Ailing Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad has returned to his home turf Bihar, amid escalating political temperatures over issues of caste census, the Rajya Sabha biennial polls and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registering yet another corruption case against the septuagenarian.
The Bihar government has moved the Supreme Court challenging a Patna high court verdict that has set aside the amended reservation laws in the state, which enabled the Nitish Kumar government to increase the quotas for Dalits, tribals and backward classes from 50 per cent to 65 per cent.
This will be the first time that the Congress, since its ouster from power in 2014, will get the post of Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha. It failed to get the position in the past 10 years as its tally was below the requisite 10 per cent of total seats in the House, both in 2014 and 2019.
At the core of Nitish Kumar's decision was a cold political calculation. He assessed that the RJD's support base was unlikely to vote for JD-U candidates in the Lok Sabha polls. He was unsure of winning even half a dozen if he stayed with the RJD and the Congress.
For a country with a huge atheist vote bank, relatively few claim to be irreligious, says Devangshu Datta
Do we have enough trained oncologists and medical professionals in India to man these over 4,500 beds in the public sector?
Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini has reached out to the SCs and the poor with the accelerated implementation of various schemes, especially the B R Ambedkar housing scheme.
The Congress on Sunday hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his 'redistribution of wealth' remarks targeting the party, saying after facing 'disappointment' in the first phase of Lok Sabha polls, the PM has now resorted to 'lies' and 'hate speech' to divert people from the real issues.
'Bringing in Dr Mohan Yadav as the Yadav-OBC face from Ujjain as chief minister, and a scheduled tribe leader Jagdish Devda from Mandsaur district, and a Brahmin face Rajendra Shukla from Rewa, the BJP is making an attempt to put in place a new caste equation in the state keeping an eye on the general elections next year.'
With Nitish Kumar on its side, a BJP-led government may feel increased pressure to conduct a nationwide caste-based census.
Mention "Hindustani" as your caste. This was the consensus arrived at a symposium on caste-based census attended by prominent people like former Union minister for civil aviation Arif Mohammad Khan.
In the video, Abbi is heard telling Gandhi, "If you have come, you are most welcome to the university. Please carry on."
A constitutional amendment bill to restore the powers of the states to make their own OBC lists was passed by Parliament on Wednesday, with the opposition and treasury benches joining hands in the Rajya Sabha to approve the legislation.
The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi on Sunday released its manifesto for the Maharashtra assembly polls, promising free cervical cancer vaccines for girls aged 9 to 16 and and two optional leave days for women employees during menstruation.
New census will include questions about religion and castes.
Among the bigwigs are Union ministers Amit Shah (Gandhinagar), Jyotiraditya Scindia (Guna), Mansukh Mandaviya (Porbandar), Parshottam Rupala (Rajkot), Pralhad Joshi (Dharwad) and SP Singh Baghel (Agra).
The broom, the hand or the kite, listen to the mind or the heart, 'tunnel vision voting' to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party or electing the 'right party'. With only two days to go for polling, the choice is anything but clear for Delhi's Muslims, say many voters.
A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices J B Pardiwla and Manoj Misra, however, agrees to hear as many as 10 petitions of the Bihar government against the Patna HC verdict.
Campaigning ended on Wednesday evening for 102 Lok Sabha seats across 21 states and Union territories which will go to polls in the first phase on April 19 with top leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance and the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) making a last-gasp effort to woo voters.
Gandhi was also asked what he applies on his skin. The answer -- he never applies cream or soap on his face and only washes it with water.
'If there is any possibility, then the BJP has to accept our conditions. There should be caste census in the country, the report of the social justice committee should be implemented, the CM should be from backward caste and also the poor must be provided a uniform, mandatory and free education as well as free medical treatment.'
Initiating the debate on the bill from the opposition's side, Congress leader Sonia Gandhi said that any delay in bringing the reservation into effect would be "gross injustice" to Indian women.
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Thursday said he will attend the inauguration of the Ram temple at Ayodhya in January if he is invited to the programme.
Rahul Gandhi's focus will be on his Nyay Yatra, rather than the INDIA bloc's election campaign, leading to speculation among allies that the Congress leader is already looking at the Opposition's fight beyond May 2024.
The 'black paper', titled '10 saal anyay kaal' also alleged that issues such as rising prices, unemployment, subversion of institutions and farmers' 'distress' had plagued the country.
The data profiles the country's rural households.
Samajwadi Party leader Swami Prasad Maurya on Tuesday resigned as the party's national general secretary accusing the leadership of discriminating against him and not defending him over his remarks.
If they wish to have any chance next year, the Congress and the alliance must quickly settle all issues, draw up an alternative agenda, and create a cohesive campaign.
Nitish Kumar wants to assure the BJP leadership that he will continue to be a part of the NDA. But he also wants to secure a larger number of seats for his party in the 2025 assembly elections in Bihar.
The Maharashtra Assembly elections are taking place today, with the ruling BJP-led Mahayuti alliance seeking to retain power and the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) hoping for a comeback. The campaign saw prominent leaders like Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, Rahul Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra crisscrossing the state to garner votes. The Mahayuti is banking on popular schemes while the MVA focuses on issues like caste-based census and social justice. The elections have also seen a significant rise in the number of candidates and voters.
"The Congress have gone and made promises in Punjab, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh that they never fulfilled," Rajeev Chandrasekhar claimed.
In yet another sign that not everything is fine between Bihar's ruling partners, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar opposes the BJP's demand for a population control law -- even while seeking a caste-based census, a red flag for the BJP. M I Khan reports.
Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad on Friday rejected reports that he was not attending 'iftaar' party hosted by Congress President Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi on July 13 over differences cropping up between the two parties.
The Delhi police on Tuesday arrested two persons including NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha in connection with a probe in the portal's foreign funding, officials said.
Some constituents of the alliance have raised concern that the panels, particularly the 14-member coordination committee, are at risk of becoming ineffective, as their decisions have so far not been acted upon.
The session will commence with the maiden address of President Droupadi Murmu to the joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament. The address essentially highlights the government's achievements and policy priorities.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday announced his intent to raise quotas for Other Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the state, saying a legislation to the effect is likely to be brought in the ongoing assembly session.
Without revealing details of the proposed programmes, the leader of the Janata Dal-United, a constituent of INDIA, said that a decision in this regard was taken at the just concluded conclave of the opposition alliance in Mumbai.
When I first spoke about Nitish Kumar being PM material, many of you scoffed at me. Now you can see... it has happened often that I say something and it becomes a widespread sentiment later on," JD-U leader Upendra Kushwaha said.
The Congress wants to reinforce the tax more powerfully now after its four generations reaped benefit of the wealth passed on to them, he said.
