Indian Overseas Congress chief Sam Pitroda has denied owning any land, home, or stocks in India, responding to allegations by a BJP leader that he illegally acquired 12.35 acres of government land in Bengaluru. The BJP leader, N R Ramesh, has filed a complaint with the Enforcement Directorate and the Karnataka Lokayukta, alleging that Pitroda, with the help of government officials, acquired the land for his organization, FRLHT. Pitroda, in a statement on X, categorically denied the allegations, stating he has never taken any salary during his time working with the Indian government and has never paid or accepted any bribe. He further clarified that FRLHT received a five-year lease on the land for conservation purposes, which expired in 2001 and was extended for another 10 years. Ramesh claims the lease expired in 2011 and the land, now worth over Rs 150 crore, was not reclaimed by the forest department. He has urged the ED to file a criminal case against those involved in the alleged land grab, including the officials responsible.
Pitroda was reported to have said that he does not understand the threat India faces from China, claiming that it is often blown out of proportion.
Indian Overseas Congress chief Sam Pitroda on Thursday said he was invited to speak at an Indian Institute of Technology-Roorkee event via a video link when just minutes after his speech, a hacker infiltrated and began streaming explicit, inappropriate content.
Pitroda is also considered the pioneer of the Indian telecom revolution, more than his reputation as a venture capitalist, inventor, technocrat and social thinker.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said on X that party chief Mallikarjun Kharge has accepted Pitroda's decision.
He further added that the people of India respect different languages, religion, food and customs which varies from region to region. "That's the India that I believe in, where everybody has a place and everybody compromises little bit," he said.
Telecom industry expert Sam Pitroda met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday and discussed a number of issues, including e-governance, education and science and technology.
If Pitroda's blunder cost him his office, what should the BJP's unrepentant attitude cost it?, asks Shyam G Menon.
"There has to be a transparent mechanism, where equal treatment is meted out to all. the 3G spectrum auction last year has shown that auction of spectrum is the best way forward," Pitroda said.
How the internet was changing the world and why it took time in India to implement policy changes.
In a 45-minute Twitter conference today, Sam Pitroda, advisor to the prime minister on public information infrastructure (PII) and innovations, stuck to elaborating publicly-known details on PII and the National Knowledge Network (NKN).
Addressing the 'Infovision 2006 Knowledge Summit' through videoconferencing from Chicago, Pitroda said the public portal is being developed by NKC member and Infosys CEO Nandan M Nilekani and his family through their foundation.
Telecommunications icon and entrepreneur Sam Pitroda, who is the chairman of National Knowledge Commission, tasked with building excellence in India's education system to meet the challenges of the 21st century, has said India faces serious problems in its higher education system and that unless it is alleviated expeditiously, the Indian march to become a major global player could be adversely impacted.
'He has a vision of India like his dad. You can see in Rahul's eyes -- at least I see -- his father's unfinished agenda,' says Sam Pitroda who has known the Congress leader since he was a child.
Sam Pitroda, chairman of India's Knowledge Commission, has predicted that the "digital silk road of the 21st century is definitely going to be all about information highways of tomorrow."
The prime minister's advisor offers proof that the government of working -- behind the scenes.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday approved the setting up of a National Innovation Council to prepare a road map for the 'Decade of Innovation 2011-2020'.
The Congress leader said he believes that democracy is derailed and "we are becoming too authoritarian". "It's all about one-man show," he said.
There are lot of opportunities in India to innovate. We need their talent, their emotions and we need their connections.
The commission also suggested that financiers need to be more proactive in assessing the business opportunities generated by entrepreneurs in the country. According to the study, there is a strong perception among entrepreneurs that start-up funding is very difficult in the country. Along with the problem of getting funds, the entrepreneurs also face skill-shortages and find it difficult to get the right candidate for the jobs, the commission found.
Sam Pitroda, chairman of India's National Knowledge Commission, believes the United States' model of a liberal arts education is applicable in the revamping of higher education in India and that such a model is very much in the works.He noted during a conference on Higher Education Policies in India, China and the United States, "Too much focus on engineering and medical education has created a situation where liberal arts really did not get due recognition," he said.
The region is sitting at the cusp of high trajectory growth path by virtue of its strategic location, natural resource, high literacy rate, and English speaking population.
Applications of information and communication technology in the field of education, health, environment and agriculture will bring in a generational change among the Indian masses acording to Sam Pitroda.
The Delhi High Court has scheduled a hearing for March 9 on the Enforcement Directorate's plea challenging a trial court order that refused to acknowledge its chargesheet against Congress leaders Sonia and Rahul Gandhi in the National Herald money laundering case.
The Delhi high court on Monday asked Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and others to respond to a plea by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) challenging the order of the trial court that refused to take cognisance of its chargesheet against them in the National Herald case.
The ED has accused Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, as well as late party leaders Motilal Vora and Oscar Fernandes, along with Suman Dubey, Sam Pitroda, and a private company, Young Indian, of conspiracy and money laundering.
In his poll rallies, Modi framed Pitroda's comments in his wider onslaught against the Congress, asserting that they have exposed its hidden agenda and that the party has become so removed from the country's social and family values that it wants to legally rob people of their assets and lifelong savings they want to bequeath to their children.
Delhi Police has filed an FIR against Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi and others in the National Herald case based on a complaint by the ED, alleging money laundering and abuse of position for personal gains.
The opposition party also vowed to expose the "vendetta politics" against its leadership, asserting that the Congress cadre is agitated and is going to show its strength against the "misuse of agencies."
The agency has questioned the trial court's findings and sought appellate review, arguing that the refusal to proceed has caused serious prejudice to the investigation and prosecution.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) will file a fresh charge sheet against Congress leaders Sonia and Rahul Gandhi in the National Herald money laundering case after taking cognisance of the latest Delhi Police FIR.
A Delhi court has declined to take cognisance of the Enforcement Directorate's (ED) complaint against Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and others in the National Herald case, citing the absence of a First Information Report (FIR).
The BJP has criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for his explanation of decentralisation using a car and motorcycle engine analogy at a university in Colombia.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Sonia Gandhi, argued that the Enforcement Directorate's National Herald case is 'truly a strange' one, citing the absence of property or its use in the alleged money laundering.
He asked if DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, "who speaks of Tamil culture, such a serious allegation has been made--will DMK snap ties with Congress, for Tamil pride and the Tamil people."
The Congress distanced itself from the 'so what' remarks of Pitroda about the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and asked the leaders of the party to be careful and sensitive in future
Sixty-year-old Pitroda, who was appointed to the new post on Tuesday, will have the rank of a Cabinet minister.
Speaking on the report of the Knowledge Commission of which Pitroda was the chairman, he highlighted five aspects of knowledge: access, knowldege concepts (vocational, primary, second, training, etc), knowledge creation (innovation, research, etc) application of knowledge and use of knowledge in (e-) governance.
The remarks reflect the "arrogance" of the Congress, he said addressing a poll rally on the last day of campaigning for the sixth phase in Haryana's Rohtak.
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