Setalvad said working on a deeply polarising issue among the public is not an easy one and added that the impact of social media on polarization is also overwhelming.
The reset button that the Bharatiya Janata Party has pressed on governance in the wake of the Covid-19 wave, which also saw a major overhaul by Prime Minister Narendra Modi of his own Cabinet, continues as Vijay Rupani on Saturday became the fourth chief minister from the party to go.
'He will use these five years to project himself as the next PM candidate within the Hindutva fold.'
'It is very interesting that the RSS is sending sadhus to Una.' 'They will again talk about Hindu unity to woo the Dalits.'
"Thirteen years of Modi rule, not two years of Anandiben are responsible for Gujarat burning. Sacrificing the scapegoat won't save the BJP," Gandhi said on his official Twitter handle.
We are today carrying out the reconstruction of New Delhi which will cost us Rs 20,000 crore and give the prime minister a new house while crores of people have no means and no money to buy vaccines for their children, observes Aakar Patel.
'...incarcerated in jails, ruining their entire families.' 'You would see that Dalits who displayed so much agitation over the Bhima-Koregaon issue are effectively silenced by the arrests of their activists by the police.' 'What can be a more pitiable state than this for a people who had just seen a ray of hope after darkness of millennia?'
A senior official of the premier Central technical institute told reporters that the students had "violated" defined guidelines of IIT-Madras.
Thenmozhi Soundararajan works to break the shackles of caste for Dalits.
TTV Dhinakaran's call to the Congress to break up with the DMK and tie up with him, is aimed at consolidating the traditional anti-BJP votes. The stronger message is to all anti-BJP constituencies in the state, especially the minorities and traditionally aligned sections of the Dalit community, that he could be trusted to take forward an 'anti-Hindutva' agenda more seriously than anyone else, the DMK included, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
These are the 25 seats to watch out for as Gujarat goes to the polls over two phases on December 1 and 5.
Indulging in religious conversion with inducement or under pressure is an "unpardonable offence", the state home minister Araga Jnanendra said adding, it may also lead to disturbance of peace in the society.
The outcome in UP is far more significant than in the other states going to the polls next year. An unlikely setback in UP can cramp the Modi government, virtually making it a lame-duck two years ahead of the 2024 parliamentary poll, observes Virendra Kapoor.
The poll results will depend much on whether the caste and community coalition worked out by Akhilesh can withstand the onslaught of the Hindutva forces who have increased their efforts to polarise the electorate on communal lines.
The journey for 24-year-old Akash Anand would be much tougher, because dynastic succession goes against the grain of Dalit politics that B R Ambedkar founded.
The Bharatiya Janata Party president accused his Congress counterpart Rahul Gandhi of "inciting hatred" in society with his "lie" that the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act has been revoked.
The prime minister said he was expecting members of the House to show enthusiasm by thumping their desks as a large number of those from the Dalits, Scheduled Tribes and OBC communities as well as sons of farmers and those from economically backward and rural backgrounds have become ministers in the recent rejig.
The letter to Sonia Gandhi reminded her of the party's 18-point agenda "given to the last chief minister" of Punjab and said that those were "equally relevant today".
'After Ambedkar, Dr Gail was the only writer who wrote critically on caste issues.'
The Congress is likely to declare its chief ministerial face for Punjab on February 6 when former party chief Rahul Gandhi will visit the poll-bound state, party sources said.
The two senior most leaders of the Communist Party of India-Marxist are at the loggerhead over alliance or adjustment with the Congress.
'The BJP will never do anything substantial to empower Dalits.'
The BJP campaign highlighted Yogi's persona as a tough-as-nails leader and an incorruptible man with no nest to feather; Modi's charisma which was turned on full blast in the penultimate phases; Amit Shah's ground work; a well-oiled party organisation, and the RSS's back-up.
Jailed gangster and former member of Parliament Atiq Ahmad and his wife on Tuesday joined the All India Majlis e Ittehadul Muslimeen in the presence of its chief Asaduddin Owaisi, drawing a sharp reaction from the Bharatiya Janata Party which said Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will not allow "Jinnah's jihadi mentality" to flourish in Uttar Pradesh.
In the backdrop of the ongoing farm protests, back into public consciousness in the aftermath of the recent Lakhimpur Kheri episode, smaller parties are expected to not only enliven the election theatre, but also queer the pitch for the Opposition.
An OBC leader, Thakor, who has good oratory skills, will have to take along all factions in the state unit while taking on the well-organised BJP which has been in power in the state from 1998.
'That is the one headline the world is reading about India this week, and it is a potentially damaging story...' 'I don't think a panic mentality has set in, but this story is one that investors and market watchers are absolutely seized with.'
With Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday inducting four new faces from Karnataka into his ministry, and chemicals and fertilisers minister D V Sadanda Gowda resigning ahead of the reshuffle, the state's representation in the Union council of ministers now stands at six.
Senior leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Shashi Tharoor, in the race for the post of Congress president, not only possess contrasting demeanour but have had an equally disparate political journey.
Sharad Pawar claims he is not in a position to name the organisations behind the violence at Bhima Koregaon, 'though active role of right-wing forces behind the violence cannot be ruled out.'
'The continuing crisis in agriculture, the inability of successive governments to provide secure jobs to millions of youths having varying degrees of skills, and fragmentation of politics have created a sense of despondency.'
Apart from Sharad Pawar, the commission will also record the evidence of the then superintendent of police (Pune Rural) Suvez Haq, then additional SP, Sandip Pakhale and the then additional commissioner, Pune, Ravindra Sengaonkar, between February 21 and February 25.
Senior Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Shashi Tharoor will face-off in an electoral contest on Monday for the post of All India Congress Committee chief, as the party gets set to have a non-Gandhi president in over 24 years.
Congress leader Charanjit Singh Channi was on Monday sworn in as the chief minister of Punjab, making him the first Dalit to hold the top post in the state.
The PM gave a call for 'Sabka Prayas' (everyone's efforts) along with ''Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas'' for building a self-reliant India.
With some variations, all regional political formations, whether in power presently or out of it, share some common features: Tight family control of the political apparatus, key members in elected or appointed positions, obvious wealth but not quite known sources of income, and family factionalism, sometimes open and bitter, notes Shreekant Sambrani.
The prime minister also raised the Rafale jet deal and the law against triple talaq, accusing the Congress of trying to block them.
Around 20-25 youths of upper caste Thakur community from Shabbirpur village were on their way to Simlana village under Badgaon police station to take part in a function to garland the statue of Rajput warrior-king Maharana Pratap.
The Dalit leader alleged that the 'false' FIR is the brainchild of the RSS and the BJP.
The longest-serving chief minister of any Hindi- speaking state, Nitish Kumar seems to have acquired an aura of indispensability when it comes to the highest seat of power in Bihar.
