Oh God, Not Again: Whistleblower Levels Fresh Allegations Against Infosys CEO

IF even God cannot change numbers of Infosys, certainly He can send another letter through a whistleblower, questioning the inaction of its Chairman Nandan Nilekani in initiating action against CEO Salil Parekh for his misdeeds in fresh allegations leveled against him, which any devotee would not refute.

Nandan, a few days back, had famously said that even God cannot change numbers of the company, in full support of the current management, after the whistleblowers’ allegations had rocked Infosys.

Jokes apart, yet another whistleblower from Infosys has accused Parekh for having stock market connections and investing in several firms, due to which the CEO stays in Mumbai, instead in Bengaluru, to have a better oversight on his investments.

“This is a gross violation of the company’s value system and has to be investigated and action for (Parekh’s) termination should be initiated. Will the company allow such a deed by other employees? If not, then why spare the CEO? What is the toothless NRC (Nomination Remuneration Committee) doing?” asked the whistleblower.

The complainant also accused Parekh for operating from Mumbai in violation of the condition that the CEO has to be based in Bengaluru and the company incurred exorbitant costs towards his airfare and local transportation.

“Though it is a year and 8 months since Mr Parekh joined the company, he operates from Mumbai in violation of the condition that the CEO has to be based in Bengaluru and not Mumbai. What is stopping the board to insist on his movement to Bengaluru,” said the whistleblower in an unsigned and undated letter to Nandan and Independent Directors on the Board.

The whistleblower alleged that Parekh, despite being given two months time to relocate to Bengaluru, did not do so, and the company incurred Rs 22 lakh towards his airfare and local transportation.

“Four business class tickets per month plus home to airport drop in Mumbai, airport pick-up in Bengaluru and drop on the return journey,” alleged the whistleblower.

The whistleblower alleged that Parekh is a smart cookie who took an apartment on rent in Bengaluru with malicious intentions to mislead the board and the company’s founders.

“Parekh is a smart cookie. He has taken an apartment on rent in Bengaluru to hoodwink people who may question him, but that does not mean he has relocated to Bengaluru. He has done this with malicious intentions to mislead the board and the company’s founders,” the complainant said.

The whistleblower argued that it was right to expect from Parekh to pay for his transport from home to office and back, as all the employees do.

Referring to Parekh’s record of visits to Bengaluru, the whistleblower said Parekh leaves Mumbai at 10 am and reaches Bengaluru by 11.30 am and office by 1.30 pm.

“Parekh spends an afternoon in office and next forenoon he is off to Mumbai by 2 pm. This kind of involvement of the CEO in the company is the worst that we have seen till date. This, unfortunately, is not setting the right example for other employees to follow. Incidentally, it has become the norm. Many people have started working from home and nobody to ask them any questions. Even if tough managers want to ask questions, how would they as the CEO himself is working from home,” the whistleblower said.

The complainant also alleged that Parekh was eroding the value systems of the company. “Hope that you will execute your responsibilities in the true spirit of Infosys and in favour of employees and shareholders who have so much of faith in the company,” the complaint said.

Infosys, however, did not respond to the whistleblower’s complaint till the time of releasing this news breaking story.

This is the second letter written by whistleblowers to the board on September 20 after a few anonymous employees had accused Parekh and CFO Nilanjan Roy of unethical practices.

They also wrote to the US-based office of the Whistleblower Protection Programme, alleging willful mis-statement material accounting irregularities for April-September quarters on October 3, after there was no response from the board to their letter.

The whistleblower claimed that he is an employee of $11-billion company’s finance department and feared retaliation for the damning disclosures if he discloses his identity.

“I am an employee working in the finance department. I am submitting this whistleblower complaint as the matter is so volatile that I fear retaliation if I disclose my identity. Please excuse me for the same, but the matter is of grave importance,” said the employee in the complaint.

As an employee and a shareholder, the whistleblower said it was his duty to bring to the notice of the chairman and the board a few facts about Mr Parekh that were eroding the value systems of the company.

“Hope that you will execute your responsibilities in the true spirit of Infosys and in favour of employees and shareholders who have so much of faith in the company,” the complaint said.

Chidambaram, DK Shivakumar's arrests should boost FDI inflow

By Bapuu Naraaynnkar

A couple of developments in last few days have taken India’s development story forward and underlined Narendra Modi government’s resolve of ease of doing business.

Many media houses highlighted the dramatic arrests of Sonia Gandhi’s money-bags P Chidambaram and D K Shivakumar on corruption charges, but missed on the benefit it accrues to India’s business prospects.

Former Karnataka Minister and Congress troubleshooter Shivakumar was arrested yesterday by ED in an alleged money laundering case.

The I-T raids on Shivakumar’s properties revealed that the Congress leader’s trans-border hawala transactions was carried out in tandem with Cafe Coffee Day officials.

The sleuths found an unaccounted sum of Rs 1.2 crore at the residence of Singapore citizen Rajnish Gopinath, which he had claimed to have belonged to CCD Founder VG Siddhartha.
They also stumbled upon Shivakumar’s close kin receiving about Rs 20 crore from CCD and M/s Soul Space in a roundabout fashion.

And, Chidambaram was arrested for tweaking norms as finance minister to allow an Indian firm to receive a suspicious foreign investment, for doing so, his son Karti Chidambaram received kickbacks in crores.

Such high-level political corruption, over the years, has been deterring many foreign investors from investing in India, but Chidambaram’s arrest will certainly give them confidence in looking at India even more.

The foreign investors, in the past, has had a good experience of a clean administration provided by Modi. This is reflected in electronic payment companies experiencing a huge growth since the demonetization. Demonetization is a step to reduce reliance on cash to check corruption, which has left India’s digital economy booming.

Another major development that unfolded was the government’s decision to merge India’s state-run banks, which would boost credit and revive economic growth from a five-year low. The merger would result in higher lending capacity, large cost reduction, cost savings for subsidiaries of each merged entity and tech compatibility. It would also mean better banking to customers, more credit to the industry, agriculture, professional governance structure and a greater autonomy and accountability of bank boards.

Yet another major step taken by the government relates to relaxation of FDI norms in contract manufacturing, coal mining, single-brand retail and insurance intermediaries.

This will not only give a major boost to Make In India programme, but also help companies like Apple-product-maker Foxconn to expand its factories in India, which are mainly assembly plants for China-made components. The easing of FDI rules for coal mining also is a very significant step taken by Modi to revive the energy prowess of the country. India, in fact, is having world’s fifth-largest coal reserves, but is the second-largest importer of coal, thanks to the domestic lobby, which has challenged reforms in energy sector.

By taking this step, Modi has sent a strong message of taking on the domestic lobby to encourage foreign investors to make a foray into coal mining. The foreign investors, with deep pockets and superior technologies, will bid for mining coal in India, which will challenge Coal India’s monopoly, thus opening the doors for private players to compete in the market.

The relaxation of local sourcing norms for single-brand retail will allow companies like Apple and IKEA to ramp up their product lines quickly and start selling their products online in India, before setting up their first brick and mortar units in India. Earlier, the single-brand retailers were allowed to mandatorily source 30 per cent of goods sold in India from the country, but under the new rules, all procurements made in India by them will be considered as local sourcing, regardless of whether the goods are sold in India or exported.

Further, such sourcing is allowed for single-brand retailers or any of its group companies, either directly or through a third party.  The five years rule of Modi has seen FDI inflows reaching a record high of $64.4 billion in 2018-19, and the measures listed above, will only take the figures even higher.

Slowdown, not a big concern, but its only a disruption

By Bapuu Naraayannkar

Yes, there is an economic slowdown, but it is not of concern, but only a disruption, as this was expected, when the country was on a threshold of an impending slowdown due to ILFS and DHFL crisis, sometime back.

Why it is disruptive? Because, there is adequate liquidity in the system, hence there is a good scope for a quick revival. The crunch is only being felt heavily at the retail level.
The current five per cent, which is the lowest quarterly GDP growth rate in six years, is no indication of India slipping into a recession as claimed by Congress.

It only refers to contraction of Indian economy in consecutive quarters, which has affected the lending process of banks and other financial institutions, but the economy has not stop growing, only the rate has slowed down.

This is, of course, a setback for India as it mandates accelerated growth to bring the economy back on track.

However, many economists and big bulls like Rakesh Jhunjhunwala are optimistic of the Indian economy making a turnaround in third quarter of this fiscal, especially after major announcements made by Narendra Modi government a few days back.

One such announcement was infusion of Rs 70,000 crore into the banking system to start the process of lending and boost consumer sentiment. Another important decision was releasing of all the pending GST refunds in next 30 days and ensuring MSMEs getting refunded within 60 days in future.

The merger of ten banks into four with adequate capital and expertise was also a vital decision as it paves the way for consolidating the banks and gives the scope to possibly privatize and divest from them, which would help India get to a higher potential growth rate i next couple of years.

Apart from these announcements made by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal also took vital steps to woo foreign investors. He allowed FDI in various sectors including single-brand retailing and mining, giving clear indication of the government's concern to revive the economy.

Additionally, the decision to give a part of its surplus reserves is shot in the arm for the government, which will give them the opportunity to put this money to good use.

Also, implementation of National Register of Citizens (NRC) by the government will boost economic growth in states, where illegal migrants are almost running a black market economies, by routing their earnings to their countries of origin by illegal means.

Moreover, government's plans to allow 100 per cent FDI in insurance from the current 49 per cent, will also help this $280 billion sector grow further.

Moreover, bringing 99.3 per cent of domestic companies having turnover of Rs 400 crore under 25 per cent tax bracket will make them deliver services and products to their clients in a cost-effective manner.

This is very vital because these firms provide enormous job opportunities and contribute to Indian economy.

Also government's efforts to relax scrutiny of investors in angel tax and reduction in shareholding voting rights from 50 per cent to 25 per cent, should attract more investors in Indian tech startups and help them transform into global unicorns, which will boost Indian economy.


With all such measures taken and fresh announcements expected from Sitharaman's office in next few days, one can only be optimistic that she would take steps, which would bring the India economy back on track in a short time.

Modi Govt Scraps Article 370; J&K, Ladakh To Be Separate Union Territories

New Delhi, Aug 5: Home Minister Amit Shah made a historic announcement of repealing Article 370, granting Jammu and Kashmir special status, on the floor of Rajya Sabha here.

With the abrogation of Article 370, Article 35A automatically gets null and void.

Shah also also declared Jammu and Kashmir a Union Territory with Legislature and Ladakh a separate Union Territory without Legislature.

Ruckus ensued in the upper house of the Parliament as soon as as Shah moved the resolution on the issue.

The notification on Article 370 signed by President Ramanth Kovind states that everything in the Indian Constitution will apply to Jammu and Kashmir.

The notification also said the Constituent Assembly in Article 370 (3) will be changed to legislative assembly, which means that the Governor, who is being treated as the State Government at the moment, will be able to move the resolution to the President.

Article 370, which was included in the Indian Constitution on October 17, 1949, exempts Jammu and Kashmir from the Indian Constitution, except Article 1 and Article 370 itself, and permits the state to draft its own Constitution.

The article also restricts Parliament’s legislative powers in respect of Jammu and Kashmir.

Article 35A stems from Article 370, having been introduced through a Presidential Order in 1954, which empowers Jammu and Kashmir legislature to define state’s permanent residents and their special rights and privileges.

BSP member Satish Chandra Mishra said his party party is not expressing any opposition to Article 370 bill and the other bill.

"Our party gives complete support. We want that the Bill be passed. Our party is not expressing any opposition to Article 370 Bill and other Bill," he said.

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) MP Nazir Raza Ahmad Laway and MM Fayaz protested on Parliament premises and tried to tear the Constitution, but were asked to walk out of the house.

Details awaited

IAF Flies Amarnath Yatris, Tourists Out Of Kashmir

Srinagar, Aug 4: The Indian Air Force Saturday flew out Amarnath Yatra pilgrims and tourists from Kashmir to two destinations after the J&K administration cancelled the pilgrimage due to threat of terrorist attacks to it.

The pilgrims and tourists were flown in IAF's C-17 transport aircraft to Jammu and Pathankot from Srinagar, sources said.

As many as 6,126 passengers reached the Srinagar airport yesterday, but 5,829 passengers traveled by 32 scheduled flights, sources said.

"Remaining 387 passengers accommodated in 4 IAF Aircraft & flown to destinations like Jammu, Pathankot & Hindon," ANI reported.

IAF C-17s has been transporting paramilitary personnel to J&K in the last few days.

The centre has deployed about 10,000 troops of paramilitary forces in J&K about a week ago. The government said the paramilitary deployment is for security situation prevailing there.

Security forces have inputs that terrorists could target Amarnath Yatra and disrupt peace in the state.

On Friday, the Chinar Corps Commander Lieutenant General KJS Dhillon had told reporters that mines, an American M-24 sniper rifle and ammunition, were found along Baltal and Pahalgam pilgrimage routes.

He also said several terrorists have assembled at launch pads across the Line of Control. Also, several infiltration attempts into India have taken place, he added.

The Indian Army yesterday had said Pakistan Army regularly tries to push terrorists through infiltration and fires a multitude of weapons to assist them.

The IAF aircraft was pressed into service because of the unavailability of commercial flights, sources said.

There were several attempts by Pakistan to disturb peace in Kashmir and target Amarnath Yatra in last 36 hours.

Alert troops neutralized 5 to 7 Pakistan regulars or terrorists, while the neighboring country tried to conduct a Border Action Team on one of the forward posts in Keran sector.

As many as four hardcore Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists were neutralized in the valley.

The army said Pakistan is deliberately resorting to malicious campaign of use of cluster ammunition by Indian Army, instead of taking credible actions against terror activities being carried out from its soil.

Omar Abdullah Wants Centre's Assurance On Article 370, 35A

Srinagar, Aug 3: National Conference leader Omar Abdullah has sought assurance on central government's plans not to repeal Articles 370 and 35A of Indian Constitution, or Jammu and Kashmir's trifurcation.

The statement comes following his meeting with Jammu and Kashmir Governor S P Malik, who assured the National Conference that there were no moves on these issues.

The party MPs would move a motion in Parliament on August 5, seeking a statement from the centre on Jammu and Kashmir situation, which has wiped up frenzied emotions, Omar told reporters here.

The National Conference Leader appealed to Jammu and Kashmir citizens to keep calm and control their emotions, besides avoid steps that may cater to vested interests' objectives.

"The Governor assured us that there was no movement on repealing Article 370 or Article 35A or delimitation of constituencies in the state," he said.

Omar said the party will never allow any tampering with the special status, both politically and legally, and also wants an election to be conducted to allow the new government to address state issues. 

"We are satisfied with our meeting with the Prime Minister, because he also expressed his wish to hold elections in Kashmir," he said.

BJP asks Kumaraswamy to quit as his govt has lost majority

Bapuu Naraayannkar

Bengaluru: Mounting the pressure on the tottering Congress-JDS coalition
government, the BJP on Monday urged chief minister H D Kumaraswamy to quit followingthe resignation of 14 MLAs belonging to both the parties,  thus reducing the government to minority.

The government's strength in the assembly as been reduced to 104 seats.

The BJP has 107 members after H Nagesh and Shankar, extending support to BJP,  after tendering their resignations.

“We have decided to hold protest dharnas in all the district headquarters on Tuesday
demanding Kumaraswamy’s resignation. This government has no moral right to continue in
office,” state BJP President B S Yeddyurappa told reporters here.

He spoke to the media after
the meeting of the party’s legislature party at the state headquarters.

Later,  party general secretary Aravind
Limbavali clarified that the BJP has nothing to do with what decision will the Speaker take
on the resignation of 14 MLAs.

“The party’s future course of action in the legislature session will be discussed and decided in the legislature party to be held again on Tuesday evening,” he said.

Talking about the technicalities, Limbavali also said since the period of a member identifying with a political party within six months of getting elected is over the issue of merger of his KPJP with Congress is rendered irrelevant since he had given such a letter to BJP also.

As per the rules, a member has
to identify with a political party within six months of getting elected. Since that period is
over, that issue is irrelevant.

Asserting that the BJP has not done anything to rock the coalition government,
Limbavali categorically denied the charge that the BJP had lured the ruling party MLAs.

“There is not even an iota of truth in the charge levelled by Congress leader Siddaramaiah.

BJP totally refutes the charge as malicious and baseless,” he said.

Limbavali said the unanimous view of the members of the legislature party is that the coalition
government has reached a situation where it is bound to collapse due to its own internal contradictions.

All JDS, Cong ministers resign in a last bid to save wobbly coalition govt

Bapuu Naraayannkar

Bengaluru: All JDS and Congress ministers resigned on Monday to pave way for reshuffling of JDS-Congress cabinet to pacify the disgruntled MLAs.

"All JDS ministers have resigned in the same manner as 21 ministers of the Congress party have resigned. The cabinet will be restructured soon," the Twitter handle of CMO Karnataka read. 

Earlier, as may as 21 Congress ministers resigned along with Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara from his post.

In the morning, ahead of the breakfast meeting with Congress ministers, Parameshwara said he was ready to quit from his post  to accommodate rebel MLAs.

Karnataka politics plunged into deep crisis after 13 MLAs of the ruling alliance submitted their resignations to the office of Speaker on Saturday.

Anand Singh, another Congress MLA, had resigned on July 1, taking the total to 14 MLAs, altogether.

However, Speaker Ramesh Kumar is yet to accept their resignations as he is only available in the office tomorrow.

Speaking to reporters, Kumaraswamy, who landed in the city from US visit, blamed BJP for the present political turmoil and added that the government will survive.

BJP has 106 MLAs in the 224-member Karnataka Assembly, after H Nagesh quit as minister and extended support to BJP.

The saffron party is now seven short of a simple majority.

Deve Gowda Hurls Bombshell, Says Mid-Term Poll Imminent, CM Kumraswamy Refutes

Bengaluru, June 21: JDS Supremo H D Deve Gowda Friday said going by the developments in the past two months, mid-term polls seem imminent and he is unsure about the longevity of the coalition government.

"I am not sure how long the coalition government would last. Going by the developments in the past two months, mid-term polls seem imminent. People can understand everything... Let me see how things pan out," he told a Kannada news channel.

Gowda said the ball is in the Congress'' court and fate of the coalition government rests on it.

"It (longevity of the government) depends on the Congress leaders. Let them decide what they want. In fact, it was the Congress leadership which wanted the coalition government," he said.

Gowda yesterday had said the coalition government was formed on the pressure of the Congress, but he was personally not in favour of it.

"They, Siddaramaiah, G Parameshwara, KH Muniyappa and others came to me and said they want to see H D Kumaraswamy as the chief minister. I did not go to them. I was not in favour of the coalition government," he said.

"They came to me saying, since you had bad experience with BS Yeddyurappa in the past to run the coalition government, you must form a coalition government with us," Gowda  added.

Moreover, JDS gave away cabinet berth from its quota to Congress in the interest of the coalition and yet the Congress is unhappy.

Gowda's comments came in the wake of Siddaramaiah's pitch for severing the ties with JDS before Congress High Command, during his visit to New Delhi to meet Rahul Gandhi.

Siddaramaiah had told the High Command that the image of the Congress has been sullied due to alliance wth JDS.

Raacting to Gowda'a comments, Kumaraswamy said the party supremo must have said in terms of local bodies' polls in the future.

"I am not aware of these comments, but the party supremo must have said, keeping in mind, the local bodies polls in future," he said.

The government is stable and would complete its  full term, he added.

Reacting to the comments, Deputy Chief Minister Parameshwar said Gowda is an experienced politician and he must have said with a purpose.

"The Congress should try to understand the comments of Gowda because he is an experienced politician and must have said with  purpose," he said.

Reacting to Gowda's comments, Congress MLA Munirathna said if the JD(S) was not happy with the Congress, let it end the alliance and go to polls.

Cabinet Expansion Will Only Reignite Dissent In Cong

Bapuu Naraayannkar

According to me, M Veerappa Moily is right when he said to me in an interview that any expansion or rejig of cabinet expansion will spell doom for the JDS-Congress government in Karnataka.

Today, as many as two or three legislators are expected to be inducted into the ministry.

This exercise, if someone asks me, will only reignite dissent, especially when some senior Congress leaders have openly flayed their senior leadership.

Particularly, Ramalinga Reddy and Roshan Baig, have been critical about their party leadership for not inducting senior leaders in the cabinet.

Baig had launched a bitter attack on KPCC President and K C Venugopal, by calling them a flop show and a bafoon, after Congress' poor Lok Sabha show in Karnataka, where it won just one seat.

Not far behind is Congress MLA Ramesh Jarkiholi, who has threatened to quit the party along with undeclared number of legislators after he was dropped after the first Cabinet reshuffle last December.

The main opposition party in the state - the BJP, which is short of eight MLAs to for the government, has been making attempts to woo some coalition parties' legislators to their side.

Not only this, the Congress also is divided over the issue of continuation of coalition government.

According to my sources, Siddaramaiah has been voicing his concern to AICC President Rahul Gandhi that the continuation of coalition government was not good for the party.

He is of the view that the Congress suffered a humiliating defeat in Lok Sabha election owing to alliance with JDS.

Given this situation, the exercise to expand the cabinet will disappoint many legislators, who are aspiring to become ministers, including Jarkiholi, H K Patil, Reddy and Baig.

BJP has 105 seats, JDS and Congress 117 seats combined. Two are independents and one nominated member in 225-seat assembly.

World Cup: Pant Asked To Fly In To Replace Shikhar

London, June 12: Rishabh Pant is being flown in as replacement to injured Shikhar Dhawan at the request of team management.

"Rishabh Pant is being flown in as the cover at the request of team," BCCI CEO Rahul Johri said.

He further said Pant will be flown in  from India today.

Dhawan yesterday was ruled out of 2019 Cricket World Cup for 3 weeks with a fractured thumb ahead of crucial matches against Pakistan and New Zealand.

K L Rahul in all probability open with Rohit Sharma with Dinesh Karthik or Vijay Shankar likely to slot in the middle order.


Dhawan, who cracked a match-winning century against Australia, suffered thumb injury in the previous match against defending champions Australia at The Oval on Sunday.

He was declared unfit after a scan report revealed his fracture.

In the 2015 World Cup, Dhawan had scored 2 hundreds.

In 2019, after a poor start against South Africa, Dhawan smashed 117 to set up a 36-run win for India.

Dhawan had bagged man-of-the-match for his ton last match.

Shikhar Dhawan Almost Ruled Out Of WC, Rishabh Or Iyer May Fly In

Bapuu Naraayannkar

London: In a big blow to Team India, Shikhar Dhawan has been ruled out of 2019 Cricket World Cup for 3 weeks with a fractured thumb ahead of crucial matches against Pakistan and New Zealand.

The possible replacement for Dhawan, as per sources, could either be Shreyas Iyer or Rishabh Pant.

K L Rahul in all probability open with Rohit Sharma with Dinesh Karthik or Vijay Shankar likely to slot in the middle order.

Dhawan, who cracked a match-winning century against Australia, suffered thumb injury in the previous match against defending champions Australia at The Oval on Sunday.

He was declared unfit after a scan report revealed his fracture.

In the 2015 World Cup, Dhawan had scored 2 hundreds. 

In 2019, after a poor start against South Africa, Dhawan smashed 117 to set up a 36-run win for India.

Dhawan had bagged man-of-the-match for his ton last match.

Karnataka JDS Chief Vishwanath Quits Post Citing Cong Conspiracy To Defeat Deve Gowda

Bengaluru, June 4: A H Vishwanath Tuesday quit as State JDS President citing several reasons including Congress conspiracy to defeat party supremo Deve Gowda and Nikhil Kumaraswamy in Tumukuru and Mandya Lok Sabha constituencies.

He also alleged that the Congress is giving problems to Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy to run coalition government smoothly.

Vishwanath also alleged Siddaramaiah for having full control over Coalition Coordination Committee, besides KPCC chief Dinesh Gundu Rao and himself having hardly any voice in it.

More details awaited

Mamata Meme Row: Police Tortured Me, Says BJP Convenor Priyanka Sharma

India, May 15: Priyanka Sharma today alleged torture in custody by Kolkata police and said she will not apologise for sharing Mamata Banerjee meme on social media, besides pitching for West Bengal Chief Minister's arrest.

"The police mentally tortured me in their custody. Despite apex court granting conditional bail yesterday, the police did not immediately release me," she told reporters here.

"The police did not allow me to meet my family members and misbehaved with me. One of the police officials also pushed me," she alleged.

The BJP Youth Wing Convenor Priyanka was arrested for sharing a meme of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Priyanka also alleged that the police forced her to sign apology letter before release.

She also said she will not apologise for sharing the meme in her Facebook account.

"I think I have not done anything wrong. The case is being heard in the apex court. I will fight the case. If you want to arrest me, jail Mamata Banerjee for abusing PM Narendra Modi," she added.

The Supreme Court had censured West Bengal government over delay in Priyanka's release for sharing a meme of Mamata.

The court also had issued notice to police over the way she was taken into custody.

I Would Not Have Been Alive, But For CRPF Protection: Amit Shah On Kolkata Poll Violence

New Delhi, May 14: Commenting on the poll violence during his rally in Kolkata last evening, BJP President Amit Shah today said he would not have been alive without CRPF cover deployed for his security.

"If there was no CRPF protection, I might not have come back alive from poll violence," he told reporters at New Delhi.

Shah said an attack on him was not unexpected because as many as 60 BJP workers were lost in political violence in West Bengal.

Shah said the Election Commission has been partial towards Mamata Banerjee's rule in West Bengal and has failed to take action, despite not giving permission to his and UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's rallies in the past.

Shah also blamed TMC for poll violence in Kolkata yesterday and asked why violence erupts only in West Bengal when BJP contests polls in all states.

"Vidyasagar college was locked. The violence occured past 7.30 pm. You should ask who rules Bengal and who has influence over the college management? Who opened the doors," he asked.

He also said Mamata didi is resorting to violence because BJP's popularity in Kolkata and Bengal has given her jitters.

Replying to a query, Shah said the party is winning more than 300 Lok Sabha seats.

"I have travelled across India, and I would like to say - after six rounds of the Lok Sabha elections, our party has already crossed 300 seats mark," he told reporters at New Delhi.

Shah also said BJP is going to sweep West Bengal by winning 23 Lok Sabha seats.

Rahul Gandhi Who Aspires To Be PM, Wanted To Be Defence Deal Pusher: Arun Jaitley

New Delhi, May 4: Leveling serious charges against Rahul Gandhi's former business partner allegedly acquiring defence offset contracts under UPA regime, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday said the Congress President was a man who aspired to be a defence deal pusher and today aspires to be India's Prime Minister.

"It is a story of a man who aspired to be a defence deal pusher and today aspires to be the PM of India. It is a serious charge. What was his own role? Did he want to start off as a defence dealer or a disguised defence dealer? Or a proxy defence dealer? Or a facilitator?," Jaitley told reporters here.

Jaitley asked Gandhi to clarify on the intention of Backops company's formation in UK and with a similar name in India and what was his relationship with the company.

"I am interested in a respone - a) Why was this company formed in 2003 in England? What was his principle job? Why was the company with similar name formed in India? What are the businesses it did? And thereafter, how come buy this vicarious route. This company eventually went up?" he said.

Jaitey said Gandhi's business partner Ulrik Mcknight at Backops Ltd in the UK had got offset defence contracts from French defence supplier Naval Group against Scorpene submarines in 2011 during the UPA rule.

He also said McKnight, after getting offset contract, signed a contract with a Visakhapatnam-based firm for the supply of critical parts for the Scorpene subs' missiles.

Jaitley also said Gandhi had a 65 per cent stake in Backops between 2003 and 2009, when it was wound up.

"Although Ulrik Mcknight is an American citizen, he is a member of the social gang of Rahul Gandhi," Jaitley claimed.

Commenting on the vicarious route undertaken by the company, Jaitley asked how did this company take such a route and asked whether Gandhi was the beneficiary of the offsets deal.

"Let him answer this question. Why was this company formed? What was his relationship with the company? And how did this company buy this vicarious route, become the beneficiary of the offsets?"  he said.

Jaitley also said it would have been better for this country if Gandhi had remained on the defence dealing rather than got into public life.

He also asked Gandhi how would he like to be judged given that he judged others - Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Rafale offsets - without any evidence.

"Rahul Gandhi made allegations in transactions cleared by the CAG and the Supreme Court.
The allegation is that you (Gandhi) by yourself the standards you have laid down has said that somebody else getting a offset contract is a charge on an unconnected person. Here, you are a connected person, directly," he said.

He also said right to silence is not available to those who aspire to be PM. It is only available to an accused.

If Imran Is Generous, He Should Hand Over Masood To India: Sushma Swaraj

India, March 14 (PTI) External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said if Pakistan PM Imran Khan is generous, he should hand over JeM chief Masood Azhar to India.

"We are ready to engage with Pakistan in atmosphere free from terror. Some people here (India) say Imran Khan is a statesman, if he is so generous then he should hand over JeM chief Masood Azhar to India ... Let us see his big heart. He should give us Azhar. Why doesn't he give us Masood Azhar?" she said.

Sushma also ruled out talks with Pakistan unless it acts against terror outfits on its soil.

"We do not want talk on terror, we want action on it. Terror and talks cannot go together," she said.

Sushma asked why Pakistan retaliated to the Indian air strikes in Balakot when India had specifically targeted JeM terror camp, without civilian causalities.

"Why did the Pakistani military attack us on behalf of JeM? You not only keep JeM on your soil, but fund them and when the victim country retaliates, you attack it on the terror outfit's behalf," she said.

Republic TV Airs Clinching Proof Of Balakot Terror Decimation

India, March 11: In yet another clinching proof of IAF decimating JeM terror camps in an pre-emptive air strike in Balakot, an audio tape aired by the Republic TV neutralises the lies spread by Pakistan and its Indian lobby on non-military action.

In the three-minute tape, an eye-witness of the air strike and a resident of Balakot is heard disclosing the explosive details of the air strikes conducted by IAF in which many top JeM terrorists were killed and dumped in Kulhar river to delete proof.

"They burnt most of the bodies, most of them. They got petrol out of cars and used it to burn the bodies. The remaining bodies were put in sacks and were dumped in the Kulhar river. Do you understand? They dumped the bodies in the river so that there is no proof available in the future," he says.

In spite of trying to cover up the matter, people are circulating videos, he adds.

He goes on to share some of their names like Mainshah Abdar Zak, Lahore's Major Retd Havar Rana, Altaf Ali Chaudhary from Karachi, Mudassar Ali from Rawalpindi, Ustad Mohsin from Bahawalpur, Datta Khel's Tafail Dost.

He also says two brothers from Dhannu Ali Khatak and Bahadur Khatak, were killed.

A top commander of Jaish from Gujranwala has also been killed, among others, he adds.

However, the total number of terrorists killed is still not known, he says, adding that the Pakistani army has surrounded the entire area in Balakot.

The army is thrashing and brutalising people, besides snatching their mobile phones and shut down internet services in the area so that people do not circulate information, videos and pictures, he says.

The army also were not providing basic medical care to the injured, though they were screaming for help, he adds.

He also says that the Indian strike has rattled JeM and ISI are rattled, and are moving all their men Waziristan-Afghanistan border.

He says that if there is another strike by India at the Pakistani army camps, they will have no place to hide.

"We believe that if the Indian army continues to target the terror camps and continues to kill terrorists, soon we will be free of terror," he adds.

Hope Polls Are Held On Level-Playing Field: Karnataka CM Kumaraswamy

India, March 10:  Shortly after Lok Sabha election dates were announced in New Delhi, Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy Sunday hoped polls are conducted in a level playing field and all parties should respect voters' decision.

"India is set for another election. In this battle of democracy, I hope elections are conducted in a level playing field. All parties and candidates must follow the guidelines issued by the ECI and uphold the values of democracy, and respect the decision of the voters," Kumaraswamy tweeted.

Elections will be held in two phases for 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka, between April 18 and April 23, Karnataka Chief Election Officer Sanjiv Kumar told reporters in Bengaluru.

In the first phase, elections will be held for Kolar, Chikballapur, Bengaluru South, Mysuru, Dakshin Kannada, Hassan and Udupi, among other Lok Sabha seats, he said.

In the second phase, elections will be held for Chikodi, Belagavi, Bidar, Ballari and Shivamogga, among other parliamentary seats, Kumar said.

As many as 50346721 electorate will vote in Karnataka, of which there are 24847292 eligible women voters as per the final rolls published for 2019 Lok Sabha election, Kumar said.

The term of the present Lok Sabha ends on June 3.

Wishing all candidates for good performance, State BJP President B S Yeddyurappa appealed all voters to cast their vote and work together for a mission.

"I appeal to all voters to turn up to vote and reinforce the democratic ethos of the nation. Lets work together for mission #PhirEkBaarModiSarkar. I Wish all candidates the very best for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections," he said.

Former Prime Minister and JDS Supremo H D Deve Gowda said the Congress-JDS coalition combine will decide on seat-sharing in few days.

Of the 28 parliamentary seats in Karnataka, five seats are reserved for Scheduled Caste and two for Sheduled Tribe, Kumar said.

The five reserved constituncies for SC are Bijapur, Kalaburgi, Chitradurga, Chamrajnagar and Kolar, whereas, reserved seats for ST are Raichur and Ballari, he said.

In the first and second phase, elections to 14 Lok Sabha seats each will be held on April 18 and April 23, Kumar said, adding that the results would be announced on May 23.

In the first phase, notifications would be issued on May 19 and last date for nominations would be March 26, Kumar said.

The scrutiny of nominations would be held on March 27 and last date for withdrawal would be March 29, he added.

In the second phase, notifications would be issued on March 28 and last date for nominations would be April 4, Kumar said, adding that the scrutiny of the nominations will be conducted on April 5 and last date for withdrawal will be April 8.

He also said there is a seven per cent increase in the number of polling station for this elections compared to the previous 2014 election.

"There are as many as 58186 polling stations this election compared to 54265 in 2014 election," he added.

Kumar also said as many as 600 women-managed polling stations will be set up across Karnataka.

As per the revised election expenses ceiling for candidates, the maximum limit of election expenses for the parliamentary constituencies is Rs 70 lakh per candidate, he said. PTI BDN 

Lok Sabha polls from April 11 to May 19: CEC

India, March 10: Lok Sabha elections will be held in seven phases, instead of nine, from April 11 to May 19.

The results will be declared on May 23, CEC Sunil Arora told reporters at New Delhi..

Assembly elections will be held simultaneously in Arunachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim and Odisha, he said.

He said phase one election will be held on April 11 and second on April 18, while phases three and four will be held on April 23 and 29.

Arora said phase five poll will be held on May 6 and sixth phase on May 12, besides phase seven of the poll will be held on May 19.

The states going in single phase are Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal, Kerala, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Punjab, Sikkim, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Andaman and Nicobar, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu, Lakshadweep, Delhi, Puducherry and Chandigarh.


States going to polls in two phases are Karnataka, Manipur, Rajasthan and Tripura and in three phases are, Assam, Chhattisgarh.

Jharkhand, MP, Maharashtra and Odisha, will go to polls in four phases, besides Jammu and Kashmir in five phases.


Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, on the other hand, will go to polls in seven phases.


Replying to a query, Arora said nomination will be rejected if Form 26 is found incomplete. He also said VVPATs will be used in all polling stations.

Arora also said there are 900 million eligible voters and 84 million new voters have been added.

More details awaited

Rajnath Triggers Storm, Mentions Third Air Strike Across LoC

India, March 9: India's Home Minister Rajnath Singh today triggered a political storm by mentioning about the third air strike conducted across LoC in last five years.

"In the past five years, we have crossed the border thrice and conducted air strikes. I will tell you about two, not the third one," he said at a public rally in Mangaluru.

"Once in Uri, our soldiers were killed by terrorists coming from Pakistan, then our soldiers had responded. Next was after Pulwama. The third one I will not disclose," he added.

In a pre-emptive and non-military action, India had targetted the terror training camp of JeM after they had claimed responsibility for February 14 terror attack in Kashmir's Pulwama in which over 40 CRPF jawans were killed by a suicide bomber.

Pakistan retaliated the next day by sending a pack of fighter jets across LoC to target military installations in India.

In an aerial dog fight that ensued, Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman shot down a Pakistani F-16 before ejecting, but he was captured by Pakistan Army after his parachute landed across the LoC.

Abhinandan, however, was released after mounting global pressure.

The first air strike in last five years was in September 2016 when IAF crossed LoC to decimate terror launch pads in PoK, weeks after Pakistani terrorists attacked an army base in Uri in Kashmir, killing 19 soldiers.