Page 39 - Lok Sabha Elections

LS polls: INDIA govt to scrap Agnipath scheme if voted to power, says Rahul

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday claimed that the INDIA bloc, if voted to power, would scrap the Agnipath scheme of recruitment in defence services and deposit Rs 8,500 to every woman's account in each month. Addressing an election rally at Bakhtiyarpur in Bihar, he asserted that Narendra Modi will not be able to become the prime minister again, since there is a clear wave in favour of the INDIA bloc across the country. When the INDIA block will form the government, the Agnipath scheme will be withdrawn, Gandhi said. The scheme, announced by the Narendra Modi government in 2022, envisages recruiting young soldiers on a contractual basis for four years and retire 75 per cent of them without certain benefits enjoyed by those who were not employed under this programme. After the formation of the INDIA block government at the Centre, Gandhi said, From July, Rs 8,500 will be deposited in women's accounts every month. This will change the financial condition of every family. Takin

Supreme Court rejects BJP appeal against Calcutta HC ban on anti-TMC ads

Lok Sabha elections 2024: Calling the BJP advertisements 'disparaging', the top court urged restraint, reminding that political adversaries aren't enemies

PM Modi used money power to topple Himachal's Congress govt, says Priyanka

Prime Minister Narendra Modi made all-out efforts to topple Himachal Pradesh's democratically-elected Congress government by using money power, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra alleged on Monday. The Congress general secretary, who was campaigning in Chamba for the party's Kangra Lok Sabha seat candidate Anand Sharma, also said the Congress was in power for 55 years but could not become the richest party. The BJP, on the other hand, has become the richest party in the world in just 10 years, she claimed. "Modi made all-out efforts to topple the democratically-elected Congress government in the state by indulging in corrupt practices and using money power," Priyanka Gandhi said during the rally. She also asked the crowd at the rally if they would want such a leader. Priyanka Gandhi claimed that the only purpose of BJP leaders, starting from Modi, is to grab power at any cost and they indulge in corrupt practices, use money power, bribe legislators and mislead people in the nam

Phase 6 turnout reaches 63.36%; ECI releases data for all completed phases

Lok Sabha elections 2024: West Bengal recorded the highest voter turnout in Phase 6 at nearly 83%, Uttar Pradesh had the lowest at 54%

INDIA bloc leaders to meet on June 1 to assess LS poll performance

Top leaders of the opposition INDIA bloc are likely to meet on June 1 to assess their performance in the Lok Sabha elections and chalk out their strategy ahead of the results. Sources said the proposed meeting will be convened in Delhi on the afternoon of June 1 when the last phase of polling will be underway. The opposition leaders will discuss their strategy ahead of the June 4 results and assess their performance in the seven-phase elections, the sources said. The opposition alliance has been claiming that it would be able to stop the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) from returning to power at the Centre and cobble together a government of its own. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge has convened the meeting, the sources said. The ruling alliance led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also claimed that it would form the government at the Centre for the third successive time after these elections. Twenty-eight opposition parties came together to form the INDIA bloc. ..

Rahul Gandhi 2018 defamation case: Court to conduct hearing on June 7

An MP-MLA court here has fixed for June 7 hearing in the 2018 defamation case against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his alleged objectionable remarks against Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The defamation complaint against Gandhi was filed by BJP leader Vijay Mishra. Gandhi's lawyer Kashi Prasad Shukla gave an application in the court, saying the Congress leader was busy campaigning for Lok Sabha polls and needed time to appear before the court. Judge Shubham Verma fixed June 7 as the next date of hearing. Plaintiff's lawyer Santosh Kumar Pandey told the court that Gandhi is running away from the court. The court had issued a warrant against Gandhi in December last. Subsequently, the Congress leader had halted his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Amethi on February 20 and appeared in court which granted him bail. The complaint was filed here on August 4, 2018, against Gandhi for his alleged objectionable comments against Shah at a press conference in Bengaluru.

