Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Thursday demanded immediate arrest of industrialist Gautam Adani after the billionaire industrialist was charged in the United States for alleged bribery and fraud.
Adani group stocks faced heavy drubbing during the early trade on Thursday, with Adani Energy and Adani Enterprises tumbling 20 per cent, as billionaire Gautam Adani has been charged by US prosecutors over his role in an alleged years-long scheme to pay $250 million bribe to Indian officials in exchange for favourable terms for solar power contracts. The stock of the group's flagship firm Adani Enterprises plunged 20 per cent, Adani Energy Solutions tanked 20 per cent, Adani Green Energy plummeted 19.17 per cent, Adani Total Gas tumbled 18.14 per cent, Adani Power slumped 17.79 per cent, and Adani Ports dived 15 per cent on the BSE.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has set an ambitious goal of winning over 215 seats in the 2026 state assembly elections, aiming to secure a fourth consecutive term for the Trinamool Congress (TMC). She declared that the party will work to significantly reduce the BJP's tally and ensure that their candidates struggle to retain their deposits. The TMC's national general secretary, Abhishek Banerjee, echoed this sentiment, urging party workers to ensure a decisive victory and achieve a two-thirds majority in the upcoming polls. The BJP, however, dismissed the TMC's claims, stating that Banerjee is merely trying to boost morale among party workers.
The plea came up for hearing before a bench comprising Justices B V Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan.
The BJP leader said even the the officials of the municipal corporation were subjected to the purification process as "they were under the influence of impurity" and were "forced to indulge in corruption".
Displaying a washing machine on its press conference dais, the Congress on Saturday taunted the Bharatiya Janata Party over the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filing a closure report in a 2017 corruption case against Nationalist Congress Party leader Praful Patel and said the ruling party's 'fully automatic washing machine' works on the principle -- 'join BJP, case closed'.
The 40 per cent commission charge has once again come to the fore to haunt the Basavaraj Bommai-led government in Karnataka, with the state contractors association on Wednesday stating that they will be writing another letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in this regard.
The federal agency has filed a chargesheet against the 56-year-old politician before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court here last year after arresting him in March.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader Kirit Somaiya, who was vocal about allegations of corruption against many Nationalist Congress Party leaders, including the recently inducted ministers Ajit Pawar, Chhagan Bhujbal, Sunil Tatkare and Hasan Mushrif, on Tuesday refrained from commenting against them.
The Supreme Court of India expressed concern about the "criminalization of politics" and questioned how convicted individuals can return to Parliament. The court sought the assistance of the attorney general on this issue, highlighting the apparent conflict of interest and the need for clarity on the Representation of People Act's provisions. The court also raised concerns about the slow pace of trials against lawmakers, with a significant number of cases pending. The issue has been referred to a larger bench for consideration.
Karnataka BJP President B Y Vijayendra on Thursday challenged Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to disclose the source of his allegation that Rs 50 crore bribe each was offered to 50 Congress MLAs to topple the government. He said the Chief Minister has lost faith in his own MLAs and, hence, was levelling false allegations.
"I challenge BJP to prove corruption charges against me. If proved, I will resign from politics," said Hemant Soren.
Abu Dhabi's International Holding Company (IHC), one of the largest sovereign funds that manages assets close to $100 billion, has reaffirmed its support to the Adani Group, saying its outlook on investments in the group remains unchanged despite the US indictment of the conglomerate's founder chairman Gautam Adani. "Our partnership with the Adani Group reflects our confidence in their contributions to the green energy and sustainability sectors," IHC, one of Adani group's key foreign investors, said in a statement.
The sanctions are linked to a criminal case heard in 2023 involving a match-fixing syndicate in Belgium over which Bulgarian official Stefan Milanov and French player Leny Mitjana were suspended earlier this year.
The EC asked him to provide factual evidence with specific and pointed response to type, quantity, nature and manner of poisoning of Yamuna.
The Opposition members wanted to discuss the Adani controversy and the recent violence in Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has alleged that former Congress president Sonia Gandhi has links to an organisation financed by the George Soros Foundation, which has reportedly supported the idea of an independent Kashmir. The party claims this connection demonstrates foreign influence in Indian internal affairs. This comes after BJP's claims of US involvement in destabilizing India, which the US has denied. The BJP also accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of collaborating with the Soros-funded OCCRP to damage India's economy and reputation. The allegations have drawn criticism from the US embassy and the opposition Congress.
'A first-time politician can only get such opportunities in AAP. Had I been in some other party, I wouldn't even have got a ticket to contest polls'
He drew the roadmap of India's economic reform, unshackled it from the licence raj and pulled it back from the brink when even its gold reserve was pledged.
"Less than two week back, we faced a set of allegations from the US about compliance practices. This is not the first time we have faced such challenges. What I can tell you is that every attack makes us stronger," he said addressing the 51st Gems and Jewellery Award in Jaipur.
Adani group founder and chairman Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar have been summoned to explain their stand on the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) allegation of paying $265 million (Rs 2,200 crore) in bribes to secure lucrative solar power contracts. Summons have been sent to Adani's Shantivan Farm residence in Ahmedabad and his nephew Sagar's Bodakdev residence in the same city for a reply to SEC within 21 days.
