logo
"Will RJD Take Action": Tej Pratap After MLA Threatens Panchayat Official

"Will RJD Take Action": Tej Pratap After MLA Threatens Panchayat Official

NDTV7 days ago
Patna:
Former Bihar Health Minister and expelled RJD leader Tej Pratap Yadav has once again openly challenged RJD leadership, this time over the alleged objectionable remarks and threats made by party MLA Bhai Virendra targeting a Panchayat Secretary who belongs to the Scheduled Caste-Tribe (SC/ST) community.
Taking to the social media platform X, Tej Pratap wrote: "Will RJD also take action against its MLA Bhai Virendra, who made shameful remarks against the SC-ST society, contrary to the ideals of Baba Saheb Ambedkar, and threatened to kill? I was expelled from the party under the conspiracy of Jai Chands... Now it remains to be seen whether the party will show the same strictness on those who create a ruckus or not. Respect for the Constitution should be seen in conduct, not in speeches."
This direct attack has stirred a fresh political storm within the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and has brought simmering factional tensions and alleged organisational bias to the surface.
Tej Pratap's statement doesn't just target Bhai Virendra; it indirectly criticises the party's top brass, including RJD chief Lalu Prasad and Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly Tejashwi Yadav, his father and brother, respectively.
By referencing his expulsion and calling out "Jai Chands", Tej Pratap accused the leadership of double standards, suggesting selective enforcement of discipline within the party.
The controversy over Bhai Virendra's remarks has sparked outrage on social media, with several Dalit organisations and civil rights groups labelling the comments as anti-constitutional.
They have demanded an unconditional apology and disciplinary action against the MLA.
After the threatening call from Maner MLA Bhai Virendra, Panchayat Secretary Sandeep Kumar, posted in Maner block of Patna, lodged a formal complaint against him in the SC and ST Police Station on Monday.
Kumar alleged that the four-time legislator had threatened him during a phone call.
Bhai Virendra confirmed the authenticity of the call but defended his actions.
He admitted using "harsh words" but accused the Panchayat Secretary of showing disrespect and not following the protocol.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Pollution boards can seek damages, bank guarantees  for future, says Supreme Court
Pollution boards can seek damages, bank guarantees  for future, says Supreme Court

Indian Express

time2 hours ago

  • Indian Express

Pollution boards can seek damages, bank guarantees for future, says Supreme Court

In a significant decision aimed at empowering pollution control boards, the Supreme Court Monday held that they can seek compensation for restitution of damages already caused by polluting entities or demand bank guarantees to prevent any potential future environmental damage. A bench of Justices P S Narasimha and Manoj Misra set aside the Delhi HC Division Bench order which said the Boards are 'not empowered to levy compensatory damages in exercise of powers under Section 33A of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 and Section 31A of the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 on the ground.' The HC held that such levy can be made only by courts, after taking cognisance of offences specified under the Acts. The SC said, 'having considered the principles that govern our environmental laws and on interpretation of Sections 33A and 31A of the Water and Air Acts, we are of the opinion that that the Division Bench of the High Court was not correct in restrictively reading powers of the Boards. We are of the opinion that these regulators in exercise of these powers can impose and collect, as restitutionary or compensatory damages, fixed sum of monies or require furnishing bank guarantees as an ex-ante measure towards potential or actual environmental damage.' The Delhi Pollution Control Board had approached the SC against the HC judgement which quashed the show cause notices issued by the Board to some residential complexes, commercial complexes and shopping malls which were allegedly constructed and were operating without obtaining the mandatory 'consent to establish' and 'consent to operate' under the Water Act and Air Act. The SC judgment said, 'The Board's powers under Section 33A of the Water Act and Section 31A of the Air Act have to be read in light of the legal position on the application of the Polluter Pays principle… This means that the State Board cannot impose environmental damages in case of every contravention or offence under the Water Act and Air Act. It is only when the State Board has made a determination that some form of environmental damage or harm has been caused by the erring entity, or the same is so imminent, that the State Board must initiate action under' the provisions. It directed that 'the powers must be exercised as per procedure laid down by subordinate legislation incorporating necessary principles of natural justice, transparency and certainty.' The court said that 'given their broad statutory mandate and the significant duty towards public health and environmental protection the Boards must have the power and distinction to decide the appropriate action against a polluting entity. It is essential that the Boards function effectively and efficiently by adopting such measures as is necessary in a given situation. The Boards can decide whether a polluting entity needs to be punished by imposition of penalty or if the situation demands immediate restoration of the environmental damage by the polluter or both.' The bench said, 'Our firm view is that remedial powers or restitutionary directives are a necessary concomitant of both the fundamental rights of citizens who suffer environmental wrongs and an equal concomitant of the duties of a statutory regulator… The State's 'endeavour to protect and improve the environment' will be partial, if it does not encompass a duty to restitute.' It said that 'of all the duties imposed under Article 51A (fundamental duties), the obligation to conserve and protect water and air, is perhaps the most significant, amidst our climate change crisis. The Water Act and the Air Act institutionalised all efforts and actions that need to be taken to protect air that we breathe and water that we consume by creating the Pollution Control Boards. These Boards functioning as our environment regulators are expected to act with institutional foresight by evolving necessary policy perspectives and action plans.'

Shibu Soren, 'Dishom Guru', tribal voice and JMM founder, dies at 81
Shibu Soren, 'Dishom Guru', tribal voice and JMM founder, dies at 81

Time of India

time2 hours ago

  • Time of India

Shibu Soren, 'Dishom Guru', tribal voice and JMM founder, dies at 81

Indian politics lost one of its more prominent tribal faces on Monday with the passing of Shibu Soren — JMM patriarch, three-time ex-CM, and among the spearheads of the decades-long statehood movement that culminated in Jharkhand being carved out of Bihar in 2000. Soren, 81, was being treated for a kidney ailment at Delhi's Ganga Ram Hospital since June 16 and had his immediate family, including his eldest son and current Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, by his bedside when he died. With his flowing white beard, forceful oratory and finger on the tribal pulse, Shibu embraced and lived up to the epithet 'Dishom Guru' — Santhali for 'guru of the land' — bestowed on him by legions of adoring followers until the ravages of age slowed him down. PM Modi called him 'a grassroots leader... with unwavering dedication to the people. He was particularly passionate about empowering tribal communities, the poor, and the downtrodden'. Indian politics lost one of its more prominent tribal faces on Monday with the passing of Shibu Soren — JMM patriarch, three-time ex-CM, and among the spearheads of the decades-long statehood movement that culminated in Jharkhand being carved out of Bihar in 2000. Soren, 81, was being treated for a kidney ailment at Delhi's Ganga Ram Hospital since June 16 and had his immediate family, including his eldest son and current Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, by his bedside when he died. With his flowing white beard, forceful oratory and finger on the tribal pulse, Shibu embraced and lived up to the epithet 'Dishom Guru' — Santhali for 'guru of the land' — bestowed on him by legions of adoring followers until the ravages of age slowed him down. PM Modi called him 'a grassroots leader... with unwavering dedication to the people. He was particularly passionate about empowering tribal communities, the poor, and the downtrodden'. Father's murder sparked Shibu's war on 'injustice' President Droupadi Murmu and PM Narendra Modi visited the hospital soon after Hemant Soren announced his father's death around 8am. 'The demise... is a big loss in the space of social justice,' Murmu posted on X. Modi also met Hemant and his MLA wife, Kalpana, before the JMM founder's body was flown to Ranchi. Born on Jan 11, 1944, in Nemra village of undivided Bihar's Hazaribag district, Shibu found his calling as a champion of the underprivileged, especially tribal communities, after his father was allegedly murdered by moneylenders. The tragedy ignited in Shibu, who was 15 at the time, the determination to embark on a lifelong battle against whatever he believed was exploitation or injustice. At 18, he established Santhal Navyuvak Sangh and, in the late 1960s, founded an ashram in Dhanbad's Tundi. By now, his presence was enough to strike fear in moneylenders and landlords accused of exploiting tribals. As his influence grew, especially among the ST and SC communities, Shibu's mission extended to chasing 'dikus' (outsiders) from the tribal heartland. On Jan 23, 1975, he allegedly led a mob of tribals to Chirudih village in Jamtara district, leading to violence in which 11 lives were lost. A murder case was registered in which he was named as an accused, leading him to go underground for a while. A Jamtara district court acquitted him later, citing lack of evidence. In 1972, Shibu joined forces with A K Roy, Binod Bihari Mahato and others to form JMM and become its general secretary. He was ele-cted to Lok Sabha for the first time in 1980 as an Independent candidate from Dumka in Santhal Parganas. In 1986, he became JMM president, a position he held for 39 years until April 15 this year, when son Hemant succeeded him. Shibu contested the Lok Sabha election from Dumka 11 times, winning on eight occasions — in 1980, 1989, 1991, 1996, the 2002 bypoll, 2004, 2009 and 2014. His last electoral loss, in 2019, was to BJP's Sunil Soren. Shibu's first major political setback came when he, along with three other MPs, was charged with accepting bribes to vote in favour of the P V Narasimha Rao-led Congress govt during a trust vote in 1992. The JMM bribery case remains a political hot potato. In 2004, Shibu became coal minister in the then Manmohan Singh govt, only to resign soon after when a warrant linked to the Chirudih killings was issued against him. He rejoined the Union Cabinet in Oct that year, continuing till March 2005. He stepped down to take over as CM of Jharkhand, but failed to prove his majority. Shibu returned to the Union Cabinet in 2006, but the stint didn't last long this time either. In Oct that year, he was convicted and sentenced to life for the murder of his personal secretary, Shashinath Jha. Delhi high court acquitted him in 2007, and he was also cleared in the Chirudih case for lack of evidence. Shibu's three stints as CM were all for less than a year, with the first one in 2005 lasting a mere 10 days. The second term lasted from Aug 27, 2008, to Jan 19, 2009, and the third from Dec 30, 2009, to June 1, 2010. He was also a member of Rajya Sabha and close to RJD president Lalu Prasad, with whom he snapped political ties after the latter opposed the move to create Jharkhand.

