Mafia rule in Haryana, says Cong.; allegations are baseless: BJP govt.
Holding a press conference in Chandigarh on the law-and-order situation in the State, Mr. Surjewala said the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has turned Haryana, the land of Bhagwat Gita, into the land of 'Gangs of Wasseypur', saying the State is now ruled by the 'mafias, guns, bullets and ransom' and not the Constitution.
Dismissing the allegations, the Saini government termed the Opposition's assertion as 'misleading and factually baseless'.
In a statement, the State government said that under its 'zero tolerance for crime' policy, it has taken significant and effective measures to strengthen the law and order in Haryana, adding that against previous years, the crime rate has witnessed a marked decline in the State.
'Bid to spread fear'
It termed the Opposition's remarks as 'an attempt to spread fear among the public and misguide the citizens'.
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Indian Express
18 minutes ago
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Decode Politics: Why Haryana fertiliser crisis has landed Saini govt in a spot
Farmers across Haryana have been struggling to obtain urea and di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) fertilisers in recent days, even as the BJP-led state government has continued to claim that there was no shortage of fertilisers. However, many farmers seem to have joined long queues, braving heavy rains in their bid to secure fertilisers. In Charkhi Dadri district, for instance, police were deployed to ensure orderly distribution amid growing tensions on Monday. Protests have already erupted at several locations across the state. With over two-thirds of Haryana's population directly or indirectly reliant on agriculture, the issue has taken centre stage in state politics. The Opposition has seized on the crisis, attacking the government for what it calls a failure to ensure uninterrupted fertiliser supply. As the second-largest contributor to India's Central foodgrain pool, Haryana — often referred to as the 'bread basket of India' along with Punjab — finds itself in the middle of a agricultural row and a political showdown. Haryana officials cite two main reasons behind the current panic over a shortage of fertilisers. The first is the advance sowing of paddy prompted by early monsoon rains in the region. The second is the announcement by the state government that the fertiliser distribution would soon be restricted to farmers registered on the government's 'Meri Fasal-Mera Byora' portal, detailing crops sown on their land. Officials believe this shift has triggered anxiety among farmers, many of whom fear they might be left out of the fertiliser supply system. As one official noted, 'Even those farmers who don't need urea and DAP immediately have rushed to procure them, creating panic across farming communities.' In part, the panic has also been rooted in previous years' fertiliser shortfalls. Government figures show that of the 10.07 lakh metric tonnes (MT) of urea allocated for this season, 5.8 lakh MT has already arrived in the state. Combined with the earlier stock of 2.7 lakh MT, total availability is 8.5 lakh MT, with 7.5 lakh MT already sold. 'Farmers only need 5.91 lakh MT of urea from April 1 to July 19,' an official claimed. Regarding DAP fertilisers, officials said that 1.46 lakh MT had landed in Haryana against an allocation of 2.83 lakh MT, with 1.1 lakh MT sold and 36,000 MT currently in stock. An additional 5,467 MT is in transit. Farmers needed 1.37 lakh MT for the April-July period, according to the officials. Farmer leaders, however, argue this crisis is 'real and urgent'. Rakesh Bains, a Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader from Kurukshetra, said, 'The farmers immediately need urea for their crop of paddy but they want to take DAP too to meet their future needs.' Tejveer Singh of the BKU (Shaheed Bhagat Singh) said, 'Farmers in rural areas are struggling more to obtain fertilisers than those living near towns.' On July 17, angry protesters allegedly held an agriculture department official hostage in Pehowa and blocked the Hisar-Chandigarh highway. Congress leader and former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and INLD chief Abhay Singh Chautala accused the Nayab Singh Saini-led BJP government of 'failing' to maintain uninterrupted fertiliser supply. Deepender Singh Hooda, the Congress's Rohtak MP, said, 'With the kharif season's planting in full swing, farmers are deeply worried about saving their crops due to the unavailability of fertilisers. Even women and children from farmers' families are forced to wait in long queues through the night for several days — yet they still don't receive sufficient quantities of DAP and urea.' 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He urged them to refrain from stockpiling fertilisers for the Rabi season in advance, cautioning that such practices could lead to unnecessary shortages and disrupt equitable distribution. Amid a DAP fertiliser crisis last year, the Centre in November 2024 allocated 1.1 lakh MT of DAP to farmers in Haryana. At the time, the Saini government said it had been in touch with Union Chemical and Fertilisers Minister J P Nadda to ensure timely supply of the allocated fertiliser. Then too, the state government had said there was no fertiliser shortage. Haryana had faced fertiliser shortages under the previous Manohar Lal Khattar-led BJP government too. In 2021, for instance, a spike in global prices had hurt India's import capacity. Since last year, the Centre has sought to discourage farmers from applying too much urea and DAP as a key policy goal. In recent years, global disruptions like the Russian invasion of Ukraine, have led to shocks in the supply of fertiliser in India, which is heavily dependent on its imports. The rupee's depreciation has also had a negative impact on imports.
The Hindu
18 minutes ago
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CJI agrees to constitute Bench to hear plea on behalf of Justice Varma
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The Hindu
18 minutes ago
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Supreme Court allows man, estranged IPS wife to part ways
The Supreme Court of India on Tuesday (July 22, 2025) invoked its extraordinary powers to allow divorce to a woman IPS officer and her estranged husband as it quashed several civil and criminal cases they filed against each other. A Bench comprising Chief Justice B.R. Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih further directed the woman IPS officer and her parents to tender an unconditional apology to the family of the estranged husband. Supreme Court issues notices to Union and States on Presidential reference on President, Governor's powers The Bench was exercising powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to bring the curtain down on their acrimonious and protracted legal battles after their marriage solemnised in 2015 went kaput in 2018. Article 142 empowers the top court to issue any order necessary for "complete justice" in any matter pending before it. 'In terms of the …observations, directions and conditions/settlement, we deem it appropriate to invoke our power under Article 142 of the Constitution of India and order for dissolution of marriage between …. The decree of divorce shall be drawn up accordingly,' the top court said. The Bench took note of the submissions of both the parties wanting to amicably resolve disputes, including matters of child custody, and settle all pending cases to avoid any future litigation and maintain peace between them. Presidential Reference concerns all States, will answer all questions raised: Supreme Court On the custody of their daughter, the Bench said, 'Mother shall have the custody of the child. The father…and his family shall have supervised visitation rights to meet the child for the first three months and thereafter based on the comfort and wellbeing of the minor girl child…, on the first Sunday of every month at the place of education of the child from 9 a.m. to to 5 p.m. or as permitted under the rules and regulations of the school.' It also considered the fact that the woman has voluntarily agreed to forgo her claim to any alimony from the husband. The Bench, as a result, quashed the high court order of ₹1.5 lakh maintenance a month to the wife. 'To bring an end to the protracted legal battle between the parties and to secure complete justice, all pending criminal and civil litigations filed by either party against the other, including but not limited to those against the wife, the husband, and his family members, in any court or forum in India as mentioned in… are hereby quashed and/or withdrawn,' the top court ordered. The Bench further quashed cases filed by third parties against them aside from those not in the knowledge of either parties. It also restrained the spouses from filing litigations in future arising out of present matters in any judicial or quasi-judicial or regulatory or administrative forum or any other forum. The wife was directed to "never use her position and power as an IPS officer or any other position that she may hold in future, position and power of her colleagues/superiors or other acquaintances anywhere in the country, against the husband, his family members and relatives by way of initiating any proceedings before any authority or forum... in any manner whatsoever." The Bench considered the fact that the husband and his father remained behind bars owing to the cases filed by the IPS wife and asked her and her parents to tender an unconditional apology. The apology was directed to be published in the national edition of a renowned English and Hindi daily.
