Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Mukesh Dalal was on Monday elected unopposed from Surat Lok Sabha constituency in Gujarat after all other nominees withdrew from the fray, a poll official said.
State BJP chief Temjen Imna Along, widely popular on social media across the country for his sense of humour, and Salhoutuonuo Kruse, one of the two women elected to Nagaland assembly for the first time, were among those who were sworn-in as members of the council of ministers.
Among the notable absentees were Congress president Rahul Gandhi, West Bengal chief minister and Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee, Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's M K Stalin, Telugu Desam Party chief K Chandrashekhar Rao, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray and Delhi chief minister and Aam Admi Party convenor Arvind Kejriwal.
The Bharatiya Janata Party sealed its alliance with the Telugu Desam Party on Saturday for the upcoming Lok Sabha and Andhra Pradesh assembly elections, with former chief minister of the southern state N Chandrababu Naidu asserting that the combine will sweep the polls.
Bangladeshis on Sunday began voting in the general elections expected to be won by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the absence of the main Opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) which is boycotting it.
If Mehbooba is 'allowed' to survive unchecked she could transform her campaign into a sentiment typically suited to the ground conditions in Kashmir, observes Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir affairs.
In 2023, this number has dropped to 90, nearly 39 per cent of the 230-member House, an ADR report said.
Proceedings in both Houses of Parliament remain disrupted from day one of the Monsoon session with the opposition parties demanding a statement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the Manipur violence before a discussion.
Glimpses from the first State dinner at the White House in the Biden administration.
'I certainly think India can play a leading role in helping us resolve the Russia-Ukraine crisis. India obviously has an old relationship with Russia'
With political stalemate continuing in Jammu and Kashmir, National Conference's working president Omar Abdullah on Monday held a meeting with top party leaders where it was decided that it will have no tie-up with the Bharatiya Janata Party but was ready to support the Peoples Democratic Party in the government-formation.
At least one commentator felt that both the BJP's reach and popularity had been underestimated in Kerala. They have shown systematic gain; one that seems personality-neutral and therefore institutionalised, explains Shyam G Menon.
Donald Trump, known for his unpredictable leadership style, divisive rhetoric targeting both allies and opponents, and the only US president to be impeached twice, left the White House on Wednesday with a tainted legacy never seen before in American political history.
The elections to legislative assemblies of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, and Odisha will be held simultaneously along with the Lok Sabha polls
Indian American Raj Shah tells Aziz Haniffa about his plans as the GOP's research director.
Soon after the suspension of 33 opposition Lok Sabha MPs, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said all democratic norms have been thrown into the dustbin by this "autocratic" government and it has shown zero accountability towards Parliament.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday accused NIA officials of attacking villagers in Purba Medinipur district, the BJP hit back at her saying that the attack on the NIA officials is Sandeshkhalli 2.0 orchestrated by the state.
APCC president Ripun Bora said following discussions with various parties, it has been decided that the Congress will join hands with the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), the Communist Party of India, the Communist Party of India-Marxist, Communist Party of India-Marxist Leninist and the Anchalik Gana Morcha.
For the first time in his political career, he failed to carry his party to even a working majority -- and again, for the first time in his career, he finds himself in a situation where he cannot rule by dictatorial fiat, points out Prem Panicker.
Breaking his silence, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday disapproved of comments of Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed giving credit to Pakistan, Hurriyat and militants for smooth conduct of Assembly polls, saying such a statement cannot be supported.
The Supreme Court said on Thursday that once a government is democratically elected in accordance with law, there is a presumption that it enjoys the confidence of the house and there must exist some objective material to dislodge this presumption.
This is the first time that Nagaland is witnessing the victory of so many political parties in the state assembly elections. LJP (Ram Vilas) and RPI (Athawale) are newbies in the state politics.
The BJP on Thursday alleged that the opposition parties have decided to boycott the inauguration of the new Parliament building by Prime Minister Narendra Modi just because it has been built at his initiative.
Now, every state election -- first up, Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand later this year, then Delhi in January and Bihar in September next year -- will be seen by his followers for evidence of his recovery, and by rivals of sharpening decline, points out Shekhar Gupta.
In the 35-member municipal House, the BJP has 17 councillors. The number of BJP's strength increased from 14 to 17 after three Aam Aadmi Party councillors switched over to it on February 19. The AAP has 10 members while the Congress has seven. The Shiromani Akali Dal has one councillor.
Signalling both change and continuity, India's new government, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a third consecutive term, got into work gear on Tuesday with cabinet ministers and ministers of state filing into their respective offices to assume charge.
'The consensus was that the debate was between looking backward and looking forward.' 'Trump, with his great enamourment of his own 'achievements,' was obviously looking backward, while Harris, nearly 20 years his junior, was focussing on the future, with hope,' notes Shreekant Sambrani.
'The opposition parties didn't want voting as it would have exposed the cracks in their alliance. They ran away from the House'
Extending its winning run in the south, the Congress on Sunday won 64 assembly seats to form government in the Bharat Rashtra Samiti-dominated Telangana, with the southern solace coming in the midst of a saffron sweep of the Hindi heartland where the Bharatiya Janata Party wrested two states from the grand old party and retained one.
The richest Rajya Sabha MPs have gotten significantly richer -- to nearly quadruple from around Rs 20 crore in 2013 to nearly Rs 80 crore in 2022.
With the Yogi Adityanath government taking credit for cracking down on criminals and making it an election issue, political parties are now having a rethink on aligning with those who have a criminal background but also enjoy influence in their areas.
The MPs representing various political parties offered heartfelt tributes to the building that has been the epicentre of India's democratic journey.
The United States Senate took the historic decision by 53-47 votes after three Republican Senators Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski and Mitt Romney voted in her favour along with 50 members of the ruling Democratic Party.
Security forces cordoned off the area and launched a search operation to track down the assailants but no arrests have been made so far, the officials said on Monday.
The Republican-majority Senate voted 52-48 to acquit him of abuse of power and 53-47 to acquit him of obstruction of Congress, thus preventing the Democratic move to overthrow him, for which they required two-thirds of votes in the 100-member House.
As the adjournment of Parliament for an indefinite period with the Rajya Sabha also adjourning sine die kickstarts the final countdown for the general elections, Modi said the last five years were a period of "reform, perform and transform" with the country moving towards "big changes" at a fast pace.
'If two regional parties in Jammu and Kashmir find common ground to rule the state, they would have given a more stable and efficient government.' 'This was a good possibility of restoring peace in Kashmir.' 'If you really wanted to give peace a chance, we should have allowed them to form a government.'
The main Opposition BNP of former premier Khaleda Zia, 78, who is under house arrest, is boycotting the elections amidst violence.
Shailaja Teacher, arguably the most famous Covid warrior in India, versus former student leader Shafi Parambil who defeated 'Metro Man' E Sreedharan in the last assembly election. Shyam G Menon reports from the Vadakara Lok Sabha constituency, which some feel is the most politically important contest in Kerala this election.
Restrictions under Section 144 CrPc have been imposed in few areas of the valley to maintain law and order, the officials said.
