'One nation, one election' not possible under present Constitution: P Chidambaram
Chandigarh, Sep 16: Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday lashed out at the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre over the 'one nation, one election' issue, saying it is not possible under the present Constitution and requires at least five constitutional amendments.
Replying to a question on reports that the BJP-led NDA government would implement 'one nation, one election' within its current tenure, he said Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not have the numbers to place those constitutional amendments either in the Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha.
In his Independence Day address last month, the prime minister made a strong pitch for 'one nation, one election', contending that frequent polls were creating hurdles in the country's progress.
Addressing reporters here, Chidambaram said, "'One nation, one election' is not possible under the present Constitution. It requires at least five constitutional amendments."
"Mr Modi does not have the majority to put those constitutional amendments in either in the Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha," the former Union minister said.
He asserted that there were greater constitutional obstacles to 'one nation, one election'. "It is not possible. The INDIA bloc is totally opposed to 'One Nation, One Election."
To a question on PM Modi recently alleging that the Congress wanted to end reservation, Chidambaram rejected the charge. "Why should we abolish reservation?" he asked rhetorically.
"We are the ones who are saying that the reservation ceiling of 50 per cent must be removed. We are the ones who are asking for a caste census. We are saying reservation must be according to the population. Do not believe everything the prime minister says," he told the reporters.
At a rally in Kurukshetra on September 15, Prime Minister Modi had lashed out at the Congress, alleging its "royal family" intended to end reservation for Dalits and asserted that as long as he was there, he would not let even a fraction of reservation given by B R Ambedkar be looted or removed.
At the media interaction here on Monday Chidambaram was asked if the Congress would announce its chief ministerial face for the October 5 Haryana assembly polls. He said that normally, the Congress does not announce a CM candidate before the polls.
"The practice is that elections take place, MLAs gather and their preferences are asked. Then the high command announces who will be the chief minister. I think the same practice will be followed in Haryana," he said.
The senior Congress leader hit out at the BJP government in the state over several issues, including unemployment, agriculture and state debt.
He appealed to the people to vote for the Congress in the Assembly elections and promised that his party would bring back Haryana's growth rate, give a fillip to development, agriculture, and industry, and tackle issues of unemployment and inflation.
"The BJP boasts of a double-engine government. One engine is without fuel and the other is completely broken down. What is the use of such a double-engine government? The time has come to junk the two engines," Chidambaram said.
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Israel launches first airstrike on Lebanon since ceasefire, accusing Hezbollah of breaching truce
Beirut, Nov 28: The Israeli military on Thursday said its warplanes fired on southern Lebanon after detecting Hezbollah activity at a rocket storage facility, the first Israeli airstrike a day after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took hold.
There was no immediate word on casualties from Israel's aerial attack, which came hours after the Israeli military said it fired on people trying to return to certain areas in southern Lebanon. Israel said they were violating the ceasefire agreement, without providing details. Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said two people were wounded.
The back-to-back incidents stirred unease about the agreement, brokered by the United States and France, which includes an initial two-month ceasefire in which Hezbollah members are to withdraw north of the Litani River and Israeli forces are to return to their side of the border. The buffer zone would be patrolled by Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers.
On Thursday, the second day of a ceasefire after more than a year of bloody conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, Lebanon's state news agency reported that Israeli fire targeted civilians in Markaba, close to the border, without providing further details. Israel said it fired artillery in three other locations near the border. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
An Associated Press reporter in northern Israel near the border heard Israeli drones buzzing overhead and the sound of artillery strikes from the Lebanese side.
The Israeli military said in a statement that “several suspects were identified arriving with vehicles to a number of areas in southern Lebanon, breaching the conditions of the ceasefire.” It said troops “opened fire toward them” and would “actively enforce violations of the ceasefire agreement.”
Israeli officials have said forces will be withdrawn gradually as it ensures that the agreement is being enforced. Israel has warned people not to return to areas where troops are deployed, and says it reserves the right to strike Hezbollah if it violates the terms of the truce.
A Lebanese military official said Lebanese troops would gradually deploy in the south as Israeli troops withdraw. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief media.
The ceasefire agreement announced late Tuesday ended 14 months of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah that began a day after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack out of Gaza, when the Lebanese Hezbollah group began firing rockets, drones and missiles in solidarity.
Israel retaliated with airstrikes, and the conflict steadily intensified for nearly a year before boiling over into all-out war in mid-September. The war in Gaza is still raging with no end in sight.
More than 3,760 people were killed by Israeli fire in Lebanon during the conflict, many of them civilians, according to Lebanese health officials. The fighting killed more than 70 people in Israel — over half of them civilians — as well as dozens of Israeli soldiers fighting in southern Lebanon.
Some 1.2 million people were displaced in Lebanon, and thousands began streaming back to their homes on Wednesday despite warnings from the Lebanese military and the Israeli army to stay out of certain areas. Some 50,000 people were displaced on the Israeli side, but few have returned and the communities near the northern border are still largely deserted.
In Menara, an Israeli community on the border with views into Lebanon, around three quarters of homes are damaged, some with collapsed roofs and burnt-out interiors. A few residents could be seen gathering their belongings on Thursday before leaving again.
