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LIVE! UK Parliament car crash treated as terror attack

15:24  UK Parliament car crash treated as terror attack :  The driver of car which crashed outside parliament arrested on suspicion of terrorist offences, reports the Independent.  A number of pedestrians were injured when a car crashed into the security barriers outside the UK’s Parliament building today, Scotland Yard said as armed police quickly arrested the male driver.

The incident happened at 07:37 am (local time), prompting a major police response. Armed officers from Scotland Yard were at the scene instantly and one man has been arrested.

“At 0737 hrs today, a car was in collision with barriers outside the Houses of Parliament. The male driver of the car was detained by officers at the scene, the Met Police said in a statement.

A number of pedestrians have been injured. Officers remain at the scene, it said. The area around Parliament Square has been cordoned off as investigations continue.

A car was seen crashed into the large steel barriers that are erected around the Houses of Parliament complex in Westminster.

Witnesses said they saw the car crash into the barriers deliberately. Heavy armed police presence could be seen in the area as the incident unfolded. 


15:03  Chhattisgarh Governor dead:  Chhattisgarh Governor Balramji Dass Tandon died at a hospital in Raipur today, an official said. He was 90. Tandon was rushed to the state-run Dr B R Ambedkar Memorial Hospital this morning after he complained of uneasiness, the governor’s secretary, Surendra Kumar Jaiswal, said. He later died at the hospital, he said.

Tandon, one of the founder members of the Jansangh which later became the BJP, became the governor of Chhattisgarh in July 2014. During his long political career, he has served on various posts, including as deputy chief minister of Punjab. The six-time MLA was also jailed from 1975 to 1977 during Emergency. — PTI

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14:54  Sidhu is of unstable mind: Subramanian Swamy :  Bharatiya Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy on Tuesday said Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu is not mentally stable, following the latter’s decision to attend Pakistan’s Prime Minister-designate Imran Khan’s swearing-in.

He said, “I don’t think Sidhu is of a stable mind. If he had some basic sense, he would not go to Pakistan to attend the swearing in of Imran Khan. If he goes, people will see this as an act of betrayal, nobody will forgive him.”

Cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu is scheduled to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Imran Khan on August 18.

The decision came shortly after Khan extended a personal invite to the Punjab Cabinet Minister over phone, to attend his swearing-in ceremony.

According to Punjab’s Information and Public Relations Department, Khan also thanked Sidhu for praising him in a press conference on August 2. — ANI


14:50  Chhattisgarh Governor Balramji Dass Tandon dies.


14:49  Man gets death sentence for sodomising, killing minor boy:  A court in Madhya Pradesh has awarded death sentence to a 20-year-old man for sodomising and killing a 13-year-old boy. Datia’s Special Judge Hitendra Dwivedi awarded the punishment to Nand Kishore yesterday while the case of a 15-year-old co-accused was transferred to a juvenile court, public prosecutor Pushpendra Kumar Garg said.

The prosecutor told the court that Kishore along with the minor co-accused lured the victim, a resident of Bijasen Muhalla area in Datia, on March 2 this year on the pretext of buying him colours for the Holi festival. They took the victim to a deserted place and then sodomised him.

Later, the accused killed the victim and disposed of the body in a canal near Deluva area on the city outskirts, the prosecution said. After killing the boy, the accused called his family members and sought a ransom of Rs 1 lakh. They told the boy’s family that they would kill him, if the money was not paid. — PTI


14:32   I-day: CRPF gets max bravery honours; 942 policemen decorated:  Two CRPF jawans from Kashmir who laid down their lives in the line of duty have been bestowed with country’s top police gallantry medal — PPMG — as the government today announced service decorations for a total of 942 state police and paramilitary personnel on the eve of the 72nd Independence Day.

Constable Sharief-ud-din Ganaie and Head Constable Mohd Tafail of the CRPF have been decorated with the President’s Police Medal for Gallantry posthumously even as 89 other personnel from the force have been awarded the Police Medal for Gallantry for undertaking dare-devil action in militancy-affected Jammu and Kashmir and anti-Naxal operations in various states.

This is the highest-ever gallantry medals tally for the Central Reserve Police Force till date, a senior official said. The CRPF was followed by the Jammu and Kashmir Police that has been accorded 37 PMsG along with the Odisha Police (11), Border Security Force (10), Maharashtra Police (8), Chhattisgarh Police (6) among others. A total of 177 PMsG have been awarded this time, a government release said.

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14:21  10 persons arrested in connection with Kanwariya vandalism:  Ten persons have been arrested in the last 24 hours for allegedly vandalising a car last week in west Delhi’s Moti Nagar after the vehicle brushed past one of their kanwariya friends, police said today.

Police had yesterday arrested 22-year-old Yogesh for allegedly being part of the group that vandalised the grey car. Yogesh was identified after police scrutinised CCTV footages and registers of nine kanwar camps on Najafgarh Road, police said.

On the basis of information provided by Yogesh, nine more people, including main accused Aman who got hit by the car and the holy water he was carrying spilled, were arrested in the last 24 hours, they said.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) Vijay Kumar said they have arrested 11 men so far. Another accused, Rahul Billa, was arrested on August 9 in connection with the attack. Most of the accused are residents of Najafgarh, Bindapur and Dwarka, he said. The incident took place on August 7 on a stretch of a busy road near Moti Nagar metro station. — PTI

Image: Kanwariya Rahul Billa was arrested on August 9


14:10  Cosmos Bank’s server hacked; Rs 94 cr siphoned off in 2 days:  Hackers managed to transfer over Rs 94 crore through a malware attack on the server of Pune-based Cosmos Bank and cloning thousands of the bank’s debit cards over a period of two days, a senior bank official said.

The fraudulent transactions were carried out on August 11 and August 13 through 25 ATMs located in Canada, Hong Kong and a few in India. The cards of the cooperative bank customers that were cloned were of Visa and Rupay.

“A complaint has been filed with Pune police about the malware attack and the bank is doing internal audits to investigate the breach,” the official said.

The bank maintained that the core banking system (CBS) was not attacked and the malware attack was on the switch, which is operative for payment gateways of Visa and Rupay debit cards. “None of the customers’ accounts were touched and it is the bank which has incurred the loss of this money,” the official said. — PTI

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13:34  Security alert after car crashes outside UK parliament house :  
A man has been arrested and a number of pedestrians injured after a car crashed into security barriers outside the Houses of Parliament, Scotland Yard has said, the Guardian reports.

Streets around Parliament Square, Millbank and Victoria Tower Gardens have been cordoned off as dozens of armed police swooped on the scene.

Officers could be seen surrounding the car before leading a man away in handcuffs. A number of ambulances arrived at the scene.

A statement from Scotland Yard said: “At 0737 hours today, a car was in collision with barriers outside the Houses of Parliament. The male driver of the car was detained by officers at the scene. A number of pedestrians have been injured. Officers remain at the scene. We will issue further info when we have it.’ It was unclear if the incident was terror related.

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13:33  Pleaded with CM to grant Karunanidhi’s last wish: Stalin:  The DMK paid rich tributes today to its departed President M Karunanidhi, hailing his contribution to various sectors in the state and the country.

A special meeting of the party’s Executive Committee under working president M K Stalin heaped praises on the late party chief. The party recalled his contribution towards social justice, industrialisation, upholding regional autonomy and his role in various national events. Party leaders observed a two-minute silence as a mark of respect to the departed soul.

“Party has lost our leader but I have lost the leader as well as my father,  Stalin said. “When Kalaignar was in his last stage I held CM’s hands and pleaded to fulfill his (Karunanidhi) last wish to be buried in Marina Beach but govt didn’t agree,” he said.

Stalin and senior leaders were present at the “emergency” meet, convened to condole the passing away of the Dravidian stalwart in Chennai. After battling for life in a private hospital for about 10 days, Karunanidhi had breathed his last on August 7.


13:24  A growing number of California detainees are Indians crossing through Mexico to seek asylum.  Read more

13:23  Death toll rises to 19 in Himachal rains:  A five-year-old boy drowned in Himachal Pradesh’s Kangra district this morning, taking the death toll in rain-related incidents in the state to 19 in the last two days, an official said.

The body of Mohit Pathania, who drowned at Nurpur area, has been recovered and an immediate relief of Rs 10,000 provided to his father, a district official said. Today’s casualty takes the death toll to 19, after incessant rains lashed various parts of the state since Sunday evening.

The highest casualty have been in Solan district (eight), followed by Mandi district (four), three in Kangra district, two in Hamirpur district and one each in Bilaspur and Una districts. Interim relief was distributed by the district administrations to the affected families, a state official had said.

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13:01  Air India disburses salaries for July :  Air India has disbursed the salary for its staff for the month of July, says Air India CMD.

The staff of the state-run carrier have not been receiving salaries on time for five months now.

According to a PTI report, the national carrier, which is facing acute financial crunch, is yet to issue any specific communication on when the payments are likely to be made.

Air India has more than 11,000 permanent staff and it generally disburses the salaries by 30th or 31st of every month.


12:48  Rupee fall due to external factors: Govt:  The government today blamed “external factors” for the rupee’s fall to an all-time low against the US dollar and said there is nothing to worry. Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chander Garg said external factors may ease going forward.

“The rpee is depreciating due to external factors,” he said. There is “nothing at this stage to worry”. The rupee hit an all-time low of 70.1 to a US dollar earlier today on concerns over Turkey’s economic woes. Rushabh Maru, Research Analyst at Anand Rathi Shares and Stock Brokers, said the rupee extended losses today on account of panic demand from importers. — PTI

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12:10  Modi’s Mitrogen? This is the chaiwalla who made biogas from gutter sludge:  It was a speech that launched a million memes.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech at the inauguration of World Biofuel Day on in New Delhi on 9 August left social media in splits.

In the speech, as an example of small-scale innovation, Modi said he read in a newspaper, the story of a tea-seller who makes tea using the biogas generated from an adjacent gutter as fuel.

Modi’s soft corner for tea sellers is understandable, but the simplistic explanation of bio-gas fuel — which has been dubbed ‘Mitrogen’ — made the PM a target of jokes with social media comparisons with Albert Einstein.  

“Kisi chotte se nagar mein, naale ke paas, koi chai ka thela lekar ke khada rehtha tha aur chai banakar ke bechta tha. Ussne ek chote se bartan ko ulta karke, ched karke ek pipe daal di. Aur jo gutter se gas nikalta tha, woh pipeline se uske chai ke thele mein le liya. Aur woh chai banane ke liye ussi gas ka upyog karke chai banata tha, the PM had said.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi had mocked the PM saying, “If you want gas, then generate gas from the gutter and make pakodas, he said.

However, Modi may just have the last laugh.

News agency ANI has in fact tweeted a series of posts on the man, who Modi was referring to in his speech.

The man’s name is Shyam Rao Shirke, a mechanical contractor, who says he patented the production of bio-CNG from sewage sludge.

“I collected water from drains and made a mini ‘collector’ to collect water bubbles, used a drum to make a gas holder. When tested, the system was functional. I connected it to a gas stove and made tea.

Shrike said the Chhattisgarh Science & Technology institute gave him money to take it to the next level.
“I built and installed it in a nallah. In three days enough gas was collected. It was installed in a house where food was prepared for 4-5 months,” Shirke said.

Scientists told him that his paper has been sent to higher authorities two years ago and he fortot about it till the reference in the PM’s speech.

He said he has no financial assistance and people from the municipal corporation threw away the equipment saying it’s a waste.

The Science and Technology institute asked him to lodge an FIR, but he says he was so disappointed with the manner in which he was treated, he did not do anything.


11:29  2 Pakistani soldiers killed by Indian Army in J-K’s Kupwara:  Two Pakistani troopers were killed by the Indian Army in response to ceasefire violations along the Line of Control in Tangdhar sector of Jammu and Kashmir, a defence spokesman said here today. Indian troops carried out operations last night after the ceasefire violations.

“In retaliatory action to unprovoked ceasefire violations and repeated attempts to facilitate infiltration by Pakistan Army in Tangdhar sector, own troops carried out calibrated operations last night in which two Pakistani soldiers were killed,” Srinagar-based defence spokesman Col Rajesh Kalia said. — PTI

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11:25  Central Rly takes up restoration of CSMT heritage building:  Artists skilled in stone carving have been roped in to restore the iconic Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus in Mumbai to its past glory, a Central Railway official said.

The 130-year-old majestic building, a UNESCO recognised world heritage site, has been chosen among 10 places to be upgraded and restored under the government’s ‘Swachh Bharat Mission’.

The building houses the Central Railway’s headquarters and also platforms of suburban and long distance trains. The total budget of the restoration project is Rs 51 crore and the State Bank of India’s CSR arm SBI Foundation has committed Rs 10 crore for conservation of the building, located in south Mumbai. — PTI

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11:22  Rupee plummets to lifetime low of 70.09:  
Rerversing all its early gains, the rupee today collapsed to a life-time low of 70.09 against the US dollar, falling 16 paise amid fears that Turkish economic crisis could lead to a global financial meltdown.

The ongoing currency turmoil in Turkey has dampened investors’ sentiments globally. Investors are turning to dollar as safe haven with Turkeys currency lira crisis continuing since the last week. Yesterday, the rupee had plunged by Rs 1.08, or 1.57 per cent, to a record low of 69.93 against the US currency. — PTI


10:56  Rupee crashes to all-time low of 70.09 against US dollar.

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10:31  Pakistan celebrate Independence Day:  India and Pakistan border guards exchange sweets at Attari-Wagah border on the occasion of Pakistan Independence Day.

Pakistan is celebrating 71 years since independence today with traditional fervour and enthusiasm.

As the clock struck midnight, fireworks began across the country while buildings were lit up to celebrate Independence Day.

The morning dawned with a 31 gun salute in the federal capital and 21 gun salute in the provincial headquarters. 

Special prayers were offered in mosques at dawn for peace, solidarity, and prosperity of the country and for the resolution of the long-standing issue of Kashmir.

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10:29  Ensure no attacks against those who criticise your govt: Umar to PM:  
A day after he was shot at the Constitution Club in New Delhi, near Parliament, Jawaharlal Nehru University student leader Umar Khalid has issued a statement, in which he appeals to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ‘guarantee that there will be no attack on those who criticise your government and its many failures’. 

In his detailed statement, he writes, “Two days before 15th August, the question also is what does “freedom” even mean if the citizens of this country have to be ready to die for their “crime” of just being vocal against injustice? What is most paradoxical is that I had gone to attend an event named “Freedom from Fear” today when an unidentified gunman attacked me and tried to kill me in front of the Constitution Club.”

He further writes, “This hate campaign against me has been going on for last two years. There is no evidence, only lies. There has been no charge-sheet, only media-trial. There are no arguments, only trolling. There has been no debate, only death threats. And today it has all come down to a gun. Why is it that hashtags like “Tukde Tukde” has literally become a prefix to my name, whereas BJP leaders openly support those who say they will do “tukde tukde” of the country if a certain movie is released? 

“Why is that I am called an anti-national and subjected to a never ending media trial, but there is no outrage against those who burnt the Constitution in the heart of the capital, in the presence of the Delhi police just a few days back? Why is it that those who are hell-bent on polarizing the country by hate-mongering against the minorities and by felicitating mob-lynchers are respected, revered and garlanded? And we who speak against hatred are villainised? Why is it that those who speak of dividing the society in the name of caste and attack the dalits the likes of Shambhaji Bhide, whom PM Modi calls a mahapurush- are not accused of breaking the country to pieces? Why is it that the people in power who want to sell off this country piece by piece to big corporates at the cost of the poor, are celebrated as deshbhakts and their critics deemed as “anti-nationals”? These are all relevant questions today.”

Read Umar Khalid’s full statement HERE

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09:57  Venthodanpadi bridge connecting Chokkad & Kalikavu was washed away. Rescue columns utilizing local resources completed one part of the bridge. 

Photograph: @adgpi/Twitter

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09:33  New I-Day task for police: Keeping stray kites away from PM:  

A hundred police personnel will have their eyes on the sky on Wednesday morning all looking out for any errant kite that may disturb the prime ministers Independence Day address. 

Taking a lesson from the previous two years once last year when a black kite landed near the podium during Prime Minister Narendra Modis address at the Red Fort, and earlier in 2016 when a kite was seen above the ramparts before the address began the Delhi Police this year have decided to deploy kite catchers who will keep an eye on flying kites near the venue on Wednesday.

While the restriction on any kind of flying object is imposed every year as a precautionary measure to avoid any untoward incident, this is for the first time that personnel have been deployed to check for kites.

The Delhi Police has restricted kite-flying till 11 am around Red Fort on Independence Day.

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09:26  When Modi suggested Gandhi sport a broom at Madame Tussauds:  

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had suggested that Mahatma Gandhi’s wax figure at the Madame Tussauds should show the Father of the Nation cleaning his surroundings with a broom.

 

“It’ll serve to inspire the 1.25 billion people of the country with the message of cleanliness across India that is enshrined in the ‘Clean India’ movement underway, and is also something which Gandhi’s life teaches us,” the prime minister told Madame Tussauds authorities in an undated interview, a video of which was shred by the museum ahead of Independence Day.

The request was made after Modi was informed that his was the first wax figure to be included in the museum that opened doors to the public in December last year.

“You have said that you would like the first replica in the museum in India to be mine. Instead, I would request you to consider having the first statue as that of Mahatma Gandhi and that too which depicts him as cleaning his surroundings,” he said.

“I will send a photograph that shows Gandhi with a broom,” he told the authorities.

Modi’s wax figure is installed alongside Gandhi’s in the museum’s history section that houses other national leaders including Bhagat Singh, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and APJ Abdul Kalam.

Initially hesitant about getting his wax figure installed alongside “distinguished dignitaries from around the world”, the prime minister eventually gave in, after learning that the decision was an outcome of “public opinion”.

He said the installation of his wax figure would perhaps lend a “softer” dimension to his personality which had otherwise been portrayed as a “harsh” one.

“I am happy that you have rendered me – someone who is perhaps seen as ‘hard’ by some – in tender, pliable wax.

“And it’s possible that when people see this wax figure, their natural instinct might be to exclaim, ‘look here’s Modi gone soft’,” he said.

— PTI

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09:02  ‘CM, entire cabinet should have attended Karuna’s burial’:  

Top Tamil star Rajinikanth today suggested that Chief Minister K Palaniswami and his entire cabinet should have attended the burial of late DMK President M Karunanidhi last week at the Marina beach.

   

The actor said he would have launched a protest if the government had appealed against a Madras high court verdict, directing it to provide burial space to the Dravidian stalwart on Marina beach.    

Speaking at a memorial event organised by the South Indian Artistes Association for Karunanidhi, the actor said that many leaders, ranging from state Governor Banwarilal Purohit to Congress president Rahul Gandhi, were present during the burial of Karunanidhi at the Marina.

   

“For his burial, the whole of India came. State honours were given by members of the three armed forces. He was given a 21 gun salute.

“But one thing remains. The Governor, many Chief Ministers and Congress president Rahul Gandhi had come. Tamil Nadu’s first citizen, the Chief Minister, shouldn’t he have come? Should not the entire cabinet have come? What will people think? Are you MGR (AIADMK founder M G Ramachandran) or Jayalalithaa,” he asked.

