With eye on polls, Modi reviews schemes with BJP CMs
New Delhi, Aug 28 : Preparing for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls and Assembly elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday took stock of the implementation of the various welfare schemes with Chief Ministers and Deputy Chief Ministers of 15 states, who took a pledge to ensure that he comes back to power with a bigger majority in Parliament.
In a day-long meeting of the BJP Chief Ministers' Council here at the party headquarters, chaired by President Amit Shah, the Chief Ministers said the party will face the people in the next Lok Sabha polls on the issues of the implementation of the development programmes it has initiated and also on the promises it made in the 2014 election manifesto.
"The Prime Minister took stock of the work done by the states and also discussed the situation in the states in the wake of the Center's initiative on higher MSP (minimum support price) for farmers, passage of OBC Commission Bill giving it a constitutional status, restoration of provisions of SC/ST Act, the National Register of Citizens in Assam and the Citizens Amendment Bill," Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh told a press conference.
"We resolved that the BJP, under Narendra Modi, will form a majority government again in 2019 by increasing its Lok Sabha tally of 2014," he said, adding they were confident of winning the Assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.
taking a dig at the Congress for its plans to form a grand alliance with regional parties to defeat Modi in 2014, Singh said that it was too early to comment as they have not yet decided their leader.
"They have not yet decided the criteria for selection of the Prime Ministerial candidate. One party says the candidate will be of the party that wins maximum seats while other says that the candidate would be of the largest party. I think they won't be able to decide the issue till the elections. It is only Narendra Modi who will be the Prime Minister in 2019," he said.
He said how the pace of implementation of Centre's schemes like Ujjawal, Saubhagya, Aawas, Swachha Bharat and others need to be increased was also discussed at the meet.
Singh said the Prime Minister and the BJP President gave valuable suggestions to the Chief Ministers of the three party-ruled states on winning the coming elections. The Chief Ministers presented a report on the situation in their states.
The meeting also discussed plans to reach out to the beneficiaries of the Centre's welfare schemes.
The BJP has 15 Chief Ministers and seven Deputy Chief Ministers -- two in Uttar Pradesh and one each in Gujarat, Bihar, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Tripura.
The Council meeting has been an annual affair since 2014.
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Cricketer Rinku Singh to marry Samajwadi Party MP Priya Saroj
Jaunpur (UP) (PTI): Indian cricketer Rinku Singh is set to get hitched to Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Priya Saroj, according to her family.
Priya Saroj's father and SP MLA from Kerakat Tufani Saroj told PTI that his family held "meaningful talks" with Singh's father in Aligarh on January 16 regarding the marriage of their children and both sides agreed to the matrimonial alliance.
No ring ceremony or pre-wedding programme has been held so far, he said.
According to Tufani Saroj, a three-time MP, his daughter and Singh got acquainted through one of her friends whose father is also a cricketer.
"Rinku and Priya have known each other for more than a year now. They both liked each other but needed the consent of their families for their relationship. Both the families have agreed to this marriage," he said.
Dates of engagement and wedding will be decided after the Parliament session. The engagement will be held in Lucknow, he said.
Singh will be playing the T20I series against England from January 22. He will also be playing in the IPL after this. It will be ensured that the wedding functions do not impact his game, he added.
According to sources, the two families met at Singh's house in Ozone City, Aligarh and finalised the marriage by exchanging 'shagun' and gifts.
Priya Saroj is a resident of Karkhiyaon village in Varanasi. She has been associated with the SP for several years now and was elected to the Lok Sabha from Machhlishahr constituency in Jaunpur district last year at the age of 25.
A former Supreme Court lawyer, Priya Saroj first shot into the limelight while campaigning for her father in the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls.
She graduated in arts from Delhi University before getting a law degree from Amity University, Noida.
