'We try to connect people, but they disconnect people.'
With most exit polls predicting a tight contest between the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party in the assembly polls in Karnataka, leaders of the two parties seem 'jittery' over the outcome, while the Janata Dal-Secular appears to be expecting a hung verdict, which would enable it to play a role in government formation.
Coalitions in Karnataka are a relatively new concept. The first real coalition was formed only in 2004 by the Congress and the Janata Dal-Secular with N Dharam Singh as the chief minister. After this government fell, the JD-S joined hands with the Bharatiya Janata Party and formed the government with H D Kumaraswamy as the chief minister.
The 'Karnataka Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Bill' was passed by the Legislative Assembly in December last.
Karnataka Assembly election will be held in a single phase on May 5 and counting of votes will be on May 8, the Election Commission said on Wednesday.
Jaishankar emphasised that the stability of the Middle East region was essential because about one crore Indian citizens live there and said, "a large part of our shipping passes through this region and also, oil comes from there."
After sleeping over in the assembly for nearly a week, members of the Karnataka legislative assembly are ready for more drama -- it is time for Yatra politics in the state. The first of the yatras (processions on foot) will commence on July 25 led by the opposition Congress.
Former Karnataka chief minister S R Bommai died in Bangalore on Wednesday after a prolonged illness. He was 84.
In 2022, Rajasthan met for 30 days, Chhattisgarh 18 days, MP and Mizoram for 15 each, and Telangana for 10 days.
Here's how some of the heavyweights fared in the Karnataka elections.
There was more trouble in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly on Thursday with the House Committee recommending the suspension of 15 members of Legislative Assembly for creating ruckus on the floor of the House.
There was more trouble in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly on Thursday with the House Committee recommending the suspension of 15 members of Legislative Assembly for creating ruckus on the floor of the House.
The Karnataka legislative assembly is in disarray and the Opposition has refused to let proceedings begin until the chief minister orders a CBI probe into the illegal mining. Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa explains the issue.
Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot has reserved the Bill pertaining to four percent reservation for Muslims in government contracts for the President's assent, citing constitutional concerns. The Bill, which has been a subject of controversy in Karnataka, was passed by both houses of the state legislature amid protests from the opposition BJP. The Governor's decision to reserve the Bill highlights the ongoing debate over the constitutionality of religious-based reservations in India.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has clarified his remarks on the Pahalgam terror attack, saying he did not call for no war with Pakistan, but emphasized that war should only be a last resort. His comments, which were played up by Pakistan media, have sparked criticism from the BJP, which accused him of acting like a "puppet" of an enemy nation.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced reservation for Muslims in supplying goods and services up to a value of Rs 1 crore to various government departments, corporations and institutions in the state budget for 2025-26. The budget also increased the value limit of government contracts in which Muslims can avail reservation to Rs 2 crore. The reservation to Muslims under 2B category is in addition to the Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, and Castes coming under Category-1, Category-2A. The budget also included various welfare schemes for minorities, including Rs 50,000 to support simple marriages and Rs 1,000 crore under the Chief Minister's Minority Colony Development Programme.
The Supreme Court on Monday stayed the disqualification of Janata Dal-Secular MLA D C Gowrishankar Swamy from the Tumkur Rural constituency in Karnataka and allowed him to contest the upcoming assembly polls in the southern state.
Amid the simmering border dispute, Maharashtra minister Shambhuraj Desai on Wednesday said if Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai does not stop making irresponsible statements, Maharashtra will have to rethink about water supply from its dams to the neighbouring state.
According to the Congress, 37 leaders associated with JD-S in the 2018 assembly polls, have joined the party so far, in the run up to the upcoming elections.
Neerja Chowdhury spoke to former prime minister and JD-S H D Deve Gowda about the ongoing political crisis in Karnataka.
A crucial meeting of the Janata Dal-Secular legislature party is scheduled to commence at 0900 hours where a final call will be taken whether to support the BJP or not. JDS supreme H D Deve Gowda has been authorised by his party to take the final decision.
