The Election Commission has announced the schedule for the Rajya Sabha elections 2024, setting the stage for polls to fill 37 seats across 10 states on March 16.
The BJP's landslide victory in West Bengal has not merely redrawn the electoral map but overturned the operating logic of politics in the state, breaching the TMC's entrenched fortress despite a decade-and-a-half of dominance, minority consolidation, and a sustained "outsider" narrative.
'The AIADMK front comes second, and then the TVK.'
Hopefully, the BJP will realise that it's the right time for parivartan (change) in its polarising poll strategies after achieving the impossible-looking goal of winning West Bengal, argues Sheela Bhatt.
The delimitation in Assam has quietly changed the political scene, raising questions about whether new constituency boundaries helped the BJP by spreading out Muslim-majority voters.
Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal criticised the BJP's stance on women's reservation, challenging them to reject ideological texts like the Manusmriti. He accused the BJP of using the issue for political gains and misrepresenting Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge's remarks.
'All this talk about women's reservation and Nari Shakti is a mirage.' 'It is a classic Trojan horse to bring about an alteration in the structure of political competition -- to the enduring advantage of the BJP.'
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has accused the BJP of inciting conflict within Indian society and exploiting the resulting instability for financial gain. She also criticised Amit Shah and the BJP's governance.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has accused the BJP of stoking fights among all sections of society and attempting to loot the country by exploiting these divisions. She also criticised the BJP's economic policies and alleged discrimination in welfare schemes.
The BJP will use Samrat Choudhary to make a dent into Nitish Kumar's traditional social support base of Kurmi and Koeri/Kushwaha communities.
This election is different. It is no longer simply about governance or welfare. It is about identity, fear, and who belongs. The BJP has successfully shifted the terms of the debate from what the government has delivered to who the real Bengali is and who is an outsider, points out Ramesh Menon.
The BJP and the Opposition have engaged in a war of words over the implementation of the women's reservation bill, which aims to reserve seats for women in legislatures. The bill was defeated in the Lower House, leading to accusations and counter-accusations between the parties.
Bihar BJP chief Sanjay Saraogi supports Amit Shah's allegations that the TMC government in West Bengal is harbouring infiltrators and obstructing border fencing.
TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee has accused the BJP of misusing democratic institutions and stoking communal discord in Bengal, criticising their 'double engine' governance model.
In a dramatic election mirroring the Nandigram contest, BJP's Suvendu Adhikari defeated Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Bhabanipur, marking a significant victory for the BJP and a setback for the Trinamool Congress.
'When Narendra Modi was here, he spoke only about development and what the BJP wanted to do in Kerala. That kind of sober rhetoric or argument is acceptable to the people here.'
'This is a major rupture in Tamil Nadu's political order.' 'For the Dravidian parties, the message is clear: The old DMK-AIADMK binary is no longer guaranteed a future.'
'The BJP is pouring in money so that only BJP candidates are visible everywhere.' 'If the Congress does not win this time, its survival itself will be a problem...'
Ruling Congress in Karnataka on Monday retained Bagalkot and Davanagere South assembly seats, giving a respite to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and the party leadership, amid the ongoing power tussle over the leadership issue.
'Remember Vijay had never spoke of himself as a Christian when he was a film star.' 'The BJP strategy is they want the Christian minority constituency to move away from the DMK.' 'That is what the BJP wants so that it will be very easy to mobilise Hindu votes.' 'This strategy is to weaken the Dravidian ideology and bring in religion based politics into Tamil Nadu.'
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has launched a strong rebuttal against Union Home Minister Amit Shah's 'chargesheet' on the West Bengal government, accusing the BJP of attempting to polarise the state ahead of elections and failing to address critical issues such as violence in Manipur and women's safety in BJP-ruled states.
'They will have to adjust themselves to the new reality. Because if they don't understand this changed political perception, their future will be difficult.'
Mamata Banerjee's defeat in West Bengal marks a significant turning point in her political career, challenging her ability to rebuild and regain influence after a long period of dominance.
'The entire party is centred around one man and that is Arvind Kejriwal.' 'Till the time you are in Kejriwal's good books you are powerful. The day you are not with him, you are no one in the party.'
'If the BJP becomes our political identity, our political face, if we are represented by the BJP, then what happens to our identity as Bengalis?'
Building a party from scratch and leading it to electoral success is an entirely different challenge.
'Vijay did not defeat Dravidian politics from outside. He entered the Dravidian field and claimed ownership of it. 'His argument was not that the room should be destroyed. It was that the present occupants no longer deserved to remain in it.'
West Bengal's Chief Electoral Officer, Manoj Agarwal, has refuted allegations of potential malpractices at counting centres, assuring that robust security measures are in place. This comes after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee raised concerns about possible tampering with EVMs.
Congress leader K Muraleedharan criticises blaming communities for voting choices in Kerala, responding to BJP leaders' remarks about the Catholic church. He also expresses confidence in the UDF's prospects in the upcoming election and criticises the Election Commission's arrangements.
Whether he comes to power or not, both his admirers and opponents agree on one thing -- Vijay may well turn out to be the 'X factor'.
BJP leader Mithun Chakraborty has criticised the West Bengal government over high fuel taxes and alleged security lapses, particularly concerning women's safety and border control.
The Congress party has accused the government of using women's reservation as a pretext to push through delimitation, arguing that the women's quota law should be implemented immediately based on the current Lok Sabha strength.
'The reason why they rushed through the bill was they wanted to avoid using the 2026 Census because the 2026 Census by their own decision will be a caste census.' 'The BJP knows that a significant share of the OBCs who will get captured in the census, for the first time after the 1931 Census, are against the BJP. Only a segment of the OBCs are in their favour.' 'So they wanted to avoid the OBC reservation among women, which is a demand of a lot of Opposition parties.'
The government has released a set of FAQs to address concerns and clarify the details surrounding the Women's Reservation Bill, which aims to provide 33 per cent quota for women in legislatures.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed concerns about the impact of the West Asia conflict on India, assuring efforts to minimise its effects and prioritising the safety of Indian citizens working in the region. He also criticised the Congress party for making remarks that could endanger Indian lives for political gain.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday claimed India's neighbours wanted to "break up" Assam by taking advantage of the unrest in the state earlier, but their "dreams were shattered" as the Narendra Modi government brought peace to the region.
Without doubt, the BJP is miles ahead in marshalling digital tools for electioneering better than any other party, observes Virendra Kapoor.
'You cannot run Parliament with 800 MPs as nobody will get time (to speak in Parliament). And Parliament sits for barely 60 days in a year.' 'Look at the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. They have 650 MPs and they sit for 150 days on an average in a year.'
'Nitish Kumar may be marginalised as an office-holder, but that is not the same thing as the disappearance of Nitish Kumar's politics.'
Congress leader V D Satheesan has criticised Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, accusing him of appeasing both majority and minority communities for political gain. Satheesan's remarks follow allegations of a CPI(M)-BJP deal in the upcoming election and Vijayan's claim that Satheesan has RSS support.
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