On Tuesday, the Supreme Court (SC) said it would take up the pleas against the appointment of the CEC and election commissioners under the 2023 law on February 19 as a "priority"
Chhattisgarh, Mizoram, Rajasthan, Sikkim, West Bengal, Delhi, Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh witnessed some of the sharpest declines of young electors
The Supreme Court on Wednesday fixed February 19 to hear pleas against the appointment of the chief election commissioner and election commissioners under the 2023 law saying if anything happens in the interregnum, the consequences are bound to follow. A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh was told by advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for an NGO, that earlier the pleas were scheduled to be heard on Wednesday but now they have been listed for hearing on February 19. Bhushan said the urgency in the matter is that Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar is scheduled to superannuate on February 18 and the government may appoint the new CEC under the 2023 law, which is under challenge. The bench said, "We are fixing the matter for hearing on February 19. If anything happens in the interregnum, then the consequences are bound to follow." Bhushan, appearing for NGO 'Association for Democratic Reforms', said the apex court registry has informed them that as Justice Kant wa
AAP and election commission clash over Form 17C transparency on election eve. What is Form 17C
Rahul Gandhi claimed that a total of 39 lakh voters were added between Lok Sabha and state assembly elections
Delhi Assembly elections 2025 voting updates: Polling day concluded with an unimpressive voter turnout. Results will be declared on Feb 8
displaying any election matter, including results of any opinion poll or any other poll survey, in any electronic media would be prohibited during the 48-hour period
The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Election Commission of India to preserve video clips of the polling during the pendency of the pleas against the decision to increase the maximum number of voters per polling station from 1,200 to 1,500. A bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar passed the order the counsel for the Election Commission of India (ECI) sought time to respond to the PIL filed by one Indu Prakash Singh. Singh has challenged the panel's communications in August 2024 for increasing the number of voters per polling stations in each constituency. "The counsel appearing for respondent number 1 prays for further time to file affidavit. Let the affidavit be filed within three weeks from today. We deem it appropriate to direct respondent no 1 to maintain the CCTV recordings as they were doing earlier," the bench said. The top court on January 15 sought responses from the Centre and the poll panel on Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh's
AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal will visit the Election Commission office here on Friday to furnish his reply to the poll body over its notice to him on his "poison mixed" in Yamuna water remark. Kejriwal, who will be accompanied by Delhi Chief Minister Atishi and his Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann, will visit the EC office at 11 am, the party said. Kejriwal on Thursday accused the EC and its chief election commissioner of indulging in politics over his statement and claimed that Yamuna water supplied from Haryana to Delhi has high levels of ammonia content. The EC served him two notices seeking reply over his allegation that the BJP government mixed "poison" in Yamuna water for Delhi attempting a "genocide" in the city. Kejriwal, who is contesting the Delhi polls from the New Delhi seat, was asked to share details of engineers, location and methodology of detecting the "poison" by Delhi Jal Board staff by Friday 11 am, failing which the Commission will be free to take appropriate ..
AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday responded to the Election Commission notice over his claim that Haryana government was "mixing poison" in Yamuna, and said raw water received from the state recently has been "highly contaminated and extremely poisonous" for human health. In his reply, the former Delhi chief minister also said his remarks were made in context of an "urgent public health crisis" over drinking water quality in the city. In the 14-page reply to the Election Commission, he said the "alleged statements" attributed to him were made as his public duty to highlight the "severe toxicity and contamination" of raw water received from the BJP-ruled state. Following a complaint filed by the BJP over the matter, the Election Commission issued the notice to Kejriwal on Tuesday, giving him time till Wednesday 8 pm to furnish his reply. Kejriwal also said the ammonia level in raw water received from Haryana was so "extreme" that water treatment plants in Delhi are unable to ..
He said election management bodies must devise and adopt a framework to manage these challenges
Delhi elections 2025: AAP alleges police collusion in intimidation case, calls for transfers of accused officials
Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded the Election Commission on Sunday, saying it has used the power of technology to strengthen people's power and also shown commitment to a fair polling process. Modi's praise for the poll body in his monthly Mann ki Baat broadcast came ahead of its foundation day on January 25, observed as the National Voters' Day, and amid frequent criticism from the opposition for its alleged pro-BJP bias. The EC has modernised and strengthened the election process from time to time, Modi asserted. "It has used power of technology to strengthen people's power," he said, asking people to participate in the polling process in large numbers to be part of democratic process and empowering it. Opposition parties have increasingly raised questions on the integrity of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), and Modi's remarks can be seen as an endorsement of the EVMs. The prime minister said doubts were cast on India's viability as a democracy after it became independent,
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar has consistently cautioned against the potential of AI and deep fakes
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has approved the transfer of AAP leader Awadh Ojha's name from the voter rolls in Greater Noida to Delhi, enabling him to file his nomination from Patparganj seat, party chief Arvind Kejriwal said on Monday. The development came after a delegation of AAP, led by Kejriwal, met ECI officials to address the issue. "The good news is that Awadh Ojha's vote will be shifted, and the commission has issued an order to transfer his vote. He will be able to file the nomination," Kejriwal said. Earlier in the day, Kejriwal alleged irregularities in the electoral process, claiming that Ojha had filed Form 8 to transfer his vote on January 7, ?the official deadline. He also accused the Delhi chief electoral officer of unlawfully advancing the deadline to January 6. Kejriwal said the move was an attempt to "deliberately debar" Ojha from contesting the February 5 Delhi Assembly elections, saying it was against the law. The former Delhi chief minister also m
Women-centric schemes fuel 18 mn surge in female voter turnout
Quashing BJP leaders' claims that he would contest the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections from a second seat out of fear of losing from New Delhi, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday said he will contest the polls from one seat only. Kejriwal also asserted that the Assembly polls are not an INDA bloc affair as there is a direct contest between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Delhi. A three-time sitting MLA from New Delhi since 2013, Kejriwal this time is locked in an intense triangular contest against the sons of two former chief ministers of Delhi. While the BJP has fielded former chief minister Sahib Singh Verma's son Parvesh Verma, Congress has given ticket to Sandeep Dikshit whose mother Sheila Dikshit was a three-term chief minister of Delhi. "I am contesting one seat only," Kejriwal said at a press conference when asked about BJP's claims that he was going to fight from a second seat out of fear of losing from New Delhi. The AAP leader's ..
Delhi elections on Feb 5, counting on Feb 8
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Tuesday defended the recent amendment to election rules restricting CCTV footage of polling booths from public inspection, saying it is meant to protect voters' privacy and prevent use of data for creating fake narratives. Based on Election Commission's recommendation, the government had last month tweaked an election rule to prevent public inspection of certain electronic documents such as CCTV camera footage of polling stations to prevent misuse. In his first remarks on tweak of Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, Kumar said only sharing of CCTV footage from inside and outside polling booths have been restricted. Addressing a press conference here to announce the schedule for Delhi Assembly polls, he said such data or footage was banned for public inspection through EC's instructions in 2024. He said certain other documents which are allowed under Rule 93 of the Conduct of Election Rules will continue to be available. Some documents which