NEWS

BJP’s Maharashtra unit has objected to the inauguration of Pune Metro’s test trials by NCP chief Sharad Pawar in the absence of PM Narendra Modi and the party’s elected representatives from Pune. Modi was toinaugurate a phase of the metro rail on Tuesday, but, owing to the rise in Covid cases, his visit was cancelled.

“While we hold Pawar in high esteem, by inviting him alone, the rail administration has sought to convey. . . that he alone is responsible for the Pune Metro,” Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrakant Patil. He said he’ll ask BJP MLAs to file a breach of privilege motion against the administration for failing to invite elected representatives for the function.

Delhi Police has not made any breakthrough in case of the bomb recovered from Ghazipur flower market in East Delhi ahead of Republic Day celebrations, even after three days of continuous investigation.

Officials of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday (January 17) met with senior special cell officials of the ongoing probes linked with Pakistan`s ISI.

A senior officer with Delhi Police Special cell said that the investigation revealed that explosives recovered were linked to ISI. "The IED recovered in Gazipur is similar to IEDs recently recovered in Punjab that was smuggled into the state from Pakistan. In recent times, more than 40 sightings of drones were spotted in Punjab border with Pakistan," he said.

The Congress seems to be backing Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi in the sweepstakes for the chief ministerial candidate in poll-bound Punjab with the party officially tweeting a video in which actor Sonu Sood states that the "real chief minister is the one who does not have to tell he is the chief ministerial candidate".

The video has footage of the Chief Minister Channi taking part in various events and comes amid an apparent tussle between Channi and Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu for being declared the Chief Ministerial candidate ahead of Punjab assembly polls. Sidhu, who has been talking of changing "the system," is not seen in the campaign video.

There are murmurs of discontent regarding the SP-RLD's ticket distribution within sections of the Muslim community in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar. While the region has about 38% Muslim voters spread across six constituencies in the district, surprisingly the alliance has not fielded a single Muslim so far.

It has declared candidates on five seats - all Hindus. Now all eyes are fixed on the lone city seat, and sources claim that this too might see a Hindu candidate "to avoid polarization". This does not seem to have gone down well with some members of the community, who said "this is happening despite the fact that, in the last two years, RLD leaders have been promoting 'bhaichara ' committees, and speeches during anti-farm law agitation appealed for Jat-Muslim unity".