Hamid Ansari was sworn-in as the vice president of the country for the second consecutive term by President Pranab Mukherjee in New Delhi on Saturday.
After the presidential elections, it may still be advantage Congress-UPA but at some point the utter lack of governance is going to cost it dearly. Meanwhile the BJP has largely failed to take advantage of the disarray in the Congress, says Rohit Pradhan.
Mamata Banerjee's role in the vice-presidential race... Kapil Sibal's battle with MPs... Why Khurshid is a Khan and Gadkari is a worried man... All this, and more, this week's Dilli Gupshup.
The VP is supposed to be the President's 'voice'. But so far, he has been relegated to be the chairman of the Rajya Sabha, says BJP's vice presidential nominee Jaswant Singh
The Congress on Monday took a dig at National Democratic Alliance's vice presidential nominee Jaswant Singh reminding him of his unceremonious exit from the Bharatiya Janata Party three years ago for praising Pakistan's founder Mohammed Ali Jinnah in his book.
Nominated as the National Democratic Alliance candidate for the Vice President election, Bharatioya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh on Monday said he would reach out to the non-NDA parties including United Progressive Alliance partner Trinamool Congress for their support.
The announcement on the name of Singh, 74, is expected to be made on Monday, when all the partners of the alliance, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party, are expected to meet. Senior BJP leaders are of the opinion that the UPA nominee should not be allowed to win uncontested and all Opposition parties should put up a candidate against the ruling Congress-led front.
Four modules of Sikh separatist group Babbar Khalsa International, arrested for planning to target religious figures, were on Wednesday sentenced to imprisonment already undergone after they pleaded guilty for being member of the banned outfit.
Congress members in the Joint Parliamentary Committee looking into the 2G scam today sought to turn tables on the Bharatiya Janata Party by raising questions as to why the then Finance Minister Jaswant Singh approved a proposal of the Telecom Ministry in 2003 on reduction in licence fee without examining its financial implications.
Congress Lok Sabha candidate from Amarinder Singh took a dig at BJP nominee Arun Jaitley for his 'majboor' (helpless)-and-'mazboot' (strong)- leader remarks, saying strong leaders "do not go begging for constituencies to secure their secret prime ministerial ambitions".
Armed with fresh details in the 25-year-old Bofors scandal, an aggressive Opposition Thursday disrupted Parliament, alleging "cover up" and demanding a new probe by a judicial commission.
United Progressive Alliance nominee Hamid Ansari appears set to get a second term as Vice President by emerging a clear winner against National Democratic Alliance's Jaswant Singh in a direct contest for the post on Tuesday.
As speculation about candidates for Presidential poll intensified after Election Commission announcing July 19 as the poll date, National Democratic Alliance convenor Sharad Yadav on Wednesday said the Opposition alliance has not zeroed on names for the posts of President and Vice President so far.
"The party has taken no decision on the vice president's post. We will only comment after the United Progressive Alliance has announced its decision. Whatever Jaswantji is doing is by his own initiative. I already made this clear during my press conference on Tuesday," said Rajya Sabha member of Parliament and BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Arun Shouri on Monday slammed the party leadership in full media glare in New Delhi on Monday, calling for a revamp starting from the top.
United Progressive Alliance candidate Hamid Ansari was on Tuesday re-elected as Vice President, becoming the second person to get the second consecutive term as he defeated National Democratic Alliance nominee Jaswant Singh by a large margin of 252 votes.
Former external affairs minister Jaswant Singh recently told The Indian Express that he knew for a fact that Pakistani terrorist Mast Gul, who spearheaded the siege of the Chrar-e-Sharief shrine in Kashmir in 1995, was "escorted to the Line of Control" after he had "vacated the dargah".
Former army, R&AW and IB officers say they were unaware of any deal being struck with the dreaded terrorist Mast Gul during the Chrar-e-Sharief siege in Kashmir in 1995. Vicky Nanjappa reports.
With the role of the venerable elder thrust on him in UP, Mr Singh has had to attune himself to the politics at the Centre, observes Aditi Phadnis.
Describing the government's White Paper on black money as "disappointing" and a "non-paper", the Bharatiya Janata Party said on Monday it is "like a bikini" as it hides the essentials and reveals only the less significant details.
Former Army chief General Joginder Jaswant Singh was on Thursday appointed the Governor of Arunachal Pradesh. The appointment, made by President Pratibha Patil, will come into effect from the date Singh assumes charge of his office, a Rashtrapati Bhavan communique said. Singh retired as Army chief last year.
The Parliamentary panel examining the nuclear liability bill on Wednesday decided to seek an extension for submitting its report on the controversial legislation. The decision to seek an extension came after top Bharatiya Janata Party leaders including L K Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley had a meeting with Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee."The committee cannot hustle through the proceedings," said BJP leader Jaswant Singh.
Says no evidence yet to incriminate Maran for coercion in Aircel-Maxis deal.
However, Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje and her five cabinet colleagues have won their respective constituencies.
He has Biden's ear and because of the past relationship, Biden will actually listen to him, unlike some past residents of Roosevelt House.
Former Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh's enormous love for Mohammed Ali Jinnah was once again on show during the launch of his controversial, yet popular book, 'Jinnah India, Partition, Independence' on Thursday.
The Gujarat government on Wednesday banned expelled BJP leader Jaswant Singh's controversial book on Pakistan founder Mohammed Ali Jinnah which allegedly defamed the image of Vallabbbhai Patel, officials in the Chief Minister's Office said.
President Ram Nath Kovind on Sunday said he had never imagined that an ordinary village boy like him would have the honour of occupying the highest post in the country, and thanked the people of his birth place for this.
Notwithstanding L K Advani's resignation, BJP President Rajnath Singh made it clear that there will be no going back on the decision to appoint Narendra Modi as campaign committee chief.
The 20 persons, who were taken ill after consuming the illicit liquor, have been admitted in the local Civil Hospital, they said.
'Why are you not saying that the person who killed CRPF jawans was sent to Pakistan by BJP?'
Reflecting a change in Bhartiya Janata Party's attitude, top party leader L K Advani was on Thursday night present at a function where Jaswant Singh released the paper-back edition of his controversial book on Pakistan founder Mohd Ali Jinnah.
Friends of former Union minister and senior Janata Dal-United leader George Fernandes on Tuesday made an appeal, endorsed by many eminent personalities like Union ministers Farooq Abdullah, Jaswant Singh, business tycoon Rahul Bajaj, eminent dancer Dr Sonal Mansingh among others.
BJP deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Gopinath Munde has been appointed Chairman of Parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC), a post vacated by expelled BJP leader Jaswant Singh.
Mohammad Shahabuddin, the dreaded criminal-turned-politician sentenced to life imprisonment in a murder case, has sought refuge in books by Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela in Siwan jail.
Expelled Bharatiya Janata Party member, currently an independent Member of Parliament from West Bengal's Darjeeling, Jaswant Singh on Monday found support from an unexpected quarter -- Leader of Opposition and BJP senior leader L K Advani.Singh had raised the issue of the hunger strike by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha leaders in his constituency for a separate Gorkhaland state and sought support from both the treasury bench and the Opposition.
During the last few years, finance ministers like P Chidambaram and Jaswant Singh limited their pre-Budget discussions to representatives from the industrialists' lobby, economists, farmers and trade unions. This time, Pranab Mukherjee has held exclusive meetings with exporters, the financial sector, electronics and information technology. He will also hold a meeting with the finance ministers of the states.
Farmers had threatened to block other roads of Delhi in the coming days if the new agriculture laws are not scrapped soon.
Former Union minister and senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Murli Manohar Joshi is likely to become the next chairman of the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee while Yashwant Sinha will replace him as head of the Standing Committee on Finance, BJP sources said.
BJP president Nitin Gadkari said, "The party has not yet taken any decision on Uma Bharati's return. The issue is still being discussed." A party leader said the party's decision may be possible after the elections to the Bihar assembly are over.
