"The era of 'lalten' is gone. In the last six years consumption of electricity has increased 3 fold in Bihar," PM Modi said. "Voters of Bihar have taken a resolve that they won't let those who have a history of making the state 'Bimaru' come near them," he added.
Bihar chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi talks about the Bihar polls with M I Khan/Rediff.com
National Democratic Alliance allies on Monday put up a united front amid vocal demands being made by some parties on their share of seats in Bihar polls but the crucial issue of seat-sharing was not discussed at their maiden joint meeting chaired by Bharatiya Janata Party president Amit Shah.
He urged the crowd attending a pro-CAA rally to give a missed call to the 8866288662, pledging their support to the legislation. Shah also sought to dispel 'rumours' of discord within the NDA in Bihar and said CM Nitish Kumar will be the alliance leader in the state.
Chirag Paswan is young. He is articulate. He has no political baggage. All he needs is the blessing of Chanakya, observes Asmita Bihari.
The article on the history of Bihar had described Indira Gandhi as 'autocratic' and said that during the Emergency, the state's tallest leader Jay Prakash Narayan had suffered a treatment which was 'worse' than the one meted out to Mahatma Gandhi in Champaran during the freedom struggle.
There have been media reports that the LJP was unhappy over the return of the Hindustani Awam Morcha-Secular into the National Democratic Alliance fold and contempleting fielding candidates against JD-U nominees.
'The BJP supporters assert that the appeal of Modi remains a big draw for voters.' 'While the Opposition's alliance is hoping to counter it with its social arithmetic.'
Opposition attacked the government, saying prohibition law was being used to target Dalits.
The Bihar CM has made a sagacious attempt to consolidate his extremely backward castes (EBC) support base while trying to make a dent into RJD's Muslim-Yadav combine.
The assembly election results on May 19 altered India's political landscape and with it dented Janata Dal-United leader Nitish Kumar's prime ministerial ambitions.
Disgruntled Janata Dal-United leader Upendra Kushwaha on Monday resigned from Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's party, less than two years after returning to the party, and announced formation of the 'Rashtriya Loktantrik Janata Dal'.
'The BJP will use Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha to check Nitish Kumar.' 'They will not allow him to function freely as before.'
Seeking a third straight term, Modi is not just looking to stamp his electoral dominance on India but also chasing history with another consecutive victory equalling first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru's record.
'(Upper caste) leaders talk against the Constitution, reservations and the nation and still get away.'
Noting that it was his government that had recommended a CBI probe into the actor's death, Kumar said the incident saddened both the state and the country.
Even as the BJP is expected to win the vice-presidential poll, ppposition hopes to make it yet another display of its unity, reports Archis Mohan.
The 33-year-old, who steered his party to an impressive show in the Bihar assembly polls last year thereby emerging out of the shadow of his father Lalu Prasad, underscored that the opposition needed to bring in "dhaar" (edge) and "nayaapan" (novelty) in its electoral issues.
"We have taken note of this anger. We should not take upper caste votes for granted believing that they will not vote for any other party as there is no option," a senior BJP leader said.
Attacking Lalu Prasad for going to the Muzaffarnagar riot relief camps a few days after Rahul Gandhi's visit, Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav on Tuesday said the Rashtriya Janata Dal leader was a sycophant who was "licking the feet" of Congress leaders.
The party is counting on women voters and caste calculus, among others, to swing the crucial polls in its favour
The Congress, which wanted to contest as many as 121 seats, has reportedly now settled for 105 seats.
'Both Pavan Varma and Prashant Kishor questioned the party president in a public forum.' 'That is why we had to show them the door.'
The Bharatiya Janata Party's bypoll win in four of the six seats it contested has invigorated the party ahead of assembly polls in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh.
The wall broke up after being forcefully hit by the Ganga river waters when the pump was switched on for a trial run.
Through the yatra the UP CM would try to send the message that he was in the driver's seat, notwithstanding all the hue and cry within the party.
Thousands of hands went up in the air to greet the Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi as he landed in the semi urban constituency of Aurangabad in Bihar after making the crowd to wait for two hours in the open on a hot sunny afternoon.
'The BJP should be really wary of Nitish Kumar, or he will also take the BJP down with him.'
Every party had been asked to give in their suggestions during the meeting.
The opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) was in the grip of a crisis on Saturday with the Janata Dal-United saying the alliance was collapsing amid indications that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will switch back to the National Democratic Alliance, prompting the Congress to allege that the Bharatiya Janata Party is doing its best to cause a 'mini implosion' in the coalition.
Hailing Banerjee as the "real Bengal tigress", the party, which had earlier said that it would join the electoral battle in the state, vowed to "stand in solidarity" with the TMC camp.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi came under scathing attack from the Grand Secular Alliance on Sunday in poll-bound Bihar with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad and Congress President Sonia Gandhi accusing him of "insulting" the state and failing to deliver on any of his promises.
'At the moment, we are supporting the Nitish Kumar-led government.' 'When the time comes for this government to fall, it will.'
Coming full circle, Ram Vilas Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party, which left the National Democratic Alliance in 2002, is all set to align with in Bihar for Lok Sabha polls, giving a jolt to Congress' plans to have a "secular" alliance with LJP and Rashtriya Janata Dal.
The Congress chief has already held talks with several opposition leaders including Nitish Kumar and Sharad Yadav of the Janata Dal-United, Nationalist Congress Party president Sharad Pawar and Left leaders Sitaram Yechury and D Raja, besides Indian Union Muslim League general secretary P K Kunhalikkutty.
'They gave Nitish their votes to bring progress. But he forgot this and got involved with his own political interests. That is not done. So he was rejected.' 'Lalu is a symbol of anarchy. He is the symbol of regressive politics.' BJP General Secretary Dharmendra Pradhan discusses Lalu, Nitish, and his strategy to bring Bihar in the BJP's fold, with Vaihayasi Pande Daniel/Rediff.com
Mauled in the Lok Sabha elections and facing dissidence within, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar resigned on Saturday but interestingly did not seek dissolution of the assembly injecting a dramatic turn in the state politics.
Sharad Yadav says that reports about disquiet among the factions are 'sponsored'.
The Lalu Prasad-led Rashtriya Janata Dal MPs, including his daughter Misa Bharti and Manoj Jha, also staged a protest at Mahatma Gandhi's statue inside the Parliament complex and contended that despite being the chief opposition party in Bihar and the single largest party in the Assembly, it was not invited.
The BJP's quest for dominance over the states political scene, evident from a seat-sharing deal as part of which it clinched nearly as many constituencies as the Janata Dal-United its senior partner so far- resonated during the election campaign.
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