'The BJP lacks a credible mass leader who matches Mamata Banerjee's popularity.' 'Given the division of votes among Opposition parties, the West Bengal government's dole-giving strategy, and the consolidation of the poor, significant sections of scheduled caste groups and Muslim minorities behind the ruling party, it will be difficult to dislodge the Trinamool from power.'
Amid opposition Congress's protest and walkout, the Karnataka legislative assembly on Wednesday okayed the anti-conversion bill, passed by the legislative council last week with minor amendments, that seeks to replace the ordinance that was in place to give effect to the bill.
A Bharatiya Janata Party delegation on Tuesday called on Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla at the Raj Bhavan in Imphal amid a leadership crisis following the resignation of N Biren Singh as the chief minister of the ethnic violence-hit state two days ago.
Members from the Jayant Chaudhary's Rashtriya Lok Dal too were part of the group, their participation seen as another indication that the party is all set to switch sides from the SP to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
The BJP's victory in the Delhi Assembly elections has sparked speculation over who will lead the next government. Several prominent leaders, including Pravesh Verma, Ashish Sood, Pawan Sharma, Vijender Gupta, and Satish Upadhyay, are in the running for the chief minister's post. The party's national leadership is expected to make the final decision, leaving the contenders in a state of anticipation.
Amid the pandemonium and chaos, which many senior members termed as a "black mark" and "unprecedented" in the House's century old history, it was adjourned sine-die within minutes after it met for the day.
The JD-U leader's outbursts met with disapproval from the RJD as well as ally BJP, leaving the party to fend for itself.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu constituted his council of ministers on Sunday night, considering their experience and social equations, giving due representation to women as well as backward castes.
The party's state unit president Jagadanand Singh announced the names of Mohd Qari Sohaib, Munni Rajak and Ashok Kumar Pandey.
Shinde has been replaced with Ajay Choudhury, Raut told reporters.
The former chief minister noted that he had worked with Pawar in his cabinet and knew his style of functioning. Pawar was Thackeray's deputy in the previous Maha Vikas Aghadi government.
The Maharashtra government is set to expand its cabinet on December 15 with 30-32 ministers taking the oath of office at a ceremony in Nagpur. The week-long winter session of the state legislature is scheduled to begin in Nagpur on December 16. The BJP-led government, which came to power after the November 20 assembly polls, has seen its fair share of twists and turns in the cabinet formation process. The BJP is likely to get 20-21 ministerial berths, followed by 11-12 for the Sena and 9-10 for the NCP.
The Congress won three seats, Shiv Sena won two, while the Nationalist Congress Party, Bharatiya Janata Party and an Independent bagged one seat each.
Shankar went to Karnataka Legislative Council chairman Basavaraj Horatti's office and tendered his hand-written resignation.
State RJD president Jagadanand Singh on Saturday announced its candidates for two seats, having done the same for 21 others a week ago, and declared that it was leaving one for the Left parties.
Political sources say Modi is 'keen' on getting the NCP (SP) over to the Mahayuti to counter Eknath Shinde's 'demands' and to act as a cushion against his present allies, Nitish Kumar and N Chandrababu Naidu, 'in case their relationship became untenable'.
Seeking to end confusion regarding the use of 'none of the above' option in the Rajya Sabha and state legislative council elections, the Election Commission has come out with a fresh set of instructions to prevent rejection of vote.
Seeking clarification, Karnataka Governor has sent back to the government a bill that sought to collect funds from temples with over Rs 10 lakh annual income, citing that a case concerning the earlier related act and amendments made to it is still pending in Supreme Court.
In a significant development, the Supreme Court on Friday agreed to consider the separate pleas of opposition-ruled Kerala and West Bengal, alleging the denial of assent to bills passed by the respective legislative assemblies.
Cross-voting was held during the Rajya Sabha elections and the Maharashtra Legislative Council polls last month.
Karnataka has the highest number of medical seats in the country at 11,745, of which 3,750 seats were in government institutions and 7,995 seats were in private colleges.
Amid intense discussions among Mahayuti allies over the distribution of portfolios and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena's insistence on the home ministry, the clarity on the composition of the council of ministers is expected by Sunday, sources said.
A jilted lover struck 18 blows on the head of his girlfriend on a road in Vasai, near Mumbai, on Friday, even as scores of people watched the gory spectacle, the police said.
The cabinet of the new government led by Rekha Gupta balances representation of all major communities that propelled the Bharatiya Janata Party to power in Delhi with a massive majority after over 26 years.
New India Assurance and Niva Bupa have invested in the Bima Sugam India Federation.
The anti-encroachment drive at Vishalgad Fort in Maharashtra's Kolhapur district turned violent as a mob hurled stones at police personnel and damaged properties, leading to the registration of cases against 500 people and the arrest of 21 others, police said on Monday.
A strategist and a quintessential political leader with grassroots connect, Rajnath Singh is credited with expanding the Bharatiya Janata Party's organisational network in the Hindi heartland state of Uttar Pradesh in the 1990s and the subsequent decades.
The chief minister, who is currently not a member of either of the Houses of the state Legislature, submitted his nomination papers to the election officer in Mumbai.
The 75-year-old Eshwarappa, had remained steadfast in his decision to contest, spurning efforts by party leaders to pacify him. He had even filed his nomination as an independent candidate.
The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that the Goods and Service Tax (GST) Council's recommendations are not binding on Union and State but have a persuasive value as the country has a cooperative federal structure.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday condemned the demand made by some Karnataka leaders that Mumbai be declared a Union Territory.
An accidental encounter between Maharashtra deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis and Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray chief Uddhav Thackeray in a lift in Vidhan Bhawan on Thursday caused ripples in state political circles.
The 10-day-old BJP-led Mahayuti alliance ministry in Maharashtra was expanded on Sunday, with 39 ministers being sworn in, taking its strength to 42. The BJP secured 19 ministerial berths, followed by 11 for the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and 9 for Ajit Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party. Governor P C Radhakrishnan administered the oath to the new ministers at the ceremony held in Nagpur. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and deputy CMs Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar were present.
The much-delayed expansion of the 41-day-old Maharashtra ministry saw as many as 17 former ministers taking oath on Tuesday.
Amidst rumblings within the state Bharatiya Janata Party seeking a change of leadership in strife-torn Manipur, Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Sunday tendered his resignation to Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla at the Raj Bhavan in Imphal.
India voted in favor of a United Nations General Assembly resolution that called for the withdrawal of Israel from the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, and reiterated the call for achieving a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in West Asia. The resolution, tabled by Senegal, was adopted with 157 nations voting in favor, while eight nations voted against it and seven abstained.
The bold decisions are part of the Congress 'Nav Sankalp' declaration that was adopted at the end of the three-day 'Chintan Shivir in Udaipur, indicating that the party has chosen to put its weight behind the young leadership after a prolonged old-versus-new tussle.
The monsoon session of the Maharashtra legislature, slated to begin on July 18, has been postponed, a senior official said on Friday.
'The BJP is using its money and muscle power to break the MVA government.'
Rashtriya Janata Dal president Lalu Prasad Yadav on Tuesday said he was in favour of extending reservation benefits to Muslims but emphasised that it should be based on social backwardness and 'not on the basis of religion'.
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