After losing both the seats in the by-polls of the Karnataka legislative assembly, state Pradesh Congress Committee's working president D K Shivakumar and Leader of Opposition Siddaramiah resigned from their posts on Thursday. The two leaders resigned after accepting the moral responsibility for the party's defeat in Kadur and Gulbarga. The Bharatiya Janata Party won the Kadur seat while the Janata Dal Secular won the Gulbarga seat.
"JD-S will not transfer power to BJP. See what all will happen on October 3," Singh, a former chief minister, told reporters in Bangalore on Thursday.
The BJP presented a surplus, farmer friendly budget for Rs 18.85 crore for the year 2008-09. Emphasis was also given to Bengaluru city with Rs 36,000 crore being allocated for infrastructure development. In his budget speech, Yeddyurappa said that the main intention was to improve the image of Bengaluru and put it on the global map. For this to take place the development of infrastructure was the key.
Amid stepped-up pressure on him by the BJP-JD(S) combine to consider its claim for government formation in Karnataka, Governor Rameshwar Thakur on Sunday said he was yet to take a decision in this regard
The Rajya Sabha election scene in Karnataka heated up with the Bharatiya Janata Party-Janata Dal (Secular) combine fielding its second candidate, even though the alliance has the strength to win only one out four seats.
Karnataka has the highest number of medical seats in the country at 11,745, of which 3,750 seats were in government institutions and 7,995 seats were in private colleges.
A high-level committee on Thursday recommended simultaneous elections for Lok Sabha and state assemblies as the first step followed by synchronised local body polls within 100 days.
The government also termed the alleged insult to the farmer as an infringement on "dignity and self-respect", and said it cannot be tolerated.
The Karnataka High Court has quashed the Enforcement Directorate's summons to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's wife Parvathi B M and Urban Development Minister B S Suresh in connection with the MUDA site allotment case. The court ruled that the ED was conducting a parallel investigation despite the case already being probed by the Lokayukta police and a Special Investigation Team (SIT). The ED had alleged that Siddaramaiah and other accused were involved in attempted money laundering in the MUDA site allotment case and that the fourteen sites (plots) allotted to Parvathi in Mysuru upmarket were illegally allotted.
Even if Kumaraswamy gets the support of independents and the Janata Dal-United, he will not be able to form the government as he needs to have at least 113 of the 226 seats in the Assembly. The JD-S now has 57 seats in the Legislative Assembly, which means it will need another 56 seats to gain a majority. Even with the support of independents and the Janata Dal-United, the JD-S will only have 70 seats, thus falling short of 43 seats.
BSR Party chief Sriramulu has claimed that he has the support of over 20 BJP MLAs. He would need just ten MLAs from the BJP to cross vote in order to defeat Chief Minister Sadananda Gowda reports Vicky Nanjappa.
Members of the Karnataka legislative assembly on Monday demanded a thorough probe into the death of chief of defence staff General Bipin Rawat along with his wife Madhulika Rawat and 11 others in a helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu's Coonoor on December 8.
Amidst a severe water crisis, the Karnataka Water Supply and Sewerage Board banned the usage of drinking water for car washing, gardening, construction, water fountains and road construction and maintenance. It also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000, if the order is violated.
The Goa government's decision has not gone down well with Opposition parties and industry bodies.
It looks like he struck an instant chord with the people, with the voters rewarding the Congress with a comfortable majority of 136 seats in the 224 member Karnataka Legislative Assembly for which elections were held on May 10, and the votes counted on Saturday.
The Commission, under Justice (retd) Ritu Raj Awasthi, would recommend an amendment to the Constitution to add the "new chapter or part" on simultaneous elections, the sources said.
Karnataka Congress president DK Shivakumar on Monday said the party's national general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has agreed to campaign and spend time in the state, for the assembly elections next year.
Karnataka minister Satish Jarkiholi on Wednesday said the guarantee schemes need to be reviewed so that only the economically weaker sections, and not the rich, benefit from them, sparking a debate on the ambitious programmes launched by the Congress government.
'That way you're not hostage just to US sort of exports to India.'
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