US to probe Trump campaign 'infiltration'
Washington, May 21: The US Department of Justice will investigate whether FBI agents spied on President Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign for "inappropriate purposes", media reports said.
In a tweet, Trump said he wanted to know whether his predecessor Barack Obama's administration ordered such a move.
"I hereby demand, and will do so officially tomorrow (Monday), that the Department of Justice look into whether or not the FBI/DOJ infiltrated or surveilled the Trump Campaign for Political Purposes and if any such demands or requests were made by people within the Obama Administration!"
"If anyone did infiltrate or surveil participants in a presidential campaign for inappropriate purposes, we need to know about it and take appropriate action," Deputy Attorney-General Rod Rosenstein said in a statement.
The call comes after the US media reports suggested the Federal Bureau of Investigation had an informant meeting campaign aides. Rosenstein said action would be taken if any infiltration was found, the BBC said.
There is already an investigation into all aspects relating to Trump's campaign for the 2016 election and whether Russia tried to influence the outcome.
Trump's latest demand came amid a series of tweets on Sunday denouncing a "witch hunt" that, he said, had found no collusion by his campaign with Russia.
This refers to the ongoing investigation led by Special Counsel Robert Mueller into Russia's efforts to interfere in the 2016 US election, whether there was any collusion between the Kremlin and Trump's election campaign and whether the president tried unlawfully to obstruct the inquiry.
Trump has constantly attacked the inquiry. "It took place very early on, and long before the phony Russia Hoax became a 'hot' Fake News story," Trump tweeted, adding: "If true - all time biggest political scandal!"
The New York Times followed with an article that suggested there was, indeed, an FBI informant -- whose identity it did not reveal -- who had been sent to speak to campaign aides but only after the FBI had received reports of "suspicious contacts linked to Russia".
The informant -- an American academic working in the UK -- had made contact with George Papadopoulos and Carter Page. The Washington Post reported a similar account.
Law enforcement officials have refused to provide evidence to Congressional leaders over the issue. They have argued that doing so would put the informant's life -- or that of his contacts -- in danger, the BBC said.
Trump could order the US Department of Justice -- which has oversight over the FBI -- to release the documents.
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BJP using women's quota bill as front to pass Delimitation Bill that will break India: Mamata
Cooch Behar (WB) (PTI): Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday alleged the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre was using the proposed amendment to the women's quota law in Parliament as a front for the Delimitation Bill that would "break the country into pieces".
The TMC will fight this Central government's move at every step, she asserted at her party's poll rally here.
The Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill to tweak the women's quota law, along with the Delimitation Bill and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, to implement the proposed amended women's quota law, in the Union territories of Delhi, Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir, were introduced in the Lok Sabha on Thursday.
According to the Constitution amendment bill, Lok Sabha seats will be increased to a maximum of 850 from the current 543 to "operationalise" the women's reservation law before the 2029 parliamentary polls, following a delimitation exercise based on the 2011 Census.
Seats will also be increased in state and Union territory assemblies to accommodate 33 per cent reservation for women.
Opposing the Centre's move, Banerjee alleged that "the BJP brought the Delimitation Bill while keeping the women's reservation bill at the front".
"The BJP is trying to increase the number of seats in the Lok Sabha to nearly 850 through the Delimitation Bill. It will break the country into pieces," the TMC supremo said.
She also alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was not speaking the truth about the development of north Bengal at a BJP rally last week.
"The prime minister said nothing was done for the development of north Bengal. But we spent Rs 1.72 lakh crore on the development of the region," Banerjee said and asked Modi to cross-check data before making such remarks.
