Bjp

BJP MP Pragya Thakur has been facing flak for the “keep knives sharpened” remark she made on Sunday in Karnataka’s Shivamogga at a Hindu Jagarana Vedike event. Responding to the remark made by BJP leader Pragya Thakur, Karnataka Congress MLA Priyank Kharge said that they will file a legal complaint against the statement. While stating that she is a terror accused, he said, “I don’t know why Karnataka government is encouraging such an environment.”

“It is unfortunate that such statements are being made by an MP. She is already a terror accused. I don’t know why Karnataka is encouraging such an atmosphere. We will file a legal complaint against it,” Kharge said as quoted by news agency ANI.

Belagavi | It is unfortunate that such statements are being made by an MP. She is already a terror accused. I don’t know why Karnataka is encouraging such an atmosphere. We will file a legal complaint against it: Priyank Kharge, Karnataka Congress MLA https://t.co/4kskNCpTPQ pic.twitter.com/57WroQmLCD

— ANI (@ANI) December 27, 2022

Also read | ‘Will India Run By Knife?’ Congress Asks PM Modi Over Pragya Thakur’s ‘Keep Blades’ Advice To Hindus

Meanwhile, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh called BJP MP’s speech a textbook case of hate speech. Taking to Twitter, the Congress leader said, “Text book case of hate speech. She can and must be prosecuted.”

Addressing people at Hindu Jagarana Vedike in Shivamogga, MP Pragya Thakur said, “Keep your daughters safe and protected. Keep weapons at home. Sharpen the knife used to cut vegetables. If our vegetables are cut well, heads and mouths of our enemies will also be cut well.”

Meanwhile, Tehseen Poonawalla registered a complaint against BJP MP Pragya Thakur for her alleged hate speech. Taking to Twitter, he wrote, “Requesting Shivamogga police to kindly register an FIR u/s 153-A, 153-B,268,295-A,298,504,508 (IPC).”

With Assembly Elections in Karnataka just a few months away, the state Congress on Tuesday announced that they will begin a bus yatra — Prajadhwani Yatra — on Wednesday from Belagavi. The yatra will cover all 224 constituencies in the State, said Congress leader and former CM Siddaramaiah.

Meanwhile, they have also released a charge against BJP in the state. “They (BJP) formed the government through unethical means. So, we are going to take out a bus yatra which will cover all districts starting from Belagavi,” said Siddaramaiah as quoted by news agency ANI.

While giving details of the yatra, the Congress leader said, “Two groups will be formed for the Congress bus yatra – one group to be headed by me and another by DK Shivakumar. Before the Assembly elections, we will cover all 224 constituencies in the State.”

We have released a chargesheet against BJP. They formed the government through unethical means. So, we are going to take out a bus yatra which will cover all districts starting from Belagavi: Congress leader Siddaramaiah

— ANI (@ANI) January 10, 2023

Failed policies of the double-engine BJP government have resulted in the drastic increase in the prices of essential commodities hurting the poor and middle-class people, said a Congress release. It has also caused great distress to the farmers in Karnataka, leading to the state becoming infamous for the second-highest number of farmer suicides in the country, the release pointed out.

The BJP government’s focus on 40 per cent commission has resulted in the death of more than 3.5 lakh Kannadigas during the pandemic and pushed innocent contractors to commit suicide.

With Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai acting as a puppet in the hands of BJP’s High Command, Congress will not let BJP run riot and destroy the lives of the people of Karnataka, read the release.

“As representatives of the people of Karnataka, witnessed your suffering and we’ll hold the BJP accountable for their crimes. The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee is releasing BJP’s ‘Paapada Purana’ (An account of sins) to expose the failures of the BJP government, outlining their record of corruption, policy paralysis, and unfulfilled promises,” said Congress in a release.

ರಾಜ್ಯದ ಅಭಿವೃದ್ಧಿಯನ್ನು ಕಡೆಗಣಿಸಿರುವ @BJP4Karnataka ಸರ್ಕಾರದ “ಪಾಪದ ಪುರಾಣ” ಬಯಲಾಗಿದೆ. https://t.co/UfEqUsQKFf ಗೆ ಭೇಟಿ ಕೊಡಿ pic.twitter.com/13TfvZItze

— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) January 10, 2023

The Congress has assured to reach out to every Kannadiga through the ‘Prajadhwani yatra’. The congress released the logo of the yatra, “We take this opportunity to release the logo of our campaign which will be the symbol of hope and a prosperous future for Karnataka.”

BJP leader Ramesh Jarkiholi, who had resigned as Karnataka minister about two years ago owing to a sex scandal, on Monday accused Congress state president DK Shivakumar of being involved in the conspiracy to discredit him and demanded an inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation against the “racket” behind it.

Jarkiholi, a minister holding the Water Resources portfolio, had resigned from his post in 2021 owing to the sex scandal, which had embarrassed the state government just ahead of a few states going to polls including West Bengal. the woman, who was at the centre of the controversy, had alleged that the minister exploited her with the assurance of securing her a government job, a charge denied by Jarkiholi.

On Monday, the BJP Gokak MLA said the woman and her accomplices including two people from Mandya should be arrested to bring out the truth in the case.

“I demand that the state government should hand over the case to the CBI. The girl should be arrested along with her accomplices, including two people from Mandya, whose names I will disclose before the CBI,” Jarkiholi said in a press meet at a private hotel here.

The former minister alleged that Congress leader Shivakumar tried to spoil his personal life.

“D K Shivakumar is unfit to be a politician. No one should spoil someone’s personal life. I never made personal attacks,” the BJP leader charged.

The former minister claimed he has evidence to prove that Shivakumar was behind it.

According to him, there are several sleaze videos of many politicians, including Congress leaders and top bureaucrats of the state, which are used for blackmailing.

“This is a very serious matter because many people have been honey trapped including Congress leaders and top officers who are being blackmailed. I urge the state government to hand over the case to the CBI,” Jarkiholi said.

The BJP MLA also said he would hand over the audio/video files and documentary evidence of illegal money transactions to the CBI if the state government handed over the case to the central agency.

Shivakumar was not available for comments. The Congress has also not reacted to the BJP leader’s allegations.

Since Jarkiholi had made indirect references to Congress MLA Laxmi Hebbalkar alleging that she was also part of the conspiracy, her brother Channaraj Hattiholi condemned the statement.

Addressing a press conference, Hattiholi, a Congress leader, said there was no clarity in the press meet convened by Jarkiholi.

“It is easy to make allegations. Instead of levelling charges and speaking lies, if you (Jarkiholi) make documents and evidence public, we will give you a reply,” Hattiholi said.

He also wondered why the BJP government did not hand over the sex scandal case to the CBI forcing the Gokak MLA to demand it after remaining silent for nearly two years.

(This report is published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)

Kuldeep Bishnoi, an Indian National Congress dissident leader, has resigned from Vidhan Sabha and will join the BJP on Thursday, August 4, ending his six-year relationship with the party he left in 2007 and rejoined in 2016, news agency PTI reported.

Bishnoi, 53, presented his resignation to Speaker Gian Chand Gupta in Chandigarh, who accepted it. This implies a byelection for Bishnoi’s existing seat in Hisar district, Adampur.

Bhavya Bishnoi, the MLA’s son who ran unsuccessfully in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from Hisar, has also left the Congress.

Kuldeep Bishnoi had met with prominent BJP leaders in recent weeks, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah and party chairman J P Nadda, showered adulation on them, and given clear signs that he was leaving the Congress.

“I am joining BJP as an ordinary worker and I hope that all my supporters, be they from Haryana, Rajasthan or parts of Punjab, will be given full respect,” Bishnoi was quoted by PTI in its report.

Bishnoi formally resigned from Congress after “considering his own sentiments as well as those of supporters.”

Bishnoi immediately challenged Congress politician Bhupinder Singh Hooda to run from Adampur after resigning.

“Hooda had challenged me that Kuldeep Bishnoi should first resign (before joining the BJP). I challenge him, he had been a chief minister for 10 years, let him contest from Adampur against me or my son,” he said.

In response to Bishnoi’s statement, Haryana Congress chief Udai Bhan said, “The man who lives abroad for six months and remains inaccessible is talking of throwing a challenge.”

“On one hand, Bishnoi is saying he is keen that his son contest from Adampur and on the other, he is throwing a challenge for Hooda ji. The Congress party’s ordinary worker is enough to defeat him,” Bhan further addded.

The Congress removed Bishnoi from all party posts shortly after he cross-voted in the Rajya Sabha elections in June. The four-time MLA and two-time MP had been fuming since the party brushed him away for the position of Haryana unit president during a restructuring earlier this year.

It will be the younger son of former Haryana chief minister Bhajan Lal’s second departure from the Congress, nearly six years after he rejoined the party.

“I feel the Congress is no longer what it used to be during Indira ji and Rajiv Gandhi ji’s time. The Congress has deviated from its ideology. It has been reduced to a party of ‘chatukars’ (sycophants). Many of those who are running the party are those who either have not fought elections or haven’t won for decades,” Bishnoi stated.

“All decisions taken by them are proving wrong across the entire country,” he said.

(With Inputs From PTI)

New Delhi: The BJP’s development claims in Himachal Pradesh are “hollow” and the people have made up their mind to bring the grand old party to power in the state, senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda said on Wednesday.

The former Haryana chief minister has been campaigning in Himachal’s Kullu-Manali and Lahaul area ahead of the November 12 assembly polls.

The state has a history of alternating between the Congress and the BJP every assembly election since 1982.

Chief Minister Jairam Thakur said on Monday that the Congress may be banking on Himachal’s ‘riwaz’ (convention) but people have made up their mind to break from tradition this time and bring back the Bharatiya Janata Party to accelerate development.

Hooda, however, said it is the voice of common people who are saying ‘riwaz nahi raj badlega’ (government will change, not convention) and the BJP government will be voted out in the elections.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi had to campaign in Chief Minister Jairam Thakur’s home district Mandi, “which indicates this government is feeling shaky,” he said.

Hooda said people have made up their mind to bring the Congress to power in the state.

“There is good response in favour of the Congress. I interacted with a cross-section of people including shopkeepers, women and cultivators. Every section is unhappy with their policies,” Hooda told PTI.

In the last five years, the Jairam Thakur government did not get big projects for the state, he said.   “Development is not visible on the ground as they claim. The government’s development claims are hollow. This has been a non-performing government,” he said.

He said the Old Pension Scheme, which the Congress has restored in the states ruled by the party, will be implemented on coming to power in Himachal.

“Besides, there are burning issues like unemployment, inflation, there are issues faced by apple growers. Cost of input has increased manifold, but they are not getting remunerative price,” Hooda said.

“Hoteliers say their work was affected during Covid period, but they did not get any relief. Similarly, there are issues faced by taxi drivers. Tourism significantly contributes to Himachal’s economy, but the government here is not sensitive to the concerns of various stakeholders,” he said.

Hooda said in some villages in Manali area where he campaigned for the Congress candidates, there was encouraging response from the people including women.

“The Congress has promised Rs 1,500 per month to women aged between 18 and 60. Besides, our party has promised several initiatives for their empowerment,” he said.