Page 141 - Lok Sabha Elections

No doctor in ambulance of K'taka Guv's convoy, protocol officer suspended

A protocol officer of the Madhya Pradesh Health Department was suspended after it was found that no doctor was marked for duty in the ambulance attached to Karnataka Governor Thawarchand Gehlot's convoy to attend to a medical emergency, an official said on Saturday. The absence of a doctor in the ambulance came to light after Gehlot's granddaughter, who was accompanying him, fell ill when the convoy was passing through Indore district of Madhya Pradesh on Friday evening, he said. "The Karnataka Governor's granddaughter, who was with him in the convoy, fell ill near Indore on Friday evening. But there was no doctor in the ambulance," Collector Ashish Singh told PTI. Gehlot's granddaughter was then admitted to a private hospital. She is now fine after being treated there, he added. "The protocol officer of the health department has been suspended for negligence in putting in place appropriate medical arrangements in the governor's motorcade," Indore's Chief Medical and Health Officer

Our govt will usher in 'Rozgar Kranti', says Cong chief Mallikarjun Kharge

The Congress will usher in a 'Rozgar Kranti' by taking concrete steps to increase employment opportunities, enable entrepreneurship and realise the aspirations of the youth, party chief Mallikarjun Kharge said on Saturday. He said the Congress guarantees that the future of youth will turn from bleak to bright and reiterated the 'Yuva Nyay' guarantees which the party would implement if voted to power. In a post on X, he said, "The Congress party will usher in a 'Rozgar Kranti (employment revolution)' through Yuva Nyay guarantee! We will take concrete measures to increase employment opportunities, enable entrepreneurship and realise the dreams and aspirations of our youth." Kharge listed the guarantees given by his party under its 'Yuva Nyay' pitch. Under the 'Bharti Bharosa' guarantee, the Congress chief said, his party would provide 30 lakh new Union government jobs, according to a jobs calendar. As part of 'Pehli Naukri Pakki', the party will provide one year Right to Apprenticesh

LS polls: Over 60 groups demand ban on infra projects in Himalayas

More than 60 environmental and social organisations in the country have demanded a complete ban on all mega infrastructure projects, such as those related to the railways, dams, hydro projects and four-lane highways in the Himalayas, and have urged for referendums and public consultations to be made compulsory for all development projects. The organisations, jointly leading the "People for Himalaya" campaign, issued a five-point charter of demand for all political parties for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls during an online press conference. They called for a complete moratorium on all mega infrastructure projects, including those related to the railways, dams, hydro projects, tunneling, transmission lines and four-lane highways, along with a comprehensive multidisciplinary review of the impacts of the existing projects. The organisations demanded that democratic decision-making through referendums and public consultations be made compulsory for large infrastructure projects. They als

Kejriwal arrest: AAP plans mega rally, INDIA bloc to attend; details here

Lok Sabha elections 2024: AAP organises mass protest following Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's arrest, ahead of the general elections

Home Minister Amit Shah to visit Assam on April 6: CM Himanta Sarma

Union Home Minister will address two election rallies in Lakhimpur and Hojai, which are under the Kaziranga parliamentary constituency

Vote for INDIA bloc for democracy, social justice: TN CM Stalin to people

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Friday attacked the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party at the Centre and appealed to people here to vote for the INDIA bloc if they want democracy and social justice to prevail in the country. Flaying Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Stalin said that if her claim of not having enough money to contest the Lok Sabha polls was true, the question is what happened to the fund the BJP received through electoral bonds. "Madam, if you want to contest the polls, you should meet the people and should toil hard for people's welfare. Since you know the result that the people will not vote for you, you have decided not to contest," he said. At a recent event in New Delhi, Sitharaman had commented that she declined the offer of the BJP to contest elections, pleading that she did not have the "kind of funds" required for the fighting the Lok Sabha polls. Canvassing votes for the DMK's Dharmapuri candidate A Mani and Congress nomin

