The coming weeks will be a tightrope walk for Gehlot who has 100 loyalists MLAs waiting to be rewarded on one side and the dissidents who wanted to be rehabilitated on the other, observes Prakash Bhandari.
The Election Commission on Monday allotted 'flaming torch' (mashaal) election symbol to the Uddhav Thackeray faction of Shiv Sena, rejecting their claim to the 'Trishul' citing religious connotation.
After the party's drubbing in the just-concluded assembly polls in five states, Congress president Sonia Gandhi has asked its state unit chiefs in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Punjab and Manipur to put in their papers.
Apart from Chamkaur Sahib assembly seat which comes in Maajha region of Punjab, Congress is all set to field CM Channi from Adampur assembly constituency which falls in the Doaba Region.
Top Congress leaders are learnt to be discussing the current political situation.
P Chidambaram's son Karti was arrested on February 28 at the Chennai airport on his return from the United Kingdom, for his alleged role in facilitating Foreign Investment Promotion Board clearance for INX Media Ltd. and its directors, Peter and Indrani Mukerjea.
The SC said it will not interfere with the Bombay HC order but Malik can avail the remedy available under the law.
"Ask people not to buy the book or read it. Tell people it is badly authored, read something better," said Justice Yashwant Varma.
'It would indeed be difficult for someone from outside the Gandhi family to run the party'
Sources said the issues to be raised during the monsoon session of Parliament starting July 19 were discussed at a meeting of the Congress parliamentary strategy group on Wednesday, which was chaired by party chief Sonia Gandhi and attended by former prime minister Manmohan Singh and former Congress president Rahul Gandhi.
A vacation bench of Justices Surya Kant and J B Pardiwala was told by advocate Sudhanshu S Choudhuri that the two MLAs have been booked for offences under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and are in jail.
'If Rahul Gandhi is doing so much for the country and the party without thinking about his own health, then I realised that the only way to impress upon Soniaji and all those who are campaigning against him about how ordinary party workers are looking up to Rahulji was to write a letter in blood.'
Tharoor had so far maintained a silence since the letter appeared in the media and was heatedly debated at the Monday meeting of the Congress Working Committee, which urged Sonia Gandhi to continue as party president and bring about organisational changes.
The case of the two Shiv Sena factions for legitimacy and the party symbol, 'Bow and Arrow', is now before the Election Commission. Whichever way the EC findings go, the other can be expected to move the Supreme Court. They would need a final verdict before the parliamentary polls, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Congress Working Committee, the party's top-decision making body, would soon meet to deliberate further on the Chintan Shivir plans, the sources said.
A bench headed by Chief Justice U U Lalit is scheduled to hear the petitions challenging the validity of the CAA whose enactment had triggered widespread protests across the country.
'In the end, it was possibly Pawar's pow-wow with Modi that helped her to come to a decision,' says Amulya Ganguli.
The decision of some key regional parties like the Biju Janata Dal, the Telangana Rashtra Samiti and the Aam Aadmi Party to skip a key opposition meet called by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on the presidential poll has cheered the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party as it believes that their absence has only highlighted the faultlines and one-upmanship among its rivals.
The Congress will hold a chintan shivir immediately after the Budget session of Parliament and the CWC will meet again before that, he told reporters
It said that the nodal counsel would consider designating some other matters as lead ones, keeping in mind the grounds of geographical and religious classifications among other factors.
The suit, filed by Hindu Sena president Vishnu Gupta, has sought direction to the authorities concerned to stop the publication, circulation, and sale of the book Sunrise Over Ayodhya for allegedly hurting the sentiments.
'How and why did we lose so many seats in places where we were expected to win?'
Amid speculation about the agreement to be the chief minister of the state just for two-and-a-half years, Baghel said, "The high command instructed me to take the oath (as chief minister), so I took the oath. When they will say someone else will be the chief minister, then it will be so. Such agreements happen in a coalition government."
'Cultural nationalism or the victim card that you play is okay when people are well fed.' 'But if you are not well fed, then it puts a question mark (on your leadership).'
In his address over Facebook on June 22, Thackeray had talked about his willingness to step down if the rebel MLAs come to Mumbai and make such a demand.
Justice Jamdar then said that the bench will grant relief to Bhamare in the two cases where his bail pleas had been rejected, while the police are restrained from arresting him in the fourth and the fifth cases.
'It was disappointing on two counts. One is on the leadership issue and second is how the Congress must win elections.'
India's stiff labour laws were one key issue that Apple CEO Tim Cook discussed with Prime Minister Modi on his recent visit.
"Congress state in-charge Harish Rawat is my good friend but who gave him the right to take such a big decision about Punjab at his level? What is the meaning of Captain's leadership now after the Kharge committee's decision to contest elections under Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi?" Congress MLA Pargat Singh said.
The 'flaming torch' symbol was used by the Sena in the past during civic body and assembly polls.
Venugopal is valued highly by Mrs Gandhi and Mr Gandhi. They consider him a loyalist, more to the point, one who can deliver.
Azad said it was a good meeting with the Congress president with the discussion centred on how to prepare and fight unitedly the forthcoming assembly polls to take on rival parties.
After a special court in Mumbai refused to grant temporary bail to them to cast their votes in the Rajya Sabha elections to be held on Friday, Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik and former minister Anil Deshmukh on Thursday approached the Bombay high court for relief.
For the Congress' revival, the eclipse of the Gandhis is absolutely necessary, asserts Virendra Kapoor.
In her inaugural address at the party's 'Chintan Shivir' in Udaipur, she urged delegates to deliberate with an open mind and send out a clear message of strong organisation and unity.
The apex court also issued notice, including to the Centre through the office of the attorney general, on Ranjan's plea seeking clubbing of FIRs and protection from coercive action.
The Congress said it will observe 'Save Democracy Day' on Friday with party workers and leaders holding protest marches at all district and state headquarters.
The high court had on December 12 granted bail to the 73-year-old NCP leader in the case but said the order will be effective after 10 days
Biharis can confidently decide whether they want to follow Badlav Se Bhadiya Bharosa (Trust is Better than Change) or Badaliye Sarkar, Badaliye Bihar (Change the Government, Change Bihar), asserts Asmita Bihari.
There have been rumours of infighting within the BJP's state unit.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances