Manmohan is PM candidate for UPA: Rahul

Manmohan is PM candidate for UPA: Rahul

: Surat, Feb 14: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will be the prime ministerial candidate of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) in the Lok Sabha elections, Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi said on Saturday.

“I have answered this question so many times in the past. Manmohan Singh is the prime minister (candidate) from the Congress and UPA,” Gandhi told reporters in reply to a query.
“My prime ministerial candidate for the Lok Sabha elections is Manmohan Singh,” Gandhi said.
Gandhi on Saturday began a three-day tour of Gujarat to spruce up the Youth Congress in the state ahead of the general elections slated for April-May. (IANS)

Note to PM for amendment of Article 355

Alappuzha: Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Vayalar Ravi today said that he had forwarded a note to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, proposing amendment of Article 355 of the Constitution. Article 355 would enable the Centre take control over districts in states where violence was prevalent.

Speaking at a function organised by the Aratuvazhi Holy Angel Charitable Trust in Alappuzha, the minister said that the proposal was made in view of the continuing violence against Christians in Orissa. "The proposal, if adapted, will be beneficial in future."

The union cabinet will soon meet to discuss the violence against Christians in Orissa, he said.

The ministeralso added that it was against Hindu dharma to attack any community
Soruce: www.mid-day.com

PM wants to quit over nuclear deal

June 20, 2008, Congress sources told rediff.com late on Thursday night that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is putting the maximum pressure possible on Congress party president Sonia Gandhi to go ahead with the India-US nuclear deal. The tussle between Dr Singh and some party leaders, who do not want an early general election provoked by the withdrawal of Left support, is on and far from over, the Congress sources added.
Dr Singh would like to resign as prime minister if the Congress party does not back him on the deal. However, negotiations between Dr Singh and the party continue and the final verdict is not out yet.
The prime minister is likely to continue pressurising the Congress leadership before the next United Progressive Alliance-Left parties meeting on the nuclear deal on June 25.
Dr Singh will not have much to lose if he insists on an exit from power because his four-year tenure has ensured his place in history. The final year in power will be the most difficult with international oil prices likely to cross $150 per barrel.
Another factor behind the current political drama in New Delhi over the nuclear deal is a powerful lobby's belief that a strategic partnership with the United States is a win-win situation for India and the US. Dr Singh's supporters think it is time "the Congress calls the bluff of the Left parties" and goes ahead with the nuclear deal.
But it seems difficult for Dr Singh to garner his own party's support for the deal. Notwithstanding the public stand of UPA allies like Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Lalu Prasad, Nationalist Congress President Sharad Pawar [Images] and Dravida Munnetra Kazagham supremo M Karunanidhi supporting the deal, the Congress is well aware that these allies do not want an early election, and certainly not in November. External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, the mediator between the Congress, the Left parties and its allies, briefed Dr Singh on the issue today.
Dr Singh cancelled all his appointments for Thursday, June 19. An official statement said the prime minister is unwell and running a viral fever.
The prime minister is understandably anguished because it will be embarrassing for him to travel to Tokyo next month for the G-8 summit -- where he will meet US President George W Bush -- after suffering a domestic political defeat on a diplomatic issue of great importance. "The prime minister," a reliable Congress source said, "wants to save his prestige in an international forum."

source: www.redif.com

Petrol up by Rs 5 LPG too has gone up by Rs 50 a cylinder

The government on Wednesday increased the price of petrol by Rs 5 a litre and that of diesel by Rs 3 a litre. The price of an LPG too has gone up by Rs 50 a cylinder.

Petroleum Minister Murli Deora has also proposed double price for extra cooking gas cylinders. He has also proposed a new distribution scheme for LPG cylinders. Only 8 cylinders will be allowed at the current rates. All extra cylinders will cost twice the amount.

The huge subsidy losses faced by the public sector oil companies due to galloping global crude prices, has led the government to impose the hike.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will address the nation at 8:30 pm on Wednesday night to explain the reason for the hike in fuel prices.

With political parties, including the Left, opposing hike in fuel prices, the prime minister had warned on Monday that government is not in a position to fully insulate the consumer from the impact of rising oil prices.

"We cannot allow the subsidy bill to rise any further. Nor do we have the margin to fully insulate the consumer from the impact of world commodity and oil price inflation," he had said.

Source: rediff.com