The original deal to procure 126 fighter jet could not go through during the UPA rule despite reaching the final stage as the then Defence Minister A K Antony felt there was something wrong in the process and asked for a review, defence ministry sources claimed.

The sources talked about Antony's intervention while asserting that there was no deal arrived at during the UPA regime to procure 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA).

The Congress has been ramping up attack on the government over the Rafale issue, claiming that the deal negotiated under its rule was much cheaper then the contract signed by the Modi government to procure 36 Rafale fighter jets from France at a cost of Rs 58,000 crore.

The sources said Antony's apprehensions may have been genuine and he may have had bonafide reasons for such an intervention. The price negotiating committee was at that time examining the deal after initially getting approval for it from the then defence minister.

Also read:<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/indian-cabinet-approves-purchase-of-36-rafale-fighter-jets-source-6629">&nbsp;Indian cabinet approves purchase of 36 Rafale fighter jets: Source</a>

The sources also said that the Eurofighter Typhoon had offered to bring down their prices by 25 per cent after Rafale was declared L1 vendor.

"Such a proposal after declaring the winning bidder was not at all acceptable as per laid down procedure. You cannot do that," said a source.

Alleging a "scam", the opposition Congress has been asking the government whether the per aircraft price of Rafale, according to international bids opened on December 12, 2012, comes to USD 80.95 million (Rs 526.1 crore) as against the Modi government's per aircraft negotiated price of USD 241.66 Million (Rs 1,570.8 crore) as per current exchange rates.

The UPA government floated a tender in 2007 for purchase of 126 MMRCA for the Air Force and, post negotiations, two of them--Rafale and Eurofighter Typhoon -- remained in the reckoning.

However, the deal could not be finalised by the UPA regime.

Asked why NDA government did not go for Eurofighter Typhoon as it had offered a 25 per cent price cut, the sources said several European countries were involved in manufacturing of Eurofighter and France was preferred for the inter- governmental deal.

The <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-attacks-jaitley-sitaraman-with-facts-over-rafale-deal-32340">Congress president</a>, on Friday, called out Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Twitter and said: "You said the UPA never released prices of Defence purchases? To nail your lie, here are 3 Parliamentary replies by the UPA with full transparency on pricing. Now do ask our Raksha Mantri to tell India how much each RAFALE jet cost."&nbsp;

With that, he attached screenshots of documents - one dated 9 August 2010 titled "Aircraft Carrier Admiral Gorshkov" and another 4 March 2013 titled "Upgradation of Aircraft" - by the Ministry of Defence.&nbsp;

The sources said the rates cannot be compared as price depended on the weapons package.

In a detailed statement, the defence ministry had on Wednesday termed as "unfounded" allegations made by the Congress about the Rs 58,000-crore deal, asserting that the demand to disclose details such as its value was "unrealistic" as doing so might compromise India's national security.

It had said giving an item-wise cost and other information would reveal details about weapons systems and customisation of the jet.

The ministry had said that in 2012, the then defence&nbsp;minister exercised an unprecedented personal veto on the laid down institutional process then underway for the procurement of 126 jets.

The sources talked about Antony's intervention while asserting that there was no deal arrived at during the UPA regime to procure 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA)

The original deal to procure 126 fighter jet could not go through during the UPA rule despite reaching the final stage as the then Defence Minister A K Antony felt there was something wrong in the process and asked for a review, defence ministry sources claimed. The sources talked about Antony's intervention while asserting that there was no deal arrived at during the UPA regime to procure 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA). The Congress has been ramping up attack on the government over the Rafale issue, claiming that the deal negotiated under its rule was much cheaper then the contract signed by the Modi government to procure 36 Rafale fighter jets from France at a cost of Rs 58,000 crore. The sources said Antony's apprehensions may have been genuine and he may have had bonafide reasons for such an intervention. The price negotiating committee was at that time examining the deal after initially getting approval for it from the then defence minister. Also read: Indian cabinet approves purchase of 36 Rafale fighter jets: Source The sources also said that the Eurofighter Typhoon had offered to bring down their prices by 25 per cent after Rafale was declared L1 vendor. "Such a proposal after declaring the winning bidder was not at all acceptable as per laid down procedure. You cannot do that," said a source. Alleging a "scam", the opposition Congress has been asking the government whether the per aircraft price of Rafale, according to international bids opened on December 12, 2012, comes to USD 80.95 million (Rs 526.1 crore) as against the Modi government's per aircraft negotiated price of USD 241.66 Million (Rs 1,570.8 crore) as per current exchange rates. The UPA government floated a tender in 2007 for purchase of 126 MMRCA for the Air Force and, post negotiations, two of them--Rafale and Eurofighter Typhoon -- remained in the reckoning. However, the deal could not be finalised by the UPA regime. Asked why NDA government did not go for Eurofighter Typhoon as it had offered a 25 per cent price cut, the sources said several European countries were involved in manufacturing of Eurofighter and France was preferred for the inter- governmental deal. The Congress president, on Friday, called out Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Twitter and said: "You said the UPA never released prices of Defence purchases? To nail your lie, here are 3 Parliamentary replies by the UPA with full transparency on pricing. Now do ask our Raksha Mantri to tell India how much each RAFALE jet cost." With that, he attached screenshots of documents - one dated 9 August 2010 titled "Aircraft Carrier Admiral Gorshkov" and another 4 March 2013 titled "Upgradation of Aircraft" - by the Ministry of Defence. The sources said the rates cannot be compared as price depended on the weapons package. In a detailed statement, the defence ministry had on Wednesday termed as "unfounded" allegations made by the Congress about the Rs 58,000-crore deal, asserting that the demand to disclose details such as its value was "unrealistic" as doing so might compromise India's national security. It had said giving an item-wise cost and other information would reveal details about weapons systems and customisation of the jet. The ministry had said that in 2012, the then defence minister exercised an unprecedented personal veto on the laid down institutional process then underway for the procurement of 126 jets.

There was no Rafale deal under UPA: Defence ministry sources

IEW: Rahul's Minimum Income Guarantee scheme promise fiscally viable?

Maharashtra Congress chief Ashok Chavan's audio tape goes viral

Congress Election Manifesto: Rs.72,000 annually for those who earn below 12,000

Congress to finalise party's manifesto today

Maharashtra Congress chief Ashok Chavan on Saturday evaded a question on an alleged audio clip of him expressing his desire to quit the party, just weeks ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

"Any private conversation with a person of the party is not in public domain. No comments on that," Chavan told media in Mumbai when asked about the controversy.

In an audio clip that surfaced recently, Chavan can purportedly be heard stating that he wants to resign over allegedly being sidelined.

Meanwhile, Chavan, who will contest the upcoming polls from Nanded (Maharashtra) lauded all the Opposition parties that are coming together to defeat the BJP in the impending elections.

The Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), along with smaller parties, on Saturday, sealed their seat-sharing agreement for the 48 Lok Sabha seats at stake in Maharashtra.

Announcing the break-up, Chavan said, "Congress will contest on 24 seats, NCP on 20 seats, Bahujan Vikas Aghadi on one seat, Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana on two seats and Yuva Swabhimani Paksha on one seat."

Maharashtra will go to polls in four phases - April 11, 18, 23 and 29. Counting of votes will take place on May 23.

Maharashtra Congress chief Ashok Chavan on Saturday evaded a question on an alleged audio clip of him expressing his desire to quit the party, just weeks ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

Maharashtra Congress chief Ashok Chavan on Saturday evaded a question on an alleged audio clip of him expressing his desire to quit the party, just weeks ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. "Any private conversation with a person of the party is not in public domain. No comments on that," Chavan told media in Mumbai when asked about the controversy. In an audio clip that surfaced recently, Chavan can purportedly be heard stating that he wants to resign over allegedly being sidelined. Meanwhile, Chavan, who will contest the upcoming polls from Nanded (Maharashtra) lauded all the Opposition parties that are coming together to defeat the BJP in the impending elections. The Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), along with smaller parties, on Saturday, sealed their seat-sharing agreement for the 48 Lok Sabha seats at stake in Maharashtra. Announcing the break-up, Chavan said, "Congress will contest on 24 seats, NCP on 20 seats, Bahujan Vikas Aghadi on one seat, Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana on two seats and Yuva Swabhimani Paksha on one seat." Maharashtra will go to polls in four phases - April 11, 18, 23 and 29. Counting of votes will take place on May 23.

Audio clip row: Ashok Chavan evades question on 'resignation' remark 

Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in Telangana, the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are all set to rope in star campaigners and senior party leaders for its election campaign in the state.

According to Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) spokesperson Gudur Narayan Reddy, the Congress has planned at least three public meetings to be addressed by party chief Rahul Gandhi and has urged the party to send AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi for the campaign in the state.

Reddy further said the list of star campaigners would be released after candidates are finalised for all constituencies in the state. "Roadshows and public meetings would be held as part of the campaign,” he added.

Meanwhile, BJP Member of Legislative Council (MLC) Ramchandra Rao said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah have agreed to address four and six public meetings, respectively, in Telangana. Union Ministers Piyush Goyal and Nirmala Sitaraman will visit Telangana in the coming days, he added.

Rao also said the schedule of their campaign will be announced in a day or two.

All 17 Lok Sabha seats in Telangana will go to polls in a single phase on April 11.

Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in Telangana, the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are all set to rope in star campaigners and senior party leaders for its election campaign in the state.

Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in Telangana, the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are all set to rope in star campaigners and senior party leaders for its election campaign in the state. According to Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) spokesperson Gudur Narayan Reddy, the Congress has planned at least three public meetings to be addressed by party chief Rahul Gandhi and has urged the party to send AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi for the campaign in the state. Reddy further said the list of star campaigners would be released after candidates are finalised for all constituencies in the state. "Roadshows and public meetings would be held as part of the campaign,” he added. Meanwhile, BJP Member of Legislative Council (MLC) Ramchandra Rao said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah have agreed to address four and six public meetings, respectively, in Telangana. Union Ministers Piyush Goyal and Nirmala Sitaraman will visit Telangana in the coming days, he added. Rao also said the schedule of their campaign will be announced in a day or two. All 17 Lok Sabha seats in Telangana will go to polls in a single phase on April 11.

Lok Sabha polls: BJP, Congress to rope in star campaigners for Telangana

BJP President Amit Shah slams Congress over Pitroda's remarks on Balakot airstrike

India Elections 2019: Rahul Gandhi may also contest from Wayanad seat in Kerala

After Congress levelled <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/tax-dept-says-loose-sheets-containing-alleged-pay-offs-by-yeddyurappa-doubtful-204926">corruption allegations</a> against former Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa, his son BY Raghavendra came down heavily on the party on Saturday and demanded an investigation into the matter.

"This has become the joke of the year," Raghavendra told ANI while accusing the Congress of unnecessarily creating a controversy.

"My father does not have a habit of writing in a dairy," he added.

He further alleged that the creator of the controversy lacks common sense as his father would never sign the pages of his own diary and demanded that a fair inquiry must be conducted into the issue.

On March 22, citing a news magazine report, Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala in a press conference alleged that BS Yeddyurappa`s diary had a mention about the payments allegedly made to the BJP`s Central Committee which included Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari, besides the Prime Minister.&nbsp;

After Congress levelled corruption allegations against former Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa, his son BY Raghavendra came down heavily on the party on Saturday and demanded an investigation into the matter.

After Congress levelled corruption allegations against former Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa, his son BY Raghavendra came down heavily on the party on Saturday and demanded an investigation into the matter. "This has become the joke of the year," Raghavendra told ANI while accusing the Congress of unnecessarily creating a controversy. "My father does not have a habit of writing in a dairy," he added. He further alleged that the creator of the controversy lacks common sense as his father would never sign the pages of his own diary and demanded that a fair inquiry must be conducted into the issue. On March 22, citing a news magazine report, Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala in a press conference alleged that BS Yeddyurappa`s diary had a mention about the payments allegedly made to the BJP`s Central Committee which included Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari, besides the Prime Minister.

Yeddyurappa's son demands inquiry into 'diary' controversy

Whether you like it or not, the use of Hindu symbolism is here to stay in Indian politics for a long time. What is happening in Congress today stands in stark contrast to Rahul Gandhi’s speech in Hyderabad in 2005 when the city hosted the plenary of the party.

Rahul Gandhi had said that the national flag is his religion. Today, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra despite her charismatic persona has not been able to ditch the trappings of cultural Hinduism publically espoused by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

I would even say that not only it shows lack of creative engagement with BJP, but Congress has fallen back upon soft Hindutva which it practised in the 1980s, leaving socialist sloganeering to regional parties cutting across India.

When Mayawati and Mulayam Singh fought elections together in the 1990s in wake of Babri Masjid’s demolition, they did not evoke cultural nationalism to fight BJP on the ground.

The politics of social justice still evoked strong sentiments and it is for this reason that the political slogan,”Mile Mulayam Kanshiram, hawa mein ud gaye Jai Sri Ram,” could not be contested by BJP as either anti-national or anti-Hindu keeping in mind caste sensitivities attached.

Today, neither Mayawati nor Akhilesh Yadav has attacked BJP on cultural position it has taken. Priyanka Vadra and Rahul Gandhi too have appropriated BJP’s political narrative of nation-building rather than challenging it from a non-left centrist point of view.

It begets the question as to why Gandhi’s became so vulnerable on the constitutional vision of India, unlike the first generation who were far more westernised and rabid on the issue of religious reform and change in the society. 
 
One, their religious identity as a Hindu was never in question and second, Congress as a party had strong conservative voices within the organisation. It allowed Congress to absorb and navigate hard Hindu politics led by RSS without pushing for any change in the Constitutional commitment towards the idea of India as conceived by the founding fathers.

The idea of India as conceived by the founding fathers was contested by RSS which argued that Constitution does not truly reflect the civilizational sensibility of the Indian sub-continent.

It is for this reason Congress will find centrist politics difficult, as it has failed to tackle ethnocentric political narrative which has marginalised them from 2012 onwards.

Congress today can neither go for the caste-specific alliance as regional parties or socialists of 70s, 80s and 90s were able to do so and nor it can push aside BJP on cultural nationalism as the theme&nbsp;originally belongs to RSS-BJP combine.&nbsp;

Congress needs to restore non-left centrism by authentic subaltern political sloganeering which picks up issues that are regional and cuts across caste and religion. At the central level, it needs to stick to Constitutional values which are being challenged in public for want of being unfair or unjust to the Hindu sensibility by RSS. 
 
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

&nbsp;

Whether you like it or not, the use of Hindu symbolism is here to stay in Indian politics for a long time. What is happening in Congress today stands in stark contrast to Rahul Gandhi’s speech in Hyderabad in 2005 when the city hosted the plenary of the party.

Whether you like it or not, the use of Hindu symbolism is here to stay in Indian politics for a long time. What is happening in Congress today stands in stark contrast to Rahul Gandhi’s speech in Hyderabad in 2005 when the city hosted the plenary of the party. Rahul Gandhi had said that the national flag is his religion. Today, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra despite her charismatic persona has not been able to ditch the trappings of cultural Hinduism publically espoused by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I would even say that not only it shows lack of creative engagement with BJP, but Congress has fallen back upon soft Hindutva which it practised in the 1980s, leaving socialist sloganeering to regional parties cutting across India. When Mayawati and Mulayam Singh fought elections together in the 1990s in wake of Babri Masjid’s demolition, they did not evoke cultural nationalism to fight BJP on the ground. The politics of social justice still evoked strong sentiments and it is for this reason that the political slogan,”Mile Mulayam Kanshiram, hawa mein ud gaye Jai Sri Ram,” could not be contested by BJP as either anti-national or anti-Hindu keeping in mind caste sensitivities attached. Today, neither Mayawati nor Akhilesh Yadav has attacked BJP on cultural position it has taken. Priyanka Vadra and Rahul Gandhi too have appropriated BJP’s political narrative of nation-building rather than challenging it from a non-left centrist point of view. It begets the question as to why Gandhi’s became so vulnerable on the constitutional vision of India, unlike the first generation who were far more westernised and rabid on the issue of religious reform and change in the society. One, their religious identity as a Hindu was never in question and second, Congress as a party had strong conservative voices within the organisation. It allowed Congress to absorb and navigate hard Hindu politics led by RSS without pushing for any change in the Constitutional commitment towards the idea of India as conceived by the founding fathers. The idea of India as conceived by the founding fathers was contested by RSS which argued that Constitution does not truly reflect the civilizational sensibility of the Indian sub-continent. It is for this reason Congress will find centrist politics difficult, as it has failed to tackle ethnocentric political narrative which has marginalised them from 2012 onwards. Congress today can neither go for the caste-specific alliance as regional parties or socialists of 70s, 80s and 90s were able to do so and nor it can push aside BJP on cultural nationalism as the theme originally belongs to RSS-BJP combine. Congress needs to restore non-left centrism by authentic subaltern political sloganeering which picks up issues that are regional and cuts across caste and religion. At the central level, it needs to stick to Constitutional values which are being challenged in public for want of being unfair or unjust to the Hindu sensibility by RSS. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s Ganga yatra and triumph of 'soft Hindutva'

The Jammu and Kashmir BJP Wednesday alleged that the Congress had conceded to the National Conference's (NC) pro-separatist agenda after the two parties announced a pre-poll alliance in the state.

The Congress and the NC finalised arrangements for the six Lok Sabha seats of the state earlier in the day.

"The NC-Congress alliance is an eyewash and a wake-up call for Jammu," BJP spokesperson Brig (retd) Anil Gupta told reporters.

"The Congress has not only surrendered to the National Conference but also conceded to the pro-separatist, Kashmir-centric, communal and divisive agenda of that party," he said.

He added that the "opportunistic" alliance was aimed at promoting "Kashmiri hegemony".

With the NC insisting on contesting from all the three seats in Kashmir, the party's couldn't-care-less attitude towards Jammu is obvious, Gupta said.

The BJP spokesperson claimed the Congress, like the NC, will oppose granting citizenship to West Pakistan refugees and inheritance rights to the state's daughters.

The Congress-NC combine will put an end to anti-terror operations and revive the over ground terror support network, Gupta alleged.

"They will revoke the ban on Jammat-e-Islami Kashmir and promote radicalisation in Kashmir. They will ensure that Rohingya and Bangladeshi Muslims are given permanent residence so that the demography of the region is changed and Jammu also becomes insecure like the Valley," he warned.

People of Jammu will do a great disservice to their future generations if they vote for the communal and divisive agenda of the NC-Congress alliance, Gupta said.

It would not be surprising if the Peoples Democratic Party also joins hands with them to further marginalise the voice of Jammu, he said.

While the Congress will contest on the Jammu and Udhampur seats, the NC will fight from Srinagar, Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said at a joint press conference here with NC president Omar Abdullah.

There will be a "friendly contest" between the two parties on the Baramulla, Anantnag and Ladakh seats, Abdullah said.&nbsp;

The Jammu and Kashmir BJP Wednesday alleged that the Congress had conceded to the National Conference's (NC) pro-separatist agenda after the two parties announced a pre-poll alliance in the state.

The Jammu and Kashmir BJP Wednesday alleged that the Congress had conceded to the National Conference's (NC) pro-separatist agenda after the two parties announced a pre-poll alliance in the state. The Congress and the NC finalised arrangements for the six Lok Sabha seats of the state earlier in the day. "The NC-Congress alliance is an eyewash and a wake-up call for Jammu," BJP spokesperson Brig (retd) Anil Gupta told reporters. "The Congress has not only surrendered to the National Conference but also conceded to the pro-separatist, Kashmir-centric, communal and divisive agenda of that party," he said. He added that the "opportunistic" alliance was aimed at promoting "Kashmiri hegemony". With the NC insisting on contesting from all the three seats in Kashmir, the party's couldn't-care-less attitude towards Jammu is obvious, Gupta said. The BJP spokesperson claimed the Congress, like the NC, will oppose granting citizenship to West Pakistan refugees and inheritance rights to the state's daughters. The Congress-NC combine will put an end to anti-terror operations and revive the over ground terror support network, Gupta alleged. "They will revoke the ban on Jammat-e-Islami Kashmir and promote radicalisation in Kashmir. They will ensure that Rohingya and Bangladeshi Muslims are given permanent residence so that the demography of the region is changed and Jammu also becomes insecure like the Valley," he warned. People of Jammu will do a great disservice to their future generations if they vote for the communal and divisive agenda of the NC-Congress alliance, Gupta said. It would not be surprising if the Peoples Democratic Party also joins hands with them to further marginalise the voice of Jammu, he said. While the Congress will contest on the Jammu and Udhampur seats, the NC will fight from Srinagar, Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said at a joint press conference here with NC president Omar Abdullah. There will be a "friendly contest" between the two parties on the Baramulla, Anantnag and Ladakh seats, Abdullah said.

Congress has surrendered to pro-separatist agenda of NC: BJP

I had begun the new year by discussing how smaller parties were going to be more important in this election season in India. Following the sad and premature demise of Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar and the tumultuous politics in the state in the aftermath, I am tempted to add one more thing: the Goa model of fractious, fluid coalition governments is set to spread over a larger swathe of India as democracy takes roots and interest group politics and local issues begin to override deeper issues of ideology, national-level posturing or big party organisations.

You only have to go state by state to understand how politics has entered the phase that the Indian economy did in the aftermath of reforms that kicked off in 1991. With the rise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and a slew of regional parties across the country, it is not just that coalitions have become mainstream.

Within each party, workers and lobbies have become more demanding - much like restless software employees who smelt opportunities in a world where employers including Infosys, Wipro, IBM, Accenture and a host of others competed for talent.

Goa is a small state and it took the charisma of Parrikar to keep his flock together. His successor Pramod Sawant was sworn in after the Congress tried valiantly to form a rival government on the strength of being the single largest party in the state assembly. Sawant now has a tough task ahead in emulating Parrikar in a state where Hindutva politics has limited utility because of the rooted presence of regional outfits and 25 per cent Christian voters.&nbsp;

A key point, as one analyst observed in a TV discussion, is that defecting leaders get re-elected from their constituencies, suggesting that their confidence and their abilities can overpower the might, the ideology or the symbol of a big party. Or, for that matter, the stigma that one used to attach to defections. I think this phenomenon is spreading across India. I hope to discuss specifics some other time, but there is a general pattern that needs to be noted.

Today's slogging party worker is tomorrow's neta. Imagine. Mamata Banerjee was just a humble Congress worker on the streets of what was then Calcutta. In today's Kolkata, she rules over the state with her own Trinamool Congress that has managed to take on both the CPM and her mothership, the Indian National Congress. Modi himself has risen in the BJP from his humble worker origins in Gujarat and has successfully sidelined stalwarts like Lal Krishna Advani.

The naive idealism of the Independence movement and the Emergency era have given way to hard-as-nuts ambitions and strategies. Mastery of local issues, goodwill, oratory, lobbying and media savvy are now explicitly recognised as key political skills.

If the "high command" of any party is not willing to recognise a worker, breakaway formations and audacious defections offer them a way out. All major Indian political parties with the exception of the communist groups no longer care enough about ideology or the mood of grassroots workers enough to discourage defectors from coming in.

There may be an unwritten recognition: a so-called loyal worker is just a not-so-competent chamcha. In such a context, parties prefer a smart defector to a dubious loyalist. Or a useful defector, as we found out last week when Tom Vadakkan, a long-time Congress spokesman considered close to Sonia Gandhi, simply jumped ship to the BJP. The Kerala leader's ostensible reason (Congress disregard for the Army) and timing for the jump were so flimsy, that it looked more comic than grandiose. Vadakkan after decades sitting literally 100 metres from 10 Janpath at the Congress head office suddenly realised the party practises dynastic politics. Excuse me?

Vadakkan is not a major leader but the BJP holding a news conference to announce his entry was certainly a significant indicator of where Indian politics is going.

Caste, community and tribe still remain important political currencies in India. To top this, we may add an increasing localisation of politics. Local netas who care about the neighbourhood hospital, road or school and are/or more available to meet voters to address their various concerns build up goodwill that escapes the attention of the national media. But they do not escape the hawk eye of the high commands of parties. We have a virtual stock exchange for "winnable" politicians based on ground reports.

The scene is not much different from the technology sector, where Amazon, Microsoft and Google may love to poach each other's employees based on their CVs and industry intelligence. Talent, work, skills and energy matter more than loyalty. If the people in question are mission critical (Read: key to winning seats or forming governments), the netas matter more.

What is happening this month across political parties are just like annual appraisals and job interviews in top companies every March, prior to the start of a new financial year. Some employees get thumbs-down signals and they look for other opportunities. Smart ones feel bad when smarter ones get the chance or a new boss moves in with his/her own ideas and confidants.

In a sense, such defections and group shifts have been part of Indian history and culture. Only, generals and soldiers who used to capture territories for kings have given way to netas and chamchas who capture votes for parties.

In such a context, the stylish reference to "winnability" in political parties is an indirect admission of the harsh reality of grassroots politics: Parties don't really win on the basis of their ideals; they increasingly put their brand names on those they think are likely to win, while keeping their trademarks alive with tall talk and big spending.

 
(This article was originally published on Zee News. Read the <a href="https://zeenews.india.com/blogs/pre-poll-defections-indias-politics-is-looking-more-and-more-like-its-it-sector-2188783.html">original article)</a>

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

I had begun the new year by discussing how smaller parties were going to be more important in this election season in India. Following the sad and premature demise of Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar and the tumultuous politics in the state in the aftermath, I am tempted to add one more thing: the Goa model of fractious, fluid coalition governments is set to spread over a larger swathe of India as democracy takes roots and interest group politics and local issues begin to override deeper issues of ideology, national-level posturing or big party organisations.

I had begun the new year by discussing how smaller parties were going to be more important in this election season in India. Following the sad and premature demise of Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar and the tumultuous politics in the state in the aftermath, I am tempted to add one more thing: the Goa model of fractious, fluid coalition governments is set to spread over a larger swathe of India as democracy takes roots and interest group politics and local issues begin to override deeper issues of ideology, national-level posturing or big party organisations. You only have to go state by state to understand how politics has entered the phase that the Indian economy did in the aftermath of reforms that kicked off in 1991. With the rise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and a slew of regional parties across the country, it is not just that coalitions have become mainstream. Within each party, workers and lobbies have become more demanding - much like restless software employees who smelt opportunities in a world where employers including Infosys, Wipro, IBM, Accenture and a host of others competed for talent. Goa is a small state and it took the charisma of Parrikar to keep his flock together. His successor Pramod Sawant was sworn in after the Congress tried valiantly to form a rival government on the strength of being the single largest party in the state assembly. Sawant now has a tough task ahead in emulating Parrikar in a state where Hindutva politics has limited utility because of the rooted presence of regional outfits and 25 per cent Christian voters. A key point, as one analyst observed in a TV discussion, is that defecting leaders get re-elected from their constituencies, suggesting that their confidence and their abilities can overpower the might, the ideology or the symbol of a big party. Or, for that matter, the stigma that one used to attach to defections. I think this phenomenon is spreading across India. I hope to discuss specifics some other time, but there is a general pattern that needs to be noted. Today's slogging party worker is tomorrow's neta. Imagine. Mamata Banerjee was just a humble Congress worker on the streets of what was then Calcutta. In today's Kolkata, she rules over the state with her own Trinamool Congress that has managed to take on both the CPM and her mothership, the Indian National Congress. Modi himself has risen in the BJP from his humble worker origins in Gujarat and has successfully sidelined stalwarts like Lal Krishna Advani. The naive idealism of the Independence movement and the Emergency era have given way to hard-as-nuts ambitions and strategies. Mastery of local issues, goodwill, oratory, lobbying and media savvy are now explicitly recognised as key political skills. If the "high command" of any party is not willing to recognise a worker, breakaway formations and audacious defections offer them a way out. All major Indian political parties with the exception of the communist groups no longer care enough about ideology or the mood of grassroots workers enough to discourage defectors from coming in. There may be an unwritten recognition: a so-called loyal worker is just a not-so-competent chamcha. In such a context, parties prefer a smart defector to a dubious loyalist. Or a useful defector, as we found out last week when Tom Vadakkan, a long-time Congress spokesman considered close to Sonia Gandhi, simply jumped ship to the BJP. The Kerala leader's ostensible reason (Congress disregard for the Army) and timing for the jump were so flimsy, that it looked more comic than grandiose. Vadakkan after decades sitting literally 100 metres from 10 Janpath at the Congress head office suddenly realised the party practises dynastic politics. Excuse me? Vadakkan is not a major leader but the BJP holding a news conference to announce his entry was certainly a significant indicator of where Indian politics is going. Caste, community and tribe still remain important political currencies in India. To top this, we may add an increasing localisation of politics. Local netas who care about the neighbourhood hospital, road or school and are/or more available to meet voters to address their various concerns build up goodwill that escapes the attention of the national media. But they do not escape the hawk eye of the high commands of parties. We have a virtual stock exchange for "winnable" politicians based on ground reports. The scene is not much different from the technology sector, where Amazon, Microsoft and Google may love to poach each other's employees based on their CVs and industry intelligence. Talent, work, skills and energy matter more than loyalty. If the people in question are mission critical (Read: key to winning seats or forming governments), the netas matter more. What is happening this month across political parties are just like annual appraisals and job interviews in top companies every March, prior to the start of a new financial year. Some employees get thumbs-down signals and they look for other opportunities. Smart ones feel bad when smarter ones get the chance or a new boss moves in with his/her own ideas and confidants. In a sense, such defections and group shifts have been part of Indian history and culture. Only, generals and soldiers who used to capture territories for kings have given way to netas and chamchas who capture votes for parties. In such a context, the stylish reference to "winnability" in political parties is an indirect admission of the harsh reality of grassroots politics: Parties don't really win on the basis of their ideals; they increasingly put their brand names on those they think are likely to win, while keeping their trademarks alive with tall talk and big spending. (This article was originally published on Zee News. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

Pre-poll defections: Political parties prefer a smart defector than a dubious loyalist

The problem with history is that it is often nuanced. Therefore, Rahul Gandhi’s colourful barb at NaMo’s China diplomacy in the Masood Azhar episode case might resonate with those bashing PM Narendra Modi, but betrays deep historical ignorance.

Such ignorance adds up because graver implications of past mistakes cannot be undone.&nbsp;

It is a fact that India was a founding member of the United Nations, whereas mainland China was excluded from that body until the early 1970s.

Nehru campaigned for China’s entry in the UN, and for making it a member of the UN Security Council (UNSC) at the expense of India’s chance of becoming a member of that apex body.&nbsp;

Even though never requested by China, India voluntarily and vigorously advocated Peoples Republic of China (PRC) for the permanent membership of the UNSC in lieu of Taiwan, lobbying with all nations for the UN membership and UNSC permanent seat - not for itself, but for China.&nbsp;

Both the US and the USSR were willing to accommodate India as a permanent member of the UNSC in 1955, in lieu of Taiwan, or as a sixth member, after amending the UN charter.&nbsp;

Nehru wanted the seat to be given to China, as he did not want them to be marginalised, a gesture reciprocated by China in kind seven years later in 1962.&nbsp;

That the lesson was completely lost on Nehru is evident from the fact that Nehru’s sister Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit — the first woman president of the United Nations General Assembly — advocated China’s case even in 1963.

Shashi Tharoor in his book ‘Nehru: The Invention of India’ recalls that when the US offered support for an “Indian Monroe Doctrine” in southern Asia in 1953, Nehru turned John Foster Dulles down with scorn.

“Indian diplomats who have seen the files swear that at about the same time Jawaharlal also declined a US offer to take the permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, then held, with scant credibility, by Taiwan, urging that it be offered to Beijing instead”.

Atal Bihari Vajpayee, in his speech in Parliament in August 1959, recalled how the Chinese occupation of Tibet in October 1950 notwithstanding, India had decided to raise the question of China’s admission into the United Nations in September 1959 at Nehru’s bidding.&nbsp;

On November 18, 1950, the representative of El Salvador moved the United Nations formally and asked the General Assembly to create a special committee to ‘study’ what measures should be adopted by the United Nations General Assembly to shield Tibet against ‘unprovoked’ Chinese aggression.&nbsp;

But when the Steering Committee of the United Nations met, the Indian representative asked the committee to drop the whole matter. When Vajpayee had moved a resolution in Parliament that simultaneously India should also raise the Tibetan issue in the United Nations, Nehru was unresponsive.&nbsp;

KM Panikkar, the Indian Ambassador in Beijing, stated that to protest the Chinese invasion of Tibet would be an act of interference vis a vis India’s efforts on behalf of China in the UN and destroy PRC’s prospects of entry into the UN.

Vallabhbhai Patel did try to draw the attention of Nehru to the threat expansionist China, warning against pursuing its entry into the UN, without quid-pro-quo, but Nehru seemed to be living in his own world, so far as China was concerned.

Patel advise came “in view of the rebuff which China has given us and the method which it has followed in dealing with Tibet”.

“There would probably be a threat in the UNO virtually to outlaw China, in view of its active participation in the Korean War”, Patel warned in his letter to Nehru, “We must determine our attitude on this question also.”

Nehru went ahead with his bull-headed stubbornness, his miscalculations driven by his inexplicably adamant and unreasonable approach, which ended up creating and complicating India-China border problem and allowed it to drift into an unfortunate war.&nbsp;

He bungled Kashmir in 1947-48 by refusing the military advice of its generals to clear the state of invaders, and internationalised the issue by sending it to the UN.&nbsp;

The Panchsheel in 1954 and the Indus Water Treaty in 1960, with zero reciprocity, amounted to massive giveaways.&nbsp;

After signing the Panchsheel agreement with China in 1954 and helping Chou Enlai to emerge into the limelight in Bandung in 1955, Nehru’s starry-eyed phase of “Hindi-Chini bhai-bhai” blissfully glossed over the real divergence of interests between the two countries at that time.&nbsp;

India exploded a bomb in 1974, but instead of declaring weapons status, it declared its intent to stay non-nuclear and left itself vulnerable to external pressures to disarm.

Nehru’s idealistic shenanigans were fatal, to say the least. Patel was strongly against the reference of Kashmir to the UN and preferred ‘timely action’ on the ground.&nbsp;

Because of this reference, the issue no longer remained an internal affair, but snowballed into an international issue in the UNSC, enabling Pakistan to rake it up every now and then.&nbsp;

If the grand old party is willing to own up the role of Indian National Congress in liberating India from the British rule all to itself, it must also be willing to accept that many of the pathogens still afflicting India are bequeathed to India by Nehru. Cosying up to China is one of them.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

(This article was originally published on The DNA. Read the <a href="https://www.dnaindia.com/analysis/column-cosying-up-to-the-dragon-2730407">original article</a>)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

 
 
&nbsp;

The problem with history is that it is often nuanced. Therefore, Rahul Gandhi’s colourful barb at NaMo’s China diplomacy in the Masood Azhar episode case might resonate with those bashing PM Narendra Modi, but betrays deep historical ignorance.

The problem with history is that it is often nuanced. Therefore, Rahul Gandhi’s colourful barb at NaMo’s China diplomacy in the Masood Azhar episode case might resonate with those bashing PM Narendra Modi, but betrays deep historical ignorance. Such ignorance adds up because graver implications of past mistakes cannot be undone. It is a fact that India was a founding member of the United Nations, whereas mainland China was excluded from that body until the early 1970s. Nehru campaigned for China’s entry in the UN, and for making it a member of the UN Security Council (UNSC) at the expense of India’s chance of becoming a member of that apex body. Even though never requested by China, India voluntarily and vigorously advocated Peoples Republic of China (PRC) for the permanent membership of the UNSC in lieu of Taiwan, lobbying with all nations for the UN membership and UNSC permanent seat - not for itself, but for China. Both the US and the USSR were willing to accommodate India as a permanent member of the UNSC in 1955, in lieu of Taiwan, or as a sixth member, after amending the UN charter. Nehru wanted the seat to be given to China, as he did not want them to be marginalised, a gesture reciprocated by China in kind seven years later in 1962. That the lesson was completely lost on Nehru is evident from the fact that Nehru’s sister Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit — the first woman president of the United Nations General Assembly — advocated China’s case even in 1963. Shashi Tharoor in his book ‘Nehru: The Invention of India’ recalls that when the US offered support for an “Indian Monroe Doctrine” in southern Asia in 1953, Nehru turned John Foster Dulles down with scorn. “Indian diplomats who have seen the files swear that at about the same time Jawaharlal also declined a US offer to take the permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, then held, with scant credibility, by Taiwan, urging that it be offered to Beijing instead”. Atal Bihari Vajpayee, in his speech in Parliament in August 1959, recalled how the Chinese occupation of Tibet in October 1950 notwithstanding, India had decided to raise the question of China’s admission into the United Nations in September 1959 at Nehru’s bidding. On November 18, 1950, the representative of El Salvador moved the United Nations formally and asked the General Assembly to create a special committee to ‘study’ what measures should be adopted by the United Nations General Assembly to shield Tibet against ‘unprovoked’ Chinese aggression. But when the Steering Committee of the United Nations met, the Indian representative asked the committee to drop the whole matter. When Vajpayee had moved a resolution in Parliament that simultaneously India should also raise the Tibetan issue in the United Nations, Nehru was unresponsive. KM Panikkar, the Indian Ambassador in Beijing, stated that to protest the Chinese invasion of Tibet would be an act of interference vis a vis India’s efforts on behalf of China in the UN and destroy PRC’s prospects of entry into the UN. Vallabhbhai Patel did try to draw the attention of Nehru to the threat expansionist China, warning against pursuing its entry into the UN, without quid-pro-quo, but Nehru seemed to be living in his own world, so far as China was concerned. Patel advise came “in view of the rebuff which China has given us and the method which it has followed in dealing with Tibet”. “There would probably be a threat in the UNO virtually to outlaw China, in view of its active participation in the Korean War”, Patel warned in his letter to Nehru, “We must determine our attitude on this question also.” Nehru went ahead with his bull-headed stubbornness, his miscalculations driven by his inexplicably adamant and unreasonable approach, which ended up creating and complicating India-China border problem and allowed it to drift into an unfortunate war. He bungled Kashmir in 1947-48 by refusing the military advice of its generals to clear the state of invaders, and internationalised the issue by sending it to the UN. The Panchsheel in 1954 and the Indus Water Treaty in 1960, with zero reciprocity, amounted to massive giveaways. After signing the Panchsheel agreement with China in 1954 and helping Chou Enlai to emerge into the limelight in Bandung in 1955, Nehru’s starry-eyed phase of “Hindi-Chini bhai-bhai” blissfully glossed over the real divergence of interests between the two countries at that time. India exploded a bomb in 1974, but instead of declaring weapons status, it declared its intent to stay non-nuclear and left itself vulnerable to external pressures to disarm. Nehru’s idealistic shenanigans were fatal, to say the least. Patel was strongly against the reference of Kashmir to the UN and preferred ‘timely action’ on the ground. Because of this reference, the issue no longer remained an internal affair, but snowballed into an international issue in the UNSC, enabling Pakistan to rake it up every now and then. If the grand old party is willing to own up the role of Indian National Congress in liberating India from the British rule all to itself, it must also be willing to accept that many of the pathogens still afflicting India are bequeathed to India by Nehru. Cosying up to China is one of them. (This article was originally published on The DNA. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

Congress's barb at Narendra Modi government's China diplomacy shows historical ignorance

India Election Watch: Can Priyanka Gandhi revive Congress in Uttar Pradesh?

India Election Watch: Congress to contest alone in West Bengal

India Election Watch: Priyanka Gandhi Vadra kicks-off poll campaign with a 3-day Ganga sojourn

A&nbsp;day after declaring its candidate for the seventh Lok Sabha seat, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Monday made it clear that there would be neither any alliance with the Congress nor a rollback of any of its candidates in Delhi.

Asserting that "enough is enough", senior AAP leader Gopal Rai said these are the final seven candidates of the party and there is no question of "any roll back".

The ruling AAP had earlier on March 2, announced the names of its candidates for the six Lok Sabha seats.

On Sunday, the party declared its last candidate in Delhi, with a senior leader saying the announcement was made seeing the Congress's "irresponsible and indecisive" attitude towards an alliance.

"Despite facing stiff opposition from its workers, the AAP was open to an alliance with the Congress in Delhi but after waiting for so long and constantly hearing conflicting statements from the party, we have decided that enough is enough and now even if Congress approaches us with a proposal there would be no alliance in Delhi," he said.

He said there has been no communication from the Congress and it clearly shows that the grand old party is "not serious" about elections in Delhi.

The BJP and Congress have not yet declared their candidates for elections in Delhi.

There were rumours of an alliance between Congress-AAP last week when the Congress decided to seek feedback from its booth-level workers on a tie-up with the AAP.

"There are many leaders and workers in Delhi Congress who are in favour of alliance with AAP. But a final call in this regard will be taken by party president Rahul Gandhi," P C Chacko, a senior Congress leader, had said earlier.

Elections to the seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi will be held on May 12. The results will be declared with the rest of the country on May 23.

A day after declaring its candidate for the seventh Lok Sabha seat, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Monday made it clear that there would be neither any alliance with the Congress nor a rollback of any of its candidates in Delhi.

A day after declaring its candidate for the seventh Lok Sabha seat, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Monday made it clear that there would be neither any alliance with the Congress nor a rollback of any of its candidates in Delhi. Asserting that "enough is enough", senior AAP leader Gopal Rai said these are the final seven candidates of the party and there is no question of "any roll back". The ruling AAP had earlier on March 2, announced the names of its candidates for the six Lok Sabha seats. On Sunday, the party declared its last candidate in Delhi, with a senior leader saying the announcement was made seeing the Congress's "irresponsible and indecisive" attitude towards an alliance. "Despite facing stiff opposition from its workers, the AAP was open to an alliance with the Congress in Delhi but after waiting for so long and constantly hearing conflicting statements from the party, we have decided that enough is enough and now even if Congress approaches us with a proposal there would be no alliance in Delhi," he said. He said there has been no communication from the Congress and it clearly shows that the grand old party is "not serious" about elections in Delhi. The BJP and Congress have not yet declared their candidates for elections in Delhi. There were rumours of an alliance between Congress-AAP last week when the Congress decided to seek feedback from its booth-level workers on a tie-up with the AAP. "There are many leaders and workers in Delhi Congress who are in favour of alliance with AAP. But a final call in this regard will be taken by party president Rahul Gandhi," P C Chacko, a senior Congress leader, had said earlier. Elections to the seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi will be held on May 12. The results will be declared with the rest of the country on May 23.

No alliance with Congress in Delhi: AAP

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra embarks on 3-day Ganga sojourn

The Gujarat BJP Sunday held a meeting to discuss names of candidates for the state's 26 Lok Sabha seats.

All 26 seats, currently held by the BJP, will go to polls in a single phase on April 23.

The meeting, which took place in Gandhinagar, was attended by Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani, state Lok Sabha poll in-charge Om Mathur and state unit chief Jitu Vaghani among others.

Names of probable candidates will be discussed for three days after which a final report will be sent to the party high command in Delhi, a leader said on condition of anonymity.

Senior BJP leaders met Sunday to discuss names of probable candidates for Vadodara, Bharuch, Panchmahals, Chhota Udepur, Dahod, Valsad, Navsari, Vardoli, Surat, Anand and Kheda Lok Sabha constituencies, Rupani said in a Facebook post.

"The Lok Sabha election committee met in Gandhinagar. Discussions were held on candidates for the Lok Sabha seats based on input received by party's poll observers," Rupani said.

Rupani said names of probable candidates for Vadodara, Bharuch, Panchmahals, Chhota Udepur, Dahod, Valsad, Navsari, Vardoli, Surat, Anand and Kheda Lok Sabha seats were discussed.

Sources said sitting MPs from the 26 seats were discussed Sunday.

Discussions on rest of the seats will be held tomorrow and day after tomorrow, a party source said.

The opposition Congress also held a meeting Sunday under the leadership of state unit president Amit Chavda.

Party sources said Congress leaders from Kheda, Kutch and Surendranagar Lok Sabha constituencies were among those who met Chavda.

Discussions were also held on the party's preparations for bypolls in five Assembly constituencies, Congress sources said.

The Gujarat BJP Sunday held a meeting to discuss names of candidates for the state's 26 Lok Sabha seats. All 26 seats, currently held by the BJP, will go to polls in a single phase on April 23.

