What to Watch Out For
BSP-SP announce alliance for Lok Sabha 2019, leaving out Congress
In the run up to the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, one-time arch rivals Uttar Pradesh’s Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party on Saturday announced their alliance, in what comes as a major snub to the Congress party. The SP and BSP party chiefs, Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati disclosed their plans to equally share 76 out of the 80 seats in UP, leaving out the Congress who had hoped to ally with the parties. The parties have however chosen not to field candidates in Amethi and Rae Bareli, represented by Congress president Rahul Gandhi and United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi. Two of the seats have been left for smaller allies and the party chiefs have been in talks with Bihar’s Rashtriya Janata Dal. Reacting to the news of the alliance, Congress chief Rahul Gandhi said, “The BSP and SP have every right to have an alliance. I think the Congress party has tremendous amount to offer to the people of Uttar Pradesh so we will do our best as the Congress party and we will fight with full capacity to spread our ideology."
100 Women will trek the ‘forbidden’ Agasthyarkoodam, days after Sabarimala row
Days after the row over the entry of women aged between 10 and 50 years into the Lord Ayyappa shrine in Kerala’s Sabarimala, a batch of 100 women will be trekking up the Agasthyarkoodam mountain peak, in Thiruvananthapuram district breaking the decades old 'ban'. On November 30, 2018, the Kerala High Court had ruled that no gender-based restrictions could be imposed on those wishing to make treks to Agasthyarkoodam. The forest department had yielded to court order and opened online registrations for women on January 5 following which the 100 women registered for the trek.
BEST strike enters into its seventh day as Thackeray announces budget merger
The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking (BEST) strike enters its seventh day in Mumbai. 32000 employees have been on strike since last Tuesday over various demands, including higher salaries and merger of budgets. More than 3200 buses have been off the streets, inconveniencing over 25 lakh commuters. Meanwhile, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray said his party will fulfill its promise to merge the budgets of the BEST and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). Shiv Sena controls the BMC apart from being a partner in the BJP-led Maharashtra government.
SC to hear former Congress Leader Sajjan Kumar’s plea challenging life term
The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear the appeal filed by former Congress leader Sajjan Kumar challenging the Delhi High Court verdict convicting and sentencing him to life term in a 1984 anti-Sikh riots case. The high court had sentenced Kumar on December 17 to spend the remainder of his life in jail for his involvement in the killing of five Sikhs in Delhi Cantonment's Raj Nagar Part-I area of southwest Delhi on November 1-2, 1984 and burning down of a Gurudwara in Raj Nagar Part-II.
What You May Have Missed
Justice A.K. Sikri responsible for Alok Verma ouster turns down government offer
The Supreme Court Justice and Chief Justice of India’s nominee on the high power panel which in a 2:1 majority vote ousted Alok Verma as the CBI chief, turned down a government offer which he was reportedly given in December. According to sources, Sikri had been promised a job in the Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT). The judge however withdrew his consent on Saturday evening “to be away from the controversy", as per sources.
President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday gave his approval to the Constitutional amendment providing for 10 percent reservation in jobs and educational institutions to the economically weaker sections in the general category. The Amendment was passed in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday in a near unanimous vote despite several opposition leaders raising questions regarding the benefits of the bill. Meanwhile, the government of Gujarat became the first state government to implement an additional 10 per cent quota after the central government legislation move for the provision.
Shubman Gill & Vijay Shankar Called up as Replacements for Rahul, Pandya
Shubham Gill and all-rounder Vijay Shankar have been called on as replacements for Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul for the ongoing One-Day International series against Australia and the limited-overs New Zealand series. Pandya and Rahul were suspended after the widespread outrage over their ‘sexist’, ‘mysoginistic’ and ‘racist’ comments on the chat show ‘Koffee With Karan’.
On Reel
The BSP-SP decision to draw an alliance for the Lok Sabha after decades of rivalry is being hailed as a historic move. Watch excerpts of the press conference held in Lucknow where the alliance was announced.
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