Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi, BJP chief J P Nadda and new party entrant Ashok Chavan and Union ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw and L Murugan were among the 41 candidates elected unopposed to Rajya Sabha on Tuesday while Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh will witness polling on February 27.
But as voters gear up for crucial assembly and parliamentary polls on May 13, all eyes are on the high-stakes battle in Pulivendula, an assembly constituency that has been a Reddy family stronghold for over four decades.
The Andhra Pradesh high court on Thursday dismissed a petition seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the assets of former chief minister and Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu.
YSR Congress party honorary president and member of Legislative Assembly Y S Vijayamma on Monday appealed to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to direct Central Bureau of Investigation to act "impartially" unyielding to any pressure from its political bosses as far as investigations against her son and Kadapa member of Parliament Y S Jaganmohan Reddy are concerned.
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YSR Congress Party chief Jagan Mohan Reddy's unexpected release on bail -- after spending 16 months behind bars on charges of corruption -- has set many tongues wagging.
The increased numbers of the Opposition bloc would mean that their MPs are likely to head several more panels than the four that they did by the end of the term of the 17th Lok Sabha.
The total number of those who have quit the Congress and embraced parties like the YSR Congress, Telugu Desam Party and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi stands at 75 today. To make matters worse, another wave of defections are expected to hit the party in the days to come.
BJP will find it tougher to push contentious Bills, especially those that would require Constitutional amendments, without the support of its allies and cooperation from the Opposition.
Jaishankar briefed the leaders of all parties about the situation in the violence-hit nation and the steps taken by the Indian government.
'Chandrababu is wiser and a very good administrator.' 'Jagan is the opposite. He is not very wise, not a good administrator.'
The humiliation for the Telugu Desam Party was such that it could cross the double digit in only five urban local bodies while other opposition parties Bharatiya Janata Party and Jana Sena Partymade little gains.
Although the BRS is projecting supreme confidence, who will be able to tap anti-incumbency -- the BJP or Sharmila plus the Congress -- remains to be seen.
As the state observes the death anniversary of YSR (as he is popularly called) on Thursday, the road ahead for the Congress appears to be bumpy.
Both the BJP and Congress understand that coalitions and alliances are not just about numbers, but have symbolic value.
The government on Monday said it was willing to discuss every issue under rules during the Budget session of Parliament and sought the support of the Opposition in running the proceedings smoothly.
The BJP was unable to win any seat in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala besides Puducherry in 2011.
Despite failing to secure a simple majority in Parliament, we will continue to see him on TV, newspapers, magazines, bill boards, vaccination certificates, railway stations, bus shelters, airports, sea ports, on the highway and on rural roads, sighs A Ganesh Nadar.
The party has issued a three-line whip to all its MPs in the Lok Sabha to ensure their presence, the sources added.
The SC asked why was there a need to make a public statement when a probe had already been ordered into the matter.
Andhra Pradesh Home Minister Sabitha Indra Reddy has been named in the charge-sheet of the Central Bureau of Investigation's chargesheet against Jagan Mohan Reddy in the disproportionate assets case against the YSR Congress chief.
Sources close to Reddy confirmed that his visit to the hill shrine has been cancelled, but did not immediately divulge the reason behind the decision that came just a couple of hours before he was supposed to depart to the temple town.
Key individual parties have cornered a larger share, with some favouring regional and others national players.
Chandrababu Naidu's victory comes barely eight months after his political career seemingly crashed in September 2023 when the YSRCP government arrested him in an alleged corruption case.
'There is also a possibility that Andhra Pradesh may demand a similar package. But as of now, we are only working on a package for Bihar.'
A day after TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu held deliberations with Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP chief J P Nadda, Kumar told PTI that preliminary discussions have taken place for the 'purpose of alliance' for the Lok Sabha and state assembly polls, which are held simultaneously in Andhra Pradesh.
The Supreme Court on Friday set up a five-member independent SIT to probe the allegations of animal fat used in preparing Tirupati laddus to "assuage the feelings of crores of people" while making clear that the court cannot be used as a "political battleground".
The high-level committee on 'one nation, one election' approached 62 parties out which 47 responded -- 32 in support of holding elections simultaneously, 15 against it.
Factors such as anti-incumbency, voter fatigue, and dissatisfaction among the youth contributed mainly to the poor showing of Bharat Rashtra Samithi in the Telangana legislative assembly election on Sunday.
Unlike the previous visit, where TDP MPs accompanied Naidu to meetings, sources termed the current visit as "low profile", with one-on-one meetings with key Union ministers.
Close to half of the total 543 Lok Sabha seats are bracing for multi-cornered fight this time, making the contest way more interesting and intense than it was in the 2019 elections.
How many seats will the TDP win? How many seats will the YSR Congress win?
Capping a day-long acrimonious debate in the Assembly that went on till the wee hours of Saturday, the motion was defeated by 84 votes in a head count by division.
The total income of national and regional parties from unknown sources for 2020-21 stands at Rs 690.67 crore.
The Congress government in Andhra Pradesh suffered yet another blow with its Kakinada MLA Dwarampudi Chandrasekhar Reddy formally joining the YSR Congress on Thursday.
Rejecting allegations that the Central Bureau of Investigation was acting against YS Jagan Mohan Reddy at the behest of the government and Congress president Sonia Gandhi, the ruling party on Monday accused the YSR Congress chief and his family of making baseless accusations for the sake of "political benefit".
Eleven MLAs from the Congress and the Telugu Desam Party have expressed their willingness to quit their respective parties and join Jagan Mohan Reddy's YSR Congress, say sources close to the leader.On Friday, Congress MLA A Nani had openly supported YSR Congress chief Jagan.Today, Congress leader Ranga Rao from Bobili constituency announced his decision to quit the Congress and join Jagan. He is likely to formally join the YSR Congress by Saturday evening.
The Supreme Court order which demands explanation from six Andhra Pradesh ministers for their alleged role in the disproportionate assets case against Jaganmohan Reddy has but the Congress in a fix, reports Vicky Nanjappa.
Normal life remained crippled for the second day on Saturday in coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions where a bandh is being observed to protest the Centre's decision to bifurcate the state.
With the exit polls projecting a majority for the BJP-led NDA, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday took potshots at the ruling party, saying it will now find a scapegoat in Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in its attempt to save Sonia and Rahul Gandhi from criticism.
With the Bharatiya Janata Party falling short of a majority in the Lok Sabha and needing the National Democratic Alliance partners to form the government at the Centre, Bihar Chief Minister and Janata Dal-United head Nitish Kumar and Telugu Desam Party's N Chandrababu Naidu have emerged as potential kingmakers.
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