congress instantly gets a headache when Shashi Tharoor lets loose one of his observations showering flowers on enemy territory. With every such action triggering controversy within a nervous Congress party, some feel it is high time Tharoor showed a degree of solidarity with the ideals of his party, notes Shyam G Menon.
They may accept revision of pension once in two years instead of one year as demanded by them.
After withdrawing the personal data protection bill, the government is hopeful of getting a new legislation passed by the next Budget session of Parliament, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has said. The government on Wednesday withdrew the Personal Data Protection Bill from the Lok Sabha. The Joint Committee on Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019, headed by BJP member P P Chaudhary, had tabled its report in Lok Sabha on December 16, 2021.
After withdrawing the personal data protection bill, the government is hopeful of getting a new legislation passed by the next Budget session of Parliament, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has said.
More than 6,000 URLs, accounts or websites were blocked in 2021, Parliament was informed on Wednesday.
Tech giant Microsoft has unveiled a blueprint for India on artificial intelligence (AI) governance, and proposed a regulatory architecture to oversee safety protocols, according to a whitepaper released on Thursday. The whitepaper titled "Governing AI: A Blueprint for India" comes amid Microsoft raising its stakes in its artificial intelligence tool ChatGPT. The proposed AI regulatory architecture includes regulations prescribing safety and security requirements, then license deployment for permitted uses in a licensed Al data centre with post-deployment safety and security monitoring and protection.
