Latest news with #IndiraGandhi
Hans India
an hour ago
- Politics
- Hans India
Double engine Sarkar autocratic, says Sharmila
Rajamahendravaram: Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president YS Sharmila strongly criticised the BJP-led government, stating that only Congress party truly understands people's problems and works for their genuine welfare. She participated in East Godavari district Congress extended meeting held in Rajamahendravaram on Friday. Sharmila alleged that both the Centre and the State are currently under autocratic and regressive rule. She appealed to the public to support Congress party and bring back good governance, which she described as a historic necessity. Senior Congress leader and CWC special invitee Gidugu Rudra Raju also addressed the gathering. Referring to the Emergency period, he condemned the BJP and RSS for spreading relentless misinformation about former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. He stated that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, constitutional institutions are being undermined and misused for political gain, which he said is far worse than anything and equal to a dictatorship. He added that while Indira Gandhi made significant contributions to national security and poverty alleviation, today's political forces are shamefully attempting to tarnish her legacy with false propaganda. Rudra Raju asserted that India witnessed real development and genuine welfare during Congress rule. The meeting was chaired by East Godavari District Congress President TK Visweswara Reddy. APCC in-charge Palak Verma also attended the event. Following the meeting, Sharmila, Rudra Raju, Vishweshwara Reddy, and others paid floral tributes to Dr BR Ambedkar's statue at Gokavaram Bus Stand. Later, Sharmila unveiled a statue of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi near the water tank at Rajiv Gandhi Park in Seethampeta and paid homage by garlanding the statues of Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.
Hans India
an hour ago
- Politics
- Hans India
BJP dubs Congress' renaming spree as ‘names change sarkar'
Hyderabad: The BJP in Telangana dubbed the 18-month-old Congress-led government as a 'Name's Change Sarkar' for failing to deliver on its promises. Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Bandi Sanjay Kumar said 'Telangana Congress promised Change,' However, 'in 18 months, all it delivered was Name Changes.' On Friday, the Karimnagar MP, taking a dig at the State government for changing the name of the Rs 5 meal scheme named after 'Annapurna' to Indira Gandhi, said, 'Universities renamed. Hospitals renamed. Irrigation projects (were) renamed. Awards renamed. Flyovers renamed. Housing scheme renamed. Farm loan incentive renamed. Greening Drive (was) renamed. Departments renamed. Official residence renamed. Telangana Talli changed.' They 'Now, shamelessly, they've renamed the Rs 5 meal scheme from Goddess Annapurna, the divine giver of food, to Indira Gandhi. This isn't governance – it's an insult to Hindu beliefs. No real work. Just name work. And namesake work.' Medak Parliament MP M Raghunandan Rao criticized the Congress government, stating that after 18 months in power, it lacks the courage to evaluate its performance and address the promises made to the public. Instead, it seems to create a new name and narrative each day to distract the people from its shortcomings. The MP asked the GHMC Mayor to focus on civic issues rather than name-changing excrement. There are many unresolved issues in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) area. The supply of potable water is insufficient, and the drainage system is inadequate. Illegal constructions are occurring in newly developed colonies, ration cards are not issued, and new pensions are being approved. The promises made by the Congress party in the state have not been fulfilled. Many women are unable to access scooties, and numerous individuals have not received the promised financial assistance of Rs. 2,500. Additionally, unemployed persons are not receiving the Rs. 4,000 that was promised. Residents are submitting petitions regarding the lack of streetlights in the slums. There are also concerning reports of stray dogs attacking children, resulting in fatalities. Furthermore, sewage water has flooded several colonies. The GHMC Mayor should respond to such issues. 'Just naming the Annapurna canteen after Indiramma canteen has not yielded any results for GHMC.' He urged Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy to stop changing the names of the schemes, reduce the hype surrounding them, and focus on fulfilling the promises made to the people before the elections. Telangana BJP Chief Spokesperson and Media In-charge N.V. Subhash condemned the decision to rename the popular 'Annapurna Canteens'—which serves subsidized meals to the poor—as 'Indira Canteens'. Calling it an 'unwarranted, insensitive, and politically motivated' move, the BJP termed the renaming as a direct affront to the sentiments of the Hindu majority, and yet another attempt to erase cultural symbols deeply rooted in India's civilizational identity. 'Annapurna is not just a name—it symbolizes Goddess Annapurna, the divine mother who nourishes the world.' He stated that the scheme had gained widespread goodwill due to its apolitical intentions. The GHMC is not a private trust, nor is it operated by the Congress Party. 'The use of public funds to glorify a single political dynasty reflects entitlement and autocracy,' Subhash remarked.
India Gazette
3 hours ago
- Politics
- India Gazette
BJP, BRS slam Telangana government over renaming of Annapurna Canteen Scheme
Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], June 28 (ANI): The Congress government's decision to rename Annapurna Canteens as Indiramma Canteens has sparked controversy in Telangana. The Annapurna Canteen scheme, launched by the previous Bharatiya Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government, provided hot, hygienic, and nutritious meals for just Rs 5 to the poor, daily wage workers, and labourers in urban regions of Telangana. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National spokesperson NV Subhash criticised the move, calling it a 'publicity stunt' aimed at impressing the Gandhi family. He demanded that the state government roll back the decision and suggested it was a 'return gift' to former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on the 50th anniversary of the Emergency. 'The BJP demands that the Congress government in Telangana roll back the names from Indira canteens to Annapurna canteens. What is the reason for the Congress government to rename the canteen, which is being run with funds from the state and GHMC, where people are fed for only Rs 5? Is it a return gift to Indira Gandhi on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the emergency... This is nothing but a publicity stunt where the CM Revanth Reddy govt chooses to impress the Gandhi family', NV Subhash told ANI. BRS leader Krishank also slammed the government, stating that it should focus on fulfilling promises rather than changing names. He criticised the Congress government under Revanth Reddy for failing to bring in new schemes and pointed out that the name change was purely election-driven. 'The Congress government under CM Revanth Reddy's rule has done nothing for Hyderabad. Earlier, the KSR government had a Rs 5 Annapurna canteen for the poor, but now, as elections are approaching, Revanth Reddy's government has changed its name from Annapurna canteen to Indira Gandhi canteen. Why be a name changer, bring in new policies, and try to fulfil your 420 promises and guarantees that you have given? But the Congress government is all about changing names... This is really shameful... Revanth Reddy should stop pleasing the Gandhi family, stop being a Gulam to the Gandhi family, and instead try to please the voters who have voted for you', BRS leader Krishank said. Meanwhile, Congress leader Hanumantha Rao defended the decision, praising Indira Gandhi's contributions to the poor. He argued that the renaming was a fitting tribute to the former Prime Minister. Speaking to ANI, Congress Senior leader Hanumantha Rao said, 'The BRS government, under Annapurna Canteens, provided Rs 5 meals. Today, under the leadership of Revanth Reddy, Indiramma Canteens provide meals at Rs 5. They have taken this name because Indira Gandhi brought a revolution; she implemented land ceiling, nationalised banks, and ensured insurance for land labourers. Revanth Reddy's Indiramma Canteen is a fitting tribute. Every poor person who eats that Rs 5 meal should remember Indira Gandhi, as the name is suitable. She brought a revolution in the lives of the poor. By adding her name, everyone will know about her work for the poor. The name for the canteens is fitting, and it should be maintained. Every poor person should eat the Rs 5 meal and remember Indira Gandhi forever. This initiative is good, and I appreciate Revanth Reddy.' (ANI)
Hindustan Times
