Page 50 - Election Commission Of India

Supreme Court refuses to stay appointments of new ECs under 2023 law

The Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay the appointments of new election commissioners (ECs) under a 2023 law that excluded the chief justice of India from the selection panel. A bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna, Dipankar Datta and Augustine George Masih told the petitioners, who pointed out that a meeting for the selection of ECs was pre-poned, to file a separate application pointing out the fact. Refusing to stay the appointments made in accordance with the 2023 law, the bench said, "Normally and generally, we do not stay a law by way of an interim order." It deferred the hearing on a batch of pleas challenging the appointment of two ECs under the 2023 law. Senior advocate Vikas Singh, appearing in the court on behalf of petitioner Jaya Thakur, said when a judgment is passed, there cannot be any transgression. He contended that there was a clear-cut transgression in the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term o

SC to examine EC rule on grant of symbols on first come, first served basis

The Supreme Court on Friday sought a response from the Election Commission on a plea of Tamil Nadu-based unrecognised political party, Naam Tamilar Katchi, challenging the allotment of free symbols to unrecognised political parties on a first come, first served basis. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra also issued a notice to another unrecognised political party which was granted the poll symbol which was earlier with the Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK). The high court, on March 1, had dismissed the petition of NTK challenging the allotment of free symbols by the poll panel to unrecognised political parties on first come, first served basis. It had rejected the contention of the petitioner, NTK, that the Election Symbols Order to this effect was arbitrary and unconstitutional, saying a contrary view would operate against the very essence of having free symbols. The petitioner was aggrieved by the allotment of free symbol 'ganna kisa

RIL denies links with Qwik Supply the third largest electoral bond buyer

Qwik Supply Chain Private Limited, a little-known company with registered address at Navi Mumbai's Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge City (DAKC) and having links to Reliance Industries, was the third largest donor to political parties using electoral bonds. It bought Rs 410 crore of electoral bonds between financial years 2021-22 and 2023-24 but Reliance said the company is not a subsidiary of any Reliance entity. Electoral bond purchases and donations by Qwik Supply were behind Rs 1,368 crore of Future Gaming and Hotel Services - another little-known lottery company - and Rs 966 crore of Hyderabad-based Megha Engineering & Infra, according to information uploaded by the Election Commission on its website. Publicly available information describes Qwik Supply as a manufacturer of warehouses and storage units. The unlisted private company was incorporated on November 9, 2000 with an authorised share capital of Rs 130.99 crore. Its paid-up capital is Rs 129.99 crore. The firm had a revenue .

Lok Sabha election 2024 poll schedule to be announced on Saturday: ECI

The Election Commission of India will also announce key dates for State Assembly elections

Sibal demands investigation into electoral bonds, calls it 'big scam'

Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Friday described the electoral bonds scheme as a "very big scam" and demanded that a special investigation team (SIT) be set up with court-appointed officials to probe the alleged quid pro quo and wrongdoings under it. Sibal, a senior advocate who is leading the arguments for the petitioners in a case in the Supreme Court against electoral bonds, alleged at a press conference here that the scheme was "illegal" and aimed at enriching a political party in such a manner that no other political party can compete with it. His remarks came a day after the Election Commission (EC) put up the data on electoral bonds on its website. Attacking the BJP-led Centre over the issue, Sibal said, "The person who started this scheme was our former finance minister (Arun Jaitley) and he thought that in this manner, no political party would be able to compete with us (BJP) and he was proven right. The one who has money can play the game." The Rajya Sabha MP said it has to

Electoral bonds: Megha Engineering donates Rs 1,200 cr; 2nd highest overall

Top electoral bonds doors: Everything you need to know about Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd and its subsidiaries that made up the second largest electoral bond donor

Meet Santiago Martin, the 'Lottery King' who is top electoral bond donor

Electoral bonds: Santiago Martin's company, Future Gaming and Hotel Services, purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 1,368 crore between April 2019 and January 2024

Electoral bonds data exposes BJP's 'corrupt tactics', says Congress

The Congress on Friday alleged that the electoral bonds data has exposed "corrupt tactics" of the BJP such as quid pro quo, seeking donations for the company's protection, kickbacks and money laundering through shell companies. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh also said the party continues to demand unique bond ID numbers, so that it can precisely match donors to recipients. In a post on X, Ramesh put out a "quick first analysis" of the Electoral Bonds (EB)data disclosure that the SBI put out after weeks of "attempting to postpone it until after the election". "Over 1,300 companies and individuals have donated electoral bonds, including over 6,000 crore to the BJP since 2019," he said. So far, the electoral bonds data exposes at least four corrupt tactics of the BJP, Ramesh claimed. "Quid Pro Quo: There are many cases of companies that have donated electoral bonds, and immediately afterwards gotten huge benefits from the government: Megha Engineering & Infra has given over

Newly appointed ECs Gyanesh Kumar, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu assume charge

Newly appointed election commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu assumed charge on Friday. The former bureaucrats were appointed as election commissioners on Thursday. They are the first ones to have been appointed as members of the poll panel after the new law on appointment of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and ECs came into force recently. Welcoming them, CEC Rajiv Kumar spoke about the significance of their joining at a historic point when the Election Commission is all set to conduct Lok Sabha elections, a spokesperson said. The vacancies had come up in the Election Commission after the retirement of Anup Chandra Pandey on February 14 and the sudden resignation of Arun Goel on March 8. Gyanesh Kumar and Sandhu, both 1988-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers, belonged to the Kerala and Uttarakhand cadres, respectively.

LS polls 2024: Ex-bureaucrats Sukhbir Sandhu, Gyanesh Kumar named new ECs

Former bureaucrats Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Gyanesh Kumar have been named as the new election commissioners by a panel chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, committee member and Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said on Thursday. Addressing reporters at his residence soon after the meeting ended, Chowdhury said six names came up before the panel for the selection of the two ECs and the names of Sandhu and Kumar were finalised by a majority of members of the high-powered panel. He, however, said the Chief Justice of India should have been part of the selection panel and there was no clarity on how six names were shortlisted from over 200 candidates that are said to have come before the search committee headed by the Law Minister. The six names shortlisted were that of Utpal Kumar Singh, Pradeep Kumar Tripathi, Gyanesh Kumar, Indevar Pandey, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, Sudhir Kumar Gangadhar Rahate, all former bureaucrats. "Of the six names, the names of Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir .

Hiding monetary exchange between capital & politics unhealthy for democracy

SBI, the institution that operated the six-year-old election funding mechanism, knows very well which political parties got money from whom in accounts specially opened for the purpose

Electoral bonds data: Cong flags discrepancy in entries, recipient files

Soon after the Election Commission released electoral bonds data, the Congress on Thursday said there was a discrepancy in the numbers of entries in donor and recipient files -- 18,871 against 20,421. It also asked why the data shared pertained to a period from April 2019 even though the scheme for anonymous political funding was introduced in 2017. Amitabh Dubey, in charge of research and monitoring in the Congress' communication department, said the electoral bond scheme began in 2017, but the data presented began in April 2019. "The donors file has 18,871 entries, the recipients file has 20,421 entries. Why the discrepancy @TheOfficialSBI?" he said on X. Tagging Dubey's post, Congress MP and AICC in-charge of Andhra Pradesh Manickam Tagore said, "Ah, yes, the electoral bond scheme, where transparency meets selective amnesia. Donors file: 18,871 entries. Recipients file: 20,421 entries. Coincidence? I think not." "@TheOfficialSBI, you've truly mastered the art of hiding in plain

EC declares electoral bond data: Future Gaming & Hotel tops the list

Future Gaming was probed by the Enforcement Directorate recently, It bought electoral bonds worth over Rs 1,368 crore under two different sets of companies

ECI moves SC seeking modification of March 11 order; hearing on Friday

The five-judge bench on Monday asked the Election Commission of India to publish the details of the information supplied to the court in pursuance of its interim order, on the commission's website

'One nation, no election': Cong's dig at govt after Kovind panel report

The Congress on Thursday attacked the government after a high-level committee recommended simultaneous elections for Lok Sabha and state assemblies, alleging that they want to completely dismantle the Constitution with the objective of 'one nation, no election'. In its report submitted to President Droupadi Murmu that ran into over 18,000 pages, the panel headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind recommended simultaneous elections for Lok Sabha and state assemblies as the first step followed by synchronised local body polls within 100 days. Asked about the development, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh told PTI in Nashik, "The Prime Minister's objective is very clear, he is going around asking for a clear majority, two-thirds majority, 400 seats, and the cat is out of the bag. They want to completely dismantle Babasaheb Ambedkar's Constitution and with what objective -- 'one nation, no election' that is what they want." In its report, the panel said simultaneous polls will .

Have shared electoral bonds details with ECI: SBI tells Supreme Court

'22,217 electoral bonds purchased, 22,030 redeemed between April 1, 2019, and February 15, 2024'

EC will disclose details on electoral bonds in time, says CEC Rajiv Kumar

The Election Commission has received details from the State Bank of India (SBI) related to the electoral bonds and will share all relevant information in time, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said here on Wednesday. The assertion comes in the wake of the Supreme Court directing the SBI to submit the details of the electoral bonds purchased since April 12, 2019 to the EC. SBI is the authorised financial institution to issue the electoral bonds. "The SBI was supposed to submit the data by March 12. They have given to us the details in time. I will go back and look at the data (and) would definitely disclose it in time," Kumar told reporters here. Kumar reached here on Wednesday to review preparations for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. "We are ready for the 2024 Lok Sabha election. We will ensure free and fair elections across the country. We request voters across the country including Jammu and Kashmir to enthusiastically take p

EC to set up 10% all-women polling booths in every Assembly seat in Odisha

The Election Commission has decided to set up 10 per cent all-women polling booths in every assembly constituency in Odisha for the upcoming Lok Sabha and assembly polls in the state, an official said on Wednesday. During a virtual meeting on Tuesday, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Odisha Nikunja Bihari Dhal directed all collectors-cum-district electoral officers (DEOs) to set up such model polling booths to be managed by women only in every assembly constituency. At least five booths in each assembly constituency will be managed by all young electoral personnel, one booth by persons with disability (PwD) and 10 per cent will be managed by all women, Dhal said. In the model women polling stations, all staffers, including police and security personnel, will be women. Similar arrangements will be made for all youth and all PwD booths. The political parties have also been asked to deploy their young, PwD and women representatives in the respective model booths, he said. To ensure the

Electoral bonds case: SBI submits compliance affidavit in Supreme Court

The State Bank of India divulged details about the purchase and redeeming of electoral bonds between April 1, 2019 to February 15, 2024

LS polls 2024: Panneerselvam, Dhinakaran hold seat-sharing talks with BJP

Expelled AIADMK leader O Panneerselvam and AMMK founder TTV Dhinakaran held late night seat-sharing talks with the BJP here for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, with OPS insisting that his candidates will contest from the Two Leaves symbol. The former chief minister O Panneerselvam (OPS) exuded confidence that the popular Two Leaves symbol of the AIADMK would be allotted to him by the EC. The talks that started late on Tuesday extended to the early hours of Wednesday. OPS and Dhinakaran, who had announced joining the BJP-led NDA two days ago, were in discussion with a delegation of the saffron party comprising Union Minister G Kishan Reddy and its Tamil Nadu chief K Annamalai among others. Speaking to reporters later, OPS, as Panneerselvam is addressed, said the NDA coalition was a "mega alliance" and there were chances that "2-3 people (parties)" could seek the same constituency. An amicable decision will be arrived at after talks, he said. Asked if he would 'claim' the Two Leaves