Subodh Ghildiyal
"NC’s worst will be 35 seats…Budgam locals wanted Omar to contest…For us this poll is about sending a message on Article 370"
Srinagar MP and well-regarded Shia cleric Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, who is a star campaigner for National Conference – from South Kashmir to Srinagar suburbs – tells Subodh Ghildiyal that NC will get close to the majority mark in the ongoing assembly polls to the 90-seat UT legislature, and that the future J&K govt will not agree with the abrogation of Article 370
‘We are likely to have a split verdict… Governor’s rule will be dangerous…Parties should try hard to form a secular govt’
Representing the third generation of PDP founder Mufti Mohd Sayeed’s family, Iltija Mufti took the electoral plunge from Bijbehara during the first phase of J&K elections yesterday. She spoke to Subodh Ghildiyal about the challenge PDP faces this time and how she intends to be different
‘Haryana is in a mood to defeat BJP’
Congress general secretary KC Venugopal explains why the party is confident about its chances in the upcoming assembly polls
Dalit politics, sliced & diced
In LS elections, bulk of UP’s Dalit-MBC vote went to ‘OBC’ party SP, wiping out BSP. Subquotas bring new spin to Dalit politics — Mayawati finding new cause, Akhilesh looking to grow bahujan base
How this SC order has made caste census inevitable
In its order on Thursday, the Supreme Court said sub-classification of Scheduled Castes is permissible and should be based on a survey for empirical data on representation of different castes in public services.
‘No reason why INDIA can’t win the next Bihar assembly elections, even if advanced…Our vote share has shot up’
Days after LS results, parties in Bihar are already preparing for 2025 assembly polls. State party CPI-ML has returned to Parliament after 35 years with two MPs in the 18th Lok Sabha. In a stunning comeback in 2020 Bihar polls, the radical Left party won 12 seats.
‘Religion, caste and reservations are issues where people don’t spare those who disturb the balance’
Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole on what worked well for the party and the Maha Vikas Aghadi in the 2024 general election
‘From Day 1, Cong said it won’t touch AAP. Our stance has been vindicated’
Punjab Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa explains why an alliance with AAP was never going to work
How Rahul finally got it right in his fight against Modi
He has been at the forefront of a ‘guarantees’ based welfare policy and caste outreach, repeatedly arguing this was the only way to take on a no-holds-barred campaign of polarisation by BJP
‘Congress manifesto is talking point on ground…Defections have made no dent on our party...BJP is desperate’
Rajya Sabha member and Congress minority affairs chief, 36-year-old poet and party spokesperson Imran Pratapgarhi tells TOI that campaign language matters, how Congress pulled back the campaign to issues, and that ‘polarising’ speech has run its course. Edited excerpts:
‘INDIA rally in Delhi was a big show, momentum will continue…BJP-JJP have split to cut votes’
The BJP’s move to replace the replace the CM in Haryana is a ploy to divert people’s attention, says Congress leader Bhupinder Hooda
What 2 Rajya Sabha upsets tell us about BJP’s Mission 370
With shock results in Himachal and UP, the BJP has revealed its hunger for winning at any cost, and exposed Opposition’s weakness just before LS polls
How Congress' winter hopes left it facing a summer of discontent
Ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, the party’s grappling with defections and snubs from allies, the result of staking all on last December's assembly polls
Will Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Nyay Yatra bring poll benefits for Congress in 2024?
Bharat Nyay Yatra by Rahul Gandhi aims at justice; covers 6,200 km in 14 states before 2024 Lok Sabha elections
- Subodh GhildiyalRumu Banerjee
- Times Network
Where does INDIA go from here?
As opposition bloc preps to begin talks after Congress’s poll defeats in north, it must first sort out seat-sharing negotiations in multi-party states
'Four members of KCR’s family control 60% of the state budget...'
Manikrao Thakre, AICC incharge for Telangana, says the state's revenue was used for KCR’s family, the party and its promotion in the state and outside
Cash-starved Congress plans to crowdfund war chest
The Indian National Congress party is set to launch a crowd funding platform to supplement its fund generation. The platform will be hosted on the party's website and will seek small donations from supporters.
'Congress is confident about its caste combination in MP'
Fifteen months after winning the Madhya Pradesh assembly election in 2018, Congress veteran Kamal Nath – who has represented Chhindwara LS seat nine times, and since 2019 is Chhindwara MLA – saw his government collapse when Jyotiraditya Scindia defected to BJP with others. Known for running efficient campaigns, the state Congress president tells TOI the BJP gets ‘nervous’ every time he visits a temple
Why elections in 5 states, despite being high voltage, might not be semi finals for Lok Sabha 2004
In Dance of Democracy, we take a deep dive into how the battle for 2024 is going to be fought. As the year nears its end, battle lines are being drawn across five states in the country. Do state elections impact Lok Sabha elections?.