It is not immediately clear how many ministers will be sworn in along with Dr Singh, but sources said the team is likely to be small to begin with.
The Congress' new headquarters located at 9A, Kotla Road in New Delhi was inaugurated on Wednesday, as the grand old party turned a page in its history after operating from its iconic 24, Akbar Road premises for the last 47 years.
Acknowledging that while Singh understands the importance of vaccination as an important method of fighting the COVID-19 battle, Vardhan said in his letter that "irresponsible" public pronouncements made by some Congress leaders have resulted in a below national average vaccination coverage of senior citizens and even front-line workers in some of the Congress-ruled states.
Two platoons of central paramilitary forces have been stationed to guard his home.
Addressing the annual meeting of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, the BJP leader slammed the Manmohan Singh government as 'non-functional' and 'internally paralysed' and claimed that 'people are already looking beyond' it.
With the removal of Singh's SPG cover, the top notch security cover will now be given only to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Gandhi family -- Congress president Sonia Gandhi and her children, Rahul and Priyanka.
Sources close to the top BJP leadership tell me that Tharoor has already had secret meetings with the BJP's top brass and is waiting patiently to make his next move, reports Ramesh Menon.
Taking on the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Karnataka, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday charged that "bad governance" and "corruption" had slackened state's progress and a sense of insecurity was prevalent among the minorities.
In a reply to a question on whether he will be United Progressive Alliance's prime ministerial candidate in the coming Lok Sabha elections, Gandhi said, "I have answered this question many times in the past. Dr Manmohan Singh is the Prime Minister from the Congress and UPA."
Clue: It's an actor who has just bagged his first BAFTa nom...
In a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former prime minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday accused him of lowering the dignity of public discourse and the gravity of the office of the PM by giving "hateful speeches" during the poll campaign.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) is set to elect its next general secretary, with speculation rife over who will lead the party. Leading contenders include M A Baby, backed by the party's Kerala unit, and Ashok Dhawale, who enjoys support from the West Bengal lobby. Other potential candidates include Mohammed Salim, B V Raghavulu, and Brinda Karat. The election will take place at the 24th CPI(M) congress in Madurai, Tamil Nadu.
Indian Overseas Congress chief Sam Pitroda has denied owning any land, home, or stocks in India, responding to allegations by a BJP leader that he illegally acquired 12.35 acres of government land in Bengaluru. The BJP leader, N R Ramesh, has filed a complaint with the Enforcement Directorate and the Karnataka Lokayukta, alleging that Pitroda, with the help of government officials, acquired the land for his organization, FRLHT. Pitroda, in a statement on X, categorically denied the allegations, stating he has never taken any salary during his time working with the Indian government and has never paid or accepted any bribe. He further clarified that FRLHT received a five-year lease on the land for conservation purposes, which expired in 2001 and was extended for another 10 years. Ramesh claims the lease expired in 2011 and the land, now worth over Rs 150 crore, was not reclaimed by the forest department. He has urged the ED to file a criminal case against those involved in the alleged land grab, including the officials responsible.
As the Centre announced the inclusion of caste enumeration in the next census on Wednesday, opposition parties said it is a victory for their long-standing demand and sought time-bound implementation.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has described his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh as a great leader not only of India but of the world. "It is a great honour for any democratic country in the world to have a leader like Dr Manmohan Singh. He is a great leader not only of India but of the world," Brown was quoted as saying by leading NRI Labour MP Virender Sharma.
'They wanted the city to be a great business hub. They didn't like the fact that taxes collected in Bombay would go outside the city.'
Perhaps because the Modi government had some differences of opinion with two of the economist governors (one of whom was appointed by the Manmohan Singh government), there is a view that its political leadership prefers a civil servant to head the RBI, notes A K Bhattacharya.
Today even those who support Prime Minister Modi feel there is a certain sense of listlessness in this government. What is it intending to achieve? This is not easy to say, notes Aakar Patel.
Naidu informed the House that he had received letters from Singh and 13 other MPs seeking leave of absence on medical grounds.
'He is the prime minister for all citizens of our country and his conduct must be worthy and consistent with that obligation that he/she has as prime minister
Tensions between the Congress and its leader Shashi Tharoor escalated on Thursday with the party saying he was very much part of their family but had erred in claiming that surgical strikes against Pakistan were held for the first time in 2016.
After spending nearly 50 years in a colonial bungalow at 24, Akbar Road, the Congress moved into a new office on January 15. Rasheed Kidwai, who knows the history of the Congress better than the Congress, looks back at the people who breathed life into this address.
Dr Singh played well on rhetoric; after playing dove, he satisfied the hawks too.
'All governments are scared of a negative image.' 'Somehow, this government has a tendency to create a narrative that things are improving.' 'When the real data gives a different picture, they are upset.'
We must resist the temptation to look at the absolute numbers being vaccinated, and focus instead on the percentage of the population vaccinated, he said in his letter.
The Congress on Wednesday expressed sadness over 'pictures of Indians getting handcuffed and humiliated' while being deported from the United States and recalled that America had to express regret over the treatment meted out to India diplomat Devyani Khobragade in 2013 after the then United Progressive Alliance government retaliated sharply.
The census will be carried out with a reference date of October 1, 2026 in snow-bound areas like Ladakh and March 1, 2027 in the rest of the country, the notification said.
Noting that terrorism is haunting the Asian and Central Asian regions, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday underlined the need for "genuine" cooperation among countries on a global scale to resolutely defeat the menace.
In a bid to clarify his 'infiltrators' and 'those with more children' remarks, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that he did not only talk about Muslims but spoke about every poor family, adding that the day he starts doing Hindu-Muslim, he will be 'unworthy of public life'.
During the meeting, Sonia and Dr Singh have been deliberating upon induction of new faces in the Cabinet, dropping old ones, promotions from Minister of State rank to Cabinet.
The leaders agreed to strengthen the multifaceted relations between the two countries.
A US federal government commission has flagged the alleged worsening of religious freedom in India and called for it to be designated as a "Country of Particular Concern".
President A P J Abdul Kalam presented the awards in Central Hall of Parliament.
Tharoor said his remarks were preceded by a reference to the several attacks that have taken place in recent years alone, during which previous Indian responses were both restrained and constrained by India's responsible respect for the LoC and the IB.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump have vowed to move forward with plans to work together to build US-designed nuclear reactors in India. The decision was made during their meeting at the White House, where they also agreed to significantly expand energy cooperation. The move comes after India announced plans to amend its nuclear liability law and the Atomic Energy Act, which had previously been obstacles to the implementation of the US-India civil nuclear deal.
Expressing disappointment over Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh's remarks that Islamabad must change its attitude and policies regarding the use of terror as an instrument of state policy, Pakistan has said that Singh's statement has no link with reality and is very regrettable.
