Page 129 - Lok Sabha Elections

Suvidha portal gets 73,000 applications for campaign-related activities

The Election Commission on Sunday said its Suvidha portal has received over 73,000 applications since the Lok Sabha polls were announced, seeking permission for various campaigning activities. The applications submitted by by parties and candidates include requests for booking rally grounds, opening temporary party offices and operating video publicity vans, the EC said. More than 44,600 requests have been approved with first in-first out principle ensuring level playing field for parties and candidates, it said. Of the total requests received, nearly 11,200 or 15 per cent were rejected, and 10,819 applications cancelled as they were invalid or duplicate, the data released by the commission showed. Maximum requests were received from Tamil Nadu (23,239), followed by West Bengal (11,976) and Madhya Pradesh (10,636). The least number of requests so far have been received from Chandigarh (17), Lakshadweep (18) and Manipur (20), the poll authority said. The Suvidha portal has stream

Khajuraho LS seat candidates being pressured to withdraw from poll: Cong

Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Jitu Patwari on Sunday alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was pressuring some of the candidates in the Khajuraho Lok Sabha seat to withdraw from the poll fray. The BJP, however, termed the allegations as baseless and said such claims were a cover-up for the internal conspiracies of the opposition INDIA bloc. The Congress has given the Khajuraho Lok Sabha seat to the Samajwadi Party (SP) as part of the seat-sharing agreement among the INDIA alliance constituents. The nomination form of SP candidate Meera Yadav, however, was rejected by the Returning Officer on Friday as she had failed to sign at one place and also submitted an old voters' list copy. After the scrutiny, 14 candidates are in fray in this seat, including sitting MP and BJP state president VD Sharma. Talking to reporters on Sunday, Patwari claimed the All India Forward Bloc candidate RB Prajapati, a former government officer, met him and said he is being pressured through differ

Will provide statehood to Puducherry if INDIA bloc wins LS polls: Stalin

DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Sunday said that the INDIA bloc, if voted to power after Lok Sabha polls, will provide statehood to Puducherry. Addressing an election rally here seeking support for Congress candidate and present MP V Vaithilingam, he said the DMK and Congress are firm that Puducherry should be made a full-fledged state. Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy is a "puppet in the hands of the Centre," Stalin said and added, "We are keen that the rights of not only bigger states like Tamil Nadu, but also the rights of union territories like Puducherry should be protected." Stating that Puducherry had not gained during the ten-year rule by the BJP at the Centre, the Tamil Nadu chief minister said that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi was campaigning only in the name of religion and caste. "Modi has not highlighted any measure to ameliorate the lot of the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and weaker sections, but has been campaigning in the nam

LS polls: Guarantees of Modi troubling INDIA bloc members, says PM in Bihar

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday launched a stinging attack on the Congress, charging that its recently released manifesto smacked of "politics of appeasement" and read as if it was brought out by the Muslim League. Addressing an election rally in Bihar's Nawada district, Modi also lambasted AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge's objection to his mention of the abrogation of Article 370 during the poll campaign in Rajasthan. "The national president of the Congress does not hold a small post. He says what does Article 370 have to do with Rajasthan. This is the mentality of 'tukde-tukde gang'. His views are an insult to security personnel from Rajasthan, and even Bihar, who died fighting insurgents in Jammu and Kashmir and their bodies came back wrapped in the tricolour," said the PM. "The Congress, its Bihar ally RJD and other constituents of INDIA bloc like to talk a lot about the Constitution. Why did they not implement the Constitution of Baba Saheb Ambedkar in Jammu and Kashmi

Top AAP leaders hold collective fast to protest against Kejriwal's arrest

Top leaders of Aam Aadmi Party gathered at Jantar Mantar here on Sunday for a day-long fast to protest against the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister and the party's national convener Arvind Kejriwal. Similar protests were being held in other states as well as by Indians abroad, including at Harvard Square in Boston, the Hollywood Sign in Los Angeles, outside the Indian Embassy in Washington DC, in New York Times Square and Toronto, London and Melbourne among others, party leaders said. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann in AAP-ruled Punjab joined a collective fast at freedom fighter Bhagat Singh's village Khatkar Kalan, they said. Many senior AAP leaders, including Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel, Deputy Speaker Rakhi Bila, ministers Atishi, Gopal Rai and Imran Hussain attended the day-long 'Samuhik Upwas' at Jantar Mantar in the national capital from 11 am. The AAP's Delhi unit convener Gopal Rai appealed to people to join the fast to protest against Kejriwal's arrest. He alleged tha