From pink bus to HC expansion: What Chandigarh BJP manifesto promises

The 20-page manifesto by BJP candidate Sanjay Tandon focuses on issues such as women, artists, patients visiting Chandigarh, and the role of the Member of Parliament (MP) in dealing with bureaucrats

As polling enters final phase, what can stock market investors expect?

Indian equities outperformed most major markets in 2023 and are trading at expensive valuations

LS polls: If economy growing fast, why people not prosperous, asks Priyanka

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra lashed out at the BJP-led Centre on Sunday, asking why people have not prospered if the country's economy is growing at a rapid pace. Addressing her first Lok Sabha poll rally in Punjab in favour of Amar Singh, the Congress candidate from Fatehgarh Sahib, Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of "speaking lies and making hollow promises to the public only to capture power". At another rally in Chandigarh, she countered the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) charge that the Congress is anti-Hindu, saying her party's philosophy is based on the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita, which has taught people about truth, love, harmony and non-violence. In Fatehgarh Sahib, the Congress general secretary urged people to ensure Singh's victory in the June 1 polls. Hitting out at the Modi government, she claimed that 70 crore youngsters are unemployed in the country and the rate of unemployment is the highest in 45 years. Gandhi said 30 lakh posts are vacan

Implementation of UCC in country is PM Modi's guarantee, says Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday said the BJP-led government at the Centre will implement a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the country as it is a guarantee of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and accused the Congress of advocating personal laws. Shah was addressing a rally in Piprai area of Ashoknagar district under Guna Lok Sabha seat in Madhya Pradesh, from where Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia is contesting as a BJP candidate. Targeting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Shah said, "Rahul Baba, you can do whatever you want for appeasement. As long as BJP is there, it will not allow personal laws. It is our promise and a guarantee of Modiji that we will implement UCC in the entire country as we have done in Uttarakhand." He also said the Modi government has ended Naxalism and terrorism in the country. "In 2019, the Modi government abrogated Article 370 in just one stroke. Rahul Baba got afraid and said that rivers of blood will flow...But Rahul Baba, this is not a Congress ...

INDIA bloc wants to turn country's majority into second-class citizens: PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said INDIA bloc parties want to turn the country's majority community into second-class citizens and also accused them of planning to rewrite the Constitution to provide reservation on the basis of religion. Addressing a public meeting in Ghosi here in Uttar Pradesh's Purvanchal region, he also alleged the opposition grouping will end the reservation given to SC, ST, OBC and give all of it to Muslims. He accused INDIA parties of making different castes fight among themselves. Attacking the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Congress, which are constituents of the INDIA bloc, Modi said they have neglected Purvanchal over the years and turned it into a "region of mafia, poverty and helplessness". The SP and INDIA bloc are making castes fight among themselves so that they become weak, he alleged, adding this is being done "to divert people's attention from the real issues". "Today, I have come to alert the people of Purvanchal and Ghosi about the big .

On Chandigarh industry's Lok Sabha polls wish list: An NCR-like tag

As the Chandigarh Lok Sabha constituency braces for a fierce contest between Tewari and the Bharatiya Janata Party's Sanjay Tandon, the questions around the city's growth are moot

Phase 6 of Lok Sabha elections: J&K shines but Haryana disappoints

The EC pointed out that the voter turnout in the districts of Anantnag, Poonch, Kulgam, and districts of Rajouri and Shopian partially, was the highest since 1989, or in 35 years

Highlights: PM Modi addresses a rally in Uttar Pradesh's Mirzapur ahead of Phase 7 elections

From death of newborn babies in fire at Delhi's hospital to PM Modi's poll rallies catch all the live updates here

Fewer BJP seats than 2019 will disappoint the market, says Mukul Kochhar

Kochhar explains that securing fewer than 303 seats would suggest the BJP has possibly peaked

Kejriwal turned Punjab into ATM of corruption to pay legal fees: Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday alleged that Delhi chief minister and AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal has turned Punjab into an "ATM of corruption" and that he has been relying on it to pay the legal fees to fight his court cases. At a poll rally in Punjab in support of the BJP's Ludhiana candidate Ravneet Singh Bittu, he slammed the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), saying they hug each other elsewhere but turn into enemies in Punjab. "I want to ask the AAP and Congress that you have an alliance in Delhi, Haryana and Gujarat, then why you are playing 'noora kushti' (fixed match) here," Shah said. The AAP and Congress, both constituents of the INDIA bloc, have a seat-sharing pact in Delhi, Gujarat, Goa and Haryana for the Lok Sabha polls but are fighting separately in Punjab. Targeting the AAP government in Punjab, the senior BJP leader alleged the state has been turned into a "den of corruption" and urged Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to "stop this corruption" since the peopl

People used to shake with fear during SP govt, mafia shakes in BJP govt: PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday targeted the Samajwadi Party, saying it defamed Mirzapur and turned the entire Uttar Pradesh and Purvanchal into "safe hideout" for the mafia. He also branded the opposition INDIA bloc as communal and casteist, and claimed they have decided to change the Constitution to give reservation to Muslims. Training his guns at the SP, he said people associated with it have animosity with law and order. "People associated with SP have '36 ka ankara' (animosity) with law and order. The SP people used to release captured terrorists and SP government used to suspend police officials for catching terrorist," Modi claimed while addressing a poll meeting here in support of NDA alliance partner Apna Dal's candidate from Mirzapur Lok Sabha seat Anupriya Patel and Robertsganj Lok Sabha seat Rinki Kol. Accusing the SP of defaming Mirzapur and "turning entire UP and Purvanchal into a safe hideout for mafia," he said in the SP government people used to shake with

Rahul enjoys vacations abroad, PM Modi celebrates with jawans, says HM Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday asserted that the ongoing Lok Sabha polls were a choice between Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who celebrated Diwali among Armymen, and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi who "rushes abroad for vacations whenever the weather becomes uncomfortable". Addressing a rally in Karakat Lok Sabha constituency of Bihar, Shah also dubbed the INDIA bloc as the one comprising "scamsters guilty of financial wrongdoings worth Rs 12 lakh crore" which was taking on Modi, "with an unblemished record during the 23 years he was CM (of Gujarat) and the PM". He also said that unlike Gandhi, who was "born with a silver spoon", Modi has worked hard to reach the top, coming from an "ati pichhda (extremely backward class) family" and selling tea at one point of time to make ends meet. The former BJP president slammed the Congress for being "scared of Pakistan's atomic bombs" and asserted that his government, which has scrapped Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, was resolved to

First time hearing about work from jail, Union min Rajnath slams Kejriwal

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday took a dig at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, saying he had heard about "work from home" but it is the first time that he is hearing of "work from jail". Addressing an election rally in Khanna for the BJP's Fatehgarh Sahib candidate Gejja Ram Valmiki, Singh said, "Here, AAP is the ruling party. You don't need to be told much about what kind of work it is doing." "There is also an AAP government in Delhi. But the AAP leader was jailed in the liquor scam," Singh, said referring to Kejriwal's arrest in a money-laundering case linked to the alleged excise policy scam. The defence minister said he thinks every leader should have the moral courage to resign from their post if they face any allegation until being cleared of the charges. This is morality, he said. "AAP leader Kejriwal was jailed in the liquor scam. Even after that, he says he will continue to occupy the chief minister's post. He says he will work from jail," Singh said. The

No progress taking place in lives of people under BJP govt, says Priyanka

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Sunday lashed out at the BJP-led Centre, asking why there is no prosperity in the lives of people if the country's economy is growing at a rapid pace. Addressing her first poll rally in Punjab in favour of party candidate from Fatehgarh Sahib seat Amar Singh, she also accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of "speaking lies and making hollow promises with the public only to capture power." Attacking the Modi government, she said 70 crore youth are unemployed in the country and unemployment is the highest in 45 years. She said 30 lakh posts are vacant in the government sector under the Modi regime. "He (Modi) makes big claims that the economy is growing at a rapid pace. I want to ask if it is growing so fast then and if there is progress in the country then why there is no progress in your (people) lives. Why did your children not get employment? the Congress general secretary said. "And why inflation has gone up too much. If the country is ..