Maharashtra CM Fadnavis expands cabinet, inducts ex-Congress leader Vikhe Patil

Agencies
June 16, 2019

Mumbai, Jun 16: Former Congress leader Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil and Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar were among the eight who were sworn in as ministers in the Devendra Fadnavis-led Maharashtra cabinet on Sunday.

Apart from the eight ministers, five were inducted as junior ministers as part of a cabinet expansion which took place a day before the beginning of the state legislature's monsoon session and four months ahead of the assembly polls.

This was the third expansion of the state cabinet and no new woman leader was inducted. There are two women ministers - Pankaja Munde and Vidya Thakur - in the BJP-Sena coalition government in Maharashtra.

Vikhe Patil, the former leader of opposition in the state assembly, and ex-NCP leader Jaydutt Kshirsagar, who joined the Shiv Sena recently, were sworn in as cabinet ministers on Sunday. Mumbai BJP chief Shelar was also inducted into the cabinet.

Shelar, the former chairman of Mumbai Cricket Association, was earlier seen as a strong contender for the cabinet post, especially after the BJP's tally in the local civic body rose from 33 to 83 under his leadership during the 2017 municipal polls.

For the first time, a leader from the Republic Party of India (Athawale), Avinash Mahatekar, was inducted into the Fadnavis government as a junior minister.

RPI(A) chief and Rajya Sabha member Ramdas Athawale is currently a minister of state in NDA government at the Centre.

Vikhe Patil, Kshirsagar and Mahatekar, who currently are not members of any House of the state legislature, can hold ministerial charge for six months.

According to the rules, they have to get elected in the state legislature within these six months. But since the state polls are due in September-October, these ministers can stay on their posts till end of this assembly's tenure.

Suresh Khade, Sanjay Kute, Anil Bonde and Ashok Uike of the BJP and Tanaji Sawant of the Shiv Sena also took oath as cabinet ministers.

Among them, Sawant is the only cabinet member who is a Member of the Legislative Council (MLC) while the others are MLAs.

Besides, BJP's Yogesh Sagar, Sanjay alias Bala Bhegade, Parinay Phuke and Atul Save were inducted as MoS. While Phuke is an MLC, the others are members of the Lower House.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra housing minister Prakash Mehta and five other ministers quit their posts, an official in the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said.

Besides Mehta, the others who resigned as ministers are Rajkumar Badole, Vishnu Sawra, Dilip Kamble, Praveen Pote and Amrish Atram. The chief minister has accepted their resignations, the official added.

The Devendra Fadnavis government took charge in November 2014, but the Sena did not join the government at that time.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led party joined the government in December that year during the first cabinet expansion. The second expansion of the cabinet was held in July, 2016.

A vacancy was created in 2018 when then state agriculture minister Pandurang Fundkar died. The portfolio was subsequently being handled by Revenue Minister Chandrakant Patil.

Earlier this year, then health minister Deepak Sawant also resigned and the department was being looked after by Eknath Shinde, who is also the PWD minister.

Parliamentary affairs and food and civil supplies minister Girish Bapat resigned after being elected to the Lok Sabha from Pune. His portfolios were till now being shared by education minister Vinod Tawde and tourism minister Jaykumar Rawal.

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News Network
July 17,2020
New Delhi, Jul 17:  Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said that as India's COVID-19 tally has crossed 10,00,000 mark and issued a warning that by August 10, more than 20,00,000 people may be infected in the country. He called on the government to take concrete steps to control the pandemic.
 
Taking to Twitter, Gandhi marked his earlier tweet from July 14 that stated: "This week the figure will cross 10,00,000 in our country."
"The tally has crossed 10,00,000 mark. If COVID-19 continues to spread at the same speed, by August 10, more than 20,00,000 people will be infected in the country.
 
The government must take concrete, planned steps to stop the epidemic," he tweeted today.
With the highest single-day spike of 32,695 cases and 606 deaths, India's COVID-19 tally on Thursday reached 9,68,876, informed the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Thursday.
 
The total number of COVID-19 cases includes 3,31,146 active cases, 6,12,815 cured/discharged/migrated and 24,915 deaths. 

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Agencies
May 30,2020

New Delhi, May 30: The Congress on Friday described the first year of the Modi government as a "year of disappointment, disastrous management and diabolical pain".

Congress leader K C Venugopal said the six years of the Modi dispensation have seen fraying of bonds of empathy, fraternity and brotherhood with increase in acts of communal and sectarian violence.

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said that at the end of six years, it appears the Modi government is at war with its people and is inflicting wounds on them, instead of healing them.

"It is inflicting wounds on Mother India," he said.

"This government is trying to fill coffers of the select rich and is inflicting pain on the poor," Surjewala said.

On the BJP's charge of the Congress playing politics over the COVID-19 crisis, Venugopal said the opposition party did not indulge in any politics and gave suggestions instead.

"Being a responsible opposition, it is our duty to raise the problems faced by the common people. As opposition, we highlighted the failures of the government," he said.

Venugopal said the government "is totally insensitive" to the plight of migrant labourers and farmers.

Surjewala also demanded that a virtual session of Parliament be convened immediately to discuss pressing issues and the due process be set in motion for holding of meetings of various parliamentary committees.

Modi and his cabinet had taken oath on this day last year for a second term in office.

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News Network
January 31,2020

Jan 31: President Ram Nath Kovind on Friday hailed the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act as "historic" in his address to joint sitting of both houses of Parliament, prompting protests by some opposition members.

He also said that debate and discussion on any issue strengthens democracy while violence during protests weaken it.

"The Citizenship Amendment Act is a historic law. It has fulfilled wishes of our founding fathers including Mahatma Gandhi," he said.

"Debate and discussions strengthen democracy, but violence during protests weaken democracy," he said without directly referring to the anti-CAA protests in the country some of which have witnessed violence.

In a reference to abrogation of Article 370, Kovind said there is happiness among people of India that people in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh have got rights on par with the rest of the country.

The president said Parliament has created record in the first seven months of the new government headed by Narendra Modi by enacting several landmark legislations.

"My government is taking strong steps for making this decade as India's decade and this century as India's century," he said.

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