Akhilesh Yadav hit back, saying no one had any clue that the alliance was coming apart and that he had dialled the BSP chief to know why the tie-up ended.
Dinesh Karthik may have spent his career in M S Dhoni's shadow, but his contributions to Indian cricket, especially in the IPL, deserve a legacy all his own, asserts Sudhir Bisht.
Political sources say Modi is 'keen' on getting the NCP (SP) over to the Mahayuti to counter Eknath Shinde's 'demands' and to act as a cushion against his present allies, Nitish Kumar and N Chandrababu Naidu, 'in case their relationship became untenable'.
The Supreme Court will hear on February 19 pleas challenging the appointments of the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners under the 2023 law. The court will take up the matter on a priority basis, after some urgent listed matters. The government has appointed a new CEC and ECs under the new law, which excludes the Chief Justice of India from the selection panel, despite a 2023 Supreme Court verdict directing the inclusion of the CJI in the panel. The petitioners argue that the exclusion of the CJI undermines the independence of the election commission.
If the DMK is able to sustain the momentum until the assembly polls, the AIADMK especially and the PMK and possibly the infant TVK too would find it hard to sign up with the BJP, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
The government on Monday appointed Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra as the 26th Governor of the Reserve Bank of India. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet cleared Malhotra's name, who has been appointed as the RBI Governor for three years, starting Wednesday. Malhotra, a 1990 Batch Rajasthan Cadre IAS Officer, will replace Shaktikanta Das, whose tenure ends on Tuesday (December 10, 2024).
Ahead of the Maharashtra assembly polls, the Election Commission on Monday directed the state government to transfer Director General of Police Rashmi Shukla with immediate effect following complaints from political parties, including the Congress, sources said.
The Delhi government is embroiled in multiple litigations with the Lieutenant Governor in the Supreme Court including its plea challenging the Centre's law establishing pre-eminence of the LG over the elected dispensation in controlling services in the national capital.
'The BJP has killed public anger. They have killed people's self-respect.'
The repatriation orders for the two Indian Police Service officers come in the backdrop of a spate of terror incidents in the Jammu region, along the India-Pakistan border.
The Supreme Court has adjourned pleas challenging the appointments of the chief election commissioner (CEC) and election commissioners (ECs) under the 2023 law. The court indicated the matter would be listed after the Holi festival break due to a paucity of time. Petitioners, including the NGO Association for Democratic Reforms, argued for an urgent hearing, emphasizing the importance of the issue and the potential impact on democratic processes. The appointment of the new CEC and ECs under the 2023 law, which excludes the Chief Justice of India from the selection panel, has been a point of contention, with petitioners alleging it undermines the independence of the election commission.
Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar, set to retire next month, plans to spend several months in solitude in the Himalayas. He also expressed a desire to teach underprivileged children, recalling his own humble beginnings. Kumar's tenure as CEC saw him oversee landmark elections, including the 16th Presidential and Vice-Presidential elections in 2022 and assembly elections in 11 states.
The deadline for officers to decide on their career path in the biggest organisational rejig in the central bank's 85-year history ends on January 31. The immediate fallout could be its disruptive impact on the supervisory process for 2020 -- and beyond -- given the manpower shortfall, even as more entities are set to come under closer central bank scrutiny.
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.
The Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Congress's alliance in Uttar Pradesh came under scrutiny as both parties did not hold a single joint campaign for the bypolls to nine assembly seats. While both parties maintained that the alliance is strong, BJP ally Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) claimed a crack in the alliance. The Congress opted out of the bypolls and announced coordination committees for all nine seats to support the SP. However, the absence of joint rallies raised questions about the alliance's strength. The SP campaign was spearheaded by its chief Akhilesh Yadav, while the Congress cited its leaders' busy schedules in Maharashtra and Jharkhand for the lack of joint campaigns. The bypoll results will be announced on November 23.
Chalapathi, a top leader of the CPI(Maoist) and a key figure in the 2008 Nayagarh armoury attack in Odisha, was killed in a gunfight with security forces at the Odisha-Chhattisgarh border. He was one of 14 Maoists killed in the encounter, which lasted for two days. Chalapathi, who had been a mystery to security agencies for decades, was eventually identified through a selfie with his wife, Aruna, found in an abandoned smartphone. He was considered an expert in military tactics and guerrilla warfare and had played a significant role in expanding the Maoist network in Odisha.
At the PMO, policies are framed by factoring in analytical perspectives, implications, sustainability, and other dimensions.
'The BJP lacks a credible mass leader who matches Mamata Banerjee's popularity.' 'Given the division of votes among Opposition parties, the West Bengal government's dole-giving strategy, and the consolidation of the poor, significant sections of scheduled caste groups and Muslim minorities behind the ruling party, it will be difficult to dislodge the Trinamool from power.'
'The Dravidian movement was started for the Hindus who were rejected by the upper castes.'
He will succeed incumbent Rajiv Gauba, who completes his unprecedented five-year term in the top bureaucratic post this month-end.
The Medal for Gallantry recipients also included Humayun Bhat, a deputy superintendent of police who was one of four officers to lay down their lives during an encounter with terrorists in south Kashmir's Kokernag in September 2023.
'The message is loud and clear: "If you're not falling in line, we will open a line of understanding with the MNS, and then the Shiv Sena will be in trouble".'
Vimala Chandra Sidam alias Tarakka, a top Naxal leader with a Rs 25 lakh reward on her head, surrendered before Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in Gadchiroli along with ten other senior Maoists. Tarakka, who joined the Naxal movement in 1986, rose through the ranks over 38 years to become a Dandkaranya Special Zonal Committee member. She is the wife of Central Committee Member Sonu alias Bhupati. The surrendered Naxals, eight women and three men, were collectively carrying a bounty of Rs 1.03 crore. Fadnavis also felicitated C 60 personnel for the July 17, 2024 encounter wherein 12 hardcore Maoists were killed in a forested area bordering Chhattisgarh.
Rajiv Kumar, the 25th chief election commissioner of India, has demitted office after a nearly three-year tenure marked by both electoral successes and allegations of bias from opposition parties. Kumar oversaw the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the Jammu and Kashmir assembly polls, among other major elections. During his tenure, he implemented reforms across various aspects of the Election Commission's functioning, including structural, technological, capacity development, communication, international cooperation, and administration. However, he faced criticism from opposition parties and activists on several issues, including the efficacy of Electronic Voting Machines, alleged fudging of voter data, and being "lenient" on the ruling BJP. While the Commission responded to the allegations, Kumar often defended himself and the poll authority through poetry. In his farewell address, Kumar expressed concerns about the timing of petitions raising doubts over poll processes and the impact of freebie promises on the fiscal health of the state. He also criticized the practice of showing early trends on counting day by news channels, calling it "nonsense". Kumar's tenure was marked by numerous controversies, with opposition parties and activists alleging bias and irregularities. While the Election Commission defended its actions, the allegations cast a shadow over his time in office.
A cache of weapons, including an AK-47 rifle, one SLR (self-loading rifle), one INSAS rifle, one LMG rifle and one .303 rifle were also recovered from the encounter spot.
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.
Police have registered a case after a video was uploaded on YouTube claiming that an Indian Police Service officer in disguise caught former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Uma Bharti while taking a bribe, an official said on Tuesday.
Tension prevailed outside a polling booth in Baramati town in Maharashtra's Pune district after Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar candidate Yugendra Pawar's mother alleged intimidation and malpractices by workers of the rival Nationalist Congress Party led by sitting MLA Ajit Pawar.
'Leave aside the negative fallouts of phraseology like 'urban Naxals' and 'terrorists', both the BJP and the Congress have to re-discover themselves in the context of the 2024 election results, including those of the upcoming ones for Maharashtra and Jharkhand,' observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
As many as 14 Maoists were killed in an encounter with security personnel in Chhattisgarh's Bastar region on Friday, a senior police official said. However, ANI has put the toll at 30.
A 26-year-old IPS officer on his way to take up his first posting died in a road accident in Hassan district of Karnataka, the police said on Monday.
With this, the number of Maoists killed in the gun battle with the security personnel on Friday has risen to 31, they said, adding that a search operation is still underway in the area.
A day after his appointment as the 26th governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), outgoing Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra on Tuesday said one must understand the economic landscape and do what was best for the economy. "Let me first go, join, understand the turf ... Here it is a different role," Malhotra said, speaking to reporters in front of North Block.
Former Uttar Pradesh-cadre Indian Administrative Service officer Anup Chandra Pandey was appointed as an election commissioner.
A group of people staged a protest on Wednesday against alleged "caste discrimination" at the Indian Institute of Management-Bengaluru (IIM-B), demanding the removal of its director. However, IIM Bangalore denied the allegations made by the protesters.
Hitting out at Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar for indulging in a blame game over the MVA's defeat in the state assembly, Raut said those who don't believe in consensus and compromise have no right to be in an alliance.
The party, rallying in his support, campaigned that national icons like Periyar EV Ramasamy, Dr BR Ambedkar and Naryana Guru had spoken against discrimination including those based on a person's birth. That the Sanatan Dharma controversy cut no electoral ice in Tamil Nadu was also seen as a success for Udhayanidhi.
Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das on Tuesday said the fiscal-monetary coordination was at its best during the last six years even as he thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for giving the opportunity to head the monetary authority of the country. Das, in a series of posts on X, on his last day of his six-year term as RBI Governor, also thanked the Finance Minister, various stakeholders and his colleagues at the central bank.
Arvind Kerjiwal, who resigned as Delhi chief minister on Tuesday, is likely to focus on galvanising the AAP cadres and rebuilding trust among the people before the assembly polls, a senior functionary said.
'Integrated with sensors, cameras, Nvidia Jetson processors, LiDAR technology and AI model computation, the glasses provide a real-time interpretation of the environment and the individual's surroundings.'
