Politics

I.N.D.I.A. bloc to take call on approaching former partners today: Rahul

THE Lok Sabha poll outcome is a mandate against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and it is his ‘political and moral defeat’, the Congress said on Tuesday while announcing it will consult the I.N.D.I.A. bloc allies on whether to approach old partners JD(U) and TDP for Government formation. Addressing a joint press conference at the Congress headquarters here along with party president Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress Parliamentary Party leader Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi said the I.N.D.I.A bloc allies would ..

BJP returns to power in Arunachal Pradesh for third time in a row

THE BJP on Sunday returned to power in Arunachal Pradesh for the third time in a row, as the party won 46 seats in the 60-member Assembly and secured a majority, Election Commission officials said. Votes were counted for 50 Assembly segments for which elections were held in the northeastern State along with Lok Sabha polls on April 19. The rest 10 seats were won by the BJP uncontested. Of the 50 seats, the BJP secured 36 seats and Chief Minister Pema Khandu is one of the 10 candidates who won unopposed. ..

I.N.D.I.A. bloc to pick PM within 48 hrs: Jairam Ramesh

    By Asim KamalNEW DELHI,    THE I.N.D.I.A. bloc will get a “decisive mandate” in the Lok Sabha polls and may take even less than 48 hours to decide on its prime ministerial pick, Congress leader Jaira..

Modi first PM to ‘lower dignity’ of public discourse, says ex-PM Manmohan Singh

     NEW DELHI,      IN A scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday accused him of lowering the dignity of public discourse and the gravity of the of..

JMM-led J’khand Govt patronising infiltrators: Modi

    DUMKA,     CLAIMING that the tribal population was decreasing in the Santhal Parganas because of infiltration, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday accused the JMM-led ruling alliance in Jharkhand of “..

Patliputra: Thrice unlucky Lalu Yadavfamily seeks to break jinx

     By Nachiketa Narayan PATNA,       THE RJD seeks to break the jinx in Bihar’s Pataliputra Lok Sabha constituency, covering rural areas around the State capital, which the party’s prove..

Will exclude agri equipments from GST ambit if voted to power: Kharge

     AMRITSAR,      CONGRESS National President Mallikarjun Kharge said on Tuesday that if the I.N.D.I.A. bloc comes to power at the Centre, they will exclude agricultural equipment from the GST ambit. Add..

Clear wave in favour of I.N.D.I.A. bloc: Rahul

     BAKHTIYARPUR,    CONGRESS leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday claimed that the I.N.D.I.A. bloc, if voted to power, would scrap the Agnipath scheme of recruitment in defence services and deposit Rs 8,500 to every..

PM’s ‘mujra’ remark is an ‘insult to Bihar’: Kharge

     SASARAM (Bihar),    CONGRESS President Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his ‘mujra’ remark against Opposition leaders and said that the latter “ins..

No progress in lives of people under BJP Govt: Priyanka

     FATEHGARH SAHIB,   CONGRESS leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Sunday lashed out at the BJP-led Centre, asking why there is no prosperity in the lives of people if the country’s economy is growing at a rapid..

BJP responsible for unemployment, graftin Haryana: Priyanka

    SIRSA (Haryana),    CONGRESS leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday slammed the BJP Government for “unemployment, corruption and inflation” in the Haryana. “There is a huge wave of Congress i..

Haryana Govt blocked Yamuna water supply to Delhi, alleges Atishi

     NEW DELHI,    DELHI Cabinet Minister Atishi on Wednesday alleged the BJP has hatched a “new conspiracy” to target AAP and through its Haryana Government has stopped water supply to the national..

He is my uncle and must be proud of me: Rohini vs Rudy

     CHHAPRA,    RASHTRIYA Janata Dal (RJD) candidate from the Saran Lok Sabha seat, Rohini Acharya on Monday, addressed her Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) opponent, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, as “uncle” and ..

Will deliver ‘Paanch Nyay Pachees Guarantee’ after June 4, Jairam

    NEW DELHI,      AS THE Siddaramaiah-led Government completed one year in office, the Congress on Monday said it has successfully implemented all guarantees made to the people of the State and when the I.N.D..

