As the UPA readies itself for the poll year, the Cabinet reshuffle is expected to be the last for the current term. What does it indicate about Congress' strategy for the general elections? Business Standard's editor AK Bhattacharya joined IBNLive readers for an interaction on the issue.
Q. How much of this reshuffle infuse their cadres leading into the 2014 elections?...do the names doing the rounds have more credibility on their performance to deliver and hence would send out a good signal to it's electorate?..or is it more about accommodating some big names? Asked by: JK
A. You have answered your question at the end. It is largely to accommodate some names that had to be given ministerial slots. It would not make any significant difference to governance or the government's administrative effectiveness....
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05:45 PM, Jun 17, 2013
New Delhi: A day after the Congress announced its new working committee members, senior party leader and the new face of the Congress media wing Ajay Maken claimed that the party is growing under Rahul Gandhi while the NDA is shrinking. In a press conference, Ajay Maken said in today's age of communication, accessibility is one of the most important aspects. In the backdrop of JD(U)-BJP split in Bihar, Ajay...
05:06 PM, Jun 17, 2013
New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on Sunday called on Congress President Sonia Gandhi and discussed issues relating to preparation for upcoming assembly election, in which Congress will seek to retain power for fourth consecutive terms. Dikshit's meeting with Gandhi came before AICC announced a major organisational reshuffle, in which Shakeel Ahmed has been made AICC in-charge of Delhi. Another prominent Congress leader from Delhi Ajay Maken has been...
01:12 AM, Jun 17, 2013
New Delhi: The Congress on Sunday announced new working committee members, a day ahead of the proposed reshuffle-cum-expansion of the Union Council of Ministers. Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi will look after frontal organisations. Meanwhile, Ajay Maken and CP Joshi, who resigned as ministers from the UPA government, have been made general secretaries of the party. CP Joshi will look after West Bengal, Assam and Andaman Nicobar islands, whereas Maken...
05:20 PM, Jun 16, 2013
New Delhi: Union Ministers Ajay Maken and CP Joshi have resigned ahead of the Cabinet reshuffle on Monday. President Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday accepted both the resignations. Meanwhile, UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi and Congress leader Ahmed Patel met on Sunday ahead of the reshuffle. Sources said that more ministers are set to resign in the next 24 hours which also includes Jairam Ramesh. The ministers...
12:59 PM, Jun 16, 2013
New Delhi: Union Minister Ajay Maken on Saturday resigned ahead of a Cabinet reshuffle next week. Maken said that he wants to work for the party. Maken submitted his resignation as Union Minister for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and has expressed his desire to work for the party, said sources. 49-year-old Maken, a Delhi Congress leader, is expected to be assigned a position in the AICC, most probably as...
07:29 AM, Jun 16, 2013
New Delhi: Ajay Maken resigned as the Housing Minister on Saturday night ahead of the reshuffle of the Council of Ministers and that of the AICC expected next week. Maken submitted his resignation as Union Minister for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and has expressed his desire to work for the party, sources said. The 49-year-old leader was earlier Minister of State for Home Affairs and was later given independent...
09:59 PM, Jun 15, 2013
New Delhi: Even as Law Minister Kapil Sibal proposed a new law to fight fixing in sports, his Cabinet colleagues Rajiv Shukla and Ajay Maken spoke in two different voices over the exemption of BCCI from the Right to Information Act. Union Minister Ajay Maken, who earlier held the sports portfolio, wants the BCCI brought under the Right to Information Act. He tweeted, "BCCI should agree to come under RTI....
07:56 AM, May 20, 2013
New Delhi: Against the backdrop of allegations of spot-fixing during IPL matches, Union Minister Ajay Maken Sunday said the BCCI - the national governing body for cricket in India - should come under the ambit of the RTI Act. "BCCI should agree to come under RTI. Any organisation entrusted with job of selecting a National Team can not call itself a Private Body!," Maken, who till recently held the Sports...
06:26 PM, May 19, 2013
Hyderabad: The Central Government would soon come up with a new policy of National Urban Livelihood Mission (NULM) to alleviate poverty in urban areas, Union Minister Ajay Maken said in Hyderabad on Friday. Maken, Union Minister for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, is on a two-day visit to the Andhra Pradesh capital to study and review the urban poverty alleviation programmes in urban areas implemented by the state government. He...
12:55 AM, May 11, 2013
New Delhi: Government plans to set up a tough regulator for the real estate sector with provisions for even jail term for the developer for putting out misleading advertisements about projects. The proposed regulator will also make it mandatory for developers to launch projects only after acquiring all the statutory clearances from relevant authorities, Minister for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Ajay Maken said at the National Editors' Conference in...
03:50 AM, Mar 25, 2013
The central government will monitor the periodical up-gradation of slums in the country by making a "slum upgradation index", a union minister said on Thursday. ...
03:51 AM, Mar 22, 2013
In a further indication of his increasing role in the day to day affairs of the Congress, Rahul Gandhi on Monday held separate meetings with party MPs from Delhi and Tamil Nadu in Parliament House, an exercise earlier done by party president Sonia Gandhi during every session. ...
07:32 PM, Mar 04, 2013
A bill to regulate street vendors in public areas and protect their rights is likely to be passed in the ongoing Budget Session. The Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood & Regulation of Street Vending) Bill is likely to be passed in this ongoing Budget Session, Union Housing Development and Urban Poverty Alleviation Minister Ajay Maken said in Mumbai on Tuesday. ...
06:53 PM, Feb 26, 2013
A bill will be introduced in the Budget session of Parliament to grant rights to street vendors for ensuring their livelihood without any harassment by various agencies, Union Minister Ajay Maken said on Sunday. ...
02:56 AM, Jan 28, 2013
AIFF has been given time till March and if it fails FIFA will make the open the bid for other interested nations as well. ...
05:00 PM, Jan 14, 2013
Ahmedabad: Union Minister for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, Ajay Maken on Saturday questioned the feasibility of Chief Minister Narendra Modi's claim to build 50 lakh low-cost houses in the next five years, and said that he was misleading the poor in Gujarat with such promises. "I was really surprised to know that in the manifesto of BJP which was released by Modi, they have announced to build 50 lakh...
01:31 AM, Dec 09, 2012
Ahmedabad: Union Minister for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Ajay Maken on Saturday mounted a scathing attack on Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi for consistently making false promises on homes for the poor in the state. "While in 2002, Modi had promised to make 15 lakh houses, a promise totally unfulfilled, he has again promised to build 50 lakh houses in the run-up to the current elections," Maken said. "Leave...
11:51 PM, Dec 08, 2012
Here's a look at the nominees of CNN-IBN's Indian of the year in the category of Politics. ...
11:58 PM, Nov 26, 2012
New Delhi: Sports Minister Jitendra Singh on Friday said the Ministry is planning to open sports schools, sports universities and 30 centres of excellence across the country to ensure better facilities for the sportspersons. Stating that the Ministry in keen on identifying and nurturing the talent at grassroots level, Singh said, "Ministry is working on a plan to open sports schools, sports universities and centre of excellence. The ministry is...
02:03 PM, Nov 16, 2012
