Jayalalithaa regrets tie-up with DMDK
PTI

Opposition DMDK members, including their leader Vijayakant, were on Wednesday evicted from Tamil Nadu Assembly after a fiery verbal exchange between him and Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, who dubbed his conduct as “obnoxious” and regretted the tie-up with his party in the assembly polls.

A war of words erupted between AIADMK and DMDK over hike in bus fares and milk prices last year, which soon turned into a one-on-one clash between Ms. Jayalalithaa and Mr. Vijayakanth ... Read More

Congress promises jobs, free electricity in UP
Lucknow, Jan 31 (IANS) Massive employment opportunities for the youth, quotas for minorities and free electricity connections to the poor were among the promises the Congress made Tuesday in its election manifesto for Uttar Pradesh released in Lucknow and nine other centres.

One lakh vacant government posts would be filled immediately and 20 lakh youth would be provided skill development if the Congress comes to power, Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Kapil Sibal said while ... Read More

State elections held in Punjab and Uttarakhand
Voting is being held amid tight security in key Indian state elections in Punjab and Uttarakhand.

More than 20 million are eligible to vote, with some 1,800 candidates contesting 187 assembly seats.

Five states are holding local elections over the next month - a major test for India's governing Congress party.

The first round of polls, in Manipur over the weekend, was marred by violence when suspected rebels attacked a polling station, killing four people.

Among the dead ... Read More

Manipur polls witness violence, five killed
Imphal: At least five people, including a suspected Naga militant, were killed in violence during the Manipur assembly polls Saturday that started on a peaceful note. The state recorded 65 percent polling till 3.45 p.m.

The state election office said that although the polling was supposed to end at 3 p.m., they would wait till those already in queues outside the booths had cast their votes.

A group of armed militants tried to capture a polling booth ... Read More

UP polls: Top 10 promises by BJP, Congress
New Delhi: Hours after BJP released its manifesto, the Congress released its vision document for Uttar Pradesh today.

The Congress has said that it wants 20 lakh jobs for the youth, a new land acquisition law and population-based minority quota. The BJP promises a cow for every poor family in UP, cheap laptops and tablets, a "spiritual Disneyland in Mathura-Vrindavan", and a very strong Lokayukta.

Here are the top 10 electoral promises for Uttar Pradesh, ... Read More

Uttar Pradesh polls: Congress assures 20 lakh jobs
Lucknow: A few hours after the BJP listed its promises for Uttar Pradesh, comes the Congress' vision document for the state. It has Rahul Gandhi stamped all over - in spirit and in pictures - and also promises more jobs like the BJP does. The Congress says it will create 20 lakh jobs.

Not a random number, said party leader Salman Khurshid, adding, " We believe the people of UP should get what they ... Read More

BJP revives Ram Temple issue ahead of UP polls
Lucknow The BJP, which has been struggling hard to regain its pre-eminent position in Uttar Pradesh, today revived the Ram Temple issue promising construction of a grand temple in Ayodhya if voted to power.

The BJP's manifesto for the state Assembly elections brought back the issue which had once propelled the party to the centerstage of national politics in the 80s and early 90s.

"Construction of a grand temple is associated with the faith of ... Read More

Advani bats for compulsory voting
PTI

Amid the ongoing debate over electoral reforms, BJP leader L. K. Advani on Thursday batted for compulsory voting, saying it was not an impossible task to achieve.

He also supported the plans of the Election Commission to register all citizens of India as voters.

At the same time, Mr. Advani said the EC should ensure that all the registered voters also cast their ballot.

“What is more important is that the voting percentage should ... Read More

Three UP BJP leaders resign after elevation of Rajnath’s son
Lucknow: The infighting within Bhartiya Janata Party's (BJP) Uttar Pradesh again came to the fore here Sunday, when three functionaries resigned from their positions to protest against appointment of former party chief Rajnath Singh's son Pankaj as a general secretary.

"We are at least ten years senior to Pankaj in the party and we have made out way up the ladder ; and here is this lad being imposed upon us from the top. This is ... Read More

Rahul for Amarinder as Punjab chief minister
Tarn Taran/Ferozepur (Punjab), Jan 25 (IANS) Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi Wednesday said Amarinder Singh will be the chief minister of Punjab if the Congress is voted to power in the Jan 30 elections to the 117-seat assembly in the state.

Addressing political rallies at Chabhal area of Tarn Taran district and later at Ferozepur town, the young Gandhi scion ended the speculation on who would be the next chief minister if the Congress comes ... Read More

Priyanka Gandhi among 40 star campaigners of Congress in UP
Lucknow After Priyanka Gandhi promised to do anything to help brother Rahul in electioneering, Congress today released a list of 40 star campaigners, including her name, for the first phase of polling in 55 Assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh on February 8.
Besides Priyanka, the list carries the names of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Rahul, besides chief ministers of Delhi, Rajasthan and Haryana.

Priyanka had indicated in Rae Bareli on ... Read More

Kalmadi gets bail, walks out of jail after nine months
-IANS

New Delhi, Jan 19 (IANS) Suresh Kalmadi, accused of corruption in the Commonwealth Games here, walked out of prison after nine months as the Delhi High Court finally accepted his bail plea Thursday.

"Kalmadi was released from jail at 7.20 p.m.," said Sunil Gupta, Tihar jail spokesperson.

Kalmadi walked out of the office of Director General (Prisons), giving a slip to the contingent of mediapersons who had been waiting for him at the main ... Read More

Kiran Reddy inducts two ministers, drops one
Hyderabad, Jan 19 (IANS) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy Thursday carried out a minor reshuffle of his cabinet, inducting two legislators from the erstwhile Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) and dropping a controversial minister.

C. Ramachandraiah and G. Srinivasa Rao were sworn in as cabinet ministers by Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan at a brief ceremony at Raj Bhavan.

The chief minister later recommended to the governor that Textile Minister Shankar Rao be dropped from the ... Read More

Uma Bharti hits out at Cong, Rahul
New Delhi: A day after being fielded as a candidate in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, BJP leader Uma Bharti Thursday said she will work for the defeat of Congress in the state the way she made Digvijay Singh "bite the dust" in Madhya Pradesh.

Hitting back at Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi for his reported remarks that Bharti was from MP though she was contesting from UP, she said the young leader should remember ... Read More

Mamata a dictator, says Congress minister and quits
Kolkata, Dec 3 (IBNS) Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee on Saturda...

Kolkata: Ties between West Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress and its ally Congress worsened further Tuesday as a Congress minister called Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee a dictator and faxed his resignation from the government to Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

Angry after Banerjee clipped his wings by taking away two departments in Monday's reshuffle, Congress Minister of State Manoj Chakraborty shot off his resignation to Sonia Gandhi, ... Read More

I will quit as oppn leader if chargesheeted: VS
Thiruvananthapuram: Under Vigilance scanner for allegedly allotting land to a relative when he was chief minister, CPM leader V S Achuthanandan Friday indicated he would resign as the leader of Opposition in the Kerala Assembly if he was chargesheeted.

Reiterating that the vigilance case against him was fabricated, the 87-year-old leader told reporters here that he would not cling to the position if charges were brought against him unlike some ministers in the Congress-led UDF ... Read More

Would Mayawati win?
MK Damodaran

Mayawati was born on January 15,1956.
Her birth number is 6.

As the birth number is 6,Mayawati is influenced by numbers 3,6 and 9.
At the first time,she was sworn in as chief minister onJune 3.
For the second time,it was on March 21(2+1=3).For the 3rd time,it was on May 3.At
the time of becoming CM for the 4th time she was 51 years.
She is now the 32nd CM of UP.

If her party wins a majority,she will head the ... Read More

Amarinder Singh's son files nomination papers
Samana (Patiala), Jan 12 (PTI) Punjab PCC chief Amarinder Singh's son Raninder today filed his nomination papers for the Samana Assembly seat as Congress candidate. He was accompanied by his mother Preneet Kaur, who is a Union minister, and his father besides other family members.
( Enjoy Moneycontrol.com on iPad and be prepared for a fantastic experience. Get real time stock quotes, interactive charts, market buzz, and watch CNBC-TV18, CNBC Awaaz live on your iPad. ... Read More

Congress-NCP alliance for Mumbai polls sealed, NCP gets 58 seats
PTI

Mumbai: After days of negotiations, Congress and NCP on Tuesday finalised the seat-sharing deal for the next month's election to the Mumbai municipal corporation.

NCP would contest 58 seats, while Congress would fight on the remaining 169 seats, Maharashtra Congress chief Manikrao Thakre said after a meeting of leaders from both the parties at Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan's residence in Mumbai.

Chavan was reportedly keen to forge the alliance as it would not be possible for ... Read More

Mercurial Mamata. Nothing can be predicted?
MK Damodaran

Mamata Banerjee tourned 57 on January 5.
She was born on January 5,1955.
Her birth number is 5.
her occult number is 41(4+1=5).
Her fate number is 26(2+6=8).
Her Zodiac Sign is represented by 8.
Numbers 5 and 8 are strong for her..
She is the 8th person to be CM of WB.
The year 2012 represents 5.
Since the year 2012 represents 5-the birth number and fate number of Mamata-it is very crucial for her.
Number 5 people are quite mercurial in nature!

So,Mamata ... Read More

Maneka Gandhi terms induction of tainted leaders a blot on BJP's image
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Maneka Gandhi on Friday expressed her displeasure over the induction of sacked Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader Babu Singh Kushwaha in the party, and said that absorbing tainted and corrupt politicians was like a blot on the image of the party.

"It does not put us in good light by inducting expelled politicians on charges of corruption of other parties. I don't think any senior leader was consulted before taking ... Read More

Congress ready with 65 names for Uttarakhand polls
C. K. Chandramohan

Alive to the BJP's experience, the Congress has nominated just two outsiders — Rajender Bhandari, former Minister for Panchayati Raj in the BJP government, from Badrinath, and Quazi Nizammudin, a former BSP MLA from Manglore in Haridwar district.

All but one sitting MLA have been fielded again. State Congress president Yashpal Arya will contest from Bajpur, Leader of the Opposition Harak Singh Rawat from Rudraprayag, Pritam Singh from Chakrata, Dinesh Aggarwal from Dharampur, ... Read More

Nitish, Bihar ministers declare assets
Patna, Jan 2 (IANS) Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his cabinet colleagues Monday made public details of their assets. Human Resources Development Minister Prashant Kumar Shahi is the richest of them all with assets worth Rs.4.5 crore.

Nitish Kumar declared a house in Sansad Vihar in New Delhi valued at Rs.40 lakh, and moveable assets worth Rs.6.15 lakh, including cash and bank deposits, a 2003 model car, an old TV set, an old air ... Read More

No relief to Sukh Ram, SC asks him to surrender
New Delhi In a huge setback to former Union Minister Sukh Ram, convicted in a 1993 graft case, the Supreme Court today asked him to surrender before a trial court to serve his three-year jail term.
Refusing to interfere with the Delhi High Court order which had upheld Sukh Ram's conviction and his jail term, the apex court also refused to give any relief to his accomplices, former bureaucrat Runu Ghosh and private telecom firm ... Read More

Trinamool Congress to test poll waters in UP
Lucknow After demolishing the Left bastion in West Bengal, Trinamool Congress led by Mamata Banerjee is all set to make its electoral debut in the Hindi heartland of Uttar Pradesh in the coming Assembly polls.
The party, in coalition with the Rashtriya Parivartan Morcha comprising smaller parties, would contest the coming elections, newly-appointed convenor of the state unit of the Trinamool Congress, Bhagwan Singh said here.

Though the Morcha would be contesting all the 403 ... Read More

Mayawati sacks two more ministers
Lucknow, Dec 28 (IANS) In a surprise move, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati Wednesday sacked two more of her ministers, taking to six the number of ministers dropped over the past two months.

According to a Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) spokesman, 'those dropped from the council of ministers were Akbar Hussain, minister of state (independent charge) for alternative sources of energy, and Yashpal Singh, minister of state for science and technology.'

Asked about the reasons ... Read More

Black money in polls: EC writes to political parties
DELHI: In order to curb the use of black money during assembly polls in five states, the Election Commission has written to all political parties asking them to avoid cash transactions and instruct their cadres not to carry huge cash during elections.

The Commission, in this context, has written a letter to all recognised political parties in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Manipur, enlisting the steps it has undertaken to "curb use of ... Read More

Madhu Koda, ex-Minister shifted from hospital to jail
Ranchi: Based on a report by army doctors, former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda and one of his former cabinet colleagues were shifted to the Birsa Munda Central Prison from a Ranchi hospital Thursday night.

"Madhu Koda, former minister Bhanu Pratap Sahi and (businessman) Vijay Joshi were shifted to Ranchi jail Thursday night following a report by army doctors. The report says that Koda, Sahi and Joshi could be treated in the jail itself," a source ... Read More

Lokpal Bill: Shiv Sena to oppose the anti-graft bill
DELHI: Opposing the Lokpal bill, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut today said his party is against the creation of the ombudsman as it is "above" Parliament.

"We are against corruption. We want to wipe out corruption and we have supported Anna Hazare's agitation against corruption," the Sena MP told reporters outside Parliament House here.

However, Raut said Shiv Sena is totally opposed to Lokpal bill. "There should not be anything above Parliament. We are against ... Read More

Akali Dal releases second list of candidates
Chandigarh, Dec 27 (IANS) Punjab's ruling Shiromani Akali Dal Tuesday announced the names of 15 more candidates for the Jan 30 state polls, including that of party president and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal.

Badal will once again contest from Jalalabad. He had won the seat in a by-election in August 2009 by a margin of over 80,000 votes.

It had last week announced the names of 48 candidates, including that of Chief Minister ... Read More

Jayalalithaa expels two more Sasikala family members
PTI

Chennai: Days after she expelled her close aide Sasikala and 13 others from the party, AIADMK chief J Jayalalithaa removed two more relatives of her former confidante from the primary membership of the party on Thursday. Sasikala's brother-in-law M Palanivel and another relative Kaliyaperumal were expelled from the AIADMK today.

Sources in the party said Sasikala and her family members were expelled because they were allegedly interfering in political and administrative matters. In a ... Read More

Mayawati angry as centre returns proposal for state division
Lucknow, Dec 20 (IANS) Taking exception to the central government's decision to return the proposal for division of Uttar Pradesh into four parts, Chief Minister Mayawati Tuesday accused it of trying to shirk responsibility on the issue for political reasons.

Addressing a press conference here barely a few hours after receiving a letter from the central government, Mayawati said it was a 'blatant violation of constitutional provisions' and aimed at 'dillydallying' the all-important issue.

Referring ... Read More