Rahul Gandhi mostly stayed away from the elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, choosing to focus on the Bharat Jodo Yatra.
The party was trounced in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh and is now left with only Himachal Pradesh in the north. It is ruling in only three states on its own and is in power in Bihar and Jharkhand as a junior partner in alliance with regional parties.
The Election Commission is likely to declare poll dates for Gujarat and Himachal on October 4 or 5.
"For me, it is like homecoming," said the 93-year-old who returned for the second time to the Congress which he had last left ahead of the 2017 assembly elections to join the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday urged the Centre to intervene to ensure that levels of the Yamuna, flowing at an all-time high of 207.55 metres, don't rise further.
The results of bypolls to three Lok Sabha and 29 assembly seats spread across 13 states and a union territory have been a mixed bag for the BJP as its fortunes continue to nosedive in West Bengal against the might of Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee while bad tidings have also come from states like Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Former Himachal Pradesh chief minister and senior Congress leader Virbhadra Singh on Wednesday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of targeting him as it is losing ground in the poll-bound state. "BJP is targeting me as it is losing ground in Himachal Pradesh, where assembly polls are round the corner." Singh said while addressing a press conference in Shimla.
Amid signs of factionalism within the state unit, Kharge is likely to instruct the party leaders to work in a united manner for ensuring victory.
Congress leader Virbhadra Singh, who quit Manmohan Singh cabinet after a Himachal Pradesh court order in a corruption case, on Sunday said his resignation is not a setback to the party's prospects in Himachal Pradesh polls later this year as he would come out unscathed before the vote.
'Mr Ballot Box' occupied the front row seat in the aircraft escorted under the watchful gaze of the Assistant Returning Officers of their respective states.
'Star campaigner' to address election meetings in poll-bound Chhattisgarh, MP, Rajasthan.
During a review, the EC found that the performance of some officers was "unsatisfactory" and they were found "complacent, if not complicit" in various matters, including the illegal supply of liquor as a possible poll inducement, sources said.
It was an extremely volatile session, borne out by the Sensex swinging over 1,200 points through the day and the Nifty 369 points.
With the assembly poll results in three states being a disappointment for the Congress, some rumblings have begun among the constituents of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) ahead of their meeting on December 6, with many leaders alleging that the grand old party ignored others, but was unable to win elections on its own.
A meeting is being held at the Bharatiya Janata Party's headquarters chaired by the party's national general secretary (organisation) B L Santosh on Sunday over the 2024 Lok Sabha Election.
'I have no doubt that when she was prevented from meeting Kejriwal, she felt humiliated.'
The Congress president during his year at the helm of the party has repaired the citadel for far more challenging years ahead, and played a crucial role in shaping the Opposition alliance.
J P Nadda is a man to watch in the BJP.
Sources said while the Congress units of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan will hold separate discussions on May 26 on their preparations and actions to be taken, the party will also hold strategy meets on Chhattisgarh on May 27.
Himachal Pradesh will also go to polls on November 11 and December 12.
The result in Gujarat was not as grand as the saffron party had expected as the party did not even cross its 2012 tally.
FHe is the only one among 17 ministers from the outgoing council of ministers who lost the Lok Sabha polls to be reappointed minister.
A two-decade-old graft case has proved to the nemesis of veteran Congress leader Virbhadra Singh who resigned as Union Minister on Tuesday, a day after charges were framed against him by a Himachal Pradesh court.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will head to poll-bound Gujarat this weekend and is expected to participate in at least eight programmes, crisscrossing the state from Saurashtra to Surat.
Four BJP leaders and former Supreme Court judge S Abdul Nazeer, who was part of the Constitution bench that upheld the archaeological report on Ayodhya, were among six new faces appointed as Governors on Sunday.
Nadda's three-year term will end in January next year, and the BJP parliamentary board, its apex body, is expected to endorse an extension for him before that, sources said.
A democracy is one, only if it has a robust Opposition. And as its actions show, the Modi-BJP combine gives two hoots for that. So, the Opposition must learn to convince people why the BJP must go. Else, it can count down to 2029, points out Shyam G Menon.
Shah along with other senior party leaders felicitated Modi for the party's performance in the five state assembly polls.
'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.'
One political resolution is expected to be passed at the meeting where Modi will deliver the valedictory address, which is expected to shape the party's views on a variety of issues.
Sharma said Jai Ram Thakur's sarcastic comments forced him to resign from the ministry, saying it indicated that the chief minister had lost faith in him.
Leaders of several like-minded opposition parties are likely to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Karnataka chief minister-designate Siddaramaiah and deputy chief minister D K Shivakumar on Saturday in Bengaluru.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's comprehensive defeat to the Congress in Karnataka where the two parties ran a campaign of contrasts has left the ruling party much to ponder as the two rivals are facing a direct contest in three more state polls this year in the run-up to the all-important 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Projecting itself as the lone alternative to the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Aam Aadmi Party on Thursday launched a nationwide survey seeking people's opinion on the two parties.
A Bolero car still could not be traced, he added.
Prashant Kishor expressed the view that the recent 'chintan shivir' could not achieve "anything meaningful".
A week after assuming power in Karnataka, the Congress on Friday released the list of 24 legislators who will be sworn-in as ministers to fill up all the vacant ministerial positions.
Speaking in the legislative assembly on the condolence motion, Thackeray, without taking any names, said, "Some people have gratitude towards the city where they live and earn their livelihood, but some don't."
Top Congress leaders held deliberations on Saturday at the first meeting of the new Congress Working Committee (CWC) focusing on preparing a comprehensive road map for ensuring the party's victory in the upcoming assembly polls in five states and the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
As the new year arrives, what is clear is that the BJP's stars continue to shine the brightest while its rivals' search for a way to dim their glow go on.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances