News Analysis India

Tag: Rahul Gandhi

  • Lok Sabha Live Updates: NDA Vs Opposition On Speaker Post, Om Birla Vs K Suresh| Updates |

    Lok Sabha Speaker Election: Kota MP Om Birla, who previously served as Lok Sabha Speaker of the previous House, submitted his nomination as an NDA candidate on Tuesday. Birla’s name was unanimously agreed upon by all NDA parties, and senior BJP leader Rajnath Singh also sought the opposition’s support. The INDIA bloc fielded Congress leader K Suresh as its candidate for the Speaker’s position against Om Birla, accusing the ruling NDA of failing to follow convention in handing over the Dy speaker position to the opposition.

    Congress leader K C Venugopal and DMK’s T R Baalu walked out of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s office, refusing to endorse NDA candidate Birla unless they were offered the position of Deputy Speaker. Venugopal stated that the BJP refused to commit to offering the Deputy Speaker position to the opposition.

    Union ministers Piyush Goyal and Lalan Singh accused the Congress of imposing conditions, adding that the ruling alliance was willing to discuss their demand when the election for Deputy Speaker took place.

    According to sources, over ten sets of nominations were filed in support of Birla’s candidature, including those from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union ministers Shah, Singh, and Nadda, as well as BJP allies such as the TDP, JD(U), JD(S), and LJP(R).

    Three nominations were submitted in support of Suresh, a Dalit leader and eight-term MP.

    Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had clarified on Tuesday that the INDIA bloc will only support the government’s nomination if the opposition is given the deputy speaker’s position. He also said that Defence Minister and senior BJP leader Rajnath Singh had yet to respond to the opposition’s request for the post of deputy speaker. Gandhi also accused the BJP of insulting Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge. 

    While speaking to reporters outside the Parliament house, Gandhi said, “Today it is written in the newspaper that PM Modi has said that the Opposition should cooperate with the Govt constructively. Rajnath Singh called Mallikarjun Kharge and he asked him to extend support to the Speaker. The entire Opposition said that we would support the Speaker but the convention is that the Deputy Speaker post should be given to the opposition.”

    #WATCH | Delhi: Congress MP Rahul Gandhi says “Today it is written in the newspaper that PM Modi has said that the Opposition should cooperate with the Govt constructively. Rajnath Singh called Mallikarjun Kharge and he asked him to extend support to the Speaker. The entire… pic.twitter.com/yR5CzlagEx


    — ANI (@ANI) June 25, 2024

    “Rajnath Singh said that he would call back Mallikarjun Kharge but he has not done that yet…PM Modi is asking for cooperation from Opposition but our leader is getting insulted…,” he said.

    Here are the live updates on Lok Sabha speaker’s election: 

    12:30 pm: Congress leader K C Venugopal and DMK’s T R Baalu walked out of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s office, refusing to endorse NDA candidate Birla unless they were offered the position of Deputy Speaker.

    Venugopal stated that the BJP refused to commit to offering the Deputy Speaker position to the opposition.

    12:00 pm: Union ministers Piyush Goyal and Lalan Singh accused the Congress of imposing conditions, saying the ruling alliance was willing to discuss their demand when the election for Deputy Speaker was held.

  • Rae Bareli: Rahul Gandhi pens emotional letter to people of Wayanad, says their unconditional love protected him

    Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday wrote an emotional letter to the people of Wayanad, the constituency that he is giving up to represent Rae Bareli in the Lok Sabha, and said when he faced abuse on a daily basis, their unconditional love protected him. Rahul had won both from Wayanad and Rae Bareli Lok Sabha constituencies and must vacate one of the seats within 14 days of the Lok Sabha results, which came out on June 4.

    He is giving up Wayanad and his sister and Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi is set to contest from there in the ensuing bypoll.

    “I was a stranger to you and yet you believed in me. You embraced me with unbridled love and affection. It didn’t matter which political formation you supported, it didn’t matter which community you were from or which religion you believed in or which language you spoke,” Rahul said. “When I faced abuse day after day, your unconditional love protected me. You were my refuge, my home and my family. I never felt for even a moment that you doubted me,” he said.

    The Congress leader said his sister Priyanka Gandhi will be representing Wayanad if the people give her an opportunity and expressed confidence that she will do an excellent job at being their MP.

    After a leadership meeting in New Delhi, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge had on June 17 said that Rahul will keep the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seat in Uttar Pradesh and vacate the Wayanad seat from where his sister Priyanka will contest. In his letter written on Sunday, Rahul also said that he cannot forget the “bravery, beauty and confidence” with which young girls translate his speeches in front of thousands of people.

