Lotus Blooms, Cong Wilts

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) tightened its grip over India’s heartland with emphatic victories across three major states on Sunday, boosting the ruling party’s prospects of prevailing in next summer’s general elections and ringing alarm bells for the Opposition, specifically the Congress which found itself outgunned and now faces uncomfortable seat-sharing talks with potential allies in the INDIA bloc.

Gulshan Devaiah's next is a lighthearted dramedy

Gulshan Devaiah has won hearts for the intense roles he's played in his last few outings, be it Devilal Singh in Dahaad, Abhishek Banne in Duranga or Chaar Cut Atmaram in Guns & Gulaabs.

Tejaswin is back fighting gravity, with eye on 2.33

Having won silver in decathlon at Asiad, the national high jump record holder is resetting as he eyes qualification at Paris

Arshdeep delivers in final over, India sign off in style

With Aussies needing 10 runs in last over, pacer gives away only 3 and takes a wicket to seal 4-1 series win

Piramal eyes PSBs to enter banking

Group is weighing acquisitions, also keeping itself open to a bank licence

Half the countries in world lack adequate multi-hazard early warning systems: Report

Half the countries in the world lack adequate multi-hazard early warning systems, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) and the World Meteorological Organisation said on Sunday.

Search for leopard continues in Sainik Farms, fresh pug marks seen at Asola

Forest and police officials on Sunday said they were yet to locate the leopard spotted multiple times in south Delhi's Sainik Farms area since Friday night. However, fresh pug marks of a leopard were seen at the Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary on Sunday, suggesting that the animal had likely returned to the sanctuary, officials said.

After light rain, IMD predicts dip in temp

The city got colder on Sunday as the minimum temperature dipped to 10 degrees Celsius (°C) and recorded drizzling in some parts, leading to weather officials to predict a further fall in mercury and dense fog in the coming days.

Kuki officials stand ground in Meitei-dominated Imphal

The ongoing ethnic strife in Manipur that has roiled the northeastern state for the past seven months has deepened fault lines between Meitei and Kuki communities, dividing them geographically across the state. While no Meiteis live in hill districts such as Churachandpur anymore, Kukis from the valley have taken refuge in the hills.

Mizoram assembly poll results to be out today

With poll results declared on Sunday for four out of the five states that went to assembly elections last month, all eyes are now set on counting of votes in Mizoram on Monday.

What state results say about national politics

It is claimed the emerging electoral trends from five states that held assembly elections are going to be a decisive factor in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections; in simple terms, we are told the assembly elections ought to be seen as a mood of the nation. A section of media and political commentators highlight the impressive performance of the BJP in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh (MP) and Chhattisgarh to argue that the party under the leadership of Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi is going to win the 2024 election with ease.

Modi, the provider, and women labharthi

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has scored a comprehensive victory in the three Hindi Belt states — Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan — that went to the polls in November, even outperforming some of the most optimistic exit polls. It is no secret that the BJP has built a solid base of support in these states: The party won 62 out of the 65 Lok Sabha seats in these states in both the 2014 and 2019 national elections. But the Congress remained optimistic while heading into the 2023 state elections, as it had won all three states in 2018.

BJP's tribal outreach key to Hindi heartland sweep

PM Modi set tone for election victory by announcing ₹24K cr for welfare mission of tribal groups in Jharkhand in Nov

Misfired OBC gambit, infighting: How to lose a mandate in 5 years

On December 17, 2018, four men stood in Raipur’s indoor stadium to a cheering crowd, their hands held aloft in victory. To the left were TS Singh Deo and Tamradhwaj Sahu, senior Congress leaders who had just won but lost out on the top job. In the centre was Rahul Gandhi, and to his right, was Bhupesh Baghel, the man who would be the first Congress chief minister for decade-and-a-half. Politically, it was a heady time.

How BJP scripted history to wrest back state from Baghel's Congress

With Modi as the face, a turn towards welfare and a focus on graft charges against Cong, BJP has pulled off unprecedented results

The rise and rise of Revanth: From ABVP cadre to CM face of Congress

54-year-old Anumula Revanth Reddy was appointed president of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president in July 2021. He took a circuitous route to the position.

Welfare pitch helps Congress win its second southern state

In BRS, Congress has defeated a regional powerhouse, but party insiders admit that similar successes in other parts of the country would be difficult

BJP improves tally in Marwar and Jaipur, retains hold in Mewar belt

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) did well in the Marwar, Mewar, eastern Rajasthan and Hadoti regions while its performance was below par in Shekhawati and north Rajasthan, election results showed on Sunday.

Schemes fail to break trend as Raj votes out incumbent

Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot was confident that his populist welfare schemes would translate into votes for the Congress party, but the measures failed to break the tradition or \"riwaz\" of the desert state to vote out the incumbent government.

BJP central team took reins of campaign to cement win

Behind the Bharatiya Janata Party’s victory in Rajasthan, and, more importantly, the quality of it -- the part won 115 of the 199 seats that went to polls -- was a mix of the usual and the unusual.

Cong shows little resistance across MP's 6 regions as BJP completes pan-state sweep

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) swept all six regions of Madhya Pradesh, winning 163 of 230 seats compared to 66 for the Congress. In 2018, when the Congress won 114 seats compared to the BJP's 109, the latter did better than the former in three regions.

Defeat puts sharp focus on failure of Kamal, Digvijaya

Over-confidence, a campaign out of touch with ground reality, poor candidate selection, and complete centralisation of all decision-making by two state leaders Congress insiders in Madhya Pradesh have put state unit chief Kamal Nath, and senior leader Digvijaya Singh, both of whom ran the Madhya Pradesh campaign, in the dock over the party's massive elections defeat.

'Unsavoury words were used against me... the results have silenced them'

Jyotiraditya Scindia, 52, whose move to the BJP in 2020 saw the party return to power after losing the 2018 elections, spoke to HT on the party’s stunning performance in Madhya Pradesh and the road ahead. Edited excerpts:

Multi-pronged strategy powers BJP

At a closed-door meeting with party leaders in Indore on July 30, Union home minister Amit Shah asked a question: “Açhchi sarkar kaunsi hoti hai?” (Which is a good government?). When the leaders did not come up with the answer he was looking for, Shah, a former party president and arguably the party’s most powerful election strategist said, “Meri sarkar achchi sarkar hoti hai” (my party’s government is the best government).

A sustained focus on corruption key in victory for BJP allegations

From alleged irregularities in the excise policy in Chhattisgarh, to the Kalehswaram dam in Telangana, to a \"red diary\" in Rajasthan, a sustained focus on corruption allegations across states of Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Telangana were key parts of the BJP's campaign in these states, forming the basis of successes in the first two, and an increase in seats in the southern state.

As Cong bolsters presence in South, it's losing grip in North

The Congress wrested a key, resource-rich state in the south, winning Telangana, but lost ground in north India, failing to displace the Bharatiya Janata Party in Madhya Pradesh, and being voted out of power in both Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. Analysts say the electoral loss has created a larger problem for the largest Opposition party: it has faltered in a region where it needs to drastically improve its strike rate against the BJP.

Caste to welfare, flat for Congress all cards fall in heartland

BHARAT JODO YATRA MAY HAVE HELPED THE CONG CONSOLIDATE ITS VOTES IN SOUTH, BUT IT FAILED TO TRANSLATE INTO EXTRA VOTES IN NORTH INDIA

Concerns over rising toll as Israel widens Gaza strikes

More than 15,500 people have been killed in the besieged Palestinian territory since October 7

Talks with Maldives still on over continued ops of Indian aircraft

India and the Maldives are in discussions on the continued operation of aircraft provided by New Delhi to the Indian Ocean archipelago, people familiar with the matter said on Sunday after Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu said the Indian government has agreed to withdraw military personnel from his country.

Welfare pitch helps Congress win its second southern state

In BRS, Congress has defeated a regional powerhouse, but party insiders admit that similar successes in other parts of the country would be difficult