'Vote banks will change affiliations and the BJP will come out with good success in Kerala.'
The Tamil Nadu Assembly has adopted a resolution, moved by Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, urging the Union government to permanently fix the Lok Sabha strength at 543 and implement 33 per cent women's reservation by 2029. The resolution also opposes delimitation that could disadvantage states successful in population control.
Ten days after both Houses of Parliament were adjourned sine die, the Monsoon session is yet to end formally, giving rise to speculation that the government wants to pass a key legislation without convening a new session.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has appealed to opposition parties to support the delimitation-linked Women's Reservation Bill, highlighting its 40-year struggle. The bill aims to provide 33 per cent reservation for women in legislatures and increase Lok Sabha seats, requiring a two-thirds majority for passage. Despite previous setbacks and ongoing efforts to secure numbers, the government continues to push for this crucial legislation.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah has announced a significant increase in Lok Sabha seats for the five southern states following delimitation, countering misinformation and clarifying the timeline for women's reservation implementation.
Defectors getting tickets is causing tremendous heartburn in the BJP, says Aditi Phadnis
The Bharatiya Janata Party replaced at least 25 sitting MPs with new faces as the party released its second list of 72 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls on Wednesday.
According to BJP insiders, every Union minister has been given 3-4 seats to mentor and has been told to work hard on these constituencies in the next 20 months to ensure the party's victory.
Its strength is set to increase by 3 seats once the current round of Rajya Sabha polls for 27 seats are concluded on June 28.
The Congress is close to finalising candidates for 100 Lok Sabha seats after the first meeting of its Central Election Committee tonight, but a decision on the fate of sitting members of the Lower House will be taken only after Parliament session concludes on February 21.
The BJP won 37.70 per cent of votes in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections while the Congress vote share declined to 19.67 per cent.
Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance is projected to bag 234-246 seats in the Lok Sabha elections, a survey conducted by CNN-IBN and CSDS said.
Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday announced the name of Vadodara deputy mayor Ranjan Ben Bhatta as its candidate for the Vadodara Lok Sabha seat vacated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Raju Srivastav says, "I have been approached by Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee President Rita Bahuguna to contest from Allahabad-Phulpur and she has also briefed me about the demography of the constituency." "I was shocked when I first heard about the offer. I thought it was another joke, better than the ones I crack. But I was told that it was a serious offer and I should consider it seriously," the 45-year-old stand-up comedian told PTI in Mumbai on Sunday.
The Monsoon session of Parliament is expected to begin on July 20 and last for three weeks. Key political developments, including recent election victories and party rebellions, are set to influence the session, alongside the government's redrafting of a significant Constitution amendment bill concerning women's reservation and Lok Sabha seats.
The counting began at 8 am to decide the fate of the candidates contesting the polls, among whom all eyes will be on Dimple Yadav, Mulayam Singh Yadav's elder daughter-in-law and the wife of Akhilesh Yadav, who is contesting from the Mainpuri Lok Sabha seat, necessitated by the demise of Samajwadi Party veteran Mulayam Singh Yadav in October.
Hours after he resigned as Haryana chief minister along with his cabinet ministers, senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Manohar Lal Khattar Tuesday hinted that he may be fielded by the party in the coming Lok Sabha polls.
The debate between the Congress and its ally Nationalist Congress Party on seat-sharing in Maharashtra for the Lok Sabha elections has taken a new turn. The NCP has told the Congress to go ahead on its own if it was sure of winning all the 48 Lok Sabha seats in the state.
Newly-appointed Uttar Pradesh Congress in-charge Rajendra Pal Gautam on Wednesday hinted at an equal seat-sharing arrangement with the Samajwadi Party for the 2027 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections.
A late-night meeting between leaders of the ruling NCP and Opposition NCP (SP) at the Maharashtra Chief Minister's residence has sparked intense speculation about shifting political dynamics in the state. This comes as the BJP reportedly seeks support for the 131st Constitution Amendment Bill, which proposes to increase Lok Sabha seats and initiate delimitation, a move criticised by Congress leader P Chidambaram for potentially disadvantaging states that controlled population growth.
After a marathon polling process to elect the 18th Lok Sabha that lasted for a month and a half, the results were declared on Tuesday.
"The truth is that the election system in India is already dead. Please remember one thing that the prime minister of India enjoys a very slim majority. If 10-15 seats were rigged, and we suspect the actual figures to be closer to 70-80 to 100, he would not have been the prime minister of the country," the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha claimed.
The Monsoon Session of Parliament for 2026 is scheduled from July 20 to August 13, with significant political developments expected following recent assembly poll results and internal party rebellions. The session will see the ruling NDA's strengthened position in the Rajya Sabha and potential redrafting of a key Constitution amendment bill.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has approved the merger of six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs with the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and allowed separate seating for 20 rebel TMC lawmakers who joined the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI), ahead of the Monsoon session.
One Rajya Sabha seat is a small price to pay for all the skills that Kamal Haasan brings to the table, points out Aditi Phadnis.
The Thiruvananthapuram MP, who was speaking at the Kerala Literature Festival in Kozhikode on Friday, said while he concedes the BJP's dominance, it is also a fact that they have lost many states and them losing the central government is not impossible.
Chief ministers from southern states convened at the Southern Zonal Council meeting in Kovalam, where Karnataka CM DK Shivakumar advocated for the 1971 census as the basis for delimitation and a freeze on Lok Sabha seats, while also addressing the contentious Cauvery water and Mekedatu dam issues.
The meeting comes amid the speculation that the Sharad Pawar led NCP may join the ruling alliance.
Nine re-elected MPs represented a different party in the 17th Lok Sabha, while eight others represented a party that split from their earlier party.
Former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir Ghulam Nabi Azad will contest the Lok Sabha elections from Anantnag -Rajouri constituency, his party Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) said.
A bill to implement 33 per cent reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state assemblies by increasing the lower house's strength to 850 is slated for introduction in Parliament. The bill seeks to amend Article 81 of the Constitution and utilise 2011 Census data for redrawing constituencies.
From royalty to a tea vendor-turned-politician's wife and from a first lady to a Bengali actress, the 18 Muslim women who treaded the hallowed corridors of power in the Lok Sabha are an eclectic mix, with each of them having an interesting backstory, but one common thread -- their path to power was always strewn with struggle and hurdles.
The Congress party has announced its seven candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections, including party president Mallikarjun Kharge, Pawan Khera, Meenakshi Natarajan, Praveen Chakravarty, Neeraj Dangi, Mansoor Ali Khan, and Pranav Jha, representing various states like Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, and Jharkhand. The elections are set for June 18.
Adequate security and Covid safety measures have been put in place for the electoral exercise.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju met Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi to discuss resolving the persistent deadlock in the Lok Sabha's monsoon session, focusing on the Delimitation Bill and FCRA Bill, though no immediate commitment was secured from the Congress leader.
NCP (SP) leader Eknath Khadse has firmly stated his disinterest in rejoining the BJP, despite being called by Amit Shah, and affirmed his commitment to Sharad Pawar, dismissing recent speculation about his political future.
'It is advisable to stay away from the markets for now and buy only on a dip.'
As more opposition MPs are now aligning with the ruling NDA, sources in the government indicated that possibilities are being explored to give a fresh push to the delimitation legislation in Parliament.
The Bharatiya Janata Party will have an understanding with former prime minister H D Deve Gowda-led Janata Dal-Secular for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said on Friday, an announcement that shot up political temperature in Karnataka.
Dimple Yadav, who was elected to the Lok Sabha in a by-election in Mainpuri, Uttar Pradesh on December 9 -- an election caused by her father-in-law Samajwadi Party founder Mulayam Singh Yadav's death -- took the oath as a member of the House of the People on Monday, December 12, 2022.
