By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: Bhopal is decorating itself to accord warn welcome to over 100 big industrial magnets who will be in the capital city to attend Madhya Pradesh government sponsored Industrial Summit. The Summit will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 24.

Nearly a hundred distinguished industrialists and chiefs of leading indigenous and international enterprises have confirmed their participation for the summit some big business houses have already sent teams for preliminary assessments and venue inspections.

According to officials, among those likely to attend areAditya Birla Group chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla and group executive president Sunil Bajaj, Duns and Bradstreet MD & CEO-India Avinash Gupta, Dubai-based Mohammed Bin Rashid Innovation Fund’s Rouba Ibrahim, Ralson Tyres director-corporate affairs Rohit Kapoor, and state coordinator-new energy of Reliance Industries, Anupam Jain.

Among the confirmed participants are founder & CEO of Dubai-based Startup Middle East, Siby Sudhakaran, Suzlon Energy vice-chairman Girish Tanti, Birla White CEO Ashish Dwivedi, Hindalco Industries COO Sameer Nayak, Grasim Industries COO K Suresh, UltraTech Cement chief financial officer AtulDaga.

Chief minister Mohan Yadav will deliver the keynote address and outline the state’s vision for economic development and the role of the diaspora in achieving that vision.

Over 500 NRIs from 15 countries have confirmed participation. The GIS will give these global professionals a platform to explore investment opportunities in their home state. The summit will also address specific queries of NRI investors regarding policy frameworks, regulatory compliance, and investment protection. Senior government officials will be available for one-on-one consultations to provide clarity on various aspects of investing in Madhya Pradesh.

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) will set the context for the Pravasi Madhya Pradesh Summit and members of Friends of MP from various chapters worldwide will address the event. Lord Remi Ranger of the UK House of Lords will also deliver an address.

Before taking a decision about Bhopal industrial summit Chief Minister Dr. Yadav visited Germany, Japan and England requesting industrialists to invest in India. He also of undertook visits to industrial towns in the country and state.

Commenting on the fourth coming industrial summit, former Chief Minister and himself an industrialist Kamal Nath warned that the state was carrying a heavy burden of loans even as the state government prepares to take another loan of Rs 5,000 crore this month.

Taking to X, Kamal Nath said, ‘Madhya Pradesh is sinking deeper into debt every day. The state has incurred a debt of Rs 4.10 lakh crore so far.

“And now there is news that the state government is going to take another loan of Rs 5,000 crore on Feb 18. Due to this loan taking policy of the BJP government, the state is moving towards a major fiscal crisis.”

The former Union minister for commerce and industry said, “It is very sad that in many cases the government has tried to earn money by selling or leasing public assets. The government is becoming completely dependent on debt to meet its expenses. The main reason for this is that the government is not using its existing resources judiciously.”

He argued if the economic activity of the state was steered in the right direction, then it will grow which will ultimately increase the revenue of the state govt.

“If the unemployed get jobs and industry and business are allowed to work in a positive environment, then economic activity will increase. But due to the poor law and order situation in the state, this is not possible,” he said.

Ten days before the Global Investors’ Summit in Bhopal, former CM Kamal Nath argued, “And the saddest thing is that despite taking continuous loans, the Madhya Pradesh government is not reducing its wasteful expenditure on events. The people of the state will never forgive them for this economic mismanagement.”

Not only from the opposition the state government is facing criticism from its party men also.

State Minister for Health Narendra Patel has publicly complained that liquorices openly sold in this constituency. He has made complaint to competent authority but no action has been taken. It is not for the first time that Patel has made complaint. He has also complaint about sand mafia. He himself caught truck load of illegal mines.

Besides Patel BJP MLA Chintamani Malviya has made complained about bribery in the allotment of House under P.M. Housing Scheme. Officers are openly demanding bribery in allotting house under the scheme. (IPA Service)

The article Madhya Pradesh Government Holding Global Summit For Investing In The State appeared first on Arabian Post.

By L.S. Herdenia

BHOPAL: The Madhya Pradesh units of both the BJP and the Congress have decided to initiate massive reforms in their respective organisations. The BJP has been asked by the RSS to apprise Congress leaders, who have joined the BJP, of the saffron party’s style and culture.

This message was given by Arun Kumar, Sangh’s Sah Karyawah at the joint-meeting of the RSS and BJP functionaries. Kumar asked BJP office–bearers if there is a plan to train ex-Congressmen. Arun Kumar asked BJP leaders to give former Congressmen responsibility in the organisation.

Arun Kumar also asked BJP leaders to participate in the activities of other affiliates of the RSS. He advised BJP to undertake activities in the extended fronts. He particularly asked BJP to participate in the 70 years of the foundation of Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh.

Similarly Bhanwar Jitendra Singh AICC general secretary in charge of Madhya Pradesh Congress asked MP leaders to shun factionalism. while appointing office-bearers. Responsibility should be given to those who were active in NSUI and youth Congress. While giving responsibility their commitment to the party ideology should be kept in mind. He said attention should be paid to office-bearers of women’s wing, kisan front and Sewa Dal.

Both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the former Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan used to claim that Madhya Pradesh has ceased to be a “Bimaru State” and it has made progress in all fields. But a recent survey in the area of education has exposed this claim. According to a finding, not a single admission was reported in Class 1 of 2000 government schools. In the last year, 6.94 lakh admission took place in the first class but this year the number has come down to 3.5 lakh, which means 62 percent seats remained vacant this year.

The number of admissions started declining from 2021-22. The reason for this decline was the lowering of educational standards as the parents started sending their children to private school. In order to halt this decline, the govt. opened 1464 new primary schools. Schools were opened but teachers to teach in these new schools were not appointed. The decline in admissions was very sharp in five major cities of the state. The number was 8084 in Bhopal in 2022-23 it came down to 3212 in 2024, It was 11,196 in 2022-23 in Indore, it came down to 4321 in 2024 it was 14,692 in 2022 in Gwalior.

The Congress took objection when it was found that Sunderkand was being recited inside a police thana. The Congress was still shocked when it was revealed that it was being done at the behest of BJP leaders. The Congress not only objected but also sought permission to allow it to do the same. The objection became doubly serious when it was found that the event had the support of Minister Vishwas Sarang.

When permission was not given, the Congress held the event on the road opposite the police station. Meanwhile, a local newspaper published many instances of a retired DGP being used for Hindu religious event.

Like the Uttar Pradesh government’s controversial decision, BJP MLA from Indore-2, Ramesh Mendola, has written to Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, demanding display of names of shopkeepers and stall owners across the state. The state Congress has opposed it, calling it “politics of hate”, and fears it would affect Dalit community members who are in the food business. While the UP order is specific to Kanwar Yatra routes, Mendola demands to make it mandatory across MP.

Mendola, a four-time MLA from Indore-2 and a close aide of Kailash Vijayvargiya, writes in the letter: “The name of a person is his identity. Asking for the names is the right of the customer and the shopkeeper should be proud to tell his name, not ashamed.”

“In doing so, the shopkeeper’s identity will be established in society and all shop-owners will try to provide better service to customers to enhance their name and goodwill. This will lead to healthy competition in the business world and the state will develop at a faster pace,” the BJP MLA argues. “I urge the government to frame rules in this regard,” Mendola said.

State Congress spokesperson Mithun Ahirwar immediately wrote to the CM, opposing Mendola’s demand. “Politics of caste and religion by BJP is not new, but the call to follow the UP model in MP is a matter of concern. The decision to write the name of the vendor on handcarts in UP has been opposed by your (BJP’s) allies as well,” the letter says. (IPA Service)

The article Madhya Pradesh BJP To Hold Special RSS Camp For Former Congressmen appeared first on Arabian Post.

By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: History repeats itself. We expected that BJP in Madhya Pradesh may prove that this saying is untrue. During last 24-years’ rule, BJP could not complete the duration of the Assembly sessions. The session invariably ended without transacting the business approved by the Business advisory committee. Before the commencement of the newly elected Assembly the BJP promises longer sitting. But they could not fulfil this promise in the very first session.

Assembly was adjourned sine die on Friday, 14 days ahead of schedule, after transacting listed business, including passage of the Rs 3.65 lakh crore state budget.

Finance minister Jagdish Devda moved a proposal for passing the budget but opposition Congress demanded a division (casting of votes) on it, which was turned down by Speaker Narendra Tomar on the ground that permission was not sought for it. He then adjourned the House sine die.

LOP Umang Singhar later told reporters his party was right in seeking division and alleged BJP was afraid of discussions on issues like the alleged nursing scam.

Earlier, the treasury and opposition benches clashed after BJP MLA Abhilash Pandey presented a private member’s bill seeking quashing of Article 30 of Constitution, which confers right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions. Pandey was supported by colleague Rameshwar Sharma. Atif Aqueel of Cong opposed it and said BJP was raking up the issue to divert attention from the nursing scam. There was no discussion on the bill.

Asked about Congress creating ruckus on the issue and if there was any plan to close down madarsas, as chief minister Mohan Yadav told reporters in Chhindwara.

During the session, Congress trained its guns on Minister Vishwas Sarang, accusing him of involvement in the alleged nursing scam. Sarang was medical education minister in the previous BJP govt.

Besides the BJP and the Congress are facing first electoral challenge after the completion of recent Vidhan Sabha and Lok Sabha elections. Amarvada Vidhan Sabha Constituency is going to polls on July 10. Amarvada constituency was declared vacant when the sitting Congress member loyal to Congress stalwart Kamal Nath resigned and joined the BJP. He not only resigned from the Congress but also resigned from the Assembly causing by poll. The voters of same constituency will exercise votes on July 10. It is a prestigious contest for both the parties.

The state Congress has started an enquiry into the causes of humiliating defeat in Lok Sabha. polls. The Congress lost all 29 Lok Sabha seats in the state and failed to win in Vidhan Sabha elections last year.

The State Congress on Saturday held a meeting to brainstorm and review the reasons for the party’s loss in the recent assembly’ and Lok Sabha elections.

Party candidates for the last assembly elections, including the MLAs who won, were given forms seeking their feedback on the defeat. The meeting was headed by AICC general secretary and state affairs in charge Bhanwar Jitendra Singh, PCC chief Jitu Patwari, and LOP Umang Singhar.

A week ago, AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge had sent a three-member fact-finding team led by former Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan to directly speak to Congress’ Lok Sabha candidates about the party’s loss in the 29 seats of MP. Chavan had conducted one-on-one interviews with the candidates and then returned to New Delhi. No state leaders were present during these interviews.

On Saturday, Congress assembly election candidates were asked to fill out feed- back forms. The feedback sought included the present situation of the party organization in Madhya Pradesh, the role and activities of the state unit, reasons for the defeat in polls, and the responsibilities and contributions of block, district, mandalam and booth presidents during the elections. Feedback was also asked of other political parties in the state, and candidates were asked to provide suggestions on how to strengthen the organization.

Speaking to reporters, former minister Sajjan Singh Verma said that the feedback will be documented and used to develop a plan to strengthen the organization in MP. “The feedback has been sought in writing so that it gives a fair idea on what should be our plan. We also have to constitute a new team – the new MP Congress Committee will be appointed. So, the feedback will suggest who are the people that should be given responsibilities. Which are the faces that we should include and omit in the new body.,” Verma said.

AICC general secretary Bhanwar Jitendra Singh said, “We are certainly disappointed with the results in the assembly and Lok Sabha elections, but we will make the organisation stronger so that it becomes the voice of the people and expose the anti-people policies of the BJP govt.”

PCC chief Jitu Patwari said, “Everyone will have to work together to strengthen the organization at the state, district, block, ward, mandal, sector and, booth levels, only then will our organization be strong. (IPA Service)

The article Congress Initiates Critical Review Of Lok Sabha Poll Reverses In Madhya Pradesh appeared first on Arabian Post.

By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: After Vidhan Sabha election, is both BJP and Congress have taken many steps to strengthen their organisation. One step the Congress has taken to oust such elements who by various acts of commission and omission, damaged party’s prospects in the election.

The Congress has to work very hard to gain their lost position. The party in the last Lok Sabha election could win only one seat – that too its traditional seat – Chhindwara, from where veteran leader Kamal Nath’s son Nakul Nath contested. As Kamal Nath contested Vidhan Sabha he set up his son from Chhindwara. Even Jyotiraditya Scindia, lost from his traditional seat. He was defeated by his former personal secretary.

State Congress Disciplinary Committee on Friday issued show-cause notices to 150 party turncoats who contested the assembly elections as independents or as a candidates from other political parties. However, none of these rebels won any seat in the state. The November 2023 assembly election turned out to be a direct contest between the ruling BJP and the Congress in 229 out of 230 seats. The BJP secured 163 seats while the Congress got 66. Only one seat Sailana – in Ratlam district – was won by Bharat Adivasi Party candidate Kamaleswar Dodiyar.

A release from the PCC office on Friday said “Meeting of the Disciplinary Committee was concluded today at the Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee Headquarters. In the meeting, a major decision was taken regarding the complaints received against party workers who contested against Congress candidates in the recently concluded assembly elections. Show-cause notices have been issued to about 150 Congressmen from across the state and their replies have been sought within 10 days”.

Madhya Pradesh Congress Disciplinary Committee Chairman and State Congress Committee Treasurer Ashok Singh said that if a positive response is not received from those show caused and involved in anti party work within 10 days, then the Congress party will take action against them. “Those who had contested against the party’s candidates in the assembly election have already been expelled from the primary membership. Today the Disciplinary Committee has given its approval to that decision of expulsion of rebels also” he said.

Earlier, the party had expelled Durgesh Nandini for contesting as independent from Sheopur, Kuldeep Ding Sikarwar for contesting as BSP candidate from Sumawali, Ajay Singh Yadav for contesting as independent from Khargapur, Rajan Yadav for contesting as Samajwadi party candidate from Pawai. A total 41 prominent member of the party were expelled as they left after Congress did not give them tickets.

The state BJP spokesman Narendra Saluja argued, “The Congress Disciplinary Committee action is only a facade. A drama is being enacted against those who have already left the Congress and contested as rebels. While Congress candidate filed hundreds of complaints against party men involved in anti-party activities, action has not been taken against many who are supporters of the big leaders”.

Meanwhile rumour was circulating that Kamal Nath was likely to leave Congress and join the BJP. This rumour gained ground after Alok Sharma, a national spokesperson of the Congress publicly accused Kamal Nath of hobnobbing with BJP in the Vidhan Sabha election and held him responsible for the defeat of the Congress. After a few days the Congress has served a notice on Alok Sharma. It is intriguing that Sharma was not pulled up immediately and damage was done.

The BJP is too not leaving anything to chance. It is planning to start mass campaign after Ramlala ceremony on January 22. Guidelines for the massive campaign have been issued. According to these cluster in-charges have been appointed for three to five Lok Sabha seats each. All the 29 Lok Sabha seats of state have been divided in seven clusters and each cluster has been placed under one important leader.

A meeting of the cluster in-charges has been fixed for January 27. In this context considerable importance is being attached to the late night meeting between state president V. D. Sharma and national president J. P. Nadda.

Besides new CM Mohan Yadav is also making whirlwind tour of the state. Not only touring the state he made sudden visit to Bihar which is a dominant Yadav state. While in Bihar he interacted with various Yadav leaders. He also sent 5 lakh laddos to Ayodhya. (IPA Service)

The post Congress Gears Up Its Organisation For Lok Sabha Polls In Madhya Pradesh first appeared on Latest India news, analysis and reports on IPA Newspack.

The article Congress Gears Up Its Organisation For Lok Sabha Polls In Madhya Pradesh appeared first on Arabian Post.

By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: By naming Mohan Yadav as the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi sprang a second surprise in the context of Vidhan Sabha elections. The first surprise was when he asked three Union Ministers and four MPs to resign and contest Vidhan Sabha elections. The Union Ministers were Narendra Singh Tomar, Prahlad Patel and Faggan Singh Kulsate and MPs were Rakesh Singh, Ganesh Singh, Riti Pathak and Uday Pratap Singh, besides Kailash Vijayvargiya who is non-MP.

After that speculation was rife that one of them will succeed Shiv Raj Singh Chouhan. Shiv Raj Singh Chouhan himself was hopeful that he may be asked to continue as the Chief Minister. But nobody, perhaps Mohan Yadav himself even in his dream, speculated that the destiny of Madhya Pradesh will be handed over to him.

Thrice MLA from Ujjain South constituency and former ABVP leader Mohan Yadav, 58, turned out to be a surprise choice as the new Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh on Monday evening.

Shivraj Singh Chouhan submitted his resignation to Governor Mangubhai Patel in the evening.

Yadav’s name was proposed by Chouhan and unanimously supported by the 162 other MLAs, sources said. An emotional Yadav said , “The responsibility you have given to a small worker like me, I don’t even deserve it. But with your love and blessings, I will try to fulfill the responsibilities”.

Minutes before the BJP legislative party meeting a photo session was held with all 163 MLAs. In the front row were the central observers, Chouhan, Tomar, Prahlad Singh Patel, Kailash Vijayvargiya and V D Sharma. Mohan Yadav was seated in the third row. Fifteen minutes later, he was announced the next CM.

Yadav could not believe his ears and could barely find words for a few minutes, said a legislator present there.

Outside the BJP office, supporters of all CM-hopefuls were shouting slogans all day. Chouhan’s supporters shouted, ‘Mama Mama” while Prahlad Singh Patel’s supporters shouted “Dada, Dada” and Kailash Vijayvargiya’s supporters yelled, “Bhaiyya, Bhaiyya”. At 4.35 pm when news came that Mohan Yadav was the next CM, there was a stunned silence for the next few minutes.

Yadav, who was the higher education minister in the last Shivraj cabinet, worked with the RSS from an early age and won his first assembly election in 2013. He succeeds Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who was MP for five terms and then held the chief minister’s post for four terms. Yadav has around three and a half year’s experience as a cabinet minister.

Keeping in mind the 52% OBC population in the state, the BJP continues with its tradition of appointing OBC chief ministers in Madhya Pradesh. Yadav will be the fourth in the line – starting with Uma Bharti in December 2003, Babulal Gaur in August 2004 and Shivraj Singh Chouhan in November 2005.

The choice of Yadav as CM in the heart of the country can help BJP in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Haryana in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s legacy as the go-getter who transformed MP from a BIMARU state to one with a GDP of Rs. 13,22,000 crore will endure.

After 16.5 years and four terms in the top post, Chouhan was not just MPs but also BJP’s longest serving chief minister.

The question now is, what will the party do with Chouhan? Very few leaders in the BJP can claim to have his kind of experience. Most ministers in the Narendra Modi cabinet do not have five terms as MP. After his resignation Chouhan, 64 is only an MLA from Budhni constituency. The chief minister for 16.5 years cannot become a cabinet minister in a government headed by Mohan Yadav who was his minister in the last term.

Modi’s choice on the face may appear surprising but it is a calculated decision which will benefit the party in the Lok Sabha elections. Yadavs constitute a major vote bank in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Modi must be knowing that Congress has alienated Yadavs when Kamal Nath while referring to Akhilesh Yadav nearly insulated him when he said “I don’t know who is this Akhilesh-Baklesh”.

It is not for the first time that a Ujjain based politician has been picked for the post of Chief Minister. Indira Gandhi did it in 1972. Just on the eve of elections she wanted to remove Chief Minister S. C. Shukla. After asking Shukla to resign she chose Ujjain based leader P. C. Sethi to succeed him. It was January 21, 1972 that Sethi took over as the Chief Minister. This is for the second time that in a surprise move a Ujjaini has been made Chief Minister.

Besides naming Chief Minister Modi has nominated Jagdish Devda and Rajendra Shukla as Deputy Chief Ministers. This is for the first time that a BJP ministry will have two Deputy Chief Ministers. Narendra Singh Tomar will be the speaker of the assembly.

Jagdish Devda, 66, has been elected to the assembly for the 9th time from Malhargarh. He is the best known leader from the SC community in the state and has held key portfolios like finance, home, transport and Jail.

The other deputy CM Rajendra Shukla has been elected from Rewa for the 5th term. As Devda is the best known Dalit face of the party in MP, Shukla is the best known Brahmin face. He comes from Rewa where Brahmins constitute a sizeable population. The fact that he won 3 of those 5 elections against the BSP candidate shows that it has often been Brahmin vs OBC-Dalit battle. In the previous two elections he defeated Brahmin candidate of Congress. .

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is making all selections of chief ministers taking into account their potential to get seats for BJP in Lok Sabha elections. New Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh chief ministers have the potential to help BJP beyond their respective states. (IPA Service)

The post New Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav Will Bring Yadav Votes For BJP In Hindi Heartland first appeared on Latest India news, analysis and reports on IPA Newspack.

The article New Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav Will Bring Yadav Votes For BJP In Hindi Heartland appeared first on Arabian Post.

By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: While Prime Minister Narendra Modi is paying special attention to Madhya Pradesh reports of mounting discontent and anger in the party are pouring in Bhopal from various areas of the state.

It was Prime Minister’s sixth visit to Madhya Pradesh in the last six months. On September 14 he came to Madhya Pradesh to lay the foundation stone of Rs. 50,000 crore petro chemicals complex in the poll bound MP at Bina. He chose the event to launch attack on the ‘ghamandi’ India alliance which has no policy, issues and leader. Addressing a gathering after laying the foundation stone of petro chemical complex Modi said “The ‘ghamandia’ alliance met in Mumbai recently. It has no policy, issues or leader. It has a hidden agenda…”

The PM asked, “While India is occupying centre stage in uniting the world, playing the role of ‘vishwamitra’ the INDIA alliance is trying to divide the country and society by attacking Sanatan values, culture and traditions, which have kept India united for thousands of years.”

On Madhya Pradesh, Modi said a state once counted among the most backward was now ‘going to scale new heights’ under the BJP government. “Mahatma Gandhi drew inspiration from Sanatan Dharma” PM Modi said.

“Corruption and crime were rampant during Congress rule” PM added, “When law and order was in shambles, you could not have expected industrial investment to arrive. Ever since BJP governed Madhya Pradesh, it has earnestly tried to change the fate of the state. Law and order improved. Basic amenities of road, power and water, which MP lacked and people of Bundelkhand know it better than anyone else, have been provided. There are roads up to every village and power in every household. Since the connectivity has improved, investors are keen to invest in Madhya Pradesh” he said. Rs. 50,000   crore is bigger than many state budgets, It’s being brought here in one day” the PM said.

“The petro chemicals complex at Bina will be another step in making the country self reliant. It will not only give rise to new industries but also benefit small farmers and entrepreneurs and create thousands of opportunities for the youth, the PM added.

Stressing the need for an “Atmanirbhar Bharat” the PM pointed out that India is dependent on other countries for petrol, diesel and other petro chemical products and underlined the need to reduce imports. “The country has come out of the mindset of slavery and the new India is marching ahead with pride” he said.

“Who knows the importance of irrigation better than Bundelkhand.” The PM said highlighting the irrigation projects carried out in the region, As many as 10 crore new families across the country got tap water in just four years of whom 83 lakh families are in Madhya Pradesh alone” the PM said.

While Modi was lauding the achievements of the party under the leadership of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, old party workers at Gwalior were complaining about their neglect because of preference being given to the followers of Jyotiraditya Scindia in all fields. They feel neglected. At another place old party workers locked their rivals in office and continued to shout slogans against the central leaders. It is significant that the local party leaders expressed their anger in the presence of party observer Bhupendra Yadav and Hitanand, organisation general secretary.

Without paying attention to the fissures in the party, Chief Minister is continuously announcing new measures to win over women voters. The latest in the series is the decision that all LPG connection holders under PM Ujjwala Yojana and registered under the Chief Minister Ladli Behna Yojana will be provided cylinder refills at Rs. 450 from September 1, 2023.

The state government will bear the remaining cost of the cylinder. The outstanding amount for the gas cylinder will be credited to the accounts of Ladli Behna beneficiaries. Orders to this effect were issued on Wednesday. In the cabinet meet in compliance with the announcement made by the CM on August 27, a decision was taken to provide cooking gas at Rs. 450 to all women having gas connection under Ujjwala scheme and Ladli Behanas having connections in their names for the month of Shravan (July 4 to August 31). Subsidy for refills during the period would be issued in the name of  Ladli Behna beneficiaries.

On September 10, in Gwalior CM Chouhan announced a provision to give gas cylinder to beneficiaries for Rs. 450. It was after this announcement that orders were issued on Wednesday.

Beneficiaries will receive subsidy on one refill per month. They will need to buy refills from the oil company at market rates, after which the subsidy provided by the Centre and the State government’s rate of Rs. 450 will be returned to their bank accounts.

In case of the amendments in the market rate for domestic LPG refills, the state subsidy will also be adjusted accordingly, the order says, The food, civil supplies and consumer protection department will be the nodal department for this.

Ladli Behna beneficiaries who already have a gas connection, will be registered on CM Ladli Behna Yojana portal. They may also be beneficiaries under the Ujjwala Yojana. For registration the gas connection consumer number and ID will be required. (IPA Service)

The post Dissensions And Infighting Mark BJP Party In Madhya Pradesh As Poll Approaches first appeared on Latest India news, analysis and reports on IPA Newspack.

The article Dissensions And Infighting Mark BJP Party In Madhya Pradesh As Poll Approaches appeared first on Arabian Post.

By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: There is near exodus from BJP to join the Congress. Among them who are leaving BJP include sitting MLAs and important party leaders. Significantly those who are leaving are listing two factors – rampant corruption and being ignored because of the preference being given to Scindia followers. In a blow to the ruling BJP ahead of assembly elections, MLA from Kolaras seat Virendra Raghuvanshi resigned from the party – an indication of the strife in the saffron camp due to influx of team Scindia.

In a letter to state BJP chief VD Sharma the two-time MLA has said that he felt ignored in the party in the last three and a half years. “In Gwalior-Chambal division, the party’s core workers like me were being ignored by the newly arrived BJP members though we worked with dedication for BJP in the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha polls” he wrote.

Raghuvanshi had won Kolaras assembly seat in Shivpuri district by 720 votes in 2018. He has resigned from primary membership and the party state working committee where he was a special invitee.

Raghuvanshi’s resignation letter makes direct allegations against Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia and his loyalists, many of whom are cabinet ministers in the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government. Talking to local media persons, he alleged that those who joined BJP with Scindia, “ministers and lieutenants alike are steeped in corruption”.

He says that he repeatedly informed CM Chouhan and the state BJP leadership that Scindia’s aides were not letting him work in his constituency and that corrupt officials were being posted in Kolaras to “thwart all development works and harass him and his supporters” but no one listened to him.

“Ministers and officials are submerged in corruption” Raghuvanshi alleged. “The minister in-charge of Shivpuri rationalised corruption in my constituency by saying that bribes are like ‘prasad’ that has to be offered in the temple. BJP grassroot leaders and workers are not heard any longer” he wrote.

Scindia loyalist Mahendra Singh Sisodia, the panchayat minister is in-charge of Shivpuri district. Raghuvanshi’s letter points out that Scindia claimed he brought down the Congress government in March 2020 because farm loans were not being waived, “But after the formation of the BJP government, Scindia hasn’t even spoken of the loan waiver scheme”. He said “in BJP meetings, there is no discussion for the benefit of the state, but corrupt ministers are protected, I feel suffocated and hurt in such an environment. Please accept my resignation”. He wrote.

To reporters, Raghuvanshi said that during a recent meeting of the district core committee, he had asked “why the CM is under pressure”. I said that I am not allowed to work. The CM didn’t give me even five minutes” he alleged, adding that he had helped KK Yadav win the 2019 Lok Sabha polls (against Scindia) “Maybe that was my mistake” he said.

Before joining BJP in 2014, Raghuvanshi was the Congress candidate from Shivpuri assembly constituency in 2007 bypoll (which he won) and the 2008 and 213 assembly elections.

Not just Raghuvanshi, many other BJP leaders from Gwalior-Chambal region have recently switched to the Congress. In June, BJP’s Shivpuri vice-president Rakesh Gupta – once a Scindia supporter – returned to the Congress. Baijnath Yadav, another BJP leader, rejoined Congress.

Another heavyweight and former MLA Girija Shankar Sharma hailing from Narmadapuram district has also resigned from the BJP. Sharma, besides being himself an influential leader also comes from a family of powerful leaders. Sharma won the Hoshangabad assembly seat in 2008 against Congress’ Vijay Dubey by a margin of 25,000 votes. He is also the brother of two times MLA from the same seat and former speaker of the state assembly Sithasharan Sharma.

Speaking to reporters, the former MLA said that he has met Congress president KalmalNath once and former chief minister Digvijaya Singh also. “But nothing has progressed in that”, Meanwhile sources in the state Congress said that BJP’s former MLA from Badnawar assembly seat Bhanwar Singh Shekhawat could join the Congress. Shekhawat won the Badnawar assembly seat in 2013 against Congress’ Rajvardhan Singh Dattigaon who was one of the 22 Congress MLAS who quit he party and followed Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia to the BJP . In the November 2020 bypolls, Rajwardhan Singh Dattigaon contested on a BJP ticket and retained the seat. In a clean swap, now Bhawar Singh Shekhawat could join the Congress party fearing that BJP will again field new entrant Rajwardhan Singh Dattigaon. (IPA Service)

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By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: Two moves both by the BJP and Congress in Madhya Pradesh have not only surprised the rank and file of the two parties but also general public.

The two moves include one by the ruling BJP. According to this, 39 candidates for such Vidhan Sabha seats which the party lost 2108 have been announced. These candidates will contest from such constituencies where party suffered defeat in the 2018 general elections. The timing of the announcement surprised everybody. Perhaps it is for the first time that candidates have been chosen before three months of the polling.

