Should have aligned with TMC in West Bengal elections, says Congress leader Veerappa Moily
Bengaluru, May 19: Senior Congress leader M Veerappa Moily on Wednesday said his party should have struck an alliance with Mamata Banerjee's TMC in the recent West Bengal elections, even as he expressed anguish over "ad- hocism" in the grand old outfit.
The former Union Minister also sought action against West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee President Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury for the poll debacle in the state, describing him as a "weak leader with no grass-root touch".
In an interview to PTI, Moily cited wrong selection of alliance for the "wipe-out" of the party in the state, where it had aligned with the Left and the Indian Secular Front.
Referring to Banerjee as "our lady" -- she was with the Congress before floating TMC, he said his party could have had "better liaison" with her despite the fact that "she may have taken our MLAs (earlier)".
"When she is fighting against the BJP, our right partner would have been Mamata", Moily, a former Karnataka Chief Minister, said.
Attacking Choudhury, Moily said he has no "grass-root touch" and is "credited as a leader only for using abusive words against Mamata Banerjee.
"That was not appreciated by people and our cadre.
Even our own voters shifted away to Mamata in our strongholds where traditionally Congress used to get elected", he said.
"And the man (Choudhury) is not punished. He continues to be PCC president, and leader of Congress in Lok Sabha.
Who will care for the party if you don't take action and make them accountable?", Moily asked.
He was also unsparing in criticism of his party over election strategy, made a strong pitch for developing regional leadership and indicated that failure to project Chief Ministerial candidates in Assembly elections in Assam and Kerala cost the Congress dearly.
Making no secret of his displeasure, Moily said the Congress tends to make the same mistakes in selection of candidates in elections.
"We select our leaders in various States depending on their ability to raising cash (resources) and capable of mobilising their respective caste.
I don't think the Congress can win elections like this," he said.
Moily was of the view that people no longer vote for a party looking at its central leadership; they want to know their Chief Ministerial candidate.
In Kerala elections for example, the Congress was confused about selection of Chief Ministerial face and people backed Pinarayi Vijayan again, according to him.
Also in Assam, the Congress did not project any Chief Ministerial face.
In Tamil Nadu, the Congress jumps for one alliance to another (with DMK) but makes no effort to strengthen the party organisation after elections, he said.
The Congress "threw away" too many seats to its alliance partner DMK in Puducherry, where that party had "not much presence".
On Assembly election setbacks in West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry, Moily said somebody should be made accountable at the AICC and State levels.
"Election management machinery.. right from AICC to both level.. is not done in Congress. Everything is done with ad- hocism", he lamented.
On lessons that the Congress should learn from the poll debacles, Moily said the party has to be revamped from the booth to top level.
"Ad-hocism will not take you anywhere.. facing a strong ruling party like the BJP. And we have to strengthen regional leadership", he suggested.
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Rajnath Singh chairs IGoM meet, urges constant vigil over West Asia crisis
New Delhi (PTI): Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday emphasised the need for round-the-clock monitoring of the West Asia conflict and called for a calibrated response to deal with any eventuality to ensure that national interests remain protected.
Singh made the comments while chairing a high-level meeting of the Informal Group of Ministers (IGoM) set-up to monitor the situation in West Asia.
The meeting was attended by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Power Minister Manohar Lal, Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister J P Nadda, Consumer Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi and Minister of Railways, Information and Broadcasting, Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw.
In view of the "uncertain situation", the defence minister underlined the importance of round-the-clock monitoring of the situation and the need to respond in a calibrated manner to deal with any eventuality, an official readout said.
He stressed on the need to leave no stone unturned to ensure that the people of the country face the minimum effect of the conflict, it said.
It was the second meeting of the IGoM after it was set up last month.
The IGoM was apprised of the measures being taken by the government in the wake of the ongoing West Asia conflict, Singh said on social media.
"We also deliberated upon the next steps to be taken by the government to mitigate any adverse impact arising due to the ongoing conflict," he said.
The defence ministry said in the readout said, "In the meeting, the seven empowered groups of secretaries briefed the IGoM on the steps being taken to tackle the situation."
"The IGoM was apprised about measures undertaken by the Ministry of Finance to address concerns arising due to global trade disruptions and provide relief and support to the industry, especially manufacturing, and bolster investor confidence," it said.
It listed measures including notification issued on Wednesday on full customs duty exemption on 40 critical petrochemical products till June 30.
The ministry also mentioned announcement of a special one-time relief measure for eligible units in SEZs to sell manufactured goods in Domestic Tariff Area (DTA) at concessional customs duty rates to be effective from April 1 to March 31.
It also noted another notification issued by the Department of Revenue clarifying that the provisions of GAAR (General Anti Avoidance Rules) will not be invoked in respect of investments made prior to April 1, 2017.
"These measures will reduce cost pressures on downstream sectors including textiles, packaging and pharmaceuticals, facilitate supply stability in the country and provide requisite clarity for investors contemplating investments in India," the readout said.
Defence Minister Singh appreciated the government's decision to impose a 25 per cent cap on the monthly increase in aviation turbine fuel prices for domestic operations, with effect from April 1.
This step will help protect the people from sudden increase in fares, he said.
The government has accorded highest priority to domestic LPG supply, with refinery production enhanced to fully meet consumption requirements, according to the readout.
"The IGoM was informed that there have been no reports of dry-out at LPG distributorships, and delivery of domestic LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) cylinders continues as per the normal schedule. The temporary supply concerns arose due to instances of hoarding and black marketing, which triggered panic buying in certain areas," it said.
The ministers were informed that strict enforcement action is being undertaken, with raids being carried out across multiple states and Union territories to curb hoarding and black marketing of LPG, the ministry said in the readout.
Action has also been taken against some LPG distributors who engaged in malpractices, it said.
"To support migrant labour and low-consumption households, the government is ensuring adequate availability of 5 kg free trade LPG cylinders, and since March 23, over 4.3 lakh such cylinders have been sold. Special focus is being given to states where demand is higher," it said.
The IGoM was apprised that industrial requirements dependent on commercial LPG are being met, with over 80 per cent of pre-crisis supply levels being maintained to ensure continuity of operations.
"Special meetings have been held with ministries and stakeholders of different industries to understand their demand and meet their needs. Oil PSUs are ensuring continued supply of Auto LPG across the country," the readout noted.
"However, some supply constraints are being faced by private operators due to their procurement challenges, which is why lines are being observed at PSU auto LPG pumps. Wherever the autos are dual feed and can use petrol, they are being encouraged to use petrol," it said.
