Will bring to justice those who stole from you, Rahul tells jawans, IAF officers and HAL workers
New Delhi, Sep 25: Congress chief Rahul Gandhi Tuesday said he understands the pain of jawans, Air Force officers, the families of martyred pilots as well as Hindustan Aeronautics Limited workers and will work to bring to justice all those who dishonoured and stole from them.
Gandhi addressed them all on Twitter in his apparent attack against the Narendra Modi government on the issue of the Rafale fighter jet deal.
"To every Air Force officer and Jawan who has served India. To the family of every martyred Indian fighter pilot. To every person who ever worked for HAL. We hear your pain. We understand how you feel. We will bring to justice all those who dishonoured and stole from you," he said on Twitter.
Gandhi has been attacking the government on the Rafale deal, accusing the Modi government and the prime minister of putting money into the pockets of his "crony" friends.
Yesterday, he said the country's "chowkidar" Modi snatched money away from the poor and handed it over to industrialist Anil Ambani.
Gandhi also asked the prime minister for answers on several issues relating to the Rafale jet fighter deal.
"The chowkidar of the country has taken out Rs 20,000 crore from the pockets of the poor, martyrs and the jawans and put it in the pocket of (Anil) Ambani," Gandhi said at a meeting in the Jais area of his Lok Sabha constituency.
"HAL which has been in the business for 70 years, makes aircraft...while Anil Ambani had not made an aircraft in his life and also has an outstanding bank loan of Rs 45,000 crore," he said.
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Pvt bus operators demand immediate hike in payment rates for buses requisitioned by EC
Kolkata (PTI): A representative body of private bus operators in West Bengal on Tuesday demanded an immediate announcement of higher payment rates for requisitioned vehicles to be deployed during the assembly elections next month, alleging that repeated appeals to the Election Commission in this regard have been ignored.
In a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer, the Joint Council of Bus Syndicate said that despite two rounds of communication with the authorities, no decision has yet been conveyed to them for hiking the rates for acquiring buses and minibuses for poll duty.
Even after two letters to the CEO’s office regarding the fare for the acquisition of buses/minibuses for elections, the operators have not received any decision so far, Syndicate Secretary Tapan Banerjee told PTI.
“The election dates have been announced for April 23 and 29. Central forces have already arrived in the state, and the administration has begun to requisition the buses for their movement. But we are yet to know the EC’s response to our demands,” he said.
“As we have to bear the expenses of fuel and wages of our conductors and drivers, our demand must be addressed immediately,” Banerjee added.
The bus operators have placed a detailed set of demands, including revised daily rates excluding fuel costs. “We demand Rs 4,000 per day (excluding diesel) for ordinary buses, Rs 4,500 for express buses, and Rs 5,500 for AC buses,” the letter stated.
In addition, the union has sought a daily allowance for workers.
“A daily allowance of Rs 500 must be provided to workers on duty,” it said.
The letter also stressed payment terms, demanding advance compensation and timely settlement of dues.
“At least 75 per cent of the payment should be made in advance, and the remaining amount must be cleared within 15 days of bill submission,” the union said.
Raising concerns about workers’ voting rights, the union further stated, “Arrangements for postal ballots must be ensured for workers on duty so that no worker is deprived of voting.”
Among other logistical concerns, the union demanded that a bus from one district should not be deployed in another.