Fully confident Himachal will support us, truth will prevail, says Priyanka

Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections and assembly bypolls to be held simultaneously in Himachal Pradesh, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Sunday expressed confidence that people of the state will support her party and truth will prevail. She said on the one hand, there is the BJP's pursuit of power by using money and agencies, destroying democracy in the process, and on the other there is the Congress' resolve to work tirelessly for the people with truth, courage and patience. In a post in Hindi on X, Priyanka Gandhi said, "I met all leaders of the Congress Party in Himachal Pradesh. I am proud of their unity, hard work, courage to contest elections strongly and their dedication towards the people." "On the one hand, there is the BJP's empire of fear, greed and lies. The pursuit of power through money power and agencies is a politics that destroys democracy. On the other hand, Congress has the resolve to work tirelessly for the people with truth, courage and patience,

Manipur LS polls: Over 24k displaced people to vote from relief camps

Eleven months of conflict, over 50,000 displaced people and an anti-poll sentiment among few---the Election Commission in violence-hit Manipur is gearing up for the challenging task of holding Lok Sabha elections in the state where the poll scene is muted. Chief Electoral Officer, Pradeep Kumar Jha said over 24,500 displaced people have been identified as eligible to vote in the upcoming elections and special arrangements have been made for them to cast their franchise from relief camps. "A total of 2,955 polling stations will be set up in the state for the Lok Sabha elections, out of which around 50 per cent have been identified as sensitive, vulnerable or critical. We are also setting up 94 special polling stations to facilitate voting by internally displaced persons (IDPs), Jha told PTI. As per Election Commission of India (ECI) norms, a vulnerability mapping of hamlets, villages and electoral segments vulnerable for threat and intimidation, is conducted ahead of polls. "Special

Lok Sabha polls: Minorities likely to support TMC in Bengal, say leaders

Minorities in West Bengal, constituting nearly thirty per cent of the electorate, are likely to vote for the TMC to halt BJP's advance, despite the presence of a secular alternative in the form of Left-Congress alliance, community leaders said. According to minority leaders, Muslims in West Bengal, pivotal in several Lok Sabha seats, are inclined towards the Mamata Banerjee-led party, which they see as a credible force, unlike the Left-Congress alliance. This inclination is particularly evident in districts such as Murshidabad, Malda, and Uttar Dinajpur, where minorities form the majority. With the Indian Secular Front (ISF) opting to go solo, efforts to woo minorities might become more challenging for the Left Congress, especially with the saffron party capitalising on various polarising issues such as the Ram Mandir and Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). West Bengal boasts the second-highest number of Muslim electorate in the country after Kashmir and Assam. Even though there may

Congress indulged in corruption, did not carry out water works: Shekhawat

Union minister and BJP candidate Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has claimed that he got budget worth thousands of crores sanctioned by the Centre for water works in Rajasthan but the previous Congress government in the state failed to utilise it. While trashing Congress candidate Karan Singh Uchiyarda's reported remarks that he could not get water for the region despite being the Jal Shakti minister, the BJP leader said he was saddened by the endorsement of the same by BJP workers. "I allocated thousands of crores of budget to the Rajasthan government for water, but if the government didn't work, what can I do? Even the Central Government has its limitations; water is a state government matter, and it was their responsibility to work on it, but they didn't and indulged in corruption", he said. Addressing a rally in Ajasar village in Pokhran on Saturday, Shekhawat said his own people were throwing mud on his face. "Congress candidate is saying that despite being the Minister of Water, ...

FPIs turn cautious, withdraw Rs 325 cr from Indian equities so far in April

FPIs have turned cautious as they pulled out Rs 325 crore from Indian equities in the first week of this month owing to relatively high valuations and the upcoming general elections. The net outflow came after a staggering investment of Rs 35,000 crore in March and Rs 1,539 crore in February, data with the depositories showed. Going ahead, Geojit Financial Services Chief Investment Strategist VK Vijayakumar said the US 10-year yield has spiked to 4.4 per cent, which will impact FPI (foreign portfolio investor) investment flows into India in the near term. However, FPI selling will be limited despite the high US bond yields since the Indian stock market is bullish and has been setting new records consistently, he added. smallcase Manager and Senior Research Analyst at Capitalmind Krishna Appala believes that FPIs might return post-elections or upon early signs of a US Fed rate reduction. According to the data with the depositories, FPIs withdrew Rs 325 crore from Indian equities th

Congress' manifesto takes up competition issues in retail, media, ports

The party said it aims to create a level playing field for all businesses

LS polls: Maoist-hit areas of Singhbhum to witness voting for first-time

Come May 13, many interior areas in the Maoist den of Singhbhum Lok Sabha seat in Jharkhand will witness voting for the first time, or after decades-long gap, as polling teams and materials will be air dropped from helicopters to enable people living in Saranda, Asia's densest Sal forest, to exercise their franchise. As many as 118 remote booths will be set up by personnel and materials dropped from choppers. "We are committed to ensuring that no voter is left out... we have identified many areas where polling will be conducted for the first time or after nearly two decades as these locations were badly affected by Maoist insurgency," West Singhbhum Deputy Commissioner cum District Election Officer Kuldeep Chaudhary told PTI. Despite improvement in the situation, West Singhbhum remains one of the worst left-wing extremism-affected districts of the country. It had witnessed 46 Maoist-related incidents resulting in 22 deaths last year. Polling stations such as Middle School, Nugdi an

Lok Sabha polls: PM Modi to address election rally in Bihar's Nawada today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold an election rally in Bihar's Nawada district on Sunday. This will be his second rally in the state after the announcement of the Lok Sabha elections. "Once again, a massive wave of BJP-NDA is being seen in Bihar. I will have an opportunity to meet my family members, who are excited about voting, in the public meeting in Nawada around 11 am today," Modi posted on X ahead of the rally. The state police have put in place a multi-tier security cover at the venue ahead of the PM's rally. The BJP has fielded Vivek Thakur, the party's Rajya Sabha MP and son of senior BJP leader and former Union minister C P Thakur, from Nawada Lok Sabha constituency. Earlier on April 4, Modi had launched the Lok Sabha election campaign of the NDA in Bihar through a rally in Jamui constituency. Polling will be held in Nawada, Gaya, Aurangabad and Jamui Lok Sabha constituencies in the first phase on April 19. As per the NDA's seat-sharing arrangement in Bihar for th

LS polls: BJP's governance in Bihar left much to be desired, says Congress

The Congress on Sunday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to answer on key issues his government should have focused on in Bihar, saying while the BJP has "excelled" at forcing its way into power, its governance has left much to be desired. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh posed questions to the prime minister on Bihar ahead of his rally in Nawada. "Today, the Prime Minister heads to Nawada in Bihar - the state where the BJP orchestrated its latest government collapse. While they have excelled at forcing their way into power, the BJP's governance has left much to be desired," Ramesh said. He hoped the PM can answer three questions about the issues his government should have focused on. When the PM visited Nawada before the 2014 election, he raised the issue of the Warisaliganj Sugar Mill, asking why it had remained defunct for so many years, Ramesh noted. "This raised the hopes of thousands of locals, as in its heyday, the mill directly employed 1,200 workers and additiona

Extended poll timings, ORS, medical teams to help voters deal with heat

In anticipation of intense heat during the Lok Sabha polls in Jharkhand, comprehensive measures have been put in place to mitigate the effects of heat waves on voters, officials, and security personnel. These include extending poll timings, setting up makeshift sheds, providing ORS and lemon water, and deploying medical teams and ambulances, an election official said. The elections will be conducted in seven phases from April 19 to June 1, with Jharkhand's voting taking place on May 13, 20, 25, and June 1 for its 14 seats. With over 2.55 crore eligible voters, including 1.25 crore women, increasing voter turnout amidst the heatwave presents a significant challenge for both the state and the Election Commission. In 2019, Jharkhand's overall voter turnout was 66.8 per cent, lower than the national average of 67.4 per cent. To address this measures such as extending polling hours from 7 am to 5 pm and providing temporary shelters at booths have been implemented. Additionally, facili

Women candidates of BJP, Cong heat up LS poll campaign in Guj's Banaskantha

Banaskantha is the only Lok Sabha constituency in Gujarat where both the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the main opposition Congress have fielded women candidates. Two-term MLA Geniben Thakor of the Congress will take on BJP's Rekha Chaudhary, an engineering professor making her poll debut, in the upcoming parliamentary polls. Thakor defeated the then Gujarat minister and senior BJP leader Shankar Chaudhary in the 2017 assembly polls and Swarupji Thakor of the saffron party in 2022. Known for advocacy of women's rights, Thakor had in 2020 said "rapists must be burnt alive rather than being handed over to police," after the alleged rape of a 14-month-old girl in Gujarat. She was one of the 17 Congress candidates who managed to bag seats in the 2022 Gujarat assembly polls, which were won by the BJP with a record mandate. Rekha Chaudhary's grandfather Galbabhai Chaudhary founded the Banas Dairy, which procures milk from 4.5 lakh farmers every day, an initiative which has ope

LS elections: TDP woos booze lovers with quality liquor at reduced prices

"We will reduce prices of commodities," may be the standard refrain of every political party fighting an election. However, in Andhra Pradesh, opposition TDP is wooing the avid booze lover with the promise of better quality spirit at reduced prices, if voted to power. Simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections are scheduled in the southern state on May 13. Telugu Desam Party (TDP) the main opposition, is also accusing the YSRCP Government of setting excessively high prices that do not align with the quality of the liquor. TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu consistently emphasizes, among others, the issue during his campaign, alleging that the state has been supplying poor quality liquor while profiting immensely from 'inflated' prices, running to thousands of crores of rupees. According to reports, the state government netted nearly Rs 24,000 crore through excise revenue in 2022-23 against over Rs 17,000 crore in 2019-20. YS Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSRCP was voted to power in ...

LS elections: Palaniswami strains every nerve for AIADMK to bounce back

The Lok Sabha polls 2024 is a litmus test for AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami as the party's electoral performance will have a considerable bearing in improving the fortunes of the outfit two years later when the state will go for Assembly polls. When Palaniswami, who expelled his former colleague and ex-Chief Minister O Panneerselvam from the party in 2022, it was the beginning of several other steps that followed to cement his position as the undisputed party chief and partly to prepare the AIADMK for the 2026 Assembly election. By snapping ties with the BJP in September last year, the AIADMK expected at least a couple of DMK's allies including the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi to join the alliance led by it. However, that did not materialise and Palaniswami who often spoke of a "mega alliance" for the LS polls could only cobble up an alliance with Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam founded by the late actor-politician 'Captain' Vijayakanth and a couple of smaller outfits. To

Joined hands with BJP to ensure anti-incumbency vote does not split: Naidu

TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu on Saturday said that Janasena, BJP and TDP joined hands to rid Andhra Pradesh of the ruling YSRCP and ensure that the anti-incumbency vote does not get divided. Addressing a public meeting at Pedakurapadu in Palnadu district as part of his Prajagalam election canvassing tour, the former chief minister said that the NDA partners banded together for the future of Andhra Pradesh. Janasena chief Pawan Kalyan has already given a call to the people that they all should join hands to rid the state of this evil (YSRCP). The TDP, Janasena and the BJP joined hands keeping in view the future of all of you, Naidu said. He said that the state endured a nightmarish five-year-rule under Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy. Under the YSRCP government, Naidu said that a great injustice has been done to the Muslim community. The TDP leader assured the community that he will personally take responsibility for their safety. Naidu said the TDP has been a part of the N

BJP's Locket Chatterjee accuses TMC supporters of accosting her vehicle

BJP's Hooghly Lok Sabha seat candidate Locket Chatterjee on Saturday accused Trinamool Congress supporters of accosting her vehicle. The TMC denied having any role in the incident, claiming that common people were protesting her alleged absence from the constituency, from where she is contesting to win for the second consecutive term. The incident took place at Bansberia in Hooghly district, where she went to attend a religious ceremony. "Suddenly, some outsiders attacked the vehicle, common people were not there. I could come out of there with the help of my security personnel," she said. Dismissing her allegations, a local TMC leader said, "Common people were protesting her absence from the constituency. The TMC does not have anything to do with the incident.