Rahul Gandhi’s support for Vijay’s ‘Jana Nayagan’: Message to DMK or push for new coalition with TVK in Tamil Nadu?
NEW DELHI: Rahul Gandhi’s strong support for actor-politician Vijay after delay in censor certification for Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) chief’s film ‘Jana Nayagan’ has set tongues wagging about a possible political realignment in poll-bound Tamil Nadu. ‘Jana Nayagan’, which is widely publicised as Vijay’s final film before his full-fledged entry into politics, was slated for a Pongal release on January 9. However, the film ran into last-minute hurdles after the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) did not issue certification in time. Rallying behind Vijay, Rahul attacked the Centre and said the I&B ministry’s “attempt to block” ‘Jana Nayagan’ was an attack on Tamil culture. He also targeted the Prime Minister and said: “Mr Modi, you will never succeed in suppressing the voice of the Tamil people.” The TVK has been quick to acknowledge Rahul’s support as a “friendly gesture.” While the Tamil Nadu Congress has denied any “political motive” behind Rahul’s gesture, the fact remains that this comes at a time when the grand-old-party’s ties with its old ally DMK has been tense over demands of power sharing. The DMK and the Congress have been partners in Tamil Nadu for long and have contested several elections together, but the grand-old party has not been a part of the DMK government in the state. The Congress wants that to change now. When Congress MP Manickam Tagore said the time has come to move beyond seat-sharing and initiate discussions on the sharing of power, he was echoing the sentiments of a section of the party. However, this “power sharing” proposal was nipped in the bud by the DMK. Ruling out any scope for coalition government, senior DMK leader and state minister I Periyasamy said: “There had never been a coalition government. The state had all along been helmed by the DMK on its own. There is no doubt about this stand of the party, there will be no coalition government and the chief minister is firm on this stand.” So, what should the Congress do? Continue with this arrangement that has been in place for years or chart a different course with a new ally? The politics of Tamil Nadu has traditionally been bipolar between two arch political rivals – the DMK and the AIADMK. However, 2026 could be different. There’s a third regional player in the fray. The entry of actor-turned-politician Joseph Vijay Chandrasekhar, fondly known as Thalapathy Vijay, has made the upcoming electoral contest interesting. Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) has already made an impressive start giving jitters to the two established regional players. Vijay is confident that his TVK will script history in the elections – just as it had happened in the 1967 and 1977 assembly elections in the state. The DMK had won for the first time in 1967 while the AIADMK won elections a decade later. While the TVK has not opened its alliance cards, Vijay has made it clear several times that his party will not join hands with either the DMK or the BJP. The actor-politician had also said that if there were any alliance in the future, it would be led by the TVK and opposed to both the DMK and the BJP. It is in this context that Rahul Gandhi’s support for Vijay has raised interest. Already there have been speculations about a tie up after TVK’s national spokesperson Felix Gerald had called the Congress a “natural ally.” “The Congress and TVK are natural allies in terms of secularism and their stand against communalism. In that sense, we have always been natural partners. Rahul Gandhi and our leader are also friends,” Gerald had said. Adding fuel to this fire was senior Congress leader and head of the party’s Data Analytics Unit, Praveen Chakravarty, who later met TVK leader Vijay. Which brings us to the question: Is the Congress seriously considering a third front in Tamil Nadu under the leadership of Vijay or is the grand-old party using Vijay’s party to bargain “power sharing” deal and extra seats with the DMK? Perhaps, we may have some answers on Congress’s future course of action in the state after Rahul’s meeting with senior state leaders in Delhi on Jan 18 and 19. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Rahul wants Tamil Nadu govt to be a coalition, claim Congress netas
CHENNAI: Rahul Gandhi has endorsed the demand for power sharing in Tamil Nadu, two Congress functionaries told TOI. They said Rahul, who was in Gudalur on Tuesday, raised the matter in a casual conversation with TNCC president K Selvaperunthagai in the presence of Nilgiris MP A Raja of DMK, who reportedly replied that CM and DMK supremo M K Stalin would decide on the matter. TOI could not confirm it with Raja. “Rahul wondered why DMK was not accepting the idea of power-sharing when (PM Narendra) Modi is okay with it at Centre and N Chandrababu Naidu has done it in Andhra Pradesh,” said a Congress politician, who claimed to be privy to the conversation. He said Rahul referred to the “unconditional” support Congress had extended to M Karunanidhi in 2006 when DMK with 96 MLAs, didn’t have the majority to form govt. Another source, an AICC member, said he “was told” about Rahul being upset about DMK’s silence on Congress’s demand for three cabinet berths (as TOI reported last week). “Rahul is said to have directed Selvaperunthagai to convince DMK, and Raja, who was present, said his ‘Thalaivar’ (Stalin) would decide on power sharing,” he said. Rahul, after an event at a Gudalur school on Tuesday, travelled to the helipad in a car with Raja, Selvaperunthagai and AICC member Girish Chodankar. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
BJP plans to boost Dalit, women representation in UP cabinet, org
Lucknow: Amid speculations of expansion of the Yogi cabinet and rejig in UP BJP organisation, the spotlight has come on Dalits and women, the two key electoral blocs that play a key role in determining the fate of parties. The development is significant even as BJP plans to step up its social coalition to counter the PDA plank of the Samajwadi Party and its ally Congress in the run-up to this year’s panchayat elections and 2027 UP polls. A senior BJP functionary said the party plans to elevate a Dalit face in the Yogi cabinet to mobilise the SC community. The state cabinet currently has 9 Dalit ministers — 2 cabinet (Baby Rani Maurya and Anil Kumar), 2 state ministers with independent charge (Gulab Devi and Asim Arun), and 5 state ministers (Dinesh Khatik, Sanjiv Gond, Manohar Kori, Suresh Rahi and Vijay Laxmi Gautam). Dalit ministers thus make up a little over 16% of the total strength of the council of ministers, comprising 54 members. This is relatively lower given the fact that SCs account for 21% of the UP population. Sources said cabinet expansion—up to a limit of 60 ministers—may see weightage being given to Dalits. The party think tank believes that the existing representation did not fully translate into political traction, particularly among non-Jatav Dalits and first-time voters, especially during the 2024 Lok Sabha polls when the BJP tally plunged from 62 to 33. The talk of promoting a Dalit face, sources said, may not just be an addition, but also a possible upgrade in visibility, portfolio weight, or political positioning—a move designed to counter the SP’s attempt to mobilise the Dalit-OBC by heightening their grievances. Likewise, BJP’s organisational unit in UP also contemplates playing a Dalit card to blunt the opposition’s increasing aggression vis-a-vis the narrative of social justice. The move will attain significance days after the BJP appointed Union minister and 7-time MP Pankaj Chaudhary, a Kurmi, as the new UP BJP chief. Organisationally, 8 out of 45 members in the state unit are Dalit. This is a little over 17%, numerically, leaving room for induction of more Dalit faces. Experts said unlike the cabinet, organisational changes have a deeper and long-lasting electoral impact. More Dalit functionaries at the state level can improve the cadre-level messaging, booth management and grievance redressal, especially in the rural and semi-rural pockets where panchayat polls are due soon. Focus on Dalits, sources said, will also be crucial during the appointment of party functionaries as members of boards and corporations, besides nomination as members in the municipal corporations. Experts said the possibility of women also gaining the spotlight will serve the purpose of reinforcing the BJP’s governance narrative around welfare delivery (Ujjwala, PM Awas, Mission Shakti, etc.), which has widely resonated with women voters in recent elections. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Defence objects to allowing new material at evidence stage in defamation case against Rahul Gandhi
Pune: The defence lawyer, Milind Pawar, on Tuesday filed a written objection before a special MP/MLA court in the city against the court allowing new material to be introduced at the evidence stage, without it forming part of the original record, in an ongoing defamation case against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Satyaki Savarkar, the grandnephew of the Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, has filed the case regarding the Congress leader’s alleged defamatory speech against the Hindutva icon, in London in March 2023. The court has concluded the recording of Satyaki’s chief examination, and the case is at the stage of cross examination by the defence lawyer. The case has been posted for next hearing on Feb 6. Satyaki had earlier submitted a CD, containing the alleged defamatory speech, along with a 65B (verification) certificate under the Indian Evidence Act, but it could not be played in court due to some unknown technical reasons. At a subsequent hearing, Satyaki presented a couple of pen drives along with a verification certificate and the court allowed them to be played. The defence lawyer then orally objected to this but the court overruled the objection on the basis that Satyaki had made an oral request. On Tuesday, the defence submitted a written objection before commencing with the cross examination of Satyaki. It stated that overruling the objection was “illegal, procedurally irregular, and contrary to the mandatory provisions of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, and the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, because electronic evidence cannot be admitted, exhibited, or played without following the due procedure prescribed by law.” The defence objection stated, among other things, that the Supreme Court has consistently held that the complainant cannot be permitted to introduce new facts, documents, or electronic material at the stage of chief examination which were neither pleaded in the complaint nor disclosed earlier, as such a course would impermissibly expand the scope of the complaint, amount to filling up lacunae in the prosecution case, and cause serious prejudice to the defence. Following the filing of the written objection, and upon the request made by advocate Pawar, the court adjourned the matter for further cross examination. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Himachal fire tragedy: Toll rises to 10 in Arki market blaze; 9 Nepalese nationals, 8-year-old among dead
SHIMLA: The death toll in the fire at Arki market in Himachal Pradesh’s Solan district was revised to 10 on Tuesday.Rahul Jain, additional deputy commissioner, Solan, said nine Nepalese nationals and an eight-year-old child from Bihar had died in the blaze that broke out in an old wooden residential building and spread to nearby shops and buildings after multiple cylinder explosions. Three more human remains were found after a 30member National Disaster Response Force team from Slapper in Mandi and a sniffer dog squad joined search operations. Jain said, “Only human remains are being found, as this was an extremely severe fire. Only one injured child was recovered on Monday, who later died in the hospital.” Three more human remains were found after a 30-member National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team from Slapper in Mandi district and a sniffer dog squad joined search operations at Arki market in Solan district on Tuesday. Rahul Jain, additional deputy commissioner of Solan, said a total of 10 people, including nine Nepal nationals and an eight-year-old child from Bihar, had lost their lives in the fire. “So far, we did not recover any complete body. Only human remains are being found, as this was an extremely severe fire. Only one injured child was recovered on Monday, who later died in the hospital,” he added. Jain said the rescue teams recovered two human remains on Monday and three on Tuesday, which the forensics team collected and stored for possible DNA matching later. A joint search operation involving NDRF, SDRF, the district administration, police, home guards, and fire department teams is set to resume on Wednesday morning. The Solan deputy commissioner ordered a magisterial inquiry into the complete incident on Monday. DNA samples from the deceased persons’ family members were collected, and identification of the recovered remains will be possible only after DNA results, said SDM Arki, Nishant Tomar. The police registered an FIR under Section 287 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for negligent conduct with respect to fire or combustible matter, said SP Gaurav Singh. Also, legal action is being taken against the damaged 4-storey old wooden building owner, Rajeev Gupta, under the Essential Commodities Act, as at least 6 LPG cylinders stored in the building exploded during the blaze. The owner was using his building’s ground and first floor for commercial purposes, and the top 2 floors were rented out to migrant labourers from Nepal and Bihar. The search operation was also obstructed on Monday due to encroachments made in the carriageway at the site, as the search teams were not able to move JCB earth excavator machines smoothly. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
‘Even if effort fails … ‘: DK Shivakumar shares cryptic post after meeting Rahul Gandhi
BENGALURU: Karnataka deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar shared a cryptic post on Wednesday after his meeting with Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi. In the post on X, he said: “Even if the effort fails, the prayer does not fail.” The post follows a brief, exclusive interaction between Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and Shivakumar at Mysuru airport on Tuesday, which triggered fresh speculation over a possible change of guard in the state, even as chief minister Siddaramaiah insisted there was no discussion of politics. Rahul, on his way to Gudalur in Tamil Nadu, arrived at Mysuru’s Mandakalli airport around 2pm on a special flight. He was received by Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, who had earlier flown together to Mysuru. Within minutes, Rahul left by helicopter for Gudalur, while the Chief Minister and his deputy exited the airport separately. Later, when Rahul returned to Mysuru ahead of schedule on his return to Delhi, Shivakumar reached the airport early and had a three-minute one-on-one conversation with the former AICC chief on the tarmac. Siddaramaiah joined them subsequently, after which Rahul interacted briefly with both leaders before leaving on a special flight around 5.45pm. The exclusive exchange between Rahul and Shivakumar, coming amid sustained speculation over a possible change of guard in the state, sparked renewed political buzz. Shivakumar also shared pictures of the meeting with reporters. However, neither he nor Siddaramaiah addressed the media. Earlier, Shivakumar was present when Mysuru city police presented a guard of honour to Siddaramaiah but stayed away when the Chief Minister spoke to reporters. Shivakumar later left for a star hotel in the city, where he briefly stayed while awaiting Rahul’s return. Siddaramaiah went to his residence in Ramakrishna Nagar. Asked about the meeting later, Siddaramaiah said, “It is the media which is speculating a change in CM, but there is no confusion or issues between Shivakumar and me. Some MLAs have spoken without knowledge. Only Shivakumar and I can speak on this. A decision on a change, if any, will be taken by the party high command and we both will abide by it.” To avoid a repeat of scenes witnessed during AICC general secretary KC Venugopal’s visit to Mangaluru airport last month — where supporters of the CM and Shivakumar shouted slogans backing their leaders for the CM post — Congress and police decided to bar party workers from entering Mysuru airport on Tuesday. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Dalit atrocities rising in BJP-governed states: Congress
