The manner in which assembly seats were distirbuted among Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh so far, has ensured that residents of the Valley rule the state forever, says Sanjeev Nayyar.
'In economic matters governments should not take sides based on religion and caste,' says T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan.
Besides law and order, the long standing demand for junking Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, economic woes of the land-locked state which has hardly any industries, are expected to figure high on the agenda of the unfolding electoral battle between the two main parties with smaller local parties such as National People's Party and the Naga People's Front chipping in with their own demands.
The government assured the Opposition that reservation to Anglo-Indians will be considered later.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it would not reopen its decision on granting reservation in promotions to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes as it was for the states to decide how they implement it.
Asaduddin Owaisi's AIMIM, which is going to contest next year's Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls on the promise of creating leadership among Muslims, has created unease in the political parties that so far considered the members of the minority community as their core "vote bank".
The minister was on his way to Motihari to attend PM Modi's rally. He never made it.
States are now gearing up to implement the scheme, integrating it with their own public health insurance plans and tying up the loose ends.
Lok Sabha elections result of 2019 tells us the Modi wave has only consolidated, instead of waning.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday insisted that nothing much should be read into his recent meeting with an MP of the Lok Janshakti Party, which is headed by his bete noire Chirag Paswan, since members of Parliament and the state legislature call on him regularly over matters relating to their constituencies.
More than eight million young people who voted early or absentee in the 2020 elections.
This time round, even 'petrol coupons' were reportedly distributed for those attending campaign rallies, especially those addressed by top leaders, cutting across party lines. If this owed to the rising cost of petrol and diesel -- which is a poll issue this time -- there were the customary coupons for 'quarter' (liquor bottle size) and non-vegetarian biryani. Some media reports claimed that some of these 'crowds' attended more than one political rally on the same day in the last week, and at times for rival political parties in adjoining constituencies or districts, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Only 4.5 per cent of the population in the country is educated upto the level of graduate or above while a majority of 32.6 per cent population is not even educated upto the primary school level.
He made the remarks on the floor of the state assembly while thanking the House members for unanimously approving a constitutional amendment for extending quotas to SCs and STs by another 10 years.
While the Delhi and Haryana governments have declared that they are all set to roll-out the food security programme on August 20 -- Rajiv Gandhi's birth anniversary -- there is confusion among the chief ministers about the implementation of the ordinance which gives the right to people to receive adequate quantity of food grains at affordable prices. Anita Katyal reports.
'They are innovating and a new Dalit leadership could be seen at the horizon'
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Ayushman Bharat health care scheme is just a slogan for the moment, it is the state's Mukhyamantri Amrutum health assurance scheme which is a comforting reality for many.
With certain quarters demanding privatisation of public sector banks in the aftermath of the alleged fraud at Punjab National Bank (PNB), Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister chairman Bibek Debroy tells Sanjeeb Mukherjee, Ishan Bakshi and Indivjal Dhasmana that reducing government equity even to zero would not mean giving up of government control over these banks.
'It did not start as a Hindutva slogan.' 'It started to tease the TMC and slowly it got internalised and the BJP started countering with Jai Shri Ram slogans because Mamata was getting provoked.'
From coming up with the correct list of beneficiaries to finding enough people to work as Ayushman Mitras to generating awareness about the scheme - many things need to fall in place before it can be successfully launched in a few days.
The passage of this major legislation comes ahead of the general election due early next year.
Sops for middle class, poor and farmers on cards.
Less than half of rural households are engaged in agriculture.
'The BJP will be the ruling party.'
Shah said the Anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protests in the national capital were turned into communal riots. "I call upon my Muslim brothers and sisters that false propaganda is being spread on the issue of CAA. This Act is not to take anyone's citizenship but to give citizenship," said Shah.
In the light of the efforts being made to forge electoral unity between scheduled castes and Muslims, Mohammad Sajjad examines what the architect of our Constitution, B R Ambedkar, had to say about the Muslim community.
The greatest progress on civil rights in the United States since Abraham Lincoln was under the Southern Democrat Lyndon Johnson, the past master of wheeling and dealing in Congress.
India's cities must switch over to piped gas leaving LPG cylinders.
At present, 27 per cent quota in government jobs and educational institutions is given to OBCs, provided the annual income of the family is up to Rs six lakh. Those with higher earnings are referred to as the 'creamy layer' and are not eligible for reservation.
India's rising GDP may have propelled the middle class to become richer, buy new cars, travel around the world and build assets, but it further pushed the economically disadvantaged and poor into poverty and drudgery, says Devanik Saha.
The record voter turnout in Rajasthan has forced politicians and psephologists to junk their pre-poll calculations. Now, all eyes are on the December 8 counting, says P B Chandra
He urged the crowd attending a pro-CAA rally to give a missed call to the 8866288662, pledging their support to the legislation. Shah also sought to dispel 'rumours' of discord within the NDA in Bihar and said CM Nitish Kumar will be the alliance leader in the state.
Vociferous protests by Opposition members led by the Congress continued in the Lok Sabha.
Setting the stage for confrontation in Parliament, an all-party meeting called in New Delhi on the eve of the monsoon session on Monday ended in a deadlock over controversies related to the Lalit Modi and Vyapam scam even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered to discuss all issues. The government ruled out any resignations.
'Open defecation kills more Indians than any terrorist organisation could, but turning that around will take communicating that all Indians are created equal and that continuing this practice is anti-national,' points out Rahul Jacob.
India's neglect of villages shows up in many other ways.
As a result of the mass state-led scheme, the processes in the health insurance market could get simplified over time and become uniform
De-scaling of businesses, job losses and subsequent impact on disposable incomes has created negative sentiment among traders, business owners and workers alike, says Abhishek Waghmare.
'We fear worse things to happen. We feel this is just a teaser.' 'I wonder whether later, the Christian community will be targeted.'
'He is just a 22 year old who has no knowledge of India's laws or Constitution. How will such a man handle a discussion on reservations in an intelligent, lawful manner?' 'Let me alert everybody that he is using the 1985 formula. Back then they opposed reservations based on caste for OBCs and now they want to be included in the same category. This clearly tells us what their intention is. They don't want reservations; they want reservations to be cancelled altogether.'
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