'Are elections still fair in India, or are we all witness to a macabre style of 'selection' of lawmakers? The jury will be out on this for a long time because there is no definitive evidence on either contention, at least as yet,' notes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, author, Narendra Modi: The Man, The Times.
After big win in Bihar, the BJP is likely to push harder in Tamil Nadu, where the DMK government and the uneasy BJP-AIADMK alliance are preparing for a tense election filled with seat-sharing fights, changing alliances, and the unpredictable entry of Vijay's TVK party, predicts N Sathiya Moorthy.
'Three Congress leaders have sold party tickets for crores of rupees.'
As Bihar goes to the polls in two weeks, locals speak about what the election means to them in the shadow of a devastating flood in Saran, Bihar.
The Election Commission has warned against the use of bulk SMSes and audio messages during the 48-hour 'silence period' before the conclusion of voting in the Bihar assembly polls. The EC has also mandated pre-certification of political advertisements on electronic media, including social media.
At least seven teachers of the government run school in Bihar's Saran district were suspended for allegedly campaigning for different candidates contesting next month's assembly polls.
Nitish Kumar may be in the chief minister's chair again, but with the BJP grabbing the home department and the assembly speaker's post, the real power in Bihar has shifted unmistakably, reports MI Khan.
'When the BJP wanted the election to focus on 'ghuspathiya' and promises that look like pies in the sky, we forced them to talk about jobs, giving free 125 units of power, and addressing women's indebtedness.'
Former Supreme Court judge B Sudershan Reddy -- the joint candidate of the Opposition parties -- filed his nomination papers for the for the vice-presidential election on Thursday, August 21, 2025.
On Sunday, October 26, 2025, New York mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani and two of his most prominent backers, United States Senator Bernie Sanders and US Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, framed his election as a one-on-one battle versus President Donald Trump and his administration at a raucous rally at the Forest Hills stadium in New York City's Queens borough.
Despite claims that he is tired and unwell, Nitish Kumar has addressed 84 election rallies, urging voters to give him 'one more chance'.
'Nitish Kumar previously held tight control over key ministries, but this concession (giving the home portfolio to the BJP) reflects either his weakened political position or a pragmatic acknowledgment of the BJP's growing dominance.'
'Every party want to contest more seats, nothing wrong in it. We have to compromise to take all together as the NDA.'
'The name will be declared at the right time.'
'I fail to understand why when Rahul Gandhi himself gave me hope that I would contest the polls, how come other Congress leaders did not consider my name?'
'It is good for us if the JMM contests. That will divide the Opposition and give us the upper hand.'
'Stalin's intention is plain and simple.' 'The DMK wants to convert what is an 'incumbency-centred' election for the party-led alliance into one more 'Modi/BJP election' after Stalin's successive success in 2019 and 2021, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
A seasoned politician and two-term Member of Parliament, Dr Shakeel Ahmad, who has served as a Union minister and senior Congress leader, resigned from the Congress party, marking the end of his decades-long association with an organisation that his family has been part of for three generations. In an interview with Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff he speaks why he quit the party.
'Prashant Kishor is forgetting that the BJP will field a strong candidate against Tejashwi from Raghopur.' 'His entry will force a three corner contest in Raghopur, an easy battle for the RJD.'
Mokama will witness one of this Bihar assembly election's hottest battles as Janata Dal-United candidate Anant Singh takes on the Rashtriya Janata Dal's Veena Devi, whose husband Surajbhan Singh, like her JD-U rival, is considered one of the state's tough guys or as they say in these parts, a Bahubali.
Meet the maverick serial election contester who shares his name with current Bihar's best known politician.
What an achievement it will be if a young Gujarati-Punjabi man is able to give the most powerful nation in the world a new direction, asserts Aakar Patel.
Uddhav and Raj Thackeray, along with their families, reunited at a Diwali event in Mumbai, fueling speculation about a potential political alliance between Shiv Sena (UBT) and MNS ahead of local body polls.
'If people had a problem, you could probably find him at one of the future events and could talk about specific issues.'
'...in comparison to his presence in the previous election campaign where he looked robust and vibrant.' 'His television and social media interviews looked dull and predictable.' 'There could be a different kind of fatigue of being out of power for a long time at work here.'
The Deepa Thoon controversy, if not allowed to die a natural death, could take the election focus away from the anti-incumbency impacting the DMK and into the secular space. Stalin would love to have it that way, all over again, after the three past elections, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
'...the electoral playing field is tilted significantly in its favour.'
While it is evident that the INDIA bloc has not shut its doors on Nitish Kumar, those within the NDA are hopeful that the JD-U's support base would benefit them as well
'If you want a bright future of Bihar and your children, I urge you not to vote for anyone with a criminal background or corrupt candidates even if they belong to your caste.'
'If the RJD loses it would be out of power for nearly 25 years. Meanwhile, the JD-U will have survival issues if it gets less number of seats.'
'In times of adversity, families unite, but the reverse is happening in the Lalu family.'
TVK cadres are worried, the leadership looks weak, and the party is not fully prepared for the 2026 elections, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
''Now the roads in Bihar are as good as any other Indian state. The power sector has improved.' 'Connectivity, law and order, gender justice...' 'Bihar now stands for all these things that were totally absent when it was under jungle raj.'
Vijay is counting on what was once proclaimed as his last filmi outing, Jana Nayagan, or 'People's Hero', to do the trick for him, when it releases on January 9, 2026, only months before the assembly poll, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Ashok Gehlot convinced the RJD leadership that the Congress had no issue about declaring Tejashwi as the Mahagathbandan's chief minister face.
...the DMK chief minister's campaign -- which includes criticism of the BJP's 'pro-Hindutva, anti-Tamil, anti-federal' policies and building on his own government's social welfare programmes targeting especially women and youth -- appeals to Tamil Nadu's voters in next year's assembly election, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
Winnability to be paramount in selection of candidates, followed by clean public image and proven loyalty to the BJP.
'If Nitish Kumar were to depart from this alliance, it would signal substantial instability in central government politics.'
Less than a month before assembly polls in Bihar, a Delhi court on Monday framed charges against Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi and their son and leader of opposition Tejashwi Yadav in the alleged IRCTC scam case.
'This will be a close election. At least now, it appears that the NDA has an edge.'
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