'Although Hong Kong weathered many a storm and displayed a remarkable resilience to bounce back, the developments in the territory have raised question marks with regard to its future stability and prosperity.' A revealing excerpt from Rup Narayan Das's Hong Kong Conundrum: Pangs of Transition.
The challenges before the coming Budget are more daunting than those in 2021, reveals A K Bhattacharya.
Union Law Minister Veerappa Moily recently said that chargesheeted candidates may be barred from polls. But those who attended consultations on electoral reforms say the government lacks the political will to do so. Vicky Nanjappa reports
The Election Commission has pressed the Law Ministry to take a call on "restricting" opinion polls by writing to it just days before the Lok Sabha polls were announced, but the government seems to be in no hurry to take a decision on the issue.
Senior leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Shashi Tharoor, in the race for the post of Congress president, not only possess contrasting demeanour but have had an equally disparate political journey.
Law Minister Kapil Sibal on Wednesday said the Election Commission should take "hard decisions" if it finds that opinion polls are used to further the cause of parties as a sting operation showed that poll data is manipulated by agencies conducting such exercise.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz president and Leader of Opposition in National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif, 70, who is the Opposition's candidate for the new prime minister, will announce his possible government priorities after taking the oath.
While many promises remain unrealised, power reforms and the creation of tens of millions of new bank accounts have helped Modi maintain his popularity
'With vendetta politics as its main plank, the BJP will be looking out for every opportunity to destabilise this Mahagatbandhan government.'
Kumar said the Commission will follow the time-tested methods of consultations and consensus building in bringing about any reforms and will not shy away from tough decisions, according to an Election Commission (EC) statement.
Regardless of how the stalemate ends, the government needs to learn that regardless of its parliamentary strength it cannot take people for granted. A little bit of humility would do it a lot of good, recommends Virendra Kapoor.
Happy at the clear mandate given by voters to the BJP-led NDA, India Inc on Friday exuded confidence that Narendra Modi will initiate bold and decisive policy reforms to promote economic growth.
The murder of Atiq and his brother and the police encounter with his son have raised many questions about the propriety of how crime is tackled by the Yogi government. But Yogi knows he has the support of the people who are fed up with crime holding the state to ransom for decades, asserts Ramesh Menon.
He said the parties rejected by the electorate are pushing their own political agenda by misleading farmers.
The better performing states throw up more employment opportunities including at unskilled levels.
'Outside the core voter base of upper caste Hindus, there is a large section unhappy with the performance of the BJP.'
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday directed the setting up of a three-member Committee of Administrators (CoA) to take over the affairs of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA).
Referring to Modi, Adityanath and Union Home Minister Amit Shah as 'outsiders', the farmer leader said he has no objection if they become prime ministers after winning polls from Uttarakhand or Gujarat.
Amid questions over his future, many political observers believe he has enhanced his political stature.
If Modi rethinks on pro-biz policies, investors will suffer.
Replying to a debate on the Representation of People (Amendment) Bill, 2010 to allow NRIs to exercise their franchise in Indian elections, Law Minister M Veerappa Moily said the government would hold a national consultation on comprehensive electoral reforms in two to three months.The Rajya Sabha had passed the bill on Monday.
By filing his nomination as Congress president on Friday, Shashi Tharoor has shown he is no 'quockerwodger' -- a word he introduced into our lexicon which means someone acting on the instructions of an influential third party.
His likable boy-next-door face and casual approach to public speaking have a unique appeal for the younger generation, but it stops there, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The broadcast and publication of opinion polls is unlikely to be restricted in the coming months as Election Commission has told the Law Ministry that it will not take such a step using its powers under the Constitution and it wants the government to come out with a law on the issue.
There is no exception for any candidate or political party when it comes to the law, be it the Representation of the People Act, the Indian Penal Code or the model code of conduct, SY Quraishi, former Chief Election Commissioner tells Rediff.com contributor Upasna Pandey
Myanmar military television says that the military has taken control of the country for one year.
The total income of seven political parties from unknown sources was Rs 2,512.98 crore in 2018-19.
A day after the Congress brainstormed over its electoral reverses, senior leader M Veerappa Moily on Monday said Sonia Gandhi should take "full control" of the party with a free hand to change non-performing leaders, and asserted that a "mere culture of tweets and social media propaganda" would not take the organisation forward.
The educated, respectable and established Muslims voices, that were on the modernising side on the Shah Bano issue, are fighting on the opposite side now, mostly because they worry about Narendra Modi, observes Shekhar Gupta.
Govt effort to curb black money in polls futile if identity of donors not known, says SC.
'EVMs are absolutely credible, they are robust.' 'It's only a calculator with certain instructions. And the sim card inside an EVM is burnt and cannot be reprogrammed.' 'Besides, the machines are circulated among various states. No machine is allowed to remain in one state after an election.' 'By far, it is one of the finest innovations India should be proud of.'
The concept of 'fairness by rulers' is deeply ingrained in Indians and any weakening of this dents the legitimacy of the ruler, warns military historian Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'To those who engaged in the acts of violence and destruction, you do not represent our country. And to those who broke the law, you will pay'
Jagdish Chhokar, founder-member of the Association for Democratic Reforms says there should be a law to regulate the functioning of political parties.
The words 'industry', 'industrial development', 'jobs', and 'employment' have been ringing with higher frequency since Mamata Banerjee stepped into her third term with landslide victory after a high-octane election last year. "Our government's next target is industrial development," the chief minister (CM) had been heard stating at different public meetings in the past few months - perhaps setting the tone for the sixth edition of the Bengal Global Business Summit (BGBS) slated for later this month. Investor summits by any state are about intent, big numbers, and tall claims. Yet in competitive federalism, its importance as a marketing tool is undeniable.
The tumultuous Winter session of Parliament ended on Wednesday a day before schedule with proceedings in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha marred by repeated disruptions by the opposition over which the government and the Congress traded charges and the presiding officers expressed their anguish at the conduct of some MPs.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said political parties will be entitled to receive donations by cheque or digital mode from their donors.
The Chief Election Commissioner pointed out that the exercise involved nearly 7.3 crore voters and over 1.06 lakh polling stations.
Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid on Friday said all demands of Anna Hazare on Lokpal Bill "cannot be accepted" and the activist has to decide the "limits" of his exercise.
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