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BJP makes another appeal to Paswan

    Patna: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is making all efforts to lure LJP President Ram Vilas Paswan into its camp and asked him to come out of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) for forming an anti-RJD government in Bihar and stop creating an "arithematic of impossibility". "Paswanji should stop creating this arithematic of impossibility (reaching the magic figure of 122 in 243-member Bihar assembly sans RJD and BJP). The arithematic is very clear that any government could be formed only with either RJD or NDA being its nucleus...There is no no third option. The LJP chief should come out of the UPA to pave way for an anti-RJD government in Bihar," said BJP spokesperson Arun Jaitley. Accompanied by BJP vice-president Sushil Kumar Modi, state unit party president Gopal Narayan Singh, former union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and its legislature party leader in the outgoing assembly Ashwani Choubey, Jaitley said BJP was "flexible to formation of an anti-RJD government". He, however, did not clarify what he meant by being "flexible". "First Paswan should come out of UPA and then we will sort out these issues, Jaitley said when asked about whether the NDA would give the top post to Paswan or would stick to the name of senior JD (U) leader Nitish Kumar.

Traders to protest against VAT (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: The traders have said that Parliament will be gheraoed tomorrow in protest against the implementation of VAT from April 1. After this first round, "the second round of this protest will follow a nationwide bandh from March 29 to April 1," said Sandip Bansal , Chairman of Akhil Bhartiya Udyog Vyapar Mandal. Alleging that the Congress had changed its stand on VAT after coming to power, Bansal said traders would boycott Congress MPs in their constituencies if the new tax system was introduced. He also charged BJP with not having any firm stand on the issue of introduction of VAT across the nation.

Women's reservation soon: Sonia (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: Chairperson of the National Advisory Council Sonia Gandhi today said that a solution of the issue of providing women reservation in Parliament would be found out soon. Sonia was speaking in the Capital after honouring women entrepreneurs on the occasion of International Women's Day. On the occasion, Sonia honoured as many as 25 women entrepreneurs belonging to Scheduled Castes, Other Backward Classes and minorities. Among those honoured were Safai Karamcharis and disabled women. These women, living below the double poverty line have risen above their trying circumstances to become successful entrepreneurs. Sonia presented them a citation, a momento, a shawl and a sari/ suit. Sonia said like representative bodies like Panchayats, national and state legislatures should have one-third reservation for women.

     Describing the women's issues as national issues, she said it was the society's responsibility to address them. "All of you must be thinking that I never mentioned about women in Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha. I have taken a pledge that like Panchayats, national and state legislatures should also have one- third reservation for women. And today I want to say that I have already started working on this and soon shall find a solution," said Sonia. Sonia called for national initiative to prevent all forms of atrocities against women. She said political parties, voluntary organisations, NGOs and media have a major role in it. She said that change in attitude and enactment of new laws to make gender equality possible is required. Referring to Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi's initiative on Panchayati Raj, the Congress president said that there are today 10 lakh women panchayat members in the country. She said this year for the first time gender budgeting has been done. Gursharan Kaur, wife of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, several union ministers, Members of Parliament and senior officials of the Ministry for Social Justice and Empowerment also attended the function.

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