— PTI

Image: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, along with former Union minister A Raja, at Rajaji Hall in Chennai to pay his last respects to the DMK patriarch. Photograph: P Ravikumar/Reuters

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08:32  CCTV grab of man accused of attacking Umar Khalid released:  

A picture of the suspect behind the shooting incident targeting Jawaharlal Nehru University student Umar Khalid has surfaced on social media. The picture, captured from a CCTV camera, was also shared on Twitter by news agency ANI.

The picture was extracted from the footage of CCTV installed at the Vittalbhai Patel Road in New Delhi.

The man had reportedly fired the shot in the air at the Constitution Club. In his statement to the police, Umar Khalid had on Monday said that the accused first pounced on him, and then pushed him as he fired in the air.

There was commotion at the spot after the shooting incident, following which the police took control of the situation. After discussing the sequence of events with Khalid, DCP Madhur Verma had said, Umar Khalid said that he was attacked. Somebody pounced on him and pushed, thereafter he tried to fire at Khalid but couldn’t. According to Khalid, the attacker fired in the air and was chased by people.

The police had recovered the weapon used by the suspect. He had reportedly dropped the weapon while trying to flee the spot where the incident took place. The police has launched an investigation into the incident.

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08:01  Trump joked he could play matchmaker for PM Modi: Foreign media:  

US President Donald Trump allegedly joked he could play matchmaker for Prime Minister Narendra Modi after learning from aides that the 67-year-old leader has long been estranged from his wife, according to a new report in Politico. 

The article detailed a long list of “diplomatic faux-pas” Trump has made with foreign leaders around the globe, including a lack of telephone etiquette, “mispronunciations” and “awkward meetings.”

Trump also displayed a lack of familiarity with South Asia, according to the report.

Ahead of the meeting last year with Modi at the White House, Trump allegedly studied a map of South Asia and mispronounced Nepal as “nipple” and referred to Bhutan as “button,” Politico said, quoting two unnamed sources. The US president seemed confused that the two countries – which border India – even existed, the report says.

“He didn’t know what those were. He thought it was all part of India,” a source told Politico. “He was like, ‘What is this stuff in between and these other countries?'”

After Trump’s staffers told the US president that Modi would not be bringing his wife along to the meeting at the White House, Trump allegedly joked, “Ah, I think I can set him up with somebody,” the report said, according to “two people briefed on the meeting.”

White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders told Politico that Trump has developed “strong relationships” with “America’s closest allies,” which allow for “candid conversations.”

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00:07  PM should campaign for all parties during elections: Uddhav Thackeray:  

Taking a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his whirlwind poll rallies, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray said he should address election meetings of all parties and not just the BJP.

   

He said the prime minister, a star campaigner for the BJP in elections, and also chief ministers, should treat all as equal.

 

“While being sworn-in, the prime minister, chief ministers and ministers take oath that they will treat everyone as equal.

 

“Why should the prime minister go only for the BJP (poll) campaign?” he said, speaking at the 58th anniversary function of the weekly magazine Marmik on Monday.

 

“They (prime ministers) should go for poll campaign of all (parties). They should attend the poll campaign of the Shiv Sena, independents and Communists,” Thackeray said.

 

He made a veiled reference to BJP president Amit Shah writing to the Law Commission, pitching various benefits of holding simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and state assemblies in the country.

 

“One nation, one election is nice. If democracy has to take root in our country, then the Election Commission should ban prime minister, chief ministers and ministers from (participating in) poll campaigns,” Thackeray said.

 

“The prime minister says he will give houses for all by 2022. If someone objects, he will say that person has negativity,” Thackeray said.

 

Union minister Nitin Gadkari has said the popular “achhe din” slogan of the BJP has become a “gale mein haddi” (bone stuck in neck) for the NDA government, he said.

He referred to Modi announcing a financial aid of Rs 1,000 crore for the IIT-Bombay during its 56th annual convocation here on Saturday and said the BJP-led government in the state is ignoring the adjoining Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation.

 The corporation has not got even a single penny of the Rs 6,500 crore that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had promised in 2015, the Sena chief said. 

Source: Rediff