Bihar: Rupauli MLA Bima Bharti quits JD(U), joins RJD
Patna (PTI): In a setback to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U), its MLA Bima Bharti on Saturday quit the party and joined his arch-rival Lalu Prasad's RJD, triggering speculations that she might get a Lok Sabha ticket.
She was inducted into the RJD by former Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav late in the evening, hours after her resignation letter went viral on social media.
On switching sides, Bharti said, "My husband and son are in jail, which is proof that 'ati-pichhda' (extremely backward) classes enjoy no respect in Bihar's ruling coalition. Lalu-ji has assured me of his blessings. I am ready to contest Lok Sabha polls if he asks me to do so."
Bharti, a former state minister, represents the Rupauli assembly segment in the Purnea district. She had remained conspicuous by her absence at the state assembly last month when the Nitish Kumar government sought a trust vote.
Once known to be in the good books of the CM, she got on his wrong side a few years ago when she threw a fit over the induction of Leshi Singh in the state cabinet.
Singh is the JD(U) MLA from Dhamdaha in Purnea and her late husband Butan Singh, a local strongman, had been a fierce rival of Bharti's spouse Awadhesh Mandal.
Speculations are rife that Bharti may be fielded by the RJD from Purnea though it could lead to problems with ally Congress, which recently inducted ex-MP Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav who wants to contest that seat.
Meanwhile, in a related development, former MLA Faraz Fatmi also gave up his membership of the JD(U), less than a week after the resignation of his father Mohammed Ali Ashraf Fatmi, who was a national general secretary in the party.
The father-son duo has been formerly associated with the RJD. Fatmi senior is a four-term former MP and has expressed his desire to contest the Lok Sabha poll from Madhubani, a seat which has gone into the kitty of JD(U)'s ally BJP.
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MediaOne TV Facebook page restored after block linked to ‘government request’
Kochi: The official Facebook page of Malayalam news channel MediaOne TV has been restored after being blocked without prior notice, the broadcaster said on Wednesday.
The channel was quoted by Maktoob as saying that the restriction was lifted automatically, with Meta Platforms informing it that the action had been taken following a “government request” which has now expired or been reversed.
The development came shortly after the channel approached the Kerala High Court challenging the blocking of its page, terming it arbitrary and in violation of legal provisions and judicial precedents. The High Court had issued notice to Meta via email hours before the restriction was withdrawn.
In its petition, the channel said access to its Facebook page had been restricted for users in India without citing any specific content or alleged violation. It contended that while individual posts may be taken down under applicable a rule, blocking an entire page goes beyond the scope of such measures.
The incident followed an earlier action taken against the channel in 2022, when the Ministry of Information and transmitting prohibited it from transmitting. It cited national security concerns regarding the Ministry of Home Affairs' refusal of security clearance.
The Supreme Court of India in April 2023 set aside the ban, observing that national security claims cannot be made without substantive basis and that criticism of government policies does not render a media outlet anti-national.
