Congress' star campaigner Rahul Gandhi on Saturday pointedly blamed both Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav and Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati for "gross neglect" of Muslims in Uttar Pradesh. Sharat Pradhan reports.
For the Congress to be taken seriously, it has to convince those around it that it could actually double its Lok Sabha seat share from the existing 52, and vote-share by a third more from the stagnating 20 per cent in 2014 and 2019, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
BJP's central leadership has thrown its weight behind Yogi Adityanath, putting a stop to murmurs against the state government months ahead of the assembly polls.
Those whose cover has been reduced include Samajwadi Party chief and former Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, leaders Shivpal Yadav and Azam Khan, Dimple Yadav and Ram Gopal Yadav, and Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati.
Samajwadi Party leader Tej Narayan Pandey on Sunday accused Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust of committing corruption in a land deal and sought a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the matter.
A remark made by a Samajwadi Party leader on the use of the Hindi word 'hamara' by Mamata Banerjee on Friday triggered speculation whether Mulayam Singh Yadav's party was still with Trinamool Congress in putting up A P J Abdul Kalam as a Presidential candidate.
The inauguration new parliament building will take place in two phases.
'Our leader is Modi and everyone has been saying Modi hai to desh hai'
Notwithstanding calls against any rapprochement with him, Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav on Sunday ruled out accepting the resignation of Amar Singh from key party posts and said differences will be sorted out soon.
In a terse message to the ruling party, Priyanka in a Hindi tweet said, 'The goons of the BJP involved in 'cheerharan' of the democracy should hear that women will become pradhans, block pramukhs, MLAs, MPs and prime minister, and defeat the government, which gives patronage to those committing atrocities against women.'
Two days after Amar Singh resigned from all Samajwadi Party posts, a senior leader of the party has questioned the timing of the decision and said making public about SP's functioning was 'most immoral.'
In both of these Hindi heartland states, the straight contest between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the opposition Congress.
Before filing her nomination papers at the Collectorate Rae Bareli, the UPA chairperson held a roadshow and offered puja at the Congress central office.
"No government can be formed without Congress, which is a major and deeply-rooted party in the country. Congress is the main opposition party too. Others are regional parties," Raut said in Pune
Senior Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh on Monday slammed the Congress for fielding Raj Babbar against Mulayam Singh Yadav's daughter-in-law in the Ferozabad Lok Sabha bypolls, but said he had nothing against Rahul Gandhi for campaigning for the party's candidate in the constituency.
Blaming the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Samajwadi Party for neglecting the plight of Bundelkhand, Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said the Centre took the initiative and provided a Rs 8,000-crore package to the region despite it being the responsibility of the state government.
The 'AIADMK symbol issue' may be a fit case for the courts and the legislature to provide for a new law for application in similar fluid, dynamic political situations, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhikesh Yadav's decision to boycott the prestigious Harvard event followed a call that was made from Boston to his father and Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav.
Alleging that the Bahujan Samaj Party and Samajwadi Party have failed to live up to the expectations of the people, Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said a change was needed by forming a government which works for all.
He came to power with a huge mandate in 2012, but Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has now forfeited the voters' trust.
Attacking the Bahujan Samaj Party, the Samajwadi Party said on Tuesday that the Mayawati-led party was a "B-team" of Bharatiya Janata Party and the two parties were hand in glove with each other.
The 'Group of 23' leaders who participated included Ghulam Nabi Azad, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Anand Sharma, Mukul Wasnik, Prithviraj Chavan, Manish Tewari, Shashi Tharoor, besides Sibal who hosted the post-birthday dinner for them.
In an apparent rebuff to Amar Singh, Congress on Monday dismissed the sulking Samajwadi Party leader's claim suggesting that his 'DNA was Congress.'
The Samajwadi Party may be bitterly opposed to the Bharatiya Janata Party but it is not happy over the rumblings within that party as it feels that disintegration of the main opposition party will not augur well for the country's polity.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said there are courts to ensure that criminals get the harshest punishment but 'playing with law and order only gives birth to anarchy'.
The meeting saw archrivals TMC and CPI-M coming together on a common platform against the government.
"It is all your imagination and guess work," a senior leader said when asked about reports of Sasikala taking over from Chief Minister O Panneerselvam.
Two Union ministers and two senior Uttar Pradesh Congress legislators got together and roughed up a handful of Samajwadi Party activists who attempted to stage a black flag demonstration against Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi on his arrival in Allahabad on Monday afternoon.
The Uttar Pradesh police will get a psychological test done on Ahmad Murtaza Abbasi, accused in the attack on security personnel outside Gorakhpur's Gorakhnath temple, a senior official said on Thursday.
The Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi's key confidants -- general secretaries Madhusudan Mistry, P C Joshi and Mohan Prakash -- were clearly among the most notable absentees. Rediff.com contributor Anita Katyal reports
Rajbir Singh, the son of former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Kalyan Singh, joined the Samajwadi Party on Wednesday. His decision comes just a day after his father quit the Bharatya Janata Party, giving a jolt to the saffron party ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav behaved entirely in character when he broke ranks with the Congress and backed the Bharatiya Janata Party in the monsoon session, says Aditi Phadnis
Taking forward its probe in the cash-for-vote scam, the Delhi police is all set to grill Rajya Sabha member Amar Singh on Friday for his alleged role in the sensational case.
Mayawati appeared to be opting for a wait-and watch-policy till the Lok Sabha election results are announced on May 23.
A coordinated multi-agency search operation is underway to locate the two, even as Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath ordered setting up a three-member committee to probe the incident and submit a report in a week.
SP to field Mulayam's daughter-in-law in bypoll
The Bharatiya Janata Party's victory in the assembly polls on Thursday has put the party on a stronger wicket for the election for the post of President expected later this year.
True, Azam Khan is being targeted rather disproportionately and also because of his Muslim identity. That must be protested and resisted. But to say that he is a big messiah, and his profit-making educational enterprise is an issue concerning all Muslims of India, is absolutely unjustified, assert Mohammad Sajjad and Md Mohammad Zeeshan Ahmad.
"Had there been no demolition, probably the courts too would have ordered status quo," he said then. And his last wish, he said, was to live till the temple comes up.
