
Tamil Nadu government should review hike in power costs: BJP State president
The State government should review the annual hike in power costs and the network charges collected, said BJP State president Nainar Nagendran in Coimbatore on Sunday.
Replying to a question on the power charges, he said the hike affected the public.
Mr. Nainar added that the State government does not implement any of the Central government schemes in the State and thus denies the public the benefits of the schemes.

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Indian Express
21 minutes ago
- Indian Express
At mahapanchayat in Rajasthan, call for Gujjar reservation, but disagreement over BJP govt response
Some members of the Gujjar community held a protest on railway tracks and stalled a train in Rajasthan's Bharatpur district Sunday after taking part in Mahapanchayat, which was called by BJP leader Vijay Bainsla, pressing for various demands including on reservation. The Mahapanchayat of Gujjar community began at 8 am Sunday in Pilupura and thousands of people from different areas attended it. During the meeting, a draft was sent to the Mahapanchayat from the government which was read out by Vijay Bainsla, who is also the president of Gujjar Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti. After this, the meeting concluded. However, a section of the community expressed discontent with the government's response, gathered on the railway tracks and stopped the Sawai Madhopur–Mathura passenger express at Fatehsinghpura near Bayana town, Harshit Srivastav, PRO, Western Central Railways told The Indian Express. Srivastav said that though the train was stopped, the presence of security forces in nearby areas ensured that the law and order situation was under control, adding that all passengers were safe. Soon, the Collector and Superintendent of Police reached the spot, spoke to the protesters and the track, which is only 150 m from the Mahapanchayat venue, was cleared around 6:30 pm. Asked about the protest, Bainsla, son of the late Kirodi Singh Bainsla who had led several Gujjar agitations on the quota issue, said that the entire community and leaders are happy with the government's response to their main demands. 'To get the 5% reservation to Most Backward Classes (MBC) included in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution, a proposal would be recommended by the state Cabinet and it would urge the Centre (to ensure its passage). The entire community wanted this. It is a legislative issue. We all are happy,' Bainsla told PTI, adding it was their key demand. According to the draft read out by Bainsla, ministers will hold a meeting with the Gujjar Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti in the next 60 days regarding the method of operation of MBC reservation and, if necessary, a decision will be taken as per law after obtaining legal opinion. The government also assured, as per the draft, that a meeting of the Committee of Ministers will be held every 3 months in which the representatives of Samiti will also be invited. The first meeting will be held in June last week. Bainsla said that another demand was that a nodal officer should be appointed in every district to dispose of police cases against community members during the Gujjar agitation. 'The government has agreed to it,' he claimed. Earlier in the day, during the meeting, Bainsla had accused his own government of not fulfilling the promises made to the Gujjars. On June 7, state MoS for Home, Jawahar Singh Bedam held a meeting with members of the Gujjar community in a hotel to convince them to call off the panchayat. Bedam told mediapersons, 'I got the information regarding the Mahapanchayat and its demands. I spoke to CM Bhajanlal Sharma about this, who said that the government is ready to hear anyone. Community leaders should come forward and put forth their demands. Government will listen and make an appropriate decision.' In 2008, when the Gujjar reservation movement erupted, Pilupura was at its centre. Under the leadership of Kirori Singh Bainsla, the Gujjar community took part in the movement and during clashes, 72 people died in police firing. —With PTI


Hindustan Times
32 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Siddaramaiah deflects Bengaluru stampede blame, says 'no connection to stadium'
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah attempted to dissociate his government from the Bengaluru stampede tragedy on Sunday, claiming it didn't have 'any connection with the stadium'. Eleven people died and scores sustained injuries after the stampede broke out outside the Chinnaswamy stadium in Bengaluru on June 4 during RCB's IPL victory celebrations. "This incident shouldn't have happened. It happened at the Cricket stadium. I don't have any connection with the cricket stadium," he said at the press conference. Also read: 'My son will not come back': Father of Bengaluru stampede victim says compensation will go to wife, daughter Pinning the blame for the stampede on officials, Siddaramaiah also said that this was the first such incident in the state under his leadership and that they have taken action by suspending several officials. "It was an unfortunate incident, it shouldn't have happened. Such an incident never happened after I became the CM. Prima facie it seems to have happened because of the officials' fault, so we have taken action. Everyone is in pain, including me,' he said. When asked whether now-suspended Bengaluru Police commissioner B Dayananda was being made a scapegoat, Siddaramaiah said that five other officials have also been suspended. Highlighting his government's action in response to the stampede, he said, "My political secretary, K Govindaraj, has been removed. We have taken a series of actions, not just the police commissioner alone." The chief minister also added that it was only at 5.45 pm on June 4 that he got to know about the deaths due to the stampede, while they were reported at the hospital at 3.50 pm. Also read: Bengaluru stampede: Siddaramaiah says he learned of deaths only at 5.45 pm 'I came to know that deaths happened at 5.45 pm. At 3.50 pm, deaths were reported at the hospital, but I came to know about it only at 5.45 pm. Until that point, I was not aware of deaths taking place due to the stampede,' he said. Siddaramaiah was not present at the event held at the Chinnaswamy stadium on June 4. However, he did attend the felicitation ceremony for the RCB held in front of Vidhana Soudha on the invitation of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA ) Secretary and Treasurer. The BJP-led Opposition has demanded the chief minister's resignation. Last week, the Karnataka government announced a compensation of ₹25 lakh for the families of those who died in the stampede. With inputs from PTI


Mint
39 minutes ago
- Mint
Shashi Tharoor-led delegation ends US visit a powerful message – ‘world knows the truth now'
The multi-party parliamentary delegation led by Congress leader Shashit Tharoor wrapped up its visit to the US after meeting with Vice President J D Vance and Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau among political and diplomatic leaders, to drive home India's strong resolve to combat terrorism emanating from Pakistan. The delegation was on the last leg of a multi-nation tour to brief key interlocutors about Operation Sindoor that India launched in retaliation to the 22 April Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people, mostly tourists. The delegation was one of the seven multi-party delegations India had tasked to visit 33 global capitals to reach out to the international community to emphasise Pakistan's links to terrorism. 'If you are born a hundred times, you will do it a hundred times; I will love my country with all my heart; We did whatever we could for the motherland, the whole world knows the truth now," Tharoor wrote on X in Hindi The group arrived in the US capital on June 3 and over the course of three days held a wide array of meetings on Capitol Hill as well as in Washington, briefing American government officials as well as lawmakers about India's stance on cross-border terrorism. The Indian team met Vice President Vance, Landau, House Foreign Affairs Committee (HFAC) leadership, India Caucus leadership and Senate Foreign Relations Committee leaders. It also held meetings and interactions with a host of US Congressmen, think tanks, policy experts, media as well as members of the Indian-American community. Tharoor described the meeting with Vance at the White House for about 25 minutes on Thursday as 'an excellent meeting,' and said the vice president was 'warm and welcoming and receptive.' 'Vance expressed complete understanding, first of all, outrage of what happened in Pahalgam and support and respect for India's restrained response in Operation Sindoor,' Tharoor told PTI after that meeting. The Indian Embassy said in a statement that during the meeting with Landau, the delegation briefed him on the heinous terrorist attack in Pahalgam, discussed India's subsequent Operation Sindoor, and put forth India's firm resolve to counter cross-border terrorism in all its forms. On the last day of the delegation's scheduled meetings, the delegation paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi at his statue opposite the Indian Embassy here. 'It is striking how many world capitals are adorned with statues or busts of the Mahatma, the 20th century's greatest apostle of peace, nonviolence, and human freedom,' Tharoor posted on X afterwards. The team, which had arrived from India in New York on May 24, had travelled to Guyana, Panama, Colombia and Brazil before arriving in Washington for the last leg of the tour. The other members of the delegation were Sarfaraz Ahmad (JMM), Ganti Harish Madhur Balayogi (TDP), Shashank Mani Tripathi (BJP), Bhubaneswar Kalita (BJP), Milind Deora (Shiv Sena), Tejasvi Surya (BJP) and India's former Ambassador to the US Taranjit Sandhu. Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated after the Pahalgam terror attack, with India carrying out precision strikes on terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir on May 7. If you are born a hundred times, you will do it a hundred times; I will love my country with all my heart. The on-ground hostilities from Indian and Pakistan sides that lasted for four days ended with an understanding of stopping the military actions following talks between the directors general of military operations of both sides on May 10.