Left, Right & Centre

Bit by bit, one by one, the BJP has made inroads into what was once a citadel of the Congress party - the northeast. Till 2016, the Congress was in power in five of the eight northeastern states. Now, the BJP is ruling Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur. Which is why the results of the Tripura, Meghlaya and Nagaland assembly polls are so important, because this could see the BJP expand its footprint further. The BJP's target is clear - they want to win big here because the northeast has 25 Lok Sabha seats and these could prove crucial in the 2019 general election. Make no mistake, their target is 25 out of 25. Part of their grand election strategy to focus on the 120 seats they have never won before. Joining us on the show, Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijjiju on the party's battle plans.

The State Bank of India, ICICI and even the Punjab National Bank have increased their lending rates which means your home loans are going to get more expensive. So what's going on here? Nirav Modi gets to swindle the PNB of over 12,000 crores and run away, but from capital gains tax to this - is the middle class being taken for a ride while the scamsters get away?

Lalit Modi got away, Vijay Mallya got away, and then Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi got away. Just like that, all of them, mocking the system, fleeing the country and not facing the music for their crimes. Now, the government of India has woken up and today the cabinet cleared a new law that would enable authorities to confiscate the properties of fugitives involved in large-scale economic offences. The BJP clearly wants to send out the message that its serious about fighting corruption and that's exactly what we are talking about tonight because this is now a huge political issue and the question is - will corruption and who fought it harder become the central theme of the 2019 election campaign? Has the Nirav Modi scandal hurt the BJP? And has the case against Karti Chidambaram dented the Congress' attack?

We all know Donald Trump isn't your average American President. He's different - brasher than what the world is used to. But there was one relationship many thought was surviving this new Presidency rather well - the one with India. But is there an irritant that's cropped up, and the President's own personality, that is causing a dent in ties? The US President has strongly criticised India - again - for its high import duties on motorbikes. He went a step further and softly mimicked the PM's accent, which by the way the Washington Post says he's done before. In fact not just bikes, the US is unhappy about higher tariffs on many items like phones and cars - so Apple is unhappy because it has made their iPhones in India more expensive. Car companies too are unhappy and have expressed that openly. This protectionism is being seen as the opposite of what the Prime Minister talked about in Davos at the World Economic Forum. But are these serious cracks in the India-US bonhomie?

The BJP man who allegedly ran over nine children in Bihar with his SUV and then ran away, could even have fled to Nepal, reports say. The BJP has now suspended him, but how come it is so easy to get away? What about the Bihar government's responsibility? Does Nitish Kumar have any answers for the parents of those children? Does the BJP?

Actor Jeetendra, who acted in over 15 films with Sridevi, remembers his friend and co-star.

Long before Sridevi became a big name in Hindi cinema she was a huge star in South India. Acting from the age of 4, Sridevi had tasted success in Tamil, Malyalam and Kannada films. Her co-stars were super heroes like Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth. It was much later that she burst onto the scene in Bollywood becoming its leading star of the 1990s. That is why Sridevi's death has become such a huge story. That is why it has left such a void among millions of Indians. Today, as the focus has shifted to how she died, Dubai authorities said she died of "accidental drowning". The case is now being further investigated. Her funeral has been delayed and many questions and theories are swirling in the air. Tonight, we look at this probe and her legacy: was Sridevi India's first real female superstar?

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has blamed everyone but his own ministry for the huge bank fraud scams. On Nirav Modi to Rotomac and more, he says regulators have to have a third-eye which must always be open. But what about the government's eyes? Should they be closed? Has the government washed its hand off any responsibility?

As Prime Minster Narendra Modi reached Chennai on Saturday for a two-day visit, in the evening he launched subsidised scooty scheme for women, a pet scheme of the late chief minster, J Jayalalithaa. Bonhomie was at display at the stage as PM Modi was seen together with O. Panneerselvam and E Palaniswami. In view of the recent political developments in the state - the vacuum created due to Jayalaithaa's death, the tumult in the ruling AIADMK, the entry of actors Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth into politics, the big question what the state can expect in coming times and is the AIADMK the BJP's best bet for 2019?

Ever since Arvind Kejriwal took over as Delhi's Chief Minister with a landslide majority 3 years ago there has been one tussle after another between him and the centre. After three years, things have reached a whole new level with allegations and counter-allegations between bureaucrats and the elected representative. Is there a governance breakdown in Delhi?