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Cong demands PM Modi’s apology for ‘insulting’ Bengaluru

Agencies
May 5, 2018

New Delhi, May 5: The Congress today accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of "insulting" Bengaluru and the people of Karnataka by calling it a "valley of sins" and demanded his apology for his "deplorable" remarks.

Congress chief Rahul Gandhi described Bengaluru as the garden city and the pride of India and said calling it a "garbage city" is "insulting".

"Building lies comes naturally to you, but you seem to find building cities very difficult. The data nails your lies," he said on Twitter, targeting the prime minister.

"Cosmopolitan, innovative and historic, beautiful Bengaluru, India’s pride, is the world’s most dynamic city!," he said in another tweet, adding that his government is committed to investing Rs 1 lakh crore to further develop Bengaluru and other cities in Karnataka.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said that as the Karnataka assembly election approaches, "the fears, frustration and follies of the BJP grow due to its impending defeat and this is reflected in the idioms and the language used by its leaders including the prime minister".

He also accused Modi of spreading "divisiveness" in the poll-bound state and alleged that such language was being used to divert the public attention from key issues such as the Cauvery water dispute, the dilution of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, joblessness and declining economy.

Singhvi said the prime minister failed to be the custodian of federal cooperation and maintain equilibrium between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu in the Cauvery river water-sharing dispute.

"You accuse Bengaluru, the Kannadiga of being a ‘valley of sin'. I think it is shameful and I think the country needs an apology which I am sure we will never get from the prime minister," he told reporters.

"As you see the heat mounting up on this campaign, you find the defamatory, the criminally culpable statements coming, deliberately inflaming and inciting communal passions, deliberately polarising communities, religious and groups and comprising blatant falsehood," he alleged.

The Congress leader said the country's prime minister lacked his grasp of the country's history as was evident from his yesterday's "false and superficial" statements on Field Marshal K C Cariappa and General K S Thimayya.

"The prime minister in his insatiable urge bordering on greed to attack the Congress party actually ended up insulting comprehensively the people of Karnataka, insulting each and every one of its entrepreneurs, insulting each and one of its IT technologists and labelling Bengaluru as the ‘valley of sin' from the Silicon Valley," he said.

"This is SIN - a ‘Special Insult. ‘S' for special and IN for insult which the prime minister of the country has heaped upon Bengaluru and the people of Karnataka," he said.

Describing Bengaluru as a birthplace of IT giants, a technological hub, a start-up hub, he said, "The prime minister has ignored the ‘S' for superior, the ‘I' for Information Technology and ‘N' for Novelty and calls it ‘SIN'."

He said, "The prime minister ignores the ‘S' for Super Highway which Bengaluru and its IT industry are and ignores the ‘I' for IT and the ‘N' for Network. He only finds 'SIN' and that is "deplorable" as he is unable to create jobs and stop farmer suicides, and instead accuse Bengaluru, the ‘Kannadiga' of being a ‘Valley of Sin'."

"The higher the divisiveness factor, the higher goes the BJP's decibel. Their decibel is linked to divisiveness. Why it is - to digress and draw the attention of the people of Bengaluru and Karnataka away from their failures in one day yesterday," he alleged.

In a full-scale attack on the Siddaramaiah government in Karnataka on city-related issues, Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday accused it of having turned Bengaluru into a "garbage city and valley of sin" from "Silicon Valley." 

Comments

MR
 - 
Sunday, 6 May 2018

All the perfumes in Arabia cannot wash away the sins Modi alone has committed.

People of Karnataka will give him a fitting reply by voting for Congress!

 

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News Network
January 13,2020

New Delhi, Jan 13: The Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) has alleged that the varsity administration has blocked the registration of 300 students on the basis of 'fake Proctor inquiries'.

The union had on Saturday asked students of the university to pay their academic tuition fee but not the hiked hostel fee.

"Today the Vice Chancellor first blocked the fee payment portal and then blocked the payment of tuition fees. It is clear that the VC was lying through the teeth when he said students want to register but are not being allowed to by protesters," JNUSU president Aishe Ghosh said.

She said the VC has also blocked the registration of 300 students based on fake proctor enquiries which are not even completed.

"The truth is that it is the administration which does not want students to register and is blocking their registration," she said.

JNUSU vice president Saket Moon said that in the meetings held in HRD ministry, it was decided that the administration would take a lenient view on the students' protest and not take action against them.

He said many students, who opened the portal for registration found they had been academically suspended and could not register.

He said the JNUSU had softened its stand by saying that they would register by paying the old fees but that has been kept on hold.

On Sunday, the administration extended the date for the winter semester registration till January 15.

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Agencies
July 30,2020

New Delhi, Jul 30: India's gold demand in 2020 is expected to fall to the lowest level in 26 years with domestic bullion prices hitting a record high and as falling disposable incomes could curtail retail purchases, the World Gold Council (WGC) said on Thursday.

Lower demand by the world's second-biggest bullion consumer could limit a rally in global prices, which hit a record high earlier this month, although it could also reduce India's trade deficit and support the ailing rupee.

"Fast rising gold prices could act as headwinds," said Somasundaram PR, the managing director of WGC's Indian operations.

Local gold futures have jumped 35% so far this year after rising a quarter in 2019.

India's gold consumption in the first half of 2020 plunged 56% on-year to 165.6 tonnes. Meanwhile, the coronavirus-triggered lockdown also slashed demand by 70% in the June quarter to 63.7 tonnes, the lowest in more than a decade, the WGC said in a report published on Thursday.

Millions of Indians have lost their jobs or taken a pay cut after the country imposed a lockdown on its 1.3 billion people to curb the spread of the virus that has infected more than 1.5 million Indians.

Consumption is generally high during the June quarter due to weddings and key festivals such as Akshaya Tritiya, but lockdown restrictions kept shoppers indoors this year.

The weak demand in the first half could drag down India's gold consumption in 2020 to the lowest since 1994, when demand stood at 415 tonnes, Somasundaram said, adding that it is still difficult to provide an estimate for full-year demand as the coronavirus crisis is still unfolding.

"Indian demand has previously jumped as much as 300 tonnes in a quarter. Latent demand could come out in the second half," Somasundaram said.

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News Network
June 13,2020

Dehradun, Jun 13: Chief of Army Staff General M M Naravane on Saturday said the country is passing through difficult times and its safety and honour depend on the ability of its young officers as military leaders.

Addressing gentlemen cadets at the Indian Military Academy here as the reviewing officer of a passing out parade, Gen Naravane said they are being commissioned as officers into the army under the most daunting of circumstances and the high standards of their military training will help them overcome the challenges lying in store for them.

The parade saw a total of 423 cadets being commissioned into the army including 333 from the country and 90 from friendly foreign countries.

"These are difficult times for the country. Its safety, honour and respect depend on your abilities as military leaders. You have to live up to the expectations of your countrymen. You have to ensure that whatever you do is for their welfare," he said.

The army chief said there are no good or bad regiments but only good officers.

"Become one with your men. Win their trust and affection and they will win battles for you," Naravane said.          

He asked the gentlemen cadets to throw themselves into their new role as commissioned officers with passion but also be compassionate towards their men.

"When the going gets tough and all seems lost, it is the spirit of your men that helps you win," he said.          

He said the gentlemen cadets who are taking their first step as commissioned officers will have to make decisions in the tactical and operational domain as well as resolve ethical issues and they will have only their conscience to guide them.          

"In such critical moments let the core values enshrined in the preamble of the constitution of India be your guiding light," the Army Chief said.

Asking them to rise above petty considerations of caste, creed and religion, he said the army does not discriminate.

Apart from containing the external threats, you may also have to defang internal forces out to destabilise the country.

He said the precise drill movements of the cadets had convinced him they will do their respective countries proud.

"In the autumn of your careers what will matter is not the position you finally attain but how honourably you have served your nation," he said.              

In a message to the gentlemen cadets' parents, who were not allowed to attend the event due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Army Chief said, "Till yesterday they (gentlemen cadets) were your children but from tomorrow they will be ours."

He promised to be with them through thick and thin.

The parade looked slightly off-colour this time with the enthusiastic crowds of parents and some usual features missing like the showering of the drill square with flower petals by helicopters.

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