News / Author / Sunetra Choudhury

Sunetra Choudhury

Sunetra Choudhury is the National Political Editor of the Hindustan Times. With over two decades of experience in print and television, she has authored Black Warrant (Roli,2019), Behind Bars: Prison Tales of India’s Most Famous (Roli,2017) and Braking News (Hachette, 2010). Sunetra is the recipient of the Red Ink award in journalism in 2016 and Mary Morgan Hewett award in 2018.

Articles by Sunetra Choudhury

After wage code, labour safety on Cabinet table

If cleared by the Cabinet, this will be the second major labour reform approved by the government.

India’s labour laws are complex and cumbersome and the government’s plan is to simplify them into four codes: wages; OSH; industrial relations; and social security. (PTI photo)

india news

Updated on Jul 10, 2019 05:43 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

No question of midterm elections, says BJP’s ex-CM Yeddyurappa

The remarks mark a change in stand from May, shortly after his party won 25 of the 28 Lok Sabha seats in the state.

Yeddyurappa said his party BJP had no role to play in the political crisis that has engulfed the JD(S)-Congress coalition in the state. (Photo @BSYBJP)

india news

Updated on Jul 09, 2019 05:58 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

No trust between leaders of Cong-JD(S) coalition, says BS Yeddyurappa

Yeddyurappa maintained that the BJP had nothing to do with the political development in the state.

Former Karnataka chief minister BS Yeddyurappa(PTI file photo)

india news

Updated on Jul 09, 2019 07:20 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Rajnath Singh rebuts Karnataka crisis blame, slips in a swipe at Rahul Gandhi

Rajmath Singh referred to Rahul Gandhi’s resignation as party chief after taking moral responsibility for the party’s debacle in Lok Sabha elections and to his remarks that numerous people would have to made accountable for the loss.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said in the Lok Sabha that his party has nothing to do with the political crisis plaguing the Congress-JD(S) coalition in Karnataka.(File Photo)

india news

Updated on May 29, 2020 08:34 PM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Sitharaman breaks from briefcase tradition with bahi khata

When Nirmala Sitharaman posed for the traditional photo-op Friday before entering Parliament, she did so carrying a “bahi khata” or ledger, packed in a red cloth embossed with the national emblem.

It was the first and perhaps the most talked-about non-verbal statement Sitharaman made, tacitly pushing ‘Make in India.’(HT Photo)

india news

Updated on Jul 05, 2019 11:09 PM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Is this why people voted for us: PM Modi on Akash Vijayvargia’s cricket bat attack

PM Modi’s speech at the BJP’s parliamentary party meeting also had words for all BJP members of parliament (MPs) lax about attendance.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has cautioned members of parliament to behave themselves(PTI file photo)

india news

Updated on Jul 03, 2019 01:15 PM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury and Kumar Uttam

‘How would you feel if Amit Shah…’: PM Modi pulls up truant MPs at BJP meet

PM Modi signaled at the meeting of the BJP parliamentary party that he was unhappy that many BJP Members of Parliament had been absenting themselves from the House during key discussions in the first few days of the Budget session.

Defence minister Rajnath Singh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP working president JP Nadda and Home Minister Amit Shah during the BJP parliamentary party meeting at Parliament library in New Delhi on Tuesday.(ANI photo)

india news

Updated on Jul 02, 2019 04:22 PM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Sack them, says PM Modi after Indore BJP MLA, workers beat municipal official

It does not matter whose son he is, an upset PM Modi is reported to have told a meeting of BJP’s parliamentary party that has lawmakers from the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, according to a TV news channel.

PM Modi’s assessment of the Akash’s conduct is at sharp variance with that of his father Kailash Vijayvargiya.(AFP File Photo)

india news

Updated on May 27, 2020 05:34 PM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Rahul Gandhi’s resignation leaves Congress in leadership vacuum

Since May 25, when Gandhi offered to resign at a Congress working committee (CWC) meeting , he has gone into a shell.

