Page 177 - Lok Sabha Elections

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw submits nomination for Rajya Sabha polls

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Thursday filed his nomination paper as a BJP candidate for the third Rajya Sabha seat from Odisha. Vaishnaw submitted his papers to Rajya Sabha Election Returning Officer Abanikanta Patnaik in the Odisha Assembly premises. He submitted two sets of paper, an official said. The ruling BJD had on Wednesday announced its support for Vaishnaw's candidature in the Rajya Sabha polls, as it had done in 2019. Vaishnaw, who is the Railways, Communications, Electronics & Information Technology Minister, was accompanied by BJP state president Manmohan Samal and 13 party MLAs while submitting his papers. No BJD leader was present when the Union minister filed his papers. When Vaishnaw had filed his papers for the 2019 Rajya Sabha bypoll, BJD leaders Sasmit Patra and Amar Patnaik were present. Two BJD candidates Debashish Samantaray and Subhasish Khuntia have already filed their nomination papers for the RS polls. Considering the strength of the BJD in the ..

Supreme Court to pronounce judgment on electoral bonds scheme today

The electoral bonds scheme, introduced in 2017, provided anonymous donations to political parties

BJP's JP Nadda to file nomination today from Gujarat for Rajya Sabha polls

Bharatiya Janata Party national president JP Nadda will file the nomination for Rajya Sabha from Gujarat on Thursday

West Bengal CM Mamata may visit Punjab on Feb 21; to meet Kejriwal, Mann

West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee may visit Punjab on February 21 and meet her Delhi and Punjab counterparts, Arvind Kejriwal and Bhagwant Mann respectively, an official source said on Thursday. The Trinamool Congress supremo is expected to offer prayers at the Golden Temple also, he said. "The chief minister is likely to visit Punjab on February 21. During her visit, she will offer prayers at the Golden Temple in Amritsar. There is a high possibility of her meeting, Delhi Chief Minister and Punjab Chief Minister during this visit," the senior official, told PTI. Banerjee's meeting with the top leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is considered crucial in the backdrop of the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections and the formation of an opposition coalition. The possible visit of West Bengal chief minister to Punjab comes at a time when farmers are demanding minimum support price for their crops. Banerjee has already extended her support to the farmers and condemned the attack

Rahul Gandhi led 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' to resume with rally in Bihar

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will on Thursday pick up the threads of his 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' with a public meeting in Bihar's Aurangabad district, about 150 km from the state capital. According to senior party leader and MLC Prem Chandra Mishra, AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge is also likely to address the rally. "Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge are likely to reach Gaya by flight and take a helicopter for Aurangabad. Thereafter, Gandhi will resume the Yatra", Mishra told PTI over phone. Notably, Gandhi was last seen in Bihar a fortnight ago when his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra had covered four districts of the Seemanchal region. According to Mishra, after the rally, Gandhi is likely to interact with farmers in Tekari Vidhan Sabha area, which falls in Gaya district but is a part of the Aurangabad Lok Sabha constituency. "Gandhi will spend the night at Sasaram. On Friday he will travel to Kaimur district from where we will see him off into the adjoining state of Uttar Pradesh"

No merger plans for Sharad Pawar-led NCP faction, says Supriya Sule

Party members have clarified that the Sharad Pawar-led NCP will continue to participate in the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha elections as part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance

Final decision on South Goa LS seat candidate after INDIA bloc meet: Cong

A day after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) announced its MLA as the INDIA alliance nominee for the South Goa Lok Sabha seat, the Congress on Thursday said a final decision on the candidate will be taken after the opposition bloc's meeting in Delhi. The AAP and Congress have been on a collision course over the sharing of seats for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, with the Arvind Kejriwal-led party on Tuesday deciding to field Benaulim MLA Venzy Viegas from South Goa and seeking to blame the Congress for the apparent delay in picking a candidate. South Goa is one of the two Lok Sabha seats in Goa currently represented by Francisco Sardinha of the Congress. Asked about AAP's announcement of the South Goa Lok Sabha seat candidate, state Congress president Amit Patkar on Wednesday said the opposition INDIA alliance is yet to decide the candidate. "We have eight aspirants each for the North Goa and South Goa seats from the Congress party itself. The AAP has shortlisted Venzy Viegas. The final ..

Not allowing for 100% VVPATs is 'terrible anyay' on Indian voter: Congress

Calling for greater accountability in using technology in conduct of polls, the Congress Wednesday questioned the Election Commission's "reluctance" to engage with INDIA parties over their demand that the number of VVPATs prescribed be steadily increased towards 100 per cent. The opposition party also said that not allowing for 100 per cent VVPATs is a "terrible injustice" on the Indian voter. In a post on X, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) parties have been requesting for an appointment to meet the Election Commission since June 2023 on the issue of the greater use of VVPATs (Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail) in the election process. "Not allowing for 100% VVPATs is a terrible ANYAY on the Indian voter," he said. On April 8, 2019, the Supreme Court had requested the EC to increase the number of election booths that undergo VVPAT slip matching, he noted. "The case is N. Chandrababu Naidu vs Union of India

