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Game On 2019: Sonia’s dinner brings 20 Opposition party leaders together

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8 years ago

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Kicking off the first concrete effort to unite non-NDA parties in the battle to halt the Modi-Shah juggernaut from rolling the BJP back to power at the Centre in the 2019 general elections, former Congress president Sonia Gandhi hosted a dinner at her residence on Tuesday night that saw the participation of leaders from 20 Opposition parties.

The ‘dinner diplomacy’ by Sonia, who remains the chairperson of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) despite stepping down as Congress president to make way for her son Rahul a few months ago, is reminiscent of her efforts to stitch together a coalition of “like-minded parties” back in February 2004.

The dinner she had hosted at her residence on February 5, 2004 – days after then Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee decided to call for early general elections in the hope that his ‘India Shining’ slogan would help the BJP-led NDA retain power – had marked the first step of the Congress’ revival plan for the hustings following successive drubbings in state polls. The situation today is unarguably grimmer for the Congress, led now by her son, which holds power in just three states while the BJP has painted 21 of India’s provinces saffron.

With her dinner diplomacy, Sonia hopes to strengthen ties between existing allies in the UPA while scouting for new ones; an effort that is touted as the first real step towards unifying the Opposition.

The dinner also signalled unequivocally that though her son may be the Congress president now, it is only her stature (and perhaps the added fear of political wilderness) that can act as the glue that can bring arch-rivals like the CPM and Trinamool or the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party or even the Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) together in a central coalition even if these parties continue to fight against each other at the provincial level.

In attendance at Sonia’s dinner party were leaders of existing and estranged UPA allies – NCP chief Sharad Pawar, DMK’s Kanimozhi, Trinamool Congress’ Sudip Bandopadhyay, JMM’s Hemant Soren, RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav and Misa Bharati, National Conference’s Omar Abdullah, SP’s Ram Gopal Yadav, BSP’s SC Mishra, Rashtriya Lok Dal’s Ajit Singh – as well as new-found friends AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal, RSP leader NK Premachandran, Hindustan Awam Morcha’s Jitan Ram Manjhi, among others. The CPI (M) – battered after losing Tripura, its citadel of 25 years, to the BJP earlier this month – also seems to have shed its impractical stubbornness to not ally with the Congress and sent leaders Mohammed Salim and TK Rangarajan for the dinner while the CPI was represented by veteran leader D Raja.

While Sonia played the host, her party was represented by chief Rahul Gandhi, former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, veterans Mallikarjun Kharge , Ahmed Patel and other senior leaders.

Sonia’s dinner diplomacy comes days after she said at a public function that “like-minded parties” needed to forget their rivalries to come together for the country’s sake. Earlier, soon after Rahul had taken over as Congress president, Sonia had told MPs from her party: “As Chairperson of the Congress Parliamentary Party, I will work with the Congress President and other colleagues in discussions with likeminded, political parties to ensure that in the next election, the BJP is defeated and India is restored to a democratic, inclusive, secular, tolerant and economically progressive path.”

Though details of the discussions that actually took place at Sonia’s dinner are not known, Congress president Rahul Gandhi tweeted about the evening saying:[/vc_column_text][vc_raw_html]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[/vc_raw_html][vc_column_text]The BJP, still riding on the supposed popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has continued to crush the Congress, as well as other Opposition parties, in successive assembly polls. However, following the scare in Gujarat and successive defeats in Lok Sabha by-polls, the latest being the shockers from Uttar Pradesh’s Gorakhpur and Phulpur constituencies – which had sent now chief minister Yogi Adityanath and his deputy Keshav Prasad Maurya respectively to the Lok Sabha in 2014 – it appears that the Congress is hopeful of a political and electoral re-alignment of that may not be very favourable for the saffron alliance in 2019.

With Sonia’s dinner clearly being a hit with Opposition parties, the game, as they say, is now on for the 2019 Big Fight. The challenge for the Congress is to sustain the dialogue and momentum built by the party’s matriarch.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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PM Modi takes aim at critics with Dimagi Naxal remark at SRCC centenary address

PM Modi revived his dimagi Naxal remark at SRCC’s centenary celebrations and spoke about India’s development journey.

Published

3 hours ago

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September 6, 2026

By

PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi revived his ‘dimagi Naxal’ remark while addressing the centenary celebrations of Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) in Delhi on Saturday, using the term to criticise his opponents.

Speaking to students at the Delhi college, PM Modi described the phrase as a “homeopathic pill” and said it had prompted those he described as “dimagi Naxals” to come forward and reveal their views.

The prime minister also used his address to speak to Gen-Z about India’s development journey and asked students to consider the challenges the country had faced in the past.

PM Modi recalls past crises

During his speech, PM Modi referred to the 2013 Kedarnath disaster and the 2008 global financial crisis while criticising the handling of national emergencies by previous governments.

He said the government at the time of the Kedarnath disaster was shaken and questioned its ability to respond to the crisis.

Referring to the 2008 banking crisis, PM Modi alleged that the government of the time failed to effectively deal with the situation and claimed that India’s banking system was pushed close to collapse.

Prime minister lists challenges faced by his government

PM Modi also highlighted several major global crises that occurred during his government’s tenure.

He mentioned the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war, disruptions to global trade and supply chains, and the crisis in West Asia.

The prime minister said there had been concerns that India would struggle during these crises but argued that the country had continued to move forward.

PM Modi’s earlier SRCC visit

PM Modi had earlier visited SRCC in 2013, when he was the chief minister of Gujarat. His speech at the college received significant attention, particularly on social media, ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha election.

His latest visit came during the college’s centenary celebrations, where his address focused on young people, India’s development ambitions and the challenges faced by the country.

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India News

India Metro Rail Network May Overtake US in 2 Years

India’s metro rail network has reached 1,170 km across 26 cities. Union minister Manohar Lal said the country could overtake the US in network length within two years.

Published

17 hours ago

on

September 5, 2026

By

Manohar Lal Khattar

India is on track to become the country with the second-largest metro rail network in the world after China, with Union Minister Manohar Lal saying the country could overtake the United States within the next two years.

India’s metro rail network has now expanded to 1,170 km across 26 cities. The network is only 216 km shorter than the US metro rail network, which stands at 1,386 km, according to figures cited by the minister.

India’s metro network expands rapidly

Speaking after the inauguration of an extended metro service in Indore, Manohar Lal highlighted the pace at which metro connectivity has grown in India.

He said metro services were operational across just 245 km in five cities when Prime Minister Narendra Modi assumed office in 2014. The network has since expanded to 1,170 km across 26 cities.

The minister said India could overtake the US in terms of metro rail network length in the next two years and become the world’s second-largest country in this segment after China.

China currently has around 8,000 km of metro rail lines, according to the figures cited by the minister.

Indore metro extension inaugurated

The minister made the remarks after inaugurating an extended section of the Indore metro. The project was built at a cost of around Rs 2,850 crore.

The Indore metro was earlier operating commercially on a six-km stretch between Gandhi Nagar and Super Corridor-3 stations. Following the extension, the service will operate on a 17-km route between Gandhi Nagar and Malviya Nagar Chauraha.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said the metro service would mark a new phase in Indore’s development. He also said the network would eventually be extended to Ujjain and other nearby areas.

India’s metro rail network: Key figures

  • India currently has 1,170 km of operational metro rail network.
  • Metro services are operational across 26 cities.
  • The US has around 1,386 km of metro rail network.
  • India is currently 216 km behind the US.
  • China has around 8,000 km of metro rail lines.
  • India’s operational network stood at 245 km across five cities in 2014.

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India News

PM Modi returns to SRCC after 13 years, revisits 2013 glass full speech

PM Narendra Modi returned to SRCC after 13 years for its centenary celebrations, revisiting themes from his landmark 2013 address.

Published

18 hours ago

on

September 5, 2026

By

PM Narendra Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi returned to Delhi University’s Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) on Saturday, 13 years after his previous visit to the institution as Gujarat chief minister. 

His latest visit came as SRCC marked its centenary celebrations. Modi’s 2013 address at the college had attracted significant attention as he spoke about India’s youth, governance and the country’s demographic potential.

In 2013, Modi was Gujarat chief minister and had not yet been named the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate. He returned to the same campus this year as Prime Minister, having completed 12 years as Prime Minister and serving his third consecutive term. 

What PM Modi said at SRCC in 2013

The 2013 lecture was titled Emerging Business Models in the Global Scenario. The address also covered governance and India’s young population.

He described India’s youth as a source of national strength rather than simply a group of new-age voters. He also highlighted India’s demographic advantage and argued that the country needed to make better use of its young population.

One of the notable moments from the speech involved a glass of water.  Modi contrasted the conventional descriptions of a glass as half full or half empty and said he viewed it as full, with half containing water and the other half air.

The speech also included his remarks on technology and young Indians. Referring to an anecdote from a visit to Taiwan, Modi used the phrase “mouse-charmers” to describe Indians using computers and suggested that young Indians had the ability to influence the world through technology.

‘Minimum government, maximum governance’

Modi’s 2013 address also touched on governance. He spoke about the role of government and the need for better governance.

He also spoke about India’s potential in the 21st century. 

Modi returns as PM for SRCC centenary

The September 5 visit coincided with Teachers’ Day and SRCC’s 100th anniversary. The Prime Minister’s Office had announced that Modi would participate in the college’s centenary celebrations and address the gathering. SRCC was established in 1926 by industrialist and philanthropist Sir Shri Ram.

Earlier this year, Modi also met the SRCC governing body at his residence in April in connection with the college’s centenary celebrations and released a commemorative postage stamp marking the occasion. 

The return to SRCC came 13 years after his 2013 appearance at the college, when he addressed students as Gujarat chief minister.

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