India-Pakistan Match Cancelled After Indian Players Boycott Game; WCL Issues Apology After Backlash
Amid internal differences within the Congress, MP Shashi Tharoor reiterated that 'the nation comes first,' stressing the need to 'cooperate with other parties in the interest of national security.' Speaking in Kochi, Tharoor said party lines must be set aside when the nation is imperilled. He defended his stance on Operation Sindoor, for which he faced criticism after leading an all-party delegation abroad. 'I will stand my ground because I believe this is right for the country,' he said, adding that he speaks for all Indians, not just those aligned with his party. 'Parties are a means, not the end.'#shashitharoor #congress #nationalsecurity #operationsindoor #indiafirst #politicalunity #indianpolitics #diplomacy #kochi #allpartydelegation #toi #toibharat
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Indian Express
18 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Conviction for forgery to card game row, Maharashtra Agriculture Minister Manikrao Kokate again lands in a controversy
From facing the prospect of losing his Assembly seat due to a criminal conviction to being caught on camera allegedly playing an online card game during an Assembly session, Maharashtra Agriculture Minister Manikrao Kokate has spent the past year navigating one controversy after another. In February, a Nashik district court sentenced the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader to two years in prison for his role in a 30-year-old case involving document forgery and fraud. The case pertained to the illegal acquisition of two flats under the Chief Minister's discretionary quota. Under the law, any elected representative sentenced to two or more years in prison stands to lose their seat. Kokate, however, managed to retain his position after a sessions court in Nashik granted a stay on the conviction. The complaint was originally filed by former minister and three-time MLA Tukaram Dighole who alleged that Kokate and his brother had submitted forged documents to fraudulently acquire flats in the Nirman View Apartment complex in Nashik's Yeolekar Mala area. Dighole, a former Congress leader, lost to Kokate in the 1999 Assembly election in what was Kokate's debut win as a Shiv Sena MLA. Dighole passed away in 2019. According to the prosecutors, the Kokate brothers falsely claimed to belong to the Low-Income Group (LIG) and declared they owned no other property. This misrepresentation allowed them to benefit from the CM's 10% discretionary housing quota. Investigations later revealed that the documents submitted were forged. Kokate, a five-time MLA from Sinnar in Nashik district, has had a politically diverse career. Once a member of both the Shiv Sena and the Congress, he is now aligned with the NCP of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. Following the NCP's split, Kokate chose to side with Ajit and was rewarded with the Agriculture portfolio in the Devendra Fadnavis-led government. Controversy, however, has continued to shadow him. Just days before his conviction in February, Kokate triggered outrage with remarks comparing farmers to beggars. 'Even a beggar doesn't take one rupee, but here we are offering crop insurance for Re 1. Yet some people still try to misuse it,' he said, further alleging that applicants from other states were exploiting the scheme. In April, he courted fresh criticism after accusing farmers of intentionally defaulting on crop loans to benefit from government waivers, and then spending the money on personal celebrations. 'You take loans and then default for five to ten years, expecting them to be waived. Farmers are not investing in their land. The government gives assistance for everything from drip irrigation to ponds and pipelines,' Kokate said at the time. On Sunday, the state agriculture minister found himself at the centre of a latest row after a purported video of him playing an online card game on his phone in the Assembly was shared on social media by NCP (SP) leader Rohit Pawar. Kokate, however, denied the allegation. 'I was not playing Rummy,' he said. 'I was trying to watch YouTube to find out what was happening in the Lower House. Someone had downloaded the game on the phone, and I was just trying to skip it. The video might be from when I was trying to close it.'
Indian Express
18 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Bihar electoral rolls revision, Pahalgam and Trump's claims on Oppn agenda for Parliament's monsoon session, govt has ‘noted their points'
The Centre convened an all-party meeting on Sunday, a day ahead of the beginning of Parliament's monsoon session, the first session of the House since the Pahalgam massacre in April. Besides the terrorist attack, the ceasefire announcement between India and Pakistan, and the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar are also expected to dominate proceedings. Representatives from the government and the Opposition discussed the agenda for the session, and the government said that it had noted down points raised by the Opposition. Members from the Opposition INDIA bloc said they hoped that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would address the nation on important issues from Parliament. Sources told The Indian Express that while the Centre accepted the Opposition's demand to hold a debate on Operation Sindoor, it was yet to take a call regarding a debate on the SIR in poll-bound Bihar. Sunday's meeting was attended by Rajya Sabha Leader of the House J P Nadda, Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Kiren Rijiju, and Parliamentary Affairs Ministers of State Arjun Ram Meghwal and L Murugan. The Opposition was represented by Congress Deputy Leader in Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi, the Congress's Jairam Ramesh, Samajwadi Party's Ram Gopal Yadav, CPM MP John Brittas, BJD's Sasmit Patra, NCP (SP)'s Supriya Sule, JMM's Sarfraz Ahmad, and others. NDA ally TDP was represented by Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu. Rijiju said after the meeting, 'The NDA, UPA (INDIA bloc) and those in between have presented their opinions. We will take all these issues to Parliament, what is to be discussed and what not will be decided in the BAC (Business Advisory Committee).' 'The Government noted their (Opposition) points. We have requested that to ensure that the House functions properly, the ruling side and the Opposition should work together with good coordination. We might be political parties of different ideologies, but it is everyone's responsibility to ensure that Parliament functions properly,' he said. On the other hand, Congress Deputy Leader in Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi said, 'This time we have more hope than before that Prime Minister Modi will address the country through the House. Those important issues are Pahalgam, the things that the (Jammu and Kashmir) lieutenant governor said about it. A lot of time has passed and the government will have to put forth its point on it. The statements coming from the US President today, in some way, raise questions on the dignity of India, the bravery of the Indian Army. The answers to the US President can be given only by the Prime Minister.' Talking about the Bihar SIR, Gogoi said, 'Secondly, important questions are being raised today regarding the right to vote.' He said the third issue to be addressed is about the 'two-front axis that has been formed on our border with China, Pakistan and Bangladesh.' 'So, it is very important that we talk about defence and foreign policy. It will be very important for Prime Minister Modi to come to this House and put forth his views on these three subjects,' he said. Samajwadi Party MP Ram Gopal Yadav said the Pahalgam attack, Operation Sindoor and US President Donald Trump's claims on the ceasefire between India and Pakistan have to be discussed. 'India's foreign policy has completely failed. The foreign policy is successful when the number of our friendly countries increases and the number of enemy countries decreases. No country in the world supported us on Operation Sindoor,' said Yadav and added that 'democracy is going to end completely', referring to the Bihar SIR. Showcasing unity on the eve of the Parliament's monsoon session, the INDIA bloc on Saturday held a virtual meeting of 24 of its constituents, reaching a consensus on eight major issues that they plan to raise during the month-long session. These include the Pahalgam terrorist attack, Operation Sindoor, the ceasefire announcement by US President Donald Trump, India's foreign policy, and the Election Commission's ongoing special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Bihar. Asad Rehman is with the national bureau of The Indian Express and covers politics and policy focusing on religious minorities in India. A journalist for over eight years, Rehman moved to this role after covering Uttar Pradesh for five years for The Indian Express. During his time in Uttar Pradesh, he covered politics, crime, health, and human rights among other issues. He did extensive ground reports and covered the protests against the new citizenship law during which many were killed in the state. During the Covid pandemic, he did extensive ground reporting on the migration of workers from the metropolitan cities to villages in Uttar Pradesh. He has also covered some landmark litigations, including the Babri Masjid-Ram temple case and the ongoing Gyanvapi-Kashi Vishwanath temple dispute. Prior to that, he worked on The Indian Express national desk for three years where he was a copy editor. Rehman studied at La Martiniere, Lucknow and then went on to do a bachelor's degree in History from Ramjas College, Delhi University. He also has a Masters degree from the AJK Mass Communication Research Centre, Jamia Millia Islamia. ... Read More
India.com
18 minutes ago
- India.com
'Modi government ready to discuss Op Sindoor, Trump's remarks': Union Minister Rijiju says before Parliament monsoon session start
Parliament- File image New Delhi: Government on Sunday held an all party meeting ahead of the commencement of the Monsoon Session of Parliament that begins tomorrow with Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju urging both ruling and opposition sides to coordinate to ensure smooth functioning of the House. Addressing media personnel in the national capital after conclusion of the all-party meeting he said the Government is ready to hold discussions on key issues, including Operation Sindoor, in the Session that begins on July 21. Describing the meeting as constructive the Unioin Minister emphasised the shared responsibility of all political parties, regardless of ideological differences. 'Government noted their points. We have requested that to ensure that the House function properly, ruling side and Opposition should work together with good coordination. We might be political parties of different ideologies but it is everyone's responsibility to ensure that Parliament functions properly – Opposition's as well as Government's.' When asked about a discussion on Operation Sindoor, he said, 'This is a very good opinion. The all-party delegations to different parties in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor had gone down very well, effectively and all those great experiences must be shared before the nation. We must welcome it.' On the issue of Justice Yashwant Verma, Rijiju said that more than 100 MPs have signed a motion seeking his impeachment, which the government plans to bring forward during the current Parliament session. 'In the Justice Varma case, the process will be undertaken together by all parties. This is not the move by the Government alone,' Rijiju said. Apart from this, Rijiju acknowledged a recurring concern raised by smaller political outfits of not getting allocated ample time to speak. 'Members of small political parties, especially those with one or two MPs, get lesser time to speak because time is allocated as per their numbers. But we have taken cognisance of this. We have agreed to allocate ample time to small parties. We will present this before the Lok Sabha Speaker and Rajya Sabha Chairman and then we will raise this issue in Business Advisory Committee.' He said that the all-party meeting saw participation from 51 political parties and 54 members attended. 'Forty people presented their opinion on behalf of their parties. It was very constructive. All political leaders stated the position of their parties and the issues that they want to bring in this session.' Rijiju stated 'The Opposition presented their opinions. Leaders from the NDA, UPA (INDIA alliance), and other non-aligned parties spoke freely. We will take all these issues to Parliament. What will be discussed and how will be finalized in the Business Advisory Committee.' The Monsoon Session is expected to witness heated debates, with the Opposition gearing up to raise a range of issues, including foreign policy transparency, internal evictions, and electoral exercises like Bihar's SIR campaign. During the monsoon session of Parliament the government plans to push its legislative agenda, which includes some new bills. The bills on the agenda of the government include Manipur Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill of 2025, Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill of 2025, Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill 2025, the Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) bill 2025, the Geoheritage Sites and Geo-relics (Preservation and Maintenance) bill 2025, the Mines and Mines (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill 2025, the National Sports Governance Bill 2025 and the National Anti-Doping (Amendment) Bill 2025. The agenda of the government also includes the Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Assembly Constituencies of the State of Goa Bill, 2024, the Merchant Shipping Bill, 2024, the Indian Ports Bill, 2025, and the Income Tax Bill, 2025. The monsoon session of Parliament will continue till August 21. As part of its ongoing efforts to modernise and digitise Parliamentary functioning, the Lok Sabha Secretariat has undertaken a number of initiatives under the guidance and leadership of the Lok Sabha Speaker to enhance transparency, inclusivity, and accessibility of Parliamentary processes for Members and the public alike.
