BJP rebel K L Thakur wins from Nalagarh seat in Himachal polls
Shimla (PTI): BJP rebel K L Thakur, who contested as an Independent, won from Nalagarh assembly seat in Himachal Pradesh on Thursday, according to the Election Commission.
Thakur defeated his nearest Congress rival Hardeep Singh Bawa by a margin of 13,264 votes.
Thakur had won the 2012 state polls on a BJP ticket but lost in 2017 and was denied a ticket by the party this time.
The BJP chose Lakhwinder Singh Rana, a two-term Congress MLA, who jumped ship ahead of the elections.
All the three Independent candidates in the fray -- Thakur, Hoshiyar Singh from Dehra and Ashish Sharma from Hamirpur -- were BJP rebels.
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Karnataka Guv to halve convoy size following PM Modi's austerity call
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on Thursday reduced the size of his official convoy to the minimum required strength following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's austerity call.
In a post on 'X', the Lok Bhavan said Gehlot had taken the step in response to the Prime Minister's appeal for fuel conservation and reduction in foreign exchange expenditure amid the West Asia crisis.
"Hon'ble Governor of Karnataka Shri Thaawarchand Gehlot has reduced his convoy to the minimum required strength, following Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji's appeal," the post said.
The move comes days after Modi, while addressing a rally organised by the BJP in Hyderabad, called for several measures aimed at conserving foreign exchange and reducing dependence on imports amid tensions in West Asia.
The Prime Minister had urged citizens to reduce petrol and diesel consumption, use metro rail services in cities, adopt carpooling, increase the use of electric vehicles and utilise railway services for parcel transportation. He had also suggested working from home wherever possible to conserve fuel and foreign exchange.
Modi further appealed to people to postpone the purchase of gold and foreign travel for one year, reduce edible oil consumption, lower dependence on chemical fertilisers and promote natural farming and swadeshi products to strengthen self-reliance and conserve foreign exchange.
