Communist Party of India-Marxist General Secretary Sitaram Yechury died at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi on Thursday, September 12, 2024 following a prolonged illness, hospital and party sources said. He was 72.
The Election Commission has defended its Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu in the Supreme Court, refuting allegations of mass deletion of genuine voters as exaggerated and politically motivated.
Popular Malayalam actor Innocent has decided to throw his hat in the ring for the April 10 Lok Sabha election. However, not everyone is happy about it.
When the country has been at war, the Opposition has buried its differences with the government, points out Aditi Phadnis.
'According to JP, Indira Gandhi was not much of a danger to democracy. He said, it was Sanjay Gandhi and his gang.'
Sources within the INDIA bloc said appointing Nitish Kumar as convenor would lend credibility to the INDIA bloc's demand for conducting a nationwide caste census.
Demanding withdrawal of the decision, the Communist Party of India said the government had opened up telecom sector when the country was 'yet to overcome the loot and losses due to 2G spectrum scam'.
Opposition parties in the Indian Parliament walked out of the Rajya Sabha after their demand for an immediate discussion on the alleged mismanagement at the Maha Kumbh, where a stampede led to several deaths, was rejected. The Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, Jagdeep Dhankhar, declined to suspend the scheduled business of the day to take up the issue, citing his previous rulings regarding notices under Rule 267.
He also said that the party "cannot be selective in fighting the communists" and it must do so in all its manifestations, irrespective of religion and colour.
After recent high-intensity operations in the Bastar region and the neutralisation of several senior Maoist leaders, officials say the insurgency has lost its ability to mount large-scale coordinated attacks.
Opposition parties will hold the next meeting of their 26-member INDIA coalition in Mumbai on August 25 and 26, sources said on Thursday.
The Congress party has criticized the Modi government for appointing Dr Shaija A, a professor at NIT-Calicut, as Dean despite a pending police case against her for allegedly praising Nathuram Godse, Mahatma Gandhi's assassin. The party alleges this appointment is part of a larger pattern by the government to "appropriate Gandhi, glorify Godse". The appointment has sparked protests from political parties, including DYFI, the youth wing of the CPI(M). Shaija was questioned by police last year after making a comment on social media expressing "pride" in Godse for assassinating Gandhi. The appointment is for two years, until further orders.
Besides disclosing in their affidavits, candidates have to prominently declare criminal cases they are facing, if any, thrice in newspapers in print as well on television, he said, adding that political parties too have to publish within three days of nomination why a candidate with criminal background was selected. "You (political parties) have to tell the public whether you did not get any (other) candidate and why was it necessary to select them (those with criminal background)," he said.
The Kerala High Court has criticized both the ruling front and the opposition in the state for holding public meetings that block public roads and footpaths. The court observed that the December 5 incident, where the CPI(M) held a conference outside the Vanchiyoor court complex in Thiruvananthapuram, was a "clear case of breach of trust" as the government holds the roads as a trustee of the people. The court has directed the police to submit a report by December 16 identifying those involved in the meeting, including those who attended and were seen on-stage in news reports. The court also pointed out that the stage for the meeting was constructed right on top of the pedestrian/zebra crossing, completely blocking the carriageway on one side of the road. This caused traffic snarls and inconvenienced pedestrians, including school children, infants, and elderly persons. The court said that provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and other laws, like the Motor Vehicles Act, would be applicable to the incident.
The Congress 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra', led by Rahul Gandhi, is scheduled to enter West Bengal from Assam on Thursday, amid political ripples within the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) in the state.
Two Union Ministers visited the family of a 23-year-old woman in Kothamangalam who allegedly took her own life due to harassment by her lover. The family is demanding an NIA probe into the incident, alleging forced religious conversion.
The Election Commission will publish the draft electoral rolls for Bihar assembly polls, triggering a period for claims and objections amid fears of voter exclusion.
'We are ready to exchange views with the government, primarily through video call.' 'The government should immediately declare a formal ceasefire for a month, stop search operations and take forward the peace process.'
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accuses the BJP-led government of stealing votes with the help of the Election Commission during a rally in Siwan, Bihar.
The Assam assembly on Thursday passed a bill to ban polygamy, making it an offence which may lead to a maximum of 10 years of imprisonment, barring some exceptions.
India has stated its neutral stance on religious matters following the Dalai Lama's announcement of his succession plan, which China has rejected. The statement comes as the Dalai Lama approaches his 90th birthday, with China urging India to exercise caution on Tibet-related issues.
Then chief minister Jyoti Basu once told an industrialist that capitalists were class enemies and he should expect no sympathy.
Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Rahul Narwekar was on Monday elected unopposed as the speaker of the 15th Maharashtra legislative assembly.
Chowdhury said that the visiting MPs will present their observations on Manipur in Parliament.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday said a decision on whether to oppose the Centre's ordinance on the control of administrative services in Delhi would be taken before the Parliament session.
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Three senior leaders of the banned CPI (Maoist) surrendered to the Telangana police. The leaders cited health issues, ideological differences, and changing socio-political circumstances as reasons for their surrender. The Telangana DGP appealed to other underground Maoist cadres to return to the mainstream.
Inarguably the biggest gainer in the Grand Alliance, the CPI-ML, often working in the margins of mainstream politics, had 19 candidates in the fray, most of them students and youth leaders.
Springing a surprise, Vijayakanth-led Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam on Wednesday struck an alliance with the four-party People's Welfare Front for the May 16 Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu with the actor-turned-politician being declared as the chief ministerial candidate of the alliance.
A senior TMC leader will be present at the proposed meeting, he said.
AISF had for the first time independently contested elections and opened its account in the union polls with Kanhaiya, who was elected for the president's post.
'Contesting fewer seats than last time but winning more and performing better... would be in the interest of the Congress.'
The Chhattisgarh State Women Commission has directed the Director General of Police to file FIRs based on complaints from three women who allege assault and molestation by Bajrang Dal workers. The women were initially involved in a human trafficking and forced conversion case.
CPI-M General Secretary Prakash Karat discuss his party's future, the coming battles in Bengal and Kerala, and the Maoists in an exclusive interview with rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt.
Two senior leaders of the banned CPI (Maoist), including a Central Committee Member underground for over four decades, surrendered to Telangana police, citing health issues, pressure from security forces, and ideological differences.
The "unknown" sources are income declared in the annual audit report by these parties but without giving the source of income, according to the ADR.
In the first such initiative, the Bharatiya Janata Party has invited the ruling and Opposition parties from around the world to witness the Lok Sabha elections in India first-hand.
'This allows opportunities for (Chinese) entry into the domestic politics of Nepal, something that is also encouraged by Nepali politicians's willingness to play the China card (vis-a-vis India).'
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the BJP of 'linguistic terror' and plotting to delete Bengali voters from electoral rolls, vowing to protect voting rights.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Friday that India-China relations have made positive strides and achieved a series of encouraging outcomes at all levels after last year's breakthrough ending the over four-year-long military standoff in eastern Ladakh. Wang's remarks came during his annual press conference as he replied to a question on how Beijing views the course of bilateral ties after the two countries ended the prolonged stalemate in the ties.
