Asking Team Anna to clarify its stand on reservation issue, Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Wednesday said he suspected "political ambitions" behind Anna Hazare's decision to expand his committee to include Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Muslims.
An MP from Karimnagar district in Andhra Pradesh on Friday filed a complaint against eminent scholar Ashis Nandy, for making remarks alleged to be anti-Dalit at the Jaipur Literature Festival, police said.
The Jaipur police on Tuesday issued a notice to sociologist Ashis Nandy asking him to appear before it in connection with his controversial remarks against Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes at the Jaipur Literature Festival.
Dalit writer and activist Kancha Ilaiah on Monday sought to put a lid on the controversy over sociologist Ashis Nandy' remarks on Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, saying it was "a bad statement with good intentions".
The Jaipur police have sought the video of author Ashis Nandy's controversial comments at the Jaipur Literature Festival -- that people from Other Backward Classes, Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities were the "most corrupt". Nandy has left the festival, skipping the rest of the event amid protests demanding his arrest.
The Jaipur Literature Festival Saturday witnessed fireworks after political critic Ashis Nandy made a controversial comment on corruption and people belonging to OBC, SC and ST communities which drew a strong response from the audience.
Charges and counter-charges flew thick and fast minutes after the controversy in the Lok Sabha, when Samajwadi Party member Yashvir Singh snatched the copy of quota in promotion bill from Union minister V Narayansamy and United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi intervened to stop him.
"I think this is absolutely wrong and this should not be done. This is absolutely ridiculous. People have been waiting for 30 years for getting promoted and working hard for it, what will happen to them," SP MP Jaya Bachchan told media persons in New Delhi.
Rajya Sabha could not function on the first day of the winter session of Parliament, with issues like Foreign Direct Investment and reservation to Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes in promotions triggering an uproar that led to its adjournment for the day.
Pressure from the Soren clan is only one of the challenges Champai faces as he readies himself to helm the predominantly tribal state.
The Congress on Wednesday hit out at the government over the women's reservation bill, saying the only appropriate description of what Prime Minister Narendra Modi has done with the matter is "it is a post-dated cheque drawn on a failing bank".
Activists who support reservation staged a protest in New Delhi.
The ruling Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress described it as the 'social cabinet', with 70 per cent representation to the BC, SC, ST and minority communities.
The Kukis have already declared that they are not fielding any candidate in the parliamentary polls as an act of boycott.
The government has planned to put opposition Bharatiya Janata Party in the dock by bringing in a constitutional amendment providing for reservation in promotions for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in government service in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.
The Centre on Tuesday cleared a proposal that would allow it to provide reservation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in promotion in government jobs. The Union Cabinet, at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, approved the proposal for making provisions for quotas for SC/STs in promotions in government jobs.
J K Ritheesh, a Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam member of Parliament and five others were arrested in connection with a clash between his partymen and Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam-All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam workers at Kalavankudi in the district, police said here on Tuesday.
The Bharatiya Janata Party will ensure the swearing-in ceremony of the new Chhattisgarh cabinet under Vishnu Deo Sai on Wednesday will be a 'historic' event which will be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP leaders and chief ministers, state chief Arun Sao said.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday agreed to bring a Constitution amendment bill for reservation to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in promotions in government jobs while responding to vociferous uproar in both Houses of Parliament on Thursday.
Naukri.com, which voluntarily started gathering data about caste from registered job seekers from May 2006, said 19 per cent of them were women, 3.4 per cent OBCs, 0.8 per cent SCs and 0.2 per cent STs. There are over 130,000 OBCs, 38,000 SCs and STs, 760,000 women, and 8,000 physically challenged job seekers registered on the job portal.
Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati on Monday demanded that the Centre bring a Constitutional amendment bill during the current session of the Parliament to provide for reservation to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe government employees in promotions.
Senior SP leader Mohan Singh on Monday said that his party will oppose the bill seeking to provide quota in promotions. He said: "The Supreme court has denied an approval thrice, but the government is still after making a bill on it. We will oppose it." Voting is likely to take place on the quota bill at around 5 pm in the Rajya Sabha.
It had given the BJP a tough fight in 2017 winning 77 of the 182 seats at stake.
The storm over the issue of Foreign Direct Investment in retail refused to subside with the matter, along with quota in promotions for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, paralysing proceedings in Parliament for the second day on Friday.
He said the then prime minister Manmohan Singh had given a speech in which he had said Muslims have the first right to the country's resources.
Sheela Bhatt and Sharat Pradhan bring voices from the ground in Barabanki in Uttar Pradesh, which is voting today in the first phase of elections
Samajwadi Party and Shiv Sena on Thursday thwarted an attempt in the Rajya Sabha to take up for passage the contentious Bill providing for quota in promotion for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes in government jobs.
Sushil Munhot, executive director & head-personal banking, IDBI Bank, says, "Any housing loan of up to Rs 25 lakh will come under priority sector lending, as it is to provide affordable housing. But we do no know when will it come into effect."
With elections to some state assemblies and Lok Sabha round the corner, the government proposes to expand the reservation list of the Scheduled Castes by including denotified, nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes.The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has circulated a Cabinet note in this regard, accepting the commendations made by a high-level panel for giving 10 per cent reservation to these tribes, beyond the limit of 50 per cent quota fixed by the Supreme Court.
An institution of national importance must reflect the "national structure", the Centre told the Supreme Court on Tuesday while pointing out that around 70 to 80 per cent students studying at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) are Muslims even without reservation.
'We were supposed to be a united nation based on unity and diversity.' 'Now what we are doing is there will be a class called Marathas, Dangars, etc.' 'The 100 per cent of our nation's population will be in classes and you will be allocating the nation's education and service resources in terms of classes.' 'How does it work out in terms of equality? Where is your equal nation?'
Names of Hardik Patel, the face of the Patidar agitation ahead of the 2017 polls who quit the Congress to join the BJP, and Rivaba Jadeja, wife of cricketer Ravindra Jadeja, figure in the list.
Dalit leader Udit Raj, who is campaigning against Team Anna's version of the Lokpal Bill, on Tuesday demanded that corporates, NGOs and media should be brought under the anti-corruption ombudsman to make the law "more effective". "If there is no representation of plurality, I don't think this law will be successful," the National Chairman of All India Confederation of Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe Organisations said.
The bill will not apply to three institutions of scientific and technological importance, including one in Chennai.
The Samajwadi Party on Monday said it will continue to stall Rajya Sabha proceedings in case the bill providing for reservation to Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes in promotion in government job is passed. "We will disrupt the House and not allow it to function if the bill (for reservation to SC/ST in job promotions) is passed. We will continue to oppose the bill and we are ready for suspension," said SP leader Ram Gopal Yadav.
There has been an absolute decline in voters aged between 20 and 39, compared with 2018, and there has been a huge increase in voters aged over 50.
The Cabinet on Thursday approved the proposal for enhancing reservation for women in Panchayats from the present 33 per cent to 50 per cent with the provision being applicable to all seats filled through direct election, office of chairpersons and of offices reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has pinned its hopes on the old guard to ensure victory in next month's assembly elections in Chhattisgarh as it gave tickets to 11 sitting MLAs and renominated 13 leaders who lost in the 2018 polls.
The opposition will seek to target the government on the issue of farmers' plight as well as their demand for a legal backing for minimum support price.
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