'NDA allies have realised that if they don't dump the BJP, then people will dump their party in 2019.' 'People's mood is against the BJP'
Addressing a joint press conference after a meeting of 26 opposition parties in Bengaluru, Kharge said, "This was a very important meeting to save democracy and the Constitution in the interest of the people of the country."
The over two-decade old BJP-Shiv Sena alliance is intact and the two parties will contest the Lok Sabha polls together, BJP President Rajnath Singh said in Mumbai on Tuesday.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, amid reports of growing discord with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, has issued a warning, stating, "Don't take me lightly." Shinde's remarks come amidst a series of events suggesting tensions between the two leaders, including the appointment of guardian ministers for Raigad and Nashik, the establishment of separate project monitoring cells, and Shinde's absence from several meetings convened by Fadnavis. The recent downgrading of police security for 20 Shiv Sena MLAs further fuels speculation of a growing rift. While both leaders have denied any discord, the events suggest a power struggle within the ruling alliance.
'It is not as if Hindus are not being touched at all, and only Muslims are.'
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said his party would oppose the Centre's move to bring a bill in Parliament to amend the 1995 law governing Waqf boards, and accused the BJP of trying to snatch the rights of Muslims.
Though the extended tenure of incumbent president JP Nadda ends on June 30, a recent amendment in the BJP's constitution has empowered its apex body, the Parliamentary Board, to take a call related to a president, including his term, in "emergency" situations.
Five years after suffering a humiliating defeat at the hands of a much younger Jagan Mohan Reddy, Telugu Desam Party supremo N Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday was on course to lead his party towards a landslide victory in the Andhra Pradesh assembly polls, with allies Bharatiya Janata Party and Janasena Party (JNP) in tow.
Mandya's independent MP Sumalatha Ambareesh on Wednesday announced that she would join the Bharatiya Janata Party, thereby extending her support to the National Democratic Alliance candidate and Janata Dal-Secular leader H D Kumaraswamy in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
With this kind of coinage, the Opposition seems to be readily conceding the point that Modi is taller than all of them put together. So they need something bigger than themselves, collectively or not, to capture the voter imagination when it is about taking on Modi and the BJP in 2024, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Hours before the ceremony, Saini visited the Valmiki Bhawan and offered prayers at a gurdwara and the Mansa Devi temple in Panchkula.
The BJP said that the SAD had informed in advance that it will not attend the meeting.
The chief contestants in the poll are the AINRC leader N Rangasamy heading the NDA in which the AINRC, AIADMK and BJP are the constituents.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar engaged in a heated exchange with Leader of the Opposition Rabri Devi in the Legislative Council, dismissing her as "inconsequential" without her husband, RJD president Lalu Prasad. The spat stemmed from RJD MLCs wearing badges promoting quota hikes passed during Tejashwi Yadav's tenure as Deputy CM, which Nitish Kumar perceived as an attempt to claim credit for the populist move. Kumar also remarked that Rabri Devi was only propped up by her husband when he was in trouble, referring to her becoming Chief Minister in 1997 while Lalu Prasad faced corruption charges. The war of words between the two rivals has intensified, with the RJD accusing Kumar of losing his mental balance and being unfit to rule.
Leaders of several Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) parties met on Saturday to take stock of the opposition's preparations leading up to the June 4 counting of votes polled in the Lok Sabha elections, and claimed they will get more than 295 seats, enough for them to form the next government.
Union minister Chirag Paswan has caused a flutter by stating he would choose to give up his ministerial berth instead of a compromise on his principles, in keeping with the precedent set by his late father Ram Vilas Paswan.
The invite to Paswan from the BJP assumes significance as this made it clear that the LJP remains a member of the NDA despite walking out of the alliance in Bihar during the state assembly polls.
The Congress continued its losing spree on Saturday posting its worst-ever show in Maharashtra and ending up a distant junior partner to the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha in Jharkhand, further diminishing its role in the opposition bloc as other allies perform better.
Amid speculation over Nitish Kumar-led Janata Dal-United's next move in the wake of vote counting trends, senior party leader K C Tyagi on Tuesday said they are in the National Democratic Alliance and 'we will be in the NDA'.
The Congress on Sunday said it was not stopping anyone from being part of diplomatic delegations to be sent to various countries following Operation Sindoor and that its leaders who have been named at the instance of the government must listen to their conscience and contribute to the exercise.
'Amit A Shah has assured us that the BJP will follow 'alliance dharma'.' 'If they follow it, the alliance will be intact.'
There is an impression within the Tamil Nadu BJP -- although no one is airing it -- that over-exposure for Narendra Modi over the past months may work against party candidates, as they have triggered a near-continuous social media debate on his achievements and failures, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
The no-confidence motion moved by the Opposition against the National Democratic Alliance government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was defeated by voice vote in the Lok Sabha on Thursday.
From the 30-share Sensex pack, Mahindra & Mahindra, Larsen & Toubro, State Bank of India, Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank and Bajaj Finance were the biggest gainers. JSW Steel and Infosys were the laggards.
'Akhilesh Yadav made voters think why is the BJP asking for 400 paar.' 'They understood his words and believed the BJP wanted 400 paar only to demolish the Constitution and end reservations.'
Even with Narendra Modi as its PM candidate, the BJP is expected to get between 170 and 190 seats in 2014. That means some 100-odd seats will have to come from allies. That also means the present NDA allies are not enough, it has to be NDA+, says Sajid Bhombal
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.
'Both the parties stood by the BJP through thick and thin, while others joined when they smelt power. The Shiv Sena was forced to quit the NDA last year while the Shiromani Akali Dal quit over farm bills'
'What should surprise BJP supporters is Modi's call for 'stability' at the manifesto launch, a theme that he and his team members had not touched ahead of the Lok Sabha polls in 2014 and 2019.' 'The last time the party called for 'stability at the Centre' was in 1998 and 1999,' recalls N Sathiya Moorthy.
The opposition AIADMK's discomfiture is likely to work in favour of the ruling DMK-backed Congress candidate.
"The NDA is discussing with important political parties to strike a pre-poll alliance for the coming Lok Sabha elections. We are confident that three to four parties will come into its fold," BJP Vice-President Mukthar Abbas Naqvi told a press conference in Bangalore.
The governor accepted Kumar's resignation, and asked him to continue as caretaker CM till a new government is formed, they said.
"Punjab and Maharashtra represent manliness and Akali Dal and Shiv Sena are the faces of that manliness," it said.
Notably, the JD-U has put up a better than expected performance in Lok Sabha polls.
In a village of Rajputs, the vote is for Modi even though the BJP is not contesting from here.
In a message posted on 'X' on Wednesday, Rama Rao said the BRS has never allied with anyone during polls ever since Telangana was formed despite several requests and in fact it is the opposition that have come together setting aside their ideological differences to defeat the 'formidable' KCR.
Kumar had also made it clear that he was in the process of uniting the non-BJP leaders.
The NDA's combined parliamentary and state-level committed Presidential votes number around 12,000 fewer than a majority.
'BJP's ultimate ambition is to control Bihar independently.'
It is said that Kumaraswamy was in a dilemma, as Nikhil was not keen on contesting but buckled under pressure from party workers.
