Rahul targets BJP over recruits marked SC/ST on chest in MP
New Delhi, April 30: Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Monday attacked the RSS and BJP over the labelling of the aspirants for the post of police constables with their respective caste on their chest during a medical examination in Madhya Pradesh saying the ruling party had stabbed the country with its casteist approach.
In a tweet, Gandhi blamed the incident on the thinking of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) adding that the Congress will defeat such thinking. Gandhi also attached a picture of the candidates having marks on their chests.
"The casteist mentality of the BJP government has stabbed the country on its chest. By writing SC/ST on the chest of the youth of Madhya Pradesh, it has attacked the Constitution," he said in a tweet.
"This is the thinking of BJP/RSS. This thinking earlier led to tying "handi" (small earthen pot) to their neck, led to tying broom to the body, did not allow them to enter temples. We will defeat this mentality," he said.
The aspirants under the reserved category were marked with their caste -- SC (Scheduled Caste) or ST (Scheduled Tribe) -- on their chest for identification during a medical examination in Dhar district of Madhya Pradesh.
The state government ordered a probe into the incident on Sunday.
Dhar Superintendent of Police Virendra Singh told IANS on Sunday that there might not be any malicious intent behind it.
"Last time some mistakes happened during the recruitment. The hospital may have used this method to avoid any mistake this time. However, a probe has been ordered," he said.
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Investors become poorer by Rs 12 lakh cr in three days of market fall
New Delhi, Jan 10: Investors' wealth tumbled Rs 12 lakh crore in three days of market slump due to uninterrupted foreign fund outflows and concerns over quarterly earnings.
Also, rising crude oil prices and a strengthening dollar index added to investors' pessimism.
In three days, the BSE benchmark Sensex tanked 820.2 points or 1.04 per cent.
On Friday, the 30-share BSE benchmark declined 241.30 points or 0.31 per cent to settle at 77,378.91. During the day, the benchmark gyrated 820.15 points between the day's high of 77,919.70 and low of 77,099.55.
The NSE Nifty dropped 95 points or 0.40 per cent to 23,431.50.
The market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms diminished by Rs 12,07,314.99 crore to Rs 4,29,67,835.05 crore (USD 5 trillion) in the three days.
From the 30-share blue-chip pack on Friday, IndusInd Bank, NTPC, UltraTech Cement, State Bank of India, Sun Pharma, Axis Bank, Tata Steel and Power Grid were among the major laggards.
Tata Consultancy Services jumped nearly 6 per cent after the IT services company reported an 11.95 per cent surge in the December quarter net profit to Rs 12,380 crore.
Devarsh Vakil, Head of Prime Research at HDFC Securities, said, "Strong quarterly earnings from TCS drove the IT index up 3.4 per cent, helping the market withstand a sharp sell-off."
However, despite broad gains across IT stocks, the Nifty fell for the third consecutive session, Vakil added.
Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, Infosys and Bajaj Finserv were the other big gainers.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 7,170.87 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.
"Domestic market sentiment remained subdued due to rising crude oil prices, driven by supply concerns, and a strengthening dollar index. Despite the IT sector's resilience following positive early Q3 results, broader indices bled due to uncertainties surrounding Trump policies and high valuations.
"Consolidation may persist in the near term, yet investors are closely watching the US non-farm payroll data today for further guidance," Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, said.
The BSE smallcap gauge dropped 2.40 per cent and midcap index declined 2.13 per cent.
Among BSE sectoral indices, power tanked 3.07 per cent, utilities (2.86 per cent), realty (2.64 per cent), industrials (2.08 per cent), commodities (2.05 per cent) and consumer durables (1.98 per cent).
BSE Focused IT jumped 3.17 per cent, IT (2.65 per cent) and teck (2.24 per cent) were the biggest gainers.
As many as 3,167 stocks declined while 827 advanced and 84 remained unchanged on the BSE.
"Markets continued its downward trajectory as the rupee dropping to new lows against the strengthening dollar has further dampened investors' sentiment. Amid concerns of subdued economic growth and expectations of a slowdown in the quarterly earnings, investors cut their bet on banking and mid & small cap stocks.
"With expensive valuations of Indian markets at large still a concern, investors would mostly resort to stock-specific activities," Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research) at Mehta Equities Ltd, said.
