The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in Uttar Pradesh is reviving its 'brotherhood committees', a strategy used successfully in the 2007 elections, to bolster its support among Other Backward Castes (OBCs) ahead of the 2027 state assembly elections. These committees, to be formed in all 403 constituencies, aim to connect with 100 people from OBC communities in each village, acting as ambassadors of the party at the booth level. The BSP sees these committees as a counter to the Samajwadi Party's PDA pitch and a means to consolidate its scattered rural vote bank. The party is also highlighting the 'anti-Dalit' and 'anti-OBC' tactics of the Congress, BJP and SP, hoping to capitalize on perceived grievances and reposition itself as a champion of marginalized communities.
While Narendra Modi is the talisman of his party, it is still not certain if he can claim this space among the people of India, says Seema Mustafa.
'I had told Fadnavisji that I will be with the party till the Lok Sabha election and I will give my 100 per cent to campaign for the BJP. But ultimately I will have to take this decision (to quit the BJP).' 'When I requested him to see this from the point of view of an elder brother, he could not say anything more after that.'
Bucking anti-incumbency, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party pulled off a hat-trick of wins in Haryana to retain power and halt Congress' comeback attempt in the assembly elections, results of which were announced on Tuesday.
Every trick in the trade is being tried unabashedly.
In simple arithmetical terms every possible 'arrangement' is being made to deny a majority to its rivals. A split verdict would hand a vital advantage to the BJP which is adept at extracting the best out of such a situation, notes Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir affairs.
Only four working days are left for the ongoing budget session to come to an end on April 4.
"I'm amazed channels are bothering with exit polls especially after the fiasco of the recent general elections. I'm ignoring all the noise on channels, social media, WhatsApp etc. because the only numbers that matter will be revealed on the 8th of Oct. The rest is just time pass," Abdullah, a former chief minister, wrote on X.
The broom, the hand or the kite, listen to the mind or the heart, 'tunnel vision voting' to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party or electing the 'right party'. With only two days to go for polling, the choice is anything but clear for Delhi's Muslims, say many voters.
A fresh plea has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the constitutional validity of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, claiming it was a "blatant intrusion" into the rights of a religious denomination to manage its own affairs in the matter of religion. The plea, filed by Samastha Kerala Jamiathul Ulema, argues that the amendments would distort the religious character of Waqfs and irreversibly damage the democratic process in their administration. Several other petitions have been filed in the apex court challenging the validity of the bill, including those by Congress MP Mohammad Jawed, AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi, and AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan.
'We used to discuss how image-conscious Nitish Kumar was and his sophisticated conduct in public life. All this has become a thing of the past.'
'Gyanendra back on the throne would be bad news for the Nepali people. He may not have learnt from his experience, but we have.'
The Congress party suffered a crushing defeat in the Delhi elections, failing to secure a single seat in the 70-member assembly for the third consecutive time. Key candidates, including Sheila Dikshit's son, Sandeep Dikshit, lost their deposits. The only consolation for the party was a slight improvement in its vote share, which they attribute to a vigorous campaign and a renewed focus on contesting elections independently. However, the defeat raises questions about the party's ability to compete in the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha elections, particularly in light of its performance in other recent state elections.
'In Western UP, last time a lot of Dalits voted for the BJP.' 'This time, there is a rethink among Dalits about the extent of their support for the BJP.'
'We are not opposed to any Indian language. We are against Hindi imposition.'
Some have been cherry-picked to assert the BJP's supremacy over its allies or, significantly, its leaders who charted an independent course in the recent past.
'The Constitution of India defeated the BJP.'
Using the Mahabharat reference as a leitmotif, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Monday claimed that an atmosphere of fear prevails all around with a group of six trapping the entire country in a 'chakravyuh' he promised would be broken by the INDIA bloc.
In a first, BJP crossed the 10 per cent vote share-mark in Tamil Nadu and has so far registered a share of 10.21 per cent, though it could not emerge in lead positions anywhere.