NEW DELHI: In the wake of the abduction of a Dalit girl and the murder of her mother in Uttar Pradesh’s Meerut, Congress on Monday alleged that Dalit atrocities are rising in BJP-governed states, but the Centre has not released the anti-Scheduled Castes (SC) crime data for the last four years, while the Union home ministry is not allowing protests against atrocities on the bizarre grounds that a 10-day notice is required for permission. Former Delhi minister and Congress SC department chairman Rajendra Pal Gautam said National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data on Dalit atrocities was last released in 2022 and has not since been made public. He said between 2019 and 2022, crimes against SCs registered a massive growth of 13.1%, with UP topping the charts. He said BJP-governed UP, MP, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and Bihar “account for 76% of total atrocities against Dalits.” Gautam alleged Delhi Police denied permission to Congress to hold a dharna against the Meerut abduction-murder of Dalit women on Monday, saying a 10-day notice should be given to the administration. “If a rape or a murder takes place, and there is urgency to highlight it, should we wait for 10 days to protest? What kind of norm is this?” he asked. The former minister said the BJP govt is taking away the constitutional right to protest and seek justice. He claimed that SC atrocities are rising because the government is not allowing protests to demand action from a reluctant administration. He said the number of unregistered cases is very high, arguing a total of 57,582 cases were registered nationally in 2022, while a central government-launched helpline call for Dalit atrocities received over 6.5 lakh calls in 2021—in which only 825 cases were registered against 3.33 lakh calls on the helpline in UP, and 718 cases were lodged out of 58,000 calls in Bihar. The Congress leader said UP has created “bulldozer justice,” but the bulldozer is rusted when the perpetrators of atrocity are upper castes, while it razes the houses within hours when the culprits are Dalit, minority, or backward. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
‘Rahul Gandhi has no right to be the Leader of the Opposition’, why is Jagadguru Rambhadracharya so furious now? Find out
During a discourse in Jaipur, Jagadguru Rambhadracharya launched a scathing attack on Rahul Gandhi, saying that someone who insults India and Indian culture abroad has no right to be the ‘Leader of the Opposition’. This is not the first time; Rambhadracharya has previously questioned Rahul’s lineage and culture. Jagadguru Rambhadracharya targets Rahul Gandhi again Jaipur: Tulsipithadhishwar Jagadguru Swami Rambhadracharya has once again given a strong statement regarding Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Speaking to news agency ANI, Rambhadracharya said that a person who goes abroad and insults India and Indian culture, does he have the right to become the Leader of the Opposition? His implication was that Rahul Gandhi does not have the right to be the Leader of the Opposition. Rambhadracharya is currently giving discourses in Jaipur. It was during this time, while speaking to the media, that he made the statement about Rahul Gandhi. Remove the word Jagadguru from your name – Congress leader A few days ago, Swami Rambhadracharya had also given a statement regarding Rahul Gandhi. He had said that Rahul Gandhi should be removed from the post of Leader of the Opposition. Congress leaders across the country protested against this statement. Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee President V. Gurunadham criticized Jagadguru Rambhadracharya’s statement, saying that his statement is strange. As a Jagadguru, he is interfering in political issues. In such a situation, you (Rambhadracharya) should remove words like Jagadguru from your name because there is no point in having such words before your name. Swami Rambhadracharya has also given the statement ‘Rahul Gandhi is not a Hindu’ Two years ago, Swami Rambhadracharya had given a highly controversial statement regarding Rahul Gandhi. He had said that his grandmother’s father himself used to say that he was unfortunately a Hindu. Then he married a Parsi. He is the grandson of Feroze Gandhi, therefore he himself is not a Hindu. Angered by the statement made by Rahul Gandhi in Parliament, Swami Rambhadracharya launched a scathing attack on Rahul Gandhi in Chitrakoot. He also said that Rahul Gandhi has gone insane and that he doesn’t know a single word of Indian culture. Authored by: Pulkit Saxena • Contributed by: Ramswaroop Lamrod About the Author Pulkit Saxena is a Digital Content Producer at Navbharat Times Online. Starting his journalism career in Delhi, he now covers Rajasthan politics, crime, current affairs, and offbeat news. He has been working in the media for about 7 years. He holds a first-class postgraduate degree in Journalism from Makhanlal Chaturvedi University and has been associated with NBT (Digital) for the past 3 years. Courtesy: Hindi News
Why did Priyanka Gandhi get a big responsibility in Assam? Learn about the political signals behind this decision
