'Definitely BJP is creating trouble in the water. That's all. It's fishing in troubled waters.'
Sharad Pawar claimed that two individuals had met him in New Delhi before the 2024 Maharashtra assembly polls and 'guaranteed' the Opposition's victory in 160 of 288 constituencies.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday claimed that a 'systematic vote chori' method, evolved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Election Commission to 'kill Indian democracy', will be deployed in the Bihar assembly polls as well.
The Congress' victory in the Karnataka assembly polls is likely to help the party get its candidates elected in three of the four Rajya Sabha seats from the state falling vacant next year.
Asserting that there are no differences between him and his deputy D K Shivakumar, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said that they both are running the government unitedly, and will continue to do so in the future too.
'It must become faceless, just as the entire direct tax assessment system has already become fully online, without any human intervention in the normal course,' recommends A K Bhattacharya.
The Election Commission has refuted allegations made by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi that CEC Gyanesh Kumar is protecting 'vote chors,' calling the claims incorrect and baseless.
'The campaign by the Mahagathbandan has failed to capture the imagination of the electorate given the fatigue factor with the Nitish government.'
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday said his party will soon come out with a 'hydrogen bomb' of revelations about 'vote chori' and after that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not be able to show his face to the country.
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.
Overcome with emotions, Karnataka Congress chief D K Shivakumar on Saturday broke down while reacting to the assembly elections results and gave credit to the Gandhi family for reposing their faith in his leadership in the state.
"We just looked at one constituency and we found this. I am absolutely convinced that constituency after constituency this is the drama that is taking place. Thousands and thousands of new voters, how old are they? -- 45, 50, 60, 65, thousands and thousands of them in one constituency. This is one thing, voter deletion, voter addition, new voters who are way above 18 (is going on)... so we have caught them," he said.
During the presser, Gandhi showed a picture of a woman who appears on the voter list 22 times in 10 booths in the Rai assembly constituency, and said this shows that this was a 'centralised operation'.
The poll panel said the seizures made since the polls were announced on October 9 are over seven times (Rs 239.15 crore) the seizures made in the previous assembly elections in these states in 2018.
'I disagree with much of Modi's politics, but it cannot be denied that in these years in office, he has carved more than a niche for himself in history,' points out Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, author, Narendra Modi: The Man, The Times.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bharatiya Janata Party president J P Nadda, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and a strong team of Union ministers figure in the list of the party's 40 star campaigners for Karnataka assembly elections next month.
The power tussle within the ruling party has intensified, amid speculation about chief minister change in the state, after the Congress government reached the halfway mark of its five-year term on November 20, citing an alleged "power-sharing" agreement involving CM Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar in 2023.
The Election Commission has strongly criticized Rahul Gandhi's allegations of election cheating in a Karnataka constituency, calling them baseless and threatening.
Five candidates were in the fray for the four seats in the elections, including Janata Dal-Secular contestant D Kupendra Reddy.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accused Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of protecting individuals involved in voter deletion and election rigging, citing data from Karnataka and Maharashtra.
Hitting out at the Congress government headed by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, he said the ruling party has reached "height of appeasement politics," and alleged that it has in a way made appeasement of minorities its "goal."
Does voter deletion controversy expose critical gaps in ECI verification procedures and safeguards protecting electoral roll integrity?
Beleaguered Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's political credibility will be tested by the outcome of the three by-elections. And cries that he must resign will become shriller if the Congress loses them.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar met senior Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, fueling speculation about a leadership change in the state. The meeting occurs amid reports of Shivakumar pressing for the chief minister's post.
'I want to tell big IT companies and others that such things (pothole issue) are everywhere, we are doing our job. It is there across the country, but we have a duty, we will do it'
Former Karnataka Chief Minister S M Krishna passed away at his residence in Bengaluru early Tuesday morning, his family said.
Bharatiya Janata Party president J P Nadda has appointed Union minister Mansukh Mandaviya and party general secretary Vinod Tawde as central observers for the election of the leader of opposition in the Karnataka assembly.
The full bench of the Election Commission may meet in the first week of March and the announcement of election schedule may take place by March 10
Bharatiya Janata Party leader Manikanth Rathod has been arrested in connection with theft of rice meant for Anna Bhagya scheme, police said on Wednesday.
According to the surveys, the Janata Dal-Secular could emerge as the kingmaker in the May 12 election.
Shivakumar on Friday called on everyone in the party to work together, abiding by the advice and message given by Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge
Amid Congress leaders in Karnataka openly discussing possible change of Chief Minister in the state, All India Congress Committee president Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday said it is up to the party high command to decide on such matters and that one should not create any unnecessary problem.
The authorisation will be sent to Kharge and the MLAs decided to go by the decision of the party's top leadership, said Shivakumar, one of the AICC observers appointed to coordinate the CLP meetings.
Sources said a couple of resolutions are expected to be passed at the crucial meeting, with an eye on the upcoming Bihar polls.
The first Karnataka legislative assembly session, after the formation of the new government will be held on starting Monday next week in Bengaluru.
The Centre told the Supreme Court that governors are not indefinitely sitting on bills passed by state legislatures, and that barring a few exceptions, most have acted in a way which the apex court would have perhaps desired. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta argued that a Governor is "not a rubber stamp" and has a duty to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Tuesday said there is no discussion on leadership change and stressed on strengthening the hands of CM Siddaramaiah and the party's government in the state.
A day after a Vokkaliga seer publicly urged Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to step down and make way for his deputy D K Shivakumar, a prominent seer from the dominant Veershaiva-Lingayat community on Friday urged that ministers from his community should be considered in case there is a change in CM post.
Karnataka Cooperation Minister K N Rajanna has been asked to resign after allegedly blaming his own Congress government for 'vote theft' in an Assembly segment. The issue sparked controversy and led to demands for clarification in the state assembly.
Pawar has summoned a meeting of party leaders in Mumbai on Saturday to finalise its plans for the assembly elections in Karnataka scheduled for May 10.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances