
Rahul Gandhi's ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra' in Bihar to begin today
'Voter Right Yatra' schedule:August 17 – Sasaram, Rohtas (Yatra begins)August 18 – Dev Road, Amba-KundumbaAugust 19 – Hanuman Mandir, Poonam, WazirganjAugust 20 – Rest dayAugust 21 – Teen Mohani Durga Mandir, SheikhpuraAugust 22 – Chandra Bagh Chowk, MungerAugust 23 – Kursela Chowk, Barari, KatiharAugust 24 – Khushkibaag, Katihar to PurniaAugust 25 – Rest dayAugust 26 – Hussain Chowk, SupaulAugust 27 – Gangwara Mahavir Sthan, DarbhangaAugust 28 – Riga Road, SitamarhiAugust 29 – Harivatika Gandhi Chowk, BettiahAugust 30 – Ekma Chowk, Ekma Vidhan Sabha, ChhapraAugust 31 – Rest daySeptember 1 – Grand finale rally in PatnaAt a press briefing in Delhi's Indira Bhawan, Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera outlined the roadmap of the Yatra, asserting that it will cover 1,300 kilometers across Bihar, touching critical constituencies and rallying public support in areas where disenfranchisement allegations are most grave.'This is not just a Yatra. It's a people's movement. The 'Voter Adhikar Yatra' will be a milestone in the history of democracy,' Khera declared. 'It is a protest against a deliberate conspiracy to erase the voice of the poor, Dalits, backward classes, tribals, minorities, and marginalised citizens.'The Congress has sharply criticised the Election Commission's role, alleging collusion with the ruling BJP to manipulate the voter rolls under the guise of the SIR process. Referring to a recent Supreme Court intervention, Khera stated that only after judicial pressure did the Election Commission agree to scrutinize the discrepancies raised by the opposition and civil society.'This is not just vote theft—it's identity theft,' Khera said. 'It threatens to erase entire communities from the electoral process, jeopardising their access to government schemes and their stake in the democratic framework.'This Yatra follows in the footsteps of Gandhi's earlier mass mobilisation efforts like the Bharat Jodo Yatra, which left a lasting impact on the political discourse. Congress leaders believe that, once again, Rahul Gandhi is tapping into the pulse of the people, challenging authoritarian tendencies and reinforcing the foundational principle of universal suffrage.- EndsTune InMust Watch
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Hindustan Times
19 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Rooted in RSS ideology, NDA nominee CP Radhakrishnan known to be affable
Chandrapuram Ponnusamy Radhakrishnan, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance's nominee for the upcoming vice-presidential elections, was picked after detailed discussions with alliance partners, and the party's ideological fount, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), people familiar with the details said on Sunday. CP Radhakrishnan The 68-year-old BJP leader who is rooted in the RSS ideology is known in the party as a soft-spoken, non-controversial figure, who is also the only BJP leader from Tamil Nadu, to have been elected to the Lok Sabha twice in 1998 and 1999. (HT Photo) The 68-year-old BJP leader who is rooted in the RSS ideology is known in the party as a soft-spoken, non-controversial figure, who is also the only BJP leader from Tamil Nadu, to have been elected to the Lok Sabha twice in 1998 and 1999. Currently the governor of Maharashtra, a position he has held since July 31, 2024, Radhakrishnan, an OBC from the Goundar-Kongu Vellalar community, was born in Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu, where he went on to earn a bachelor's degree in business administration. People close to Raj Bhavan said the Maharashtra governor was sounded out about his possible candidature on Sunday afternoon, after which he paid a visit to the famous Siddhivinayak temple to seek blessings of the deity. Having cut his teeth in public life as an RSS Swayamsevak, he rose to become the state executive committee member of the Bharatiya Janasangh in 1974. His colleagues said his affability and ability to steer the party without conflict and controversy were the reasons why he was picked to head the state unit in 2004. Party leaders welcomed his nomination, describing him as an 'excellent choice for the role', because of his 'pragmatic, straightforward and clean image'. Although as governor of Jharkhand between February 2023 and July 2024, he locked horns with the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha government over a host of issues, particularly concerning the tribal communities, his gubernatorial stint was not as combative as those of other BJP governors in non-NDA-ruled states or even his predecessor Ramesh Bais in Jharkhand or Bhagat Singh Koshyari in Maharashtra. A table tennis player and a long-distance runner, Radhakrishnan's elevation as governor in 2023 was seen as the party's attempt to create a new political order in the state unit. A man with friendly ties across the political divide, he was also called the 'Vajpayee of Coimbatore', for his conciliatory politics. But with the rise of K Annamalai, there was a stir in the party unit, which was attributed to testy relations between the old order and the young crop. The differences came to the fore when Radhakrishnan and Annamalai took a divergent stance on the issue of calling a bandh in Coimbatore against the ruling DMK. While Radhakrishnan gave the call for a bandh, the legal counsel for Annamalai told the Madras high court that no such announcement was made. His nomination for the VP's post is also being read as the party's attempts to strengthen its outreach and footprint in the southern region, particularly in Tamil Nadu where elections are due in 2026. His stint as a parliamentarian, his dyed in the wool RSS credentials and cordial ties with leaders across the political spectrum are seen as attributes that would help him steer the House of Elders as chairman. Although the NDA's strength in the Upper House is 132 members (of 240) and the alliance is expected to win the polls comfortably, the BJP is hopeful that the nominee will get support from other parties that are not part of the opposition's INDIA bloc. In an interview with Sansad TV, Radhakrishnan earlier said he never developed enmity with anyone in his political career and moved along with everyone. 'Some things you don't like can be avoided silently. That was my earlier day character. There was a bomb blast in Coimbatore. I was against the terrorist but not against Muslims. When some Muslims approached me, I went to the police and said that they must arrest only those who are connected with the blast. No one expected this. That's why I am called the Vajpayee of Coimbatore,' he said in the interview.


Hindustan Times
19 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Nitin Gadkari shares plan to make Delhi congestion-free, says new links will halve traffic
Union road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari, at the inauguration of the Delhi sections of the Urban Extension Road-II (UER-II) and Dwarka Expressway on Sunday, said that the opening of these two links is likely to halve traffic jams in Delhi. He also outlined the Union government's upcoming infrastructure plans to improve connectivity between high-speed corridors in Delhi-NCR, which will improve logistics in the region and reduce costs. PM Modi, CM Rekha Gupta and Union minister Nitin Gadkari. (HT) 'The people of Delhi-NCR will get a lot of relief from these two projects. If I say that 50% of traffic jams in Delhi will reduce due to the UER-II and Dwarka Express highway, I don't think it will be surprising,' he said. Crediting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for directing his ministry to develop world-class infrastructure, he said, 'At that time, the situation in Delhi was not good. There were traffic jams decided to make Delhi a world-class city and made a plan to make it congestion free.' Gadkari said plans are underway to link UER-II with the Delhi-Katra Expressway, link Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab with the Delhi airport, and the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway with UER-II. 'The upcoming Delhi-Dehradun Expressway is also connected from UER-II. Travel time from vehicles coming from the Dehradun side to the Delhi airport will come down from 2-2.5 hours to just 45 minutes. A road link will also connect Noida, Faridabad with the Delhi-Dehradun Expressway, which will also work as a bypass for east Delhi,' the minister said. He said that a direct link from southwest Delhi to the Noida-Faridabad road will be built, and a tunnel road connecting Shiv Murti–Mahipalpur (Dwarka Expressway) with Nelson Mandela Road (Vasant Kunj) will be built. Elevated corridors on the AIIMS-Mahipalpur-Gurugram routes will reduce snarls on the inner and outer ring roads. Gadkari said all these road projects will also reduce the cost of logistics to make Indian goods competitive in the global market. Citing studies by multiple IITs, Gadkari said the logistics cost has reduced by 6% due to the improvement of roads and by 2026, the logistics cost will be in single digits. The union minister said of the ₹65,000 crore worth of projects envisioned to ease congestion in Delhi, projects worth ₹48,000 crore have been completed in the past decade. He said three out of the six greenfield expressways connecting Delhi are ready, and the remaining three, including the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, will be completed by December 2026. The other two are the Delhi-Katra Expressway and the Delhi-Dehradun Expressway. The Dwarka Expressway, Delhi-Meerut and Delhi Peripheral Ring Road have already been completed. Recalling litigation that held up the peripheral ring road, he said: 'With great difficulty, even after many problems, we completed the project, and heavy incoming traffic to Delhi was diverted.' He said the Delhi Meerut Expressway, signal-free corridors between Mukarba Chowk and Sonepat, and Dhaula Kuan and Gurugram, eased the twin problems of pollution and congestion. Gadkari said the two projects inaugurated on Sunday were envisioned in the Delhi Master Plan of 2001, but previous governments did not act on it. According to details shared, the upcoming tunnel project between Shiv Murti and Nelson Mandela Marg will be 5km long, and consist of two ducts with three lanes each. It will pass under Delhi's southern ridge at a depth of 20-40 metres. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) will provide cross-passage and lay-by zones at every 500-metre interval, according to an NHAI report. The project is likely to cost ₹3,500 crore. The AIIMS to Mahipalpur-Gurugram elevated corridor is likely to be 20km long and cost around ₹5,000 crore. According to an NHAI decongestion report shared with the Delhi government, the highway connecting UER-II with Delhi-Katra Expressway will be around 20 kilometres long and is likely to cost around ₹4,000 crore. Once complete, it will serve as an alternative to the NH-44. Similarly, the UER-II extension to the Delhi-Dehradun Expressway will start from Alipur and end near Tronica City, covering around 17km. This extension is likely to cost around ₹3,350 crore and would provide faster connectivity to commuters from Haryana and Rajasthan heading towards Dehradun. 'It will decongest Delhi by diverting long distance and freight traffic from central roads easing pressure on NH-48, NH-44, Ring Roads and Barapullah elevated corridor,' the report reads. A further eastern extension of the UER-II, which will act as a new bypass for east Delhi, connecting Noida, Ghaziabad and Faridabad, will be around 65 kilometres long and ₹7,500 crore. 'The highway will connect major roads such as Delhi-Dehradun Expressway, Delhi-Meerut Expressway, Noida-Greater Noida Expressway and DND-Faridabad highway. It will provide connectivity to towns such as Loni, Baghpat, Ghaziabad, Noida with North, Northwest and West Delhi,' the report reads.


Hindustan Times
19 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Opposition likely to field a non-political face
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