A day after Congress' defeat in the Haryana polls, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the Congress is an irresponsible party and a factory to 'spread hatred' which wants to divide Hindus and pit one community against another.
Once a trusted lieutenant of the former National Conference president Omar Abdullah and his political advisor during his tenure as chief minister, Rana holds considerable sway among Muslims, particularly the Gujjar community in Jammu.
The BJP has emerged the second largest party by winning 29 constituencies in the maiden assembly polls post abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, improving its all-time high tally of 25 seats recorded in 2014 elections.
Former separatist leader Bilal Gani Lone criticizes the Hurriyat Conference for its irrelevance and Pakistan for creating problems in Jammu and Kashmir, urging a new approach for the region's future.
Celebrations had already begun at BJP headquarters before the full announcement of results.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader and Nagrota MLA Devender Singh Rana, brother of Union minister Jitendra Singh, died on Thursday at a private hospital in Haryana's Faridabad. He was 59.
A BJP ally since the mid-90s, Kumar split with the party in 2014, only to realign three years later. In 2022, he again parted ways, vowing to dislodge the BJP from power at the Centre and bring together parties from across the country to form the INDIA bloc.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has dismissed reports of a rift within the ruling Mahayuti alliance, stating that "everything is hunky-dory." He attributed any issues to differences that will be resolved through discussions. Shinde's comments come after reports of him complaining to Union Home Minister Amit Shah about Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, who heads the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). However, Pawar and BJP leader Sudhir Mungantiwar have denied the allegations, claiming Shinde would have directly approached them if there were any issues. The ruling alliance comprises the BJP, Shiv Sena, and NCP, which retained power after the state assembly polls last year. The alliance has also faced challenges with the appointment of guardian ministers in Raigad and Nashik, with the Shiv Sena opposing the appointments of Aditi Tatkare (NCP) and Girish Mahajan (BJP).
The RSS-affiliated ABVP has won the post of joint secretary in the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) election, ending a nine-year period out of office. The ABVP's victory marks a significant shift in the political landscape of JNU, breaking the Left's long-standing dominance. Left candidates won the remaining three central panel posts, but the ABVP's victory is seen as a major gain for the right-wing group.
Following the results on Saturday, Maliwal attacked AAP for losing Delhi assembly elections, stating that god "punishes" those who commit crime against woman.
Fifty-nine members of delegations visiting 33 world capitals, reaching millions of people, giving one message, in one language, in one voice -- is an unprecedented world movement, observes former BJP MP Tarun Vijay, former Chief Editor, Panchjanya, the RSS weekly.
The message from Sunday's event will undoubtedly reverberate globally. It's a landmark occasion that will be remembered for generations and will inspire many other states to introduce the story of Rajendra Chola into school curricula, says Tarun Vijay.
The Delhi Assembly elections saw BJP's Karnail Singh emerge as the richest winner with assets worth Rs 259 crore, Umang Bajaj at 31 as the youngest winner, Tilak Ram Gupta as the oldest contestant at 73, and AAP's Amanatullah Khan the candidate with the highest, 19, criminal cases. Several winning candidates have pending criminal cases, according to a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms.
'Can we force somebody to contest and fight an election when they don't want to contest an election?'
Political observers lauded the SP's choices in fielding several non-Yadav and Scheduled Caste candidates, the party's alliance with the Congress, and Rahul Gandhi's campaign around the danger to the Constitution if the BJP won a big majority.
Akhilesh's fielding candidates from a broad spectrum of castes, not just Yadavs, and with the BJP losing in several seats in Purvanchal, suggests that smaller OBC communities shifted from the BJP to the SP in the region.
I was never a believer in road shows, lives of people far more important: Gautam Gambhir
No major glitches in electronic voting machines were reported and the voting passed off peacefully with high security observed at the 3,360 critical booths in 493 locations where more than 25,000 police personnel, nearly 13,000 home guards and 100 companies of paramilitary forces were deployed, officials said.
Welcoming them into the BJP fold, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav cryptically said many people are feeling anxious and they will eventually join the saffron party in the coming days.
'The TMC can't go on forever taking advantage of the people's fright of the BJP.'
The BJP's Central Election Committee had met on Sunday evening to finalise the party's candidates for the polls.
Reports said seven persons were killed, but there was no confirmation of the same.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's energy, dynamism and willingness to engage remains a 'prime asset' for India on the global stage but deserves greater backing, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said on Monday, in remarks that are likely to irk his party and widen the growing cracks in his ties with its leadership.
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.
'We don't believe in the BJP. But the Congress has no main leader who is credible.'
'Let's see how this love story shapes up in the run up to the municipal corporation election.'
'BJP insiders acknowledge that the party needs to be helmed by someone who can match Arvind Kejriwal's stature.' 'A Sudhanshu Trivedi or Bansuri Swaraj could bring the freshness the party needs in Delhi,' points out Aditi Phadnis.
Mahua asserted that despite all efforts by the Bharatiya Janata Party to "sound the death knell" for constitutional democracy, India is too great a country to be destroyed by the fascists.
The Bharatiya Janata Party suffered stunning losses in three Hindi heartland states, partial poll results showed Tuesday, forcing the party to rely on allies to form the government after a bitter and divisive election that was projected as a referendum on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity.
'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.'
Kharge claimed that the Centre accepted "intelligence failure" in an all-party meeting and said it should be held accountable for "not reinforcing" security arrangements in Kashmir to protect people.
Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Manoj Sonkar on Tuesday defeated Aam Aadmi Party's Kuldeep Kumar to win the post of mayor in the Chandigarh mayoral polls.
They are learnt to have taken stock of the prevailing political situation following the exit polls predicting a big win for the BJP-led alliance, and the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA)'s series of meetings rejecting the forecast and sticking to its claim that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government is on its way out.
The youth -- their dreams of government jobs unfulfilled -- are voicing their frustration.
Every trick in the trade is being tried unabashedly.
In simple arithmetical terms every possible 'arrangement' is being made to deny a majority to its rivals. A split verdict would hand a vital advantage to the BJP which is adept at extracting the best out of such a situation, notes Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir affairs.
'The politics of divisiveness won't work.' 'The janta is too clever not to see through it.'
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis met MNS head Raj Thackeray at the latter's residence in Mumbai on Monday. The purpose of the meeting was not immediately known. BJP MLC Prasad Lad confirmed the meeting, stating that Thackeray had invited Fadnavis to his residence. The meeting comes after Thackeray had criticized the ruling BJP in the past, raising questions about their actions and the outcome of the Maharashtra assembly elections.
The Maharashtra government, led by a coalition of the BJP and Shiv Sena, has admitted that it cannot increase the monthly financial aid under the Ladki Bahin Yojana to Rs 2,100, as promised during the 2024 assembly polls. The government cites severe financial stress as the reason. Social Justice Minister Sanjay Shirsat, a Shiv Sena leader, has said that the scheme will continue with the existing amount of Rs 1,500, but the increase is not feasible at this time. The minister also accused the Finance Department, led by Ajit Pawar, of diverting funds from his department without his knowledge. He called for a law to ensure that the social justice and tribal affairs departments receive their allocated funds. The statement comes as an embarrassment for the Mahayuti government, which had heavily campaigned on the promise of increasing the Ladki Bahin Yojana aid.
Four-time Odisha MP Pinaki Misra's wedding to firebrand TMC MP Mahua Moitra in a quiet, intimate ceremony that chose privacy and tradition over fanfare, was a reflection of his personal style.
Former Indian kabaddi team captain and Bharatiya Janata Party nominee Hooda is locked in a multi-cornered electoral contest from the Jat-dominated Meham assembly constituency in the Rohtak district for the Haryana assembly polls.
