The BJP's West Bengal unit chief, Samik Bhattacharya, has criticised the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government, accusing it of crushing democracy and creating a lawless environment in the state. He highlighted political violence, rising debt, and a lack of investor confidence as key issues under the TMC's rule.
Former West Bengal minister Sujit Bose has been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with a money laundering case linked to an alleged municipality recruitment scam.
This election is different. It is no longer simply about governance or welfare. It is about identity, fear, and who belongs. The BJP has successfully shifted the terms of the debate from what the government has delivered to who the real Bengali is and who is an outsider, points out Ramesh Menon.
South India's manufacturing, construction, and services sectors are grappling with severe labour shortages, prompting employers to offer attractive incentives like free air tickets and salary increments to lure migrant workers back from their home states after recent assembly elections.
After a gap of more than three years, the central government has agreed to resume the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) works in West Bengal with immediate effect, but subject to mandatory adherence to stringent conditions. These include a prohibition on any work valued at more than 20 lakh, compulsory 100 per cent electronic know-your-customer (eKYC) verification of all workers, and mandatory pre-estimation field visits for all works before they are undertaken.
The additional 25 per cent tariff imposed by US President Donald Trump on India is set to deliver a major blow to West Bengal's export-driven economy, with the state's labour-intensive leather, engineering and marine sectors expecting losses ahead of the festive season, stakeholders said. The increased levies on Indian products for the country's purchases of Russian oil came into effect on Wednesday, bringing the total amount of tariff imposed on New Delhi to 50 per cent.
The Enforcement Directorate arrested former West Bengal minister Sujit Bose in connection with a money laundering case linked to an alleged municipality recruitment scam.
The newly elected BJP-led government in West Bengal will take oath on May 9, coinciding with Rabindranath Tagore's birth anniversary, according to West Bengal BJP President Samik Bhattacharya. He also addressed post-election incidents and urged party workers to celebrate responsibly.
The BJP's West Bengal unit chief, Samik Bhattacharya, criticised the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government, accusing it of crushing democracy and fostering lawlessness in the state. He highlighted alleged political violence, economic decline, and disrespect for constitutional posts under the TMC's rule.
A city court has remanded former West Bengal minister Sujit Bose to Enforcement Directorate (ED) custody until May 21 in connection with the alleged municipal recruitment scam. Bose, a Trinamool Congress leader, was arrested after questioning and is accused of concealing information and making contradictory statements.
'The nepotism, corruption, bad governance and 15 years of rampant crime that has happened across West Bengal under her rule led to her ouster.'
The Trinamool Congress government's massive defeat in West Bengal shows "deep anti-incumbency and unpopularity" as out of 35 ministers who contested the assembly elections, 22 have been defeated, including Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in her constituency.
A migrant labourer from West Bengal allegedly killed his wife and three children with an iron rod in Bihar's Darbhanga district following a family dispute.
Under the TMC, Bengal has seen expansion of welfare, but not big-ticket private investment.
The Left Democratic Front's defeat in Kerala marks a historic moment as Left parties are without power in any state for the first time in decades, highlighting their diminishing political influence across India.
'...especially pressure on the rupee, the current account deficit, and foreign exchange outflows.' 'The key question over the next several months is whether the government can prevent external turbulence from feeding into domestic economic pessimism.'
A woman and her accomplice have been sentenced to life imprisonment by the Kullu District and Sessions Court for the murder of her husband in 2018.
Police in Kanpur have arrested a suspected mastermind behind a network of fake firms, forged documents, and suspected hawala transactions worth over Rs 3,200 crore.
The death toll in the Vedanta power plant blast in Chhattisgarh's Sakti district has risen to 24, with one more worker succumbing to injuries. An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the explosion, which occurred in a steel tube carrying high-pressure steam.
Banerjee is personally present in court room one along with her lawyers. A gate pass was issued in the chief minister's name on Tuesday.
The BJP has accused West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of attempting to separate the state from India by inciting violence and protecting illegal immigrants, drawing parallels to the 1905 partition of Bengal.
'Raising the retrenchment, layoff and closure threshold to 300 workers for prior government permission enables hire-and-fire in more than 90 per cent of the Indian workplaces. More than 12,00,000 disputes are now pending for adjudication with an average disposal period ranging from 3 to five years for more than 75 per cent of the disputes.'
A West Bengal native was arrested in Kottayam, Kerala for allegedly murdering his wife and burying her body near an under-construction house. The accused, Soni SK, confessed to the crime, citing suspicion of an extramarital affair.
A fire in two godowns in West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district resulted in at least seven deaths and several missing persons. Rescue operations are underway to clear the debris and ascertain the full extent of the tragedy.
The death toll from the April 14 blast at Vedanta's power plant in Chhattisgarh's Sakti district has risen to 21, with several others hospitalised. Investigations are underway to determine the cause of the explosion, with preliminary findings pointing to excessive fuel accumulation in the boiler furnace.
Shah said not allowing trains to reach West Bengal is "injustice" to the migrant workers from the state.
As the March 31 deadline arrives, a wave of Maoist surrenders suggests insurgency's end, but political and social concerns remain.
The second phase of the Systematic Integration of Rolls (SIR) in West Bengal is causing distress among elderly, disabled, and vulnerable voters, leading to political accusations ahead of the assembly polls.
The cost of the war is being counted not in the corridors of power in Washington or Tehran, but in Firozabad's darkened furnace rooms, Howrah's idle casting sheds, and a barbershop in Kochi where the wait is suddenly, inexplicably, an hour long, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War.
'The BJP is keeping its options open and that the final decision is still tightly held.' 'That is consistent with the party's tendency to preserve suspense, avoid premature factional conflict, and use leadership selection as a way of resetting internal hierarchies.'
A nationwide strike called by central trade unions saw a mixed response across India, impacting various sectors and states differently, with some areas experiencing disruptions while others remained largely unaffected.
A nationwide strike called by trade unions to protest against the central government's labor policies had a mixed impact across India. While normal life remained largely unaffected in most parts of the country, some sectors like banking, transport, and insurance experienced disruptions. Sporadic incidents of violence were reported in West Bengal.
West Bengal was the second-most industrialised state in terms of value added and first in terms of number of factories and employment even in the mid-1960s. With a severe and long process of deindustrialisation, it lost its primacy.
Faulty procurement, rising farm inputs push debt-ridden farmers into desperation leading to suicides
The Supreme Court is examining the validity of the Election Commission's decision to conduct special intensive revisions of electoral rolls in several states, focusing on concerns about democratic participation and the burden on ordinary voters.
'The question for the TMC is not whether it can hold its bastions, but whether it can expand effectively into regions where the BJP already possesses a good ecosystem.'
Mark Tully, the renowned journalist, author, and Indophile, has passed away at the age of 90. He spent a lifetime in India as a journalist, mingling with its people and telling their stories.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's biggest challenge will be to find a new growth driver, particularly against the backdrop of a global economy ravaged by heightened uncertainty and fragmentation, financial markets on a precipice, and global commodity prices on a continued uptrend.
Budget 2026 sticks to fiscal discipline, shuns populist measures despite five key state elections coming up, but ends up rattling stock markets with a higher transaction tax on derivatives trading.
The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has launched an integrated audit across 32 states and Union Territories to assess the ease of doing business for the micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) sector.
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