The Gujarat BJP Sunday held a meeting to discuss names of candidates for the state's 26 Lok Sabha seats. All 26 seats, currently held by the BJP, will go to polls in a single phase on April 23. The meeting, which took place in Gandhinagar, was attended by Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani, state Lok Sabha poll in-charge Om Mathur and state unit chief Jitu Vaghani among others. Names of probable candidates will be discussed for three days after which a final report will be sent to the party high command in Delhi, a leader said on condition of anonymity. Senior BJP leaders met Sunday to discuss names of probable candidates for Vadodara, Bharuch, Panchmahals, Chhota Udepur, Dahod, Valsad, Navsari, Vardoli, Surat, Anand and Kheda Lok Sabha constituencies, Rupani said in a Facebook post. "The Lok Sabha election committee met in Gandhinagar. Discussions were held on candidates for the Lok Sabha seats based on input received by party's poll observers," Rupani said. Rupani said names of probable candidates for Vadodara, Bharuch, Panchmahals, Chhota Udepur, Dahod, Valsad, Navsari, Vardoli, Surat, Anand and Kheda Lok Sabha seats were discussed. Sources said sitting MPs from the 26 seats were discussed Sunday. Discussions on rest of the seats will be held tomorrow and day after tomorrow, a party source said. The opposition Congress also held a meeting Sunday under the leadership of state unit president Amit Chavda. Party sources said Congress leaders from Kheda, Kutch and Surendranagar Lok Sabha constituencies were among those who met Chavda. Discussions were also held on the party's preparations for bypolls in five Assembly constituencies, Congress sources said.

Gujarat: BJP, Congress hold meetings for Lok Sabha poll candidates

Senior Congress leader and former Goa Chief Minister Digambar Kamat on Sunday denied the rumours of him joining BJP and said that he went to Delhi for some personal work.

''News about my entry in BJP is being planted by vested interests, it is bogus,'' he said.

''I will return to Goa tonight and attend the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting on Monday. I had gone to Delhi for personal work,'' news agency ANI quoted former Goa CM as saying.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Congress MLA &amp; former Goa CM Digambar Kamat to ANI: News about my entry in BJP is being planted by vested interests, it is bogus. I will return to Goa tonight &amp; attend the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting on Monday. I had gone to Delhi for personal work. (File pic) <a href="https://t.co/sxytHWUcLg">pic.twitter.com/sxytHWUcLg</a>
— ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/1107270353863303168?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 17, 2019</a></blockquote>
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Speculations were rife that Kamat may be inducted into the BJP and given a major position in the state government, considering current Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar's deteriorating health.

Kamat was second in command in the BJP till 2005 when he switched over to the Congress.

The senior Congress leader held the reigns of the state from 2007 to 2012.&nbsp;

(With inputs from PTI)

Senior Congress leader and former Goa Chief Minister Digambar Kamat on Sunday denied the rumours of him joining BJP and said that he went to Delhi for some personal work.

Senior Congress leader and former Goa Chief Minister Digambar Kamat on Sunday denied the rumours of him joining BJP and said that he went to Delhi for some personal work. ''News about my entry in BJP is being planted by vested interests, it is bogus,'' he said. ''I will return to Goa tonight and attend the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting on Monday. I had gone to Delhi for personal work,'' news agency ANI quoted former Goa CM as saying. Congress MLA & former Goa CM Digambar Kamat to ANI: News about my entry in BJP is being planted by vested interests, it is bogus. I will return to Goa tonight & attend the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting on Monday. I had gone to Delhi for personal work. (File pic) pic.twitter.com/sxytHWUcLg — ANI (@ANI) March 17, 2019 × Speculations were rife that Kamat may be inducted into the BJP and given a major position in the state government, considering current Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar's deteriorating health. Kamat was second in command in the BJP till 2005 when he switched over to the Congress. The senior Congress leader held the reigns of the state from 2007 to 2012. (With inputs from PTI)

'News about me joining BJP is not true': Former Goa CM Digambar Kamat

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/indian-navy-says-ins-vikramaditya-nuclear-submarines-deployed-in-northern-arabian-sea-amid-indo-pak-tensions-203846">Indian Navy says INS Vikramaditya, nuclear submarines were deployed in </a><a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/indian-navy-says-ins-vikramaditya-nuclear-submarines-deployed-in-northern-arabian-sea-amid-indo-pak-tensions-203846">northern</a><a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/indian-navy-says-ins-vikramaditya-nuclear-submarines-deployed-in-northern-arabian-sea-amid-indo-pak-tensions-203846"> Arabian Sea after Pulwama terror attack</a>

The Indian navy said that it had deployed its assets including INS Vikramaditya and nuclear submarines in northern Arabian sea in the last week of February amid tension between India and Pakistan following Pulwama terror attack on February 14.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/lok-sabha-polls-bjp-releases-andhra-arunachal-candidates-list-203879">Lok Sabha polls: BJP releases Andhra, Arunachal candidates list</a>

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released its list of candidates for the 54 seats of Arunachal Pradesh and 123 seats of Andhra Pradesh for upcoming legislative assembly elections on Sunday.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/congress-returns-the-favour-leaves-seven-seats-for-sp-bsp-combine-in-uttar-pradesh-203877">Lok Sabha polls: Congress returns the favour, leaves seven seats for SP-BSP combine in Uttar Pradesh&nbsp;</a>

Pakistan: Four killed, 10 wounded after bomb went off on train track in Balochistan

Four people were killed and 10 injured in Pakistan on Sunday when a bomb went off on a train track in the resource-rich province of Balochistan, where separatist rebels have been fighting the security forces for years.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/suspicious-package-shutters-new-zealands-dunedin-airport-203848">'Suspicious package' shutters New Zealand's Dunedin airport</a>

New Zealand police closed Dunedin airport late Sunday after a suspicious device was reported on the airfield.&nbsp;

'Dunedin Airport is currently closed' a statement said. 'Police are at the scene and specialist teams have been deployed to determine the nature of the package.'

Indian Navy says INS Vikramaditya, nuclear submarines were deployed in northern Arabian Sea after Pulwama terror attack The Indian navy said that it had deployed its assets including INS Vikramaditya and nuclear submarines in northern Arabian sea in the last week of February amid tension between India and Pakistan following Pulwama terror attack on February 14.

Indian Navy says INS Vikramaditya, nuclear submarines were deployed in northern Arabian Sea after Pulwama terror attack The Indian navy said that it had deployed its assets including INS Vikramaditya and nuclear submarines in northern Arabian sea in the last week of February amid tension between India and Pakistan following Pulwama terror attack on February 14. Lok Sabha polls: BJP releases Andhra, Arunachal candidates list The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released its list of candidates for the 54 seats of Arunachal Pradesh and 123 seats of Andhra Pradesh for upcoming legislative assembly elections on Sunday. Lok Sabha polls: Congress returns the favour, leaves seven seats for SP-BSP combine in Uttar Pradesh Pakistan: Four killed, 10 wounded after bomb went off on train track in Balochistan Four people were killed and 10 injured in Pakistan on Sunday when a bomb went off on a train track in the resource-rich province of Balochistan, where separatist rebels have been fighting the security forces for years. 'Suspicious package' shutters New Zealand's Dunedin airport New Zealand police closed Dunedin airport late Sunday after a suspicious device was reported on the airfield. 'Dunedin Airport is currently closed' a statement said. 'Police are at the scene and specialist teams have been deployed to determine the nature of the package.'

News brief: Big stories of the day

The Congress has announced its candidates for five out of the total 11 Lok Sabha seats in Chhattisgarh, giving a chance to three of its sitting MLAs.

The names of candidates for Surguja, Bastar, Raigarh and Kanker seats, reserved for the Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Janjgir-Champa, which is allocated to a Scheduled Caste (SCs) candidate, were declared late Saturday night.

Prominent tribal leader Khelsai Singh, currently an MLA from Premnagar Assembly seat, has been nominated from Surguja Lok Sabha constituency.

Mr Singh, a four-time MLA, earlier represented the Surguja Lok Sabha seat thrice in 1991, 1996 and 1999.

Another tribal leader Dipak Baij, who is a legislator from Chitrakot Assembly seat, will contest from Bastar Lok Sabha constituency.

Also, Dharamjaigarh seat MLA Laljeet Singh Rathiya has been fielded from Raigarh Lok Sabha constituency.

His father Chanesh Ram Rathiya had been a Congress MLA from Madhya Pradesh before Chhattisgarh was carved out of it.

Besides, the Congress has fielded Biresh Thakur from Kanker Lok Sabha seat.

He is currently a member of the Kanker Zila panchayat. His father Satyanarayan Singh Thakur and grandfather Ratan Singh Thakur had also earlier served as Congress MLAs in MP.

Former Congress MP Parasram Bhardwaj's son Ravi Bhardwaj will contest from Janjgir-Champa (SC) Lok Sabha seat.

"All the five candidates are active in their regions. The way Congress unseated the BJP in last year's Assembly polls, it will also win all the 11 Lok Sabha seats in the state," state Congress spokesperson RP Singh told PTI.

The party is yet to announced its candidates for the remaining six general category Lok Sabha seats - Raipur, Mahasamund, Rajnandgaon, Bilaspur, Korba and Durg.

In the 2014 general elections, the BJP won 10 out of the 11 seats in the state.

Tamradhwaj Sahu was the lone Congress candidate who won from Durg parliamentary seat.

The BJP is yet to announce its candidates for the Lok Sabha polls, to be held in three phases in the state on April 11, 18 and 23.

The Congress has announced its candidates for five out of the total 11 Lok Sabha seats in Chhattisgarh, giving a chance to three of its sitting MLAs. The names of candidates for Surguja, Bastar, Raigarh and Kanker seats, reserved for the Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Janjgir-Champa, which is allocated to a Scheduled Caste (SCs) candidate, were declared late Saturday night.

The Congress has announced its candidates for five out of the total 11 Lok Sabha seats in Chhattisgarh, giving a chance to three of its sitting MLAs. The names of candidates for Surguja, Bastar, Raigarh and Kanker seats, reserved for the Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Janjgir-Champa, which is allocated to a Scheduled Caste (SCs) candidate, were declared late Saturday night. Prominent tribal leader Khelsai Singh, currently an MLA from Premnagar Assembly seat, has been nominated from Surguja Lok Sabha constituency. Mr Singh, a four-time MLA, earlier represented the Surguja Lok Sabha seat thrice in 1991, 1996 and 1999. Another tribal leader Dipak Baij, who is a legislator from Chitrakot Assembly seat, will contest from Bastar Lok Sabha constituency. Also, Dharamjaigarh seat MLA Laljeet Singh Rathiya has been fielded from Raigarh Lok Sabha constituency. His father Chanesh Ram Rathiya had been a Congress MLA from Madhya Pradesh before Chhattisgarh was carved out of it. Besides, the Congress has fielded Biresh Thakur from Kanker Lok Sabha seat. He is currently a member of the Kanker Zila panchayat. His father Satyanarayan Singh Thakur and grandfather Ratan Singh Thakur had also earlier served as Congress MLAs in MP. Former Congress MP Parasram Bhardwaj's son Ravi Bhardwaj will contest from Janjgir-Champa (SC) Lok Sabha seat. "All the five candidates are active in their regions. The way Congress unseated the BJP in last year's Assembly polls, it will also win all the 11 Lok Sabha seats in the state," state Congress spokesperson RP Singh told PTI. The party is yet to announced its candidates for the remaining six general category Lok Sabha seats - Raipur, Mahasamund, Rajnandgaon, Bilaspur, Korba and Durg. In the 2014 general elections, the BJP won 10 out of the 11 seats in the state. Tamradhwaj Sahu was the lone Congress candidate who won from Durg parliamentary seat. The BJP is yet to announce its candidates for the Lok Sabha polls, to be held in three phases in the state on April 11, 18 and 23.

Lok Sabha polls: Congress announces candidates for 5 seats in Chhattisgarh

Congress stakes claim to form govt in Goa

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-general-elections-2019/yogi-adityanath-addresses-rally-in-west-bengal-via-audio-link-after-his-chopper-was-denied-permission-194825">Yogi Adityanath</a> Saturday said Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's entry into politics will make 'no difference'&nbsp;to the BJP's Lok Sabha poll prospects in the state and dismissed the SP-BSP alliance as 'false alarm'. 
 
'The Congress has made her (Priyanka) its general secretary (in-charge of eastern UP) this time. It is an internal matter of that party. 
 
'Earlier too she had campaigned for the Congress. This time also it will make no difference (to the BJP),' he told PTI. 
 
Adityanath also claimed that the 'fledgeling'&nbsp;SP-BSP alliance is already 'embroiled in dispute'. 
 
'The newfound alliance is already embroiled in a dispute. It (alliance) is nothing but a 'hauaa' (false alarm),'&nbsp;he said in his first interview after the Lok Sabha poll schedule was announced Sunday.&nbsp;

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Saturday said Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's entry into politics will make 'no difference' to the BJP's Lok Sabha poll prospects in the state and dismissed the SP-BSP alliance as 'false alarm'.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Saturday said Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's entry into politics will make 'no difference' to the BJP's Lok Sabha poll prospects in the state and dismissed the SP-BSP alliance as 'false alarm'. 'The Congress has made her (Priyanka) its general secretary (in-charge of eastern UP) this time. It is an internal matter of that party. 'Earlier too she had campaigned for the Congress. This time also it will make no difference (to the BJP),' he told PTI. Adityanath also claimed that the 'fledgeling' SP-BSP alliance is already 'embroiled in dispute'. 'The newfound alliance is already embroiled in a dispute. It (alliance) is nothing but a 'hauaa' (false alarm),' he said in his first interview after the Lok Sabha poll schedule was announced Sunday.

Priyanka Vadra will make no difference to BJP's poll prospects in UP: Yogi Adityanath

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to start Congress poll campaign today

Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi's daughter Priyanka Gandhi Vadra officially started her career in active politics in February 2019, just a few months before general elections. Congress president Rahul Gandhi introduced her as general secretary in charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh. But the question is: Will she be a lucky charm for Congress in Uttar Pradesh?

Priyanka Gandhi is very famous in Amethi and Rae Bareli; she had campaigned during the 2009 and 2014 Lok Sabha polls and Congress had won both the seats.

The eastern part of Uttar Pradesh accounts for 42 Lok Sabha seats from the sub-regions of Avadh and Purvanchal. In 2009, Congress won 21 seats in Uttar Pradesh and 15 of them were from east UP. In 2014, the tally was reduced to just two. So, Priyanka has a tough job at hand, especially because the region also includes Gorakhpur and Varanasi - the strongholds of Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, respectively.

The 2014 Lok Sabha polls saw Congress getting 10 per cent of vote share in east Uttar Pradesh and winning just two seats - it's the pocket borough of Amethi and Rae Bareli.

Even if Congress's gamble pays off and Priyanka factor works for the party, it is not going to give a boost to the number of seats it won in last Lok Sabha elections. The reason is coming together of Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). With the SP-BSP combine at play in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, going by the last vote share, the BJP and its alliance partners are likely to get 37 seats, the SP, BSP and RLD 41, and Congress will remain at two.

If Congress gets two per cent more vote share and the SP-BSP combine loses out its two per cent, it will not translate into a seat for the INC. In fact, the SP-BSP loss is likely to benefit the BJP which can get 44 seats.

If there is a gain of three per cent to Congress and loss of three per cent to SP-BSP alliance, the beneficiary again will be BJP. This will increase its seats from 37 to 46 seats, SP-BSP alliance will get 33, and INC two.

The only scenario which can work for Congress is if Priyanka is able to garner 10 per cent more votes for the party. The Congress will then get four seats, but after coming together of SP and BSP, an upward swing of 10 per cent in favour of Congress looks nearly impossible.

If we look at the past, Priyanka had promised her mother Sonia Gandhi during the 2012 assembly election a perfect 10 in Rae Bareli and Amethi (both have five assembly constituencies each). But the party couldn't even win a single seat in Amethi.

Adding to the pressure is the SP-BSP alliance. In 2014 Lok Sabha polls, even though SP won just five seats and BSP failed to win a single seat, their combined vote share of 42.12 per cent was almost equal to 42.63 per cent of BJP which won 71 seats.

The political arithmetic, caste politics and alliance challenges make the going tough for Priyanka. The Congress is banking on her charisma to revive its fortunes in Uttar Pradesh. The poll bugle has been sounded, now it remains to be seen how she tackles the tough battle of eastern UP. 
 
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi's daughter Priyanka Gandhi Vadra officially started her career in active politics in February 2019, just a few months before general elections.

Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi's daughter Priyanka Gandhi Vadra officially started her career in active politics in February 2019, just a few months before general elections. Congress president Rahul Gandhi introduced her as general secretary in charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh. But the question is: Will she be a lucky charm for Congress in Uttar Pradesh? Priyanka Gandhi is very famous in Amethi and Rae Bareli; she had campaigned during the 2009 and 2014 Lok Sabha polls and Congress had won both the seats. The eastern part of Uttar Pradesh accounts for 42 Lok Sabha seats from the sub-regions of Avadh and Purvanchal. In 2009, Congress won 21 seats in Uttar Pradesh and 15 of them were from east UP. In 2014, the tally was reduced to just two. So, Priyanka has a tough job at hand, especially because the region also includes Gorakhpur and Varanasi - the strongholds of Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, respectively. The 2014 Lok Sabha polls saw Congress getting 10 per cent of vote share in east Uttar Pradesh and winning just two seats - it's the pocket borough of Amethi and Rae Bareli. Even if Congress's gamble pays off and Priyanka factor works for the party, it is not going to give a boost to the number of seats it won in last Lok Sabha elections. The reason is coming together of Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). With the SP-BSP combine at play in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, going by the last vote share, the BJP and its alliance partners are likely to get 37 seats, the SP, BSP and RLD 41, and Congress will remain at two. If Congress gets two per cent more vote share and the SP-BSP combine loses out its two per cent, it will not translate into a seat for the INC. In fact, the SP-BSP loss is likely to benefit the BJP which can get 44 seats. If there is a gain of three per cent to Congress and loss of three per cent to SP-BSP alliance, the beneficiary again will be BJP. This will increase its seats from 37 to 46 seats, SP-BSP alliance will get 33, and INC two. The only scenario which can work for Congress is if Priyanka is able to garner 10 per cent more votes for the party. The Congress will then get four seats, but after coming together of SP and BSP, an upward swing of 10 per cent in favour of Congress looks nearly impossible. If we look at the past, Priyanka had promised her mother Sonia Gandhi during the 2012 assembly election a perfect 10 in Rae Bareli and Amethi (both have five assembly constituencies each). But the party couldn't even win a single seat in Amethi. Adding to the pressure is the SP-BSP alliance. In 2014 Lok Sabha polls, even though SP won just five seats and BSP failed to win a single seat, their combined vote share of 42.12 per cent was almost equal to 42.63 per cent of BJP which won 71 seats. The political arithmetic, caste politics and alliance challenges make the going tough for Priyanka. The Congress is banking on her charisma to revive its fortunes in Uttar Pradesh. The poll bugle has been sounded, now it remains to be seen how she tackles the tough battle of eastern UP. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

Lok Sabha polls: Analysing the battle of east UP and the Priyanka factor

Top Congress leadership on March 12 paid their respect to Mahatma Gandhi at the Sabarmati Ashram, ahead of launching the party's poll campaign for the Lok Sabha elections.

Party leaders led by its chief Rahul Gandhi, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, former prime minister Manmohan Singh sought to give a symbolic message to the people of the country ahead of the general elections by remembering Mahatma and his ideals of non-violence and tolerance.

Other party leaders like A K Antony, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Ahmed Patel, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy, former chief ministers Siddaramaiah, Tarun Gogoi, Harish Rawat and Oommen Chandy attended a prayer meeting at the Sabarmati Ashram.

Rahul while addressing Congress booth workers in Delhi on March 11 had said the upcoming general elections will be a battle between Mahatma Gandhi's India and Nathuram Godse's India with love on one side and hate on the other.

March 12 also marks the anniversary of the famous 'Dandi March' started by Mahatma Gandhi from Sabarmati Ashram on March 12, 1930 with a group of Satyagrahis.

"Today marks the anniversary of the #DandiMarch, led by Mahatma Gandhi, which played a pivotal role in India's struggle for independence. The march was a non-violent protest against the rigorous and oppressive British policies on salt," the Congress said on its official Twitter handle.

The Congress, at its meeting of the working committee-- the highest decision-making body, later in the day will give the final shape to its strategy for the general elections.

The Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting is being held at Vallabhbhai Patel's national memorial here, with top party leaders, including former prime minister Manmohan Singh and newly-appointed Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in attendance. This will be the first official meeting of Priyanka after assuming an active political role in the Congress party.

Later, the party will sound the poll bugle from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state, with a 'Jan Sankalp Rally', party leaders said.

The day-long meeting of the Congress Working Committee assumes significance as it comes barely two days after the declaration of the poll schedule.

Sources said the Congress is seeking to give a strong political message to the nation from the land of Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel, with the party leadership holding the prayer meeting at Sabarmati Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad, followed by the CWC meet at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel national memorial in the state.

The CWC meeting is being held in Gujarat after a gap of 58 years. It was last held in the state at Bhavnagar in 1961.

The party will also hold a public meeting in Adalaj in Gandhinagar district of Gujarat with the slogan of 'Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan'. Priyanka Gandhi is also likely to address this meeting in her first public rally after entering politics.

Patidar leader Hardik Patel, who shot to fame by spearheading quota stir in the state and is set to fight the Lok Sabha polls, will join the Congress at the meeting in the presence of party chief Rahul Gandhi.

Besides giving final shape to its Lok Sabha election strategy, the party will demand answers from Modi and the BJP on what it calls the "failures" and "unfulfilled promises" of the government.

The top Congress leadership led by Rahul, Sonia, Manmohan Singh and other senior leaders will deliberate on key issues for the national elections beginning April 11.

The party leaders will also discuss ways to corner Modi and his government on issues of governance, agrarian and economic crisis, unemployment and lack of job creation, national security and women's safety.

The party has maintained that the narrative for the general elections needs to be steered towards real issues and problems confronting people rather than the "propaganda" plank of the current regime, especially after the Pulwama attack and subsequent airstrike on terror camps in Pakistan.

Sources said the party will issue a statement after the CWC, covering all these issues.

The Congress leaders feel that the party needs to demand answers from the prime minister on the status of the promises made by him five years ago and on his governance track record.

Top Congress leadership on March 12 paid their respect to Mahatma Gandhi at the Sabarmati Ashram, ahead of launching the party's poll campaign for the Lok Sabha elections.

Top Congress leadership on March 12 paid their respect to Mahatma Gandhi at the Sabarmati Ashram, ahead of launching the party's poll campaign for the Lok Sabha elections. Party leaders led by its chief Rahul Gandhi, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, former prime minister Manmohan Singh sought to give a symbolic message to the people of the country ahead of the general elections by remembering Mahatma and his ideals of non-violence and tolerance. Other party leaders like A K Antony, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Ahmed Patel, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy, former chief ministers Siddaramaiah, Tarun Gogoi, Harish Rawat and Oommen Chandy attended a prayer meeting at the Sabarmati Ashram. Rahul while addressing Congress booth workers in Delhi on March 11 had said the upcoming general elections will be a battle between Mahatma Gandhi's India and Nathuram Godse's India with love on one side and hate on the other. March 12 also marks the anniversary of the famous 'Dandi March' started by Mahatma Gandhi from Sabarmati Ashram on March 12, 1930 with a group of Satyagrahis. "Today marks the anniversary of the #DandiMarch, led by Mahatma Gandhi, which played a pivotal role in India's struggle for independence. The march was a non-violent protest against the rigorous and oppressive British policies on salt," the Congress said on its official Twitter handle. The Congress, at its meeting of the working committee-- the highest decision-making body, later in the day will give the final shape to its strategy for the general elections. The Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting is being held at Vallabhbhai Patel's national memorial here, with top party leaders, including former prime minister Manmohan Singh and newly-appointed Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in attendance. This will be the first official meeting of Priyanka after assuming an active political role in the Congress party. Later, the party will sound the poll bugle from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state, with a 'Jan Sankalp Rally', party leaders said. The day-long meeting of the Congress Working Committee assumes significance as it comes barely two days after the declaration of the poll schedule. Sources said the Congress is seeking to give a strong political message to the nation from the land of Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel, with the party leadership holding the prayer meeting at Sabarmati Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad, followed by the CWC meet at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel national memorial in the state. The CWC meeting is being held in Gujarat after a gap of 58 years. It was last held in the state at Bhavnagar in 1961. The party will also hold a public meeting in Adalaj in Gandhinagar district of Gujarat with the slogan of 'Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan'. Priyanka Gandhi is also likely to address this meeting in her first public rally after entering politics. Patidar leader Hardik Patel, who shot to fame by spearheading quota stir in the state and is set to fight the Lok Sabha polls, will join the Congress at the meeting in the presence of party chief Rahul Gandhi. Besides giving final shape to its Lok Sabha election strategy, the party will demand answers from Modi and the BJP on what it calls the "failures" and "unfulfilled promises" of the government. The top Congress leadership led by Rahul, Sonia, Manmohan Singh and other senior leaders will deliberate on key issues for the national elections beginning April 11. The party leaders will also discuss ways to corner Modi and his government on issues of governance, agrarian and economic crisis, unemployment and lack of job creation, national security and women's safety. The party has maintained that the narrative for the general elections needs to be steered towards real issues and problems confronting people rather than the "propaganda" plank of the current regime, especially after the Pulwama attack and subsequent airstrike on terror camps in Pakistan. Sources said the party will issue a statement after the CWC, covering all these issues. The Congress leaders feel that the party needs to demand answers from the prime minister on the status of the promises made by him five years ago and on his governance track record.

Lok Sabha elections 2019: Congress begins poll campaign from PM Narendra Modi's bastion Gujarat

The Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress are different in many ways. But one striking difference is the manner in which these parties react to electoral outcomes. In victory, the BJP turns its attention to the next challenge instead of spending too much time basking in glory. The Congress exults so much that it loses sight of the new obstacles ahead. Following a setback, the BJP quickly rethinks its strategy, even going to the extent of casting away earlier narratives. Congress, on the other hand, sinks into despair and nearly loses the ability to emerge from the crisis.&nbsp;

Let us consider a few instances. Late last year, the BJP lost three important north Indian states which it had ruled. Stung by the result, it swung into action to summon whatever leverage it had to reach out to allies it had antagonised earlier. It kept aside past acrimony with the Shiv Sena, even the latter’s open criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and saved the partnership which was as good as dead. It’s a fact that Shiv Sena too saw merit in burying the past in its own interest, but had the BJP not demonstrated a desire to let bygones be bygones, the Shiv Sena would have kept its promise of going it alone in the Lok Sabha elections. Ideological similarities, which was cited by both parties to justify the alliance, would not have come in the way of a parting of ways. Now, suddenly, the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party, which were salivating at the prospect of the Sena and the BJP contesting against each other, are on the back foot.&nbsp; 
 
In the south, the BJP moved swiftly to forge an alliance with the AIADMK and the PMK. There is speculation that the DMDK too will join the coalition. The BJP’s speed took many by surprise, given that it happened before even the Congress and the DMK, who have been virtually together for a long time, could formally announce their partnership. Nobody is predicting that the BJP-AIADMK combine will trounce the Congress-DMK, but at least there may not be a one-sided contest.&nbsp; 
 
In Uttar Pradesh, where the BJP faces a formidable opponent in the SP-BSP coalition, the party has sought to placate disgruntled regional allies, and there are prospects that the outreach will bear fruit. Neither the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party OP Rajbhar nor the Apna Dal (Sonelal) of Anupriya Patel, whom the senior leadership of the BJP has moved to retain in the NDA fold, has real chances if it goes with the Congress. &nbsp; 
 
Now contrast the Congress’s reaction after its victory in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. It is so confident (over-confident) that it spurned repeated attempts by the Aam Aadmi Party for an alliance in Delhi. The party’s Delhi unit under the leadership of Sheila Dikshit put its foot down in opposing the partnership, despite the high command seemingly eager for the alliance. Both the Congress and the AAP realise that together they had a better chance to take on the BJP, yet personal animosity came in the way of an electoral understanding. The result is, most opinion polls are predicting a clean sweep for the BJP in the seven seats in Delhi.&nbsp; 
 
Cussedness, apart, there is also tepidness in the Congress’s actions post the wins late last year. The party initially grabbed the headlines with the announcement of Priyanka Gandhi Vadra being made general secretary in charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh. But after the impressive roadshow in Lucknow, nothing has been heard of her. The Congress, instead of helming a new narrative with Priyanka in the front seat, is back to its tired old Rafale lament and ‘Chowkidar is a thief’ refrain. To make matters worse for itself, it appears to have caught the wrong end of the stick on the air strikes the Indian Air Force has conducted deep inside Pakistan.&nbsp;

The BJP had followed the 2014 victory with a series of wins in state Assembly elections, including breaking the glass ceiling, so to say, in states such as Tripura and Assam. It recorded a massive win in Uttar Pradesh. Meanwhile, it renewed its alliance with the Janata Dal (United) in Bihar and performed well enough in Karnataka, though it could not form the government there.&nbsp;

Whether in victory or defeat, the BJP has studiously concentrated on greenfield states — Odisha and West Bengal — where it is expected to perform well. The Congress, on the other hand, despite the booster shot it got recently, has failed to make any headway in either of the two states. In the first, it stands no chance, and in the second it depends on Mamata Banerjee to contain the BJP. Incidentally, unlike the BJP, the Congress had once upon a time ruled these states for long periods of time. &nbsp;&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
While it is not clear if the BJP has regained all of the ground it had lost in the past months, recent developments have revived its prospects of a return in the coming general election. Congress needs to do better if it hopes to oust the Modi regime.&nbsp; 
 
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

The Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress are different in many ways. But one striking difference is the manner in which these parties react to electoral outcomes.

The Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress are different in many ways. But one striking difference is the manner in which these parties react to electoral outcomes. In victory, the BJP turns its attention to the next challenge instead of spending too much time basking in glory. The Congress exults so much that it loses sight of the new obstacles ahead. Following a setback, the BJP quickly rethinks its strategy, even going to the extent of casting away earlier narratives. Congress, on the other hand, sinks into despair and nearly loses the ability to emerge from the crisis. Let us consider a few instances. Late last year, the BJP lost three important north Indian states which it had ruled. Stung by the result, it swung into action to summon whatever leverage it had to reach out to allies it had antagonised earlier. It kept aside past acrimony with the Shiv Sena, even the latter’s open criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and saved the partnership which was as good as dead. It’s a fact that Shiv Sena too saw merit in burying the past in its own interest, but had the BJP not demonstrated a desire to let bygones be bygones, the Shiv Sena would have kept its promise of going it alone in the Lok Sabha elections. Ideological similarities, which was cited by both parties to justify the alliance, would not have come in the way of a parting of ways. Now, suddenly, the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party, which were salivating at the prospect of the Sena and the BJP contesting against each other, are on the back foot. In the south, the BJP moved swiftly to forge an alliance with the AIADMK and the PMK. There is speculation that the DMDK too will join the coalition. The BJP’s speed took many by surprise, given that it happened before even the Congress and the DMK, who have been virtually together for a long time, could formally announce their partnership. Nobody is predicting that the BJP-AIADMK combine will trounce the Congress-DMK, but at least there may not be a one-sided contest. In Uttar Pradesh, where the BJP faces a formidable opponent in the SP-BSP coalition, the party has sought to placate disgruntled regional allies, and there are prospects that the outreach will bear fruit. Neither the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party OP Rajbhar nor the Apna Dal (Sonelal) of Anupriya Patel, whom the senior leadership of the BJP has moved to retain in the NDA fold, has real chances if it goes with the Congress. Now contrast the Congress’s reaction after its victory in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. It is so confident (over-confident) that it spurned repeated attempts by the Aam Aadmi Party for an alliance in Delhi. The party’s Delhi unit under the leadership of Sheila Dikshit put its foot down in opposing the partnership, despite the high command seemingly eager for the alliance. Both the Congress and the AAP realise that together they had a better chance to take on the BJP, yet personal animosity came in the way of an electoral understanding. The result is, most opinion polls are predicting a clean sweep for the BJP in the seven seats in Delhi. Cussedness, apart, there is also tepidness in the Congress’s actions post the wins late last year. The party initially grabbed the headlines with the announcement of Priyanka Gandhi Vadra being made general secretary in charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh. But after the impressive roadshow in Lucknow, nothing has been heard of her. The Congress, instead of helming a new narrative with Priyanka in the front seat, is back to its tired old Rafale lament and ‘Chowkidar is a thief’ refrain. To make matters worse for itself, it appears to have caught the wrong end of the stick on the air strikes the Indian Air Force has conducted deep inside Pakistan. The BJP had followed the 2014 victory with a series of wins in state Assembly elections, including breaking the glass ceiling, so to say, in states such as Tripura and Assam. It recorded a massive win in Uttar Pradesh. Meanwhile, it renewed its alliance with the Janata Dal (United) in Bihar and performed well enough in Karnataka, though it could not form the government there. Whether in victory or defeat, the BJP has studiously concentrated on greenfield states — Odisha and West Bengal — where it is expected to perform well. The Congress, on the other hand, despite the booster shot it got recently, has failed to make any headway in either of the two states. In the first, it stands no chance, and in the second it depends on Mamata Banerjee to contain the BJP. Incidentally, unlike the BJP, the Congress had once upon a time ruled these states for long periods of time. While it is not clear if the BJP has regained all of the ground it had lost in the past months, recent developments have revived its prospects of a return in the coming general election. Congress needs to do better if it hopes to oust the Modi regime. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL.)

In victory or defeat, BJP responds to electoral outcomes more maturely

When President Donald Trump proposes his 2020 federal budget on Monday, official Washington will likely have a quick look, shrug and move on, marking another stage in the quiet decay of the US government's traditional policy-making processes.

There was a time when the release of the president's budget was a red-letter day on the calendar of Washington wonkery, with policy experts and fiscal hawks delving into spreadsheets and expounding upon new spending plans and the national debt.

But the hoopla of the budget day is gone, a relic of a time when politics were less polarised, the federal deficit drove political decisions and the White House and Congress still took the budget process seriously.

"It has seemed to me that budget day ain't what it used to be," said Robert Bixby, who has pored over the budget for more than 25 years at the Concord Coalition, a fiscal responsibility advocacy group.

Last year's budget weighed in at a whopping $4.4 trillion. It was not balanced and was panned for relying on rosy economic projections and for not doing enough to cut the federal deficit.

The 2020 Trump budget will land a month after a deadline established in law, a lag blamed on the recent five-week partial shutdown of the federal government over a funding dispute.

Congress, which controls federal spending, is likely to dismiss Trump's proposal if recent history is any guide.

The Democratic-ruled House of Representatives and Republican-majority Senate also are unlikely to agree on a joint budget resolution of their own. Instead, they probably will stumble forward until fiscal 2019 ends and a spending deadline arrives on October 1, forcing them to produce a last-minute deal or face another government shutdown.

"The entire process has become one of the missed deadlines, make-believe budgets filled with gimmicks and magic asterisks," said Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

MacGuineas remembers in years gone by "scurrying around" to read through the budget as fast as possible so that she could answer a flurry of calls from reporters. These days, the budget is a blip on the news cycle, a process that is neither serious nor effective.

"I think it feels like a bit of kabuki theatre at this point, for everybody," MacGuineas said.

The White House disagreed. The budget process helps the administration set priorities for agencies for the year ahead and lays down a marker on issues, a senior administration official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"Of course, Congress has the power of the purse but the president’s budget plants a flag to define terms of the tax and spending debate in Washington," the official said.

Budget on a stranger

The traditional budget and appropriations process was limping along well before Trump took office.

One of former President Ronald Reagan's budgets in the 1980s was brought out on a stretcher as a stunt to show the document was alive and well, ahead of it being declared dead-on-arrival in Congress, recalled Stephen Moore, a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.

"What we have right now is essentially government by automatic pilot and that's not healthy," Moore said, describing the cycle of last-minute massive omnibus spending bills agreed on only when deadlines loom.

The budget and spending process has been further hobbled by lawmakers' unwillingness to compromise and tendency to put off hard decisions while hoping for a shift in the next election cycle, said Kenneth Baer, an associate director in the Office of Management and Budget under former President Barack Obama.

Trump's budget office has accelerated the downward slide of the process by using more gimmicks to make up for shortfalls, Baer said. "All the normal ways of operating the government have just been thrown out of the window," he said.

Trump's acting budget director, Russell Vought, has said the budget aims to cut non-defence spending and cap spending under levels set in the 2011 Budget Control Act - a feat made possible only with an increase in an emergency account called the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) fund to cover Trump's plan to increase defense spending.

The tactic makes a mockery of the budget process, said Bixby of the Concord Coalition.

"It's nothing but an astronomical gimmick! It's over the top! It's so over the top, it's clownish!" Bixby said.

With the national debt now topping $22 trillion and the deficit at $900 billion in 2019, it is unlikely that Washington will find its way to fiscal discipline without an overhaul of the process, Bixby said.

He said he is frustrated and worried that it could take a crisis to jolt change, like a recession or a failure to raise the government's debt limit - something that needs to happen in coming months to avoid stumbling into a first-ever default.

"If they act as dysfunctionally this fall as they did last fall and throw the debt limit into the mix, it's very, very toxic," Bixby said.

When President Donald Trump proposes his 2020 federal budget on Monday, official Washington will likely have a quick look, shrug and move on, marking another stage in the quiet decay of the US government's traditional policy-making processes.

When President Donald Trump proposes his 2020 federal budget on Monday, official Washington will likely have a quick look, shrug and move on, marking another stage in the quiet decay of the US government's traditional policy-making processes. There was a time when the release of the president's budget was a red-letter day on the calendar of Washington wonkery, with policy experts and fiscal hawks delving into spreadsheets and expounding upon new spending plans and the national debt. But the hoopla of the budget day is gone, a relic of a time when politics were less polarised, the federal deficit drove political decisions and the White House and Congress still took the budget process seriously. "It has seemed to me that budget day ain't what it used to be," said Robert Bixby, who has pored over the budget for more than 25 years at the Concord Coalition, a fiscal responsibility advocacy group. Last year's budget weighed in at a whopping $4.4 trillion. It was not balanced and was panned for relying on rosy economic projections and for not doing enough to cut the federal deficit. The 2020 Trump budget will land a month after a deadline established in law, a lag blamed on the recent five-week partial shutdown of the federal government over a funding dispute. Congress, which controls federal spending, is likely to dismiss Trump's proposal if recent history is any guide. The Democratic-ruled House of Representatives and Republican-majority Senate also are unlikely to agree on a joint budget resolution of their own. Instead, they probably will stumble forward until fiscal 2019 ends and a spending deadline arrives on October 1, forcing them to produce a last-minute deal or face another government shutdown. "The entire process has become one of the missed deadlines, make-believe budgets filled with gimmicks and magic asterisks," said Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. MacGuineas remembers in years gone by "scurrying around" to read through the budget as fast as possible so that she could answer a flurry of calls from reporters. These days, the budget is a blip on the news cycle, a process that is neither serious nor effective. "I think it feels like a bit of kabuki theatre at this point, for everybody," MacGuineas said. The White House disagreed. The budget process helps the administration set priorities for agencies for the year ahead and lays down a marker on issues, a senior administration official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. "Of course, Congress has the power of the purse but the president’s budget plants a flag to define terms of the tax and spending debate in Washington," the official said. Budget on a stranger The traditional budget and appropriations process was limping along well before Trump took office. One of former President Ronald Reagan's budgets in the 1980s was brought out on a stretcher as a stunt to show the document was alive and well, ahead of it being declared dead-on-arrival in Congress, recalled Stephen Moore, a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. "What we have right now is essentially government by automatic pilot and that's not healthy," Moore said, describing the cycle of last-minute massive omnibus spending bills agreed on only when deadlines loom. The budget and spending process has been further hobbled by lawmakers' unwillingness to compromise and tendency to put off hard decisions while hoping for a shift in the next election cycle, said Kenneth Baer, an associate director in the Office of Management and Budget under former President Barack Obama. Trump's budget office has accelerated the downward slide of the process by using more gimmicks to make up for shortfalls, Baer said. "All the normal ways of operating the government have just been thrown out of the window," he said. Trump's acting budget director, Russell Vought, has said the budget aims to cut non-defence spending and cap spending under levels set in the 2011 Budget Control Act - a feat made possible only with an increase in an emergency account called the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) fund to cover Trump's plan to increase defense spending. The tactic makes a mockery of the budget process, said Bixby of the Concord Coalition. "It's nothing but an astronomical gimmick! It's over the top! It's so over the top, it's clownish!" Bixby said. With the national debt now topping $22 trillion and the deficit at $900 billion in 2019, it is unlikely that Washington will find its way to fiscal discipline without an overhaul of the process, Bixby said. He said he is frustrated and worried that it could take a crisis to jolt change, like a recession or a failure to raise the government's debt limit - something that needs to happen in coming months to avoid stumbling into a first-ever default. "If they act as dysfunctionally this fall as they did last fall and throw the debt limit into the mix, it's very, very toxic," Bixby said.

Trump's budget to land with a thud on Monday

The Congress party is happy seeing fugitive billionaire <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/uk-sends-nirav-modi-extradition-request-to-court-enforcement-directorate-202187">Nirav Modi in London</a>, said Union Minister Prakash Javadekar in Jaipur on Saturday.

“The Congress party, which has reared up Nirav Modi, feels happy to see that he is fine in London. It, however, does not know that the Indian government’s efforts are on to bring him back to India,” Javadekar told ANI.

He said that Indian government’s requests for the extradition of economic offenders have been acted upon earlier as well, and gave the example of Rajiv Saxena, Christian Michel, and Deepak Talwar to bring home his point.

“All these economic offenders ran away as soon as the BJP came to power at the Centre under the leadership of Narendra Modi. They knew that they won’t be spared by the BJP government. Till the time Congress was in power, they knew that their loot will continue,” he said.

“I want to ask the Congress leaders—What is their relationship with Nirav Modi? One day Rahul Gandhi goes to a programme organised by Nirav Modi, and next day he gets a loan from the Allahabad Bank,” Javadekar said.

Union Minister Javadekar’s reaction comes in response to the reports in British media that Nirav Modi is living in London.

The British newspaper story reveals that Modi has also started a new diamond business in Soho.

The newspaper headlined its piece—‘Exclusive: India’s most wanted man Nirav Modi—accused of £1.5 billion fraud—living openly in London.’

The video shows Nirav Modi sporting a handle-bar moustache and wearing an expensive jacket, repeatedly saying “no comments” to a series of questions put to him by the newspaper’s reporter, including whether he has sought asylum in the United Kingdom.

Modi is the subject of an extradition request by India, along with an Interpol Red Corner Notice issued for the PNB scam accused.

He is the prime accused in Rs 13,000 crore PNB fraud, along with his uncle Mehul Choksi, who has got the citizenship of Antigua and Barbuda.

Modi and Choksi left India in January last year before the PNB scam was exposed.The duo has not returned to India despite repeated summons from the probe agencies and courts to be put on trial.

“Journalists of The Telegraph managed to track down Nirav Modi. Why was the Modi Govt unable to do so? Who is Modi trying to protect? Himself, Nirav Modi or the people who let him escape?" the Congress tweeted on its official handle.

The Congress party is happy seeing fugitive billionaire Nirav Modi in London, said Union Minister Prakash Javadekar in Jaipur on Saturday. “The Congress party, which has reared up Nirav Modi, feels happy to see that he is fine in London.

The Congress party is happy seeing fugitive billionaire Nirav Modi in London, said Union Minister Prakash Javadekar in Jaipur on Saturday. “The Congress party, which has reared up Nirav Modi, feels happy to see that he is fine in London. It, however, does not know that the Indian government’s efforts are on to bring him back to India,” Javadekar told ANI. He said that Indian government’s requests for the extradition of economic offenders have been acted upon earlier as well, and gave the example of Rajiv Saxena, Christian Michel, and Deepak Talwar to bring home his point. “All these economic offenders ran away as soon as the BJP came to power at the Centre under the leadership of Narendra Modi. They knew that they won’t be spared by the BJP government. Till the time Congress was in power, they knew that their loot will continue,” he said. “I want to ask the Congress leaders—What is their relationship with Nirav Modi? One day Rahul Gandhi goes to a programme organised by Nirav Modi, and next day he gets a loan from the Allahabad Bank,” Javadekar said. Union Minister Javadekar’s reaction comes in response to the reports in British media that Nirav Modi is living in London. The British newspaper story reveals that Modi has also started a new diamond business in Soho. The newspaper headlined its piece—‘Exclusive: India’s most wanted man Nirav Modi—accused of £1.5 billion fraud—living openly in London.’ The video shows Nirav Modi sporting a handle-bar moustache and wearing an expensive jacket, repeatedly saying “no comments” to a series of questions put to him by the newspaper’s reporter, including whether he has sought asylum in the United Kingdom. Modi is the subject of an extradition request by India, along with an Interpol Red Corner Notice issued for the PNB scam accused. He is the prime accused in Rs 13,000 crore PNB fraud, along with his uncle Mehul Choksi, who has got the citizenship of Antigua and Barbuda. Modi and Choksi left India in January last year before the PNB scam was exposed.The duo has not returned to India despite repeated summons from the probe agencies and courts to be put on trial. “Journalists of The Telegraph managed to track down Nirav Modi. Why was the Modi Govt unable to do so? Who is Modi trying to protect? Himself, Nirav Modi or the people who let him escape?" the Congress tweeted on its official handle.

Congress is happy seeing Nirav Modi in London: Prakash Javadekar

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