If 'Raja' Amarinder Singh can address the issues of health and education, he is certain to coast to victory.
Sukhbir Singh Badal, son of Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is to being installed as the new CM of Punjab with the Shiromani Akali Dal's alliance partner, the Bharatiya Janata Party giving its consent.
'Narendra Modi might not have made 145 in Maharashtra, but it is definitely true that the Congress, and other dynastic parties, are well and truly stumped.'
Apart from the 18 members of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA), including the Bharatiya Janata Party, seven non-National Democratic Alliance parties will attend the ceremony, going by their stated position on the issue which has snowballed into another political flashpoint between the ruling and opposition camps.
With 85-year-old Akali Dal patriarch Parkash Singh Badal at the helm, the old faces mostly stand out in the newly sworn Punjab Cabinet, whose average age is 60 years. Badal is the oldest member of his council of ministers, which comprises 17 other Cabinet-rank ministers, including his son Sukhbir Singh Badal as his deputy.
A day after his party got a miserable drubbing in the Assembly polls, Peoples Party of Punjab chief Manpreet Singh Badal on Wednesday accused Shiromani Akali Dal of using money power to garner votes.
The results of the Assembly elections were nothing to exult about for the Bharatiya Janata Party with the party faring poorly in Uttar Pradesh and its chief minister B C Khanduri losing in Uttarakhand although it grabbed Goa from Congress.
Despite attaining absolute majority in Punjab, the Shiromani Akali Dal and its ally Bharatiya Janata Party lost its vote share in comparison to Congress which failed to live up to its expectations in the poll results of the 117 member assembly.
The SAD-BJP alliance on Tuesday created history in Punjab by storming back to power for a second consecutive term, breaking a 46-year-old jinx.
Shiromani Akali Dal created history on Tuesday to become the first party ever to retain power in Punjab bucking the anti-incumbency factor with Parkash Singh Badal, the grand old man of the state politics, and his son Sukhbir Singh leading the charge.
Bharatiya Janata Party president Nitin Gadkari is confident that his party will come back to power in Uttrakhand as well as Punjab, where it has an alliance with the Shiromani Akali Dal. He also believes that the party will fare way better in Uttar Pradesh than the predictions made by several exit polls. "I am confident that we will win the elections in Uttrakhand and Punjab," he said.
In the complaint, the DSGMC mentioned that Ranaut had intentionally and deliberately portrayed the farmers' protest (Kisan Morcha) as a Khalistani movement and also dubbed the Sikh community as Khalistani terrorists.
A beaming Amarinder Singh thanked the people of the state for their overwhelming support, saying he was committed to good governance and tackling the drug menace.
Even as Sidhu parries queries on whether he would join the AAP, dissent is brewing in Arvind Kejriwal's party.
Though the Congress lost the battle in 2007 to the Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party alliance, it hopes to regain power in Punjab this year. The party, which is banking on the anti-incumbency factor, believes it "will throw Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal and Bhartiya Janata Party out of power".
The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance is set to host a meeting of its constituents on Tuesday in what is being seen as a show of strength by the ruling alliance amid a get-together of opposition parties in Bengaluru to forge unity, as the two sides step up their campaign for the Lok Sabha elections in 2024.
After 13 years in hibernation, the prospects of passage of the controversial women's reservation bill brightened with sharp divisions coming to the fore among one of the main the opponents of the measure--JD(Uas Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar declared his support.
President Ram Nath Kovind said the nation will always be grateful to the security personnel who laid down their lives in the line of duty.
Taking a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rahul asked how could he stand with the Akali Dal when he always talks about eliminating corruption.
The government has ruled out a separate marriage law for the Sikhs and dropped the proposal to amend the Anand Marriage Act of 1909 to provide for registration of the Sikh marriages.
Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit administered the oath of office and secrecy to Mann in the swearing-in ceremony that took place at Khatkar Kalan, the ancestral village of legendary freedom fighter Bhagat Singh in Punjab's Shaheed Bhagat Singh (SBS) Nagar district.
The 48-year-old Mann was elected the AAP Legislature Party leader at a meeting of the party MLAs in Mohali on Friday.
Other prominent candidates among the 904 in the fray are Union minister Anurag Thakur, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee, RJD supremo Lalu Prasad's daughter Misa Bharti.
The dinner was followed by a meeting in which nearly two dozen allies facilitated Prime Minister Modi.
Several candidates, including Taranjit Singh Sandhu, the BJP's Amritsar candidate, are promising resumption of India-Pakistan trade via the Attari-Wagah land route.
Sikh groups on Tuesday said the incident of shoe-throwing at Home Minister P Chidambaram reflected the long pent-up anger of the community which had suffered in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.
Opposition MPs staged a walkout from the Lok Sabha on Thursday as Prime Minister Narendra Modi was replying to a debate on the no-confidence motion, complaining that there was no reference to Manipur in the first 90 minutes of his speech.
'Kirtans' (hymns) were sung and prayers offered as Bhindranwale's portrait was placed alongside paintings dating to the 15th century in the Sikh heritage museum.
Poll-bound Delhi will witness star-studded election rallies on Sunday, organised by the Bharatiya Janata Party's ally Shiromani Akali Dal, the Congress and the Bahujan Samaj Party, which are trying their best to ensure impressive turnouts.Congress president Sonia Gandhi will sound the election bugle from Mangolpuri in outer Delhi while Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and BSP chief Mayawati will address a rally in Trilokpuri in east Delhi.
They try to hide behind the smokescreen that these are works of fiction inspired by real events. So, you can pick and choose from facts and fictionalise to push the right triggers with your audience or appease the powers that be, observes Shekhar Gupta.
A former chief minister of Punjab, Barnala has the ability to carry other parties with him, including Akali Dal from the National Democratic Alliance.
Some candidates in these two states have been provided security till the poll process ends.
Amid some Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) constituents switching sides to the National Democratic Alliance, Congress leader Sachin Pilot on Sunday said the opposition alliance is 'strong' and the Bharatiya Janata Party is attempting a 'frantic rejig' of the political landscape as it is worried over the collective strength of the coalition.
Addressing mediamen at Wishvkarma Gurudwara at Mandi Dabwali, the president of the Shiromani Akali Dal Amritsar (Panj-Pardhani) Daljit Singh Bittu said the Dera chief should be arrested and his activities should be stopped by the Union government. Protestors will pray at the Golden temple in Amritsar on July 19 before leaving for Delhi, Bittu added.
After many years, intricate caste calculations will dominate politics in Punjab.
A special court in Roopnagar on Friday framed charges against Badal, his wife, son and seven others in connection with the case.
Polling to 115 of 117 seats of the Punjab Assembly will be held amidst tight security.
The Rajya Sabha was adjourned for the second straight day on Wednesday without transacting any business as a determined Opposition stalled proceedings demanding action against those indicted by the Nanavati Commission.
The party's general secretary Arun Jaitley, who is in charge of the Punjab polls, will accompany Advani from Pathankot.
The Aam Aadmi Party has sought the setting aside of Tuesday's election, alleging tampering of ballot papers, and fresh elections under the supervision of a retired high court judge.
