Rebel BJP MP Somabhai Patel on Sunday indicated that he may vote in favour of the UPA during the confidence motion in Lok Sabha, claiming that he was not bound by a whip as he remains suspended from the party.
"I am free to take my own decision," the MP from Surendranagar in Gujarat told PTI on the phone. He said he would announce his decision before the session begins.
Patel, a strong critic of the style of functioning of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, said he was not bound by a whip as he has been suspended from the party.
Accusing senior party leader L K Advani of joining hands with the Communists to "fulfil his dream of becoming the Prime Minister," Patel said "Advani should have waited for six more months for the next Lok Sabha polls".
He claimed that there is no danger to UPA government and that it will win July 22 trust vote.
When it was pointed out that BJP has revoked the suspension of Vallabh Kathiriya, party MP from Rajkot, he replied "I am not Kathiriya".
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), a close ally of UPA, is in touch with him, Patel said.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Saturday, July 19, 2008
South Africa celebrates Mandela on his 90th
Some came in exquisitely beaded traditional skins, others wore T-shirts emblazoned with his name, and Nelson Mandela welcomed all to the festive tent outside his home Saturday for the formal celebration of the anti-apartheid icon's 90th birthday.
Hundreds of guests stood and cheered and a Xhosa choir sang "Here is our hope!" at the entrance of Mandela — walking in with his successor as South Africa's president, Thabo Mbeki, and African National Congress leader Jacob Zuma. Mandela, wearing an intricately patterned shirt in shades of brown, stopped to personally greet a few of the 500 honored guests as he made his way to the head table.
Zuma called the gathering a celebration of "a life and legacy of a father, grandfather, comrade, warrior, soldier, nation builder and statesman." Former Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda caught the festive mood with a tuneful solo of "Happy Birthday" followed by a teasing verse:
"How old are you? State secret!" Then the 84-year-old Kaunda jogged over to Mandela to shake his hand.
The Nobel Peace Prize winner icon had celebrated privately with his family in his home village in the country's rural southeast on Friday, the day he turned 90. Saturday was a grand occasion at his homestead in Qunu, 600 miles south of Johannesburg where as a boy he herded cattle in the hills.
The party tent was decorated with the blue and orange colors of Mandela's Xhosa tribe and with his clan's crest — a bee flanked by tree branches, symbolizing industry, community and strength.
George Bizos was among the fellow veterans of the struggle to transform South Africa from a white supremacist pariah nation into a multiracial democracy who came to the party Saturday. He identified Mandela's optimism as his most "sterling quality.
"He always believed that there would be freedom around the corner," said Bizos, a lawyer who defended Mandela and other anti-apartheid leaders during the era of white rule.
Tributes from Mbeki and others and performances by choirs and dancers were planned under the tent. As the party started, herd boys beat drums outside, while an orchestra played inside.
"Clearly, today is a very special day for all of us in South Africa and around the world," said Mac Maharaj, who served time with Mandela on Robben Island, and then served in Mandela's Cabinet.
Mandela was imprisoned for nearly three decades for his fight against apartheid. He was released in 1990 to lead negotiations that ended decades of racist white rule, then was elected president in South Africa's first democratic elections in 1994.
He completed his term in 1999 and did not run again, but has continued to take a leading role in the fight against poverty, illiteracy and AIDS in Africa. Age has slowed him in recent years, but many still remain in awe of his stamina. Just last month he was the honored guest for a huge charity concert in London's Hyde Park.
"For a man of 90, he's in very good shape," one of his doctors, Peter Friedland, said at the party Saturday.
He looked and sounded vigorous Friday when he gave a brief interview to a small group of reporters from The Associated Press and other media, his first such exchange in several years. He was expected to address the party guests later Saturday.
During Friday's interview, he expressed deep concern at the poverty that still grips wide swaths of South Africa. The economy has grown steadily in recent years, but the benefits have yet to trickle to the poorest. Most blacks were stripped of resources and given inferior education under apartheid, leaving them unprepared to enjoy development now.
Mandela's message was simple — the wealthy must do more.
"There are many people in South Africa who are rich and who can share those riches with those not so fortunate, who have not been able to conquer poverty," Mandela said Friday.
Friday was also the 10th anniversary of his marriage to his third wife, Graca Machel.
Flowers were arranged in vases of tin, a traditional material for 10th anniversary gifts, at the head table Saturday. His children and grandchildren had put together an album of family photographs and testimonials as a gift, bound in aluminum, another 10th anniversary material.
Hundreds of guests stood and cheered and a Xhosa choir sang "Here is our hope!" at the entrance of Mandela — walking in with his successor as South Africa's president, Thabo Mbeki, and African National Congress leader Jacob Zuma. Mandela, wearing an intricately patterned shirt in shades of brown, stopped to personally greet a few of the 500 honored guests as he made his way to the head table.
Zuma called the gathering a celebration of "a life and legacy of a father, grandfather, comrade, warrior, soldier, nation builder and statesman." Former Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda caught the festive mood with a tuneful solo of "Happy Birthday" followed by a teasing verse:
"How old are you? State secret!" Then the 84-year-old Kaunda jogged over to Mandela to shake his hand.
The Nobel Peace Prize winner icon had celebrated privately with his family in his home village in the country's rural southeast on Friday, the day he turned 90. Saturday was a grand occasion at his homestead in Qunu, 600 miles south of Johannesburg where as a boy he herded cattle in the hills.
The party tent was decorated with the blue and orange colors of Mandela's Xhosa tribe and with his clan's crest — a bee flanked by tree branches, symbolizing industry, community and strength.
George Bizos was among the fellow veterans of the struggle to transform South Africa from a white supremacist pariah nation into a multiracial democracy who came to the party Saturday. He identified Mandela's optimism as his most "sterling quality.
"He always believed that there would be freedom around the corner," said Bizos, a lawyer who defended Mandela and other anti-apartheid leaders during the era of white rule.
Tributes from Mbeki and others and performances by choirs and dancers were planned under the tent. As the party started, herd boys beat drums outside, while an orchestra played inside.
"Clearly, today is a very special day for all of us in South Africa and around the world," said Mac Maharaj, who served time with Mandela on Robben Island, and then served in Mandela's Cabinet.
Mandela was imprisoned for nearly three decades for his fight against apartheid. He was released in 1990 to lead negotiations that ended decades of racist white rule, then was elected president in South Africa's first democratic elections in 1994.
He completed his term in 1999 and did not run again, but has continued to take a leading role in the fight against poverty, illiteracy and AIDS in Africa. Age has slowed him in recent years, but many still remain in awe of his stamina. Just last month he was the honored guest for a huge charity concert in London's Hyde Park.
"For a man of 90, he's in very good shape," one of his doctors, Peter Friedland, said at the party Saturday.
He looked and sounded vigorous Friday when he gave a brief interview to a small group of reporters from The Associated Press and other media, his first such exchange in several years. He was expected to address the party guests later Saturday.
During Friday's interview, he expressed deep concern at the poverty that still grips wide swaths of South Africa. The economy has grown steadily in recent years, but the benefits have yet to trickle to the poorest. Most blacks were stripped of resources and given inferior education under apartheid, leaving them unprepared to enjoy development now.
Mandela's message was simple — the wealthy must do more.
"There are many people in South Africa who are rich and who can share those riches with those not so fortunate, who have not been able to conquer poverty," Mandela said Friday.
Friday was also the 10th anniversary of his marriage to his third wife, Graca Machel.
Flowers were arranged in vases of tin, a traditional material for 10th anniversary gifts, at the head table Saturday. His children and grandchildren had put together an album of family photographs and testimonials as a gift, bound in aluminum, another 10th anniversary material.
Obama visits Afghanistan on international tour
Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama met US troops in Afghanistan Saturday during a visit to assess efforts against extremist militants at the start of a major international tour, officials said.
US military commanders at the main US base at Bagram, north of Kabul, briefed Obama and other senators on the international effort against Taliban and other Islamic extremists, the US-led coalition said.
The delegation later flew to a base in eastern Afghanistan, closer to the border with Pakistan, where they met more of the 36,000 US soldiers in Afghanistan.
Obama was due to hold talks with President Hamid Karzai on Sunday, the Afghan government said.
The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee told reporters before leaving the United States that he was looking forward during his trip, which will also take him to Iraq, to seeing the situation on the ground.
"I want to, obviously, talk to the commanders and get a sense, both in Afghanistan and in Baghdad of, you know, what ... their biggest concerns are. And I want to thank our troops for the heroic work that they've been doing."
The Illinois senator said in the days building up to the tour that Afghanistan needs more help as it battles the Taliban-led insurgency.
If he wins the November elections, he has said he would commit at least two more combat brigades, up to 10,000 men, to Afghanistan while downscaling the size of the force in Iraq.
"We need more troops, more helicopters, better intelligence-gathering and more non-military assistance to accomplish the mission there," Obama said in The New York Times on Monday.
"Iraq is not the central front in the war on terrorism, and it never has been."
In a major foreign policy address on Tuesday, Obama reiterated his promise to get most US combat troops out of Iraq within 16 months, and to focus on Al-Qaeda havens in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
"We cannot tolerate a terrorist sanctuary, and as president I won't," he said.
In a radio address Saturday to coincide with the visit, his Republican rival John McCain criticised Obama for announcing his strategy for Afghanistan and Iraq before his fact-finding tour.
"Apparently, he's confident enough that he won't find any facts that might change his opinion or alter his strategy -- remarkable," McCain said.
An extremist insurgency was launched in Afghanistan after the Taliban were removed from government in late 2001 in an invasion led by the United States.
The hardliners were attacked after they refused to hand over Al-Qaeda leaders for the 9/11 attacks that killed around 3,000 people in Washington and New York.
The number of international troops in Afghanistan has since risen to nearly 70,000 but the unrest has grown too, with some of the bloodiest incidents in recent months.
In one of the deadliest attacks on foreign troops since they deployed here in 2001, nine US soldiers were killed July 13 when about 200 insurgents stormed a base at a remote outpost in the northeast. Another 15 soldiers were wounded.
A week earlier, Kabul was struck by its deadliest suicide attack when a car bomb blew up outside the Indian embassy. Around 60 people were killed including two senior Indian diplomats.
The spike in violence has led Afghanistan to accuse elements in Pakistan, another US ally, of supporting the rebels, further straining an already tense relationship between the Muslim neighbours.
In new violence, a Canadian soldier was killed in a bomb blast in the southern province of Kandahar, the Canadian military said.
Four Afghan police officers were killed in a similar blast elsewhere that was claimed by the Taliban.
US military commanders at the main US base at Bagram, north of Kabul, briefed Obama and other senators on the international effort against Taliban and other Islamic extremists, the US-led coalition said.
The delegation later flew to a base in eastern Afghanistan, closer to the border with Pakistan, where they met more of the 36,000 US soldiers in Afghanistan.
Obama was due to hold talks with President Hamid Karzai on Sunday, the Afghan government said.
The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee told reporters before leaving the United States that he was looking forward during his trip, which will also take him to Iraq, to seeing the situation on the ground.
"I want to, obviously, talk to the commanders and get a sense, both in Afghanistan and in Baghdad of, you know, what ... their biggest concerns are. And I want to thank our troops for the heroic work that they've been doing."
The Illinois senator said in the days building up to the tour that Afghanistan needs more help as it battles the Taliban-led insurgency.
If he wins the November elections, he has said he would commit at least two more combat brigades, up to 10,000 men, to Afghanistan while downscaling the size of the force in Iraq.
"We need more troops, more helicopters, better intelligence-gathering and more non-military assistance to accomplish the mission there," Obama said in The New York Times on Monday.
"Iraq is not the central front in the war on terrorism, and it never has been."
In a major foreign policy address on Tuesday, Obama reiterated his promise to get most US combat troops out of Iraq within 16 months, and to focus on Al-Qaeda havens in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
"We cannot tolerate a terrorist sanctuary, and as president I won't," he said.
In a radio address Saturday to coincide with the visit, his Republican rival John McCain criticised Obama for announcing his strategy for Afghanistan and Iraq before his fact-finding tour.
"Apparently, he's confident enough that he won't find any facts that might change his opinion or alter his strategy -- remarkable," McCain said.
An extremist insurgency was launched in Afghanistan after the Taliban were removed from government in late 2001 in an invasion led by the United States.
The hardliners were attacked after they refused to hand over Al-Qaeda leaders for the 9/11 attacks that killed around 3,000 people in Washington and New York.
The number of international troops in Afghanistan has since risen to nearly 70,000 but the unrest has grown too, with some of the bloodiest incidents in recent months.
In one of the deadliest attacks on foreign troops since they deployed here in 2001, nine US soldiers were killed July 13 when about 200 insurgents stormed a base at a remote outpost in the northeast. Another 15 soldiers were wounded.
A week earlier, Kabul was struck by its deadliest suicide attack when a car bomb blew up outside the Indian embassy. Around 60 people were killed including two senior Indian diplomats.
The spike in violence has led Afghanistan to accuse elements in Pakistan, another US ally, of supporting the rebels, further straining an already tense relationship between the Muslim neighbours.
In new violence, a Canadian soldier was killed in a bomb blast in the southern province of Kandahar, the Canadian military said.
Four Afghan police officers were killed in a similar blast elsewhere that was claimed by the Taliban.
No question of PM resigning before trust vote: Cong
The Congress today said there was no question of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh resigning before the July 22 trust vote as he will comfortably win the trial of strength.
