Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday called up Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee after which the key United Progressive Alliance ally decided to attend a meeting of the ruling coalition in Delhi on July 14.
The NCP leader said that he will be happy to cooperate with the ED so that the agency understands the "complexities" of the aviation sector.
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They raised slogans against the Bharatiya Janata Party and the central agencies.
If the poll surveys pointing to a near-whitewash for the Congress in the five assembly elections are any indication, the United Progressive Alliance government it heads will find it increasingly difficult to govern, as it will now have to contend with an aggressive opposition and far more assertive allies. The situation is unlikely to improve even after the session ends as the looming 2014 Lok Sabha elections will reduce the UPA to a 'lame duck' government, feels Anita Katyal
Top leaders of UPA allies met on Friday to fine-tune their political strategy as the ruling coalition braced towards a trust vote in the Parliament in the wake of withdrawal of support by Left parties, plunging the government into a minority.
Defending his party's decision to support the Presidential poll contest, Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani on Monday said the government has to build consensus on the issue and the UPA dispensation made no such effort as it sought support for Pranab Mukherjee only after announcing his candidature.
The Common Minimum Programme will also be made public on Wednesday.
The United Progressive Alliance will face the monsoon session of Parliament, which begins on Wednesday, on a high, having proved that when it comes to numbers it can beat its opponents hollow.
Poor shape of economy and massive corruption in UPA government would result in defeat of the ruling coalition in the next general elections, BJP MP and party's spokesperson Prakash Javadekar claimed in Hyderabad on Monday.
Days after Dr Singh begged the nation for their trust and sought to detail that money does not grow on trees, an Right to Information query has revealed that the prime minister spent Rs 7,721 on each plate of dinner that was served at the third anniversary celebrations of the UPA-II government held at his residence in New Delhi in May.
With both friends and foes warning that spiralling prices of essential commodities might sound the 'death knell' for the Manmohan Singh government, reining in inflation will be a task for the UPA to accomplish to escape the ire of voters. As the government is caught in the web of coalition politics, the Congress-led UPA has to do a tight-rope walk so as not to annoy its Left partners and at the same time keep the voters in good humour by containing inflation.
The BJP has sought the disqualification of Soren as an MLA accusing him of allocating a mining lease to himself while he held the state Mining portfolio in 2021.
The Bharatiya Janata Party was on Friday evasive on whether it will demand a floor test in Parliament to determine if the Manmohan Singh-led government enjoyed a majority, following the withdrawal of support to it by Trinamool Congress.
"The nation is paying a very heavy price for having a non-performing government headed by the weakest ever Prime Minister in India's history. The Prime Minister's office has been so devalued that his writ does not run even in his own cabinet," Advani alleged. He claimed the UPA regime, in addition to having failed to keep its own coalition in order, had also failed to tackle the issues of terrorism and price rise.
The RBI was not party to the decision to demonetize 500 and 1,000-rupee notes, which was taken at the highest level of India's political leadership.
During the day-long debate, the lines between science and religion often got blurred with many invoking religious texts and the contribution of 'rishi munis' to highlight India's tryst with the extra-terrestrial world.
The Nationalist Congress Party on Thursday attributed the drubbing the Congress-led UPA has received in polls mainly to the "communication deficit" on part of outgoing prime minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi and also to issues like hike in prices of fuel and LPG cylinders by the ruling dispensation.
Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Monday said that the United Progressive Alliance government will come back to power after the next general elections as the Manmohan Singh regime has not only lifted the country's economic growth rate, but made the process pro-poor as well.
Though CPI has called for review of support to the UPA, the CPI(M) has said withdrawal of Left support at this juncture would mean bringing down the government, which would be 'counter-productive' and only help the BJP.
The war of words between Trinamool Congress and Congress on Wednesday intensified with Mamata Banerjee saying her party was not in the United Progressive Alliance at anyone's "mercy".
Mayawati said she would announce her party's stand in New Delhi on Tuesday.
The Opposition is likely to raise the issues of fuel price hike, the Bhopal gas tragedy case, unrest in Kashmir and talks with Pakistan. It is also likely to attack the government over a series of train accidents in recent months, including the one today in West Bengal.
In a blistering attack against the BJP over the violence in Manipur, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday alleged that its politics had "murdered Bharat Mata" in the northeastern state and termed members of the ruling party "traitors".
As soon as the House met for the day, Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies raised the issue vociferously with Deputy Leader of the Opposition V K Malhotra taking exception to the formation of the committee.
On the eve of the all-party meeting on Lokpal issue, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday night held consultations with United Progressive Alliance constituents after which a "broad consensus" was reported on the approach to the matter.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, while being enumerated for Census 2011 last week, said the data from this massive exercise would be a treasure house of information to help the government plan development work.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Saturday appeared to rule out early Lok Sabha polls, saying "our aim is to go till the very end".
Simply put, the story of UPA is one of omissions and commissions.
A day before the Cabinet considers issuing an ordinance to implement government's ambitious National Food Security Bill, Food Minister K V Thomas said all UPA allies, including Nationalist Congress Party, are on board and there was a consensus on issuing an ordinance.
Seeking to exert pressure on the Centre, United Progressice Alliance's key ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Thursday said "any weakened response" by it on the Ram Sethu issue would only "expose the betrayal of hope and promise" given to Tamil Nadu.
The party said that in the last three years, the government had failed to implement any of the 17 demands put forth by the party.
Left party leaders hoped that a decision will be taken by Friday.
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday shot off a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, complaining against Home Minister P Chidambaram's comment on the issue of IPS officers, alleging that the United Progressive Alliance government was trying to destabilise his government.
Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Wednesday attributed nine per cent economic growth rate in 2005-06 to the United Progressive Alliance government's investment-friendly policies.
Asking the UPA itself to review its performance so far in a 'frank and transparent spirit', Bardhan said the Left parties should meet after the Presidential election and do the same.
The 10-year UPA rule came under sharp attack in the BJP's National Council meeting in on Saturday, which unveiled the new government's future plans and policy prescription in domestic and foreign affairs arena in a political resolution, which hailed the "strong and able" leadership of Narendra Modi.
Noting that the CPI-M will oppose UPA's policies both inside and outside the government, he said his party has not discussed the issue of withdrawing support to the Central government.
This assumes significance as it comes two days ahead of the monsoon session of Parliament when the Left allies of UPA will be raising the nuclear deal issue.
Standard and Poor's (S&P) in its report released on Monday 'Will India Be The First BRIC Fallen Angel?' said: "Slowing GDP growth and political roadblocks to economic policy making could put India at risk of losing its investment grade rating".
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