'BJP' offered Rs 20 crore to buy me, says AAP MLA

February 3, 2014

Sanjay-SinghNew Delhi, Feb 3: An AAP lawmaker alleged Monday he had been approached by BJP leaders, including Narendra Modi, in an attempt to buy him off for Rs.20 crore.

Madan Lal, MLA from Kasturba Nagar, claimed that he had been first approached Dec 7, a day before the Delhi assembly election results were announced.

However, Madan Lal said he has no proof to back his allegations.

Addressing a press conference, he said that just past midnight that day he received a call from an "unknown number" and the person who spoke to him said that he would make him talk to a "big person" and mentioned Arun Jaitley's name.

"I told him to shut up and put down the phone," said Lal.

Recounting a second instance, Lal said he was approached by two people on behalf of Gujarat Chief Minister and BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi a few days ago.

"Two people came to my house to meet him. I asked what they want, and they told me 'We are Modi's people'. I remember the name of one person, Sanjay Singh. Both were in their 40s. I asked them what is the work they had come to me for. They told me to wean away nine AAP lawmakers and form a party and align with the BJP," said Lal.

Lal claimed he was told that if he formed a government with the breakaway MLAs in alliance with BJP and wanted to be chief minister he would be paid Rs.20 crore. The AAP MLAs who wanted to be cabinet ministers would be paid Rs.10 crore each.

He said he had informed the party high command each time he was approached.

In the December 2013 Delhi assembly elections, the AAP won 28 seats in the 70-member house and formed the government with the outside support of the Congress that had won eight seats.

Janata Dal-United (JD-U) MLA Shoaib Iqbal and an Independent also extended support to the AAP in the assembly.

Of AAP's 28 lawmakers, one was elected speaker and another MLA -- Vinod Kumar Binny  -- was expelled for anti-party activities.

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Agencies
April 24,2020

New Delhi, Apr 24: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has termed the government decision to freeze Dearness Allowance of Central government employees for a year as "insensitive and inhuman."

The former Congress President in a tweet said: "Lakhs and crores are being spent on the Bullet Train and New Delhi's Central Vista which should have been suspended, but the government has deducted DA of Central government employees and pensioners... It is insensitive and inhuman."

"The tragic part is that by deducting this amount from January 1, 2020 up to 30th June, 2021 for a period of 1.5 years, the government of India proceeds to deduct almost Rs 38 thousand crore from the income of these middle class government employees and pensioners, who rely completely on the pay and pensions that they receive," said Randeep Surjewala, chief spokesperson of Congress.

There are about 50 lakh such serving government employees and about 62 lakh pensioners.

"Even more tragic and objectionable is the fact that the government of India has not even spared our armed forces. The government has deducted Rs 11 thousand crore of the 15 lakh serving armed forces personnel and nearly 26 lakh military pensioners. What is their fault? They are serving the nation in times of all types of crises," said Surjewala.

The Congress alleged that the government did not spare the savings scheme.

Instead of curbing the wasteful expenditure, the government has been constantly hitting at the income of government employees and the middle class, it added.

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News Network
March 24,2020

Kochi, Mar 24: Long queues were witnessed in front of state beverages corporation outlets across Kerala on Tuesday despite the statewide lockdown to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

As tipplers thronged the outlets unmindful of the curfew, officials asked them to ensure that they kept a one metre distance between them as part of preventive steps to check the COVID-19 transmission.

Official sources said precautionary measures have been taken at the beverages outlets to prevent the virus spread.

Only those wearing masks were allowed to stand in queues, the sources said.

Police were deployed to ensure that the people standing in queues keep a one metre distance between them, they added.

The opposition Congress slammed the CPI(M)-led LDF government for not taking steps to restrict crowds in front of the Kerala State Beverages Corporation (Bevco) outlets, apprehending that such a situation would pave way for spreading the virus.

Ernakulam district congress committee general secretary Sherin Varghese claimed if the government had implemented a 2017 Kerala high court order directing the beverages corporation to take remedial steps to end long queues in front of the outlets, such a situation would not have arisen.

"Had the beverages corporation complied with the court order, safety and security of persons standing in queues could have been ensured.

Now there is no protective measure to prevent the possible transmission of the coronavirus from a carrier to another person," he told PTI.

Meanwhile, the state government has directed that adequate distance be kept between people standing in queues.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday justified the decision to keep the liquor shops open citing the "peculiar" situation prevailing in the state.

Kerala is in a total lockdown since Monday midnight till March 31 to check the virus spread.

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News Network
June 10,2020

New Delhi, Jun 10: Petrol price on Wednesday was hiked by 40 paise per litre and diesel by 45 paise, the fourth straight daily increase in rates after oil PSUs ended an 82-day hiatus in rate revision. Petrol price in Delhi was hiked to Rs 73.40 per litre from Rs 73, while diesel rates were increased to Rs 71.62 a litre from Rs 71.17, according to a price notification of state oil marketing companies.

Rates have been increased across the country and vary from state to state depending on the incidence of local sales tax or VAT.

This is the fourth daily increase in rates in a row since oil companies on Sunday restarted revising prices in line with costs, after ending an 82-day hiatus.

In four hikes, petrol price has gone up by Rs 2.14 per litre and diesel by Rs 2.23.

Latest petrol, diesel prices in top cities:

New Delhi: Petrol ₹73.40. Diesel ₹71.62

Gurgaon: Petrol ₹72.86. Diesel ₹64.90

Mumbai: Petrol ₹80.40. Diesel ₹70.35

Chennai: Petrol ₹77.43. Diesel ₹70.13

Hyderabad: Petrol ₹76.20. Diesel ₹70b

Bengaluru: Petrol ₹75.77. Diesel ₹68.09

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