Page 139 - Lok Sabha Elections

Lok Sabha polls: BJP will win all 25 seats in Rajasthan, says Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday exuded confidence that the BJP will win all the 25 Lok Sabha seats in Rajasthan and the margin of victory will be much more than the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections. He also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is taking the country towards all-inclusive development. While speaking at a meeting with the representatives of various social organisations at a hotel here, Shah said the entire opposition is uniting to remove Prime Minister Modi, while on the other hand, PM Modi has only one slogan -- "development of the nation". "After independence, the Congress has worked to divide society. It has created four sores of corruption, casteism, nepotism and terrorism whereas PM Modi has freed the country from all these," he was quoted as saying in a statement from the BJP. Shah highlighted the consecration at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, abrogation of Article 370, 33 per cent reservation for women and law on triple talaq as achievements of the Modi ...

2024 Lok Sabha elections: Why political memes are no laughing matter

The race for creativity, the accessibility of tools, and the urgency of elections often blur the line between what is humorous and what is offensive

BJP's lists of Lok Sabha candidates: Of give and take, and long wait

The BJP has dropped almost a third of its sitting MPs

Protectionism to continue if BJP comes back to power

The commerce minister left no one in any doubt that the government will protect the domestic producers as long as they felt that it was necessary

Highlights: Corrupt person, howsoever big, will face action, says PM Modi

LIVE updates: Opposition protests against CM Kejriwal's arrest, BJP unveils lineup of leaders for Tripura LS polls, and more. Catch all the latest updates from across the globe here

Last 10 years a trailer: PM Modi vows big steps in 100 days of new govt

Begins campaigning in UP from Meerut

DMK, AIADMK ruled state for 57 yrs, ruined everything: PMK chief Ramadoss

Ramadoss told ANI that drugs are the biggest problem, and the government has not done anything about it

LS elections: Prakash Ambedkar's VBA declares 11 more nominees for Maha

Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) on Sunday declared its second list of 11 candidates from Maharashtra for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. With this, the VBA has so far declared 20 candidates. The 11 constituencies include Hingoli, Latur, Solapur, Madha, Satara, Dhule, Hatkanangale, Raver, Jalna, Mumbai North Central, and Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg. Notably, VBA candidates finished third in many of these constituencies in the 2019 general elections wherein Congress or NCP (undivided) nominees could finish second, indicating that votes were split in favour of winning candidates, mostly from BJP and Shiv Sena (undivided). The VBA last week released its first list of nine candidates, fielding Ambedkar from Akola, signalling the outfit is no longer pursuing an alliance with the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).

Lok Sabha elections: Several leaders of Congress, BPF join BJP in Assam

In a boost to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, several leaders of the Congress and Bodoland People's Front (BPF) joined the BJP on Sunday during a programme held at the Assam State BJP headquarters in Guwahati in the presence of state BJP president Bhabesh Kalita."Today marked a significant moment as Ananta Kumar Malo, former MLA, Kishore Bhattacharya, former APCC member, and Bhaskar Dahal, former secretary & Spokesperson of APCC, officially joined the BJP at Atal Bihari Vajpayee Bhawan, Guwahati," Kalita said in a post on 'X'."I warmly welcome them and look forward to their valuable contributions towards the development and progress of our nation. My heartfelt congratulations to Ananta Kumar Malo, Kishore Bhattacharya, and Bhaskar Dahal as they start their new journey with BJP," he added."Today several people joined the party...The opposition is going to be a big zero in Assam. That is their condition here," Kalita said speaking to ANI on ...

Jai Ram Thakur meets Kangana, discusses strategy for upcoming LS polls

Former Himachal Pradesh chief minister Jai Ram Thakur on Sunday met BJP Lok Sabha candidate from Mandi Kangana Ranaut at her home in Bhambla to discuss the election strategy. Ranaut, a popular Hindi film actor, welcomed Thakur by presenting him with a cap at her Mandi house. Sarkaghat MLA Dilip Singh Thakur and other local BJP office bearers were also present on the occasion. Kangana kick-started her election campaign on Friday with a road show and a rally. On Sunday, she slammed the Congress leaders over their remarks on women of Mandi and called upon the people to give a befitting reply to the party in the coming election. Congress leaders Supriya Shrinate and H S Ahir recently stoked a controversy when they made comments on Kangana and Mandi. Talking to reporters in the local dialect, Kangana said "no matter where you work, where you go, home is home and people here are my own." "I have always fought for the women's rights and women empowerment," she added. Thakur, who is al

