Given the alarming situation, the EC needs to show us its institutional spine rather than resort to its copybook of sending notices and seeking explanations.

In what is a "too-close-to-call" contest, the NDA and INDIA bloc fight it out to secure the swinging OBC voters.

The polls will also be a crucial test for the larger political question on whether welfarist governance can actually galvanise different sections and trump the caste and community equations at play.

Unlike the JMM, which has a voter base in all communities, the BJP has cornered a significant advantage in urban pockets which gives it a ready-made fillip in the elections.

Whether Gandhi’s warning resonates with India’s corporate houses remains to be seen. Even if it does, would it spark off any pushback from them is a bigger question.

While the INDIA bloc has sharpened its Jharkhandi versus non-Jharkhandi line and the BJP its Adivasi versus Muslim one, it is the Sadans who may well decide this election.

BJP's formula continues to reap dividends because of the reluctance, and even obduracy, of opposition parties to acknowledge social fault lines and correct their courses.

The challenger seeks to trigger a social churn, while the incumbent prefers the status quo.

The AAP chief, in his new avatar as a person who understands the significance of political alliances, is here to stay.

He was a cementing force in Indian polity when communal and profit-greedy forces registered their presence like never before.

For Modi to build several Singapores in India, he would need to pursue its leaders' key doctrines: that communal harmony and a cohesive society are essential for material prosperity.

Yadav has shown that he is second to none in being at the forefront of holding the opposition flag in parliament.

The larger thrust of the budget will only intensify the already growing inequality, with the poor and the middle classes forced to pay heavily even for necessary household consumption and investments made for long-term savings. What the budget starkly lacked is an element of justice.

Uttar Pradesh police, which lodged an FIR against two Muslim journalists and three others for calling the incident a “lynching” on social media, have not provided a reason as to how Firoz Qureshi died.

The current turn of events is a reminder of similar tensions after the Modi-Shah duo chose chief ministers like Raghubar Das or Manohar Lal Khattar. However, as the BJP commanded formidable electoral strength at the time, that dissension went unnoticed.

The opposition has clearly received a fillip from the way it unitedly conducted itself in the first session of the Lok Sabha. At least three changes were witnessed in the first session, even as the Narendra Modi government tried very hard to give an opposite impression.

The prime minister clubbed all criticisms of his government as an anti-national conspiracy by the Congress and its “ecosystem” and vowed to nip them in the bud, indicating a surefooted continuity in the way his government has cracked down strongly against protestors, dissenters and critics.

The Congress leader, who was responding to the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address, lashed out at the 10-year rule of Narendra Modi which he said resulted in 'systematic attack on the constitution, on the idea of India'.

The decision has come at a time when Nitish Kumar’s own social justice agenda will be tested against his loyalty towards the NDA. The NDA’s coalition dynamics on the issue will surely be an interesting watch.

The RSS maintained stoic silence during the campaign, even as reports emerged that its pracharaks showed little excitement to mobilise voters. However, immediately after the BJP fell short of a majority, critical voices emerged.