For a party plagued by factionalism from the Centre to the states, it’s not easy to zero in on a replacement who has the ability and credibility to act as the glue that holds it together. (Photo @RahulGandhi)

india news

Updated on Jun 23, 2019 01:45 PM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Over dependence on data may have derailed Congress’s 2019 campaign

According to the functionaries cited, the Congress leadership relied too heavily on the numbers that were being generated and the inferences drawn from them.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi with the party’s data analytics department chief Praveen Chakravarty.(Photo: Twitter)

india news

Updated on Jun 20, 2019 07:23 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | ByRoshan Kishore and Sunetra Choudhury

No place for slogans in Parliament: Speaker Om Birla

The sloganeering was mentioned by the Congress leader in the Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, in his welcome address to the speaker on Wednesday.

Newly elected Speaker for the 17th Lok Sabha, Om Birla conducts the proceedings during its first session, at Parliament in New Delhi on June 19, 2019. (LSTV Grab/PTI Photo)

india news

Updated on May 24, 2020 10:19 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

PM Modi working on new, updated edition of his book ‘Exam Warriors’

PM Modi wants to write about mental health and about children getting addicted to gadgets in the revised edition.

Modi also has also given inputs about the illustrations in the book.(PTI file photo)

india news

Updated on Jun 18, 2019 12:37 PM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

‘Will continue to raise special status issue with PM’: Jagan Reddy

The Andhra CM said that he hopes that the PM’s heart would “soften” one day and he would grant the special category status.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy arrives at North Block to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi, on Friday, June 14, 2019.(Vipin Kumar/HT PHOTO)

india news

Updated on Jun 15, 2019 08:51 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Modi is the PM, I’m the CM, we need to work together: Jagan Mohan Reddy

In a conversation with HT, newly-elected chief minister of Andhra Pradesh Jaganmohan Reddy talks about his plans for the state, his relationship with the Centre, and the upcoming Parliament session.

Jaganmohan Reddy tells HT about his plans for the state, his relationship with the Centre, and the upcoming Parliament session.(PTI file photo)

india news

Updated on Jun 15, 2019 09:05 PM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Panel may recommend splitting 27% OBC quota into three bands

The next census, in 2021, is slated to count OBCs for the first time in 90 years. The commission, headed by former high court chief justice G Rohini, is giving the finishing touches to its report that will be submitted next month.

A key government panel is likely to recommend radical changes to how the 27% reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) is implemented in India for jobs and education, according to people familiar with the matter.(Kunal Patil/HT File Photo)

india news

Updated on Dec 31, 2019 02:12 PM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

What makes the Cabinet committees so significant

The body has representation from allies like, for instance, the Akalis and Shiv Sena in the Modi government, which has made it large and unwieldy, according to officials in the know.

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari, Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah and others during the first cabinet meeting(PTI)

india news

Updated on Jun 09, 2019 10:12 AM IST

New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

PM Modi, Rajnath Singh on 6 Cabinet committees, Amit Shah on all 8

Interestingly, in the list released on Thursday morning, Singh was named as a member of just two, albeit crucial committees -- the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) and the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA).

A day after announcing new Cabinet committees for employment and growth, the government on Thursday reconstituted six other panels. (Ajay Aggarwal/HT PHOTO)

india news

Updated on Jun 07, 2019 07:14 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Why Nitish Kumar chose to stay out of the NDA cabinet

JD (U) won 16 of the 17 seats it contested in Bihar and so was unhappy with the formula worked out by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to give a single cabinet berth to each ally in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), regardless of the number of seats won.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar addresses the media in Patna(PTI)

india news

Published on May 31, 2019 10:09 PM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Amit Shah’s presence in PM Modi’s new cabinet to boost govt

He may have been third in line in seniority in the Cabinet after the Prime Minister and Rajnath Singh. But 55-year-old Amit Shah is set to be the second-most powerful person in Narendra Modi’s council of ministers.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president Amit Shah signs the documents after taking oath during a swearing-in ceremony, at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi, on Thursday, May 30, 2019.(Ajay Aggarwal/HT PHOTO)

india news

Updated on May 31, 2019 09:48 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Lack of trust in Congress helped BJP in Rajasthan, says Murlidhar Rao

The BJP won all 25 parliamentary constituencies in Rajasthan, just five months after being defeated by the Congress in state assembly elections

Seen here is Muralidhar Rao, National General Secretary of Bhartiya Janta Party.((Photo by Arijit Sen/Hindustan Times))

india news

Published on May 29, 2019 07:40 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

BJP’s next target: 333 in 2024 Lok Sabha polls with focus on south

In an attempt to increase its footprint in the southern states, the BJP will recast itself as a pan-Indian party and not a “Hindi-speaking outfit” in time for the next Lok Sabha election, senior functionaries said

PM Narendra Modi (R) and Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) president Amit Shah gesture to supporters as they celebrate the victory in India's general election at the party headquarters in New Delhi on May 23, 2019.(AFP file photo)

india news

Updated on May 28, 2019 10:30 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury and Smriti Kak Ramachandran

Lok Sabha elections 2019: Chowkidar to Rafale, Congress’s graft pitch failed

Interestingly, Gandhi’s continued use of the slogan prompted the Prime Minister to make it the prefix of his Twitter ID, encouraging his council of ministers and other BJP followers to emulate him.

Congress supporters during a protest against alleged corruption in the Rafale fighter jet deal in Assam on April 9, 2019.(ANI Photo)

elections

Updated on May 24, 2019 09:22 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

How Opposition failed to stop the Modi wave, despite unity effort

They came, they met and then they lost the game. The opposition league, which was toying with names such as Secular Democratic Front, failed to dent or stop the Narendra Modi wave.

To defeat Modi, Gandhi had agreed to give up several things(PTI file photo)

elections

Updated on May 24, 2019 10:59 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Jagan Reddy, Stalin, Naveen other big winners

The giant laddoo cake that had been ordered by the Delhi unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) hadn’t even arrived yet from Bengali Sweets on Thursday when the party accomplished a majority on its own in the Lok Sabha.

Yeduguri Sandinti Jaganmohan Reddy President YSR Congress(ANI photo)

india news

Updated on May 24, 2019 12:10 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

UPA+ could be branded as Secular Democratic Front

The name SDF was suggested by the Congress, according to people directly involved in the process of forming the alliance who asked not to be named

elections

Updated on May 23, 2019 08:45 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Sharad Pawar works the phones to get new partners for anti-BJP bloc

Hindustan Times has learnt from officials aware of developments in the NCP and the Congress that Pawar was getting in touch with the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), and the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP).

Congress managers who are now working out the post-poll strategy confirmed Pawar’s role as one of the key people talking to parties who may be open to supporting the United Progressive Alliance. (Photo by Bachchan Kumar/ Hindustan Times)

elections

Updated on May 22, 2019 11:51 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury and Aurangzeb Naqshbandi

Priyanka Gandhi hints she is game for Amethi bypoll fight

It’s not a challenge, Priyanka Gandhi said in an interview to HT on Friday, when asked if she was ready to take on the task of contesting for the Amethi seat in case the Congress president gives it up

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra hinted that she might contest from Amethi in case Rahul Gandhi wins both the seats he is contesting in the Lok Sabha elections(ANI)

elections

Updated on May 18, 2019 07:55 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

‘PM Modi should clearly state what he thinks about Godse’: Priyanka Gandhi

“It’s not enough to say that in your heart, you will not forgive them. You are a political leader, you have to state your political position,” Priyanka Gandhi said.

Uttar Pradesh, May 9 (ANI): Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi addresses at an election rally(ANI)

elections

Updated on May 18, 2019 11:22 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

‘Exceeding brief, interference’: Why top Bengal officials were shifted by EC

The report details what happened during and after BJP president Amit Shah’s rally and ends by asking for “Exemplary action against Sh Atri Bhattacharya, Principal Secretary, Home and Sh Rajeev Kumar,. Addl DG, CID”.

The Election Commission’s decision to transfer West Bengal CID’s additional director general Rajiv Kumar and relieve the state’s home secretary Atri Bhattacharya of his duties in the wake of clashes between Trinamool Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party workers was based on a two-page report by its observers on location.(REUTERS)

elections

Updated on May 17, 2019 11:44 AM IST

New Delhi | BySunetra Choudhury

Lok Sabha elections 2019: KCR pushes for national role in post-poll scenario

KCR is also believed to be negotiating on behalf of the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), led by Jaganmohan Reddy, in Andhra Pradesh. The two parties hope to have a bloc of around 35-40 seats, a considerable number.

Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) chief and Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday met Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader MK Stalin.(PTI File Photo)

elections

Updated on May 14, 2019 08:40 AM IST

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | ByAurangzeb Naqshbandi and Sunetra Choudhury

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Sunetra Choudhury

If cleared by the Cabinet, this will be the second major labour reform approved by the government.

The remarks mark a change in stand from May, shortly after his party won 25 of the 28 Lok Sabha seats in the state.

Yeddyurappa maintained that the BJP had nothing to do with the political development in the state.

Rajmath Singh referred to Rahul Gandhi’s resignation as party chief after taking moral responsibility for the party’s debacle in Lok Sabha elections and to his remarks that numerous people would have to made accountable for the loss.

When Nirmala Sitharaman posed for the traditional photo-op Friday before entering Parliament, she did so carrying a “bahi khata” or ledger, packed in a red cloth embossed with the national emblem.

PM Modi’s speech at the BJP’s parliamentary party meeting also had words for all BJP members of parliament (MPs) lax about attendance.

PM Modi signaled at the meeting of the BJP parliamentary party that he was unhappy that many BJP Members of Parliament had been absenting themselves from the House during key discussions in the first few days of the Budget session.

It does not matter whose son he is, an upset PM Modi is reported to have told a meeting of BJP’s parliamentary party that has lawmakers from the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, according to a TV news channel.

Since May 25, when Gandhi offered to resign at a Congress working committee (CWC) meeting , he has gone into a shell.

According to the functionaries cited, the Congress leadership relied too heavily on the numbers that were being generated and the inferences drawn from them.

The sloganeering was mentioned by the Congress leader in the Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, in his welcome address to the speaker on Wednesday.

PM Modi wants to write about mental health and about children getting addicted to gadgets in the revised edition.

The Andhra CM said that he hopes that the PM’s heart would “soften” one day and he would grant the special category status.

In a conversation with HT, newly-elected chief minister of Andhra Pradesh Jaganmohan Reddy talks about his plans for the state, his relationship with the Centre, and the upcoming Parliament session.

The next census, in 2021, is slated to count OBCs for the first time in 90 years. The commission, headed by former high court chief justice G Rohini, is giving the finishing touches to its report that will be submitted next month.

The body has representation from allies like, for instance, the Akalis and Shiv Sena in the Modi government, which has made it large and unwieldy, according to officials in the know.

Interestingly, in the list released on Thursday morning, Singh was named as a member of just two, albeit crucial committees -- the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) and the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA).

JD (U) won 16 of the 17 seats it contested in Bihar and so was unhappy with the formula worked out by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to give a single cabinet berth to each ally in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), regardless of the number of seats won.

He may have been third in line in seniority in the Cabinet after the Prime Minister and Rajnath Singh. But 55-year-old Amit Shah is set to be the second-most powerful person in Narendra Modi’s council of ministers.

The BJP won all 25 parliamentary constituencies in Rajasthan, just five months after being defeated by the Congress in state assembly elections

In an attempt to increase its footprint in the southern states, the BJP will recast itself as a pan-Indian party and not a “Hindi-speaking outfit” in time for the next Lok Sabha election, senior functionaries said

Interestingly, Gandhi’s continued use of the slogan prompted the Prime Minister to make it the prefix of his Twitter ID, encouraging his council of ministers and other BJP followers to emulate him.

They came, they met and then they lost the game. The opposition league, which was toying with names such as Secular Democratic Front, failed to dent or stop the Narendra Modi wave.

The giant laddoo cake that had been ordered by the Delhi unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) hadn’t even arrived yet from Bengali Sweets on Thursday when the party accomplished a majority on its own in the Lok Sabha.

The name SDF was suggested by the Congress, according to people directly involved in the process of forming the alliance who asked not to be named

Hindustan Times has learnt from officials aware of developments in the NCP and the Congress that Pawar was getting in touch with the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), and the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP).

It’s not a challenge, Priyanka Gandhi said in an interview to HT on Friday, when asked if she was ready to take on the task of contesting for the Amethi seat in case the Congress president gives it up

“It’s not enough to say that in your heart, you will not forgive them. You are a political leader, you have to state your political position,” Priyanka Gandhi said.

The report details what happened during and after BJP president Amit Shah’s rally and ends by asking for “Exemplary action against Sh Atri Bhattacharya, Principal Secretary, Home and Sh Rajeev Kumar,. Addl DG, CID”.

KCR is also believed to be negotiating on behalf of the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), led by Jaganmohan Reddy, in Andhra Pradesh. The two parties hope to have a bloc of around 35-40 seats, a considerable number.

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