West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Monday called for a federal front of non-Congress and non-Bharatiya Janata Party regional parties for the coming Lok Sabha elections and said a plan of action should be decided.
With 103 members belonging to the BJP, the Karnataka assembly will witness a balance it has never seen.
The government on Friday rejected allegation of phone tapping of the Bharatiya Janata Party leader Arun Jaitley and promised to get the full details of the "unauthorised" obtaining of call details of the leader of the opposition in Rajya Sabha.
The Centre on Thursday rejected Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa's charge that non-Congress ruled states were discriminated against at the National Development Council meet and said that no leader should make political capital at such events.
Leader of opposition Arun Jaitley on why Justice Markandey Katju must quit as the Chairman of the Press Council of India
'Don't try to impose anything on us.'
The development comes a day after senior CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechury called on Yadav at his residence amid talks of non-Congress and non-BJP parties coming together for the next general elections.
Stepping up its offensive against the Bharatiya Janata Party, the government on Saturday said the opposition party should ask its chief ministers to resign in connection to the coal-gate row since the state governments decide who gets the mining lease. "The basic question is that who executes the lease," Union Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal said.
The BJP and the Left have come out poorer, while the Congress was galvanised to push Pranab Mukherjee's into the race. The political permutations and combinations also indicate the possibility of a non-Congress, non-BJP 'third front' being in the fray for the 2014 general elections, says Praful Bidwai.
As the battle lines are drawn between the United Progressive Alliance and the National Democratic Alliance, the NDA is now beginning to smell power, says Neerja Chowdhury
Stepping up her campaign for former Lok Sabha speaker P A Sangma's candidature for Presidency, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam supremo Jayalalithaa on Sunday contacted top leaders of several non-Congress parties including Bharatiya Janata Party veteran L K Advani, seeking their support to the tribal leader.
'Raman Singh will certainly be defeated by the alliance we have created," says Chhattisgarh's first chief minister Ajit Jogi.
Rao had recently said a non-Congress and non-BJP front should be formed in the country
The Centre will try its best to get a nod from chief ministers to set up the controversial anti-terror hub National Counter Terrorism Centre at Saturday's crucial meeting which is expected to witness fiery scenes.
Chief ministers of non-Congress states on Monday accused the Centre of not consulting states on key security issues wherein the state's powers are "abrogated" while United Progressive Alliance ally Trinamool Congress opposed National Centre for Counter Terrorism as it "upsets" the federal structure.
As the race for the President reaches it non-exciting climax, it is clear that no political constituent is winning with dignity, says Sheela Bhatt.
India is mushrooming with Deve Gowda wannabes because being a former prime minister is better than being a former chief minister, says Shekhar Gupta.
Slamming Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani for predicting a non-BJP, non-Congress prime minister in 2014, Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray on Monday said it is like a general saying before a war that there is no guarantee on the outcome and "demoralising" the entire army.
Breaking his silence over stiff opposition to his pet project National Counterterrorism Center, Home Minister P Chidambaram on Friday wrote to 10 non-Congress chief ministers, saying countering terrorism is a shared responsibility and Centre will continue to work with states to fight the menace.
The chief ministers of the non-Congress-ruled states continued to oppose to proposal, while most Congress CM gave it a thumbs up. Here's what a few chief ministers said in support of the NCTC.
The Centre on Saturday failed to break the logjam on the controversial anti-terror body National Counter Terrorism Centre with non-Congress chief ministers stoutly opposing and some of them demanding its withdrawal.
Giving a new turn to the Presidential race, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday ruled out supporting Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Vice-President Hamid Ansari or any other candidate who may be put up by the Congress but is open to supporting anyone chosen by the non-Congress parties.
The plan for the creation of the ambitious National Counter Terrorism Centre has come under attack from non-Congress chief ministers, including the party's ally Trinamool Congress. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee joined Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in opposing the setting up of the anti-terror body and wrote a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, asking him to "review and withdraw" the decision.
Holding non-Congress governments responsible for lack of development in Uttar Pradesh in the last 22 years, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday said only Congress, led by Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, can change this "bad situation" and provide good governance in the state.
A day after non-Congress chief ministers and an ally attacked the Centre over National Counter Terrorism Centre, Home Minister P Chidambaram on Tuesday lamented the "mistrust" harboured by some states and expressed confidence that the issue would be resolved in the May 5 meeting.
Few had imagined the BJP would be able to travel this far when it was founded on April 6, 1980.
The unprecedented hike in petrol prices has helped the Left and the Right to make common cause on Thursday for a nationwide protest, described by the Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies as Bharat Bandh and by Left as All India Protest Day.
Representatives from Gujarat, Chhattisgarh and Bihar voiced their concern at the high-level meeting chaired by Home Secretary R K Singh in which state chief secretaries, home secretaries and police chiefs were present.
The government is learnt to have decided not to go ahead with the proposed National Counter Terrorism Centre after facing strong opposition from non-Congress chief ministers.
When was the last time you saw the majority of the non-Congress political parties rooting for a Congressman as President? So why is the Congress hesitating to name him for the post? Neerja Chowdhury analyses the party's dilemma
In the latest medical bulletin issued by AIIMS, the hospital said that he 'continues to respond well to treatment'.
After the launch of National Counter Terror Centre was put on hold due to protests by non-Congress ruled states, chief ministers of Tamil Nadu and Orissa on Tuesday trained their guns again at the Centre by opposing the proposed amendment to the Railway Protection Force Act.
Under attack from non-Congress-ruled states over setting up of an anti-terror institution, Home Minister P Chidambaram on Saturday sought to reach out to them saying that the security of the country is a shared responsibility of the central and state governments.
Sharing the dais for the first time in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi and daughter Priyanka on Tuesday lambasted the Mayawati regime for lack of development alleging large-scale corruption in implementation of central schemes worth Rs 1 lakh crore.
The Samajwadi Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party's formula to woo voters with laptops and tablet computers might work in some south Indian states but would not be of any help in Uttar Pradesh where the electorate is "much wiser", senior Congress leader Sriprakash Jaiswal has said. Exuding confidence that the issue of development would be the main issue in the UP elections, Jaiswal said there is a growing realisation that non-Congress governments have "hindered" growth.
Lashing out at non-Congress governments of Uttar Pradesh for "selling Ram, caste and religion" for the past 22 years, Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday asked voters to give five years to his party for development of the state.
The Bharatiya Janata Party -led National Democratic Alliance on Friday indicated that it will try to mobilise support of non-Congress parties for A P J Abdul Kalam, whose name has been floated by SP and Trinamool Congress.
Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Saturday indicated that the annual meeting of chief ministers on April 16 may be extended to discuss setting up of National Counter Terrorism Centre as demanded by some of the non-Congress ruled states.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani, who is on an anti-corruption yatra, on Friday fired a fresh salvo at the United Progressive Alliance government claiming that it was following 'discriminatory' policies against non-Congress ruled states.
Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa brings forth the different contours of the proposed NCTC, and also explains the raging debate over its formation.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances