The world order may have been upended, battered by another war. But it is hard to tell this looking at the list of India’s most powerful. For the 12th year, Narendra Modi and Amit Shah take the top two slots in The RMA News list, with nine of the top 10 the same as in 2025.

That’s a testament to how power equations remain largely unchanged even ahead of another round of Assembly elections. The list also tells the story of the Opposition’s failure to check the BJP, even as the latter pushes into new territory. Rahul Gandhi and Mamata Banerjee are the only two non-NDA leaders who make the top 20. If the Congress leader’s efforts mean he has just about kept his No. 9 slot, the Trinamool Congress chief continues to stay one step ahead of the indefatigable BJP.

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar has been a collateral — and not unwilling — beneficiary of this high-stakes political fight, vaulting to No. 20. In 2024, his counterpart was at a much more modest No. 63. The other new entrants in the list, who rank as close, are here by virtue of the posts they now occupy — Chief Justice Surya Kant (No. 17), and BJP chief Nitin Nabin (No. 21).

US President Donald Trump’s volatility (to put it mildly) means Commerce, Finance and External Affairs Ministries have to be constantly on their toes and, hence, Piyush Goyal (No. 5 from No. 12) joins Nirmala Sitharaman and S Jaishankar in the top 10. Not surprisingly, NSA Ajit Doval, the government’s eyes and ears on all things security, climbs too, to No. 29.

With six years plus and counting as Principal Secretary to the PM, PK Mishra continues to be one of Modi’s most trusted (the PM rushed him to Ahmedabad after the Air India plane crash in June 2025) aides, and surges by 46 spots to No. 32. Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi sees the same rise, to No. 35, as she takes on a more hands-on role in the party, with Assam to be her litmus test after UP.

One person watching the Congress performance closely would be AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, who is at No. 55 now, up by 34, as he climbs into the space vacated by the Opposition on minority issues.

In a BJP where power flows from the top, only a rare party CM such as Yogi Adityanath, Devendra Fadnavis and Himanta Biswa Sarma figures at the top; Opposition leaders fill more rungs on this count. But the CM with the biggest fall is Nitish Kumar; down 63 ranks to No. 84, after a farewell to Bihar. Nitish called it his own decision. However, surely the Hero No. 1 of Bihar, who had a glorious poll victory just months earlier, would have wished for a better ending.

Talking about heroes and endings, the two new entrants from Bollywood in the list are Aditya Dhar and Arijit Singh — Dhar for announcing his arrival as a dhurandhar of “patriotism” packaged slickly; Arijit for “exiting” while the music still sang.

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In a tweet, Gandhi said: “BJP`s politics of hatred has burnt Manipur for over 40 days leaving more than a hundred people dead. The PM has failed India and is completely silent. An all-party delegation must be sent to the state to end this cycle of violence and restore peace. Let`s shut this `Nafrat ka Bazaar` and open a `Mohabbat ki Dukaan` in every heart in Manipur.”

Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi also dubbed the situation in the northeastern state as distressing, saying: “The situation in Manipur is very distressing, and it is deeply disheartening to see that the Central government is not taking immediate measures to ensure the safety of the people of Manipur and the restoration of peace.”

The remarks of the Congress leaders came after the reports of fresh violence in the northeastern state, which has been on boil since May 3 this year. Over 100 people have died and thousands have been displaced and forced to live in over 349 relief camps in the state.

On Wednesday, in a fresh incident of violence, assailants burnt the official residence of Manipur`s Industry Minister Nemcha Kipgen in the Lamphel area in Imphal West district. Kipgen, the lone woman minister in the state, was not at home when the attackers burnt down her official bungalow.

At least 11 people were killed and 23 others injured after suspected militants attacked the Khamelock village in Imphal East district late on Tuesday night. Officials said the death toll is likely to increase as several of the injured are said to be critical.

Source: IANS

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In 2018, the then Congress President Rahul Gandhi had promised to wave off farmers’ loans, and the party under the leadership of Kamal Nath had managed to return to power after 15 years gap, Priyanka sounded the poll bugles by offering a financial scheme of Rs 1500 per month, LPG cylinder at a subsidized rate of Rs 500 along with cheaper electricity.

Worth mentioning that the Congress promised to provide Rs 1500 to women (with certain conditions) under its proposed scheme `Nari Samman Yojana` to counter the BJP`s `Ladli Behna Yojana` launched by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan recently. Similarly, subsidized cooking gas will counter Prime Minuter Narendra Modi`s flagship `Ujjawala Yojana` launched in May 2016.

Besides these, Congress also made another major announcement for implementing the old pension scheme (OPS) to gain the support of state government employees and their families in the coming elections. The cheaper electricity is akin to what the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) announced in its debut election in 2013 and since then it maintained the same in states it contested the elections.

“The Congress government in Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh has restored the OPS. Our government in Karnataka has cleared the five guarantees (the poll promises made by the party there),” Priyanka said while addressing a mammoth poll gathering in Jabalpur on Monday.

Notably, the Congress made similar five-point promises in Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka and managed to uproot the BJP from both states and formed the government with an absolute majority.

In her speech, Priyanka hit out at Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led BJP government highlighting issues like atrocities against women and tribals, unemployment, and scams that broke out in the past 18 years in Madhya Pradesh. Referring to the collapse of Saptarishi idols in Ujjain`s Mahakal Lok corridor, Priyanka said, “Shivraj government did not spare even the God.”

Meanwhile, mocking the BJP`s `double-engine government` poll talk, the General Secretary said, “We have seen a lot of double and triple-engine governments, but people of Himachal and Karnataka have given a befitting reply in the polls.”

Source: IANS

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The BJP chief was speaking after releasing a book on 9 Years’ Achievements of the Modi Government on Monday in the national capital. In his speech, Nadda said that the Congress leader does not like the country’s prestige as he does not understand it.

“I do not know what is the problem of Rahul Gandhi with India’s increasing pride. He does not understand and like this pride. You are praising the vaccine of the world and questioning India’s vaccine, while 100 countries of the world have taken India’s vaccine. You question surgical strike. You talk about dividing society and still claim that you are running ‘Mohabbat Ki Dukan’. You are running a ‘mega shopping mall’ of hatred,” Nadda said.

Heaping praises on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Nadda said, “He proved to the world how a pandemic is managed. Every country in the world failed during the Covid. However, PM Modi took a timely bold decision and announced a lockdown in the country, saving countless precious lives.”

Lashing out at the previous government at the Centre, he said, “There is a massive difference between the pre-2014 era and the post-2014 era. People believed that nothing would change and corruption could not be wiped out. Our country was counted as one of the corrupt countries. There was no leadership, intention or policy. However, people voted for the BJP and in 2014 India got a leadership that is leading India ahead.”

“From the economic point of view, today India has become the fifth largest economy in the world, leaving Britain behind. Rishi Sunak says that the day is not far when India will be the third largest economy in the world,” Nadda added. 

Source: ANI

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The remarks came on the day when Nitish Kumar faced questions over the under-construction bridge collapse on river Ganga on Sunday in Bihar, while he was trying to bridge the gap between the opposition parties ahead of the crucial 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Speaking to the media here, Congress` Bihar in-charge Bhakta Charan Das said, “I spoke to Nitish Kumar and Tejashwi Yadav on Sunday. He wants all the parties` chiefs who are capable of taking the decision to attend the meeting on June 12. This was not happening, so it has been decided to speak to everyone and arrange a meeting after June 22.”

The Congress leader`s remarks came hours after the Bihar Chief Minister speaking to the media in Patna, said, “Except for the Congress, the majority of the opposition political parties had agreed to meet in Patna on June 12.

“The Congress leadership was not comfortable with the venue. Since, there was no point in meeting without the grand old party, I asked him to discuss the party and then finalise a date. We will match the date with every opposition political party and then decide about the meeting. For now, the scheduled meeting on June 12 stands postponed,” Nitish Kumar said.

The JD-U leader had called the meeting of like-minded parties on June 12 in Patna after discussing with the top Congress leadership and also after meeting and convincing the top leaders of several parties in last one and half month.

Kumar was also conveyed of the Congress leader Rahul Gandhi`s return from the US on June 10, after which the date of June 12 was finalised and the JD-U leader invited several leaders like Akhilesh Yadav, Mamata Banerjee, Sharad Pawar, Uddhav Thackeray among others who gave their go ahead to attend the meeting.

However, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK leader MK Stalin then cited his engagements on June 12 and asked to postpone the meeting for another date.

Following Stalin`s request, Congress also came forward with the same proposal citing the personal engagements of party President Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi and asked to convene the meeting on June 22 or some other dates.

This demand was also echoed by CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechury. Thus, looking at the request of several leaders meeting has been postponed.

Source: ANI

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“The central architect of modern India, Mahatma Gandhi, was an NRI. The foundation for India’s freedom movement was laid in South Africa… Nehru, BR Ambedkar, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Subhash Chandra Bose, all were NRIs and had an open mind about the outside world,” Rahul Gandhi said.

Continuing with his offensive against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Congress leader said the country faces a battle between two ideologies — one espoused by the Congress and the other by the BJP and its ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

“There is a fight between two ideologies in India — one that we (Congress) represent and another that is espoused by the BJP and the RSS,” the Congress leader claimed.

Further, he added that the principles and ideology that Congress holds dear are the same as that of the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi.

He claimed that the ideas espoused and propagated by the BJP and RSS were that of Nathuram Godse, a rightwing leader who assassinated Mahatma Gandhi.

“The ideology that we follow is the ideology of Mahatma Gandhi, an NRI, and a kind and simple man who propagated non-violence and had a lifelong quest for the truth. However, the ideology that BJP and RSS follow is that of Nathuram Godse, a violent and angry man unable to face the reality of his own life,” Rahul claimed. 

Source: ANI

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Gandhi arrived in New York after visiting Washington and San Francisco and will address a community rally at the Javits Centre in Manhattan on Sunday. He said in the Karnataka elections, the BJP “tried everything in the book, they had the entire media, they had 10 times the amount of money we had, they had the government, they had the agency. They had everything and then we decimated them,” Gandhi said.

“And I want you to know that we are going to decimate them in Telangana next,” he said to loud cheers and applause from the gathering. “It will be hard to find the BJP in Telangana after this election,” he said. Election in the southern Indian state is scheduled to be held later this year. Congress supporters, officials, party members and members of the diaspora gathered in large numbers at the community event that was also attended by New York City Mayor Eric Adams.

Apart from the Telangana election, there are elections scheduled for ‘Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh where we will do the same we did to them in Karnataka,’ Gandhi said to cheers and applause from the supporters. “It is not just the Congress party that is going to defeat the BJP. It is the people of India, the people of Madhya Pradesh, the people of Telangana, the people of Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh who are going to defeat the BJP,” Gandhi said.

He added that the reason for this is that ‘India has understood that it cannot go forward with the type of hatred that the BJP is spreading in society.’ “That is what is going to happen in the next few states. And then after that in 2024 we will do the same. The opposition is united, we are all working together. It is an ideological battle. On one side, there is a divisive ideology of the BJP, the hate-filled ideology of the BJP. On the other side, there is the affectionate, loving ideology of the Congress party,” he said.

He said in Karnataka, the BJP tried to polarise the election and create anger and hatred between communities. “Prime Minister himself tried it. Did it work,” he said as the audience replied no. Gandhi said the people of Karnataka declared that the election is about prices, unemployment and corruption. Gandhi referred to his slogan made during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, during which he had said ‘Nafrat ke bazaar mein mohabbat ki dukan kholenge.’

Adams said the “New Delhi of America is right here in New York City.” “This community is one of the most highly-educated, one of the most highly business operated and owned,” he said, adding that what is unique about America is that, “we tell you never give up your homeland as you embrace your adopted land,” amid a round of applause and cheers from those gathered. “You are Indian-(dash)Americans. As you embrace America, do not remove the Indian part,” the NYC Mayor said.

He added that India ‘historically has given so much not only to the geographical boundaries of your country but what the Indian community historically has given to the globe is just remarkable and has yet to truly be reflected in historical proportions. “All of the great Nobel peace prize winners have basically borrowed from the rich history of your society,” he said, adding that they have drawn inspiration from the ancient Vedas and early writings. Earlier in the day, Gandhi ‘had a thought-provoking fireside chat’ with leading thinkers of New York at Roosevelt House, home of former US President, Franklin D Roosevelt.

Gandhi said the members of the diaspora in the US are ‘our ambassadors’ and have shown America and the rest of the world ‘what it means to be Indian.’ He said there is a fight going on back home and a similar fight also in America about two different visions for India. “One vision which is our vision – accepts everybody, embraces everybody, respects everybody, loves everybody, and wants everybody to be a part of the future of our country regardless of their religion, their community, their caste, their language.

“We are fighting our friends in the BJP. They have a very limited view of our country,” he said. Addressing the audience and the diaspora at the event, Gandhi said: “You respect other religions. You respect other cultures. You respect other people, you respect women. And that is the best way to fight the BJP, to live according to the ideology that we believe in,” he said, adding that the fight is not difficult.

Source: PTI

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Speaking to the media, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that the accident happened due to a change in the electronic interlocking system. “The commissioner of railway safety has investigated the matter and let the investigation report come but we have identified the cause of the incident and the people responsible for it… It happened due to a change in electronic interlocking,” Vaishnaw told the media.

Hours later, Congress leader Pawan Khera addressed a press conference where he claimed that the Railway Ministry was informed about the signal interlocking issue in February. “If you go to the Twitter timeline of the Railway Minister, you will see the reality of the Railways. There are 3.12 lakh posts vacant in the Railway Department. An internal report circulated in the Railway Ministry on February 9 stated that there was a defect in the signal interlocking system. If this is not done properly, accidents will keep happening. We want to know what action was taken on this report?” asked Khera.

He also said that according to the CAG report, there have been 1,127 incidents of train derailments between 2017 and 2021. “The budget for repair/renovation of the track is decreasing every year in the Modi government. Not only this… the budget that is there is not being used. We are not against the high-speed train, but by showing 10-15 shining trains, they will make the whole structure hollow, this is not acceptable,” alleged Khera.

The Congress leader also asked whether PM Narendra Modi will take responsibility of the worst train accident of the century. He also said that Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw should resign.

The restoration work of the damaged track is underway at the Balasore site. The Railway minister informed that the down main line was made fit at 12:05 pm today. The fatal accident involving Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express, Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express and a goods train occurred around 7 pm on Friday near the Bahanaga Bazar station in Balasore.

Source: Bureau

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