Telangana Rashtra Samithi supremo K Chandrashekar Rao must be thanking the Congress and his stars profusely, after sitting Member of Parliament Vijayashanti was suddenly moved out of the Medak parliamentary constituency and asked to contest the assembly seat instead. This makes KCR the main contender for this parliamentary seat. Vicky Nanjappa explains what it could mean for the TRS chief.
A controversial bill which paves the way for the Polavaram project in Andhra Pradesh by merging some villages and mandals of Telangana with Seemandhra was approved in the Lok Sabha on Friday, amid stiff opposition from the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, the Biju Janata Dal and some other parties.
While Rahul loyalists were keen that he be given the post, a leader known to be close to him said, "If he does not become the leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha, then he should quit politics."
Naidu is acting behind the scenes to ensure a provocation from the TRS. The TRS, on the other hand, wants to give Naidu a bad name by provoking people and then making it look as though he could not protect the rights of his own people.
Additionally, the Lower House will have 442 candidates, who have assets running into the crores. Vicky Nanjappa reports.
Self-proclaimed heir of Rani Rashmoni, lottery baron join businessmen in the list of MP-aspirants with assets worth over Rs 100 cr, reports Abhineet Kumar.
All talks regarding an alliance between the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Telugu Desam Party came to an abrupt end on Saturday with the Telangana unit of the BJP putting its foot down against a tie-up.
Just like Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's 'chai pe charcha' where he connects with various sections while sipping tea over the internet, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi will take part in a 'Google Hangout' on March 15, where he will interact with block, district and Pradesh Congress Committee presidents to give them pep talk on the coming elections and to get their feedback on their states and their districts. Renu Mittal reports
In renaming TRS and repositioning it as a 'national' party, KCR is also eyeing a pole position in opposition politics ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
The Congress which was snubbed by the Telangana Rashtra Samithi has decided to rope in members of the Telangana Joint Action Committee to fight the elections on their ticket.
Though the wily TRS supremo, credited with achieving the separate state of Telangana, stopped short of saying he was about to declare dissolution of the assembly, none doubted its imminence.
The United Progressive Alliance coordination committee will meet on July 31 to finalise its stand on the vexed Telangana issue amid indications from Congress that carving out a separate state out of Andhra Pradesh is a foregone conclusion and that complexities involved in the process will be adequately addressed.
It was a mixed outing for super rich candidates as five of them emerged victorious and an equal number suffered defeat in the Lok Sabha polls.
Leaders of a number of opposition parties on Tuesday met twice after which they decided to put up a united fight for the post.
Its passage in the Lok Sabha is all but certain due to the massive majority the Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies have, and the Union government is confident of its passage in the Rajya Sabha as well with the support of several non-aligned regional parties which have often joined the treasury benches in the past.
The ruling party seems in far better shape than the Congress, which is yet to finalise seat-sharing agreements in several states.
KCR will continue as caretaker chief minister until the new government is formed.
Earlier, KCR had met West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee as part of efforts to build a non-Congress, non-BJP third front ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
As soon as Speaker Sumitra Mahajan took up the Question Hour, members from these parties trooped into the Well holding placards.
Political pundits said this trend indicates that the regional satraps might play key roles in 2019 general elections for which attempts are already underway by non-BJP parties to put a united front against Prime Minister Narendra Modi's bid for a second term.
Most of the parties supported 'one nation one election', says defence minister Rajnath Singh.
On the proposed Grand Alliance of the Congress and other parties in the state, Shah said the Telugu people had not forgotten how the Congress had treated their leaders like former (undivided) Andhra Pradesh chief minister Anjaiah and former prime minister P V Narasimha Rao.
For Telangana Rashtra Samithi President K Chandrasekhar Rao, the metamorphosis from being the leader of separate statehood agitation by starting of with only a handful of supporters in 2001 to security majority on his own and occupying the chief minister's chair in Telangana is complete.
Come June 1, the premises that serve as the Andhra Pradesh assembly would have two sittings. In the morning it would serve as the assembly for Seemandhra and in the afternoon, it would act as the Telangana assembly. Aditi Phadnis and Dasarath Reddy report
Lagadapati Rajagopal, now being referred to as the 'pepper spray member of Parliament', is holding talks with Andhra Pradesh's caretaker Chief Minister Nallari Kiran Kumar Reddy about floating a new political party.
In view of the Andhra CM's resignation from the post and the Congress, party president Sonia Gandhi has requested Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to grant special category status to the Seema-Andhra for five years. Renu Mittal reports
Cross-voting by Left and Congress MLAs on Friday helped Trinamool Congress gain an extra seat in West Bengal while a similar action by Congress MLAs in Andhra Pradesh saw the Telangana Rashtra Samithi making its debut in Rajya Sabha as high drama marked the polls to the upper House in the two states.
In what appears to be a major setback for the Bharatiya Janata Party's hopes in South India, the All India Anna Dravida Munetra Kazhagam supremo has entered into an alliance with the Communist Party of India. Vicky Nanjappa reports.
The entire process of the formation of a new state of Telangana is expected to take 5 to 6 months, say experts. The government is likely to impose President's rule in Andhra Pradesh until the process is completed. Vicky Nanjappa reports
BJP's best bet lies in the TDP and the TRS striking a deal with the Congress and framing the battle as a UPA versus NDA clash, reports Radhika Ramaseshan.
Gowda said he would not comment on or criticise Prime Minister Narendra Modi unless the latter traded charges against him.
Rao's son K T Rama Rao, a TRS leader said that they are open to a working relationship with the Congress. "Give us some time, and we will work out the modalities and take the next step," he said in this interview with rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa.
In the clearest indication that the Congress leadership is moving towards the formation of a separate state of Telangana, the party organised a massive show of strength in Hyderabad on Sunday giving a clarion call in favour of the new state.
"All opposition parties should work together. It should be a one-to-one fight against the BJP. All opposition parties should help the strongest one in the state against the BJP," Banerjee said.
The Congress and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh are talking about secularism only to cover up their failures in governance and corruption, senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader M Venkaiah Naidu alleged in New Delhi on Tuesday.
"Very shortly we will come out with a concrete plan," Rao told reporters after meeting the Trinamool Congress president.
For the fourth day, the Lok Sabha House fails to take up trust vote notices.
Members in the Lok Sabha on Thursday expressed grave concern over hate crimes against Indians in the United States, with opposition parties questioning Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "silence" on the matter and the government saying it was being "viewed seriously".
'Mayawati is an experienced politician with a track record in national politics much longer than Modi's.' 'She must be sensing from the tremors in the Hindi heartland she crisscrossed in recent months that the prospect of another Modi-led government at the Centre is fast receding,' says M K Bhadrakumar.