Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad on Friday formally broached the idea of a grand alliance including former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party in poll-bound Bihar, a move that may rock attempts at a merger between 'Janata Parivar' parties.
All's fair in politics? The Bihar CM stroke a controversy by visiting a tantrik.
Fuelling further the bitter quota debate in Bihar polls, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday accused his rivals Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad of having come together in July 2005 to demand a review of the policy to provide for religion-based reservation.
Campaigning has reached a fervent pitch in Bihar with senior political leaders wooing the voters, one last time before the state goes to the polls.
The Election Commission on Friday gave the go-ahead to the airing of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Mann ki Baat programme on Sunday.
A day after the National Democratic Alliance finalised the seat-sharing arrangement for the Bihar assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party has emerged as the 'big-brother' and the largest party in the state to contest the number of seats.
Bharatiya Janata Party veterans L K Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Shanta Kumar and Yashwant Sinha, who had virtually revolted after Bihar poll debacle, met in New Delhi on Thursday to discuss the suspension of MP Kirti Azad and issues related to party leadership.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday came out in support of full statehood for Delhi and said Janata Dal-United in coordination with other parties will raise the issue in the Parliament.
"Party is taking note on what is being said by whom. They have not come out against Narendra Modi, they have just made a comment on our strategy about Bihar. The section of media has highlighted it as a headline," Union urban development minister said.
Naidu 'disturbed' by media reports that Opposition parties will now be more emboldened to unite and stall the government's Parliamentary agenda for the Winter Session.
Expelled Janata Dal-United leader and former Bihar chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi on Friday launched a new party -- Hindustani Awam Morcha -- to counter the Janata Parivar. The party will contest alone all the 243 seats in Bihar polls scheduled for later this year.
BJP leaders said the party will take corrective measures, while its long-time ally Shiv Sena appeared taking a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Incidents like the Dadri lynching "damage" the image of the National Democratic Alliance government, and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has nothing to do with them, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has said.
Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday urged party leaders in Kerala to shed their differences and fight the coming assembly polls unitedly
Reiterating his 'suit-boot ki sarkar' jibe, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday dubbed Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a feku (a brag).
Dissent in BJP grows stronger as more leaders question party's poll strategy in Bihar.
As the BJP does soul searching for its humiliating defeat in Bihar polls, senior party leader Arun Jaitley on Monday admitted "irresponsible statements" made during elections "changed the narrative".
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday met Rahul Gandhi at his residence in New Delhi as the talks on alliance to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party in Bihar polls gained momentum.
Rahul hits out at Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for joining hands with the BJP.
Taking a cue from the massive victory of the Grand Alliance against the Bharatiya Janata Party in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh CM Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday said such a tie-up was possible in the state where assembly elections are due in early 2017.
Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu on Saturday accused the writers, who returned their awards, of double standards saying they were selective in attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi for "growing intolerance" in the country and overlooked the Congress wrongdoings including Emergency in the past.
Manjhi said he had held rallies across the state where the "consensus" was to get "rid" of the Lalu-Nitish combine.
Speaking at a rally in poll-bound Bihar, Modi said that the Congress has no right to talk about tolerance after the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.
Shahs also said that his party will strive to rid the state of its 'Bimaru' tag as development is the way forward in Indian politics now.
A 7.8 per cent increase in votes for the JD-U-RJD-Congress alliance over BJP-led NDA's tally fetched it another 120 seats catapulting the Nitish Kumar-led coalition to a landslide two-third majority.
Barclays, the global brokerage firm, also stated that the election verdict could lead to a weakness in the stock market.
"Intolerance debate is the unnecessary creation of very imaginative minds who are being paid a lot of money," Minister of State for External Affairs VK Singh said.
Earlier, the BJP leader had to take back his tweets saying Shah Rukh's soul is in Pakistan.
Markets end in red; bluechips struggle to keep pace.
Raising the 'Jungle Raj' pitch, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday warned that Lalu Prasad will "remote control" the affairs in Bihar and "kidnapping" will be only industry that will flourish if the opposition grand alliance comes to power.
Questioning BJP's stand on reservation, he said whatever the ruling party may say it cannot go against the views of the RSS.
While the RJD has decided to deploy 50 tamtams, the JD-U has hired PM Modi's former campaign advisor to engage voters and counter the BJP.
Congress has indicated it won't settle for less than 50 seats in any non-BJP alliance, unlikely if a JD(United)-RJD deal does take place.
Rashtriya Janata Dal President Lalu Prasad on Thursday invited former Bihar chief minister Jiten Ram Manjhi, a known detractor of Nitish Kumar, to join the process of uniting parties against the Bharatiya Janata Party for the upcoming assembly polls in Bihar.
Ahead of PM Modi's maiden visit to the UK, the British media today said "troubles at home" after the BJP's drubbing in the Bihar elections will overshadow his visit.
Hundreds of RSS cadres are helping the Saffron party counter Lalu-Nitish's campaign on the reservation issue in Bihar polls, observes M I Khan
When it comes to the winning strike rate, Lalu Prasad Yadav's Rashtriya Janata Dal has emerged victorious on eight of every ten seats it contested while only one of the every three Bharatiya Janata Party candidates managed to win.
At the best, the so called Rs 1.25 lakh crore package will not provide anything more than Rs 10,368 crore as additional or incremental resource to the state, said Chief Minister Nitish Kumar
The Prime Minister tends to keep such decisions close to his chest.
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