Former MLA Harshwardhan Sapkal has been appointed as the new president of the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC), tasked with reviving the party in the state after its crushing defeat in the last year's assembly polls. Sapkal, a veteran politician, replaces Nana Patole, who held the position since 2021. The Congress aims to rebuild its base and prepare for upcoming local body polls, including those in Mumbai, Pune, Thane, and Nagpur. The party will also need to work with its allies, the Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP), to strengthen the opposition against the ruling BJP-led alliance.
Some of his directives had the Supreme Court judges disclose their assets whereas the row over the discovery of cash from a sitting judge's official residence paved way for inquiry.
While BJD leaders held a marathon meeting at Naveen Niwas, the residence of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, in Bhubaneswar on Wednesday, the BJP leaders had a similar meeting in the national capital, discussing election matters, including a potential alliance.
In an atmosphere enlivened by music and the cheering crowd, the roadshow started from Patel Chowk and continued till the NDMC convention centre.
To seek approval for about 2,084 political advertisements in the city, the BJP submitted nearly 517 applications to the poll body from March 13 till May 8, data accessed by PTI showed.
The Congress had fielded Bam against sitting BJP MP Shankar Lalwani from the Indore Lok Sabha seat, where polling will be held on May 13.
A meeting of Aam Aadmi Party MLAs will be held on Tuesday morning, and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is likely to tender his resignation after it, the party said.
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, who faced trolling on social media in the wake of India and Pakistan reaching an understanding on May 10 to halt all military actions, has received support from veteran diplomat Nirupama Menon Rao, a body of Indian diplomats and a host of politicians from several parties.
National Conference (NC) vice president Omar Abdullah Friday challenged the Bharatiya Janata Party to contest Lok Sabha polls in the Kashmir Valley, saying he will quit politics if the national party's candidates do not lose their security deposits.
Political battle over 'Pujari Granthi Samman Yojna' announced by Aam Aadmi Party supremo Arvind Kejriwal intensified on Tuesday, as he launched registration process for the scheme at a temple in Kashmiri Gate in New Delhi.
Delhi Water Minister Atishi on Wednesday said that she has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the water crisis in the national capital and threatened to go on an indefinite strike from June 21 if the issue is not resolved within a couple of days.
There are unconfirmed reports that the BJP has offered to appoint Paras as governor and a berth in the Bihar cabinet to his nephew Prince Raj. M I Khan reports.
As the 240-seater prime minister attempts to moderate his image of hardline hero, he has made room for others to elbow in and that is what is happening. And that it what will continue to happen from inside the BJP, notes Aakar Patel.
The choice that bypasses several other senior government leaders is likely to set a stage for another round of tussle between the AAP dispensation and the LG Secretariat.
Biju Janata Dal founding member and six-time Cuttack Lok Sabha MP Bhartruhari Mahtab joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in New Delhi on Thursday, dealing a big blow to the Odisha's ruling party ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
The apex court bench, also comprising justices Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai, JB Pardiwala, and Manoj Misra, will assemble at 10.30 am to hear the two petitions.
There is no use of the BJP targeting the likes of Mamata Banerjee and M K Stalin, directly by the party's political bosses, both in Delhi and the respective state capitals, or even using the Raj Bhavans to fire those salvos from. Successive elections have proved that it's counter-productive, if anything. But the BJP is yet to understand it, acknowledge it, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Senior BJP leaders, including Union ministers Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh, asserted on Saturday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will complete his full term if elected to power, refuting the Aam Aadmi Party's claim that Modi wants Shah to succeed him after turning 75 next year.
Former Delhi government minister Rajendra Pal Gautam on Friday quit the Aam Aadmi Party and joined the Congress, alleging discrimination against Dalit and minority leaders in the Arvind Kejriwal led party.
Jitin Prasada was once considered as among Rahul Gandhi's 'young Turks' and was a minister in successive Manmohan Singh governments but defected from the Congress to the BJP in 2021, where he has again established himself as a prominent Brahmin face of Uttar Pradesh.
The BJP's strategy seem to be to wean away allies from the Congress, in Dravidian Tamil Nadu, and maybe later in UP, Bihar and elsewhere, though in slow doses, but without wooing them into a new alliance. The idea seems to be only to weaken the INDIA bloc from within -- and leaving it at that, notes N Sathiya Moorthy.
After joining the Congress, Rahul Kaswan said he felt his "voice was not being heard" in the party.
Hours after the AAP announced its night-long sit-in against the Lieutenant Governor, BJP MLAs also started an overnight dharna on the assembly premises demanding the sacking of ministers Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain over alleged corruption.
Aam Aadmi Party's Delhi state convener Gopal Rai on Thursday said his party's alliance with the Congress was only for the Lok Sabha elections and hinted that the ruling party in the city will go solo in next year's assembly polls in Delhi.
'During Eid Muslims get Eidi, but Opposition parties never gave that to them.' 'When PM Modi is giving Eidi to Muslims Opposition leaders are getting upset.'
Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Suresh Gopi has stirred controversy by suggesting that members of the "upper castes" should handle the tribal affairs portfolio. Gopi, an actor-turned-politician, argued that true progress in tribal welfare would only be achieved under the leadership of individuals from "upper castes." His comments have been met with widespread criticism, including from CPI state secretary Benoy Viswam and prominent tribal leader C K Janu.
"Fresh elections to the assembly should be held to enable people to elect a popular government in the state in accordance with law," the memorandum to the Haryana governor read.
The two candidates, current mayor Oberoi and BJP's Rai, had earlier filed their nominations for the Delhi mayoral poll slated to be held on April 26, officials had said.
Ganguly joined the BJP in New Delhi at the party headquarters in the presence of several other party leaders, including its national media department in-charge Anil Baluni.
'Everyone is unhappy with the lieutenant governor's administration, which is ignorant, high-handed, and inaccessible.'
'The Congress backstabbed us and the BJP frontstabbed us.' 'This is the only difference between the two parties.'
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Monday urged all political parties, including the Congress, to unite against anti-India forces, and raise their voice if they find their leaders working against the country's interest.
Bharatiya Janata Party's Sandeshkhali leader Gangadhar Koyal on Friday moved the Calcutta high court, claiming that technology-aided videos mimicking his voice were being circulated in a bid to defame him, and prayed for security be provided to him by central agencies.
The party also named Dinesh Pratap Singh as its candidate from Rae Bareli, a Gandhi family bastion which was won by former Congress president Sonia Gandhi five consecutive times.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has said he is "more than happy" to take responsibility for everything wrong the party did in its history, including the 1984 Sikh riots. He acknowledged that the party made "a lot of mistakes" when he was not there, but said he has publicly stated that what happened in the 80s was "wrong." The remarks were made during an interaction at Brown University in the US. The video of the interaction was uploaded on the YouTube channel of the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs on Saturday. The BJP has criticized Gandhi for his remarks, accusing him of "ridiculing" the beliefs of Hindus and Sikhs.
Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said her "sympathies" were with the BJP as big leaders of the INDIA bloc who are known to be good speakers have made it to the House.
The Boxing Federation of India (BFI) has rejected former Sports Minister Anurag Thakur's nomination for the upcoming elections, citing his ineligibility.
Bharatiya Janata Party leaders on Wednesday attended a ceremony to rename South Delhi's 'Muhammadpur' village to 'Madhavpuram', saying the locals did not want to associate themselves with any "symbol of slavery".
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge accused the BJP-RSS of carrying out a "well-planned conspiracy" against national heroes and said that Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's ideology was contrary to the RSS' ideas. He defended the relationship between Sardar Patel and Jawaharlal Nehru, saying they were "two sides of the same coin". He also criticized the BJP-RSS for their alleged attempts to appropriate the legacy of Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel.
Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi has criticized the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, calling it a 'brazen assault' on the Constitution and part of the BJP's strategy to keep society in a 'permanent state of polarization.' She also spoke out against the One Nation, One Election Bill, calling it a 'subversion of the Constitution.' Gandhi further accused the Modi government of ignoring the women's reservation bill and other demands for reservation, and of 'dragging the country into an abyss' where the Constitution will only exist on paper. She also criticized the government for limiting the speaking time of the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament and for not allowing discussions on important issues like the working of the defense and external affairs ministries and the challenges posed by China on the border.
