Sonia Gandhi is the most reserved leader in Indian politics and it was delightful to see Rahul get all affectionate with her, provoking his mother to mildly tick him off.
It is clear to any observer that the BJP risks its demolition drive boomeranging on itself. Except for one unpredictable factor in the works -- Rahul Gandhi himself, observes Shyam G Menon.
Reacting to the development, BJP IT department head Amit Malviya said in a tweet, "Rahul Gandhi may have survived this one but for how long?"
According to official sources, family members of former prime ministers will not be guarded by the elite SPG commandos, as per the amendments approved by the Union cabinet.
Rahul Gandhi, in turn, thanked all the leaders for reposing faith in him and said he would apply his mind on their request of becoming the Congress president, the sources said.
"We would like to be a part of your wedding procession (baraat) said Prasad, evoking a shy smile from Gandhi and guffaws from others present on the occasion.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday praised her son Rahul's role in the party's revival in Uttar Pradesh. "Rahul Gandhi's efforts have helped the Congress do well. I am happy that Congress has done well in Uttar Pradesh after so many years," she said during her first visit to her constituency that gave her a victory margin of over 3.7 lakh votes in the recent elections.
In a major development in the Congress, the party has formed an informal committee comprising General Secretary Rahul Gandhi, spokesperson Janardan Dwivedi, political secretary to Sonia Gandhi Ahmed Patel and Defence Minister AK Antony to look into the party's affairs, as the Congress president will be away since she is undergoing treatment in the United States.
During 2023-24, while the BJP received over Rs 723 crore worth of donations from Prudent Electoral Trust, it also got over Rs 127 crore from Triumph Electoral Trust and over Rs 17 lakh from Einzigartig Electoral Trust.
The two leaders have returned to the country amid a growing clamour for structural changes within the party after its debacle in the crucial Uttar Pradesh polls.
The announcement put an end to speculation that Sonia Gandhi may not contest in the upcoming polls due to health reasons and the party's newly appointed general secretary in-charge (East UP) Priyanka Gandhi Vadra may be fielded from her constituency.
On Monday, when Rahul Gandhi missed the party's 136th Foundation Day celebration event as he is travelling abroad to see his grandmother, and Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi couldn't attend the event due Covid-19 pandemic, Priyanka Gandhi took charge.
The central election authority of the Congress met and finalised the initial program of the process.
Pushing for an active role for Rahul Gandhi in Parliament, 10 Congress Members of Parliament have written to party chief Sonia Gandhi, suggesting that he be appointed as the Leader of the Lok Sabha.
Rahul Gandhi's focus will be on his Nyay Yatra, rather than the INDIA bloc's election campaign, leading to speculation among allies that the Congress leader is already looking at the Opposition's fight beyond May 2024.
The veteran Congress leader said the NDA's success was attributable to the absence of a strong and united Opposition.
According to sources, Sonia Gandhi took a jibe on party leaders, "You all are sitting together right but otherwise you don't even talk to each other."
The government wants to introduce a nationwide goods and services tax to revive its stalled reform programme.
Dodging immense political heat that Congress is facing from the opposition and the civil society members, United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi is reportedly on a visit to her hometown Italy.
The core groups had a separate wing of women workers.
A combative Congress president also hit out at the Centre saying it should not try to frighten them and that they 'would not allow democratic institutions to be weakened or destroyed'
In the midst of the ongoing controversy over Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde's remarks on 'Hindu terror' and the offensive launched by the Bharatiya Janata Party and other Hindu organisations asking that the home minister be sacked, Congress president Sonia Gandhi will visit Allahabad for the ongoing Kumbh Mela which is currently on and has attracted crores of devotees. Renu Mittal reports.
'In spirit, and more importantly in its DNA, this is the Congress Inc, or Incorporated, a family-run entity,' notes Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra D Modi, senior Cabinet ministers, Congress and Opposition leaders paid their respects to former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh, who passed into the ages on Thursday night, at his residence in New Delhi on Friday.
When he turned 53 last year, celebrations were rather subdued. Two weeks after the Congress won 99 seats (including a personal double victory in Wayanad and Raebareli), hoardings and banners wishing Rahul Gandhi on his 54th birthday appeared around 10 Janpath (where his mama and Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi lives) and the Congress HQ in Delhi.
In the event that like in the 17th Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi again gets locked out of the House, the Congress needs a second-in-command who will keep the momentum going inside Parliament, notes Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
Priyanka Gandhi addressed 209 rallies and roadshows, the maximum by any top leader during the UP election campaign, followed closely by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who spoke at 203 poll events.
'Anybody is free and welcome to contest in the election if they have the backing of 10 PCC delegates'
Raising the issue during Zero Hour, Gandhi demanded immediate withdrawal of the objectionable question and a review into the 'gravest lapse'.
The ruling party said Rahul Gandhi should not worry about the PM and should rather be concerned about his and Sonia Gandhi's electoral fate in 2019.
Shah said the 'friendship' between Christian Michel, the alleged middleman in the deal, and Congress' top leadership is 'time tested and deep'.
The Congress on Friday welcomed the statements of opposition leaders condemning Rahul Gandhi's disqualification from the Lok Sabha and said it was now time for the party to take on the job of building the opposition unity in a "systematic way".
Congress president Sonia Gandhi will launch her nationwide election campaign in Assam along with party Vice president Rahul Gandhi and Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh by the end of the month.
'Harassment' is the objective, not detention.
The nation on Saturday remembered former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on her 31st death anniversary with President Pranab Mukherjee, Vice President Hamid Ansari and other leaders paying tributes at her memorial in New Delhi.
In some ways, Jyotiraditya parting ways with the Gandhis was similar to the saga of the Gandhis and the Bachchans, largely a story of friendship that turned sour. A fascinating excerpt from Rasheed Kidwai's The House Of Scindias: A Saga Of Power, Politics And Intrigue.
Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad on Friday resigned from all party positions, including its primary membership, delivering another blow to the embattled party that has seen a series of leaders leave it.
Those responsible for protecting MPs have failed in their constitutional duties, said Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.
However, the party remained evasive about the part she could play in the party in future.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi and party vice-president Rahul Gandhi have reassured Prime Minister Manmohan Singh about the party's support for him and the government -- in the wake of Rahul Gandhi's criticism of a Union Cabinet ordinance that allows Members of Parliament and Members of Legislative Assembly to attend Parliament and state assemblies despite having criminal cases against them.
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