Nitish Kumar's new grand alliance a setback for NDA in Rajya Sabha too

News Network
August 10, 2022

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Patna/New Delhi: With Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United) breaking ties with the BJP in Bihar, the National Democratic Alliance, or NDA, has suffered a small setback in Rajya Sabha.

Mr Kumar's Janata Dal (United), or JD(U), has five MPs including the Deputy Chairperson Harivansh in Rajya Sabha.

The NDA did not have majority in the upper house even when the JD(U) was part of it. Mr Kumar's JD(U) is the third party to leave the NDA in the last three years. Earlier, the Shiv Sena and the Shiromani Akal Dal quit the NDA. The Telugu Desam Party, or TDP, left before the general elections in 2019.

With JD(U) no longer with the NDA, the BJP-led national coalition will be more dependent on other neutral parties such as Odisha's Biju Janata Dal, or BJD, and Andhra Pradesh's YSR Congress Party, or YSRCP, to push crucial bills through the upper house.

The current strength of Rajya Sabha is 237. There are eight vacancies - four from Jammu and Kashmir, one from Tripura and three to be nominated. The majority mark is 119.

The NDA's current strength in Rajya Sabha is 115, which includes five nominated MPs and one independent.

After the JD(U) left the scene, the NDA's number has been reduced to 110, or nine short of the majority mark.

The government can nominate three more MPs before the winter session and BJP is likely to win the Tripura seat, whenever election takes place. Even then, the NDA's strength will be 114, which will still be short of the new halfway mark of 121.

The BJP will need the support of BJD and YSRCP - which has nine MPs each - on crucial bills.

In the recent presidential and vice presidential elections, however, the BJP got support of BJD, YSRC, TDP, Shiromani Akal Dal and Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party.

Here's how the numbers stack up for the NDA in Rajya Sabha: BJP 91, AIADMK 4, SDF 1, RPIA 1, AGP 1, PMK 1, MDMK 1, Tamil Manila 1, NPP 1, MNF 1, UPPL 1, IND 1 and nominated 5, whose total comes to 110.

Mr Kumar will take oath as Chief Minister of Bihar today at 2 pm. Rashtriya Janata Dal's Tejashwi Yadav will be the Chief Minister's deputy in the new "Grand Alliance".

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News Network
November 21,2025

Bantwal: A domestic dispute appears to have led to a violent confrontation in BC Road area, where the owner of a textile shop was allegedly attacked with a knife by his wife on Wednesday evening.

Krishna Kumar Somayaji, the owner of Somayaji Textiles, sustained serious injuries in the incident and was immediately taken to a hospital for treatment. He is currently receiving care in the intensive care unit and is reported to have survived the assault, according to police.

The Bantwal Town police have registered a case against Somayaji's wife, Jyothi KT, who has since been taken into custody.

Police stated that the complainant, Namita, an employee at the shop, reported the sequence of events. She stated that around 7 p.m. on Wednesday, the suspect entered the shop, wearing a burqa and disguised as a customer, before attacking Somayaji with a knife. The employee then transported the injured owner to a local hospital via an autorickshaw.

Superintendent of Police Arun K confirmed that an ongoing domestic dispute between Somayaji and his wife reportedly preceded the attack. Police noted that Jyothi KT had previously visited the shop and issued threats.

Based on the complaint, Bantwal Town police have registered a case under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Indian Arms Act-1959. An investigation into the incident is currently underway.

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News Network
December 5,2025

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New Delhi, Dec 5: IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers issued a public apology this evening after more than a thousand flights were cancelled today, making it the "most severely impacted day" in terms of cancellations. The biggest airline of the country cancelled "more than half" of its daily number of flights on Friday, said Elbers. He also said that even though the crisis will persist on Saturday, the airline anticipates fewer than 1,000 flight cancellations.

"Full normalisation is expected between December 10 and 15, though IndiGo cautions that recovery will take time due to the scale of operations," the IndiGo CEO said. 

IndiGo operates around 2,300 domestic and international flights daily.

Pieter Elbers, while apologising for the major inconvenience due to delays and cancellations, said the situation is a result of various causes.

The crisis at IndiGo stems from new regulations that boost pilots' weekly rest requirements by 12 hours to 48 and allow only two night-time landings per week, down from six. IndiGo has attributed the mass cancellations to "misjudgment and planning gaps".

Elbers also listed three lines of action that the airline will adopt to address the issue.

"Firstly, customer communication and addressing your needs, for this, messages have been sent on social media. And just now, a more detailed communication with information, refunds, cancellations and other customer support measures was sent," he said.

The airline has also stepped up its call centre capacity.

"Secondly, due to yesterday's situation, we had customers stranded mostly at the nation's largest airports. Our focus was for all of them to be able to travel today itself, which will be achieved. For this, we also ask customers whose flights are cancelled not to come to the airports as notifications are sent," the CEO said.

"Thirdly, cancellations were made for today to align our crew and planes to be where they need to start tomorrow morning afresh. Earlier measures of the last few days, regrettable, have proven not to be enough, but we have decided today to reboot all our systems and schedules, resulting in the highest numbers of cancellations so far, but imperative for progressive improvements starting from tomorrow," he added.

As airports witnessed chaotic scenes, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) stepped in to grant IndiGo a temporary exemption from stricter night duty rules for pilots. It also allowed substitution of leaves with a weekly rest period. 

Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu has said a high-level inquiry will be ordered and accountability will be fixed.

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News Network
November 30,2025

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Mangaluru, Nov 30: A 22-year-old college student succumbed to her injuries at a private hospital in Mangaluru today, days after she was hit by a goods tempo while crossing a road in Padubidri.

The deceased has been identified as Preksha, a resident of Nadsalu Billitota in Padubidri. The fatal incident occurred as Preksha, who was returning home after completing her examination, attempted to cross the service road towards Mangaluru. She was struck by a goods tempo approaching from the Udupi side, causing her to fall and sustain a severe head injury.

Prompt action from local residents ensured she received immediate first aid before being rushed to a hospital in Mangaluru for specialised treatment. Despite medical efforts, she passed away while undergoing care.

Preksha was a student at Karavali College, Vamanjoor on the outskirts of Mangaluru city. The tragedy is compounded by the fact that she belonged to a financially vulnerable family, having previously lost her father. She is survived by her mother and brother.

A case related to the accident has been registered at the Padubidri police station, and an investigation is underway to determine the exact circumstances that led to the collision. The incident highlights the growing concerns over road safety, particularly on busy service roads, and serves as a tragic reminder of the human cost of traffic accidents.

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