<p>Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday attacked the NDA government over the Aadhaar scheme, dubbing it as a compulsory weapon to &quot;disempower&quot; citizens.</p>

<p>&quot;UPA&#39;s Aadhaar = A voluntary instrument to empower citizens.<br />
&quot;NDA&#39;s Aadhaar = A compulsory weapon to disempower citizens,&quot; he tweeted.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">UPA&#39;s Aadhaar = A voluntary instrument to empower citizens.<br />
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NDA&#39;s Aadhaar = A compulsory weapon to disempower citizens.</p>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/953652492528648192?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 17, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<p>Rahul Gandhi attack on NDA comes on a day when a&nbsp;five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra began hearing a batch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the government&#39;s flagship Aadhaar programme and its enabling Act of 2016.</p>

<p>The Congress government, which introduced Aadhaar, is opposing the government&#39;s stand that it should be compulsory for receiving the benefits of state-sponsored welfare schemes.</p>

<p>Concerns have been voiced about the massive data collection process under Aadhaar, which has information about more than a billion Indians, over fears that these could be used for identity theft and surveillance by the government.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Supreme Court was told that Aadhaar was &quot;an electronic leash&quot; to which every resident of India was tethered, and was violative of the Constitution as it reduces the recognition of an individual to a number.</p>

<p>Asserting that Aadhaar reduces the individual identity to a numerical, the five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra was told the &quot;government has rolled out a little-understood programme that seeks to tether every resident of India to an electronic leash&quot;.</p>

<p>The court was told this by the senior counsel Shyam Divan as the constitution bench, also comprising Justice AK&nbsp;Sikri, Justice AK&nbsp;Khanwilkar, Justice DY&nbsp;Chandrachud and Justice Ashok Bhushan, commenced hearing on a batch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of Aadhaar Act on the grounds of its being violative of the right to privacy.</p>

<p>&quot;If the Aadhaar Act and programme is allowed to operate unimpeded it will hollow out the Constitution, particularly the great rights and liberties it assures to citizens,&quot; said Divan appearing for the petitioners challenging Aadhaar Act.</p>

<p>Telling the constitution bench that &quot;A People`s Constitution will transform into a State Constitution&quot;, Divan said that the Aadhaar &quot;electronic leash&quot; is &quot;connected to a central data base that is designed to track transactions across the life of the citizen&quot;.</p>

<p>Brushing aside the Centre`s contention that challenge to Aadhaar was &quot;elitist&quot;, Divan said the question is &quot;whether the Constitution of India allows the State to embrace this new programme or whether the Constitution repudiates this giant electronic mesh&quot;.</p>

<p>He referred to the judgment of the nine-judge constitution bench which had upheld the right to privacy and said that challenge to Aadhaar was not elitist.</p>

<p>The hearing will continue on Thursday.</p>

<p>(With PTI inputs)</p>


The Congress government, which introduced Aadhaar, is opposing the government's stand that it should be compulsory for receiving the benefits of state-sponsored welfare schemes.

Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday attacked the NDA government over the Aadhaar scheme, dubbing it as a compulsory weapon to "disempower" citizens. "UPA's Aadhaar = A voluntary instrument to empower citizens. "NDA's Aadhaar = A compulsory weapon to disempower citizens," he tweeted. UPA's Aadhaar = A voluntary instrument to empower citizens. NDA's Aadhaar = A compulsory weapon to disempower citizens. — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) January 17, 2018 × Rahul Gandhi attack on NDA comes on a day when a five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra began hearing a batch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the government's flagship Aadhaar programme and its enabling Act of 2016. The Congress government, which introduced Aadhaar, is opposing the government's stand that it should be compulsory for receiving the benefits of state-sponsored welfare schemes. Concerns have been voiced about the massive data collection process under Aadhaar, which has information about more than a billion Indians, over fears that these could be used for identity theft and surveillance by the government. The Supreme Court was told that Aadhaar was "an electronic leash" to which every resident of India was tethered, and was violative of the Constitution as it reduces the recognition of an individual to a number. Asserting that Aadhaar reduces the individual identity to a numerical, the five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra was told the "government has rolled out a little-understood programme that seeks to tether every resident of India to an electronic leash". The court was told this by the senior counsel Shyam Divan as the constitution bench, also comprising Justice AK Sikri, Justice AK Khanwilkar, Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice Ashok Bhushan, commenced hearing on a batch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of Aadhaar Act on the grounds of its being violative of the right to privacy. "If the Aadhaar Act and programme is allowed to operate unimpeded it will hollow out the Constitution, particularly the great rights and liberties it assures to citizens," said Divan appearing for the petitioners challenging Aadhaar Act. Telling the constitution bench that "A People`s Constitution will transform into a State Constitution", Divan said that the Aadhaar "electronic leash" is "connected to a central data base that is designed to track transactions across the life of the citizen". Brushing aside the Centre`s contention that challenge to Aadhaar was "elitist", Divan said the question is "whether the Constitution of India allows the State to embrace this new programme or whether the Constitution repudiates this giant electronic mesh". He referred to the judgment of the nine-judge constitution bench which had upheld the right to privacy and said that challenge to Aadhaar was not elitist. The hearing will continue on Thursday. (With PTI inputs)

NDA's Aadhaar 'compulsory' weapon to 'disempower' people: Rahul Gandhi

<p>A court in Bhiwandi has asked Congress President Rahul Gandhi to be present in the court on April 23 for framing charges against him in connection with a defamation case.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The court granted him exemption after his lawyer presented an exemption application. Gandhi was supposed to be present in the court today.</p>

<p>A defamation case was filed against Congress president Rahul Gandhi for making a comment on RSS.</p>

<p>At a rally in Thane in March 2014, he had said: &quot;RSS people killed Gandhi&quot;.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Rahul Gandhi RSS defamation case in Bhiwandi : Court sets a new date for framing of charges against Rahul Gandhi as he was not present in court today, court allowed exemption application by his lawyer and directed Rahul Gandhi to remain present on 23rd April. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Maharashtra?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Maharashtra</a> <a href="https://t.co/rJIMHAIgxj">pic.twitter.com/rJIMHAIgxj</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/953518187538075649?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 17, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Gandhi was supposed to be present in the court today. However, the court granted him exemption after his lawyer presented an exemption application

A court in Bhiwandi has asked Congress President Rahul Gandhi to be present in the court on April 23 for framing charges against him in connection with a defamation case. The court granted him exemption after his lawyer presented an exemption application. Gandhi was supposed to be present in the court today. A defamation case was filed against Congress president Rahul Gandhi for making a comment on RSS. At a rally in Thane in March 2014, he had said: "RSS people killed Gandhi". Rahul Gandhi RSS defamation case in Bhiwandi : Court sets a new date for framing of charges against Rahul Gandhi as he was not present in court today, court allowed exemption application by his lawyer and directed Rahul Gandhi to remain present on 23rd April. #Maharashtra pic.twitter.com/rJIMHAIgxj — ANI (@ANI) January 17, 2018 ×

Defamation case: Rahul Gandhi to be present in court on April 23

<p>Congress President Rahul Gandhi embarked on a two-day visit to his parliamentary constituency Amethi in Uttar Pradesh starting Monday.</p>

<p>During the day, Rahul tried to woo the farmers by promising a food park where their products will be sold at the right prices.</p>

<p>Rahul, however, added that all of this would be possible only when Congress forms a government in Uttar Pradesh. &nbsp;</p>

<p>While addressing the gathering, Rahul attacked Prime Minister &nbsp;Narendra Modi and his policies, claiming it is not in Amethi people&#39;s benefit.</p>

<p>Rahul even whet on to compare PM Modi&#39;s government with that of &nbsp;China, saying the work Chinese government does in two days, the ruling takes a complete year.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;Jo kaam China ki sarkaar do din mein karti hai use karne mein Narendra Modi Ji ki sarkaar ko ek saal lag jaata hai,&quot; said Rahul.</p>

<p>He asked people to name Centre&#39;s one scheme which has benefitted the people.</p>

<p>&quot;Please tell me one Narendra Modi government scheme where someone has benefitted?&quot;&nbsp;</p>

<p>As per media reports, the Gandhi scion accused Modi led government of spreading communal violence, saying they only know how to make one caste fight with the other.&nbsp;</p>

<p>It is Gandhi&#39;s first visit to Amethi since he took over the rein of &nbsp;Congress from his mother and former party president Sonia Gandhi.</p>

<p>His visit comes on the heels of the assembly election result in Gujarat, in which his party showed a much better performance from the last election in the state.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Gandhi has now shifted his focus on Uttar Pradesh and plans to give a morale boost to party cadres for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.<br />
&nbsp;</p>


Rahul tried to woo the farmers by promising a food park where their products will be sold at the right prices

Congress President Rahul Gandhi embarked on a two-day visit to his parliamentary constituency Amethi in Uttar Pradesh starting Monday. During the day, Rahul tried to woo the farmers by promising a food park where their products will be sold at the right prices. Rahul, however, added that all of this would be possible only when Congress forms a government in Uttar Pradesh. While addressing the gathering, Rahul attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his policies, claiming it is not in Amethi people's benefit. Rahul even whet on to compare PM Modi's government with that of China, saying the work Chinese government does in two days, the ruling takes a complete year. "Jo kaam China ki sarkaar do din mein karti hai use karne mein Narendra Modi Ji ki sarkaar ko ek saal lag jaata hai," said Rahul. He asked people to name Centre's one scheme which has benefitted the people. "Please tell me one Narendra Modi government scheme where someone has benefitted?" As per media reports, the Gandhi scion accused Modi led government of spreading communal violence, saying they only know how to make one caste fight with the other. It is Gandhi's first visit to Amethi since he took over the rein of Congress from his mother and former party president Sonia Gandhi. His visit comes on the heels of the assembly election result in Gujarat, in which his party showed a much better performance from the last election in the state. Gandhi has now shifted his focus on Uttar Pradesh and plans to give a morale boost to party cadres for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

What China government does in two days, Modi does in one year: Rahul Gandhi

<p>The PM Modi government recently announced its plan to introduce a set of changes in passports issues to Indian citizens.</p>

<p>According to the plan, a passport will <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/soon-passports-will-cease-to-be-valid-address-proof-29346">no longer serve as a valid address proof</a> and its last page will not bear the holder&#39;s address.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In addition to this, the government also announced to issue orange-jacketed passports to those who seek immigration.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;As the last page of the passport would not be printed now, the passport holders with ECR (Emigration Check Required) status would be issued a passport with orange passport jacket and those with non-ECR status would continue to get a blue passport,&quot; an MEA statement read.</p>

<p>The changes did not go well with Congress President Rahul Gandhi who criticised the move as &quot;discriminatory&quot; and slammed the government for treating India&#39;s migrant workers as &quot;second-class citizens&quot;.</p>

<p>&quot;Treating India&#39;s migrant workers like second-class citizens is completely unacceptable. This action demonstrates BJP&#39;s discriminatory mindset,&quot; the Congress president tweeted.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Treating India&#39;s migrant workers like second class citizens is completely unacceptable. This action demonstrates BJP&rsquo;s discriminatory mindset.<a href="https://t.co/6iiOy2rPKC">https://t.co/6iiOy2rPKC</a></p>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/952415825239175168?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 14, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<p>The government gave a nod to the recommendations suggested by a three-member panel, including officials from the External Affairs Ministry and the Women and Child Development Ministry.</p>

<p>It was decided that the last page of passports and other travel documents issued under the Passports Act, 1967, and Passport Rules, 1980, &quot;would no longer be printed&quot;.</p>

<p>The foreign ministry has not decided on the date for issuing the new passports.</p>

<p>All existing passports will be replaced by the new version after they expire.&nbsp;</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from PTI)&nbsp;</em></p>


The foreign ministry has not decided on the date for issuing the new passports.

The PM Modi government recently announced its plan to introduce a set of changes in passports issues to Indian citizens. According to the plan, a passport will no longer serve as a valid address proof and its last page will not bear the holder's address. In addition to this, the government also announced to issue orange-jacketed passports to those who seek immigration. "As the last page of the passport would not be printed now, the passport holders with ECR (Emigration Check Required) status would be issued a passport with orange passport jacket and those with non-ECR status would continue to get a blue passport," an MEA statement read. The changes did not go well with Congress President Rahul Gandhi who criticised the move as "discriminatory" and slammed the government for treating India's migrant workers as "second-class citizens". "Treating India's migrant workers like second-class citizens is completely unacceptable. This action demonstrates BJP's discriminatory mindset," the Congress president tweeted. Treating India's migrant workers like second class citizens is completely unacceptable. This action demonstrates BJP’s discriminatory mindset.https://t.co/6iiOy2rPKC — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) January 14, 2018 × The government gave a nod to the recommendations suggested by a three-member panel, including officials from the External Affairs Ministry and the Women and Child Development Ministry. It was decided that the last page of passports and other travel documents issued under the Passports Act, 1967, and Passport Rules, 1980, "would no longer be printed". The foreign ministry has not decided on the date for issuing the new passports. All existing passports will be replaced by the new version after they expire. (With inputs from PTI)

Government's move to issue orange-jacketed passports for migrants irks Rahul Gandhi 

<p>Karnataka Chief Minister&nbsp;Siddaramaiah&nbsp;met Congress President Rahul Gandhi at his Delhi residence today.&nbsp;Siddaramaiah was accompanied by senior party leaders from the Karnataka state assembly.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The minister noted that there was &quot;no anti-incumbency&quot; against his government and that all programmes mentioned it the manifesto was implemented successfully in the state.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Siddaramaiah noted that the Congress chief was delighted after knowing the same.</p>

<p>The CM also accused the BJP of &quot;raising irrelevant issues&quot;.</p>

<p>Congress&#39; Karnataka unit chief, Dr G Parameshwara, shared that Rahul Gandhi will visit Karnataka from February 10-12 &quot;for the first leg of the election campaign&quot;.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Congress President Rahul Gandhi is visiting Karnataka from 10-12 February for first leg of election campaign. He will be addressing meetings, interacting with various groups of intellectuals, farmers, women and students: Dr. G. Parameshwara, Karnataka Congress chief <a href="https://t.co/ZYW0qaIY3t">pic.twitter.com/ZYW0qaIY3t</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/952109498423914498?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 13, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<p>The Congress president, on his visit, will address meetings and interact with groups of intellectuals, farmers, women and students.</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from ANI)&nbsp;</em></p>


Rahul Gandhi will visit Karnataka from February 10-12 for the first leg of the election campaign

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah met Congress President Rahul Gandhi at his Delhi residence today. Siddaramaiah was accompanied by senior party leaders from the Karnataka state assembly. The minister noted that there was "no anti-incumbency" against his government and that all programmes mentioned it the manifesto was implemented successfully in the state. Siddaramaiah noted that the Congress chief was delighted after knowing the same. The CM also accused the BJP of "raising irrelevant issues". Congress' Karnataka unit chief, Dr G Parameshwara, shared that Rahul Gandhi will visit Karnataka from February 10-12 "for the first leg of the election campaign". Congress President Rahul Gandhi is visiting Karnataka from 10-12 February for first leg of election campaign. He will be addressing meetings, interacting with various groups of intellectuals, farmers, women and students: Dr. G. Parameshwara, Karnataka Congress chief pic.twitter.com/ZYW0qaIY3t — ANI (@ANI) January 13, 2018 × The Congress president, on his visit, will address meetings and interact with groups of intellectuals, farmers, women and students. (With inputs from ANI)

Rahul Gandhi meets Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah in Delhi

<p>Taking their long-standing spat to a new level, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath today accused his Karnataka counterpart Siddaramaiah of killing Hindus, and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi of instigating communal rift through his numerous temple visits during the Gujarat Assembly election, and his proclamation of being a Hindu.</p>

<p>The over-a-minute-long video, posted on Uttar Pradesh BJP&#39;s Twitter handle sarcastically retorts to Siddaramaiah&#39;s recent statement about him being a Hindu, and shows pictures of 12 Hindus, who were killed in the last two to three years in Karnataka.</p>

<p>&quot;But when questioned by Yogi, he (Siddaramaiah) calls himself a Hindu,&quot; states the video.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="hi">काम जो कर लिया होता 5 साल में तिनका भर, यूँ रेसिपी नहीं बना रहे होते कांग्रेस के राजकुंवर। <a href="https://t.co/Ah0gmaZU39">pic.twitter.com/Ah0gmaZU39</a></p>
&mdash; BJP Uttar Pradesh (@BJP4UP) <a href="https://twitter.com/BJP4UP/status/952024283756113920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 13, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>The video also highlights the corruption cases against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and the 1,002 cases of farmers&#39;s suicide in Karnataka in the current fiscal year,</p>

<p>Adityanath, while addressing a BJP rally in Bengaluru, had earlier accused Siddaramaiah of mixing religion with politics and following the footsteps of Rahul Gandhi ahead of the assembly elections in Gujarat.</p>

<p>He had also questioned Siddaramaiah for &quot;endorsing beef eaters&quot; being a Hindu. The Karnataka chief minister had responded by saying that Hindus did eat beef, and questioned Aditynaath&#39;s right to criticise the people&#39;s food habits.</p>

<p>Siddaramaiah had also called Adityanath&#39;s governance in Uttar Pradesh as &#39;Jungle Raj&#39; and opined that the latter could &quot;learn a lot&quot; from him.&nbsp;</p>

<p>(With inputs from ANI)</p>


Taking their long-standing spat to a new level, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath today accused his Karnataka counterpart Siddaramaiah of killing Hindus, and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi of instigating communal rift through his numerous temple visits during the Gujarat assembly elections

Taking their long-standing spat to a new level, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath today accused his Karnataka counterpart Siddaramaiah of killing Hindus, and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi of instigating communal rift through his numerous temple visits during the Gujarat Assembly election, and his proclamation of being a Hindu. The over-a-minute-long video, posted on Uttar Pradesh BJP's Twitter handle sarcastically retorts to Siddaramaiah's recent statement about him being a Hindu, and shows pictures of 12 Hindus, who were killed in the last two to three years in Karnataka. "But when questioned by Yogi, he (Siddaramaiah) calls himself a Hindu," states the video. काम जो कर लिया होता 5 साल में तिनका भर, यूँ रेसिपी नहीं बना रहे होते कांग्रेस के राजकुंवर। pic.twitter.com/Ah0gmaZU39 — BJP Uttar Pradesh (@BJP4UP) January 13, 2018 × The video also highlights the corruption cases against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and the 1,002 cases of farmers's suicide in Karnataka in the current fiscal year, Adityanath, while addressing a BJP rally in Bengaluru, had earlier accused Siddaramaiah of mixing religion with politics and following the footsteps of Rahul Gandhi ahead of the assembly elections in Gujarat. He had also questioned Siddaramaiah for "endorsing beef eaters" being a Hindu. The Karnataka chief minister had responded by saying that Hindus did eat beef, and questioned Aditynaath's right to criticise the people's food habits. Siddaramaiah had also called Adityanath's governance in Uttar Pradesh as 'Jungle Raj' and opined that the latter could "learn a lot" from him. (With inputs from ANI)

Yogi Adityanath targets Siddaramaiah, Rahul Gandhi in video post

<p>Calling today&#39;s press conference by four <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/the-7-page-letter-4-senior-supreme-court-judges-wrote-to-chief-justice-of-india-29321">senior judges of the Supreme Court</a> &#39;unprecedented&#39;, Congress president Rahul Gandhi said the &ldquo;points raised by the honourable judges need to be looked into&rdquo;.</p>

<p>&quot;This is unprecedented. The points raised by the honourable judges need to be looked into carefully, even Justice Loya&#39;s death needs to be investigated properly,&quot; Gandhi said at a press conference at Congress headquarters in New Delhi.</p>

<p>All citizens who love the idea of justice are looking at this issue and it needs to be addressed, he added.</p>

<p>Earlier Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjiwala&nbsp;said, &quot;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/all-you-should-know-about-sc-judges-who-addressed-media-today-29348">Observations made by Hon Judges </a>are extremely disturbing and have far-reaching consequences.&quot;</p>

<p>The Congress had earlier said that democracy was in &quot;danger&quot;, while the CPI(M) called for a thorough probe after the press conference by the four judges.</p>

<p>&quot;We are very concerned to hear 4 judges of the Supreme Court expressed concerns about the functioning of the Supreme Court. #DemocracyInDanger,&quot; the Congress&#39; official Twitter handle said.</p>

<p>Former Union law minister and Congress leader Ashwani Kumar said it was a &quot;sad day&quot; in the history of India that judges were &quot;compelled&quot; to bring in the public domain the happenings in the top court.</p>

<p>Four sitting Supreme Court judges Justice Madan B Lokur, Justice Kurian Joseph, Justice Jasti Chelameswar and Justice Ranjan Gogoi addressed the media for the first time on differences with the Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra.</p>

<p>The judges criticised Supreme Court&#39;s distribution of cases to judges and raised concerns about judicial appointments.</p>

<p>&quot;We were left with no choice but to address the media, we have failed to convince the Chief Justice,&quot; Justice Chelameswar said on the lawns of his residence in New Delhi. &quot;The four of us are convinced that unless this institution is preserved and it maintains its equanimity, democracy will not survive in this country,&quot; he added.</p>

<p>&quot;We wanted to let the nation know that it is important to preserve the institution of judiciary,&quot; the judge said.</p>

<p>The justices gave few details of the incidents they were referring to but released a letter they had written to Misra.</p>


Earlier Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala said, "Observations made by Hon Judges are extremely disturbing and have far-reaching consequences."

Calling today's press conference by four senior judges of the Supreme Court 'unprecedented', Congress president Rahul Gandhi said the “points raised by the honourable judges need to be looked into”. "This is unprecedented. The points raised by the honourable judges need to be looked into carefully, even Justice Loya's death needs to be investigated properly," Gandhi said at a press conference at Congress headquarters in New Delhi. All citizens who love the idea of justice are looking at this issue and it needs to be addressed, he added. Earlier Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjiwala said, "Observations made by Hon Judges are extremely disturbing and have far-reaching consequences." The Congress had earlier said that democracy was in "danger", while the CPI(M) called for a thorough probe after the press conference by the four judges. "We are very concerned to hear 4 judges of the Supreme Court expressed concerns about the functioning of the Supreme Court. #DemocracyInDanger," the Congress' official Twitter handle said. Former Union law minister and Congress leader Ashwani Kumar said it was a "sad day" in the history of India that judges were "compelled" to bring in the public domain the happenings in the top court. Four sitting Supreme Court judges Justice Madan B Lokur, Justice Kurian Joseph, Justice Jasti Chelameswar and Justice Ranjan Gogoi addressed the media for the first time on differences with the Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra. The judges criticised Supreme Court's distribution of cases to judges and raised concerns about judicial appointments. "We were left with no choice but to address the media, we have failed to convince the Chief Justice," Justice Chelameswar said on the lawns of his residence in New Delhi. "The four of us are convinced that unless this institution is preserved and it maintains its equanimity, democracy will not survive in this country," he added. "We wanted to let the nation know that it is important to preserve the institution of judiciary," the judge said. The justices gave few details of the incidents they were referring to but released a letter they had written to Misra.

Points they raised need to be looked into: Rahul Gandhi on Supreme Court judges' revolt against CJI

<p>Congress President Rahul Gandhi told&nbsp;NRIs in Bahrain on Monday that there &quot;is a serious problem at home&quot;.&nbsp;</p>

<p>He went on to say that &quot;job creation is at an eight-year low&quot;. And that instead of focusing on the &quot;removal of poverty&quot; and &quot;job creating&quot;, the country was instead seeing a rise in the &quot;forces of hate and division&quot;.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;Instead of accepting that we are struggling to create jobs, instead of uniting people of all religions and communities together to face the challenge, the government is busy converting the fear being generated in jobless youth into hatred between communities,&quot; Gandhi said.&nbsp;</p>

<p>He added that he was there to tell the non-resident Indians what they meant to their country, and that they were part of the solution.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;Your talent, skills, tolerance, patriotism is what India needs today. You have shown us how you have built the countries you have journeyed to,&quot; Gandhi added.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Gandhi was addressing the Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin in Bahrain.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Gandhi, who recently took over as president of the Congress party from his mother Sonia, has made some of his <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-in-us-makes-no-holds-barred-attack-on-pm-modi-20102" target="_blank">strongest attacks on the government</a>&nbsp;while abroad.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-gives-second-address-in-us-talks-jobs-20418" target="_blank">Central question</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-gives-second-address-in-us-talks-jobs-20418" target="_blank"> is how does India give its people jobs?</a>&nbsp;</p>

<p>ANI also reported Gandhi, while interacting with the Indian diaspora after his address, as saying that &quot;Gujarat BJP ka gadh hai aur wahan bach ke nikli hai BJP&quot;.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The BJP had recently <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/bjp-wins-gujarat-but-does-not-cross-100-mark-takes-himachal-easily-27117" target="_blank">won the Gujarat elections</a>, coming back to power for a sixth time despite ruling the state for 22 years straight, where it won 99 seats against the Congress&#39; 77 in the 182-seat house.&nbsp;</p>

<p>BJP President Amit Shah had earlier said his party would win a total of 150 seats.&nbsp;</p>


Instead of focusing on the 'removal of poverty' and 'job creating', the country was instead seeing a rise in the 'forces of hate and division', Gandhi said

Congress President Rahul Gandhi told NRIs in Bahrain on Monday that there "is a serious problem at home". He went on to say that "job creation is at an eight-year low". And that instead of focusing on the "removal of poverty" and "job creating", the country was instead seeing a rise in the "forces of hate and division". "Instead of accepting that we are struggling to create jobs, instead of uniting people of all religions and communities together to face the challenge, the government is busy converting the fear being generated in jobless youth into hatred between communities," Gandhi said. He added that he was there to tell the non-resident Indians what they meant to their country, and that they were part of the solution. "Your talent, skills, tolerance, patriotism is what India needs today. You have shown us how you have built the countries you have journeyed to," Gandhi added. Gandhi was addressing the Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin in Bahrain. Gandhi, who recently took over as president of the Congress party from his mother Sonia, has made some of his strongest attacks on the government while abroad. Also read: Central question is how does India give its people jobs? ANI also reported Gandhi, while interacting with the Indian diaspora after his address, as saying that "Gujarat BJP ka gadh hai aur wahan bach ke nikli hai BJP". The BJP had recently won the Gujarat elections, coming back to power for a sixth time despite ruling the state for 22 years straight, where it won 99 seats against the Congress' 77 in the 182-seat house. BJP President Amit Shah had earlier said his party would win a total of 150 seats.

'Serious problem at home', job creation at 8-year low: Rahul Gandhi in Bahrain

<p>Congress president Rahul Gandhi has again found new grounds to attack BJP - this time over India Gross Domestic Product (GDP) or as Gandhi has coined Gross Divisive Politics.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;The GDP is at a 4-year-old low now. Will Prime Minister Modi and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley stop boasting that India is the fastest growing economy?&quot; asked Congress leader Anand Sharma while addressing the media.</p>

<p>Gandhi took to Twitter on Saturday, giving out facts about the current growth projections in the country, while also taking a jibe at finance minister Arun Jaitley and calling him a &quot;genius.&quot;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">FM Jaitley&rsquo;s genius combines with Mr Modi&rsquo;s Gross Divisive Politics (GDP) to give India:<br />
<br />
New Investments: 13 year ?<br />
Bank credit Growth: 63 year ?<br />
Job creation: 8 year ?<br />
Agriculture GVA growth: 1.7%?<br />
Fiscal Deficit: 8 year??<br />
Stalled Projects ??<a href="https://t.co/bZdPnREYiE">https://t.co/bZdPnREYiE</a></p>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/949479733850337280?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 6, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<p>&nbsp;The Congress leader further said the national investment rate has also fallen.</p>

<p>&quot;The state of the economy is a matter of great concern. All the parameters are going down. The national investment rate has also fallen. Manufacturing has come down. The situation is grim and the government has no roadmap for recovery&quot;, he added.</p>

<p>India&rsquo;s economic growth is estimated to slow down to 4-year low of 6.5 per cent this fiscal, the lowest under the NDA regime, mainly due to GST impact on manufacturing and subdued farm output, according to the advance estimates of national accounts.&nbsp;</p>

<p>As per data released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), Real GDP at constant (2011-12) prices in the year 2017-18 is likely to attain a level of Rs 129.85 lakh crore, as against the Provisional Estimate of GDP for the year 2016-17 of Rs 121.90 lakh crore, released on May 31, 2017.</p>

<p>The sectors, which registered a growth rate of over 7.0 per cent, include public administration, defence and other services, trade, hotels, transport, communication and services related to broadcasting, electricity, gas, water supply and other utility services and financial, real estate and professional services.</p>

<p>Gandhi has continuously attacked Modi&#39;s implementation of demonetisation and Goods and Services Tax, dubbing it as Gabbar Singh Tax.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The war is set to continue a few more states will go o polls in 2018, ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha poll</p>


The growth in GDP during 2017-18 is estimated at 6.5 per cent, as compared to the growth rate of 7.1 per cent in 2016-17, the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation had noted on Friday

