- 2 days ago
The show delves into the escalating political confrontation over the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, with Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav hinting at a potential poll boycott due to concerns about the fairness of the process.
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00:00Good evening, hello and welcome. You're with the news today, your prime time destination news,
00:04newsmakers, talking points and we have plenty on this power pack news today, this Wednesday night.
00:09Who will be India's next vice president? That question is now blowing in the wind.
00:14Has the Dhankar exit already dented the Modi government's image?
00:18Also, why is the government so hesitant to debate the controversial Bihar special intensive review in parliament?
00:24Could the RJD boycott the elections? That's the breaking news that we have.
00:29Plus, interviews with Pawan Kalyan, the deputy chief minister of Andhra.
00:33We'll also talk about Dharmstala, what that controversy is all about.
00:38Lots to talk about on the show tonight, but first, it's time for the nine headlines at nine.
00:46Parliament log jammed as India block MPs protest in parliament against the electoral roll exercise in Bihar.
00:55Government sources rule out any debate in parliament on poll roll,
00:58say can't answer questions on behalf of the election commission.
01:03Deja Svi Yadav stirs a controversy, says RJD could even boycott the Bihar elections.
01:11As inside details come out as to what led to Jagdeep Dhankar's exit,
01:16opposition set to put up a joint candidate for the vice president election.
01:21All eyes now on what really, was it really the legal issues that led to Dhankar's exit?
01:30India rejects claims of UK family on receiving wrong bodies of AI-171 victims.
01:36MEA says mortal remains treated with dignity, adds it is ready to address any concerns.
01:42BJP targets Akhilesh Yadav over a meeting at a mosque, questions wife dimples attire for not covering her head.
01:53The Samajwaadi chief hits back, accuses the BJP of once again attempting to use religion as a weapon.
02:00A safety alert in Bengaluru, six jalapen sticks found at a bus stand,
02:07Karnataka cops and anti-terror squad carry out an inspection.
02:15Big crackdown on terror, Gujarat ATS nabs four Al-Qaeda terrorists,
02:20two held in Gujarat, one each in Delhi and Noida.
02:23Ghaziabad micro-nation scam exposed, man set up fake embassies of fictional nations,
02:33claim ties with fictional countries, luxury watches, diplomatic number plates, forged ID's seized.
02:42ED summons Rana, Galbubati, Prakash Raj, Vijay Devakonda,
02:46others in the illegal betting apps probe, stars allegedly paid with scam, proceeds to promote apps.
02:53Black Sabbath frontman, an icon of British heavy metal, Aussie Osborne dies at 76,
03:00Black Sabbath was a path-breaking band of the 1970s.
03:05But the story we are breaking at the moment, just months ahead of the Bihar election,
03:23the Rashtia Janata Dal has said it might even consider a poll boycott in Bihar,
03:29after its objections to the special intensive revision exercise have been ruled out by the election commission.
03:37Tejasvi Yadav, the leader of the RJD, has said the party can consider a poll boycott.
03:43Tejasvi says we'll go by people's views.
03:46Tejasvi has gone on to say don't hold polls if voter list rigged.
03:50Remember the EC is carrying out a special intensive exercise which they claim is aimed to purify the rolls.
03:57More than 50 lakh voters of previous elections may well be excluded because the EC says either they are dead or they are in double names
04:07or not resident anymore at the place where they originally voted from.
04:13I've listened in to what Tejasvi Yadav has said a short while ago.
04:16So, children have to be treated by the cops or they will change the process or what you have to do right-handle?
04:22No, that can be done. This thing is also possible.
04:25We will see people what they want and all of them.
04:31As such, even if you must do all of them,
04:34when you've prepared everything that you need for increasing the need for the government to give to them
04:37so that they don't use themselves.
04:40Then they will see what they need to do.
04:42and joining us now on that breaking story is the rjd senior mp manoj ja appreciate your joining us
04:54mr ja a bit of a flutter being created by your leader teja svi yadav suggesting that boycotting
05:01the elections can also be considered are you serious is the rjd serious that it will consider
05:08boycotting the elections because of the special intensive revision being carried out by the
05:13election commission radhi don't look at this statement uh in isolation with what we have
05:22conveyed to election commission of india and honorable supreme court if you look at this
05:31statement as a standalone statement bereft of the background i think that will not do any justice
05:39you know what happened 24th of june honorable supreme court said that we want to be do this kind of
05:48exercise 25th they started 2003 we had a similar exercise nobody ever complained what happened in
06:012003 now the second point i'm telling you we went to honorable election commission of india you know
06:10what they told us that we want all of our decision to be based on consultation with you they never
06:19consulted us then we went to supreme court supreme court gave a direction that because this exercise
06:30is ongoing please include epic voter card aadhar card and ration card to maximize inclusion and minimize
06:43maximize exclusion but you know what happens if if the election commission is adamant on behalf of somebody
06:56on behalf of a political party on behalf of a political party i think my election commission should not appear
07:04as election commission of bangladesh we have seen what happened in bangladesh in that context
07:13jai jaswiji said that if we are not understood if the voters of bihar not of those who have been deleted
07:25are not heard we might also consider we might he said we might we might also consider the possibility of
07:38a bite by by by cutting but even even manoj even even suggesting now that you are considering the possibility
07:47you might consider the poll boycott the supreme court is hearing the matter on the 28th remember the supreme court
07:52the supreme court didn't say you must include ration card aadhar cards or voter id card the supreme court said
08:00this can be a this can be a potential uh uh you know this can be a potential solution let's be very
08:08clear manoj no no no the supreme court has not made it mandatory they have suggested it my limited point
08:14when your leader says we might consider boycott what is the message going on that you do not trust the
08:20election commission you have lost faith in the election commission razhi let me tell you i was
08:27there the whole day when the supreme court was hearing what they said you know that we believe
08:37that in order to maximize inclusion you must look at the possibility of looking at these documents
08:46and they listed three documents and election commission refused that should that should have
08:54been your question number one no no my question to you is do have you lost faith in the election
08:59commission has your leadership lost faith in the election commission do you believe the election
09:04commission is not a neutral umpire razhi it's please pose this question to people of india voters of india
09:14india it's not only about political parties i think ordinary voters are fast losing
09:24faith in the election commission an election commission which had the audacity to tell us
09:32in our meeting that this is a new commission an election commission which told us that two
09:40crore voters which are migrant they are doubtful voters i think your presumptions election commission's
09:50presumptions are basically untenable and in in in a democracy like ours if election commission behaves like
10:01uh a kind of uh a kind of uh uh uh a body which is dictated by uh the top two i i i only worry about my democracy
10:21my people and potential elections you know but i must ask you this uh in conclusion uh manujja because you're saying
10:30that your worry is that the election commission is being dictated by the top two in the government
10:34the commission in its reply to the supreme court has made it very clear they are not backing down
10:38from this strategic uh intensive revision they believe that this entire exercise is designed to purify
10:44the roles they are saying this is a role purification exercise are you willing to give the election commission
10:51the benefit of the benefit of doubt or not i cannot razeep 2003 you were in the media i was in my university
11:01did we hear anything about 2003 that people had complaints that people had doubts you know why
11:11sir you kept your finger on the screen your finger is on the screen 2003 exercise
11:18big big in fact it was almost at the same level but the fact is in 2003 nobody doubted because the
11:29credibility quotient of the election commission was high today the credibility quotient of election
11:37commission is all time low i think it's it's not only a matter of worry for the election commission
11:46but for the all the people who believe that democracy should have
11:53will you will the rjd seriously consider boycotting uh the election or is this an empty threat at the
12:00moment raul gandhi says chunav chori ki kia ja ra hai your leader is saying we may even consider
12:05boycotting the election are you serious about it or is this an empty threat i no no please no threats are
12:13ever empty and this is not a threat this is a warning this is a caution to election commission
12:22please don't act at the behest of a political party or on the direction of two people
12:32in the government don't make an exercise you said we should have resulted in maximum inclusion
12:40as maximum exclusion okay if you continue doing that democrat indian democracy can shock you and
12:50surprise you and i don't want to say that our election commission should not appear as the election
12:58commission of bangladesh let me leave it there manoj ja you've joined me uh uh i know that you were
13:04under work pressure but you've joined me i appreciate you joining me there manoj kumar ja on that
13:09breaking story at the moment uh on the rjd chief they just we other suggesting that the rjd could
13:17even consider boycotting the bihar elections of november okay let's uh stay with that story because
13:25all of this is shadowing the monsoon session of parliament which continued to be disrupted yet again
13:30it began with the opposition demanding first a debate on operation sindoor wanting the prime minister
13:36to speak the prime minister has taken off for the united kingdom then came the sudden resignation
13:41remember of vice president dhankar where bjp silence has sparked all theories the opposition wants
13:47the bjp to come clean on what happened for the vice president to resign but now the special revision
13:53of electoral rolls in bihar has become the latest flashpoint the opposition claims the move is aimed at
13:59favoring the bjp ahead of the state elections where does all of this leave the entire battle both in
14:05bihar and in delhi is politics now heading for another confrontation take a look
14:29another day of monsoon session with no business conducted parliamentary proceedings being halted
14:38once again as the opposition staged a protest over special intensive revision of the electoral rolls in
14:44bihar protests were witnessed both inside and outside the parliament premises opposition across party
14:53lines put a united front against the government with the members of parliament alleging it was an
14:58attempt by the election commission to curb the voting rights and benefit the bjp in elections
15:04of the elections
15:07abhinna nekiya kiya kiya ki abam bihar ka pura ka pura
15:11uh system nye tari ka se karenge water delete karenge or nye tari ka se voter list like
15:19hindustan me election to reikiya jari hain
15:23ye reality hindustan
15:25however the exercise has been hailed by the nda which insists it is being conducted under the
15:30ambit of the constitution
15:51a similar showdown of the electoral revision was witnessed in bihar too which chief minister
15:56nitish kumar and the leader of opposition tejashvi yadav sparring in the state assembly
16:02tejashvi yadav questioning the transparency and fairness by the election commission
16:07in this exercise
16:08is
16:12uh
16:15uh
16:17uh
16:19uh
16:21uh
16:23uh
16:25uh
16:27uh
16:29In a quick rebuttal, the Chief Minister Nitesh Kumar reminded Tejashvi of the jungle Raj in Bihar when he was a child.
16:59As the debate rages on over the SIR exercise, whether in the Parliament or in the State Assembly, it is the taxpayers bearing the burden of the stalled business.
17:15Bureau Report, India Today.
17:19There's some big question. Is this EC voter list revision now going to be completely under the scanner?
17:25Could the opposition seriously boycott the Bihar elections?
17:28Why is the government wary of a Parliament debate on the special intensive revision?
17:33Should the EC come out more clearly to allay all fears?
17:36These are questions I'll raise in my political face-off at the moment.
17:39Ajay Kumar is Spokesperson, Congress and former MP.
17:42Dr. Ajay Alok, Spokesperson, National Spokesperson, BJP.
17:45I appreciate both of you joining us.
17:48I want to come to you, Dr. Ajay Alok.
17:49You might have heard Tejashvi Yadav a short while ago saying,
17:53I do not rule out, I do not rule out, he says, the possibility of boycotting the polls.
18:00How do you see it?
18:01The opposition is saying they fear the polls will be rigged.
18:05More than 50 lakh voters could be struck off the rolls.
18:07Well, it's an immature statement from an immature leader who doesn't understand the root of democracy
18:15and the extent of democratic ship in this country.
18:19Of course, he should have taken some lessons from his father.
18:23And Dr. Ajay Kumar was a serving officer then when TN section episode happened in Bihar with Lalu Prashad Yadav.
18:29He never said like that.
18:32When all the Gotal Kachin and all everything was taken away by station.
18:35This was the same election commission then also.
18:37And this is now also the same election commission.
18:39By the way, Rajdeep, you must have listened to Mr. Manoj Jha very carefully.
18:45He was trying to just get away from this statement.
18:49He's trying to rather, what else say, put on some...
18:52No, no, he's saying he fears the election commission of India could become the election commission of Bangladesh one day.
18:58That's what Manoj Jha said.
18:59He said directly that a government of two people is dictating terms to the election commission.
19:05That's the last statement he delivered.
19:07Before that in your conversation of nine minutes, he was saying something else.
19:11Why are you just concentrating on the last ten second statement that can become an election commission of Bangladesh?
19:17Well, I would like to ask Congress Party if tomorrow RGD decides to backort.
19:23I think Congress Party should follow the suit.
19:26Because it's a very simple thing and a very simple logic.
19:30You can't keep on questioning the referee all the time.
19:33If you have your intentions, very doubtful about the referee, you must not play the match.
19:38Where's the doubt about it?
19:40If you have doubts about referee, don't play the match.
19:43But is Congress Party will do so?
19:44No, they never will do so.
19:46Because if RGD once and for all, which is never going to happen, let me tell you, it is never going to happen with Lalu Prashad at the helm of the affairs, they will never give a green field to Congress because Congress will capsize it like anything.
19:58If RGD decides to boycott, they will say, okay, we are with you.
20:02And then the last comment goes, fight all the nomination and grab all the votes for RGD has.
20:06Can I get in Ajay Kumar on that?
20:10Ajay Kumar, do you support the idea that Tejasvi Yadav has floated that if the election commission cannot satisfy them with their attempt at purifying the roles, they could consider boycotting the polls?
20:21Is that a statement that should have been made or is it an immature statement as the BJP is calling it?
20:27No, I think the problem what's happening with the Bharatiya Janta Party is looking at a single election victory and not bother about what happens to the democracy and polity of this country.
20:41If a leader of the opposition and senior leaders in the opposition are even voicing this, you're actually getting close to what Bangladesh is.
20:52This is what happened with the BMP and with the Bangladesh government 10 years back.
20:57Exactly.
20:57You see, people are not able to see the writing on the wall exactly 10 years back when repeatedly the debates on Bangladesh and Manojah, to take his example, we keep saying that India is a Vishwaguru.
21:11Our institutions are perfect.
21:13I would pick to defer whether it is the police institution, whether it is the governance institution, whether it is the PWD, whether the bridges, what are we saying?
21:23That this great election commission, because some IS officers have been there, it was being run well, it's in a constitutional post.
21:30Why not at least allow Dr. Ajay Kumar the exercise to be complete?
21:35In any case, the matter is before the Supreme Court, with your protests in Parliament, with your protests outside Parliament, are you pre-empting the entire process?
21:44Let the SIR get complete and then, if you find that it is flawed, provide all the evidence and make sure that the Supreme Court gives you a verdict in your favor?
21:53Or have you lost faith even in the Supreme Court?
21:56No, no.
21:57Vastik, you need to...
21:58What is troubling us?
