#Union Minister slams Congress

[tomorrowusa]

Lech Wałęsa is the founder of the Solidarność trade union which contributed to the collapse of communism in Poland in the 1980s. He served one term as president of Poland and won the Nobel Peace Prize.

Like most people in Poland, Wałęsa has no illusions about the intentions of Vladimir Putin. In a recent visit to Washington, he called for strong and united leadership in the West regarding Russia – especially in the ongoing information war.

“The whole world has joined together against Russia. It has never been like this. It’s our great opportunity to finally put some order into this world,” Walesa said in an address on February 8 at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington think tank. Walesa said fate has given the United States the role of leader in meeting these challenges and it cannot retreat now. “Our grandchildren will never forgive us” if it does, he said. The co-founder of Poland's Solidarity movement, who served from 1990 to 1995 as Poland’s first postcommunist president, said he fought his struggle against the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact more than 40 years ago mainly with information and he encouraged the United States to do a better job “fighting with propaganda” against the current regime of Russian President Vladimir Puin. This includes tactics such as publishing data about the number of Russian soldiers killed and maimed in the war and the stories behind those losses. Ordinary Russians must be reminded that their neighbors or their neighbors’ sons may no longer be alive because they were sent to “die for Putin.” Westerns should help Russians “internalize what needs to be done.” In the decades since he left politics Walesa has been a champion of democracy and the rule of law, encouraging Eastern Europe’s formerly communist countries to pursue progress through democratic means. Walesa was celebrated in Washington in 1989 as the man who did more than any other single individual to bring down communism in Eastern Europe and addressed a joint session of Congress.

His trip to the US comes at a time aid to Ukraine is stalled in Congress as a result of Donald Trump's open advocacy of the Putin dictatorship.

Poland's current Prime Minister Donald Tusk has been far more direct about pointing the finger of blame.

Reagan ‘must be turning in his grave’: Poland’s Tusk slams Republicans over Ukraine aid

Ultimately it's up to American voters to get Republicans to quit acting like mindless stooges for the Evil Empire.

Progress has been made in the Senate on aid to Ukraine. But the House, led by religious fanatic Speaker "MAGA Mike" Johnson remains a problem.

Here is a list of Republican House members from districts won by President Joe Biden in 2020. These GOP representatives are particularly vulnerable. Presumably the 2020 presidential figures have been adjusted to 2022 district boundaries.

If you live in one of those districts, you have a disproportionate amount of influence on aid to Ukraine. Contact your representative and politely demand that the House quits starving Ukraine of needed assistance. Remind these Republicans that Ronald Reagan would be disgusted by the GOP acting as lap dogs for Putin's Evil Empire. Interestingly, 11 of those 18 districts are in either New York or California.

And yes, that table was made before the ouster of George Santos – otherwise it's up to date.

Not sure who represents you? Use your ZIP+4 to find out here...

Find Your Representative

#invasion of ukraine #assistance to ukraine #stand with ukraine #lech wałęsa #donald tusk #poland #polska #russia #vladimir putin #russia's war of aggression #the evil empire #ronald reagan #us house of representatives #find your representative #election 2024 #house republicans from biden districts #агрессивная война россии #владимир путин #путин хуйло #путин - военный преступник #путлер #геноцид #руки прочь от украины! #геть з україни #вторгнення оркостану в україну #деокупація #будь сміливим як україна #слава україні! #героям слава!

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

David Whamond, Toronto Star

* * *

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

March 14, 2024

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

MAR 15, 2024

This morning, Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), one of the highest-ranking Jewish officials in the U.S. government, said Israelis need to call new elections to replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who, Schumer said, “has lost his way by allowing his political survival to take precedence over the best interests of Israel.” Schumer, who is a strong ally of Israel and who also blamed Hamas for the crisis in the Middle East, warned that the deadly toll on civilians in Gaza under the policies of Netanyahu’s government is “pushing support for Israel worldwide to historic lows. Israel cannot survive if it becomes a pariah.”

Netanyahu needs to hold his far-right coalition together to escape the corruption trial in which he is currently at risk, and that coalition wants continued attacks on Hamas. Netanyahu has announced that Israel’s forces are planning to invade the city of Rafah, where about 1.4 million Palestinians are sheltering, despite President Joe Biden’s warning that such an invasion must have a plan to protect civilians “that was actually planned, prepared and implementable.” 

Meanwhile, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is so bad that the U.S. and other countries are conducting airdrops of essential relief—airdrops are a poor substitute for land-based aid—and Netanyahu’s government has rejected the call of neighboring Arab states, the U.S., and the European Union for a real path to a Palestinian state, instead trying to prevent such a state by pushing more settlements in the West Bank. On a hot mic at the State of the Union address last Tuesday, Biden told Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Senator Michael Bennett (D-CO): “I told him, Bibi…you and I are going to have a come to Jesus meeting,” slang for a moment that precipitates a major change.  

Netanyahu’s far-right government is deeply unpopular in Israel. In January, only 15% of Israelis wanted him to keep his job after the war on Hamas ends, and three days ago the U.S. intelligence community assessed in its annual report on the threats facing the United States that “[d]istrust of Netanyahu’s ability to rule has deepened and broadened across the public from its already high levels before the war, and we expect large protests demanding his resignation and new elections.” It concluded: “A different, more moderate government is a possibility.” Centrist political rival Benny Gantz has visited the U.S. and the U.K. recently. 

“As a democracy, Israel has the right to choose its own leaders, and we should let the chips fall where they may,” Schumer said. “But the important thing is that Israelis are given a choice.”

Netanyahu has forged strong ties in the U.S. with Republicans; in 2015 he spoke before Congress at the invitation of Republicans in an attempt to undermine then-president Barack Obama’s negotiations with Iran to stop that country’s development of nuclear weapons. Today, Republicans slammed Schumer’s speech. House speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said: “We need to be standing with Israel. We need to give our friends and allies our full support.”

In Hungary today, the U.S. ambassador launched a similar pushback against a far-right leader whose personal interests are driving his country’s policies. 

Today is the twenty-fifth anniversary of Hungary’s joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). U.S. Ambassador David Pressman used the occasion to warn Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán that the United States has lost patience with his embrace of Russian president Vladimir Putin, his undermining of support for Ukraine, and his open advocacy of Trump’s return to the White House. 

Pressman noted that the U.S. and Hungary have long historic ties, reaching all the way back to the American Revolution and the influence of revolutionary leader Lajos Kossuth—who is one of two foreign leaders whose busts are in the U.S. Capitol—on the defense of democracy in the years before the Civil War. “What unites these connections between our two nations is the shared longing of our peoples for liberty and democracy,” Pressman said. 

When Hungary joined NATO in 1999, Pressman noted, Viktor Orbán was prime minister, and he was proud of the country’s democratic future aligned with a transatlantic community of democracies. Now, he said, Hungary’s choices are increasingly isolating it from its friends and allies. 

“We cannot ignore it when the Speaker of Hungary’s National Assembly asserts that Putin’s war in Ukraine is actually ‘led by the United States,’” Pressman said. “We cannot ignore a sitting minister referring to the United States as a corpse whose nails continue to grow. We can neither understand nor accept the Prime Minister identifying the United States as a ‘top adversary’ of our Ally, Hungary. Or his assertion that the United States government is trying to overthrow the Hungarian government—literally, to ‘defeat’ him.” 

“While the Hungarian government’s wild rhetoric in state-controlled media may incite passion, or ignite an electoral base, the choice to issue, on a daily basis, dangerously unhinged anti-American messaging is a policy choice, and it risks changing Hungary’s relationship with America,” Pressman said.    

The ambassador called out Orbán’s “systematic takeover of independent media,” the use of government power to “provide favorable treatment for companies owned by party leaders or their families, in-laws, or old friends,” and law defending “a single party’s effort to monopolize public discourse.” “[T]his is not something we expect from allies,” Pressman said. The U.S. seeks to engage through dialogue and is willing to speak honestly, he said, but he warned that the U.S. is ready “to act in response to choices the government is making.”

“Hungary’s allies are warning Hungary of the dangers of its close and expanding relationship with Russia,” Pressman said. “If this is Hungary’s policy choice—and it has become increasingly clear that it is with the Foreign Minister’s sixth trip to Russia since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and with his next trip to Russia scheduled in two weeks, following his engagement with Russia’s Foreign Minister earlier this month, and the Prime Minister’s meeting with Vladimir Putin in China—we will have to decide how best to protect our security interests, which, as Allies, should be our collective security interests.”

Pressman called out Orbán for his open support for Trump—Orbán visited Trump at Mar-a-Lago last week and has repeatedly expressed his hope that he will be returned to the White House—and his active participation in U.S. partisan political events. Orbán is a darling of the far right and has appeared at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) more than once.  

“While Hungary attempts to wait out those it disagrees with, whether in the United States or the European Union, the rest of the world is moving forward,” Pressman said. “While the Orbán government may want to wait out the United States Government, the United States will certainly not wait out the Orbán administration. While Hungary waits, we will act,” he said. 

“[W]e want what polls consistently show the vast majority of Hungarians want: a close relationship between the United States and Hungary, rooted in democratic values and shared security and prosperity. Exactly what the Prime Minister said he wanted 25 years ago,” he said. “And that is what we still want today.”    

The U.S. has pledged to defend member states in the family of democracies, Pressman said, and while Hungary tied itself to those democracies 25 years ago, “this government’s actions and rhetoric make it sound like it does not feel so firmly anchored. The United States would not be acting as your ally if we did not forthrightly express concern about the course Hungary is charting, through rough seas of its own choosing. We anchored together 25 years ago as democratic Allies; it remains our hope that we sail forward together as part of a stronger, and now larger, democratic Alliance—a choice that remains up to Hungary, its government and its people.”  

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

#Letters From An American #Heather Cox Richardson #Hungary #Orban government #totalitarianism #democratic rule #NATO

[pressnewsagencyllc]

'Quest for dominance of Hindi, Hindutva, Hindustan ... ': Shashi Tharoor slams BJP - Times of India

NEW DELHI: Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Thursday targeted the BJP and claimed that quest for dominance of ‘Hindi, Hindutva, Hindustan’ is the most dangerous threat to foundations of our plural consciousness. The former Union minister also dismissed saffron party’s claim of strong performance in south India in Lok Sabha polls and called it a product of BJP’s “propaganda mill.” Tharoor,…

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#breaking news #Google news #India #india news #india news today #kerala lok sabha elections #Lok Sabha elections #Rajeev Chandrashekhar #Shashi Tharoor #thirvananthpuram lok sabha seat #today news

[angel0news]

Citizenship Act CAA Unconstitutional? 237 Petitions Before Top Court Today

Amid the row over the Centre's move to implement the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) weeks before Lok Sabha election, the Supreme Court will hear today a batch of 237 petitions challenging the law. A bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and comprising Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra will hear the matter.

Among the petitioners are Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), a political party primarily based in Kerala, and Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), Congress leader Jairam Ramesh, Trinamool leader Mahua Moitra and AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi.

The day after the Centre notified CAA rules, the two organisations approached the Supreme Court, seeking a pause on the implementation of the law. They termed CAA "discriminatory" against the Muslim community.

Back in 2019, when the Citizenship Amendment Bill cleared the Parliament, multiple petitions had been filed against it. But the court had not paused its implementation because the rules had not been notified. On Friday, Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal told the court that there was no question of a pause back then since the rules were not notified. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta then said that the fact that the rules were notified before the elections was irrelevant.

Under this law, non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan fleeing religious persecution can seek Indian citizenship. Persons from Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian communities from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh, who entered India on or before December 31, 2014, are eligible to seek citizenship under CAA.

The Opposition has slammed the Narendra Modi government over the timing of the law's implementation - four years after it cleared the Parliament. The move is "evidently designed to polarise the elections, especially in West Bengal and Assam", party leader Jairam Ramesh has said.

Trinamool Congress chief and Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has said she doubts the legality of CAA and alleged a conspiracy to "snatch citizenship rights". "BJP leaders say CAA gives you rights. But the moment you apply for citizenship, you become illegal migrants and you will lose your rights. You will lose rights and be taken to detention camps. Please think before you apply," she said.

The Centre has trashed the Opposition's allegations. Stressing that the CAA is not "unconstitutional", Home Minister Amit Shah has accused the Opposition of resorting to the "politics of lies". On the timing of the law's implementation, he said, "BJP made it clear in its 2019 manifesto that it will bring CAA and provide Indian citizenship to refugees (from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan). BJP has a clear agenda and under that promise, the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill was passed in both houses of Parliament in 2019. It got delayed due to Covid."

He has also said that minorities of the country "need not be afraid because CAA has no provision to take back the rights of any citizen".

#Citizenship Amendment Act #Supreme Court (SC) #CAA

[blogynews]

"Incredible Scandal Unveiled: Rajeev Chandrasekhar Slams Mahua Moitra in Astonishing 'Cash for Query' Controversy | Uncover the Jaw-Dropping Truth!"

Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar expressed his shock and disappointment regarding the “cash for query” allegations against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra. He stated that if these allegations are proven to be true, it would be a serious misuse of Parliamentary Questions (PQs). Chandrasekhar mentioned that news reports suggest that the MP may have asked the question on behalf of a data…

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[blogynewz]

"Incredible Scandal Unveiled: Rajeev Chandrasekhar Slams Mahua Moitra in Astonishing 'Cash for Query' Controversy | Uncover the Jaw-Dropping Truth!"

Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar expressed his shock and disappointment regarding the “cash for query” allegations against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra. He stated that if these allegations are proven to be true, it would be a serious misuse of Parliamentary Questions (PQs). Chandrasekhar mentioned that news reports suggest that the MP may have asked the question on behalf of a data…

View On WordPress

[blogynewsz]

"Incredible Scandal Unveiled: Rajeev Chandrasekhar Slams Mahua Moitra in Astonishing 'Cash for Query' Controversy | Uncover the Jaw-Dropping Truth!"

Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar expressed his shock and disappointment regarding the “cash for query” allegations against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra. He stated that if these allegations are proven to be true, it would be a serious misuse of Parliamentary Questions (PQs). Chandrasekhar mentioned that news reports suggest that the MP may have asked the question on behalf of a data…

View On WordPress

[internationalnewz]

Anurag Thakur slams Rahul Gandhi, Uddav Thackeray for their silence in 'Sanatan Dharma' issue 

The opposition is limited to insulting the Sanatan Dharma. This shows their mentality and efforts are going on one after another to insult the Sanatan Dharma, the Minister said. 

NAGPUR: Union minister Anurag Thakur on Monday said efforts were being made to ‘insult’ Sanatan Dharma and hit out at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Shiv Sena (UBT) head Uddhav Thackeray for staying silent over it.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader’s remarks came amid a political row after DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin blamed Sanatan Dharma for promoting division and discrimination among people and said it should be eradicated. Also, DMK leader A Raja had likened Sanatan Dharma to diseases like leprosy and HIV which had social stigma.

To a query by reporters here on Rahul Gandhi’s statement that he has read Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita and that there is nothing Hindu about what the BJP does, Thakur said, “The opposition should break its silence on insults to Sanatan Dharma.”

“The opposition is limited to insulting the Sanatan Dharma. This shows their mentality and efforts are going on one after another to insult the Sanatan Dharma,” the minister claimed.

Asked about Rahul Gandhi’s comments over the India versus Bharat debate, Thakur said some people have the habit of “spreading fear and confusion and telling lies”. They have done this all their lives, he added.

On Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray’s statement that a “Godhra-like” incident may take place after the inauguration of the Ram Temple at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh, Thakur claimed some people have forgotten their ideology for the greed of power.

“I don’t know what Balasaheb (late Shiv Sena founder and Uddhav Thackeray’s father) would have thought today and what Uddhav ji is doing today for the greed of power. Rahul ji and Uddhav ji did not say a word when so many things were said about Sanatan Dharma,” Thakur added.

Thackeray on Sunday claimed a “Godhra-like” incident may take place during the “return journey” of a large number of people expected to converge in Ayodhya from across the country for the inauguration of the Ram Temple.

The temple is likely to be inaugurated in January 2024, ahead of the Lok Sabha polls due next year.

On February 27, 2002, ‘karsevaks’ returning from Ayodhya on board the Sabarmati Express were attacked and their train coach set ablaze at Godhra station in Gujarat, leading to several deaths that triggered large riots across the state.

#Anurag Thakur #Sanatan Dharma

[shahananasrin-blog]

[ad_1] Smriti Irani slammed Rahul Gandhi over his accusationNew Delhi: Union Minister Smriti Irani today alleged that Congress MP Rahul Gandhi blew a flying kiss while leaving parliament after his speech on the No-Confidence Motion."Only a misogynist man can blow a flying kiss to parliament that seats women MPs," Smriti Irani said, referring to Rahul Gandhi - who was reinstated in parliament yesterday.Mr Gandhi's action "lacked dignity", she charged. Ms Irani later told reporters that parliament has never witnessed such misogyny. "Never before has the "misogynistic behaviour" of a man been so visible in parliament. When the House of the people - where laws are made to protect the dignity of women - during the course of a session stands witness to a man's misogyny, my question is should he be brought to task?," she asked while speaking to reporters. BJP women MPs have complained to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla over Mr Gandhi's alleged gesture accusing him of insulting women.Ms Irani slammed Rahul Gandhi over his accusation that the government had "killed Bharat Mata(India)" in Manipur.She said it's the first time when someone has made such a statement. "This is the first time that someone talked about the murder of India, and Congress leaders were thumping desks," Ms Irani said."You are not India because you define corruption in India, you define incompetence," the BJP MP said.Rahul Gandhi today kicked off the second day of the No-Confidence Debate in the Lok Sabha today.Launching s scathing attack on the BJP-ruled Central government, Mr Gandhi said, "Manipur has been split in two. Government's politics has murdered India in the state. You are not protectors of Bharat Mata, you are her killers.""To listen to the nation's voice, we will have to give up on arrogance and hatred," he said.The Not-Confidence Motion was initiated by Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi yesterday. He said the Opposition bloc INDIA was forced to bring the No-Trust vote against the government to break Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "vow of silence" on Manipur.The Prime Minister will reply to the debate on Thursday. He chaired the BJP's Parliamentary Party meeting yesterday ahead of the big vote. Taking a swipe at the INDIA coalition, the Prime Minister reportedly said that this is not a vote to express distrust in the government, but to see who can trust whom in the opposition. "It's a test of their own internal trust," he reportedly said.The session, which started on July 20, has been continually disrupted by Opposition protests. The opposition contends that in view of the 170-plus deaths, injuries and displacements of thousands of people since the ethnic violence broke out in May, there is nothing more urgent that can demand the Prime Minister's attention.Home Minister Amit Shah, during a discussion on the Delhi Services bill on Monday, had accused the Opposition of running away from a debate on Manipur. "The question is the  Manipur situation and what steps the government is taking there, not a show of strength by voting. If you want voting, I dare you to make this bill fall through voting," Mr Shah had said. [ad_2]

[trustednewstribune]

Punjab government offered to supply rice to K’taka for its Anna Bhagya scheme

AAP Karnataka convener Prithvi Reddy took a dig at the BJP government at the Centre for allegedly declining to provide extra rice to Karnataka.

BENGALURU: The AAP-ruled Punjab has come forward to supply rice required for Karnataka's free rice scheme, Anna Bhagya, the party's state unit has said.

The AAP's Karnataka unit said the Punjab government, led by Bhagwant Mann was willing to help Karnataka by providing the rice required to implement the scheme, which offers 10 kg of food grain to each member of a family living below the poverty line.

In a letter to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday, AAP Karnataka convener Prithvi Reddy said, “The AAP government of Punjab is ready to provide the rice required for the implementation of Anna Bhagya scheme in Karnataka.” He stated that he had a detailed discussion on the issue with Punjab Chief Minister Mann.

”Mann reacted positively and has in-principle agreed to supply rice in the state from Punjab,” Reddy claimed.

The AAP strongly believes that irrespective of political differences, all parties must support initiatives that are meant to help the people of our country, he said.

Reddy also took a dig at the BJP government at the Centre for allegedly declining to provide extra rice to Karnataka.

“It is both surprising and sad to note that the BJP-led central government has refused to provide extra rice to our state for the fulfilment of the new Anna Bhagya scheme proposed by your government,” the AAP state chief said in his letter.

Slamming the Centre, Reddy said the alleged refusal to provide the extra rice not only exposes the ‘anti-poor attitude’ of the BJP government but also their ”step-motherly” treatment to non-BJP ruled states”.

Later, addressing reporters he flayed the Congress for coming to power in Karnataka without any prior preparations.

He also charged the Siddaramaiah-led dispensation with completely ‘copying’ the programmes of the AAP and announcing many hasty guarantees for vote bank politics.

While five kg rice was already being given by the Centre, the state government wants to provide an additional five kg from its resources, according to a senior state government official.

The union government recently discontinued the sale of rice and wheat from the central pool under the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) to state governments.

According to an order issued by the Food Corporation of India (FCI), The sale of wheat and rice under the OMSS (domestic) for state governments is discontinued. However, the sale of rice under the OMSS will be continued for northeastern states, hilly states and states facing law and order situations, and natural calamities at an existing rate of Rs 3,400 per quintal, it said.

The move comes amid the slow progress of the monsoon and rising prices of rice and wheat. Rice prices have increased by up to 10 per cent in the last year at the mandi level and by 8 per cent in the last month, as per official data.

According to Siddaramaiah, the state needed 2.28 lakh metric tonnes of rice. On June 12, the FCI had agreed to provide the required quantity of rice but two days later it backtracked, he alleged.

Karnataka has approached the National Consumer Cooperative Federation, National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation, and Central Warehousing Corporation to procure rice.

#Punjab #Karnataka

[all-about-news24x7]

Doesn’t Suit Any Leader To Criticise Own Country Abroad: Shah Slams Rahul; Asks Him To Learn From His Ancestors

Patan, Jun 10: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday accused Rahul Gandhi of criticising India and discussing its internal politics during his visits to foreign countries, and said the Congress leader should learn from his ancestors.Shah said it does not suit any leader to criticise one’s own country abroad, and asked Gandhi to keep in mind that people of the country were watching him.He was…

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[hardynwa]

FG, Atiku, Obi trade words over Tinubu’s victory

The Federal Government and the presidential candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar; and the Labour Party, LP, Mr Peter Obi, were once again at one another’s jugular over the outcome of the 2023 presidential poll, yesterday. The Federal Government through the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, fired the first salvo when it urged Atiku, Obi and other candidates to drop their petitions at the tribunal because they deserved to lose the election won the All Progressives Congress, APC’s, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. Countering, the LP declared that the APC-led Federal Government “murdered sleep” by allegedly rigging the 2023 general elections. Also, the PDP insisted that Atiku won the presidential balloting and alleged that the Federal Government was plotting to blackmail the President Election Petition Tribunal to rule in favour of Tinubu You deserve to lose 2023 elections, FG tells opposition The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, advised the opposition to stop their endless complaints over the 2023 presidential election which they lost woefully, saying they know very well that they deserve to lose the election because of their overconfidence and complacency. In a statement issued in Abuja, the Minister said Mr. President’s analysis on the reasons for the opposition’s loss in the 2023 elections was incontrovertible. He said the President deserves nothing but accolades for delivering undoubtedly the best election in Nigeria’s history, adding that the tempestuous but predictable reaction to the President’s comments by the opposition had shown them for what they are: shameless sore losers. “President Muhammadu Buhari lived up to his billing by delivering a free, fair and credible election, and his legacy is assured. The President would rather lose his state and many of his party’s strongholds than tamper with the fidelity of the election, and that is why he provided a level playing field for all parties,’’ Mohammed said. He said the opposition’s overconfidence going into the election stemmed in part from the blitzkrieg of social media propaganda as well as faulty and procured opinion polls, which were apparently meant to hoodwink their foreign backers and a section of the international media into uncritically reporting that they were coasting home to victory, when they were indeed heading into the ravine of defeat. The Minister said the presidential candidate of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, won the presidential election fair and square, clinching the majority of the votes cast and surpassing the constitutionally-stipulated 25% of votes cast in each of at least two-thirds of all the states in the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory. “Going by the results, none of the opposition parties met any of the conditions stipulated for winning the presidential election. They didn’t even come close, in spite of their pre-election grandstanding. ‘’They (opposition) keep leaning on some international observers to justify their fraudulent claim that the election was rigged. They conveniently forgot what Ambassador Johnnie Carson, the revered US diplomat who co-led the National Democratic Institute (NDI) and International Republican Institute (IRI) International Election Observation Mission to Nigeria said: that the APC candidate undoubtedly won the polls. ‘’They also forgot that the African Union Election Observation Mission to Nigeria said the atmosphere was generally calm and peaceful in 95% of the polling units visited,’’ he said, adding that it is on the strength of these reports that many nations, including the US and the UK, wasted no time in congratulating the victorious APC Presidential Candidate. Alhaji Mohammed slammed the opposition for continuously seeking to mislead the world by clutching at the weak straw that results were not immediately uploaded onto the IReV Portal, as if the portal has any role to play in the collation of results. ‘’The opposition’s insinuation that the failure to immediately upload the result of the presidential election onto IReV affected the credibility of the election is a fraud. It is an act of blackmail and deceit by desperate individuals. ‘’The opposition Labour Party, in particular, will go down in the history books as the first-ever distant third-place finisher in a presidential election anywhere to have bold-facedly claimed victory,’’ he said. FG, APC murdered sleep by rigging 2023 polls — LP Countering, Acting National Publicity Secretary of the LP, Obiora Ifoh, came down hard on Alhaji Lai Mohammed over his attempt to echo President Buhari’s thoughts on the outcome of the 2023 general elections.It equally accused the Minister of “wasting scarce public funds junketing around the United States and the United Kingdom ‘’ in futile attempt to whitewash the disasterous 8 year rule of the outgoing Buhari administration. Ifoh said: “We just want the Minister to know that by rigging the 2023 general election, himself, his party, All Progressives Congress and the leader of the party, President Buhari have murdered sleep and they do not deserve peace. The LP Spokesman explained that it was appalling that the Minister chose to progress in the error laden prognosis of his employer, President Buhari about the outcome of the 2023 general elections. He said: “A few days after President Buhari made that heavily flawed and erroneous remarks on the outcome of the 2023 presidential election claiming that opposition parties lost the presidential election due to their “overconfidence, complacency and bad tactical moves”, it is heart-wrenching to hear the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, still progressing with that warped, illogical and incongruous concept. “We would rather not join issues with a man who is famous for constantly prescribing doses of expired and ineffectual propaganda to Nigerians. “ His ill-fated and hugely failed trip to the United Kingdom and United States where he attempted to redeem the grossly battered democratic credentials of this present administration; spending millions of tax payers money to defend an indefensible action is yet another tragedy of President Buhari’s 8 years leadership. “It is only the blind that will continue to insist that the 2023 presidential election which was massively rigged was free, fair and credible. “As we have said earlier, the opposition political parties allegedly lost the election because the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC jettisoned the electoral act, having not uploaded the result from the polling unit in real time as promised and in so doing, created room for riggers to have a field day. “The election witnessed the unprecedented magnitude of violence, ballot snuffing, snatching and manipulations of result from the collation centres using thugs, security agencies, which included police, army amongst others. “All these issues and a lot more were captured, well documented and have been taken to the appeal tribunal and the matters are ongoing. Mr. Lai Mohammed need not preempt the tribunal as his actions are contemptuous and could be used against him.” Atiku won 2023 Presidential polls, PDP insists On its part, the PDP has insisted that its Candidate, Atiku Abubakar, won the February 25, 2023 Presidential election based on the actual votes cast at the Polling Units across the country. The party described claims by the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, that the opposition lost the election, as subjudice and part of a series of attempts by the APC-led Federal Executive to bully and blackmail the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal. This was contained in a statement signed by the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr. Debo Ologunagba, in Abuja, yesterday. Ologunagba said: “Nigerians are invited to note that Lai Mohammed’s comment is coming after President Buhari made a similar subjudice comment in his widely condemned attempt to justify the rigging of the Presidential election, which case is pending before the Tribunal. “It is indeed appalling that Lai Mohammed could attempt to defend the outcome of a fraudulently conducted election which has been adjudged as the worst in the history of elections in Nigeria and which has attracted nationwide and international outrage against the Buhari administration. “By stating that President Buhari deserved “accolades” for conducting a globally condemned Presidential election and describing well-meaning Nigerians as “shameless sore losers”, Lai Mohammed has further confirmed the complicity of the Buhari administration, in which he serves as mouthpiece, in one of the most reprehensible election swindles in the history of democracy. “ The party however said it was not surprised that Lai Mohammed will continue in the trajectory of the Buhari-led APC administration which is notorious for lying, deceit and falsehood. This, the PDP said, was because Nigerians are aware that by the authentic results obtained from the Polling Units, Atiku Abubakar and not the APC candidate met all the conditions stipulated for the winning of the Presidential election. According to the party, this situation explained why “the compromised Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) refused to transmit directly and announce results as obtained from the Polling Units as required by law.” The opposition party stated further that ot was for the umpteenth time cautioning the APC and the Buhari-led Federal Executive against its furtive attempts to bully the judiciary in the handling of the Presidential election petitions pending before the Tribunal. “The facts of the rigging of the February 25, 2023 Presidential election are well known to Nigerians and the PDP will not relent until it reclaims its mandate at the Tribunal.” Ologunagba added. VANGUARD Read the full article

[wordexpress]

"PM Modi Alone Enough...": Minister After Rahul Gandhi Meets Nitish Kumar

The union minister's response came after Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav met Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi

Mumbai: Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Ramdas Athawale on Wednesday said that Prime Minister Modi is alone enough to take on all opposition parties that want to forge unity to take on BJP in the 2024 elections.

Speaking to ANI in Mumbai, Mr Athawale said National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is really strong under the leadership of PM Modi.

“If opposition parties want to come together, they can. PM Modi alone is enough to take on all of them. NDA is really strong under the leadership of PM Modi,” Union Minister said on Bihar CM Nitish Kumar meeting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

The union minister’s response came after Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav met Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi and also Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday.

Opposition parties are striving as part of their efforts to unite as many as possible to take on the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

After the meeting, Mr Kharge talked of fighting the polls unitedly. Rahul Gandhi also talked of “standing together and fighting together”. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal said it is essential for all opposition parties to unite and oust the BJP-led government in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

The meetings are being seen as an attempt by Congress and other opposition parties to take forward their “unity” displayed during the budget session of Parliament session that concluded on April 6. The session saw continuous disruptions over the opposition’s demand for a JPC probe into the Hindenburg-Adani row.

The opposition parties also slammed the government over the disqualification of Rahul Gandhi from Lok Sabha following his conviction by a Surat court in a criminal defamation case.

BJP leader and Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur on Wednesday took a swipe at the opposition parties over their efforts to forge unity to take on the BJP in the 2024 elections and said these parties were coming together for ‘Maha thug Bandhan’.

“When political parties that are indulging in corruption come together they form ‘Maha Thug Bandhan’. Corruption cannot be hidden. People know that they have neither policies, leadership, nor intention. People do not vote when there is a wrong intention. They don’t have any policy or leadership. People will not vote for them. During 2014, 2019 and UP polls also formed this ‘Maha Thug Bandhan’ but nothing happened as people know about them,” Mr Thakur told ANI.

Rahul Gandhi described the meeting with Janata Dal-United and RJD leaders as a “historic step” towards opposition unity and an ideological fight.

Rahul Gandhi, who posted a picture of Mr Kharge and him with JD-U and RJD leaders, said they are “standing together, will fight together — for India.”

“In this battle of ideology, a historic step has been taken today towards opposition unity. (We are) standing together will fight together — for India!” Rahul Gandhi said in a tweet on Wednesday.

Janata Dal-United president Rajiv Ranjan (Lalan) Singh was also present at the meeting held at Mr Kharge’s residence.

Nitish Kumar said they will try to unite as many parties as possible.

“We will try to unite as many political parties as we can and move forward together. We will sit and deliberate on the way forward. We have had discussions. Those who agree with us…we will then take decisions about the future. A lot of people will come together,” he said on Wednesday.

#Rahul Gandhi #Nitish Kumar

[citizenrecord]

"Abuse Is Not Criticism, Rahul Gandhi Abused A Community": Union Minister

"There's a difference between criticism and abuse, they are different. He has abused the entire OBC community," he told NDTV.

New Delhi: Union Minister and BJP's national general secretary Bhupender Yadav today slammed Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, saying using the term 'thief' for an entire community is a misuse of freedom of speech. As the grand old party prepares for a protest march against the conviction of Mr Gandhi for his "why do all thieves have Modi as (their) common surname" remark, Mr Yadav questioned whether they are marching to demand the right to insult the OBC community.

"There's a difference between criticism and abuse, they are different. He has abused the entire OBC community," he told NDTV.

Mr Yadav said never has a national leader abused someone on the basis of a surname. This can disturb communal harmony, he said, adding that it was against the constitutional right for everyone to live with dignity.

"How can an entire community be thieves? Rahul Gandhi has insulted the entire OBC community by calling them thieves. He has broken all political decorum," Bhupender Yadav said.

Refusing to comment on Rahul Gandhi's automatic disqualification from the Lok Sabha, he said there's an independent judicial process in the country and the case was going on for four years.

"Is this not an insult to the country's judiciary as well?" he said on the Congress's allegation that it's not just a legal issue, but a political one as well.

"We need to develop a political understanding in this country that no politician has the right to abuse the OBC community," Mr Yadav said.

He further called Mr Gandhi a repeat offender, who is alleged is "lowering the political discourse" in the country.

Rahul Gandhi was found guilty of defamation for a 2019 campaign trail remark implying that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was a criminal. However, he was granted bail and his sentence was suspended for 30 days to let him appeal the decision.

#Rahul Gandhi #Union Minister

[strawberryandvanillaa]

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri Slams Congress' Rahul Gandhi Over 'Att...

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[digitalminhajalam]

Smriti Irani Slams Rahul Gandhi On London Remarks

“Rahul Gandhi’s hatred for the Prime Minister is now hatred for the nation.” New Delhi: Union Minister Smriti Irani today hit out at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and said that he defamed the nation on foreign soil. Addressing the press conference Ms Irani said, “Rahul Gandhi defamed the nation on foreign soil. He disrespected the institutions like SC and EC. Is humiliating India a democracy? Is…

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