Brokerage Houses Project Continuity for Modi-Led BJP But With Reduced Majority

As India prepares for its next general elections in mid-2024, the biggest question is whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi will secure a third consecutive term at the helm, or whether the new INDIA alliance will ride a way of anti-incumbency sentiments to power. According to recent research reports by prominent brokerage houses Jefferies and IIFL […]

Kerala CPIM warns of Islamist, Christian extremism on campuses

Abandoning its long-held restraint when it comes to commenting on extremists originating from minority communities, the Kerala unit of CPIM has included warnings about ‘attempts to spread extremism’ among students belonging to Muslim and Christian communities in Kerala. The warning, contained in this year’s guidebook for student leaders, was in addition to the traditional instruction […]

BJP blames state govt for SC verdict on Maratha Reservation

The Maharashtra state unit of BJP has put the blame for the adverse judgment by the Supreme Court in the Maratha Reservation case squarely at the feet of the state government. Earlier today, a Supreme Court bench comprising justices Ashok Bhushan, L Nageswara Rao, S Abdul Nazeer, Hemant Gupta and S Ravindra Bhat today stuck […]

How Congress, BJP underestimated Pinarayi Vijayan

Keralites overwhelmingly voted to retain the government of Pinarayi Vijayan in Kerala, breaking from a nearly half-a-century-old tradition of swapping the party in power every five years. Several factors have helped ensure a second term for Vijayan, but perhaps the most crucial has been the decisive and efficacious leadership shown by the politician during the […]

Pinarayi Vijayan most popular among Hindus, Chandy leads among minorities

Even as one survey after another predict a win for the incumbent Left Front alliance in Kerala, an opinion poll conducted by the Media One news channel has thrown up some interesting figures on Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s support levels among various religious communities. Pinarayi Vijayan, an atheist and a communist, is four times as […]

Swamy says too much fear around; ‘Fear led to emergency’

Former Janata Party leader and current BJP MP Subramanian Swamy today said that the media, and people in general, are increasingly afraid to speak the truth in political matters, and said such unhealthy fear was a major factor that enabled the emergency 45 years ago. Swamy’s comments come in the context of the Indo-Chinese skirmish, […]

AAP office-bearers in Kerala resign en masse to join Swaraj India

Swaraj India, the fledgling political party under the leadership of former AAP leaders such as Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan, announced that a large chunk of AAP’s office bearers in Kerala have joined the party. These include 77 elected State Coordination Committee members and around 700 volunteers, according to a statement from the party. Among […]

Saffron outfit claims to bring down film set in Kerala

A Facebook page claiming to represent Praveen Togadia’s AntarRashtreeya Hindu Parishad — which positions itself as an ‘alternative Hindu organization’ to the Sangh Parivar in Kerala — has claimed responsibility for the destruction of a Church built as part of a movie set on the Periyar riverbed in Kerala. The page posted pictures of some […]

NCP disciplinary committee wants Ajit Pawar out of the party

The internal disciplinary committee of the Nationalist Congress Party has recommended the expulsion of Ajit Pawar from the primary membership of the party. With the recommendation, the responsibility to remove Ajit Pawar from the primary membership of the party has now moved to party president and uncle Sharad Pawar. Any expulsion of Ajit Pawar will […]

MAHARASHTRA BATTLE: Supreme Court reserves judgment for Tuesday morning

The Supreme Court of India is hearing the petition filed by political parties Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party and Indian National Congress, accusing the governor of violating constitutional norms in inviting the BJP to form the government in the state. The judgment has been reserved for 10:30 AM tomorrow, giving much-needed respite for the BJP […]

We did not cause even a second’s delay – Congress Party

Congress general secretary Ahmed Patel today denied charges that his party dragged its heels in the formation of a new government in Maharasthra, giving rival BJP enough time to break Congress’ ally Nationalist Congress Party and come back to power. “We haven’t caused even a second’s delay,” Patel said, addressing media today. “But it’s true […]

Athavale says Sharad Pawar refused invite to join NDA

Union minister and Republican Party of India leader Ramdas Athavale said he was aware of moves to woo Sharad Pawar Nationalist Congress Party to join with the BJP, but the patriarch had refused the invitation. His comments came in the wake of Pawar’s nephew and NCP leader Ajit Pawar breaking away from the NCP and […]

Three-way talks start between Shiv Sena, Congress and NCP on Maharashtra govt formation

Uddhav Thackeray, the head of political party Shiv Sena, confirmed today that his party has begun official talks with the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party on forming a government in Maharashtra. The statement indicates that the Congress Party and the NCP have reached some kind of consensus on what to expect and demand from […]

Keeping BJP out is our No.1 priority – Prithviraj Chavan on Shiv Sena option

With only a day remaining for the BJP to inform the Raj Bhawan of its final stand on forming the government in Maharashtra, the state-leadership of the Congress Party seems to have fully come around to the idea of lending support to a government involving rival Shiv Sena. Speaking to a TV channel from a […]

Kerala anti-conversion activist expresses regret over 2018 assault

Puliparambil Gopinath, a Hindutva activist who shot to fame last year after roughing up a team of Christian evangelists in Kodungallur in Kerala, has publicly expressed his regret at his past political choices and blamed Hindutva organizations for failing to support their workers in their hour of need. Gopinath, also known as Gopinath Kodungallur in […]

No Ayyappa To Help: BJP’s vote share falls 31.5% in Pala bypoll

Five months, it seems, is a long time in politics, certainly long enough for the electorate in Kerala to forgive, if not forget, the Left Front’s decision to ‘desecrate’ the holy shrine of Sabarimala. The Left Front has emerged as the undisputed and unexpected winner in today’s results of the high-profile Pala by-election, but it […]

Chidambaram’s Arrest: A Breakdown in Lutyen’s Consensus?

The arrest of former finance minister P Chidambaram has thrown many critics of the current administration into a quandary. On the one hand, they know that there may be some truth to the allegations of corruption made by the investigating agencies. They would, therefore, like nothing better than for corrupt politicians to be probed just […]