DAHOD (Guj), May 15:
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today compared Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Mahatma Gandhi, saying like the world keenly listened to the Father of the Nation, it now “listens to” Modi.
“First, the world would keenly listen to everything Mahatma Gandhi said. Today, the world listens to Modiji,” he said at the launch of the second phase of ‘Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana’ in the presence of BJP chief Amit Shah and Chief Ministers Anandiben Patel (Gujarat) and Vasundhara Raje (Rajasthan).
In his speech, Shah compared Modi’s campaign for giving up LPG subsidy by well-off people to that of former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri’s call of voluntarily giving up one meal to deal with food shortage.
“The response to the appeal was unprecedented. Perhaps never before did any Prime Minister get such a massive response,” Shah said. “If we look back, perhaps (former PM) Lal Bahadur Shastri had made a similar appeal to the countrymen to stop eating dal-rice which received immense response and people had stopped eating it,” the BJP chief said.
“On PM Modi’s appeal, one crore people have left the (gas) subsidy which is not a small thing,” he said.
Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel said the Prime Minister had fulfilled promises made before the Lok Sabha elections.
Addressing the gathering, Raje said Modi always believed in working for the benefit of the poor.
Recently, Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu had hailed Modi as a “God’s gift to India”, drawing a sharp jibe from Congress which wondered whether his flattering chant was much different from Dev Kant Baruah’s “India is Indira and Indira is India” remark for which he was castigated. (PTI)
Time to impose President’s
rule in Bihar: Paswan
PATNA, May 15:
The murder of a teenager and a journalist within a week has proved that law and order has completely broken down in Bihar and President’s rule should be imposed in the state, LJP supremo Ram Vilas Paswan said today.
“It is appropriate time for imposition of President’s rule in Bihar. The teenager Aditya Sachdeva in Gaya and journalist Rajdeo Ranjan in Siwan were murdered within a week. It reflects complete breakdown of law and order,” he said.
Sachdeva was shot dead allegedly by the son of JD(U) MLC Manorama Devi in Gaya on May 7 in a road rage case, while Ranjan was gunned down in Chatra on May 13.
“The situation appears to be worse than ‘jungle raj’ or ‘rakshasa (demon) raj’,” he alleged adding only President’s rule can “arrest further slide” in the law and order situation.
The Union Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Minister demanded CBI probe in both the cases claiming that Bihar Police will not be able to bring the culprits to justice due to “political pressure”. (PTI)
He asked the media and people at large to put pressure on the state government to recommend CBI probe.
“Public pressure will also force the Centre to consider imposition of President’s rule in Bihar on the ground of breakdown of law and order,” Paswan said adding Centre will not be able to intervene in the matter on its own.
“Instead of touring others states to campaign for ban on liquor, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar should focus on restoring rule of law of in his own state where political leaders, businessmen, engineers, students and a journalist were murdered in the last six months,” the LJP chief said.
“He is neither JP (Jai Prakash Narayan) nor Vinoba Bhave. Nobody is going to listen to Kumar’s sermon on prohibition,” the Union Minister said.
A party delegation led by MP Chirag Paswan will visit Siwan on May 17 to meet the family of the slain journalist, he said, adding LJP may call for ‘Bihar Bandh’ soon on the “breakdown of law and order situation” in the state. (PTI)
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