It is in power on its own only in three states -- Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh and Telangana -- with a big question mark on whether it can even stake claim to be head of the INDIA bloc.
Political pundits unanimously suggest that the state is not experiencing a discernible Gandhi wave this time around.
'Sheikh Abdullah ruled the state with secular values. Post 1953, when he was sacked, corruption took over governance.'
'He was a very good friend for India. He stood by us through thick and thin.'
'Gehlot is right now doing things, which are not appreciated by the Gandhis.' 'The Gandhis have realised that their writ does not run in Rajasthan, therefore they have deflected the issue to Kharge.'
'If you post on social media on an issue like power cuts in Tral, the police will come to your home and tell you to remove your social media post.' 'If you don't, then the local police threaten you that they will book you under PSA.' 'This is happening all the time in Kashmir.'
The specter of how the Munambam issue was exploited during the November by-elections is proof of the price Kerala is paying for its emergent politics. Controversies become the stuff of slow-burn and brinkmanship. The former promises mileage; the latter searches for an advantage, notes Shyam G Menon.
'You can attack and conspire to weaken us, but you cannot destroy the Congress permanently.'
Varun Gandhi adds that communists always joke with him and say he is a "communist in the BJP".
Pawar, an ally of the Congress, however, took exception to Barack Obama's unflattering comments on the Congress leader.
The visit comes amid the campaign for the November 25 assembly polls in Rajasthan, where the Congress hopes to return to power.
'Besides Ayodhya, the BJP lost in nine other constituencies with a Ramayana imprint; it tasted success only in Thrissur.' 'In Rameswaram, K Navaskani of the Indian Union Muslim League won with a 44% voteshare in a 84% Hindu constituency.' 'In the 21 seats in the Ayodhya and Varanasi regions, both crucial to the Hindutva project, the BJP won just 7.' 'It won just 3 out of 12 seats around Modi's constituency,' points out Krishna Prasad.
The nation on Sunday remembered the country's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru on his 48th death anniversary, with President Pratibha Patil and Vice-President Hamid Ansari paying homage to him.
If the Congress is contesting fewer seats than ever before, the BJP is set to contest its highest-ever number of Lok Sabha seats.
'Where is the remote control in the BJP? When I become president, the remote control will stay with me'
Immediately following its ban being lifted on July 11, 1949, the RSS began debating entering politics in the pages of its house organ, The Organiser. Thus was born the Jana Sangh/BJP, points out Aakar Patel.Thus Was Born Jana Sangh/BJP, asserts Aakar Patel.
Besides Defence Minister Singh (Lucknow), Minister of Women and Child Development Irani (Amethi), those in the fray are Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs Kaushal Kishor (Mohanlalganj) and Minister of State of Consumer Affairs Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti (Fatehpur).
'Temperamentally, they are quite alike.' 'Ahmed Patel avoided the limelight and was not a power seeker.' 'The Gandhis too are not power wielders, but trustees of power.'
Most politicians and even non-politicians have been honoured because of what they were purported to be electorally worth for the ruling party of their time, argues N Sathiya Moorthy.
Every young diploma and degree holder in the country will have the right to apprenticeships in the private and government sectors, he said.
If her mother anoints her as the Congress's chief ministerial candidate for the UP assembly election, it could be Game On! in Lucknow.
Adding that the two leaders had shared an 'excellent personal rapport'.
Wouldn't it be better to join the celebrations with the vast Hindu majority while at the same time criticising Mr Modi/BJP/RSS for politicising it? notes Shekhar Gupta.
He will be around for another crack at the elections, and a clear majority, predicts Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
Asked about the reason behind the appointments, Sinha said they will help meet the goal to develop NMML into a centre of research as envisioned by the present government.
'Let me reveal for the first time that around August 2019 Congress President Sonia Gandhi told the Congress leadership and CWC members to form a consensus over the name of a non-Gandhi leader.'
Modi said laws which divide the country on communal lines and become a reason for inequality have no place in a modern society.
'Nehru knew he could not become the ruler of India unless he had Gandhi's blessing. Gandhi declared that Nehru was his political successor. He said, after his death, Nehru would speak his language. That was a kind of manipulation Gandhi did.' 'If Modi gets the whole authority in his hands, he will be able to consolidate and become a confident ruler, like the leaders of Venezuela and Cuba. But what is his vision of India? I don't think he has a clear vision.' Professor N A Karim does not hold back the punches in a no-holds-barred interview with Shobha Warrier/Rediff.com
'Actually, the RSS is deeply ambivalent and uncomfortable with Gandhi as well as also Ambedkar, but it is not politically wise to oppose these two.' 'So Nehru is the main and only target.'
To mark his 50th death anniversary, rediff.com has launched a special series to evaluate Jawaharlal Nehru's legacy.
Chauhan, a former Madhya Pradesh chief minister, said political parties governed by dynasty, family and caste politics were defeated everywhere including Uttar Pradesh and Bihar in the general elections.
It's intriguing that the prime minister now wants his American partner to help protect the Hindu minority in Bangladesh. That's conceding to the Americans a pre-eminence India has always contested, resented and feared, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
His five-year rule saw the Babri Masjid demolition, the rise of the saffron forces and also the country being placed firmly on a new economic path, away from the Nehru years of public sector socialism.
Manoj Tiwari is the only sitting MP whom the BJP has retained.
The Bharatiya Janata Party is hopeful that the issue will come handy to its efforts to gain political traction in Dravidian state as it gears up for the Lok Sabha polls.
'It would indeed be difficult for someone from outside the Gandhi family to run the party'
Former Union minister and controversial Bharatiya Janata Party MP Anantkumar Hegde has once again stoked a row by calling the freedom struggle led by Mahatma Gandhi a "drama". However, this is not the first time a leader from the ruling party has insulted the Father of the Nation. Here are other instances when BJP leaders took a swipe at Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi.
Kharge claimed that though the BJP says the corrupt must be put in jails, when leaders facing corruption charges join the saffron party, they are "put on the lap" and sent to Rajya Sabha or assembly.
'Behind the BJP's anti-Congress crusade is an attempt to divert attention from the Ladakh standoff,' explains Amulya Ganguli.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances