Page 30 - Election Commission

Battleground 2024: Rivals misusing tech to spread fake videos, says PM

In Delhi, a BJP delegation, led by Union minister Ashwani Vaishnaw, complained to the EC alleging that the Congress circulated a "deep fake and morphed" video of Amit Shah to derail the poll process

LS polls: Congress' Indore candidate withdraws nomination, could join BJP

Besides Indore, seven more seats in Madhya Pradesh will go to the polls on May 13, concluding elections to the state's 29 seats

36 out of 266 LS poll candidates in Gujarat face criminal cases: ADR data

Thirty six out of the 266 candidates for the Lok Sabha polls in Gujarat have criminal cases against them, with some also facing attempt to murder and dacoity charges, as per an analysis of their affidavits by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR). Elections to 25 out of the 26 Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat will be held on May 7. The BJP candidate from Surat seat has already been declared elected unopposed. "Out of the 266 candidates, 36, or 14 per cent, have criminal charges against them, as per details provided by them in the affidavits. Out of them, 21, or 8 per cent, have serious criminal cases against them," ADR's Gujarat coordinator Pankti Jog told reporters here on Monday. Serious criminal cases are those which attract a maximum punishment of 5 years or more, are non-bailable, related to murder, rape, kidnapping, bribery, assault, causing loss to the exchequer, crimes against women, hate speech, and offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act, she said. Among the majo

Probe 'terrible mismanagement' of Lok Sabha polls in Kerala: Congress to EC

Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala Assembly V D Satheesan said the elections in Kerala were "grossly mismanaged", leading to considerable delays in numerous polling booths

Among national parties, Bahujan Samaj Party's candidate owns fewest assets

Baluswamy owns less than an average Indian household

Chasing paper trails

Supreme Court puts VVPAT controversy to rest

Lok Sabha polls: Mandi will teach lesson to Cong's prince, says Kangana

People of Mandi will teach a lesson to the gangs of "shehzadas" for making inappropriate comments and disrespecting the women of the state, BJP candidate from Mandi and Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut said on Saturday. Addressing a public gathering in the Jhakari area of the Mandi Parliament constituency, Kangana trained her guns at Congress leader Vikramaditya Singh, calling him "Prince of Rampur," and took exception to his referring to her Bollywood connection. Vikramaditya Singh is a scion of the erstwhile Bushahr estate, now known as Rampur, one of the 17 assembly segments in the Mandi Lok Sabha constituency. Referring to Kangana, Singh had earlier said, "I pray to Lord Ram to give her wisdom and hope she goes back pure from 'Dev Bhoomi' Himachal to the Bollywood because she will not win the election since she knows nothing about people of Himachal." In her rally, Kangana responded to the dig, saying, "Now they are saying that I am impure because I have come here after working

Highlights of the day: Voters will score such 'goal' in phase 3, INDI alliance will vanish says PM

From Hamas looking into latest ceasefire proposal from Israel to the developments of the Lok Sabha polls, catch all the latest news from around the world here

LS polls: Congress accuses Anurag Thakur of violating model code, moves EC

The Congress on Saturday complained to the Election Commission against Union Minister Anurag Thakur for his "outrageous" remarks made at a poll rally and alleged that it violated the Model Code of Conduct (MCC). Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said that the party has sent a complaint to the Election Commission against Thakur and has sought "immediate and meaningful" action against him, failing which they will "name and shame the offenders". The Congress also said that Thakur was following the footsteps of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. "Today, Anurag Thakur followed in the footsteps of the PM and the UP Chief Minister and made a most outrageous speech that violates all standards of decency and truth, apart from the EC's Model Code of Conduct itself. "@INCIndia has written to the ECI to take note of the speech and issue Mr. Thakur a notice immediately. The ECI must realise that a lack of meaningful action emboldens these bad .

LS polls: Phase 2 turnout reaches 66.7%; both phases see dip since 2019

The voter turnout in the second phase of Lok Sabha elections has touched the 66.7 per cent mark, which is less than the figures of the 2019 parliamentary polls, according to sources. Both phases of the ongoing polls have seen a dip in the voter turnout as compared to the last general election. The 66.7 per cent figure is approximate and the Election Commission has so far not come out with the polling percentage formally. Phase two of the Lok Sabha elections was held on Friday across 88 constituencies spread in 13 states. In the second phase of 2019 Lok Sabha elections, held in 95 constituencies across 13 states, the turnout was higher at 69.64 per cent. In the first phase of this election, the turnout was 65.5 per cent as compared to 69.43 per cent in the phase one of the 2019 parliamentary polls. Some of the constituencies were different then and the total number of seats which went to poll were 91. Heat wave is believed to have contributed to several voters not turning up at po

EC orders re-polling at one booth in Chamarajanagar LS segment in Karnataka

The Election Commission said on Saturday that re-polling will be conducted at a polling station in Hanur which falls under Chamarajanagar Parlimentary Constituency in Karnataka on April 29. In a letter addressed to the Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer, the EC stated that on the basis of reports submitted by the Returning Officer and General Observer for Chamrajnagar Parliamentary Constituency and after taking all material circumstances into account, the Commission hereby declares under appropriate sections of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 that the poll taken on April 26 at the polling station no 146, Government Lower Primary School, Indiganatha, 221- Hansur Assembly Constituency of Chamarajanagar Parlimentary Constituency, falling under Chamarajanagar district to be void. The letter further stated that April 29 has been fixed as the date for a fresh poll at the polling station in accordance with the Commission's instructions. The polling will be held from 7 am to 6 ...

