Nation Briefs

Former AAP Goa chief Amit Palekar joins Congress

Panaji: Amit Palekar, former president of the Goa unit of the Aam Aadmi Party, joined the Congress on Friday. Palekar, who had been projected as the AAP’s chief ministerial face during the 2022 elections, recently resigned from the Arvind Kejriwal-led party. He was inducted into the Congress in the presence of its Goa desk in-charge Manikrao Thakare, state unit chief Amit Patkar, Leader of Opposition in the assembly Yuri Alemao and others. Speaking on the occasion, Thakare said the Congress will never forgive the MLAs who got elected on its ticket but joined the ruling BJP later.

Siddaramaiah will not give up CM post on his own: Kumaraswamy

Mysuru: Amid the ongoing power tussle within the ruling Congress in the state, Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Friday claimed that Siddaramaiah will not give up the Chief Minister post on his own. The JD(S) leader was responding to a question about whether Siddaramaiah will complete a full five-year term (2023-28) or give up the Chief Minister’s post. “He (Siddaramaiah) has said he will continue as CM if the high command says so, while his son (MLC Yathindra Siddaramaiah) says that his father will be CM for a full five years. We have seen him (Siddaramaiah) when he was with us (JD(S)), we have experience with him. Many in Congress also have experience but cannot speak out,” Kumaraswamy said.