Page 143 - Lok Sabha Elections

LS polls: Filing of nominations for 1st phase of elections in UP concludes

The filing of nominations for eight Lok Sabha seats of Uttar Pradesh that will go to polls in the first phase of elections ended on Wednesday, Chief Electoral Officer Navdeep Rinwa said. A total of 155 nominations have been filed in the eight Lok Sabha seats, of which 109 were filed on Wednesday, as per information provided by the state election commission. Eight parliamentary constituencies -- Saharanpur, Kairana, Muzaffarnagar, Bijnor, Nagina, Moradabad, Rampur and Pilibhit -- will vote in the first phase on April 19. Most nominations have been filed from Muzaffarnagar seat where 38 candidates are in the fray. A total of 23 nominations were filed in Bijnor, 18 each in Moradabad and Rampur, 17 in Kairana, 16 in Pilibhit, 13 in Saharanpur and 12 in Nagina. UP cabinet minister Jitin Prasada, who is the BJP candidate frpm Pilibhit, was among those who filed their nominations on Wednesday. From the Saharanpur Lok Sabha seat, nine candidates, including BJP's Raghav Lakhanpal filed the

LS polls: Congress releases list of 14 candidates for UP, Telangana, MP

It also fielded Pratap Bhanu Sharma against former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan in Vidisha. Tarvar Singh Lodhi has been nominated from Damoh

Cracks in MVA: Congress, Uddhav Sena spar over candidates in Maharashtra

The Maharashtra Congress on Wednesday objected to the Shiv Sena (UBT) announcing its candidates for the Bhiwandi, Mumbai South Central and Sangli Lok Sabha seats, saying MVA partners must stick to "coalition dharma". Congress Legislature Party leader Balasaheb Thorat urged Sena (UBT) to reconsider its decision. However, his party colleague Sanjay Nirupam adopted a more belligerent stand, attacking their leadership for letting the Uddhav Thackeray-led outfit grab most of the seats in Mumbai. Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) constituents Congress, Sena (UBT) and NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) have been holding seat-sharing discussions for the 48 constituencies in Maharashtra, where the Lok Sabha polls will be held in five phases starting April 19. Amid the talks, Sena (UBT) earlier in the day released its first list of 17 candidates for the upcoming elections and said it will contest a total of 22 seats in the state. Congress Legislature Party leader Balasaheb Thorat said the announcement was not

I do not have the kind of money to contest LS elections: FM Sitharaman

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said she declined the offer of the BJP to contest elections pleading that she did not have the 'kind of funds' required for fighting the Lok Sabha polls. The minister said that the BJP President (J P Nadda) gave her the option to contest either from Andhra Pradesh or Tamil Nadu. "After thinking over a week or ten days, I just went back to say... maybe not. I do not have that kind of money to contest. I also have a problem whether it is Andhra Pradesh or Tamil Nadu. It's also going to be a question of various other winnability criteria that they use...Are you from this community or are you from that religion? Are you from this? I said no, I do not think I am going to able to do it," she said. Sitharaman was speaking at the TIMES NOW Summit 2024 here. "I am very grateful that they accepted my argument...So I am not contesting," she added. When asked why even the finance minister of the country does not have enough funds to fight Lok S

Lok Sabha polls: BJD names 15 candidates, 72 Assembly poll nominees

Biju Janata Dal (BJD) president Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday declared the first list of party candidates for the Lok Sabha and Odisha Assembly elections. The BJD president announced the names of nine candidates out of the 21 Lok Sabha seats in Odisha. Patnaik himself will contest from the Hinjili Assembly segment in Ganjam district. BJD general secretary (Organisation) Pranab Prakash Das will contest from the Sambalpur Lok Sabha seat against Union Minister and BJP candidate Dharmendra Pradhan. Odisha Minister Sudam Marndi will contest from the Mayurbhanj Lok Sabha seat while former Indian Hockey skipper Dilip Tirky will face former Union Minister and sitting MP Jual Oram in the Sundergarh Lok Sabha seat. The other candidates for Lok Sabha seats were: Lambodar Nial (Kalahandi), Ansuman Mohanty (Kendrapara), Prajip Kumar Majhi (Nabarangpur) and Manmath Routray, who joined BJD from Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha seat. Other Lok Sabha candidates were: Kausalya Hikaka (Koraput), Ranjita Sahu ..

Highlights: EC withholds Akola West Assembly bypoll in Maha after HC order

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

Kejriwal's arrest will benefit AAP electorally in Lok Sabha polls: Atishi

Delhi minister Atishi on Wednesday said the arrest of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will benefit the AAP electorally in the Lok Sabha polls as the party is getting a lot of sympathy. In an interview with PTI, Atishi termed the arrest of Kejriwal by the Enforcement Directorate in an excise policy-linked money laundering case as an attack on democracy that was "never seen before" in the democratic history of the country. "The good thing is that it has benefited us electorally," she said, adding before the arrest of Kejriwal, the result of Lok Sabha polls was a forgone conclusion as people were of the view that the BJP was going to win. "But after Kejriwal's arrest, the level of public sympathy has gone up for us. There is just one sentiment that the BJP has gone one step too far. So, I would feel it has benefitted us electorally," Atishi told PTI. She said the upcoming Lok Sabha polls have become a 'People vs BJP' election. "This election has become a very different kind of electio

Lok Sabha polls: 38 candidates file nomination for first phase in Assam

Altogether 38 candidates, including Union minister Sarbananda Sonowal and senior Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi, have filed their nominations for the first phase polls scheduled on April 19 in Assam, an election official said. On the last day of filing of nominations on Wednesday, 26 people filed their papers and they include sitting BJP MP Topon Gogoi in Jorhat, Rajya Sabha MP Kamakhya Prasad Tasa in Kaziranga and MLA Ranjit Dutta in Sonitpur. The constituencies going to the polls in the first phase are Dibrugarh, Jorhat, Lakhimpur, Sonitpur and Kaziranga. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma accompanied Gogoi and Tasa during their nomination filing at Jorhat and Golaghat and exuded confidence that both the candidates would win their respective seats and help Prime Minister Narendra Modi to lead the nation for the third consecutive term. He said that the massive support for Gogoi is reflective of the love and faith people have in the Prime Minister and 'I am sure that he will win by a

LS polls: Congress likely to announce candidates for 4 Jharkand seats

The Congress is likely to announce the names of its candidates for Ranchi, Lohardaga, Khunti and Hazaribag Lok Sabha seats on Wednesday, a senior party leader said. The names are likely to be announced after the party's Central Election Committee (CEC) meeting in New Delhi. "The names of the candidates for Ranchi, Lohardaga, Khunti and Hazaribag Lok Sabha seats are likely to be announced today. We are going to participate in the meeting in Delhi, and the final list is likely to be issued after the CEC meeting and the screening committee meeting this evening," Congress legislature party leader Alamgir Alam told PTI before leaving for Delhi. He said a final decision on seat sharing among the INDIA bloc allies is also likely to be taken during the day, and accordingly the names of candidates will be announced. Leaders of the INDIA bloc said that a seat-sharing agreement has been finalised for all the 14 Lok Sabha constituencies in the state. As per the agreement, the Congress would .

LS polls: EC's notice to Supriya Shrinate, crisis in K'taka Cong. 10 points

Lok Sabha elections: Amid the political row over campaign conducts and remarks, the last day to file nominations for Lok Sabha elections phase one ends today

EC issues show-cause notices to Ghosh, Shrinate for remarks targeting women

The Election Commission on Wednesday issued show-cause notices to BJP leader Dilip Ghosh and Congress leader Supriya Shrinate for their offensive remarks against West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Kangana Ranaut respectively. Ranaut has been fielded by the BJP from Himachal Pradesh's Mandi Lok Sabha seat for the parliamentary elections. Their remarks were "undignified and in bad taste", the Election Commission (EC) said. The poll panel said that prima facie, the two remarks were violative of the Model Code of Conduct and its advisory to political parties to maintain dignity during electioneering. The two have been asked to respond to the show-cause notices by March 29 evening.

LS polls: Over 58,000 voters opt for home voting option so far in Rajasthan

More than 58,000 voters in Rajasthan have so far opted for home voting in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, an official said on Wednesday. For the first phase of the general election, 35,542 people, including 26,371 senior citizens and 9,171 persons with disabilities, have registered for home voting, the state's Chief Electoral Officer Praveen Gupta said. Registration for home voting in the first phase of the polls will be completed Wednesday, he said. Returning officers will share the list of registered home voters with all recognised political parties and candidates by April 1. Booth-level officers are completing the registration process of eligible home voters in all 25 Lok Sabha constituencies of the state, Gupta said. After the names of the candidates for the constituencies are finalised, door-to-door voting will be conducted, he said. "So far, over 58,000 eligible voters have opted to vote from home. These include 43,638 senior citizens and 14,385 persons with disabilities," the

Lok Sabha elections second phase: Schedule announced for filing nominations

The Election Commission announced kept April 4 as the last date for filing nominations, while the candidates can withdraw their candidacy till April 8

We're sitting on ticking bomb of joblessness, have plan to give jobs: Cong

Attacking the Centre over the issue of unemployment, the Congress on Wednesday claimed the country is sitting on a "ticking bomb" of joblessness with the youth bearing the brunt of the Modi government's "apathy" and asserted that it has a concrete plan for providing jobs to them. Citing the India Employment Report 2024 released by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the Institute of Human Development (IHD), Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge urged people to remember before voting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised to provide 20 crore jobs in 10 years but "snatched more than 12 crore jobs from the youth". "Our Youth is bearing the brunt of Modi government's pathetic apathy, as ever-rising Unemployment has destroyed their future. ILO & IHD Report conclusively says that the Unemployment problem is grim in India," he said. "They are conservative, we are sitting on a 'ticking bomb' of joblessness!" Kharge said in a post on X. "But the Modi government's Chief ...

LS polls: Congress likely to announce candidates for 4 Jharkand seats

The Congress is likely to announce names of its candidates for the Ranchi, Lohardaga, Khunti and Hazaribag Lok Sabha seats on Wednesday, a senior party leader said. The names are likely to be announced after the party's Central Election Committee (CEC) meeting in New Delhi. "The names of the candidates for Ranchi, Lohardaga, Khunti and Hazaribag Lok Sabha seats are likely to be announced today. We are going to participate in the meeting in Delhi, and the final list is likely to be issued after the CEC meeting and the screening committee meeting this evening," Congress legislature party leader Alamgir Alam told PTI before leaving for Delhi. He said a final decision on seat sharing among the INDIA bloc allies is also likely to be taken during the day, and accordingly the names of candidates will be announced. Leaders of the bloc said that a seat-sharing agreement has been finalised for all the 14 Lok Sabha constituencies in the state. As per the agreement, the Congress would contest

PM Modi to kick start Lok Sabha polls campaign in UP from Meerut on Mar 31

Lok Sabha polls will be held in seven phases beginning April 19. Uttar Pradesh, which sends the maximum number of MPs, 80, to Parliament, will vote in all seven phases

Alliance with UBT Sena may prove self-destructive for Cong: Sanjay Nirupam

Nirpuam who had represented Mumbai North in 2009 in the Lok Sabha said that the decision of the Shiv Sena to field candidates in Mumbai, is meant to side-line the Congress

Youth understands BJP can't provide employment, says Cong leader Priyanka

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday attacked the Centre over the issue of unemployment, saying the youth has understood that the BJP cannot provide employment and her party has a concrete plan for providing jobs to them. Citing the India Employment Report 2024 released by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the Institute of Human Development (IHD), Gandhi pointed out that out of the total unemployed people in India, 83 per cent are youth. "The share of educated youth in the total unemployed was 35.2% in 2000. In 2022, it has almost doubled to 65.7%," she said. "On the other hand, the Prime Minister's Chief Economic Advisor is saying that 'the government cannot solve the problem of unemployment'," the Congress general secretary said. This is the truth of the BJP government, she added. "Today every youth of the country has understood that BJP cannot provide employment. Congress Party has a concrete plan to provide employment to the youth," she said. Gandh

BJP MP Dilip Ghosh apologises for his comments on CM Mamata Banerjee

BJP MP Dilip Ghosh said that wherever Mamata Banerjee goes, she calls herself the daughter of that state, and "she must identify her own father"

Lok Sabha elections: Shiv Sena (UBT) releases 1st list of 16 nominees

The Shiv Sena (UBT) on Wednesday released its first list of 16 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, nominating former Union ministers Anant Geete and Arvind Sawant from Raigad and South Mumbai constituencies respectively. The party also fielded Rajan Vichare from Thane, Amol Kirtikar from Mumbai North-West, and Sanjay Patil from Mumbai North-East. The Uddhav Thackeray-led party is a constituent of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in the state. Another MVA constituent, NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) is yet to officially declare its candidates in the state for the April-May Lok Sabha polls. On the other hand, the Congress, which is also a part of the state-level grouping of the opposition parties, has declared its candidates on some seats where there is no tussle with its alliance partners. Maharashtra, which has 48 Lok Sabha seats, the second highest after Uttar Pradesh (80), will vote in five phases starting from April 19.