Thakur's tenure as chief minister is best remembered for implementation of the recommendations of the Mungeri Lal Commission, whereby quotas for backward classes were introduced in the state in 1978. This panel was the forerunner of the Mandal Commission. Both Mungeri Lal and B P Mandal were from Bihar, which has a long history of socialist struggles.
Upset about being snubbed by INDIA, Nitish Kumar is weighing his political options. BJP would like him back knowing that it would jolt the Opposition alliance, perhaps irreversibly.
What some of our leaders were up to on over the weekend.
Punjab Minister Anmol Gagan Mann on Wednesday said her Aam Aadmi Party will fight on all 13 parliamentary seats in the state.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's move to get reservation for women in legislatures promises to shape the political discourse ahead of key state polls and Lok Sabha elections, and a parliamentary approval to the long-contested proposal will be used by the Bharatiya Janata Party to burnish his credentials as a decisive leader.
Women politicians bring to politics and policy a sensitivity that most of their male counterparts, at least until a generation back, lacked.
"NDA is a beautiful rainbow of regional aspirations... So nation's development through the development of states... At a time when we are working for a developed India, NDA is taking the lead in showing the spirit of sabka prayas," he said.
The Act deals with automatic disqualification of MPs and state legislators upon being convicted and sentenced for two years or more in a criminal case.
"We will definitely contest it in court. The Shinde faction left the Shiv Sena, then how can they claim that their group is the original party, and not the one led by Uddhav Thackeray. The Thackeray name is synonymous with the Shiv Sena," the Rajya Sabha member said.
Opposition parties that are against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh should come together and discussions are ongoing on what should be its framework, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said Friday after meeting Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Sharad Yadav.
"Lalu ji had madhur sambandh (cordial relations) with my father and political mentor Ram Vilas Paswan. I thank him for lending credence to my leadership. But, my current priority is the ongoing state-wide Ashirwad Yatra", Chirag told reporters in Patna.
Can Nitishbabu create an anti-BJP phalanx like Jayaprakash Narayan did in 1977 or will his efforts come undone by Opposition leaders' political ambitions and, of course, the BJP's agency-aided campaign of intimidation?
Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi on Saturday visited Janata Dal-United leader Nitish Kumar in the presence of party president Sharad Yadav to reconcile after Bharatiya Janata Party's top leadership in Delhi made it clear not to support Manjhi.
Post Nitish's exit, 17 parties plan to meet on Friday to formulate their future course of action. Congress president Sonia Gandhi has invited Sharad Yadav to join them, reports Archis Mohan.
Ailing Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad has returned to his home turf Bihar, amid escalating political temperatures over issues of caste census, the Rajya Sabha biennial polls and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registering yet another corruption case against the septuagenarian.
The four choices offered to candidates were: Sharad Yadav, Shatrughan Sinha, Lalu Prasad Yadav and Vijay Rupani.
Rahul Gandhi had earlier indicated that he might be present at the Patna rally.
Bihar is no stranger to being at the centre of a tectonic shift in national politics fuelled by turbulent regional forces.
As he snapped ties with the Bharatiya Janata Party, Bihar's caretaker chief minister Nitish Kumar has once again been pitched as a prime ministerial candidate for the 2024 elections by some, but a majority of the Opposition still view the Janata Dal-United leader with suspicion citing his numerous 'U-turns'.
The final phase of polling on Saturday will cover 78 constituencies spread across 19 north Bihar districts.
This is the biggest action taken against rebel leaders close to Yadav by the JD-U in Bihar.
Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi held a virtual meeting on Friday evening with leaders of 19 Opposition parties, including the chief ministers of some Opposition-ruled states, amid efforts to boost Opposition unity and evolve a common strategy against the National Democratic Alliance government.
Here's how the biggies fared in Bihar elections 2020.
K C Tyagi, senior Janata Dal-United leader and close confidante of party president Sharad Yadav, on Saturday filed nomination for the lone Rajya Sabha seat vacant from Bihar following resignation of rebel leader Upendra Kushwaha.
Efforts to form a new "block" of parties opposed to the Bhartiya Janata Party and the Congress is all set to gain momentum with a meeting of leaders in Delhi on February 5, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said on Saturday.
Welcoming Team Anna's entry into politics, Janata Dal-United chief Sharad Yadav on Saturday refused to comment on whether the Lokpal crusader's outfit will be invited to join the National Democratic Alliance.
Party said it will take action against Sharad Yadav if he attends Lalu Yadav's August 27 rally.
Naidu visited the All India Institute of Medical Sciences to enquire about his former cabinet colleague's health.
The Congress on Sunday named Baghel, a five-time MLA from Patan, to head the state Congress Legislature Party. Baghel, who took charge as Congress state president Congress after the 2013 assembly polls, was credited for the massive victory of the party in the recent assembly polls where Congress won 68 seats in the 90-member House.
Addressing the protesters, opposition leaders attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Janata Dal-United1 and demanded stringent punishment against those involved in such heinous crimes.
Cong leaders Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi, former Prez Pranab Mukherjee, NCP chief Sharad Pawar, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav as well as CMs of six states to be present at the occasion.
The RJD will give one seat to the CPI-ML from its quota and former JD-U president Sharad Yadav will contest on RJD symbol.
The RJD is yet to complete its seat-sharing talks with smaller allies and the Left parties.
Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar on Saturday admitted that there is variance in opinion between him and party chief Sharad Yadav on Women's Reservation Bill and called it a "difference of approach".
Modi did not have the guts to face the students of the country and so he crushed them using the police, he alleged. "I challenge the prime minister to go to any of the universities, stand over there without his police, without his infrastructure and tell the people what is he going to do with this country," the Congress leader said.
Former Bihar CM Nitish Kumar was elected as leader of the JD-U legislature party.
More than two decades after the then Janata Dal disintegrated, six of its constituents merged on Wednesday to form a new party which will be headed by Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav.
Tyagi said his party will contest on four to five "traditional" seats in Gujarat.
Ajit Singh represented a bridge between a constituency that represented a more traditional era in politics and a modern, forward-looking, India, remembers Aditi Phadnis.
President Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday conferred the Outstanding Parliamentary award to Congress veteran Karan Singh, Janata Dal-United chief Sharad Yadav and Union Minister Arun Jaitley.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances