'While the Congressmen were fighting, the LDF was quietly doing its job, perhaps bringing in results in the lives of the people.' 'Pinarayi Vijayan and several ministers in his cabinet believed that the government should do real business, which is not to fight with the UDF but govern.'
'Rama is Lord God of maryada. Today's maryada is the Constitution.'
Those complaining to the Election Commission about violation of model election code must keep in mind that right to free speech has not been diluted by the MCC in any way, Jaitley noted.
Activist Swami Agnivesh on Friday launched an attack on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, accusing them of being silent about crucial issues and not listening to the voices of the people. Addressing protestors as Anna Hazare launched his fast at Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi, he said, "Mr Manmohan Singh, the country wants you to end your silence and open your mouth. You have been silent for the past three years".
Desperate times need desperate actions, and the BJP's only option is to enforce legislation to build a Ram mandir, says Sunil Sethi.
'There was a lot of resentment against the BJP which has not translated into votes, this is surprising.'
Narendra Modi promised to be A B de Villiers but has batted like a Geoff Boycott, says T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan
Sibal termed these allegations as an attempt to divert attention from issues of national importance such as the CBSE paper leak.
The Congress officially said the party stands in support of its senior leader while accusing the government of "persecuting" its citizens for speaking truth to power.
The Congress president accused the AAP of taking a U-turn over alliance talks.
Amid the ongoing crisis within the Congress in Punjab, its national spokesperson Supriya Shrinate on Friday expressed the hope that its leaders "talk more in private and less in public."
Ramesh also said that business as usual approach will not work against Modi and Shah.
If only the Congress could rebuild on its strengths and develop a modern enough ideology, we could again be moving towards a clearer two-party political landscape, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
They said this round was the 'semi-final', and that the finals in 2014 would be between Rahul Gandhi and Narendra Modi. The two men campaigned more than any other party leaders in their respective camps. On both sides, there were enthusiasts who could not wait. Some in the Bharatiya Janata Party declared Mr Modi a prime ministerial candidate while the campaigning was still on, as though L K Advani was already history; and businessmen hastened to sing his praises.
'Modi has shown political courage by instituting several economic reforms which include demonetisation, ushering in GST, eradication of benami transactions...'
As Mallikarjun Kharge won the Congress president poll, his electoral rival Shashi Tharoor on Wednesday said the 'democratic contest' has galvanised vibrancy at all levels and has prompted a healthy and constructive discussion on change, which will serve the party in good stead in the future.
Congress presidential candidate Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday claimed many electors have been instructed by 'their leaders' to support his rival but they may eventually vote for him in a secret ballot.
'The 2024 general elections proved that UP is not Gujarat.'
Union minister Jairam Ramesh termed the 1984 anti-Sikh riots as a "blot" on the country and the Congress and suggested that more needs to be done for the victims and to bring the guilty to book.
"Such are his core supporters that they will vote for him even if cooking oil sells for Rs 5,000 per litre under his leadership.' 'They don't think about inflation but Modi when they go out to vote.'
The former Union minister asserted that an objective analysis of the political situation will lead to the conclusion that the Congress has to be the "pole" around which Opposition unity in the 2024 Lok Sabha election can be built.
Rahul said his party's soon-to-be released manifesto will reflect the people's voice and not just one man's view.
'Where they lose, you never ask why they failed there, like in Bihar and Punjab.' 'You are stuck on the UP victory, thinking they have the mandate to rule for all times to come.' 'The BJP has 282 MPs, but can I honestly say that the BJP is the party for everyone?'
The 78-year-old Ahamed died at 2:15 am at RML hospital where he was admitted on Tuesday and put on artificial life support.
For the chief minister and Assam alike, the road ahead is full of challenges, notes Aditi Phadnis.
Nothing 'accidental' about this movie, feels Syed Firdaus Ashraf.
Earlier at the University of California, Berkeley Gandhi had said that Modi had caused "tremendous damage" to India's economy with his "reckless and dangerous" decisions like demonetisation and "hastily-applied" GST.
It sent shock waves in the party -- a political greenhorn had taken on Modi in his home turf of Gujarat. Smriti had clearly tried to choose sides, in this case Vajpayee's camp. Many felt that this would end Irani's career. A revealing excerpt from Nidhi Sharma's new book She, The Leader: Women in Indian Politics.
Congress president Rahul Gandhi said the Nyay plan is a game changer and that the scheme is "fiscally perfectly doable" and will not be implemented rashly.
'Whether she will remain CPP chairperson or not, that she will decide.'
There's a quiet before the storm within the ruling party. Illustration: Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com.
The War of the Tiranga is a metaphor for a new battle of ideas in national politics, observes Shekhar Gupta.
'For Modi, it's not just winning, but winning with style.'
Prasad alleged there was pressure for extraneous considerations and 'bribe' for not finalising the Rafale deal during the UPA rule.
Shah said that it is "a 3-D government in Rajasthan and three Ds stands for 'dange' (riots), 'durvyavhar' (ill-treatment) with women and 'Dalit' atrocities.
'Why does Mr Modi only attack Nehru from the Dynasty?' 'At one level, it is pure politics,' notes Shekhar Gupta.
'Dr Shashi Tharoor by far is a much better choice.'
The least the Opposition can do, for India's sake, is try to offer one, says Mitali Saran.
'Today, environment has become an issue of political debate. It has become a media issue. I think that is a good development.'
'To lead the Congress party, you need experience.' 'You should have held some positions which give you the experience of running the party at any level.' 'Tharoor doesn't have any such experience.'
