Gujarat is likely to witness a triangular fight in this year's assembly polls, as dissident Bharatiya Janata Party leaders -- opposed to Chief Minister Narendra Modi and led by former chief minister Keshubhai Patel -- are set to float their own party.
The Gujarat government has announced that people will not be fined for violation of traffic rules during the Diwali festival this year.
'They contest to ensure they win the election.'
Despite the AAP cutting into its votes, the Congress still polled 27 per cent votes and won 17 seats.
MNS chief Raj Thackeray alleges the state government's three-language formula is a precursor to separating Mumbai from Maharashtra, speaking at a rally with Uddhav Thackeray.
Haryana is now in the same bracket as Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh where the BJP is the centre-point of politics.
This would give BJP the chance to explore Constitutional options for government formation if there is no clear-cut mandate, explains Sheela Bhatt.
Rathwa was a Minister of State for Railways in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in 2004, and lost to BJP candidate Ramsinh Rathwa in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections.
A statement from the Congress said the party's disciplinary committee decided to suspend Kumbhani after a thorough discussion, adding it had come to the conclusion that the nomination form was rejected due to gross negligence on his part or "in connivance with the BJP".
Addressing the 'parivartan sankalp rally' in Ahmedabad, Gandhi made a host of promises to people of Gujarat, where the assembly polls are due later this year, including creation of 10 lakh new jobs, building 3,000 English medium schools and free education to girls.
Names of Rajya Sabha MPs Harbhajan Singh and Swati Maliwal are missing from the list.
Gujarat has registered a voter turnout of 64.33 per cent for the recently-concluded elections to 182 assembly seats, a drop of more than 4 per cent as compared to the turnout registered in the 2017 polls.
The opposition Congress has decided to support the bandh in protest against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's 'failure' to control the situation in the north-eastern state, a party spokesperson said on Saturday.
New Delhi looks to be testing Omar's endurance with unconcealed glee, never feeling shy to bite whenever a moment comes its way. After all, ruling the country's only Muslim-majority UT/state has been the BJP's burning desire, points out Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir affairs.
With central Congress Party leaders turning down Gujarat leader Narhari Amin's request to be allowed to contest assembly polls from the Gandhinagar South constituency, the senior party loyalist on Thursday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party, asking his supporters to ensure victory of Chief Minister Narendra Modi.
Bharatiya Janata Party's Parvesh Verma first rose in national politics in 2014 when he won the West Delhi Lok Sabha seat but his profile took a leap when he emerged as the giant killer in the Delhi assembly polls after defeating Aam Aadmi Party supremo and three-time chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.
Banking on the Budget's tax relief, the BJP seeks to energise Delhi's middle class; the AAP is doing its bit too. But will their outreach mobilise this politically crucial yet disengaged electorate?
Issuing a video message after his resignation, Vaghela expressed his displeasure about lone NCP MLA Kandhal Jadeja defying the party whip and indulging in cross-voting during the June 19 Rajya Sabha polls for four seats.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday fielded its president J P Nadda for Rajya Sabha polls from Gujarat and former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan from his home state.
'It is something like traditional Indian families.' 'The family might be run by younger people, but if the patriarch says that you should consider someone for some task, it is very difficult for the others to ignore it.'
The first list has 10 Patel or Patidar faces, 11 tribals, 10 OBCs and five SCs.
Modhwadia emphasised that he was not joining the BJP due to any coercion or allurement as claimed by the Congress.
Whether AAP bounces back or fades into political oblivion will depend on its strategy in the coming months.
Parts of Gujarat had witnessed large-scale violence in 2002 following the train burning incident at Godhra railway station in February that year.
The prolonged delay over electing J P Nadda's successor possibly stems from the RSS leadership wanting a person who is at least equidistant from the Sangh as well as the Modi/BJP edifice, observes BJP-RSS watcher Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
Vyas was a minister in the BJP government in Gujarat when Narendra Modi was the chief minister.
Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini has vowed to take strict action against travel agents involved in sending youth from the state abroad through illegal routes. He said the government is identifying those involved and will introduce a law to control illegal immigration. Saini also commented on the recent Delhi elections, praising the BJP's victory and criticizing former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal.
'They want to keep the pot boiling all the time.' 'The BJP wants to set a political narrative that the Gandhis are doing wrong things.'
The ruling BJP has named Kalpesh Parmar as its candidate for the Matar seat, which was represented by Solanki in 2014 and 2017.
The counting is underway in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. Watch all the political action unfold in these states right here on Rediff.com.
An OBC leader, Thakor, who has good oratory skills, will have to take along all factions in the state unit while taking on the well-organised BJP which has been in power in the state from 1998.
In another jolt to the opposition Congress for the second day in a row ahead of the Gujarat assembly polls, senior MLA Bhagwan Barad on Wednesday resigned as a legislator and primary member and is set to join the Bharatiya Janata Party.
In a bid to nullify anti-incumbency sentiment, the ruling party dropped 45 MLAs including former chief minister Vijay Rupani.
Former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani and ex-deputy CM Nitin Patel, both senior leaders of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), on Wednesday night announced they will not fight the next month's assembly elections.
'The people of Gujarat are more religious than people of other states, this gives the BJP an advantage.'
To shore up its finances, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in Gujarat has planned to collect over Rs 200 crore from its workers and supporters ahead of the assembly elections slated by the year-end, said an office-bearer on Monday.
People lined up in large numbers on both sides of the road to greet Modi.
An alliance between the Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress in Delhi and in different states, including Gujarat and Haryana, for the Lok Sabha polls may be officially announced on Saturday, sources in the AAP said.
Politely decline to be prime minister, and hand the baton to someone else in the BJP -- like Sonia did to Manmohan Singh -- advises Krishna Prasad.
Party sources said the issue of Rupani's successor will be discussed in the legislature party meeting likely to be held on Sunday.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances