While the saffron party may not get a majority, the National Democratic Alliance will sail through, said Gujral, who represents one of the BJP's oldest allies in Parliament.
Gujral, 92, who has been unwell for sometime, was put on the ventilator today after his condition deteriorated. He was on dialysis for over a year now and had suffered a serious chest infection some days ago.
Amid prayers and a 21-gun salute, his body was consigned to flames at Smriti Sthal on the banks of Yamuna where Vice President Hamid Ansari and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi were also present.
Satish Gujral, renowned for his versatility across different mediums, died on Thursday night. He was 94.
A new book by former West Bengal governor Gopal Krishna Gandhi claims that former chief election commissioner T N Seshan proposed an immediate halt to the general election process after Rajiv Gandhi's assassination in 1991 and even offered to become home minister. Gandhi, who was joint secretary to then president R Venkatraman, writes that Seshan was the one who broke the news of the assassination to the president and arrived at the Rashtrapati Bhawan "super-fast" that night. According to Gandhi's account, Seshan told Venkatraman that he felt the election process needed to be stopped and that he was ready to take on the role of home minister if necessary. However, Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar and Cabinet Secretary Naresh Chandra assured the president that the situation was under control and that there was no need to pause the election process. Seshan's suggestions were ultimately ignored, but he did manage to postpone the second and third phases of polling.
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.
AAP has nominated former cricketer Harbhajan Singh as its Rajya Sabha candidate from Punjab
As the battle lines are drawn between the United Progressive Alliance and the National Democratic Alliance, the NDA is now beginning to smell power, says Neerja Chowdhury
While members from Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Nagaland and Tripura are retiring on April 2, five members from Punjab are retiring on April 9.
A day before her scheduled appearance before the Enforcement Directorate in the Delhi excise policy case, Bharat Rashtra Samiti leader K Kavitha led a hunger strike here on Friday seeking the passage of the long-pending Women's Reservation Bill in this Budget session of Parliament.
The Shiromani Akali Dal on Tuesday attacked Rahul Gandhi for his comments that the Congress government had tried to stop the 1984 riots in Delhi, alleging that the party had shielded individuals who were involved in the "carnage" against the Sikhs.
'It is not just about numbers. Sometimes coalitions and alliances have symbolic value.'
Speaking at an event organised to remember former Prime Minister IK Gujral on his 100th birth anniversary, Singh said, "When the sad event of 1984 took place, Gujral ji that very evening went to the then Home Minister Narsimha Rao and said to him that the situation is so grim that it is necessary for the government to call the army at the earliest. If that advice would have been heeded perhaps the massacre that took place in 1984 could have been avoided."
Asked whether the SAD would pull out of the National Democratic Alliance as well, Harsimrat said it was for the party to decide and a collective decision would be taken on the issue by all senior leaders together.
Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday said legislators across the country should be driven by passion, performance and procedural integrity, and desist from disrupting law-making bodies.
JD-U MP Harivansh filed his nomination as the ruling NDA candidate to the Rajya Sabha deputy chairman's post and is likely to be elected, even as the Opposition is working to field a joint candidate against him to force a contest.
'When you come through the hassles and struggles of business life, your mind is wired differently.' 'You are more connected to reality,' Akali Dal MP Naresh Gujral tells Rahul Jacob and Archis Mohan
The Akali Dal is convinced that Waris Punjab De and Amritpal Singh are part of a bigger plan to create a law and order problem in the state, leading to the imposition of central rule and even the exclusion of Punjab from the Lok Sabha polls as was done in 1991.
The Janata Dal-United on Tuesday became the third major ally after the Shiv Sena and the Akali Dal to snap ties with the Bharatiya Janata Party after 2019.
The BJP said that the SAD had informed in advance that it will not attend the meeting.
The two main factions in Karnataka's Congress party -- one led by Siddaramaiah and the other by D K Shivakumar -- are both contenders for the chief ministership. Both groups have fought hard to get their choice of MLAs the party ticket, notes Aditi Phadnis.
The Aam Aadmi Party has nominated former cricketer Harbhajan Singh, Lovely Professional University founder Ashok Mittal, AAP MLA Raghav Chadha, IIT Delhi faculty Sandeep Pathak and industrialist Sanjeev Arora for the March 31 Rajya Sabha polls.
The Shiromani Akali Dal on Tuesday termed as "full of hypocrisy" Rahul Gandhi's remarks that the Congress government tried to stop the anti-Sikh riots and accused it of shielding individuals involved in the "carnage" and delaying deployment the army.
After intense confabulations and consensus-building lasting over eight hours, BJP on Wednesday announced the names of 62 candidates for Delhi assembly elections and decided to field former state unit president Vijendra Gupta against Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit.
'I won't be surprised if a third alternative to Badal and the Congress is swept to power in Punjab in 2022.'
Bowing to opposition pressure, the government has agreed to refer the controversial Insurance Bill to a Select Committee of Parliament, which will have 15 members.
A report by parliamentary standing committee on commerce noted that Indian industry was getting decimated by China dumping its cheap products in India.
The BJP's rediscovery of its allies, including the PM touching the feet of Parakash Singh Badal, would be interpreted as the party's efforts to keep its flock together if it falls short of the majority mark on May 23.
'Parties like ours and others like the Lok Janshatki Party will ensure that the BJP remains on the straight and narrow path,' says Shiromani Akali Dal leader Naresh Gujral
Sachin Tendulkar was again under attack in Rajya Sabha on Monday for his prolonged absence even as the cricket icon sought to control damage by applying for leave for the entire Budget session, which was granted amid strong opposition from members.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj briefed them about the operation that destroyed Jaish-e-Mohammed's terror training camp in Balakot in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan.
"Today, we stand united in solidarity with our security forces in fighting terrorism and in defending the unity and integrity of India."
The suspense over the possible composition of the National Democratic Alliance cabinet is nearly over.
The Akali Dal, an ally of the BJP, has written to the parliamentary committee opposing certain clauses in the land acquisition bill. A Ganesh Nadar/Rediff.com speaks to Akali Dal MPs to find out why they oppose the controversial legislation.
Bharatiya Janata Party member Subramanian Swamy on Friday introduced in the Rajya Sabha a private member bill which seeks "deterrent punishment", including the death penalty, for slaughter of cow and issues related to that.
With the Lokpal Bill slated to come up in Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, a near unanimity emerged at an all-party meeting in New Delhi on Monday, but United Progressive Alliance's outside supporter Samajwadi Party remained a stumbling block continuing its opposition to the anti-corruption measure.
The remark by Agrawal was expunged by the chair even as it came for a strong condemnation from the BJP.
'...even if they have profound differences. We discuss within our party and with each other, but not openly. We just reminded the BJP that they too, should follow this dharma.'
During the meeting, the parties also decided to unitedly move forward in fielding a joint candidate for the post of deputy chairman of Rajya Sabha, which fell vacant after the retirement of P J Kurien on July 1.
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