Modi centralising power, anti-democratic: Congress

The Congress on Monday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of centralising power and anti-democratic functioning, three days after 16 secretaries were removed without "consulting any minister".

Congress spokesperson Anand Sharma told the media that the ministers got to know about the replacements from the media.

Sharma's remarks came on a day when an official notification said that Home Secretary L.C. Goyal sought voluntary retirement citing personal reasons and this was accepted by the prime minister.

"One after another, secretaries with fixed tenures are being removed. The home secretary was removed (though) his tenure was to finish on February 4, 2017," the Congress leader said.

The government appointed Finance Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi as the new union home secretary on Monday.

Sharma said: "This is not a democratic way of running the government. It is worrisome. The prime minister's mentality is not democratic at all."

The Congress leader said the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) had only the home minister and the prime minister as members, and "he (home minister) is also informed only after the appointments have been approved by the prime minister.

"The complete concentration of decision making and undermining the authority of the cabinet is complete," Sharma said.

"We can understand the agony of the cabinet ministers that they get to know of the appointments through the media.

"All three top secretaries are supposed to work without any pressure. There is complete uncertainty and fear in the minds of the officials," he said.

On Modi's decision not to re-promulgate the land acquisition ordinance, Sharma said the real face of the government had come out, and it was "anti-farmer and anti-poor".

On the reservation stir led by Hardik Patel in Gujarat, Sharma said: "It shows that the Gujarat model of development has exploded as it was not inclusive." - IANSAt least 100 police officers were injured on Monday in clashes in front of the Ukrainian parliament here as radical nationalists gathered to protest against constitutional amendments that grant more autonomy to the pro-Russian eastern region of the country, police said.

"Up to 100 law enforcers have been injured during the clashes near the parliament building," Tass quoted Kiev police chief Alexander Tereshchuk as saying.

Hundreds of supporters of Ukraine’s right-wing nationalist parties staged a demonstration in front of the country’s parliament, Verkhovna Rada, calling on the legislative body to overturn the controversial amendments.

Despite the violent protests, the Ukrainian parliament passed the amendments with 265 lawmakers voting in favour of them and 87 voting against. The constitutional reforms, proposed by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and backed by Western powers, would grant more autonomy to the country’s restive east which is currently under control of pro-Russia forces.

Donetsk and Lugansk are two mainly Russian-speaking regions in eastern Ukraine where deadly clashes are under way between pro-Russia forces and the Ukrainian army since Kiev launched military operations in April last year to crush pro-Russia protests there. - IANS