Page 146 - Lok Sabha Elections

Election latest: Cong drops 'pro-BJP' Jaipur nominee, Kangana on poll debut

Lok Sabha elections: The BJP revealed many surprising names in its latest list of candidates for the Lok Sabha polls, naming actors Kangana Ranaut and Arun Govil as debut nominees

Assam MLA Bharat Chandra Narah quits Cong after wife fails to get LS ticket

Bharat Chandra Narah, the MLA of Nowboicha in Assam's Lakhimpur district, resigned from the Congress on Monday. The resignation comes two days after Congress announced Uday Shankar Hazarika as its candidate for the Lakhimpur Lok Sabha seat. Narah was hopeful that his party would nominate his wife Ranee Narah, a former Union Minister, for the seat. He sent a one-line resignation letter, which he shared with PTI, to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge. "I do hereby resign from the Indian National Congress with immediate effect," the MLA said in the letter. On Sunday, Narah resigned from the post of the chairman of Assam Congress' media cell.

People fed up with BJP, its hollow promises, says SP leader Shivpal Yadav

Samajwadi Party leader Shivpal Singh Yadav on Monday said that people are fed up with the BJP, which made "false and hollow" promises and have decided to vote for the SP. Talking to reporters in Saifai on the occasion of Holi, Yadav said, "Everyone is fed up with the BJP. Inflation, taxes, unemployment and corruption are at its peak. The promises BJP made were false and hollow. This time people will ensure victory for the SP candidates." "If we win UP, BJP will be wiped out," he added. Candidates on remaining seats will be declared soon, the SP national general secretary said Asked whether there are chances of his son, Aditya Yadav, contesting from Buduan in his place, Yadav said, "As of now, It's I who would be contesting." "Whatever directions the party will give, I will follow," he said. Yadav has been declared party candidate from Budaun seat.

LS elections: Kangana to Varun Gandhi, key highlights of BJP's 5th list

Popular Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut and famous TV personality Arun Govil were the surprise names among the nominations, while the BJP did not give Pilibhit MP Varun Gandhi the ticket

Kejriwal arrested to divert attention from electoral bonds scam: Kerala CM

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday said the electoral bonds scam is the biggest corruption ever witnessed in India and added the BJP government at the Centre arrested his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal to divert attention from the same. Addressing the third consecutive rally organised here by the CPI(M) against the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), Vijayan alleged the BJP-led Central government and the Sangh Parivar give scant regard to the rule of the law in the country. He alleged that the Sangh Parivar was trying to take control of the Constitutional institutions and even threatening the country's judiciary. "The Union government, BJP, Sangh Parivar, they all very well know that the Supreme Court order on the electoral bond scam was harmful to them. They wanted to divert the attention from this topic and for that they have arrested Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal," Vijayan said. The chief minister said when the idea of electoral bonds was floated, the CPI(

Lok Sabha polls: Chirag Paswan's party to declare candidates after Holi

NDA ally Chirag Paswan said his Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) will declare its candidates for the Lok Sabha polls immediately after Holi. Paswan, whose party has got five of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar, also asserted he was "ready for any challenge" that came from his estranged uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras. "We will announce all our candidates in a few days... immediately after Holi, Paswan said on Sunday, but evaded a direct reply to the question of whether he would accommodate Veena Devi and Mehboob Ali Kaiser, sitting MPs from Vaishali and Khagaria, respectively. Both the seats, contested by his late father Ram Vilas Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party in 2019, have been assigned to the young leader's party this time. The MPs had rallied behind Paras when he split the LJP in 2021, but of late have been repenting that decision and swearing their loyalty towards the late party founder's son. Paswan was also asked about the threat by Paras, who has resigned from his Union cabinet ber

LS polls: With 6 more names, BJP declares candidates for Gujarat's 26 seats

The ruling BJP announced the names of six candidates for Lok Sabha polls from Gujarat, including new faces for Vadodara and Sabarkantha where the party nominees earlier withdrew from the fray. With this, the party has announced the names of candidates for all 26 constituencies where elections are scheduled to be held in a single phase on May 7. In its latest list of six candidates released late Sunday night, the party dropped five sitting MPs, including Minister of State for AYUSH and Child Development Mahendra Munjpara from Surendranagar. On Vadodara and Sabarkantha seats, BJP had nominated sitting MP Ranjan Bhatt and Bhikhaji Thakor, respectively. However, on Saturday, two-time MP Bhatt and Thakor withdrew from the fray. The party has replaced Bhatt with Hemang Joshi, while Shobna Baraiya will contest in place of Thakor. Joshi is the vice-chairman of Municipal School Board of Vadodara Municipal Corporation. Baraiya is the wife of former BJP MLA from Prantij. BJP has repeated ..

PM Modi made 'corrupt-mukt Congress': Ramesh after Naveen Jindal joins BJP

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday took a swipe at the BJP soon after industrialist Naveen Jindal joined the party and said this had to happen "when you need a giant size washing machine". "When you need a giant-size washing machine, this had to happen. And after making ZERO contributions to the party in the last ten years, saying I am resigning from it is a big joke," Ramesh said in a post on X soon after Jindal joined the BJP. The Congress leader also took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "The PM wanted a Congress-mukt Bharat. Instead he has made a Corrupt-mukt Congress by deploying so many washing machines along with the ED and the CBI to force corrupt Congressmen to flee to his embrace!" he said in another post. Jindal, who represented Kurukshetra constituency in the Lok Sabha from 2004-14 as a Congress MP, announced his resignation on X just before he joined the BJP. "I represented the Congress Party in the Parliament as an MP from Kurukshetra for 10 years. I thank

Lok Sabha elections: Assam CM Sarma meets AGP leaders to discuss strategy

The Assam Chief Minister, while talking about the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, said that, in this election, the BJP and its ally parties will win the seats with a record margin

Caste census only way to ensure equal opportunity for all, says Congress

The Congress on Sunday asserted that a caste census is the only way to ensure equal opportunity for all in the country. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said caste has been a socio-economic reality of Indian society for centuries. "We cannot deny caste-based discrimination in India and the disadvantages imposed by caste at birth," he said in a post on X. "To make the distribution of economic growth more equitable, we need a survey of the ownership of assets and the representation of people in the institutions of our democracy," Ramesh said. Therefore, what is needed is a caste census combined with a survey of national assets and governance systems, which is updated from time to time, he asserted in the post on X. "This survey of caste groups, national assets, and representation in governance systems -- collectively called a comprehensive socio-economic caste census -- is the only solution to ensure an India with equal opportunity for all," the Congress leader said using the

Report card: BJP's campaign mantra for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections

The party campaigning over the past 10 years has been themed around Brand Modi. But the messaging has changed. Nivedita Mookerji explains

Highlights: BJP releases new list for LS; Kangana, Naveen Jindal nominated

From AAP's plans to launch protests across the capital to Bengal BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari complaining to EC against TMC, catch all the latest updates from around the world here

Infrastructure takes centre stage as ministers ready Lok Sabha poll pitch

Energy security, safer travel to form the core of BJP's LS poll promises

LS polls: BJP names 18 candidates for Odisha seats, drops 4 sitting MPs

The BJP on Sunday announced the names of its candidates for 18 of the 21 Lok Sabha seats in Odisha, while dropping four sitting MPs from the list. The nominees for Cuttack, Jajpur and Kandhamal Lok Sabha constituencies are yet to be named by the party. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan will be contesting from Sambalpur seat. The party has fielded four women - Aparajita Sarangi (Bhubaneswar), Sangeeta Kumari Deo (Bolangir), Malvika Keshari Deo (Kalahandi) and Anita Subhadarshini (Aska). The sitting MPs who were denied BJP tickets this time are Suresh Pujari (Bargarh), Union Minister Bisheswar Tudu (Mayrbhanj), Nitish Gang Deb (Sambalpur) and Basant Panda (Kalahandi). The party has nominated Pradeep Purohit in place of Pujari while Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan replaced Nitish Gang Deb in Sambalpur. Rairangpur MLA Naba Charan Majhi has replaced Bisheswar Tudu in Mayurbhaj seat. Malvika Keshari Deo is made the new candidate in place of Basant Kumar Panda in .

Chirag Paswan's party to declare LS poll candidates immediately after Holi

NDA ally Chirag Paswan on Sunday said his Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) will declare its candidates for the Lok Sabha polls "immediately after Holi". Paswan, whose party has got five of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar, also asserted he was "ready for any challenge" that came from his estranged uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras. "We will announce all our candidates in a few days... immediately after Holi, said Paswan, but evaded a direct reply to the question whether he would accommodate Veena Devi and Mehboob Ali Kaiser, sitting MPs from Vaishali and Khagaria, respectively. Both the seats, contested by his late father Ram Vilas Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party in 2019, have been assigned to the young leader's party this time. The MPs had rallied behind Paras when he split the LJP in 2021, but of late have been repenting that decision and swearing by their loyalty towards the late party founder's son. Paswan was also asked about the threat by Paras, who has resigned from his Union cabinet .

Lok Sabha elections: BSP names 25 candidates; JD(U) lists all 16 in Bihar

The Janata Dal (United), on the other hand, announced all its 16 candidates from Bihar, where the Opposition 'grand alliance' is seeing some friction between the Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal

Pallavi Dempo first woman to contest Lok Sabha polls on BJP ticket in Goa

Dempo Industries executive director Pallavi Dempo is the first woman candidate in BJP's poll history in Goa who will contest Lok Sabha elections on the party ticket. The BJP on Sunday declared Dempo's candidature from South Goa in its latest list of 111 candidates for general elections. A Goan entrepreneur and educationist, Dempo holds a graduate degree in chemistry and a postgraduate degree in business management (MBA) from MIT, Pune. The 49-year-old entrepreneur oversees the media and real estate arm of Dempo Industries as its executive director. The South Goa seat is currently represented by Congress leader Francisco Sardinha. The BJP had won this constituency only twice since 1962. South Goa constituency, spread across 20 assembly segments, had changed hands among the Maharashtravadi Gomantak Party, United Goans Party, and Indian National Congress. The BJP won this seat in the 1999 and 2014 elections but couldn't retain it. Dempo's husband Shrinivas Dempo is a noted industri

LS polls: BJP announces candidates for 17 Bihar seats, drops 3 sitting MPs

The BJP on Sunday announced its candidates for 17 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar, dropping three sitting MPs, including Union Minister Ashwani Kumar Choubey. According to the list released by the party in New Delhi, Choubey, who was elected from Buxar for the second consecutive term in 2019, was replaced by Mithilesh Tiwari, a senior BJP leader and a former MLA. The party also dropped its incumbent MPs Chedi Pawasan and Ajay Kumar Nishad from Sasaram and Muzaffarpur constituencies respectively. The BJP fielded former MLA Shivesh Ram for Sasaram, while Raj Bhushan Nishad, a greenhorn in the Lok Sabha polls, will contest the Muzaffarpur seat on a party ticket. Vivek Thakur, a Rajya Sabha member, was fielded from Nawada, where the BJP would be contesting this time, instead of its ally Lok Janshakti Party (LJP). All the remaining 14 candidates are sitting MPs, who will seek re-election from their respective seats.

I will not contest 2024 Lok Sabha elections, says union minister VK Singh

The former Army General further explained his rationale, emphasising his desire to redirect his energy and time towards new avenues of serving the nation

LS polls: SP fields S T Hasan from Moradabad, changes Bijnor candidate

The Samajwadi Party on Sunday renominated its Lok Sabha MP from Moradabad S T Hasan from the same seat and changed its Bijnor candidate by fielding Deepak Saini, the son of a party MLA. The party announced the names in a post on X. The Samajwadi Party had earlier named Yashveer Singh as its candidate from Bijnor. However, on Sunday, it named Deepak Saini as its candidate for the seat. He is the son of Ram Avtar Saini, the SP legislator from the Noorpur assembly segment that comes under the Bijnor parliamentary constituency. According to the election schedule, polling in Uttar Pradesh's eight parliamentary constituencies, including Bijnor and Moradabad, will be held in the first phase of Lok Sabha polls on April 19. The state will see voting in all seven phases of the Lok Sabha polls. The counting of votes will be held on June 4.