Maharashtra politics: Congress, MVA eye stronger comeback ahead of LS polls

Ashok Chavan on Tuesday announced his decision to join the Bharatiya Janata Party asserting to work for the "constructive development of Maharashtra"

'For alliance dharma', AAP offers Congress 1 Lok Sabha seat in Delhi

Delhi Congress president Arvinder Singh Lovely said seat sharing 'cannot be decided at press conferences', pointing out that Congress candidates were runners-up in five seats

Govt likely to approve 2 Bengaluru Metro Phase 3 corridors ahead of polls

The approval for the two Phase 3 corridors is in an advanced stage

'Delhi Chalo': Modi will benefit in LS polls, Owaisi on agitation demands

Farmers' protest: Barbed wires, concrete, and nails have been put on Delhi borders to stop the agitation from entering Delhi. The move has invited widespread criticism from the Opposition

AAP wants to contest 6 seats in Delhi, offer 1 to Congress: Sandeep Pathak

The AAP on Tuesday said it wants to contest six seats in Delhi in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and offer just one to the Congress, asking the senior INDIA bloc ally to conclude seat-sharing talks at the earliest. The party also announced its candidates for two Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat and one in Goa. Addressing a press conference here after a meeting of the party's Political Affairs Committee (PAC), AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sandeep Pathak said Venzy Viegas will contest from the South Goa seat, while Chaitar Vasava and Umesh Bhai Makwana from Bharuch and Bhavnagar seats in Gujarat respectively. He said the AAP has demanded eight Lok seats in Gujarat (total 26) from the INDIA bloc which is proportionate to the party's vote share in the last assembly poll. "We want to contest six seats in Delhi and offer one to the Congress for the polls based on the vote shares in recent elections. We are not announcing any candidate for Delhi at the moment but if seat-sharing talks do not happen quickly, w

Defence minister Rajnath Singh to address mega rally in Assam's Barpeta

Union Minister Rajnath Singh is scheduled to visit Assam on February 29, where he will address a mega rally in the Barpeta Lok Sabha Constituency, according to a BJP official

EC team visits Sikkim, reviews preparedness for LS, Assembly polls

An Election Commission of India team headed by Senior Deputy Election Commissioner Dharmendra Sharma visited Sikkim and held meeting with state government officers to review the preparedness for Lok Sabha and state Assembly polls to be held later this year, an official said on Tuesday. The EC team held a meeting with the Chief Secretary, DGP, Special DGP, Chief Electoral Officer, State Police Nodal Officer, Home Secretary and other senior officials. In the meeting, the overall preparedness of the state for the conduct of general elections was discussed in detail, he said. On Monday, the EC team also held a meeting with all District Collectors and Superintendents of Police to review the preparedness and plan of action of the district administration. All DCs and SPs made a detailed presentation on the matters relating to the electoral roll, printing of EPIC, identification of critical/vulnerable polling stations, availability and training of manpower, arrangements for establishment o

Congress is equally at fault: Punjab Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee

Pandher said that these laws were brought by Congress and the farmers are not in favour of anyone

Ashok Chavan's resignation: Maha Cong in-charge calls key meeting in Mumbai

In the wake of the recent resignation of former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, Maharashtra Congress in-charge Ramesh Chennithala has called for a key meeting of party leaders in Mumbai

Farmers set to march towards Delhi, after talks with Union ministers fail

Farmers are set to begin their 'Delhi Chalo' march Tuesday morning, a farmer leader asserted after their five-hour-long meeting with two Union ministers over their demands remained inconclusive. Earlier on Monday, tractor-trolleys set out from different parts of Punjab to join the protest, mainly to press for a law to guarantee a minimum support price for crops, while all eyes were on the second round of meeting between the government and the farmer union in Chandigarh. "We do not think the government is serious on any of our demands. We do not think they want to fulfil our demands.... Tomorrow, we will march towards Delhi at 10 am," farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher told reporters here after the meeting ended just before midnight. Union Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda, who along with Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal attended the meeting, said a consensus was reached on most issues and the government proposed that the remaining be addressed through the formation of

Ashok Chavan resigns from Congress, to announce future plans in 48 hrs

In a major setback for the Congress party, former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan has resigned from the party's primary membership ahead of Lok Sabha polls

BJP will win 370 seats, NDA more than 400 seats in LS polls: Amit Shah

Union Minister Amit Shah on Monday said there is no suspense in the people's minds on the outcome of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections as the ruling BJP is set to win 370 seats and the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will bag more than 400 seats. Shah also took a swipe at the Congress and said out of the 10-year rule of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the first five years went in filling up the "pit" dug by the opposition party, when it ruled the country, and another five years in laying the foundation (of development). "Make him (Modi) the prime minister for the third term and a magnificent building will come up on the foundation at a very fast pace," the senior BJP leader said here after launching Rs 1,950 crore development projects of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC). "I was in Karnataka yesterday, and visited 11 states in January. There is no suspense in any state regarding the (outcome of the) Lok Sabha elections. There is a mood prevailing across the country that the