The 13 month-old Karnataka coalition government of JD-S and Congress slumped into crisis following the resignation of their 11 MLAs from the membership of the state assembly on Saturday.
Addressing a joint press conference in New Delhi, All India Congress Committee general secretary organisation K C Venugopal and AICC general secretary, communications Jairam Ramesh, said the Bharat Jodo Yatra has so far covered 3,122 km from Gandhi Mandapam in Kanyakumari to the Red Fort in Delhi.
The BJP on the other hand is in power in 16 states in the country.
Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu said appropriate action would be taken in case anything is 'found wanting'.
Accusing Congress of 'abuse culture', Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday urged the people of Karnataka to punish those indulging in abuse, while casting their vote in polling booths on May 10.
The Bharat Nyay Yatra will be mostly covered by bus along with short stretches of walking.
The Bharatiya Janata Party replaced at least 25 sitting MPs with new faces as the party released its second list of 72 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls on Wednesday.
Senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Praveen Sood took over as the new Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) director on Thursday and he will be in the post for two years, officials said.
While 39 members of the all-important panel are general members, it has 32 permanent invitees, including some in-charges of state and 13 special invitees.
Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, who have extended support to the Congress to form the government in the state, were not present.
A majority of Congress leaders said the party will face desertions if Rahul Gandhi does not remain the leader.
Among the 17 new AICC secretaries named so far, 10 are below 50 years of age, indicating the generational change in the 132-year-old Congress being brought in by 47-year-old Rahul, reports Amit Agnihotri.
Mallikarjun Kharge may be a respected politician and a loyal Congressman, but he is not a great orator nor does he have exceptional debating skills. Vicky Nanjappa/Rediff.com reports
The BJP's challenge is whether it can again deflate a Congress, which now looks reinvigorated and has adopted sharper messaging around its 'guarantees', and several regional parties, especially in Bihar, Maharashtra and West Bengal.
The Shiv Sena has spurned Congress' request to participate in the bandh.
Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi cited a viral video on social media platforms, claiming that in it Modi's voice is heard in a call with BJP rebel Kripal Parmar.
Congress leadership would take a call on who would be its deputy chief minister on Tuesday.
Sources said that despite senior leaders making serious attempts to convince him to rethink on his decision, Gandhi is said to be unfazed.
'There is no hard evidence, but our MLAs have been getting calls from industrialists and mining mafia in the state to quit the Congress and join the BJP.'
"Whoever said all those words you mentioned, I did not respond in kind because it is not the way I am built and we now have to move on, let bygones be bygones, whatever was said, we need to forget and move forward. It is not about individuals or positions or someone's statements now. It is about the country and the party," Pilot said.
Sibal, a prominent Opposition voice and a former Congress leader, also said that instead of a common minimum programme, the Opposition parties should talk about a 'new vision for India'.
Congress Vice-president Rahul Gandhi has a real chance to push through the changes he has been talking about for the past year, now that the state bosses stand exposed after the recent assembly polls. Anita Katyal reports
All political parties were asked at the dinner meeting on Monday night to suggest names for the alliance and the same would be discussed and consensus would be arrived at during the deliberations.
From the 'group of 23' leaders, who had written letter to Gandhi seeking Congress' overhaul, Azad and Sharma continue to be regular members of the CWC,
Rahul Gandhi is marching with a positive thought, it is a positive yatra. There is no violence, no hatred. If you are not showing this yatra, you are not fulfilling your dut
Two other Rajasthan ministers Vishvendra Singh and Ramesh Meena were also sacked from the state cabinet after a meeting of the Congress Legislature Party, its second in the last two days. The meeting was billed as a 'second chance' for Pilot, who had turned down appeals from the party's top leadership -- including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi -- to return to the fold.
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has said the party cannot afford the spectacle of its ministers and state presidents running away from a tough contest. Anita Katyal reports
The party may announce Somen Mitra as the Lok Sabha candidate from North Kolkata whose name is set to be decided upon following intra-party elections to choose contenders -- a move initiated by the Congress vice-president to ensure transparency in ticket-distribution system. Renu Mittal reports.
Actor-filmmaker Pooja Bhatt joined the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Hyderabad on Wednesday and walked with Rahul Gandhi.
For the first time in his political career, he failed to carry his party to even a working majority -- and again, for the first time in his career, he finds himself in a situation where he cannot rule by dictatorial fiat, points out Prem Panicker.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday announced a Rs 100 per cylinder cut in cooking gas LPG price to ease financial burden on households. Non-subsidised cooking gas price will be cut to Rs 803 per 14.2-kg cylinder in the national capital with effect from midnight of Friday/Saturday, official sources said. Prices vary from state to state depending on the incidence on local taxes.
The second meeting of the NITI Aayog's governing council, was, however, attended by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
'There is a need for a younger person at the top, but the old guard wants to grab the post themselves,' points out Amulya Ganguli.
Surjewala made the case for state-specific alliances while arguing for a larger coalition with like-minded parties in 'national interest'.
Amit Shah wants to increase the party's nationwide vote share by at least 10 per cent from the 37.7 per cent it secured five years ago and ensure above 50 per cent vote share in the states where it came close to that benchmark, but couldn't cross it.
Gandhi attacked the BJP by alleging that the saffron party has proved that hatred can be used politically and to win polls, but cannot generate employment.
The court struck down the portion of the Speaker's order by which the legislators were disqualified till the end of the 15th Karnataka assembly.
He laid stress on workers' connection with the ground and cited his own example when he was party in-charge for various assembly elections in the past.
'Since we defeated their evil designs on July 10, their poaching approach became more aggressive with using blackmail and money power as tools to finish off the political opposition in Goa.'
'It is not just about numbers. Sometimes coalitions and alliances have symbolic value.'
