The Delhi Cabinet on Monday lifted the `50,000 cap on property registration fee which will now be equivalent to one per cent of the value. The move makes buying a property costlier as the city government had almost doubled the circle rates in various localities.

Nothing has been going their way even since the rebel BJP legislators decided to withdraw support to chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa in October last year. Not even the Supreme Court verdict has helped them emerge from the mess they have landed in after the coup attempt pioneered by JD(S) state president H.D. Kumaraswamy in

Even as the Congress is mounting pressure on the Centre to act against the BJP government in Karnataka against the backdrop of the Supreme Court’s judgement, the Union government is treading cautiously keeping in mind a possible political consequences. The Congress has yet to take a political call whether or not to face the

The Congress and its allies will wrap up their Cabinet berth discussions here on Tuesday, ahead of the swearing-in of the chief minister and ministers on May 18.
It was on May 18 five years ago that CPI(M) veteran V.S. Achuthanandan was sworn in as the chief minister. The baton was passed on to him by Mr Oommen Chandy, who was in office for less than two years.

Four women leaders — Mayawati, Mamata Banerjee, J. Jayalalithaa and Sheila Dikshit — are leading the key states from north, east and south which elect a total of 168 Lok Sabha seats.

With Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi all set to take the oath on Wednesday, hectic lobbying has started among legislators to find a place in the new council of ministers.

AIADMK supremo J. Jayalalithaa was sworn in as chief minister of Tamil Nadu along with 33 ministers at a glittering ceremony in the centenary auditorium of the Madras University, which was packed with applauding party functionaries and special invitees including Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi and TDP chief N. Chandrababu

The CPI(M) politburo met on Monday to analyse the causes for the poll setback. West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee did not attend the meeting which analysed the poll results. West Bengal CPI(M) secretary Biman Bose dismissed reports on Mr Bhattacharjee opting out of politburo taking responsibility for the poll drubbing. “These are all rumours. It is concocted and manufactured,” Mr Bose said.

Chief minister-designate Mamata Banerjee who will take oath of office on Friday, has almost finalised her Cabinet. Sources said Amit Mitra may get finance, Partha Chatterjee industry, Purnendu Bose labour and Rabi Ranjan Chatterjee education. Advocate Biman Banerjee or former high court judge Noore Alam Chowdhury may be appointed the Speaker of the Assembly.

Chief minister-designate Mamata Banerjee is likely to contest from Behala East Assembly constituency in a byelection. Sovan Chatterjee of the Trinamul Congress, who is also the city mayor, won this seat defeating Kumkum Chakraborty of the CPI(M) by 48,173 votes in the recently-concluded Assembly polls. Ms Banerjee, who was on