This is vital to keep the shine on the Election Commission whose independence and credibility are critical for the smooth functioning of a democracy.

Gopal Jain: A code of conduct for the EC

Business Standard

Two months before the Lok Sabha elections, Congress President Sonia Gandhi today dropped ample hints that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would continue to lead the government if the party came back to power. In a signed letter to the party workers, Gandhi said in the party&rsquo;s mouthpiece Congress Sandesh, &ldquo;We look forward to his continued leadership and his inspiration to the younger generation particularly.

Manmohan to remain Cong&#39;s PM candidate, hints Sonia

Nagpur meet to finalise party&rsquo;s strategy for coming elections.

BJP invokes Gandhi to tide over slowdown

The BJP, which had kept its pet issues like Ram Janambhoomi on the backburner because of compulsions of coalition politics 10 years ago, today revived the Ayodhya chant saying it would build a magnificent temple for Lord Ram if it got a majority on its own.

Eye on Lok Sabha elections, BJP rakes up Ayodhya issue

Press Trust of India

Holding out the promise of creating jobs on a large scale, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has said that it would focus on promoting construction, textiles, manufacturing and infrastructure sectors if it comes back to power after the Lok Sabha election.

BJP promises to promote labour-intensive sector

After a decade of being confined to his own state, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has been included in the core team of leaders to work closely with Lal Krishna Advani, the prime-ministerial candidate of the BJP for the 2009 Lok Sabha election.

Modi made member of core team

Linking the two main points of the Congress agenda &mdash; economic growth and fight against divisive forces, Congress President Sonia Gandhi today defined the theme for the party&rsquo;s 2009 election campaign. &ldquo;Social harmony and economic growth are the two sides of the same coin.

Congress to retain 'aam aadmi' focus

The Congress party not only launched its 2009 Lok Sabha campaign today but also promoted Rahul Gandhi as its new face ahead of the polls. At the convention of the Block and District Congress leaders, party chief Sonia Gandhi or Prime Minister Manmohan Singh&rsquo;s faces&rsquo; appeared in just one place on the dais. The smiling young Gandhi donned the hoardings all around.

Culture of money power must end: Rahul

Literally, a vote on the accounts of the Government of India. No money can be spent by the government without the Parliament approving it; so after the government presents the accounts of expenditure and income, the Parliament approves it. Only after this does the government get to spend the money.

Primer: What is a vote on account?

The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) wants to cobble together a grand political alliance ahead of the 2009 general elections to include smaller secular parties.

NCP wants secular parties&#39; alliance in Maharashtra

Countering the Congress&rsquo; focus on young leaders in its campaign for the coming Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today said the Congress was encouraging &ldquo;dynastic succession&rdquo;.

Congress encouraging &#39;dynastic succession&#39;, says BJP

&lsquo;Smridh Bharat, Surakhshit Bharat&rsquo; (prosperous India, safer India) is the theme slogan of the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)&rsquo;s multi-crore media campaign for the coming Lok Sabha elections that is scheduled to be finalised by the party&rsquo;s prime ministerial candidate, L K Advani, by the month-end.

BJP to weave campaign around &#39;prosperous, safer India&#39; theme

With the delimitation exercise changing the face of Lok Sabha constituencies, many members of the Lower House may have to work hard to adapt to new political contours. But Mani Shankar Aiyar, the Union Panchayat Minister, can rest in peace. He is the only MP who could resurrect his constituency (Mayiladuturai in Tamil Nadu&rsquo;s Nagapattinam district) after it was declared abolished by the delimitation commission.

Aiyar manages to avoid delimitation blues

Shiv Sena working president Uddhav Thackeray had a hush-hush meeting with NCP president and Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Tuesday night at the latter&rsquo;s official residence in the Capital.

Uddhav meets Pawar, sparks speculation

Just ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the Indian National Congress received a major jolt in western Maharashtra region as a number of senior Congress leaders openly opposed the candidature of Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president and Pune member of parliament Suresh Kalmadi.

Rebellion on in Congress ahead of Lok Sabha polls

We can align with any secular party: NCP.

Jaya asks Cong to snap ties with DMK

The Congress today said its alliance with the DMK was &ldquo;quite strong&rdquo; and it had no plan to tie up with AIADMK &ldquo;as on today&rdquo;.

As of today, we have not decided: Cong

Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the Congress carried out a major organisational reshuffle on Thursday, bringing senior leader Ghulam Nabi Azad back as party general secretary and giving him the charge of four states, besides changing the work allocation of almost all other general secretaries.

Major reshuffle in Congress

With the Lok Sabha elections round the corner, the BJP&rsquo;s prime ministerial candidate today started his poll campaign from his constituency Gandhinagar, a seat he won four times.

Advani off the block from Gandhinagar

EC meets top bureaucrats to assess the security situation.

Dates for general polls likely by this weekend

Some weeks ago, when Congress President Sonia Gandhi asked&nbsp; Jairam Ramesh to head the core team for the Congress campaign in the 2009 general elections, he readily agreed to give up his ministerial responsibilities as Union Minister of State for Commerce &amp; Power in Shram Shakti Bhavan and Udyog Bhavan, and move with a suitcase to his new home on Gurudwara Rakabganj Road.

NEWSMAKER: Jairam Ramesh

Lok Sabha Elections News: Get the latest news and updates on Lok Sabha election in 2024. Stay tuned for Special Reports, Videos & Photos of General Elections 2024 on Business Standard.

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Get the latest news and updates on Lok Sabha election in 2024. Stay tuned for Special Reports, Videos & Photos of General Elections 2024 on Business Standard.

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