Pointing out that the party had contested seven seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the state LJP chief said there was no reason why it would settle for less than that for the 2019 elections, or for six Lok Sabha seats and one in Rajya Sabha.
The current battle within the party is seen as setting the stage for August 10 when Sonia completes one year of interim presidentship, and questions are being raised about a leadership vacuum. For the first time, responsible quarters are suggesting that as Sonia cannot function as interim president indefinitely and Rahul seems to want power but not the responsibility, one way out is collective leadership, reports Aditi Phadnis.
'As we enter 2025, it must be acknowledged that there is a convergence of capital, influential people (from business and politics) and technology deciding the destiny of others in the name of pride, patriotism, nationalism, nation building, all of it thinly veiled disguises for personal profit and glory,' asserts Shyam G Menon.
It will be in Modi's interest to reinvent his party, read the writing on the wall that voters wrote, and move ahead. He has little choice now. The country is watching, asserts Ramesh Menon.
Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Sunday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party of weakening the country by spreading fear and hatred, and said only the Congress can unite the country and take it to the path of progress.
Ahead of completion of three years of the National Democratic Alliance, the Congress young brigade alleged that the government has failed on various counts including on issues like dealing with Pakistan, Kashmir policy, internal security, women safety and rising cases of rapes, atrocities on Dalits, high petrol and diesel prices, besides generation of jobs.
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday decided that 10 per cent of the government's stake in Coal India Ltd would be sold. Similarly, the sale of five per cent of its stake in ONGC and 11.4 per cent in the hydropower public-sector unit, NHPC, has been cleared.
YSR Congress Party President and Member of Parliament Jagan Mohan Reddy on Monday triggered a new round of political speculations when he praised Gujarat Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.
Gandhi has been attacking the BJP government for allegedly inking the deal at a much higher price than the one the previous United Progressive Alliance regime had negotiated to benefit 'one businessman'.
'The failures of private businessmen have set back the process of market-oriented reform, though that is the only way forward,' argues T N Ninan.
The Congress candidate from Thiruvanathapuram said that the Centre has ignored the concerns and aspirations of southern states and that Rahul Gandhi's decision to contest from the south has made a very effective outreach.
'Defence does not new 'planning commissions'; it needs an implementation commission.'
CPI-M says it is ready to forge a front with Congress in Parliament on issues like land bill and secularism but ruled out being part of a national front.
Addressing a press conference, Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and the party's chief whip in the Upper House Jairam Ramesh alleged that the government is throttling the voice of the Opposition leaders to prevent them from raising issues of public importance.
Kovind spoke to Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray over phone and thanked him for supporting his candidature.
Sitharaman cancels Myanmar trip at last moment citing launch of Modi's Jan Dhan Yojana.
A day after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's comment that there was no United Progressive Alliance anymore, Kishor, who has earlier been political advisor to various parties, also called for democratically electing the opposition leadership.
Rahul Gandhi said the meeting was very productive and everyone decided to stop the BJP from further assault of institutions and the Constitution.
11 BJP members in the Joint Committee of Parliament on land bill moved amendments seeking to bring back the social impact assessment and consent clause.
If New Delhi finds itself out in the cold in Afghanistan, both the Congress-led UPA and BJP-led NDA have only themselves to blame. Each has been in power for a full decade from 2001, without reaching out to the Taliban, points out Ajai Shukla.
On Wednesday, Bengal's own daughter she firmly pitched herself as, was sworn in as the chief minister of the turbulent state for the third successive term amid raging fires of political violence and a rampaging pandemic.
Since its peak, the S&P BSE Sensex has dropped nearly 3,000 points.
Gandhi said he has "received tremendous love and affection from people of Tamil Nadu and it is my duty to stand with people of Tamil Nadu and protect their history, their culture and their language."
Growth under NDA has been reasonable, inflation, exports and job creation are problem areas
This is the first meeting chaired by Gandhi after relinquishing the post of Congress president last year.
'During his stint as MoS in the Narasimha Rao PMO, Matang Sinh developed contacts in the bureaucracy which stood him in good stead even when out of power.'
The government last month introduced the GST Bill in Parliament.
National Conference (NC) vice president Omar Abdullah Friday challenged the Bharatiya Janata Party to contest Lok Sabha polls in the Kashmir Valley, saying he will quit politics if the national party's candidates do not lose their security deposits.
If the concerns over risking political capital are overcome, the long-term gains for the Indian economy will be immense, asserts A K Bhattacharya.
The BJP president came down heavily on the Opposition saying a shocking change has happened in the country's politics with those against the prime minister resorting to lies and speaking it loudly all the time.
When we look at the pension expenditure of the states, so far, there has been no gain from the NPS reform. Pension expenses as a share of total state revenue expenditure rose from 4% in 1991-1992 to 10% at the time of the NPS reform, and have risen further to about 12%, observes Ajay Shah.
Addressing a press conference in London via Skype, the man, identified as Syed Shuja, said the BJP would have won Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh elections if his team hadn't intercepted the BJP attempts to hack the transmissions in these states.
BJP's total silence on Delhi statehood is intriguing.
Shekhar Dutt's resignation has sparked a debate on the parameters of removing a governor.
Former Defence Minister A K Antony on Wednesday acknowledged "corruption" in the AgustaWestland chopper deal.
The ruling coalition between the Congress and the National Conference in Jammu and Kashmir may split amid indications that Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was considering resigning following sharp differences between the two parties.
Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu announced in the House that the election will be held at 11 am on August 9.
Tearing into the Bharatiya Janata Party, Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Saturday said victory for her party in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls is vital to safeguard the unity and secularism of the country and cautioned the people against giving in to the "untested promises and lies" of the saffron party.
The finance ministry is working on a Cabinet note for establishing a full-fledged Public Debt Management Office, officials told Business Standard.
'The Congress agreed to it, but the RJD has some problem with Kanhaiya.'
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