Exit polls on Saturday predicted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will retain power for a third straight term, with the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance expected to win a big majority in the Lok Sabha polls.
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.
The BJP, which has allied with a few smaller parties, has sought to upend the state's conventional politics, which has so far been indifferent to Hindutva politics, by taking the ruling DMK head-on for its alleged insult of Sanatan Dharma besides involvement in corruption.
'Rahul Gandhi never gets firsthand information. He does not know what is good or bad going on in the party.'
24 hours was all it took for the Congress to overturn its decision to boycott the TV debates on the exit poll results. Sudhir Bisht offers an explanation.
'Besides Ayodhya, the BJP lost in nine other constituencies with a Ramayana imprint; it tasted success only in Thrissur.' 'In Rameswaram, K Navaskani of the Indian Union Muslim League won with a 44% voteshare in a 84% Hindu constituency.' 'In the 21 seats in the Ayodhya and Varanasi regions, both crucial to the Hindutva project, the BJP won just 7.' 'It won just 3 out of 12 seats around Modi's constituency,' points out Krishna Prasad.
The lack of clarity on who is next in line, when the time comes, as indeed it will one day some day, reflects poorly on the management of the world's largest political party. It scarcely need be said that a squabble between the contenders, Shah and Yogi, is exactly what the doctor ordered for the Opposition, notes Krishna Prasad.
Kanugolu had also made forays in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh following a directive from the party's central leadership but regional satraps Ashok Gehlot and Kamal Nath reportedly were not on the same page as the poll strategist.
Influential Patidar leader Naresh Patel, who heads the Shree Khodaldham Temple Trust, on Wednesday claimed that though the older generation is against him joining politics, youth and women want him to take the route.
It's just not a date. It's just not about selecting a candidate. It's not about helping some candidate win. It's about expressing emotion, after ten years, that could reach out in India and beyond it, notes Sheela Bhatt.
Malik said that there has been no such talk in the party or with other parties.
What some of our leaders were up to on Wednesday, January 4, 2023.
From all indications, Sunil Kanugolu is here to stay, though whether his magic will help the Congress in the northern states in the Lok Sabha elections remains to be seen, wonders Aditi Phadnis.
Election strategist-turned-activist Prashant Kishor on Thursday claimed to have told Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar that the state's much-touted liquor prohibition drive has been a "complete failure", and in need of a "review".
Kishor met Pawar at the latter's residence in Mumbai on Friday. The meeting, which lasted around three hours, sparked speculation in political circles.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday asserted that he attached 'no importance'to his administration's uncharitable assessment by Prashant Kishor.
He was administered the oath of office by Governor Rajendra Arlekar at the Raj Bhavan in Patna.
Deposition of persons claiming to be 'directly affected' by alleged phone-tapping using Pegasus software will commence from December 13 before a two-man commission of inquiry set up by the Mamata Banerjee government, one of its constituents Justice (retd) Jyotirmoy Bhattacharya said on Thursday.
Did Nitish Kumar want to return to the Mahagathbandhan 6 months after aligning with the BJP?
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar seems intent on mending fences with estranged former colleagues as part of the spadework for posing a credible challenge to the Bharatiya Janata Party's national hegemony.
Party sources are tight-lipped about the fate of Tyagi, who is a trusted aide of Kumar, the party's supreme leader, but has reportedly often left the latter embarrassed by going public on issues without waiting for a nod from the boss.
Sources said while the Congress units of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan will hold separate discussions on May 26 on their preparations and actions to be taken, the party will also hold strategy meets on Chhattisgarh on May 27.
The move came even as deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav, while speaking in the state assembly earlier in the day, sought to go by the version of the Tamil Nadu DGP who has rubbished reports of attacks on Hindi-speaking people in that state.
'An old party like the Congress cannot rely solely on the prescriptions of a 'Doctor' whose motives and intentions are still unknown and that he does not look attached towards any party or ideology,' point out Sunil Gatade and Venkatesh Kesari.
The Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC), which contested the Goa Assembly elections for the first time this year, failed to make a mark in the coastal state.
What some of our leaders were up to on Monday, December 12.
Senior Congress leaders Venugopal, Ajay Maken and Ashok Gehlot had on Wednesday took stock of the preparations for the Chintan Shivir.
Roy's comments comes amid several TMC councillors returning to the party after switching to the BJP.
The Sena's remarks come in the wake of Mamata Banerjee's recent visit to Mumbai, in which she made a cryptic statement that 'there is no UPA now'.
'For the politics of patronage in West Bengal, it has always been important to have territorial control.'
Yadav also called for firming up of an Opposition alliance to take on the BJP in the 2024 general elections, suggesting that the Congress must focus on over 200 seats on which it is in direct fight with the saffron party, while taking a 'backseat' in states where regional parties are a formidable force.
'Why don't you contest the election for PM's post. You are media, you can also contest'
Defending the liquor ban in Bihar, he said that the state's prohibition policy has benefitted several people and a large number of people have given up drinking alcohol due to his measures.
'BJP and Modi are confident they will win the 2024 election.'
Over the last few months, Dutta has been vocal about his opposition to election strategist Prashant Kishor and the way he was handling party affairs.
Justice GR Swaminathan of the HC bench in Madurai noted that Tamil Nadu was a land of temples where the shrines have played a central role in our culture.
'Mamata is an emotional person, she follows her heart.' 'We loved that Didi, we still love her, but she is a changed person.' 'Why and how the change happened, who is responsible, I can't say.'
Measure each word you utter in public, advises Virendra Kapoor.
First, Mamata's pampering of lawless elements masquerading as Trinamool Congress cadres. Second, her promotion of her nephew, Abhishek Banerjee, as a possible successor and the adoption of Prashant Kishor as her political adviser. Neither has gone down well with either her followers or the public, observes Amulya Ganguli.
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