New Delhi: After lunch and dinner, the AAP has organised a “Tea with Kejriwal”, to collect donations for the party ahead of the state Assembly polls.

The event has been organised by former Delhi Law Minister Somnath Bharti this Saturday.

“This High Tea is a fund-raising event to collect donations ahead of elections where attendees will be charged Rs 20,000 each,” Bharti said who also shared a video on social media appealing people to donate for AAP.

AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal has already attended fund-raising dinners at Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru in the recent past.

PTI

New Delhi, Dec. 22 — Celina Jaitley, who became popular with her roles in films like No Entry (2005) and Golmaal Returns (2008) is now enjoying her role as mother to twin boys.
Having experienced the various phases of womanhood, she has seen how one’s wardrobe evolves over time. From her modelling days and the acting phase to her pregnancy, Celina has seen it all. She says, “My wardrobe is an integral part of my identity. I have a planned wardrobe – a melange of various shades of my moods and roles as a woman.”
However, wardrobe makeovers are often difficult for Celina as she gets attached to her clothes. She explains, “Earlier, I used to be a victim of the exploding wardrobe syndrome. But I now realise that hanging on to clothes and other items is psychologically equivalent to not letting go.”
And now, she has found that charity is actually an opportunity to revamp her style with changing season. She says, “Hence I make a very strong effort to evolve every season, and I do give away everything twice a year.”
However, in a city plagued with the issue of space crunch, Celina is lucky enough to have a walk-in wardrobe. She says, “It is huge and has customised space for everything from gowns and saris to swim wear. It’s has a special walk-in area for my 800 plus shoes too.”

Demolition of houses and slums are a regular feature in Mumbai. In this context a slum area located at Kalina was recently demolished. Among them tenants lived a lady with her two children aged six months and four years. With no support from any concerned bodies she was compelled to live a life in the streets with her two children. The cold winter played hell with her and her children.

Some member of AAP from Kalina could not see the plight of the women and her children. They arranged a room her, paid her deposit for the room and now she has a decent living. She now with a shelter for her children is confident enough to earn a living and pay her monthly rent.

In another incident an AAP member Kumud had witnessed a lady on the streets whose son had recently died. Kumud thought of doing something for the lady. He started tweeting around seeking for help. Among those tweets he happened to get his attention a reporter of NDTV Saurabh Gupta. He covered the news and help started pouring in from all corners. Apart from the help what touched everyone’s heart is when Sourabh paid towards the meal for the street children and the lady. It showed a soft corner of a media man which is of course rare amongst this profession.

New Delhi, December 23 Elated over BJP’s good showing in Assembly polls, Home Minister Rajnath Singh today expressed confidence that his party would form government in both Jammu and Kashmir and Jharkhand. “We will form government in both the states,” the senior BJP leader told reporters outside Parliament House on queries over election results. Early trends of counting of votes show that BJP was leading in more than 20 seats in Jammu and Kashmir and the party is emerging as a clear winner in Jharkhand, leading in more than 35 seats. — PTI

Opposition lawmakers in India have shut down parliament in protest against alleged forced conversions of Muslims to Hinduism, with the disarray threatening to disrupt the premier’s legislative agenda.

Furious lawmakers stormed the well of parliament’s upper house on Tuesday, demanding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi address reports that groups linked to his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) coerced poor Muslims into converting to India’s majority religion.

“The house will not run until the prime minister comes for discussion over the communal incidents and forced conversions issue,” said Derek O’Brien, from the regional opposition All India Trinamool Congress.

An associate group linked to Modi has allegedly bribed some 50 poor Muslim families into converting to Hinduism in the Taj Mahal in the city of Agra last week.

One of the converts said the families were promised financial incentives and ration cards if they went ahead with the conversions.

Meanwhile, a BJP lawmaker has since announced that a bigger conversion event was planned in the northern town of Aligarh on Christmas Day, in hopes of converting more Christians and Muslims.

In May, the BJP, led by Modi, won 274 seats in the 543-seat lower house of parliament, the Lok Sabha.

However, the BJP lacks a majority in the upper house, where Congress and regional lawmakers routinely protest a range of issues.

Currently at stake are Modi’s plans to pass a series of major economic reforms through parliament, with just four days of the current session remaining.

New Delhi: Several members of a saffron outfit were Friday detained by the police after they staged a protest at the Pakistan High Commissioner’s residence at Tilak Marg here this afternoon demanding that he be sent back to Pakistan.
Several members of Hindu Sena outfit were today detained and taken to the Tilak Marg police station following a protest outside Pakistan High Commissioner’s residence, a senior police official said.
The protestors were released after an hour, police said.
Demanding that the Pakistan High Commissioner should be sent back, the protestors urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take up the matter to the United Nations for the speedy trial of the terror attack.
The demand comes after a Pakistani Court had granted bail to Zakir-ur-Rehman Lakhvi in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.

Hunger strike broken due to AAP-MUMBAI. Since last 8 days the teachers of Swami Vivekand high school situated at Appa wada,Malad East were sitting on an indefinite hunger strike at Ismal Yusuf college outside the Education Department Building to protest against the injustice and atrocity of the school management and the trust headed By Mr Shamsher Singh . The most astonishing fact is that some of the officers of the Education department namely the Education Inspector Mr Bagul,Clerk Mrs Tawde were also hand in glove with the trust. AAP-MUMBAI committee took the issue head on and the Mumbai secretary Mayank Jain along with Mr Kiran Advankar, Rakesh kakria, Shobha Pande met the Deputy Director of education Mr Fadtare and took him into confidence. Initially After being evasive about the situation The DDG visited the sight and took the case into his hands. After nearly hours of arguments and struggle Finally the DDG gave us /affected teachers the letter which statted the following :

1.Immediate Reinstatement of the teachers and a administrative enquiry on the trust.
2.Transfer of the Concerned officer Mr Bagul
3.Inquiry about the fraud committed by the trust with respect to the suspension, recruitment of permanent teachers.
Today Monday 16/12/14 After getting a written assurance from the DDG the teachers have now ended their fast .Parties like MNS AND SHIV SENA were pursuing the case for two years but only gave false assurances. AAP gave justice to the teachers in mere three days. This shows for good work and results will power is more important than simply power

New Delhi: In a move which is bound to have long-term political repercussions, a special CBI court on Tuesday directed the investigative agency to examine former prime minister Manmohan Singh over its probe into the allocation of the Talabira-II coal block to Hindalco in 2005, that involved top industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla.

Dr Singh held the coal portfolio in 2005.

Besides Dr Singh, the court also said it would be appropriate if the investigating officer examines B.V.R. Subramanyam, who was PS to Dr Singh, and T.K.A. Nair, who was then working as principal secretary in the PMO, in connection with the case.

Sending the matter back to the CBI for a further probe after it had filed a closure report, special judge Bharat Parashar said it would be “appropriate” that the then coal minister be “first examined” on various aspects of the matter.

New Delhi: The Union HRD Ministry was on Monday at the centre of a controversy over a circular by Navodya Vidyalaya Samiti(NVS) asking all its schools to observe December 25– X’mas day–as ‘Good Governance Day’ that led to an uproar in Parliament.

As the issue generated heat both inside and outside Parliament, Government moved on multiple fronts to defuse the row, clarifying that all schools including Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalas (JNV) will remain closed on December 25. It also denied a media report suggesting the schools would remain open on Christmas Day to observe ‘Good Governance Day’.

“This is to clarify that CBSE has not directed any schools to remain open on December 25. All schools will follow their vacation schedule including holiday on December 25 as specifically clarified by CBSE,” a press statement issued by the Human Resources Development(HRD) Ministry said.

It said CBSE has neither issued any circular on its website nor issued any instructions to any schools for remaining open on December 25.

“In view of this, no child or student will be deprived of celebrating the holidays or vacations or participating in their own festivals and religious festivals wholeheartedly”.

The Rajya Sabha was adjourned thrice during the pre-lunch session following pandemonium over the circular while the Lok Sabha witnessed an uproar.

In a circular dated December 10, the NVS–which falls under the HRD ministry–has asked its schools to celebrate the birthday of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee as well as Madan Mohan Malaviya on December 25 “in its true spirit” by holding activities like declamation contests, quiz competitions and screening of documentaries related to good governance.

“You are requested to ensure that Good Governance Day is celebrated in all JNVs under your region,” the circular issued by NVS Commissioner G S Bothyal to the Principals of all JNVs said.

HRD Minister Smriti Irani dismissed as “baseless and inaccurate” the media report suggesting that schools would remain open on December 25 to observe ‘Good Governance Day’.

“It is unfortunate that misreporting has been deliberately done…Controversy has been created to grab headlines.

“December 25 is Christmas and will be celebrated like that and schools will be shut,” she told reporters.

The intention is to make me keep on giving explanations on this, she said.

Irani said the essay competition that the schools JNVs would be organising would be “voluntary” in nature and conducted online.

“All schools closed for X’Mas, essay competition only online,” she tweeted separately.

The CPI-M termed as “offensive and unjustifiable” the move to keep schools open on Christmas and demanded its withdrawal saying it was an “assault” on the religious right of Christians.

The NVS circular had said CBSE would also be organising competitions under its expression series on good governance on December 24 and 25 and it was open to all schools under the Board.

The circular said screening of documentaries and films on best practices in good governance and organisation of various activities through child cabinets in schools would be organised.

NEW DELHI: Seven months after the forming of the new Lok Sabha, the NDA government is yet to nominate two Anglo-Indian representatives to the Lok Sabha with members of the community having now written to the Prime Minister urging him to “take necessary steps” in the matter.

Concerned over the “inordinate delay” in the nomination of their representatives to Lok Sabha, the community today wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking his “urgent ..

They urged Modi to “take necessary steps to effect the nomination of the two Anglo-Indian members” to Lok Sabha as per Article 331 of the Constitution.

“More than seven months have passed since the elections to Lok Sabha and the Anglo-Indian community is anxious over the inordinate delay in nominating their representatives to Lok Sabha,” Charles Dias, president of the Federation of Anglo- Indian Associations in India (FAIAI), said in the letter  ..

Dias, who was the Anglo-Indian representative in the Lower House during the previous UPA regime, said the community numbering about four lakh is scattered all over the country.

He said “they are thankful to the generous framers of the Constitution” for providing representation for them in Lok Sabha and few of the state Assemblies as per Articles 331 and 333 of the Constitution, respectively.

“Because of it (representation), this voiceless community with many disabilities could raise and redress several of their grievances,” he said.

Dias told Modi that a sizable section of the community’s members live in poor and pitiable conditions. “Housing and unemployment are a few of their major problems. So much so that the community is slowly losing its identity,” he said.

FAIAI, which functions as an umbrella organisation for a majority of the Anglo-Indian associations in the country, has also presented a panel of names to the Prime Minister for consideration for nomination.

Dias also said FAIAI has complained to Modi that the Anglo -Indian representatives have been denied an opportunity to raise their problems in Lok Sabha.

The MP-LADS fund allocation, representation in various parliamentary committees and other government bodies and local bodies, allocation of seats in Kendriya Vidyalayas and other facilities are denied to these members. This is injustice to a weak minority,” he said