INDIA bloc's formula is to give PM's post to alliance parties for one year each, says Modi in K'taka
Davangere, Apr 28: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday claimed that the INDIA bloc has come up with a "formula" whereby the parties in the opposition alliance will get the PM's post for one year each if they come to power. "With such a system, the good of the country cannot be expected," he said at an election rally here, as he urged the people not to waste their vote.
"I have heard that the INDI Alliance has invented a new formula...if the country has to be given into someone's hands, will we think before giving it or not? Will you give it to anyone? We will think whether the person is able to handle the country or not, will the track record be analysed or not?" Modi asked the people.
Questioning the INDIA bloc on which person or leader among them could the people hand over the country's responsibilities to, he asked, "Is there any name? Will you accept without any name, keeping you in the darkness? Will the country accept it?"
He claimed, "So they (INDIA bloc) have come up with a formula, to make everyone happy. If they get the opportunity for five years (to govern), they have told their alliance partners that each one will get one year of prime ministership. This means one year, one PM, next year second, then third, fourth and fifth..."
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Wondering what would happen to the country and the people if this becomes the "situation", the prime minister said: "Do you see the good of the country (happening) with such things? Do you see good in it for you and your children? Will you waste your vote for such a thing? Your vote is precious, please don't waste it even by mistake."
Former chief minister and party candidate from Haveri Basavaraj Bommai and Davangere BJP candidate Gayatri Siddeshwara were among others party leaders present at the rally.
Pointing out that a game of political one-upmanship is on in the Karnataka Congress "between leader one and leader two" (referring to CM Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM D K Shivakumar), Modi said they lack vision for the progress of the state.
"Due to its factionalism, nepotism, bad policies, Congress is playing with the future of youth, farmers and common citizens. Look at Karnataka Congress's situation -- 2.5 years he will be there (in CM post), next 2.5 years you come (indicating to the alleged plans for rotation of CM post between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar)," he said.
Targeting the Karnataka Congress government for putting the brakes on the New Education Policy, Modi claimed that they had cancelled it to keep their vote bank happy.
"The biggest loss because of this has happened to the youths...we may have political differences, but none has the right to destroy the future of the people," Modi said.
Karnataka has become the victim of the Congress's governance model under which they made a great sin of indulging in corruption and scams of crores of rupees, he said.
Accusing the Congress of creating a number of fake beneficiaries of government schemes in the name of the downtrodden, and claiming that this was their model of corruption, the PM said, "They have mastery in corruption. Our government has removed about 10 crore such fake beneficiary names and have put a lock on their (Congress) corruption."
The number of fake beneficiaries on paper was more than Karnataka's total population, and the money used to go from the government treasury, he claimed. "They used to usurp thousands of crores of money with the fake names, and this money used to go to Congress's ecosystem," he further claimed.
"Modi by Aadhaar and DBT has put an end to it and the money is now going to genuine beneficiaries," he went on to claim.
Modi also accused the Congress government in Karnataka of diverting Rs 11,000 crore from the SC/ST welfare fund towards their "corruption fund". He also alleged that Congress in Karnataka is distributing OBC reservation to its vote bank for the sake of appeasement.
Claiming that "Modi" is the name of guarantee for security and development in the country, the PM said, "This is Modi, you have seen me for 10 years... For me the security of my countrymen is my utmost priority."
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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.
