The leaders attacked the BJP, accusing it of trying to create "Hindu-Muslim disturbances" to benefit politically and making false claims and promises.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi took a swipe at the BJP, saying one has to refer to the state-wise election schedule to know when one will have access to the vaccine. The BJP, however, said health is a state subject and its manifesto is for Bihar, not for the entire country, where it has promised that the state will buy the vaccine for its people.
Startling allegations of backstabbing were made against the Bharatiya Janata Party by MLAs and MPs of the Janata Dal-United on Tuesday at a meeting in Patna after which Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar pulled the plug on the alliance.
Former Bihar chief minister and BJP ally Jitan Ram Manjhi alleged on Wednesday that five MPs, including a Union minister, have been elected to Lok Sabha from seats reserved for the Scheduled Castes on the basis of "forged" certificates and sought an inquiry.
'Bihar's caste survey has bolstered the Opposition parties, but one shouldn't forget that the BJP is also trying to present itself as a party that cares for the OBCs more than other parties,' points out Sanjay Kumar.
Will a caste census make tens of millions desert Mr Modi?, asks Shekhar Gupta.
The boy is being produced in a juvenile court here and further legal proceedings are being carried out, Verma added.
As trends indicate an easy return to power for the Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi, former Janata Dal-United vice-president, Prashant Kishor, thanked the people for "standing up to protect" the country's soul.
The BJP's quest for dominance over the states political scene, evident from a seat-sharing deal as part of which it clinched nearly as many constituencies as the Janata Dal-United its senior partner so far- resonated during the election campaign.
he news reports of the response that Tejaswi has been generating at his election rallies must definitely put a smile on his father's face, observes Asmita Bihari.
According to insiders, their lack of enthusiasm is showing on the ground. There is nothing to suggest that their enthusiasm will return in the final four phases of polling, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Development economist Jean Dreze said the Indian democracy is currently navigating a crisis that is not only limited to the 'recent wave of authoritarianism' but also suppression of opposition voices by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
Despite the BJP emerging as the largest party in the ruling alliance with 74 seats, 31 more than the JDU, the top leadership of the saffron party, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has emphatically endorsed Kumar as the next chief minister.
The alliance adopted a resolution to this effect and said its theme for the elections will be "Judega Bharat, Jeetega India, (India will unite, India will win)".
'If such a practice were feasible, every state would seek additional funds, posing a significant risk to the overall health of the economy.'
Chouhan's fate will be determined by the BJP central command's assessment of the implications of such a move ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
Modi also announced Rs 2 lakh aid to the kin of those who died in the deluge.
'There is a strong possibility that the BJP's seats are going to be much higher compared to the JD-U and this would be the turning point for the BJP.'
The meeting between the two leaders, which was also attended by Bihar's deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav, was described as 'positive'.
Ironically, rival Tamil Nadu governments expend the most on social welfare schemes, especially targeting women and youth and children, but that money comes only by selling more liquor. There is always the specious plea, which has been peddled very many times in the past, that without licensed liquor, drinkers would go after hooch and there could be more hooch tragedies and hooch deaths. No one is convinced, but no one can dispute it either, comments N Sathiya Moorthy.
The speaker identified himself as Amit Kumar from Lakhisarai at the Bapu Sabhagar auditorium where a function was organised to mark the inauguration of the 'fourth agriculture roadmap' of the state government.
The JD-U leader rubbished speculations that he was maintaining an eloquent silence on the issue because of anxieties about tarnishing his own image for probity by aligning with "tainted" politicians and could even be thinking of breaking away with the "Mahagathbandhan", which besides RJD, also includes Congress and the Left.
The notification issued by the law ministry on Monday night said the maximum expenditure a candidate can incur for campaigning in Lok Sabha polls is now Rs 77 lakh. It was so far Rs 70 lakh. For assemblies, it has been hiked from Rs 28 lakh to Rs 30.8 lakh.
JD-U leaders contend that R C P Singh may have misled the BJP leadership into believing that Nitish Kumar was ready for a smaller share in power at the Centre.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi took stock of the damage caused by the earthquake in eastern India and has spoken to the chief ministers of Bihar, Assam and Sikkim, government sources said.
Kumar, whose "national role" has become a matter of much speculation since his break-up with the Bharatiya Janata Party last month, however also sought to rule himself out, for the umpteenth time, of the Prime Ministerial race.
The BJP, which has traditionally been considered as the party of upper castes and Vaishyas/Baniyas, seems to be consolidating its base especially among Vaishyas and EBCs.
A lacklustre show by the Congress in Bihar seems to have proved costly for the opposition grand alliance, as it dragged down the RJD too from government formation in the Hindi heartland state.
About 2.34 crore voters, spread across 78 assembly segments of the 243-strong assembly, will decide the fates of 1,204 candidates, including the Speaker and 12 members of the state cabinet.
The alliance leaders are getting together for the third round of the brainstorming session in Mumbai, after Patna and Bengaluru, to chalk out their common campaign strategy to take on the NDA in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
JD-U national president Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan, who addressed a press conference in Patna, however, dismissed queries about Kumar's absence at the NITI Aayog meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with the terse remark 'you should ask the chief minister'.
Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma added to the mystery by declaring only that the next CM would be from the BJP, without naming Sarbananda Sonowal, the CM of the outgoing government.
Even as the grand old party seeks to promote opposition unity ahead of the hustings next year, Trinamool Congress supremo and West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, however, would be conspicuous by her absence at the event at Sree Kanteerava Stadium.
Kumar had added colour to 'lotus', election symbol of the BJP, when Devi had invited him at 23rd Patna Book Fair on Saturday to paint her drawing.
Joining the chorus of protests over remarks on Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi at Janata Dal-United conclave, Bihar Bharatiya Janata Party stalwart and Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi on Tuesday termed the developments "unfortunate" and said the party parliamentary board would take a call on the emerging situation at an appropriate time.
Unfazed by strident criticism of his cousin Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray over his anti-Bihari remarks, Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday sought a permit system to check the influx of Bihari migrants into Mumbai.
The TMC chief, however, parried questions on her reservations about the Congress's alliance with the Left in her state and the Aam Aadmi Party threatening a "walkout" if support was not forthcoming on the ordinance of control of services in Delhi.
Earlier, The Nitish Kumar government had banned sale and consumption of country and spiced liquor in rural areas from April 1 this year, but had allowed sale of foreign liquor in towns and cities.
'Laluji personally telephoned several Opposition leaders to attend the meeting.'
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