Page 76 - Lok Sabha

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

Sachin Pilot comes out in support of Ashok Gehlot's son ahead of LS polls

Having buried the hatchet with former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot, Congress leader Sachin Pilot says moving on was in the best interest of the party and stressed he would "100 per cent" campaign for his senior colleague's son Vaibhav who is contesting the Lok Sabha polls from Jalore. In an interaction with PTI editors at the news agency's headquarters here, the Congress general secretary said a redux of the 2004 election when the party won the polls despite the India Shining campaign of the NDA is very much on the cards. "Repeat of 2004 is very much possible given the circumstances, given the unrest among most people. What you don't see in the media is the real sentiment on the ground. This politics of jumlas and overconfidence (by the BJP) has its limits," Pilot said earlier this week. Asked how he has been able to shake off his past differences with Gehlot and the former Rajasthan CM's 'nikamma-nakara' jibe at him in 2020, Pilot said, "I saw no advantage in replying in t

Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Congress launches 'Ghar Ghar Guarantee' campaign

The Congress party will distribute guarantee cards to 80 million families, ahead of the general elections

LS polls: Jalgaon MP Unmesh Patil joins Sena (UBT) after BJP denied ticket

Unmesh Patil, the BJP MP from Jalgaon in north Maharashtra who failed to get the saffron party ticket for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, joined the opposition Shiv Sena (UBT) on Wednesday. Patil joined the Sena (UBT) at 'Matoshree', the residence of party head and former state chief minister Uddhav Thackeray in suburban Mumbai, along with his followers. Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut said Patil joining the party will bolster its prospects in Jalgaon and north Maharashtra and make its path to victory easier. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has replaced Patil with Smita Wagh in the Jalgaon parliamentary constituency. Patil met Raut here on Tuesday, sparking speculation about his future political move. The BJP is fighting the Lok Sabha polls, to be held in five phases in Maharashtra from April 19 to May 20, as part of the 'Mahayuti' (grand alliance) with Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) headed by Deputy CM Ajit Pawar as its two other

Lok Sabha polls: EC to meet officials to assess security along borders

Election Commission will hold a meeting with top state and Union territory officials and central agencies guarding the borders on Wednesday to assess the security along the borders ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. During the meeting, scheduled to be held at the Election Commission headquarters here, the law-and-order situation and vigilance along the borders in the upcoming Lok Sabha and assembly elections will be reviewed. Officials from states and Union Territories are scheduled to join the meeting through video conference. India shares borders with Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and China.

Lok Sabha polls: PM-Modi led NDA to win most votes in UP, shows survey

PM Modi is banking on strong economic progress and Hindu nationalist policies to return to power for a record third term

Lok Sabha polls, phase 1: 7 women among 80 candidates in Uttar Pradesh

Among the 80 candidates in the fray for the first phase of Lok Sabha polls in Uttar Pradesh, just seven or 8.75 per cent are women, according to official data. The figure is lower than the first phase of the 2019 general elections when 12 of the 91 contenders or 13.18 per cent were women. However, none of those female candidates were victorious. Of the 80 Lok Sabha constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, eight -- Saharanpur, Kairana, Muzaffarnagar, Bijnor, Nagina, Moradabad, Rampur and Pilibhit -- will go to polls in the first phase on April 19. Kairana, Moradabad and Saharanpur have two female candidates each and Muzaffarnagar has one. Bijnor, Pilibhit, Rampur and Nagina do not have any female contenders, the Election Commission website showed. In Kairana, the Samajwadi Party has fielded Iqra Choudhary while Priti Kashyap is representing the Rashtriya Mazdoor Ekta Party. Ruchi Vira is the Samajwadi Party nominee and Sadhna Singh is an Independent candidate in Moradabad. In Saharanpur, .