PM’s charge of budget allocation for Muslims foolish: Sharad Pawar

    NASHIK,    PRIME Minister Narendra Modi’s claim that Congress wanted to keep 15 per cent of the budget for Muslims is “foolish”, said NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Thursday, stressing that all..

A S Lovely, 4 others join BJP ... after quitting Cong

ARVINDER Singh Lovely, former Delhi Congress chief and Rajkumar Chauhan, a former Congress Minister, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the party headquarters in the capital on Saturday. Apart from Arvinder Lovely and Rajkumar, a couple of other known faces of the Delhi Congress unit including Naseeb Singh, Neeraj Basoya and Amit Malik joined the BJP on Saturday...

Revanna suspended from JD(S) over sex scandal

JD(S) on Tuesday suspended its Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna from the party with immediate effect over an alleged sex scandal involving him. The suspension came minutes after the party core committee that met in Hubballi recommended his suspension to its national president and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, who is also Revanna’s grandfather. “Videos of Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna allegedly harassing women are widely in circulation on social media and media and this has caused huge embarrassment ..

MVA seals poll pact

THE Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi on Tuesday announced its seat-sharing formula for the Lok Sabha polls with the Shiv Sena (UBT) getting the major chunk of 21 seats, while the Congress will contest 17 and the NCP (SP) 10 seats. The Congress gave up its claim on the contentious Sangli and Bhiwandi seats, which will now be contested by the Sena (UBT) and the NCP (SP), respectively. NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar said there are no differences among the allies over any seat and the distribution arrangement ..

SC asks NCP factions to abide by order on use of poll symbol, party name

DAYS before the first vote for the Lok Sabha polls is cast, the Supreme Court on Thursday asked the rival NCP factions led by party founder Sharad Pawar and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar to abide by its directions on the use of symbols, party names and disclaimers in publicity material for the elections. On March 19, the top court had allowed the Sharad Pawar faction to use ‘Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar’ as its name and ‘man blowing turha’ (a traditional trumpet also ..

Rahul Gandhi filesnomination fromKerala’s Wayanad

CONGRESS leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday filed his nomination papers for upcoming elections from Kerala’s Wayanad Lok Sabha seat. Accompanied by his sister Priyanka Gandhi and other senior party leaders including AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal, Rahul submitted his nomination papers to the District Collector who is also the Returning Officer. After submitting the papers, he read out the oath to uphold the Constitution which concluded the submission process. Soon after filing papers, Rahul affirmed ..

Kharge launches Congress’ ‘Ghar Ghar Guarantee’ initiative

AHEAD of the Lok Sabha polls, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday launched the party’s ‘Ghar Ghar Guarantee’ initiative here under which it aims to reach out to eight crore households across the country and make them aware of its “guarantees”. Kharge launched the initiative from Usmanpur, Kaithwada, in the North East Delhi Parliamentary Constituency and distributed pamphlets on the party’s ‘Paanch Nyay Pachees Guarantee’...

alliance on cards: Raj meets Amit Shah

MAHARASHTRA Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray met Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday in an indication that the BJP is looking to ally with him for the Lok Sabha polls to boost its alliance in the western State. Senior MNS leader Bala Nandgaonkar said in Mumbai that the talks on Lok Sabha polls between the two leaders were “positive”, and details will be shared in a day or two. The meeting drew sharp reactions from the Maha Vikas Aghadi camp, with the Congress accusing the BJP of “betraying” ..

Second list BJP names 72 candidates

THE Bharatiya Janata Party released the second list of Lok Sabha polls on Wednesday, consisting of 72 candidates, including three former Chief Ministers Manohar Lal Khattar, Trivendra Singh Rawat, Basvaraj Bommai as well as four Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari, Anurag Thakur, and Piyush Goyal, Pralhad Joshi. The BJP has fielded former Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar for the Karnal Lok Sabha seat. Manohar Lal Khattar had earlier resigned from the position of Haryana Chief Minister on Tuesday. In ..

Khattar quits, Nayab Saini new Haryana CM

HARYANA BJP chief Nayab Singh Saini was on Tuesday sworn in as State’s new Chief Minister, hours after the surprise resignation of Manohar Lal Khattar from the post along with his Cabinet ministers. Five MLAs -- four from the BJP and one independent -- were also sworn in as ministers. However, former Home Minister and six-term MLA from Ambala Cantt, Anil Vij, has not found a place in the new Cabinet. Saini, the 54-year-old OBC leader, was administered oath by Governor Bandaru Dattatreya at the oath-taking ..

Nakul Nath from MP, Vaibhav Gehlot from Raj Gaurav Gogoi from Assam

THE Congress on Tuesday announced its second list of 43 candidates for the Lok Sabha polls, fielding Kamal Nath’s son Nakul Nath once again from Madhya Pradesh’s Chhindwara and Ashok Gehlot’s son Vaibhav from Rajasthan’s Jalore. The party’s deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi has been fielded from Assam’s Jorhat and Pradyut Bordoloi from Nagaon. Rahul Kaswan, who switched over from the BJP a few days ago, has been fielded from Churu in Rajasthan. The second list came a day after the Congress’ ..

Confusion Reigns supreme in MP’s pre-poll arena

THOSE who have watched Madhya Pradesh politics for the past fifty years would certainly testify that such a peculiar situation did not exist ever. For, this is one condition in which old loyalties are breaking down, new loyalties are in the making, certified loyalties are asserting themselves — and all this is only adding to a great ideological confusion that actually never characterised MP politics. Until today, lines of loyalty were pretty clearly drawn. Today, those lines are only a maze of ..

Sharad Pawar faction can use ‘NCP-Sharadchandra Pawar’ name till further orders: SC

THE Supreme Court on Monday directed that Election Commission’s order of February 7 granting name of ‘Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar’ for the group led by Sharad Pawar will continue till further orders. A bench of Justices Surya Kant and K V Viswanathan sought response of Ajit Pawar-led faction on a plea of Sharad Pawar against the February 7 order of Election Commission recognising the Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister-led group as the real Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). The bench ..

17 seats - SP’s offer to Congress in UP

THE Congress has been offered 17 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, the Samajwadi Party said on Monday and asserted that its chief Akhilesh Yadav will join the Rahul Gandhi-led ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’ in Raebareli only if the proposal is accepted. “We have given a final offer of 17 Lok Sabha seats to the Congress. Akhilesh Yadav’s participation in the Nyay Yatra in Raebareli on Tuesday will depend on their acceptance,” Rajendra Chaudhary, the Samajwadi Party’s chief spokesperson, told PTI. He, however, ..

NEW JOURNEY RS POLLS Ex-Mah CM Ashok Chavan joins BJP

FORMER Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan on Tuesday made his political move by joining the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Mumbai, just a day after parting ways with the Congress. The 65-year-old Chavan was warmly welcomed into the BJP fold at the party’s Mumbai office in the presence of key figures, including Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Regarding his new phase in his political career, Chavan, who spent nearly four decadesin Congress, said today signifies the ..

Sena man shot by BJP MLA CRITICAL

A SHIV Sena leader suffered multiple gunshot wounds and is in critical condition after a BJP MLA fired upon him over a land dispute in Maharashtra’s Thane district, prompting the Opposition to demand Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s resignation, citing deteriorating law and order in the state. Deputy CM and State Home Minister Devendra Fadnavis said he has ordered a high-level probe to find out what made the MLA open fire and under what circumstances. Kalyan MLA Ganpat Gaikwad of BJP opened fire on ..

Nitish soon to expand Cabinet, Lobbying starts for Speaker’s post

A DAY after Chief Minister Nitish Kumar formed the Government in Bihar in alliance with the NDA, hectic lobbying started for the post of Assembly Speaker, and other legislators to be included in the Council of Ministers. Kumar on Monday chaired the meeting of his new cabinet to distribute portfolios. After the cabinet meeting, leaders of NDA constituents, however, remained tight-lipped about the distribution of portfolios...

Nitish Kumar back in NDA

JD(U) President Nitish Kumar on Sunday took oath as Chief Minister of Bihar for a record ninth time after a dramatic volte-face, ditching the Mahagathbandhan and the Opposition bloc I.N.D.I.A. and forming a new Government with the BJP, which he had dumped less than 18 months ago. Kumar was sworn in by Bihar Governor Rajendra Arlekar at Raj Bhawan in the presence of senior leaders including BJP national President J P Nadda, hours after he resigned from the post, saying “things were not working well” ..

Mamata to go ‘solo’ in W Bengal for LS polls

IN A major setback to the Opposition I.N.D.I.A. bloc, West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday announced that her party has decided to go alone in the State in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Banerjee’s comments came a day before Congress leader Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra will enter West Bengal. “I had given them (Congress) a proposal (on seat-sharing), but they refused it at the outset. Our party has now decided to go alone in Bengal,” Banerjee said amid ..

Milind Deora quits Cong, joins Sena

IN A setback for Congress in Mumbai ahead of Lok Sabha polls, former Union Minister Milind Deora on Sunday quit the party “to walk the path of development” and joined the Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, ending a “55 years old association” of the Deora family with the Grand Old Party. With Deora resigning just before the start of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, the Congress alleged that the timing of the announcement of his departure from the party was determined by Prime Minister Narendra ..

HISTORIC ENDORSEMENT Shinde faction is Real Shiv Sena

IN A major ruling, Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar on Wednesday held that the Eknath Shinde-led faction of the Shiv Sena was the “real political party” after the vertical split in the party and when rival groups emerged on June 21, 2022. The Speaker's much-awaited verdict came as a huge relief to Chief Minister Shinde and a major blow to the Shiv Sena-UBT, led by ex-CM Uddhav Thackeray, who had contested the claims of the breakaway group. Reading out his ruling on disqualification petitions ..

Sharmila’s Entry Into Congress

Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy sent their uncle Y V Subba Reddy to dissuade Sharmila from throwing in her lot with the Congress, but in Sharmila’s case, blood proved to be thinner than water and so, it will be brother versus sister in Andhra Pradesh. ..

Make I.N.D.I.A. bloc effective bulwark against BJP

(PTI) THE Congress on Thursday asserted that it would take all necessary steps to make the I.N.D.I.A. bloc an effective bulwark and force against the BJP and its allies, while vowing to be fully prepared at the earliest to fight the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. In a resolution that was passed unanimously after a four-hour meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the party also alleged that the suspension of MPs from Parliament was done to ensure that the Opposition was not present to challenge ..

Mamata and Kejriwal propose Kharge as PM face; ‘let’s win first’, says Cong chief

WEST Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday proposed Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge’s name as the prime ministerial candidate of Opposition bloc INDIA, MDMK leader Vaiko said after the meeting of the grouping. However, the veteran Congress leader said it is important to win first and everything else can be decided later. Significantly, while Vaiko said Kharge’s name was proposed by Banerjee and Kejriwal, other leaders, on the ..

Mah Govt accepts Shinde panel report on procedure

THE Maharashtra Government on Tuesday accepted the first report of a committee headed by retired High Court judge Sandeep Shinde, appointed to decide the procedure for granting Kunbi caste certificates to the Marathas in the Marathwada region. The process of the issuance of Kunbi certificates has begun, an official statement said. Kunbi, a community associated with agriculture, is grouped under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category in Maharashtra and enjoys reservation benefits in education ..

Shinde to remain CM even if disqualified: Fadnavis

MAHARASHTRA Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has said Chief Minister Eknath Shinde will not be disqualified and in case that happens, he will be elected as an MLC and will retain his post. The Supreme Court on October 17 granted State Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar a final opportunity to give it a realistic timeframe for deciding the crosspetitions filed by rival factions of the Shiv Sena seeking disqualification of each other’s MLAs following a split in the party last year...

VBA’s Prakash Ambedkar meets Sharad Pawar

VANCHIT Bahujan Aghadi chief Prakash Ambedkar on Saturday met Nationalist Congress Party supremo Sharad Pawar on the sidelines of an event here but replied in the negative when asked if it could result in his outfit joining the Opposition bloc INDIA. Both Pawar and Ambedkar were speakers at an event titled ‘Unleashing India’s Economic Potential: Dr Ambedkar’s Legacy Lives On’ at YB Chavan Centre in south Mumbai...

More than a year after stoking controversy,Nupur Sharma makes 1st public appearance

 ■ NEW DELHI,  Nupur was seen at the promotional event of Vivek Agnihotri’s upcoming movie ‘The Vaccine War’  ALMOST more than a year after she made controversial remarks against Prophet Mohammad, suspended..

AIADMK quits NDA alliance

ENDING its four year-old ties with the BJP, the AIADMK on Monday announced walking out of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and said it would lead a separate front for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The decision to break away from the NDA was taken at a high level meeting chaired by party chief Edappadi K Palaniswami at the AIADMK headquarters here. The decision was met with cheers from the Dravidian party workers who burst crackers outside the headquarters here...

Kumaraswamy’s JD(S) joins hands with BJP in K’taka

IN A boost to the BJP in Karnataka ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Janata Dal (Secular) has decided to ally with the party following a meeting of its leader H D Kumaraswamy with Home Minister Amit Shah and party President J P Nadda. After the meeting, Nadda said on X, “I am happy that JD(S) has decided to be the part of National Democratic Alliance. We wholeheartedly welcome them in the NDA. This will further strengthen NDA and vision of Hon PM Narendra Modi Ji for ‘New India, Strong India’.” Shah ..

Mah to drop casesagainst Marathaquota protesters

MAHARASHTRA Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has announced the withdrawal of police cases filed against proMaratha reservation protesters in Jalna district, the epicentre of the latest round of stir on the issue, and urged quota activist Manoj Jarange to end his indefinite fast. He has also announced the suspension of three police officials involved in lathi-charge on quota agitators in central Maharashtra’s Jalna district in the first week of September. The Chief Minister made the announcements on Monday ..

Uddhav pays ‘courtesy’ visit to Ajit

SHIV Sena (UBT) President and former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday paid a ‘courtesy’ call on Deputy CM Ajit Pawar – their first meeting after the latter split the Nationalist Congress Party, here on Wednesday afternoon. A relaxed Thackeray walked to the chamber of Ajit Pawar, along with Aditya Thackeray and several MLAs of the Shiv Sena (UBT). They exchanged warm pleasantries and the former Boss (Thackeray) and his second-in-command (Ajit Pawar) had a brief discussion...

Ajit and others meet Sharad Pawar, urge him to keep party united

MAHARASHTRA Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar of NCP and some Ministers from his camp met party President Sharad Pawar here on Sunday and requested him to keep the Nationalist Congress Party united, party leader Praful Patel said. Patel said the NCP chief listened to them quietly but didn’t give any reaction. This unscheduled meeting between Sharad Pawar and the Ajit Pawar camp was the first one after he rebelled against his uncle and joined the Shiv Sena-BJP Government on July 2...

TMC poised to sweep WB rural polls

THE ruling Trinamool Congress on Wednesday inched closer to a sweeping victory in WBengal’s violence-scarred rural polls, bagging more than half the seats and leaving its rivals trailing way behind in results declared till now by the State Election Commission. The TMC has won 34,913 Gram Panchayat seats, besides leading in 607 seats, according to the SEC as of 7.30 pm on Wednesday. In all elections are being held for 63,229 Gram Panchayat seats. The ruling party’s nearest rival BJP has won 9,722 seats ..

BJP’s fact-finding team reaches West Bengal

SENIOR BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad on Wednesday criticised West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for letting loose a reign of terror during the rural polls and wondered why the central leadership of the Congress and the Left are silent on it. A four-member BJP fact-finding team to West Bengal, led by the former Union Minister, said that the State unit’s demand for implementing Article 355 is “justifiable”...

Won’t allow anyone to snatch NCP’s symbol, name: Pawar

NATIONALIST Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on Wednesday warned the Ajit Pawar-led faction that he would not let his party’s symbol and name fall into their hands. Pawar also objected to the Ajit Pawar faction using his photograph on their banners. “If they have gone there, why are they using my photo? I will not let our symbol and party name fall into their hands,” he said. Pawar senior was speaking at a party meeting organised here to show his strength after his nephew Ajit revolted against ..