Ansari has edge over Jaswant Singh in vice presidential poll

August 6, 2012

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New Delhi, August 6: As many as 787 members of parliament will vote Tuesday to elect India's 14th vice president. In the poll, UPA nominee and incumbent Hamid Ansari appears to have a clear edge over his rival Jaswant Singh, backed by the opposition NDA, according to sources.

The result will be out Tuesday evening.

The sources claimed the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) nominee has the support of 500 out of the total 787 members in both houses of parliament, who constitute the electoral college for the vice presidential election.

The Lok Sabha has a total strength of 545 members, including speaker. It has two vacancies -- Pranab Mukherjee resigned after being elected the 13th president of India and Vijay Bahuguna resigned to be co-opted as council member after he was made chief minister of Uttarakhand. A Bharatiya Janata Party member from Bellary, Karnataka, J. Shanta, facing a court case, would not be able to vote. The Rajya Sabha has 245 members.

UPA constituents like the Nationalist Congress Party, the DMK, the Rashtriya Lok Dal and the National Conference are backing Ansari but the Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee is yet to clarify her stand.

Parties supporting the UPA from outside like the Samajwadi Party, the Bahujan Samaj Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Lok Janshakti Party are also backing Ansari.

The Janata Dal (Secular) has also pledged support to Ansari, who has been a career diplomat and scholar.

The Communist Party of India-Marxist, which had supported Ansari in 2007, is backing him for a second term but the Revolutionary Socialist Party will abstain from voting.

National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate Jaswant Singh is supported by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and allies like the Akali Dal, Janata Dal (United) and the Shiv Sena.

The Biju Janata Dal and AIADMK, which had supported opposition nominee P.A. Sangma in the presidential poll, are yet to declare their support to Singh.

A former army man, Singh is a veteran BJP leader and has headed the key foreign and finance ministries during the 1998-2004 NDA rule.

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Agencies
June 26,2020

New Delhi, Jun 26: Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday said the central government cannot shirk its responsibility of securing our borders with China and asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take the nation into confidence on the situation in Ladakh.

In a video message put out as part of the Congress party's campaign to honour the Army personnel who sacrificed their lives in Ladakh, she asked why the country's soldiers were martyred when China has not captured any Indian territory, as claimed by the Prime Minister.

"Today when there is a crisis-like situation at the India-China border, the central government cannot shirk its responsibility (of securing them)," she said in a video message as part of 'SpeakUpForOurJawans' campaign.

"The country wants to know if China has not captured our land in Ladakh, as claimed by the Prime Minister, then why were our 20 soldiers martyred," she asked.

She said while the Prime Minister says there is no intrusion into Indian territory, experts after seeing satellite images talk of the presence of Chinese troops in our territory confirming the intrusions.

"When and how will the Modi government take back from China our land in Ladakh? Is our territorial integrity being violated by China in Ladakh? Will the Prime Minister take the nation in confidence on the situation at the border?" Gandhi asked.

She said the government should give full support and strength to the Army, saying "this will be true patriotism".

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News Network
April 26,2020

New Delhi, Apr 26: Medical services at Babu Jagjivan Ram Hospital in Jahangirpuri area have been closed and the hospital is being sanitised after 44 staff members including doctors were tested positive for COVID-19, Delhi Health Department said on Saturday.

"Total 44 staff members including doctors at Babu Jagjivan Ram Hospital in Jahangirpuri area of Delhi have tested positive for COVID-19. Test reports of other staff members are awaited. Hospital's medical services have been closed and the hospital is being sanitized," Delhi Health Department said.

Earlier today, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain informed that there are 2,625 coronavirus cases in Delhi, out of which 111 were reported yesterday.

The total number of active cases in the national capital stands at 1,518 while 869 people have recovered so far, the minister further informed. There have been 54 deaths in the national capital, as per the Union Health Ministry.

A total of 26,496 confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been reported in India, including 19,868 active cases, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said on Sunday.

824 people have lost their lives due to the infection in the country.

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News Network
April 16,2020

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 16: Seven fresh cases of COVID-19 were reported from Kerala on Thursday, taking the total number of active cases to 147 in the state,even as over 88,000 people are under observation.

On Wednesday, only one positive case had been reported, thelowest in weeks.

While Kannur reported four cases, two were from Kozhikode and one from Kasaragod, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told reportershere.

Five of those affected had come from abroad, while two have got it through contact with infected people.

Samples of 27 people, including 24 from the worst affected Kasaragod, have turned negative on Thursday.

He said 394 coronavirus cases have so farbeen detected from the state.

Over 80,000 people are under observation, including 532 in various hospitals.

Vijayan said 17,400 samples have been sent for testing of which 16,459 have returned negative.

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