Page 15 - Election

After setback in assembly polls, Cong braces for make-or-break in 2024

Fresh from the setbacks in the assembly elections of Hindi heartland states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, the Congress is bracing for a make-or-break 2024, the year of the 18th Lok Sabha election. As Prime Minister Narendra Modi hopes to equal Jawaharlal Nehru's record of returning to the PMO thrice in a row, the new year is also being seen by many as one of the toughest periods for the Congress in its 138-year journey. It will also mark 40 years since Congress scaled its electoral peak in 1984 winning a record 414 Lok Sabha seats. With just 48 seats in the Lower House of Parliament now, the party has experienced a steady decline in the last 10 years. In 2024, as Congress hopes to arrest this slide, it will face multiple challenges, the topmost being finalizing seat-sharing deals with constituents of the anti-BJP INDIA bloc which is yet to make any electoral impact. The Congress will begin these negotiations on a weak footing, having lost the Hindi heartland states

FinMin seeks proposals for final supplementary demands for grants

The finance ministry has sought expenditure proposals for the second and final batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants from various ministries and departments ahead of the Budget session likely to commence in the last week of January. This would be the last session of the 17th Lok Sabha before the general elections and the government would seek expenditure approvals of Parliament for four months till July 2024 through a vote on account. The second batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants for 2023-24 is proposed to be placed before Parliament in the ensuing Budget session, the finance ministry said in an office memorandum. The cases that would be eligible to be incorporated under such demands include those where advances from the Contingency Fund have been granted. Besides, payments against court decree would be included as well as cases where the finance ministry has specifically advised moving the supplementary demand in the winter session, it said. "While processing proposals

Bangladesh polls: Hasina's party manifesto pledges friendly ties with India

The reaffirmation came as she unveiled the manifesto of the ruling Awami League party on Wednesday for the upcoming general elections scheduled for January 7

Year in review: How India's political landscape transformed in 2023

With the end of another year, we take a look at the biggest headlines and stories from Indian politics that defined 2023

LIVE news: BJP national secretary Anupam Hazra removed from his post

Catch all the latest news updates LIVE from across the world

LIVE: Priyanka Gandhi replaced as UP in-charge in Congress reshuffle

Catch the latest news updates from across the world

Congress constitutes manifesto committee for 2024 general elections

The list also includes Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh, Shashi Tharoor, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra among others

Pakistan's EC extends deadline for filing nomination papers by two days

Pakistan's election commission on Friday extended the deadline for filing nomination papers for the February 8 general elections by two days till Sunday after major political parties sought more time to complete the time-consuming exercise. According to the schedule issued by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), potential candidates are required to file nomination papers from December 20 to 22. The top election body began accepting nomination papers from prospective candidates on Wednesday. The deadline for the filing of papers was set to expire at 4:30 pm on Friday. However, in a press release on Friday morning, the electoral watchdog announced that nomination papers can now be filed till Dec 24 (Sunday). It said the decision was taken in response to requests from political parties and to facilitate the candidacy process. Political parties must submit priority lists for specific seats to returning officers within the stipulated time, it said. With little than over a month l

Mallikarjun Kharge as INDIA bloc PM face? Here's what leaders have to say

Mamata Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal proposed Mallikarjun Kharge's name as the INDIA bloc's prime ministerial candidate

On your mark, get set, go! BJP set for 2024 polls with 'Amrit Kaal' vision

Election-ready: From Dec 2023 to early April 2024, BJP's schedule is packed. Its workers are on their toes to win over the voters once again, with idea of 'Amrit Kaal'. Radhika Ramaseshan writes

After thaw, Opposition leaders to get hot on INDIA agenda for LS polls

Picking up the pieces: After the Assembly poll debacle, the Congress has become more receptive to other Opposition parties. This may aid reconciliation at the INDIA meet tomorrow. Archis Mohan writes

Karachi police seeks 20,000 personnel, PKR 100 mn for election conduct

The police chief asked for extra manpower from the top bureaucrats of the city and provincial bureaucracy

US government injects confusion into Venezuela's 2024 presidential election

The US government injected confusion into next year's presidential election in Venezuela on Friday by incorrectly suggesting opposition leader Maria Corina Machado had filed an appeal to reverse her ban on running for office. Machado subsequently sidestepped questions about whether she had been pressured by the Biden administration to appear before Venezuela's highest court, but she made a veiled criticism of the US comment, saying she wished she had been able to announce her actions herself. A tweet from the US government's unit that oversees Venezuelan affairs praised Machado's courage and willingness to appeal the ban. But as she left the country's highest court Friday evening, she told reporters she did not file an appeal because she has not been officially notified of the ban announced against her in June. I am not going to resort to that procedure, she said of the appeal process. Instead, Machado, a longtime foe of the ruling party and winner of an opposition presidential ...

Imran Khan got Afghans included in voter lists: PPP leader Asif Zardari

The former president also hinted at the possibility of a "little delay" in the elections but said his party had no problem with it

Biden dings Trump on infra, while showcasing $8 bn for major rail projects

President Joe Biden went to Las Vegas on Friday to say he's "putting high-speed rail on the fast track," and he used the moment to blast Donald Trump his predecessor and likely 2024 challenger as a do-nothing politician. "Trump just talks the talk. We walk the walk," Biden said at a hall for unionized carpenters. "He likes to say America is a failing nation. Frankly, he doesn't know what the hell he's talking about. I see shovels in the ground, cranes in the sky. People hard at work rebuilding America together." The president showcased USD 8.2 billion in new federal funding for 10 major passenger rail projects across the country. He also emphasized the fundamental differences between Trump and himself, a sign that his policy speeches are taking an ever greater political bent with the election now roughly 11 months away. The Democrat said Trump "failed" to deliver on his promises to invest in US infrastructure. Biden countered that his rail funding could help to connect Las Vegas t

Vladimir Putin announces he'll run for 5th Russian presidential term

Vladimir Putin has moved to prolong his repressive and unyielding grip on Russia for another six years. State media say he has announced his candidacy in the 2024 presidential election -- which he is all but certain to win. Putin still commands wide support after nearly a quarter-century in power, despite starting an immensely costly war in Ukraine that has taken thousands of his countrymen's lives, provoked repeated attacks inside Russia - including one on the Kremlin itself - and corroded its aura of invincibility. A short-lived rebellion in June by mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin raised widespread speculation that Putin could be losing his grip, but he emerged from it with no permanent scars.

'Viksit Bharat' to be centrepiece of BJP's 2024 Lok Sabha polls campaign

Prime Minister Modi reiterated the significance of 'Viksit Bharat' campaign, focusing on pro-incumbency themes and India's development vision

PM Modi cites 'team spirit' as reason for BJP's triumphs across states

Urges MPs to use 'Modi ki guarantee' slogan instead of 'Modiji ki guarantee'

Assets of Chhattisgarh, Telangana MLAs surge; crorepati count rises

Crorepati winning candidates: Out of 119, 114 (96%) are crorepatis, that is with financial assets of Rs 1 crore or more compared to 106 (89%) MLAs five years back

Mizoram Assembly election results: ZPM gets majority, bags 21 of 40 seats

The opposition ZPM was ahead of the ruling MNF as the initial trends poured in for the assembly elections in Mizoram on Monday morning. The Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) was ahead in 11 seats, while the Mizo National Front (MNF) was leading in six seats, TV channels showed. According to PTI correspondents at the counting centres, the ZPM was ahead in two seats and the MNF in one. The Election Commission website showed that the ZPM was leading in one seat and the BJP was leading in one. The counting of votes for the 40 assembly seats in the state began at 8 am. The counting was being held in 13 centres. Postal ballots were counted first, and from 8.30 am, the counting for votes polled in the EVMs began. Besides three counting centres in the Aizawl district, which has 12 assembly constituencies, one centre each has been set up in the 10 other districts, he said. In some of the seats that have a lesser number of voters, only two rounds of counting will be held, but in most of the .