How long can the Cockroach Janta Party remain an agitationist force? asks Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
With leaders of various opposition parties taking out a protest march in support of their demand for revoking the suspension of the 12 MPs, the Bharatiya Janata Party leader Pralhad Joshi took a swipe at them, saying the voters of the country have given them "marching orders" twice -- a reference to their back-to-back defeats in two Lok Sabha elections -- and will reduce their presence further.
Chief ministers who have been championing federalism must take the lead in reforming the Rajya Sabha so that it truly represents the interests of their states rather than the permanent political interests of unelected party apparatchiks in Delhi, says Shashi Shekhar.
Kiren Rijiju has strongly criticised the Congress for allegedly 'unfairly disrupting' the recent monsoon session.
A planned protest by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) at Jantar Mantar, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged voter-list manipulation, was thwarted by a massive security deployment in Delhi on Saturday. Thousands of protesters were detained as they attempted to gather at various alternative locations across the city, with metro services suspended and mobile internet blocked in some areas.
Top leaders of opposition parties including Congress' Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, TMC's Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Tejashwi Yadav of Rashtriya Janata Dal and Uddhav Thackeray of Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray, besides Left leaders and those from smaller parties, are likely to attend the meeting at the Constitution Club in the national capital.
The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a PIL seeking to allow secret ballot in polls for the Rajya Sabha and state legislative councils, observing that the open ballot system is needed to "prevent cross voting and maintain party discipline".
The AAP leader, who was angling for a Rajya Sabha slot, said that it is difficult to survive in the Aam Aadmi Party if one disagrees with Kejriwal.
The finance minister could not take the oath earlier in Parliament due to his ill-health.
The opposition had fielded Manoj Jha, an Rashtriya Janata Dal member.
Mayawati was outmanoeuvred by the BJP in the race for the Rajya Sabha in Uttar Pradesh just days after she helped the Samajwadi Party snatch two Lok Sbaha seats from the saffron party in bypolls.
Confident of securing a massive majority in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday outlined his vision for his next five-year term saying the Modi 3.0 government will put all its might to strengthen the foundation of 'Viksit Bharat' or a developed nation.
Veteran Rajya Sabha MP Sukhendu Sekhar Roy has suggested that the rebellion within the Trinamool Congress (TMC)'s legislative wing could extend to its Members of Parliament, following an unprecedented revolt by MLAs and the party's recent electoral defeat in West Bengal.
The party also nominated six others, including former Union minister Beni Prasad Verma, an influential Kushwaha leader who recently quit Congress and returned to the Samajwadi Party, and realtor Sanjay Seth for the biennial polls scheduled next month.
The Aam Aadmi Party has petitioned for the disqualification of seven Rajya Sabha MPs who defected to the BJP, citing violation of the anti-defection law and betrayal of the people's mandate.
Seven members are retiring from Maharashtra followed by six each from Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, five each from West Bengal and Bihar, four each from Orissa and Gujarat.
Union minister Smriti Irani will also contest the Rajya Sabha polls from Gujarat from where she is already an MP and her term ends on August 18.
After 47 years in electoral politics, Union minister Sharad Pawar on Monday became a member of the Rajya Sabha for the first time.
Bharatiya Janata Party candidates Dineshchamdra Jemalbhai Ananvadiya and Rambhai Harjibhai Mokariya won both Rajya Sabha seats from Gujarat on Monday.
According to sources, TDP president and former chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu has zeroed in on the name of his brother-in-law and actor Harikrishna for a Rajya Sabha seat that the party can win on the basis of its strength in the present legislative assembly, which constitutes the electoral college for the Rajya Sabha elections. He is expected to file his nomination papers on March 14.
23 political parties of the INDIA bloc will meet on Monday to redraw their strategy to take on the BJP and iron out differences amid changed power dynamics after the defeat of regional anchors TMC and DMK in the recent assembly polls.
He said that his primary goal would be to strengthen the political momentum to replace the Congress government with BJP rule in the coming assembly polls in Karnataka.
NCP (SP) leader Eknath Khadse has firmly stated his disinterest in rejoining the BJP, despite being called by Amit Shah, and affirmed his commitment to Sharad Pawar, dismissing recent speculation about his political future.
Trinamool Congress MP Kirti Azad has accused the BJP of orchestrating 'Operation Lotus' to induce defections from the Mamata Banerjee-led party, citing recent resignations and meetings of dissident MPs as evidence of an organised attempt to weaken the TMC.
Former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar, who was serving a life sentence for his involvement in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, has died. He was convicted in two separate cases related to the killings of Sikhs during the riots and was lodged in Tihar Jail.
Here are who's who attending the wedding.
Union Minister Kumari Selja was named the Congress nominee for Rajya Sabha elections, putting an end to speculation that former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit could be brought to the Upper House from Haryana.
The BJP team under the new national president Nitin Nabin, who took charge in January, is expected to be announced within this month, with sources suggesting that some holding positions in the government may move to the party.
BJP-led govt will need regional parties' support in Upper House to get legislation cleared. Archis Mohan reports
The absence of NCP-SP leaders from a key Maha Vikas Aghadi meeting in Maharashtra has ignited concerns about opposition unity ahead of the crucial budget session and upcoming Rajya Sabha elections.
The Delhi poll body has issued notices to several prominent voters, including Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal, for discrepancies in their enumeration forms during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. While Gupta's entry has been validated, millions of other voters, including other political figures, have received notices for issues like age-related mismatches or being unmapped with previous SIR records, requiring them to submit documents by October 29.
Opposition parties in India are preparing to move a motion seeking the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, alleging degradation of the office. The move requires significant support from both houses of Parliament and follows concerns raised by opposition leaders.
Political strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj Party has secured its first seat in the Bihar Assembly, with Kishor winning the Bankipur bypoll in his electoral debut, stunning the BJP in its long-held bastion.
Government floor managers are busy talking to Opposition members to resolve the stand-off over Minister Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti's remarks, in the Rajya Sabha.
Rejecting these notices, the Chairman said, "I have not admitted (the notices) as there are other avenues to raise this matter in the House and some matters are local."
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is set to chair a crucial Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, April 14.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday led the Rajya Sabha in felicitating Hamid Ansari on his second term as vice president and chairman of the House, saying his re-election was a tribute to his qualities. When the House met for the day, the prime minister stood up to felicitate and congratulate Ansari, who took oath as the vice president for his second term on Saturday.
Rajya Sabha Chairman and Lok Sabha Speaker reject opposition notices to remove Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, citing insufficient grounds.
Congress veteran Kapil Sibal had on Wednesday filed his nomination as an SP-backed Independent candidate for the Rajya Sabha polls.
The Congress on Sunday launched a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party over the alleged theft of donations at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, saying not everyone in the BJP is a "chhanda chor" but all the "chhanda chors" are in the ruling party.