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
BJP, BRS slam Telangana government over renaming of Annapurna Canteen Scheme
The Congress government's decision to rename Annapurna Canteens as Indiramma Canteens has sparked controversy in Telangana. The BJP demanded that the CM Revanth Reddy-led Telangana government roll back the decision.(PTI) The Annapurna Canteen scheme, launched by the previous Bharatiya Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government, provided hot, hygienic, and nutritious meals for just ₹ 5 to the poor, daily wage workers, and labourers in urban regions of Telangana. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National spokesperson NV Subhash criticised the move, calling it a "publicity stunt" aimed at impressing the Gandhi family. He demanded that the state government roll back the decision and suggested it was a "return gift" to former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on the 50th anniversary of the Emergency. "The BJP demands that the Congress government in Telangana roll back the names from Indira canteens to Annapurna canteens. What is the reason for the Congress government to rename the canteen, which is being run with funds from the state and GHMC, where people are fed for only ₹ 5? Is it a return gift to Indira Gandhi on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the emergency... This is nothing but a publicity stunt where the CM Revanth Reddy govt chooses to impress the Gandhi family", NV Subhash told ANI. BRS leader Krishank also slammed the government, stating that it should focus on fulfilling promises rather than changing names. He criticised the Congress government under Revanth Reddy for failing to bring in new schemes and pointed out that the name change was purely election-driven. "The Congress government under CM Revanth Reddy's rule has done nothing for Hyderabad. Earlier, the KSR government had a ₹ 5 Annapurna canteen for the poor, but now, as elections are approaching, Revanth Reddy's government has changed its name from Annapurna canteen to Indira Gandhi canteen. Why be a name changer, bring in new policies, and try to fulfil your 420 promises and guarantees that you have given? But the Congress government is all about changing names... This is really shameful... Revanth Reddy should stop pleasing the Gandhi family, stop being a Gulam to the Gandhi family, and instead try to please the voters who have voted for you", BRS leader Krishank said. Meanwhile, Congress leader Hanumantha Rao defended the decision, praising Indira Gandhi's contributions to the poor. He argued that the renaming was a fitting tribute to the former Prime Minister. Speaking to ANI, Congress Senior leader Hanumantha Rao said, 'The BRS government, under Annapurna Canteens, provided ₹ 5 meals. Today, under the leadership of Revanth Reddy, Indiramma Canteens provide meals at ₹ 5. They have taken this name because Indira Gandhi brought a revolution; she implemented land ceiling, nationalised banks, and ensured insurance for land labourers. Revanth Reddy's Indiramma Canteen is a fitting tribute. Every poor person who eats that ₹ 5 meal should remember Indira Gandhi, as the name is suitable. She brought a revolution in the lives of the poor. By adding her name, everyone will know about her work for the poor. The name for the canteens is fitting, and it should be maintained. Every poor person should eat the ₹ 5 meal and remember Indira Gandhi forever. This initiative is good, and I appreciate Revanth Reddy.'
Indian Express
4 hours ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Ex-ADM recalls Emergency: The night Delhi fell silent, fearing ‘something far-reaching'
THE only woman Additional District Magistrate (ADM) of Delhi, the youngest of the five posted in the Capital, Meenakshi Datta Ghosh never expected to find herself where she did — a part of the night when Independent India witnessed one of its biggest political upheavals. By the time the Emergency was imposed, the 27-year-old, who was only in her second posting on June 25, 1975, had been witness to the Ramlila Maidan rally that preceded, and maybe even hastened the Indira Gandhi government's crackdown, and seen how the levers of powers were oiled and wills were bent. 'The issue was do I comply with the law, or follow the political cum bureaucratic commands? Do I preserve process and procedure, or do I enable power?… I feel that the Emergency prepared me to overcome everything that came my way,' she says, looking back at that time. It began with a massive Opposition rally at the Ramlila Maidan on June 25 against Mrs Gandhi, where Jayaprakash Narayan reiterated his call for peaceful resistance and non-violent civil disobedience. He urged government servants, police and armed forces to 'follow their conscience', 'rather than blindly obeying authoritarian orders, that went against democracy'. Already nervous, the Indira Gandhi government was rattled by this protest right at its doorstep, Ghosh says. A meeting was held at Raj Niwas that very evening, where Lt Governor Krishan Chand was present, along with Delhi District Magistrate (DM) Sushil Kumar and the IGP, DIG, Range, and SP, CID. A direction was given that leaders of non-CPI Opposition parties be detained under MISA (Maintenance of Internal Security Act) that very night. Some officers voiced their objections, given the procedural necessity under MISA that requires inclusion of specific grounds for detention in each case. The matter also went to the PMO, where a suggestion was made that Opposition leaders be held under preventive sections of the Criminal Procedure Code instead. 'But it was made clear that that route could land the government in difficulties as the courts would quickly release the detainees,' Ghosh says. The government 'desired that all arrests be carried out strictly and only under MISA'. At 10 pm, all the five ADMs gathered at the office of DM Kumar. He was not yet back from the PMO, Ghosh recalls. 'There was immense speculation… definitely a sense that something far-reaching was underway.' When Kumar finally returned around 11 pm, his face was ashen and he looked deeply disturbed, Ghosh says. 'There have been some critical developments… I have been directed by the authorities that several VIPs from political parties are to be detained, in accordance with the names under finalisation,' she recalls Kumar saying. In New Delhi that night, the silence on the streets was heavy, laced with fear and dread. 'With the PMO, Rashtrapati Bhavan, the highest seats of Executive power, top ministers' residences, and critical government infrastructure, the New Delhi district is the nerve centre of national governance… On the night of June 25, 1975, it became the epicentre of a constitutional rupture.' On that first night alone, 67 MISA warrants were issued by the DM, to be executed across Delhi. The Shah Commission that probed the Emergency's excesses recorded that over the 21-month period, 1,012 persons were detained under MISA in the Capital. This included 146 members of banned organisations, 180 members of political parties and 538 individuals classified as 'criminal elements', including economic offenders. The actual numbers detained in Delhi could have been much higher, Ghosh says. One detention, in particular, still haunts her. It was of Mamchand, a newspaper and magazine hawker and the sole bread earner in a family of 10. He was detained for over 12 months merely because 'a single copy of the magazine 'March of the Nation' allegedly containing material prejudicial to the State was found in his possession'. Mamchand's name was nowhere cited in police records of the Special Branch. Ghosh says that when the first four-monthly review of MISA arrests came about, she sought revocation of Mamchand's detention. But he was not released. Instead, his detention was extended. Ghosh would eventually be the only ADM to serve in Delhi district all through the Emergency, and remained in the post till a year later. So it was that, on October 3, 1977, seven months after the Emergency was lifted, when Mrs Gandhi, now out of power, and some of her former Cabinet members were arrested by the CBI under the Prevention of Corruption Act, Ghosh was part of the team that went to execute the order. Mrs Gandhi was accused of misusing vehicles during her election campaign. 'She took a long time emerging from her room. The IG, Police, requested me to help ascertain that all was well with the former PM,' recalls Ghosh. Mrs Gandhi's lawyer B R Handa got into a heated argument with CBI officials, saying she could not be taken out of Delhi as she had been arrested without a magistrate's order, Ghosh adds. 'The next day, October 4, 1977, Indira Gandhi appeared before a magistrate. With scant evidence provided, the court released her unconditionally. The case against her did not hold.' Her detention lasted all of 16 hours, but Ghosh sensed that the air had shifted again. 'The arrest by the Janata Party government was widely seen as politically motivated, and created a wave of sympathy for Indira Gandhi.' On the streets of Delhi, as life returned to normal, including for her as ADM, Mrs Gandhi started her climb back. 'She started holding carefully staged and managed public rallies across the New Delhi district… helping her revive and re-energize her support base,' says Ghosh. In the Lok Sabha elections held three years later, in 1980, the Congress bounced back with 353 seats, and Mrs Gandhi was back in power.
