Know Your Leader

Under Naveen’s leadership, the BJD stormed to power in the 2000 Odisha Assembly polls. He assumed the chief minister’s position — something he continues to hold uninterrupted till date

Know Your Leader | Pinarayi Vijayan: From fiery Left strongman to composed and shrewd CM

Vijayan’s early days as CM was bumpy. The sidelining of VS Achuthanandan, 93 then, did not go down well with a section of cadre and Vijayan faced opposition within the party

Know Your Leader | Chandrashekhar Azad: A revolutionary standing up for Dalit rights and taking on Modi in Varanasi

The emergence of Azad’s Bhim Army has piqued the other significant party which stands for Ambedkarite principles – Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party

Know Your Leader | Mamata Banerjee: Bengal’s street fighter takes on the Modi challenge on home turf

Many see her as having prime ministerial aspirations. But, this is dependent on what happens in Paschim Bangla

Know Your Leader | Milind Deora: A freeman, an Indian, an MP and a Congressman — in his words, in that order

The former Union minister of IT and communications considers himself well-versed with latest social media trends. He has also spoken out for 'regulation' of content on social media

Know Your Leader | Vokkaliga icon HD Deve Gowda has been in active politics for 65 years

In 1962, at the age of just 28 years, the youthful Gowda contested as an Independent from Holenarasipura constituency and was elected to the Karnataka Legislative Assembly

Know Your Leader | Nitish Kumar: Bihar's 'vikas purush' and a serial 'flip-flopper'

Nitish earned accolades for the work he did in Bihar and by early 2013, it had become clear that Narendra Modi and Nitish were the two strongest possible candidates for the NDA for the 2014 Lok Sabha election

Know Your Leader | Tejashwi Yadav: From middle-order batsman to the 'chosen one' of Bihar politics

One of the factors that has worked in Tejashwi's favour is his age, which, according to observers, has played a big role in him being projected as a leader with independent ideas

Know Your Leader | In 1st election without patriarch Karunanidhi, MK Stalin captain of the DMK-Cong ship in Tamil Nadu

At the age of 14, Stalin jumped into politics by campaigning for his father’s party in 1967. However, he made his official entry in 1973 when he was inducted into the DMK general council

Know Your Leader | Ram Vilas Paswan: India's 'most reliable weathervane' is a local leader with national relevance

Even though Paswan could never expand his base beyond Bihar, mainly due to the Paswan-Jatav conflict, he is known to correctly predict the political wind and switch sides at the last time

Know Your Leader | Farmer, poet, longest-serving CM: Sikkim's Pawan Chamling banks on performance and charm

Chamling has not only dominated the political discourse, but also the electoral politics of the state

Know Your Leader | Strong, committed Jagan Mohan Reddy turns nemesis for CM Naidu in Andhra Pradesh

Jagan has made it clear that his party will not be part of any alliance in the forthcoming state and general polls

Know Your Leader | Uddhav Thackeray: With strong legacy to shoulder, astute Sena chief balances ideology with realpolitik

The one thing that has often been reported about Uddhav is his ability to strategise from the background while all the talking goes on the front. Now he has to do both

Know Your Leader | Mallikarjun Kharge: Understated, undefeated and Congress' go-to man

Kharge has never been defeated and has held a number of ministerial posts in both Karnataka and the central government