Page 21 - Election Commission

PM Modi doesn't understand pain of farmers, poor: Priyanka in Haryana

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, accusing him of not understanding the pain of farmers and the poor and alleging that his government frames policies only for his "billionaire" friends. She also hit out at the BJP-led Centre over the issues of "Agniveer" and female wrestlers. Addressing a Lok Sabha poll rally in Panipat district of Haryana after holding a roadshow in Sirsa, Gandhi announced that once the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) forms its government at the Centre, farmers will get a legal guarantee on the minimum support price (MSP) for crops and their debts will be waived. "One thing that has become clear in 10 years is that Modiji does not understand the pain of farmers, the poor, middle class, women and youngsters," she said. Panipat falls under the Karnal Lok Sabha constituency, from where Haryana Youth Congress president Divyanshu Budhiraja is contesting the polls against former chief .

Lok Sabha polls: 11 candidates older than 80 years, 537 in 25-30 age range

Eleven candidates older than 80 and 537 in the 25-30 age range are contesting the Lok Sabha elections, according to an analysis of election data gathered by the Association for Democratic Reforms. The analysis looked at data of 8,337 of the 8,360 candidates contesting the elections. According to the analysis, 505 candidates aged between 25 and 40 contested the elections in the first phase. There were 849 candidates aged between 41 and 60, 260 between 61 and 80, and four over 80 years. During the second phase, 363 candidates in the 25-40 age group were in the fray, followed by 578 aged between 41 and 60, 249 between 61 and 80, and two over 80 years. In the third phase, 411 candidates in the 25-40 age range contested the elections while 712 were aged between 41 and 60. There were 228 candidates aged between 61 and 80 and one aged 84. During the fourth phase, 642 candidates in the fray were aged between 25 and 40, 842 in the 41-60 age range, and 226 between 61 and 80 years. In the

LS polls: 60,000 personnel, cameras to ensure peaceful voting in Delhi

With 60,000 personnel, including 51 companies of paramilitary forces and 13,500 home guards from Uttarakhand, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, and drones and CCTV cameras, the Delhi Police is all prepared to conduct the Lok Sabha polls in the city. The voting for all seven Lok Sabha seats of Delhi is scheduled on May 25 in the second last phase of the elections. These seven seats include East Delhi, New Delhi, North East Delhi, North West Delhi, South Delhi, West Delhi and Chandani Chowk. Deputy Commissioner of Police (election cell) Sanjay Sehrawat told PTI that an elaborate arrangement has been made to ensure peaceful elections in the national capital. Around 60,000 police personnel will be deployed in Delhi on the polling day and at least 33,000 of them will be guarding voting centres, DCP Sehrawat said. "There are a total of 2,628 voting centres of which 429 are sensitive. Extra paramilitary personnel with drones and CCTV cameras will be deployed in these sensitive poll centres,"

Congress, AAP responsible for crisis of credibility in politics: Rajnath

Senior BJP leader and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday attacked opposition INDIA bloc partners Congress and AAP, alleging that they are responsible for the crisis of credibility in Indian politics. Singh made the remarks while addressing an election meeting in favour of BJP's West Delhi Lok Sabha constituency candidate Kamaljeet Sehrawat, hours before campaigning for the May 25 round of polling ended. Targeting Congress and AAP, which are contesting the general elections in the national capital under a seat-sharing arrangement, he said, "The leaders of the Congress and the AAP have contributed the most to the crisis of credibility in the politics of India." While the AAP is contesting four seats, the Congress has fielded candidates from three seats. The seven Lok Sabha constituencies in Delhi go to polls in the sixth round of the seven-phase general elections. Taking a swipe at Delhi Chief Minister and AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal on continuing on the post despite being ..

EC wrong in directing Cong not to 'politicise' Agnipath scheme: Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday said the Election Commission was "egregiously wrong" in directing his party not to 'politicise' the Agnipath scheme, asserting that it is the right of an Opposition party to criticise a policy of the government. The Election Commission Wednesday came down heavily on the ruling BJP and opposition Congress, asking them to desist from campaigning along caste, community, language, and religious lines. The EC also asked the Congress not to politicise defence forces and make potentially divisive statements regarding the socio-economic composition of the armed forces. The Commission was referring to remarks made by top Congress leaders on the Agnipath scheme. In a post on X, Chidambaram said the ECI is wrong in directing the Congress party not to 'politicise' the Agnipath scheme. "What does 'politicize' mean? Does the ECI mean 'criticise'? Agniveer is a scheme, a product of the policy of the government. It is the right of an Opposition ...

Indiscriminate disclosure of voter turnout data online to cause chaos: EC

The Election Commission on Wednesday told the Supreme Court that "indiscriminate disclosure" of polling station-wise voter turnout data and posting it on website will cause chaos in the election machinery which is already in motion for the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. The poll panel said that public posting of Form 17C - which gives the number of votes polled in a polling station - is not provided in the statutory framework and could lead to mischief and vitiation of the entire electoral space as it increases the possibility of the images being morphed. The EC also dismissed as false and misleading the allegation that the first two phases of the Lok Sabha elections saw an increase of "5-6 per cent" in the voter turnout data released on the day of polling and in the subsequent press releases for each of the two phases. The Election Commission stated this in an affidavit filed in response to a plea of an NGO seeking a direction to the poll panel to upload polling station-wise voter .

Socio-cultural milieu can't be a casualty to polls: EC to BJP, Cong prez

The EC directed BJP President JP Nadda to inform its star campaigners to not make divisive speeches and refrain from any campaigning methods or utterances along religious or communal lines

LS elections: 8,360 candidates in fray in 2024 polls, highest since 1996

A total of 8,360 candidates are contesting the ongoing Lok Sabha elections, the highest since 1996, according to an analysis of official data. In the 2019 polls, there were 8,039 candidates, and in 1996, a record 13,952 candidates were in the fray for 543 seats of the Lower House of Parliament. The 2024 general elections are being held in seven phases, with five rounds of polling completed. The sixth and last rounds will be held on May 25 and June 1, respectively. Counting of votes will be taken up on June 4. The fourth phase of the elections held on May 13 had the highest number of candidates in the fray, 1,717 in 96 parliamentary constituencies in 10 states and Union Territories (UTs). The first phase held on April 19 had 1,625 candidates in 102 constituencies in 21 states and UTs, according to Election Commission (EC) data. There were 1,198 candidates in the second phase on April 26 in 89 constituencies across 13 states and UTs, 1,352 candidates in the third phase on May 7 in 94

Women make up less than 10% of candidates contesting Lok Sabha polls: ADR

Less than 10 per cent of the candidates contesting in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections are women, according to an analysis of data shared by the poll rights body Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR). Of the 8,337 candidates analysed, only 797 are women, representing a mere 9.5 per cent of the total candidates contesting across the seven phases of the elections. This is the first election since the passage of the women's reservation bill to reserve one-third of seats in Lok Sabha and state assemblies for women, reviving a bill pending for 27 years for want of consensus among parties. The bill is yet to come into effect. During the first phase of the elections, out of 1,618 candidates, only 135 were women. This pattern continued in the subsequent phases, with women candidates remaining a small fraction of the total. Phase 2 saw 1,192 candidates of which affidavits of 1,198 candidates were analysed and as many as 100 were women. Phase 3 had 1,352 candidates, including 123 women a

LS polls: Congress questions delay in release of voter turnout data by EC

The Congress on Wednesday raised questions over the big difference between the real time voter turnout data and the final figures released by the Election Commission, and said voters are worried over the "strange goings-on" in the poll body. Congress leader and head of media and publicity department of the party Pawan Khera said the difference is around 1.7 crore votes, and termed it as unprecedented. "Voters are worried about the strange goings on in the Election Commission through the four phases of voting. First, the Election Commission takes 10-11 days to bring out the final figure of voting and then the difference between real time data and final figure turns out to be 1.7 crore votes. This is truly unprecedented," Khera said on X. "Unanswered questions about the missing EVMs are also very worrying," he added. AICC general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "This difference of 1.07 crore overall translates into an increase of 28,000 in each LS seat. This is HUGE." "The discrepancy

Odisha lost 25 years of development under 25-year BJD rule: Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday asserted that Odisha lost 25 years of development under the 25-year BJD rule in the state, during which various sectors like healthcare, education and infrastructure got derailed. Shah, addressing a poll rally at Nayagarh, also sought clarification from Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on the missing keys of Puri Jagannath temple's Ratna Bhandar. Odisha is the most prosperous state in the country, but people of the state are poor. If you want to get rid of this, you need to vote for (Narendra) Modi ji and make him the PM again. You gave Naveen babu 25 years, but the state lost 25 years of development, he said at the public meeting. Odisha's healthcare, education system and infrastructure got derailed under the BJD rule; only PM Modi can bring these back on track, he asserted. Shah also said after coming to power, the BJP government will punish those responsible for the missing keys of the Ratna Bhandar. I want to ask Naveen babu, where are the

EC responsible for slow voting in Maha, poll body helping BJP, alleges Raut

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Tuesday claimed the Election Commission was an "extended branch of the BJP" and the voting process in Maharashtra's 13 Lok seats was slow wherever the MVA candidates were expecting a good turnout. Talking to reporters, Raut also claimed the election was seamless in areas where the possibility of the ruling BJP or its allies getting votes was more. An average turnout of 54.33 per cent was recorded after voting on Monday in the 13 Lok Sabha constituencies, including six in Mumbai, during the fifth and final phase of general elections in the state, as per poll authorities. The final figures will be declared later, an official from the state CEO's office said on Tuesday. The six Lok Sabha constituencies in Mumbai recorded an average turnout of 52.27 per cent, compared to 55.38 per cent in the 2019 general elections. Raut claimed wherever the Shiv Sena (UBT) or MVA was expecting good votes, there was snail-paced election. "The Election Commission

Battleground 2024: Women share their struggle and hope in Haryana

As Haryana gears up for elections on 25th May, women's issues, the treatment of the women wrestlers and farmer protests weigh heavily on the minds of the voter

5th phase of Lok Sabha polling: J&K's Baramulla beats key urban centres

At 42 per cent, Kalyan in Maharashtra registered the worst voter turnout among all 49 seats

LS polls: Inducements worth Rs 8,889 crore seized; drugs contribute 45%

Authorities have seized cash, drugs and inducements worth Rs 8,889 crore that aimed to influence voters in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls, the Election Commission said on Saturday. At 45 per cent, drugs formed the biggest chunk of the total seizures. Narcotics worth around Rs 3,959 crore were seized, it said. Drugs, liquor, precious metals, freebies and cash influence elections in varying degrees, some flowing directly as inducements while others through reduced levels of circulation of money, the poll authority said. The commission said it has laid special emphasis on the seizure of narcotics and psychotropic substances. Analysis of data found that states and Union Territories that used to be transit zones are increasingly becoming consumption territories of drugs, it said. The Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad, Narcotics Control Bureau and the Indian Coast Guard in joint operations have made three high-value seizures of drugs in just three days, amounting to Rs 892 crore, the poll panel

LS polls phase 5: Scattered incidents of violence reported in West Bengal

Scattered incidents of violence marred the fifth phase of Lok Sabha polls in seven parliamentary constituencies in West Bengal on Monday, as TMC and BJP workers clashed in various parts of Barrackpore, Bongaon, and Arambagh seats. Although the poll panel has claimed that the polling has been peaceful so far, it said it has received 1,036 complaints until 11 am from different political parties alleging EVM malfunctioning and agents being stopped from entering booths. Clashes broke out between supporters of TMC and BJP in Khanakul area of Arambagh constituency as both parties clashed over stopping polling agents from entering the booths. Two live crude bombs were also recovered from the area by security personnel. "BJP goons have unleashed a reign of terror in the area and are intimidating voters," TMC candidate Mitali Bag said. BJP candidate Arup Kanti Digar rubbished the allegations and blamed the TMC for letting loose violence on the day of the polls. In neighbouring Hooghly ...

Phase 5 of Lok Sabha elections 2024: What was the voter turnout at 11 am?

In the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections 2024, 49 out of 543 constituencies went to polls in six states and two Union Territories. Votes will be counted on June 4

Phase 5: Rae Bareli, Lucknow among 49 Lok Sabha seats to vote on Monday

The Election Commission on Sunday said 89.5 million electors would be eligible to cast their voters on the 49 seats. Simultaneous polling for 35 Assembly seats will be held in Odisha

LS polls Phase 5: EC asks voters in Mumbai, UP to ensure higher turnout

On the eve of phase five of Lok Sabha polls, the Election Commission on Sunday pointed out that Mumbai, Thane and Lucknow have shown apathy towards voting in the past and asked these city dwellers to turnout in higher numbers. The poll authority noted that in the past these cities have "suffered" from urban apathy in voting. "The Commission specially calls upon these city dwellers to erase the stigma by turning out in higher numbers," it said. On May 3 too, while referring to voter turnout in phase two, the Commission had said it was "disappointed" with the turnout level in some metropolitan cities. The EC had last month assembled many metro Commissioners here to work out a strategy to fight urban apathy. Urban and youth apathy is described as a phenomenon when young voters and those living in metros fail to turn up at polling stations on election day. So far, the last four phases have registered a voter turnout of 66.95 per cent. Around 45.1 crore electors have exercised their

Lok Sabha polls: 889 candidates to contest elections in phase 6 on May 25

'After scrutiny of all nominations filed, 900 nominations were found to be valid. In 3-Anantnag-Rajouri, total 28 nominations were filed in Phase 3 and 21 nominations were found to be valid,' it added