Stung by Naveen, BJP ropes in Modi to lead Orissa campaign

Its 11-year alliance with the BJD dead, a bitter BJP is calling in its heaviest hitter to mount an aggressive attack on “most dependable ally” turned “betrayer” Naveen Patnaik. Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi will spearhead the high voltage BJP campaign, which begins with a Vijay Sankalp rally in Bhubaneswar on March 16.

Modi will not be present at the opening rally, but will thereafter concentrate his energies on Orissa in an extensive, statewide campaign that will also feature the NDA’s prime ministerial candidate L K Advani, BJP chief Rajnath Singh and former Union minister Sushma Swaraj, said Orissa BJP president Suresh Pujari.

Nearly every senior BJP leader other than Modi will at tend the March 16 show, Pujari said. “We will tell the people of Orissa how trusting Naveen Patnaik is a dangerous step.”

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Modi refuses to speak at National Integration Council, hands speech text slamming UPA on terror

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi today stunned the meeting of the National Integration Council, chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, when he “declined” to speak and submitted for the records the text of his written speech.

Belying expectations, Modi sat quietly, listening to the verbal duel between Home Minister Shivraj Patil and Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik over deployment of paramilitary forces in the state which is battling a wave of anti-Christian attacks.

Asked about Modi, P K Gera, Gujarat’s Resident Commissioner in Delhi, confirmed that the CM declined to speak.“Yes,he did not speak. Perhaps he didn’t find any reason to speak with so many airing their views.”

Modi’s “reluctance” to speak surprised the large gathering because he was expected to raise a storm over the issue of terror. “We were expecting he would create an uproar. We were taken a back when he refused to speak,” said a Union Minister.

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Modi, Tata drive Nano to its new home in 4 days

The Tatas today announced they were shifting their Rs 1-lakh Nano car project to Sanand near Ahmedabad — this was first reported by The Indian Express — after a controversial stay in Singur in West Bengal. The Tatas, who quit Singur last Friday, said they would be investing Rs 2,000 crore and would go all out to meet the deadline for the world’s cheapest car, even if it meant turning to a makeshift plant.

A Tata Motors statement said it would explore the possibility of manufacturing Nano at its existing facilities in Pune and Pantnagar and would launch the car in the last quarter (January-March) of the financial year.

“This is an extremely momentous and happy day for us because we have been through a rather sad experience from a small quarter of residents of West Bengal despite the efforts of the state government,” Tata Group chairman Ratan Tata said at a joint press conference with Chief Minister Narendra Modi.

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