The presidential election is due in July and the poll to the post of the vice president is scheduled for August.
President Ram Nath Kovind has approved the appointment of a few Governors and changes in portfolios of some others.
The youth leadership taking the reigns of the states was a rare event in the last century as very few broke the glass ceilings.
For far too long, the BJP has postponed an uncomfortable debate on the need for radical change. The outcome in Uttar Pradesh presents the perfect opportunity to force that debate, says Shashi Shekhar.
Having twice betrayed the BJP -- and Arvind Kejriwal determined not to admit in AAP anyone who could question his authority -- Sidhu seems to have reached a dead-end in his political career, asserts Virendra Kapoor.
Could the defeat of Vasundhara Raje, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, and Raman Singh in last year's polls in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh, respectively, augur a transition in the command structure of these states, where they reigned supreme?
We used to hear of the Modi-Shah pair as the hyphenated top of the BJP leadership. Lately, the hyphen has disappeared and it is only Modi at the top. Yogi Adityanath gets honourable mentions, but he is still a good distance away from being anointed a worthy successor, observes Shreekant Sambrani.
Aiming to breach the Bharatiya Janata Party's Gujarat bastion, the Aam Aadmi Party fielded its candidate to contest all 182 assembly seats and carried out a high decibel campaign in the run-up to the polls in Gujarat.
Shah said he is confident that BJP will return to power in four states -- Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur -- and make impressive gains in Punjab.
Former Delhi Lieutenant Governor Vijay Kapoor and two former chief secretaries -- Baleshwar Rai of Goa and Arun Kumar of Chhattisgarh -- on Saturday formally joined the Bharatiya Janata Party.
"BJP leaders are playing the game at the behest of central leaders. MLAs were offered money... Rs 10 crore in advance and Rs 15 crore after the government is toppled," the chief minister alleged and added that the BJP wants to convert the state's politics into a goat market, 'bakra mandi'.
As per the preliminary estimates, the BJP has significantly improved its national vote share from 31.34 per cent in 2014 to a new record high, while there appeared to be only a marginal change in case of the Congress from its 19.5 per cent score of the last elections.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan felicitates Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi.
The comments came in backdrop of the political crisis in Karnataka after some Congress-Janata Dal-Secular MLAs resigned and the 10 party legislators in Goa joining the BJP.
Voting will be held on Thursday for the first phase of Gujarat Assembly elections in 89 seats spread across 19 districts in Saurashtra-Kutch and southern parts of the state where 788 candidates are in the fray.
If we get a chance to form the next government at the Centre, all backward states will get special category status, Kumar said.
An analysis of seats across the five states shows that the race was won on tighter margins than five years ago, except for Punjab and Uttarakhand.
Narendra Modi, riding a sweeping victory in the Gujarat bye-elections, on Wednesday met Bharatiya Janata Party president Rajnath Singh amid indications that he may be made the head of the party's campaign committee for next Lok Sabha elections at the National Executive meet in Goa this weekend.
Congress General Secretary Digvijaya Singh on Monday cautioned BJP President Rajnath Singh against the Gujarat Chief Minister, saying Narendra Modi has always "chopped off" the hands, which promoted him.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Monday greeted 'good friend' and her Gujarat counterpart Narendra Modi on his elevation as Bharatiya Janata Party's election campaign committee chief, but declined to comment on the development, insisting it was that party's internal matter.
The results of the Assembly elections were nothing to exult about for the Bharatiya Janata Party with the party faring poorly in Uttar Pradesh and its chief minister B C Khanduri losing in Uttarakhand although it grabbed Goa from Congress.
'The implication of being adamant is to be arrogant. So yes, he is arrogant.'
Asserting that there is a silent wave in his favour, Utpal Parrikar, elder son of late Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar, who is contesting the February 14 Assembly election as an independent candidate from the Panaji seat, has said he was a favoured choice after his father's death in 2019, but was denied poll ticket by the Bharatiya Janata Party due to local politics.
It was not a one-way ride up though for the man who now could potentially become the BJP's national president over time.
Glimpses from all the action from the campaign trail.
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra did remarkable and energetic campaigning for the party, and "from my point of view, I don't think that the Congress per se can be faulted because on the grounds of one person's campaigning", Tharoor said.
Yogi Adityanath's aura is no longer limited to Uttar Pradesh. At the age of 49, his journey to the higher echelons in the BJP has well and truly begun, predicts Sudhir Bisht.
UP BJP spokesperson Manoj Mishra said state BJP vice-president J P S Rathore, in a complaint letter sent to the Chief Election Commissioner, has accused Akhilesh of violating the model code of conduct.
In true Karnataka political style, which cuts across parties and loyalties, any reinstatement of Yeddiyurappa, even with adequate legislative majority, could trigger rebellion from within, which could embarrass the Modi-Shah duo than any other development elsewhere in the country, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Bharatiya Janata Party President Rajnath Singh and the party's senior leader Narendra Modi dodged all questions about the latter's possible projection as BJP's prime ministerial candidate, after they arrived for the party's national executive meeting in Panaji on Friday.
'The BJP is trying to bribe or unleash the income tax authorities (on us).'
Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, who is tipped to become the Union defence minister, on Saturday tendered his resignation from the post paving way for the appointment of his successor in the state.
Aditi Phadnis picks five key seats in the three states where assembly elections are being held today.
While the Modi government had jump-started its second innings taking one major decision after another, there is a deep sense of loss in the party over the demise of Swaraj and Jaitley.
The governor justified her decision to invite the BJP, saying the party has requisite numbers.
Gadkari said we have taken note of issues raised by states and will prepare a report which will be submitted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in ten days.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to explain why the political party (Aam Aadmi Party) which was allegedly the beneficiary of the Delhi Excise Policy 'scam', has not been made an accused in the money laundering case.
The results are being seen as a ringing endorsement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's policies and a reflection of his unmatched popularity.
Exuding confidence, Kejriwal said, "Our government will be formed in Gujarat in 2027."
