The post Shashi Tharoor Misses Congress MPs Meeting Chaired by Rahul Gandhi for the Third Time appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>Tharoor’s social media posts indicated that he was in Kolkata on Thursday night to speak at an event organised by the Prabha Khaitan Foundation.
Rahul Gandhi, serving as the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, chaired the meeting, interacted with the party MPs, and gathered their feedback on recent parliamentary developments. According to party sources, Gandhi remarked during the meeting that the government appeared to be ‘under pressure’ from the opposition on issues such as the Vande Mataram debate and electoral reforms.
read also: Shashi Tharoor Rejects Veer Savarkar Award, Clarifies Stance on Controversial Honor
This marks the third occasion on which Tharoor has remained absent from an important party meeting. Earlier, on December 1, the Thiruvananthapuram MP clarified that he had not deliberately avoided the Congress strategic group gathering held a day earlier. He explained that he was on a flight returning from Kerala when the meeting took place.
When questioned about the matter, Tharoor said, “I did not skip it; I was on a plane, coming from Kerala.”
His absence from a recent strategy discussion chaired by Sonia Gandhi, ahead of the Parliament’s winter session, drew significant attention—particularly because he had also missed the earlier meeting on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) issue, citing health concerns.
According to his office, he was travelling with his 90-year-old mother on a later flight from Kerala, which made it impossible for him to reach Delhi in time. Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal was also unable to attend the meeting owing to his commitments related to local body election campaigning in Kerala.
Tharoor’s repeated absence from crucial party deliberations has increasingly become a subject of discussion within Congress circles.
The post Shashi Tharoor Misses Congress MPs Meeting Chaired by Rahul Gandhi for the Third Time appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>The post Rahul Gandhi Accuses RSS of Attempting to Influence India’s Institutions appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>read also: Delhi Court Seeks Responses from Sonia Gandhi and Police on Plea Challenging Earlier Order on Citizenship-Linked Voter Entry
Gandhi said that following Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination, the RSS pursued what he described as a long-term goal of gaining control over India’s institutional framework, arguing that the current political atmosphere reflects the results of that sustained effort.
He further contended that the organisation does not support the principle of equality, insisting that its ideology is rooted in hierarchy rather than fairness. According to him, the belief that every Indian is equal “unsettles” those aligned with the RSS.
Emphasising the foundation of Indian democracy, Gandhi said the strength of the nation lies in the equal value of each citizen’s vote. He added that India, with its population of 1.5 billion people, is held together by the democratic right to vote, and he warned that any move to weaken electoral integrity threatens the country’s unity.
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]]>The post Delhi Court Seeks Responses from Sonia Gandhi and Police on Plea Challenging Earlier Order on Citizenship-Linked Voter Entry appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>Special Judge Vishal Gogne issued notices while hearing a revision petition that disputes the magistrate’s September 11 ruling.
The earlier order had rejected the complaint, stating that the allegations appeared crafted to confer legal authority on the court despite lacking merit, substance, or jurisdictional validity.
The judge has scheduled the case for further hearing on January 6.
The revision plea was submitted by advocate Vikas Tripathi, who serves as vice president of the Central Delhi Court Bar Association at Rouse Avenue courts.
Representing Tripathi, senior advocate Pavan Narang told the magisterial court that Sonia Gandhi’s name was allegedly added to the New Delhi constituency voter list in January 1980, a period during which she had not yet become an Indian citizen.
The petitioner further alleged that the entry involved falsification of records and resulted in deception of a public authority.
However, the magistrate dismissed the original plea seeking an investigation, concluding that the complainant was attempting to trigger criminal proceedings by urging the court to assume a jurisdiction it did not legally possess.
The post Delhi Court Seeks Responses from Sonia Gandhi and Police on Plea Challenging Earlier Order on Citizenship-Linked Voter Entry appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>The post Deaths of Two Booth Level Officers Raise Concerns Over Workload During Electoral Roll Revision appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>West Bengal recorded its fourth booth level officer death, since the revision began on November 4, prompting a Trinamool Congress delegation to meet the full bench of the Election Commission in Delhi and accuse the poll body chief of carrying moral responsibility for the deaths.
Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav also attacked the ongoing revision process, calling it a large scale conspiracy against citizens that he claimed could create a situation more oppressive than the colonial period.
The special intensive revision is currently underway in twelve states and Union territories.
In Gujarat’s Mehsana district, Dinesh Raval, a 50 year old teacher, at a government primary school in Sudasana village, passed away from a heart attack at his home between Thursday night and Friday morning according to Sadasana police sub inspector Udaysinh Zala.
Opposition leaders and teachers’ unions linked his death to heavy workload and inadequate support for booth level officers, though police denied any connection between his duties and the incident
Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi stated that booth level officers are under intense pressure to complete assigned tasks within strict deadlines, while Gujarat State Primary Teacher Association president Digvijaysinh Jadeja said he had heard from other teachers that Raval had been experiencing stress due to his BLO responsibilities.
In West Bengal’s Murshidabad district, Zakir Hossain, a teacher in a state run primary school deployed as a booth level officer, collapsed on Thursday after reporting severe chest pain and was taken to a local hospital where he died later that night according to his family.
Relatives said Hossain had been struggling to balance his booth level duties with regular teaching, and claimed that his school did not relieve him from classroom responsibilities despite multiple requests, forcing him to juggle both roles.
Leaders of the Trinamool Congress, including Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, have accused the Election Commission of assigning an unreasonable and poorly planned workload to booth level officers.
The Bharatiya Janata Party rejected the allegations and argued that any stress faced by booth level officers stemmed from pressure exerted by the ruling Trinamool Congress rather than the Election Commission.
A ten member TMC delegation led by Rajya Sabha MP Derek O Brien met EC officials in Delhi and raised five questions regarding the deaths and the workload, but said they received no direct answers from Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Mahua Moitra said the delegation submitted a list of forty individuals whose deaths they claim are linked to the revision process, but the Commission dismissed the list as unverified allegations.
Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav posted a video on social media urging opposition parties, including NDA allies, to unite and expose what he described as a large scale plan by the BJP, warning that tampering with voter rolls could eventually lead to removal of names from land records, ration cards, caste certificates, social welfare lists, and even bank accounts.
BJP spokesperson Harishchandra Srivastava rejected Yadav’s comments and accused him of attempting to create fear and confusion among citizens.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission announced that Lakshadweep has become the first Union territory to complete full distribution and digitisation of enumeration forms under the special intensive revision.
The post Deaths of Two Booth Level Officers Raise Concerns Over Workload During Electoral Roll Revision appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>The post BJP Emerges Victorious in Bihar Assembly Polls, NDA Surges Ahead appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>read also: Congress Claims Bihar Election Outcome Was Manipulated on a Massive Scale
Despite pre-election surveys and opinion polls that favored Tejashwi Yadav, the chief ministerial candidate from the Mahagathbandhan, the opposition alliance seemed to face a crushing defeat The Mahagathbandhan, comprising Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Congress, three Left parties, and smaller factions, was barely on track to reach 35 seats.
The BJP’s remarkable achievement of winning 35 seats and leading in an additional 55 of the 101 constituencies it contested further solidifies its status as the country’s top political force The party’s performance helps offset setbacks from the previous year’s Lok Sabha elections, where it had to rely on coalition partners to maintain power at the center.
The high turnout of female voters, who outnumbered male voters by almost 10 percentage points, was seen as a key factor favoring the BJP-led NDA Various studies suggested that women voters in Bihar tend to favor the NDA.
The NDA’s victory in Bihar follows its strong performances in Delhi, Maharashtra, and Haryana, reaffirming its dominance across the country.
Prime Minister Modi and his ministers’ strong support for Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar seemed to pay off for the Janata Dal-United (JD-U), which is expected to improve drastically on its 2020 performance of only 43 seats JD-U has now secured 24 seats and was leading in 64 others, with a nearly 19 percent vote share.
The Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), led by Union Minister Chirag Paswan, has also made gains, winning two seats and leading in 17 constituencies, despite having only 28 candidates in the race.
A simple majority in Bihar’s assembly requires 122 seats, and the NDA’s current tally places it well above this threshold.
Promises of “double-engine growth,” with the NDA in power at both the state and central levels, were popular among voters Issues like free electricity, increased social security pensions, and financial support to women appear to have resonated strongly with the electorate.
In contrast, the Opposition struggled to counter the BJP’s claims about the RJD, with its leader Tejashwi Yadav being criticized for allegedly continuing the legacy of “jungle raj”.
The election was held in two phases, and amid allegations of irregularities in the electoral roll revision, the outcome is seen as a potential precursor to the upcoming assembly elections in West Bengal and Assam.
Celebrations erupted in Patna, with BJP and JD-U workers marking their victories with drums, firecrackers, and slogans.
Among BJP’s prominent winners were Deputy CM Samrat Choudhary (Tarapur), and ministers Prem Kumar (Gaya Town), Sanjay Saraogi, and Raju Kumar Singh (Sahebganj) JD-U also had significant wins, including Minister Maheshwar Hazari (Kalyanpur) and former MLA Anant Kumar Singh (Mokama).
The RJD, despite being the largest opposition party, faced a poor showing with just six seats and 20 leads According to the Election Commission, Tejashwi Yadav, who was expected to perform well in his home constituency of Raghopur, faced an initial struggle but gained momentum later in the counting rounds.
Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi’s Hindustani Awam Morcha and Rajya Sabha MP Upendra Kushwah’s Rashtriya Lok Morcha, both junior allies of the NDA, secured strong positions with five and four seats respectively.
The Congress, often criticized for being a weak link in the INDIA alliance, performed poorly, winning only one seat and leading in five others out of 61 contested.
Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM, which contested 32 seats, was ahead in six constituencies, while Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party failed to secure any leads.
The BJP’s performance raises the possibility of internal demands for the party to consider a chief minister from its ranks, especially given its strong showing in this election and the JD-U’s underperformance.
Bihar remains one of the few states where the BJP has yet to independently form a government, but Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have consistently backed Nitish Kumar’s leadership, a strategy reflecting the BJP’s reliance on coalition partners for power.
The post BJP Emerges Victorious in Bihar Assembly Polls, NDA Surges Ahead appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>The post Assam CM Mulls Legal Action Against Karnataka Minister Over Remark on Assamese Youth appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>Sarma sharply criticised the Congress party for failing to denounce Kharge’s remarks, calling them offensive to the youth of Assam. He stated that the comments undermine the capability and education of young people in the state. The Chief Minister went on to describe the Karnataka minister as a first-class fool for making such a statement
According to reports, Priyank Kharge told a television channel that investments originally intended for Karnataka were being redirected to Gujarat and Assam because of pressure from the central government. Responding to this, Sarma said his administration was exploring legal options to determine whether a case could be filed, as the remarks were an insult to Assamese youth and their competence
Sarma emphasised that such statements not only question the skills of the state’s youth but also reflect poorly on those who make them. He reiterated that Assam has capable and educated individuals contributing to various sectors and that the state should not be undermined in national discussions
The post Assam CM Mulls Legal Action Against Karnataka Minister Over Remark on Assamese Youth appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>The post “If Constitutional Officers Fail in Their Duties, Should Courts Sit Idle?” – Supreme Court’s Scathing Observation appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>Legal experts see this as a stern warning against negligence in governance. Constitutional authorities, which include governors, chief ministers, and other officials, hold critical responsibilities to ensure that democracy functions effectively. When such duties are ignored, the burden falls on the judiciary to intervene – a situation the court clearly wants to avoid.
Political analysts believe the remark is a reflection of the judiciary’s growing frustration with rising cases of institutional breakdown. Critics argue that the over-dependence on courts for every governance issue dilutes the separation of powers, while supporters say the judiciary is the last line of defense when constitutional values are undermined.
The statement has already triggered intense discussions among politicians, lawyers, and activists. Many now expect stricter scrutiny of cases involving negligence by public office holders.
The post “If Constitutional Officers Fail in Their Duties, Should Courts Sit Idle?” – Supreme Court’s Scathing Observation appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>The post If Constitutional Officers Fail in Their Duties, Should Courts Sit Idle? appeared first on The Edge Media.
]]>Legal experts see this as a stern warning against negligence in governance. Constitutional authorities, which include governors, chief ministers, and other officials, hold critical responsibilities to ensure that democracy functions effectively. When such duties are ignored, the burden falls on the judiciary to intervene – a situation the court clearly wants to avoid.
Political analysts believe the remark is a reflection of the judiciary’s growing frustration with rising cases of institutional breakdown. Critics argue that the over-dependence on courts for every governance issue dilutes the separation of powers, while supporters say the judiciary is the last line of defense when constitutional values are undermined.
The statement has already triggered intense discussions among politicians, lawyers, and activists. Many now expect stricter scrutiny of cases involving negligence by public office holders.
The post If Constitutional Officers Fail in Their Duties, Should Courts Sit Idle? appeared first on The Edge Media.
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