Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the decision to transform Jammu and Kashmir into a Union Territory is 'temporary' and the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government will restore the statehood to the region.
Hours before the ceremony, Saini visited the Valmiki Bhawan and offered prayers at a gurdwara and the Mansa Devi temple in Panchkula.
To understand Modi, listen to what he does not say -- vide NRC, suggests Prem Panicker.
'It has changed the political character of India by ejecting socialism as an ideology from the Constitution of India.'
Despite the upbeat statement, the party is expected to reflect on what caused the sharp fall in its numbers. It is expected to win about 240 seats against the 303 it had won in 2019.
In its manifesto, the party made a string of promises, including expeditious construction of a Ram temple, doubling farmers income and the scrapping of Article 370 that gives special status to Jammu and Kashmir.
Describing it as 'Sankalp Patra', the party in its manifesto promised 33 per cent reservation to women in government jobs and private institutions in the state and free rides in Haryana roadways buses.
Speaking at the Congress manifesto launch programme, Gandhi said it is a much closer contest than what is propagated by the media, and expressed confidence in winning the polls.
Convert the Haryana result into a blessing in disguise; make the calamity into an opportunity. Maharashtra was always the big ticket game in town; MVA must win it. The Congress should shift headquarters to Mumbai for the entire month. Show urgency and a hunger to win, asserts Sanjay Jha.
'Crores of rupees have been spent on paper but nothing has actually happened on the ground.'
The Centre is considering a proposal on increasing coverage under the Ayushman Bharat scheme to Rs 10 lakh from the current Rs 5 lakh.
Three days before the first phase of the Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday, April 8, released its manifesto with a focus on development and national security.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who released BJP's manifesto for the legislative assembly polls, said a committee would be constituted on UCC.
'One nation, one election' is not possible under the present Constitution. It requires at least five constitutional amendments'
The term of the 22nd Law Commission, which is without a chairperson for the past few months, ends Saturday with its key report on the uniform civil code still in works. The report prepared by the law panel on simultaneous elections is ready and is pending submission to the law ministry.
Rajasthan Congress chief Sachin Pilot said the manifesto was prepared after taking opinions through multiple platforms such as social media.
The Congress had dubbed the BJP's election manifesto a "Jhansa Patra" (deception document) and a "bubble of lies" on Monday and said it would have been better had the saffron party issued a "maafinama" instead.
Haryana is witnessing a multi-cornered contest this time, with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party facing anti-incumbency and a resurgent Congress.
The party president said the manifesto was the 'voice of the people of Karnataka'.
The new TDP government will have to mop up over Rs 10,000 crore to fulfill the financial requirements for July, a retired senior bureaucrat said.
Gandhi's remarks come amid repeated attacks by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying that the Congress manifesto bears a 'Muslim League imprint'.
'The Abdullah family is the problem and facilitator of the instability that we are seeing in Kashmir.'
'In case of multi-phase elections, manifesto shall not be released during the prohibitory periods, as prescribed under Section 126 of the RP Act of all the phases of those elections'
'People in politics have lost the value of being connected to their own people.' 'Now it's all about vote share, vote bank, how many parties can you break and make them join you.'
The manifesto also vowed to carry out caste-based census in 2020-21.
BJP general secretary and in-charge of Karnataka's party affairs P Muralidhar Rao alleged that the problem of the Congress was looking at schemes through the prism of religion which is reflected in promising benefits to autorickshaw owners, "who in majority belong to the minority community."
Annapoorna chain of restaurants owner Srinivasan is seen purportedly highlighting concerns over varying GST rates. In the second video, Srinivasan was seen purportedly apologising in person to the Finance Minister.
Shekhawat, the BJP's poll in-charge for Punjab, said to finalise the seat sharing agreement, a joint committee will be formed comprising two leaders from each party.
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Monday said her party has prepared a separate manifesto for women for the upcoming Uttar Pradesh assembly polls, and promised them free LPG cylinders and travel in government buses if voted to power.
The Congress chief said if his party is elected to power, its government would spend 6 per cent of the GDP on education.
Every student of Classes 9 and 10 will receive Rs 2,200 and that of Classes 11 and 12 Rs 7,500 as scholarships, said the manifesto, which was released by Prasad in Ranchi, in the presence of Chief Minister Raghubar Das, Union Tribal Minister Arjun Munda and BJP's state unit president Laxman Gilua.
'If an election promise has to be credible, silence on practical questions doesn't help matters,' notes T N Ninan.
A political party's manifesto is the first stage of building a compact with the voters in any governance plan. If that compact is dependent on a document that reeks of fiscal imprudence and lacks credibility, it is a serious setback to the country's democracy and governance, says A K Bhattacharya.
Jammu and Kashmir BJP chief Ravinder Raina, seeking re-election from Nowshera assembly constituency of Rajouri district in Jammu and Kashmir, is facing a major challenge from his former party colleague Surinder Choudhary.
Modi began his nearly 45-minute speech by welcoming the people who attended the rally in the Kashmiri language. "This time, the (assembly) election will decide the future of Jammu and Kashmir, which has remained the target of foreign powers since Independence," he told the gathering.
All four gates of Jagannath temple in Puri were reopened for devotees on Thursday morning in the presence of Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and his council of ministers.
He referred to the Modi government scheme providing five kilograms of ration to the poor every month and said, "The Congress brought the Food Security Act, you did nothing."
Bettering the promise of monthly payouts to homemakers by the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the DMK, Kamal Haasan's Makkal Needhi Maiam on Friday assured Rs 3,000 "value rights assistance" to them in its manifesto for the April 6 assembly polls, but maintained it was not a dole.
This election will be remembered for being the first election where the Election Commission failed to take action on gross violations involving the ruling party that repeatedly used religion, communal slurs, lies and undocumented allegations, observes Ramesh Menon.
'If we want real democracy, the economy itself will need to be democratised.'
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