New Delhi: In a blow for Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, the state Lokayukta has indicted the Delhi government and the Chief Minister for misusing public funds worth Rs 22 crore for an advertising blitz during the 2008 election. The Lokayukta has now appealed to the President to ask Dikshit to return Rs 11 crore to the state exchequer.
Lokayukta Justice Manmohan Sarin recommended President Pranab Mukherjee to administer "caution" to Dikshit for the alleged misuse of public funds for a series of advertisements carried out in print and outdoor media in 2007-08 with punchline "Delhi is changing". The petition was filed with the Lokayukta by BJP Leader Vijender Gupta, who has now called for Sheila Dikshit's resignation.
"It has been proven that state funds worth Rs 22 crore have been misused for Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and the Congress party's political campaigns. The case should be investigated further. The money should be returned immediately. Sheila Dikshit must resign from the Chief Minister's post," Vijender Gupta said.
In his complaint, Gupta had charged Dikshit with abusing her position as Chief Minister by carrying out an advertisement campaign with a view to gain political mileage in the assembly election in 2008. Sheila Dikshit was holding charge of the Department of Information and Publicity when the advertisement campaign was carried out....
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09:30 AM, May 23, 2013
Lucknow: BJP president Rajnath Singh will lead the party's 'jail bharo' agitation in Lucknow on June 2, 2013 against corruption under the UPA rule. BJP state unit president, Laxmi Kant Bajpai, who reviewed the preparation for the week-long agitation starting May 27, said that besides the national president, newly appointed in-charge of the state affairs, Amit Shah will also be present in Rampur during the agitation on May 29. Claiming...
01:38 AM, May 22, 2013
Guwahati: BJP will launch a week-long 'Jail Bharo' campaign protesting against alleged corrupt practices of the UPA government. The campaign would start on May 27 and continue till June 2 in all states, BJP vice president SS Ahluwalia told reporters in Guwahati on Sunday. The UPA government at the Centre had over the years been rocked by various scams losing the moral right to continue in office, he said. Various...
03:53 AM, May 20, 2013
Do glitzy election campaigns work with voters in India, specially when the credentials of a government are being seriously questioned by the actions of its leading figures and ministers? Brand-expert Harish Bijoor joined IBNLive readers for an interaction on the issue. Q. At the time of India shining there was still lot of optimism in the country. Today, with so much pessimism is the Self Drum beat of congress a...
04:34 PM, May 15, 2013
New Delhi: The government on Tuesday defended its advertising campaign 'Bharat Nirman' saying it was not an election campaign and was completely different from Bharatiya Janata Party's 'India Shining'. Speaking to IBN18 Editor-in-Chief Rajdeep Sardesai, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Manish Tewari said there was nothing irregular in UPA's campaign. "Bharat Nirman tells the India story, the journey of India. There's nothing irregular in it, it has been...
03:49 PM, May 14, 2013
New Delhi: With an eye on 2014 Lok Sabha elections, government on Monday unveiled a series of audio-visual clips as a part of its multi media campaign to highlight its achievements and showcase impact of UPA's policies in the last nine years. Information and Broadcasting minister Manish Tewari, in whose presence the presentation was made, said the multimedia initiative was different from the 'India Shining' campaign of the NDA in...
09:40 PM, May 13, 2013
Miami: Nine more wealthy families and individuals have pledged to give at least half of their fortunes to charity as part of a philanthropic campaign by two of the world's richest men, Warren Buffett and Bill Gates. The Giving Pledge, which was launched by Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft, and investor Buffett in 2010, said on Tuesday that billionaires joining the campaign included New York-based real estate magnate Stephen Ross....
05:46 AM, May 08, 2013
Bangalore: A fortnight-long hectic campaign for the May 5, 2013 Karnataka legislative assembly elections ended on Friday, with mainstream and regional political parties switching over to door-to-door canvassing to woo the voters over the next 24 hours. "Elaborate arrangements have been made to conduct free and fair elections Sunday in 223 assembly constituencies across the state through 6,200 pollings booths, involving about 100,000 officials and over 135,000 security personnel drawn...
04:24 AM, May 04, 2013
Islamabad: Ten persons were injured when a bomb went off near a campaign office of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement in Pakistan's largest city of Karachi on Thursday, the latest in a string of attacks by the Taliban targeting liberal political parties ahead of the May 11, 2013 polls. The bomb went off tonight near the MQM office at Burns Road, a neighbourhood in Karachi known for its eateries. The blast...
12:48 AM, May 03, 2013
New Delhi: Dell launches new campaign for its Inspiron series of NoteBooks, all set to go on air from 26th April 2013. Inspiron is one of the key brands in Dell India's consumer products portfolio and it is targeted primarily at the youth. Being one of the most dynamic consumer segments, the very nature of audience is diverse. Youth today have clarity of thought, intent and ambition. Their dreams are...
03:50 PM, Apr 29, 2013
Thiruvananthapuram: The pro-CPI(M) youth outfit Democratic Youth Federation of India would launch a campaign to "uphold secular culture" in Kerala from April 30 to May 8. In a statement, DYFI state president M Swaraj and secretary TV Rajesh said the organisation would hold meetings across the state at the grassroot level. The aim of the campaign is to "uphold secular culture and isolate religious terrorism," the statement said. The UDF...
12:03 PM, Apr 29, 2013
Bangalore/Ranebennur: Top BJP leaders LK Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Rajnath Singh on Sunday held public rallies across Karnataka seeking to give a big thrust to the party which is seeking a renewed mandate in May Assembly polls. Advani addressed meetings at Ranebennur and Davangere, Rajnath Singh in Chikkodi and M Venkaiah Naidu at Sindhanoor and Gangavathi in north Karnataka, from where the party draws much of its strength. Swaraj addressed...
11:42 PM, Apr 21, 2013
Lahore: Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan on Saturday formally kicked off his campaign for next May 2013 general election by offering prayers at the shrine of Sufi saint Ali Hajvari for the success of his party Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf. Khan led a huge rally from the Mall, one of Lahore's main thoroughfares, to the Data Darbar shrine. A charged crowd, consisting mostly of youths, shouted slogans like "The lion hunter has come". The...
02:29 AM, Apr 21, 2013
Bangalore: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will on Friday officially launch it's poll campaign and release it's poll manifesto for the Karnataka Assembly election, which will be held on May 5. The ruling party in the state is set to unleash a high-pitch campaign for the May 5 assembly polls, with its top national leaders slated to travel cross the state from April 21. Announcing the campaign schedule, BJP state...
12:09 PM, Apr 19, 2013
Bangalore: Senior Congress leaders SM Krishna, Rahman Khan, KH Muniyappa and N Dharam Singh on Saturday skipped the campaign-commencing public rally of the party in Bangalore for the May 5 Assembly elections in Karnataka. Their absence is seen in some party quarters as a direct fall-out of the lobbying that was seen during selection of candidates, with the party struggling to finalise names. Krishna, former External Affairs Minister and ex-Chief...
07:58 PM, Apr 13, 2013
New York: The teams behind President Barack Obama's 2012 social media election campaign and Justin Bieber's fragrance launch were among the nominees on Tuesday for the annual Webby Awards, which honour excellence on the Internet. Tom Hanks, Lady Gaga, Tiger Woods, Alec Baldwin and Charlize Theron were among many other celebrities whose high-flying careers provided fodder for innovative Internet campaigns. The annual Webby Awards honour websites, online video and social...
02:08 PM, Apr 10, 2013
New Delhi: The residents of Delhi who joined Aam Aadmi Party's campaign against electricity bills could face legal trouble. One of the electricity supply companies has decided to lodge FIRs against six residents of Jahangirpuri. The FIR will be filed against six people who are residing in Lakhi Park slums of Jahangirpuri. Claiming that the six people owned almost Rs 20,000 in dues the company has filed a complaint in...
12:35 PM, Apr 10, 2013
Has Narendra Modi gone on an image-building and personality projection endeavour too soon? Do his speeches, aimed at the urban middle class, have any resonance with the rural voters who will decide the 2014 polls? Is he making the right noises? Senior journalist Vivian Fernandes joined IBNLive readers for an interaction on the issue. Q. If BJP doesn't come in power in 2014..will this mean end of Modi dream to...
05:28 PM, Apr 09, 2013
Colombo: A red-robbed Buddhist monk calmly picked up stones and hurled them at a security camera. Then, as police looked on, his followers smashed up a popular, Muslim-owned clothing store. March's attack on the Fashion Bug chain near the Sri Lankan capital of Colombo, filmed by a local television station whose cameraman was attacked by the mob, was the most public outburst in a growing anti-Muslim campaign by Buddhist nationalist...
09:50 AM, Apr 08, 2013
Bangalore: The ruling BJP will launch its campaign for the May 5, 2013 Assembly elections in Karnataka from Monday with the party stalwarts L K Advani and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to skip the event. The two leaders' absence seems to have taken some sheen off the rally, which would be addressed by party President Rajnath Singh, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj and her counterpart in...
04:58 AM, Apr 08, 2013