Fighting battle against corrupt, won't be intimidated by attacks: PM Modi

Lashing out at the opposition INDIA bloc, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the attacks on him will not stop the fight against corruption and action will be taken against those involved in graft irrespective of their status. "When Modi is fighting the battle against corruption with full strength, these people have formed the INDI alliance. They think they will intimidate Modi, but for me, my Bharat is my family and I am taking steps to protect it from the corrupt," the prime minister said addressing his first rally in Uttar Pradesh after the announcement of the Lok Sabha election schedule. Modi's counter-offensive came as the stalwarts of the INDIA bloc held a rally at the Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi in support of AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal and JMM leader Hemant Soren, arrested on graft charges, and accused the prime minister of adopting dictatorial policies. The prime minister said some people are rattled because he is taking action against corruption. "I am fighting a bi

Lok Sabha polls: 55 candidates left in fray for five seats of Uttarakhand

One independent candidate from Almora has withdrawn from the contest leaving only 55 candidates in the fray for the April 19 Lok Sabha polls in Uttarakhand. Arjun Kumar Dev, the independent candidate from Almora, withdrew on the last date for withdrawal of nominations on Saturday, Additional Chief Electoral Officer Vijay Kumar Jogdande said. Dev was the lone candidate to withdraw, he said. There are now a total of 55 candidates in the fray for the five Lok Sabha constituencies in the state which go to polls in the first phase on April 19. There are 11 candidates in the fray for Tehri seat, 13 for Pauri Garhwal, 7 for Almora, 10 for Nainital and 14 for Haridwar, Jogdande said. The additional chief electoral officer said that publishing and broadcasting of exit poll results will be completely prohibited during the entire election process as per the Election Commission's instructions. Jogdande said that there will be a ban on the publication and telecast of exit polls from 7 am on A

Lok Sabha polls: Election officials search former Telangana CM KCR's bus

As part of poll duty, election officials on Sunday inspected the bus in which former Telangana Chief Minister and BRS supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao was traveling during his visit to Suryapet district, about 170 km from here. Telangana will vote for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls on May 13 for which the Model Code Conduct (MCC) is currently in place. According to sources in the BRS, Rao was on his way to Suryapet as part of his tour to inspect agricultural fields which are allegedly facing drought-like conditions. The BRS sources said the vehicle was checked at Edulaparre tanda check post in the district. KCR was interacting with farmers to instill confidence in view of the drought-like conditions faced by them, party sources said.

PM's guarantee like Chinese goods, only meant for polls: Tejashwi Yadav

In a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Sunday claimed that his guarantee is like Chinese goods and is only meant for polls, as he urged people not to fall for the BJP's "propaganda" in the Lok Sabha polls. Addressing the INDIA bloc rally at the Ramlila maidan here, Yadav alleged that an "undeclared emergency" was prevailing in the country and asserted that the opposition will not let the RSS agenda to be implemented in the country. Yadav also sang lines from a Govinda-starrer movie with a play on the lyrics "tum toh dhokebaaz ho, vaada karke bhool jaate ho", to allege that Prime Minister Modi did not fulfil his promises made in the last election. The former Bihar deputy CM charged that the Enforcement Directorate, CBI and IT department are cells of the BJP. "Cases have been slapped on me, my father, mother, sisters. We are not the ones to get scared. The manner in which Hemant Soren ji and (Arvind) Kejriwal ji have been arrested (has been

LS polls: Challenge BJP to cross even 200 seats; won't allow CAA, says CM

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday mocked the BJP's target of winning 400-plus seats in the Lok Sabha polls and challenged the saffron camp to win at least 200 constituencies. Banerjee also asserted that she won't allow the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act in the state. She cautioned people that applying for CAA would turn an applicant into a foreigner and urged them not to apply for it. "The BJP is saying "400 paar", I challenge them to cross the 200 seats benchmark first. In 2021 assembly polls, they gave a call of 200 plus seats but had to stop at 77," she said. "The CAA is a trap to turn legal citizens into foreigners. We would allow neither CAA nor NRC in West Bengal," she said while addressing her first rally in the election season after her injury earlier this month. Banerjee, the TMC supremo, slammed the opposition bloc INDIA partners -- CPI(M) and Congress-- for "joining hands with the BJP" in West Bengal. "There is no INDIA alliance in W

Our govt gave new flight to hopes of family members across nation: PM Modi

Ahead of his first Lok Sabha election rally in Uttar Pradesh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday referred to the people of the country as his family members and said his government has given a new flight to their aspirations. The prime minister will hold a rally in Meerut on Sunday where the BJP has fielded actor Arun Govil of TV serial 'Ramayan' fame as its candidate. According to sources, apart from Govil, Rashtriya Lok Dal president Jayant Chaudhary, who recently joined the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance, will share the dais with the prime minister. In a post on X in Hindi, PM Modi said, "In the last 10 years, our government, through its work, has given a new flight to the aspirations of my family members across the country. To give further speed to this, the countrymen have once again made up their mind to go with the BJP-NDA in the Lok Sabha elections." "Will get the privilege of receiving blessings from the public around 3.30 pm today in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh," he ..

Lok Sabha polls: South will help reach Modi target of 370, says Gadkari

Avowing abiding confidence in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's goal of 370 seats, BJP leader Nitin Gadkari says the additional seats to its current strength of 288 will come from gains in southern India in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. In a wide ranging interview with PTI at his residence in Nagpur, Gadkari said there is "no doubt" in his mind that the BJP-led NDA alliance will cross 400 seats and that Modi will take over as prime minister for a third term because of the solid work done by the government in the last 10 years. He dismissed allegations that the Modi government is weaponising central probe agencies such as the Enforcement Directorate and CBI to weaken the opposition, saying BJP's rivals should make efforts to overcome adversity by winning the confidence of the people. Is it our responsibility to make the opposition weak or strong? When we had just two MPs and were weak, we never got any package out of sympathy, Gadkari, who is seeking a third Lok Sabha term from ...

Lok Sabha polls: Swami Prasad Maurya to contest from UP's Kushinagar

Former Uttar Pradesh minister Swami Prasad Maurya, who recently parted ways with the Samajwadi Party, on Sunday said he will contest the Lok Sabha elections from Kushinagar as a candidate of his Rashtriya Shoshit Samaaj Party. Claiming that he held talks with the INDIA bloc constituents from Uttar Pradesh over seat sharing but got no response, Maurya also announced that S N Chauhan will be his party's candidate from the Deoria Lok Sabha seat. The names of other candidates of the party would be announced soon, he added. Kushinagar and Deoria Lok Sabha seats will vote in the seventh and final phase of the general elections on June 1. In a post on X in Hindi, Maurya said that since the formation of the Rashtriya Shoshit Samaj Party, he has been trying to strengthen the INDIA bloc and make it win. "We also appealed to the people of the country to save the Constitution, democracy and get rid of the BJP," he said. "I held talks with the leaders of both the big parties of Uttar Pradesh w

Failed to put up united Oppn candidates due to politics: Assam Cong chief

Assam Congress president Bhupen Kumar Borah has asserted that the opposition parties' attempt to contest the Lok Sabha polls unitedly in the state fell apart "due to national politics". He claimed that the AAP contesting separately in the state would be its "biggest blunder", while the TMC's refusal to concede any constituency to the Congress in West Bengal "impacted the alliance adversely" in the northeastern state. "We had formed the United Opposition Forum, Assam (UOFA) eight months before the INDIA bloc was constituted. Ours is a 16-party forum and out of these, three are contesting the Lok Sabha polls directly. But it is not due to my leadership or politics in the state, but due to national politics," Borah said in an interview with PTI. Of the total 14 seats in the state, the Congress is contesting 13, leaving one for the UOFA member Assam Jaitya Parishad (AJP). The other UOFA constituents, which have put up candidates in the state, are the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Trinamool ..

LS polls: Cong eyes win in 6 seats in Chhattisgarh in which BJP never lost

Six out of the 11 Lok Sabha seats in Chhattisgarh have been the Bharatiya Janata Party's bastions where it never lost the elections since the state's formation in 2000. While the Congress has expressed confidence of breaching the saffron citadels this time, the BJP is hopeful of retaining them and also pocketing the other Lok Sabha seats in the state. Of these six seats, Kanker, Surguja and Raigarh are reserved for the Scheduled Tribes, Janjgir-Champa for the Scheduled Castes, while Raipur and Bilaspur are for the general category candidates. In Rajnandagon Lok Sabha seat, the BJP never tasted defeat since 2000 but in a 2007 bypoll, the Congress emerged victorious. This time, the Congress has fielded former chief minister Bhupesh Baghel from Rajnandgaon. After Chhattisgarh was carved out of Madhya Pradesh, the BJP fared well in both the assembly and Lok Sabha elections in the state. The saffron party ruled the state uninterrupted for 15 years from 2003 to 2018 and came to power fo