Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday drew loud cheers from the crowd when he said he was looking forward to Kerala having a woman chief minister.. Rahul Gandhi’s remarks, coupled with a bicycle ride alongside local candidates, drew enthusiastic responses from the crowd. (PTI file photo). Addressing a rally in Puthuppally here, Gandhi spoke about the guarantees announced by the Congress if it comes to power, including free KSRTC bus travel for women and a monthly assistance of ₹1,000 for college-going girl students.. He said the Congress wants women to be active participants in Kerala’s development.. ALSO READ | Model of injustice against Dalits, tribals in Gujarat: Rahul Gandhi. “In fact, we are looking forward to the day when we have a woman chief minister of Kerala,” he said, drawing a loud response from the crowd.. He also remarked that men were not clapping enough for the statement.. “We want women of Kerala to fulfil their dreams. Whatever they want to do, we want them to succeed,” he said.. He said the Congress would ensure that women have the freedom to go wherever they want and pursue the jobs they choose.. ALSO READ | Losing turf, 2021 upset: What is behind Congress’s ‘solo’ gamble in West Bengal. “For this purpose, our guarantees include free travel for women in KSRTC buses,” he said.. No woman has so far been elevated to the post of Chief Minister in Kerala, despite prominent leaders, including K R Gouri Amma, playing significant roles in the state’s politics.. In this election, the Congress has fielded only nine women candidates out of 92, while UDF allies, the Indian Union Muslim League, have fielded two women candidates, and KK Rama of the Revolutionary Marxist Party is also contesting the April 9 poll.. ALSO READ | Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan attacks Rahul Gandhi, says he lacks understanding. After the event in Puthuppally, Gandhi joined sitting MLA Chandy Oommen and the Congress candidate for a bicycle ride.. Oommen has been riding a bicycle as part of his election campaign.. Both rode for a few miles, giving security personnel a tough time as they had to run behind them.. Crowds gathered on both sides of the road cheered the leaders.. This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. 

 Union home minister Amit Shah on Monday hit out at the Congress party, stating that the root cause of naxalism in India dated back to the 1970s when Indira Gandhi served as the Prime Minister.. Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Lok Sabha during the budget session of Parliament, in New Delhi (Sansad TV). Speaking in the Lok Sabha, the senior BJP leader stated that the root cause of naxalism in India was not the demand for development, but rather the embrace of left wing ideology.. “I want to tell, the main reason of Naxalism is not the demand of development, but an ideology, to win the Presidential election, from 1970 Indira ji accepted that due to leftist ideology, Naxalism spread,” he said, alleging that Gandhi used the ideology to tilt the 1971 presidential election in favour of V.V. Giri.. “Twelve states- Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Bengal, Kerala, parts of Karnataka, and three districts of Uttar Pradesh were affected. A complete ‘Red Corridor’ was formed, and the rule of law ended there. Twelve crore people lived in poverty for years, and no one showed any concern. Thousands of young lives were lost. Many were left permanently disabled or crippled for the rest of their lives. Who is responsible for this?” Shah asked further.. The BJP leader further hit out at the Congress party, accusing them of pushing aside the focus on development of India.. “For sixty years, you failed to provide them with homes or access to clean water; you built no schools for them; you prevented mobile towers and banking facilities from reaching their areas, and yet, now you are the ones demanding accountability?” said Shah, adding that development only took place from 2014 onwards, with the election of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.. (With inputs from PTI, ANI) 

 Union home minister Amit Shah on Monday hit out at the Congress party, stating that the root cause of naxalism in India dated back to the 1970s when Indira Gandhi served as the Prime Minister.. Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Lok Sabha during the budget session of Parliament, in New Delhi (Sansad TV). Speaking in the Lok Sabha, the senior BJP leader stated that the root cause of naxalism in India was not the demand for development, but rather the embrace of left wing ideology.. “I want to tell, the main reason of Naxalism is not the demand of development, but an ideology, to win the Presidential election, from 1970 Indira ji accepted that due to leftist ideology, Naxalism spread,” he said, alleging that Gandhi used the ideology to tilt the 1971 presidential election in favour of V.V. Giri.. “Twelve states- Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Bengal, Kerala, parts of Karnataka, and three districts of Uttar Pradesh were affected. A complete ‘Red Corridor’ was formed, and the rule of law ended there. Twelve crore people lived in poverty for years, and no one showed any concern. Thousands of young lives were lost. Many were left permanently disabled or crippled for the rest of their lives. Who is responsible for this?” Shah asked further.. The BJP leader further hit out at the Congress party, accusing them of pushing aside the focus on development of India.. “For sixty years, you failed to provide them with homes or access to clean water; you built no schools for them; you prevented mobile towers and banking facilities from reaching their areas, and yet, now you are the ones demanding accountability?” said Shah, adding that development only took place from 2014 onwards, with the election of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.. (With inputs from PTI, ANI) 

 Kolkata: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday questioned Debasish Kumar, Trinamool Congress MLA and candidate for the upcoming assembly poll from south Kolkata’s high-profile Rashbehari assembly seat, in connection with alleged land deals in the city, an official from the federal agency said, requesting anonymity.. Debasish Kumar, a member of the Mayor-in-Council at the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), won the Rashbehari seat for the first time in 2021. (https://www.debasishkumar.com). Kumar, a member of the Mayor-in-Council at the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), won the Rashbehari seat for the first time in 2021. In the coming two-phase Bengal polls, he is pitted against the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Swapan Dasgupta, a senior journalist and former Rajya Sabha member.. “Kumar came under scrutiny after documents recently seized from the residence of a real estate businessman, Amit Ganguly, indicated that some disputed lands were sold at a high price for real estate business. Papers used for these land deals could only be provided by KMC insiders,” the ED official said.. Kumar was summoned in the morning and asked by ED officials to return in the afternoon with relevant documents.. “I will not utter a word about the investigation or why I was summoned,” Kumar told reporters outside the ED office.. TMC state vice-president Jay Prakash Majumdar alleged that the ED probe was politically motivated.. “The BJP knows it cannot win the Bengal polls. This is not the first time it has used federal agencies against TMC leaders before elections,” Majumdar said.. Bengal BJP’s chief spokesperson Debjit Sarkar dismissed the allegations as “baseless.”. “Why is ED questioning Kumar and not you or me? TMC should stop making the same baseless allegation whenever there is an ED or CBI operation. Why don’t they move court saying their candidate is being harassed unnecessarily,” Sarkar said. 

 Bhubaneswar: BJD president Naveen Patnaik on Monday criticised BJP MP Nishikant Dubey’s remarks on former Odisha chief minister Biju Patnaik, terming the comments “outrageous” and describing them as baseless allegations against a leader regarded as Odisha’s pride.. Former Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik. (Arabinda Mahapatra/Hindustan Times). The controversy stems from Dubey’s recent statement questioning Biju Patnaik’s role during the Sino-Indian War of 1962. Dubey alleged that then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru conducted the war effort with American assistance and coordination with the CIA, and claimed that Biju Patnaik acted as a liaison between the US government, the CIA and Nehru.. Responding to the remarks, former CM Patnaik said he was “surprised” and “shocked” by what he described as false and irresponsible insinuations about his father’s role in national defence. He recalled that Nehru had relied on Biju Patnaik during the conflict and had even placed an office next to his in Delhi to coordinate tactical responses against Chinese forces.. “I was very young at the time, about 13 years old, but I remember how furious Biju Babu was with the Chinese attack and how much he did to repel it,” Patnaik told reporters just outside the state assembly. He added that Biju Patnaik had played a key role in allowing US aircraft to refuel in Odisha during the war, facilitating logistical support to India’s defence efforts.. Patnaik said the BJP MP’s comments reflected a lack of understanding of history.. Congress and BJP leaders in Odisha are yet to comment on Dubey’s statement.. Amid the escalating row, BJD leaders stepped up their protest inside and outside Parliament. Rajya Sabha MP Sasmit Patra resigned from the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Communications and IT, which is chaired by Dubey, stating he could not continue under someone who had made “disrespectful” remarks about Biju Patnaik.. In a strongly worded post on X, Patra said he was “deeply shocked and anguished” by what he termed “outrageous, false and irresponsible insinuations” against the former Chief Minister. He accused Dubey of attempting to distort history and malign a revered leader for political narratives.. Raising the issue in the Rajya Sabha on Monday, Patra described the remarks as an insult to Odisha’s pride and identity, asserting that disrespecting Biju Patnaik amounted to insulting the entire state. BJD members demanded an immediate apology from Dubey and the BJP and later staged a walkout from the House.. The BJD warned that protests would intensify if an apology was not issued, maintaining that Biju Patnaik’s contributions to India’s freedom struggle and nation-building were well documented and could not be undermined by what it called irresponsible statements.. Meanwhile, Dubey said he did not make any allegations against Patnaik.. “Biju Patnaik ji was a tall freedom fighter, and the BJP showed full respect to h