Jyotiraditya Scindia likely to join BJP in presence of JP Nadda
New Delhi: A day after announcing his resignation from Congress, Jyotiraditya Scindia is likely to join BJP on Wednesday in the presence of the ruling party's president JP Nadda.
According to sources, the BJP is likely to name him as one of its candidates for the Rajya Sabha polls in Madhya Pradesh and is also confident of forming the government in the state with his help as 22 MLAs including Scindia's supporters have resigned from the state Assembly reducing the Kamal Nath government to a minority.
BJP's media cell sent out a message saying an "eminent personality" will join the party in the presence of its president JP Nadda.
Peeved with his marginalisation in the Congress, Scindia met Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday and then the two leaders went to the prime minister's residence where they held talks for over an hour.
Soon after meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the disgruntled Madhya Pradesh Congress leader tendered his resignation to party president Sonia Gandhi saying it was time for him to move on.
Scindia took the decision to sever his ties with the Congress on the day of his father Madhavrao Scindia's 75th birth anniversary.
Scindia, four-time MP, first got elected from Guna in Madhya Pradesh in 2002 after winning a by-election necessitated by his father's demise. He was only 31 years old at that time.
He gradually made his way up the Congress ladder becoming Minister of State for Communications and IT in 2007 during the Congress-led UPA-1. In 2009, he became Minister of State for Commerce and Industry and in 2012 was appointed Minister of State for Power during UPA-2.
After the Congress lost the 2014 General Election, Sonia Gandhi named him the party's chief whip in the Lok Sabha. He is expected to be nominated by the BJP for Rajya Sabha from Madhya Pradesh.
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No unannounced load shedding in Kerala, outages due to overload, says Minister
Palakkad (PTI): Kerala Electricity Minister K Krishnankutty on Saturday said there was no unannounced load shedding in the state, attributing recent power interruptions to temporary overload caused by high consumption.
Clarifying concerns raised from various parts of the state, the minister said the disruptions are not deliberate but occur when demand peaks, particularly between 10 pm and 11 pm.
"It is not being done intentionally. Power consumption has risen sharply, and when there is excessive and indiscriminate usage, the system experiences overload, leading to natural supply interruptions," he told reporters here.
His remarks come amid complaints that several areas have been witnessing frequent power cuts, often lasting around 15 minutes and occurring multiple times during the night.
Krishnankutty said the state's power demand has crossed 6,195 MW, putting pressure on the supply system. He added that around 70 per cent of Kerala's electricity is procured from outside, and existing power banking arrangements have been exhausted.
"We have approached the Regulatory Commission seeking permission to purchase more power. However, this will come at a higher cost," he said.
The minister said the government is trying to avoid increasing electricity tariffs and urged consumers to exercise restraint in usage to help manage the situation.
Responding to opposition criticism over the ruling LDF's earlier claims of a decade without power cuts, he said the current situation is not unique to Kerala.
A power crisis is emerging across the country, he said, and sarcastically asked the Opposition to take note of the role of natural factors in this.
Krishnankutty expressed confidence that the situation would improve within two days, while cautioning that long-term energy security would depend on enhancing in-state power generation.
He also warned that future generations could face serious challenges if adequate electricity production capacity is not developed within Kerala.