BJP accuses Rahul Gandhi of making ‘immature' comments against Armed Forces
BJP accuses Rahul Gandhi of making ‘immature' comments against Armed Forces

The Hindu

time2 hours ago

  • The Hindu

BJP accuses Rahul Gandhi of making ‘immature' comments against Armed Forces

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday stated that Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi's credibility is at stake, citing the Supreme Court's remarks during the hearing of a criminal defamation case related to his December 2022 comments on Indo-China border tensions. At a press conference, BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said: 'Such immature, anti-Army, and demoralising statements made without any evidence or facts, especially when our Army was engaged in the Galwan incident, raise serious questions. Why does Rahul Gandhi make such statements? This is a big question. And it is a question about his credibility.' 'The question arises: Does India deserve a more responsible and better Leader of Opposition? As a Leader of the Opposition, who has taken an oath under the Constitution to safeguard the sovereignty of our country, is he destroying that very sovereignty? ...is he helping the nations which are inimical to our country? Is he demoralising the brave Indian armed forces?' the BJP leader asked. Quoting the Supreme Court's remarks, Mr. Bhatia alleged that this was not the first time Mr. Gandhi had displayed 'such an anti-India' mindset. He referred to another defamation case involving comments by the Congress leader about V.D. Savarkar. 'We all know that the commission-hungry Congress failed to procure Rafale jets for 10 years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi made sure that the Air Force received these aircraft. Displaying similar immaturity, Rahul Gandhi used inappropriate language for the Prime Minister. Subsequently, the Supreme Court's decision affirmed that the addition of Rafale jets strengthened the Air Force and was in India's national interest,' Mr. Bhatia added.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store