Page 85 - Lok Sabha

LS election: AAP-Cong seek to end BJP all-seat winning streak in Delhi

It will be a direct fight between the AAP-Congress alliance and the BJP on the seven Lok Sabha seats in the national capital. The BJP, which won all the seats in the 2019 as well as the 2014 polls, is optimistic of repeating the feat, despite the INDIA bloc partners coming together in an attempt to end its streak. Of the parliamentary constituencies here, New Delhi and South Delhi are the seats to watch out. In the past these have sent prominent leaders from both the Congress and the BJP to the Lok Sabha, including former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, former deputy prime minister LK Advani, Madan Lal Khurana, Sushma Swaraj and Lalit Makan. The North East Delhi seat will see BJP's Manoj Tiwari trying to retain it for a third time in a row. He is the only sitting MP that the party has repeated here for the polls. The other Lok Sabha seats are Chandni Chowk, East Delhi, North West Delhi and West Delhi. The Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is contesting four constitue

Gujarat key LS seats: Amit Shah in Gandhinagar, Mandaviya in Porbandar

Of the 26 Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat, the electoral battle in Gandhinagar, where Union minister Amit Shah is in the fray to retain his seat, will be among the most keenly watched one in the ensuing elections. Lok Sabha polls in Gujarat will be held in a single phase on May 7. Counting of votes will be held on June 4. Following are the Lok Sabha seats to watch out for in Gujarat: 1. Gandhinagar: This urban seat has been a BJP bastion for long, having sent stalwarts like Atal Bihari Vajpayee and L K Advani to Parliament. It is now represented by Shah, who defeated Congress' C J Chavda by 5.57 lakh votes in the 2019 polls. 2. Porbandar: The BJP is the dominant party here due to the large presence of Leuva Patidars, a sub caste of the numerically and electorally strong Patel community. The party has fielded Union minister Mansukh Mandaviya, a Leuva Patidar, from the seat. The minister, who hails from Bhavnagar district, has so far reached Parliament through the Rajya Sabha route. The

YSRCP releases list of candidates for 25 LS, 175 Assembly seats in Andhra

The Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSRCP on Saturday announced the list of candidates for all the 25 Lok Sabha constituencies and 175 Assembly segments in Andhra Pradesh, allotting 50 per cent of the seats to SC, ST, BC and minority communities. The ruling YSRCP announced the list of candidates at the 'samadhi' (grave) of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhar Reddy in the presence of party supremo and CM Jagan Mohan Reddy and senior leaders at Idupulupaya in Kadapa district. Bapatla MP Nandigam Suresh read out the names of the candidates for the Lok Sabha elections while Revenue Minister D Prasada Rao did so for the Assembly polls. "Earlier it was only limited to rhetoric. After Jagan came to power in 2019, for the first time in this state, people from poor and minority sections were given high representation in political power," said Rao, addressing a press conference. He said the YSRCP is now taking one more step ahead to include even more people from these communities t

Stage set for world's largest democratic exercise: What 2019 numbers say?

So will the ruling BJP snatch a record third term? Or the Opposition Congress and its allies will script a success story? This is something the ballot will decide now

Singer Anuradha Paudwal joins BJP ahead of LS polls at party's headquarters

After joining the party, the singer expressed happiness saying, it was her fortune that she was becoming a part of the BJP

Congress' five guarantees: From health benefits to employment promises

Under Swasthya Adhikar, Cong promises to deliver the right to health that will provide universal healthcare, including free medicines, treatment, essential diagnostics, among other health benefit

Prominent Bollywood singer Anuradha Paudwal joins BJP, praises PM Modi

Noted Bollywood singer Anuradha Paudwal joined the BJP here on Saturday ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. Addressing a joint press conference with BJP leaders at the party's headquarters, Paudwal praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said she was happy to join the party led by him. The famous playback singer, who was conferred the Padma Shri, the country's fourth-highest civilian award, joined the BJP in the presence of its senior leaders, including national general secretary Arun Singh and chief spokesperson Anil Baluni.