    “I do not know how to thank you for what you have done for me. For the love and protection you gave me when I needed it most. You are part of my family and I will always be there for each and every one of you,” he said.

  • hd kumaraswamy: PM Modi acted immediately to safeguard students’ interests: Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy on NEET exam row

    Amid the row over alleged irregularities in the NEET examination, Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Friday said that “acting immediately” Prime Minister Narendra Modi has directed the concerned minister to safeguard the interest of the students.

    “According to my knowledge, PM Modi acted immediately after it came to his notice. In the first cabinet itself, he advised the concerned minister how to…safeguard the interest of the students. He has given the direction,” Kumaraswamy told reporters.

    The former Karnataka CM also performed yoga on the 10th International Yoga Day here in the national capital on Friday.”PM Modi encouraged citizens of nearly 124 countries to do Yoga every day and keep good health. I congratulate him,” he said after the event.

    Earlier on Thursday, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Modi and said he is ‘silent’ on the entire issue because he is “crippled” and he has “psychologically collapsed” post-elections and will struggle to run a government like this.

    Rahul Gandhi further said that it seems PM Modi is not bothered about NEET and is instead more concerned regarding the election of the Speaker.”The silence (of government) is because the Prime Minister is crippled. Right now, the PM’s main agenda is the (election of) Speaker. He is not bothered about NEET or all these things. He is bothered about his government and Speaker. That is where his mind is,” Rahul Gandhi said at a press conference on Thursday.Speaking about the people who have been arrested from Bihar in the “paper leak” case, he said, “Regarding Bihar, we have said that there should be an inquiry and action should be taken against those who have leaked the paper.”

    Rahul Gandhi also said that the Congress party will raise the issue in the Parliament.

    Recently, Patna Police arrested several people including some candidates who had taken the NEET exam in recent days.

    Meanwhile, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the government is working to further strengthen the National Testing Agency (NTA) by “reconsidering important things.” He also assured action against those responsible for the alleged irregularities in the conduct of the examinations.

    Speaking to ANI, Pradhan said, “In a democracy, everyone has their views. It is our job to listen to everyone. Our responsibility is to run a process-driven government, it is our responsibility to speak the truth and accept truth. Few students have doubts about NTA (National Testing Agency) and we will have to accept this.”

    “The government has decided to form a committee and experts will be part of that committee. All the important things will be reconsidered and the NTA will be strengthened further. Those who are responsible for it (discrepancies) will be held accountable,” he said.

    The Education Minister earlier announced the formation of a high-level committee to probe into the issues pertaining to the functioning of NTA.

    The NEET-UG 2024 exam was conducted on May 5 and the results were declared on June 4, ahead of its scheduled announcement date of June 14. Protests were held alleging irregularities and paper leaks as the results showed that as many as 67 students had topped the exam with a perfect score of 720.

    The NEET-UG examination, conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA), paves the way for admission to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH and other related courses in government and private institutions across the country.

  • Rahul Gandhi turns 54, celebrates birthday with Priyanka and Congress chief at party HQ – The Economic Times Video

    Senior leader Rahul Gandhi shared a lighter moment at the Congress headquarters on Wednesday as he cut his birthday cake. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Priyanka Gandhi and other senior leaders were present during the cake-cutting event. Rahul Gandhi, who turned 54, was greeted by numerous Congress leaders from across the country. The 54th birthday marks a special moment for Rahul, as Congress doubled its tally in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections. Rahul Gandhi has instructed party workers to refrain from grand celebrations and rather celebrate the occasion by engaging in humanitarian works.

  • “Right political decision”: Congress’ Pramod Tiwari lauds Rahul Gandhi’s decision to retain Rae Bareli seat

    Congress leader Pramod Tiwari lauded Rahul Gandhi’s decision to retain the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seat in Uttar Pradesh and called it the “right political decision.”

    Tiwari also thanked the Congress party and Rahul Gandhi for respecting the mandate of Uttar Pradesh.

    “I want to thank the national leadership of Congress and Rahul Gandhi. He (Rahul Gandhi) has taken the right political decision. Apart from this, he has also respected the mandate of Uttar Pradesh which gave 43 out of 80 seats to the INDIA alliance,” the senior Congress leader told ANI.”Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will win from Wayanad by 5 lakh votes,” he added.

    Meanwhile, Congress workers burst crackers and celebrated in Rae Bareli as Rahul Gandhi decided to retain the Lok Sabha seat.

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    Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge announced Priyanka Gandhi’s candidature from Wayanad at a special press conference on Monday. If Priyanka Gandhi wins from Wayanad, three members of the Nehru-Gandhi family will be in Parliament – Sonia Gandhi in Rajya Sabha and Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi in the Lok Sabha.Priyanka Gandhi said on Monday that she will contest the bypoll from Wayanad but her decades-old association with Amethi and Rae Bareli will continue.”I am very happy to be able to represent Wayanad and I will not let them feel his (Rahul Gandhi’s) absence. I will work hard and I will try my best to make everyone happy and be a good representative. I have a very old relationship with Rae Bareli and Amethi and it cannot be broken. I will also help my brother in Rae Bareli. We will both be present in Rae Bareli and Wayanad,” Priyanka Gandhi said at the special press conference.

    The bye-election in the seat was necessitated after Rahul Gandhi decided to retain Uttar Pradesh’s Rae Bareli seat, which he won along with Wayanad in the recently held Lok Sabha elections.

  • ‘God has given PM Modi an opportunity to…’, RSS’ Indresh Kumar slams Rahul Gandhi over remark against PM – The Economic Times Video

    RSS leader Indresh Kumar responded to Rahul Gandhi’s remarks about the Prime Minister, stating that after June 4, Narendra Modi will no longer be the Prime Minister and emphasized that India has progressed beyond such comments and asserted that the people desire new dimensions and destinations with new leadership. “I said that because Rahul had announced that he is giving it in writing that on the 4th (June), the Prime Minister of the country won’t be Narendra Modi. Kejriwal had said that INDI Alliance will get so and so several seats. They made a political-style announcement, you can call it whatever you want. All I can say is that the country has moved forward from this. The country wants to see its new destination and new dimensions with the new leadership. God has given Narendra Modi and BJP-NDA this opportunity to take this country forward swiftly” said Indresh Kumar.

  • Wayanad Lok Sabha Election 2024 LIve Results |

    Wayanad Lok Sabha Election Results 2024 Live: The scenic and densely forested Wayanad constituency, one of Kerala’s 20 seats, went to the polls along with the rest of the state on April 26. Established as a separate constituency in 1980, Wayanad was carved out from Kozhikode and Kannur districts. Comprising three municipal towns—Kalpetta, Mananthavady, and Sultan Bathery—and three assembly constituencies, Wayanad is witnessing a keenly contested election.

    Wayanad Election Results 2024 Live Updates

    1: 04 PM: Rahul Gandhi is poised for a historic win in the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency, having secured a commanding lead of over 200,000 votes against his opponents.

    12: 04 PM: Leading with a significant margin of 143,081 votes is Rahul Gandhi from the Indian National Congress. Trailing behind with a deficit of 143,081 votes is Annie Raja from the Communist Party of India.

    11: 23 AM: Annie Raja of the Communist Party of India trails with 74,232 votes. Following her is K Surendran of the Bharatiya Janata Party, with 43,436 votes, trailing by 130,836 votes. 

    10: 58 AM: Rahul Gandhi from the Indian National Congress is presently in the lead in the election, securing 174,272 votes, with a substantial margin of 100,040 votes ahead of the runner-up.

    9: 41 AM: Recent reports from Wayanad depict a tough situation for Annie Raja, who currently holds the second position. The INC contender, Rahul Gandhi, is in the lead with a margin of 34,249 votes over Annie Raja as the counting continues.

    9:28 AM: During the 2014 elections, MI Shanavas of the Congress secured victory with 377,035 votes, whereas Sathyan Mokeri representing the CPM garnered 356,165 votes.

    8: 57 AM: Wayanad Election Result 2024 Live: 2019 General Elections Recap, Rahul Gandhi (Congress) won with 706,367 votes.

    8: 19 AM: Rahul Gandhi is leading the count as soon as the count began….

    7: 59 AM: Rahul Gandhi, a leader of the Congress party, is running for Parliament from two constituencies: Wayanad and Raebareli. After losing the traditional stronghold of Amethi in 2019 and securing a seat in Lok Sabha from Wayanad, Gandhi is striving to uphold the party’s remaining stronghold in the state. His opponents in Wayanad include Dinesh Pratap Singh and K. Surendran from the BJP, along with Annie Raja from the CPI-M.

    7: 21 AM: Shashi Tharoor, a three-time Member of Parliament from Thiruvananthapuram representing the Congress party, is in a challenging electoral battle against Rajeev Chandrasekhar of the BJP and Panniyan Ravindran of the CPI-M. Exit polls suggest a closely contested race ahead.

    7: 12 AM:  Wayanad is one of the 20 parliamentary constituencies in Kerala. The counting of votes for the Wayanad, Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha seats begins shortly.

    6.48 AM: Counting of votes to start from 8 am. Postal ballots are to be counted first and EVMs to be opened around 8.30 am or 8.45 am.

    Background Details Of The Seat

    Congress MP Rahul Gandhi is contesting from Wayanad for the second time, facing competition from BJP state president K Surendran and the ruling Left’s Annie Raja. In the 2019 elections, after losing Amethi to Union minister Smriti Irani, Rahul Gandhi chose to contest from Wayanad, winning by over 7 lakh votes and securing a vote share of 64.7%.

    Reflecting on previous elections, Congress leader M.I. Shanavas clinched victory in Wayanad in 2009 and 2014. In 2009, Shanavas won by a margin of 4.10 lakh votes and a vote share of 49.8%, repeating the feat in 2014 with over 3.77 lakh votes and a vote share of 41.2%. In 2014, the CPM’s Sathyan Mokeri secured only 356,165 votes.

    According to the exit poll for the Wayanad Lok Sabha 2024 election, Congress is poised to win favourably in this state, but BJP has also made an impression. As per the Axis My India-India Today exit poll, INC-UDF is expected to secure 18 seats, while BJP is projected to win 2-3 seats. Rahul Gandhi is anticipated to retain the Wayanad seat.

  • ‘4 June ke baad, Shehzade Bhi Gufa Dundhenge’: Acharya Pramod’s shocking claim about Rahul Gandhi – The Economic Times Video

    Former Congress leader Acharya Pramod Krishnam said that BJP will form the government on June 04. People will make PM Modi, Prime Minister for the third time. He further lashed out at the INDIA Bloc and said that the actions of opposition are anti-national. While speaking to ANI, Acharya Pramod Krishnam said, “The results on 4th June will be quite shocking. More seats will come than exit polls, people will make PM Modi, Prime Minister for the 3rd time. On one side there is a leader who is dedicated to the welfare of the nation and on the other side there is this leader who, in greed of power, holding meetings after meetings. The actions of the opposition are anti-national. After June 4, the princes of the novice family-oriented party of the opposition will go into seclusion and will search for caves and go abroad. The people of the country have rejected these people.”

  • Congress leader Rahul Gandhi writes to Prez Droupadi Murmu on Agnipath scheme, urges her to intervene

    Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday wrote to President Droupadi Murmu against the Agnipath scheme, alleging there is “discrimination” in the nature and extent of benefits given to the families of slain soldiers. Urging the president to intervene, Gandhi said an “exception is warranted in this case” as she is the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of India and the issue affects national security. In his two-page letter to the President of India, Gandhi said he is writing to her with an appeal to provide ‘nyya’ (justice) to Agniveers, who lay down their lives in service to the nation. “There can be no clearer illustration of the fundamental flaw in the Agnipath scheme – the creation of a ‘lesser’ cadre of soldiers who are expected to work on similar tasks with lower pay, benefits and prospects,” he said while sharing his letter to President Murmu on the scheme. “The discrimination in the nature and extent of benefits accorded to the families of our slain Agniveers, compared to regular soldiers warrants your urgent attention,” Gandhi said in his letter. AllUttar PradeshMaharashtraTamil NaduWest BengalBiharKarnatakaAndhra PradeshTelanganaKeralaMadhya PradeshRajasthanDelhiOther States “This anyaay – injustice – is why the Congress Party and our INDIA allies have strongly opposed the Agnipath scheme, and have promised to repeal it if we form the government,” the former Congress chief said. In the letter, Gandhi said, “I request you to intervene. I recognise that a President does not generally interfere in matters of policy, which are the domain of the elected government. “However, I believe an exception is warranted in this case, given both the seriousness of this issue, and your unique position. You are the Supreme Commander of India’s Armed Forces. You have taken an oath to devote yourself to the well-being of the people of India.” “Is this discrimination against our Agniveer martyrs not a risk to our national security? Is it not a grave injustice to our youth who bravely risk their lives to serve?” Gandhi asked in his letter.

    “These pressing questions can only be answered in the affirmative.

    “Therefore, I appeal to you to use your distinguished office to do nyaay – justice to Agniveer soldiers who lay down their lives, by ensuring that they receive the same benefits as any soldier who makes the highest sacrifice for our motherland,” he said.

  • ‘Mungerilal Ke Haseen Sapne’, Devendra Fadnavis mocks Rahul Gandhi’s claims of INDIA bloc forming govt on June 4 – The Economic Times Video

    Varanasi (UP): While reacting to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s claims of INDIA bloc forming government on June 4, Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis called such claims ‘Mungerilal Ke Haseen Sapne’. He said, “When I was a child, there used to be a serial called ‘Mungerilal Ke Haseen Sapne’. Like Mungerilal, Rahul Gandhi can also dream. He can dream till June 4 and even become the President of the US. People are with PM Modi.”