UP govt laud Lokayukta for exposing memorial scam

Lucknow: The ruling Samajwadi Party on Monday said that all those indicted by Uttar Pradesh Lokayukta, for syphoning off public money in construction of memorials during the BSP regime, would be punished according to the law. In a statement issued here, SP spokesman Rajendra Chaudhary said that Lokayukta, vigilance and CBI were probing scams of the previous Mayawati regime and the results were appalling.

"All records of misuse of the government were broken. A dozen ministers of the BSP government are involved in serious crimes like disproportionate assets, extortion, murder and rape," he alleged. Chaudhary said that instead of working with a sense of vendetta, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has emphasised on establishing "Rule of Law". Reacting on the Lokayukta report, Bhartiya Janata Party said that the SP government should now act against corruption and scams of the BSP rule.

Can the congress distance itself from Jagan Reddy?

In a dramatic development, Andhra Pradesh Home Minister P Sabita Reddy and Roads and Buildings Minister D Prasada Rao, who were named as accused in disproportionate assets case involving Kadapa MP YS Jaganmohan Reddy, late on Sunday night submitted their resignations to Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy.

Jagan's DA case: Cong under pressure as two ministers step down

The Congress government in Andhra Pradesh is under pressure after two ministers named in the Jagan Reddy disproportionate assets case stepped down on Sunday night. Voices of dissent from within gained ground even as Jagan's wife Bharathi Reddy wrote to the Prime Minister, alleging the CBI probe is unfair and that her husband is being victimised.

'CAG did disservice by tossing 'mythical' numbers'

New Delhi: Taking on CAG Vinod Rai over the 2G spectrum loss figure of Rs 1.76 lakh crore, Union Minister Manish Tewari on Monday said the chief auditor had done a "disservice" to the India story by bringing out "hugely exaggerated and mythical numbers" in public discourse. Tewari also invited Rai to a public debate over the loss estimate in the allocation of 2G spectrum.

"We've seen this great debate around certain hugely exaggerated and mythical numbers which have been thrown in public debate by certain very responsible institutions and functionaries. And with due respect, because the gentleman is supposed to retire the day after... I think when institutions start indulging in fiction writing that is the greatest disservice that can possibly be done to an issue," he said.

Rahul Gandhi removes all zonal presidents from UP Cong

New Delhi: Amid mounting complaints to Rahul Gandhi, Congress on Monday removed all the eight zonal presidents in Uttar Pradesh including two Union Ministers RPN Singh and Jitin Prasada and CWC member Rasheed Masood and brought in local leaders in their place. Zonal presidents who faced the axe included senior leaders like PL Punia and Rajaram Pal, MP and state leaders Vivek Singh, Anugrah Narayan Singh and Bijendra Singh.

They were appointed as zonal presidents only in late 2012 and there were complaints of 'non-performance' against them in reaching out to the people. The move to have zonal presidents and vice presidents was the brainchild of Gandhi as part of his plans to tone up the organisation.

BJP reminds Nitish of his responsibility to strengthen NDA

Patna: Amid sparring between ruling NDA partners in Bihar, the BJP on Monday said Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was duty-bound to strengthen the alliance as he has been an anti-Congress leader all his life. "Having been an anti-Congress leader during his entire public life, Nitish Kumar too has responsibility to strengthen NDA," BJP national vice-president and Rajya Sabha MP Prabhat Jha said.

He expressed confidence that strains between BJP and JD(U) over the latter's reservations against projection of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi would blow over in course of time and Nitish would come on board in the end on BJP's choice of the prime ministerial candidate. The BJP leadership will take a call on its choice of its prime ministerial candidate at an appropriate time, Jha, a Madhya Pradesh-based leader, said adding Nitish should have no doubt that Modi remains "by far the most popular" leader of the country.

Dalit Memorial scam: UP Lokayukta asks Maya aides to pay Rs 1,400 cr

Lucknow: In a huge setback for former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati, the state government has named the BSP chief's key confidant in its report on the Dalit Memorial Scam and asked for a Rs 1,400 crore compensation.

The UP Lokayukta, NK Mehrotra, has named Mayawati's key aide former minister Nasimuddin Siddiqui and Mayawati's former right hand man Babu Singh Kushwaha as the main accused in the scam.

Full text: PM's statement on Chinese Premier Li Kiang's visit to India

India and China on Monday signed eight agreements during Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's visit to India. Premier Li held talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and issues along the Indo-China border were also discussed. Following is the text of Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh's statement to the media following delegation level talks with Chinese Premier HE Li Keqiang in New Delhi today:

"It is an honour for me to welcome Premier Li on his first official visit to India. It has been an immense pleasure to get to know him personally. I sincerely appreciate his reaching out to me on his first day in office and his choosing India as his first foreign destination as Premier.

DA case: Jagan Reddy's wife attacks CBI

New Delhi: With Jaganmohan Reddy completing a year in jail after his arrest in a disproportionate assets case, his wife Bharathi on Monday attacked CBI, alleging it was controlled by partisan interests and had delayed probe to keep him in prison.

Bharathi shot off a letter to CBI chief Ranjit Sinha alleging the investigation is being conducted in a "possibly politically motivated" manner and said that she had reasons to believe that the "Congress run CBI intends to keep my husband in custody until the General Elections".

Ishrat Jahan fake encounter: Sharad Pawar slams Modi

Thane: Targeting Narendra Modi over the alleged fake encounter of Mumbra resident Ishrat Jahan in 2004, Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said here that the Chief Minister and Gujarat Police had killed an innocent college girl by branding her as a terrorist.

"Modi had then announced that he was proud of his police force for gunning down terrorists. He boasted that the encounter was a feather in the cap of the Gujarat police, while the Mumbai police had failed to do their duty," Pawar said on his visit to Mumbra on Sunday.