AAP will form government in K'taka like it did in Delhi, Punjab: Kejriwal
Bengaluru, Apr 21: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) would form a government in Karnataka like it did in Delhi and Punjab, Chief Minister of the nation's capital Arvind Kejriwal said on Thursday.
We, the common people, were challenged to get into politics when we demanded law against corruption. We formed a political party. Our first government was formed in Delhi and then in Punjab. Now, we will form our next government in Karnataka, the AAP chief said while addressing a farmers' rally, organised by various farmers' body, led by the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS).
The KRRS convenor Kodihalli Chandrashekar joined the AAP and called upon the KRRS members to extend full support to the party.
Speaking about the alleged corruption in Karnataka, Kejriwal said the previous Congress government was called "20 per cent commission government" and the current BJP government "40 per cent commission government."
Kejriwal referred to the recent suicide by a civil contractor who had accused in a purported suicide note Karnataka Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister K S Eshwarappa of charging 40 per cent commission.
Delhi has zero per cent commission government because there is a hardcore honest government in Delhi. Not a paise is taken as bribe, Kejriwal said.
Stating that he got a certificate from Prime Minister Narendra Modi of being the most honest government, Kejriwal said the CBI, income tax and Delhi police raids were carried out against him, his deputy Manish Sisodia and 17 MLAs but the agencies could not find anything concrete to frame them.
Referring to the riots in Delhi and elsewhere in Karnataka, Kejriwal said all the rowdies, rogues, uncouth and corrupt across the country go to one political party'.
A Minister's son murders farmers by driving his jeep over them, but his father is rewarded with a ministerial position. Whoever commits rape gets a rousing welcome. A small girl was raped, they took out a Shobha Yatra'. In such a scenario how can the country prosper? Kejriwal said.
We don't know about engineering riots. There are riots across the country. Who is doing this? Which party does riots? People of the country do not want riots. They want peace, they want to live peacefully, the AAP chief said.
He said if people want riots, they should vote for "them" but if they need schools, hospitals, free electricity, free transport, free water, they should vote for the AAP.
The Chief Minister said AAP does not know anything about rowdyism because his party is of gentle people, patriots and honest, who want schools, hospitals, roads, potable water, electricity and free transport.
Speaking about farmers, the Chief Minister said even after 75 years of independence their condition has not improved.
Though 45 per cent of the population depend on agriculture, the children of farmers don't wish to join politics.
He congratulated farmers for their massive agitation, which forced the Centre to scrap the three farm laws 13 months after their promulgation.
Welcoming Kodihalli Chandrashekar into the AAP, he said the party would transform the lives of farmers if voted to power. He appealed to the farmers to join the AAP and end corruption in Karnataka.
Speaking on the occasion, Kodihalli Chandrashekar said the purity and sanctity of the KRRS would remain though the organisation toils round-the-clock to ensure that the AAP comes to power in Karnataka.
According to Chandrashekar, neither the BJP nor the Congress nor the JD(S) were options anymore to rely upon and called upon farmers across the State to back the AAP, as it is offering alternative politics.
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Bengal govt directs schools to mandatorily include singing of Vande Mataram in morning assemblies
Kolkata (PTI): The West Bengal government has directed all state-run and aided schools to mandatorily include the singing of Vande Mataram during morning assemblies with immediate effect, according to an official communication issued by the School Education department.
The directive states that every student must participate in the singing the national song at the start of the school day. Heads of institutions have been instructed to ensure strict compliance.
"The singing of Vande Mataram during morning assembly prayers prior to the start of classes should be made mandatory so that Vande Mataram should be sung by all students in all schools in the state with immediate effect," the Director of Education specified in a communication to state-run and state-aided school heads on May 13.
The move comes shortly after the Union government initiated steps to strengthen provisions related to respect for national symbols, including a proposed amendment to the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971, making obstruction to the singing of Vande Mataram a punishable offence.
A school education department official indicated on Thursday that the song is to be performed at the beginning of the assembly session.
School authorities have also been asked to document the proceedings, including video recordings, as proof of implementation, he said.
Earlier, schools in the state traditionally sang only the national anthem, Jana Gana Mana, composed by Rabindranath Tagore.
In recent years, the previous TMC government had introduced 'Banglar Mati Banglar Jol', also penned by Tagore in 1905 during protests against the partition of Bengal, as the state song.
The national song Vande Mataram, written by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, now adds to the list, raising questions among sections of teachers about the duration and sequencing of both the national anthem and the national song within the limited assembly time.
Headmaster of Hindu School Subhrojit Dutta told PTI, "Once our students attend classes after summer vacation, they will sing Vande Mataram along with the National anthem Jana Gana Mana during the assembly before classes."
"Our students had already been told about the historical significance of Vande Mataram on the occasion of its 150th year, and they had been asked to recite the lines and memorise it at home before this notice was issued. So once they join school, they will sing the national song along with the national anthem," he added.
A left-run teacher representative body spokesperson said further clarity is awaited regarding whether all songs are to be sung daily and how they are to be accommodated within the existing schedule.