The Supreme Court of India expressed concern over the appointment of DMK leader V Senthil Balaji as a minister in the Tamil Nadu government despite pending money laundering cases against him. The court questioned the state government's decision, stating it is "terribly wrong" to appoint a person as a minister while facing legal proceedings. The matter has been adjourned to January 15, 2025.
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.
He also promised to give free electricity, quality education in government schools and good healthcare for the state's people.
Trump knows by now that the western narrative of Biden's war is a load of bullshit peppered with falsehoods and outright lies, and that the war erupted only out of the diabolic western plot to poke the bear, which got provoked finally and hit out, explains Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The Lokpal directive came while deciding a complaint by BJP Lok Sabha member Nishikant Dubey alleging that Moitra had asked questions in the Lower House of Parliament in exchange for cash and gifts from Dubai-based businessman Darshan Hiranandani.
'Justice may or may not happen, but who are those people who did this to her?' 'If the hospital authorities had helped us that day, or the police, then the real culprits would have been caught.' 'Getting justice for my daughter is my goal now and I want the CM to remember that.'
Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was summoned as an accused in a coal block allocation case, but the Supreme Court intervened and stayed the directive. Singh, a renowned economist and politician, questioned the absence of mandated sanction for prosecuting public officials and denied any wrongdoing in the coal block allocation. The Supreme Court's decision highlights the complexities of government functions and criminal prosecution in cases involving public officials.
Ratings agency Moody's said on Tuesday that it has cut the outlook on the ratings of seven Adani entities to 'negative' from 'stable', citing the US indictment of chairman Gautam Adani and others on alleged bribery charges, while Fitch Ratings put some bonds of the conglomerate on negative watch. Moody's affirmed the ratings on all seven entities -- Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd, two limited restricted groups of Adani Green Energy Ltd, Adani Transmission Step-One Ltd, Adani Transportation Restricted group 1 (AESL RG1), Adani Electricity Mumbai Ltd and Adani International Container Terminal Pvt Ltd.
Priyanka slammed Prime Minister Modi's 11 resolutions as "hollow" and said if there is zero tolerance towards corruption then why doesn't the BJP agree to a discussion on the Adani issue.
Senior Congress leader and Maharashtra assembly poll candidate Balasaheb Thorat has asserted that the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) will win a clear majority and also indicated his chief ministerial aspirations. Thorat, who is among the senior leaders in the MVA after NCP (SP) head Sharad Pawar, said he enjoys cordial relations with leaders of the alliance. He also criticized the ruling Mahayuti coalition, accusing it of corruption and communal politics.
The Uttar Pradesh government has deployed two senior IAS officers, who were part of the team that successfully conducted the 2019 Ardh Kumbh, to oversee the smooth conduct of the Maha Kumbh Mela in the wake of the recent stampede that left at least 30 pilgrims dead. The officers, Ashish Goyal and Bhanu Chandra Goswami, have extensive experience in administration in Prayagraj, including crowd management and inter-agency coordination. They will join Mela Adhikari Vijay Kiran Anand, forming a trio that was part of the mega fair six years ago. The government has also deployed additional senior police officers to strengthen security and crowd management ahead of Basant Panchami, one of the key bathing days of the festival, on February 3.
French energy giant TotalEnergies SE on Monday said it will make no new financial contribution as part of its investments in Adani group companies till the Indian firm's founder is cleared of bribery charges. The energy giant said it was not aware of the investigation into the alleged corruption. TotalEnergies is one of the biggest foreign investors in billionaire Gautam Adani's business empire and had previously taken stakes in the group's renewable energy venture Adani Green Energy Ltd (AEGL) and city gas unit Adani Total Gas Ltd (ATGL).
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan, however, said there can be no straitjacket formula which enumerates that every case concerning the consideration of bail should depend upon the filing of a charge sheet.
From bhikshus of Ashokan 3rd century BC and medieval Sufis to Oxfam, Omidyar and Soros now, non-State actors have any real power only when they work in conjunction with a real State, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
The family of the 34-year-old techie who allegedly died by suicide in Bengaluru, has demanded justice for him and strict action against his harassers, so that his 'soul can rest in peace'.
The applicant allegedly indulged in a conspiracy with the officers of the Noida Development Authority funnelled several crores of rupees from the public fund released for the construction of a cricket stadium with a pavilion building at Integrated sports complex at Noida.
Veteran Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, in his latest book, argues that Pranab Mukherjee should have been made Prime Minister in 2012 instead of Manmohan Singh, who was then recovering from health issues. Aiyar believes this would have prevented the "paralysis of governance" and "doomed" any prospects the Congress might have had to form UPA-III. He also criticizes the government's handling of the Anna Hazare-led agitation and the Commonwealth Games scandal, which he believes contributed to the party's downfall in the 2014 general elections.
The Congress on Tuesday accused Home Minister Amit Shah of harboring "hatred" towards B.R. Ambedkar, demanding an apology from him for his remarks in the Rajya Sabha. Congress leaders pointed out that Shah's comments, which criticized the frequent invocation of Ambedkar's name by the opposition, demonstrate a deep-seated animosity towards the architect of India's Constitution. The allegations sparked outrage among Congress members, who accused the BJP and RSS of having a history of disdain for Ambedkar. The incident has fueled political tensions, with the Congress vowing to hold Shah accountable for his remarks.
Even as corruption charges threatened to topple Pakistan's second premier in a row, the country's Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar drew a parallel with India, saying Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had also faced "very big" allegations.