Multiple challenges, particularly with regard to cabinet formation, stare at Siddaramaiah as he takes over as the new chief minister of Karnataka, nudging out party colleague and state Congress president D K Shivakumar -- who will now be his deputy.
With no apparent wave on the ground or pressing everyday issues, that's what it boils down for voters as Rajasthan readies for assembly polls this week.
The Bharatiya Janata Party in Gujarat is hoping to make a clean sweep in the Dalit and tribal-dominated Sabarkantha district comprising four Assembly constituencies even as unemployment has become a major issue that the ruling party hopes to negate with Hindutva and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's charisma.
Mishra's assertion came amid a growing perception that the BSP could again join hands with the saffron party if the 2022 assembly elections throw a hung House.
'The BJP, already falling short of a strong OBC leader from Maharashtra, will be more than happy to welcome Chhagan Bhujbal in its fold.'
Party insiders concede statements of the Raja kind have the potential to hurt the DMK's electoral chances in closely-fought seats in 2024, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'Both the DMK and ADMK are equally to blame.' 'When the question is violence against Dalits, they don't take measures to protect Dalits.'
Before pedalling down the streets of the state capital, Yadav told mediapersons at the party headquarters that the BJP government has "failed" in Covid management.
Political watchers say the caste survey report was made public to play the OBC-EBC card and stall the BJP's campaign to win most of Bihar's 40 Lok Sabha seats.
'It is an existential crisis. We cannot recover lost ground through social media. We need to forge alliances and reshape our ideological contours.'
The Congress and the Left parties have not only extended support to the Samajwadi Party candidate but are also campaigning for him, in accordance with the spirit of the new opposition togetherness ahead of next year's general election.
'This setback is only transient, and this too shall pass.'
'For no other leader of India do so many people turn up for an event every year without invitation.'
Congress sources said internal surveys indicate that the party is likely to get a majority in Himachal polls leading to increasing the number of contenders for the chief minister's post.
'Where should shudra-OBCs go because of whom the nation is surviving?'
Without taking any name, Prasada hit out at the regional parties in the wake of Akhilesh Yadav, the chief of Uttar Pradesh's main regional party, of late making consistent attacks on the ruling BJP.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday picked first-time MLA Bhajan Lal Sharma as Rajasthan's new chief minister, ending days of speculation that followed its victory in the assembly polls.
Yogi expands UP Cabinet in attempt to balance caste, regional aspirations head of the assembly polls early next year.
The party has to zero in on its chief ministerial candidate from one of three leaders -- Union Minister for Surface Transport Nitin Gadkari, state BJP president Devendra Fadnavis and Leader of Opposition in the state council Vinod Tawde. But the biggest handicap with them is that they can't match Munde in terms of popularity.
Names of Hardik Patel, the face of the Patidar agitation ahead of the 2017 polls who quit the Congress to join the BJP, and Rivaba Jadeja, wife of cricketer Ravindra Jadeja, figure in the list.
Stalin's personal intervention in the Adheenam row may have contained the avoidable political damage and social tensions at least for now, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Amidst indications that Samajwadi Party leader and Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav is warming up to the idea of an alliance with Congress, UP PCC President Raj Babbar on Monday said his party will contest alone in the state and described such talks as "hypothetical".
'This is going to generate a new debate on reservation because the quota for Economically Weaker Sections is 10%, and that is for nearly 16% of the population.' 'For 16% you are giving 10%. This is set to raise eyebrows among the OBCs after the caste survey.'
After a controversy erupted over the alleged remarks of his father, the chief minister said he was pained by such comments and asserted that nobody was above the law in his government and police will take an appropriate action in the matter.
It is not unlikely that ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the BJP government comes up with more imaginative schemes aimed at constituency-building. The party under Modi's leadership has a more modern thinking in such matters unlike its rivals, which are still steeped only in ideology, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
'In his first speech in Parliament, Modi spoke about the slavery of 1,400 years, and though he didn't say in so many words, the meaning was that he had come to re-establish a Hindu Rashtra.'
'The Shiv Sena and the Ambedkarites are two powerful social forces in Maharashtra with a presence in the toiling classes. However, they were made to fight each other by the powers that be. Now, they are joining hands while overcoming this contentious past.'
'Our study finds that only about 20% of Indians are vegetarians and the rest of the 80% are non-vegetarians or meat-eaters.'
The state government is worried that the agitation may pose a serious threat to it, reports Sanjay Jog.
'But he was very quick and did a very stylish adab.' 'Of course, I didn't expect him to hug.'
With the Congress emerging victorious in Himachal Pradesh, state party president Pratibha Singh is considered a key frontrunner for the chief minister's post, closely followed by former party chief Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and outgoing Congress Legislature Party leader Mukesh Agnihotri.
The two parties have fielded 33 candidates each belonging to the Jat community for the December 7 polls.
Deciding on the chief ministerial face who can bind the party going forward is the immediate challenge for the Congress.
There was no immediate reaction from the PSPL on the inclusion of Shivpal Singh Yadav's name in the SP's list of campaigners.
The Tamil Nadu chief minister may have opened a Pandora's Box on the religion front with the appointment of qualified non-Brahmin temple priests, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'They were certainly not practising Hinduism in the Harappan culture (which includes Mohenjo Daro and other sites).' 'There was no notion of Hinduism then.'
In a state where Hindu social identity continues to remain in the overarching Dravida umbrella, the 'Hindutva' political identity does not have the same, or even near-similar electoral purchase, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
The album consists of Mehendi, Sangeet, and two wedding ceremonies pictures!
The Congress and BJP are apprehensive that AAP might eat into their votes among the Patel community, Kshatriyas, a section of minorities, and Dalits, thus delivering a fatal blow in the closely-contested seats. But the local BJP is elated over the entry of AIMIM as there will be a contender for minority votes apart from the Congress in seats like Bhuj and Mandvi, which have considerable Muslim electorate.
'...it gets a survey report that they are going to lose elections.' 'The fear of losing elections will make them immediately conduct a caste census.'
