For the first 90 days of 2021, from January 5 onwards, one Union minister will visit one district in Tamil Nadu every week till the assembly election.
The young and suave candidate of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, Bhavya Bishnoi, looks to defend his 'family bastion' for five decades, while the main opposition Congress has placed its bet on veteran leader Jai Prakash in the Adampur bypoll in Haryana.
The Punjab government has declared a holiday on Thursday as a mark of respect to the former chief minister.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday clinched a stunning hat-trick win in Haryana overcoming anti-incumbency and dashing Congress' hopes of a comeback while the National Conference-Congress combine pulled off a spectacular victory in maiden elections in Jammu and Kashmir after abrogation of Article 370 in 2019.
Bishnoi said the Congress has deviated from its ideology and is no longer what it was during Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi's time.
Former Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar and three others were on Sunday inducted into the Union Cabinet as Prime Minister Narendra Modi expanded his Council of Ministers, bringing in 21 new ministers as Shiv Sena kept away from the exercise.
The move is expected to shield the BJP from Jat anger.
The exit polls have predicted the ruling BJP-Shiv Sena alliance getting elected in Maharashtra but have differed in their projection of a number of seats.
'The voter is cautioning the BJP not to take them for granted.'
Sandeep Singh said he will now serve the country in politics after doing so as a sportsperson.
"Peace and harmony is the only way forward to ensure a prosperous future," Dr Singh said.
Haryana's Additional Advocate General Jagbir Singh Malik said the State will be filing a Special Leave Petition (SLP) against the order before the Supreme Court. The interim order has come as a relief for companies in the state which feel that the Haryana State Employment of Local Candidates Act, 2020 would have a bearing on their future business operations and investment.
The chief minister accused the media of "running a misleading and factless campaign" against him and shared on Twitter a full video of the event.
Army was on Friday called in for deployment in eight districts of Haryana after one person was killed and 21 were injured in police action as Jat stir for quota turned violent and the rampaging mobs set ablaze the house of state's Finance Minister besides several government and private properties.
The Union home ministry on Monday ordered a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the death of Bharatiya Janata Party leader Sonali Phogat, officials said.
Amid a raging row, two police officers were on Friday booked on charges of murder of a 15-year-old Dalit youth in Sonipat even as Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar claimed that he had committed suicide and had not died in police custody as alleged by his family.
Farmers blocked the national highway in Pipli in Haryana's Kurukshetra district for a second day Tuesday over the MSP for sunflower seeds, with BKU leader Rakesh Tikait asking the state government to accept the demand or send farmers to jail.
Thakur said the minister told him a CBI inquiry would take minimum one year to conclude and that he should trust the state police's investigation.
"Six bodies have been retrieved from the accident site so far. The rescue teams are still on job," an NDRF spokesperson said.
Was Ram Rahim's release on parole for the 10th time since his conviction in 2017 timed to coincide with the Haryana assembly elections? It does seem so when one considers he has been released mostly when there was an election in Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan. Listing the times that Ram Rahim has been out on parole.
Haryana on Wednesday honoured its 'daughter' Sakshi Malik by appointing her as brand ambassador of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's flagship 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' campaign and presenting the Olympic bronze medallist a cheque of Rs 2.5 crore.
Officials said security personnel, including those from paramilitary forces, have been deployed to keep a strict vigil. Security at inter-state and inter-district borders has also been tightened, they said.
President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, several central ministers and chief ministers and leaders cutting across party lines condoled the demise of former Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal on Tuesday and hailed his immense contributions to the state as well as the country.
Haryana Agriculture Minister O P Dhankar has triggered a row by terming farmers who commit suicide as criminals and cowards.
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Monday questioned former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda in connection with alleged irregularities in the allotment of 14 industrial plots at Panchkula, by Haryana Urban Development Authority.
Armyman Navin alias Nikku was nabbed by the SIT from Odisha, the police said.
Farmers from Punjab clashed with Haryana police at two border points between the states on Tuesday, facing tear gas and water cannons as they tried to break past barricades blocking their protest march to the national capital. The police lobbed tear gas shells -- some of them dropped from a drone -- and tried to disperse groups of stone-pelting protesters in the face-off that last several hours at Shambhu border near Ambala in Haryana.
Signalling both change and continuity, India's new government, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a third consecutive term, got into work gear on Tuesday with cabinet ministers and ministers of state filing into their respective offices to assume charge.
Along with Modi, senior BJP leaders including Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, Nirmala Sitharaman and S Jaishankar, all ministers in Modi 2.0 Cabinet, took oath as cabinet ministers at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. In all, 71 ministers were sworn-in along with Modi, taking the strength of the Union council to 72.
As the weather improved in parts of north India, which was pummelled by heavy rains for days, authorities on Wednesday worked on a war footing to rescue stranded tourists, restore vehicular traffic on arterial roads and prevent floodwaters from entering new areas.
Under attack from the Opposition and ally Lok janshakti Party, the Haryana government on Wednesday recommended a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the burning alive of a Dalit family in Faridabad by upper caste perpetrators which left two toddlers dead.
Prohibitory orders banning assembly of five or more persons have also been issued by some district authorities, including Sonipat, as a precautionary measure to maintain peace.
Congress MLA Mamman Khan has been arrested in connection with the July 31 Nuh violence case, police said on Friday.
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said protesting against the government 'will not serve any purpose'.
The online edition of the 52-page magazine has been removed from the official website of the primary education department.
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Yadav and Singh alleged that BJP MP Mishra issued a 'brazen threat' against the protesting farmers only a few days ago.
The panel is expected to meet next month in Chandigarh.
Two persons, including the main accused Sumit, who is also a Dalit, have been sent to seven days in police remand.
