Ending months of speculation, the ruling coalition met on Friday evening at the residence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh where its Chairperson Sonia Gandhi put forward the name of the 77-year-old veteran Congressman from West Bengal as its candidate, which was unanimously approved by the leaders of the constituent parties
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday during which the issues of financial package for the state and United Progresseive Alliance's Presidential candidate are likely to come up for discussion.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee arrived in Delhi on Tuesday night for consultations with United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday on the issue of the Presidential poll nominee of the UPA, amid intense speculation on Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee's candidature for the post.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday described Rahul Gandhi's speech at a Confederation of Indian Industry programme as that of a "confused leader" which reflected the fear of the emergence of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in national politics.
The TDP and JD-U will have a lot to answer inside Parliament, day after day, session after session, notes N Sathiya Moorthy.
United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi wants Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam M Karunanidhi to be present when the Congress nominee for the Presidential Polls presents his/her nomination papers on June 16 to Returning Officer V K Aghnihotri in Parliament House, say sources in New Delhi.
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leaders T R Baalu and M K Stalin on Thursday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and are believed to have discussed the issue of selection of a candidate for the presidential election. The meeting lasted for around 5 to 7 minutes and was described by the DMK leaders as a courtesy call.
Some ministers have a different point of view from the current conventional wisdom in the Congress party and the UPA government.
The Congress on Saturday maintained silence over Union Minister Beni Prasad Verma's renewed attack on outside ally Samajwadi Party, which is hopeful that he will be removed during a minor Cabinet reshuffle being talked about soon.
Taking a dig at the Congress, Bharatiya Janata Pary's Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that the party chants the mantra of poverty every time elections approach and treats all 365 days of the year as April Fools' Day.
The July 5 'Bharat Bandh' to protest fuel price hike is unlikely to get the support of all non-Congress non-United Progressive Alliance parties with Bahujan Samaj Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Lok Janshakti Party and Rashtriya Lok Dal so far maintaining a silence on which side of the political divide they are.
With the exit of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam from United Progressive Alliance, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday sought to drive a wedge between Congress and Samajwadi Party demanding immediate removal of Union Minister Beni Prasad Verma for his remarks against Mulayam Singh Yadav.
Dr Manmohan Singh's government has 47 crorepati ministers in it. Nationalist Congress Party leader Praful Patel is the richest of the lot with assets worth Rs 89.9 crore.
Refusing to spell out their preference, Left parties on Wednesday asked the United Progressive Alliance government to come up with a candidate with the "widest possible acceptance" for the Presidential election. After a meeting of the four Left parties in Delhi, the leaders said they did not discuss any names during the 90-minute-long deliberations though they mentioned that Nationalist Congress Party leader P A Sangma approached them for support.
The controversial Government affidavit on Below Poverty Line cap was condemned by Opposition today as an "insult and betrayal" of the poor and also slammed by a key United Progressive Alliance ally Nationalist Congress Party.
As United Progressive Alliance completes three years in office, opposition Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday claimed the government may fall anytime as coalition partners were unhappy and were not even ready to break bread together.
If the poll surveys pointing to a near-whitewash for the Congress in the five assembly elections are any indication, the United Progressive Alliance government it heads will find it increasingly difficult to govern, as it will now have to contend with an aggressive opposition and far more assertive allies. The situation is unlikely to improve even after the session ends as the looming 2014 Lok Sabha elections will reduce the UPA to a 'lame duck' government, feels Anita Katyal
Dismissing the perception that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and United Progressive Alliance Chairperson Sonia Gandhi have backtracked on the India-United States nuclear agreement, the Congress on Friday said that it has not changed its stand and everyone is adhering to the coalition dharma. "The Congress' stand is the same. However, at the same time, we have to abide by the consensus among our allies and coalition partners," Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said.
With its ties with Congress under strain, the Samajwadi Party will elicit views of partymen on withdrawing support from the United Progressive Alliance and chalk out agitational programme against the Mayawati government at its special national conference beginning in Agra on Tuesday.
