Tamil Nadu is set to protest against the National Education Policy (NEP) on February 18, with the ruling DMK and its allies announcing a demonstration. The state government has been at odds with the Centre over the implementation of the NEP and the three-language formula proposed in the policy. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan dismissed the state's opposition as "politics" and asserted that the Centre is committed to implementing the NEP across the country. The DMK, however, accused the Centre of encroaching on the state's rights and using the office of the Governor to push the NEP.
The plenary session in Chhattisgarh's Nava Raipur will start from February 24 and is expected to be attended by around 15,000 delegates.
Thapar had strong reservations about Project Cheetah, India's initiative to reintroduce African cheetahs into the wild. He argued that India does not have the necessary habitat or prey base to support free-ranging cheetahs and that the authorities lacked experience in managing spotted felines in the wild.
Three Congress members of the Lok Sabha, who had reached the speaker's podium leading to their suspension from the house, on Friday expressed regret for their behaviour to the privileges committee of the lower house.
Former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot, who has been involved in a leadership tussle with Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, skipped his interaction.
The decision on Rahul Gandhi's appointment as the Leader of Opposition was made after a meeting of the floor leaders of the INDIA bloc at Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge's residence.
Freedom At Midnight is a bold attempt to revisit the whole discourse about Partition, its causes, and the predicament under which the Congress leaders accepted it. It perfectly captures the extremely confused and complicated situation to which it seemed the only viable solution, observes Utkarsh Mishra.
Tharoor said if Pakistan were to dismantle the infrastructure of terrorism, "we can talk to them".
Seeking to allay fears that existing Waqf properties will be subject to scrutiny after the amended Waqf law comes into force, a parliamentary panel on Tuesday recommended that no cases will be reopened against such properties on a retrospective basis, provided the asset is not in dispute or belongs to the government.
As part of the investigation, EC officials visited Sudhakaran's residence on Thursday and recorded his statement. They said the matter would be submitted to the district collector for further actions.
We have nothing to gain by raising our concerns internationally as our narrative has got entangled with several controversial concepts in the United Nations, asserts Ambassador T N Sreenivasan.
Amid a row over change in stand over voting on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Friday asserted it is a secular regional outfit and maintains equal distance from the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance and the opposition Indian National Democratic Inclusive Alliance bloc led by the Congress.
During their visit to the holy city, the Congress leaders will take a dip in Saryu river, and then visit the Ram temple and Hanumangarhi temple, Rai said on Sunday.
Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi is likely to take a mid-campaign review of the party's poll strategy on Thursday in the Congress war room in New Delhi. He has called a meeting of the various Congress committees set up for Uttar Pradesh, including the manifesto committee, the publicity and media committee and the campaign committee.
'After giving my own money to this party, I was insulted.'' 'Neither this party nor its leaders have no respect for women.'
A hill with an altitude of 5,000 feet, once a hub of the Maoists along the Chhattisgarh-Telangana border, was reclaimed by the security forces after driving out the extremists following nine days of intense anti-Naxal operation, official sources said.
The deportation of Indians from the United States, deaths in the Maha Kumbh stampede and the joint Parliamentary committee report on the Waqf bill were among the issues that led to heated exchanges and some disruptions in an otherwise smooth first part of the Budget session that ended on Thursday.
Sources within the INDIA bloc said appointing Nitish Kumar as convenor would lend credibility to the INDIA bloc's demand for conducting a nationwide caste census.
The 62-year-old former deputy chief minister was first elected the party president in 2008. His re-election at the outfit's general delegate session in Amritsar comes barely four months after he quit after he was declared 'tankhaiya' (guilty of religious misconduct) by the Akal Takht for "mistakes" committed by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and its government from 2007 to 2017.
India's Parliament is set to begin its Budget session on Friday, with opposition parties poised to demand a discussion on the alleged mismanagement of the Maha Kumbh festival in Prayagraj, where 30 pilgrims died in a stampede. The opposition also accused the government of politicising parliamentary committees and pushing its agenda through its majority. The session will start with President Droupadi Murmu addressing both houses of Parliament. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget on Saturday for the eighth consecutive time.
While Tharoor declined to comment on whether he would throw his hat into the ring, he has written an article for the Malayalam daily Mathrubhumi calling for a 'free and fair' election.
According to information received from sources, there will be a meeting at 5 pm through video conferencing but its agenda is not clear.
The Congress on Tuesday said it cannot accept the Haryana assembly polls verdict as there were 'serious issues' about the integrity of the counting process and functioning of the EVMs in some districts, and asserted that it would take up the matter with the Election Commission.
Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi has criticized the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, calling it a 'brazen assault' on the Constitution and part of the BJP's strategy to keep society in a 'permanent state of polarization.' She also spoke out against the One Nation, One Election Bill, calling it a 'subversion of the Constitution.' Gandhi further accused the Modi government of ignoring the women's reservation bill and other demands for reservation, and of 'dragging the country into an abyss' where the Constitution will only exist on paper. She also criticized the government for limiting the speaking time of the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament and for not allowing discussions on important issues like the working of the defense and external affairs ministries and the challenges posed by China on the border.
'Right to apprenticeship means that anyone below the age of 25 years with a diploma or other qualifications can demand an apprenticeship with a private, a public sector company or a government organisation. And when he/she demands this, it is the obligation of the government to provide it.'
In a major organisational rejig ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, the Congress on Saturday appointed Avinash Pande the general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh, replacing Priyanka Gandhi Vadra while Sachin Pilot was made the general secretary in-charge of Chhattisgarh.
Indicating his keenness to contest the Lok Sabha elections from Amethi, Robert Vadra, businessman and husband of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has said that the people of Amethi expect him to represent their constituency if he thinks of becoming a member of Parliament.
The proposed legislation on Emigration (Overseas Mobility (Facilitation and Welfare) Bill, 2024) seeks to replace the Emigration Act of 1983 with a view to facilitate the circular mobility of people intending to emigrate for overseas employment.
In a letter to Dhankhar, Ramesh said sending the Bill to the joint committee of both Houses means "devaluation and denigration" of the status and functions of the standing committee.
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi along with the five other Congress MPs from Uttar Pradesh will visit violence-hit Sambhal on Wednesday, party's state unit chief Ajay Rai said.
"Our target was the decimation of the Samajwadi Party and we have succeeded in it," Salman Khursheed said, congratulating Mayawati on her party's performance.
"No such alliance has been formed, but the possibilities are always there," All India Congress Committee general secretary Ashok Gehlot told PTI.
'About 90 per cent of our netas have no loyalty and will go with the winner.'
Patole, the MLA from Sakoli in Bhandara district, had resigned as speaker of Maharashtra assembly on Thursday.
Speculation has been rife that the Gandhi or his sister Priyanka could be projected as the Congress face in UP.
'Let Fadnavisji prove to the people of Maharashtra that he acts fairly against one and all.'
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Saturday (local time) highlighted how India responded in a measured and calibrated manner towards terror bases and headquarters in Pakistan, following the dastardly Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 people were killed.
The owner and manager of Rituraj Hotel in Kolkata have been arrested following a devastating fire that killed 14 people. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has ordered surprise checks of all establishments in the city to ensure fire safety compliance, after the tragedy highlighted serious violations at the hotel. The hotel has been sealed and special committees will be formed to monitor and identify establishments flouting fire safety norms.
Lok Sabha was adjourned sine die on Friday amid protests by opposition and treasury benches over the alleged insult to Dr B R Ambedkar and directions by Speaker Om Birla to members against holding demonstrations at any gate of Parliament.
The Congress needs to reorganise itself at the grassroots, infuse younger blood, and have more boots on the ground. Just offering freebies is not the answer anymore. Leadership matters, asserts Ramesh Menon.