Raj Congress to hold protest against I-T notices, freezing of bank accounts

Rajasthan Congress will hold protests at all district headquarters of the state on Saturday against the fresh notices issued to it by the Income Tax Department and the freezing of the party's bank accounts. General Secretary and spokesperson of Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee Swarnim Chaturvedi said the BJP-led central government is continuously attacking democracy and democratic systems in the country. Public demonstrations will be organised by the district Congress committees at all the district headquarters of Rajasthan on Saturday, he said. All senior leaders, office bearers, and workers of the Congress will participate, he added. As part of a well-planned conspiracy of the central government, the bank accounts of the Congress party were frozen and now undemocratic action is being taken against it by the Income Tax Department which has asked it to pay Rs 1,823.08 crore, he said. This is being done so that the Congress is not able to participate with strength in the genera

Lok Sabha elections: The rise of the no-result political parties

More parties have begun contesting the elections, with an increase by 45 per cent between the previous election in 2014, and the election conducted in 2019

LS polls: RJD to contest on 26, Cong, Left to field on 14 seats in Bihar

In the seat-sharing formula for the Mahagathbandhan allies, RJD gets key constituencies in Madhubani and Hajipur while Congress to contest from Kishanganj and Muzaffarpur

ED wants AAP's LS poll strategy details from Kejriwal's phone: Atishi

The Enforcement Directorate is working as BJP's political weapon and it wants to get details of AAP's Lok Sabha election strategy by accessing Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's phone, senior AAP leader Atishi alleged on Friday. Kejriwal, who is the national convener of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), was arrested by the central probe agency on March 21 in the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case and is in its custody till April 1. Addressing a press conference here, Atishi claimed the insistence of the ED to look into Kejriwal's mobile phone, which is a few months old and did not exist when the policy was formed and implemented, proves that the agency is working as a "political weapon" of the BJP. Hitting back at Atishi, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva accused her of "bluffing" and asked the AAP to explain to the people why Kejriwal and former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia "changed phones frequently". No immediate reaction was available from the ED. Atishi

Lok Sabha polls: Govinda makes a political comeback. Tracing his journey

Lok Sabha elections: Bollywood actor Govinda on Thursday joined the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena in Maharashtra, marking his re-entry into politics after a 14 year hiatus. Here is his journey

Lok Sabha polls: Shah to visit Tripura for 2 days from Apr 7 to campaign

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is likely to visit Tripura for two days from April 7 and will address a rally and hold a roadshow the next day as part of the BJP's campaign for its candidates in the two Lok Sabha seats in the northeastern state, a party leader said on Friday. During his proposed visit, Shah is also expected to chair an organisational meeting of party leaders, he said. Amit Shah ji, who is scheduled to address a rally in Mizoram on April 7, is likely to arrive in Tripura on the same day. He will hold an organisational meeting, address a rally in Gumati district's Udaipur and a roadshow in Agartala," BJP state general secretary Amit Rakshit told PTI. He said Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha held a meeting with senior party leaders on Thursday night for Shah's visit to the state. Elections to the Tripura West Lok Sabha constituency and by-poll to the Ramnagar assembly seat will be held on April 19, while the Tripura East parliamentary constituency will go to polls on .

BJP's Rekha Patra lodges complaint against TMC leader for privacy violation

BJP's Basirhat candidate Rekha Patra, who had highlighted the plight of women in West Bengal's Sandeshkhali, has lodged a complaint with the National Commission for Women against TMC nominee Debangshu Bhattacharyya for alleged violation of her privacy. She also shot off a letter to the National Commission for Scheduled Castes, alleging that Bhattacharyya, the TMC nominee from Tamluk Lok Sabha seat and head of the party's social media cell, made the details of her personal information and bank accounts public. "Recently, through a post on Debangshu Bhattacharyya's Facebook account, the TMC candidate from Tamluk has shared the private details of my client, such as phone number, bank account details, Swasthya Sathi scheme details, as well as the Duare Sarkar scheme details, which is a clear violation of my client's right to privacy and an outrage to her modesty by making her personal details public," Patra's lawyer said in the letter. The BJP candidate, through her counsel, urged the .

LS polls: Over 79K violations reported so far through C-Vigil app, says EC

The Election Commission (EC) on Friday said its C-Vigil mobile application has become an effective tool in the hands of people for flagging poll code violations and since the announcement of the Lok Sabha election, more than 79,000 complaints have been received. More than 99 per cent of the complaints have been resolved and close to 89 per cent of those were resolved within 100 minutes, the poll panel said. More than 58,500 complaints (73 per cent of the total number of complaints) received were against illegal hoardings and banners, the EC said, adding that over 1,400 complaints received pertained to money, gifts and liquor distribution. Close to 3 per cent of the complaints (2,454) were related to defacement of property. Of the 535 complaints received for display of firearms and intimidation, 529 have been resolved, the poll panel said. A total of 1,000 complaints were for campaigning beyond the prohibited period, including those related to the use of speakers beyond the permitt

Lok Sabha polls: Oppn seals Bihar deal; RJD to contest 26 seats, Congress 9

Lok Sabha polls: The RJD, which drew a blank in 2019 Lok Sabha polls, will fight on 26 seats in Bihar, while the Congress will contest on 9 seats, including its 2019 win - the Kishanganj constituency

LS polls: INDIA bloc's protest, PM Modi calls Congress a 'bully'. 10 points

Lok Sabha elections 2024: INDIA bloc's protest against Arvind Kejriwal arrest, Govinda's re-entry into politics, phase two of nominations, and all the latest updates on Lok Sabha elections

Congress will reserve 50% government jobs for women, says Rahul Gandhi

The Congress will reserve 50 per cent of government jobs for women if it is voted to power, former party chief Rahul Gandhi said on Friday, asserting that powerful women will change the destiny of India. Gandhi asked why even today only one in three women is employed and why is there only one woman in 10 government jobs. "Isn't the population of women in India 50%? Is the presence of women in higher secondary and higher education not 50%? If so, then why is their share in the system so less?" the former Congress chief said. "Congress wants - 'Aadhi Abaadi Poora Haq', we understand that women's potential will be fully utilized only when women have equal contribution in the government running the country," he said in a post in Hindi on X. Therefore, the Congress has decided that half the recruitment in all new government jobs should be reserved for women, he said. "We are also in favour of immediate implementation of women's reservation in Parliament and in assemblies," Gandhi ...

Ceiling for LS polls expenditure: District poll panels fix menu, rates

Candidates in Punjab's Jalandhar can spend Rs 15 for a cup of tea and the same price for a samosa they offer to people during public meetings and campaign trails in the Lok Sabha elections. However, those in Madhya Pradesh's Mandla can spend Rs 7 for a cup of tea and another Rs 7.50 for a piece of samosa, considered a staple snack in many parts of the country. With polls to elect the 18th Lok Sabha approaching, district poll panels are fixing the rates for expenses as part of the election expenditure monitoring process. The candidates will have to manage their expenditure within the prescribed limit. These rate cards often become a subject of "meme-fest" on social media about the prices not being in sync with the current inflation level. In most states, including Andhra Pradesh, the expenditure ceiling for a Lok Sabha candidate is set at Rs 95 lakh. However, in Arunachal Pradesh, Goa and Sikkim, the limit is slightly lower at Rs 75 lakh per candidate. Similarly, for Union territori

Hope in India everyone's rights are protected: UN amid Kejriwal's arrest

A spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said we very much "hope that in India and any country that is having elections, people's "political and civil rights" are "protected" and everyone is able to vote in a "free and fair" atmosphere. Spokesperson for the Secretary-General Stephane Dujarric made these remarks on Thursday while he was responding to a question on the political unrest in India ahead of the upcoming national elections in the wake of the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and the freezing of the opposition Congress Party's bank accounts. What we very much hope that in India, as in any country that is having elections, that everyone's rights are protected, including political and civil rights, and everyone is able to vote in an atmosphere that is free and fair, Dujarric said at the daily press briefing Thursday. The response from the United Nations comes a day after the US also reacted to a similar question on Kejriwal's arrest and freezi

Highlights: Govinda joins Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena ahead of LS

Lok Sabha polls 2024 latest news: Catch all the latest updates on the announcements related to the General Elections here