Page 72 - Lok Sabha

Over 99% independent candidates lost deposits in LS polls since 1991

As India heads to the 18th general election, data over the years show voters' trust in independent candidates has been diminishing, with more than 99 per cent of independent candidates losing their deposits since 1991. Data compiled by the Election Commission of India show that since independence, even as the number of independent candidates has remained high, numbers of those winning polls have come down from over six per cent in 1951 and eight per cent in 1957, to around 0.11 per cent in 2019. An independent candidate is one who is not aligned with any recognised party. In the first elections of 1951-52, 533 independent candidates had contested, and 37 of them won, around 6.90 per cent. Election Commission regulations stipulate that candidates failing to secure a minimum of one-sixth of the total valid votes polled would have their deposits redirected to the treasury. The security deposit amount was Rs 500 for general candidates and Rs 250 for candidates from SC/ST communities i

LS polls: Not Hemant, but Nalin Soren to fight BJP's Sita Soren in Dumka

Lok Sabha elections: The JMM has named Nalin Soren as its candidate for the Dumka constituency, where the BJP has fielded Hemant Soren's sister-in-law, Sita Soren

LS polls 2024: CPI(M) manifesto promises 'super tax' on rich, scrap UAPA

Lok Sabha elections 2024: The Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Thursday launched its poll manifesto, making several promises, including unemployment allowance, scrapping UAPA, CAA and more

Sonia Gandhi, Ashwini Vaishnaw, 12 others sworn in as RS members: Checklist

Sonia Gandhi took oath as a member of the Upper House from Rajasthan, and Vaishnaw was sworn in as a member of the same house from Odisha

Women Commission summons MP Surjewala over 'sexist' remark on Hema Malini

Women Commission summons MP Surjewala over 'sexist' remark on Hema Malini

LS polls 2024: Rahul Gandhi ashamed of IUML support, says Smriti Irani

Union Minister Smriti Irani on Thursday lashed out at Congress MP Rahul Gandhi by accusing him of being "ashamed" of party ally IUML as its flag was not shown during his roadshow in this hill district. The Union Minister for Women and Child Development, who had defeated Gandhi in Amethi in the 2019 general elections, said if he was ashamed of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), he should reject their support. She also said she was shocked that he had allegedly accepted support of Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), the political arm of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI). "By accepting their support, he (Gandhi) has also violated the oath to the Constitution taken during the filing of the nomination," she said while speaking to reporters after the filing of BJP state chief K Surendran's nomination from the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat. Irani also questioned as to who the Prime Ministerial candidate of INDIA bloc was and whether Gandhi was an acceptable choice for that ...

CM Shinde's Shiv Sena faces opposition from party leaders over nominations

With the Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde likely to replace its candidate in Hingoli Lok Sabha seat, some party leaders claim they are facing opposition from alliance partners over nominations in a couple of seats. The Shiv Sena on March 28 announced Hingoli's sitting MP Hemant Patil as its candidate from the seat. However, there has been opposition to his candidature from within the 'Mahayuti' (grand alliance), which also comprises the BJP and Ajit Pawar-led NCP, a Shiv Sena leader claimed. Polling in Hingoli will be held in the second phase of Lok Sabha polls on April 26. With Thursday being the last day of filing nominations for the second phase, Patil is likely to be replaced with Shiv Sena functionary Baburao Kadam Kohalikar. Talking to reporters on Wednesday, Kadam said, "CM Shinde called me to Mumbai four days back and asked me to start preparations for the Lok Sabha elections. It was the first time when I got the hint that Hemant Patil was going to

LS elections 2024: PM Modi to kick off NDA's campaign in Bihar today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will kick off the NDA's Lok Sabha poll campaign in Bihar on Thursday with a rally, his first in the state since the announcement of the elections . Modi, who is running for a third consecutive term in office, is scheduled to address the rally at Jamui around noon. The Bihar Police have put in place a multi-tier security cover at the venue and its surroundings ahead of the PM's rally. BJP ally Chirag Paswan, who has handed over the mantle to brother-in-law Arun Bharti after having represented Jamui, a reserved seat, two times on the trot, has been effusive in his praise for the prime minister for the gesture. "It is a matter of pride for Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) and the people of Jamui that the prime minister has agreed to launch his campaign in Bihar from the constituency. We are committed to helping him achieve the target of 400-plus seats for the NDA, including all the 40 in Bihar," said Paswan. Jamui is among the four Lok Sabha seats in Biha

LS polls: Nadda reviews BJP's poll readiness in five seats of western MP

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president J P Nadda on Wednesday reviewed the party's preparations for Lok Sabha elections in five seats of western Madhya Pradesh where tribal and farmer voters play a decisive role. Nadda reviewed poll preparedness for Indore, Dhar, Jhabua-Ratlam, Khandwa and Khargone at a party meeting here. About 150 office-bearers including state BJP general secretary Hitanand Sharma and Madhya Pradesh deputy chief minister and BJP 'cluster in-charge' Jagdish Dewda were present at the meeting which lasted for about two hours. After the meeting, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav also met Nadda. "Nadda asked us to come out with all our strength to win the elections with a thumping majority," state cabinet minister Vijay Shah told reporters. Nadda also told BJP leaders at the cluster meeting how to take the Narendra Modi-led government's work among voters and remove shortcomings related to election preparedness, Shah said. Another state cabinet minister Kailash Vijayvargiy

Lok Sabha polls: 47 candidates file nomination for second phase in UP

Forty-seven candidates filed their nomination papers on Tuesday for the second phase of the Lok Sabha polls in Uttar Pradesh, a senior election official said. Voting in the second phase will be held in eight parliamentary constituencies -- Amroha, Meerut, Baghpat, Ghaziabad, Gautam Budhnagar, Bulandshahr, Aligarh and Mathura -- on April 26. State Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Navdeep Rinwa said that till now 81 candidates have filed their nomination papers of which 47 filed on Wednesday. Prominent among those who filed their nominations for the second phase of the elections in the state are Kunwar Danish Ali of the Congress from the Amroha Lok Sabha seat, Atul Garg of the BJP from Ghaziabad and Dr. Mahesh Sharma of the BJP from Gautam Buddh Nagar. The CEO said that the last date for filing nominations for the eight Lok Sabha seats in the second phase is April 4. Scrutiny of nomination papers will be done on April 5 (Friday) and the last date for withdrawal of nominations is schedu

Will not stop taking action against corruption: PM to Bengal BJP workers

The Prime Minister slammed the TMC and Congress-Left alliance fighting against each other in Bengal polls as a "superficial fight" as all the three parties are the same

Lok Sabha elections: Rahul Gandhi files nomination today in Wayanad

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi will arrive here on Wednesday to file his nomination papers for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. He will also hold a roadshow in the constituency where he had won in the 2019 Parliament polls with a massive margin of over four lakh votes. Rahul will arrive by helicopter at Muppainad, a village here, and will travel by road till Kalpetta, the party said. At 11 am, he will hold a roadshow from Kalpetta in which he will be accompanied by his sister Priyanka Gandhi and AICC general secretaries K C Venugopal and Deepa Das, AICC in-charge of the National Students' Union of India Kanhaiya Kumar as well as Leader of Opposition in the state assembly V D Satheesan and KPCC acting president M M Hassan, Congress said. It said that thousands of party workers and supporters are likely to turn up for the roadshow. The roadshow will end near the Civil Station here at around noon after which Rahul will submit his nomination papers to the District Collector, the party said

'Modi ki guarantee' unsuccessful, does not reach people: Mallikarjun Kharge

Prime Minister Narendra Modi talks about "Modi Ki guarantee" but it is "unsuccessful" and does not reach people, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge alleged on Wednesday as he launched his party's "Ghar Ghar Guarantee" initiative under which it aims to reach out to eight crore households across the country. Kharge launched the initiative from Usmanpur, Kaithwada in the North East Delhi parliamentary constituency and distributed pamphlets on the Congress's "Paanch Nyay Pachees Guarantee". Party general secretary Jairam Ramesh said it is important to note that the "Ghar Ghar Guarantee" initiative is being launched from a place from where, in 1978, the Congress used the "hand" symbol for the first time. Interestingly, this time the Congress's campaign tagline is also centred around its poll symbol -- "Haath Badlega Halaat". Kharge hit out at Modi, saying, "We give a guarantee that our government has always worked for people and will always do so. The prime minister talks about Modi ki ..

Sushil Modi says he is battling cancer, won't fight Lok Sabha elections

'I will not be able to do anything' during elections, says veteran Bihar politicians on X

BJD releases list of nominees for 27 assembly and 5 Lok Sabha seats

Odisha's ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Wednesday fielded former BJP leaders Bhrugu Baxipatra and Parineeta Mishra from Berhampur and Baragarh Lok Sabha seats, hours after they joined the regional outfit. BJD chief and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik announced the names of 27 candidates for assembly elections and five for Lok Sabha polls during the day. With this, the BJD has fielded 20 candidates for the 21 Lok Sabha seats, barring Balasore. The party has so far announced nominees for 99 assembly seats out of 147. Patnaik has denied tickets to seven sitting MLAs and dropped two MPs from the list. They have been replaced by new aspirants. The sitting MLAs who were denied re-nomination are Parsuram Dhada (Soro), Ramesh Chandra Sai (Athamallik), Angad Kanhar (Phulbani), Bijay Shankar Das (Tirtol), Pritam Padhi (Pottangi), Pratap Jena (Mahanga) and Rajkishore Das (Moroda). While Pratap Jena of Mahanga has been replaced by his son Ankit, Morada MLA Rajkishore Das's wife Preetinanda Kan

Village in Udupi decides to boycott elections overs poor civic facilities

Residents of a village in Kapu assembly segment of Udupi-Chikkamagaluru Lok Sabha constituency have decided to boycott the upcoming election, in protest against the poor civic amenities there. The decision was taken by the villagers of Kattingeri, which is part of Moodubelle Gram Panchayat. They declared their refusal to partake in any forthcoming electoral processes, including the Lok Sabha elections, until their demands are met. The villagers were aggrieved that Kattingeri grapples with a dearth of essential amenities such as roads, bridges, and functional public transport connectivity. They lamented the lack of progress despite previous engagements with authorities, including a visit by the deputy commissioners in the past, which failed to yield tangible solutions. Former President of Belle Gram Panchayat Shivaji S Suvarna highlighted the significant voter base in Kattingeri, estimating around a thousand eligible voters with substantial participation in past elections. However,

ECI meets with States, UTs to ensure peaceful, inducement free elections

The meeting chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar along with ECs Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu was attended by top officials from States/UTs and central agencies

BSP releases third list of 12 candidates, fields Sarvar Malik from Lucknow

The Bahujan Samaj Party on Wednesday released its third list of 12 Lok Sabha poll candidates for Uttar Pradesh, fielding Nandkishore Pundir from Ghaziabad and Sarvar Malik from Lucknow. With this, the Mayawati-led party has declared its candidates for 37 seats out of total 80 parliamentary seats in the state. According to the latest list released by the BSP office here, the party declared its candidates for Ghaziabad, Aligarh, Mainpuri, Lucknow and Mirzapur seats, among others. In Mathura, the party has changed its candidate and now Suresh Singh will be in the electoral fray in place of Kamal Kant Upmanyu. Singh has been made BSP candidate against sitting BJP MP and actor Hema Malini. While Nandkishore Pundir will be party nominee from Ghaziabad, Hitendra Kumar alias Bunty Upadhyay will contest from Aligarh. According to the list, Gulshan Dev Shakya will seek election from Mainpuri, Anshay Kalra Rockeyji from Kheri, Ashok Kumar Pandey from Unnao and Rajesh Kumar alias Manoj Pradha

Tharoor files nomination from Thiruvananthapuram for 4th bid in LS polls

Senior Congress leader and three-time Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor filed his nomination on Wednesday from the Thiruvananthapuram constituency for the fourth consecutive time in the Lok Sabha elections. Tharoor arrived at the district collectorate in the afternoon along with senior party leaders, including MLA M Vincent, former minister V S Sivakumar, and Thiruvananthapuram DCC president Palode Ravi, along with other workers. He shook hands with people and exchanged pleasantries while proceeding to the Collectorate complex. Some party activists draped shawls around him and expressed their support. Before filing his nomination, Tharoor offered prayers at famed shrines in the constituency, including Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple and Pazhavangadi Ganapathi Temple. With senior CPI leader and former Thiruvananthapuram MP Pannian Raveendran and BJP leader and Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar as Tharoor's challengers in the fray, the high-profile Thiruvananthapuram constituency is set for

LS polls: SP, Congress didn't want Ram temple in Ayodhya, says Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said the Samajwadi Party and the Congress were not in favour of the Ram temple being constructed in Ayodhya. Addressing a public meeting in Muzaffarnagar to seek votes for BJP candidate Sanjeev Baliyan ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Shah said it was the Narendra Modi government that honoured people's sentiment and built the temple. He also said that the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh has stopped the migration of people from western Uttar Pradesh by improving the law and order situation and it is the criminals who are now leaving the state. "Akhilesh Yadav ji's party (SP) and the Congress never wanted the Ram temple to be built in Ayodhya. The Congress kept the issue of Ram Janmabhoomi stuck for 70 years but Modi ji won the case, performed bhoomi pujan and also the consecration of Ramlalla," Shah said. Criticising the INDIA bloc, he said, all those who were part of the opposition alliance were involved in scams. "Those part of the arro