NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar has praised the RSS for its dedicated cadre and urged his party to create a similar base committed to progressive ideas. He attributed the NCP's recent electoral setbacks to complacency and a failure to communicate its work for the OBC community. Pawar also emphasized the need for social engineering to address caste tensions and announced that 50% of the tickets for upcoming local body elections will be given to new faces.
'All of these guys who are opposing the Supreme Court judgment are from dominant scheduled caste communities and none of them come from the scavenging community.' 'Not a single scavenging leader will oppose this Supreme Court judgment.'
Owaisi said 324 farmers have died by suicide in "Aurangabad (Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar) division", but no one is talking about it.
Bucking anti-incumbency, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party pulled off a hat-trick of wins in Haryana to retain power and halt Congress' comeback attempt in the assembly elections, results of which were announced on Tuesday.
'Gyanendra back on the throne would be bad news for the Nepali people. He may not have learnt from his experience, but we have.'
The veteran leader is also expected to use his good offices in unifying the faction-ridden party in the state, ahead of assembly elections just six months away.
Haryana is witnessing a multi-cornered contest this time, with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party facing anti-incumbency and a resurgent Congress.
"Making a person belonging to Dalit caste as the chief minister of Punjab is nothing but an election stunt. I have come to know through the media today that assembly elections in Punjab will be fought under a non-Dalit leader and not under Channi," Mayawati told newspersons in Lucknow
Delhi faces a severe financial crunch and the deficit is largely due to numerous welfare schemes without adequate revenue flowing in. The success of welfare schemes and electoral promises will need careful financial planning and out of the box thinking to whip up additional revenue, notes Ramesh Menon.
Former Delhi government minister Rajendra Pal Gautam on Friday quit the Aam Aadmi Party and joined the Congress, alleging discrimination against Dalit and minority leaders in the Arvind Kejriwal led party.
Tanwar had joined the AAP in April 2022. Before joining the AAP, he was with the Trinamool Congress briefly.
The Narendra Modi government will purchase all farm produce at minimum support price, Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said in Rajya Sabha on Friday.
DMK general secretary Duraimurugan announced through a statement in Salem that Manikam has been placed under suspension for violating the party discipline.
Home Minister Amit Shah accused the Congress of twisting facts and distorting his comments on B.R. Ambedkar in the Rajya Sabha, saying the opposition party launched a malicious campaign after a parliamentary discussion "established" the Congress as being "anti-Ambedkar and anti-reservation." Shah defended his remarks, stating his address was clear and without confusion, and that his party would explore all legal options against the Congress for misrepresenting his comments. He also accused the Congress of insulting V.D. Savarkar, crushing constitutional values by imposing Emergency, and humiliating soldiers who laid down their lives.
According to a complaint lodged by the woman's husband, Shakoor Khan broke into their home on Thursday and raped his wife when she was alone.
Banerjee said she would stand by the Dalit community till the end as her caste is "humanity" and she does not believe in differentiation on the grounds of caste and religion.
On the eve of the Haryana assembly poll results, the issue of chief minister-ship has taken centre stage in the Congress with all eyes on its high command's next move as the party expects to regain power after 10 years in the state.
'In Western UP, last time a lot of Dalits voted for the BJP.' 'This time, there is a rethink among Dalits about the extent of their support for the BJP.'
Soon after Gandhi's press conference, the Election Commission said it will respond with full facts in writing.
Thousands of people gathered in Maharashtra's Beed city on Saturday to protest against the brutal murder of Massajog sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh as even MLAs from ruling parties demanded the sacking of Nationalist Congress Party minister Dhananjay Munde.
Farmers from different parts of Uttar Pradesh demanding adequate compensation for their lands acquired by the government marched towards Delhi on Monday but were stopped at the Noida-Delhi border where they sat on a dharna.
Darshan Solanki, who hailed from Ahmedabad in Gujarat and was a first-year student of B Tech (Chemical) course at the IITB, allegedly died by suicide by jumping off the seventh floor of a hostel building located on the campus on February 12.
A First Information Report was also registered against the victim on a complaint filed by some of the accused, said an official of the local Kakoshi village police station.
'The 2024 general elections proved that UP is not Gujarat.'
Amidst alleged power struggles within the ruling Congress in Karnataka, AICC general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala has called for discipline within the party, emphasizing that the party is paramount. This comes as the state's chief minister and deputy chief minister submitted a consolidated report on the performance of 31 ministers to Surjewala, fueling speculation about a potential cabinet reshuffle.
So far, 15 wedding ceremonies have been held in the district under the initiative and the step has been welcomed by the upper caste community, they said.
A student collective at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay on Wednesday demanded the resignation of the premier institute's director against the backdrop of alleged suicide by a first-year Dalit student and allegations that he was facing caste discrimination.
The BJP's charge was that the matter was being politicised as Prime Minister Narendra Modi came from a poor family
Bihar Assembly Deputy Speaker Maheshwar Hazari on Wednesday accused outgoing Speaker Vijay Kumar Sinha of having "insulted Dalits" by denying him the opportunity to conduct proceedings of the House after stepping down.
'If questioning and dethroning hierarchies is your primary motive, why not put an end to the practice of announcing your shining star, your box office draw, in big flaming letters and mentioning everyone else's name in small font at the bottom of the screen?' asks Sreehari Nair.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launched a scathing attack on AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal during his campaign rallies in Delhi, accusing him of being involved in the "liquor scam" and of being "afraid" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Gandhi also criticized Kejriwal's governance style, calling it "sheesh mahal politics" and accusing him of being absent when violence and hatred engulfed Delhi during the 2020 riots. He also attacked the BJP, accusing them of trying to change the Constitution and insulting the country's founding fathers.
Citing violation of party discipline, the state BJP has issued a showcause notice to Munirathna and asked him to clarify the allegations before a disciplinary committee within five days.
Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi's reaction to President Droupadi Murmu's address to the Joint session of the Parliament on Friday stoked a controversy.
With the Rajasthan cabinet reshuffle scheduled for later in the day, Congress leader Sachin Pilot on Sunday expressed his satisfaction over the move and stated that the inclusion of four Dalit ministers in the cabinet has sent out a positive message about the party and the state government.
Newly elected Samajwadi Party MP RK Chaudhary, one of the founders of the Bahujan Samaj Party, has claimed BSP chief Mayawati has been ignoring the Bahujan movement which has led to her party's rout in these Lok Sabha polls.
The procession, called bindoli in the local language, was taken out on Thursday at Sarsi village under Manasa police station area, some 30 km from the district headquarters, an official said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday accused the Congress of making attempts to snatch reservations meant for tribals and hand them over to its 'vote bank'.
With the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls scheduled for 2027, political experts are observing an increasing trend of temple-mosque disputes in the state, leading to heightened polarization. Recent bypolls saw the use of divisive slogans, and analysts believe this trend will intensify as the 2027 elections approach. The recent surge in claims about the existence of Hindu temples at the sites of mosques in various cities has fueled this polarization. The BJP-led government has been accused of promoting communal polarization, while opposition parties like the SP have criticized the ruling party's actions. The RSS chief has called for restraint in raising new temple-related disputes. Experts predict that communal polarization is likely to escalate in the coming days.
'They are innovating and a new Dalit leadership could be seen at the horizon'
Union minister Chirag Paswan has caused a flutter by stating he would choose to give up his ministerial berth instead of a compromise on his principles, in keeping with the precedent set by his late father Ram Vilas Paswan.
