An architect and Bharatiya Janata Party leader from Uttarkhand, whose body was found in Baheri area, was strangulated, a senior officer said here on Sunday.
They stated that when a soldier fights for the nation, he does so not as a Hindu, Muslim, or any other religion, but as a patriot.
The shocking scenes of physical and psychological trauma unfolded on a massive scale as search and rescue operations were underway, digging out mud-buried bodies and rescuing the injured trapped in slush and rocks after flash floods triggered by a cloudburst devastated Chositi village in Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar district on Thursday.
As night fell over Chositi village, rescuers worked frantically and pulled out 167 people from under mounds of rubble. Of these, 38 are in a serious condition, officials said. The death toll went up steadily as the day progressed and there were fears it could rise further.
The BJP won in 34 of the 69 constituencies where elections were held, while Congress bagged only 21 seats.
The Uttarakhand assembly on Wednesday passed the Uniform Civil Code Bill, which may serve as a template for other Bharatiya Janata Party-run states to enact similar legislation.
A local Bharatiya Janata Party leader was shot dead on Sunday, allegedly by a Bahujan Samaj Party activist, sparking massive violence in Uttarakhand's Nainital district. In the ensuing violence, a policeman was burnt alive by a mob, which also torched a police station and over a dozen vehicles. Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal has ordered a magisterial inquiry into the killing of Balwant Singh, head of Kotabagh block in the district.
The swearing-in ceremony may take place on Tuesday with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP president J P Nadda and chief ministers of several BJP-ruled states likely to attend the event, he said.
An Uttar Pradesh government spokesperson said a formal order for all eateries along the Kanwar Yatra route in the state was likely to be issued soon.
'If this was not tokenism, why is the central government not bringing the UCC, why is a small state like Uttarakhand doing so?'
The monthly Rs 2500 payment for poor women is expected to cost Rs 11,000 crore while the pension scheme of Rs 2000 for every senior citizen will cost around Rs 4100 crore. The Yamuna clean up will cost over Rs 10,000 crore while a similar amount is required to upgrade Delhi's hospitals. Ultimately, the new BJP government will have no choice but to ask the centre for financial support, notes Rashme Sehgal.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is expected to release its preliminary report this week on the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad, which resulted in the deaths of at least 260 people. The investigation is ongoing, with the help of foreign experts, and the black box and voice recorder data are being analyzed.
Despite falling short of majority, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in Uttarakhand on Wednesday began efforts to form the government with its senior leaders trying to establish contact with Independent members of Legislative Assembly and the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal.
'They are calling me an accused without even an inquiry.' 'The video was fabricated and doctored. Now the truth is coming out.'
The Uniform Civil Code bill was passed by the state assembly and also received the presidential assent recently after which it has become a law.
Moderate to high turnout was recorded in 13 assembly constituencies across seven states where bypolls were held on Wednesday amid sporadic incidents of violence in Uttarakhand, Bihar and West Bengal.
Ruling parties held sway in most of the 13 states in the assembly byelection results declared on Saturday, with the Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies wresting seats in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan and the Trinamool Congress sweeping West Bengal.
Yadav further accused the BJP of "using distractions" to avoid addressing real issues such as rising unemployment, inflation, lack of investment in Uttar Pradesh, and failing healthcare facilities.
Dhami will continue as the Uttarakhand chief minister, the BJP said on Monday, ending the 11-day suspense over it.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday accused the ruling Congress of trying to poach its members of Legislative Assembly in Uttarakhand to get a seat vacated for Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna, enabling him to enter the state Assembly.
Uttarakhand is abuzz with speculation that the BJP could pick a new leader as CM, given the possibility that the Election Commission may not hold a by-poll enabling Rawat's election to the state assembly.
Mr Pradhan's understanding of realpolitik and organisational dynamics makes him the ultimate party man, notes Aditi Phadnis.
Bihar Bharatiya Janata Party leader Ashwani Choubey and his family, who were stranded in a temple in Kedarnath, have been rescued and brought to Dehradun by a helicopter on Thursday.
The birth anniversary of Dr Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, whose political influence has surged with the passage of time, on Monday was marked by bitter trading of charges between the ruling BJP and opposition parties as they fought for his legacy.
The BJP government in Gujarat has formed a five-member committee, headed by a retired Supreme Court judge, to assess the need for the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the state and to draft a bill for the same. The committee will submit its report within 45 days. The decision has sparked debate with the Opposition claiming it is an attempt to divert attention from pressing issues ahead of the upcoming local body polls, while the government insists the UCC will protect the rights of tribal communities. The committee will consult with religious leaders, including those from the Muslim community.
Uttarakhand CM Tirath Singh Rawat resigns
A purported video of former Uttarakhand chief minister Tirath Singh Rawat saying no work could be done in the state without paying commission has surfaced online.
Six Himachal Pradesh Congress MLAs who voted against party nominee Abhishek Manu Singhvi in the Rajya Sabha elections, along with three Independent lawmakers, have shifted to a hotel in Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled Uttarakhand amid an ongoing rebellion against Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.
Reacting to the results, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said that in the by-elections held on 13 seats in seven states, the people of the country have given their support to the INDIA bloc.
Another MLA Rekha Arya, who was also supposed to join the BJP on Wednesday, is visiting the Simhasth Kumbh in Ujjain, but has sent her acceptance to the party.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader Shaurya Doval has said he has never expressed desire to contest elections but is open to the idea if the party decides to field him.
Dhami under whose leadership the BJP had contested the February 14 assembly polls was the frontrunner for the post.
The Uttarakhand assembly poll result has presented the Bharatiya Janata Party with a dilemma of sorts as it weighs various options after outgoing chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami who was tipped to continue in the post lost the election even as the party stormed back to power.
The draft will be examined, studied and discussed before it is tabled in the assembly on February 6, he said.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Sunday named 14 candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha polls including former Union minister R P N Singh and Sudhanshu Trivedi -- the only outgoing MP renominated by the party.
The BJP expelled Vinod Arya and his son from the party, a day after the leader's another son was arrested in the murder case of a woman receptionist at a resort in Uttarakhand's Pauri.
Known as a simple and down-to-earth leader, Tirath Singh Rawat takes over the rein of power in Uttarakhand at a time when the BJP is preparing for the state assembly polls due early next year.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday appointed election in-charges and co-in-charges for 23 states and Union territories in view of the Lok Sabha polls this year.
Voting for the bypolls in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Tamil Nadu were held on Wednesday.
Vijay Rawat, brother of India's first chief of defence staff General Bipin Rawat who recently died in a helicopter crash, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday.
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