Faced with severe criticism after Italy refused to send back two marines accused of killing Indian fishermen, the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government may take a hard stand and expel Rome's envoy in New Delhi Daniele Mancini.
Rediff.com correspondents across the country spoke to the aam admi, unanimously battered by corruption in one way or the other, on how they perceive the episode. While some are unaware, others think it is the much-needed remedy to counter corruption.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati on Tuesday staged a statewide protest against the steep hike in petrol prices announced by the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance-l government.
The CMP could not be implemented properly in the last two years due to the coronavirus pandemic, said state Congress chief Nana Patole in the letter.
Backing for Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee got further boost with United Progressive Alliance constituent Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam endorsing his name for the post of President over which the Congress hopes to build a consensus across the political spectrum.
The discussion on the joint statement would start after a special discussion on the issue of price rise of essential commodities, an issue that led to protests from several opposition parties in both Houses of Parliament on Tuesday.
With the Congress-led coalition facing flak from both friends and foes of the United Progressive Alliance and supporting Left parties which have called bandhs in states ruled by them, Gandhi suggested to Congress chief ministers to lower sales tax on petroleum items. Congress is in power in around half a dozen states, prominent among them being Maharashtra, Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh and Haryana.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday announced the formation of a seven-party rainbow alliance for the April 24 Lok Sabha polls in Tamil Nadu, in its first-ever such electoral venture in the state where the turf has been largely dominated by Dravida Munetra Kazhagam and All India Anna Dravida Munetra Kazhagam.
Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday said that there was "no division" in the United Progressive Alliance over the Lokpal issue even as his party spokesperson criticised Anna Hazare's arrest.
Defending Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Sunday that he found "nothing wrong" in the key United Progressive Alliance ally's statement that the killing of top Maoist leader Azad was not correct.
Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar has convened an all-party meeting in New Delhi on Wednesday to ensure smooth functioning of the Budget Session of Parliament, which begins on February 21.
Cricketer turned politician and newly elected Congress' Member of Parliament from Moradabad constituency Mohammad Azaruddin, hit the first six of his political career when he was allowed by speaker Meira Kumar to make his maiden speech in the Parliament.
Even as the Central Bureau of Investigation has decided to send a team to Italy to gather details on the VVIP chopper scam, evidence regarding links with the Emaar-MGF is slowly coming to light, reports Vicky Nanjappa.
Declaring that the Prime Ministerial candidate of the Third Front would be decided after the elections, Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati hosted a dinner for the leaders of the grouping and resolved to defeat the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance and the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Deomocratic Alliance.
The Communist Party of India Marxist-led ruling Left Front seems confident about retaining power in the poll-bound state of Tripura. The north-eastern state, which will go to polls on Thursday, is the only state ruled by the Left Front now.
Unrest in Kashmir and Commonwealth Games preparations are expected to find a mention when Congress President Sonia Gandhi addresses a meeting of Congress Parliamentary Party in New Delhi on Thursday.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader M Venkaiah Naidu Sunday said that there was a possibility of early elections in the country.
The question is not when but who after Dr Manmohan Singh? Will an alternative to Dr Singh emerge from within the Congress? Or will a government be formed by regional parties supported by the BJP or Congress from outside? Or will India have mid-term elections? Whatever be the combination, Jaya has emerged as a crucial player in the current political context, says M R Venkatesh.
The Trinamool Congress' rally in Maoist-affected Lalgarh had its echo in Parliament on Monday with members of the Left seeking to know the Centre's stand on the alleged hobnobbing of the United Progressive Alliance ally with the extremists, dubbing the meeting as an "anti-national activity".
The way things are going, India may have a no-limits free-for-all political contest rather than a three-horse race. Parties are approaching one another across the dividing lines of alliances, breaching conventional rules of the political game.
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