"The question does not arise as he will win the trust vote comfortably," Congress media department chief M Veeraapa Moily said on being asked by reporters whether PM would step down before Tuesday's vote in Lok Sabha.
Asked about Congress President Sonia Gandhi meeting with party MPs, Moily said "the MPs are meeting her out of courtesy and they are politically mature enough to take the message of benefits of nuclear deal to the people." Moily said the Congress has information that some MPs from Shiv Sena, Akali Dal and BJP would abstain but declined to name them.
In reply to a question whether the JMM MPs are on board, Moily said "as of now they are with the UPA." On getting the support of Ajit Singh-led RLD, the senior Congress leader said, "Ajit Singh will take his own decision." PTI
"The question does not arise as he will win the trust vote comfortably," Congress media department chief M Veeraapa Moily said on being asked by reporters whether PM would step down before Tuesday's vote in Lok Sabha.
Asked about Congress President Sonia Gandhi meeting with party MPs, Moily said "the MPs are meeting her out of courtesy and they are politically mature enough to take the message of benefits of nuclear deal to the people." Moily said the Congress has information that some MPs from Shiv Sena, Akali Dal and BJP would abstain but declined to name them.
In reply to a question whether the JMM MPs are on board, Moily said "as of now they are with the UPA." On getting the support of Ajit Singh-led RLD, the senior Congress leader said, "Ajit Singh will take his own decision." PTI
CPM's central committee meeting holds key
The CPI(M)'s Central Committee would begin a crucial meet in New Delhi on Saturday to chart out its role in the prevailing political turmoil, even as it left out Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee from the whip to vote against the Government during the confidence motion on July 22.
The exclusion of Chatterjee is significant as the CPI (M) has so far maintained that he should toe the party line to vote against the government.
A day ahead of the two-day meet of the decision-making body, a three-line whip was issued to 41 CPI(M) MPs asking them to reach the national capital on July 20 and be present in Lok Sabha on the next two days besides voting against the government. Besides Chatterjee, Left-backed independent from Kerala, Sebastian Paul, has also been left out.
CPI (M) General Secretary Prakash Karat while maintaining that it was for the Speaker to take a decision on resigning his post, contended that a person holding this high office does not cease to have political affiliations.
"After someone ceases to be a Speaker, they resume political activities," he said in a recent interview.
"We don't follow the British precedent in India...we have a former Speaker as the Home Minister and another former Speaker is the leader of one of the opposition groups in Lok Sabha. So all this talk of Speaker sans party and politics is hypocritical," he said.
The Central Committee would debate the decisions taken by the Politburo in the recent past, including the talks the top CPI(M) leadership has been holding with several political leaders like UP Chief Minister Mayawati and others.
The exclusion of Chatterjee is significant as the CPI (M) has so far maintained that he should toe the party line to vote against the government.
A day ahead of the two-day meet of the decision-making body, a three-line whip was issued to 41 CPI(M) MPs asking them to reach the national capital on July 20 and be present in Lok Sabha on the next two days besides voting against the government. Besides Chatterjee, Left-backed independent from Kerala, Sebastian Paul, has also been left out.
CPI (M) General Secretary Prakash Karat while maintaining that it was for the Speaker to take a decision on resigning his post, contended that a person holding this high office does not cease to have political affiliations.
"After someone ceases to be a Speaker, they resume political activities," he said in a recent interview.
"We don't follow the British precedent in India...we have a former Speaker as the Home Minister and another former Speaker is the leader of one of the opposition groups in Lok Sabha. So all this talk of Speaker sans party and politics is hypocritical," he said.
The Central Committee would debate the decisions taken by the Politburo in the recent past, including the talks the top CPI(M) leadership has been holding with several political leaders like UP Chief Minister Mayawati and others.
IAEA OK with safeguards agreement: Sources
A fifty minute long closed-door affair in a Vienna hotel was what it took for Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon and his team of Indian diplomats to convince the IAEA board members on the merits of the safeguards agreement.
In all, ninety diplomats headed up to listen to India's case.
A western diplomat told NDTV that the group had many questions but India answered them all. When asked whether it was a good meeting he said 'yes'. When asked further as to whether he was convinced that it was a good safeguards agreement the answer was again a 'yes'.
At the lobbying exercise that India undertook with the sixty member countries of the IAEA, things seem to have gone in India's favour but we have to wait and watch to see what happens on August 1 in the IAEA.
In all, ninety diplomats headed up to listen to India's case.
A western diplomat told NDTV that the group had many questions but India answered them all. When asked whether it was a good meeting he said 'yes'. When asked further as to whether he was convinced that it was a good safeguards agreement the answer was again a 'yes'.
At the lobbying exercise that India undertook with the sixty member countries of the IAEA, things seem to have gone in India's favour but we have to wait and watch to see what happens on August 1 in the IAEA.
Yahoo proxy may come down to battle of big funds
It looks like the bar room tete-a-tete in Sun Valley, Idaho last week may have helped one of Yahoo Inc.'s biggest institutional shareholders make up his mind.
Friday's news from Bill Miller, chairman and chief investment officer of Legg Mason, that he intends to support Yahoo (YHOO:YHOO
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YHOO, , ) management in its proxy fight with activist investor Carl Icahn was a big coup for embattled Jerry Yang & Co. See full story.
It was also a possible endorsement of the persuasive powers of Yahoo president Sue Decker, who was spotted last week at a table in the back of a bar conversing with Miller, Larry Page, co-founder of Google Inc. (GOOG:GOOG
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GOOG, , ) and oddly enough, former Yahoo CEO Terry Semel, at the media mogul fest in Sun Valley.
Now that Miller has indicated which way he is voting Legg Mason's 4.4% stake in Yahoo, all eyes will be on other institutions with large holdings in the Internet portal. Perhaps one of the most influential is Gordon Crawford, a portfolio manager at Capital Research Global Investors. Its parent company, Capital Group Cos. has at least three funds with a combined stake of nearly 17% in Yahoo, making it the largest institutional holder. Capital's funds also own a combined stake of nearly 6% in Microsoft (MSFT:MSFT
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MSFT, , ) , Yahoo's spurned suitor.
A Capital spokesman declined to comment on how the funds plan to vote their shares on Friday. But it is worth noting that in May, during Microsoft's attempt to buy Yahoo, Crawford has made some unusually sharp statements, saying he was "extremely disappointed in Jerry Yang." While Crawford's fund also owns Microsoft, Miller's fund does not.
Some pundits have speculated large institutional shareholders do not typically lead activist campaigns. But Miller coming out with a statement in support of Yahoo management two weeks ahead of the much-anticipated shareholder meeting scheduled for August 1 could inspire other funds to try and persuade other investors to take their side. See full story.
Two other interesting players to watch will be the institutional shareholder advisory firms, such as RiskMetrics and Glass Lewis, which make recommendations to institutions.
Friday's news from Bill Miller, chairman and chief investment officer of Legg Mason, that he intends to support Yahoo (YHOO:YHOO
News, chart, profile, more
Last:
Delayed quote dataAdd to portfolio
Analyst
Create alertInsider
Discuss
Financials
Sponsored by:
YHOO, , ) management in its proxy fight with activist investor Carl Icahn was a big coup for embattled Jerry Yang & Co. See full story.
It was also a possible endorsement of the persuasive powers of Yahoo president Sue Decker, who was spotted last week at a table in the back of a bar conversing with Miller, Larry Page, co-founder of Google Inc. (GOOG:GOOG
News, chart, profile, more
Last:
Delayed quote dataAdd to portfolio
Analyst
Create alertInsider
Discuss
Financials
Sponsored by:
GOOG, , ) and oddly enough, former Yahoo CEO Terry Semel, at the media mogul fest in Sun Valley.
Now that Miller has indicated which way he is voting Legg Mason's 4.4% stake in Yahoo, all eyes will be on other institutions with large holdings in the Internet portal. Perhaps one of the most influential is Gordon Crawford, a portfolio manager at Capital Research Global Investors. Its parent company, Capital Group Cos. has at least three funds with a combined stake of nearly 17% in Yahoo, making it the largest institutional holder. Capital's funds also own a combined stake of nearly 6% in Microsoft (MSFT:MSFT
News, chart, profile, more
Last:
Delayed quote dataAdd to portfolio
Analyst
Create alertInsider
Discuss
Financials
Sponsored by:
MSFT, , ) , Yahoo's spurned suitor.
A Capital spokesman declined to comment on how the funds plan to vote their shares on Friday. But it is worth noting that in May, during Microsoft's attempt to buy Yahoo, Crawford has made some unusually sharp statements, saying he was "extremely disappointed in Jerry Yang." While Crawford's fund also owns Microsoft, Miller's fund does not.
Some pundits have speculated large institutional shareholders do not typically lead activist campaigns. But Miller coming out with a statement in support of Yahoo management two weeks ahead of the much-anticipated shareholder meeting scheduled for August 1 could inspire other funds to try and persuade other investors to take their side. See full story.
Two other interesting players to watch will be the institutional shareholder advisory firms, such as RiskMetrics and Glass Lewis, which make recommendations to institutions.
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