BJP names former IAS officer AK Sharma its MLC candidate in Uttar Pradesh
New Delhi: Former IAS officer Arvind Kumar Sharma, considered close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was on Friday named BJP's candidate for the upcoming legislative council polls in Uttar Pradesh.
Sharma had joined the BJP on Thursday, days after he opted for voluntary retirement from the IAS.
There is a strong possibility that Sharma after his election as a legislator will be given a key position in the state government led by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, sources have said.
A Gujarat cadre officer hailing from Uttar Pradesh, Sharma had long been one of the trusted bureaucrats of Modi since his tenure as Gujarat chief minister.
He also served in key positions in the PMO after Modi became prime minister in 2014.
Besides Sharma, the BJP also named Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma, its state president Swatantra Dev Sing and Lakshman Prasad Acharya as its candidates for the polls.
Polling for 12 legislative council seats in Uttar Pradesh will be held on January 28.
In the 100-member UP Legislative Council, the SP has 55 MLCs, BJP has 25 MLCs, BSP has eight MLCs, Congress and 'Nirdaliye Samooh' have two MLCs each and Apna Dal (S) and 'Shikshak Dal' have one MLC each. There are three independent MLCs and three seats are vacant.
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15 dead in Kolkata hotel fire; BJP slams CM Mamata over 'insensitive' response
Kolkata (PTI): Fifteen people, including a woman and two children, were killed in a devastating fire at a hotel in the Mechuapatti area of central Kolkata, police said on Wednesday.
Thirteen others were injured in the fire that broke out on Tuesday evening, a senior police officer said.
According to the Kolkata Police officer, the deceased include 11 men, eight of whom have been identified so far.
The condition of several of the injured is said to be critical, he said.
“There were 88 guests in 42 rooms at the time of the incident. A boy, a girl and a woman are among the dead. The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained. Our forensic team will examine the site, which has been cordoned off,” the officer said.
The fire was first reported around 7:30 PM. Ten fire tenders were pressed into service, and the blaze was brought under control, after nearly 10 hours, this morning on Wednesday, a fire and emergency services official said.
"There were 15 fatalities in last night’s fire. Eight of the deceased have been identified," state minister Sujit Bose told PTI.
In the wake of the tragedy, the Kolkata Police has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the incident.
West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar lashed out at Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, accusing her of "insensitivity" for attending a day-long inauguration programme of Jagannath Dham in Digha while the fire tragedy was unfolding in the state capital.
"Yesterday, a devastating fire in the Mechhua area of Burrabazar claimed the lives of more than 14 innocent people. Many more are battling for their lives. Yet, the chief minister chose to remain silent and continued with her religious event in Digha," Majumdar said in a strongly worded statement.
"This exposes her lack of empathy and the failure of her administration. While helpless citizens were trapped in flames and dying in pain, the CM was busy exploiting religion for political gain. Her year-round appeasement and election-time religious posturing have once again taken precedence over governance," he alleged
Majumdar called upon BJP workers across the state to immediately mobilise relief efforts and extend support to the victims' families.
"I will personally stand by the affected families and oversee our party's involvement in the rescue and relief operations," he said.
