'Modi's charisma may have weakened as last year's Lok Sabha poll results showed but in the eyes of the Sangh Parivar, it has not waned.' 'Minus a strong BJP government at the Centre for another decade and more, there is apprehension that an anti-Hindutva government could reverse many of the ideological gains that the Modi dispensation has achieved through its three terms,' points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
The principal opposition party though appeared content securing 99 of the 543 seats in the 2024 national elections as against its all-time low of 44 in 2014 and then 52 in 2019.
The extended Winter session of Parliament got off a stormy start on Wednesday with uproar over the Telangana and caste-reservation issue stalling proceedings.
'The Election Commission's involvement in the avoidable SIR controversy has carried a message down to the last voter -- who just does not like it,' observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
By naming a sworn swayamsevak for vice president, the Modi-Shah duo have sent out a clear and positive message to Nagpur, where the RSS headquarters is located, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Congress high command has summoned Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy and former chief minister and Tamil Nadu Governor K Rosaiah to discuss the Telangana issue. The Congress high command, while delaying its final decision on creating a separate state, had stated that it wanted to consult senior leaders from the state about it.
The Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay tabling of the Telangana Bill in Parliament, saying it did not want to interfere at this stage.
V Vijayasai Reddy, a Rajya Sabha member from the YSRCP, has announced his decision to quit politics and resign from his parliamentary membership. He stated that agriculture will be his future and that his decision was personal, with no pressure or influence from others. Reddy's announcement comes as the YSRCP faces challenges after its defeat in the 2024 Assembly elections. He thanked YSRCP supremo YS Jagan Mohan Reddy for providing him the Rajya Sabha opportunity and highlighted his working relationship with the ruling TDP and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan.
The Group of Minister, set up to look into the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, is all set to recommend special status to both the states under Article 371-D of the Constitution and examining a proposal to include two districts of Rayalseema in Telangana.
Congress legislators from the coastal Andhra and Rayalaseeema would soon undertake a 48-hour hunger strike in Hyderabad in support of united Andhra Pradesh.
Three of the fence-sitters rule fairly large states Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Odisha that together send 63 members to Lok Sabha -- where the Congress or other opposition parties have been pushed to the margins.
The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Bill 2014, which got Parliament's approval on February 20 despite strong opposition from Seemandhra leaders, got the Presidential assent, paving the way for creation of the country's 29th state by splitting Andhra Pradesh.
President Pranab Mukherjee has given his nod to the Telangana Bill, which is likely to be tabled in Parliament on Tuesday.
Y S Sharmila's message to voters in Kadapa is brief: 'I am YSR's daughter, my brother Jagan has ruined Andhra, vote for me, vote for Congress.' A Ganesh Nadar listens in.
As the Congress and United Progressive Alliance government appear to be veering towards formation of a separate Telangana state, ministers and MPs from Andhra and Rayalaseema regions met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday opposing any division of Andhra Pradesh.
The vote value of an MLA is calculated on the basis of the total population of the state, based on the 1971 census.
Throwing a direct challenge at the Congress high command, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on Saturday said that he would ensure the defeat of the AP Reorganisation Bill 2013 when it comes up for passage in the state assembly.
The Andhra Pradesh Congress legislature committee unanimously passed a resolution on Friday, requesting Congress president Sonia Gandhi to choose the Congress Legislature Party leader. The resolution, moved by Kadapa member of Parliament YS Jaganmohan Reddy, was supported by 150 Members of the Legislative Assembly and 49 Members of Legislative Council
The Group of Ministers, set up to look into the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, has completed the process of discussions with various stake holders and will submit its report to the Union cabinet as early as possible to pave way for tabling Telangana Bill in the winter session of Parliament.
With K Rosaiah stepping down as the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, insiders say that Kiran Kumar Reddy, speaker of the Andhra Pradesh assembly, is the frontrunner of the post.
Primarily the discussion will be on Satyam matters and also on ensuing parliament and state Assembly polls.
There is little doubt that the prime minister's own charisma exceeds that of his party, but 2024 is proof that no party can ultimately depend on one person to deliver victory all the time, points out R Jagannathan.
'Chandrababu is wiser and a very good administrator.' 'Jagan is the opposite. He is not very wise, not a good administrator.'
The BJP is focusing determinedly on the seats it lost in 2019, with the hope of winning these either independently or with the aid of its allies.
The polling began amidst tight security in the by-elections to four Lok Sabha and 18 Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh on Thursday. While the by-elections to four Lok Sabha and 16 Assembly seats were caused by the en-masse resignation of Telangana Rashtra Samiti members on the issue of statehood for Telangana region, two other Assembly seats fell vacant following the death of sitting Khairatabad Congress Legislator P Janardhan Reddy in the city.
The Election Commission is set to conduct 17 by-polls in Andhra Pradesh, according to highly-placed sources. The impending president election is the main reason for the hurry is conducting the assembly by-polls, said the sources, as protocol demands that no assembly or Parliament seat should be vacant during the election of the President of India.
22 images that captures glimpses of a most unusual Indian who led the nation for 10 years.
The Home Minister said creating a new state normally takes a period of eight to nine months but the central government would try its best to do it as early as possible.
'The karyakartas who wanted to contest were disappointed and it took some time to explain to them why we needed an alliance.'
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the proposal for 'one nation, one Election' as recommended by the Kovind panel, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Wednesday.
"We are preparing a note to pass a resolution in the Cabinet. After we finalise the note, it will be sent to the Law Ministry for legal vetting. I hope the note will be presented before the Cabinet within 20 days," Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde told reporters in New Delhi on Monday.
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 last session of Parliament started off on a noisy note as pro and anti-Telangana MPs sparred with each other on the floor of the two houses.
However, the Telangana statehood was not even on the agenda of the assembly which reconvened on Thursday morning.
With several leaders from the Seema-Andhra region waiting to defeat the Telangana resolution in the assembly, the Congress is exploring the possibility of imposing the President's rule in the state.
Seeking to put a lid on speculation, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde on Thursday said the bill for creation of the new state of Telangana, bifurcating Andhra Pradesh, will be tabled in the winter session of Parliament starting on December five.
The parties which gave chief ministers and sent scores of MPs to Parliament, drew a blank this time.
The Andhra Pradesh police have issued a general advisory to all elected representatives, mainly ministers, members of Parliament and members of Legislative Assembly, asking them not to travel in Maoist-infested agency areas in the state.
Speaking for the first time in the Andhra Pradesh legislative assembly after she was elected six months ago, YS Vijayalakshmi, widow of former Chief Minister Y S Rajashekhar Reddy, defended her son and member of Parliament YS Jaganmohan Reddy.
Call it the art of staying rooted yet bending with prevailing political winds. With Telangana going to the polls in December, and assembly and Lok Sabha elections in Andhra and Odisha scheduled next year, what factors have influenced parties' recent moves?
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