Page 28 - Election Commission

Between hard rock & an election

From its hard rock triumphs to its geographical proximity to China, to the aspirations of its youth, all will play a role in Sikkim's electoral dynamics and the outcome on June 2

INDIA bloc leaders meet EC over voter turnout data, allege MCC violations

Leaders of the opposition INDIA bloc will meet the Election Commission on Thursday over their demand to promptly release the absolute voter turnout figures in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls after each phase, sources said. They will also raise the issue of alleged "use of religious symbols" by the BJP in their campaign, they said. The sources said leaders from the INDIA bloc will meet the full bench of the Election Commission of India on Thursday afternoon, submit a memorandum and also discuss the issues with the poll panel. INDIA bloc parties, including the Congress, Trinamool Congress and the Communist Party of India (Marxist), have written to the poll panel separately so far, expressing concern over the alleged "delay" in the release of the voter turnout data in the first two phases. Amid the opposition's allegations, the poll body had asserted that booth-wise data of the "actual number of votes polled" is available with the candidates soon after the voting ends. In a statement iss

Free pilgrimage to Ayodhya for 500,000 Odiyas if BJP wins: Himanta

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday said the BJP will ensure free pilgrimage of five lakh people from Odisha to Ayodhya's Ram temple if the party is voted to power in the eastern state. Addressing an election rally at Kalimela here, the senior BJP leader also took a swipe at the ruling BJD for naming villages with numbers in Malkangiri district. In Assam, I have decided to take one lakh people to Ayodhya, and the state government will bear the cost. As Odisha is bigger than Assam, 5 lakh people should get this facility. A new BJP chief minister will facilitate this pilgrimage if the party is voted to power in Odisha, Sarma said. Sarma also sought to connect with the large number of Bengali-speaking population in Malkangiri district, assuring the people that Bengali teachers will be appointed, among other promises. About one lakh Bengali-speaking people were rehabilitated in Malkangiri district after the 1971 Bangladesh war. On names of villages in the district bea

Lok Sabha Elections: India Bloc to meet EC over Voter turnout numbers

INDIA bloc is expected to meet the Election Commission on Friday over their demand to promptly release the absolute voter turnout figures in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls after each phase. Watch the vid

Lok Sabha Elections 2024: When can you find out Exit Poll predictions?

Countdown to clarity: Key dates and insights for when Lok Sabha 2024 Exit Polls will go live. Read on to know the A to Z of Exit Polls in India

EC establishes 4 special polling booths for Kashmiri migrants in Delhi

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has set up four special polling booths for the Kashmiri migrant community at various locations in Delhi, officials on Wednesday said. Over 1.13 lakh Kashmiri migrants are registered to vote in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections for the Anantnag, Srinagar and Baramulla constituencies in the Kashmir Valley, they said. Polling for the Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency will be held on May 25 followed by Srinagar on May 13 and Baramulla on May 20. "To facilitate the Kashmiri migrants residing in Delhi to cast their votes in person on the polling days during the Lok Sabha elections for seats across Jammu and Kashmir, the ECI has established special polling booths for the community at four different locations in the capital," an official spokesman said. These booths are located at the Kashmir Resident Commission on Prithviraj Road, Kashmir Kisan Ghar in Shalimar Bagh, Arwachin International Public School in Dilshad Garden and GGSSS Paprawat in Najafgarh,

LS polls: 695 candidates set to contest across 49 constituencies in Phase 5

A total of 695 candidates are in the fray across 49 constituencies spread over eight states and Union territories in the upcoming fifth phase of the Lok Sabha polls, the Election Commission (EC) said on Wednesday. The figure emerged after the scrutiny of 1,586 nomination forms filed for the fifth phase of the ongoing polls. Of the nominations, 749 were found to be valid after the deadline for filing papers closed on May 3, according to a statement issued by the EC. The statement said 695 candidates will contest the polls from eight states and Union territories in the fifth phase on May 20. Maharashtra topped the list with 512 nominations, resulting in 301 valid candidates contesting across 13 constituencies, while Uttar Pradesh followed closely with 466 nominations, leading to 147 valid candidates across 14 constituencies. The highest number of nominations in a single constituency was seen in Maharashtra's Chatra, which received 69 candidatures, followed by Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh

Karnataka Police summons JP Nadda over BJP's video post targeting Muslims

The investigating officer has issued summonses to JP Nadda and Amit Malviya, granting them a week to comply and appear for questioning

Lok Sabha elections: Phase-III records 61.4% voter turnout on 93 seats

Voting has now been completed on 283 of 543 seats, or 52 per cent, and in 20 states and UTs, the EC said

Over 15 million eligible to vote in Delhi's Lok Sabha elections on May 25

Lok Sabha elections 2024: All 7 Lok Sabha seats in Delhi will go to polls in a single phase on May 25

EC directs 'X' to take down Karnataka BJP's animated clip on Muslim quota

In a letter to the nodal officer of 'X', the EC took exception to the non-compliance of the directive of the Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer to the social media platform for taking down the video

Free breakfast to diamond rings, EC on overdrive to boost voter turnout

In Kashmir, the state EC counducted henna art and rangoli competitions for first time women voters, and held awareness programmes in colleges

Anonymous hoardings still cropping up in Delhi: EC prods CEO to take action

Amid complaints, including those by the Congress, the Election Commission has reminded the Delhi Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) to take action against anonymous political hoardings. In a letter to the CEO of Delhi, the poll authority said it had been receiving representations from various stakeholders, including political parties, regarding anonymous election hoardings at authorised and unauthorised sites in the national capital. Anonymous political or election hoardings or advertisements are those which do not bear on their face the names and addresses of the printer and the publisher -- a violation of the electoral laws and the provisions of the Model Code of Conduct. The poll panel reminded the CEO of the various legal provisions and its instructions, including the one issued as recently as in March, to deal with such advertisements. "All these instructions are to be followed scrupulously in letter and spirit while dealing with the complaints referred to above," the EC told the p

Women of Guwahati LS seat seek better future for kids, secure environment

From aspiration of a better future for their children to the hope that the government will "work for the people" to appeal for a secure environment for office-goers, women voted with diverse issues in mind in Assam's Guwahati constituency on Tuesday, where two female candidates are locked in a direct fight. As polling for the prestigious seat commenced along with three other constituencies in the third and final phase in the state, voters braved inclement weather to exercise their right of franchise. Women, who outnumber men by over 34,000 in terms of total voters in Guwahati, had their agenda in mind while choosing their representatives. Out of the total 20,36,846 voters in Guwahati, 10,35,588 are women, 10,01,200 are men and 58 are from the third gender. BJP is seeking to retain the seat for the fourth consecutive term through its candidate Bijuli Kalita Medhi, while the Congress has fielded Mira Barthakur Goswami. Guwahati has been represented by a woman BJP MP since 2009. It

LS polls 2024: PM Modi hails EC for peaceful conduct of first two phases

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday congratulated the Election Commission for conducting the first two phases of Lok Sabha polls with hardly any violence and asked the people to come out in large numbers to vote. He said violence during elections was very common in the past. After casting his vote at Nishan School in Ranip area of Ahmedabad city under the Gandhinagar Lok Sabha constituency in Gujarat, PM Modi also said the way the Indian elections are being conducted could be a learning process for other democracies. "Matdaan samanya daan nahi hai, hamare desh main daan ka mahatva hai (voting is not a common gift, in our country importance is given to donation). People of the country should vote in large numbers keeping this feeling in their hearts," Modi told reporters. The third phase of voting is underway on Tuesday and campaigning will go on for almost three weeks and four more phases of polling, he noted. "As a voter from Gujarat, I have been voting here (Nishan School) f

BJP an 'autocratic regime, drunk with power': Congress Chief Kharge

Lok Sabha elections 2024: Ruling party will 'go to any extent to stay in the chair', Mallikarjun Kharge says as India votes for Phase 3 of elections

Election Commission's credibility at all-time low: Kharge to INDIA partners

Lok Sabha elections 2024: Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge writes a letter to INDIA alliance leaders raising concerns on voting data discrepancies and registered voters' list by the ECI

LS polls: ECI censures Jagan Mohan, Chandrababu Naidu for flouting MCC

The Election Commission on Monday censured YSRCP supremo and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy and opposition leader N Chandrababu Naidu for violating the Model Code of Conduct (MCC), directing them to remain careful during public utterances. The poll body recognised that both the leaders have violated the provisions of the MCC by attacking each other with derogatory personal attacks during public addresses while electioneering in the southern state over the past several days. Therefore, the Commissionstrongly censures Jagan Mohan Reddy, president, YSRCP with the direction to remain careful in his public utterances in the future, said Avinash Kumar, Principal Secretary, Election Commission, in an order addressed to the chief minister. Kumar issued a similar order to Telugu Desam Party (TDP) supremo Naidu. The Election Commission took note of Reddy hurling taunts such as habitual offender', rogue', sadist', and others at Naidu, including portraying him as a villaino

Remove fake content from social media within 3 hours: EC tells parties

The Election Commission (EC) on Monday directed political parties to remove fake content from their social media platforms within three hours of such content being brought to their notice. This is part of directives issued by the poll panel to political parties for responsible and ethical use of social media in election campaigning to ensure a level playing field for all stakeholders after taking cognisance of certain violations by them. Recently, deepfake videos featuring Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and actors Aamir Khan and Ranveer Singh posted on certain social media handles were taken down and criminal complaints were filed. The EC also warned the parties against misuse of artificial intelligence-based tools to create deepfakes that distort information or propagate misinformation and emphasised the need to uphold the integrity of the electoral process. "Taking cognizance of certain violations of MCC and the extant legal provisions by Political ..

LS polls 2024: SC grants bail to Umar Ansari in violation of MCC case

The Supreme Court on Monday granted bail to Umar Ansari, son of late gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari, in a criminal case registered against him during the 2022 assembly elections for alleged violation of the model code of conduct. A bench of Justices Hrishikesh Roy and PK Mishra asked Umar to appear before the trial court in connection with the case. On January 25, the top court had granted him protection from arrest in the case. The Allahabad High Court on December 19 last year had rejected the anticipatory bail application of Ansari, and said that looking at the facts and circumstances of the case, the offence is made out. An FIR was lodged on March 4, 2022 at Kotwali police station in Mau district against Abbas Ansari (SBSP candidate from Mau Sadar seat), Umar Ansari and 150 unknown people. It was alleged in the FIR that on March 3, 2022 at Pahadpura ground, Abbas Ansari, Umar Ansari, and organiser Mansoor Ahmad Ansari in a public meeting called for settling a score w