Daily Dispatch (India): Ex-Indian ambassador to US Taranjit Singh Sandhu joins BJP, Raj Thackeray meets Amit Shah amid alliance talks, Hemant Soren's sister-in-law Sita Soren joins BJP

Ex-Indian ambassador to US Taranjit Singh Sandhu joins BJP

Former Indian ambassador to the United States Taranjit Singh Sandhu joined the BJP on Tuesday amid the possibility that he may be fielded in the Lok Sabha polls from Amritsar in Punjab. He joined the party in the presence of its general secretaries Vinod Tawde and Tarun Chugh. After joining the BJP, Sandhu said,“In the last 10 years, I have worked closely with PM Modi’s leadership, especially in the relationship with the United States and Sri Lanka…PM Modi is development focussed… Development is very much needed today and…this development should reach Amritsar too. So, I thank the party president, the Prime Minister, Home Minister who encouraged me for the new path of service to the nation that I am entering…”

Raj Thackeray meets Amit Shah amid alliance talks

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray met Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday in an indication that the BJP is looking to ally with him for the Lok Sabha polls to boost its alliance in the western state. Thackeray, who arrived in New Delhi on Monday, was joined by BJP national general secretary Vinod Tawde when he met Shah. If the alliance is sealed, the MNS may be given one seat to contest from Mumbai, the Maharashtra capital where his cousin Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena faction enjoys some influence. Raj Thackeray had parted ways with the Shiv Sena, when it was undivided and led by his cousin. However, his MNS could not make much impact even though he is seen as a powerful orator and enjoys a certain following.

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Ex-Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren’s sister-in-law Sita Soren joins BJP

JMM legislator Sita Soren, the sister-in-law of former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren, joined the BJP on Tuesday. She quit the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) hours before joining the BJP, claiming that she was being neglected and isolated in the state’s ruling party. Soren joined the BJP in the presence of its national general secretary Vinod Tawde and Jharkhand poll in-charge Laxmikant Bajpai at its headquarters here. The three-term MLA’s decision to join the BJP is a shot in the arm for the party’s efforts to boost its connect with the Scheduled Tribes, a community which has been the main vote base of the JMM.

Pashupati Paras resigns from Union cabinet, accuses BJP of injustice

Union minister Pashupati Kumar Paras resigned on Tuesday and accused the BJP of doing “injustice” with his Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party by not including it in the seat-sharing deal with allies for the Lok Sabha polls in Bihar. Paras’s announcement came at a press conference a day after the BJP-led NDA announced its seat-sharing pact and gave five seats to the Chirag Paswan-led LJP (Ram Vilas). Paras made brief remarks at the press conference about his resignation and did not elaborate about his future plans.

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President Murmu accepts resignation of Telangana Governor Soundararajan

President Droupadi Murmu has accepted the resignation of Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, the Rashtrapati Bhavan said in a statement on Tuesday. It also said that the President is “pleased to appoint C P Radhakrishnan, Governor of Jharkhand, to discharge the functions of the Governor of Telangana and Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry in addition to his own duties until regular arrangements are made.” Soundararajan, who was also the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry, tendered her resignation on Monday. “I resigned of my own volition as my desire is to serve the public directly. I want to involve myself in intense public service,” she had said. The resignation came amid reports of her plans to contest the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha polls from Tamil Nadu.

PM Modi to address rally in Tamil Nadu’s Salem today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a rally in the western town of Salem on Tuesday, a day after he held a well attended roadshow in nearby Coimbatore. Alliance party leaders, including PMK founder S Ramadoss are likely to attend the public meeting. Ahead of the 19 April Lok Sabha polls in Tamil Nadu, the BJP has been focusing on the southern state, hoping to win as many of the 39 constituencies as part of its ‘mission 400’ seats in the coming polls.
PM Modi had addressed a public rally in Kanniyakumari last week, even as he has made a number of visits to the southern state in the past few months.

TMC complains to EC about PM Modi’s model code ‘violation’

The Trinamool Congress has complained to the Election Commission alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is the BJP candidate from Varanasi, has violated the model code of conduct by using central government funds for campaigning. In a letter addressed to the chief election commissioner on Monday, TMC Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien said a message by the PM highlighting his government’s programmes reached the electorate on 16 March, after the model code of conduct came into force. PM Modi has purportedly written the message in the form of a letter to the voters on 15 March, the TMC leader claimed. “By using the office of the prime minister, the BJP has issued the aforesaid letter at the cost of the public exchequer under the guise of a message seemingly sent by the Government of India. Such mass circulation is nothing but an appeal to the voters in favour of the BJP and Mr Modi and thereby flouting the mandate of the Election Commission of India,” O’Brien said in the complaint. He urged the EC to ensure that appropriate directions are issued to the BJP and its candidate Modi to withhold from future campaigns at the cost of public exchequer, to withdraw the letter….."

SC to hear over 200 petitions challenging CAA implementation today

The Supreme Court will on Tuesday hear a batch of more than 200 petitions challenging the implementation of the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA) by the Centre. The petitions seek a stay on the implementation of the CAA and the Citizenship Amendment Rules 2024. The petitions will be heard by a bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra.

With inputs from agencies