The other move is by the Congress which has released a charge sheet against the BJP government much ahead of the election dates. Though the BJP thought that the announcement of candidates will be welcomed by the party men but what happened was contrary. Instead of welcome the announcement was marked by resentment from a substantial section of the party. At a time, when surveys predicted heavy anti-incumbency against the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government, the BJP has fielded its candidates in constituencies it lost in 2018 and has been losing in more than one elections..There have been protest demonstrations by the disgruntled BJP members.

By releasing the list almost three months before the elections, it gave a message that the BJP is going to give a strong fight and is contesting for its fifth term in the state. It will fight for every seat. State BJP leaders explained that with this list, workers will be mobilised and charged. They will get out of their homes and hit the field much before the previous assembly elections. This is being seen as an opportunity with enough time to win some of those seats known as Congress strongholds. Announcement of 13 tribal candidates was also meant to win back tribal voters to the saffron party.

Hours after Rajkumar Karathe resigned from the AAP on Thursday morning, he was fielded as the BJP candidate from Lanji constituency in Balaghat. Supporters of Ramesh Bhatere, former party MLA from the seat, took out a procession with BJP flags on the streets of Lanji shouting slogans against Rajkumar Karathe. “Rajkumar ko jhaadu maro” (beat Rajkumar with a broom)” was their slogan.

“The central leadership should know that they have given a ticket to the man who is even today not a primary member of the party. Till Friday, he was with AAP and was continuously canvassing against the BJP central and state leadership. We demand that this decision be changed”. One of the supporters of Ramesh Bhatere said.

Fielding of former minister Lalita Yadav from Chhatarpur, a seat she won in 2008 by a margin of 7,508 votes and in 2013 by 2,217 votes is also being resisted. When her margin decreased in the constituency, the party shifted her to Bada Malahra constituency in 2018 assembly election which she lost to Congress’ Pradyumn Singh Lodhi (now in BJP) by a margin of 15,779 votes. While Lalita Yadav was shifted to Bada Malahra, seat held by Uma Bharti durng her chief ministerial tenure, BJP fielded two-time Chhatarpur municipality chairperson Archana guddu Singh as its candidate from Chhatarpur. Archana Singh also lost the 2018 election by a margin of 3,496 votes.

The question now being asked is why would the party field Lalita Yadav from Chhatarpur when her winning margin was slim in 2013 and was defeated in Bada Malehra in 2018? In compression Archana Singh’s defeat in Chhatarpur was by a far lesser number of votes. Soon after name of Lality a Yadav was announced, Archana Singh’s supporter took out a protest rally at the Chharasal Chouraha in Chhatarpr. They shouted slogans – “Ticket wapas karo”.

Sources in the party claimed Lalita Yadav’s candidature in Chhatarpur is meant to address the caste equation in the district and adjoining constituencies in the Bundelkhand region with considerable Yadav votes including Khargapur, Niwari, Prithvipur, Deori, Surkhi and other constituencies.

Addressing the caste factor, the party has strategically nominated Pritam Lodhi, who was expelled from the party last year due to his controversial statement against Brahmins.

The Congress appeared very smart when it released the charge sheet against the BJP government. Former chief minister Kamal Nath released the charge sheet alleging corruption against the BJP government. Calling it the Ghotalapatra, Congress in its charge sheet accused thr BJP government of 254 scams during its 18 years’ rule in Madhya Pradesh ranging from an alleged Rs.. 50,000 crore illegal mining scam, Rs. 86,000 crore liquor scam, Rs. 11,000 crore sewerage construction scam to Rs. 94,000 crore electricity scam to Rs. 100 crore Mahakal construction scam.

Congress claimed the allegation is based on documental proof including the government’s reply to questions in the state assembly, CAG reports, documents from the Lokayukyta and the CBI. Congress also accused the BJP government of the Rs. 15,000 crore nutritious meal scam, Rs. 12,000 crore mid-day meal scam, Rs. 9,500 crore aganwadi nal gal (tap water) scam, Rs. 2,000 crore VYAPAM scam and Rs. 800 crore recruitment scam. (IPA Service)

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By L. S. Herdenia

BHOPAL: BJP in general and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in particular are paying maximum attention to Dalits and Tribals of Madhya Pradesh, who constitute more than one third Vidhan Sabha seats. This is clear by the fact that the Prime Minister has paid two visits to the state in just within a month. During his first visit he announced several schemes for tribals and during his second visit he announced several schemes for Dalits. This included laying the foundation of a temple for Sant Ravidas, who is worshipped by Dalits. Addressing a huge gathering, he claimed that Dalits, Tribals and backward classes are getting maximum benefits from his government’s welfare schemes.

Modi paid floral tributes to Saint Ravidas at Badtuma, about 10 kms from the Sagar district headquarters, where the proposed temple will be built. He offered prayers and chanted mantras for the saint. He further promised that one and half years later, he would come to inaugurate the temple. “Sant Ravidas will give me that opportunity,” he said.

On February 8 this year, chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced the construction of a Rs. 100 crore temple and museum dedicated to Sant Ravidas. The government allotted 11 acres of land for this.

With barely three months left for the assembly election, the PM’s temple foundation function is being seen as part of BJP’s effort to woo the 18% Dalit vote base in the state. There are 35 SC reserved seats. In 2013, BJP won 28 of these, but in 2018 its tally dropped to 18 while Congress gained, notching up a tally of 17. Also in 2018, the BJP faced a  rout in the 47 tribal reserved seats, with Congress winning 31 and BJP left with just 16 – 15 seats less than 2013.

The BJP is on an overdrive to woo both the communities. The PM’s last visit to MP (on July 1) was to the tribal-dominated Shahdol.

On Saturday, Modi’s meetings in Dhana focused only on how his government has benefitted SC/ST/OBC’s. His speech was different in that he attacked the Congress just twice, without mentioning the party or its leaders. “Dalits, backwards and tribals are getting maximum benefits of welfare schemes. You know that earlier governments only brought schemes during election season but our belief is that at every stage in life we should stand with Dalits, backwards, tribals and women. That we can support their hopes and expectations,” the PM said, claiming that the BJP is the only party which does maximum to ensure their wellbeing.

Meanwhile, the BJP gave a surprise to the Congress by filing FIRs against Priyanka Gandhi and Kamal Nath over 50 percent commission barb at BJP government. Cases have been registered under IPC sections 469 (forgery for the cause of harming reputation) 500 (defamation) and 501 (printing or engraving matter known to be defamation).

“Let them file FIRs. How many FIRs can they file?” a combative Nath told reporters when told that complaints had been filed.

On Friday Priyanka had tweeted “An association of contractors in Madhya Pradesh has written a letter to the Chief Justice of the high court complaining that payment of dues is received only after paying 50% commission in the state. The corrupt BJP government in Karnataka used to collect 40% commission. In Madhya Pradesh BJP has broken its own record”. Nath was amongst the Congress leaders who re tweeted it.

Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that the letter is fake. “Confusion is being spread. The address on the letter is nowhere to be found. Neither is the person nor the organisation” he said.

“Congress thought that the 40% commission tactic worked in Karnataka, so they tried out 50% here. It’s fake. They are doing it as part of a dangerous strategy” the CM said, adding that he had the letter checked out by the intelligence and it turned out to be a complete fraud.

Minister for medical education Vishwas Sarang and other BJP leaders filed a complaint with the crime branch in Bhopal. In Indore, the party’s legal cell filed the complaint.

“Imagine the kind of mentality that does this kind of politics,” home minister Narottam Mishra said. “Congress’s politics in Madhya Pradesh is based on false claims. In the last elections, Kamal Nath and Digvijaya Singh made Rahul Gandhi make a false promise of waiving farmloans up to Rs. 2 lakh. And now, based on a fake letter, they got Priyanka Gandhi to tweet”. He asked Congress to give proof of the contractors’ association and the person who wrote the letter and warned of a legal action.

State BJP president VD Sharma accused Congress of ‘‘manufacturing fake letters”. This kind of conspiracy will not happen in Madhya Pradesh. BJP will take strict and punitive action. Priyanka Gandhi will have to clarify why a fake letter has been used to malign BJP’s image” Sharma said.

Asked about the complaint, PCC chief Kamal Nath told media persons: “There are thousands of instances of corruption. How many FIRs can they file”?

State Congress MLA PC Sharma hit out at BJP by saying that worse has happened than the 50% commission. “There have been cases where work was not done yet full payment was made and the money got distributed,” Sharma told reporters. “They want to register an FIR. Let them do it, we are ready. How many FIRs will they register and against how many people” he asked.  (IPA Service)

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By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: “Ninety six hours – two visits by Home Minister Amit Shah” It is obvious Amit Shah does not want that 2018 is repeated in 2023 Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh. That is why he is paying special attention to the state. He reached Bhopal in the late Wednesday evening, held closed door meetings with top leaders till past mid-night. Then next day held face to face consultations with selected leaders including Chief Minister Shiv Raj Singh Chouhan and then left for Delhi. There are reports that he would again visit Bhopal on Sunday. Obviously he does not want BJP to lose like it lost in 2018 assembly elections  and then he had used muscle and money power to get power from backdoor  by organizing defections   from the Congress.

During his stay in Bhopal Shah held a four hour meeting with 12 top leaders including chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, state BJP president VD Sharma, Union ministers Narendra Singh Tomar, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Prahalad Singh Patel, Faggan Singh Kulaste, BJP national general secretaries Murlidhar Rao, Kailash Vijayvargiya, Shivprakash and other leaders. BJP national general secretary BL Santosh was also present.

Sources in the party claimed there was detailed discussion on seats that the BJP lost in 2018 assembly polls. A roadmap is being worked out to win back these seats, especially in tribal areas where the Congress bagged 31 of the total 47 seats in the last assembly elections. In total, the BJP secured 109 seats while Congress got 114, SP got one seat, BSP two and independents won four constituencies. BJP’s major loss was in Gwalior-Chambal, Malwa-Nimar and the Mahakaushal region.

Three months before the assembly elections, the ruling party will take out a Vijay Sankalp Yatra. It will start in the first week of September from Ujjain and roll throughout the state. A suggestion has also been given that Vijay Sankalp Yatras should be simultaneously started from four or five cities in the state.

A senior BJP leader said, “Before 2008, 2013 and 2018 assembly elections, chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan went on a Jan Ashirwad Yatra which was a people contact programme touching a 230 assembly seats. This time, it will be the Vijay Sankalp Yatra but all prominent leaders will be given the responsibility to lead the yatra in different parts of the state”.

The source said “The party will decide which of the leaders will lead the yatra and in which districts. We expect that the Vijay Sankalp Yatra will not only be led by chief minister Chouhan but also by Narendra Singh Tomar, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Kaiash Vijayvargiya, Narottam Mishra and other leaders in their areas of influence”.

A senior party leader claimed that Amit Shah has asked senior leaders to pacify unhappy members of the party by giving them specific roles in elections and including them in various election committees to be announced soon.Amit Shah will address a   meeting   of senir leaders   next week in Indore.

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The Congress chose to launch fierce attack on BJP during the presence of Amit Shah in Bhopal. They used a woman leader to do this. The woman leader, Shobha Oza, a former Mahila Congress national president claimed that women are not safe in Madhya Pradesh, she alleged that the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government puts up a façade of being a women-friendly regime and said that NCRB report reveals that Madhya Pradesh has the largest number of offences committed against women and the girl child.

Oza said that while maximum number of girls go missing from the state even boys are victims of such unexplained disappearances. “The Shivraj Singh Chouhan government makes tall claims with schemes like Ladli Laxmi and Ladli Behna to show that it is women friendly government. The chief minister also mentions “Pyare Bhanjauon aur  Bhanjiyon (dea nephews and nieces)’ in his speeches but this is a devious conspiracy by him to hide the reality and to divert the attention from the atrocities committed in the state.” Oza alleged, adding “The BJP has failed to explain why Madhya Pradesh remains number one in crimes against women, girls and children in every successive NCRB report.

Shobha Oza argued that cases of rape, gang rape, torture, assault, dowry harassment, domestic violence and molestation against women and girls are increasing continuously in Madhya Pradesh. And because of this an atmosphere of fear prevails among women, girls and their families.

Quoting NCRB data, OZa argued, “According to this figure our state has maximum number of cases of missing girls in the country. And girls are not the only victims of missing persons’ cases reported. A large number of boys also go missing from the state and hence it is clear that the state is incapable of protecting children. The Government of Madhya Pradesh, its Chief Minister and the Home Minister have proved to be completely incompetent.”

She said that according to the latest data presented in the Lok Sabha by the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development, from July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2023 (which is the last five years) 61,102 children went missing in the state out of which 49,024 are girls and 12,078 are boys.      (IPA Service)

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By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: June 12 proved to be a day of two major calamities for Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mr. Shivraj Singh Chouhan. One calamity was the huge fire which caused havoc in many floors of Satpura Bhawan. Satpura Bhawan is a multi story building which houses offices of several key state government departments. The fire was so massive that it destroyed about 40,000 files. Some of them related to serious corruption cases which are being enquired by Lokayukta and economic offenses wing of Police.

Fire broke out at about 3.30 PM on Monday and raged until Tuesday morning. At 8 am officials announced that the fire was finally out but smoke kept billowing out. Army and Air Force personnel had led the firefight along with teams from NDRF, SDRF, BHEL, Bhopal Municipal Corporation, the airport and nearby industrial areas. Questions are being asked why the administration couldn’t put out the blaze necessitating Army intervention and whether the building had enough fire safety measures.

These questions are expected to be answered by the high-level committee set up the CM which inspected the burnt-out building on Tuesday. Samples were collected for forensic tests.

The fire has exposed Bhopal Municipal Corporation’s lack of preparedness. As the fire raged, BMC fire staff looked helpless. Archaic methods of firefighting hampered the personnel who didn’t lack courage but sorely lacked training and equipment.

The Satpura Bhawan fire has given opportunity to opposition to level major charges on the BJP government. Kamal Nath, chief of the state Congress has claimed that the fire was evidence of BJPs corruption. He also claimed that fire was set intentionally. Nath said “The question is, whether this fire started on its own or was the building set on fire? They claim that 12,000 files have been burnt. No one knows how many thousands of files have been burnt. What is the goal and aim of this fire? This is a matter of corruption and there should be a probe by an independent agency”.

The former CM also alleged that the BJP government is ‘never prepared for any emergency’. The only preparation they know is how to make money” he said. However Home Minister Narottam Mishra on Tuesday dismissed allegations of a conspiracy and said that all records can be retrieved.

On Congress’ allegations that the fire was set on purpose to destroy certain files, the home minister said, “Four thousand people were in the building when the fire started. What kind of conspiracy can there be? The fire started after a blast in the compressor of the air-conditioner. There are people who witnessed it. The Congress party looks for opportunities even during a crisis, but it always fails. They didn’t realize that files have not been destroyed. The files are there in pen-drives, hard disks and even at Vallabh Bhawan”.

The other calamity was political. On June 12 Priyanka Gandhi got a massive response during her day long visit to Jabalpur. The response she got in Jabalpur must have caused concern to Chief Minister Chouhan. She competed with BJP and turned her visit to religious trip. She performed puja at the bank of holy river Narmada while 100 priests recited suitable Mantras. In competition with BJP Congress installed lord Hanuman’s images at the crossings in the city. While performing Puja at Narmada she made five important promises to people which will be implemented if Congress grabs power after elections. The five promises are: Rs. 1500 to every woman, LPG cylinder at Rs. 500, restoration of old pension scheme, 100 units of power free and waiver of farmer loans. In her speech she accused BJP government of 225 scams in 220 months. Priyanka tore into the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government alleging that its “list of scams is longer than Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s list of insults”.

“A bribe raj is being run, forcing you to pay bribes for every small work. If you do not stop it today, then think about what will happen in the future. Scams after scam is happening here” she said. Naming the VYAPAM scam, and alleged scams in the Covid fight., e-tender, ration, scholarships and jobs. How many more scams” Priyanka asked.

While Congress chose Jabalpur for the visit of Priyanka Gandhi, BJP government also chose Jabalpur to launch Ladli Behna Yojana. PCC office bearers argued that Priyanka Gandhi’s programme was scheduled In April while BJP government’s purposely selected Jabalpur for the launch of its flagship scheme Ladli Behna Yojana to off-shoot the Congress function. But the question remains, why did the Congress choose Jabalpur to launch its election campaign?

The answer is simple. Jabalpur is the biggest city in the Mahakaushal area which has a total 38 assembly seats including 13 tribal reserved constituencies. Apart from being the area of PCC chief Kamal Nath’s influence, this is one of those places where the party performed exceptionally well during the 2018 assembly elections. Out of the 38 seats In the region Congress bagged 24 in the last election compared to the BJP’s 13 seats. And 11 out of 13 tribal reserved seats were won by Congress candidates. The BJP won just two. (IPA Service)

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By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL Lokayukta enquiry against senior Minister Bhupendra Singh came as explosion in the political circles of Madhya Pradesh. Bhupendra Singh is considered to be very close to the state Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Besides, Lokayukta Chief Minister has also received serious complaints against Bhupendra Singh from two Ministers and about half a dozen party MLAs. All of them and also Bhupendra Singh belong to Sagar district. Their complaint is that all police and civil officials act only on direction of Bhupendra Singh

Bhupendra Singh gives the impression that he enjoys the confidence of Chief Minister. The Chief Minister held two sittings with the complaining Ministers and MLAs in the presence of Bhupendra Singh. Ultimately Chief Minister warned them that in view of coming elections they must resolve their differences otherwise they will adversely affect elections.

While Bhupendra was still facing hostility from party colleagues another calamity came in the form of Lokayukta enquiry. Lokayukta has ordered enquiry after he received complaints from Congress leader and advocate J. P. Dhanopia and other Congress leaders. In their complaint they gave evidence of wealth disproportionate of his known sources of income. What is surprising is not the complaint but the speed with which Lokayukta decided to order enquiry.

Ordinarily complaints against Ministers are kept pending for several years. But in this case enquiry was ordered within two days of its filing. Observers point out that it was done to prevent Bhupendra Singh from becoming president of the state party unit. It is learnt that the term of present occupant is over. It is also learnt that Chief Minister is not keen to give extension to him. By manipulating enquiry they will achieve their objective.

Two unexpected developments took place in the state. One such development was the confession by former Chief Minister and Rajya Sabha member Digvijaya Singh that “Scindia joining BJP was personal shock to me”. Talking to media at Indore he said that he had never imagined that the senior Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia would switch over to the BJP and his decision came as a personal shock to him.

Singh claimed that he had received some tip-off about ‘some people being sold’ that later resulted in toppling of the then Kamal Nath-led Congress government.

“We had however never imagined that Scindiaji would be one of them and we are sorry about it. He had an energetic leadership in the Congress party while there were all the possibilities of his leading us. The Nehru-Gandhi family including Soniaji, Rahulji and Priyankaji had given him all the respect, made him minister twice along with AICC general secretary as he had family terms with them, but he left” Singh said.

He added that what hurts more is Scindia’s statements after leaving the party just for getting a mere post in BJP.

“An old video of Scindia is going viral in which he had called Shivraj Singh Chouhan that his hands are full of blood of farmers (in Mandsaur police firing incident) but now he is sharing the dais with Shivraj. It is not only betrayal but being opportunistic as well” Singh added.

He also targeted Chouhan and his wife for alleged “Dumper Scam” along with alleging corruption in e-tendering, sand mining, VYAPAM and others. ‘After corruption in construction in Ujjain, the government had given the land of Mahakal Temple to a trust associated with RSS that is running business there, but no money is deposited to the temple’s account” Singh said.

He alleged that Shivraj Singh has made a fool of Narendra Modi by poor construction in Mahakal Lok.

It appears that Madhya Pradesh will witness multi -party contest during the coming Assembly elections. Besides AAP Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) from South is all set to enter Madhya Pradesh. If it finally happens it will be first party from South India to enter Hindi speaking state.

The BRS has been sponsored by Telangana Chief Minister. Many politicians have joined the Samithi after leaving their respective parties. (IPA Service)

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By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: All attempts of national and Madhya Pradesh leaders to persuade Deepak Joshi not to leave BJP failed. He finally joined the Congress on Saturday in the presence of PCC president Kamal Nath. He accepted the Congress membership along with large number of his followers.

While announcing his decision to leave party he levelled serious charges of corruption, specially in his constituency. He said that to make complaint with people holding powerful position did not yield any result.

Son of Kailash Joshi, who commanded great respect in the party, Deepak Joshi occupied ministerial position in the BJP government. He also alleged that the party humiliated his father despite the fact that he was one of the founders of the party. In 1977 when party secured majority in the state with great reluctance he was made chief minister and removed him within six months in highly humiliating condition. But despite this he continued in the party and even agreed to join the ministry under the chief minister V. K. Sakhlecha who at that time was the blue eyed boy of the RSS.

He further said when he started raising the voice of the people against corruption half of the BJP stood against him. He claimed that “I am the son of the person who always respected decisions of the party but he wants a platform to destroy the present system as Congress worker”.

To the surprise of the state BJP, at least half a dozen top leaders spoke almost in the same language in which Deepak spoke. One such leader is Kailash Vijayavargiya, general secretary of the party. He made very significant remark “only BJP can defeat BJP. There is urgent need to correct mistakes in the party”. Another stalwart Bhawar Singh Shekhawat targeted Jyotiraditya Scindia and his supporters who joined BJP, accusing them of ‘breeding corruption and destroying party ideology’. Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Dattigaon, a Scindia supporter, rejected his allegations and threatened to sue him.

“When Scindia and his supporters joined BJP, party workers welcomed them and worked hard to get them elected. But the situations that arose after their arrival are disheartening and saddening.” Shekhawat, twice MLA from Baddnawar and Indore-5 told reporters.

“If the party had grown stronger, we could have understood. But after their (team Scindia’s) arrival the party’s base has become hollow. Our morals were lost”. He said. “I’d never heard of corruption charged against BJP ministers, the kind that’s being levelled now against those who came with Jyotiraditya” he alleged.

“In Badnawar, Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Dattiaon has captured lands, mines and started illegal mining” Shekhawat alleged.

“The party is being defamed. People associated with its original ideology are hurt. This is what we are trying to tell the party. These were the kind of reasons why the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government lost in 2018. The people who led to the fall of the government, who worked against the party, you are rewarding them” he asked.

“Learn to respect the elders. This is not a fight for tickets. This is a fight to keep the party alive and against those trying to destroy it” he added.

Another important leader Sattan too blamed Scindia for all the ills and corruption. Ministers having loyalty to Scindia are indulging in all sorts of omissions and commissions. He claimed that Scindia joined the BJP to fulfill his own vested interest.

Another senior leader Raghu Nandan Sharma also expressed concern over the state of affairs in the party. The Congress is claiming that many more BJP leaders are knocking their doors. (IPA Service)

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By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: Both BJP and Congress are promising ‘moon’ on the eve of assembly election. In Madhya   Pradesh   by October/ November this year. BJP has already promised Rs. 1000 per month dole to women. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan is going from place to place explaining the details of the scheme. He even tells the women how to fill forms giving details of the schemes.

While this scheme is being explained the chief minster made one more lucrative scheme to win over women voters. According to this scheme known as Mukhyamantri Jeevan Janani Yojna every pregnant women who are not income tax payers will be given assistance of Rs. 4,000. Chief minister made this announcement at a small place. Speaking at Ladli Behna Sammelan in Morena, Chouhan urged for cooperation from women to create a new era where women and their families are happy. He instructed collector for prompt implementation of the scheme in the district and asked SP to ensure that no one can take even a paisa from beneficiaries while demanding action against those who do.

Chouhan made announcement for upgradation of state hospitals. “Modular operation theatres at s cost of Rs. 2.5 crore each and modular kitchens at a cost of Rs. 25 lakh each will be made in all district hospitals. Buildings will be constructed for 1440 sub-health centres of the state. There will be an MRI machine in five districts of MP including Morena. Drug warehouse will be set up at divisional level for distribution.

On his pa state Congress chief Kamal Nath announced a unique scheme. According to this scheme if voted to power the Congress will bring a law on safety audit for religious and public events.

Referring to Baleshwar Mahadev temple tragedy in Indore which killed 36 people on Ram Navmi, he said that this is not the first time that such a tragedy happened during a religious event in MP.

“Whether it was the stampede at Ratangarh Mata temple on October 13, 2013 in which 117 devotees died or the 20 devotees who were killed in the stampede at Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga temple bridge, or the mismanagement during the recent Rudharkasha festival when lakhs of devotees gathered at Kukreshwar Dham in Sehore – we commit that after the Congress government is formed in the state, we will classify events of religious, social and public importance and make their safety audit mandatory for organisers,” Nath said. He claimed such an audit will ensure that such events can be widely celebrated with enthusiasm.

He argued, “Events will be categorised as a function with a crowd 1000 to 5000, next 5000 to 50000 or even bigger 50000 to one lakh and even more than one lakh people – a comprehensive safety and security audit will be done for which a law will be made” Kamal Nath said.

He said that in the audit, information on aspects of the event will be gathered including evaluation of the capacity at the event premises, pre-planning to prevent accident related to electricity and water, food safety assessment will also determined for the food served. A traffic plan will also be made to ensure commute of crowd to the venue for the big event. A competent authority will be constituted for the audit.

Meanwhile Congress has started copying the BJP in organising religious events right in the office of the party. The Congress held a grand show by holding Hanuman jayanti. The party held this programme on the instruction of Kamal Nath. Commenting on the event, chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan called this the “dual policy of Congress” and launched an attack on Kamal Nath.

“I don’t understand. But with this his ‘kutilta’ (cunningness) is revealed,” CM Chouhan told reporters. “On the one hand he (Nath) widely publicises that he is a Hanuman Bhakth and on the other hand, he sits in a Roza Iftar and talks of riots and communal unrest. What does he want to say? That he wants to garner votes from a community through the Roza Iftar?” Chouhan asked.

The chief minister alleged. “This is degraded politics to spread fear and get votes. Madhya Pradesh is an island of peace. Where is the riot in Madhya Pradesh? It is his ill-intention, cunningness, appeasement through which he wants to get votes. I condemn this”.

In a video, the PCC chief and the veteran leader Kama Nath is seen telling elders of the Muslim community “You take care of Chhindwara I have to take care of the entire state. If you want me to be constrained here (Chinidwara) then I will stay here. But you can see what is happening in the entire country. The way they are carrying out communal riots in the entire country. Yeh poore desh ko barbad kar ke chhorenge (They will destroy the whole country.)   (IPA Service)

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By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: BJP is resorting to virtual ‘ghero’ of Madhya Pradesh. Besides several small leaders, two stalwarts of the party chose to visit Madhya Pradesh almost at the same time. While home minister Amit Shah visited Chhindwara, stronghold of Kamal Nath for more than four decades, party president J. P. Nadda arrived in Bhopal.

During his day long visit, he addressed several meetings besides performing bhoomi pujan of the massive building which will house the BJP party state headquarter. This building is being constructed on the same land on which party’s earlier office was located. The proposed building will have eleven floors. The building will have most modern facilities. During his stay in Bhopal he addressed several meetings. Addressing one such meeting he said “What is the situation of the Congress party today? I do not want to take names but discussions are being held. Arrogance is huge and understanding so little. The Congress party is on a Satyagraha protest. Satyagraha is what Mahatma Gandhi did in 1906 in South Africa and in 1919 in India. For who did he practice Satyagraha? For the pride of India, so India could be ruled by Indians”.

He further argued, “But what is the Congress’ Satyagraha about? What is your pride? You are breaking the tradition of democracy. You have no faith in the law. Ati peechra jati suchak gali deto ho (you make cattiest slurs)? Said they are thieves. The court kept asking ‘Apologise, apologise, apologise’. Your arrogance grew so huge that you refused to apologise. Your membership is annulled and you are convicted. Rassi ja gayi, bal nahi gaya.”

Soon after he landed at the state hanger for his day’s visit to the state capital on Sunday morning, JP Nadda set a dual target for BJP workers. With assembly elections due in November this year, Nadda asked for a victory with ‘200 paar (200 +)’ seats out of a total 230 and 51% vote share.

“The way you welcomed me today with great enthusiasm, it has given a message for coming days. You have to transform this enthusiasm to a target and achieve 200 plus seats in the assembly elections.” He also set the goal of 51% vote share for the party. The ruling party’s focus is on attaining the 51% votes because in 2018 assembly elections the party secured 41.02% votes share against the Congress’ 40.89. And though the Congress’ vote share was slightly lower yet it managed to get five seats more than the BJP and formed a government with the help of BSP, SP and independents.

Significantly in the presence of chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, union ministers Jyotiraditya Scindia and Narendra Singh Tomar and state party president V. D. Sharma, Nadda complained that there is a lack of team work among leaders.

While party president Nadda tried to plug loopholes in the state leaders union home minister Amit Shah launched blistering attack on state Congress chief Kamal Nath right in his stronghold Chhindwara. This happens to be the last standing fortress of the Congress party in Madhya Pradesh where the party holds all seven assembly seats and the lone Lok Sabha seat.

Chhindwara being a predominantly tribal and OBC populated district, the union home minister argued “When I have come to Chhindwara, I want to say that BJP is the lone party that has thought of paying respect to tribals and OBCs. Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid respect to the tribal societies across the country on November 15, 2021, when he observed the birth anniversary of Birsa Munda as Janjaitiya Gaurav Diwas. The Congress party always spoke of backward classes but did nothing for the benefit of OBCs.

Attacking Nath he said “I want to tell Kamal Nath that since you were given an opportunity (as CM) you should now give an account of what you did for the people of Chhindwara. He did nothing new. Instead Kamal Nath looted what Shivraj Singh Chouhan left in the government”.

Countering Amit Shah’s allegations Kamal Nath took to Twitter to respond to those accusations “Amit Shahji, fever from keeping bad company can be terrible”.

He targeted the incumbent chief minister of the state Shivraj Singh Chouhan in his tweet and said “I was hoping that you would come to Chhindwara and say some good things. But Shivrajji’s falsehood machine had made a big impression on you”.

On the charges of lack of development during his rule in the Madhya Pradesh he said in his tweet “You are asking me questions on development projects? You have probably forgotten that after masking a government out of horse-trading Shivraj Singh Chouhan is the chief minister and you are the union home minister. If any project has been stopped, then you should ask Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Prime Minister Modi to account for it”. The former chief minister tweeted. “The end of misrule is not very far away” Kamal Nath added.

As the MP assembly elections are scheduled by year end, the political tempo is picking up and more and more BJP meetings are being held attended by senior leaders to ensure that the party retains power in the next assembly elections. The central BJP leaders are keeping close watch on the performance of the chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and they are apprehensive that the former Congress CM Kamal Nath has been in the campaign in an aggressive manner and the Congress organization has been revitalized in the recent weeks after Bharat Jodo Yatra. The battle lines are now drawn. (IPA Service)

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By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: Who will be the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh? This question is being asked in political circles – both in the BJP and Congress. While this question is almost settled in BJP the issue is still open in Congress. While it is certain that the BJP will contest the next assembly election under the leadership of the current chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who will lead the Congress is still open. . While Most   of   the   Congress leaders favour Kamal Nath, who is the president of Pradesh Congress., there is a small faction which is publicly saying that Chief Minister will be decided by high command.

The other day Kamal Nath convened a huge press conference and interacted with reporters for more than one and a half hour. During press conference he answered many questions about himself and also about policy matters. But after the press conference some media agencies quoted Kamal Nath that he will not contest the assembly elections which are due in November. But next day he himself clarified and asserted that he will contest the poll.

In the evening, few hours after press conference, social media reports said that Kamal Nath, in informal chat with reporters, said that he may not contest assembly polls. The state Congress office immediately put down the rumours with a statement that “President of Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee has not made any announcement that he will not contest the elections. News of this nature on the social media is totally misleading”.

Speaking to reporters in Pohri of Shivpri district Kamal Nath clarified, “I did not say that I won’t contest the elections. “The other day I hosted a lunch for journalists and was asked whether I will give tickets to local leaders in the assembly constituencies, I said I am the worst sufferer in this category. I am not a resident of Chhindwara assembly seat, which I represent. I am from Sausar constituency in Chhindwara district”.

He added “People from Sausar had asked me why I contest from Chhindwara assembly seat. And I told them, that my identity is attached to Chhindwara. Nath had represented the Chhindwara Lok Sabha constituency for nine terms. “Many may not have even heard of a constituency called Sausar. I said that I will decide from where I will contest. It was in relation to the question on giving tickets to local candidates” he said.

Kamal Nath also spoke on the internal factional strife in the state Congress, especially after posters installed by his followers claimed he will be the ‘future chief minister’. After the posters, former PCC chief Arun Yadav openly challenged the claim of Nath being the future CM. Yadav said that who will become the chief minister is decided by the party high-command and MLAs who elect their leader. He even said “Anyone can become the chief minister including Arun Yadav”. Kamal Nath in recent conference had retorted, “I cannot stop party workers from raising slogans about the future chief minister”. Nath said “Senior Congress leaders have not said anything new about the CM’s post. I have reiterated several times that I do not aspire for any post. My aim and dream is to secure future of the state. I have dedicate my entire youth and life for MP”.

Meanwhile an interesting dialogue has been going on between Chief Minister Chouhan and PCC chief Kamal Nath. In this dialogue Chouhan is posing question and challenging Kamal Nath to answer them. So far Kamal Nath has not obliged   the Chief Minister. In his last question (14th) Chouhan told Kamal Nath “Power for him is not the end but the means. Through many schemes, we are continuously trying to serve the people. But for Congress politics is only to be in power”.

He further alleged that to come to power, the Congress party can go to any extent, ‘Whether being untruthful, making promises and not fulfilling them, ask them questions and they do not reply. People know how many false promises were made by the Congress”.

The chief minister then fired his next question to former chief minister Kamal Nath. “You had said that or the benefit of subsidiary agro-based industries like animal husbandry, dairy development, fisheries, horticulture, farmers will be encouraged’. Chouhan said. “That five-year loans will be provided on concessional interest rates. Please tell us what did the Congress government do in one-and quarter years?” he said.

Chouhan also took a jibe at reports on social media that Kamal Nath will not contest the assembly elections. “What Kamal Nath is saying. I do not understand. He said he will not contest the elections. But his IT cell immediately called him avashyambhavi (inevitable), that without him the Congress party and the world cannot run. What is avasambhavi chief minister”.

“There is total turmoil in that party, with a lot of infighting within the organization” the chief minister said. (IPA Service)

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By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: Madhya Pradesh has been assured massive investment both by foreign and domestic investors in the course of two day Global Investment summit (GIS) held at Indore. Leading business houses of the country and also from abroad. The sectors that were assured investment include chemicals and petroleum (Rs. 77,000 crore), service sector (Rs. 71,000 crore), Auto, engineering and e-vehicles (Rs. 42,000 crore) Pharma and healthcare (Rs. 18,000 crore), Logistics and warehousing (Rs. 18,000 crore) and others (Rs. 1.25 lakh crore).

The state Government has prepared elaborate plan to expand state’s $ 150 billion economy to $ 550 billion economy by 2026 in a bid to align growth with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s target of $ 5 trillion economy for India. Madhya Pradesh will be strongly pushing for economic diversification while creating jobs, adding value to agriculture and food processing, semi conductors and ESDM and boosting bio-economy, besides focusing on skill development and logistical upgrade.

The work has already started with identification of key sectors for economic transformation of Madhya Pradesh based on recommendations of various expert reports, participants of sessions on “Madhya Pradesh’s contribution to the $ 5 trillion economy’ were informed on the sidelines of GIS 2023, Madhya Pradesh State policy and Planning Commission vice-chairman Sachin Chaturvedi outlined four major areas of execution for transformation and said agriculture and allied products have a huge share in the state’s GDP. He said the need as to ensure value addition to the sector by developing an ecosystem, enhance skills and connectivity.

He said 455 trains pass through Madhya Pradesh giving a huge fillip to transportation. Chaturvedi spoke about the need for technology integration and said under an RBI plan, efforts are being made for financial inclusion at the district level.

He stressed on the need for statistical upgrade of the state and lauded the formation of Madhya Pradesh State Statistical Commission.

The focus should also be placed on developing a bio economy. “It is seen that Rs. 5 will show 550% increase to Rs. 5500 when invested in bio economy”. Chaturvedi said State Planning Commission member secretary Swantata Kumar Singh gave details of the roadmap prepared and focus areas.

There are many factors which held up industrialisation of the state. Among them high cost of logistics, being a landlocked state there is need for providing freight subsidy. The high cost of logistics involved in transportation of goods from manufacturing unit to destination makes the product out priced in the global market said industrialists on sidelines of Global Investors Summit.

Flexituff Group promoter Saurabh Kalani said “We are poised correctly for a good growth given a chance. There is a lot of potential provided we got better connectivity and improved logistics. Being a landlocked state, the logistic costs becomes much higher than other states and this makes us out priced in the market”.

Industry players said transport subsidies to exporters will level playing field for everyone.

An international buyer from Malaysia, Taizoon Hyder Tyebkhan said, “I am into hardware business. I came to attend the summit to meet suppliers of some hardware parts but unfortunately could not get any deals locked because of the price factor. Prices of products are very high in MP and do not suit my requirement”. Tyebkhan said in comparison to other countries the cost quoted by Indian businessmen is about 5-10 per cent higher.

Industry players stressed on bridging the infrastructure and logistics gap to give a fillip to domestic manufacturing and exports.

Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) additional secretary Santosh Sarangi said “MP needs to address the  infrastructure and logistics gap. There are some key export clusters where the transportation facilities, connectivity issues still exist and those need to addressed”.

Addressing difficulties pointed out by participants of investors summit Chief Minister Shiv Raj Singh Chouhan assured that they will not have to take any permission to start operations in Madhya Pradesh and they will not be inspected for compliance of deemed permission for three years.

MP, a predominantly agricultural state, is keen to position itself as an industrial destination, leveraging its advantages of location, low land prices and abundance of water, power and human resources. “My government is committed to ensuring ease of starting business and ease of doing business. For this, we have made a big decision. Industrialists will not have to take any permission for starting an industry in areas earmarked and notified by us, whether it is industrial areas or MSME” Chouhan said. “Investors have complained about running around for clearance for several days. No permission  needed. Start your work. You have to trust the investors. They will not run away with the land. Follow the rules. We have complete faith in you” Chouhan assured. “No officer will carry out inspection of industries for compliance of deemed permissions for three years. You must understand my intentions. We have full faith in you” he added. (IPA Service)

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By L.S. Herdenia

The Indian Journalists Union has expressed serious concern over persistent attacks on media and the shrinking space for independent media in the country.

In a resolution passed at the two-day plenary session at Chennai last week, the union appealed to the democracy loving people  in the country to raise their voice against the unabated attack on media and media persons by both state actors and unlawful and vested interests enjoying the state patronage. . The resolution further added that safeguarding the media is critical to sustain the democracy and it is the sacred duty of every citizen to protect and stand by independent media.

Over 400 journalists from various parts of the country including from far away Ladakh attended the two day conference.

Earlier in his presidential speech Mr. K. Sreenivas Reddy said “For all of us…for working journalists in the country this is a difficult phase. We are passing through testing times. We are facing various challenges professionally and our job security is in peril. Journalists in India are also facing security issues for their professional work. As far as the wage revisions and welfare measures are concerned the less we speak the better. The last wage board for working journalists and other news paper employees for wage revision was in 2007 and the recommendations of that wage board headed by Justice Majithia were yet to be implemented by many establishments and the state governments have not been acting responsibly.’

Reddy   said “For doing their professional duty and defending media freedom and while exercising their right to freedom of expression a number of journalists were put behind bars in various states. In this sacred duty some others paid with their lives. In this atmosphere of growing intolerance journalists are increasingly facing threats of intimidation and physical harm. Attacks against journalists have become a common thing. This situation poses a very serious danger to democratic society’.

“Though journalists have been hailed as covid warriors by none other than the Prime Minster and several Chief Ministers and governors, in reality the fraternity received scant support in terms of covid relief. On the front of wages implementation of revised wages recommended by wage board and duly notified by the governments remains a shameful exercise with both managements and the governments arrogantly neglecting their responsibility. In electronic media payment of wages position at lower and mid level is very pathetic. It is high time that the Union Government appointed a Media Commission to go into the whole scenario of media in the country.’ , the IJU president said.

The conference was inaugurated by L. S. Herdenia, one of the founders of the IFWJ and also of the IJU. At the outset he said “freedom is in peril. This does not apply to media alone but to the entire country. According to him, the worst calamity affecting print media relates to the repeal of the Working Journalists Act, along with the Working Journalists (Fixation of Rates of Wages) Act. These laws were repealed without incorporating corresponding special provisions governing the working conditions, wages and special privileges of working journalists in the Labour Codes Bill, greatly impacting them and their independence, essential for sustaining a vibrant democratic polity in the country. After passage of the Labour Code, no working journalist or editor can approach a court to challenge his or her arbitrary and illegal termination under the Industrial Disputes Act. As the four Labour Codes greatly endanger the freedom of expression and independent journalism, the working journalists and their organisations should unitedly defend their rights and freedom with all their might.

“Democracy is being destabilised. State governments are being overthrown by purchasing legislators. If governments are to be changed by bribery, what is the need for elections? Constitutional posts are being kept vacant. There is no deputy speaker in Lok Sabha. There is no deputy speaker in Madhya Pradesh Vidhan Sabha. Governors are being used to harass elected state governments, Herdenia added.

In his report, secretary general of IJU Balwinder Singh Jammu noted “Journalists who became jobless due to retrenchment got neither any compensation or any immediate job and they had to undergo a difficult time. A few journalists reported to commit suicide due to depression.

“Credibility of major newspaper came under fire with their anti journalist policies during the pandemic. On the other side, medium and small newspapers could not get sufficient government-private advertisement support due to changes in policy. These media houses are still facing the problems. .

“In future, we need to come up as much stronger Union to counter the attacks on the journalists that we have been watching continuously for longer time.

“I would like to say that it’s a positive and encouraging sign that the unions that have left us sometimes back have again come back. We have two more new state unions formed in Maharashtra and Haryana which are now in the fold of IJU. Another good news was that journalists in Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan have also met with the leaders of IJU and adhoc committees have been formed  and they have started the process of registration of unions. Their delegations are attending the plenary.”

The Plenary also passed a resolution demanding national law for protection of journalists and media establishments. The resolution said “This Plenary regrets that the Union Government has not taken any action so far on IJU’s repeated appeals for the enactment of a national law to ensure safety and protection of working journalists and media establishments with payment of adequate compensation to their families in case any tragedy befalls on them. Even the Maharashtra Government which accepted the demand and came out with a special law. The Maharashtra Media Persons and Media Institutions (Prevention of Violence and damage or loss to property) act 2017 which was notified in 2019 for the protection of journalists and media establishments is not covering it adequately. We thank them for bringing the first act to protect journalists in our country and request the present government to improve it.’

The Plenary/ Delegate session of IJU, called upon the Central Government and all other State governments not to wait for the occurrence of the next big tragedy but to take urgent steps to enact a law to ensure the safety and protection of working journalists and media establishment with the payment of adequate compensation to the families of working journalists in case of any abuse on their duty and fundamental rights. (IPA Service)

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By L S Herdenia

BHOPAL: Both the major political parties of Madhya Pradesh BJP and the Congress have taken two very crucial steps in view of the coming elections of   state Vidhan Sabha. Among the two the state BJP has held a marathon session of important leaders of the party. The meeting was held in the forests of Ratapani in Raisen district, 55 kms from Bhopal. The meeting lasted more than nine hours.

At the same time the Congress took a unique decision of launching four month long Gandhi Choupal. The Gandhi Chaupal has been launched from October 2, Gandhi Jayanti day.

The BJP’s highly confidential core group meeting was attended by BJP National general secretary BL Santosh, chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Union ministers Narendra Singh Tomar, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Prahlad Patel, Virendra Khatik and Faggan Singh Kulaste.

Only eight ministers of the Shivraj government, including Narottam Mishra and Bhupendra Singh attended along with state BJP president VD Sharma, BJP national general secretary Kailadh Vijayvargiya, former minister Jaibhan Singh Pavaiyya, BJP national general secretary in-charge of state affairs Murlidhar Rao, BJP national co-ordination general secretary Shiv Prakash and party organising secretary Ajay Jamval.

The meeting was so confidential that even security personnel of ministers were not permitted anywhere near the meeting spot. The venue was the Abhyaran Guest House, 8 km inside Ratapani Sanctuary which is beyond the reach of mobile networks and the media. The phones of all the core committee members were unreachable. All the core committee members were packed in a jungle safari bus and taken to the venue. Only select state BJP office bearers, who are part of the core committee, were allowed.

After the meeting concluded, leaders were evasive and no one was immediately willing to comment. By evening, questions were being asked on why some senior ministers like Gopal Bhargava and Vijay Shah were left out of the meeting. Sources said that the party has constituted a ‘political affairs subcommittee’ and only ministers who are part of this group were called to the meeting. Among them were Inder Singh Parmar and even Mohan Yadav and Vishwas Sarang, who are junior to Bhargava.

Later in the evening VD Sharma said “Whether 2023 or 2024, BJP takes every election  seriously. We review our work and hold meetings routinely. We are observing a Seva Pakhwada (service week) to celebrate the birthday of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. That was reviewed. Future political functions were also on the agenda. Our party organisation general secretary BL Santosh gave his guidelines, From Shiv Prakash to Ajay Jamwal, all main party workers reviewed their work at the meeting. Organisational work and its expansion, we kept working on that too.”

Asked about the inclusion of select ministers in the meeting, Sharma said, “Everyone is given some work or the other and that is why they were also part of the expansion. Also strengthening of booths”.

State BJP spokesman Durgesh Keswani told reporters, IN BJP we have our ways of sitting together and holding discussions. We have just won the polls in 46 civic bodies. Discussions are held on how to work for the people of the state and the country”. Asked why only selected leaders were called for the meeting and everyone else kept 8 kms away, Keswani said ‘The criteria of such meetings are fixed by the central leadership. We, at the state unit, cannot intervene in the arrangements.”

As for Congress, it has launched its massive Choupal programme on Gandhi Jayanti day. The programme will conclude on January 30, the day of Gandhiji’s martyrdom. A year before the assembly elections, state Congress launched this campaign to reach out to the 23,000 village panchayats with Gnadhian bhajans and the mantra of Gram Swaraj. Through this campaign Congress targets to add two lakh new members to the party.

Party MLAs and office bearers will launch the Choupals after paying floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi and former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri.

“From October 2, the state Congress campaign cell will launch hosting the Gandhi Choupal in 23,000 panchayats” said state PCC media cell vice-president Bhupendra Gupta. “In the Gandhi Choupals, bhajans and songs of unity will be sung like ‘Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram’ and ‘Ishwar Allah Tero Namm’. Mahatma Gandhi’s principles will be discussed” he explained.

Senior and elderly members of the villages will be felicitated. “The party will reach out to all 23,000 panchayats in the next four months, campaign will conclude on January 30 – the 75th death anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. It is also our pledge to have two lakh members join the Congress party during the campaign. And these workers will get the opportunity to join the Bharat Jodo Yatra” Bhupendra Gupta said.

State Congress leaders claimed that financial disparities are increasing in the country with one or two persons becoming the richest in the world while the rest of the population becoming poorer every day. “To bridge the gap, it is required to promote Gram Swaraj and the Mahatma’s model of self-reliance” Bhupendra Gupta said.

“Through this Choupal Congress will talk to the people in the villages about how the rich-poor disparity and hatred between communities is increasing. Rural India is being exploited while Inflation is spiralling and the youths face increasing unemployment. The Congress will work through this campaign to bring people of all communities together” he said. (IPA Service)

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By L S Herdenia

What would have happened if Germany and Japan would have succeeded in defeating allied powers in the Second World War? In this context a remark by U Nu, the then Prime Minister of Burma was very significant.

Our Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru was on a visit to Burma. During informal talk with Nehru U Nu made a remark. His remark was “you know Panditji – it was fortunate for Mr. Subash Bose that the Japanese did not come to India. If they had, Mr. Bose would have found it difficult to free himself and the country from them.

After SubashChaqndra Bose left India with the idea to seek help from Germany and Japan, there was a great debate in India over what Germany and Japan would do if they became victorious in the second world war. When Subash Bose sought clarification from the rulers of Germany and Japan, their reply came as a shock to Bose. Reply from both the countries of course was that we will rule over India and also we will rule over all such countries which we will annex in the war. After all for what we are waging this war.?

After Subash Bose decided to leave India with the objective to seek the help of Hitler and Hirohito in his effort to liberate India from the clutches of Britain, forces in India which were waging war with Britain were doubtful about Bose’s objective. At that time Subash Bose was shown in cartoons as the pet  of the Japanese. Bose’s strategy of uniting with the enemy of our enemy was not just criticised but his patriotism itself was questioned and assailed. He was regarded and depicted as a Japanese agent.

Congressmen were not one in their response to the war. At one extreme was Subash Bose. At the same time there was C. Rajagopalachary, who wanted to give wholehearted support to Britain in the fight against gangsterism (Hitler and Japan).

Nehru had a deep aversion towards Fascism and regarded that the imperialist oppression to which India was subjected was a kind of Fascism. He therefore suggested that India’s struggle for freedom from British imperialism must be linked to the world-wide struggle against Fascism. Subash Bose on the other hand was pursuing the logic of “enemy’s enemy is friend”. Subash was the main spokesman of this theory. Nehru did not agree with this logic. And because of this Nehru and others remained in the camp of the world revolutionary movement against the Fascist forces. Nehru considered Fascism and imperialism as twin brothers. He could not even imagine opposing British imperialists with the assistance of Fascists. Nor could he think of accommodating British imperialism on the pretext of preventing the advance of the Fascist power.

This Indian opinion under the leadership of Jawaharlal Nehru was totally opposed to Subash. Nehru was fully aware of the dangers of Nazism and Fascism. Much before the outbreak of the second world war Nehru was aware that Hitler wanted to capture the entire Europe. Not only that he evolved a dirty philosophy of Nazism. Nazism was used to destroy the race of Jews. Nehru and his likeminded Congressmen were conscious that it was inhuman to associate with Hitler. Despite the nasty ideology promoted by Hitler Subash Bose associated with him. Nehru was fully aware that if Hitler wins the Second World War, he will not give freedom to India. Nehru was not prepared to take risk of seeking Hitler’s help in attaining freedom. Thus despite Subash Bose being a great patriot he took a wrong path and he can’t be treated as a hero.

But why Narendra Modi has taken the decision to hail Subash Bose as a hero?. Perhaps because there is a common element between Hitler’s ideology and the ideas of the RSS, which is cherished by Narendra Modi. There was a time when RSS chief Guru Golwalkar lauded Hitler’s ideology.  This also explains why Narendra Modi admires Subash and hates Nehru.   (IPA Service)

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From L.S. Herdenia

BHOPAL: Psychiatrists can play a major and decisive role in checking suicides by farmers. This claim was made at the conference of Psychiatrists held in Bhopal. It was suggested that governments should seek the help of Psychiatrists and use a holistic multipronged approach to prevent farmers from taking such an extreme step.

The four-day conference of Indian Psychiatric society discussed various issues relating to mental problems of the people, the lack of doctors, social stigma attached to mental disease, absence of research and effect of internet over use and mobile in triggering mental problems. Shortcomings in the Mental Care Bill pending in the Rajya Sabha was yet another item which was discussed at the conference.

The World Psychiatric Association’s first-ever Indian-origin president Prof Dinesh Bhugra said that instead of playing down farmer suicides, the Indian government should seek the help of psychiatrists and use a holistic multi-pronged approach to prevent farmers from taking such an extreme step.

Bhugra spoke to media on the sidelines of the conference of the Indian Psychiatric Society. Over 2,500 delegates, including 1,800 psychiatrists participated in the conference, which was held for the first time in Bhopal, according to Dr Vaibhav Dubey, organising secretary of the conference.

“Mental health cannot be looked in isolation. If you want a mentally healthy society, a society where farmers don’t commit suicides, you have to deal with the issue in a holistic manner. You have to deal with education, economy, employment, law and a whole range of other issues collectively. The approach has to be multi-pronged and accordingly the government has to tweak its policy. Then only farmer suicides or other issues related to mental health could be approached in the right way,” said Bhugra, who is professor of Mental and Cultural Diversity at Maudsley International Health Service and Population Research Department David Goldberg Centre United Kingdom.

Bhugra, who is also a Fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, stressed that farmers in India were committing suicides as there was no social support system when they faced a crisis.

He said the government should give basic training in mental health to all Allopathic, Homeopathic, Ayurvedic and Unani doctors, besides health staff at the ground level so that they could identify people suffering from mental disorders and counsel them to seek treatment from the nearest psychiatrist.

Bhugra said he was optimistic about India. “See India is a culture in transition. Ultimately it will find its balance. The question is whether it actively seeks to gain that balance by being aware of the pitfalls or the balance will come in future on its own. India, unlike West, has advantage on two fronts. Indians have a strong sense of spirituality and family. Both these factors act as a support system, a buffer for people here when they are having a rough time,” he added.

Most of the participants regretted that in our country not only mental patients are neglected but even the doctors of this field are also neglected. There is virtual no presence of doctors to treat mental disease in government hospitals. The country does not have enough doctors to take care of mental patients. There total number of doctors in this field is less than six thousand.

The conference expressed concern over some of the major shortcomings in the Mental Health Care Bill pending in the Rajya Sabha.

Dr. Mrugesh Vaishanav felt we should create a public movement with regard to the drawbacks in the MHCB. We can approach all the MPs and reach the public through media. All places should organize rallies. He said that he proposed a rally in Hyderabad. An Action Committee for the sole purpose should be created immediately and a movement should be generated.

Dr CL Narayan said the position of IPS is to reject the entire bill. But as it appears difficult at this stage, he suggested that the Society should think of modifications and accordingly it should formulate the priorities. In his opinion excluding the General Hospital psychiatry units from the purview should be a major issue. He also wondered that the representation of psychiatrists in both state and central mental health authorities is negligible. Dr. Suwalka said that before meeting the ministers and other authorities, we should be very clear in our understanding and demands. Dr. Jagiwala said that attempts could be made from Gujarat for getting an appointment with Mr. Narendra Modi. Dr. Rajeev Jain felt the issue of mental care bill is very important. We cannot fight like trade unions. He felt that emphaszing the exclusion of General Hospital Psychiatry Units alone is not good and should think of other lacunae in the bill. He recalled the efforts of central zone having organized a workshop on Mental Health Care Bill. Dr. Brahma suggested that the position statement of IPS should be uploaded in the website. Dr Roy Abraham felt that the office bearers should meet the Health Secretary. He recalled the cooperation extended by the earlier health secretary Dr. Desiraju. He suggested that NGOs and families of patients should be engaged, sensitize all MPs, meet PM/HM/CMs if possible and IMA under new President, a neurosurgeon should be roped in.

Dr. Asokan felt that we were fighting a losing battle and we should explore possibilities of taking legal action by way of PIL. It is better to approach judiciary than politician or bureaucrats. Dr. Ponnudurai said PIL can be thought only if the bill is enacted. Dr. Indira Sharma suggested that instead of criticizing, we should submit our recommended changes to the Government and PIL should be an option. Dr Rajeev Jain said let EC decide with regard to line of action to be taken. Dr. Vinod Kulkarni felt PIL can be filed even if the bill is not enacted. Dr. Nambi endorsed the view of Dr. Asokan, Dr. CL Narayan said as the bill is still pending with Rajya Sabha, PIL may not be admitted. Dr. Brahma felt that individual letters be written to all MPs and voice of every practitioner should be heard. Dr. Sarvesh Chandra felt minister will not listen to us. Dr. Prasad Rao said Mental Health Care Bill is one among eighteen bills pending in Rajya Sabha. While agreeing with Dr. Nambi and Dr. Asokan that legal option should be a serious thought, he was planning to use his proximity with central minister, Shri Bandaru Dattatreya and MPs like Dr. Naraasayya to bring to their notice.

The conference also discussed the role of overuse of internet, tabs, mobile phones triggering neurobiological changes in the brain like drugs and in fast settling as an addiction. According to Indian Psychiatric Society president, G.L. Prasad Rao, the increase in internet penetration, use of smart phones at a younger age and growth of information technology in general were contributing to the addiction. The age group 11 to 25 is particularly vulnerable. But, we have found that it was also affecting other age groups too, like middle-aged people.

The World Psychiatric Association’s first Indian-origin president Dinesh Bhugra, however, said that more studies were required to identify how internet and cell phones were affecting people and their relationships.

I think internet is an evolving medium and it will ultimately arrive at some balance on its own, with its users coming up with some sort of code or guidelines for its proper usage, he said. There was need to assess as to at which age parents needed to expose their children to internet and mobiles.

Murshidabad Medical College psychiatry head Ranjan Bhattacharyya, who had been engaged in a research on the issue, claimed that the addiction to modern gadgets and technologies across generation had increased about four times. He quoted a study in this regard.

Bhattacharyya said internet as a new mode of communication had ended up weakening family bonds as emoticons have replaced emotions, “People now prefer to socialise on internet more and more rather than face-to-face” he said. The habit takes over gradually, “It starts as an impulsive activity and gradually develops into a compulsive activity due to neuro-adaptation. This is fuelling internet and mobile phone addiction. (IPA Service)

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From L.S. Herdenia

BHOPAL: Negligence and indifference by the concerned officials and failure to enforce relevant rules and procedure caused another tragedy in Madhya Pradesh. A few days ago about 80 persons lost their lives following a massive blast caused due to careless storage of explosive material. Explosion took place in Petlavad, which was part of Jhabua-Ratlam parliamentary constituency, was lost by the BJP. Petlavad explosion was one of the causes, which led to BJP’s defeat in the by-election.

The same factors which caused Petlavad tragedy are responsible for another tragedy in which more than fifty persons nearly lost their eyesight, after they underwent surgery at a cataract operation camp organised by the government from November 16 to 24 in Barwani. The affected persons were later referred to the MY hospital and Aurobindo hospital in Indore.

The matter came to light after the chief medical and health officer of Barwani submitted a report on the eye camp to the joint director of health, Indore. “An eye check-up camp for cataract was held in Barwani, in which around 90 people participated. Soon, the people who were operated upon started developing infection. When their condition deteriorated and were referred to another ophthalmologist, it was revealed that they were on the brink of losing their eyesight,” said Dr Sharad Pandit, joint director of health.

As days went by, the number of patients increased and it was revealed that the eye camp was to blame for it. However, by the time some of these patients approached doctors at other centres, the damage had already been done.

“Three patients were referred to us on November 25, and all of them had the same kind of infection. While one could be partially treated and was discharged, the condition of the other two is still not stable,” said Dr Preeti Rawat, ophthalmologist at the My Hospital. Ordering an inquiry into the entire incident, Dr Pandit said, “It is very unfortunate that this happened at a government camp. I have ordered an inquiry into the matter, and announced free medical treatment for all the patients.” A report will be filed in this matter by a special field team sent from Indore to Barwani.

The incident sent shockwaves not only in Madhya Pradesh but in entire country. The government promptly shifted patient to well equipped hospitals having expert surgeons. But it did not help. The health department on December 4, suspended eye surgeon Dr RS Palod and five others for negligence after botched cataract surgeries during an eye camp at the Barwani district hospital led to more than 25 people losing their eyesight.

A team — set up shortly after the incident on the orders of the principal secretary of health services Bhopal visited the Barwani district hospital and found lacunae at various levels in the facility.

“Prima facie, finding lacunae at various levels in protocol of the operation, the department has decided to suspend eye surgeon Dr RS Palod, operation assistant Pradeep Choukse, nursing staff Leela Verma, Vinita Choukse, Maya Chouhan and Shabana Mansuri”.

The field team headed by NHM Bhopal director Dr BN Chauhan also included Dr Pandit, Prof Vineeta Rawat from MGM Indore, MYH Indore ophthalmologist Dr Pradeep Goyal, Dileep Mishra (quality control) and drug inspectors Dharmendra Nirgudiya and Pramod Thakur. The findings of the team have been sent to the government, said Dr Pandit. The botched surgeries came to light after the chief medical and health officer of Barwani submitted a report on the eye camp to the joint director of health services, Indore, on December 3.

Soon, the people who were operated upon started developing infections. When their condition deteriorated and they were referred to another ophthalmologist, it was revealed that they were on the brink of losing their eyesight,” said Dr Pandit. He added that 86 people were operated on for cataract between November 17 and 24, and till Friday, 43 patients had developed infections. The remaining patients too have been called back for a thorough examination, he added. Dr Chouhan said that slackness and negligence were found rampant in the medical staff at the hospital, adding that instruments, lenses, saline solution and other medicines too have been sent for analysis.

Health minister Narottam Mishra has assured free and full treatment of all patients and proper action against the negligent staff. However, reacting sharply to the incident, Congress district president Sukhlal Parmar has demanded Mishra’s resignation in the matter. The suspension of six officials in connection with botched cataract surgeries in Barwani where at least 45 people lost their sight has triggered a blame game between doctors and health department officials.

Blaming health department officials for the botched eye surgery camp, doctors in Indore said that apart from suspending the surgeon who performed the operations, actions should be taken against officials who were responsible for purchasing drugs used in the surgeries. “It is not clear what led to the infection…but drugs could be the source,” said Dr Mohit Naredi, president of Indore junior doctors association. Madhav Hasnani, general secretary of Madhya Pradesh Medical Officers Association, said protocol should have been followed while conducting the eye camp.

After the botched eye camp in Chhattisgarh’s Bilaspur, where more than 16 people lost their eye sight the Madhya Pradesh health department had asked doctors to avoid holding eye camps, he said.

“If eye camps were to be held then proper precautions should have been taken, which sadly were not done.” He said if enough doctors were not available to “meet targets” for cataract surgeries, the camp should have been avoided.

Rajni Dabar, chief medical and health officer of Barwani, said had follow-up procedures been carried on time then the botch up could have been avoided. Show cause notices have been issued to 10 health staff who was responsible for maintaining the operation theatre where the surgeries were conducted. The sordid development revealed the mess of the health system in the State. (IPA Service)

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BHOPAL: Both the Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress are in serious trouble. The reason is mounting discontent over the distribution of tickets for the three-tier urban bodies which will go to polls during the current month and also during December this year. How much serious situation is in both the parties can be appreciated by the headlines in a local English newspaper. The headlines are “After resignation of top leaders, Congress faces ticket-for-cash charges”. The other headline is “Rebels galore in BJP too.”

The discontent in the Congress is almost explosive. Protesting against the partisan allocation of tickets, three senior leaders of the Congress resigned from the posts held by them. The three leaders are Manak Agrawal, who has been acting as the chief spokesman of the state Congress for almost more than a decade, Dr. Govind Singh, former Minister and presently a senior party legislator and Premchand Guddu, former member of Lok Sabha. All three held the posts of Vice President: It is speculated in the media that all these leaders owe loyalty to Digvijay Singh, AICC general secretary and former Chief Minister. All the three leaders alleged that they have been sidelined by the present PCC Chief Arun Yadav.

Digvijay Singh who was in Bhopal on November 16 tried to play down the turmoil over ticket distribution and resignations of PCC office-bearers, Digvijay Singh said “The distribution of tickets must have been done in a proper manner.”

Talking to the media persons at the airport here, Singh said tickets for civic elections were distributed by AICC general secretary in-charge Mohan Prakash, secretaries in-charge Rakesh Kalia and Sanjay Nirupam, PCC president Arun Yadav and convenor Sajjan Singh Verma.

On the question of protests of senior leaders, Singh said that it is under the jurisdiction of Mohan Prakash and he would naturally deal with it. Digvijay Singh said resignation issue would be resolved and PCC president would deal with the issue in right earnest.

Meanwhile Shobha Ojha, chairperson of the women’s wing of the AICC described Manak Agrawal as a blackmailer. Shriniwas Tiwari, former speaker is also not happy over the manner in which tickets have been distributed. Reports about the discontent among the party men at various places are also pouring in Bhopal. The most significant aspect of the controversy is that most of the senior leaders who head various factions are maintaining distance from the ticket distribution process. These leaders include Kamal Nath and Jyotiraditya Scindia and to some extent Digvijay Singh himself.

The present leadership of the state Congress has refused to make any change in the list of candidates already announced despite the pressure mounted on it. Clearly message is that the Pradesh Congress Committee is not going to bow to the ‘dirty’ tactics of the rebels.  The party has also warned that if any Congressman contests against the official candidate, they will face disciplinary action. Congress chief spokesperson K.K. Mishra asserted that the ticket distribution has been transparent and final decisions about the party candidates were made on the basis of reports prepared by 32 central and 1200 state observers.

The situation is a bit less serious in the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, But it can’t be said that all is well in the BJP. Reports of resignations over the distribution of tickets at many places, refusal to withdraw after denial of ticket are reaching Bhopal.

Perhaps, the most serious situation has arisen in Hoshangabad district where Girja Shanker Sharma, former BJP legislator and real brother of the speaker Dr. Sitasharan Sharma has raised the banner of revolt. Here Girja Shanker is supporting an independent against the BJP’s official nominee. Looking to the serious consequences of Girja Shanker’s revolt, the BJP leaders asked Speaker to intervene and persuade his brother to give up his opposition. With this objective in view, Speaker Sharma was summoned to the BJP office and told to intervene. Many eye brows have been raised over the speaker’s decision to visit the BJP office over a party matter.

According to tradition and norms, Speaker should keep away from day to day politics. Dr. Sharma violated this code of conduct by appearing before the party leadership in connection with electoral politics.

Meanwhile the BJP has to expel three senior leaders over their acts of indiscipline.

Those expelled for anti-party activities are former mayor of Dewas, Sharad Pachunkar, former MLA from Guna, Rajendra Saluja and Daulatram Gupta, former vice-president of municipal committee of Sheopur.

Almost on the eve of the announcement of urban elections, BJP central leadership changed the party in-charge of Madhya Pradesh. So far Anant Kumar was the central in-charge of Madhya Pradesh. He has been replaced by Vinay Sahastrabuddhe. The outcome of the civic election will be the first test of his leadership. (IPA Service)

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BHOPAL: More than three thousand persons will reach Bhopal on December 4, 2014. They will be part of a “Nation-wide Yatra”, which has commenced from November 2. These yatras have started from states in the north-east, south, east, west and north parts of the country. After passing through various states, they will reach Bhopal on December 4 to coincide with the 30th anniversary of gas leakage from the Union Carbide factory.

These ‘Yatras’ have been launched by the ‘All India Forum for Right to Education’.

The yatras will highlight the commercialisation and communalisation of education and plead for establishment of a fully state-funded and entirely free Common Education System from “KG to PG” in order to achieve the Constitutional goal of building a democratic, secular, socialist, just, egalitarian and humane society.

The All India Shiksha Sangharsh Yatra is being taken out to oppose the prevailing discriminatory, multi-layered school system and wants its replacement with a Common School System, based on Neighbourhood School concept and governed in democratic, decentralised and participative mode.

It is against English as medium of education in all educational institutions and wants that the mother tongue, in a multi-lingual context, should be the medium of education in all private and government schools and colleges. The mother tongue as medium of education is globally acknowledged as the most potent medium for acquiring knowledge and learning other languages, including English. Such a common language policy in education and other sectors of national life (e.g. legislative, executive, judiciary, trade and business, Information Technology and knowledge production), along with a Common Education System from ‘KG to PG’, is one of the crucial pre-conditions for reversing the prevailing developmental policies that reinforce the dominance of the upper classes and upper castes and exclude the majority of dalits, tribals, OBCs, religious and linguistic minorities and the disabled, especially women in each of these sections of society, from equitable economic opportunities and social development.

The forum also demands abolition of all forms of child labour and provision of residential schools for all children for holistic childhood care and security, education and development. It shall campaign for unconditional free and equal Fundamental Right to Education up to the age of 18 years (i.e. until Class XII) and equal opportunities in higher education in all areas of knowledge in order to meet the aspirations of the youth belonging to various social strata and development needs of a democratic, egalitarian, just and humane society.

It is also opposed to the WTO agenda in higher education and establishment of Foreign Universities and committed for India’s sovereignty in policy making in education and knowledge creation at all stages of education.

It is opposed to commercialisation of education, including all forms of PPP and FDI and is committed to equality, social justice and affirmative action for the disadvantaged groups viz., SCs, STs, OBCs, the disabled and religious and linguistic minorities, with special focus on women in each of these sections, and all other discriminated groups and communities such as the nomads, denotified tribes and transgenders.

Communalisation of the education, which violates the Constitutional Right to diversity in languages, cultures and religions, is also on the agenda of the campaign. It is committed to appreciation of plurality and democratisation of all religious, linguistic and cultural communities in order to eradicate inequalities based on class, caste, gender, languages, locale and disability, physical or mental. It is against irrational, sectarian, divisive, majoritarian and inhuman propaganda by rightwing fundamentalist groups, especially the Sangh Parivar and its related organisations and campaign with commitment for inculcating scientific, secular and democratic outlook in society as envisioned in the Constitution.

The forum also opposes distortion of the very purpose of education to serve the needs of the global capital for skilled and slavish workforce and instead campaign with commitment for an education system that aims at the enlightenment of the individual for humane development of the society.

The member-organisations of the forum in different states/UTs have taken initiative to constitute State-level Convening Committees with like-minded organisations/groups/individuals to organise yatra in their respective states/UTs with the purpose of broadening and deepening the social base of education movement. They shall also strive to form, wherever required and feasible, District-level Convening Committees and Block-level Convening Committees with the same purpose.

The yatras will submit memorandum to each District Collector/magistrate in all districts as a part of the Yatra viz., (a) District-level Memorandum with local demands prepared by the respective DLCC; (b) State-level Memorandum with state-level demands addressed to the CM prepared by the respective SLCC; and (c) All India Memorandum with all-India demands prepared by AISC. All the demands raised at the state and district level shall be in conformity with forum’s ideological and political stand.

The main objective of the yatra is to apprise the common man about the dangers of the present education system which is totally against the interest of the country. (IPA Service)

The article RIGHT TO EDUCATION YATRA TO REACH BHOPAL ON DECEMBER 4 appeared first on Arabian Post.

BHOPAL: After Assembly and Lok Sabha elections Madhya Pradesh is again in election mode. While Madhya Pradesh electors voted for Assembly at the end of 2013, the first five months of the current year were also marked by election fever, now the stage is set for local elections in November and December. Elections mean total suspension of developmental activities.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is taking local election with extra ordinary seriousness. It has decided to hold a massive congregation of party workers on October 30-31. The party expects that more than 25 thousand workers will attend what is being described as “Sankalp Adiveshan”. The party has drawn a unique plan to host the party workers who will come to attend the event. The party has indentified 11 thousand families in Bhopal where these workers will be staying. Every family will accommodate at least two party men. Among others chief minister other ministers; party MPs, MLAs and other important functionaries will also host the outside party workers. According to the party sources expenditure on the programme will be reduced to a consideration extent. Local party legislators and functionaries were asked to identify the families where the party workers from outside will be accommodated. A party spokesman claimed that the process for the identification of host families is already over.

The polls for local elections are conducted by an officer who enjoys constitutional immunity. In all 281 local bodies will go to the polls. The voting may begin in November and May be completed in December. Wards, post of mayors in corporations and posts of chairman of municipal committees have been reserved for women, tribals and schedule caste.

The reservation is done by drawing of lots. This process is not scientific but has to be resorted as it is considered to be the least controversial. According to this process post of mayors of 11 municipal corporations out of total 16 have been declared reserved. Similarly posts of presidents of 98 municipal councils have be declared as reserved.

After the lottery, the post of mayor for Bhopal, Gwalior, Khandwa, Dewas and Katni stayed intact for open competition.

While Jabalpur, Satna, Rewa and Ratlam seats are reserved for women candidates; Burhanpur and Sagar are reserved for OBC candidates; and Indore and Chhindwara are reserved for OBC women. The seat in Morena went to SC candidates, Ujjain to SC women and Singrauli to ST women.

50% of the total 264 Nagar Parishad seats have been reserved for women. Thus, 132 heads of parishads would be represented by women in Madhya Pradesh. Forty-two seats have been reserved for SC candidates and 21 for ST candidates, while 66 posts of heads of parishads have been kept reserved for OBCs.

Draw of lots were held under supervision of commissioner, Urban Administration Department.

Model code of conduct would be enforced in the state once election dates are announced.

With the completion of the process of reservation the factional politics has hot up both in the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress. At present BJP controls majority of the corporations and Municipal committees and Nagar Parishads.

The BJP will again try to capture the majority of the local bodies. Both the parties have their eye on winning mayors’ post in the major towns. At present Bhopal, Indore, Gwalior and Jabalpur, which are the most important towns, are under the control of the BJP. The Congress is hopeful that it might get advantage of anti-incumbency in these towns.

There is one aspect of the law governing local urban bodies which hamper smooth functioning of various corporations and municipal committees. According to this law mayors of corporation and chairmen of Municipal Committees and ward members are elected directly. But in many cases while mayor may belong to one party and majority of ward members may belong to some other party. In such a situation mayors and presidents are not able to deliver goods as per their party’s programme. This anomaly must be removed in order to enable the local bodies to function in a coordinated manner.

The Bharatiya Janata Party has geared up its election machinery with a view that it may retain its commanding position in local bodies. In Madhya Pradesh elections in urban local bodies are fought on political basis the same is not the position in case of panchayats.

Anyhow results of local body may indicate whether Narendra Modi’s magic is still influencing elections. (IPA Service)

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BHOPAL: Madhya Pradesh is the home state of Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi – the founder of ‘Bacchpan Bachao Andolan’.

Satyarthi was born 60 years back at Vidisha, a district headquarter town about 55 kms from Bhopal. He did his schooling and degree in engineering from the government engineering college at Vidisha but instead of going for a cushy job, he chose the turbulent path of a crusader for child rights.

Ironically, his home state is infamous for child trafficking and for children who go missing from their homes, never to return.  Madhya Pradesh is only second to Uttar Pradesh is crimes against children.

A recent report on ‘Exploitation of children in Tourism’, based on extensive surveys carried out in two tourist destinations of the state, present a very sordid picture of the state of children in Madhya Pradesh.

The first is Khajuraho, where the number of foreign tourist visitors is only second to the Taj Mahal. And second, Ujjain – one of the most sacred Hindu pilgrimage centre of the country. Besides ordinary people, a large number of top politicians, officers, lawyers, judges, film actors and other prominent personalities visit Ujjain regularly to pay homage to Lord Mahakaal.  Mahakaal is one of the twelve ‘Jyotirlingas’ of the country and every 12 years, Kumbh (known as Simhastha) fair is held at Ujjain, which draws tens of lakhs of Hindu pilgrims.

Both these centres of tourism are also centres of exploitation of children- both boys and girls. The survey says that the children are exploited in temples, hotels and many other places. A large number of children are made to beg to take advantage of the gullible pilgrims, who want to earn some ‘Punya’. And in many cases, this is done with the approval of their parents. A group of 8 child beggars of Ujjain told the researchers that they come from extremely poor families and earn Rs 100 to Rs 200 per day as alms from the pilgrims. The money is used by the children and their parents for buying intoxicants. The child beggars are put on work when they are as young as 3-4 years old. The most distressing aspect of the issue is that almost all children working in hotels or indulging in begging are addicted to intoxicants of one kind or the other. They mainly used whitener and nail polish removers for the purpose. They work the whole day and in the evening, buy Whitener to get intoxicated.

Though the district administration has banned the sale of Whitener in Ujjain but it is available easily. Besides begging, small kids also work in hotels in Ujjain. Their working hours are not fixed. On occasions, they have to work from morning through the night. During the festive season, they beg during the day and work in hotels in the night as pilgrims keep on coming to and going from the city the whole night. In Ujjain, many small boys and girls have also been caught in the whirlpool of sexual exploitation. Besides local girls, the pimps also bring girls from other parts of the state to Ujjain. Earlier, there used to exist a red light area called ‘Pinjarwadi’ in Ujjain but now prostitution and sexual exploitation is rampant in many other parts of the city. The sex workers of Pinjarwadi have been shifted to other locations in the city. It is said that many houses in the city have become known centres of prostitution. Women and especially minor girls sing and dance before the ‘customers’ to entertain them. This continues till the customers keep on shelling out money. In the end, bidding is held and the highest bidder gets a chance to have intercourse with the girl. Autorickshaw drivers take tourists to such houses and they get a hefty commission in return. Tourists take snaps of minor girls. They are taken to their homes to shoot their nude pictures and their MMS are made. Children selling sexual literature (like Kaam Sutra) are a common sight.

What is worse is that all this is happening with full knowledge and tacit consent of the administration and the police. The administration does nothing to put a stop to such nefarious activities. Childline is functional in Ujjain for the last seven years. The cases which come before it are mainly related to making children beg in the vicinity of temples, molestation of children by family members or by neighbours, child labour, child trafficking, children going missing and children getting addicted to intoxicants. The Childline is not doing anything to extricate the children trapped in sex rackets.

The condition is worse in Khajuraho. The survey revealed that sexual exploitation of children and child labour are very common in and around Khajuraho. Hotels of all types are centres of sexual exploitation of children and they include starred hotels. The boys subjected to sexual exploitation are locally called ‘Lapka’. Besides Indian, a large number of foreign tourists are also involved in this horrific exploitation of children. Many foreign tourists stay with the families of such children and take the children out for sexually exploiting them. The boys take the tourists for sightseeing on bikes. “They give us everything and in return we give them sex”, was the rather shocking admission of a young boy. Some boys do not see this as exploitation at all. They consider it a business. And their family members concur. In many cases, some foreign tourists make repeated trips to Khajuraho and stay with the same families. The tour operators also bring boys from other states for the purpose. In Khajuraho, sexual exploitation of boys is a big business, involving thousands of persons. A large number of young boys also develop sexual relations with foreigner women tourists.

The surveyors were told that not a single case of child sex exploitation is registered against any foreign tourist in Khajuraho though there are couple of cases against the Indian tourists. No complaints have been lodged with police with regard to child exploitation by the tourists. The police do not have much understanding and sensitivity about this issue either.

The organisations that conducted this survey included Bangalore-based ‘Equations’ which works to check child labour, sexual exploitation of children and child trafficking. ‘Vikas Samvad’, which analyses social problems and suggests solutions for them also joined the survey. These two organisations conducted the survey in collaboration with CRY (Child Rights and You). (IPA Service)

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BHOPAL: The three day Global Investors meet concluded last week with the promise of investment to the tune of Rs. 6.89 lakh crores in Madhya Pradesh. Addressing media after the conclusion of the fourth such summit, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan said that the government has received 3,165 investment proposals worth Rs. 4.36 lakh crore from investors who registered on the official website.

Also investments to the tune of Rs. 1.53 lakh crore were announced during the summit, while an additional investment of Rs. 1 lakh crore has been announced by Union chemicals and fertilizer minister Ananth Kumar. This investment to be made in the petrochemicals sector is very significant in the context of the present developmental phase in Madhya Pradesh

Essel Group chairman Subhash Chandra announced an investment proposal of Rs. 50,000 crore in different sectors and expressed interest in developing five existing cities as smart cities.

Jaypee Group chairman JP Gaur talked about his long association with Madhya Pradesh. He pledged an investment of Rs. 35,000 crore in different sectors including building a smart city in Rewa. He also talked about his journey from rags to riches and how he was always full of confidence while bidding for a project even though the project used to be many times the balance sheet of the company.

Besides private sector public sector industries have also promised investment in various areas. The centre plans to invest Rs. 22,000 crore through BORL that owns and operates Bina refinery.  Other investments by public sector enterprises include Rs. 12,000 crore for setting up of a fertilizer unit, Rs. 13,000 crore by SAIL for steel and iron plant and Rs. 28,000 crore for mining by NMDC and NALCO.

Union minister for chemicals and fertilizers Ananth Kumar also announced an investment of Rs. 1 lakh crore for setting up a petrochemical investment region in and around Bina in Madhya Pradesh. Power and Coal minister Piyush Goyal said his ministry will invest Rs. 20,000-Rs. 22,000 crore over the next few years in renewable energy sector in the state and also announced additional investments by NTPC in thermal power plants. The state government will now follow up on the investment proposals and depute an official as investment manager to facilitate the projects and obtain necessary permission.

Madhya Pradesh is the country’s fastest growing state with some of its best infrastructure but private investment has not kept pace. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan has been making all efforts to promote a pro business climate in the state in a bid to facilitate speedy investment.

Following are the major areas in which investments have been promised:-

On the last day of the meet, separate sessions were held to consider possibilities in various key sectors.

These separate sessions discussed potential in Textile, wearing the futures heavy engineering and machine tools, policy initiatives and facilitating. Separate sessions were also organised for representatives from foreign countries. On October 8 a session was organised for Canada, Czech Republic, Mexico and Peru. On October 9 a special session was organised for Australia, on October 10 representatives of Spain, Malaysia and South Africa met in separate sessions.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi specially came to Indore to address the delegate of the summit. In his address Modi said states can play important role in the development of the country. He was all praise for the initiative taken by Shivraj Singh Chauhan. He suggested that every state should make its global pool. He said that providing employment should be one of the main objectives of industrialisation. Jobs can be created in three key sectors. They are construction, agriculture and service. Through our slogan “make in India” we have assured the world that there is vast scope for investment in our country. Modi said foreign investments worth $100 billion are knocking at the doors of India and called for stronger Centre-state relations to capitalise on the opportunity. Almost all the prominent industrialists of the country, several unions and state ministers, ambassadors and high commissioners of 28 countries heard Modi on October 9.

Besides Prime Minister progress made by Madhya Pradesh in IT sector was praised by Dr. R.S. Sharma, Union Government IT Secretary. Pithampur-Dhar-Mow area will be one of the biggest industrial hubs under Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor Project. Industrial area in Ujjain and Sitapur-Morena area will be upgraded to world class industrial area. Vikram Udyognagari in Ujjain will be one of the first smart cities to be developed in the country.

Film maker Prakash Jha announced that henceforth he would shoot his films in Madhya Pradesh. Jha said “People say it is because of my films that Madhya Pradesh gained visibility, but I say I am happy that I got MP and now I do not want to ever leave it.” Jha who has shot five films in MP praised the people and the state government for all the help rendered. He said that in the next few months, he would be shooting four films in Bhopal and other parts of Madhya Pradesh. Jha is planning a film city in the state. He has been given 22 acres by the MP government for that. (IPA)

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BHOPAL: Brisk preparations are on for the mega investors’ summit to be held in Indore in the first week of October. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh is hopeful that the summit will open the doors for massive investments in Madhya Pradesh. Almost all the important and leading industrial houses of the country are likely to be present in the summit. According to a government spokesman, Mukesh Ambani, Essar group chairman Shashi Ruia, Videocon representative Anirudh Dhoot and several others leading industrial tycoons have given their consent to participate in the Indore meet. Besides Ambassadors and representative of foreign countries have also accepted MP government’s invitation.

The Chief Minister visited South Africa and Dubai to invite industrialists to the summit.

The Indore meet has assumed extra importance after the Chief Minister announced that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi had agreed to inaugurate the summit. Earlier, reports were in circulation that the Prime Minister is unlikely to come to Indore. After the Prime Minister’s consent, some more business houses, which were reluctant to participate, have conveyed this willingness to attend the summit. According to a leading industrialist, Modi’s presence will enable them to have firsthand knowledge about the government of India’s strategy to boost industrialisation in the country.

Besides ensuring Prime Minister’s presence, the Madhya Pradesh government has taken some more initiatives to assure the business houses that it means business.

One such initiative relates to the reforms in labour laws. The cabinet meeting held on September 22 gave in principle sanction to major amendments to simplify labour laws. Amendments have been proposed in 20 laws in favour of both labourers and entrepreneurs. Go-ahead of Government of India will be sought wherever required. As a result of these amendments, entrepreneurs will be encouraged to establish industries in the State and labourers’ working conditions will improve.

As per the amendments, now an employer will have to deposit Rs. 25,000 in Labourer Rehabilitation Fund if child labourers are found in his establishment. A criminal case will also be filed. Period of overtime for labourers in establishments is also proposed to be enhanced. Overtime period, in a quarter, will be increased from 75 to 125 hours. Now, consent of labourers for overtime will be mandatory. Micro industries are proposed to be exempted from nine labour laws. Their inspection will be made only after advance permission from the Labour Commissioner. Status quo is proposed to be maintained in provisions for salaries, gratuity, bonus, ESI, provident fund, etc. for workers in these industries.

At present, a labourer becomes entitled to holidays for next calendar year after working for 240 days. As per proposed amendment, a labourer will become entitled for paid holidays after working for 180 days during the same year. In place of 61 registers, one consolidated register will be maintained under 16 labour laws and only two returns are proposed to be filed instead of 13 annually.

It is proposed to exempt Gumashta establishments (those with less than 9 labourers) of unnecessary inspections. Inspections will be made only after advance permission from the Labour Commissioner. Powers of giving permission for filing cases under Factory Act are proposed to be vested in Labour Commissioner instead of inspector. Provision has been made to abolish unnecessary procedures of licence and registration under five labour laws. Licences/registrations not issued within time-limit will be deemed as issued.

Provision of compounding is proposed in labour laws, as a result of which, only fine will have to be paid and the provision for a jail term would be annulled. Madhya Pradesh Industrial Employment Standing Order Act is proposed to be implemented on the number of labourers being 50 instead of 20. Permission for layoff, retrenchment and closure will have to be taken when number of labourers is 300 instead of 100. A provision has been proposed to give 3-month notice and 3 months’ salary separately in establishments with less than 300 labourers to ensure that labourers get better compensation on lay-off. This provision will inspire employers to employ over 100 labourers on regular rolls. ‘Plant and Machinery’ will be separated from construction cost for fixation of Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Cess.

While the proposed labour law reforms have been welcomed by the industrialists, Trade Unions cutting across political lines have criticised them and announced their intention to launch a joint agitation against them.

The lack of communication, particularly air connectivity, has been one of the major bottlenecks in boosting industrialisation. Keeping this factor in mind, the state government has been assured by the Union Civil Aviation Minister that major cities of the state will be connected with Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad and Pune. During his visit to Bhopal Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju, besides assuring more flights between Bhopal, Indore and other cities, also assured to develop Indore and Bhopal as international airports. While labour reforms and better air connectivity will enhance the interest of big business houses to invest in Madhya Pradesh there are certain developments which may hamper the enthusiasm of industrial houses. One such factor relates to various scams which had hit the headlines in the last few months. Several political leaders, officials and also some entrepreneurs, particularly from the field of education, are in jail or facing charges of corrupt practices. The series of scams have created the impression that Madhya Pradesh is a fertile land for corrupt elements, where they can mint money with ease.

Another negative development relates to the cash crunch being faced by the MP Government. According to newspaper reports, “The Madhya Pradesh government has tightened its purse strings to tide over an acute liquidity crisis, described by officials as ‘temporary’. The shortage of cash has forced the state finance department to issue a circular, asking departments not to incur expenditure above Rs. 25 crore without its clearance.”

The cash crunch came days before the Global Investors’ Summit, aimed at showcasing the state as a major investment destination for overseas and domestic industrialists.

A government official said that the finance department’s notification was in response to a ‘temporary liquidity crisis’ and would be withdrawn within a month.

Sources in the state government said that earlier standing instructions mandated that payments above Rs. 50 crore had to be made after clearance from the finance department.

In early September, the state finance department issued the fresh circular reducing this limit to Rs. 25 crore.

Sources pointed out that the bulk release of about Rs. 1,000 crore for payment as compensation to farmers has contributed to the temporary liquidity crisis.

Also, funds from certain departments of the Union government were delayed too. (IPA Service)

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BHOPAL: Supporters of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan heaved a sigh of relief when Nand Kumar Chauhan was appointed President of the Madhya Pradesh Bharatiya Janata Party. The search for the new chief of the state party began after Narendra Singh Tomar was inducted into the Union Ministry. Tomar was president of the State BJP during the last two general elections to the State Vidhan Sabha. He had excellent rapport with Shivraj Singh Chauhan.

Tomar is regarded as a master strategist and planner. It was under his stewardship that the BJP emerged victorious in the Assembly elections held in 2008 and 2013. It took about three months for the party High Command to make a final decision about Tomar’s replacement.

From the beginning, Nand Kumar Chauhan was the Chief Minister’s only choice. But the central leadership was reluctant to appoint Nand Kumar Chauhan as Tomar’s

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