Congress president Rahul Gandhi has again found new grounds to attack BJP - this time over India Gross Domestic Product (GDP) or as Gandhi has coined Gross Divisive Politics. "The GDP is at a 4-year-old low now. Will Prime Minister Modi and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley stop boasting that India is the fastest growing economy?" asked Congress leader Anand Sharma while addressing the media. Gandhi took to Twitter on Saturday, giving out facts about the current growth projections in the country, while also taking a jibe at finance minister Arun Jaitley and calling him a "genius." FM Jaitley’s genius combines with Mr Modi’s Gross Divisive Politics (GDP) to give India: New Investments: 13 year ? Bank credit Growth: 63 year ? Job creation: 8 year ? Agriculture GVA growth: 1.7%? Fiscal Deficit: 8 year?? Stalled Projects ??https://t.co/bZdPnREYiE — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) January 6, 2018 × The Congress leader further said the national investment rate has also fallen. "The state of the economy is a matter of great concern. All the parameters are going down. The national investment rate has also fallen. Manufacturing has come down. The situation is grim and the government has no roadmap for recovery", he added. India’s economic growth is estimated to slow down to 4-year low of 6.5 per cent this fiscal, the lowest under the NDA regime, mainly due to GST impact on manufacturing and subdued farm output, according to the advance estimates of national accounts. As per data released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), Real GDP at constant (2011-12) prices in the year 2017-18 is likely to attain a level of Rs 129.85 lakh crore, as against the Provisional Estimate of GDP for the year 2016-17 of Rs 121.90 lakh crore, released on May 31, 2017. The sectors, which registered a growth rate of over 7.0 per cent, include public administration, defence and other services, trade, hotels, transport, communication and services related to broadcasting, electricity, gas, water supply and other utility services and financial, real estate and professional services. Gandhi has continuously attacked Modi's implementation of demonetisation and Goods and Services Tax, dubbing it as Gabbar Singh Tax. The war is set to continue a few more states will go o polls in 2018, ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha poll

Rahul Gandhi takes a jibe at Modi, Arun Jaitley over GDP projections

<p>After terming Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s Goods and Service Tax as Gabbar Sigh Tax and Make In India as Fake In India, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday again tore into Modi&#39;s economic policies and coined a new acronym to GDP -- Gross Divisive Politics.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Rahul Gandhi attributed to India&#39;s GDP growth slump&nbsp;to FM Jaitley&rsquo;s genius combines with Mr Modi&rsquo;s Gross Divisive Politics (GDP).&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">FM Jaitley&rsquo;s genius combines with Mr Modi&rsquo;s Gross Divisive Politics (GDP) to give India:<br />
<br />
New Investments: 13 year ?<br />
Bank credit Growth: 63 year ?<br />
Job creation: 8 year ?<br />
Agriculture GVA growth: 1.7%?<br />
Fiscal Deficit: 8 year??<br />
Stalled Projects ??<a href="https://t.co/bZdPnREYiE">https://t.co/bZdPnREYiE</a></p>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/949479733850337280?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 6, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<p><br />
He blamed GST and the note ban for the slow economic growth in the country.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Meanwhile, Congress leader and former finance minister P Chidambaram tweeted GDP growth in 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18 (est) is 8.0, 7.1 and 6.5. These numbers prove there is a slowdown.</p>

<p>&#39;&#39;Our fears and warnings have proved true. GDP growth in 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18 (est) is 8.0, 7.1 and 6.5. These numbers prove there is a slowdown,&#39;&#39; Chidambaram tweeted.</p>

<p>Taking a jibe at Modi governments tall claims, he added &#39;&#39;Will the government continue to claim that India&#39;s growth rate is robust?.&#39;&#39;</p>

<p>He urged the government to stop making tall claims and &#39;&#39;bends down to do solid work&#39;&#39;.</p>

<p>The economic growth is expected to slow to a four-year low of 6.5 per cent in 2017-18, the lowest under the Modi-led government, mainly due to the poor performance of agriculture and manufacturing sectors.</p>

<p>The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was 7.1 per cent in 2016-17 and 8 per cent in the preceding year. It was 7.5 per cent in 2014-15.</p>

<p>Congress party communication in-charge Randeep Surjewala claimed that the double whammy of &quot;Modi Made Disaster of Demonetisation&quot; and the implementation of a flawed GST were responsible for the economy&#39;s downturn.</p>

<p>&quot;An arrogant Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a failed Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, hell-bent upon ignoring economic wisdom, have dealt a catastrophic blow to India&#39;s growth story as proved by the latest GDP estimates slumping from 7.3 per cent to 6.5 per cent,&quot; he said yesterday.</p>

<p>He claimed the truth was that investment had stagnated, job creation was abysmal, exports were in dire straits, stalled projects were burgeoning, inflation remained unchecked and rural distress was at an all-time high.</p>

<p>&quot;Hype, hyperbole and headline management cannot be a substitute to the grim reality on the ground,&quot; he said.</p>

<p>He alleged that 6.5 per cent GDP growth &quot;detailed the failed promise of the prime minister and explained the abject failure of Modinomics&quot;.</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">An arrogant Prime Minister,Shri Narendra Modi and a failed Finance Minister, Shri Arun Jaitley hell bent upon ignoring economic wisdom have dealt a catastrophic blow to India&rsquo;s Growth story as proved by the latest <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GDP?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GDP</a> estimates slumping from 7.3% to 6.5%.<br />
<br />
Our Statement:- <a href="https://t.co/xraOI4rgvU">pic.twitter.com/xraOI4rgvU</a></p>
&mdash; Randeep S Surjewala (@rssurjewala) <a href="https://twitter.com/rssurjewala/status/949291942415708160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>


The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was 7.1 per cent in 2016-17 and 8 per cent in the preceding year. It was 7.5 per cent in 2014-15.

After terming Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Goods and Service Tax as Gabbar Sigh Tax and Make In India as Fake In India, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday again tore into Modi's economic policies and coined a new acronym to GDP -- Gross Divisive Politics. Rahul Gandhi attributed to India's GDP growth slump to FM Jaitley’s genius combines with Mr Modi’s Gross Divisive Politics (GDP). FM Jaitley’s genius combines with Mr Modi’s Gross Divisive Politics (GDP) to give India: New Investments: 13 year ? Bank credit Growth: 63 year ? Job creation: 8 year ? Agriculture GVA growth: 1.7%? Fiscal Deficit: 8 year?? Stalled Projects ??https://t.co/bZdPnREYiE — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) January 6, 2018 × He blamed GST and the note ban for the slow economic growth in the country. Meanwhile, Congress leader and former finance minister P Chidambaram tweeted GDP growth in 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18 (est) is 8.0, 7.1 and 6.5. These numbers prove there is a slowdown. ''Our fears and warnings have proved true. GDP growth in 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18 (est) is 8.0, 7.1 and 6.5. These numbers prove there is a slowdown,'' Chidambaram tweeted. Taking a jibe at Modi governments tall claims, he added ''Will the government continue to claim that India's growth rate is robust?.'' He urged the government to stop making tall claims and ''bends down to do solid work''. The economic growth is expected to slow to a four-year low of 6.5 per cent in 2017-18, the lowest under the Modi-led government, mainly due to the poor performance of agriculture and manufacturing sectors. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was 7.1 per cent in 2016-17 and 8 per cent in the preceding year. It was 7.5 per cent in 2014-15. Congress party communication in-charge Randeep Surjewala claimed that the double whammy of "Modi Made Disaster of Demonetisation" and the implementation of a flawed GST were responsible for the economy's downturn. "An arrogant Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a failed Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, hell-bent upon ignoring economic wisdom, have dealt a catastrophic blow to India's growth story as proved by the latest GDP estimates slumping from 7.3 per cent to 6.5 per cent," he said yesterday. He claimed the truth was that investment had stagnated, job creation was abysmal, exports were in dire straits, stalled projects were burgeoning, inflation remained unchecked and rural distress was at an all-time high. "Hype, hyperbole and headline management cannot be a substitute to the grim reality on the ground," he said. He alleged that 6.5 per cent GDP growth "detailed the failed promise of the prime minister and explained the abject failure of Modinomics". An arrogant Prime Minister,Shri Narendra Modi and a failed Finance Minister, Shri Arun Jaitley hell bent upon ignoring economic wisdom have dealt a catastrophic blow to India’s Growth story as proved by the latest #GDP estimates slumping from 7.3% to 6.5%. Our Statement:- pic.twitter.com/xraOI4rgvU — Randeep S Surjewala (@rssurjewala) January 5, 2018 ×

Rahul Gandhi decodes FM Jaitley's genius and  Modi's Gross Divisive Politics

<p>Congress President Rahul Gandhi lashed out at PM Modi&#39;s government for delaying the appointment of Lokpal.</p>

<p>The Lokpal Bill was passed in the year 2013 with an aim to check and sanitise public functionaries and fight corruption.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;Four years have passed, the Lokpal has not come into reality. The public is asking only one question until when shall be the tune of falsehood be played?&quot; tweeted Rahul Gandhi.</p>

<p>&quot;Are the &lsquo;defenders of democracy&rsquo; &amp; &lsquo;harbingers of accountability&rsquo; listening? #FindingLokpal,&quot; his tweet noted.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Lokpal Bill was first introduced in the year 1968 and subsequently passed in 1969.</p>

<p>The bill could not be passed by the Rajya Sabha and ended up getting lapsed owing to the dissolution of the Lok Sabha.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="und">??? ?? ??? ???<br />
???? ??? ??????<br />
???? ???? ?? ????<br />
?? ?? ?????? &#39;???? ???&#39;?<br />
<br />
Are the &lsquo;defenders of democracy&rsquo; &amp; &lsquo;harbingers of accountability&rsquo; listening?<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FindingLokpal?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FindingLokpal</a> <a href="https://t.co/v9Kc2Io3Ur">pic.twitter.com/v9Kc2Io3Ur</a></p>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/949225977875320833?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<p>The Bill was finally passed on 17 December 2013 in the Rajya Sabha and on 18 December 2013 in the Lok Sabha.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Alternatively known as the Citizen&#39;s Ombudsman Bill, the bill is touted as an anti-corruption tool which calls for the appointment of an investigative committee -- Jan Lokpal -- to check and counter corruption.</p>


'Are the ?defenders of democracy? & ?harbingers of accountability? listening? #FindingLokpal," Gandhi tweeted

Congress President Rahul Gandhi lashed out at PM Modi's government for delaying the appointment of Lokpal. The Lokpal Bill was passed in the year 2013 with an aim to check and sanitise public functionaries and fight corruption. "Four years have passed, the Lokpal has not come into reality. The public is asking only one question until when shall be the tune of falsehood be played?" tweeted Rahul Gandhi. "Are the ‘defenders of democracy’ & ‘harbingers of accountability’ listening? #FindingLokpal," his tweet noted. The Lokpal Bill was first introduced in the year 1968 and subsequently passed in 1969. The bill could not be passed by the Rajya Sabha and ended up getting lapsed owing to the dissolution of the Lok Sabha. ??? ?? ??? ??? ???? ??? ?????? ???? ???? ?? ???? ?? ?? ?????? '???? ???'? Are the ‘defenders of democracy’ & ‘harbingers of accountability’ listening?#FindingLokpal pic.twitter.com/v9Kc2Io3Ur — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) January 5, 2018 × The Bill was finally passed on 17 December 2013 in the Rajya Sabha and on 18 December 2013 in the Lok Sabha. Alternatively known as the Citizen's Ombudsman Bill, the bill is touted as an anti-corruption tool which calls for the appointment of an investigative committee -- Jan Lokpal -- to check and counter corruption.

Rahul Gandhi criticises Modi government for delay in appointing Jan Lokpal

<p>Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu, on Saturday, sent a privilege notice against Congress President Rahul Gandhi to Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan for further action, holding that &quot;prima facie there is an issue of privilege&quot;.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;On examination, prima facie there is an issue of privilege,&quot; Naidu said while referring the privilege notice to the Lok Sabha speaker.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Senior BJP MP Bhupendra Yadav had raised an issue of breach of privilege last month against the Congress President.</p>

<p>In his notice, Yadav had said that Gandhi twisted the spelling of Jaitley&rsquo;s surname to &#39;Jaitlie&#39;&nbsp;and it was highly derogatory.</p>

<p>&quot;Dear Mr Jaitlie - thank you for reminding India that our PM never means what he says or says what he means. #BJPLies,&quot; Rahul Gandhi had said while putting out a video of the prime minister&#39;s speech against his predecessor and Jaitley s remarks made in Rajya Sabha.</p>

<p>According to reports, the Rajya Sabha chairperson&#39;s office said that the &ldquo;the breach of privilege stands on the grounds that it imputed motives to the intent, character and conduct of the Leader of the House Arun Jaitley by the way the spelling of Mr. Jaitley has been twisted (it was spelt as Jaitlie in Mr. Gandhi&rsquo;s tweets).&rdquo;</p>

<p>The BJP member said the Congress President had &quot;deliberately twisted&quot; the spelling of Jaitley&#39;s surname to &#39;Jaitlie&#39;, which was &quot;highly derogatory&quot;.</p>

<p>The Congress president, Yadav said, has deliberately misinterpreted the proceedings of Rajya Sabha in order to &quot;malign the government, which constitutes an affront to the dignity of the House&quot;.</p>

<p>He also alleged that it is a deliberate attempt at vitiating the political atmosphere of the country.</p>

<p>Sources further said that the matter was likely to be referred to the privilege committee.&nbsp;</p>

<p>(With inputs from PTI)</p>


In his notice, Yadav had said that Gandhi twisted the spelling of Jaitley?s surname to ?Jaitlie? and it was highly derogatory

Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu, on Saturday, sent a privilege notice against Congress President Rahul Gandhi to Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan for further action, holding that "prima facie there is an issue of privilege". "On examination, prima facie there is an issue of privilege," Naidu said while referring the privilege notice to the Lok Sabha speaker. Senior BJP MP Bhupendra Yadav had raised an issue of breach of privilege last month against the Congress President. In his notice, Yadav had said that Gandhi twisted the spelling of Jaitley’s surname to 'Jaitlie' and it was highly derogatory. "Dear Mr Jaitlie - thank you for reminding India that our PM never means what he says or says what he means. #BJPLies," Rahul Gandhi had said while putting out a video of the prime minister's speech against his predecessor and Jaitley s remarks made in Rajya Sabha. According to reports, the Rajya Sabha chairperson's office said that the “the breach of privilege stands on the grounds that it imputed motives to the intent, character and conduct of the Leader of the House Arun Jaitley by the way the spelling of Mr. Jaitley has been twisted (it was spelt as Jaitlie in Mr. Gandhi’s tweets).” The BJP member said the Congress President had "deliberately twisted" the spelling of Jaitley's surname to 'Jaitlie', which was "highly derogatory". The Congress president, Yadav said, has deliberately misinterpreted the proceedings of Rajya Sabha in order to "malign the government, which constitutes an affront to the dignity of the House". He also alleged that it is a deliberate attempt at vitiating the political atmosphere of the country. Sources further said that the matter was likely to be referred to the privilege committee. (With inputs from PTI)

Venkaiah Naidu sends privilege notice against Rahul Gandhi to Lok Sabha

<p>In his recent tweet, Congress President Rahul Gandhi attacked the Prime Minister and his government on Lokpal.</p>

<p>Gandhi tweeted asking the government that for how long will they continue to recite false tunes. He said that four years have passed but the Lokpal was still not put into effect.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Targetting the government he said &quot; Are the &quot;defenders of democracy&quot; and &quot;harbingers of accountability&quot; listening?</p>

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???? ??? ??????<br />
???? ???? ?? ????<br />
?? ?? ?????? &#39;???? ???&#39;?<br />
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Are the &lsquo;defenders of democracy&rsquo; &amp; &lsquo;harbingers of accountability&rsquo; listening?<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FindingLokpal?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FindingLokpal</a> <a href="https://t.co/v9Kc2Io3Ur">pic.twitter.com/v9Kc2Io3Ur</a></p>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/949225977875320833?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<p>Gandhi&#39;s tweet came in response to PM Modi&#39;s tweet of 2013.&nbsp;</p>

<p>PM Modi&#39;s tweet on 18 December 2013 said&quot; Am very proud of the positive and proactive role played by BJP MPs under leadership of @SushmaSwarajbjp &amp; @arunjaitley in passing Lokpal Bill.</p>

<p>The Lokpal bill aims to the appointment of Jan Lokpal, an Independent body to investigate corruption cases.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Anna Hazare had earlier alleged that Modi-led government has weakened the Lokpal Act.&nbsp;</p>


Gandhi tweeted asking the government that for how long will they continue to recite false tunes. He said that four years have passed but the Lokpal was still not put into effect

In his recent tweet, Congress President Rahul Gandhi attacked the Prime Minister and his government on Lokpal. Gandhi tweeted asking the government that for how long will they continue to recite false tunes. He said that four years have passed but the Lokpal was still not put into effect. Targetting the government he said " Are the "defenders of democracy" and "harbingers of accountability" listening? ??? ?? ??? ??? ???? ??? ?????? ???? ???? ?? ???? ?? ?? ?????? '???? ???'? Are the ‘defenders of democracy’ & ‘harbingers of accountability’ listening?#FindingLokpal pic.twitter.com/v9Kc2Io3Ur — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) January 5, 2018 × Gandhi's tweet came in response to PM Modi's tweet of 2013. PM Modi's tweet on 18 December 2013 said" Am very proud of the positive and proactive role played by BJP MPs under leadership of @SushmaSwarajbjp & @arunjaitley in passing Lokpal Bill. The Lokpal bill aims to the appointment of Jan Lokpal, an Independent body to investigate corruption cases. Anna Hazare had earlier alleged that Modi-led government has weakened the Lokpal Act.

Rahul tweets: 4 years and no Lokpal, PM Modi playing wrong tune

<p>Rahul Gandhi will embark next week on a visit to Bahrain, his first foreign trip after becoming Congress president, during which he will address a convention of NRIs and is likely to meet the country&#39;s prime minister.</p>

<p>According to party sources, Gandhi will be the state guest of the Kingdom of Bahrain and will address NRIs settled there on January 8.</p>

<p>He will leave for Bahrain on January 7 and is likely to return on January 9. The NRIs settled there have invited him.</p>

<p>Also read: <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-in-us-makes-no-holds-barred-attack-on-pm-modi-20102" target="_blank">Rahul Gandhi, in </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-in-us-makes-no-holds-barred-attack-on-pm-modi-20102" target="_blank">US</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-in-us-makes-no-holds-barred-attack-on-pm-modi-20102" target="_blank">, makes no-holds-barred attack on PM Modi</a></p>

<p><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-gives-second-address-in-us-talks-jobs-20418" target="_blank">Rahul Gandhi in </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-gives-second-address-in-us-talks-jobs-20418" target="_blank">US</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-gives-second-address-in-us-talks-jobs-20418" target="_blank">: </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-gives-second-address-in-us-talks-jobs-20418" target="_blank">Central question</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/rahul-gandhi-gives-second-address-in-us-talks-jobs-20418" target="_blank"> is how does India give its people jobs?</a>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Gandhi is also likely to meet Bahrain&#39;s Prime Minister Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa and the members of the royal family, the sources said.</p>

<p>They said that he was to also address NRIs in Dubai but that visit has been postponed.</p>

<p>Prime Minister Narendra Modi is due to visit the UAE later this month.</p>

<p>Party sources say Gandhi&#39;s visit to Bahrain will be on the lines of his US trip last year.<br />
<br />
Rahul Gandhi was in Goa on New Year along with his mother Sonia Gandhi.&nbsp;</p>


Gandhi will leave next week and will speak to the NRIs on January 8

Rahul Gandhi will embark next week on a visit to Bahrain, his first foreign trip after becoming Congress president, during which he will address a convention of NRIs and is likely to meet the country's prime minister. According to party sources, Gandhi will be the state guest of the Kingdom of Bahrain and will address NRIs settled there on January 8. He will leave for Bahrain on January 7 and is likely to return on January 9. The NRIs settled there have invited him. Also read: Rahul Gandhi, in US, makes no-holds-barred attack on PM Modi Rahul Gandhi in US: Central question is how does India give its people jobs? Gandhi is also likely to meet Bahrain's Prime Minister Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa and the members of the royal family, the sources said. They said that he was to also address NRIs in Dubai but that visit has been postponed. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is due to visit the UAE later this month. Party sources say Gandhi's visit to Bahrain will be on the lines of his US trip last year. Rahul Gandhi was in Goa on New Year along with his mother Sonia Gandhi.

Rahul Gandhi to visit Bahrain, address NRIs

<p>Video has emerged of a Congress MLA slapping a woman constable, who slapped the politican back.&nbsp;</p>

<p><em>Watch </em><em>video</em><em> below:&nbsp;</em></p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WATCH?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WATCH</a> Shimla: Congress MLA Asha Kumari assaults woman constable, gets slapped back. She was being allegedly denied entry by Police in Rahul Gandhi&#39;s review meeting (amateur video) <a href="https://t.co/puvMRnHKss">pic.twitter.com/puvMRnHKss</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/946647996619374592?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 29, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<p>The incident took place in Shimla.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Police were reportedly not allowing the MLA, identified as Asha Kumari, into a meeting being chaired by Congress President Rahul Gandhi.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Gandhi is in Shimla to review the Congress&#39;s poll performance in the recently-held Himachal elections.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Congress lost the elections, with the BJP winning 44 seats in the 68-member house. The Congress won 21.&nbsp;</p>

<p><br />
&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


The incident took place in Shimla. The MLA was identified as Asha Kumari

Video has emerged of a Congress MLA slapping a woman constable, who slapped the politican back. Watch video below: #WATCH Shimla: Congress MLA Asha Kumari assaults woman constable, gets slapped back. She was being allegedly denied entry by Police in Rahul Gandhi's review meeting (amateur video) pic.twitter.com/puvMRnHKss — ANI (@ANI) December 29, 2017 × The incident took place in Shimla. Police were reportedly not allowing the MLA, identified as Asha Kumari, into a meeting being chaired by Congress President Rahul Gandhi. Gandhi is in Shimla to review the Congress's poll performance in the recently-held Himachal elections. The Congress lost the elections, with the BJP winning 44 seats in the 68-member house. The Congress won 21.

Watch: Congress MLA slaps woman constable, who slaps back

<p>The BJP has moved a privilege motion against Congress President Rahul Gandhi in the Rajya Sabha.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The motion was moved after Gandhi referred to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley as Mr &quot;Jaitlie&quot;.&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Dear Mr Jaitlie - thank you for reminding India that our PM never means what he says or says what he means. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BJPLies?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BJPLies</a> <a href="https://t.co/I7n1f07GaX">pic.twitter.com/I7n1f07GaX</a></p>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/946038581306441728?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 27, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<p>&quot;Dear Mr Jaitlie - thank you for reminding India that our PM never means what he says or says what he means,&quot; Gandhi had tweeted on December 27.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The motion was moved by BJP MP Bhupendra Yadav on Thursday.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Rajya Sabha chairman Venkaiah Naidu said would will examine the motion and take an appropriate decision.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


The motion was moved by BJP MP Bhupendra Yadav

The BJP has moved a privilege motion against Congress President Rahul Gandhi in the Rajya Sabha. The motion was moved after Gandhi referred to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley as Mr "Jaitlie". Dear Mr Jaitlie - thank you for reminding India that our PM never means what he says or says what he means. #BJPLies pic.twitter.com/I7n1f07GaX — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) December 27, 2017 × "Dear Mr Jaitlie - thank you for reminding India that our PM never means what he says or says what he means," Gandhi had tweeted on December 27. The motion was moved by BJP MP Bhupendra Yadav on Thursday. Rajya Sabha chairman Venkaiah Naidu said would will examine the motion and take an appropriate decision.

Privilege motion against Rahul Gandhi in Rajya Sabha

<p>In a video gone viral, Congress MLA Asha Kumari is seen slapping a woman constable on duty during party chief Rahul Gandhi&#39;s visit to Himachal Pradesh, only to get two slaps in return from the police official.</p>

<p>Former minister Dhani Ram Shandil had to intervene to quell the frayed tempers.</p>

<p>The Congress MLA later tendered an apology for the incident, saying &quot;the lady constable misbehaved, abused me and almost beat me, but I should not have lost my calm. I am sorry for the incident&quot;.</p>

<p>However, the woman constable has filed a complaint against the Congress legislator.</p>

<p>&quot;An FIR has been registered against Kumari under IPC sections 353 and 332 (assault or use of criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty),&quot; SP, Shimla, Soumya said.</p>

<p>The scuffle broke out when the police refused to allow the MLA into a meeting being chaired by Congress President Rahul Gandhi. Gandhi is in Shimla to review the Congress&#39; poll performance in the recently-held Himachal elections.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Congress lost the elections, with the BJP winning 44 seats in the 68-member house. The Congress won 21.&nbsp;</p>


Congress MLA Asha Kumari, who slapped the woman cop, said that she should not have lost her temper and apologized.

In a video gone viral, Congress MLA Asha Kumari is seen slapping a woman constable on duty during party chief Rahul Gandhi's visit to Himachal Pradesh, only to get two slaps in return from the police official. Former minister Dhani Ram Shandil had to intervene to quell the frayed tempers. The Congress MLA later tendered an apology for the incident, saying "the lady constable misbehaved, abused me and almost beat me, but I should not have lost my calm. I am sorry for the incident". However, the woman constable has filed a complaint against the Congress legislator. "An FIR has been registered against Kumari under IPC sections 353 and 332 (assault or use of criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty)," SP, Shimla, Soumya said. The scuffle broke out when the police refused to allow the MLA into a meeting being chaired by Congress President Rahul Gandhi. Gandhi is in Shimla to review the Congress' poll performance in the recently-held Himachal elections. The Congress lost the elections, with the BJP winning 44 seats in the 68-member house. The Congress won 21.

Cong MLA slaps woman constable, gets two slaps in return

<p>As Rahul Gandhi has taken charge of Congress party, there has been a role reversal at the Gandhi household. The Congress party President&#39;s mother Sonia Gandhi was recently seen enjoying a much-deserved break in Goa.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Photos of the vacation have surfaced on the Internet which shows Mrs. Gandhi enjoying a cycle ride and posing for selfies with tourists.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
The former president of Congress party reportedly flew to Goa on December 26th and would be coming back to New Delhi only in the first week of January.&nbsp;</p>

<p>According to a report in News18.com, the politician is staying at a five-star property in South Goa currently.&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/sonia%20gandhi%20in%20goa-20171228073856.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
<p>This photo was shared by Riteish Deshmukh who wrote, &quot;Some pictures make you happy... this is one of them. Wishing Sonia ji happiness and best of health.(sic)&quot; (Twitter)</p>
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<p>Many feel that its a holiday well deserved for the longest-serving president of the Congress party who has till recently postponed vacations to concentrate on work while her son Rahul has been taking annual vacations.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
Sources close to Mrs. Gandhi have stated that she is there with some of her close friends and is spending time reading, doing her yoga and cycling around the property.&nbsp;</p>


The former president of Congress party reportedly flew to Goa on December 26 and will be coming back to New Delhi only in the first week of January

As Rahul Gandhi has taken charge of Congress party, there has been a role reversal at the Gandhi household. The Congress party President's mother Sonia Gandhi was recently seen enjoying a much-deserved break in Goa. Photos of the vacation have surfaced on the Internet which shows Mrs. Gandhi enjoying a cycle ride and posing for selfies with tourists. The former president of Congress party reportedly flew to Goa on December 26th and would be coming back to New Delhi only in the first week of January. According to a report in News18.com, the politician is staying at a five-star property in South Goa currently. This photo was shared by Riteish Deshmukh who wrote, "Some pictures make you happy... this is one of them. Wishing Sonia ji happiness and best of health.(sic)" (Twitter) × Many feel that its a holiday well deserved for the longest-serving president of the Congress party who has till recently postponed vacations to concentrate on work while her son Rahul has been taking annual vacations. Sources close to Mrs. Gandhi have stated that she is there with some of her close friends and is spending time reading, doing her yoga and cycling around the property.

Caught on camera: Sonia Gandhi in Goa on a cycle

<p>Congress President Rahul Gandhi said Thursday that the &quot;constitution, the foundation of our country, is under threat&quot;.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;The Constitution, the foundation of our country is under threat, it is under attack directly, statements are being made by senior members of BJP and it is under attack surreptitiously from the back and it&#39;s our duty, duty of Congress party and every single Indian to defend it,&quot; he said.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Gandhi was speaking at the 133rd anniversary of the founding of the Congress party.&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Congress President Rahul Gandhi distributes sweets among children at AICC headquarters on party&#39;s 133rd foundation day <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Delhi?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Delhi</a> <a href="https://t.co/dlh520yP9r">pic.twitter.com/dlh520yP9r</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/946238242461966336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 28, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
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<p>&quot;What is happening today in our country is a web of deceit,&quot; Rahul added.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;The BJP operates on the basic idea that lies can be used for political benefit and it is the difference between us and them, we might not do well, we might even lose but we will not give up the truth,&quot; he said.&nbsp;</p>


Gandhi was speaking at the 133rd anniversary of the founding of the Congress party

Congress President Rahul Gandhi said Thursday that the "constitution, the foundation of our country, is under threat". "The Constitution, the foundation of our country is under threat, it is under attack directly, statements are being made by senior members of BJP and it is under attack surreptitiously from the back and it's our duty, duty of Congress party and every single Indian to defend it," he said. Gandhi was speaking at the 133rd anniversary of the founding of the Congress party. Congress President Rahul Gandhi distributes sweets among children at AICC headquarters on party's 133rd foundation day #Delhi pic.twitter.com/dlh520yP9r — ANI (@ANI) December 28, 2017 × "What is happening today in our country is a web of deceit," Rahul added. "The BJP operates on the basic idea that lies can be used for political benefit and it is the difference between us and them, we might not do well, we might even lose but we will not give up the truth," he said.

Constitution, the country's foundation, is under threat: Rahul Gandhi

<p>If today&rsquo;s electoral outcomes were not to impact tomorrow&rsquo;s, they would be dealt with as standalone and transient phenomena. But because the results have a roll-over effect in varying measure, they get analysed threadbare &mdash; and with some hair-splitting added. Both the winner and loser has lessons to learn, and the one who imbibes them better stands the greater chance to stand high on the podium in the coming days. And so, the verdict on the political contests of 2017 can be a determinant for 2018 as well.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Two crucial elections happened in 2017, and while the end result was the same, the messages the electorate delivered were very different and the level of endorsement varied. That one of these confrontations took place early in the year and the other later as 2017 came near to a close, helped in establishing a &lsquo;beginning and end&rsquo; narrative. Except that every start is a new beginning and every end is the harbinger of a new beginning. It&rsquo;s this belief that keeps political parties going, losing steam one moment, gaining it the next. Of course, the one which recoups its losses the earliest stand the better chance of breasting the tape.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>The BJP began 2017 with a bang and the Congress with a whimper.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>The former swept the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election with a margin that even its staunchest admirers had not reckoned with. The Congress, which had tagged along with the Samajwadi Party, came to a cropper. There can be endless debate on whether the Congress sunk the Samajwadi Party or the reverse happened.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>With 80 Lok Sabha and 400 plus Assembly seats, Uttar Pradesh has often been the bellwether State. Parties that perform poorly here cannot hope to rule the country. Having won 71 Lok Sabha seats in 2014 on its own, the BJP had the difficult task to live up to the high level. The general sense during the Assembly poll campaigning had been that the party would return to power after nearly two decades in exile, but nobody saw the massive margin of victory coming. The wave flattened the Samajwadi Party, decimated the Bahujan Samaj Party and obliterated the Congress.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>The messages were the following: Prime Minister Narendra Modi&rsquo;s charisma was intact (he was the star campaigner for the BJP); the split in the Samajwadi Party as the result of a family feud had taken its toll on the party; the politics of appeasement does not work; talk of good governance still sells; caste considerations, while still relevant and on which both the Samajwadi Party and the BSP heavily rely on, now have limited appeal; and, the party which manages its macro as well as micro election strategies more smartly, using both manpower and technology, has the greater chance of victory.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>The outcome of the Uttar Pradesh election threw up a dilemma for the Congress: Should it continue with the tactic of over-relying on strong local leaders or fire up its own local leadership to lead the battle?</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>By the time the Gujarat Assembly election came only months after the Uttar Pradesh poll, the Congress was still unsure on this front. For the first time in two decades, it sensed a chance to oust the BJP in the State, and yet there was also a feeling of diffidence. This led to its over-dependence on three young caste warriors whose affiliation to the Congress was tentative and their desire to align with that party was motivated by the prospect of little more than an immediate gain.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>It cannot be denied that they - Mevani, Hardik Patel, Alpesh Thakore- impacted the final tally to an extent, reducing the BJP&rsquo;s number as compared to the 2012 figure and bettering the Congress&rsquo;s. But that impact was less than expected, since the BJP did succeed in containing the damage caused by the migration of a section of the Patidar community to the Congress camp. It did appear that, as in the case of Uttar Pradesh, the Congress had placed all its eggs in the basket of local leaders from outside the party.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>It needs to be remembered that the BJP had been as weakened in Uttar Pradesh over the two decades preceding 2014 as the Congress had been. But while the BJP continued to work on its core strengths and weaknesses in the State, the Congress flirted with both the Samajwadi Party and the BSP in a desperate bid to regain influence.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>In Gujarat too, instead of focusing on the discontent in rural parts, the disruptive nature of Goods and Services Tax implementation, and the general sense of anti-incumbency of two decades, the Congress outsourced its fate to caste leaders with little political experience. In the end, it was reduced to claiming &ldquo;moral victory&rdquo;, which means nothing in electoral politics.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>The message for the BJP was that it could no longer take the voters for granted, even in Gujarat. Its tally fell by 16 seats as compared to 2012, although its vote-share went up. The party must recall the &ldquo;India Shining&rsquo; moment of 2004 and understand that support can dissipate almost as quickly as it comes. Recent political history is replete with such instances: 1977, when Indira Gandhi led the Congress to a debacle and also lost in her constituency; 1980, when the Janata Party collapsed and Indira Gandhi made a grand comeback; 1989, when Rajiv Gandhi led his party to a defeat, frittering away a three-fourth mandate.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Fresh battle lines will be drawn for 2018, which is a year of many important elections. If both the Congress and the BJP have absorbed the experiences of the year to soon end, we can expect fireworks that will light up the nation&rsquo;s democratic landscape. The Congress will seek to protect its turf in Karnataka and Meghalaya, while the BJP can expect a fight in the States its rules &mdash; Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>The rural-urban voting pattern will be tested in good measure, given that Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan have a far larger number of rural constituencies than Gujarat has; the BJP did resoundingly well in urban Gujarat and relatively less well in the rural belt. Although each of these States has a different set of issues on which the voters will decide, common factors will be at play too.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>The first is the central leadership of the Congress and the BJP. As Congress president, Rahul Gandhi will now be even more than before pitted against his rival party&rsquo;s principal campaigner, Modi. The second is the local leadership of the two parties. Interestingly, while both have strong leaders, there are turf issues as well among these leaders. The State-level leadership tussle, thus, could be a decisive factor.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>The BJP had ruled Karnataka before, and so had the Congress in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. If the BJP manages to win over Karnataka and retain the States it governs, the Congress&rsquo;s prospects for 2019 would be bleak. Indeed, even a status quo would be fine for the BJP, though the loss in Karnataka can set back its plans for a south India foray.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>For the Congress, less than the best scenario would be to retain Karnataka and snatch at least one state from the BJP. That would be more than a &lsquo;moral win&rsquo;. The best case situation would, of course, be a complete victory in the north and the south. It&rsquo;s important that the party&rsquo;s new president creates his team well before these contests. Finally, there are de-railers in both the Congress and the BJP. They must be reined in.</p>

<p><em>(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).</em></p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


If both the Congress and the BJP have absorbed the experiences of the year to soon end, we can expect fireworks that will light up the nation?s democratic landscape.

If today’s electoral outcomes were not to impact tomorrow’s, they would be dealt with as standalone and transient phenomena. But because the results have a roll-over effect in varying measure, they get analysed threadbare — and with some hair-splitting added. Both the winner and loser has lessons to learn, and the one who imbibes them better stands the greater chance to stand high on the podium in the coming days. And so, the verdict on the political contests of 2017 can be a determinant for 2018 as well. Two crucial elections happened in 2017, and while the end result was the same, the messages the electorate delivered were very different and the level of endorsement varied. That one of these confrontations took place early in the year and the other later as 2017 came near to a close, helped in establishing a ‘beginning and end’ narrative. Except that every start is a new beginning and every end is the harbinger of a new beginning. It’s this belief that keeps political parties going, losing steam one moment, gaining it the next. Of course, the one which recoups its losses the earliest stand the better chance of breasting the tape. The BJP began 2017 with a bang and the Congress with a whimper. The former swept the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election with a margin that even its staunchest admirers had not reckoned with. The Congress, which had tagged along with the Samajwadi Party, came to a cropper. There can be endless debate on whether the Congress sunk the Samajwadi Party or the reverse happened. With 80 Lok Sabha and 400 plus Assembly seats, Uttar Pradesh has often been the bellwether State. Parties that perform poorly here cannot hope to rule the country. Having won 71 Lok Sabha seats in 2014 on its own, the BJP had the difficult task to live up to the high level. The general sense during the Assembly poll campaigning had been that the party would return to power after nearly two decades in exile, but nobody saw the massive margin of victory coming. The wave flattened the Samajwadi Party, decimated the Bahujan Samaj Party and obliterated the Congress. The messages were the following: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s charisma was intact (he was the star campaigner for the BJP); the split in the Samajwadi Party as the result of a family feud had taken its toll on the party; the politics of appeasement does not work; talk of good governance still sells; caste considerations, while still relevant and on which both the Samajwadi Party and the BSP heavily rely on, now have limited appeal; and, the party which manages its macro as well as micro election strategies more smartly, using both manpower and technology, has the greater chance of victory. The outcome of the Uttar Pradesh election threw up a dilemma for the Congress: Should it continue with the tactic of over-relying on strong local leaders or fire up its own local leadership to lead the battle? By the time the Gujarat Assembly election came only months after the Uttar Pradesh poll, the Congress was still unsure on this front. For the first time in two decades, it sensed a chance to oust the BJP in the State, and yet there was also a feeling of diffidence. This led to its over-dependence on three young caste warriors whose affiliation to the Congress was tentative and their desire to align with that party was motivated by the prospect of little more than an immediate gain. It cannot be denied that they - Mevani, Hardik Patel, Alpesh Thakore- impacted the final tally to an extent, reducing the BJP’s number as compared to the 2012 figure and bettering the Congress’s. But that impact was less than expected, since the BJP did succeed in containing the damage caused by the migration of a section of the Patidar community to the Congress camp. It did appear that, as in the case of Uttar Pradesh, the Congress had placed all its eggs in the basket of local leaders from outside the party. It needs to be remembered that the BJP had been as weakened in Uttar Pradesh over the two decades preceding 2014 as the Congress had been. But while the BJP continued to work on its core strengths and weaknesses in the State, the Congress flirted with both the Samajwadi Party and the BSP in a desperate bid to regain influence. In Gujarat too, instead of focusing on the discontent in rural parts, the disruptive nature of Goods and Services Tax implementation, and the general sense of anti-incumbency of two decades, the Congress outsourced its fate to caste leaders with little political experience. In the end, it was reduced to claiming “moral victory”, which means nothing in electoral politics. The message for the BJP was that it could no longer take the voters for granted, even in Gujarat. Its tally fell by 16 seats as compared to 2012, although its vote-share went up. The party must recall the “India Shining’ moment of 2004 and understand that support can dissipate almost as quickly as it comes. Recent political history is replete with such instances: 1977, when Indira Gandhi led the Congress to a debacle and also lost in her constituency; 1980, when the Janata Party collapsed and Indira Gandhi made a grand comeback; 1989, when Rajiv Gandhi led his party to a defeat, frittering away a three-fourth mandate. Fresh battle lines will be drawn for 2018, which is a year of many important elections. If both the Congress and the BJP have absorbed the experiences of the year to soon end, we can expect fireworks that will light up the nation’s democratic landscape. The Congress will seek to protect its turf in Karnataka and Meghalaya, while the BJP can expect a fight in the States its rules — Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. The rural-urban voting pattern will be tested in good measure, given that Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan have a far larger number of rural constituencies than Gujarat has; the BJP did resoundingly well in urban Gujarat and relatively less well in the rural belt. Although each of these States has a different set of issues on which the voters will decide, common factors will be at play too. The first is the central leadership of the Congress and the BJP. As Congress president, Rahul Gandhi will now be even more than before pitted against his rival party’s principal campaigner, Modi. The second is the local leadership of the two parties. Interestingly, while both have strong leaders, there are turf issues as well among these leaders. The State-level leadership tussle, thus, could be a decisive factor. The BJP had ruled Karnataka before, and so had the Congress in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. If the BJP manages to win over Karnataka and retain the States it governs, the Congress’s prospects for 2019 would be bleak. Indeed, even a status quo would be fine for the BJP, though the loss in Karnataka can set back its plans for a south India foray. For the Congress, less than the best scenario would be to retain Karnataka and snatch at least one state from the BJP. That would be more than a ‘moral win’. The best case situation would, of course, be a complete victory in the north and the south. It’s important that the party’s new president creates his team well before these contests. Finally, there are de-railers in both the Congress and the BJP. They must be reined in. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).

Opinion: Will Congress's fortune see a turnaround in 2018?

<p>Hours after Finance Minister Aruj Jaitley issued clarification regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s comments on former&nbsp;prime minister Manmohan Singh and former vice-president&nbsp;Hamid Ansari, Congress president Rahul Gandhi targeted Jaitley on Twitter by sarcastically thanking him for reminding the nation that &#39;&#39;our PM never means what he says or says what he means&#39;&#39;.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Dear Mr Jaitlie - thank you for reminding India that our PM never means what he says or says what he means. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BJPLies?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BJPLies</a> <a href="https://t.co/I7n1f07GaX">pic.twitter.com/I7n1f07GaX</a></p>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/946038581306441728?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 27, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>Rahul Gandhi tweeted ``Dear Mr Jaitlie - thank you for reminding India that our PM never means what he says or says what he means.&#39;&#39;</p>

<p>The Congress president called the BJP leader as &#39;Mr Jaitlie&#39; to imply that he was a liar too.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Rahul Gandhi also posted the video of Modi&#39;s speech where he accused former &nbsp;PM Manmohan Singh of colluding with Pakistan to defeat the BJP in the Gujarat polls.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Jaitley today clarified, &quot;PM in his speeches didn&#39;t question, nor meant to question the commitment to this nation of either former PM Manmohan Singh or Former VP Hamid Ansari.&quot;</p>

<p>&quot;We hold these leaders in high esteem, as well as their commitment to India,&quot; said Jaitley and called any such perception &quot;erroneous&quot;.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Both the houses of Parliament were adjourned previously over sloganeering by the Opposition against PM Modi&#39;s remarks.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Congress party had also staged a walkout from the Lok Sabha after seeking an apology from PM Modi over his remarks against Manmohan Singh for an alleged &quot;secret meeting with Pakistani officials&quot;.<br />
&nbsp;</p>


Jaitley today clarified, "PM in his speeches didn't question, nor meant to question the commitment to this nation of either former PM Manmohan Singh or Former VP Hamid Ansari."

Hours after Finance Minister Aruj Jaitley issued clarification regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi's comments on former prime minister Manmohan Singh and former vice-president Hamid Ansari, Congress president Rahul Gandhi targeted Jaitley on Twitter by sarcastically thanking him for reminding the nation that ''our PM never means what he says or says what he means''. Dear Mr Jaitlie - thank you for reminding India that our PM never means what he says or says what he means. #BJPLies pic.twitter.com/I7n1f07GaX — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) December 27, 2017 × Rahul Gandhi tweeted ``Dear Mr Jaitlie - thank you for reminding India that our PM never means what he says or says what he means.'' The Congress president called the BJP leader as 'Mr Jaitlie' to imply that he was a liar too. Rahul Gandhi also posted the video of Modi's speech where he accused former PM Manmohan Singh of colluding with Pakistan to defeat the BJP in the Gujarat polls. Jaitley today clarified, "PM in his speeches didn't question, nor meant to question the commitment to this nation of either former PM Manmohan Singh or Former VP Hamid Ansari." "We hold these leaders in high esteem, as well as their commitment to India," said Jaitley and called any such perception "erroneous". Both the houses of Parliament were adjourned previously over sloganeering by the Opposition against PM Modi's remarks. The Congress party had also staged a walkout from the Lok Sabha after seeking an apology from PM Modi over his remarks against Manmohan Singh for an alleged "secret meeting with Pakistani officials".

'PM never means what he says or says what he means': Rahul Gandhi taunts Arun Jaitley

<p>Congress president Rahul Gandhi seems to have found a new admirer -- a 107-year-old grandmother from Bangalore who finds him &quot;handsome&quot; and wishes to meet him.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Dipali Sikand, her granddaughter, had posted a tweet on Monday which said: &quot;Today my grandmother turned 107. Her one wish. To meet Rahul Gandhi! I asked her why? She whispers ... He&#39;s handsome!&quot;</p>

<p>Dipali attached a picture of her grandmother cutting her birthday cake to the tweet.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Today my grandmother turned 107. Her one wish. To meet <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@OfficeOfRG</a> Rahul Gandhi ! I asked her why? She whispers ... He&#39;s handsome ! <a href="https://t.co/k3wUaSMKfE">pic.twitter.com/k3wUaSMKfE</a></p>
&mdash; Dipali Sikand (@SikandDipali) <a href="https://twitter.com/SikandDipali/status/945204254570004481?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 25, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>Gandhi, soon after, returned the wishes on Twitter -- and called her in the evening.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/whos-been-tweeting-for-rahul-gandhi-he-finally-answers-sort-of-23104" target="_blank">Who&#39;s been tweeting for Rahul Gandhi? He finally answers... sort of</a></p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Dear Dipali, Please wish your beautiful grandmother a very happy birthday and a merry Xmas. Please also give her a big hug from me. Best, Rahul. <a href="https://t.co/lcp8NUa8Di">https://t.co/lcp8NUa8Di</a></p>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/945308492142751744?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 25, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>&quot;And as if this was not enough <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@OfficeOfRG</a> Mr.Gandhi called and personally wished my Nani!! This is <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TrueHumaness?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TrueHumaness</a>,&quot; Dipali tweeted.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">And as if this was not enough <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@OfficeOfRG</a> Mr.Gandhi called and personally wished my Nani!! This is <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TrueHumaness?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TrueHumaness</a>. Thank you all of you for the blessings for her . Each one of them matter. <a href="https://t.co/ftvZ1pmhsJ">https://t.co/ftvZ1pmhsJ</a></p>
&mdash; Dipali Sikand (@SikandDipali) <a href="https://twitter.com/SikandDipali/status/945344005331550208?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 25, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>&quot;Thank you all of you for the blessings for her. Each one of them matter,&quot; she added.&nbsp;</p>


'Today my grandmother turned 107. Her one wish. To meet Rahul Gandhi! I asked her why? She whispers ... He's handsome!' the centenarian's granddaughter had posted on Twitter

Congress president Rahul Gandhi seems to have found a new admirer -- a 107-year-old grandmother from Bangalore who finds him "handsome" and wishes to meet him. Dipali Sikand, her granddaughter, had posted a tweet on Monday which said: "Today my grandmother turned 107. Her one wish. To meet Rahul Gandhi! I asked her why? She whispers ... He's handsome!" Dipali attached a picture of her grandmother cutting her birthday cake to the tweet. Today my grandmother turned 107. Her one wish. To meet @OfficeOfRG Rahul Gandhi ! I asked her why? She whispers ... He's handsome ! pic.twitter.com/k3wUaSMKfE — Dipali Sikand (@SikandDipali) December 25, 2017 × Gandhi, soon after, returned the wishes on Twitter -- and called her in the evening. Also read: Who's been tweeting for Rahul Gandhi? He finally answers... sort of Dear Dipali, Please wish your beautiful grandmother a very happy birthday and a merry Xmas. Please also give her a big hug from me. Best, Rahul. https://t.co/lcp8NUa8Di — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) December 25, 2017 × "And as if this was not enough @OfficeOfRG Mr.Gandhi called and personally wished my Nani!! This is #TrueHumaness," Dipali tweeted. And as if this was not enough @OfficeOfRG Mr.Gandhi called and personally wished my Nani!! This is #TrueHumaness. Thank you all of you for the blessings for her . Each one of them matter. https://t.co/ftvZ1pmhsJ — Dipali Sikand (@SikandDipali) December 25, 2017 × "Thank you all of you for the blessings for her. Each one of them matter," she added.

107-year-old grandma calls Rahul handsome, he calls her back

<p>Congress president<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/after-gujarat-elections-rahul-gandhi-set-to-visit-somnath-temple-today-meet-new-mlas-27511"> Rahul Gandhi arrived in Gujarat today</a> to offer prayers at the Somnath temple in less than a week after his party lost the state elections to the BJP.</p>

<p>The Congress president <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/promise-of-15-lakh-in-every-bank-account-demonetisation-gabbar-singh-tax-modi-modeleverything-is-lie-rahul-gandhi-27471">who had visited Dwarkadhish Temple</a> in September to seek blessings of Lord Krishna after kicking off the Gujarat campaign was seen at Somnath temple offering flowers and praying amid high security around the temple complex.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Congress President Rahul Gandhi visits Gujarat&#39;s Somnath temple <a href="https://t.co/F8vdXyBKai">pic.twitter.com/F8vdXyBKai</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/944441128857698304?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>During the recent Gujarat polls, Rahul had visited at least 25 temples across Gujarat including the Chotila temple, Khodaldham in Kagvad, Jalaram Bapa temple in Virpur and Dasi Jivan temple near Jasdan, among several others.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Rahul had stopped over at &nbsp;Umiya Mata temple in Unjha during the election campaign in the state which was the epicentre of Patidar campaign. The stopover had provided rich dividends as the Congress candidate Asha Patel ultimately won from area beating five-time BJP MLA Narayanbhai Patel.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Congress President Rahul Gandhi offers prayers at Gujarat&#39;s Somnath temple. <a href="https://t.co/MCLzNgrkVn">pic.twitter.com/MCLzNgrkVn</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/944444607449899008?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>After his Somnath visit, Rahul Gandhi will meet newly-elected MPs to chalk out the future strategy for the Congress in the state. The Congress had won 77 seats in the recent polls which was its best performance in decades coming shortly after Rahul was crowned the president of the party.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Congress President Rahul Gandhi offered prayers at Gujarat&#39;s Somnath temple. <a href="https://t.co/2SGfiZet5j">pic.twitter.com/2SGfiZet5j</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/944458634708205568?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>


During the recent Gujarat polls, Rahul had visited at least 25 temples across Gujarat

Congress president Rahul Gandhi arrived in Gujarat today to offer prayers at the Somnath temple in less than a week after his party lost the state elections to the BJP. The Congress president who had visited Dwarkadhish Temple in September to seek blessings of Lord Krishna after kicking off the Gujarat campaign was seen at Somnath temple offering flowers and praying amid high security around the temple complex. Congress President Rahul Gandhi visits Gujarat's Somnath temple pic.twitter.com/F8vdXyBKai — ANI (@ANI) December 23, 2017 × During the recent Gujarat polls, Rahul had visited at least 25 temples across Gujarat including the Chotila temple, Khodaldham in Kagvad, Jalaram Bapa temple in Virpur and Dasi Jivan temple near Jasdan, among several others. Rahul had stopped over at Umiya Mata temple in Unjha during the election campaign in the state which was the epicentre of Patidar campaign. The stopover had provided rich dividends as the Congress candidate Asha Patel ultimately won from area beating five-time BJP MLA Narayanbhai Patel. Congress President Rahul Gandhi offers prayers at Gujarat's Somnath temple. pic.twitter.com/MCLzNgrkVn — ANI (@ANI) December 23, 2017 × After his Somnath visit, Rahul Gandhi will meet newly-elected MPs to chalk out the future strategy for the Congress in the state. The Congress had won 77 seats in the recent polls which was its best performance in decades coming shortly after Rahul was crowned the president of the party. Congress President Rahul Gandhi offered prayers at Gujarat's Somnath temple. pic.twitter.com/2SGfiZet5j — ANI (@ANI) December 23, 2017 ×

Days after poll verdict, Rahul Gandhi visits Somnath temple in Gujarat

<p>Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday said an initiative by the transport and skill development departments to spend Rs&nbsp;15,000 crore as payment to labourers working on the construction of national highways under Skill India, has been announced.</p>

<p>&quot;In this unique experiment transportation department has carried out in collaboration with our ministry (Skill and Development), of Rs. 15,000 crore out of total Rs 1, 30,000 crores will be spent on labourers&#39; payment,&quot; said Dharmendra Pradhan on the training of people under Skill India for construction of NH.</p>

<p>He also said that the rural labourers, who do not possess required skills or knowledge for the new age machinery and technology in the field of construction, would be able to get the benefits from the initiative.</p>

<p>Dharmendra Pradhan also took a jibe at the Congress party and their president Rahul Gandhi saying, &quot;A dynasty political party, which was ruling the nation for a long time, was made unemployed back in 2014 by the women and the youth of India,&quot;</p>


The transport and skill development, departments to spend Rs. 15,000 crore as payment to labourers working on the construction of national highways under Skill India.

Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday said an initiative by the transport and skill development departments to spend Rs 15,000 crore as payment to labourers working on the construction of national highways under Skill India, has been announced. "In this unique experiment transportation department has carried out in collaboration with our ministry (Skill and Development), of Rs. 15,000 crore out of total Rs 1, 30,000 crores will be spent on labourers' payment," said Dharmendra Pradhan on the training of people under Skill India for construction of NH. He also said that the rural labourers, who do not possess required skills or knowledge for the new age machinery and technology in the field of construction, would be able to get the benefits from the initiative. Dharmendra Pradhan also took a jibe at the Congress party and their president Rahul Gandhi saying, "A dynasty political party, which was ruling the nation for a long time, was made unemployed back in 2014 by the women and the youth of India,"

Rs 15,000 crore to be spent to train labourers constructing national highways: Dharmendra Pradhan

<p>While addressing party workers in Ahmedabad, Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said that in the next elections they will&nbsp;get 135 seats and form the government in Gujarat.&nbsp;</p>

<p>He said that a new leadership had been formed in the legislative assembly in this election. He added that this leadership will run the government in Gujarat in the next election.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="hi">Vidhansabha mein iss baar ek nayi leadership tayyar hui hai, ye leadership agle chunaav mein Gujarat ki sarkar ko chalayegi. Aap dekh lena; main yahan stage se aapko kehta hoon 135 seats Congress ki aayengi: Congress President Rahul Gandhi in Ahmedabad <a href="https://t.co/h9rlia7Keb">pic.twitter.com/h9rlia7Keb</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/944552405093384194?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>The Congress president said that the Congress will not lose if it stands together. He added that even though their party lost the elections in Gujarat, they did not lose, they won because they fought the election with love. He said that the BJP fought with anger and they had all the resources.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="hi">Agar Congress ek saath khadi ho jaati hai, to wo haarti nahin hai. Chunaav mein humari haar hui, par hum jeete kyunki wo gusse se lade aur unke paas sab saadhan the. aur humare paas sach; hum pyaar se lade : Rahul Gandhi,Congress President addresses party workers in Ahmedabad <a href="https://t.co/KVQzYHopVz">pic.twitter.com/KVQzYHopVz</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/944547426160877568?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>The Congress president said that though 90 per cent workers fought the election with the party, about 5-10 per cent&nbsp;did not help the party. He added&nbsp;that action will be taken against the workers who did not help the party.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


While addressing the party workers in Ahmedabad, Congress President Rahul Gandhi said that in the next elections they will 135 seats and form government in Gujarat

While addressing party workers in Ahmedabad, Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said that in the next elections they will get 135 seats and form the government in Gujarat. He said that a new leadership had been formed in the legislative assembly in this election. He added that this leadership will run the government in Gujarat in the next election. Vidhansabha mein iss baar ek nayi leadership tayyar hui hai, ye leadership agle chunaav mein Gujarat ki sarkar ko chalayegi. Aap dekh lena; main yahan stage se aapko kehta hoon 135 seats Congress ki aayengi: Congress President Rahul Gandhi in Ahmedabad pic.twitter.com/h9rlia7Keb — ANI (@ANI) December 23, 2017 × The Congress president said that the Congress will not lose if it stands together. He added that even though their party lost the elections in Gujarat, they did not lose, they won because they fought the election with love. He said that the BJP fought with anger and they had all the resources. Agar Congress ek saath khadi ho jaati hai, to wo haarti nahin hai. Chunaav mein humari haar hui, par hum jeete kyunki wo gusse se lade aur unke paas sab saadhan the. aur humare paas sach; hum pyaar se lade : Rahul Gandhi,Congress President addresses party workers in Ahmedabad pic.twitter.com/KVQzYHopVz — ANI (@ANI) December 23, 2017 × The Congress president said that though 90 per cent workers fought the election with the party, about 5-10 per cent did not help the party. He added that action will be taken against the workers who did not help the party.

Congress will form government in Gujarat after next elections: Rahul Gandhi

<p>While addressing a press conference in Delhi after his first Congress Working Committee meeting, Congress president Rahul Gandhi&nbsp;again hit out at the BJP and said its entire structure was based on lies.</p>

<p>The Congress president said, &quot;The whole architecture of BJP is about lies, the whole structure is about lies.&quot;&nbsp;</p>

<p>Referring to the 2G spectrum acquittal, he said the truth was before the people.</p>

<p>Claiming Gujarat Model to be a lie, he said &quot; If you see the Modi model in Gujarat it was a clear lie, when we went to Gujarat the people said there is no model, they said what is going on is stealing of people&#39;s resources.&nbsp;</p>

<p>You talk of 2G....whether you look at the Modi model or the promise of 15 lakhs in every bank account, Demonetisation, Gabbar Singh Tax, everything is a lie.&quot;</p>

<p>The newly-appointed Congress president headed&nbsp;his first Congress Working Committee meeting today.</p>

<p>The meeting was organised at the All India Congress Committee headquarters in Delhi.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh, former Congress president Sonia Gandhi and senior Congress leader Motilal Vohra were also in attendance.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Delhi: Former Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh reaches AICC for Congress Working Committee meeting, <a href="https://t.co/ZyolRgSbio">pic.twitter.com/ZyolRgSbio</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/944161455091286017?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 22, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Delhi: Rahul Gandhi arrives for his first CWC meeting as Congress President, Sonia Gandhi and Motilal Vora also reach AICC for Congress Working Committee Meet <a href="https://t.co/r6uKazDYen">pic.twitter.com/r6uKazDYen</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/944163029825994752?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 22, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Delhi: Inside visuals of Congress Working Committee meeting underway at AICC, it is Rahul Gandhi&#39;s first CWC meeting as party President, <a href="https://t.co/BdVipcyLDs">pic.twitter.com/BdVipcyLDs</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/944163906909540353?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 22, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>Rahul Gandhi took over as Congress President on December 16.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Gandhi scion took the position as the party&#39;s chief from his mother Sonia Gandhi who served as party president for 19 years.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">If you see the Modi model in Gujarat it was a clear lie, when we went to Gujarat the people said there is no model, they said what is going on is stealing of people&#39;s resources: Rahul Gandhi <a href="https://t.co/M0PioaxkhF">pic.twitter.com/M0PioaxkhF</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/944196899434774530?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 22, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">You talk of 2G... whether you look at the Modi model or the promise of 15 lakhs in every bank account... <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DeMonetisation?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#DeMonetisation</a>, &#39;Gabbar Singh Tax&#39;.. everything is a lie: Rahul Gandhi <a href="https://t.co/teMuZ0tPvB">pic.twitter.com/teMuZ0tPvB</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/944197896219459584?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 22, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Referring to the 2G spectrum acquittal, Rahul Gandhi said the truth was before the people

While addressing a press conference in Delhi after his first Congress Working Committee meeting, Congress president Rahul Gandhi again hit out at the BJP and said its entire structure was based on lies. The Congress president said, "The whole architecture of BJP is about lies, the whole structure is about lies." Referring to the 2G spectrum acquittal, he said the truth was before the people. Claiming Gujarat Model to be a lie, he said " If you see the Modi model in Gujarat it was a clear lie, when we went to Gujarat the people said there is no model, they said what is going on is stealing of people's resources. You talk of 2G....whether you look at the Modi model or the promise of 15 lakhs in every bank account, Demonetisation, Gabbar Singh Tax, everything is a lie." The newly-appointed Congress president headed his first Congress Working Committee meeting today. The meeting was organised at the All India Congress Committee headquarters in Delhi. Former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh, former Congress president Sonia Gandhi and senior Congress leader Motilal Vohra were also in attendance. Delhi: Former Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh reaches AICC for Congress Working Committee meeting, pic.twitter.com/ZyolRgSbio — ANI (@ANI) December 22, 2017 × Delhi: Rahul Gandhi arrives for his first CWC meeting as Congress President, Sonia Gandhi and Motilal Vora also reach AICC for Congress Working Committee Meet pic.twitter.com/r6uKazDYen — ANI (@ANI) December 22, 2017 × Delhi: Inside visuals of Congress Working Committee meeting underway at AICC, it is Rahul Gandhi's first CWC meeting as party President, pic.twitter.com/BdVipcyLDs — ANI (@ANI) December 22, 2017 × Rahul Gandhi took over as Congress President on December 16. The Gandhi scion took the position as the party's chief from his mother Sonia Gandhi who served as party president for 19 years. If you see the Modi model in Gujarat it was a clear lie, when we went to Gujarat the people said there is no model, they said what is going on is stealing of people's resources: Rahul Gandhi pic.twitter.com/M0PioaxkhF — ANI (@ANI) December 22, 2017 × You talk of 2G... whether you look at the Modi model or the promise of 15 lakhs in every bank account... #DeMonetisation, 'Gabbar Singh Tax'.. everything is a lie: Rahul Gandhi pic.twitter.com/teMuZ0tPvB — ANI (@ANI) December 22, 2017 ×

Everything about BJP is a lie: Rahul Gandhi in first meet as CWC president

<p>The final verdict is not yet out but first round of the 2G spectrum &ldquo;presumptive&rdquo; scam goes to the former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, DMK leader A Raja, party patriarch M Karunanidhi&rsquo;s daughter MK Kanimozhi and 15 others, including former top telecom ministry officials whose stand has been vindicated.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Case will go through legal scrutiny from the High Court to the Supreme court. The Top court had earlier taken cognisance and cancelled the 122 licenses issued by Raja and even fined accused telecom companies in February 2012, citing wrongdoings in the allocation of 2G spectrum. The Supreme Court noticed that PM Manmohan Singh was kept in the dark at that time. The latest verdict also raises questions on the role of officials in Manmohan Singh led PMO. That may worry Congress but politically they have a reason to smile for now.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Initial leaks in the case were fuelled by the UPA government&#39;s internal conflicts, emerging at the time due to the existence of many power centres, acting in their own capacities and interests over and above that of the Government.</p>

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<p><strong>Taint on Mr clean</strong></p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Post-2004 election victory, Sonia Gandhi had put her bait on Dr Manmohan Singh as the prime minister, projecting him as a leader with clean Image, which is rare in politics. Dr Manmohan Singh&rsquo;s claim, &ldquo;history will be kinder&rdquo; to him, is proven right in this round. An economist, founder of a liberalised economic regime in India, Manmohan Singh was questioned in scam after scam during UPA2.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>This Scam Series started with 2G spectrum allocation of 2008. Manmohan Singh has been given benefit of doubt but was questioned &ldquo;why did he let allies loot the nation under his nose&rdquo; when he was head of the government.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Reason for Congress rout</strong></p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Opposition NDA, led by BJP, tore the government apart on the issue inside parliament forcing adjournments. Dr Singh was often accused by LK Advani as weak and dummy PM to 10 Janpath, which happens to be the official residence of Congress president Sonia Gandhi. Returning to power in 2009, Dr Manmohan Singh tried to assert his authority by internally rejecting to accommodate alliance partner DMK in his Council of Ministers. So, was there some admission of wrongdoing is the question.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Opposition NDA led by BJP, Anna Hazare with Arvind Kejrival took to the streets. Politically Congress paid the price, Arvind Kejriwal got a foothold in Delhi and Narendra Modi swept the country with a historic electoral verdict.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Rahul Gandhi&#39;s challenge</strong></p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>A clean chit in 2G and now Bombay High Court&#39;s &ldquo;no&rdquo; to prosecute Ashok Chavan in Adarsh scam have given a big boost to Congress. Dramatic events are building up to 8 states Assembly elections and the run-up to 2019, making it interesting. Turning the turf to his side will depend on political skills of Rahul Gandhi as the new president of the Grand Old Party. One thing is clear if Rahul was to pose any challenge, he would have to look for combinations which would be capable of taking on the election-winning duo of Modi and Shah as 2017 ends.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p><em>(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).</em></p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


2G verdict has emboldened Congress but Rahul Gandhi as the Congress President will have to come up with a combination which would be capable of taking on the election-winning duo of Modi and Shah as 2017 ends.

The final verdict is not yet out but first round of the 2G spectrum “presumptive” scam goes to the former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, DMK leader A Raja, party patriarch M Karunanidhi’s daughter MK Kanimozhi and 15 others, including former top telecom ministry officials whose stand has been vindicated. The Case will go through legal scrutiny from the High Court to the Supreme court. The Top court had earlier taken cognisance and cancelled the 122 licenses issued by Raja and even fined accused telecom companies in February 2012, citing wrongdoings in the allocation of 2G spectrum. The Supreme Court noticed that PM Manmohan Singh was kept in the dark at that time. The latest verdict also raises questions on the role of officials in Manmohan Singh led PMO. That may worry Congress but politically they have a reason to smile for now. Initial leaks in the case were fuelled by the UPA government's internal conflicts, emerging at the time due to the existence of many power centres, acting in their own capacities and interests over and above that of the Government. Taint on Mr clean Post-2004 election victory, Sonia Gandhi had put her bait on Dr Manmohan Singh as the prime minister, projecting him as a leader with clean Image, which is rare in politics. Dr Manmohan Singh’s claim, “history will be kinder” to him, is proven right in this round. An economist, founder of a liberalised economic regime in India, Manmohan Singh was questioned in scam after scam during UPA2. This Scam Series started with 2G spectrum allocation of 2008. Manmohan Singh has been given benefit of doubt but was questioned “why did he let allies loot the nation under his nose” when he was head of the government. Reason for Congress rout Opposition NDA, led by BJP, tore the government apart on the issue inside parliament forcing adjournments. Dr Singh was often accused by LK Advani as weak and dummy PM to 10 Janpath, which happens to be the official residence of Congress president Sonia Gandhi. Returning to power in 2009, Dr Manmohan Singh tried to assert his authority by internally rejecting to accommodate alliance partner DMK in his Council of Ministers. So, was there some admission of wrongdoing is the question. Opposition NDA led by BJP, Anna Hazare with Arvind Kejrival took to the streets. Politically Congress paid the price, Arvind Kejriwal got a foothold in Delhi and Narendra Modi swept the country with a historic electoral verdict. Rahul Gandhi's challenge A clean chit in 2G and now Bombay High Court's “no” to prosecute Ashok Chavan in Adarsh scam have given a big boost to Congress. Dramatic events are building up to 8 states Assembly elections and the run-up to 2019, making it interesting. Turning the turf to his side will depend on political skills of Rahul Gandhi as the new president of the Grand Old Party. One thing is clear if Rahul was to pose any challenge, he would have to look for combinations which would be capable of taking on the election-winning duo of Modi and Shah as 2017 ends. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).

Opinion: With 2G Verdict, parties gear up to tap the waves for 2019

<p>Obstacles during elections always come out of the blue. They are sudden and have the capacity to change the narrative. Election campaigns in India are far more prone to losing balance over ill-timed comments and lost-in-translation sentences. Both Kapil Sibal and Mani Shankar Aiyar&#39;s comments prove this theory right that an election can go off-course if organisations fail to control leaders&#39; their extra-curricular activities. It happened to BJP in Bihar when Mohan Bhagwat spoke on reservations; throughout the campaign, BJP had to explain its position on it.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
For this reason, BJP rejoiced when Congress handed over a &#39;<em>Maut Ka Saudagar</em>&#39;&nbsp;moment to them on a platter till Nana Patole, BJP MP from Gondia resigned from Lok Sabha calling BJP anti-farmers. It is too early to know about the nature and depth of the damage and whether it is <em>Maut ka Saudagar </em>part 2, it definitely tells us a few things about current politics.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
Despite analysts making sweeping observations about highly charged urban Gujarat&rsquo;s dominance over rural issues and constituencies, economic issues have managed to find resonance in the state across the rural-urban map. It is for this reason that BJP has decided to cling to mandir and <em>neech</em> remarks because it harnesses Gujarati pride which can make them override the issue of incumbency and lack of leadership in the state post-Modi.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
On the other hand, what we see today is a different Congress. Politicians like Mani Shankar and Kapil Sibal enjoyed a good amount of autonomy under Sonia which I don&rsquo;t think will continue under Rahul Gandhi. Within hours, Mani Shankar Aiyyar was suspended, apology issued and BJP was asked to extend a similar courtesy to Congress when their senior leaders abuse Gandhi&rsquo;s in person. Congress did not allow the statements to assume the proportion of <em>chai par </em><em>charcha</em> which has become a hallmark of BJP&rsquo;s campaign to showcase humble origin of Narendra Modi. Despite the gaffe and BJP&rsquo;s attempt to milk it best of its ability, Gujarat tells us that same electorate can quickly see a person from a different angle within a short span of time. Indian history is replete with such examples and it should worry the government.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
For this reason, social media did not bite Rahul Gandhi in Mani-Kapil controversy.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
Rahul is a dynast and not like Modi who has become Prime Minister out of his own might and will. The issue will persist till Rahul gains legitimacy through an electoral process which is a win attributable to him.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
The difference this time is that Rahul Gandhi is getting sympathy from the same electorate which disliked him. The reason for is the impression that he has received more than his share of brickbats. BJP should be wary of it.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
Indira Gandhi became authoritarian from being a strong leader in a very short span of time. Rajiv Gandhi from being the most honest and fresh politician became a symbol of corruption within three years. The liberal and new age Nehru was being perceived as weak and idealist within 15 years of power. Even VP Singh from being most loved became most hated within a span of 2 years. Even UPA could not escape it. Within a decade, a division of power between Sonia and Manmohan led to the emergence of the theme of PM without authority in 2014 Lok Sabha elections.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
Rahul who has been portrayed as <em>Pappu</em> and a dynast is slowly turning into an underdog. That should worry the government even if Gujarat is retained. Though Narendra Modi was quick to change and respond to <em>suit boot ki Sarkar</em> jibe which pinned him down as pro industrialist. It is for this reason land bill is still in cold storage and PM continues to mention Ambanis and Adani in his electoral speeches.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
&nbsp;It remains to be seen whether BJP can recreate the magic of <em>maut</em><em> ka </em><em>saudagar</em><em> </em>moment once again. The controversy has shown that BJP wants its national campaign to remain centred around cultural nationalism and Ayodhya issue.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
During 2014, the campaign was around delivering a prosperous nation. India voted for Modi because it saw its own potential in him. The BJP&#39;s 2019 campaign script will be sealed in the Gujarat elections -- this way or that way.</p>

<p><em>(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).</em></p>


Rahul, who has been portrayed as Pappu and a dynast, is slowly turning into an underdog. That should worry the government even if Gujarat is retained

Obstacles during elections always come out of the blue. They are sudden and have the capacity to change the narrative. Election campaigns in India are far more prone to losing balance over ill-timed comments and lost-in-translation sentences. Both Kapil Sibal and Mani Shankar Aiyar's comments prove this theory right that an election can go off-course if organisations fail to control leaders' their extra-curricular activities. It happened to BJP in Bihar when Mohan Bhagwat spoke on reservations; throughout the campaign, BJP had to explain its position on it. For this reason, BJP rejoiced when Congress handed over a 'Maut Ka Saudagar' moment to them on a platter till Nana Patole, BJP MP from Gondia resigned from Lok Sabha calling BJP anti-farmers. It is too early to know about the nature and depth of the damage and whether it is Maut ka Saudagar part 2, it definitely tells us a few things about current politics. Despite analysts making sweeping observations about highly charged urban Gujarat’s dominance over rural issues and constituencies, economic issues have managed to find resonance in the state across the rural-urban map. It is for this reason that BJP has decided to cling to mandir and neech remarks because it harnesses Gujarati pride which can make them override the issue of incumbency and lack of leadership in the state post-Modi. On the other hand, what we see today is a different Congress. Politicians like Mani Shankar and Kapil Sibal enjoyed a good amount of autonomy under Sonia which I don’t think will continue under Rahul Gandhi. Within hours, Mani Shankar Aiyyar was suspended, apology issued and BJP was asked to extend a similar courtesy to Congress when their senior leaders abuse Gandhi’s in person. Congress did not allow the statements to assume the proportion of chai par charcha which has become a hallmark of BJP’s campaign to showcase humble origin of Narendra Modi. Despite the gaffe and BJP’s attempt to milk it best of its ability, Gujarat tells us that same electorate can quickly see a person from a different angle within a short span of time. Indian history is replete with such examples and it should worry the government. For this reason, social media did not bite Rahul Gandhi in Mani-Kapil controversy. Rahul is a dynast and not like Modi who has become Prime Minister out of his own might and will. The issue will persist till Rahul gains legitimacy through an electoral process which is a win attributable to him. The difference this time is that Rahul Gandhi is getting sympathy from the same electorate which disliked him. The reason for is the impression that he has received more than his share of brickbats. BJP should be wary of it. Indira Gandhi became authoritarian from being a strong leader in a very short span of time. Rajiv Gandhi from being the most honest and fresh politician became a symbol of corruption within three years. The liberal and new age Nehru was being perceived as weak and idealist within 15 years of power. Even VP Singh from being most loved became most hated within a span of 2 years. Even UPA could not escape it. Within a decade, a division of power between Sonia and Manmohan led to the emergence of the theme of PM without authority in 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Rahul who has been portrayed as Pappu and a dynast is slowly turning into an underdog. That should worry the government even if Gujarat is retained. Though Narendra Modi was quick to change and respond to suit boot ki Sarkar jibe which pinned him down as pro industrialist. It is for this reason land bill is still in cold storage and PM continues to mention Ambanis and Adani in his electoral speeches. It remains to be seen whether BJP can recreate the magic of maut ka saudagar moment once again. The controversy has shown that BJP wants its national campaign to remain centred around cultural nationalism and Ayodhya issue. During 2014, the campaign was around delivering a prosperous nation. India voted for Modi because it saw its own potential in him. The BJP's 2019 campaign script will be sealed in the Gujarat elections -- this way or that way. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).

Opinion: Rahul, the underdog?

