The new chief minister, if from the Congress, will have little or no time for political administration, to ensure that he does not lose the voter's goodwill even before the Lok Sabha polls. He can count only on one thing. That the BJP may not want to upset him too early lest an early failure should become an added problem for the party in all the polls to follow, predicts N Sathiya Moorthy.
Bharatiya Janata Party MLA in Chhattisgarh and former state minister Brijmohan Agrawal has stoked a controversy as he said that those who call inflation a national calamity should stop eating food and using petrol.
Asserting that there was no comparison between Rahul Gandhi and Narendra Modi, the Congress on Sunday said while the Gandhi scion was an undisputed leader, the Gujarat Chief Minister was a "leader of all disputes".
Gehlot said even within the party, there is an opinion in favour of making Rahul the new president.
Prime Minister Modi also made a veiled reference to China, saying the global order is based on the respect for the principles of the UN Charter, peaceful resolution of disputes, and respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray, who has issued a diktat to his partymen to greet Rahul Gandhi with black flags for his "Mumbai for all Indians" remark, on Friday attacked Marathi ministers at the Centre for "not protesting Rahul's anti-Mumbai statement".
Tharoor said the message is also that the Congress is the party that can unite India and if the public is sufficiently inspired by this message, it will indeed inaugurate the revival of the party.
For the Congress' revival, the eclipse of the Gandhis is absolutely necessary, asserts Virendra Kapoor.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said there was a competition among Congress leaders as to who will use the most abusive words against him, referring to the opposition party president Mallikarjun Kharge's 'Ravan' jibe at him.
'The Congress is not pragmatic about politics or about people.' 'Rahul's intention is good, but good intention does not win you elections.'
'I defended them -- Amit Shah and Narendra Modi -- in over 10,000 national debates, but I never asked for any favour.'
"Singh is stable and is progressing well. He has had no episodes of fever," Congress general secretary and chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said.
Amidst the fanfare over Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's plans to celebrate Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's birth anniversary in Kolkata on January 23, his daughter Anita Bose-Pfaff has said that the organisation's ideology and the nationalist leader's ideas of secularism and inclusiveness are 'poles apart and do not coincide'.
Four people, including two staff of Congress MP Rahul Gandhi's Wayanad office, were arrested on Friday for allegedly causing damage to Mahatma Gandhi's photo nearly two months ago when an Students' Federation of India protest march led to violence on the premises.
According to RJD sources, Lalu is reluctant to share the dais with Rahul as he is reportedly unhappy with him over his approach and stand on certain issues.
Gandhi said party people should move about in villages and know the problems faced by common people throughout the year, not just during elections.
Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi has directed party leaders of five election-bound states to keep candidates with criminal background out.
On the occasion, Gandhi said their campaign was against hatred, violence and fear being spread in society.
The ambit of the G-23 grouping increased this time as some more leaders -- Patiala MP Preneet Kaur, former Gujarat chief minister Shankar Singh Vaghela, former union minister Mani Shankar Aiyar and former Haryana speaker Kuldeep Sharma -- joined them.
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra sat on a hunger strike on Monday after being detained in Uttar Pradesh's Sitapur district while she was en route to Lakhimpur Kheri, her party said.
The development suggested a worsening power struggle between the chief minister and Sachin Pilot who was tipped to be Gehlot's replacement after he declared his candidature for the Congress president's post.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party managed to notch up a morale-boosting win on its 'Mission Northeast' on Thursday by retaining Tripura emphatically, despite anti-incumbency and newcomer Tipra Motha playing spoilers to its party, while also piggy-backing to power in Nagaland on Neiphiu Rio-led NDPP's shoulder.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday took to the streets and led a march of its top leaders to Rashtrapati Bhavan to protest against the climate of growing intolerance in the country and accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of "endorsing" incidents of hate.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi has tested positive for COVID-19 and she has isolated herself under medical advice, party chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said on Thursday.
Top Pentagon leaders have warned US lawmakers against including their "pet projects" in the annual defence budget, particularly at a time when it is struggling to save money in view of the tough economic environment.
Mother and son refuse to go away despite indications blowing in the wind that their leadership is ringing the death knell of the party, observes Ramesh Menon.
The former Union minister and Senior Congress leader Anand Sharma on Wednesday said that the party needs revival and which is possible with collective efforts.
With the Pradesh Congress committees passing resolution seeking Rahul Gandhi at the helm of All India Congress Committee, party General Secretary, Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday said such measures have no binding effect.
The BJP and the AIADMK are unable to sort out ideological differences, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Ahead of starting the much-hyped 'Bharat Jodo Yatra', Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday attended a prayer meeting at the Rajiv Gandhi Memorial in Sriperumbudur on Wednesday.
"It is shameful that Rahul Gandhi, instead of coming to Parliament and apologising for his undemocratic rant against India, today seeks to be absent from Parliament," she asserted.
With trends projecting a defeat for the Congress in both Maharashtra and Haryana, a group of party workers gathered outside the All India Congress Committe office in New Delhi demanding that Priyanka Gandhi join active politics.
A group of 57 lawmakers have appealed to US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to call to call an independent international probe into alleged war crimes during Sri Lanka's 25 years of civil war.
'I am requesting Sonia Gandhi to listen to her inner voice again.' 'Then, she will know this is the time for the family to step aside.'
In the wake of some Congress members commenting that they would not spare even Congress president Sonia Gandhi if government schemes are not properly implemented, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K Rosaiah on Sunday urged partymen not to violate party discipline. "There is no problem if I am the object of their criticism. If it goes to the extent of saying that we will not spare Sonia Gandhiji and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, it is very sad," he said.
Rahul Gandhi has become a symbol of 'Bharat jodo' (unite India) and will be seen in a new avatar post the Congress' pan-India march, senior party leader Digvijaya Singh said.
The Congress on Thursday said former party chief Rahul Gandhi will file an appeal against a Gujarat court verdict holding him guilty in a 2019 criminal defamation case, and alleged that the government was after him for speaking the truth and bringing to light its 'misdeeds'.
Rahul Gandhi probably delivered one of the best speeches of his political career at the AICC meeting, where he was relaxed, conversational at times and philosophical at others. But the question being asked was whether he would continue to be serious or once again disappear as he has done in the past.
As a Congressman put it, "I don't think we should sell F-16s to India either. Both are poor countries. F-16s are not going to produce any more wealth for the people of Pakistan or India."
The G-23 group seems to have expanded with several senior Congressmen attending Wednesday's meeting.
