Mamata in fresh row, faces flak for calling students Maoists

May 19, 2012

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?Kolkata, May 19: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday stormed out of a CNN-IBN show on one year of Trinamool Congress rule, after accusing the audience, which consisted of students, to be Maoists and CPM cadre.

The Trinamool Congress chief lost her cool and stormed out of the interactive TV session when members of the audience questioned her on the arrest of Jadavpur University professor Ambikesh Mahapatra and increased rate of crime against women in the state, including the controversial Park Street rape case.

Alleging that the professor was a member of the CPM cadre, the West Bengal Chief Minister said, "It is not a cartoon. We love cartoons. Cartoon is a different thing. He is a CPM man. He misused the e-mail of his society people without their consent. He forwarded it to 60 people."

Mamata also hit out at the CPM, accusing it of working hand-in-glove with the Maoists.

While responding to the question on the cartoon controversy, Mamata slammed the students among the audience saying, "I know that Maoist people and CPM are putting up these questions."

The Chief Minister even went on to ask the girl student who had posed the question if she was a Maoist, asking, "Why students from outside Jadavpur University are not here?"

When asked by the students about crime against women in the state, the Chief Minister got furious. She argued there was no crime against women in the state, and accused the students of being CPM cadres and asking "Maoist questions".

Mamata claimed that it could even be verified that the members of the audience were Maoists and CPM cadres, and they were asking nothing but "questions of the Maoists and the CPM".

Post her walkout, an angry audience spoke out against Mamata's behaviour and expressed their dismay at the sorry state of affairs in the state.

The girl who was accused by the Chief Minister of being a Maoist cadre, said, "I study political science, I know of it in theory. I don't see it in practice. I mean, I am just asking her a question. I didn't provoke her. I didn't instigate her to do what she did. She put a label on me and she walked off. That's what she's been doing. She put a label on the rape victims even before the police had done their dues."

Another member of the audience said, "Looking at the chair, I stood like a lamp post here and that kind of symbolises what is happening in West Bengal. There is one post and everyone else is a lamp post. There is no other work in the Cabinet."

"I am not officially attached to any party. What amazes me as a common man is that if a head of the state behaves that way, then how do we expect local TMC people to behave?" another member asked.

"I have come back after 20 years to this state to try and do some work here because I was so enthused by the change and well... I am going back," said another.

"When she came here, didn't she know that she was going to be asked uncomfortable questions? What did she expect? That people will pat her back and say that you have done very good work? Wasn't she prepared for all these uncomfortable questions?" asked another.

"If you want to engage the youth, involve them in politics and governance. You need to be prepared to give honest answers and to suit their fears and address them."

"Whatever happened, we can joke about it, we can laugh about it but underlining that laughter is a sense of utter despair and the fact that she has landed exactly in that position of political intolerance of defence she voted out the CPM," said an audience member. "Every time she speaks she quotes from Ram Chandra Paramhans and Swami Vivekanand and Tagore and what she displayed here, if she could have just level headedly took the questions. If she thought that we were the ones who were wrong, she should have come out with a logic and told us that you are wrong because of these reasons and not just label somebody as a Maoist and walk off. That just shows that she doesn't have a hallmark of a true leader."

"She has been quoted in Time magazine as being a very powerful woman, Hilary Clinton has rave reviews about her. I wonder what these people will say when they hear about how she behaves with common citizens," said another.

"She has the perfect platform, she just let it go. This is unacceptable," another member added.

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Agencies
May 28,2020

Kochi, May 28: In these pandemic times, when the businesses are gravely affected and the MSMEs are particularly feeling the heat, a Kerala institute has come up with an initiative to help the distressed industry. The Institute of Small Enterprises and Development (ISED) has come out with a unique platform -- 'business clinic' for extending advisory services to the COVID-19 affected MSMEs in the state.

The Kochi based ISED's multi-disciplinary team of experts will offer free guidance to entrepreneurs to make a self-evaluation for improving their performance.

It will serve the interests of the MSMEs, entrepreneurial aspirants, such as the returning migrants, start-ups, educated unemployed, and women entrepreneurs.

ISED director, PM Mathew said COVID-19 pandemic has shattered the budgets and operations of most SMEs, globally, as also in India.

"Post-lockdown, the operational problems are likely to get aggravated. Beyond the broad macro level projections and debates, it is now time to act at the grassroots level. Many entrepreneurs need appropriate clinical assessment, and moral and psychological support, said Mathew.

According to the work force participation data at the national level, Kerala is ranked 31 in terms of the number of self employed, and placed in second rank in relation to the size of casual labour.

The Kerala Enterprise Development Report, brought out by the ISED states while the number of the unregistered enterprises is sizeable, constituting 76.85 % of the total, the respective share of registered MSMEs is only 9.53 %.

The constraints to these enterprises today are, poor sales, large inventory, delayed payments, damage of stock, wage bill arrears, unreliable labour supplies, fund diversion due to exigencies, GST related problems, and NPA/poor credit score.

"For all businesses, unlike in a sporadic recession in the economy, the danger today is circular and cumulative. Both from the demand side, and the supply angle, there is a serious contraction of business activities, which essentially means a glut in the cash flow. Corporate businesses, obviously, will come out of the mess due to their relative advantages of high reserve funds, liberal credit offerings, and easier access to alternative sources of finance," said Mathew.

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News Network
April 30,2020

Hyderabad, Apr 30: A 45-day-old baby boy, who tested positive for COVID-19 when he was 20-days-old, was discharged from a state-run hospital here on Wednesday after his full recovery.

The baby from Mahabubnagar, who contracted the infection from his father, was 20-days-old at the time of admission (on April 4), a COVID-19 bulletin said.

He was discharged after being cured, it said. The baby, probably the youngest to contract the infection in the country, was treated at the state-run Gandhi hospital in the city.

State Health Minister E Rajender expressed happiness over the baby being discharged after recovery.

An official release said 35 people were discharged today and 13 of them were children.

Those who were discharged thanked the doctors and medical personnel of the hospital and the minister has lauded the doctors and other medical staff for their efforts, it said.

Among those undergoing treatment at the hospital, 10 are being treated in the ICU.

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News Network
June 25,2020

New Delhi, Jun 25: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday hit out at Congress for "unceremoniously sacking" its spokesperson and said that leaders in the opposition party are "feeling suffocated".

To substantiate his point, Shah referred to the recent Congress Working Committee (CWC) meet in which senior members and younger members raised a few issues, however, they were "shut down".

Taking to Twitter, Shah posted two English dailies' articles titled -- "Not scared of PM Modi, but many in the party dodge him: Rahul at Congress Working Committee meet" and "Congress removes Sanjay Jha as party spokesperson after critical article".

Last week, Jha was dropped as AICC spokesperson and Abhishek Dutt and Sadhna Bharti appointed as National Media Panelist of Congress party.

"During the recent CWC meet, senior members and younger members raised a few issues. But, they were shouted down. A party spokesperson was unceremoniously sacked. The sad truth is - leaders are feeling suffocated in Congress," the Union Minister tweeted.

Meanwhile, Shah also targetted Congress on the completion of 45 years of emergency, which was imposed by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on June 25, 1975 and asked the party to self introspect.

"As one of India's opposition parties, Congress needs to ask itself: Why does the Emergency mindset remain? Why are leaders who do not belong to 1 dynasty unable to speak up? Why are leaders getting frustrated in Congress? Else, their disconnect with people will keep widening," he wrote.

Comments

Fairman
 - 
Thursday, 25 Jun 2020

Jha the spokesperson, tried to be under the payroll of BJP, so disciplinary action was imminent.

 

Discipline has no compromise.

Mohammed
 - 
Thursday, 25 Jun 2020

If i am not wrong you have already purchased suffocated leaders from congress.

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