The calculated playing up of confidence by Amit Shah and his team obviously means that the BJP has a strong counter-strategy in place to turn the tables on the Congress before the monsoon session is over, reports Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com.
'The regime -- and particularly the home ministry under Amit Shah -- have sought to suppress and destroy these struggles through intimidation, bullying, threats, through false cases, arrests, custodial torture, the use of draconian laws like the UAPA.'
'The softening of India's attitude towards Pakistan -- whatever the compelling reasons -- opens up the BJP to harsh scrutiny.' 'This is a high stakes gamble with the potential for devastating losses,' warns Vivek Gumaste.
Sonia told party MPs to work with dedication, loyalty and enthusiasm with Rahul to strengthen the party and said he was her boss to.
Pawar, who founded the NCP in 1999 after walking out of the Congress, said he worked in opposition for 27 years.
'His revelation about what went on behind the scenes make it abundantly clear that the BJP must have indulged in similar tactics in Goa, Manipur and Meghalaya where it formed a government even though it did not have a majority,' says Amulya Ganguli.
Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Tuesday said the central leadership of the Bharatiya Janata Party had discussed with him before finalising the names of two "low profile" party workers as candidates for the June 19 Rajya Sabha polls from the state. "Only the BJP can take such decisions and give opportunity to ordinary karyakartas. From our core committee (state) we had sent some names, but ultimately our national president spoke to me and said it has been decided to give tickets to ordinary party workers, we discussed it, after which the two names have been finalised."
Former Congress MP Vitthal Radadia, who had hit the headlines last year for brandishing a gun at a tollbooth, on Friday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party along with his son and supporters in the presence of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in Dhoraji.
The 31-year-old is seeking re-election from Raghopur in Vaishali district which he had wrested back for his party from the Bharatiya Janata Party's Satish Kumar in 2015. The BJP leader had defeated Yadav's mother Rabri Devi, a former chief minister, in 2010.
Congress' chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said the 'Nav Sankalp Chintan Shivir' is also aimed at deliberating on challenges facing the country such as "freefall of the economy", increasing inequality of wealth, price rise of essential commodities, "deep-rooted conspiracy" to hand over farming sector to a select group of private corporates, "attack on India's territorial integrity by China, "attack" on rights of Dalits, SCs/STs, minorities and attempts to divide by using Hindu-Muslim rhetoric.
The National Conference suffered a major setback in Jammu as two prominent leaders Devender Rana and Surjit Singh Slathia resigned from the party on Sunday.
Perhaps the BJP will win the UP elections, but that will be a political win and will leave the problems on the ground from the economy to national security to disaffected farmers and minorities intact, asserts Aakar Patel.
By maintaining that all Indians are tolerant, the Pew centre appears to have skimmed over the surface of its subject matter without delving deep, asserts Amulya Ganguli.
Senior NCP leader and Maharashtra minister Chhagan Bhujbal on Wednesday said the Supreme Court order on the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) quota was a setback to the state government and it should do everything it can to save the community's reservation.
The firebrand leader of the Shiv Sena underwent an angioplasty at the Lilavati Hospital on Monday evening hours after he complained of chest pain.
'The wish is that 2022, if not bring us into happier times, at least sees some easing of the pain,' hopes Aakar Patel.
'Let me reveal for the first time that around August 2019 Congress President Sonia Gandhi told the Congress leadership and CWC members to form a consensus over the name of a non-Gandhi leader.'
Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday accused the Modi government of having failed the people of the country in handling the pandemic and demanded that an all-party meeting be convened immediately on the Covid-19 situation.
'For Modi and Shah, the humiliating setback is bigger than the electoral defeats in New Delhi and in Bihar in 2015.'
Among the other prominent faces for the ruling BJP who tasted defeat in the elections was its state president Subhash Barala.
In the last two-and-a half years, the Congress has lost 13 of its MLAs to the BJP which now enjoys an overwhelming majority in the assembly.
'MLAs said they're captive, (their) phones snatched away, there is police in front of every room. They're being followed 24X7'
Speaking to reporters for the first time after arriving in Bengaluru and sending in their resignations, the 22 MLAs said they were ready to face any consequences.
"Nobody is above law. With the Supreme Court giving its judgment, it is not right to make a political comment," the Rajya Sabha member said. Asked if the verdict was a setback to the Shiv Sena-led Maharashtra government, Raut said, "Such things do happen in legal battles."
The national executive committee meeting of the Bharatiya Janata Party in Patna over the weekend, climaxing with a large public rally, was supposed to be a kind of coming out party for the junior partner in the Bihar government. In the event, it turned out to be a setback resulting from a self-goal.
The results for the bypolls in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Bihar, Telangana, Maharashtra, Punjab and Tripura were announced on Tuesday.
Electioneering for the third and the final phase of polling in Assam to be held on April 24 in six constituencies - Gauhati, Dhubri, Kokrajhar, Barpeta, Mangaldoi and Nowgong -- came to an end on Tuesday afternoon with the election department expecting a high turn out on the basis of overwhelming response of voters in the last two phases of polling in the state.
Ruling the Bhartiya Janata Party suffered a fresh setback in poll-bound Karnataka with two more ministers quitting the Jagadish Shettar cabinet on Thursday, amid indications that they would join the Congress.
It is for the second consecutive year that the yatra is not being held due to the pandemic.
When almost the entire political class was engrossed in the Bihar polls, the Congress shahzada was holidaying in a hill station. As the Bihar contest and other by-elections have shown, a large number of states have become Congress-mukt, fulfilling the Hindutva brigade's dream, notes Amulya Ganguli.
Pawar, who at 30 became the youngest chief minister of Maharashtra in 1978, will have to do a lot of heavy-lifting in the Maharashtra assembly polls, due by October, after severe setbacks in the Lok Sabha polls, reports Sunil Gatade.
For the first time in seven years the prime minister finds himself at his most vulnerable, observes Virendra Kapoor.
'People will realise sooner or later that there are no jobs, inflation is unchecked and loads of corruption charges are coming from various states which the government is totally brazen about.'
'Three successive failures can tarnish the image of invincibility.' 'Once this happens, Chanakya can fall prey to his adversaries outside and inside the party,' notes Amulya Ganguli.
In a statement after the apex court verdict, Thackeray said, "With folded hands, we request the prime minister and the president to take an immediate decision on Maratha quota."
Anwar, an AICC general secretary, came out with a flurry of tweets calling for 'urgent and deep introspection' over the debacle of the party, the second largest constituent of the opposition coalition, which contested as many as 70 seats but returned with a tally of just 19.
he news reports of the response that Tejaswi has been generating at his election rallies must definitely put a smile on his father's face, observes Asmita Bihari.
Transcript of the political resolution adopted by the Bharatiya Janata Party in its national executive meeting in Panaji, Goa on Sunday.
'Not only has the ire against the Congress subsided in Gujarat, but people are now coming to their senses.'
The first chief minister of Chhattisgarh, was known in the political circles as someone who never gave up despite defeats, controversies and debilitating health issues.
