Page 16 - Election Commission

LG govt has shaken up administration: NC asks EC to suspend transfer

The National Conference on Friday called on the Election Commission of India (ECI) to thoroughly investigate the massive transfers in the police and civil administration, and demanded immediate suspension of the implementation of such orders. National Conference general secretary Ali Mohammad Sagar said the move seems "clearly intended to undermine" the integrity of the electoral process, which restricts such transfers to prevent the ruling party from gaining an undue administrative advantage over the opposition. "Why has a massive reshuffle been ordered in the police and administration since last evening, and today morning, seemingly to pre-empt the Election Commission's announcement? It appears to have been orchestrated by a BJP-appointed LG to benefit his party and its allies," Sagar said in a statement. "The LG government has strategically shaken up the entire administrative set up compromising the principles of free and fair elections," he added. The National Conference called

Election Commission to release poll schedule for key states at 3 pm

The terms of legislative assemblies in Haryana and Maharashtra will expire on Nov 3 and Nov 26, respectively. J&K elections are expected to be held before Sept 30, as ordered by the Supreme Court

Ensure level playing field during Assembly polls: EC to Haryana officials

The Election Commission has directed district election officers and superintendents of police in Haryana to act with complete impartiality and ensure a level playing field for free and fair assembly elections. Underscoring its focus on an inducement-free poll process, the commission directed the enforcement agencies to work in a coordinated manner to curb the inflow of illicit liquor, cash and drugs. The directions were issued by an Election Commission (EC) team led by Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar. The team is on a two-day visit of Haryana to review poll preparedness for assembly elections, likely to be held later this year. The term of the 90-member Haryana Assembly is due to expire on November 3. The EC team, also comprising election commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, arrived in Chandigarh on Monday. During the visit, the team met representatives of national and state parties such as AAP, BJP, CPI(M), Congress, Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) and th

Committed to conducting elections in J&K at earliest: CEC Rajiv Kumar

Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Friday said that the EC was committed to conducting polls in Jammu and Kashmir at the earliest and would not allow any internal or external forces derail the electoral process. Addressing a press conference here, Kumar said all parties in Jammu and Kashmir are "batting strongly" for holding assembly elections. "We are committed to conducting polls in Jammu and Kashmir at the earliest and we will not let any internal or external forces derail the election," Kumar said. "All political parties in Jammu and Kashmir are batting strongly for holding assembly elections as soon as possible," he added. An Election Commission delegation led by Kumar is in Jammu and Kashmir on a three-day visit to review the preparedness of the administration as well as the security agencies for the conduct of the polls. On the second day of their visit on Friday, the EC delegation that also includes Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and S S Sandhu, held discussi

J-K poll: EC team holds consultations with chief secretary, police chief

The Election Commission on Friday held consultations with the Jammu and Kashmir chief secretary and the union territory's police chief to review the preparedness for assembly polls, officials said. On the second day of their visit, the EC delegation comprising Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar and Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and S S Sandhu held discussions with J-K chief secretary Atal Dullo and J-K Police DGP R R Swain, the officials said. The ECI reviewed the preparedness of the administration as well as the security agencies for the conduct of the polls. The ECI team sought feedback from the DGP on the readiness and preparation of the forces for the polls, the officials said. The issues of deployment of forces, providing security cover to candidates, and security during campaigning were deliberated upon, the officials added. After the meeting, the ECI team left for Jammu where it will hold a review meeting with enforcement agencies. It will also hold a pres

Elections to 12 vacant Rajya Sabha seats from 9 states on September 3: EC

Elections to 12 vacant Rajya Sabha seats in nine states will be held on September 3, the Election Commission said on Wednesday. Ten Rajya Sabha seats fell vacant as the sitting members, including Union ministers Piyush Goyal, Sarbananda Sonowal and Jyotiraditya Scindia, were elected to the Lok Sabha. Bypolls are also being held for two seats in Telangana and Odisha. K Keshava Rao from Telangana resigned recently from the House after quitting the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) to join the Congress while Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MP Mamata Mohanta resigned from her Rajya Sabha seat and primary membership of the party. Besides Goyal, Sonowal and Scindia, the other Rajya Sabha members who won the parliamentary polls and moved to the Lok Sabha are Kamakhya Prasad Tasa (BJP), Misha Bharti (RJD), Vivek Thakur (BJP), Deepender Singh Hooda (Congress), Udayanraje Bhosle (BJP), K C Venugopal (Congress) and Biplab Kumar Deb (BJP). The notification for the Rajya Sabha elections will be issued on Aug

Assembly elections in J&K to be held in Sept: Union minister G Kishan Reddy

A new J&K has emerged where terrorism, stone-pelting, hoisting of Pakistani flags, and an insult to the Tricolour are history, said the minister in Jammu rally

EC issues instructions on transfer of officials in J&K ahead of elections

In a fresh indication that assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir are imminent, the Election Commission on Wednesday asked the Union Territory administration to transfer out officers posted in their home districts, an exercise it holds ahead of conducting elections. The commission has been following a consistent policy that officers directly connected with the conduct of elections in a poll-bound state or Union Territory are not posted in their home districts or places where they have served for a considerably long period. It has issued similar directions to the chief secretaries of Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand. It said the terms of the existing legislative assemblies of Haryana, Jharkhand and Maharashtra were up to November 3, 2024; January 5, 2025; and November 26, 2024, respectively, and elections in these states were due in 2024. "Further, the election to the legislative assembly of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir is also due in the near future," it noted. It is us

Election Commission to conduct mock polls to check EVMs post LS polls

The EC received eight applications for verification of EVMs used in the 18th Lok Sabha elections and three for the Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha

Congress candidates lead in Manglaur, Badrinath seats of Uttarakhand

Congress candidates for the Badrinath and Manglaur assembly bypolls in Uttarakhand were leading in both the seats on Saturday, officials said. The counting of votes for the by-elections in the two assembly constituencies, held on Wednesday, began at 8 am. Congress' Qazi Nizamuddin was ahead by 87,365 votes against the BJP's Kartar Singh Bhadana in the sixth round of counting in Manglaur. BSP's Ubaidur Rahman, who was behind Nizamuddin at the second spot in the initial rounds of counting, is now trailing at the third spot in the seat. The seat was with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) but fell vacant after Rahman's father and sitting MLA Sarwat Karim Ansari died in October 2023. In the Badrinath assembly seat, Congress' Lakhpat Singh Butola was leading by 1,935 votes against BJP's Rajendra Bhandari in the seventh round of counting. The seat fell vacant after Bhandari resigned from the Congress and the state assembly to join the BJP just before the Lok Sabha polls earlier this year.

Donald Trump no more 'broke don' as fundraising race shifts his way

Joe Biden, who had no major primary rivals nor an army of attorneys to pay, has built up a $212 million war chest, a record amount for a Democratic candidate

EC to update voters' list in poll-bound states, including Jammu and Kashmir

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said on Thursday that assembly elections would be held soon in Jammu and Kashmir and plans are underway to restore statehood to the UT in the near future

EC begins J&K Assembly polls prep, electoral roll expected by Aug 20

State and UT Assembly elections will be conducted in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), Haryana, Jharkhand, and Maharashtra, along with 47 by-polls

EC begins updating electoral rolls for Haryana, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, J-K

The Election Commission on Friday said it has initiated preparations for forthcoming assembly elections in Haryana, Maharashtra and Jharkhand with updation of electoral rolls in these states. July 1, 2024 will be the qualifying date. For the just-held Lok Sabha polls, the voters list was updated with January 1 as the qualifying date. Qualifying date helps establish number of voters on a given date in a state or in the country. The term of the existing legislative assemblies in the three states are going to end on November 3, November 26 and January 5, 2025 respectively and elections to these legislative assemblies are required to be conducted before the completion of their terms. Besides, assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir are also to be conducted for constituting a new house after delimitation of constituencies, the EC said. "Witnessing the huge participation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections, the Commission has also directed

Rahul, Aaditya should apologise for remarks over EVMs: Sanjay Nirupam

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Nirupam on Monday said Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray should apologise for disseminating "false" information based on a news report on the EVMs. A political slugfest erupted on Sunday over EVM tampering claims with Gandhi, Thackeray and other opposition leaders citing a media report which alleged that a relative of Shiv Sena's Mumbai North West Lok Sabha seat candidate Ravindra Waikar was found using a mobile phone "connected" to an EVM during the counting of votes on June 4. The media report said a relative of Waikar, who won from seat by just 48 votes, had used a mobile phone to "unlock" an electronic voting machine (EVM) when the votes were being counted. Vandana Suryavanshi, returning officer of the constituency, however, dismissed the report in 'mid-day' newspaper as "false news" and said a defamation notice has been issued to the publication. She asserted that the EVM is a standalone system, not programmable and has

EC should release data on EVMs found faulty in LS polls: Gaurav Gogoi

Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi on Monday asked the Election Commission to put out data on how many EVMs were found faulty throughout the Lok Sabha polls. Gogoi, who won the just concluded Lok Sabha elections from Assam's Jorhat seat by defeating his nearest BJP rival by a margin of over 1.44 lakh votes, said he can confidently say that these machines have shown inaccurate results. Gogoi's statement came a day after a fresh political row erupted over EVM tampering claims with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders citing a media report that alleged that a relative of the Shiv Sena candidate in Mumbai North West Lok Sabha constituency was found using a mobile phone "connected" to an electronic voting machine during the counting of votes on June 4. In a post on 'X', Gogoi said before treating the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) as infallible, the Election Commission of India should put out data on how many EVMs were found faulty throughout the elections. He said the

Bypolls for 13 Assembly seats in 7 states on July 10; results on 13th: EC

The Election Commission on Monday announced bypolls to 13 assembly constituencies across seven states, including four in West Bengal, on July 10. The bypolls are to be held against vacancies created either due to deaths or resignation of incumbent members. The assembly seats going for bypolls are Rupauli (Bihar), Raiganj, Ranaghat Dakshin, Bagda and Maniktala (all West Bengal), Vikravandi (Tamil Nadu), Amarwara (Madhya Pradesh), Badrinath and Manglaur (Uttarakhand), Jalandhar West (Punjab) and Dehra, Hamirpur and Nalagarh (Himachal Pradesh). The notification for the elections will be issued on June 14, the last date for filing of nomination papers is June 21, the poll papers will be scrutinised on June 24 and the last date for withdrawal of nomination papers is June 26. The bypolls will be held on July 10 and the counting of votes will be on July 13. The Election Commission said the bypolls have to be completed before July 15.

65.79% turnout recorded in LS polls, excludes postal ballots, says EC

A voter turnout of 65.79 per cent was recorded in the just-concluded Lok Sabha elections but the final figures may change as it does not include postal ballots, the Election Commission said on Thursday. In the 2019 parliamentary polls, the turnout was 67.40 per cent. While in 2019, India had 91.20 crore voters and out of these, 61.5 crore had exercised their franchise, in the 2024 polls, the size of the electorate grew to 96.88 crore. At a recent press conference, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar had said a total of 64.2 crore voters have exercised their franchise in the 2024 polls. "Overall, 65.79 per cent voter turnout recorded in general elections, 2024, at the polling stations," the Election Commission said in a statement. Voter turnout at polling stations means votes polled in electronic voting machines. The poll panel said detailed statistical reports having the number of postal votes and gross voter turnout will be made available after finalisation of details as rec

Rebuffed attempts to vitiate electoral process with rumours, doubts: ECI

The Election Commission on Thursday dedicated the "violence-free" Lok Sabha polls to Mahatma Gandhi and asserted that it rebuffed attempts to vitiate the electoral process with "rumours and baseless doubts" that could have fomented unrest across the country. Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar and Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and S S Sandhu visited the Raj Ghat, the Mahatma Gandhi's memorial, after presenting the notification constituting the 18th Lok Sabha to President Droupadi Murmu. In a statement, CEC Rajiv Kumar pledged that the EC's service to the nation, now in its 76th year, will go on with "unflinching" dedication. "We rebuffed all attempts to vitiate the electoral process with rumours and baseless doubts which could have fomented unrest. The 'Will' and 'Wisdom' of the common man who has enormous faith in democratic institutions of India have prevailed. We are morally and legally obliged to always uphold the same by conducting free, fair and inclusive ...

CEC Rajiv Kumar, 2 ECs meet Prez Murmu; present details of new LS members

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar along with two election commissioners on Thursday presented details of newly elected Lok Sabha members to President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhavan here. The meeting is part of the process for the formation of the next or the 18th Lok Sabha. CEC Rajiv Kumar, accompanied by Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, met the President at 4.30 pm, a statement issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan said. "A copy of the notification issued by the Election Commission of India, in terms of Section 73 of the Representation of People's Act, 1951, containing the names of the members elected to the House of the People following the General Elections to the 18th Lok Sabha, was submitted by them to the President," it said. The section mandates "publication of results of general elections to the House of the People and the State Legislative Assemblies and of names of persons nominated thereto". President Murmu congratulated th