TMC alleges BJP-CBI-NSG conspiracy in Sandeshkhali raid, writes to EC

The Trinamool Congress alleges the Sandeshkhali raid was a bid to smear TMC's image during ongoing polls

Lok Sabha polls: 77.35% turnout in second phase in 5 seats in Assam

An estimated 77.35 per cent of 77.26 lakh voters exercised their franchise in the second phase of polling in five Lok Sabha constituencies in Assam, election officials said on Saturday. The final polling percentage could be further revised as the compilation of figures is yet to be completed, an official said. Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency recorded the highest voter turnout of 80.56 per cent, followed by 78.41 per cent in Darrang-Udalguri, 75.97 per cent in Silchar (SC), 75.63 per cent in Karimganj and 73.11 per cent in Diphu, they said. Sixty-one candidates are in the fray in this phase. Assam Transport Minister Parimal Suklabaidya is pitted against Surya Kanta Sarkar of the Congress in Silchar, while BJP's Amarsing Tisso is contesting against Congress's Joyram Engleng in Diphu. Nagaon's sitting Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi is contesting against BJP's Suresh Bora, while Karimganj's BJP MP Kripanath Malla is pitted against Congress's Hafiz Ahmed Rashid Choudhury. In Darrang-Udalg

Lok Sabha polls: 61% cast vote in Phase 2, Maharashtra sees lowest turnout

According to this newspaper's estimates, calculated from the data provided on the EC's turnout app at 9 pm, the voter turnout was almost 65 per cent

LS polls Highlights: Nearly 61% turnout recorded in 2nd phase of elections

Eighty-eight Lok Sabha seats (including parts of the outer Manipur seat), across 13 states and Union Territories, are set to vote today

LS polls: Omar, Mehbooba ask EC not to postpone voting in Anantnag-Rajouri

NC leader Omar Abdullah and PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Friday asked the Election Commission not to postpone polls in Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha seat. The former chief ministers made the appeal after the EC sought a report from Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo and the Chief Electoral Officer on representations submitted by some parties and three candidates seeking rescheduling of elections in the constituency due to adverse weather conditions, including snowfall on the Mughal road. "I appeal to the EC that such a step should not be taken.The demand for postponement is not from all parties. The weird thing is that some of the people who have written to the EC are not contesting. If I write to the EC about constituencies in Tamil Nadu etc. will they take notice," he told a press conference in Srinagar. Speaking to reporters in Surankote area of Poonch district, Mehbooba said, They all have ganged up against me because they do not want to see me in Parliament. The people, cutting across

Lok Sabha polls 2024: Political mercury rising, 2nd phase of voting today

The BJP and its allies won 62 of the 87 seats in 2019

2024 LS polls, costliest ever, expenditure may touch Rs 1.35 trn: Report

The 2024 Lok Sabha elections are on track to break past records and become the most expensive electoral event in the world, according to a poll expert. The estimated expenditure is expected to reach a staggering Rs 1.35 lakh crore, more than double the Rs 60,000 crore spent in 2019, claimed N Bhaskara Rao, who chairs the Centre for Media Studies (CMS), a not-for-profit organisation, and has been tracking election spending for 35 years. Rao stated that this comprehensive expenditure encompasses all spending, direct or indirect, related to polls, including that by political parties and organisations, candidates, the government, and the Election Commission. With the BJP vying for a third consecutive term under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, industry observers have noted the party's dominant presence in campaigns, irrespective of the mediums used for publicity. In an interview with PTI, Rao said he revised the initial expenditure estimate from Rs 1.2 lakh crore to Rs 1.35 l

LS polls: Over 1.7 million voters to decide fate of 22 candidates in Jammu

The Jammu parliamentary constituency is all set to go to polls in the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections amid tight security arrangements on Friday. Over 17.81 lakh eligible voters are set to exercise their franchise across 2,416 polling stations to decide the fate of 22 candidates. The Jammu Lok Sabha seat is one of the 89 constituencies in 13 states and Union territories across the country going to polls on Friday. The campaigning for the elections to the Jammu Lok Sabha seat concluded peacefully on Wednesday evening. "The preparations are underway. Tomorrow is the election date. The teams have been dispatched. The process started at 9 am. The teams will reach the polling stations in Jammu by evening," said Sachin Kumar Vaishya, the returning officer for Jammu Lok Sabha constituency. The officials said that all arrangements have been put in place for an incident free polls. Security and other related arrangements are in place to ensure free, fair and peaceful voting. A .

Kerala Oppn leader complains to EC against Delhi LG for MCC violation

On the eve of polling day in Kerala, Leader of Opposition in the Assembly V D Satheesan on Thursday urged the Election Commission to take action against Delhi's Lt Governor for allegedly visiting heads of churches in the southern state to "lure" them to take a stand in favour of BJP in the Lok Sabha elections on April 26. Satheesan, in a letter to the Commission, alleged "blatant violation of the model code of conduct" by Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena through his meeting of church heads in Kerala. "I am writing to invite your attention to the blatant violation of the model code of conduct by the Delhi Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena by visiting various church heads in Kerala to lure them to take a stance in favour of BJP in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections," the opposition leader said in his complaint. Satheesan claimed that Saxena, who is on a two-day visit to Kerala, requested an audience with the heads of the Syro Malabar Church, Jacobite Syrian Orthodox Church, ...