Nearly 17 years after a blast in Malegaon town of north Maharashtra claimed six lives, a special court in Mumbai on Thursday acquitted all the seven accused, including former Bharatiya Janata Party MP Pragya Singh Thakur and Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit, noting there was 'no reliable and cogent evidence' against them.
A region-wise analysis of the Gujarat assembly results shows that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) swept Saurashtra region, winning 40 of 48 seats, regaining its hold over a region where the Congress held sway in 2017 polls.
When the votes get counted for the assembly elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party will be hoping to set a few new records.
This would give BJP the chance to explore Constitutional options for government formation if there is no clear-cut mandate, explains Sheela Bhatt.
The project was allegedly awarded to contractors linked with AAP.
"According to you Congress should guarantee foolproof intelligence to BJP and nothing should be asked of the BJP," Raj said in a post on X.
The Bharat Mata controversy in Kerala shows how political and symbolic fights between the state and the Centre have taken attention away from education, throwing the state's oldest university into confusion and disorder, observes Shyam G Menon.
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.
Polling in 31 district panchayats, 231 taluka panchayats and 81 municipalities of Gujarat and by-elections of 23 municipalities and 3 taluka panchayats were held on Sunday.
The Aam Aadmi Party alleged on Wednesday that its Surat East candidate Kanchan Jariwala was abducted at the behest of the Bharatiya Janata Party, which "feared" a defeat from the seat during the Gujarat assembly election.
The Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP criticised the move, claiming the BJP was promoting curbs on the free will of citizens.
The Congress also claimed that the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP was the "B-team" of the BJP in Gujarat.
The Congress had won 77 seats in the 2017 assembly elections. Of these 77 legislators, as many as 20 resigned during the past five years, with three quitting in the last two days alone.
Counting of votes will be held on Thursday for the Gujarat assembly elections which were held in two phases on December 1 and 5 across 33 districts of the Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled state.
A meeting is being held at the Bharatiya Janata Party's headquarters chaired by the party's national general secretary (organisation) B L Santosh on Sunday over the 2024 Lok Sabha Election.
The ruling BJP has named Kalpesh Parmar as its candidate for the Matar seat, which was represented by Solanki in 2014 and 2017.
Gujarat voters, spoilt for choice, are eagerly waiting to see what the BJP will offer them.
The row over alleged offensive remarks made by Union minister Parshottam Rupala escalated on Wednesday with Rajput leaders rejecting the BJP's bid to patch up and threatening to launch nationwide protests if the saffron party fails to withdraw his candidature from Gujarat.
Though different voices are emerging from within the ruling BJP in Madhya Pradesh over the issue, several saffron party MLAs, including senior leaders, appeared worried about a possible repeat of the 'Gujarat formula' to overcome anti-incumbency in the central state, where Assembly elections are due in end-2023.
Shivakumar said, "Mahayuti leaders should visit my state to see how Congress' welfare guarantees are benefiting people."
In another jolt to the opposition Congress for the second day in a row ahead of the Gujarat assembly polls, senior MLA Bhagwan Barad on Wednesday resigned as a legislator and primary member and is set to join the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Despite the AAP cutting into its votes, the Congress still polled 27 per cent votes and won 17 seats.
Kejriwal asked whether the BJP-led central government was waiting for the Lok Sabha elections to make a move in this direction.
The Congress has proposed AAP should contest five seats while the Samajwadi Party and Left parties could contest one seat each.
The GMC poll was being seen as a litmus test for the BJP in the backdrop of its sudden and surprising decision to change the state's chief minister and the entire cabinet recently, ahead of the state Assembly polls due next year.
The Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad has arrested five persons for allegedly hatching a conspiracy to extort Rs 8 crore from a retired Indian Police Service officer by preparing and circulating a false affidavit to claim he had raped a woman, an official said on Monday.
Incumbent MLA Kandhal Jadeja of Samajwadi Party on Thursday retained the Kutiyana assembly seat
The Gujarat high court has issued summons to the Bharatiya Janata Party MP from the Surat Lok Sabha constituency, Mukesh Dalal, over two petitions challenging his uncontested victory.
The seven candidates are contesting from the seats that will go to polls in the first phase of the elections scheduled to be held on December 1.
While the BJP faces rebellion in some pockets and an undercurrent of anger palpable among the dominant OBC Chaudhary community due to the arrest of dairy cooperative leader and former home minister Vipul Chahduary, local caste dynamics and selection of candidates are likely to play a major role in the final outcome, political analysts said.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) conducted searches at the residence of former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel in Raipur and Bhilai on Wednesday. The agency also searched the residences of a senior police officer and a close associate of the former chief minister. The CBI is tight-lipped about the matter in which the searches are taking place. Further details are awaited. Recently, the Enforcement Directorate had conducted searches at Baghel's residence in connection with an alleged liquor scam case.
Rathwa was a Minister of State for Railways in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in 2004, and lost to BJP candidate Ramsinh Rathwa in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections.
Names of Rajya Sabha MPs Harbhajan Singh and Swati Maliwal are missing from the list.
'The BJP will not win a single seat in Punjab.'
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday fielded its president J P Nadda for Rajya Sabha polls from Gujarat and former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan from his home state.
The resolution, moved by Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, was passed unanimously as besides the BJP MLAs, members of the Opposition Congress as well as the Aam Aadmi Party extended their support to it.
Vaghani, a relatively young Patel face of the BJP, was earlier state unit's youth wing president.
MNS leader Raj Thackeray has sparked speculation about a potential political rapprochement with his estranged cousin and Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, suggesting their past differences are "trivial" and uniting for the greater good of "Marathi manoos" is not a difficult task. The comments come amid a political landscape in Maharashtra where the Shiv Sena (UBT) is facing a tough battle to retain its stronghold in Mumbai in upcoming civic polls, with competition from the Shinde-led Sena and BJP.
Of the 788 candidates contesting 89 seats in the first phase of Gujarat Assembly polls, 211 are 'crorepatis', with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party accounting for 79 such nominees, the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) said in a report on Thursday.
Some BJP workers in the area have expressed unhappiness over her candidature.
