This is the one big problem in Congress' plan to topple Modi in 2019

India’s main opposition Congress party is facing a financial crisis that could undermine its ability to wrest power from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s wealthy Bharatiya Janata Party in 2019.

For the past five months, Congress leadership has stopped sending the funds required to run its offices in various states, party officials with knowledge of the matter said, asking not to be identified as they were not authorized to speak to the media. To overcome the crisis, Congress has urged members to step up contributions and asked officials to cut expenses, they said.

Led by Rahul Gandhi, the party’s steady flow of money from industrialists has all but dried up, leaving a cash crunch so serious that it’s been forced to crowd-fund for a candidate.

“We don’t have money," said Divya Spandana, who leads the Congress Party’s social media department. Compared with the BJP, she said her party is not getting much funding via electoral bonds -- a new method for cash donation to political parties -- which may force Congress to opt for more online crowd sourcing to raise money.

Defence and geopolitics dominate talks on PM Modi's 1-day Russia tour

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'informal summit' with Russian President Vladimir Putin was heavy on defence and geopolitical discussions, at a time US sanctions on Russia's military have been picking up pace and Washington DC turns the heat up on a trade war with India.

On Monday, Modi reached Sochi as part of his one-day tour of Russia and Putin saw him off in the early hours of Tuesday. The trip has been officially characterised as 'agendaless' by the government which has meant that the Prime Ministers topic of discussions haven't been announced while there also hasn't been a joint statement by both leaders after the conclusion of the trip.

So, what has instead surfaced is images of both leaders soaking in the culture of the black sea resort town and holding a meeting on a yacht. But reports from Russia now confirm that international geopolitical issues and that bedrock of India's ties with Russia - defence - received the maximum time from both leaders during talks.

Sochi: Modi, Putin hold 'intense' talks to cement 'special privileged' ties

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had “very intense” discussions on bilateral and global issues that would provide the guidelines for the further development of “special privileged” strategic ties between India and Russia, Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday.

Modi said the strategic partnership between India and Russia has now been elevated into a “special privileged strategic partnership” which is a “very big achievement” as he met Putin in this Black Sea coastal city of Sochi for their first informal summit to discuss a range of bilateral topics, including defence cooperation as well as global issues of common concern.

“I am grateful to President Putin who invited me for an informal meeting and hence, in the long friendship of ours, this is a new aspect that has been attached to our relationship,” Modi said.

“You have added a new aspect of informal summit in the bilateral relationship which I think is a great occasion and creates trust,” he said.

Tejashwi Yadav calls for united opposition against BJP's 'dictatorship'

"All the opposition parties need to come together and raise voice against what is being done by BJP across India. We need to oppose their dictatorship. If something is not done now, then soon there will be no Constitution. The Britishers came to India and treated us like slaves. Now BJP is doing the same," Tejashwi Yadav said at the 'Samvidhan Bachao Andolan' rally in Patna on Friday.

He added, "The BJP leaders will not follow any of the Consitution rules as they feel Prime Minister Narendra Modi is bigger than Constitution.

"If the Consitution is same for all, then why Karnataka is different from what happened in Bihar?" he asked.

Earlier on Friday, Tejashwi along with other alliance leaders handed over letters to the Governor, stating that they were the single largest party elected in 2015 Bihar Legislative Assembly election and hence should be invited to form a government in the state.

Venezuela's President also wants North Korea style talks with the US

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has called for dialogue with Washington similar to that between the US and North Korea, but warned that he will not give in to threats from Donald Trump.

"I think that the processes of dialogue between Democratic Republic of Korea and the US government are very positive and could serve as an example" for a rapprochement between Washington and Caracas, Maduro told a news conference in the southern city of Bolivar.

However, he noted differences between the tensions between the White House and Venezuela and those between the US and North Korea, as "we do not have nuclear missiles." But the talks with Pyongyang "could serve as an example that the world needs tolerance, dialogue, respect for differences," Maduro said ahead of a campaign event for Sunday's election.

The early polls are being boycotted by the Venezuelan opposition, and much of the international community has condemned them as illegitimate.

Think twice' before you 'Thunder': N Korea threatens to scrap Trump summit

North Korea abruptly canceled talks with South Korea and warned the U.S. to “think twice” about the fate of President Donald Trump’s planned meeting with Kim Jong Un next month, tamping down hopes of a breakthrough at the historic summit.

North Korea told South Korean authorities that it was “indefinitely” suspending minister-level talks planned for Wednesday, South Korea’s Unification Ministry said. North Korea cited the annual South Korean-U.S. “Max Thunder” air defense drills in its decision to call off the meeting, which was intended to discuss implementing last month’s peace declaration with South Korea.

“The U.S. will have to think twice about the fate of the DPRK-U.S. summit now on high agenda before a provocative military racket against the DPRK in league with the south Korean authorities,” the state-run Korean Central News Agency said Wednesday, using an abbreviation for North Korea’s formal name. “We will closely watch the ensuing behavior of the U.S. and the South Korean authorities.”

Gaza Strip: 55 Palestinians killed while protesting US embassy in Jerusalem

At least 55 Palestinians were killed and 2,771 were injured on Monday as Israeli troops fired on demonstrators along the Gaza-Israel boundary protesting the opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem, making it the deadliest day of violence since the 2014 Gaza war.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan today accused Israel of "state terror" and "genocide" after Israeli forces killed at least 55 Palestinians on the Gaza border.

In one of his most vehement broadsides ever against the Jewish state, Erdogan also announced three days of national mourning over the deaths, as well as a giant protest in Istanbul on Friday.

US blocks call for independent Gaza inquiry at UN

Despite the bloodshed, Trump hailed the move in a video message. He told the dedication ceremony that it had been a "long time coming", adding: "Israel is a sovereign nation with the right to determine its own capital but for many years we failed to acknowledge the obvious."

Will take away credentials If you do negative stories, Trump warns media

Expressing his anguish over the continued "negative" coverage of his administration, US President Donald Trump today threatened to revoke media credentials of news channels.

"The Fake News is working overtime. Just reported that despite the tremendous success we are having with the economy & all things else, 91 percent of the Network News about me is negative (Fake)," Trump rued in a tweet.

"Why do we work so hard in working with the media when it is corrupt? Take away credentials?" Trump continued.

During the election campaign, Trump had denied credentials to some of the top media outlets including The Washington Post and Politico. They were later given access.

Trump routinely describes news outlets critical of him as "dishonest" and "fake". However, his White House has never denied credentials to news outlets. In fact, more news outlets have been given White House media credentials after he came to power.

Singapore likely to be the venue for Trump-Kim meeting in June

US President Donald Trump and North Korea's Kim Jong Un are likely to meet in Singapore next month, reports said Monday, as anticipation builds for unprecedented talks between the mercurial leaders.

Trump said at the weekend that the two sides had settled on a date and location for the summit -- the first between a sitting US president and a North Korean leader -- without providing details.

"We'll be announcing it soon," Trump told reporters. The landmark summit will take place in "mid-June", South Korea's Chosun Ilbo daily reported Monday, citing diplomatic sources who quoted Trump's National Security Advisor John Bolton.

The newspaper suggested that the possibility of Singapore hosting the landmark meeting had "increased greatly", after a decision by Trump to host South Korean president Moon Jae-in at the White House later this month, without giving further explanation.

Bolton met his South Korean counterpart Chung Eui-yong in Washington late last week to discuss plans for both locations, according to local media reports.

A similar report on the weekend from South Korea's Yonhap news agency also said Singapore was firming as the favoured location for the summit.

Pakistan minister Ahsan Iqbal shot at, attacker nabbed; sad, says Malala

Pakistan's Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal was injured on Sunday in an assassination attempt when an unidentified man opened fire at him in Punjab province after he addressed a political rally, police said.

Following the incident, prominent Pakistani educational activist and the youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai condemned the attack.

Iqbal, 59, was hit by a bullet on his right shoulder in the attack in his native Narowal's Kanjrur Tehsil after he addressed a rally, the police said.

Terming the incident as "sad", Malala, who is pursuing a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics at the Oxford University was quoted by Geo TV as saying, "I wish that every Pakistani [person] remains safe and that no one's life is in danger. I hope for a Pakistan where everyone lives peacefully."

The Nobel laureate further said that she was thankful to God that the murder attempt on Iqbal did not end up being fatal and prayed for his quick recovery.

The incident took place when the US-educated Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader was leaving the rally.

Leaders approve Prince Charles to succeed Queen as Commonwealth head: BBC

Commonwealth leaders agreed on Friday to back Prince Charles as the next head of the organisation, a day after Queen Elizabeth II said it was her "sincere wish" that her son would succeed her in the role "one day".

The 69-year-old Prince of Wales will be the next head of the 53-member Commonwealth, the BBC reported.

The decision is believed to have been taken at the retreat at the grand Waterloo Chamber of the Castle, one of the homes of Queen Elizabeth II the Head of the Commonwealth.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was also present at the retreat.

The Commonwealth is one of the world's oldest political association of states, with its roots in the British Empire when some countries were ruled directly or indirectly by Britain.

Independent countries from Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe and the Pacific have joined The Commonwealth over the years, with the last two members to join Rwanda and Mozambique having no historical ties to the Empire.

Barbara Bush, wife of one American president, mother of another, dies at 92

Barbara Bush, the wife of one U.S. president and mother of another who embodied the old-fashioned sensibility that family comes before careers or politics, has died. She was 92.

She died Tuesday, according to a statement posted by family spokesman Jim McGrath. The cause wasn’t immediately known. Funeral arrangements would be scheduled “as soon as is practical," it said.

President Donald Trump said he and First Lady Melania Trump “join the Nation in celebrating the life of Barbara Bush.”

Bush, who was in “failing health,” decided to no longer seek medical treatment and instead focused on “comfort care,” McGrath had said Sunday in a statement. Her 93-year-old husband, George H.W. Bush, has also had a series of health problems, including a bout of pneumonia that hospitalized him for two weeks last year.

The granddaughter of an Ohio Supreme Court judge, a distant descendant of President Franklin Pierce, the former Barbara Pierce set herself up for a globetrotting life within the Republican Party when she fell for Bush -- “Poppy,” as he was known -- in 1941.

Look forward to meeting Kim Jong-un; US talking to N Korea directly: Trump

President Donald Trump on Wednesday said the US was in direct talks with North Korea "at a very high level" ahead of his planned summit with Kim Jong-un.

The two countries were looking at five potential venues for the summit, "but it is not in the United States", Trump told reporters at Mar-a-Lago where he was hosting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

"We've also started talking to North Korea directly.We have had direct talks at very high levels -- extremely high levels -- with North Korea," Trump said before a restricted bilateral meeting with Abe.

"I really believe there's a lot of goodwill. A lot of good things are happening.We'll see what happens.As I always say, we'll see what happens.Because ultimately, it's the end result that counts, not the fact that we're thinking about having a meeting or having a meeting," he said.

Trump morally unfit to be prez, causing damage to US: Ex-FBI chief Comey

Donald Trump is "morally unfit" to be president, former FBI chief James Comey asserted on Monday as he claimed "it's possible" that Russia may have some information on him that Moscow could use to compromise him.

Comey, 57, who was unceremoniously fired by the US president in May last year, in a wide-ranging interview to ABC News warned that "The foundation of this country is in jeopardy when we stop measuring our leaders against that central value of the truth."

He also cautioned that if Trump ever tries to sack special counsel Robert Mueller, then it would be his "most serious attack yet on the rule of law" and causing "tremendous damage" to the country's institutions.

Mueller is investigating alleged Russian interference in the 2016 US election and any potential ties between Trump campaign and Russia. Trump has repeatedly called the investigation a witch hunt and denied any collusion.

Comey led the federal probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election before he was fired by Trump

Americans are murderers: Massive protest in Athens against Syria airstrikes

Thousands of Greeks turned up at a rally and march in central Athens organised by the Communist Party to protest the US-led airstrikes against Syria.

The protesters gathered Saturday at Athens' central Syntagma Square before marching to the US Embassy, chanting anti-US slogans and carrying banners.

Some wrote on the pavement in red paint: "Americans, murderers of people."

Police vehicles barricaded access to the embassy and protesters left peacefully.

Dimitris Koutsoumbas, the Communist Party's leader, blasted Greek politicians for believing "flimsy excuses about a use of chemical weapons" by Syria.

He also criticized their "subservience" to the EU and NATO, as well as their support for Israel.

He told the crowd "the imperialists once again spill the blood of the local people. They destroy and splinter states by using fabricated evidence.

Six takeaways from Mark Zuckerberg's time in the Senate spotlight

In some ways, Facebook Inc. CEO Mark Zuckerberg might be relieved. He prepared for harder questions than he got during his first testimony before US lawmakers.

No senator asked him, for example, about whether he should resign from Facebook - a question Zuckerberg would have answered by saying he has solved big problems before, according to a snapshot of his notes from the Associated Press. Or about the fact that malicious actors may have abused Facebook’s search feature to scrape data on a majority of its 2 billion users, which, he would have explained, the company has resolved so it doesn’t happen again in the future.

The executive had to clear up a few misconceptions about his product in exchanges with senators that came with a touch of irony, considering how misinformation is known to spread on his social network. No, Zuckerberg said, Facebook doesn’t sell data to advertisers or anyone else. (Instead, it has an ad-targeting system that allows advertisers to reach users based on their interests and activity without ever seeing their names.) Facebook also isn’t listening to people’s conversations via their phones’ microphones, or trying to silence conservative voices, he said.

But there were some hard-hitting questions. And in five hours of testimony before a joint hearing of the Senate Judiciary and Commerce committees, the 33-year-old ducked some, skirted around others, but answered most of them. Here are the top takeaways:

'Modi Scam Alert!' says Rahul Gandhi on Rafale deal: Top 10 developments

Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over an alleged scam in the Rafale fighter aircraft deal with France. Issuing a "Modi Scam Alert!" Gandhi tweeted: "$15 billion fighter jet deal re-tendered. Prime Minister's friend's race to tie up strategic partners. "RAFALE, (Rs) 40,000 crore loss to the exchequer was "Sayonara" (bye bye in Japenese) money to French, so Prime Minister could re-tender contract and favour friends." Gandhi's comment came in the wake of a news report which stated that India was looking to buy more than 100 new fighter jets which were eventually expected to cost upwards of Rs 100,000 crore or about $15 billion.

1.Govt begins the process to procure 110 fighter jets for IAF for $9-13 bn: The Indian Air Force (IAF) on Friday initiated the procurement of 110 fighter aircraft for its depleted combat force — now languishing at 31 fighter squadrons against the desired strength of 42. When in service, these fighters will fill six squadrons. The order would be worth between $9-13 billion (Rs 584-844 billion) making it the world’s biggest international fighter buy. Single engine fighters would cost about $80-85 million each, while twin-engine fighters would cost closer to $120 million apiece.

More bad news for 'dreamers': Trump ends 'catch and release' practice

US President Donald Trump has signed a presidential memorandum to end "catch and release" practice whereby illegal immigrants are released into the United States shortly after their apprehension.
In his presidential memorandum, Trump has also asked the Defence Secretary to produce a list of military facilities which could be used to detain illegal immigrants.

The White House, in a statement yesterday, called the 'catch and release' policy "a dangerous practice" whereby aliens who have violated the US immigration laws were released into the country.
"The safety and security of the American people is the president's highest priority, and he will keep his promise to protect the country and to ensure that US laws are respected," the White House said.
"At the same time, the president continues to call on congressional Democrats to cease their staunch opposition to border security and to stop blocking measures that are vital to the safety and security of the United States," it said.

Trump sends National Guard to US-Mexican border to stop illegal immigration

President Donald Trump and border-state governors are working to "immediately" deploy the National Guard to the US-Mexico border to fight illegal immigration, with some troops potentially arriving later yesterday, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said.

"The threat is real, "Nielsen said at an afternoon briefing, adding that Trump was signing a proclamation to put the deployment into effect. "It's time to act."

The announcement came hours after Trump pledged "strong action today" on immigration and a day after he said he wants to use the military to secure the southern border until his "big, beautiful wall" is erected.

In a tweet early yesterday, Trump said that "Our Border Laws are very weak" and that Democrats "stand in our way" of new laws. He added, "We will be taking strong action today."

Here's how Donald Trump's game of musical chairs is taking a risky turn

The appointments of Pompeo and Bolton and the removal of McMaster and Tillerson suggest greater military belligerency and war risks but little substantial change.

The appointments of Mike Pompeo and John Bolton to replace less hawkish members of the White House team comes at the same time as threatened new trade tariffs on China’s alleged theft of American intellectual property, a problem recognised within China, on top of tariffs on steel and aluminium, and the strengthening of US-Taiwan relations.

Those moves appear to be classic Trumpian ‘transactionalism’ – a big rhetorical roar designed to open negotiations and force concessions, or the ‘art of the deal’. This was clearly seen with steel and aluminium tariffs, initially on all states yet from which the European Union, Canada, Mexico, Australia, and Argentina, are now exempt pending talks on trade and military spending. The difference, however, is that the latter are US allies while China has been declared a strategic competitor and revisionist power.

The aim seems to be to leverage US market access and military power against other states to shore up the US’ position, to reverse widely perceived ‘decline’ through America First ‘principled realism’ which US President Donald Trump claims will ‘make America great again’.