BJP MP and actor Ravi Kishan has been awarded the Sansad Ratna for his outstanding performance in the Lok Sabha, becoming the first actor-turned-politician to receive the honour.
The principal opposition party though appeared content securing 99 of the 543 seats in the 2024 national elections as against its all-time low of 44 in 2014 and then 52 in 2019.
The veteran leader quit the party and formed a new outfit to pursue the demand for a separate Vidarbha state.
On the 83rd anniversary of the Quit India movement, Utkarsh Mishra recalls the conditions under which the Congress, led by Mahatma Gandhi, launched the final struggle for independence.
'If you fight you win, if you don't fight, how will you win?'
The Maharashtra legislative assembly passed the 'Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill' aimed at preventing unlawful activities of Left Wing Extremist organizations, focusing on urban Naxalism and passive militancy.
The third phase of polling will take place on May 7, 2024.
The stage is set for a direct contest between NDA nominee C P Radhakrishnan and joint opposition candidate B Sudershan Reddy for the September 9 vice-presidential election. Nominations have been scrutinized and accepted.
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi will embark on a fresh padayatra (foot march) from Gujarat to Meghalaya and during that period leaders and workers of the party's Maharashtra unit would criss-cross the state, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president Nana Patole said on Tuesday.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has re-introduced the Special Public Security Bill in the state assembly, aiming to combat 'urban Naxalism'. The bill, which seeks to criminalize activities deemed to disrupt public order, has faced criticism from opposition parties who argue it could stifle dissent. The proposed law will be referred to a joint select committee for review and is expected to be passed in the monsoon session next year.
'And Nana Patole fits the bill perfectly.' 'There is nothing wrong in being aggressive and today Patole is our angry young man.'
'Let Fadnavisji prove to the people of Maharashtra that he acts fairly against one and all.'
The stage is set for a direct contest between NDA nominee C P Radhakrishnan and joint opposition candidate B Sudershan Reddy for the vice-presidential election. The BJP-led alliance has a clear edge in the poll necessitated due to the sudden resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar.
The panel, headed by Congress MP Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka, had called Patkar to hear her views on the implementation and effectiveness of the land acquisition law enacted by Parliament when the Congress-led UPA government was in power in 2013.
The Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Congress's alliance in Uttar Pradesh came under scrutiny as both parties did not hold a single joint campaign for the bypolls to nine assembly seats. While both parties maintained that the alliance is strong, BJP ally Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) claimed a crack in the alliance. The Congress opted out of the bypolls and announced coordination committees for all nine seats to support the SP. However, the absence of joint rallies raised questions about the alliance's strength. The SP campaign was spearheaded by its chief Akhilesh Yadav, while the Congress cited its leaders' busy schedules in Maharashtra and Jharkhand for the lack of joint campaigns. The bypoll results will be announced on November 23.
Debacle in four states prompts party to step up efforts to fare well in general elections, reports Sanjay Jog.
At least six people were killed and 30 injured in a stampede during a temple festival in North Goa, India. The incident occurred at the Sree Lairai Devi temple in Shirgao village, around 40 km from Panaji, as thousands of devotees thronged the narrow lanes to the temple for the annual festival.
The preferred format would be for the top BJP leadership in the government to reach out to the alliance leaders on a case-to-case basis.
The Congress has finalised almost all the 174 seats it plans to contest in the October 13 Maharashtra polls but did not rule out exchange of few seats with the Nationalist Congress Party for the 288-member assembly.
As Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra travels across Maharashtra, Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com captures scenes from the walkathon to spread kindness and harmony from Nanded.
The Congress will not allow the Maharashtra state assembly to function and will corner the Bharatiya Janata Party-led state government, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee said on Sunday.
'They want to keep the pot boiling all the time.' 'The BJP wants to set a political narrative that the Gandhis are doing wrong things.'
Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole has said that his party's top brass will discuss with Nationalist Congress Party founder Sharad Pawar his much-debated meeting with politically estranged nephew and state Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar when the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) holds its conclave in Mumbai later this month.
By naming a sworn swayamsevak for vice president, the Modi-Shah duo have sent out a clear and positive message to Nagpur, where the RSS headquarters is located, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
With elections to 27 zilla parishads, 309 panchayat samitis and 10 municipal corporations to be held next month, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee has invited All India Congress Committee General Secretary Rahul Gandhi to address a public meeting in Mumbai.
The debate between the Congress and its ally Nationalist Congress Party on seat-sharing in Maharashtra for the Lok Sabha elections has taken a new turn. The NCP has told the Congress to go ahead on its own if it was sure of winning all the 48 Lok Sabha seats in the state.
'Chavan's political clout began declining since his Lok Sabha defeat in 2019.'
While the BJP went back to the drawing board to recraft its political and governance outreach and regained momentum by notching up surprisingly big wins in a string of assembly polls, the burst of fresh optimism in the main opposition Congress and other INDIA bloc parties fizzled out.
The Indian National Congress, India's oldest political party, is moving from its longtime headquarters at 24 Akbar Road to a new building called Indira Gandhi Bhawan. The move marks the end of an era for the Congress, which has been headquartered at 24 Akbar Road for nearly 50 years.
The Congress party suffered a crushing defeat in the Delhi elections, failing to secure a single seat in the 70-member assembly for the third consecutive time. Key candidates, including Sheila Dikshit's son, Sandeep Dikshit, lost their deposits. The only consolation for the party was a slight improvement in its vote share, which they attribute to a vigorous campaign and a renewed focus on contesting elections independently. However, the defeat raises questions about the party's ability to compete in the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha elections, particularly in light of its performance in other recent state elections.
There is no confusion or dispute in the 'Mahagathbandhan' over Tejashwi Yadav being the main face for the Bihar chief minister's post, Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar said on Friday while asserting that the CM will be from the Rashtriya Janata Dal if the alliance gets a majority in the upcoming polls.
Congress party in Maharashtra has its hopes pinned on a 'newly recharged' vice-president Rahul Gandhi for its revival.
In its third list of candidates for the coming Lok Sabha elections, the Congress on Tuesday fielded 58 candidates, mostly tried and tested ones. While most sitting ministers, including Kapil Sibal (Chandni Chowk), Krishna Tirath (Northwest Delhi), Sachin Pilot (Ajmer) and Srikant Jena (Balasore) were retained, the surprise elements were state Youth Congress President Vishwajeet Kadam replacing tainted Suresh Kalmadi from Pune and cricketer Mohammed Azharuddin from Tonk-Sawai Madhopur (Rajasthan).
The controversy over fund collection for Congress president Sonia Gandhi's rally at Sevagram in Wardha district on Friday could land Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee chief Manikrao Thakre in trouble. The All India Congress Committe indicated that it was not coming to the rescue of the beleaguered leader, amid questions whether he was off the hook or being proceeded against.
Former Congress legislator Kanhaiyalal Gidwani, who was chargesheeted in the Adarsh Society scam, died in Mumbai on Tuesday following a brief illness.
Political parties in Maharashtra reacted strongly to the Supreme Court verdict.
A revamp of the All Indian Congress Committee is also on the cards.
President Pratibha Patil's son and Congress Member of Legislative Assembly Raosaheb Shekhawat was on Tuesfay questioned by the Amravati police in connection with the seizure of Rs one crore unaccounted cash ahead of the civic polls. Accompanied by Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee general secretary Ganesh Patil and a battery of lawyers, Shekhawat reached the police commissioner's office in Amravati on Tuesday morning, where his statement was recorded in the case.
"More voters were added in Maharashtra in five months between the Lok Sabha and assembly polls than in five years," the former Congress president said.
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