Will the Aam Aadmi Party repeat its magic or are Delhi voters going to reprimand it for party chief Arvind Kejriwal's maverick 49-day chief ministership in the upcoming state assembly elections? Search for the answer led me to party ideologue Yogendra Yadav, who appears to have some justification and back-of-the-envelope calculations to suggest that his party stands a chance, despite rival Bharatiya Janata Party's surge in other recent state polls.
'While taking the decision regarding cricket, the Supreme Court has said that the officials should not be above 70 years of age and they have described these positions as "lucrative" which made me very sad and that's why I don't have any wish to work any more'
N Sundaresha Subramanian, Karan Choudhury and Shreya Jai report on the sorry condition of homebuyers who invested in Jaypee Infratech and the Amrapali group's Noida-based projects.
'No government should be viewed as authoritarian, rather as a collective institution of people,' says Pinarayi Vijayan.
More than 25 years after the Babri Masjid was destroyed, another generation proclaims its commitment to building a Ram temple.
'Under Justice Gogoi's tenure, the Supreme Court has gone from an institution that was at least formally committed to the protection of individual rights as its primary task, to an institution that speaks the language of the executive, and has become indistinguishable from the executive,' warns Gautam Bhatia.
The results for the bypolls in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Bihar, Telangana, Maharashtra, Punjab and Tripura were announced on Tuesday.
Soon after the BJP lost the 2004 election, the stockmarkets went into unprecedented free fall. Then SEBI Chairman G N Bajpai reveals how his firm handling of the situation restored confidence and soon the markets were back to doing what they do best -- make money. A revealing excerpt from his book, A Game Changer's Memoir.
Mamata Banerjee was on Friday sworn in as the chief minister of West Bengal for the second consecutive time, heading a 42-member ministry.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
From hobnobbing with the likes of Jacqueline Kennedy and Mick Jagger, the reclusive author-turned-politician has come a long way, says Anita Katiyal
With days to go before Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh go to polls, the Congress is struggling to make an impact in the two key heartland states which have been ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party for two successive five-year terms.
The massive protest has been called by the All India Government Nurses Federation and the Delhi Nurses Federation seeking redressal of issues related to pay and allowances.
Sharif is in London with his ailing wife Kulsoom, who is suffering from throat cancer and has undergone three surgeries so far.
Rakhi Sawant is as uncensored as they come.
'Is Trump going to play a mediating role? Can he play a mediating role? It's out of the question.' 'Kashmir is an Indian responsibility.'
The Congress vice president has taken up the daunting task of bringing in a sea change in the working of the party, but also faces opposition from some old guards and regional satraps, notes Anita Katyal.
'He is an extraordinarily focused, determined, full-time politician, who from the moment he wakes up to the moment that he goes to sleep is looking at the job in hand.'
Whose political stock is likely to rise and which leader is most likely to make an impact in the coming year?
Mulayam's cousimn and senior Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav's son Akshay is all set to take the electoral plunge in Ferozabad. However, he faces really tough competition from BJP's S P Singh Baghel. Renu Mittal reports.
'I give Modi full credit, for brilliantly using his personal diplomacy, his personal stature, to accomplish his goals...'
'Indian nationhood is indeed at the cusp of alarming redefinition -- hate-filled, and exclusionary.' 'Nations are not built this way, instead these are the ways of liquidating nations.' 'We must pre-empt it.' 'Can we?' asks Mohammad Sajjad.
'Bribing voters is very, very less in Kerala; I would say, almost zero... Across the border, there is so much of money power during the elections. But I don't think in Kerala, people vote for money... People of Kerala do believe that politics can bring in good governance, 'says Nalini Netto, the Chief Electoral Officer, Kerala.
'I have seen in action six prime ministers and ten chief ministers, considered stalwarts in their days, and it is the first time, in all my experience, that a prime minister has gone into such great detail, laying down even the standards of cleanliness that should be maintained in all offices,' says B S Raghavan, former chief secretary, West Bengal.
While courts are there to tackle crime and a few non-government organisations support victims of crime, NCW, a body empowered to take suo moto interest in a case, is in between, says Aparna Kalra
A look at the financials of some of the key companies in the Sasikala clan's business empire.
"Our only solace is that Modi will win Varanasi, but there will be a by-election here. Modi will not be able to cobble 272 seats to become prime minister so he will remain the chief minister of Gujarat. He will resign from Varanasi and then we will ensure Kerjiwal's handsome win." Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt reports on how Varanasi's 300,000 Muslim voters are strategising their vote.
The exemption from MAT does not apply retroactively.
Shattered by the party's worst debacle in the elections, Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi on Monday offered to resign accepting responsibility but the party unanimously rejected it.
Happy at the clear mandate given by voters to the BJP-led NDA, India Inc on Friday exuded confidence that Narendra Modi will initiate bold and decisive policy reforms to promote economic growth.
I write this from Mumbai, on a day that news anchors are calling "waterlogged" and "rain drenched". A completely wasted day for the city that never sleeps, in fact. No trains, no buses, no way to leave our homes, no staff, no home delivery, no greengrocer and milkman at the door, poor TV reception, no Internet connectivity -- nothing.
A K Bhattacharya digs into the yet-to-be-public report on ways to curb black money and finds out that Modi's next moves could include action on dabba trading, hawala, and education.
'Let us not say that Modi has not delivered on anything; he has delivered something and in parts substantially, but he has to also deliver on a large number of his electoral promises.'
What is the road ahead for Rahul Gandhi? Shehzad Poonawalla offers a blueprint.
'If enough of us take up the issue with their elected representatives, politicians will get the message.'
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
The Indian economy was on an impressive growth path through the first decade of this century till it was brought to an abrupt halt by the policy inertia during UPA2 and the Modi government's inability to restore economic and financial momentum. Fascinating glimpses of what went wrong from Puja Mehra's must-read book The Lost Decade: How India's Growth Story Devolved Into Growth Without A Story.
Modi today needs BJP CMs and non-party regional leaders to win votes and build alliances, but he will over-rule them and treat them like dirt once they have served their electoral purpose. Make no mistake: Modi is incurably authoritarian and will brook no dissent -- so long as the RSS is on board, says Praful Bidwai.
The veteran politician's desire to quit politics may just be a new entry into the long list of occasions where he has gone back on his word, notes Neeta Kolhatkar.
As a loyalist who would run to her with every little matter, he realises it is time he comes into his own.
