1. Slapped at Rally, Hardik Says BJP Trying to Kill Him
Patidar quota leader Hardik Patel, who recently joined the Congress, was slapped by a man on Friday, 19 April while he was addressing an election rally at Baldana village of Gujarat’s Surendranagar district.
Alleging that it was an attempt to kill him, Hardik accused the ruling BJP of being behind the attack. The Congress also condemned the attack, calling it “BJP sponsored”.
The assaulter, who has been identified as Tarun Gajjar, a resident of Kadi town of Mehsana district, was thrashed by the people present at the venue. He was later admitted to a hospital in Limbdi town.
(Source: The Indian Express)
2. Lok Sabha Election 2019: NYAY to Spur Demand, Boost Economy, Says Rahul Gandhi
Congress president Rahul Gandhi said on Friday, 19 April, that the Nyuntam Aay Yojana (NYAY), under which his party has promised payout of Rs 72,000 annually to the poor upon coming to power, would jump-start the Indian economy.
"As soon as we form the government, 20% of the poorest Indians will get the money directly into their bank accounts...Rs3.60 lakh in five years. This is our surgical strike on poverty," the Congress president said at a public meeting in Bajipura village of Surat. The village falls under Bardoli Lok Sabha seat, from where Congress has fielded former minister Tushar Chaudhary against MP Prabhu Vasava.
Gandhi said that prime minister Narendra Modi had conducted surgical strikes on farmers, unemployed, and shopkeepers through demonetization and GST.
(Source: DNA)
3. Ahmedabad East Seat Has Maximum 'Crorepati' Candidates in Gujarat
Ahmedabad East Lok Sabha constituency has the highest number of 'crorepati' candidates in Gujarat, while Congress candidate from Mehsana A J Patel is the richest one, an analysis of election affidavits shows.
A total of 371 candidates are in the fray for 26 seats in Gujarat that will go to polls on 23 April.
The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), an election watchdog, said in a report that six out of 26 candidates from Ahmedabad East have declared that they possess assets worth Rs one crore or more.
It is followed by Gandhinagar, where five out of total 17 candidates are worth Rs one crore or more. There are a total of 75 'crorepati' candidates, around 20 percent of the total 370 candidates analysed by the ADR.
(Source: The Economic Times)
4. EC Seeks Report on CJ Chavda's 56-Inch Remark
The election authorities have sought a report after Congress candidate from Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat CJ Chavda made comments mocking 56-inch chest.
Speaking at an election rally in Sanand on Thursday evening, 18 April, the Congress leader said that a mule has a 56-inch chest. "An elephant's chest is 108 inch. A camel has a 90-inch chest, while the horse has between 72-80 inch. The chest of the Indian wild ass is 62 inch. It is a mule which has a 56-inch chest," Chavda, who is MLA from Gandhinagar North seat, said.
The dig was aimed at prime minister Narendra Modi, who has said on several occasions that it required a 56-inch chest to take tough decisions. CEO S Murali Krishna took suo motu note of the comments, and sought a report from the district administration.
Ahmedabad district collector Vikrant Pandey said that he had sought a report into the comments from Sanand Assistant Returning Officer.
(Source: DNA)
5. Guj LS Poll: Inquiry Ordered Into 'Cash Video' Claims by Media
Gujarat election authorities on Friday, 19 April, ordered an inquiry after media reports cited a viral video to claim that cash was distributed to people outside the venue of a poll rally addressed by Union minister Smriti Irani.
The rally took place in Patan district, over 125 kilometres from here, on 17 April and some local television channels aired a video which showed a woman, part of a group, accepting money from another.
These media outlets had alleged that the video was shot outside Irani's Patan rally.
"We have taken suo motu cognisance after watching the news and asked the collector of Patan district to submit a report after conducting an inquiry into the matter," said P Bharthi, Additional Chief Electoral Officer, Gujarat.
(Source: PTI)
6. Ahmedabad: 2,812 Cases of Illnesses Due to Heat Since 2 April
With rising temperatures, the number of heat-related illnesses is increasing.
The highest number of cases being reported are of abdominal pain, followed by unconsciousness, the data from 108 GVK Emergency Management and Research Institute (EMRI) reveals.
Since 2 April, 2019, the 108 emergency services have reported 2,812 cases of illnesses due to heat exhaustion or dehydration. The highest incidences among them, accounting for 48% of the total registered cases, are abdominal pain and unconsciousness cases.
The services reported 794 cases of abdominal pain and 562 cases of unconsciousness, followed by fall victims (363) and patients with complaint of chest pain (356).
(Source: DNA)
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