Surprising Karan Singh 'sidestepped' Rijuju's 'hit job' on Nehru: Jairam Ramesh
New Delhi (PTI): Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Thursday criticised party colleague Karan Singh for "sidestepping" Union minister Kiren Rijuju's "hit job" on Jawaharlal Nehru's role in Jammu and Kashmir's accession to India.
The Congress general secretary's remarks come over an article by Karan Singh on Jammu and Kashmir's accession to India in an English daily in which Ramesh said he had defended his father and erstwhile ruler Hari Singh.
Reacting to the piece, Congress general secretary in-charge communications Ramesh said on Twitter, "There is not a single scholarly and serious work on J&K that portrays Maharaja Hari Singh in good light."
"Even this authoritative work by VP Menon doesn't make Hari Singh a wronged man. It is hence natural that his son Dr. Karan Singh defends him in the HT today," Ramesh said, sharing the screenshot of the cover of a book by Menon.
"What I find surprising though is that Dr.Karan Singh has sidestepped Rijuju's hit job on Nehru. This the same Nehru without whose support Dr. Karan Singh wouldn't have achieved much, as he acknowledges in his 2006 book with 216 letters exchanged between them during 1948-64," he said.
This is the same Nehru to whom Singh dedicated his book on Aurobindo in May 1962, and for which the country's first PM wrote a wonderful foreword, he added.
Jammu and Kahmir's accession came into focus with Rijiju writing an article for a portal citing "five Nehruvian blunders", including floating the idea of a plebiscite and terming Jammu and Kashmir's accession provisional.
The minister had said it was important to realise past mistakes to build a new future and added he has not tweaked history but stated facts to set the record straight.
The Congress had demanded an apology from Rijiju over his criticism of Nehru's handling of the Kashmir issue and asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to rein in ministers from making "irresponsible statements".
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
