The Congress's central leadership has summoned Andhra Pradesh party unit's chief Botsa Sathyanarayana to Delhi to discuss the Telangana issue. Sathyanarayana is expected to discuss the demand for creation of Telangana with the party's top leaders today. The Congress is working out a package for Telangana to ensure that party leaders are on a strong footing when the Andhra Pradesh legislative assembly starts another session in December.
In an unprecedented rush for tickets, the Andhra Pradesh unit of the Congress has received as many as 8,000 applications for the 294 assembly seats in the state and 500 applications for 42 Lok Sabha seats. The sources said that the Congress party was planning to release the first list of candidates with 80 names for assembly polls and 15 for the Lok Sabha elections before the Election Commission issues the poll notification.
The BJP's year has been marked by a remarkable ability to adapt its message and methods, rebounding from Lok Sabha election setbacks with improbable wins in Haryana and Maharashtra. The party's campaign machine, drawing on the strength of the RSS and its affiliates, has demonstrated a capacity to shift focus and respond to regional dynamics. While the BJP faces challenges, its adaptability and Modi's unchallenged leadership suggest a continued strong presence on the Indian political landscape.
In Tuesday's vote only 19 Congress MLAs voted against the Andhra Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy as against YSR Congress chief Jaganmohan Reddy's threat that he had the strength to pull out 40. Clearly, Jagan does not enjoy the support he boasts about, say political observers.
The thumping electoral victory the Congress had dreamt about is now a distant reality, says Vicky Nanjappa
Virtually launching Congress' election campaign for the next general election in the state Sonia Gandhi urged the people of Andhra Pradesh to stand by with the Congress and gave their blessings to it so it could complete the transformation of the state and the country in to a prosperous economic power.
There is a proposal from the BJP camp that they would resort to a proportion-based increase in the number of Lok Sabha seats for individual states, based on what they now have. On the face of it, this sounds like a fine argument that those demanding a 'freeze' now cannot oppose without reasons and justification, avers N Sathiya Moorthy.
Telugu Desam Party legislator D Umamaheswar Rao, who is on an indefinite fast in support of a united Andhra Pradesh, was 'very weak' and unable to speak, his doctors said on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Congress Member of Parliament Lagadapati Rajagopal also continued his fast against the creation of Telangana state in a city hospital. "Umamaheswar Rao is not able to speak. He is very weak but stable," doctors said.
The focal point of the Telangana issue has shifted to Delhi with the arrival of Andhra Pradesh Governor ESL Narasimhan and Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy in the capital on Wednesday.
The muscle-flexing by 140 Members of Legislative Assembly of the Congress in Andhra Pradesh, demanding the appointment of late AP Chief Minister Y S Rajshekhara Reddy's son Jaganmohan Reddy as the next CM, has come as a rude jolt to the Congress leadership, according to highly placed sources in the party.The party has realised that the entire power structure in a state should not be handed over to one individual or faction.
A united opposition is set to corner the NDA government on issues ranging from the NEET paper leak case to railway safety.
Why weren't the chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Kerala, Maharashtra and Telangana -- all of which have borders with Karnataka -- not invited to Saturday's swearing-in ceremony, asks Shyam G Menon.
Capping a day-long acrimonious debate in the Assembly that went on till the wee hours of Saturday, the motion was defeated by 84 votes in a head count by division.
As Andhra Pradesh braces to face a cyclone, political activity continues in the background. According to sources, two key leaders of the Congress -- Lagadapati Rajgopal and Rayapati Sambasiva Rao -- are in touch with YSR Congress chief Jagan Mohan Reddy with an intention of joining his party.
Right to apprenticeship, legal guarantee for MSP, passing a constitutional amendment to raise the 50 per cent cap on reservations for SCs, STs and OBCs, a nation-wide caste census and scrapping of Agnipath scheme are among the promises made by the Congress in its Lok Sabha polls manifesto released on Friday.
With billionaire Gautam Adani charged in the United States with alleged bribery and fraud, the Congress on Thursday said it 'vindicates' its demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee investigation into the various 'scams' involving his conglomerate.
If as critics point out, the environmental impact assessment study was commissioned only after the auction process got underway with not all the stakeholders getting to know of it, then the government has already compromised the trust it could have enjoyed with Kerala's public including its coastal communities, points out Shyam G Menon.
'The pressure from these betting games, coupled with financial ruin, is becoming unbearable for many, and tragically, some even resort to extreme measures like suicide.'
22 images that captures glimpses of a most unusual Indian who led the nation for 10 years.
As part of efforts to mollify the dissatisfied ministers, the chief minister has despatched ministers Aanam Ramanarayana Reddy and Kasu Venkata Krishna Reddy for talks with the rebellious ministers.
With its age-old fascination for education, southern states have done better than the North. Start-ups, IT hubs, and industry majors setting up shop have changed the face of the South. Nearly 79% of global offices set up by international conglomerates in India are in the South. Almost 46% of tech unicorns are from the South. The GDP per person in the South is 4.2 times higher than the North. None of these indicators can be ignored by any central government, whatever the political compulsions, notes Ramesh Menon.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, who chaired Tuesday's cabinet meeting, the last before the announcement of the poll schedule, presented the results of three different extensive surveys across the state before the ministers.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu's claim that animal fat was used in Tirupati laddus during the previous government has triggered a massive political row, with the YSRCP accusing Naidu of indulging in "heinous allegations" for political gains and the Telugu Desam Party circulating a lab report to back its claim.
'Each state is unique, but when it comes to finance, the fundamentals cannot be different.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, his cabinet colleagues Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, Rajnath Singh, chief ministers of Nationalist Democratic Alliance-ruled states and prominent personalities from industry and Bollywood on Thursday attended the grand swearing-in of Devendra Fadnavis as Maharashtra Chief Minister in Mumbai.
The leaders met Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chief Rahul Gandhi in the presence of general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal and Telangana Congress chief A Revanth Reddy.
The BJP, which rules the Centre, is in power in Uttarakhand, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Goa, Assam, Tripura, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, and is all set to get Madhya Pradesh back and snatch Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh from the Congress after today's vote count.
Y S Jaganmohan Reddy on Saturday warned that the days of the Congress government in Andhra Pradesh were numbered as it was neglecting the farmers in distress.
The prospect of an upset worries the ruling Congress in Andhra Pradesh as it faces a threat from a rebel candidate in the biennial election to Rajya Sabha slated for Friday.
The ruling Congress party in Andhra Pradesh is caught in a state of confusion on how to deal with the resignations of its 24 members of Legislative Assembly, who are loyal to YSR Congress president Y S Jaganmohan Reddy. For the record, the party has been saying that by-elections are inevitable in those 24 constituencies and two others from where Telugu Desam Party rebel MLAs have also resigned in support of Jagan.
Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan on Monday expressed concern over the law and order situation in the state and said if he was the state home minister, 'things would be different', remarks seen as direct criticism of Vangalapudi Anitha, who is holding the department currently.
The Supreme Court on Friday junked a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into alleged use of animal fat in making Tirupati laddus under the previous Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy-led regime.
Given the possibilities that next year's assembly elections could throw up, Stalin told the state assembly that an interim report had to be submitted by January 2026. The outcomes may well find its way into the DMK's poll manifesto, thus seeking to keep the electoral focus still on the BJP-ruled Centre and Prime Minister Modi, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
A day after six persons died in the Tirupati stampede, the Andhra Pradesh government on Thursday announced a judicial inquiry into the incident that seems to have been the result of a policeman's innocuous act of opening the gate with the intention of aiding a sick woman.
Stalin's comments came two days after Naidu said there was a need to manage the population in Andhra Pradesh given there will be an increase in the aging population.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy is currently visiting New Delhi and he is expected to discuss the disqualification of those legislators who support YSR Congress president Jagan Mohan Reddy with the party top brass there. Although the official version is that Reddy is in Delhi to wish Congress supremo Sonia Gandhi on her birthday, sources say that he wants to discuss this long-pending issue with the party leadership.
As the Bharatiya Janata Party grapples with a potential shortfall in its Lok Sabha tally, its ally Telugu Desam Party (TDP) has unequivocally pledged allegiance to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), dismissing any speculation of a pivot towards the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA).
'Chandrababu is wiser and a very good administrator.' 'Jagan is the opposite. He is not very wise, not a good administrator.'
According to an Andhra government statement, Naidu 'reposed confidence' in the PM's leadership.
Former Karnataka Chief Minister S M Krishna passed away at his residence in Bengaluru early Tuesday morning, his family said.
