Home   Contact Us                                                                       Dateline New Delhi, Tuesday, June 7, 2005

 

 


Main Page                                                       Archive

 

Rane sworn in Goa CM for seventh time

     Panaji (Goa): Veteran Congress party leader Pratapsinh Rane assumed charge as the chief minister of Goa for the seventh time on Tuesday, a day after he was unanimously elected as the leader of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP). The swearing in ceremony was held at the Raj Bhawan in Panaji in the presence of a host of dignitaries. With Rane assuming charge, President's rule in Goa has ended after three months. President's rule was clamped after prolonged political turmoil following Governor S.C.Jamir's decision to remove the BJP-led coalition government of Chief Minister Manohar Parriker. President's rule over Goa was lifted on Jamir's recommendation. On Monday, Rane met Jamir at the Raj Bhawan and formally staked a claim to form the next government in Goa after presenting to him letters of support from Congress allies Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Maharashtra Gomantak Party (MGP). Earlier on Monday , Rane was unanimously chosen as the Leader of CLP at a meeting of MLAs, AICC general secretary incharge of Goa Margaret Alva said. Alva said although it was initially decided to entrust party President Sonia Gandhi to take the decision on electing the CLP leader but Gandhi had conveyed to her that the MLAs should discuss the matter and elect the leader.

Advani resigns as BJP chief (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: BJP President L.K.Advani today announced that he was quitting the post in the wake of the political furore generated by his comments on the demolition of the Babri Mosque and on Mohammad Ali Jinnah during his recent week-long visit to Pakistan after a gap of 27 years. Informed party sources said that Advani called BJP General Secretary Sanjay Joshi to his residence this morning and handed over his letter of resignation to the latter. In his letter, Advani said that he had prepared it in Karachi itself with a view that it was in the overall long-term interest of the BJP. He said that he was keen to be relieved of the responsibility of being the BJP president, and added that his visit to Pakistan had reinforced his view that the initiatives taken by the Vajpayee Government to activiate a peace and dialogue process with Pakistan was going along expected lines.

     The news of Advani's resignation spread like wildfire across the political spectrum of the Indian capital. Hundreds of media, cameramen and BJP acitivists were seen hovering outside Advani's Prithviraj Road residence waiting anxiously for that elusive sound byte from the veteran party stalwart or from one of the senior BJP leaders who were inside the premises attempting to convince Advani to withdraw his resignation letter. Advani's praise of Jinnah as a secular leader and his description of the Babri demolition as "the saddest day" of his life attracted severe criticism from the VHP and RSS, which asked him to withdraw his statement with an apology. However, on his return from Karachi on Monday, Advani stood by his statements asserting his statement was based on the August 11 "historic speech" of Jinnah in 1947 in Pakistan's constitutional assembly.

     Meanwhile, former prime minister A B Vajpayee said that Advani's statements in Pakistan were being misinterpreted even as an incensed RSS hardened its stand and demanded he withdraw his utterances. "Whatever has been said, is being misinterpreted. His remarks on Jinnah are being misinterpreted," Vajpayee told reporters at Bhuntar airport near Kullu before his departure for Delhi. Describing Jinnah as the "Janak (Father)" of Pakistan Vajpayee said that the Qaid-e-Azam had wanted the people of India and Pakistan to live in harmony, but his intentions were not supported by other Pakistani leaders. Senior Congress leaders like Sarojini Naidu had also made similar remarks about Jinnah, who had played an important role in the freedom struggle, Vajpayee said, adding that everyone had a right to freedom of expression and he did not mind it. On Monday night, RSS general secretary Mohan Bhaghwat and its other functionaries firmly conveyed the RSS's disappointment over Advani's remarks to senior BJP leaders M Venkaiah Naidu, Sanjay Joshi, Arun Jaitely and Bal Apte who met them at the RSS Jhandewalan headquarters. RSS spokesman Ram Madhav told that "basic ideological questions are involved here and it is not possible for the Sangh to compromise on them or accept them. They (Advani's views) should be reviewed". Answering a question, he said that there was no question of an apology from Advani as RSS cannot compromise on fundamental ideological issues. The 90-minute meeting between RSS and BJP leaders came after the saffron party leaders held a day-long meeting among themselves and met Advani separately soon after the party President's return from Pakistan discussing the fall-out of his remarks in Pakistan.

Storm over Jinnah: This started it all! (Go To Top)

     Karachi/New Delhi: To claim that Mohammad Ali Jinnah espoused the cause of a secular Pakistan seems to have boomeranged on LK Advani, and he is now being regarded by the Sangh Parivar as the "self-styled" Hindu leader and a betrayer to the Hindu cause. "There are many people who leave an inerasable stamp on history. But there are a few who actually create history. Qaed-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah was one such rare individual," wrote Advani in the visitors' book at the Jinnah mausoleum in Karachi. These words and his very visit to Jinnah's mausoleum appear to be an attempt to dissociate himself from the "Akhand Bharat" (indivisible India) ideology espoused by the Sangh Parivar. Jinnah's August 11, 1947 address to the Constitutent Assembly, Advani said was really ``a classic, a forceful espousal of a secular state in which while every citizen would be free to pursue his own religion, the state should make no distinction between one citizen and another on grounds of faith. My respectful homage to this great man''. Advani's resignation as BJP president was reportedly precipitated by VHP leader Pravin Togadia's comment that he (Advani) was a 'traitor'. "Advani was deeply hurt by the word gaddar (traitor). On hearing it from one section of the (Sangh) Parivar he decided to resign," a web site quoted an Advani confidant as saying. "He did not only speak about Jinnah, he supported secular values in governance. He talked about the non-theocratic State. Why are his critics only looking at what he said about Jinnah?" "People must also look at the fact that for the first time, an Indian politician was invited to inaugurate a temple in a land with a history of demolition of Hindu temples," the unnamed confidant was further quoted as saying.

VHP appreciates Advani's courageous decision to resign (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has appreciated BJP President L K Advani's decision to resign from the top post and standing by his statements on Jinnah. "It is good that Advani didn't say that he was misquoted and stood by his statements. He took a courageous step," VHP senior leader Acharya Giriraj Kishore told reporters here. Kishore also said that Advani had to take this step as he had shifted from his earlier stand of Hindutva which had brought the BJP to power. Now, he is trying to make inroads into Muslim vote bank, which will lead him to disaster. Meanwhile, RSS today said that it never asked for Advani's resignation and dismissed suggestions it had applied any pressure on the BJP. "We have nothing to do with today's development (Advani's resignation. It is an internal matter of the party," RSS spokesman Ram Madhav told reporters. Kishore and Madhav both were of the opinion that the party itself would decide the next course of action and they didn't want to interfere into internal matters of the BJP. "The BJP will take an appropriate decision at an appropriate time. We do not get involved," said Ram Madhav. The BJP, however, has said that the party officials and leaders were requesting Advani to reconsider his decision to step down. "All party leaders are urging Mr. Advani to reconsider his resignation and lead the party," BJP Spokesperson Prakash Javadekar told reporters here. He also said that party Vice-President M. Venkaiah Naidu was co- ordinating the efforts of party leaders to convince Advani.

References: Rane sworn in Goa CM, Advani resigns BJP chief, Advani Jinnah NDA Fernandes Vajpayee, pataudi raid, Lalu Laloo dolls toy Bihar, Mirdha Sangeet Natak Akademi, Pakistan defence budget, Malihabad mango, Jennifer Aniston Buddhism, Potter book, Live 8 concert, Russell Crowe arrested, Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Mr and Mrs Smith, Jagger Kabbalah, Katie Holmes Tom Cruise wonder woman, India, India News, Newspaper, Indian, News, Travel News, India Travel Times, Travel,Tourism, Tour, Tourist, India, Times, News, Hotels, Airlines, Ayurveda, Yoga, Hindu, Taj Mahal, Cuisine, Festival, Temple, Trekking, Hindu, Bharatanatyam, Kathakali, Odissi, Dance, Shimla,Varanasi, Kullu, Manali, Dehra Dun, Mussourie, Mussoorie, Haridwar, Hardwar, Rishikesh, Nainital, Delhi, Goa, Kovalam, Darjeeling, Bodh Gaya, Kancheepuram, Kanchipuram, Thekkady, Badrinath, Amar Nath,Vaishno Devi, Tirupati, Sabarimala, Guruvayoor, Kanyakumari, Kodaikanal, Ooty, Chennai,

     Previous File                 Go To Top
Home    Contact Us
NOTE:  Free contributions of articles and reports may be sent to editor@indiatraveltimes.com
DISCLAIMER
All Rights Reserved ©indiatraveltimes.com