Jayanta Roy Chowdhury reports on how the West Bengal elections are being fought by the BJP and Trinalool Congress amid COVID challenges, 'Bangaliana', and campaigns based on religion, region, and caste.
Ambassador Venu Rajamony, who served as press secretary to President Pranab Mukherjee during his tenure, salutes the statesman and political legend, who passed into the ages on Monday.
The Congress party continues to be racked by arbitrary decision-making and the absence of accountability.
'Instead of camping in the cities and leading the party, leaders have to go to the interiors of the country.' 'The Congress is losing touch with the common man.'
'Mamata is synonymous with Bengal, its culture, language, traditions.'
A good night's sleep helps remove stress and anxiety.
Air India Express, a new low-cost airline, and a subsidiary of Air India, is aimed at Keralites working in the Gulf.
The last leg of poll campaign saw many national leaders canvassing for their parties.
In a major embarrassment to the Congress-led United Democratic Frontn government in Kerala, state Finance Minister K M Mani was on Thursday booked by the vigilance and anti-corruption bureau in the bar bribe scam.
'I was very much aware of what was coming, but not to this extent.' 'If I had expressed what I felt, our campaign would have been in trouble.'
In a boost to the United Democratic Front ahead of assembly polls in Kerala next year, the Congress candidate K S Sabarinadhan on Tuesday won the Aruvikkara assembly by-poll by a margin of 10,128 votes defeating his nearest rival M Vijayakumar of the Opposition Left Democratic Front.
The LDF was also leading in 10 out of the 14 district panchayats and 108 block panchayats of the total of 152, according to the State Election Commission figures.
'Why do they talk about Narendra Modi insulting Oommen Chandy when he himself informed the PMO that he would not be available? Why did he write to Delhi that he was preoccupied on the 15th? After that, he should not make such noise about the function.'
Rampant corruption by Congress ministers must be counted as the single biggest factor to prompt the electorate to hand over a thumping mandate to the Communist parties, says M K Bhadrakumar.
Reactions on the tragic incident have been pouring in since morning. Leaders cutting across various political parties and celebrities have expressed solidarity over the loss of life in the incident and prayed for the speedy recovery of injured.
'This year, it may be pertinent to look at some of the myths that invoke her warrior form, where she manifests herself as Shakti, the underlying strength in all humanity,' says Arundhuti Dasgupta.
More than 750 constituencies spread across four states and one union territory will go to the polls on Tuesday
Nine people died and several others were reported missing as a string of landslips triggered by heavy downpour battered Idukki and adjoining districts of Kerala on Monday.
Police have begun enforcing the liquor ban across Kerala in the wake of the state high court ratifying the state government's new liquor policy.
'Even if the anti-Modi 'Mahagatbandhan' gets a majority there is simply no way that Nitish Kumar can ensure even a stable government, leave alone a good -- clean, development-oriented -- government,' argues T V R Shenoy.
A day after various exit polls predicted Opposition Communist Party of India-Marxist-led Left Democratic Front coming to power in Kerala, ruling Congress-led United Democratic Front leaders shrugged it off
Amid massive protests by the opposition in the Kerala assembly state Finance Minister K M Mani, facing corruption charges in the bar licence issue, presented the budget on Friday morning.
Polling to elect representatives to the 140-member Kerala assembly, 232-member Tamil Nadu assembly and the 30-member Puducherry territorial assembly began at 7 am on Monday.
The BJP scripted history by opening its account in the state assembly.
What the Congress will have to understand is that it is not enough to have a 40-something vice-president in New Delhi, but young faces with fresh ideas in the states,' says Amulya Ganguli.
Kerala chief minister will inaugurate CIAL's green initiative.
A high voter turnout was recorded in West Bengal, Assam Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry assembly elections on Tuesday. The massive polling exercise following COVID-19 health protocol and involving lakhs of personnel began at 7 am and the last hour from 6 pm to 7 pm was set aside for COVID-19 patients and those under isolation. The counting of votes in the states will be held on May 2.
Ruling Congress-led UDF in Kerala on Saturday suffered a setback in the civic elections, billed as the semifinal ahead of next year's assembly polls, as CPI-M-led LDF won a majority of local bodies while the BJP made inroads improving its performance.
The unfortunate thing is that the film will leave a poor impression of the IAF's and indeed of the armed forces's ability to handle sensitive social matters within their professional space, observes Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd).
The day-long hartal called by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in Kerala on Tuesday to protest murder of an activist in Kannur district disrupted normal life across the state.
Govt wants firms to remove suffixes & prefixes to original names of these drugs.
With Pinarayi Vijayan set to be chief minister, what will be the role for party patriarch V S Achuthanandan? And what are the key takeways from the election results in Kerala?
Even if they score administratively, state governments ruled by the party suffer from an inability to communicate positively, say observers.
The police's Crime Branch wing registered a criminal case against Thomas for penning his bare-all autobiography Sravukalkkoppam Neenthumbol (Swimming With Sharks) without seeking prior permission from the higher-ups.
'There is no meritocracy or at least there is none that is visible and transparent.' 'The Congress has two opportunities to change this,' says Aakar Patel.
Launching a fresh attack on Defence Minister A K Antony, Narendra Modi on Tuesday charged that the country's defence had suffered seriously during his stewardship and said he owed an explanation to the people for this.
'We used to have beautifully crafted, witty and touching duets which taught the genders how to speak and romance each other.' 'Where else would we get the genius of Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle from?'
The BJP on Saturday accused Congress and its "first family" of leveling "false and baseless" allegations against PM Modi over the Gujarat land deal issue to cover up its own corruption and fraud.
Rescuers were on Tuesday looking for possible survivors in rain-ravaged Idukki district of Kerala, where a string of landslides claimed 14 lives, even as Cochin International Airport was yet to resume operations.
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