Page 16 - Election Commission

Sri Lanka President's party wins parliamentary majority. India impact

Sri Lanka's National People's Power, led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, has secured a parliamentary majority, as per official results announced by the country's elections commission

'Ensure level playing field': Congress to EC on Rahul's chopper delay

The Congress on Friday complained to the Election Commission against the alleged grounding of party leader Rahul Gandhi's helicopter in poll-bound Jharkhand and sought its urgent intervention in ensuring a level-playing field in poll campaigning. The Congress has alleged that Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi's chopper was not allowed to take off due to restrictions leading to his public meetings getting either delayed or cancelled. Congress general secretary, communications, Jairam Ramesh wrote to the poll panel and asserted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's poll campaign cannot take precedence over that of others. "There should be a level-playing field in campaigning. The PM's campaign cannot take precedence over that of all others. Today Rahul Gandhi got delayed in Jharkhand on this account," Ramesh said in a post on X. In his complaint to the Chief Election Commissioner, the Congress leader sought his urgent intervention, saying a level playing field should b

Nearly 65% turnout recorded in first phase of Jharkhand Assembly polls

In Jharkhand, the average voter turnout for all 81 seats in 2019 was 65.18 per cent

Jharkhand Assembly elections Phase 1 highlights: 65% voter turnout in 43 seats till 5 pm

Jharkhand Assembly elections LIVE: Voters to decide if JMM stays in power or BJP-led NDA stages a comeback, catch all the LIVE updates here

Jharkhand polls: 46.25% turnout recorded in 43 Assembly seats till 1 pm

A voter turnout of 29.31 per cent was recorded in the first four hours of polling on Wednesday in 43 assembly constituencies in Jharkhand where voting is underway in the first phase, officials said. Polling began at 7 AM in these constituencies across 15 districts and will continue till 5 PM. A total of 683 candidates are trying their luck, including former CM Champai Soren and ex-MP Geeta Kora. Long queues of voters were seen outside several booths in the morning. Khunti district registered the highest voter turnout at 34.12 per cent, followed by 33.86 per cent in Gumla, 33.44 per cent in Lohardaga and 33.18 per cent in Simdega. Serailkeala-Kharsawan recorded 32.65 per cent voting, followed by 31.10 per cent in Koderma, 30.59 per cent in Latehar and 30.38 per cent in Garhwa. Hazaribag registered 29.60 per cent polling, Chatra 29.52 per cent, West Singhbhum 29.42 per cent, Palamu 29.36 per cent and East Sinbhum 28.34 per cent. Of the remaining districts, Ranchi recorded 24.75 pe

BJP's 'shadow campaigns' maligning image of Jharkhand: CM Hemant Soren

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Wednesday accused the BJP of maligning his and the state's image through "shadow campaigns". He alleged that the saffron camp has been "spending crores of money on various social media platforms" and "created 95,000 Whatsapp groups" to campaign against the JMM-led coalition in the state. Hitting out at the saffron party, Soren claimed that "dictators may possess billions of rupees" but he believed it was "better to stick to principles rather than securing a win through unfair means". The allegations were made at a time when the polling was underway in 43 of the 81 assembly constituencies in the state in the first phase of elections. "I want to present an important report to you. Crores of rupees have been spent on Facebook advertisements by the BJP to damage my and the state's image through a 'shadow campaign'. "In the last 30 days, advertisements worth Rs 72 lakh have been given from various social media accounts like 'Jharkhand Chaupal',

Sri Lanka set for parliamentary polls on Nov 14, all arrangements in place

Sri Lanka is set to hold its parliamentary election on Thursday with all arrangements in place to ensure a fair and transparent process, a top election commission official has said. Voting will take place at over 13,314 polling stations across the country, from 7 am to 4 pm local time on Thursday. Director General of the Elections Commission Saman Sri Ratnayaka on Tuesday said that all ballot boxes and other equipment needed at the polling stations would be dispatched on Wednesday. The polling station officials will carry out rehearsals from 7 am on Wednesday," Ratnayaka said. Over 17 million voters from the island's 21 million population are eligible to vote. 225 members would be elected from voting based on proportional representation. The western province district of Gampaha would elect the highest number of Members of Parliament 19 with the capital district of Colombo from the same province having 18 MPs elected. The eastern province district of Trincomalee will elect the lo

Raut alleges huge money distribution ahead of Assembly polls, questions ECI

Taking a jibe at the ECI, Raut asked why only the vehicles and planes of opposition leaders are being checked

TMC complains to EC, claims poll code violation by BJP's Suvendu Adhikari

The Trinamool Congress on Monday complained to the Election Commission of India alleging that BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari breached the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) by making communal remarks during a campaign rally for the byelection to Taldangra assembly constituency. In West Bengal, bypolls will be held in six assembly constituencies on November 13, necessitated due to resignations of sitting MLAs of the six segments following their victory in this year's Lok Sabha elections. The TMC, in a complaint letter to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), West Bengal, alleged that the Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, "made inflammatory and communal remarks" violating the MCC. The TMC sought immediate intervention of the Election Commission of India in enforcing "appropriate penal action including strict censorship of Suvendu Adhikari and BJP as a stakeholder political party for palpable violation of Model Code of Conduct. A 3-member TMC delegation, comprising lead

Wayanad bypolls: EC seizes food kits with Rahul, Priyanka Gandhi's photos

The by-election for the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency is scheduled for November 13

ECI orders transfer of Maharashtra DGP Rashmi Shukla ahead of polls

hief Secretary has been directed to submit a panel of three IPS officers for the appointment of the new DGP by 1 PM on November 5, 2024

EC accepts J'khand govt's proposal to appoint Alka Tiwari as chief secy

The Election Commission on Friday accepted the Jharkhand government's proposal to appoint Alka Tiwari as the chief secretary of the poll-bound state. Assembly polls in Jharkhand will be held in two phases -- November 13 and November 20. Tiwari, who is from the 1988 batch, is currently the senior-most IAS officer in the cadre. Before this, the poll panel had also consented to the proposal of a five-month extension of the tenure of former chief secretary Lalbiaktluanga Khiangte, sources said. Meanwhile, the state government issued a notification announcing the appointment of Tiwari as the chief secretary. "The proposal for appointment has been approved by the Election Commission of India," a notification from the department of Personnel, Administrative Reforms and Rajbhasha said. Her husband and 1986-batch retired IAS officer Dr DK Tiwari had earlier held the topmost bureaucratic post in the state. Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren in a post on X said: "Mr Khiangte has retired

EC rejects Congress' allegation over irregularities in Haryana polls

In a letter to the Congress party, the Commission urged them to refrain from making unfounded claims after every election, accusing the party of creating "generic" doubts without substance

SC notices ECI after plea claims RP Act provision prevents choosing NOTA

The Supreme Court on Monday sought responses from the Centre and Election Commission of India (ECI) on a plea challenging a provision of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, claiming it prevents voters from choosing the "none of the above" (NOTA) option if there was only one candidate. The plea, which came up for hearing before a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan, challenged Section 53 (2) of the Act. Section 53 deals with procedure in contested and uncontested elections and Section 53 (2) says if the number of contesting candidates is equal to the number of seats to be filled, the returning officer shall forthwith declare all such candidates to be duly elected to fill those seats. The apex court issued notices to the Centre and the ECI seeking their responses on the petition. Senior advocate Arvind Datar along with advocate Harsh Parashar appeared for petitioner legal think-tank Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy. The plea further sought that Rule 11 read with Forms

Ahead of Assembly polls, EC orders removal of acting Jharkhand DGP

Ahead of the upcoming Jharkhand polls, the Election Commission on Saturday directed the state government to remove Acting Director General of Police (DGP) Anurag Gupta from his position with immediate effect due to a "history" of complaints against him in previous elections, sources said. The Jharkhand Assembly elections will be held in two phases -- November 13 and 20. The decision to remove Gupta was taken based on a history of complaints and action taken by the commission against him during previous elections, the sources said. The charge of the DGP will now be handed over to the senior most DGP-level officer in the cadre, they said.

Over 900 centenarians eligible to cast votes in 1st phase of J'khand polls

More than 900 centenarians, including 533 women, are eligible to exercise their franchise in 43 assembly constituencies going to polls in the first phase of Jharkhand elections on November 13, an official said on Friday. The Jharkhand assembly polls will be held in two phases on November 13 and November 20, while the counting of votes will take place on November 23. "A total of 995 voters aged above 100 years, including 462 male voters and 533 female voters, are eligible to cast their votes in the first phase of assembly elections in the state on November 13," the official said. As per the electoral rolls, Jharkhand has a total of 2.60 crore voters, of whom 1.13 lakh are senior citizens aged above 85 years. The official said that assured minimum facilities along with accessibility friendly infrastructure like ramps would be ensured at the polling stations for PWDs (persons with disabilities) and senior citizens. In Jharkhand, all polling stations are located at ground floor and ra

SC notice to Centre, EC on fresh plea against freebies during elections

The Supreme Court has sought response from the Centre and the the Election Commission on a fresh plea against the practice of political parties promising freebies during elections. A bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra issued notices to the Union of India and the poll panel on a petition filed by Bengaluru resident Shashank J Sreedhara. The petition filed by advocate Srinivasan has also sought a direction to poll panel to take effective steps to restrain political parties from making promises of freebies during the pre-election period. "The unregulated promise of freebies imposes a significant and unaccounted financial burden on the public exchequer. Further, there exists no mechanism to ensure the fulfilment of pre-poll promises on which votes were secured," the plea said. The top court tagged the matter with other pleas on similar issue. The apex court had earlier agreed to list for hearing pleas against the practice of political par

Maharashtra to vote on Nov 20, Jharkhand on Nov 13 & 20; results on Nov 23

The tenure of the 288-member Maharashtra Assembly ends in November, while the 81-member Jharkhand Assembly's tenure ends on January 5, 2025

Haryana elections: Congress alleges 'EVM tampering' in 13 more seats

During vote counting, Jairam Ramesh noted that BJP-led EVMs had 99% battery levels, while those with 60-70% battery showed Congress winning

Haryana polls: Cong submits more complaints to EC about EVM discrepancies

The Congress on Friday submitted more complaints to the Election Commission alleging discrepancies in the electronic voting machines during counting of votes for the Haryana Assembly elections. The Congress candidates from 20 assembly constituencies, in their written complaints to the Election Commission (EC), have alleged that the batteries in some of the EVMs were charged at 99 per cent during counting on October 8. The complaints follow the Congress' shock defeat in the Haryana Assembly elections after the party failed to win a simple majority even after 10 years of the BJP rule in the state. The Congress has said that the assembly polls results were "unexpected" and have alleged discrepancies in the EVMs in some seats. "In furtherance of the issues raised and the representation submitted to the Election Commission of India on 9th October, we have now submitted an updated memo highlighting serious and glaring irregularities in the election process in 20 assembly constituencies i