Even his critics say Thaawar Chand Gehlot is a man of delivery. 'If a task is assigned, he wins it over with political sagacity,' they say.
The infighting in the AIADMK has made it weak on par with the DMK and other parties, says R Rajagopalan.
With 200 MPs out of 785 above the age of 65, there is a serious shadow of COVID-19 looming over the monsoon session Of Parliament.
The PM is keen to fill 40 per cent of joint secretary level openings with outsiders.
Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Gulam Nabi Azad approached leader of the house Arun Jaitley, saying that he is accompanying Sonia Gandhi to Varanasi on Tuesday.
In the next two years, reveals says R Rajagopalan, Modi-Shah will make a strong effort to woo the south.
Even as the unity moves between the two AIADMK factions seem to be going nowhere, former chief minister O Panneerselvam is working on a grand alliance of other Opposition parties, reports R Rajagopalan.
Among the names being mentioned for inclusion as ministers are Tejasvi Surya, the 29-year-old MP from Bangalore South, Jamyang Tsering Namgyal, the 35-year-old MP from Ladakh, Locket Chatterjee, the 45-year old MP from Hooghly, and Dilip Ghosh, MP from West Medinipur and president of the BJP's West Bengal unit.
Even though V K Sasikala's relatives may be calling the shots within the AIADMK and the Tamil Nadu government now, the 'Mannargudi clan' doesn't have a future in state politics, reports R Rajagopalan.
Modi, Shah and Nadda have created a strategy to boost the BJP and the government's image.
The political stability that Tamil Nadu saw under Chief Minister Jayalalithaa may be a thing of the past, as the new administration struggles to find its feel, says R Rajagopalan.
'With its vote bank is intact, the PMK, though a smaller party of Vanniars, was able to twist around major parties like the DMK and AIADMK, negotiating with both before settling for Chief Minister Edapadi K Palaniswami's side.' 'There is a lesson in it for regional parties in other states as well, on how to dominate the national parties with a committed vote share of just 7 to 8 per cent,' says R Rajagopalan.
Utter confusion prevails in the ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in Tamil Nadu.
A new political crisis is brewing in the VK Sasikala camp in Tamil Nadu -- differences between Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami and party general secretary Sasikala.
With Donald Trump unable to make it, Modi settles for Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.
The BJP's faces for 2019 will be Dharmendra Pradhan, Piyush Goyal, Nirmala Sitharaman, Yogi Adityanath and Devendra Fadnavis, says R Rajagopalan.
Rajinikanth's comments on the Cauvery issue have often made him the target of pro-Kannada outfits who threatened to disrupt his film's release in Karnataka. However, this time there has so far been a lack of fanfare even in Tamil Nadu. R Rajagopalan explains why.
With the presidential elections over, the time has come for Prime Minister Modi to show Tamil Nadu that the state's interests are safe under him, says R Rajagopalan.
Rumours are rife that Parade Grounds are being handed over to the Telangana government in order to acquire TRS's support for the presidential polls.
Thus it was that for the first time in the history of the republic a constitutional amendment was announced and passed by Parliament within 72 hours, reports R Rajagopalan.
BJP President Amit Shah has authorised Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu to liaise with M Thambidurai and TTV Dinakaran from the Sasikala camp, just in case it turns against the BJP after the income tax raids on its health minister C Vijayabaskar.
The Modi juggernaut is all set to paint the five south Indian states in saffron colours, writes R Rajagopalan.
From handling the party organisation, finalising candidates, shooting the breeze with the media to pow-wows with diplomats and liaising with the PMO -- Arun Jaitley is the BJP's chief backroom manager in this election, reports R Rajagopalan.
The lingering boundary issue will also feature in his talks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang and other leaders, says R Rajagopalan, who will travel to Beijing with the President.
Modi and Shah have finalised names for the Rashtrapati's post, which the BJP boss has discussed with the RSS chief.
Prime Minister Modi has entrusted Amit Shah with the task of coordinating all the agencies with their power to monitor movement and phone calls, says R Rajagopalan.
Political Pundit R Rajagopalan lists his big takeaways from the election results.
'Jaitley was one of the earliest politicians to sense the changing political scenario in Delhi. He had closely watched the rise of the BJP and declining fortunes of the Congress party during the L K Advani era. But it was between 2009 and 2014 as the Leader of the Opposition that he began to read the tea leaves. 'And thus it was that he introduced Modi-Amit Shah duo to Lutyens Delhi,' says senior journalist R Rajagopalan who had known Jaitley since 1975.
The threat to Sasikala won't come from the Tamil Nadu chief minister or New Delhi, but from her 20-plus kin, reports R Rajagopalan.
Given Modi's penchant for springing a surprise, the BJP nominee for next President could be anyone. The only thing certain is that it will be an RSS person, reports R Rajagopalan.
'Naidu understands electoral calculus, that the regional parties are yet to gain confidence in Rahul as a vote-catcher,' points out R Rajagopalan.
The DMK parliamentary party appears to be a house divided, reports R Rajagopalan.
Security has been put on high alert across the nation as the Supreme Court of India is all set to deliver its verdict in the Ram Janambhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute, Sabarimala case and a host of other legal wrangles.
'The CPI-M indulges in senseless talk. Be it the solar scam or the National Games scam, did the CPI-M prove anything?'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has started holding interactive sessions with his party MPs at which he wants them to open up. R Rajagopalan/Rediff.com reports on an unusual political exercise.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's much-speculated Cabinet reshuffle is likely to take place on Monday, reports R Rajagopalan/Rediff.com.
'KCR's plan for the future is three-pronged. He wants to see a non-Congress, non-BJP government at the Centre in 2019 so that he can become the Union minister for home or defence,' says R Rajagopalan.
Sasikala may be set to take over the reins of Tamil Nadu, yet she faces a period of immense turbulence.
Is Stalin positioning himself as a central figure in the anti-Bharatiya Janata Party, anti-Narendra Modi formation?
R Rajagopalan, who travelled through Tamil Nadu, says it will be an election of many firsts.
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