New Delhi: Distancing himself from the UPA's falling fortunes, Samajwadi Party Chief Mulayam Singh Yadav may skip the dinner which Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will host on Wednesday for its allies and supporting parties, according to sources.
An invite has also gone to the BSP's Maywawati. However, sources say she may skip the dinner too, but the key aide Satish Mishra will be attending. Both SP and BSP support the UPA from the outside. The government's run in office has been marked by several scams, political drama and hectic parlays with allies.
Manmohan Singh will present the last Report Card of UPA-II in which he is expected to list the positives such as Direct Benefit Transfer and FDI in retail in a bid to boost the sagging morale of Congressmen with elections less than a year away. Battered by series of scams and the recent sacking of Cabinet Ministers PK Bansal and Ashwani Kumar, the Prime Minister's task to present a positive picture is not easy.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi and leaders of UPA constituents will be present at a dinner in which Singh will present the Report Card on the fourth anniversary of UPA-II. Sonia is expected to showcase her backing for the Prime Minister in the backdrop of reports that the two had sharp differences, which has been denied by the party....
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10:08 AM, May 22, 2013
On the UPA's fourth anniversary, ally NCP said the government dragged its feet on the sacking of Pawan Bansal and Ashwani Kumar. "The timing was perhaps wrong. There was no need to wait for things to go wrong," said Praful Patel. ...
04:47 PM, May 21, 2013
New Delhi: With the image of his government in tatters, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will present the last Report Card of UPA-II on May 22 in which he is expected to list the positives such as Direct Benefit Transfer and FDI in retail in a bid to boost the sagging morale of Congressmen with elections less than a year away. Battered by series of scams and the recent sacking of...
12:58 PM, May 19, 2013
New Delhi: Law and Justice Minister Kapil Sibal on Monday said that the present collegium system of making appointments to the higher judiciary was "opaque" and "non-transparent", but nothing could be done to change it overnight. "The present system of appointment of judges is opaque and non-transparent," Sibal said in an informal interaction with mediapersons soon after assuming charge of the Law Ministry, given to him as an additional responsibility...
11:40 PM, May 13, 2013
New Delhi: For nine years now, through all the UPA's ups and downs, Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh have enjoyed a near-perfect relationship. But last week, they hit a wall, perhaps for the first time. CNN-IBN learnt that the decision to remove Pawan Bansal and Ashwani Kumar as cabinet ministers was resisted by the PM until pressure from Sonia finally forced them out. In fact, even after Ashwani Kumar's resignation...
10:14 PM, May 13, 2013
Congress General Secretary Digvijaya Singh questioned as to based on what law can the Supreme Court supervise a CBI investigation. ...
03:36 PM, May 13, 2013
New Delhi: The Congress on Sunday said that decision to drop Pawan Kumar Bansal and Ashwani Kumar from the cabinet was "joint decision" of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and party chief Sonia Gandhi even as BJP sought his resignation over reports that he was nudged into taking the decision. Congress general secretary Janardan Dwivedi said that it had appeared in a section of the media that it was at the...
04:52 AM, May 13, 2013
New Delhi: Demanding Manmohan Singh's resignation for allegedly shielding former Law Minister Ashwani Kumar and former Railways Minister PK Bansal, the BJP on Sunday said that the Prime Minister has become 'a great burden on the country'. BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu said, "His (Prime Minister) approach is see nothing, hear nothing, do nothing. We want this government to go." On Karnataka Assembly polls defeat, the BJP leader said, "Central...
07:16 PM, May 12, 2013
New Delhi: Days after two Union Ministers were sacked, there were reports of a feud between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi. But the Congress on Sunday downplayed that and said that there is no rift. The party has rubbished all reports that the Prime Minister has been isolated. Senior Congress leader Janardhan Dwivedi on Sunday reiterated that the resignations of Pawan Kumar Bansal and Ashwani Kumar...
02:31 PM, May 12, 2013
New Delhi: Days after Union Ministers Pawan Kumar Bansal and Ashwani Kumar were sacked, there seems to be an apparent divide between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Congress party. The Congress has given full credit to UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi for the resignation of the Bansal and Ashwani. Sources say the party is upset with the Prime Minister's strong defence of Ashwani. Meanwhile, the BJP has upped the ante...
08:43 AM, May 12, 2013
Pune: Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde on Saturday said the resignations of Union Ministers Ashwani Kumar and Pawan Kumar Bansal would not pose any danger to the UPA government. "There is no danger to UPA government. The decisions taken by the Prime Minister and the two ministers are right. We are set to complete full term," he told reporters on the sidelines of a function in Pune. When asked...
02:23 AM, May 12, 2013
New Delhi: With the sacking of Ashwani Kumar and Pawan Bansal as Law Minister and Railways Minister, the heat is now on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The new Law Minister will have to shield the PM even as there's a widening divide between him and his party. Ashwani's exit has left the PM vulnerable, and even lonely. Within hours of the former law minister's resignation, BJP targeted the PM, raising...
09:48 PM, May 11, 2013
New Delhi: Attorney General GE Vahanvati, who was under scanner for trying to influence CBI's coal scam status report, will continue in his position. Government sources on Saturday confirm there will be no action against the top law officer. Meanwhile, sacked Law Minister Ashwani Kumar on Saturday came out in his defence saying he resigned only to avoid any unnecessary controversy claiming that his conscience still remains clear. He also...
06:47 PM, May 11, 2013
CPM leader Nilotpal Basu said both Pawan Kumar Bansal and Ashwani Kumar should have been sacked earlier. ...
06:14 PM, May 11, 2013
New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata will continue to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over the coal scam controversy. Speaking to Karan Thapar on this week's Devil's Advocate, Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley has said the exit of Ashwani Kumar in the matter was not enough and that his party will flag the demand for the Prime Minister's resignation. Following is an excerpt...
03:37 PM, May 11, 2013
Congress Spokesperson Bhakta Charan Das admits there was a difference of opinion between the Prime Minister and the party over the sacking of Ashwani Kumar and Pawan Kumar Bansal and that the initiative was taken by Congress President Sonia Gandhi. He spoke to CNN-IBN's Rupashree Nanda. ...
02:30 PM, May 11, 2013
New Delhi: It seems that the government is distancing itself from sacked Law Minister Ashwani Kumar. Sources say that the government had prepared a statement to defend Ashwani Kumar after he resigned, however, it did not release that statement. Sources say the statement said, "Ashwani resigned because of perception and his resignation should not be seen as corruption. He has not been indicted by the Supreme Court in any way."...
12:59 PM, May 11, 2013
New Delhi: Sacked Law Minister Ashwani Kumar on Saturday came out in his defence saying he resigned only to avoid any unnecessary controversy claiming that his conscience still remains clear. "I tendered my resignation to put an end to unnecessary controversy in a matter pending before the Supreme Court. My conscience remains clear and I believe I will remain vindicated," Ashwani Kumar said. He also said that his resignation was...
12:49 PM, May 11, 2013
New Delhi: A day after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was forced to sack Ashwani Kumar as Law Minister and Pawan Kumar Bansal as Railway Minister, the Congress party has given full credit to party President Sonia Gandhi and Vice President Rahul Gandhi for taking action against the tainted ministers. "Congress President and Rahul Gandhi never tolerate corruption and that is why they took the resignation of the two ministers," Congress...
12:06 PM, May 11, 2013
New Delhi: After days of sustained pressure, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was finally forced to act against his ministers charged with corruption and interference. Law Minister Ashwani Kumar and Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal were both forced to quit on Friday. Both of them called on the Prime Minister on Friday evening and submitted their resignations. While Ashwani Kumar was sacked for interfering in CBI's coalgate probe report, Pawan Bansal...
07:55 AM, May 11, 2013
