'The BJP will win comfortably if the Congress and AAP fight separately -- though not with 162 seats.' 'But if they form an alliance, it will become a major problem for the BJP. That's precisely why this expansion is happening now.'
According to an international media report, the jet crashed in the afternoon local time while flying a demonstration flight at the prestigious air show.
The party also promised reservation to minorities on basis of their population after the caste census.
Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voters' list commenced in nine states and three Union territories on Tuesday, amid objections from several parties with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee leading the anti-SIR offensive in West Bengal with a rally in Kolkata and alleging 'silent, invisible rigging' through the exercise.
Sources said the party has also tasked its senior leaders to be observers at the meeting of the Congress Legislature Party in Haryana to elect its new leader.
The Election Commission will conduct phase two of the special intensive revision of electoral rolls in 12 states and Union territories between November and February, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar announced on Monday.
Rajasthan Congress leaders Jyoti Mirdha and Sawai Singh Chaudhary switched to the Bharatiya Janata Party in Jaipur on Monday ahead of assembly elections due later this year.
At its Jaipur meeting, the BJP will focus on this year's assembly elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh while the Congress's Chintan Shivir in Udaipur will discuss how it can resurrect itself.
With Thursday's win, the Congress's strength in the Lok Sabha has gone up to 48.
Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's mortal remains were brought to the Congress headquarters in New Delhi on Saturday, where top party leaders paid their last respects. Singh, who headed the Congress-led UPA government and is considered the architect of India's economic reforms, died on Thursday at 92. A seven-day national mourning will be observed throughout the country in his honor.
'The water crisis is so obvious that people see no point begging for it from politicians.'
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Congress' chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala and senior leader Jairam Ramesh were among the 10 candidates elected to the Rajya Sabha on Friday from Karnataka, Rajasthan and Haryana, while counting was underway in Maharashtra after an eight-hour delay due to wrangling by rival parties over alleged breach of voting rules.
'These frequent visits show the BJP fears that the Congress will retain power.'
While naming him as the NDA candidate for the Vice President's post, the BJP had described him as 'Kisan putra', a move seen in the political circles aimed at reaching out to the politically significant Jat community which had participated in huge numbers in the year-long farmers' protests against agriculture reform measures unveiled in June 2020.
The federal probe agency also said it seized Rs 12 crore in cash (including about Rs crore in foreign currency), gold jewellery worth Rs 6 crore, silver about 10 kg along with four vehicles following raids launched on Friday in multiple states.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi reiterated his vote theft allegations and criticized the Election Commission for demanding an affidavit to support his claims. He alleged collusion between the EC and BJP to steal the Lok Sabha election and called for investigation into election irregularities.
Congress observers for Rajasthan on Tuesday recommended disciplinary action against three key loyalists of Ashok Gehlot but did not seek any action against the chief minister, as the party scampered to resolve the crisis that has cast a shadow on the election of the party president.
A special investigation team (SIT) has been formed in Madhya Pradesh to investigate the deaths of 14 children in Chhindwara, suspected to be linked to a toxic cough syrup. The investigation includes arrests, exhumations, and a ban on the implicated cough syrup.
According to the police, the bus was speeding and filled with passengers due to which the driver lost control and the vehicle rammed into the wing wall of the flyover.
Amid slogan shouting by Congress members, the House witnessed three adjournments.
"The truth is that the election system in India is already dead. Please remember one thing that the prime minister of India enjoys a very slim majority. If 10-15 seats were rigged, and we suspect the actual figures to be closer to 70-80 to 100, he would not have been the prime minister of the country," the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha claimed.
'There is no provision for a specific salary for the vice president; instead, they receive remuneration and benefits commensurate with their role as the chairman of the Rajya Sabha.'
The development comes after Congress cracked down on Sachin Pilot, stripping the dissident leader of the posts of Rajasthan's deputy chief minister and the party's state unit president, and sacking two loyalists from the state Cabinet.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accuses the government of a politically motivated witch-hunt against his brother-in-law Robert Vadra after the Enforcement Directorate filed a chargesheet against him in a money laundering case.
The Congress refrained from commenting on any peace formula between Gehlot and Pilot.
Senior Congress leader and former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot arrived in the national capital on Tuesday amid a buzz of a likely meeting with the party high command that is grappling with the high political drama in the state.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday suggested that if the Congress comes to power, it would redistribute wealth of people to Muslims and cited former PM Manmohan Singh's remark that the minority community had the first claim on the country's resources.
Amid the ongoing political turmoil in the Congress in Rajasthan, the party's chief whip in the state, Mahesh Joshi, on Tuesday said a meeting of the MLAs loyal to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot was not called to mount pressure on the party high command.
A drunk SUV driver, identified as Usman Khan, a Congress leader, allegedly hit multiple pedestrians and vehicles in Jaipur, killing three people and leaving six others seriously injured. The incident occurred on a narrow city road in the Nahargarh area. Khan, who is the Congress' Jaipur district vice president, was driving recklessly and under the influence of alcohol, according to police. Following the incident, locals gathered at the Nahargarh police station and blocked roads to protest and demand compensation for the victims. The Congress has expelled Khan and expressed condolences to the families of the victims. The BJP criticized the Congress, alleging that the party is full of people with criminal tendencies.
Malviya, the MLA from Bagidora in Banswara district, said he joined the BJP for the development of the Vagad region.
With all eyes on the Congress's next step in Rajasthan after Sachin Pilot's fast in Jaipur on Tuesday, AICC in-charge of state Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa on Wednesday said he agrees with the issue of corruption taken up by Pilot but the manner in which it was raised was not right.
In seniority in the BJP leadership team, V K Malhotra, who passed into the ages this week, was next only to Atal Bihari Vajpayee, L K Advani and Nanaji Deshmukh, notes Sudhir Bisht.
Data collected by Association for Democratic Reforms on the candidates show a maximum number of candidates (482) fall in the 31 to 40 years age group.
If Meena resigns, it is likely to put pressure on other ministers whose areas also saw poor performance in the general elections.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a charge sheet against Robert Vadra, husband of Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, in a money laundering case related to a land deal in Haryana's Shikohpur. The ED has also attached properties worth Rs. 37.64 crore linked to Vadra.
The most number of crorepati candidates are fielded by the Bharatiya Janata Party (176), while the Congress has fielded 167 crorepati candidates.
Upset over an open rebellion in Rajasthan, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Monday sought a written report on it from party observers Mallikarjun Kharge and Ajay Maken as the chances of Ashok Gehlot becoming the party chief receded and other names cropped up for the post.
The Bharatiya Janata Party has fielded candidates in all 200 constituencies while the Congress has fielded 199 candidates.
'But unlike Punjab, the rebels have an alternative -- the BJP'
Congress candidates Randeep Surjewala, Mukul Wasnik and Pramod Tiwari were elected to the Rajya Sabha, according to a tweet by Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.
