Delhi services ordinance issue: Kejriwal seeks time to meet Cong chief Kharge, Rahul Gandhi
New Delhi (PTI): Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has sought time to meet Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and party leader Rahul Gandhi for their support to oppose the Centre's ordinance on control of services in Delhi.
The Centre on May 19 had promulgated the ordinance to create an authority for the transfer and posting of Group-A officers in Delhi, which the AAP government had called a deception with the Supreme Court verdict on control of services.
"Sought time this morning to meet Congress president Kharge ji and Rahul Gandhi ji to seek Congress support in Parliament against undemocratic and unconstitutional ordinance passed by BJP government and also to discuss general assault on federal structure and prevailing political situation," Kejriwal tweeted.
The ordinance came a week after the Supreme Court handed over the control of services in Delhi, excluding police, public order and land, to the elected government. It seeks to set up a National Capital Civil Service Authority for transfer of and disciplinary proceedings against Group-A officers from the DANICS cadre.
Transfer and postings of all officers of the Delhi government were under the executive control of the lieutenant governor before the May 11 top court verdict.
Chief Minister Kejriwal, who is the AAP's national convener, has sought support of various political parties, including the NCP, the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the TMC, on the Delhi services issue.
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Surat LS candidate Nilesh Kumbhani whose nomination form was rejected suspended from Congress
Ahmedabad, Apr 25: The Gujarat Congress on Friday suspended from the party for six years its Surat Lok Sabha candidate Nilesh Kumbhani, whose nomination form was rejected over discrepancies leading to the BJP's Mukesh Dalal getting elected unopposed.
A statement from the Congress said the party's disciplinary committee decided to suspend Kumbhani after thorough discussion, adding it had come to the conclusion that the nomination form was rejected due to gross negligence on his part or "in connivance with the BJP".
"To be fair to you we have given time to you to explain your case but instead of coming before the party disciplinary committee you have gone incommunicado. After your form was rejected by the authorities, BJP went ahead and got form of other eight candidates withdrawn. This has deprived people of Surat their voting rights," the Congress disciplinary committee headed by Balu Patel said.
"People of Surat and party workers have become very angry due to your action and are expressing their anger in different ways. The Congress party has decided to suspend you for six years from the party," the press note said.
Kumbhani's nomination form was rejected on April 21 after his three proposers submitted affidavits to the district returning officer claiming the signatures on the document was not theirs.
The nomination form of Suresh Padsala, the Congress' substitute candidate from Surat, was also invalidated on the same grounds.
In his order, Returning Officer Sourabh Pardhi said the three nomination forms submitted by Kumbhani and Padsala were rejected after prima facie discrepancy was found in the signatures of the proposers and they did not appear to be genuine.
Kumbhani, a former corporator from Surat, had unsuccessfully fought the 2022 Assembly polls from Kamrej there.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's Mukesh Dalal was elected unopposed from Surat Lok Sabha constituency on April 22 after all other nominees, including one from BSP, withdrew from the fray one by one on the last day of withdrawing papers.
