“Patel agitation is not for representation but for reservation,” said a senior state leader, who also pointed that Mr Modi, who will have the final say in Ms Patel’s successor, is not known to succumb to pressure. Till few months back, Mr Shah’s name was doing the rounds as the next Wayfinding signage Suppliers chief minister of Gujarat.
The BJP’s highest decision-making body, parliamentary board, is expected to take a call on her resignation as well as her successor Tuesday.BJP parliamentary board to take a call on successor todayIn the midst of growing dalit and Patidar protests in the Prime Minister’s home state, Gujarat chief minister Anandiben Patel on Monday offered to resign from her post, saying it was time for new leadership to take over since she would soon be turning 75.” Asked about her replacement, Mr Shah said the parliamentary board will decide on the new chief minister. The BJP also fared badly in the rural civic bodies polls in December 2015 and the Opposition Congress has been making gains at the cost of the saffron rival post-Patidar agitation.Though sudden, for many the development was on expected lines as the BJP has been facing multiple challenges in Gujarat, a state it has been ruling since 1998.I am asking the party to relieve me two months in advance as the new chief minister will require the time to work, when the state is going to face elections in 2017 and an important event like Vibrant Gujarat Summit to be held in January.. Names of Vijay Rupani, the state unit president of the BJP, state cabinet ministers Nitin Patel and Saurabh Patel, and Purushottam Rupala, MoS in the Modi government, are doing the rounds as Ms Patel’s successor.
There was a growing feeling, both within the ruling party in the state as well as the state administration, that Ms Patel was loosing her grip over governance.In New Delhi, BJP president Amit Shah said, “Anandiben Patel has offered to resign. Ever since the Patidar agitation rocked Gujarat last year, Mr Modi, who was Gujarat’s chief minister for 14 years, had been keeping a tab on the development in the state and there was speculation that Ms Patel would be replaced. While political circles are abuzz that Ms Patel could be replaced by someone from her own community, keeping the Patidar (Patel) agitation in mind, sources said that Patels have been given ample representation in both the state as well as the Modi government. I will place her letter before the (BJP) parliamentary board which will take the final decision. Mr Shah said Ms Patel, who has in the past offered to resign twice, wants her replacement to get adequate time to prepare for Vibrant Gujarat summit to be held in January 2017 and the Assembly polls later next year.
Two months ago I had requested the party to relieve me from the post and today also through this letter, I request the party to relieve me of the post. Ms Patel had written a letter to party president Amit Shah in the morning, and later posted her resignation letter on Facebook, requesting the party leadership to relieve her of the post. With Assembly elections in Gujarat scheduled for next year, sources disclosed that the BJP top brass had been pursuing the issue of replacing Ms Patel for the past six months as she turn 75 in November, the age bar set by the party. I will attain the age of 75 in November. In her Facebook post on Monday, Ms Patel wrote: “For the last some time there has been a tradition in the party that those who attain the age of 75, voluntarily retires from the post.” A minister in the BJP government since 1998, Ms Patel had succeeded Mr Modi as Gujarat’s chief minister on May 22, 2014
She said that the matter was under continuous discussion with the LDO since 2015. The corporation has already paid a compensation of approx `110 crore in this case.The letter said: “Since I was grounding my case on the reliable document of ‘jamabandi’ of the GNCTD revenue department and the value of the land in question is more than `15,000 crore, I declined to oblige and preferred to let the matter reach its logical conclusion upon the production of relevant documents by the LDO in the interest of the corporation. She alleged that during the handling of the land and estate department for a brief period, she noticed that a huge chunk of land acquired for the project, which was actually government land, was given on lease.Listing the irregularities in the NDMC, Ms Jagdev wrote, “In the recent past I came across some glaring shortcomings in the working of the corporation, which I duly put in a file. But for some untold reasons, I could not garner the support of the commissioner.
In a sensational disclosure, the former additional commissioner (Revenue) of the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC), Renu Jagdev, has accused the municipal commissioner of pressuring her to drop the ownership rights of the civic body’s land worth about Rs 15,000 crore to favour a private builder in the national capital.Ms Jagdev, an IRS officer of the ICCE services 1989 batch, had been working in the NDMC on deputation basis since November 26, 2014.“Similarly, according to khasra number 288, the land belonged to the Methodist Church of India. She was handling the charges of revenue, advertisement, parking, IT, and finance amongst others. The complaint seems like an attempt of a disgruntled employee trying to portray herself as a whistleblower in order to hang on to the deputation assignment.
Mr Vyas added. Reacting to the allegation, NDMC commissioner Madhup Vyas told this newspaper that her (Ms Jagdev) complaint required detailed examination as the instances mentioned did not relate to his tenure.”Ms Jagdev also pointed out lapse in the land acquisition of wholesale sign factory NDMC for the much delayed ‘Rani Jhanshi’ flyover.Former NDMC mayor and Delhi BJP general secretary Ravinder Gupta has approached lieutenant-governor Anil Baijal and demanded a CBI investigation into the allegation levelled by Ms Jagdev.She further alleged that even the measurement of the land is not clear since the land to be acquired for the flyover was on 698 square meters, the rest having already been resumed from the National Cold Storage for DMRC project (1087 square meters in 2000 and 400 square meters in 2006).5 years’ stint in the MCD. However, compensation has been paid to one Abhishek Gupta.Referring to a letter dated March 12, 2018, the NDMC claims that the question of wrongful allotment of land to DMRC by LDO does not arise. But lately, she was being pressurised by the commissioner to accept the contention of ownership by LDO and drop the matter so that the building plan of “M/s Parsvnath” could be sanctioned and their project continued. It therefore needs to be investigated,” she wrote.“It has been informed that NDMC has raised the issue of ownership of this land and is not clearing the plans of M/s PDL in respect of the land leased to them by DMRC. He asked why she was raising these issues now and what was she doing during her 9.”In her letter dated May 18, Ms Jagdev wrote that all of a sudden, she received repatriation orders on May 17, relieving her from the office with effect from May 18.
Ms Jagdev listed several irregularities, which include similar acquisition cases related to the flyover, involving payment to private persons was approved by the commissioner for `10 crore, irregularity in procurement of biometric machines, wrong fixation of pay scales of officials causing a recurring loss of several crores per annum, and other irregularities causing loss to the civic body.“I have joined in September 2017..She further wrote that there was no justification in acquiring this land at all since it is a part of the lease conditions that if the government, at any point of time, requires these lands, the lease shall be cancelled.He also questioned the timing of the allegation. You are, therefore, requested to issue necessary instructions to the concerned authorities for clearance of the aforesaid project of DMRC and provide necessary assistance to them for completing their project in time,” the NDMC said citing the LDO letter. In a letter to NDMC mayor Adesh Gupta, standing committee chairman Tilak Raj Kataria, Delhi chief secretary Anshu Prakash, Ms Jagdev claimed that a 95- acre land at Khyber Pass, which as per the Delhi government’s revenue records comes under the ownership of the north civic body, had been wrongly allotted to the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) by the land and development office (LDO)
Birth and death fuse into one leading to a cyclical flow of energy. One could sense his ability to effortlessly interpret everything in terms of an infinite nothingness.His artworks move from a form to formless, rightly showing the evanescence of life. One of India’s renowned contemporary artists, Iranna’s current suite of works consists of canvases, works on paper and installations. If art must connect with the masses then Ether is all that is hits the bulls eye because it’s the truth of life told with simplicity that too with a medium that only compliments the artist’s thought and his message to his viewers.While friends appreciate your work because they know you, the Biennale was a learning curve. Iranna, who received an overwhelming response at the Kochi Muziris Biennale where his work titled Ash to Ash was applauded by artists from all over the world. “Vibhuti is also called bhasma and when one applies it to the forehead then the person completely vanishes, she/he becomes that holy ash. He knew the spiritual importance of it.
Then we have “Ash” that uses the medium on paper, there’s “Water” and “Tree”, where the painting starts with the branches of the tree but eventually blurs and treads into the domain of abstract.R. The ash wasn’t new to him because as a child he was very familiar with it as being a Hindu Shaiivite he would apply it on his forehead. Everything, name body is all removed what is eat is just ash,” explains Iranna.One of the art installations is titled Mirror which has a classic wooden frame with a stand and instead of the glass there are tiny cubes of ash blocks. And going a step further with the same theme, Iranna is showcasing his recent body of works under the title Ether is all that is at Gallery Espace, New Delhi.My favourite is the carpet installations again made with bright red, White, yellow and blue ash bricks.G. So simple is his idea and the execution of the same that you tell yourself “ya I thought as much”.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.Iranna’s uncanny ability to speak through his art is baffling. “Unknown people from all over the world came up to me not knowing my name, my body of work. IrannaIranna started with charcoal powder and then moved on to using cement as a medium, this is when he happen to what he calls “negotiate” with the material and decided to work sexclusively with ash, which is “stronger than cement”.The most fascinating thing is the use of ash and acrylic. “The mirror builds up an ego but at the same time you need to be aware of the fact that you are also ash… The beauty is in this realisation. Little we realise that all this one day will turn ash —— that’s the ultimate truth.R. It has layers but it is just a rug and I use it to show the ephemerality of life”, says Iranna. The only thing that matters is our soul.Her early leaf’s a flower;But only so an hour. We are born from the five elements of earth, fire, water, air and sky and we will merge into them. How many times we look in the mirror and marvel at the beauty of our reflection. “Carpet is the witness of our society, people use it for different purposes yet it’s temporary.. Iranna compels you to look beyond, look at your reflection, which is nothing but ash.So Eden sank to grief,So dawn goes down to day.”— Robert FrostThese lines from the poem Nothing Gold Can Stay have always stuck with me as it talks about the impermanence of life. It is or body and nature that has created this mirror where we see beauty, glory, youth but not ash.Nothing gold can stay.“Nature’s first green is gold,Her hardest hue to hold. Carpet is something we use as a decorative item in our drawing rooms and bed rooms, it is often used for prayers as well.Earlier, Iranna was only a visitor where he would admire the creativity of others but being a participant in the Biennale opened up a whole new world for him.
This installation goes a step further to show how the carpet is decorated from both sides yet it is not permanent; it will outlive its utility. Iranna has been using the holy ash or vibhuti as we call it in Hindi as a primary medium. Taking a step further and giving this thought his own interpretation is renowned artist G. I want people to think of the other aspect of mirror too”, elucidates Iranna. They not only praised my work but also gave critical comments and shared their thoughts about my work which for me was the most valuable feedback for me,” says Iranna. In a way it doesn’t exist. This too is made of ash. So good is he at his craft that the artworks hold your gaze and you are unable to move acrylic letters signs or even think; almost trance-like
Historically, its very important. I think you see a lot of very positive things happening with President Xi, who has helped me quite a bit with this.Washington: US President Donald Trump confirmed that his Singapore Summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un would take place on June 12, and said it would begin the process of denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula. And I think were totally over that. I didnt like the Russian meeting yesterday.."It will be a beginning. He is not going to run and do things. And they want other things along the line. "It was actually very interesting because this was literally going to be the delivery of a letter, and it ended up being a two-hour conversation with the second-most powerful man in North Korea," he said. Now were going to deal, and were going to really start a process," he said."I think they want to do that."We talked about almost everything. Trump acknowledged that denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula was going to be a long process."I think itll be a process. Trump said they also talked about ending the Korean war.
This war has been going on -- its got to be the longest war -- almost 70 years, right? And there is a possibility of something like that. If its a negative meeting, Im not happy," he said. Based on the talks, Trump said the China 3D signs Manufacturers North Korean leader was committed to denuclearisation. If its a positive meeting, I love it. I have no doubt," the US President said. I cancelled it in response to a very tough statement.
We did discuss the ending of the Korean War," he said. "My letter was a response to their letter. We would not take sanctions off unless they did that. I dont say and Ive never said it happens in one meeting. Without us, it wouldnt happen.Trump said countries in the region – Japan and South Korea – were also involved in this."We talked about ending the war. He wants to be careful. Responding to a question, Trump said he had never cancelled the meeting.The president described the letter as very interesting and nice. We talked about sanctions," Trump added. He said the United States was unlikely to offer much aid to North Korea, which would be taken care of by South Korea and Japan."I didnt like it, but it could be very positive, too. But the sanctions are very powerful. Youre talking years of hostility, problems and hatred between so many different nations. Its not going to be starting up again. But well see. You know, the media said, Oh, you had a meeting, then you cancelled. But the relationships are building, and thats a very positive thing," he said. Confident that the North Koreans wanted to achieve this goal, he said they want other things along the line. They want to develop as a country.
"The meeting went very well.The President said he looked forward to the day when the sanctions could be lifted Trump, however, said the current level of sanctions on North Korea would remain. But I think that you see a lot of very positive things, including with China. It is ultimately going to be a successful process," Trump said. They have a potential to be a great country. Thats going to happen. I know they want to do that. The media forgot that.The President went on to confirm that the summit would take place in Singapore on June 12. Everybody wants the United States. Its really a get-to-know-you kind of a situation," Trump said at an impromptu press conference with the White House pool soon after the North Korean envoy left.His letter to Kim Jong-un was in response to statements coming from them. Well be meeting on June 12th in Singapore. It went very well. But I told him, to be honest with you, look, we have sanctions on; theyre very powerful sanctions. "Were going to make sure when this is over, its over.
"Its going to remain what it is now.Responding to a question, Trump said he was concerned about the recent visit of the Russian foreign minister to Pyongyang. "I do think so. Thats more of a signing of a document that its very important in one way. So well see where it leads," he said.The United States, Trump said, was going to ensure the security of Kim Jong-un. I never said it goes in one meeting. Youre going to see how powerful sanctions are when it comes to Iran. I didnt cancel the meeting. You see what thats doing to Iran," he said. "Were involved in terms of getting everything. Hed like to see it happen.Trumps announcement came at the end of a nearly 80-minute meeting in the Oval Office of the White House with North Korean envoy Kim Yong Chol. So were going to help in the process."We are meeting with the Chairman (Kim Jong-un) on June 12 (in Singapore). I think South Korea, Japan and China are going to help a lot," he said. I dont even want to use the term maximum pressure anymore because were getting along," he said. But I think youre going to have a very positive result in the end," he added.Kim Yong Chol delivered a letter from the North Korean leader to Trump. Kim Yong Chol arrived in Washington DC after two days of talks with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in New York
“I am tired of men telling women how to feel or dress or behave or be patronising about rape.In an age of digital communication, open letters are still possibly the fastest way to get your word around. “I think that it’s great that these people have stepped up and spoken about this as something that is affecting their own lives.” While author at the feminist blog Ladies Finger, Nisha Susan praises the idea of the open letters as a form of starting a dialogue in society, she too agrees that the content in Big B and Farhan’s letters came across as preachy. They sounded like general speeches, preachy and impersonal. While Farhan’s letter speaks of his helplessness as a father to a daughter who lives in a society full of sexual violence.
Mary’s is a personal take on how she herself was molested as she urges her sons to grow up to respect women. A few days prior to the release of his movie Pink, Amitabh Bachchan penned an open letter to his granddaughters. Whether it was for publicity’s sake or not, the letter became an inspiration for other celebrities to write open letters — Farhan Akhtar and Mary Kom. The first time I spoke about it on a personal level was at a conference where I said that most of my friends, and even I had had to face sexual abuse at some point in our lives and suddenly everyone only wanted to know my story, because I’m a celebrity and that’s just not something I’m comfortable talking about outside of a select group of people. I am tired of seeing men in real life and reel life wearing capes and coming out to ‘save’ women. While they can definitely follow it up by creating forums for debate and discussions, it is all right even if they choose not to, because they have already thrown the matter open to the public. I think it is very impactful and motivational to hear people who have experienced their story and have decided to share it. I haven’t read Farhan’s letter but somehow cannot relate to anything that does not stem from personal experience,” says celebrity hairstylist and feminist Sapna Bhavnani.
The letters hogged the virtual space, making sure what transpired between the celebrities and their kids was for all to see.”She goes on, “I respect Mary Kom for her letter. “Even if these letters are simply about publicity, it’s fine. If one of them had said something like, ‘I see this inequality in my field — in the film industry — everyday and I will do everything I can to make it more equitable for women, I would have found it more interesting.“The recent letter that Amitabh Bachchan penned for his granddaughter was very sexist in my opinion. Having read Farhan’s letter, she says that it is as personal as it gets, since the fear of a father for his daughter’s safety is very real. It encouraged Aradhya Bachchan and Navya Nanda to stand on their own two feet and not to let society dictate their actions. While one faction of the readers praised the actor for writing the letter, a section of the Twitterati called it a mere publicity stunt for his film. Farhan, as a father, feels helpless when his daughter is unsafe.”Nisha too believes that any kind of positive dialogue about social inequalities is necessary in the current social context. Who are we to moralise the issue If you’re a public figure and your movie is talking about sexual violence, then I think that it’s fine to promote the film in this way because then at least it spreads a useful message,” she says.
“I don’t think that there is anything special or personal in the letters that Amitabh Bachchan or Farhan Akhtar wrote. So, I’m learning as I go along, to find a positive way to express the message through a play or through writing that gets my point across and ensures that it’s not misused.”Actor and theatre person, Kalki Koechlin, on the other hand, wholly praises the attempt. While most readers have praised Mary for her stark and eloquent writing, some seem to doubt the sincerity of the letters written by the men. He talks about the custom acrylic letters legacy of his great grandfather but does not care to speak of the great grandmother! The letter was unknowingly steeped in patriarchy besides being a publicity stunt. After all, who’s going to go and check if Amitabh Bachchan is being nice to his granddaughter or Farhan Akhtar is giving his daughter freedom While I appreciate the attempt, I wish that they had been more personal, like Mary Kom, who spoke about her own experience. When a celebrity is writing an open letter, it brings attention to the issue.Actress and director of the iconic play Vagina Monologues, Mahabanoo Mody-Kotwal agrees, “Silence is equal to death.”Inputs by Julie Sam.Speaking from personal experience, Kalki says, “It is important to choose how you want to talk about issues. He is one of the most vocal feminists in Bollywood right now and he has tried to propagate the message through his songs, at his concerts and if he’s made use of his Bollywood fame to do it, it’s fine because he’s talking about something that needs to be talked about,” she says. Standing testimony to the fact are open letters penned by Amitabh Bachchan, Farhan Akhtar and more recently Mary Kom, addressing the sensitive issue of molestation and rape