The Lok Sabha witnessed a display of linguistic diversity on Monday, with the newly-elected MPs taking their oaths in English and Indian languages, including Sanskrit, Hindi, Dogri, Bengali, Assamese and Odia.
'If the BJP had contested all 227 seats, I believe they would have managed to secure a majority on their own.'
Ajit Pawar granted Rediff an interview in Baramati at 6 am. Why? 'To be a successful politician one needs to sleep less, and I never sleep for more than 4 hours' Ajit Pawar told Syed Firdaus Ashraf as Hitesh Harisinghani/Rediff captured the encounter on his camera.
Despite his influence, Pratik Jain avoids the spotlight. Credit is routinely passed on to colleagues. He maintains no visible faction within the TMC, no personal coterie.
Voting was underway on Friday in 102 Lok Sabha seats spread across 21 states and Union territories in the first of the seven phases of the world's largest electoral exercise, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging voters to exercise their franchise in record numbers.
The passing of bills without Parliament, including the treasury benches, having any real understanding of what they contained through any rigorous process has accelerated through the Modi era, points out Aakar Patel.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah directed BJP leaders to intensify grassroots outreach in West Bengal, setting performance benchmarks for the upcoming state elections. He emphasized party unity and the importance of booth-level workers.
The Congress party is intensifying its efforts to strengthen its organizational base in Uttar Pradesh, with plans to contest all 403 seats in the 2027 Assembly elections. Senior leaders emphasize grassroots preparations, voter outreach, and public meetings to regain political ground in the state.
'In my experience of politics, I have seen political grips and political chokes are mostly hidden. The average person cannot see them,' Rahul Gandhi said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the new Parliament building Sunday morning and installed the scared 'Sengol' in the Lok Sabha chamber, right next to the Speaker's chair, after performing a puja.
Puri's clarification came after Gandhi claimed that the Union minister's name has also figured in 'Epstein Files' released in the US.
'Vote banks will change affiliations and the BJP will come out with good success in Kerala.'
The Delhi High Court has scheduled a hearing for March 9 on the Enforcement Directorate's plea challenging a trial court order that refused to acknowledge its chargesheet against Congress leaders Sonia and Rahul Gandhi in the National Herald money laundering case.
The women's Reservation Bill is likely to be introduced in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday during the ongoing special session of the Parliament and in Rajya Sabha on September 21, government sources said.
LS Speaker Somnath Chatterjee said he accepted Bangarappa's resignation letter.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has declined to comment on reports claiming he held discussions with CPI(M) members in Dubai. CPI(M) dismisses speculation about Tharoor joining, while Congress denies he is leaving.
The BJP will contest 25 seats and Shiv Sena 23 of 48 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra. The two parties will contest equal number of seats, along with their other allies, in elections for the 288-member state assembly, due this year.
Opposition leaders have criticized Defence Minister Rajnath Singh's remarks about Jawaharlal Nehru's alleged desire to build the Babri Masjid with public funds, accusing him and the BJP of distorting historical facts.
It was a changed scenario in the new Lok Sabha with the churning brought out by the elections throwing in contrasts.
Ajit Pawar became a ray of hope for Muslims, the only man in power who could resolve their grievances.
Even if the BJP gets 60, 70, or even 100 per cent of the votes in the seats where it scored more than 50 per cent in the 2019 Lok Sabha election, these will still add up to only 224 seats, argues Shekhar Gupta.
The Congress on Monday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of attempting to 'rewrite history' and giving a 'political colour' to the Vande Mataram debate, and asserted that no matter how much the Bharatiya Janata Party tries, it will not be able to put a single blot on the contribution of Jawaharlal Nehru.
The sweeping victory of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance in the Bihar Assembly elections has caused ripples across the country, but perhaps more pronounced in politically crucial Uttar Pradesh, where Assembly elections are due in 2027.
His disqualification as Wayanad MP is effective from March 23, the day of his conviction
Parliament is set to debate the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram and election reforms, with key discussions led by Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Shah.
Union Minister Bandi Sanjay Kumar has offered Rs 10 lakh fund for villages in his Karimnagar Lok Sabha constituency if they elect a BJP-backed candidate in the Gram Panchayat polls to be held in Telangana next month.
'It would have polarised the Marathi-non Marathi divide further. 'Fadnavis had a very clear strategy: Let all Marathi people campaign for us (the BJP), and whatever results we get will be delivered by Marathi people only.'
Assam Congress alleges CM Himanta Biswa Sarma's family grabbed thousands of acres of land, prompting a defamation case announcement. BJP denies claims as baseless.
Birla, 57, has been MLA from Rajasthan thrice and MP twice.
The new Lok Sabha will have 300 MPs who have been elected for the first time to the Lower House.
The Bharatiya Janata Party, which won 25 seats in the Himachal Pradesh elections, suffered a setback in the assembly segments falling under Shimla, Hamirpur and Kangra parliamentary constituencies in the hill state.
NCP-SP MLA Rohit Pawar demonstrated the preparation of a fake Aadhaar card in Donald Trump's name and its use to register bogus voters.
In apparent signs of thaw after years of bickering stemming out of internal feud in the AIADMK in the past, party chief Edappadi K Palaniswami welcomed Dhinakaran back in to the National Democratic Alliance. The AMMK founder reciprocated with a "heartfelt thanks," yet admitting there was "sibling rivalry" with AIADMK, the party he was once associated with.
The counting began at 8 am to decide the fate of the candidates contesting the polls, among whom all eyes will be on Dimple Yadav, Mulayam Singh Yadav's elder daughter-in-law and the wife of Akhilesh Yadav, who is contesting from the Mainpuri Lok Sabha seat, necessitated by the demise of Samajwadi Party veteran Mulayam Singh Yadav in October.
The Congress president during his year at the helm of the party has repaired the citadel for far more challenging years ahead, and played a crucial role in shaping the Opposition alliance.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi termed the Bihar Assembly results as "truly surprising" and said "we could not achieve victory in an election that was not fair from the very beginning". He added that the Congress and the INDIA bloc will conduct an in-depth review of the poll results.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has refuted reports that indelible ink marks on voters' fingers were being wiped off during the ongoing civic polls. The BMC clarified that the Municipal Commissioner had not made any such statement.
A new book reveals that Atal Bihari Vajpayee rejected an offer to become President of India, a move that would have made Lal Krishna Advani Prime Minister. Vajpayee believed that a sitting PM becoming President would set a bad precedent for Indian democracy.
Both Mr Modi and Amit Shah like Nabin because they know he will never answer back, points out Aditi Phadnis.
Humayun Kabir, recently suspended from the TMC, has launched a new political party, Janata Unnayan Party, and announced candidates for the 2026 assembly elections.
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