The Rajya Sabha election scene in Karnataka heated up with the Bharatiya Janata Party-Janata Dal (Secular) combine fielding its second candidate, even though the alliance has the strength to win only one out four seats.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday remained non-committal about forming the government in Delhi, following Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's decision to step down, with the main Opposition saying that while it did not favour dissolution of the House, it was ready to face fresh polls.
Given the possibilities that next year's assembly elections could throw up, Stalin told the state assembly that an interim report had to be submitted by January 2026. The outcomes may well find its way into the DMK's poll manifesto, thus seeking to keep the electoral focus still on the BJP-ruled Centre and Prime Minister Modi, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Congress-AAP alliance this time aims to give a tough fight and stop the division of anti-BJP votes.
With this, the Shiv Sena has become the second major political party to release its list of candidates for the state assembly polls. Its ally BJP released a list of 99 candidates on Sunday.
They were suspended for misbehaviour and shouting slogans in the House.
Members of the Legislative Council asked how some former legislators could enter the Vidhan Bhavan premises amid COVID-19-related restrictions and sought a report on the matter.
Ajit Pawar has the support of more than 40 MLAs of the NCP, according to sources citing a letter submitted to Raj Bhavan.
Raghuvar Das, the national vice president of the Bharatiya Janata Party will be the first non-tribal chief minister of Jharkhand after he was elected the leader of BJP legislative party.
Those who quit included deputy chief minister Y JoyKumar Singh.
It also cautioned that if the legislation is passed, the "two crutches" on which the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government is running at the Centre would not be able to escape responsibility.
While Fadnavis has admitted that the letter was sent to him in good faith, he said that he would have to discuss with the party leadership before taking a decision.
Amid a controversy over a Telangana Bharatiya Janata Party leader describing tennis star Sania Mirza as a "non-local" and "daughter-in-law" of Pakistan, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar on Thursday said the tennis ace is a pride and brand ambassador of India.
The MLAs of the ruling JMM-led alliance exuded confidence of winning the floor test, while the opposition BJP asserted that the coalition would be defeated.
The Delhi high court on Monday said the state government dragged its feet on the issue of tabling of several Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) reports before the assembly, raising 'doubts on its bona fides'.
Although the BJP has never been ballistic about the BJD and Narendra Modi has avoided being critical of Naveen Patnaik, the BJP is optimistic that the party can improve its electoral fortunes in Odisha on its own, notes Rup Narayan Das.
The newly elected Bharatiya Janata Party MLAs in Rajasthan will meet in Jaipur on Tuesday to formally pick the next chief minister of the state, ending days of suspense after the party won the assembly elections.
West Bengal, which is governed by the Trinamool Congress, became the second state after Congress-ruled Punjab, where such a resolution has been tabled and passed.
Khan, who was recently released from Sitapur Jail, is in Rampur and could not attend the meeting due to health reasons, SP leaders said.
Patel insisted that the meeting with Shah and other BJP leaders was a "courtesy call" as he and Ajit Pawar had not met them formally since joining the ruling alliance in Maharashtra.
Protesters in West Bengal's Murshidabad district set fire to police vehicles and hurled stones during a demonstration against the Waqf (Amendment) Act. The incident occurred on Tuesday afternoon in the Jangipur area, where a large crowd had gathered demanding the withdrawal of the legislation. Police responded with lathi charges and tear gas to control the situation. Several people were detained and police personnel were injured in the stone-pelting. The West Bengal Police has said the situation is under control and strict action will be taken against those who resorted to violence.
Former Congress MLA from Barnala, Kewal Dhillon, and former Shiormani Akali Dal MLAs Sarup Chand Singla and Mohinder Kaur Josh also joined the BJP.
The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) constituents have decided to house all its newly-elected MLAs together in Mumbai after the Maharashtra election results, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said on Friday, a move aimed at preventing poaching ahead of government formation. Raut said MVA leaders met on Thursday and carried out an assessment of every seat. The counting of votes for the November 20 Maharashtra assembly polls will take place on Saturday. Raut expressed confidence that the MVA would win 160 seats in the elections. The term of the Maharashtra legislative assembly ends on November 26. The opposition fears that President's rule could be imposed in the state if a new government is not formed till then.
Few in Varanasi expect the result to be different from 2014 and 2019. The only point of interest is whether Narendra Modi will increase his winning margin against his rivals.
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.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party has informed the Election Commission that he has been elected national president of the party.
In an embarrassment to the Bharatiya Janata Party in Bihar, one of its MLAs has been accused of hurting Hindu sentiments by allegedly berating Goddess Lakshmi and Saraswati and Lord Hanuman.
Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini has vowed to take strict action against travel agents involved in sending youth from the state abroad through illegal routes. He said the government is identifying those involved and will introduce a law to control illegal immigration. Saini also commented on the recent Delhi elections, praising the BJP's victory and criticizing former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal.
The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) has shifted its focus back to Hindutva after suffering significant losses in the recent Maharashtra assembly elections. The party has been vocal about attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh and has taken a stance to "protect" a Hanuman Temple in Mumbai. Observers say this move is an attempt to regain its core voter base and counter the BJP's narrative on Hindutva, ahead of the upcoming civic polls. Analysts believe the party's "secular" stand may not be effective in the BMC elections and that its return to Hindutva is a sign of frustration from electoral setbacks.
Cracks are widening within Bihar BJP with more party legislators coming in the open and alleging lack of inner democracy with one MLA openly vouching for Chief Minister Nitish Kumar saying he would serve as a better prime minister.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's disqualification as an MP by the Lok Sabha Secretariat is a result of a court order and not a political call, Bharatiya Janata Party leaders said on Friday, stating that everyone is equal before the law.
The newly-elected MLAs of Telangana would take oath during the first session of the Legislative Assembly scheduled to be held on Saturday.
Both the BJP and Congress understand that coalitions and alliances are not just about numbers, but have symbolic value.
Several BJP and JD-S leaders joining the Congress ahead of the May 10 assembly polls in Karnataka is an evidence to prove that public sentiment is in favour of the party and it will come to power, its state unit President D K Shivakumar said on Monday.
Lodhi, who represented the Bada Malhera assembly seat in Chhatarpur district, joined the BJP at the ruling party's state headquarters in the presence of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
'It was not the individual's decision. It was the collective decision (that BSY should resign).'
Prominent among these include former sports minister and sitting MLA Gurmit Singh Sodhi, MLA Fatehjang Singh Bajwa and former minister Anil Joshi.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar's statement that even God can't fix Bengaluru traffic in the next two or three years, has come under severe criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party, with leader of opposition R Ashoka on Friday demanding that the former step down and make way for someone more capable if he is unable to take responsibility and address the city's traffic issues.
The recently held presidential election and the historic victory of Droupadi Murmu are likely to create political ripples in Kerala as the NDA candidate received an unexpected vote from the southern state.
Gadkari is credited with the construction of more than 90,000 km of national highways and 30,000 km of new roads in the country in the last 10 years.
