Connect with us
Friday,21-August-2026
Breaking News

National News

How the ‘revadi culture’ label has turned a fiscal debate into a political slugfest

Published

on

 ‘Revadi culture’ or freebies by political parties to woo the electorate has triggered a major political controversy in the country.

The raging debate on ‘revadi’, (a sweet often distributed during festivals) was kicked off after Prime Minister Narendra Modi used it as a metaphor for freebies promised by political parties to grab power.

Sri Lanka’s economy hitting the rock bottom, has set off alarm bells for several developing countries. The Indian government has, however, ruled out the possibility of a Sri Lanka-like situation in the country, but advised the states to introspect their respective economic situation.

On July 19, in an all-party meeting during the Monsoon session of Parliament, the Centre had warned about the state-wise debt and the expenditure being incurred by them. Several leaders of regional parties present in the meeting had objected to the Central government raising the issue.

However, a few days before this meeting, on July 12, Modi ignited a political debate on freebies while addressing a rally in Deoghar, Jharkhand, after inaugurating and laying the foundation stone of various development projects worth more than Rs 16,800 crore.

In Deoghar, Modi had said that people should stay away from the ideology behind shortcut politics as it can cripple the state’s economy and harm the country.

He added that it is very easy to get votes from the people by making populist promises while adopting short-cuts. Those who adopt short-cuts do not have to work hard nor do they think about the far-reaching consequences it can cause to the country.

But the truth is that the country whose politics is based on short-cuts, is sure to collapse one day. Short-cut politics destroys the country. Citing the example of how electricity is a necessity, Modi said that today one cannot think of a life without electricity.

“Without electricity, we will not be able to charge our mobile phones, watch TV, or get water. There will be no choice but to light a lamp or lantern during evenings. If there is no electricity, tomorrow all the factories will permanently shut down. But this electricity cannot be generated by short-cut. To generate this electricity, power plants have to be set up and thousands of crores of rupees have to be invested,” the Prime Minister said.

On July 16, at the inauguration of the Bundelkhand Expressway in Jalaun, Uttar Pradesh, Modi once again targetted the freebies culture and said that there is a challenge before the new India which if not taken care of now, will destroy the future of youth in the country. That’s why it’s important to remain alert of the danger of freebies culture. “Nowadays, every effort is being made in our country to promote the culture of getting votes by distributing free ‘revadi’ (freebies).”

Political leaders who promote it will never build new expressways, airports or defence corridors. Those promoting the culture feel that they can buy people’s trust by distributing free ‘revadis’ to them. The people have to unite together to defeat this mindset from the political discourse of the country.

Apparently, the Prime Minister was taking a dig at the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders for promising free electricity in every upcoming poll-bound state after forming the government in Delhi and Punjab.

Responding to the allegations, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal slammed the Centre for “mismanaging’ the country economy. Kejriwal said that the welfare schemes provided by the AAP government cannot be “freebies”.

Condemning the Prime Minister’s statement calling the welfare schemes of the Delhi government as freebies, Kejriwal said that free education and health services cannot be called freebies.

In retaliation, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra accused Kejriwal of deceiving people by offering them freebies to fulfill his poll ambitions and win elections.

The benefit of the Centre-launched welfare schemes is being directly provided to the poor sections of society, while Kejriwal, who pretends to work for the people, is busy giving freebies just to win elections, he alleged.

However, not only AAP, but the TRS government in Telangana and the DMK government in Tamil Nadu have also objected to the Central government’s claims and strongly criticised the BJP government.

The issue has become more political than being viewed from the prism of the economic state of the country. Therefore, political rhetoric is bound to hog the limelight in the coming days as well.

National News

Professor Dr. Qazi Rashid Anwar Appointed AYUSH Advisor for Unani Medicine, Anjuman-e-Islam Congratulates

Published

on

In a major development in the field of medicine and the promotion of Unani system of treatment, the Government of Maharashtra has nominated Prof. (Dr.) Qazi Rashid Anwar, Principal of Dr. Muhammad Ishaq Gymkhana Wala Tabiya Unani Medical College and Haji A. R. Kalsekar Tabiya Hospital (Versova, Mumbai) under Anjuman-e-Islam, to the prestigious post of Advisor on Unani Medicine (Advisor, Unani Expert) in Directorate of AYUSH, Government of Maharashtra. The appointment was formally approved by the Hon’ble Minister for Medical Education, Hon’ble Hasan Musharraf and Director of AYUSH, Dr. (Vidya) Raman Ghongralikar, felicitating Prof. Dr. Rashid Qazi on the issuance of the official order.

On this important honor, the President of Anjuman-e-Islam, a leading educational institution of the subcontinent, Padma Shri Dr. Zaheer I. Qazi, Vice President Mr. Mushtaq Antola, General Secretary Mr. Aqeel Hafeez and other members of the association as well as the Chairman of this college Imran Furniture Wala have congratulated Professor Dr. Rashid Qazi and expressed their best wishes for his new responsibility. The Arbab-e-Anjuman said that this appointment is not only a source of pride and joy for the institution but also augurs a bright future for Unani medicine in the state.

It should be noted that at present, a total of seven Unani medical colleges, including 3 government-aided (aided) colleges, are providing education and treatment services in Maharashtra, but despite this wider network, there was no expert or regular officer of Unani medicine in the Directorate of AYUSH, Government of Maharashtra, due to which a long-standing gap was being felt in policy making and technical guidance. In addition, the Maharashtra government has recently approved the establishment of the first government Unani Medical College with 100 seats and a 100-bed hospital in Savar village, Mahsala taluka (Raigad district), for which the guidance of a qualified expert was indispensable for its educational and technical formation. In this context, this step of the Maharashtra government is being viewed with great appreciation and hope in the medical community.

The President and members of Anjuman-e-Islam have expressed the hope that the vast teaching and administrative experiences of Professor Rashid Qazi, including the project of the new government college, will give a new prestige and a new dimension to Unani medicine across the state.

Continue Reading

National News

Saini narrates his rise from computer operator to Haryana CM

Published

on

In 1996, while operating a computer at the BJP office in Panchkula, Nayab Singh Saini had never imagined that he would one day become the Chief Minister of Haryana.

Years later came an electoral defeat in 2009 but a decisive victory in 2014 and eventually opportunities to serve as a minister, a Member of Parliament, the state BJP President and now the Chief Minister.

Sharing his journey with young entrepreneurs at the ‘Gen-H Yuva Udyami Chaupal’ in Gurugram University in Gurugram on Friday, CM Saini said there were no shortcuts in his journey, only the steady climb of hard work.

Referring to the young participants as Gen-H, the Chief Minister gave the expression a wider meaning. “You call it Gen-H for Haryana; I would call it Gen-HB — Haryana-Bharat. Gen-HB is the heartbeat of India,” he said.

In a candid interaction, young entrepreneurs asked the Chief Minister direct questions about advancing in politics without a legacy, recovering from failure, technology, sports, employment, the challenge of drug abuse, startups, the pace of government functioning and family.

The programme was watched live across more than 4,000 institutions. Drawing from his own experiences, the Chief Minister urged young people not to allow failure to become their identity, but to let their work define them.

Rather than chasing quick success, he asked them to make consistency, credibility and patience their strengths. Asked how he had reached this far in politics despite having no one behind him, CM Saini said his journey had no lift, only stairs, and there were times when even the next step was not visible.

After entering politics, he recalled his first electoral responsibility was not to contest an election himself but to help someone else fight one.

During that election, he worked until 2 a.m. When he was asked to contest in 2009 he did not have the money, but people came forward and helped him fight the election. He lost in 2009, but decided that defeat would not become his identity; instead, he would learn from it.

The very next day, he was back among the people. There was no position in hand and no assurance of another ticket, but he had made the decision to continue working. It was this approach, he said, that led to his victory by a significant margin in 2014.

The Chief Minister also recalled 1996 when Narendra Modi was the BJP in-charge for Haryana and had sent a computer to the party office in Panchkula. CM Saini said while operating that computer at the party office he had never imagined that he would one day become Chief Minister.

Referring to the period before 2014, the Chief Minister said there was a time when the youth were used for politics, but if a young person sought to move ahead in politics, that aspiration was suppressed.

Asked what the 2009 electoral defeat had taught him, the Chief Minister said he rose again the very same day with twice the enthusiasm. For him, a position had never been important; the spirit of ‘Nation First’ had always remained paramount.

The Chief Minister said his desire to help people led to the support he received in 2014. People elected him and the party entrusted him with ministerial responsibility.

The opportunities that followed, to serve as Member of Parliament, state BJP President and the Chief Minister, were the outcome of people’s affection, his sense of responsibility towards them and the opportunities given to him by the party.

Continue Reading

National News

Punjab BJP criticises Congress leaders for remarks on Sajjan Kumar’s demise

Published

on

Punjab BJP President, Kewal Singh Dhillon, on Friday condemned remarks by Congress leaders describing former MP Sajjan Kumar, an accused in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, as a “role model.” He said that this statement once again exposed the party’s anti-Sikh mindset.Dhillon said even after 42 years of the horrific and painful 1984 riots, the wounds of the victim families remain unhealed.

At such a sensitive time, describing a key accused in the massacre as a “role model” is a condemnable attempt to rub salt into the wounds of the victim families and reopen their painful memories, he said.He further said no amount of condemnation “is enough for Congress’ anti-Sikh mindset. The Congress has repeatedly acted in a manner that has hurt the sentiments of the Sikh community”.

Dhillon asked the party to unconditionally apologise to the families of the victims and the entire Sikh community for such irresponsible and shameful statements made by its leaders.Kumar, who was serving life imprisonment in connection with the riots, died on Thursday at a Delhi hospital at the age of 80.Kumar, who was lodged in Tihar Jail, was taken to Safdarjung Hospital after his health deteriorated. Doctors declared him brought dead on arrival.

The former Congress leader had been convicted for his role in the violence in Delhi’s Palam Colony on November 1 and 2, 1984, following the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her two Sikh bodyguards.On December 17, 2018, the Delhi High Court overturned a trial court’s 2013 verdict acquitting Kumar in the case. He was subsequently convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment.

The case related to the murder of five Sikh men in Raj Nagar Part I, Palam Colony, as well as the burning of a gurdwara during the widespread violence.the High Court held Kumar guilty of criminal conspiracy and abetment and directed that he remain in prison for the remainder of his natural life. In its judgment, the court had described the 1984 anti-Sikh violence as “crimes against humanity”.

Continue Reading

Trending