The mass of voters chose Kejriwal and Mamdani for the simple reason that they were sick and tired of the stale promises and repetitive speeches belted out for long by mainstream political personalities, notes M R Narayan Swamy.
Police conduct raids at bookshops in Kashmir to seize banned books promoting false narratives and glorifying terrorism, following a government order. The ban and subsequent raids have drawn criticism from authors and political leaders.
On the 83rd anniversary of the Quit India movement, Utkarsh Mishra recalls the conditions under which the Congress, led by Mahatma Gandhi, launched the final struggle for independence.
'They mean business, but business as usual is unacceptable to them'
In her maiden speech at a political rally, Sunita also asked people whether Kejriwal should resign as Chief Minister.
The Congress will get three ministerial berths in the new Nitish Kumar government in Bihar, a senior party leader said.
The 72-year-old Yechury is being treated for acute respiratory tract infection at the ICU in AIIMS, it said in a statement.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said Modi should take inspiration from former prime minister Indira Gandhi and stand up to the president of the United States.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping held bilateral talks focusing on economic ties and global stability amid trade tensions and the aftermath of the Ladakh border row.
Having been the butt of criticism on social media for months, the Communist Party of India-Marxist's West Bengal chapter, has hosted a Facebook page and has also opened a Twitter account.
The meeting will focus on the current internal security scenario in the state, with a special emphasis on anti-Maoist operations, the release added.
At the customary meeting ahead of the session beginning Monday, the opposition raised various issues, including voter roll revision in Bihar, the Pahalgam terror attack and Trump's 'ceasefire' claims.
As an IAS officer in Kerala, Gyanesh Kumar -- who the Congress described as Amit Shah's 'right hand man' -- had a good working equation with the state's Congress and Left leaders.
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.
'One good outcome of Operation Sindoor -- perhaps, its best outcome -- could be that India has resumed meaningful contact directly with Pakistan at the military-to-military level,' observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Building grassroots people's movements is the only way forward for the Left, says Praful Bidwai
'Handling or mitigating a rebellion is not a corporate plan with quarterly, half-yearly and annual goals and results but an aggregation of the effort of several years.'
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) is set to elect its next general secretary, with speculation rife over who will lead the party. Leading contenders include M A Baby, backed by the party's Kerala unit, and Ashok Dhawale, who enjoys support from the West Bengal lobby. Other potential candidates include Mohammed Salim, B V Raghavulu, and Brinda Karat. The election will take place at the 24th CPI(M) congress in Madurai, Tamil Nadu.
The government has moved to increase the strength of the joint committee of Parliament that will scrutinise the two bills proposing simultaneous elections from 31 MPs to 39, giving representation to more parties.
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.
Former Kerala minister M A Baby was elected as the CPI(M) general secretary at the 24th party congress in Madurai. Baby, who was a member of the Rajya Sabha from 1986 to 1998, has been a member of the Politburo since 2012. He succeeds Sitaram Yechury, who passed away last year.
'Talking about boycotting polls is simply a move to galvanise party leaders, workers, and supporters for the big political fight.'
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.
The opposition has raised questions regarding Jagdeep Dhankhar's sudden resignation as the vice president, with concerns about the reasons behind his decision and its timing.
Communist Party of India-Marxist general secretary Prakash Karat called for unification between Communists and Socialists to forge a "viable political alternative". Karat, who was participating in a function to mark the centenary celebrations of late socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia, said on Tuesday, "the Communists are ready to forge a third force in the country in which socialists should also join and share a common platform."
'...or go to jail.' 'The government is getting them silenced.'
The Maharashtra legislative assembly passed the 'Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill' aimed at preventing unlawful activities of Left Wing Extremist organizations, focusing on urban Naxalism and passive militancy.
In underlining the role of border villages as custodians of India's frontiers, New Delhi is following China's example in Tibet.
An Anna University girl student was allegedly sexually assaulted and a 37-year old man, who sells biryani on the pavement, has been arrested for the crime, police said on Wednesday.
On May 28, 2010, Maoists derailed the Jnaneshwari Express, killing 148 passengers.
The CPM argued that though the Kolkatta high court order asking the Central Bureau of Investigation was judicially not correct, it will not contest the order.
A special court in Chhattisgarh's Bilaspur district granted bail to three persons, including two nuns from Kerala, arrested on charges of human trafficking and forced religious conversion.
A heated debate erupted in the Rajya Sabha over the ongoing strike by ASHA workers in Kerala, with Congress and CPI(M) MPs trading accusations over responsibility for addressing their demands for a higher honorarium and post-retirement benefits. Congress MP Jebi Mather alleged that both the Kerala government and the Union government had ignored the workers' pleas, while CPI(M) MP John Brittas countered by claiming Kerala provides the highest honorarium to ASHA workers. The debate also saw demands for an AIIMS in Kerala and a hike in MBBS seats, as well as concerns over maternal health, elderly care, and mental health in India.
His own party -- the Communist Party of India Marxist -- might have sidelined him. But V S Achuthanandan -- the octogenarian chief minister of Kerala, has eventually found a place in the international arena of communism.And Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee -- once the 'poster boy' of communist governance in a capitalist society -- will miss a chair as his party organises the 11th Communist and Workers Parties International Meeting to discuss a rescue path from the financial crisis.
China has honored an army regiment commander who was injured in the Galwan Valley border clash with Indian soldiers in 2020 as an outstanding member of the national advisory body - Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). Qi Fabao, who was made the torchbearer for the Winter Olympics in 2022, was among the 33 individuals honored with the 2024 Outstanding Performance Award for CPPCC Members. The incident, which resulted in the deaths of 20 Indian soldiers, led to a freeze in relations between the two countries for over four years. Ties were restored after a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping in October 2023.
Just eight months after its good showing in the Lok Sabha polls, the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) seems to be running out of steam with internal bickering and conflicting ambitions resulting in diminishing electoral returns that have once again put the Bharatiya Janata Party in the driver's seat in national politics.
A female student of primary school was killed in Kaliganj in West Bengal's Nadia district on Monday after bombs were allegedly hurled from a Trinamool Congress victory celebration rally taken out even before the results of the assembly bypoll were officially announced.
Aam Aadmi Party's Gopal Italia on Monday won from Gujarat's Visavadar assembly constituency and his party also retained Punjab's Ludhiana West seat while the Congress-led United Democratic Front wrested Nilambur from the ruling Left Democratic Front in Kerala, according to results of assembly bypolls in four states.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist Leninist), a Naxalite outfit, on Thursday slammed the Maoists for destroying the communist movement by indulging in individual annihilation and facilitating the despatch of para-military forces and commandos to Lalgarh.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Sunday said that the 'unelected nominees of New Delhi locked up the elected representatives' of the people of Jammu and Kashmir after prominent leaders from ruling and opposition parties were not allowed to leave their houses to prevent them from visiting the graveyard of 1931 martyrs in Srinagar.
