NEW DELHI:

The law and railway ministries - vacated by Ashwani Kumar and Pawan Kumar Bansal — were allotted to Kapil Sibal and C P Joshi as additional charges in what is seen as a precursor to a Cabinet reshuffle.

The decisions, intended to swiftly fill the vacuum caused by the sacking of Kumar and Bansal due to corruption-linked controversies and signal that governance won't be hit, are expected to be followed by a larger political exercise.

"Both have been given temporary assignments," said a source when asked about the nature of fresh responsibilities for Sibal and Joshi.

Apart from law and railway portfolios, ministries like chemicals and fertlizers - vacated by DMK - and those that were redistributed after the Trinamool Congress's exit from the UPA need to be attended to as well.

Telecom minister Sibal would take charge of the law ministry despite his being reluctant to handle the portfolio.

At the same time, the return of the railway ministry to Joshi is a repeat of the scenario when he held the job after Mukul Roy of the Trinamool Congress had resigned following his party's pullout of UPA. The portfolio was later given to Pawan Kumar Bansal in a reshuffle last October.

The bid to restore the perception of normalcy comes amid regret that extended periods of uncertainty has made UPA-II look like a government in a limbo.

As part of a plan, Congress has launched a campaign to refocus on legislations on food security and land acquisition that could not be passed in parliament because of BJP's blockade. It is felt that the Congress offensive after the Karnataka defeat left BJP smarting, and could make the main Opposition reconsider its stridency against the UPA.

I&B minister Manish Tewari blamed BJP of obstructionism, saying with the party "having failed as a responsible opposition, one shudders to think of the fate of the nation in the very unlikely eventuality of them being on the treasury benches".

He dismissed saffron patriarch L K Advani's demand for the PM's resignation as a follow-up to the sacking of Kumar over Coalgate. "The logical culmination of people's verdict in Karnataka is serious and sustained introspection of BJP's policies, politics and philosophy over the past nine years," Tewari said.

AICC spokesman Bhakta Charan Das said BJP's stance on coalblock allocation reflected doublespeak since its leaders Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj had in parliament spoken in favour of the existing policy. He quoted from the statements made by them in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.

source:http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Railway Minister Pawan Bansal and Law Minister Ashwani Kumar  quit government,  latest political news update, political news , latest political news, national news , national news today.

NEW DELHI 

Scandal-hit Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal and Law Minister Ashwani Kumar quit on Friday, adding to speculation the prime minister may have to call an early election after the furore paralysed parliament and forced the delay of economic reforms.

Bansal had been widely expected to step down after police arrested his nephew on suspicion of accepting a bribe in a case that was seen as embarrassing to the Congress party-led government, which has been battered by a series of corruption scandals.

Kumar's departure comes days after the Supreme Court said the government substantially changed a report by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into alleged irregularities in the awarding of mining rights potentially worth billions of dollars to private companies.

They met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh late Friday and submitted their resignations, ruling Congress party spokesman Bhakta Charan Das told Reuters.

The main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has also demanded Singh's resignation, but stopped short of calling a no-confidence motion in parliament to bring down the government.

However, the opposition clamour for the resignations proved so disruptive that parliament was adjourned on Wednesday until further notice, two days ahead of its scheduled close, as it became impossible to carry out meaningful legislative business.

The government has had to postpone economic legislation and a flagship programme to give cheap food to 70 percent of the population.

DISARRAY

"The resignation of the two ministers shows that our demand for their resignation was justified and the government was unnecessarily adamant," BJP leader Sushma Swaraj wrote on Twitter.

"If they had accepted our demand for their resignations earlier, the parliament session could go on."

Led by octogenarian economist Singh, India's minority coalition government has been unsteady since two key allies pulled out and the resignations will add to speculation over whether Singh will call an election before May 2014.

The so-called Coalgate mining rights scandal has become one of the biggest headaches for Singh, who was coal minister when some of the blocks were awarded.

Bansal was appointed amid much fanfare last year to turn around the ailing Indian Railways, becoming the first railway minister from the Congress party since 1996 and the first to raise passenger fares in nine years.

However, his resignation seemed inevitable after his nephew, Vijay Singla, was arrested last week on suspicion of accepting a $160,000 bribe to arrange the promotion of a railways official. Singla has said he is innocent of the charges.

Bansal has denied any wrongdoing and is yet to be questioned by police. Indian media said the police were investigating how much Bansal knew about his nephew's activities.

Despite the seemingly endless stream of corruption scandals and setbacks, the Congress party is still hopeful of winning a third term in office.

The Hindu nationalist BJP is in disarray and has lost control of four state governments in the past year - most recently its only southern stronghold Karnataka - where Congress swept to victory on Wednesday.

NEW DELHI

With former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif appearing set to take power in Pakistan, India has expressed hope that relations with its arch rival will improve, while Afghanistan is hoping for more cooperation in ending the Taliban insurgency.

As news emerged in that Nawaz Sharif was headed to become Pakistan's prime minister for a third term, Indian foreign minister, Salman Khurshid sounded a note of optimism.

Khurshid said he hopes India can continue to have good relations and boost ties with Pakistan if Sharif comes to power.

The Indian foreign minister says that statements by Sharif to the media indicate New Delhi can have faith his initiatives will be positive and India can respond accordingly.

In the run up to the parliamentary elections, Sharif made several assurances that struck the right note in New Delhi. He told Indian media that if elected, he will work to normalize ties with Pakistan's bigger neighbor. He said the two countries have issues to resolve, but says there are examples of countries opposed to each other that have resolved more difficult problems.

The veteran Pakistani leader has said he will not allow militant groups to mount attacks on India from Pakistan - a repeated demand by New Delhi. He has promised a joint investigation into Indian allegations that Pakistani intelligence agencies played a role in the deadly 2008 Mumbai attacks in India.

Relations between India and Pakistan nosedived in after those attacks. Although they are improving now, the relationship is still dogged by suspicion.

But Indian analysts caution against expecting swift improvement. They point out any move on Sharif's part to establish friendlier ties with India will only bear fruit if it is backed by the military, which continues to be a powerful player in Pakistan.

India and Pakistan's competing claims to the Himalayan territory of Kashmir lie at the heart of their often bitter ties, and have triggered two of their three wars.

But Sharif's victory was welcomed in Indian-administered Kashmir.

The chief minister of the India's Jammu and Kashmir state, Omar Abdullah, urged the Indian prime minister to extend a hand of friendship to Nawaz Sharif so that Kashmiris can benefit.

He says until the two countries have friendly ties, the region can build roads, schools and bridges, but the core dispute between two countries will remain unaddressed.

Pakistan's western neighbor, Afghanistan, also expressed hope Pakistan's new government will help it end the Taliban insurgency it has been battling for more than a decade. Afghan President Hamid Karzai said the two countries need to cooperate to be saved from the menace of terrorism and to root out terrorist sanctuaries.

Sharif's victory was not just welcomed by the political class in India. There were also jubilant celebrations in a small Indian village, Jatti Umra, in the northern Punjab state where Nawaz Sharif's family lived before migrating to the Pakistani city of Lahore before the two countries were partitioned in 1947.

An elderly resident, Massa Singh, says the villagers have been praying for Sharif's success. He says villagers are very happy because Sharif has made the village proud.

Like others in India, this tiny village too is hoping for an easier chapter in the uneasy ties between the two countries.

source:www.pakistannews.net

Congress President Sonia Gandhi  tell Pm Manmohan Singh to take a final decision On Ashwani, Bansal soon, latest Political News update, latest News, political News , latest Political news.

New Delhi:

Congress President Sonia Gandhi has told Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take a final decision on Law Minister Ashwani Kumar and Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal. Sources say Sonia Gandhi feels that the damage must be controlled and spoke to Manmohan Singh on Thursday.

This comes even as reports say Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is not keen on Law Minister Ashwani Kumar's removal. Sources add that Manmohan Singh is worried that if Ashwani Kumar goes, he too will come under further opposition fire. One of the solutions being worked out is that Ashwani Kumar's portfolio be changed.

Sources have also told CNN-IBN that Railway Minister Pawan Bansal might not survive the cash for appointments controversy. He skipped the Cabinet meet on Thursday, sparking further speculations of his exit.

Sonia tells PM to take a final call on Ashwani, Bansal

Sources say Congress President Sonia Gandhi feels that the damage must be controlled and spoke to Manmohan Singh on Thursday.

However, later on, the party, while downplaying reports of Bansal's absence at the meet, said that he had welcomed CBI probe into the Railway Board bribery scandal, in which his nephew Vijay Singla is an accused and is in jail. Reports also said that the Congress was now looking to change the portfolio of Ashwani Kumar as a way out.

"Government is seized of the matter. Let us wait. This decision will be taken by the government. It will be done between the Prime Minister and his Cabinet colleague," party spokesperson Renuka Chowdhary said.

She made the remarks after a meeting Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi had with the party spokespersons as also AICC general secretaries Janardan Dwivedi who is the in-charge of AICC media department.

"I am not an astrologer. How can I predict what is going to happen? These are probabilities, these are possibilities. We cannot say anything about it at this time. A process is on. As long as this process does not culminate, we cannot preempt any of the issue.... The matter is sub-judice. We cannot preempt a reply," Chowdhary said.

Meanwhile, the demand for Bansal's exit has been growing. Former Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi said Bansal must step down. Speaking to IBN18 Editor-in-Chief Rajdeep Sardesai, Trivedi said, "A minister should not deal with any thing related to transfers, posting and appointments, any files related with tender. There are manipulations obviously. He has to step aside pending inquiry. Anybody with a little bit of morality will do it."

Former IPS officer Kiran Bedi said the rot has reached the PMO. "All these appointments are cleared by the PMO. How can the Railway Minister be so brazen that he'll get money through the nephew or the nephew will get money. How will the nephew pay such a huge amount without being assured of appointment," she questioned.

source:http://ibnlive.in.com