Did Team Anna member and Right to Information activist Arvind Kejriwal commit a criminal office when he appealed to Hisar voters not to vote for the Congress in the by-polls?
On such a historic day in the 127-year-old Congress party's history, Rahul Gandhi presented himself as a dreamy-eyed idealist who is trying to be a visionary instead of an Indian leader keen to be a man of steel to take on the hard realities of India. Sheela Bhatt assesses Rahul Gandhi's emotional first speech as Congress vice-president.
Sheela Bhatt offers her take on Congress President Sonia Gandhi's speech that kicked off the the party's Chintan Shivir.
Yashwant Sinha on Elections 2009 and Narendra Modi's rise in the BJP.
If Narendra Modi's forward march to Delhi is to be permitted then the president of BJP will be someone who is completely loyal to the RSS. That will improve Gadkari's chances though there is a serious lack on enthusiasm in the RSS on giving him a second term. Sheela Bhatt reports
Sheela Bhatt compiles a list of things, both unknown and known, about the latest challenger to the New Delhi throne.
After a SWOT analysis of the UPA, Sheela Bhatt examines how its prime challenger squares off. 'In the public space Modi enjoys many advantages the BJP doesn't. At same time, there are many advantages to the BJP which Modi doesn't enjoy.'
Rajesh Khanna's demise marks the passing a gentler, more romantic era. For today's generation, bred on cinematic blood, gore and violence, it sounds a warning bell, says Sheela Bhatt.
Rajesh Khanna's demise marks the passing a gentler, more romantic era. For today's generation, bred on cinematic blood, gore and violence, it sounds a warning bell, says Sheela Bhatt.
'President Obama bahut dhanyavad, we should say! He gave an outstanding speech to Parliament on Monday. His address to lawmakers and the people of India was balanced and profound.'
At Law Minister Salman Khurshid's party, there was a lavish spread of sweet mangoes and spicy gossip. Sheela Bhatt shares some notes from the soiree
The UPA government has been caught unawares once again. The latest salvo from Army Chief V K Singh, this time targetting the Prime Minister's Office, has left it groping in the dark for options. Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt analyses.
Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt caught up with Lieutenant General Tejinder Singh (retd), who has been accused of allegedly offering army chief General V K Singh a bribe of Rs 14 crore in September 2010 for an arms deal.
Sheela Bhatt feels that in view of the wrong message percolating down in India from New Delhi, it is very necessary that the political class, instead of running down the protesters, instead of resisting the movement at Jantar Mantar for small political gains, say something with conviction
Somabhai Modi talks to Sheela Bhatt and Sonil Dedhia about his famous younger brother, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi
Sheela Bhatt profiles Arvind Kejriwal, a crucial member of Team Anna, who has emerged as one of the key players in the movement for a strong anti-corruption law.
A senior Congressman from Uttar Pradesh explained that there was a clear attempt by the BJP to underplay the Hindutva sentiment so that they could appeal to the Indian youth, who doesn't want riots and seek to move on.
Sheela Bhatt profiles Arvind Kejriwal, a crucial member of Team Anna, who has emerged as one of the key players in the movement for a strong anti-corruption law.
Kapil Sibal, union minister of Human Resource Development, believes that higher education offered by US-based universities is much better than that offered by universities in the United Kingdom.
Akhilesh Yadav, the youngest chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, represents the change the state needs today. But he will have to handle difficult and complex challenges to consolidate the Samajwadi Party's gains, writes rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt.
Sheela Bhatt talks to former Indian Ambassador Naresh Chandra about the raminfications of New Delhi's decision to drop American fighter aircraft from the mother of all defence deals
Bureaucrats, police officers and the security clan spend public funds as lavishly as ministers do.
Arun Jaitley, leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and the Bharatiya Janata Party's strategist, is getting ready to take on the United Progressive Alliance in the coming Budget session of Parliament. Jaitley's legal background and his envious reach in New Delhi's media is a potent combination helping his party to push its political agenda. He spoke exclusively to Sheela Bhatt on the Uttar Pradesh election.
The Congress-Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam alliance is back on track, with the re-opening of communication channels between the two parties. Sources said the Congress is set to agree to contest 60 seats, which was the DMK's final offer after three rounds of hard bargaining.
'Through his Election 2012 campaign Narendra Modi has not shown any signs to suggest that he is confident enough to take the risk to set new standards to don the national leadership. His attempt to stoop low to conquer is avoidable, entirely, in view of his comfortable position in the ongoing election campaign.' Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt identifies the factors that are not going well for Modi.
A recent event in Delhi witnessed an interesting debate among strategic gurus about whether India could still stick to the policy of non-alignment. Sheela Bhatt and Priyanka listen in.
Sources in the government have claimed that if most political leaders are in favour of withdrawing the government's Lokpal Bill -- at the all-party meeting scheduled to be held on Wednesday afternoon -- the government may agree to withdraw it. The all-party meet will be held on Wednesday at 3.30 pm at Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's official residence at 7, Race Course road.
BJP leader Arun Jaitley elaborates his party's traditional belief on the Kashmir tangle and spells out its future position.
The urgency to understand and decode the possible impact of the Ayodhya verdict is so high that the Bharatiya Janata Party and many Muslim organisations are not even participating in public debates, reports Sheela Bhatt. They want to play it safe by not inciting the public before the verdict and they want to ensure that all options are kept open after the highly anticipated judgment.
Nandkumar says it is too early to say to quantify the deficit in food grain production but, a 6-million hectare deficit in paddy cultivation has been noted in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Nandkumar, whose office has a top view of the farming sector in India says that Indian farmers could somehow make up by growing maize or jowar instaed of paddy.
Sheela Bhatt and Sharat Pradhan bring voices from the ground in Barabanki in Uttar Pradesh, which is voting today in the first phase of elections
The Indian government sees the hand of Pakistan army behind possibility of popping up, on the political platform, of Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, chief, Jamaat-ud-Dawah, which is considered the front of terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Tayiba. Sheela Bhatt reports.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer Umesh Sinha tells Sheela Bhatt that although the Election Commission has ensured a peaceful environment ahead of the assembly election, misuse of money power continues to be a concern.
Supreme Court Justice Cyriac Joseph retires on January 27. Before he does so, he would have to deliver his verdict on the high-profile corruption case against Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and his family.
Arvind Kejriwal speaks out on Congress leader Digvijay Singh, Robert Vadra and the Gandhi family in this exclusive interview with Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt.
Sheela Bhatt traces the fascinating life journey of India's new Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi.
On a chilly January morning, Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt and Sharat Pradhan traveled off National Highway 24 to probe rustic Indian minds on corruption, weeks ahead of the election in Uttar Pradesh.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi wants Congressmen to concentrate on the reserved constituencies of Uttar pradesh and on the area where Muslim votes make a crucial difference. He has formed teams to send all the Dalit constituencies, and this exercise is being called 'Mission 85'. Sheela Bhatt reports.
In an exclusive column to Rediff.com, CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat explains what is wrong with the Union Budget 2011-12 that Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee presented in Parliament on Monday.
Amit Shah's fall has dented his boss Narendra Modi's eligibility to some day lead non-Congress centrist parties at the Centre. Here lies the real win for the Congress, as this will play as an advantage for its future leadership, says Sheela Bhatt.
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