22:01People, two crore people from Bihar struggling to get back.
22:04Their own JDU MP is saying...
22:06Dr. Ajay Alok should ask the JDU MP in Parliament, what is Mr. Yadav's issue?
22:13Why is he saying the same thing?
22:14The whole state of Bihar is in turmoil.
22:18People are...
22:19Names are being slashed off.
22:2150 lakhs, they are saying.
22:22Nobody is answering it.
22:24Bhartia Janda Party is the only people replying to questions we raise on EC.
22:29Only...
22:30The BJP only answers.
22:31EC doesn't answer.
22:33But the most important thing is, is this an important issue or not?
22:37First question, Razdeep, it is important.
22:39If it is an important issue, we under Rule 377 in the Parliament have the right to bring it to the Speaker's attention that it is a matter of urgent national importance.
22:49Discuss that there is no voting on that, on Article 377 of the...
22:54I'll just finish with five seconds.
22:57Why can't you have a discussion?
22:59What is the issue of having a discussion under Rule 377?
23:02I take your point, I take your point, Dr. Ajay Kumar, which I think Ajay Alok, you should answer.
23:06Why not a discussion?
23:07Parliament is the forum for debate.
23:10If the opposition wants a discussion on this special intensive review, why not have the debate?
23:15Why is the government reluctant to have debates on any contentious issues?
23:20First of all, Razdeep, Dr. Ajay Kumar should understand and Congress Party should understand that this is not a Gandhi family country.
23:28This is a country run by the Constitution.
23:31And the Constitution, according to Article 324 and 326, gives the Election Commission right to conduct all these exercises.
23:39And government is known to answer on behalf of Election Commission in the Parliament, especially when the case is subjudiced and it is being reviewed by the Supreme Court.
23:47And when the next hearing is scheduled for 28th of July.
23:50Is our opposition is not responsible enough to understand this, that when Supreme Court is going to review everything on 28th of July.
23:57And Election Commission has already filed an affidavit.
24:00Why there is a need to create a ruckus in the Parliament, just on the pretext of SIR.
24:05Okay.
24:06Ajay Kumar, you want to respond to that?
24:10That there is also the sense that the opposition is perhaps using the platform of Parliament to try and corner the government when the issue is actually before the Supreme Court and within the purview of the EC.
24:27Wait for the Supreme Court is what the government is saying.
24:30Let's hear what the Supreme Court has to say on the 28th.
24:32No, no, so this is becoming a, I mean, with due respect to Ajay, this is the theater of the absurd.
24:42Why can't we raise issues in the Parliament?
24:44Now, take an example, take an example that ED and the misuse of ED and CBI happening in the Supreme Court, you will not raise it in the Parliament.
24:53I mean, what kind of discussion is this, that you can't raise issues in the Parliament, the Parliament is the highest forum in which you have to discuss issues, whether it's in Supreme Court or not, that doesn't matter, the first point.
25:06The second point is, why is the BJP answering on behalf of the EC, which Ajay has not answered it?
25:12Because every question we have asked, only BJP is defending this whole exercise.
25:16JDU is not defending.
25:17The third and most important thing, your channel, every channel across India, YouTubers, Hindi newspapers like Denny Baskar or the Indian Express in English and lots of YouTubers have put some very, very pertinent questions to the Election Commission.
25:37I remember, Rajdeep, for 30 seconds, that there was a time when the press would raise issues and it would reverberate and echo in the corridors of power in the Parliament.
25:49I remember Sainat saying that that is the power of, Mr. Sainat saying that's the power of journalism.
25:55When you guys used to raise 10 years back questions, it would be seriously considered.
25:59Today, we are in New India, where nobody wants to report and the few who honestly report, no, one sec, who honestly report, it just doesn't, there's no discussion in the Parliament.
26:12Okay, final word, Ajay Alok, final word.
26:16I come back to it.
26:18If the government is going to defend the EC on TV shows, defend them in Parliament also.
26:24So, if Ajay Kumar and Ajay Alok can have a debate on my TV show, why can't you have the same debate in Parliament?
26:31We are not here defending the EC.
26:34The Bihar Tia Janta Party and NDA is not defending the EC.
26:38It is sufficient enough for themselves to defend themselves and they are doing so in the court.
26:42Today also, at 5 p.m., they have issued a press release, which Congress Party unfortunately has not read, citing all the reasons.
26:49What we are doing is absolutely constitutionally legal.
26:53What we are saying, what is the harm?
26:55Let me ask you one thing.
26:56This SIP, he said, Manojha said that it happened in 2003.
27:01Nobody questioned.
27:02He conveniently forget.
27:04There was a rally taken out in Gandhi Medan against this SIR in 2003 by Ilana Zad and Lalu Prashad Yadav Radeem, if you remember.
27:11It was just after the Lati rally to just oppose this movement.
27:15When he was running the government in Bihar, he opposed that.
27:17And he took out a rally with Mr. Lalu Prashad Yadav.
27:20And in the result, in 2004, UPA won.
27:23How come?
27:24They have already against all these kind of constitutional things.
27:27It has been a matter of real good things.
27:29I am going to leave it there.
27:31I am going to leave it there.
27:32No, just give me 10 seconds.
27:3310 seconds.
27:34Just 10 seconds.
27:35If at all dead people names are being removed, what is the problem, Mr. Ajay Kumar?
27:39If our voter is duplicated or duplicated, his name is being removed, what is your problem?
27:44If a voter who is not there at the current present address, his name is being deleted from the list.
27:49Let me give Ajay Kumar 15 seconds to respond to that and then I will move on.
27:53Ajay Kumar, respond.
27:54What is your specific objection to this entire exercise?
27:57Very quickly.
27:5815 seconds.
27:59Because you want to make it an election commission is becoming the election department of the BJP.
28:05You did this.
28:06No, you don't have an answer for it.
28:07One sec.
28:07One sec.
28:08Ajay, I didn't interrupt you.
28:09We did this during the Lok Sabha election.
28:12When you did this whole exercise in Lok Sabha election, again you want to know why you're doing it.
28:16You're doing it to polarize.
28:17We are no one to do this.
28:18Election commission is that.
28:19I am going to leave it.
28:20I am going to leave it there.
28:21You see, we will have a wider round table on this issue but clearly the least you would expect is these issues which are urgent and national importance would be debated in our parliament.
28:32That's where is the ideal forum, not necessarily TV shows like ours.
28:36To Ajay Alok and Ajay Kumar, appreciate your joining us.
28:39Now, what is the ground situation?
28:41Because remember the election commission claims it has found as many as 7 lakh electors who have been enrolled in two places.
28:47Kishan Ganj, which is a border area of Bihar, has come under particular scrutiny.
28:53Many voters are now seen there as suspects.
28:55It has a large Muslim population and there are those who are claiming that Muslims are being targeted in this exercise.
29:01My colleague Shriyat Chatterjee has been on the ground to investigate.
29:05Take a look at her report.
29:17In Bihar, Seemachal, citizenship isn't being decided by a court, but by a form.
29:28And in Kishan Ganj, India's most controversial voter list cleanup is underway.
29:34This is a region where Muslims form 68% of the population.
29:39It borders Nepal to the north and is long alleged to host infiltrators from Bangladesh.
29:44India today spent a week on the ground, tracking what locals call the suspect list.
29:54What we found was alarming.
29:57Forms are being held back.
29:58Some residents are under quiet investigation.
30:01In multiple suspect wards, India today met individuals who had only an Aadhaar or a voter ID and no family or land records.
30:22When asked where he came from,
30:52he couldn't give a plausible answer.
30:54Sir, here are many people who have not quantified us.
31:24This is how voters are being segregated.
31:52Category 1.
31:54If your name is in the 2003 voter list, you are cleared without any additional documents.
32:00There is no suspicion.
32:01Category 2.
32:02Category 2.
32:03If your parents' name were in the 2003 list, you need to submit proof of parentage.
32:09Again, no inherent suspicion.
32:11Category 3.
32:13If neither you nor your parents were on the 2003 voter list, every document you submit is put through intense scrutiny.
32:21Category 3.
32:22Then you are under high suspicion.
32:28Category 3.
32:29Category 4.
32:30India today met the block statistical officer, a key coordinator in the revision drive to understand the process.
32:37Category 4.
32:38When we ask him about how they are identifying, this is what he says.
32:44Category 5.
32:45The
32:46Category 5.
32:47The
32:48Category 5.
32:49Category 5.
32:50Category 5.
32:51Category 5.
32:52Category 5.
32:53Shersha Badi Muslims, a Bengali dialect-speaking community, have been living across Kishan
33:13Ganj, Katihar, Purnia and Malda, originally settled during the Sur dynasty rule under
33:20Shersha Suri , then migrated during British India.
33:26Their dialect and migration history now work against them, with their settlements overlapping
33:32in Bengal, Bihar, Bangladesh across the Indo-Gangetic Plain.
33:38Their migration was most always defined by the changing rivers course.
33:42But due to a Bengali dialect which is not a norm in Bihar, locals, even other Muslims,
33:48known as Surjapuri, label them Bangladeshi.
33:53Most refuse to speak, but one Shersha Badi elder, who had only an Aadhaar and a voter ID, did.
33:59A quiet cleansing, one form at a time, one family at a time.
34:04In Kishan Ganj, citizenship is now on probation.
34:08In Kishan Ganj, citizenship is now on probation.
34:15And as Bihar nears election, EC sources tell us they have identified Bangladeshis, Nepalis
34:16and Rohingyas.
34:17Removal may follow.
34:18As more states roll out SIR, India today remains at the first time.
34:22A quiet cleansing.
34:23A quiet cleansing, one form at a time, one family at a time.
34:29In Kishan Ganj, citizenship is now on probation.
34:33And as Bihar nears election, EC sources tell us they have identified Bangladeshis, Nepalis
34:40and Rohingyas.
34:41Removal may follow.
34:44As more states roll out SIR, India today remains at the front line of India's most complex,
34:51most contentious, silent identity test.
34:56With Shreya Chatterjee in Kishan Ganj, Bureau Report, India Today.
35:00At ground report from Kishan Ganj, let me turn to another piece of breaking news that's coming
35:07in at the moment over the Vice President elections.
35:11Sources now telling India today the opposition will field a joint candidate in the contest
35:17for Vice President.
35:18Sources saying opposition will not give the government a walkover after Jagdeep Dhanka's
35:22dramatic resignation.
35:24Meanwhile, the BJP, according to sources, has decided that they will decide on their candidate
35:29only after the Prime Minister returns.
35:31The election commission is expected to initiate the VP poll process later this week.
35:37Moshmi Singh joins me for a quick update on that.
35:40Moshmi, the numbers are stacked heavily in favour of the BJP again and its allies.
35:45The opposition still wants to put up a joint candidate.
35:50What will the opposition gain from it?
35:52Moshmi Singh, why is the opposition deciding to go ahead with a joint candidate when they
36:03don't know they don't have the numbers?
36:06Is this purely a symbolic fight?
36:11Okay, we were trying to get through to Moshmi Singh.
36:19Yes, Moshmi, go ahead.
36:22So clearly, Rajdeep, you know, ever since the entire resignation bombshell, actually political
36:29bombshell fell, after that there's been a lot of buzz and it is now clear that there would
36:36be elections held for the post of the Vice President and our sources confirm to us that
36:42the opposition wants to make this a battle of ideology.
36:45They are very clear that they will, the Congress is very clear that they will be pitching a candidate
36:52against the government's candidate and also not only the India bloc, they will try to take
36:58other opposition parties, like-minded parties on board to make sure that they get the government
37:04on the mat on this one.
37:06Okay, we'll wait and see who that candidate is but for now, it's likely to be a contest
37:11sometime next month.
37:13Meanwhile, the Dhankar resignation mystery is deepening.
37:17Remember the former Vice President had cited health concerns as the reason for his sudden
37:21resignation.
37:22But now, India today's Ankit Kumar is busting the health story.
37:27The social media posts of Mr. Dhankar's office tell a very different story that over the
37:33last two months, Mr. Dhankar has been criss-crossing the country and holding several meetings.
37:39Take a look at what Ankit Kumar found out is the reality of the health issue raised over
37:45the Vice President.
37:48Our social media sometimes tell a story that we did not intend to.
37:53Because the surprise resignation of Vice President, rumor mills are running hot.
37:59All kinds of theories, angles, claims are being put out.
38:02Now, consider this for example.
38:04The Vice President's office does a very dutiful work of collecting all his public engagements,
38:10his speeches, meetings and puts it out on Vice President's social media.
38:15Now, here at India today, what we did was, we aggregated, collected all those posts put
38:21together by the Vice President's office to get an idea of how his calendar looked like
38:27in the days and weeks leading to his surprise exit.
38:31Now, sample this.
38:33Starting May 20, until his surprise resignation on July 20, in just two months, there are at
38:43least 53 public engagements that were publicized by Vice President's office.
38:50This includes travel to states like Goa, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh.
38:57This also includes July 10 event in New Delhi, where he now famously said that he will retire
39:03in August 2027.
39:05Now, all these show at least two breaks between June 7 and June 12, and there is a five-day
39:12break between June 13 and June 16.
39:15What it does show is, a calendar of a man who is definitely not slowing down.
39:2153 events, public events at least, in two months is not a sign of a person who is looking to
39:29slow down.
39:30What it does is, it raises more questions than answers.
39:33If not health, then what was the reason behind Vice President's surprise exit?
39:40Interesting there, what social media posts reveal.
39:43Up next is our exclusive tonight.
39:46Pawan Kalyan, the Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister and Superstar, is someone who speaks his mind.
39:53My colleague Akshita Nand Gopal and I have caught up with him on several contentious issues.
40:00That's on the other side.
40:01You're watching the news today.
40:03News without the noise.
40:13Okay, let's turn to tonight's exclusive.
40:18Now, Andhra Pradesh's Deputy Chief Minister, Pawan Kalyan, is also known as the Power Star, and is coming up with his latest movie, which incidentally portrays the Mughal ruler, Aurangzeb, once again, as a villain.
40:33Pawan Kalyan has been speaking on his movie, also on why he believes Hindi should be a linked language, and also on his newfound reputation as a Hindutva hero.
40:45How did someone who once admired Fidel Castro and Che Guevara now become a Narendra Modi fanboy?
40:52Take a look at all the contentious issues that are swirling around the Andhra Deputy Chief Minister.
40:59My colleague Akshita Nand Gopal and I caught up with him.
41:03Take a look.
41:04Thanks for watching.
41:07Pawan Kalyan, thank you very much for joining us on India Today.
41:10You're joining us when you're not just Deputy Chief Minister, but you're also releasing a new movie, Hari Hara Veera Mallu, your new Telugu film.
41:20So, I want to ask you, which role are you more comfortable in?
41:25The power star of cinema or the Hindutva hero of politics of Andhra Pradesh?
41:33Which is the real Pawan Kalyan? Hindutva hero or power star or both?
41:42I don't consider myself either as a Hindutva hero or as a power star.
41:48As a power star, what I do is whatever comes on my way, I try to give my best.
41:53As an actor, I'm comfortable.
41:55As a leader, I'm comfortable.
41:56As a deputy chief minister, I'm comfortable.
41:58Whatever that particular situation demands out of me, I give my 100% thought.
42:04So, I'm comfortable and I don't know about Hindutva concept of it.
42:09I never looked at it as a Hindutva concept alone.
42:13I feel whatever is, some kind of imbalance is there.
42:17When I address it, maybe people might be perceiving it as a Hindutva icon.
42:22But I actually feel I'm doing what is needed to be done.
42:27The reason I think that's important in a way to understand Pawan Kalyan,
42:32the biggest Hindi blockbuster of 2025 is Chhava.
42:36Where again, it's Chhatrapati Shambhaji Maharaj versus Aurangzeb.
42:41Now you're making a film where again, Aurangzeb is the antagonist.
42:45It almost seems as if whether Hindi cinema or Telugu cinema, making Aurangzeb or the Mughals the villains,
42:52is the way to box office success.
42:55I saw a quote of yours where you said, why should the Mughals be shown only as great rulers,
43:00whether Akbar or any other ruler, they resorted to a lot of suffering.
43:05So is there a conscious attempt to paint the Mughals as the antagonists to attract box office?
43:11And this is where your role as a Hindutva hero in real life is merging with what you are showing on real life?
43:21Not necessarily. Maybe it is, frankly speaking, it is a bit coincidental.
43:27I never planned a period film. This is a story not written by me.
43:32I am just an actor. And this film had been, this plot had been conceived by the original scriptwriter and the director,
43:40Mr. Krish, who came in 2018, I think, around 2018.
43:46Then he toyed with that idea and it took him some time to start the film.
43:50I think it started around four to five years back.
43:53Where even, what I was saying, where a lot of films have been coming out, where Aurangzeb is being projected as an antagonist.
44:02But we started quite early and even I was, we didn't even have a kind of BJP alliance, as I had said earlier.
44:09It has got nothing to do, but the story, we, when it was, it started, it is more about Kohinoor.
44:16Kohinoor originated from Krishna Basin, mines of golden, diamond mines of Krishna, which is situated in Andhra Pradesh.
44:25So it is more of a retrieval of Kohinoor from Peacock throne.
44:28So incidentally, around that time where Aurangzeb had ascended the throne.
44:33So in that way, if we had to look at it, it is not because of my firm stand on certain Hindutva related issues.
44:45But what is your stand? Is your stand that we need to look at the, we need to look at the Mughals more objectively?
44:52Is that your stand that, therefore, we should look at the darker side of the Mughals?
44:57Definitely. Because now even NCRP textbooks are trying to project what they call a more objective...
45:07Definitely, because Mr. Rajdeep, I would like to share this with you.
45:14When we were in school, we had been taught about the glory of Mughals, what they had done.
45:18Definitely, they said they had projected the pious side of, the religious side of Aurangzeb.
45:25And he now used to, the best side of Aurangzeb had been portrayed in our school syllabus, when we were in school.
45:32But parallelly, if we go back to our homes and all, we used to get to read a lot of literature.
45:37Especially, I don't know about Hindi, but I can say, Mr. Prasad, who is a historical writer.
45:43And we used to read all his novels and all his books and historical depiction, historical characters, whatever historical novels.
45:53And there we could see another side of Mughals and also the lot of South Indian dynasties or other dynasties of India.
46:00Had been, he had written a lot about it. So, my question at that, well, during school, not just for me, for my entire class of group of people.
46:10We used to discuss, how come this is not being reflected in the syllabus?
46:14So, it is not out of today, because of it happened today, not in NCRT had introduced, it's not about that.
46:21It is about the general feeling, what we, when we are growing up in school, growing to school in the eighties.
46:29I think that's what we all had faced and maybe we grew up and we had, everyone had a role to play.
46:36I became an actor and also became a leader. I think all this merged into one.
46:40But nevertheless, it just didn't happen because of the recent developments. It is always there.
46:45Right.
46:46Because they constantly talk about the glory of Mughals, the good side of Mughals, the good side of Aurangze, but they had never shown the negative aspect, the dark aspect of Mughal.
47:00I think if you want to say anything in an objective manner, I think they could have presented in school books or syllabus, they could have presented both good and bad.
47:09But they conveniently, his Jijiya, for example, his Jijiya, for being a Hindu, you have to pay a tax.
47:16And it was just a simple line. There's nothing else been elaborated on that.
47:22And the concept, but they're elaborating, like, you know, good things about him, positive things about him, how he never used to take money.
47:29He used to write books, write Quran, and I think he used to stitch some topis, something like that.
47:33I think, why didn't they do it? So this was our question. I think this film addresses the, looks at his darker side too.
47:43Okay. So you're saying cover both sides, ensure everything is known of the Mughals era, of the Mughal dynasty.
47:49Pavan Kalyan Karo, also, when we talk of this particular issue, I think another one that comes up is the language debate, which has been playing out for the last many years, that you dived into headfirst recently as well.
48:02What do you think? Do you think Hindi should be our national language? Is that what you're pitching for?
48:06I, frankly speaking, when I was in school, Hindi is a second language to all of us. Today I'm able to read and write Hindi only because I learnt it in school.
48:22I don't know suddenly why it became a big issue in recent times, even in Andhra Pradesh. Andhra Pradesh shares borders with Chhattisgarh. Andhra Pradesh shares borders with Varissa.
48:34And Karnataka, we share borders with Tamil Nadu, we share borders with Varissa. And Telangana, of course, recently.
48:42And I don't know why we have to make a language issue as a big debate. If Telangana itself is mixed with the Urdu mixed Telugu, instead of you saying Aspatal, you call it as Davkana.
48:54So what is so wrong then, even in Telangana, certain leaders are antagonizing Hindi. It's a quite surprising thing for me, a surprising element to me, if I look at it.
49:04I don't know why everyone is sparking this language debate. I feel it is more than the Hindi itself. I think it is, maybe they don't lie, because the hatred towards BJPR, the hatred towards Modiji should not get diverted to Hindi language.
49:21I think that's how I frame it.
49:23The allegation constantly, sir.
49:25The allegation constantly is that Hindi is being imposed by a certain political party. And your political detractors, to counter what you've said on Hindi, have raised what you've said years ago, when you said to North Indian politicians, you know, don't bring your language, don't impose it on us.
49:44No, no, no, no. I, I, I still, I stand by the same, because a language should be learned with a passion. No one has taught me English by force. It then created a necessity to learn English. I didn't learn, today we are speaking in English, not because of that we love English, because it has, because of English rule or colonial rule, it became a necessity.
50:06In the same way, Hindi is also a necessity for me. Today I am able to speak Tamil because of, it is, I love it and it is a necessary way of a language to communicate, especially when I am doing films, as I grew up in Chennai also.
50:18And vice versa, if I go to Karnataka, that's what I try to speak. If I go to Maharashtra, I try to pick up a few lines of Marathi. I think that's what we all should understand, a multilinguistic approach or perspective is needed to each and every citizen of this nation.
50:35I think it is good for the linguistic integration and cultural integration. I firmly believe in it.
50:40Pavan Kalyan Gadu, what are the ideology and ideals of the Jana Sena? Five years ago, six years ago, you said Che Guevara and Fidel Castro were your heroes. You once told me Jai Prakash Narayan was your hero, but you seem broadly very leftist.
50:56Just six, seven years ago. Today your hero is Narendra Modi. You have shifted from Che Guevara and Castro. You have shifted from Che Guevara to Narendra Modi.
51:07Rajdeep ji. No, I like the way you frame your questions and I love you the way you speak. But let me be very frank with you. I like even now, I like Che Guevara. I love him. I respect him.
51:26And even sometimes when I used to go to America, certain people say, they say, you like Che Guevara. You know, we Americans, we don't, you know how much we like him in the way, in a sarcastic way.
51:37For me, I look at Che Guevara, because I, let me tell you about my background. You have to understand where I come from. Suddenly, because I became an actor, suddenly I started a political party. It's not, I'm not saying this.
51:49I grew entire southern part of India, especially Andhra Pradesh or southern part, not even Tamil Nadu, especially Andhra and Telangana, is very much, no matter whether they're left parties or so-called democratic parties, there is a left leaning in the political ideological framework in each and every party.
52:09And my father was a member of a combined communist party before it got split into CPI and CPM and including my uncle and my, one of my maternal uncles also, my maternal, my mother's maternal uncle also.
52:27He used to had a small district unit as a CPI secretary or something for some, for some kind of workers union.
52:36For me, it is not, I grew up with a left-wing thought ideology, socialistic ideology rather, I can say, not even left, but I can say socialistic ideology.
52:46We used to get a lot of, so literature from Soviet land, we can say Soviet land and all these things. We respect that. Equality for all, justice for all, is what everyone strives for.
52:58But at the same time, my father is also a great devotee of Lord Rama. So we can't say a man who is seeking social justice or who stands for social justice does not mean that he has to keep, he not necessarily has to be an atheist.
53:13He could be a believer, he could be a great devotee and also he can propagate the ideology of social justice. I think that's where I come, my background comes from, my cultural background.
53:24So I always say, I see social justice and devotion both go hand in hand in our families and more or less in, if you look at the entire Andhra Pradesh, even hardcore communist leaders, our devotee had become devotees in their later years, including the late Gadhar also.
53:43Let's leave it there. Thank you, sir. Thank you, sir Rajdeep ji. Thank you, Jahan.
53:46Thank you. Thank you so much.
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