The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) has shifted its focus back to Hindutva after suffering significant losses in the recent Maharashtra assembly elections. The party has been vocal about attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh and has taken a stance to "protect" a Hanuman Temple in Mumbai. Observers say this move is an attempt to regain its core voter base and counter the BJP's narrative on Hindutva, ahead of the upcoming civic polls. Analysts believe the party's "secular" stand may not be effective in the BMC elections and that its return to Hindutva is a sign of frustration from electoral setbacks.
Although the BJP has never been ballistic about the BJD and Narendra Modi has avoided being critical of Naveen Patnaik, the BJP is optimistic that the party can improve its electoral fortunes in Odisha on its own, notes Rup Narayan Das.
'While other parties generally need support directly from their central leadership to get influencers or celebrities to endorse their party, the work of identifying and contacting such influencers has been decentralised to state and district level IT cells to get more engagement in the BJP.'
After being sworn in as the 47th president of the United States, Trump started his inaugural address with a sentence that echoed Modi's coinage some years ago, notes Modi biographer Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
'When honest, wealthy people come forward to serve India, people should feel proud and welcome them.'
As the Bharatiya Janata Party looks set to retain Haryana, the Congress' poll campaign, which was built around various issues including unemployment, farmers' plight and Agnipath scheme, appeared to have failed to click with a majority of the voters.
'Not even a single rupee from the electoral bonds should be allowed to be used in the election.' 'If it is used in the election, it will taint India's electoral process itself.'
'We want to ensure that no government in J&K will be formed without our support.'
'Bringing in Dr Mohan Yadav as the Yadav-OBC face from Ujjain as chief minister, and a scheduled tribe leader Jagdish Devda from Mandsaur district, and a Brahmin face Rajendra Shukla from Rewa, the BJP is making an attempt to put in place a new caste equation in the state keeping an eye on the general elections next year.'
'I have no doubt that when she was prevented from meeting Kejriwal, she felt humiliated.'
The specter of how the Munambam issue was exploited during the November by-elections is proof of the price Kerala is paying for its emergent politics. Controversies become the stuff of slow-burn and brinkmanship. The former promises mileage; the latter searches for an advantage, notes Shyam G Menon.
Instead of harvesting the wrath against the BJP and using it to their advantage by opting for a collective form of leadership, the Congress decided once again to bestow their trust in the Hooda family who were given a free hand in the distribution of tickets. This turned out to be the biggest blunder and this faulty selection was the single over riding factor in the Congress defeat, explains Rashme Sehgal.
'What should surprise BJP supporters is Modi's call for 'stability' at the manifesto launch, a theme that he and his team members had not touched ahead of the Lok Sabha polls in 2014 and 2019.' 'The last time the party called for 'stability at the Centre' was in 1998 and 1999,' recalls N Sathiya Moorthy.
Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Mukesh Dalal was on Monday elected unopposed from Surat Lok Sabha constituency in Gujarat after all other nominees withdrew from the fray, a poll official said.
The Bharatiya Janata Party sealed its alliance with the Telugu Desam Party on Saturday for the upcoming Lok Sabha and Andhra Pradesh assembly elections, with former chief minister of the southern state N Chandrababu Naidu asserting that the combine will sweep the polls.
The Congress party in India has alleged "serious and grave inconsistencies" in the data relating to the polling and counting processes for the recently concluded Maharashtra Assembly elections. The party has sought an in-person hearing from the Election Commission to present evidence of alleged discrepancies, including the arbitrary deletion and addition of voters and inexplicable increases in voting percentages. The Congress leaders claim these irregularities benefited the ruling BJP-led alliance, which won a decisive victory in the polls.
If the idea was to garner AIADMK votes with or without the three faction leaders after the party broke ties with the NDA, it may not work after all, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'BJP's ultimate ambition is to control Bihar independently.'
Whether the age-old cry of kendrer banchana will be able to drown out pangs of Sandeshkhali, the EVM will tell.
'Barring Tamil Nadu and Kerala, the BJP will may make inroads in Karnataka, Andhra and Telangana in 2024.'
The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance is expected to achieve a clear majority in Rajya Sabha after bye-elections for 12 seats scheduled next month, which would help the party get the nod for key legislations such as the Waqf (Amendment) Bill.
At the same time VK Sasikala, confidante of late party matriarch J Jayalalithaa is staking claim to the late leader's legacy.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances