'Maharashtrians are facing a dual battle -- numerical battle with North Indians and financial battle with Gujaratis and Marwaris.' 'This has created anxiety about survival and ownership over Mumbai and Maharashtra.'
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 Rajya Sabha secretariat has verified the signatures of 44 of the 55 MPs who had signed a notice to bring a motion for the removal of Allahabad high court Judge Shekhar Yadav over his 'hate speech' even as Kapil Sibal and nine others were yet to verify their signatures.
While the BJP went back to the drawing board to recraft its political and governance outreach and regained momentum by notching up surprisingly big wins in a string of assembly polls, the burst of fresh optimism in the main opposition Congress and other INDIA bloc parties fizzled out.
Discord in the Congress in Kerala between Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and KPCC president Ramesh Chennithala has sharpened after the possibility of the latter's entry into the state cabinet with a plum portfolio got dimmed.
The grand old party alleged that these namesake candidates are backed by the Communist Party of India-Marxist and the Bharatiya Janata Party to confuse voters.
M A Baby faces several significant challenges: Helping the CPI (M)-led Left Democratic Front secure a third consecutive term in Kerala's 2026 assembly elections, and regaining ground lost in the party's traditional strongholds of West Bengal, Tripura, and other regions.
His remarks came after the Kerala assembly on Tuesday passed the Kerala State Private Universities (Establishment and Regulation) Bill, 2025, which marks a break from the Communist Party of India Marxist-led government's long-standing opposition to the privatisation of education.
The KPCC made this decision simultaneously as Sarin announced a press conference in Palakkad, declaring his intention to work with the Left Democratic Front moving forward.
Kerala Chief Minister and veteran Marxist leader Pinarayi Vijayan intensified his attack on the Congress, alleging that its general secretary, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, is contesting the Wayanad Lok Sabha by-election with the backing of Jamaat-e-Islami.
Experts say the state's economy is grappling with hidden debt, rising welfare costs, and lack of transparency.
A 26-year-old man, Anandu Krishnan, has been arrested for allegedly defrauding people across Kerala by promising them scooters, sewing machines, and home appliances at half price. The accused claimed to use Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds from big companies. The case has taken a political turn with the involvement of Congress leader Lali Vincent, who served as a legal advisor to an NGO involved in the transactions. Vincent defended Krishnan and said he was not a fraudster, claiming he was made a scapegoat after those who promised CSR funds backed away. The case is being investigated by the Kerala police, who are also looking into the role of certain political leaders in the fraud.
The 52-year-old, who joins her mother Sonia and brother Rahul as an MP in what is a rare instance of three members of a family together in Parliament, would visit Parliament as a teenager to listen to her father Rajiv Gandhi speak as prime minister.
'What matters is policies, not personalities like Priyanka, Rahul or Modi.'
Priyanka's victory seems assured, but the broader implications for Kerala's political landscape and South Indian politics remain to be seen.
Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor welcomed the revival of long-stalled India-UK FTA negotiations, posting a selfie with Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and the UK's Secretary of State for Business and Trade Jonathan Reynolds. Tharoor's post comes amid a row over his recent article praising the Kerala government's investment climate, which drew criticism from some Congress leaders.
At least one commentator felt that both the BJP's reach and popularity had been underestimated in Kerala. They have shown systematic gain; one that seems personality-neutral and therefore institutionalised, explains Shyam G Menon.
JD-U MP Sanjay Kumar Jha heads a diplomatic mission to Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea, Japan and Singapore, to seek international cooperation after the Pahalgam attack while highlighting Pakistan's role in cross-border terrorism.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said the Centre had sent multiple advance warnings to the Kerala government about possible floods and landslides in the state, starting as early as July 23, and nine National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams were rushed to the state the same day.
The Kerala government on Saturday announced that a township will be established in a secure area to rehabilitate those displaced by the catastrophic landslide that occurred in the Mundakkai region of Wayanad district.
The Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party have united in their demands, calling for the immediate resignation and arrest of P P Divya, a Communist Party of India-Marxist leader and district panchayat president, who leveled graft accusations against ADM Naveen Babu at his send-off function organised by colleagues at the Kannur district collectorate.
Politicians from the Left and the Congress party in Kerala have rallied behind Malayalam superstar Mammootty, who is facing online harassment from certain right wing sympathisers in connection with his 2022 film, Puzhu.
Hours after the Waqf (Amendment) Bill was passed in Parliament, 50 individuals embroiled in land disputes in Kerala's Munambam joined the BJP, hoping for a resolution to their claims. The residents, who have been protesting for 174 days, allege that the Waqf Board is claiming ownership of their properties. BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar assured them of the party's support and a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to express gratitude. The BJP capitalized on the Catholic Church's support for the legislation, accusing the Congress and the Left of appeasement politics. The opposition, however, questioned the impact of the bill on the Munambam issue.
Anandu Krishnan, a 26-year-old man, has been arrested for allegedly defrauding people of several crores by promising scooters, sewing machines, home appliances, and laptops at half price using fake CSR funds from major companies. The total fraud is estimated to be around Rs 600-700 crore. Krishnan was operating the scam since 2022 by registering societies and convincing people that he was the National Coordinator of the National NGO Federation and that he had been entrusted with managing the CSR funds of various companies. He collected money through 62 "seed societies" and used his political links to convince the victims. The police are investigating the role of certain political leaders in the fraud.
Dominic Xavier/ Rediff.com captures the election mood in and near the town of Shoranur in Kerala,
A YouTuber has been arrested in Thrissur, Kerala, for allegedly blocking the convoy of Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, the police said on Monday.
Several petitions were filed in the apex court challenging the Act, contending that it was discriminatory towards the Muslim community and violated their fundamental rights.
The Election Commission has said it will allow suspected fake voters to cast their ballots in the Palakkad assembly by-poll, but will take action against them later. The CPI(M), Congress, and BJP have accused each other of enrolling fake voters. The by-poll is scheduled for November 20.
Rahul Gandhi has urged the youth of Bihar to join him in the march in Begusarai wearing "white T-shirts".
Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor welcomed the extradition of Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a key accused in the 26/11 case, and said everyone associated with the conspiracy of the Mumbai terror attacks must face the court of justice. He described Rana's extradition as a "step forward for justice." Rana, a Pakistan-born Canadian national and close associate of David Coleman Headley, is being brought to India after his last-ditch attempt to evade extradition failed. Tharoor expressed hope that the interrogation of Rana would provide more details about the Mumbai attacks and said he was "very glad" that Indian authorities managed to get Rana's custody.
The Enforcement Directorate on Friday detained Bahubali Shah, one of the owners of the leading Gujarati newspaper Gujarat Samachar, following a raid on their premises in Ahmedabad, sources said.
On April 3, Gandhi's roadshow, on the way to filing his nomination in Wayanad was visibly different from that of 2019 in the hill constituency when the green flags of ally IUML outnumbered the Congress's in the crowd. There were no flags of any party or affiliated organisations.
Opposition parties in India's Rajya Sabha, including the Congress and the TMC, walked out of the chamber after their demand for a discussion on the Election Commission's alleged lapses in issuing duplicate voter ID cards and delimitation was disallowed. The Deputy Chairman, Harivansh, rejected the notices under Rule 267, citing non-compliance with previous rulings. While TMC and Congress MPs focused on the duplicate voter ID issue, Tamil parties expressed concerns about the impact of delimitation on southern states. Despite raising slogans and pressing for a discussion, the opposition staged a walkout after their notices were rejected and their statements deemed not part of the official record.
Robert Vadra, brother-in-law of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for the third consecutive day on Thursday for questioning in a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in a 2008 Haryana land deal. The ED has been investigating Vadra in connection with a land deal in Haryana's Manesar-Shikohpur, where a company he was a director of purchased land from Onkareshwar Properties and later sold it to DLF for a significantly higher price. The case has been embroiled in controversy since 2012, with allegations of corruption and nepotism surrounding the deal. The ED is expected to file chargesheets in all three cases being investigated against Vadra.
Robert Vadra, the brother-in-law of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for the second consecutive day on Tuesday in connection with a 2008 land deal in Haryana linked to a money laundering case. Vadra, who was accompanied by his wife Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, was questioned for about five hours and his statement was recorded by the ED. The session will resume on Wednesday. Vadra has termed the ED action "political vendetta." The probe against Vadra is linked to a land deal in Haryana's Manesar-Shikohpur, where a company named Skylight Hospitality Pvt Ltd, of which Vadra was a director, purchased a 3.5-acre land in 2008. The company later sold the land to realty major DLF in 2012, which led to controversy after an IAS officer cancelled the mutation, deeming the transaction as violative of state consolidation Act and related procedures.
Tharoor had earlier criticised India's stance when Russia attacked Ukraine and called for condemnation of the aggression.
Over 150 people were injured, including eight seriously, in a fireworks accident during a temple festival near Neeleswaram in Kasaragod late Monday, police said.
The Kerala High Court has ordered a further probe into an allegation that state Fisheries Minister Saji Cherian insulted the Constitution in a speech in July 2022. The court found that Cherian's words, including 'ideal Constitution to loot the people', and the use of certain Malayalam terms, could be interpreted as disrespectful to the Constitution. The court also criticized the initial investigation, finding it insufficient and biased, and directed the State Crime Branch to conduct the further probe.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has said he is "more than happy" to take responsibility for everything wrong the party did in its history, including the 1984 Sikh riots. He acknowledged that the party made "a lot of mistakes" when he was not there, but said he has publicly stated that what happened in the 80s was "wrong." The remarks were made during an interaction at Brown University in the US. The video of the interaction was uploaded on the YouTube channel of the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs on Saturday. The BJP has criticized Gandhi for his remarks, accusing him of "ridiculing" the beliefs of Hindus and Sikhs.
On a day a sexual abuse case was registered against actor Siddique based on a complaint by a woman actor, the Left government appears to have adopted a cautious approach in the case of MLA Mukesh, with two ministers indicating that further action hinges on the findings of the probe by the special police team.
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