Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday said he was neither a claimant for the prime minister's post nor desirous of it, his assertion coming amid speculation that his visit to the capital is to claim leadership of the opposition parties.
K Chandrasekhar Rao, in an interview with Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa, says the TRS has decided to fight the election on its own and is convinced the people will reward them for their efforts.
The colourful rally galvanised the BRS workers who shouted slogans hailing the party-led regime's welfare schemes in Telangana and peppy political songs praised Rao's 'national' emergence.
The 'Group of 23' leaders who participated included Ghulam Nabi Azad, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Anand Sharma, Mukul Wasnik, Prithviraj Chavan, Manish Tewari, Shashi Tharoor, besides Sibal who hosted the post-birthday dinner for them.
"It is just an announcement; the real celebrations will begin once the bill is passed in the Parliament," Telangana Rashtra Samithi chief K Chandrasekara Rao said.
The joint Opposition including the Congress, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the Trinamool Congress, the Left, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi and the Aam Aadmi Party did not join the Question Hour of the session when the House reassembled after its first adjournment till noon.
"We condemn this and resolve to continue and intensify our collective fight against the anti-people, anti-farmer, anti-Constitution policies of the Modi 'sarkar' that is destroying the social fabric of our society," they also said in the statement.
Andhra Pradesh Governor ESL Narasimhan on Thursday invited Telangana Rashtra Samithi chief K Chandrasekhar Rao to form government in the new state, which would come into existence as the 29th state of India on June 2.
"Mr Modi has utterly failed. It is clear by now that we (NDA) cannot deliver more than this (since 2014)," he said.
Modi told the leaders that Tomar was just a phone call away for protesting farmers and the agriculture minister had conveyed the same to farmer leaders earlier this month.
TMC sources said their leaders Derek O' Brien and Sudip Bandyopadhyay are unlikely to attend the interaction.
Speaking at the meeting called by the central government, Modi said India is in a better position than many other countries in terms of the ratio of the population hit by the disease but underlined the need to remain vigilant as he cited the resurgence of the infection in some countries like the UK, sources said.
The Telangana Rastriya Samithi has upped the ante against the idea of sharing the capital once Telangana is formed. At Hyderabad, the TRS has warned that it would lead to serious repercussions in case Hyderabad is shared.
Political analyst and former MLC Prof Nageshwar said that by frequently visiting the temple the BJP is trying to polarise votes which unfortunately MIM also wants.
M Thambidurai of the All India Dravida Munetra Kazhagam is set to be elected unopposed as Deputy Speaker of Lok Sabha after all major parties, including Congress, extended support to his andidature.
The Election Commission on Saturday announced the dates for the Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram assembly polls.
The Telugu Desam Party has confirmed that its chief Chandrababu Naidu will be sworn in as the chief minister of Seemandhra on June 8. The swearing-in will take place six days after Telangana Rashtra Samithi supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao is sworn in as the chief minister of Telangana.
There are fathers, sons, nephews, daughters and brothers contesting the elections in Telangana this time, which makes it an interesting battle, says Vicky Nanjappa
Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu also made a fervent appeal to the leaders of various parties at an all-party meeting to ensure smooth and effective functioning of the House during the Budget Session.
Over 400 incumbent Lok Sabha members including Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, Lal Krishna Advani and Rajnath Singh have not yet declared their assets and liability details, according to an RTI reply.
Both the BJP and the Congress have banked on new and young faces, some of whom have been nominated by the parties for the first time.
An agitating Congress member in Lok Sabha on Monday banged his placard on the table of the Speaker, prompting the angry Sumitra Mahajan to abruptly adjourned the House for an hour.
The Congress has convinced at least eight Telangana Rashtra Samithi MLAs to join them.
With the TRS and TDP achieving majority in Telangana and Andhra respectively, the results reveal that both the states will have non-coalition governments. Vicky Nanjappa reports.
'When the Congress tied up with Chandrababu Naidu, they helped trigger Telangana pride.'
After weeks of bargaining, discussing and protesting, the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Telugu Desam Party have come to an agreement on a seat sharing arrangement in Andhra Pradesh.
The NDA's combined parliamentary and state-level committed Presidential votes number around 12,000 fewer than a majority.
Chennamaneni, who was re-elected to Telangana Assembly from the Vemulawada constituency last year, said he would approach the high court for relief.
'The agenda in politics should be service-oriented. But in Telangana the mandate of those who got mandate -- their entire focus is to abuse Modi'
By keeping the Sanatana Dharma row alive and adding the Ayodhya temple consecration scheduled for January 22 and adding the free darshan promise from four polled states to the entire country, the BJP may have a self-fulfilling concoction, predicts N Sathiya Moorthy.
Bypolls to the Lok Sabha seats vacated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav will be held on September 13, the Election Commission announced on Saturday.
Issues ranging from fencing of the Indo-Bangla border to desilting of Hooghly river and spread of fluorosis among people in Telangana were among several issues raised in the Lok Sabha during Zero Hour on Wednesday.
Mamata Banerjee's sights are not on the next month's Presidential election. She is focusing on another election that will take place in 2024.
Though the run-up to the poll saw a high pitched campaign by the parties, the turnout of the voters on December 1 was an unimpressive 46.55 per cent (34.50 lakh) out of the total 74.67 lakh voters.
Maharashtra is the BRS' first target.
Former West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar's subsequent elevation set a new benchmark for the actions of those who occupy Raj Bhavans, observes Aditi Phadnis.
The two most iconic monuments in Telangana, the Charminar and the Kakatiya Kala Thoranam (built by the rulers of Andhra Pradesh the 12th and 13th centuries in Warangal) have been included in the logo, along with the Ashok Chakra.
Opposition leaders urged Modi to use the opportunity for the country's benefit.
Hitting out at Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy for rejecting the AP Reorganisation Bill, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi on Thursday said the move cannot stop formation of Telangana.
Ever since Nitish embarked on the slippery path of trying to unite the Opposition against the BJP, he has repeatedly rebutted suggestions that the exercise was aimed at bringing himself centre stage. The problem is: It is not enough if he says so. Others have to say so as well, especially Congress, observes Aditi Phadnis.
