Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, who had gone abroad for a "routine checkup" on February 27 following a surgery six months back, returned to New Delhi on Monday.
Th epicentre of the 6.3-magnitude earthquake, which struck at 1.57 am, was in Nepal, about 90 km east-southeast of Pithoragarh
Rejecting criticism of tardy relief operations in flood-ravaged Uttarakhand, Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram has said government was making all efforts and complimented armed forces personnel for their untiring efforts in rescuing the stranded people.
"Objectively, it is only the Congress that has a footprint, shall we say, in eight to 12 states. So to have healthy democracy in which one party does not steamroll the Opposition, the kind that India experienced from the late 1970s till 2014, to revive that, to restore it, which I believe would be very good for all of us, it would depend a lot on the Congress becoming more competitive," he claimed.
Congress members staged a walkout after Singh said that "a boat is bound to sink if it has a hole".
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra released the Congress' manifesto for Uttarakhand on Wednesday promising to reserve 40 per cent jobs for women in the police department, jobs to four lakh people, and creation of a 'tourism police' force.
After the party's drubbing in the just-concluded assembly polls in five states, Congress president Sonia Gandhi has asked its state unit chiefs in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Punjab and Manipur to put in their papers.
'Political parties have appropriated our military victories -- the Kargil war is the BJP's and the Bangladesh war is the Congress's -- what is going on?' As Uttarakhand -- where faujis number nearly 40% of the state's population -- prepares to vote, Rediff.com's Archana Masih discovers what upsets retired soldiers in Uttarakhand the most is a forgotten protest in the heart of Delhi.
In the given scenario, Doiwala MLA Trivendra Singh Rawat and Pithoragarh MLA Prakash Pant emerge as the two most favourites.
With Sonia Gandhi putting her seal of approval on his name, Harish Rawat was elected on Saturday the Congress Legislature Party leader in Uttarakhand, paving the way for Haridwar MP's swearing in as new chief minister of the hill state.
Rahul also held a 75-km long road show and a Nukkad Sabha in Haridwar.
Indicating that the leadership feud in Uttarakhand Congress was far from over, Union Minister Harish Rawat on Wednesday held consultations with his supporters while making it clear he would not quit the party.
BJP president J P Nadda also appointed former Congress spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill its national spokesperson.
Ganesh Joshi also credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the smooth conclusion of Rahul Gandhi's Yatra in Jammu and Kashmir.
Sibal, a prominent Opposition voice and a former Congress leader, also said that instead of a common minimum programme, the Opposition parties should talk about a 'new vision for India'.
The poll reforms advocacy group further said that 10 (14 per cent) winning candidates have declared serious criminal cases against themselves.
The apex court directed that the proceedings of the floor test should be video-graphed. The President's rule, imposed on the state on March 27, was suspended for the proceedings of floor test.
Former Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh on Friday hit out at the Congress for blaming the anti-incumbency of his four-and-half-years tenure for the poor show in assembly polls, saying the party's leadership will never learn.
Amid revolt by a section of his party Congress against him, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna on Wednesday said he would win a trust vote and his government would complete its five-year term. However, Bahuguna did not give any time frame for seeking the trust vote.
The results of the Assembly elections were nothing to exult about for the Bharatiya Janata Party with the party faring poorly in Uttar Pradesh and its chief minister B C Khanduri losing in Uttarakhand although it grabbed Goa from Congress.
Incessant rains unleashed more death and destruction on Monday in parts of north India, with 37 people killed in landslides and other rain-related incidents in the last two days even as the Army and NDRF teams stepped in to intensify the relief and rescue operations.
A case was registered against Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in Hyderabad for his alleged remarks on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, the police said on Wednesday.
B C Khanduri was removed last year as chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on defence.
A post-poll survey conducted by CNN-IBN, The Week and CSDS in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Manipur has revealed some interesting results. The Samajwadi Party will win 34 per cent of the total vote share of the UP polls, according to the survey.
Several exit polls on Monday forecast a clear majority for the Bharatiya Janata Party in Uttar Pradesh and the Aam Aadmi Party in Punjab with some of them giving an edge to the saffron party in Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur.
Chidambaram also stressed that there were lessons to be learnt by the Congress from the Gujarat loss, saying there is no such thing as a "silent" campaign in a hard-fought election.
What some of our leaders were up to on Monday and Tuesday.
Rawat had played a crucial role in the removal of Amarinder Singh as chief minister of Punjab, who was replaced by Charanjit Singh Channi.
A round-up of Day 4 of the Ranji Trophy quarter-finals on Friday.
Uniform Civil Code is aimed at replacing personal laws based on religions, customs, and traditions with one common law for everyone irrespective of religion, caste, creed, sexual orientation, and gender. Personal laws and laws related to inheritance, adoption and succession are likely to be covered by a common code.
Among the 17 new AICC secretaries named so far, 10 are below 50 years of age, indicating the generational change in the 132-year-old Congress being brought in by 47-year-old Rahul, reports Amit Agnihotri.
In Haridwar, where he performed 'Ganga Aarti' at the famous Har Ki Pauri Ghat, Gandhi said, "We will give you a chief minister who comes to you, listens to your problems and runs the government accordingly."
As he completed one year in office on Saturday, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Major Gen (Redt) B C Khanduri has earned laurels as an able administrator. He is seen as a chief minister who has brought down the corruption level and infused a new life into the Himalayan state. Khanduri became the fourth chief minister of the 8-year-old Himalayan state (carved out of Uttar Pradesh) on March 8, 2007 after demolishing a Congress regime.
'In Chhattisgarh, MP and Rajasthan, he is far more popular than the defeated chief ministers,' notes Karan Thapar.
The voting will begin at 7 am and end at 5 pm after the electioneering came to an end on Saturday, 48 hours before the electorate begin casting their votes.
Holding placards and banners that read "INDIA for Manipur" and "INDIA demands PM's statement on Manipur", the opposition parties raised slogans against the government in front of Mahatma Gandhi's statue in Parliament complex.
The ruling Congress in Uttarakhand got a boost after Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna won from Sitarganj with a record margin that increased its total tally to 33 in the 70-member house.
The action was taken upon a plea filed by Congress Vikasnagar runner-up candidate Navprabhat on alleged tampering of electronic voting machines.
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.
Rawat, who thanked Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and other party leader for lending support, said the state would need active support of the central government and that he would meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.
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