Winning the assembly elections in Maharashtra and Haryana will make the BJP stronger in Parliament. Come 2020, and eight Rajya Sabha seats—six from Maharashtra, including the one held by Nationalist Congress Party president Sharad Pawar—will fall vacant. If the BJP is able to win both the states by a good margin, it would win at least five seats in the upper house, thereby significantly boosting the Union government’s ability to pass crucial bills.
A Congress victory, on the other hand, will not only improve its Rajya Sabha numbers, but also help revive the grand old party at the national level. Having Mumbai, India’s financial capital, under its control can revive the Congress and the NCP organisationally as well.
Such an outcome, however, looks improbable. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is so confident of returning to power that, a day before he ended his Maha Janadesh Yatra, he declared that the BJP would soon launch a vijay yatra (success tour). “The yatra will end only after we succeed in hoisting the flag of the BJP-led grand alliance in the Maharashtra legislature,” said Fadnavis in Nashik.
The Maha Janadesh Yatra covered more than 150 assembly seats across the state in three phases. “We will win 90 per cent of these constituencies,” Fadnavis told THE WEEK.
A tall claim? Perhaps. But there is no doubt that Fadnavis, 49, has played his cards well. In 2014, when the relatively young legislator from Nagpur with no ministerial experience was sworn in as chief minister, everyone expected him to be overwhelmed by the responsibility of running a debt-ridden state plagued by droughts and agrarian crisis.
Five years since, not only has Fadnavis survived, but he has also checkmated his party rivals and the opposition. His vision, intellect, oratorial skills and genuine desire to solve problems have helped him gain a firm grip on the wheels of the administration.
この記事は THE WEEK の October 06, 2019 版に掲載されています。
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この記事は THE WEEK の October 06, 2019 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
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A golden girl
One of India's most formidable beauties passed away earlier this month. The odd thing is she would absolutely hate this obituary; she hated being written about and avoided publicity for all of her nine decades. Indira Aswani was 93 when she died. But anyone who encountered her, even briefly, was in such awe of her grace and poise, and one could not but remember her forever.
The interest in wine is growing delightfully in India
The renowned British wine writer and television presenter Jancis Robinson, 74, recently came to Delhi and Mumbai to reacquaint herself with India's wine industry. This was the Robinson's fourth visit to India; the last one was seven years ago. On this trip, Robinson and her husband, restaurateur Nicholas Lander, were hosted by the Taj Hotels and Sonal Holland, India's only Master of Wine.
United in the states
Indian-Americans coming together under the Democratic umbrella could get Harris over the line in key battlegrounds
COVER DRIVE
Usage-driven motor insurance policies offer several benefits
GDP as the only measure of progress is illogical
Dasho Karma Ura, one of the world's leading happiness experts, has guided Bhutan's unique gross national happiness (GNH) project. He uses empirical data to show that money cannot buy happiness in all circumstances, rather it is family and health that have the strongest positive effect on happiness. Excerpts from an interview:
India is not a controlling big brother
Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay considers India a benevolent elder sibling as the \"big brotherly attitude\" is happily missing from bilateral ties. He thinks the relationship shared by the two countries has become a model of friendship not just for the region, but for the entire world. \"India's attitude is definitely not of a big brother who is controlling and does not allow the little brother to blossom and grow,\" says Tobgay in an exclusive interview with THE WEEK.
Comrade with no foes
Lal Salaam, Comrade Yechury-you were quite a guy!
Pinning down saffron
In her first political bout, Vinesh Phogat rides on the anti-BJP sentiment across Haryana
MAKE IN MANIPUR
Home-made rockets and weapons from across the border are escalating the conflict
SAHEB LOSES STEAM
Coalition dynamics and poor electoral prospects continue to diminish Ajit Pawar's political stock