The Bharatiya Janata Party walked out in protest when Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar refused to allow former external affairs minister Yashwant Sinha who wanted to know whether the statement of external affairs minister S M Krishna had broken the protocol by saying that unless Pakistan government takes action against Hafeez Sayeed, master mind behind the Mumbai bomb blast, there was no point in carrying forward any kind of dialogue with Pakistan.
Expressing his dissatisfaction over Dr Singh's reply on the discussion over the Indo-Pak Joint Statement, former foreign minister Yashwant Sinha told rediff.com the facts given by the prime minister in the Lok Sabha are at variance with what happened at Sharm-El-Sheikh.
Accusing the ruling United Progressive Alliance of losing grip of the situation in the aftermath of the Mumbai attacks, the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party has suggested that the government should call off composite dialogue with Pakistan as that country has not responded adequately to India's demands.
In its December 14 order, the Supreme Court had dismissed petitions seeking a probe by a Special Investigation Team into the Rafale deal signed two years back, alleging irregularities and corruption in the pact.
With raging dissent in Bharatiya Janata Party coming out in the open, a senior party Member of Parliament on Wednesday said that the points raised by veterans like Yashwant Sinha, Arun Shourie and Jaswant Singh should be given due importance.
"The BJP is totally opposed to the extension of President's Rule in Karnataka, based on specious procedural grounds of the commission not being in a position to complete the procedural work. We earnestly hope the commission will rise to the occasion and find administrative solutions for resolving this problem," BJP leader Yashwant Sinha said.
'Igniting in this country, a false feeding of nationalism combined with religion.' 'They are promoting the religion of the majority people in the country to feed their political agenda.'
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday demanded an immediate session of Parliament to move breach of privilege motion against the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for "misleading" the two Houses on the Indo-US nuclear deal.
The court's remarks came when the petitioner said they were seeking a court-monitored CBI probe into the deal.
The Opposition BJP on Thursday said it is willing to consider supporting the government in expediting economic reforms if the Prime Minister takes the initiative.
Reacting to the Interim Budget 2009-10 on Monday, the Bhartiya Janata Party claimed that the United Progressive Alliance government had failed to live up to the promises it made to the nation under its common minimum programme.
'Not just 12 MPs, but 22 former Shiv Sena MLAs as well as four MLAs who are still in Uddhav Thackeray's camp will be switching to our side gradually.'
The Bharatiya Janata Party has convened a meeting of the party's core committee to discuss the resignation of senior Maharashtra leader Gopinath Munde. Senior leaders including L K Advani, Jaswant Singh, Yashwant Sinha, Sushma Swaraj, Venkaiah Naidu and Arun Jaitley are expected to participate in the meeting.The BJP leadership had called Munde and Maharashtra BJP chief Nitin Gadkari to Delhi. Gadkari had arrived in New Delhi and Munde was expected to arrive late on Monday.
In a bid to stop the party leaders' infighting in public, Bharatiya Janata Party president Rajnath Singh on Saturday issued a gag order on its leaders and functionaries from talking to media, formally or informally.
"I am glad." That is how former external affairs Yashwant Sinha reacted to Prachanda's resignation as Nepal Prime Minister. Sinha was addressing a press conference in New Delhi on Monday.
'It's a fact that the Government of India was misleading Parliament and the people. We were saying what the letter is saying. We were saying all along that these are the conditions, but the government is even now saying that 'we have the right to test'. It's like saying that I have the right to murder, it's only that I will have to suffer the consequences. The consequence of murdering somebody is death penalty, so is India prepared to accept the death penalty?'
Senior leaders of Bhartiya Janata Party feel that the Congress is adding fuel to the fire that is devastating the party in last couple of weeks.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's plan to pip other parties in declaring candidates for the Lok Sabha elections by the end of January has come a cropper. The party on Monday declared 18 candidates, including former union finance and foreign minister Yashwant Sinha from Hazaribagh and former Union minister Karia Munda from Khunti in Jharkhand.
After Rahul's Bharat Jodo Yatra began criss-crossing the Hindi heartland, BJP leaders have revived their attacks on 'dynasty politics' and 'family rule' in the Congress, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
The talk of an anti-BJP front got revived after leaders of various parties and prominent individuals congregated at Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar's New Delhi residence last month.
A purported video clip where Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is seen sitting on a wheelchair and moving her plastered leg back and forth has gone viral on social media, giving her rivals an opportunity to claim that she was playing up her injuries to win sympathy.
The Trinamool Congress on Friday complained to the Election Commission of partisan behaviour by central police forces in favour of its rival Bharatiya Janata Party, while the saffron party made a counter-complaint that Chief Minister Mamata Benerjee had violated the model code of conduct by being inside a polling booth in Nandigram for two hours on polling day.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's decision to keep the finance portfolio for himself drew sharp criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party which said it was too vast a ministry to be adjunct of the PMO.
(Excerpts from former BJP vice-president Yashwant Sinha's letter to party President Rajnath Singh)
The All India Tennis Association has convened an executive committee meeting in New Delhi on Thursday to find ways to douse the simmering controversy which rocked Indian tennis after top Davis Cuppers revolted against captain Leander Paes.
She posed for the traditional 'briefcase' picture outside her office along with her team of officials before heading to meet the President. She, however, was holding a tablet instead of a briefcase to present the Budget in a digital format.
Former FM Yashwant Sinha has opined about the impact of a weak dollar on the Indian economy and the present FM's stand on it.
Addressing media persons in Varanasi, Sinha claimed that an industrialist was working out a deal between the two, but refused to identify him.
Yeshwant Sinha has been made vice president. Arun Jaitley is secretary of the party's Parliamentary Board.
Honour the committment or just forget about the coalition," declared senior BJP leader Yashwant Sinha in Bangalore on Monday. "There is no further scope for negotiations on power transfer," he added.
'You don't win elections on the basis of borrowed players.' 'There is a great crisis of leadership for the BJP in Bengal'
Asked whether it meant that Advani should not be considered PM-in-waiting, he said, "No, this is not what I am saying. Whenever a decision is taken on the issue within the party and the NDA, you will be told."
'The finance minister has messed up the economy.'
'But a repair job will not do; what is wanted is a total overhaul to overcome contradictions and complications.'
Yashwant Sinha has concluded that with the Economic Survey the government has accepted economic defeat as it is unable to sustain high growth.
When it comes to running between the wickets -- which is exactly what an FM and a governor do -- Jadeja always defers to Dhoni's larger judgement of the situation and the needs of the team, observes T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan.
Opposition in the Rajya Sabha on Monday demanded the resignation of finance minister P Chidambaram, saying it appeared "market is in the hands of manipulators".
Yashwant Sinha expressed displeasure over Rohan Bopanna's decision to opt out of the upcoming Davis Cup tie.
Defence Minister A K Antony on Friday concluded his four-day visit to Moscow leaving for home without meeting with President Vladimir Putin. He is the second senior Indian minister to have visited Moscow in one week who the president hasn't met, the other being External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee.
