Govinda
to contest against Ram Naik
Mumbai:
Popular Bollywood star Govinda will contest on a Congress
ticket from Mumbai (north) Lok Sabha constituency against
Union Minister Ram Naik of BJP. The candidature of Govinda,
who joined the party early this week, was announced by Congress
spokesman Kapil Sibal in Delhi. Soon after the announcement,
the Mumbai star said he would travel by local trains and
buses to garner votes. Govinda's close friends say they
are willing to campaign for him, if needed.
Security
beefed up for Vajpayee's visit to Amritsar (Go
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Amritsar:
Police officials in Amritsar have beefed up security
ahead of Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee's visit on
Friday. Vajpayee will join Deputy Prime Minister Lal Krishna
Advani in Amritsar as he concludes the first phase of his
nation-wide campaign to consolidate votes ahead the of April-May
polls. Advani had started his chariot-ride earlier this
month from Kanyakumari. J.P Virdhi, Inspector General of
Police (Border Range) said security arrangements would not
cause inconvenience to the public. Vajpayee will jointly
address a public rally with his deputy and Prakash Singh
Badal, leader of his ally Shiromani Akali Dal in the state.
Peace
with Pakistan tops BJP's campaign (Go
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New
Delhi: Peace with Pakistan topped Deputy Prime Minister
Lal Krishna Advani's agenda on Thursday as his chariot ride
to garner votes ahead of national polls entered Punjab.
Advani told reporters in Chandigarh that India and Pakistan
could solve their outstanding disputes through dialogue
and described the ongoing cricket series as an important
step to cement ties. "I believe that conducting cricket
matches is a small but important step in improving relations
between India and Pakistan. Since the National Democratic
Alliance (NDA) government is formed, Prime Minister Atal
Behari Vajpayee has taken efforts to bring normalcy in the
bilateral relations. We have always desired to have good
relations with Pakistan and whatever is the problem between
us can be solved only through dialogue," Advani said.
The
Indian cricket team, in Pakistan for a full tour after 15
years, pulled off a thrilling one-day series victory over
Pakistan on Wednesday to win the series 3-2. India had banned
bilateral cricket with Pakistan due to tensions over Kashmir,
at the heart of decades of enmity between the two countries
who have gone to war three times in the last half a century.
Advani also claimed that Muslims have realised that the
Congress party had been exploiting them as a vote bank.
Boom
time for flag sellers in Patna (Go
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Patna:
It is boom time for publicity material makers in Patna.
With general elections round the corner, the business is
brisk for hundreds of paper flags, banners and cut- out
makers in the city. Wall painters, poster makers and printers
are working at a feverish pitch to meet the massive rise
in demand. In April-May dozens of national and regional
parties will battle it out to lead the world's largest democracy.
On an average, the suppliers will make anything between
Rs. 300,000 and Rs. 700,000, in just one month of poll campaigning.
"This is my only source of livelihood, and it is only during
elections that we do a good business. During this time,
political parties place bulk orders, and we work day and
night to fulfill the needs of all the parties," said Mohammad
Jaffer, a poster maker. With innovation like plastic coverings
for posters and neon paint for cloth banners, prices have
also soared.
Earlier
the dealers used to buy in bulk from textile centres and
retail them in local areas. But after seeing the demand,
some of them have set up their own shop. "I used to provide
banners, posters etc to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from
Delhi and Mumbai because it was not available here. Gradually,
I realised that there is an increased demand and so I decided
to start my own business, in Patna itself," said Satyendra
Singh, an election publicity materials dealer. Election
campaigns in India are lively and blaring affairs costing
at least ten million rupees for each parliament candidate.
It generates thousands of jobs during the last fortnight-long
campaign and a month or two preceding it.
AIADMK
battles for supremacy in Madurai (Go
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Madurai
(Tamil Nadu): Battlelines are drawn in Madurai where
the ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK)
party is trying to wrest the constituency from the Communist
Party of India (Marxist). AIADMK president and Chief Minister
Jayaram Jayalalitha, who pulled down the Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP)-led government in 1998 by withdrawing support,
is now in the BJP camp. The AIADMK is contesting in 33 seats
of the total 39, leaving only six to the BJP. The DMK, an
NDA ally till late last year, now leads an alliance including
the Congress party and the Left parties. The topsy-turvy
political equation assures an interesting battle across
the state.
The
AIADMK, which won a huge majority in the 2001 Assembly elections,
is struggling hard to overcome the anti-incumbency wave
in the state. AK Bose, AIADMK's candidate, said he would
try to cash in on the people's resentments against P Mohan,
the lawmaker who represented Madurai in the dissolved Lok
Sabha."The sitting member of parliament has done nothing
major for Madurai in the last tenure. He has taken no step
in bringing international airport to Madurai which is a
basic criteria to develop Madurai and place it in the international
map. This would be my top priority," Bose said. CPI (M)
candidate P.Mohan refuted the allegation saying his priority
has always been to project Madurai as a tourist destination
and would focus on the issue again. "To develop Madurai
as a best tourist destination would be my priority because
bringing tourists here would generate employment opportunities,
Mohan said.
Some
of the locals also supported Mohan. "I will vote for the
P.Mohan because he is a good man, he has done many things
for us. He has raised our issues in parliament many times,"
Vadivelu, a local resident, said. Traditionally, Madurai
has been the stronghold of Congress. In the 1999 elections
the constituency voted in favour of CPI (M) which had allied
with the Congress. The AIADMK-BJP alliance hopes for a consolidation
of the Hindu votes, especially upper caste votes would help
them win the constituency. Around 1.3 million voters in
Madurai will vote on May 10.
