Not in PM race, Modi to continue at top post: Gadkari
Bhopal: Making it clear that he is not in the race for the prime minister's post, Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Sunday said the ruling BJP will win more seats than it had won in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and Narendra Modi will continue to be at the helm.
"I have said it earlier also that I am not a prime ministerial candidate," he told reporters here in response to a query.
The Union minister for road transport and highways, water resources and river development said, "The BJP will win more seats than the 2014 general election and Narendra Modi will again be the prime minister."
Asserting that development was the only agenda of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the ongoing national election, he said "we are fighting the polls to make the country a super economic power" and listed the works carried out by the Modi government.
Gadkari claimed that what the Congress could not do in 50 years, the BJP had done in five years. Describing Hindutva as a way of life, he said the term does not mean the Hindu religion.
"For us, Hindutva is nationalism," he said in response to a query.
Stating that his ministry had brought a double-decker Skybus, Gadkari said if the people of Bhopal want, he can send it to the city immediately
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
