Sonia chose Manipur as her first destination amid reports that Congress candidates were being threatened by banned militant groups to either stay out of the poll process or cough up money.
'Although the Congress party ethos resembles a court with courtiers, Sonia Gandhi's style was to be consensual.'
Sharmila said it was her father's dream to see Rahul Gandhi as prime minister and she would be happy to contribute to it.
Banerjee said the two leaders discussed the current political scenario and strategies to oust the BJP in assembly and Lok Sabha elections at the 20-minute meeting at Gandhi's residence.
'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.
her visit coincides with the BJP's three-day silver jubilee convention.
'We shall not see the like of Kalaignar again, and our nation is poorer without his wise statesmanship, and his dedication to our country and our people,' she said.
The opposition alliance that will take on the ruling National Democratic Alliance in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections will be called Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) and an 11-member committee will be set up for coordination, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge announced after a meeting of the parties in Bengaluru.
'I left the party with heavy heart. If a party is working against national interest, there there is no other option but to leave it'
Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday lambasted BJP and TDP for doing nothing for the country's farmers during the six years of National Democratic Alliance rule. Addressing a massive farmers' rally at Jaggampeta town in Andhra Pradesh after dedicating the first phase of the Rs 600-crore Thota Venkatachalam Pushkara lift irrigation project, Sonia questioned BJP and TDP's credentials to champion the cause of the farmers when these parties were out of power.
Delhi recorded a voter turnout of over 19 per cent in the first four hours of polling on Wednesday across 70 assembly constituencies, with the highest voter participation witnessed in North East district.
United Progressive Alliance chairperson and Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Saturday expressed the Congress' readiness to face elections while Prime Minister Manmohan Singh sought to play down speculation that the country was headed for mid-term polls. "Not at all. If there are elections you face it," Gandhi said.
The presidential order paves the way for Sonia Gandhi's re-appointment as chairman of the National Advisory Council, a post that has the rank of a Cabinet minister.
Congress party president Sonia Gandhi was on Wednesday ranked the sixth most powerful woman in the world, ahead of US First Lady Michelle Obama, by Forbes magazine in its list of 100 influential women, which was topped by German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Gandhi also attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over unemployment, farmers distress and alleged corruption in the Rafale deal with France.
Two railway employees were placed under suspension on Tuesday for allegedly causing delay in the movement of Congress chief Sonia Gandhi's cavalcade during her visit.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and All India Congress Committee Vice President Rahul Gandhi have been named among top 5 in the world's 100 most influential list of Asians topped by China's new President Xi Jinping.
The former cricketer said Gandhi would visit Pakistan 'very soon'.
Convert the Haryana result into a blessing in disguise; make the calamity into an opportunity. Maharashtra was always the big ticket game in town; MVA must win it. The Congress should shift headquarters to Mumbai for the entire month. Show urgency and a hunger to win, asserts Sanjay Jha.
Congress leader and chairperson of the Telangana State Women's Cooperative Development Corporation, B Shobha Rani, hit out at Reddy over his comments saying he insulted women with his disrespectful comments.
The BJP's bandh call, separately endorsed by the Maoists, was meant to mark protest against the delay in the formation of separate Telangana state by the Congress-led UPA government. However, the bandh evoked mixed response though the BJP leaders and activists went around the towns and cities across Telangana to enforce the call.
The Congress party alleged that the BJP government has asked social media platform 'X' to remove Home Minister Amit Shah's speech from the Rajya Sabha, which they claim insulted Babasaheb Ambedkar. The party cited an email from 'X' to support their claim. The BJP has not yet commented on the matter, and 'X' has refused to delete the speech, citing freedom of speech. The Congress accused Shah of insulting the architect of the Indian Constitution and demanded his resignation.
Protesting adivasis will hit the streets of Assam on Friday to highlight their grievances before United Progressive Alliance chairperson and Congress president Sonia Gandhi during her day-long visit to Guwahati. Sonia will be addressing a farmers' rally to be organised by the ruling Congress party, besides attending an award presentation ceremony organised by Assam government in the afternoon.
The two-day deliberations, which will be held at Grand Hyatt in the suburbs, will begin in the evening of August 31 and from 10am on September 1. The meeting will be followed by a press conference, Raut informed.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Sushma Swaraj on Wednesday lashed out at Sonia Gandhi, saying that the United Progressive Alliance chairperson should act firmly in the case involving the rape of a medical student and not demand action
Addressing media persons on Saturday evening, Anna said that the civil society had put its view before the UPA chairperson, and added that she had promised to look into the issue. The Gandhian, however, warned that if the right draft did not go to the Parliament, he would go on fast again.
Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad and Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, two prominent opponents of Women's Reservation Bill, had a nearly 20-minute interaction with Congress president Sonia Gandhi in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, but both sides appeared to have failed to convince each other.
UPA chairperson and Congress president Sonia Gandhi announced it while attending the inaugural function at North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences in Shillong on Friday. She however, said no time-frame had been set for unveiling the special healthcare scheme for urban areas.
The Ulema Council, which recently staged protests against what it termed as "harassment" of Muslim youths in the name of terror, declared on Turesday that it would field candidates against Congress president Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul in the upcoming Lok Sabha election.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday slammed Congress chief Sonia Gandhi for standing by her "merchant of death" remarks against Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, saying the United Progressive Alliance chairperson has breached all limits of "political decency" with her comments.
A steady stream of mourners led by Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Friday paid homage to veteran Congress leader K Karunakaran at his residence in Thiruvananthapuram where his mortal remains are kept.
The Congress had won over 400 seats in the 1984 Lok Sabha election after which Rajiv Gandhi became the prime minister.
Stalin also heaped praise on "brother" Rahul Gandhi, saying he is the "ideal antidote" to the BJP's "parochial" politics.
Rahul Gandhi stressed the importance of an electoral understanding in UP if the BJP is to be defeated in the Lok Sabha polls.
The UPA chairperson had left for the US before the monsoon session of Parliament, which commenced on July 26. Her son and party general secretary Rahul Gandhi, too, had gone along with her but returned a week back.
The Congress on Friday welcomed the statements of opposition leaders condemning Rahul Gandhi's disqualification from the Lok Sabha and said it was now time for the party to take on the job of building the opposition unity in a "systematic way".
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Uma Bharti on Saturday met Congress President Sonia Gandhi and demanded that quick and effective action be taken to save river Ganga and prevent parties from playing politics over the issue.
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