Thiruvananthapuram, May 13 (IANS) With both the leading allies – CPI and KC (Mani) in the ruling CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) on Monday expressing their desire for one of the two Rajya Sabha seats which the Left will win, things are heating up.

Three members are due to retire from Kerala from the Upper House on July 1, and the problem now is that while all the retiring members belong to the Left, the new nominees will see the Left winning two, while the Congress-led UDF is certain to win one seat.

The CPI is the second-biggest ally and Binoy Viswam, its sitting member who is retiring from the Upper House and who is also the state secretary of his party, on Monday told the media that the seat which the CPI holds will be the one that the CPI will get again.

KC (Mani) is the third-biggest ally which joined the Left in 2020, after their party split. The faction led by Jose K Mani joined the LDF.

On Monday at a special party meeting of KC (Mani) at Kottayam, chaired by party Chairman Jose K Mani who is also retiring on July 1, the party’s leaders said they will raise their demand at the appropriate forum.

“We wish to point out that, no one will forget that in the 2021 Assembly polls the ruling Left for the first time in history retained office, and this was because of the efforts of our party. We came with a Rajya Sabha seat and we are not interested in debating this in public, instead we will raise it at the appropriate forum,” said Mani.

The notification for the elections to the three seats is expected anytime now.

Meanwhile the forthcoming LDF meeting is expected to discuss this issue.

–IANS

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New Delhi, May 13 (IANS) Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday fired a fresh salvo against Rahul Gandhi and the Congress, for making “lofty promises disconnected with reality” during the Lok Sabha poll campaign without explaining where the huge funds to finance these schemes were going to come from.

The Finance Minister said that these schemes could not be implemented without increasing taxes or borrowing heavily and running down the economy.

The Finance Minister said on X: “Has @INCIndia considered the cost of the lofty promises made in their manifesto? Have they calculated how much the ‘Khata Khat’ schemes will cost fiscally? Will they borrow substantially for them, or will they raise taxes to fund them? How many welfare schemes would @RahulGandhi shut down to accommodate the fiscal cost of the ‘Khata Khat’ schemes?”

The Finance Minister asked would Rahul Gandhi care to answer these questions and explain how their gigantic schemes of fiscal splurge would work without increasing taxes or borrowing heavily and running down the economy.

“Here’s a challenge to him to answer these questions for the people of India,” she said.

She said that the truth is that the BJP government’s fiscal management is much better than that of the UPA despite facing the COVID-19 pandemic in which substantial resources were used for relief efforts.

She also asserted that the Modi government had managed the country’s fiscal situation in a much better manner than the Congress-led UPA government and cited figures to drive home her point.

“During the UPA rule from FY2004 to FY2014, Central Government Debt, including external debt at current values, grew about 3.2 times, from Rs 18.74 lakh crore in March 2004 to Rs 58.59 lakh crore in March 2014. This increase was much greater than the 2.9 times growth from Rs 58.59 lakh crore in FY 2014 to Rs 172.37 lakh crore in FY 2024 (RE),” she said.

This lower increase between FY 2014 and FY 2024 occurred despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, where the Centre borrowed to provide relief to those in need even as revenues fell, she added.

She said that the Central government’s debt, which was 52.2 per cent of GDP at the end of FY 2013-14, was reduced to around 48.9 per cent in FY 2018-19 through gradual fiscal consolidation.

“During this period, the fiscal deficit was lowered from 4.5 per cent in FY 2013-14 to 3.4 per cent in FY 2018-19. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and proactive government measures to protect lives and livelihoods, the fiscal deficit surged to 9.2 per cent of GDP in FY 2020-21, increasing the central government’s debt to 61.4 per cent of GDP,” the Finance Minister said.

She said that post-pandemic, the government pursued a balanced approach to fiscal consolidation while sustaining economic growth.

“This strategy reduced the fiscal deficit from 9.2 per cent of GDP in FY 2020-21 to 5.8 per cent in the Revised Estimates for FY 2023-24,” she said.

The minister said that the Interim Budget projects a further reduction to 5.1 per cent of GDP in FY 2024-25. Similarly, the Central government’s debt-to-GDP ratio fell from 61.4 per cent in FY 2020-21 to 57.1 per cent in FY 2023-24.

“On the other hand, under UPA, for 6 consecutive years between FY 2009 and FY 2014, the ratio of India’s Gross Fiscal Deficit (GFD) to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was at least 4.5 per cent. It was between 4.5 per cent – 5 per cent of GDP in 3 out of the 6 years, between 5 per cent – 6 per cent in one, and more than 6 per cent in 2 years. And there was no COVID-19-like crisis that needed such a quantum of fiscal expansion, showing poor fiscal management by UPA,” the Finance Minister said.

The Net Market Borrowings (G-sec) of the Centre had gone up a whopping 4.5 times during the UPA regime. It went up by 2.6 times under our government despite the COVID-19 pandemic. It shows the robust fiscal management of our govt, she added.

During COVID-19, ‘borrow, spend and even print money’ to reboot the economy was the predominant advice given by the so-called “luminaries” of the opposition parties led by Congress. Ironically, the same people are complaining about high debt levels, the Finance Minister remarked.

Under the Congress-led UPA government, the underlying deficit was much higher than the budgeted deficit, she said.

UPA Govt did ‘window dressing’ to hide its high fiscal deficit without maintaining the integrity of the fiscal numbers. Fiscal Deficit for 2008-09 would have been 7.9 per cent instead of 6.1 per cent as officially stated, she said.

“In contrast, our government has prioritised transparency and accountability in its budgeting practices, thereby enhancing the credibility and robustness of its fiscal numbers,” the Finance Minister added.

–IANS

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Noida, May 13 (IANS) Police on Monday arrested a close aide of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Amanatullah Khan in connection with a case in which the employees of a petrol pump in Noida Sector 95 were thrashed by the MLA’s son.

The accused has been identified as 50-year-old Iqrar Ahmed, the manager of Amanatullah Khan.

Meanwhile, the police also issued NBW against the MLA, his son Anas and one other accused Abu Bakar.

The police have now added non-bailable sections to the registered FIR.

With the help of local intelligence and electronic surveillance, Noida Police arrested Iqrar Ahmed, the wanted accused in this case, from near the border of Kalindi Kunj.

The police said Iqrar Ahmed, a native of Hapur district, was currently living in the office of MLA Amanatullah Khan in Okhla.

The incident took place on May 7 after an altercation broke out between the two sides. The video of the incident had also gone viral on social media.

In the CCTV footage, the AAP leader’s son and his aides could be seen jumping the queue at the petrol pump and then thrashing the staff after a heated exchange.

As per the media report, Amanatullah Khan also reached the fuel station after the fracas and threatened the fuel station employees.

The police have booked the father-son duo in the case and are searching for them.

–IANS

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Chennai, May 13 (IANS) The Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK ), the political arm of the powerful Vanniyar community in Tamil Nadu, will hold agitations in support of the demand for the implementation of 10.5 per cent internal reservations for Vanniyars within the Most Backward Class (MBC) quota, the party’s founder-leader S. Ramadoss announced on Monday.

Addressing a press conference here, Ramadoss said the date for the agitations will be announced soon.

Even after the Tamil Nadu government directed the State Backward Classes Commission on January 12, 2023, to submit a report on the 10.5 per cent internal reservation for Vanniyars, no decision has been taken on it to date, he said.

The PMK leader also said that he and party President Anbumani Ramadoss had written seven letters to Chief Minister M.K. Stalin in this regard but nothing happened.

He said the Tamil Nadu government could have implemented the reservation by now, but since it has not taken any decision on this, the party is left with no other option but to stage agitations to press for its demand.

He also called upon the DMK government to come out with measures to rectify the ‘mistakes’ it committed in the implementation of social justice in the state.

Ramadoss said that PMK has been continuously spearheading the campaign on social justice, adding that the party has been advocating the importance of conducting a caste-based census to provide reservations based on the data.

He also claimed that the DMK government had ideologically accepted the demand for a caste-based census, but was shying away from the responsibility by putting the onus on the Union government, saying it was better placed legally to carry out the exercise.

–IANS

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Dhule (Maharashtra), May 13 (IANS) Targeting Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday asked the former Maharashtra chief minister if he was backing the Congress which “supports” Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab who was involved in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack.

Speaking at a rally in Maharashtra’s Dhule Lok Sabha constituency to garner support for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) nominee Subhash Bhamre, HM Shah, posed several questions for Uddhav Thackeray.

“Congress leaders are supporting Kasab. I ask Uddhav Thackeray — are you with the Congress leaders? The Congress wants to bring back Muslim Personal Law, are you with them? Rahul Gandhi opposes Veer Savarkar, do you agree with him? Udhayanidhi Stalin opposes Sanatan Dharma, are you supporting him?” he asked

Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT) is an alliance partner of the Congress — the principal opposition party.

Addressing the rally, HM Shah also wondered why the Congress as well as Uddhav Thackeray, despite being invited for the January 22 Pran Partishtha ceremony of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, did not turn up.

“Because they were scared of losing their vote bank, but we are not afraid,” the Home Minister said.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi built the Kashi Vishwanath corridor which was destroyed by Aurangzeb. Bomb blasts were happening almost every day when the Manmohan Singh-led government was in the Centre. Mumbai was also shaken by explosions. When Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in power, terrorists attacked Uri and Pulwama. In just 10 days, our military forces entered Pakistan and carried out surgical strikes and air strikes, and wiped out the terrorists,” HM Amit Shah said.

–IANS

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