Lucknow, Nov 21 (PTI) Opposition parties in Uttar Pradesh blamed the BJP for the violence in Sambhal, alleging the survey team was sent to the mosque by the party to nurture its "politics of hatred". The BJP, in turn, alleged that the INDIA alliance had been trying to create unrest since the Lok Sabha polls. It said that those who do not agree with judicial orders should take legal recourse. "Nobody has any right to break the law. If a court has passed an order, it will be implemented. The judicial process is available for those who want the order amended," party spokesperson Nalin Kohli said. Another BJP spokesperson Ajay Alok blamed what he called the "ghamandia alliance" (an alliance full of arrogance), a term BJP leaders have often used for the INDIA bloc, for the violence. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav lashed out at the BJP, saying its government and the administration orchestrated the violence "to divert attention from electoral malpractice". "A survey team was deliberately sent in the morning to disrupt discussions about the election. The intention was to create chaos so that no debate on election issues could happen," he said at a press conference in Lucknow. UP Congress chief Ajay Rai said the incidents of violence were increasing day by day in the state under the Yogi Adityanath government. "When the Chief Minister of the state himself gives statements like 'batenge toh katenge,' then how can there be an atmosphere of peace in the state? This is a completely planned incident," Rai in a statement said. The UP unit of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) called the Sambhal violence a planned conspiracy. Its secretary Heeralal Yadav questioned the hurry behind the survey of the mosque in contention. He accused the BJP of fomenting unrest in the state "in the name of temple and mosque" and appealed to the public to maintain peace. The CPI (Marxist-Leninist) also attacked the BJP, blaming it for the Sunday violence in which three people were killed. Sudhakar Yadav, the party's state secretary, said BJP, emboldened by its recent wins, was fuelling polarisation of communities and wanted to throw the state into the fire of communalism. Tearing the fabric of peace, and polarising communities was all in a good day's work for the "saffron brigade," he alleged. Three people were killed and scores of others, including around 20 security personnel, were injured as protesters opposing a court-ordered survey of a Mughal-era mosque here clashed with police on Sunday. Protesters torched vehicles and pelted stones at the police, who used tear gas and batons to disperse the mob. "Shots were fired by the miscreants ... the PRO of the superintendent of police suffered a gunshot to the leg, the police circle officer was hit by pellets and 15 to 20 security personnel were injured in the violence," Moradabad Divisional Commissioner Aunjaneya Kumar Singh said. He said that a constable also suffered a serious head injury, while the deputy collector fractured his leg. Internet services have been suspended in Sambhal tehsil for 24 hours and the district administration declared a holiday on November 25 for all students up to Class 12. Images, purported to be from the spot shared on social media, showed mobs pelting stones at cops from atop buildings and in front of the Shahi Jama Masjid. Later, police were purportedly seen cornering and hitting people as they tried to disperse a large crowd in a narrow alleyway. A lane was shown in a video strewn with a scores of slippers, bricks, and stones. In another purported clip, some policemen in riot gear were seen firing gunshots in a street, while flames leapt and smoke billowed into the air in the background. Superintendent of Police Krishan Kumar urged stone-pelters not to indulge in violence. "Do not spoil your future for these politicians," he is heard saying through his megaphone in one of the videos. Tension had been brewing in Sambhal since Tuesday when the Jama Masjid was surveyed on the orders of a local court following a petition that claimed that a Harihar temple stood at the site. (This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)
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MLA for sports in schools to check obesityNew Delhi, Dec 22 (PTI) Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has stressed the importance of using south Indian cinema to promote the natural beauty of Jammu and Kashmir as part of a broader strategy to boost tourism in the region. The chief minister also expressed a desire to engage more with filmmakers from the south Indian industry, which he believes has been overlooked so far. “The places we should be focusing on where the money is there, the budgets are big are actually the south Indian film industry. That, for reasons of arrogance or ignorance, we have consciously ignored up until now. So they are the ones with movie budgets of Rs 300-400 crore,” Abdullah told PTI during a recent interview. The chief minister observed the tourism sector would benefit greatly if films depicted the scenic beauty of Jammu and Kashmir, as he highlighted the historical connection with Bollywood that, he said, had played an important role in establishing the valley as a favourite honeymoon destination for generations of Indians. This strategy, according to Abdullah, would serve a dual purpose — it would not only display the scenic beauty of the region in south Indian films but also promote Kashmir as an attractive travel destination among tourists from south India who had not traditionally viewed the valley as a vacation spot. While there is no precise estimate of the south Indian film industry’s size, a 2022 report by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) valued it at approximately Rs 74,900 crore. The report, titled “Regional is the New National – Way Forward for the South India Media and Entertainment Industry”, showed that the south Indian film industry accounted for 35 per cent of the total media and entertainment market share, maintaining its relevance despite rapid technological advancements. According to media consultancy firm Ormax Media, Tollywood — the Telugu-language film industry — brought in around USD 212 million last year, surpassing Bollywood’s earnings of USD 197 million. Abdullah mentioned the possibilities of marketing Jammu and Kashmir as a prime filming location for films and video albums. These have more time for shoot preparation but can easily boast high budgets. He also highlighted the destination wedding market, a major commercial business opportunity now. By targeting these avenues, Abdullah aims to give a boost to the tourism industry and showcase the unparalleled beauty of Jammu and Kashmir to a wider audience. The chief minister said a proposal had been made for opening some new destinations in Kashmir. “We have actually put together a proposal and are trying to see if we can get multilateral agency funding.” PTI SKL SKL SZM SZM This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content. var ytflag = 0;var myListener = function() {document.removeEventListener('mousemove', myListener, false);lazyloadmyframes();};document.addEventListener('mousemove', myListener, false);window.addEventListener('scroll', function() {if (ytflag == 0) {lazyloadmyframes();ytflag = 1;}});function lazyloadmyframes() {var ytv = document.getElementsByClassName("klazyiframe");for (var i = 0; i < ytv.length; i++) {ytv[i].src = ytv[i].getAttribute('data-src');}} Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() );What channel is the Duke vs. Arizona game today (11/22/24)? College basketball FREE LIVE STREAM, time, TV channelVIENNA - Austria's far-right Freedom Party won a state election in Styria for the first time on Sunday, a projection indicated, in an echo of September's general election and a show of strength while national coalition talks continue without it. Sunday's election in Styria, which is home to Austria's second city, Graz, has little immediate impact nationally but it raises the pressure on party leaders currently attempting to forge the country's first three-way government since 1949. It is only the second state which the eurosceptic, Russia-friendly Freedom Party (FPO) has ever won, the first having been Carinthia, the fiefdom of then-FPO leader Joerg Haider in his heyday in the late 1990s and early 2000s. "There's been a landslide in Styria. I didn't expect such a resounding result," the FPO's deputy leader in Styria, Stefan Hermann, told national broadcaster ORF. A projection by pollster Foresight for ORF and news agency APA showed the FPO first on 35.3% and the conservative People's Party second on 26.6%. The estimate, based on a count of 70% of votes cast, had a margin of error of 1.0 percentage points. It is the first time since World War Two that neither the OVP nor the Social Democrats (SPO) have won in the state bordering Slovenia where actor Arnold Schwarzenegger was born. The FPO will need a coalition partner to control a majority of seats in Styria's state assembly and form a government. In contrast to national elections, after which the Austrian president decides whom to task with forming a government, in Styria the party that wins, in this case the FPO, is automatically called upon to set up a state government. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you. 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An end to the COVID-19-era government subsidies that some Americans have used to purchase health insurance. Limits to food stamps, including for women and children, and other safety net programs. Rollbacks to Biden-era green energy programs. Mass deportations . Government job cuts to "drain the swamp." Having won the election and sweeping to power, Republicans are planning an ambitious 100-day agenda with President-elect Donald Trump in the White House and GOP lawmakers in a congressional majority to accomplish their policy goals . Atop the list is the plan to renew some $4 trillion in expiring GOP tax cuts, a signature domestic achievement of Trump's first term and an issue that may define his return to the White House. "What we're focused on right now is being ready, Day 1," said House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., after meeting recently with GOP colleagues to map out the road ahead. The policies emerging will revive long-running debates about America's priorities, its gaping income inequities and the proper size and scope of its government, especially in the face of mounting federal deficits now approaching $2 trillion a year. The discussions will test whether Trump and his Republican allies can achieve the kinds of real-world outcomes wanted, needed or supported when voters gave the party control of Congress and the White House. "The past is really prologue here," said Lindsay Owens, executive director of the Groundwork Collaborative, recalling the 2017 tax debate. Trump's first term became defined by those tax cuts, which were approved by Republicans in Congress and signed into law only after their initial campaign promise to "repeal and replace" Democratic President Barack Obama's health care law sputtered, failing with the famous thumbs-down vote by then-Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. The GOP majority in Congress quickly pivoted to tax cuts, assembling and approving the multitrillion-dollar package by year's end. In the time since Trump signed those cuts into law, the big benefits have accrued to higher-income households. The top 1 percent — those making nearly $1 million and above — received about a $60,000 income tax cut, while those with lower incomes got as little as a few hundred dollars, according to the Tax Policy Center and other groups. Some people ended up paying about the same. "The big economic story in the U.S. is soaring income inequality," said Owens. "And that is actually, interestingly, a tax story." In preparation for Trump's return, Republicans in Congress have been meeting privately for months and with the president-elect to go over proposals to extend and enhance those tax breaks, some of which would otherwise expire in 2025. That means keeping in place various tax brackets and a standardized deduction for individual earners, along with the existing rates for so-called pass-through entities such as law firms, doctors' offices or businesses that take their earnings as individual income. Typically, the price tag for the tax cuts would be prohibitive . The Congressional Budget Office estimates that keeping the expiring provisions in place would add some $4 trillion to deficits over a decade. Adding to that, Trump wants to include his own priorities in the tax package, including lowering the corporate rate, now at 21% from the 2017 law, to 15%, and doing away with individual taxes on tips and overtime pay. But Avik Roy, president of the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity, said blaming the tax cuts for the nation's income inequality is "just nonsense" because tax filers up and down the income ladder benefited. He instead points to other factors, including the Federal Reserve's historically low interest rates that enable borrowing, including for the wealthy, on the cheap. "Americans don't care if Elon Musk is rich," Roy said. "What they care about is, what are you doing to make their lives better?" Typically, lawmakers want the cost of a policy change to be offset by budget revenue or reductions elsewhere. But in this case, there's almost no agreed-upon revenue raisers or spending cuts in the annual $6 trillion budget that could cover such a whopping price tag. Instead, some Republicans have argued that the tax breaks will pay for themselves, with the trickle-down revenue from potential economic growth. Trump's tariffs floated this past week could provide another source of offsetting revenue. Some Republicans argue there's precedent for simply extending the tax cuts without offsetting the costs because they are not new changes but existing federal policy. "If you're just extending current law, we're not raising taxes or lowering taxes," said Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, the incoming chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, on Fox News. He said the criticism that tax cuts would add to the deficit is "ridiculous." There is a difference between taxes and spending, he said, "and we just have to get that message out to America." At the same time, the new Congress will also be considering spending reductions, particularly to food stamps and health care programs, goals long sought by conservatives as part of the annual appropriations process. One cut is almost certain to fall on the COVID-19-era subsidy that helps defray the cost of health insurance for people who buy their own policies via the Affordable Care Act exchange. The extra health care subsidies were extended through 2025 in Democratic President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act, which also includes various green energy tax breaks that Republicans want to roll back. The House Democratic leader, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York, scoffed at the Republican claim that they've won "some big, massive mandate" — when in fact, the House Democrats and Republicans essentially fought to a draw in the November election, with the GOP eking out a narrow majority. "This notion about some mandate to make massive, far-right extreme policy changes, it doesn't exist — it doesn't exist," Jeffries said. Republicans are planning to use a budgetary process, called reconciliation, that allows majority passage in Congress, essentially along party lines, without the threat of a filibuster in the Senate that can stall out a bill's advance unless 60 of the 100 senators agree. It's the same process Democrats have used when they had the power in Washington to approve the Inflation Reduction Act and Obama's health care law over GOP objections. Republicans have been here before with Trump and control of Congress, which is no guarantee they will be able to accomplish their goals, particularly in the face of resistance from Democrats. Still, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who has been working closely with Trump on the agenda, has promised a "breakneck" pace in the first 100 days "because we have a lot to fix."Sources from both countries announced that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin held a phone call on Sunday. The Turkish Presidency’s Directorate of Communications said the two leaders discussed bilateral relations and regional and global issues, while the Kremlin said they talked about trade and economic cooperation along with a number of international topics. The directorate said Erdoğan told Putin that they aimed to expand cooperation in many areas, primarily expanding bilateral trade volume. Erdoğan also affirmed that his country was working to end regional tensions and would remain steadfast in contributing to peace processes. The two men last met in person last month in Tatarstan’s Kazan during a BRICS summit. Türkiye and Russia maintain close ties, though Putin long delayed a planned visit to Türkiye. The leaders have been in touch at the height of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which appears to be entering a new stage with the escalated Western support for Ukraine and Putin’s approval of Russia’s new nuclear doctrine.
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