In Assam, the Congress party has given Priyanka Gandhi a major responsibility, appointing her as the chairperson of the party’s screening committee. This decision was not taken suddenly; rather, several political messages are hidden behind it. Priyanka Gandhi given a major responsibility in the Assam elections New Delhi: The Congress party has appointed Priyanka Gandhi Vadra as the chairperson of the screening committee for the Assam Assembly elections. This is a decision that is being seen as having far-reaching political implications both within and outside the party. This is the first time that a member of the Gandhi family has been given the responsibility of selecting candidates for a state assembly election. Fear of defections: The political context of Assam makes this decision even more significant. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma is not only counted among the influential leaders of the BJP, but he is also a vocal critic of the Gandhi family. In this situation, by giving the responsibility of Assam to Priyanka, the party wants to show that it is fielding the same political leadership in his stronghold that has a strong grip on the organization. The Congress also fears that some party leaders might switch sides before the elections. Defections are not new in Northeast politics. The Congress has already suffered the consequences of this in the past. Therefore, the top leadership wants to have control over the candidate selection process. It is hoped that Priyanka will promote only those leaders who have a clean image, ideological commitment, and loyalty to the organization so that there is no defection after the elections. The work of the screening committee may seem technical, but it is one of the decisive processes in electoral politics. The main task of the screening committee is to scrutinize the potential candidates from each assembly constituency, their political background, commitment to the organization, social acceptability, and most importantly, the possibility of defection. Although the final approval is given by the Central Election Committee (CEC), the responsibility of deciding which names reach the CEC rests with the screening committee. Assam is not new to Priyanka. Although she may not have been formally visible in the 2021 assembly elections, her role at the strategic level was crucial. The decision to appoint Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel as the senior observer for Assam was also part of the same strategy. This time too, Bhupesh Baghel and Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar have been appointed as senior observers for Assam. The Congress’s position in Assam is not very weak. In the 2021 assembly elections, out of 126 seats, the NDA got 75 and the Congress alliance got 50 seats. The difference in vote percentage was only 1.6%. The NDA got 43.9% and the Congress alliance got 42.3% of the votes. This shows that if there is better coordination among the opposition, the contest could be tough this time. This is where Priyanka’s role becomes crucial. Signs of a comeback in UP: Assembly elections are to be held in Uttar Pradesh in 2027. UP is the state where Priyanka was in charge of the Congress for a long time. The party is now once again preparing to sharpen its strategy around her. On January 12, Priyanka’s birthday, the UP Congress launched a special 100-day strategy. In the 2022 assembly elections, the contest narrowed down to a fight between the BJP and the SP. This caused significant damage to the Congress. Now the party wants to break new ground by focusing on social justice and OBC politics. The responsibility of the screening committee in Assam and the preparations for 2027 in UP indicate that the Congress is gradually establishing Priyanka in a broader political role. This role is not limited to campaigning but is related to strategy, organization, and leadership. Authored by: Hemant Rajoura • Edited by: Akshay Srivastava About the Author Hemant Rajoura is a Special Correspondent at Navbharat Times. He deeply covers the politics of major opposition parties including Congress, SP, and RJD. He also keeps a close watch on important news related to health, science, and policy. Ground reporting, clarity of analysis, and strong access to reliable sources are the hallmarks of his journalism. Courtesy: Hindi News
Rahul invites TN Congress leaders to Delhi on Jan 18
Chennai: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has asked senior leaders of the party’s state unit, TNCC, to visit New Delhi for a two-day visit. “Rahul called us for a meeting on Jan 18 and 19,” a Congress MP from TN told ToI. Senior leaders, MPs and MLAs have been asked to make the visit. A senior Congress leader said Rahul was likely to discuss the demand from a section of Congress men for an alliance with TVK as well as the demand for power sharing if the alliance continued with DMK. “We will explain the concerns of our functionaries and put forth our suggestions. He will take a call on both the issues and give a clear road map for us to proceed,” said a Congress leader. While AICC functionary Praveen Chakravarty and some TNCC leaders, including Manickam Tagore, have batted for a share in power, Rahul and other national leaders have not expressed their views on this aspect. Chief minister M K Stalin too has been maintaining a stoic silence on the issue of power sharing, though other DMK leaders such as organisational secretary R S Bharathi said the demand cannot be accepted. “Rahul is expected to visit Tamil Nadu around Jan 25. We have planned a tentative programme schedule for him, which will be conveyed to him during our visit,” said the Congress leader. Once Rahul confirms the schedule, preparations for his visit will begin. The meeting has been organised to sort out issues before the visit, so that Congress can proceed with seat sharing talks as well as campaigning, he said. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights