PM's secret meet with Sonia
The May 11 and 13 nuclear tests and the retaliatory Pakistani explosions seem to be catalysing new political equations in the country. Congress President Sonia Gandhi called on Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee at his Race Course residence for a one-to-one meeting. Like her last meeting with the Prime Minister, Congress leaders did not know what transpired during the interaction between the two.
Budget irks BJP allies
Rumblings of dissent are making their presence felt within the Atal Behari Vajpayee Government, with alliance partners complaining of being cold-shouldered. The rail budget came in for severe criticism by members of the Biju Janata Dal and even BJP MPs hailing from Gujarat.
Govt fails to rally Oppn in the hour of crisis
Rarely has there been a schism in the long-established practice of a national consensus on foreign policy. But as the bitter three-day debate in Parliament on the nuclear issue showed, this convention stands shattered, leaving the BJP-led government on the ropes. The anxiety in the government over its political isolation at home revealed itself in the Prime Minister's appeal for support from the Opposition in Parliament.

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SPORTS
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EXPRESSIONS
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BUSINESS
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  Kremlin crack force to deal with coup bids

POLITICS
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  Karunanidhi chides TMC leader over Kamraj issue