PM only worried about 'cow economy', not country's: Owaisi on Modi’s 'Om and cow' mantra ahead of polls

Agencies
September 12, 2019

Sept 12: AIMIM President Asaduddin Owaisi on Wednesday targetted Prime Minister Narendra Modi within hours of the latter saying some people get "electric shocks" when someone talks about "Om and cow".

Owaisi lashed out at PM Modi saying he talked about "Om and cow" keeping an eye on the assembly elections in Maharashtra and Haryana where the BJP has already kicked off its campaign.

Speaking with reporters, the Hyderabad MP said Modi was just worried about the "cow economy" and not country's.

"... his target was assembly elections in Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand, he spoke like this, keeping that in view," he was quoted as saying by news agency.

Owaisi said every Indian heard the sound of 'Om' and Bhajans from temples and prayers from mosques, Gurdwaras, churches and others in the morning which is the beauty of India.

Modi should have stated that "all this beauty is there in the country, that people of all religions live here. But, Prime Minister talks about only one religion. It is very painful," he said.

The Prime Minister was worried about "cow economy" and not about the country's economy and decline in the GDP and did not want debates on such issues, Owaisi charged.

"Prime Minister wants that no debate takes place about painful issues facing the country like poverty and unemployment and lay-off and attention of people is removed from them," he said.

Owaisi said Modi had expressed concern about mob lynchings but it was not having any impact.

"...your government, your state governments are standing" by the oppressors instead of ensuring justice for the victims, he alleged, referring to the Jharkhand Police dropping murder charges against 11 accused in the mob lynching case of Tabrez Ansari.

The AIMIM leader said he knew a cow was a matter of faith for Hindu brethren, but the right to life under the Constitution was for humans.

While launching the National Animal Disease Control Programme (NACDP) to control foot and mouth disease (FMD) and bacterial infection brucellosis in livestock, Modi hit out at

his critics who argue that mention of words 'Om' and 'cow' takes India back to the 16-17th century, saying they are hell-bent on damaging the country.

"But, it is unfortunate that in our country the moment the word 'Om' falls on the ears of some people, they get alarmed ('baal khadhe ho jaate hai')," he said.

"They also get alarmed by the word 'cow'. They feel as if the country has gone back to the 16-17th century. This type of knowledge has only been used by people hell-bent on damaging the country and they have left no stone unturned to do so," Modi said, without naming anyone.

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News Network
January 2,2020

Kolkata, Jan 2: In what could spark fresh tensions between West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the BJP-led centre, the Union Ministry of Defence on Wednesday rejected her state's tableau proposal for the Republic Day parade on January 26.

"The tableau proposal of West Bengal government was examined by the expert committee in two rounds of meetings. The tableau proposal of the West Bengal government was not taken forward for further consideration by the committee after deliberations in the second meeting," the ministry said in its statement.

Twenty two proposals comprising 16 states and union territories and six ministries and departments have been shortlisted for the parade. The shortlist was compiled from as many as 56 tableau proposals - 32 from states and union territories and 24 from various ministries and departments - received by the central government.

"The expert committee examines the proposals on the basis of theme, concept, design and visual impact before making its recommendations. Due to time constraints arising out of the overall duration of the parade, only a limited number of tableaux can be shortlisted for participation in the parade," the statement read, adding that West Bengal was shortlisted for the 2019 Republic Day parade through a similar process.

"The rejection of the West Bengal tableau for the Republic Day parade is discriminatory. It has been done because West Bengal has been opposing the centre's CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act) and the NRC (National Register of Citizens) plans," Trinamool Congress MP Saugata Roy told news agency.

"West Bengal is known to be living state as far as culture, including arts, music and other things are concerned. So obviously, this is a discriminatory step taken by the central government against West Bengal," Mr Roy added.

The Trinamool Congress-led Bengal government is at loggerheads with the central government over several issues, and the expanding presence of the BJP in the eastern state ahead of the 2021 assembly elections has further intensified their rivalry.

Mamata Banerjee has repeatedly said that she will not allow Bengal to be a part of the proposed nationwide National Register of Citizens, an assertion that the BJP claims is proof of her minority appeasement strategy. Last month, a four-member delegation of Trinamool Congress politicians that visited BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh to meet families of those killed in violent protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act were stopped by police personnel at the Lucknow airport.

The BJP leadership has now decided to launch a campaign blitzkrieg in West Bengal to counter what it claims is the Trinamool's "misinformation programmes" against the amended citizenship law and reach out to refugees. Protests across the country have currently put the party on the backfoot.

The Citizenship Amendment Act, for the first time, makes religion the test of citizenship in India. The government says it will help minorities from three Muslim-dominated countries get citizenship if they fled to India because of religious persecution before 2015. Critics say it is designed to discriminate against Muslims and violates the secular principals of the Constitution.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro will be the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations.

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News Network
March 28,2020

New Delhi, Mar 28: The total number of coronavirus positive cases in the country has risen to 918 that include foreign nationals, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said on Saturday.

The ministry said: "The total positive cases of coronavirus are 918. The active COVID-19 cases are 819. Cured and discharged are 79. While 19 deaths have occurred so far. One person with COVID-19 migrated. As many as 15,24,266 passengers were screened at airports."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday announced a 21-day lockdown in the entire country to deal with the spread of coronavirus, saying that "social distancing" is the only option to deal with the disease, which spreads rapidly.

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News Network
May 27,2020

Bengaluru, May 27: Karnataka Chief Minister Yediyurappa on Wednesday said that his government will re-open temples, mosques and churches in the state after May 31.

"We are going to open temples, mosques and churches in the state after May 31, he said while speaking to media in Bengaluru.

The Chief Minister added that the "guidelines will be followed" as suggested by experts for opening the worship places.

"We have no objections to open malls and cinema halls, but we are waiting for the guidelines of the central government, Prime Minister will take decisions to allow malls and cinemas to open," he added.

Yediyurappa has said that people from Gujarat, Maharashtra, Kerala and Tamil Nadu will not be allowed in the state till May 31.

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