<p>Rahul Gandhi&#39;s trump card in Gujarat could well have been two-pronged: alignment with the Patidar-Dalit trio - Hardik Patel, Alpesh Thakor and Jignesh Mewani and playing up the &quot;soft&quot; Hindutva card.</p>

<p>The Patidar-Dalit factor no doubt dented the BJP votebank in Gujarat elections this time, in 39 Patidar-majority seats, the BJP won 24 and the Congress won 15 seats, last time in 2012, however, the BJP had won 28 seats in the Patidar-dominated areas with the Congress winning just 9 seats.</p>

<p>Hardik&#39;s high decibel anti-Modi campaign no doubt had an effect on the Patidar community who had witnessed large-scale quota-based reservation stir two years ago.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The sudden rise of Alpesh Thakor, who recently joined the Congress and Jignesh Mewani, who although lost the election but swayed votes away from the BJP, helped the Congress to rally its troops on the ground and surge ahead winning 77 seats, up from 42 seats in 2012.</p>

<p>And of course, Rahul, basing his campaign on the slogan &quot;When in Rome, Do as the Romans do&quot; &nbsp;very shrewdly played the Hindutva card in Gujarat. He reportedly visited at least 25 temples with Chotila temple, Khodaldham in Kagvad, Jalaram Bapa temple in Virpur and &nbsp;Dasi Jivan temple near Jasdan, among several others.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Congress president had visited the Dwarkadhish Temple in September to seek blessings of Lord Krishna as he kicked off the Gujarat campaign.</p>

<p>Manish Doshi, Congress party&#39;s Gujarat spokesman was quick to side with Rahul declaring though the BJP &quot;mocked&quot; Rahul for his temple visits but &quot;results&quot; show he was able to &quot;connect&quot; with people.</p>

<p>One of the most talked about visits during the Gujarat campaign was the Congress president&#39;s visit to Umiya Mata temple in Unjha which was the epicentre of Patidar agitation.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In the end, Congress candidate Asha Patel beat five-time BJP MLA Narayanbhai Patel by a sizable margin. UP chief minister had dismissed Rahul&#39;s temple visit as a &quot;sham&quot;, clearly, the people of Gujarat did not think so!</p>

<p>Not just Gujarat, the Congress president tried the &quot;experiment&quot; in Uttar Pradesh during the assembly polls in May. He visited the Dugdheshwar Nath in Deoria and the Hanuman Garhi temple.</p>

<p>Despite this, the Congress fell short winning 77 seats, but the tie-ups with local leaders to encash the quota stir and temple runs in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh could well become the Congress party&#39;s new poll strategy in the coming state elections in Karnataka.</p>

<p>Watch this space...&nbsp;</p>


Not just Gujarat, the Congress president tried the "experiment" in Uttar Pradesh during the assembly polls in May

Rahul Gandhi's trump card in Gujarat could well have been two-pronged: alignment with the Patidar-Dalit trio - Hardik Patel, Alpesh Thakor and Jignesh Mewani and playing up the "soft" Hindutva card. The Patidar-Dalit factor no doubt dented the BJP votebank in Gujarat elections this time, in 39 Patidar-majority seats, the BJP won 24 and the Congress won 15 seats, last time in 2012, however, the BJP had won 28 seats in the Patidar-dominated areas with the Congress winning just 9 seats. Hardik's high decibel anti-Modi campaign no doubt had an effect on the Patidar community who had witnessed large-scale quota-based reservation stir two years ago. The sudden rise of Alpesh Thakor, who recently joined the Congress and Jignesh Mewani, who although lost the election but swayed votes away from the BJP, helped the Congress to rally its troops on the ground and surge ahead winning 77 seats, up from 42 seats in 2012. And of course, Rahul, basing his campaign on the slogan "When in Rome, Do as the Romans do" very shrewdly played the Hindutva card in Gujarat. He reportedly visited at least 25 temples with Chotila temple, Khodaldham in Kagvad, Jalaram Bapa temple in Virpur and Dasi Jivan temple near Jasdan, among several others. The Congress president had visited the Dwarkadhish Temple in September to seek blessings of Lord Krishna as he kicked off the Gujarat campaign. Manish Doshi, Congress party's Gujarat spokesman was quick to side with Rahul declaring though the BJP "mocked" Rahul for his temple visits but "results" show he was able to "connect" with people. One of the most talked about visits during the Gujarat campaign was the Congress president's visit to Umiya Mata temple in Unjha which was the epicentre of Patidar agitation. In the end, Congress candidate Asha Patel beat five-time BJP MLA Narayanbhai Patel by a sizable margin. UP chief minister had dismissed Rahul's temple visit as a "sham", clearly, the people of Gujarat did not think so! Not just Gujarat, the Congress president tried the "experiment" in Uttar Pradesh during the assembly polls in May. He visited the Dugdheshwar Nath in Deoria and the Hanuman Garhi temple. Despite this, the Congress fell short winning 77 seats, but the tie-ups with local leaders to encash the quota stir and temple runs in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh could well become the Congress party's new poll strategy in the coming state elections in Karnataka. Watch this space...

Opinion: Temple visits & quota politics define Rahul's Gujarat pitch

<p>Narendra Modi clinched a victory for BJP in Gujarat. He ensured it by consolidating his party&rsquo;s base in urban India. He has given a new political mantra for his party to function:&nbsp;hope and fear. Evidently, Indian politics has the potential to behave as T20 match and Test cricket at the same time. Gujarat result is an example in case.</p>

<p>Rahul Gandhi despite the loss, took away the sheen from BJP&rsquo;s victory. Under his leadership, the Congress brought the BJP&nbsp;down to a two-digit victory, making him the Man of the Match. Narendra Modi, however, remains the Man of the Series when it comes to elections. Modi proved, again, that he is the only one who has the stamina to either change the public mood or arrest a tsunami.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/opinion-in-spite-of-gst-how-modi-won-gujarat-27077"><strong>Also read: In spite of GST, how Modi won Gujarat</strong></a></p>

<p>Gujarat election changes a&nbsp;couple of things in the political narrative. It proves that Narendra Modi will not shy away from taking the battle to any level, provided it led to victory. Clearly, he is the only one in Indian politics who has the capacity to shape the mood of the voters if not completely shift them. It shows that Modi treats elections like a battle to be won at all the cost, and rest of the issues are shoved at the periphery.</p>

<p>Whether it is the dinner diplomacy gaffe or Mani-Kapil&#39;s quick mistakes between the wickets, the urban audience in Gujarat reacted positively to Modi&rsquo;s jibe. Urban Gujarat chose Modi despite economic distress. Ultimately, the Prime Minister is their original poster boy. To take him down would mean taking one&rsquo;s own down.</p>

<p>On the day Rahul Gandhi took over as the Congress President, the former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh spoke of politics of hope and fear. He said that hope must triumph over fear. The results in Gujarat show&nbsp;that for urban India the hope and fear do not exist in a binary but are intermeshed.</p>

<p>It was best reflected by the speeches of the prime minister on the &#39;neech&#39; comment, dinner and temple issue. Both fear and hope were stoked at the same time. The hope was in the assertion of majoritarian politics and the fear was the return to a state where minority voice mattered.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/opinion-rahul-the-only-winner-in-gujarat-election-27045"><strong>Also read: Rahul, Hardik run out BJP at 99</strong></a></p>

<p>Rahul Gandhi did neutralise his anti-Hindu stance which he inherited during 2014 elections but the political memories of hard secularism came flushing back into the electoral arena because of the mistakes committed by Congress leaders and activists. It is not to say that BJP supporters don&rsquo;t use abusive language. In fact, the correct picture is that twitter handles of far-right supporters have been far more abusive and rest seems to be only catching up now.</p>

<p>The challenge for Rahul Gandhi is to break this matrix put in place by the BJP which thrives on hard Hindutva during elections, and once the race is won it goes back to <i>sabka saath sabka vikas</i>. It works on fear and hope at the same time. It is also married to new and some repackaged government schemes which are all attributable to Narendra Modi.</p>

<p>The only thing attributable to Rahul Gandhi today is the extension of NREGA throughout India. However, it is a distant memory today. It is this politics of hope and fear which Rahul Gandhi has to battle as it is enmeshed with fear of the return of massive corruption and minority politics. The hope is pinned on assertive India sitting on the stool of identity.</p>

<p>Rahul played the match well and lost. The vote share difference was again 8 per cent but rural Gujarat supported Congress. It reinforces the image of Congress as a party which takes up agrarian issues more than BJP. He won admiration from both his own party and other regional players. This has happened for the first time. He has received sympathy and grudging respect. To borrow it from &quot;The Last Jedi&quot;, the BJP should hope that Rahul doesn&rsquo;t become the spark which fires up the entire Opposition, which today is in the doghouse, lying straight on the ground.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/opinion-what-bjp-and-congress-learned-from-gujarat-elections-27138"><strong>Also read: What BJP and Congress learned from Gujarat elections</strong></a></p>

<p><em>(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).</em></p>


The challenge for Rahul Gandhi is to break this matrix put in place by the BJP which thrives on hard Hindutva during elections, and once the race is won it goes back to sabka saath sabka vikas.

Narendra Modi clinched a victory for BJP in Gujarat. He ensured it by consolidating his party’s base in urban India. He has given a new political mantra for his party to function: hope and fear. Evidently, Indian politics has the potential to behave as T20 match and Test cricket at the same time. Gujarat result is an example in case. Rahul Gandhi despite the loss, took away the sheen from BJP’s victory. Under his leadership, the Congress brought the BJP down to a two-digit victory, making him the Man of the Match. Narendra Modi, however, remains the Man of the Series when it comes to elections. Modi proved, again, that he is the only one who has the stamina to either change the public mood or arrest a tsunami. Also read: In spite of GST, how Modi won Gujarat Gujarat election changes a couple of things in the political narrative. It proves that Narendra Modi will not shy away from taking the battle to any level, provided it led to victory. Clearly, he is the only one in Indian politics who has the capacity to shape the mood of the voters if not completely shift them. It shows that Modi treats elections like a battle to be won at all the cost, and rest of the issues are shoved at the periphery. Whether it is the dinner diplomacy gaffe or Mani-Kapil's quick mistakes between the wickets, the urban audience in Gujarat reacted positively to Modi’s jibe. Urban Gujarat chose Modi despite economic distress. Ultimately, the Prime Minister is their original poster boy. To take him down would mean taking one’s own down. On the day Rahul Gandhi took over as the Congress President, the former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh spoke of politics of hope and fear. He said that hope must triumph over fear. The results in Gujarat show that for urban India the hope and fear do not exist in a binary but are intermeshed. It was best reflected by the speeches of the prime minister on the 'neech' comment, dinner and temple issue. Both fear and hope were stoked at the same time. The hope was in the assertion of majoritarian politics and the fear was the return to a state where minority voice mattered. Also read: Rahul, Hardik run out BJP at 99 Rahul Gandhi did neutralise his anti-Hindu stance which he inherited during 2014 elections but the political memories of hard secularism came flushing back into the electoral arena because of the mistakes committed by Congress leaders and activists. It is not to say that BJP supporters don’t use abusive language. In fact, the correct picture is that twitter handles of far-right supporters have been far more abusive and rest seems to be only catching up now. The challenge for Rahul Gandhi is to break this matrix put in place by the BJP which thrives on hard Hindutva during elections, and once the race is won it goes back to sabka saath sabka vikas. It works on fear and hope at the same time. It is also married to new and some repackaged government schemes which are all attributable to Narendra Modi. The only thing attributable to Rahul Gandhi today is the extension of NREGA throughout India. However, it is a distant memory today. It is this politics of hope and fear which Rahul Gandhi has to battle as it is enmeshed with fear of the return of massive corruption and minority politics. The hope is pinned on assertive India sitting on the stool of identity. Rahul played the match well and lost. The vote share difference was again 8 per cent but rural Gujarat supported Congress. It reinforces the image of Congress as a party which takes up agrarian issues more than BJP. He won admiration from both his own party and other regional players. This has happened for the first time. He has received sympathy and grudging respect. To borrow it from "The Last Jedi", the BJP should hope that Rahul doesn’t become the spark which fires up the entire Opposition, which today is in the doghouse, lying straight on the ground. Also read: What BJP and Congress learned from Gujarat elections (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).

Opinion: Rahul is the Man of the Match. Modi is the Man of the Series

<p>Rahul Gandhi&#39;s charisma clearly<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/gujarat-elections-2017-live-results-27014"> won over PM Narendra Modi&#39;s hometown </a>Vadnagar which is part of Unjha assembly constituency. &nbsp;</p>

<p><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/election-results-bjp-wins-gujaratand-himachal-27098">PM Modi&#39;s Gujarat magic clearly</a> did not work in the Patidar constituency which voted out five-time BJP MLA Narayanbhai Patel. Congress president Rahul Gandhi had visited Unjha during his campaign trail.</p>

<p>Congress candidate Asha Patel who had lost by 25,000 votes to Patel in 2012 finished on pole position winning 8,1797 votes as against Narayanbhai Patel who finished second with 6,2268 votes.</p>

<p>Unjha which is a hub of spices and condiments has become a prestigious constituency for the BJP because of Modi&#39;s connection.</p>

<p>Several people believe Modi as a teenager had sold&nbsp;tea standing on the Vadnagar railway station.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;</p>

<p>Unjha which consists of 40% Patidars witnessed large-scale agitation two years ago in which one person had died.</p>

<p>The town naturally voted out the BJP candidate Narayanbhai Patel. The Umiya Mata temple in Unjha&nbsp;became the epicentre of the agitation, Rahul Gandhi had stopped there during his campaign trail as the town simmered with anger over the Patidar death.</p>

<p>In fact, the BJP has seen reverses in Patidar constituencies across Gujarat.</p>

<p>In the 39 Patidar-majority seats, the BJP has won 24 and the Congress has won 15 seats.</p>

<p>In 2012, the BJP had won 28 and Congress just 9 seats, signalling a real shift in the voting pattern of the Patidar&#39;s during the Gujarat elections in 2017.</p>


Unjha which consists of 40% Patidars witnessed large-scale agitation two years ago in which one person had died.

Rahul Gandhi's charisma clearly won over PM Narendra Modi's hometown Vadnagar which is part of Unjha assembly constituency. PM Modi's Gujarat magic clearly did not work in the Patidar constituency which voted out five-time BJP MLA Narayanbhai Patel. Congress president Rahul Gandhi had visited Unjha during his campaign trail. Congress candidate Asha Patel who had lost by 25,000 votes to Patel in 2012 finished on pole position winning 8,1797 votes as against Narayanbhai Patel who finished second with 6,2268 votes. Unjha which is a hub of spices and condiments has become a prestigious constituency for the BJP because of Modi's connection. Several people believe Modi as a teenager had sold tea standing on the Vadnagar railway station. Unjha which consists of 40% Patidars witnessed large-scale agitation two years ago in which one person had died. The town naturally voted out the BJP candidate Narayanbhai Patel. The Umiya Mata temple in Unjha became the epicentre of the agitation, Rahul Gandhi had stopped there during his campaign trail as the town simmered with anger over the Patidar death. In fact, the BJP has seen reverses in Patidar constituencies across Gujarat. In the 39 Patidar-majority seats, the BJP has won 24 and the Congress has won 15 seats. In 2012, the BJP had won 28 and Congress just 9 seats, signalling a real shift in the voting pattern of the Patidar's during the Gujarat elections in 2017.

Gujarat elections: Congress beats BJP in Modi's hometown Vadnagar in Unjha assembly constituency

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