The Hindu – JD(U) severs ties with BJP on Modi issue

Nitish Kumar meets Governor, seeks dismissal of 11 BJP ministers

Rahi Gaikwad

Patna, 16 June 2013.  Anticipating the appointment of Narendra Modi as the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday broke the 17-year-old alliance between his party, the JD(U), and the BJP.

Mr. Kumar will now face a floor test in the Assembly. He met Governor D. Y. Patil in the afternoon and handed a list of 11 BJP ministers seeking their dismissal. Mr. Patil approved the recommendation and allowed Mr. Kumar to seek a vote of confidence on the floor of the House during a special session convened on June 19.

In a statement issued at a press conference in Patna, the JD(U) said the Goa announcement of the chairmanship of the electoral campaign committee of the BJP has filled the JD(U) with “deep apprehensions” about the future. “It has not left a shadow of doubt that this is a mere ceremonial prelude to his [Mr. Modi’s] nomination as the PM candidate. All efforts within the BJP to suggest care and
moderation in the process were smothered by the authoritarian cult and imperious disdain,” the JD(U) said.

The BJP’s “total disregard and the ominous recent development therefore compel the JD(U) to forthwith terminate and sever its present alliance with the BJP,” it further stated.

Flanked by Mr. Kumar and other senior leaders of the party, JD(U) national president Sharad Yadav announced the split. Mr. Yadav has relinquished his position as the NDA convenor.

The resolution passed by the JD(U) in its national council meeting this April called for a candidate with “acceptable high secular credentials with no rough edges or divisive characteristics.”

“We decided not to compromise on our basic principles and whatever happens I am not worried about the consequences,” said a defiant Mr. Kumar, who did not utter Narendra Modi’s name till the last minute.

He blamed “external interference” for the souring of relationship, accusing the BJP’s central leadership of meddling in Bihar’s affairs. “Till the BJP’s concerns were limited to Bihar there was no problem. The coalition was running well. The [BJP’s] stand was not clear. We too have to run a party which has its own ideology. If we don’t read the writing on the wall we will be stumped.”

Refusing to take responsibility for the separation he said, “We were driven to it. A situation was created whereby we were left with no choice. The [BJP’s] political strategy should have been to attract more parties to the NDA. They should have kept the divisive agenda aside.”

He criticized the BJP ministers for not attending the State cabinet meeting this morning. As for the BJP’s accusation of betraying the people’s mandate, Mr. Kumar retorted, “The mandate was for Bihar, not for some other State [read Gujarat]. Our alliance was forged on some founding principles, but when things started going against those, we had to take a political decision.”

Mr. Yadav said although the Goa meet was the BJP’s internal matter, the speeches of the BJP leaders thereafter were problematic.

With the split in the ruling alliance, the ball is now in Mr. Kumar’s court. The JD(U) will have to prove its majority in the 243-member assembly. It has 118 MLAs and needs just four more to achieve the magic figure of 122.

With 91 MLAs, the BJP will be sitting in the opposition along with the Rashtriya Janata Dal, which has 22 MLAs. The Lok Janshakti Party and the Communist Party of India have one MLA each. Four of the six independents in the Assembly are expected to save the day for Mr. Kumar.

“We have four MLAs who have been supporting us and voting in favour of our proposals in the Assembly. So we are safe,” a JD (U) minister told The Hindu earlier.

Among the independents, the JD(U) has the support of Vinay Bihari, Pawan Jaiswal, Dulal Chandra Goswami and Som Prakash Singh, party sources told The Hindu. Dilip Kumar, an independent formerly with the BJP, has refused support. The remaining independent Jyoti Rashmi has been opposed to the JD(U). The party is therefore not sure of her backing.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/jdu-severs-ties-with-bjp-on-modi-issue/article4820120.ece

The Hindu – JD(U) needs Modi in Bihar as much as BJP: Rajiv Pratap Rudy

Staff Reporter

Patna, 7 June 2013.  Sharpening the position of the Bharatiya Janata Party on Narendra Modi vis-à-vis Nitish Kumar’s opposition, party general secretary Rajiv Pratap Rudy on Thursday said the Janata Dal (United) needed Mr. Modi in Bihar as much as the BJP. He said this is the unanimous view.

He also stressed that both alliance partners were dependent on each other and that there were no cracks in their relationship.

While he praised Mr. Kumar’s governance, he said there was need for “able leadership” in Bihar.

“We have to present a top united order to the country,” he said.

He praised the leadership of many senior BJP leaders, including Mr. Modi. The party would give “a clear message to the country” at its meet in Goa.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/jdu-needs-modi-in-bihar-as-much-as-bjp-rudy/article4788591.ece

The Asian Age – In Delhi, death politics begins

Rajnish Sharma, Asian Age Correspondent

New Delhi, 3 May 2013. Hours after Sarabjit died in mysterious circumstances, a full-blown political slugfest erupted in New Delhi, with the Opposition, including the BJP and the Akali Dal, leaving no stone unturned to embarrass the government.

Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi was quick to criticise the government for “failing Sarabjit”. He said: “The Indian government had all the time to mobilise the world … it left the matter to Sarabjit’s family themselves to handle.”

At a Mangalore election rally, Mr Modi said Sarabjit’s death was a clear case of “extra-judicial killing”. Realising the issue could snowball into a huge political controversy, the government swung into damage control mode, with home minister Sushilkumar Shinde meeting Sarabjit’s family members early Thursday.

The MHA arranged for a helicopter to fly the family from Delhi to their native village Bhikiwind.

This was followed by an emotionally-charged meeting of family members with Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, who promised all possible help to them. Rahul Gandhi hugged Sarabjit’s sister Dalbir Kaur while offering his condolences.

http://www.asianage.com/india/delhi-death-politics-begins-909

The Asian Age – Modi on Bharat blitz

Asian Age Correspondent

New Delhi, 9 April 2013. After the grand show at Ahmedabad’s Sardar Patel Stadium, Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, who is emerging as the BJP’s face for the 2014 general election, continued his moves to inch closer to Delhi.

On Monday he addressed the Ficci Ladies Organisation in the national capital, and then moved on to talk about governance in a television show. His Ficci address was aired live by nearly 40 TV channels across the country. On Tuesday, Mr Modi is expected to reach Kolkata and take on Trinamul Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee over development issues.

West Bengal, incidentally, had lost out to Gujarat when Tata Motors shifted out its Nano factory from Singur. In Kolkata, the Gujarat CM is due to address a special session on “Modi’s Vision of a Vibrant Growth Model for India”.

Addressing the Ficci ladies in New Delhi on Monday, Mr Modi focused on women’s entrepreneurship, empowerment and equality. At the same time he took potshots at Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, and virtually ridiculing his famous “Kalavati” role model, the CM talked about Gujarat’s own “Jasubehn” and her “famous pizzas”.

Mr Modi said Jasubehn “exemplified” how successful women entrepreneurs could be “if they were given the right opportunity, which was available in Gujarat”.

Mr Modi said “even today women are not part of the economic decision-making process”, and added that “we have to change this, and bring them into decision-making”. Mr Modi added: “Entrepreneurship is inbuilt in women, and if an opportunity is given for this to flourish, it gives results.” He claimed things were now “changing… with more and more men seeking working wives”.

Then came the dig at Rahul Gandhi. “Before our friends from the media go there to find out if Jasubehn is like Kalavati, I would like to tell them she died five years ago. Her pizzas, however, still have a big market,” Mr Modi said amid laughter. And then his sting for Gujarat’s woman governor Kamla Beniwal.

He said the Gujarat Assembly had passed a bill reserving 50 per cent seats for women in local bodies in urban and rural areas, but it had still not got her assent. “It is my misfortune that despite being a woman she has not given her assent,” he said.

And then he took on the Congress. “My Congress friends had created so many potholes that till now I have been filling them. I have brought it to a level playing field now. Imagine how big those potholes were. Now the effort will be to build an impressive, grand Gujarat.”

Later, responding to Mr Modi’s swipe, AICC general secretary Janardan Dwivedi, alluding to the 2002 riots in Gujarat, said: “Someone will have to surely fill up the deep chasm he has created.”

Mr Modi strongly criticised female foeticide and pointed to imbalances in the sex ratio due to this. He stressed the need to show respect to women, and claimed he granted property rights to women in his state and also given them stamp duty relief.

Mr Modi, who is likely to play a key role in the general election, sent a clear signal to the Ficci audience. “No human being is complete. In everybody there are some shortcomings. I have all the shortcomings of an ordinary man, but with the values I received, I have been able to leave some of them behind. I have not reached the height where I can evaluate myself. That is for you all to do.”

From Ficci he went to address the audience at a TV show “Think India”, where he spoke on issues ranging from good governance to policy matters.

http://www.asianage.com/india/modi-bharat-blitz-994

The Hindu – Modi marches into Rajnath Singh’s Team 2014

His aide Amit Shah, an accused in Sohrabuddin encounter case, is one of 10 general secretaries

B. Muralidhar Reddy

New Delhi, 31 March 2013.  Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s return to the BJP Parliamentary Board, the highest decision-making organ of the party, and the appointment of Mr. Modi’s confidant and former State Home Minister Amit Shah as one of the ten party general secretaries were the highlights of a reconstituted party leadership announced by BJP president Ranjath Singh on Sunday.

Mr. Singh, who had dropped the Gujarat Chief Minister from the Parliamentary Board during his first stint as party president, was left with little option but to accommodate Mr. Modi on the Board, as he could ill-afford to ignore the clamour from sections of the party to project Mr. Modi as the party’s face in the 2014 general elections.

Within the constraints of pulls and pushes from various lobbies within the party, Mr. Singh has tried to keep all the influential players happy.

According to sources in the party, Mr. Modi could be entrusted with the task of electoral management as the party gets into the 2014 Lok Sabha poll mode.

However, it is to be seen how some of the BJP allies, such as the JD(U), look at Mr. Modi’s greater role on the national stage.

The growing clout of Mr. Modi within the party was evident during the party’s recent National Council and National Executive meeting where workers raised slogans in favour of the Gujarat Chief Minister as the party’s Prime Ministerial candidate in the presence of the top brass. At the meeting, Mr. Modi did not attempt to restrain the workers loudly advertising his ambitions for a greater national role.

The fact that Mr. Singh has been constrained to name Amit Shah as the party general secretary reflects Mr. Modi grip over the party. Mr. Shah is facing charges of murder, kidnapping and extortion in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case.

The Central Bureau of Investigation has questioned Shah in connection with the murder case of Tulsiram Prajapati, a key witness in Sheikh’s ‘encounter’, and only a few months ago he was allowed by the Supreme Court to return to Gujarat.

Mr. Rajnath’s new team has 12 vice-presidents, 10 general secretaries, 15 secretaries and seven spokespersons, besides a 12-member Central Parliamentary Board, a 19-member Central Election Committee and a five-member Central Disciplinary Committee.

Among the new faces in Mr. Rajnath’s team are the former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Uma Bharti and Rajya Sabha member Smriti Irani, named as vice-presidents. Pilibhit MP Varun Gandhi has also been elevated to the position of general secretary.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/modi-marches-into-rajnaths-team-2014/article4566873.ece

The Tribune – JD-U to be key player in 2014: CM Nitish Kumar; In Delhi, presses for special status for Bihar; says open to tie-ups with other parties

Girja Shankar Kaura, Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 17. Sounding the election bugle, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today sought special status for his backward state and suggested that his support would be crucial for formation of next government at the Centre.

Bringing his political fight to Delhi, Nitish, who has been openly opposed to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi being named as NDA’s prime ministerial candidate, also went to the extent of suggesting that his party, JD-U, which is part of BJP-led NDA, was not averse to exploring other tie-ups.

“Either you give it (special status) now or after 2014, you will have to give it. You will have to accept the demand in circumstances that will be there after 2014. Only one, who feels about the backward, the backward states will occupy the seat of power in Delhi,” Nitish said addressing the‘Adhikar’ rally here.

Nitish urged the Union Government to “change the criteria to give special status to Bihar.” “We have been told that we do not meet all qualifications for getting special status,” he said. Making a strong political statement, a day after Modi had an audience full of industrialists, politicians and people from the middle class in rapt attention at a conclave here, Nitish although admitted that while Finance Minister P Chidambaram’s Budget 2013 had showed concern for Bihar, the state had largely been treated unfairly by the Centre.

At the rally for which BJP leaders (JD-U’s key ally in Bihar), were not invited, Nitish tried to juxtapose his politics against that of Modi, by saying that his own model of development was that of a unified India.

“We will leave everyone behind and move ahead with development. And we will present a model before the world.

These days development model is being discussed. This model is what takes along everyone together. This is the real development model of India,” Kumar said in a veiled reference to the Modi’s speeches about the Gujarat model of development.

Pitching himself for a national role ahead of the 2014 General Election, Nitish did not hide his prime ministerial ambitions, saying: “Only those who understand the pain of the poor and the backward must rule Delhi.”

He said his demand would not only benefit Bihar, but also other backward regions of the country. “If backward regions start developing, it will push up the national growth rate. We want development for all.”

In his over 20-minute speech, Kumar invoked regional pride and said that people from Bihar are ignored everywhere and cited the Centre’s refusal to give rehabilitation funds for Kosi flood victims and the repeated refusal of the government in past to accord special status to the state.

Focusing on the steps taken by him for good governance, the Bihar Chief Minister referred to the bicycle scheme in his state and questioned “whether the Centre has any such scheme which has benefited so many people in four years.”

He said the UPA government will have to implement what they have stated and “if they delay, then the people of Bihar will have to prepare themselves. “We will not rest in peace till we get special status for the state. Those in power in Delhi should be careful. We have come forward to seek our rights.”

Kumar will also be meeting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130318/main1.htm

The Asian Age – No deadline for NDA PM nominee: Nitish Kumar

Anand S T Das, Asian Age Correspondent

Patna, 12 February 2013. Feeling annoyed by relentless questions and speculation on the NDA’s prime ministerial candidate, Bihar chief minister and JD(U) stalwart Nitish Kumar on Monday gave ally BJP a little relief by saying that he had not set any deadline for the BJP to declare the name.

While Mr Kumar, who is opposed to Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi of the BJP being projected as the NDA’s PM candidate for the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, insisted that a consensus name must be announced before the polls, he denied having ever said that the announcement must come at least a year before the polls.

“I have never talked about the time for announcing the PM candidate’s name. I have set no deadline,” said Mr Kumar to journalists after his weekly “Janata Durbar” programme. Even as the JD(U) sees him as the most suitable PM candidate in the NDA and hopes to have the BJP see the advantages soon, Mr Kumar echoed JD(U) chief Sharad Yadav’s view that the NDA’s choice of its PM candidate would be decided in the meeting of all its allies in due time.

Taking a dig at hyper speculations in some sections of the media on the issue, Mr Kumar asked the media not to “go overboard on this issue” and said it should be left to politicians. “The issue should not be repeated on a daily basis.

The right of when and what should be done should be left to politicians like us,” Mr Kumar had said last week that he was not in the race for prime minister’s post.

After former External Affairs Minister and senior JD(U) leader Hari Kishore Singh publicly said Mr Kumar was the most suitable person for the post, the CM said it pained him to issue frequent clarifications.

http://www.asianage.com/india/no-deadline-pm-nominee-nitish-686

The Tribune – 2002 riots unfortunate, never again, Modi told EU envoys

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, February 8. At a high-profile luncheon meeting with envoys of the European Union (EU) based in New Delhi recently, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi described the 2002 riots in his state as “unfortunate” and promised that everything would be done to avoid the recurrence of such a situation.

India is a multi-ethnic country in which every individual must take an inclusive approach, he is reported to have told the EU ambassadors at the meeting held at the Germany Ambassador’s residence here on January 7. He also assured the envoys that he would accept any verdict of the judiciary looking into the riots. Some of the EU representatives firmly told Modi that accountability must be fixed for the riots.

The meeting, which is bound to enhance Modi’s stature, ended a decade-long boycott of the Gujarat strongman by the powerful economic bloc of the European nations, imposed in the aftermath of the anti-Muslim riots. Last October, Britain, also a member of the EU, had unilaterally announced its decision to renew its engagement with Modi.

EU Ambassador to India Jao Cravinho had yesterday told the media that Modi had come to have lunch with the EU envoys at their invitation. The meeting had taken place shortly after voting for the Gujarat Assembly had taken place, but the outcome was awaited.

Today, German Ambassador to India Michael Steiner also confirmed the meeting with Modi. “I always said we will not interfere in the election in Gujarat and take a fresh look after the election. That’s what we did and part of it was to talk directly to Modi.” Emphasising that India is a democracy, he said the EU has full faith in this country’s judicial system.

The Germany envoy declined to say anything further in the matter, but it is learnt the lunch invitation was prompted by the grouping’s assessment that Modi could play a larger role at the national level in India in the coming days.

There is a growing feeling within the EU that since it has a strategic partnership with India, it would not be desirable to talk to one side while ignoring the other in this country’s polity.

It is learnt that Modi had a free-wheeling discussions with the EU envoys at which he gave his assessment of the political situation, human rights situation in Gujarat and his vision of India.

Food for thought

The recent luncheon invite with EU envoys was prompted by the grouping’s assessment that Modi could play a larger role at the national level in the days to come, it is learnt

The meeting ended a decade-long boycott of the Gujarat strongman by the powerful economic bloc of the European nations imposed after the 2002 anti-Muslim riots

Last October, Britain, also a member of the EU, had unilaterally announced its decision to renew its engagement with Modi

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130209/main3.htm

The Tribune – Moga bypoll; SAD to contest Sikh-dominant seats in other states; Sukhbir says DSGMC to take steps for greater transparency in working

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, February 4. Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal today said that the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) was seriously considering the issue of fielding its candidates in the Sikh-dominant areas of UP, Rajasthan, Uttrakhand and Madhya Pradesh.

Addressing mediapersons after felicitating newly elected DSGMC members at Teja Singh Samundari Hall here today, Sukhbir stated that the SAD already had its MLA in Haryana and it had contested Delhi Assembly seats too.

“Now, the party will take a call whether it should put up candidates on seats where the Sikhs are in dominance.” he said. He announced that the party would fight the next Vidhan Sabha elections in Delhi on the party symbol.

To a query on Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi being projected as the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, Sukhbir said the SAD would go along with the NDA decision on the issue. Asked about the Moga byelection, he said he was certain that SAD candidate Joginder Pal Jain would win with a record margin.

Addressing the newly elected DSGMC members, Sukhbir said the Sarnas had lost the elections “because of their arrogance and we must take a lesson from their defeat.”

He described the elections as the reaffirmation of the Sikhs’ faith in the supremacy of Akal Takht. He said the message was clear- that anybody trying to divide the Panth for petty personal interests would be punished.

Outlining the agenda of the newly elected DSGMC, Sukhbir said it would work for introducing measures to bring about greater transparency in its working and financial management and would constitute an education board for schools and colleges being run by it.

Earlier, the newly elected DSGMC members paid obeisance at Darbar Sahib.

Now, the party will take a call whether it should put up candidates on seats where the Sikhs are in dominance… The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee elections as the reaffirmation of the Sikhs’ faith in the supremacy of Akal Takht.
— Sukhbir Singh Badal, Deputy Chief Minister

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130205/punjab.htm#1

The Hindu – Muslim Labour peer under fire for meeting Modi

Special correspondent

London, 27 January 2013.  Lord Adam Patel, a Labour peer and one of Britain’s most influential Gujarati Muslims, has come under fire from fellow community leaders for meeting the Gujarat Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, on a visit to India, and inviting him to London.

He has been threatened with disciplinary action by the Council of Indian Muslims of which he is the founder and chief patron.

In a strongly-worded statement, its executive committee sought an explanation from Lord Patel as its members accused him of “cosying up” to Mr. Modi.

“In the urgent meeting called to discuss Lord Patel’s reported meeting, EC members expressed, disappointment, dismay and disbelief unanimously agreeing to wait until his return from India and give him an opportunity to explain his position,’’ it said.

Lord Patel led protests against Mr. Modi for his alleged role in the anti-Muslim violence in Gujarat and demanded his arrest during his visit to Britain in 2003. But he is now reported to be in favour of starting a dialogue with the Modi government.

Keywords:

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/muslim-labour-peer-under-fire-for-meeting-modi/article4351095.ece