BJP's RS MP Ajay Pratap Singh quits party, expresses dissatisfaction

Bharatiya Janata Party's Rajya Sabha member from Madhya Pradesh, Ajay Pratap Singh, on Saturday said he has resigned from the party's primary membership, saying he was not happy with the ruling outfit's process of selecting candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Singh shared his resignation letter in a post on his official X account on Saturday morning. "I am resigning from the primary membership of the party," he stated in the one-line letter addressed to BJP chief J P Nadda. He didn't mention any reason behind his resignation in the letter. Singh was nominated to the Upper House of Parliament by the BJP in March 2018. His tenure as Rajya Sabha member will end on April 2. He was not re-nominated by the party. Talking to reporters, Singh expressed displeasure over the party's process of selecting candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. He said although he wanted to contest from the Sidhi Lok Sabha seat, the BJP fielded Rajesh Mishra from there.

Congress demands Supreme Court monitored probe on electoral bonds issue

Stepping up its attack on the government over the electoral bonds issue, the Congress on Saturday alleged that thousands of crores have been "extorted" from corporate India and asserted that the need for a Supreme Court-monitored independent probe is pressing. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the BJP's four "corrupt tactics" -- "Chanda Do, Dhandha Lo (give donations, get business), Hafta Vasuli (extortion), Theka Lo-Rishvat Do (get contracts after paying bribe), Farzi Company - Dakait Sangni (loot through shell companies) -- emerged after a quick first analysis of the data on the "electoral bond scam". These four patterns of corruption that have emerged are of grave concern and the need for a Supreme Court-monitored independent probe is pressing, Ramesh said in a post on X. "In fact, since yesterday, we have seen dozens of examples of these kinds of corruption emerge. Thousands of crores have been extorted and extracted from corporate India, and thousands of crores of

CM Mamata's health is stable, undergoing fast recovery, say doctors

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's health condition is "fine", doctors treating her, said on Saturday morning. The 69-year-old is recovering well, they said. "The chief minister is fine and stable. She is recovering well. The pain due to the injuries has also subsided much. Still, she is prescribed to take rest," a senior official of the state-run SSKM Hospital told PTI. The Bengal CM also slept well in the night, he added. The Trinamool Congress supremo had a fall at her Kalighat residence on Thursday evening leading to severe injuries on her forehead and nose. Banerjee's nephew and TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee rushed her to the SSKM Hospital where she underwent three stitches on her forehead and one on her nose. A three-member doctor team visited the Bengal CM at her Kalighat residence on Friday evening and conducted necessary check-ups on her. "Our doctors may conduct another round of check-ups on Banerjee today. It's still not decided whether sh

Before LS poll announcement, Andhra govt orders releasing DA to employees

Less than 24 hours before the announcement of the Lok Sabha and Andhra Pradesh Assembly elections schedule, the state government issued orders for releasing dearness allowance (DA) to employees pertaining to multiple time periods. Special Chief Secretary (Finance) Shamsher Singh Rawat issued a government order (GO) on Friday night for the release of DA to government employees for the period from July 1, 2019 to December 31, 2021. He issued orders for the release of DA with effect from January 1, 2022 to eligible government employees. Also, the Special Chief Secretary said the government has issued orders to release DA raising it from 22.75 per cent to 26.39 per cent of the basic pay with effect from July 1, 2022. Similarly, the state government issued orders to revise the DA for government employees from 26.39 per cent to 30.03 per cent of the basic pay with effect from January 1, 2023. The state government issued orders to revise DA rates with respect to employees drawing revised

Rahul's Nyay Yatra closing to feature INDIA bloc leaders: Nana Patole

"A huge rally will be organised. Leaders of the INDIA bloc will be present here to welcome Rahul Gandhi," Patole said

Ahead of Lok Sabha elections, PM Modi to address rally in Telangana

Ahead of the announcement of the schedule for Lok Sabha elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a BJP rally at Nagarkurnool in Telangana on Saturday. Modi held a roadshow in the Malkajgiri Lok Sabha constituency here Friday evening. Modi would attend another rally at Jagtial in the state on March 18, Telangana BJP has said. The Prime Minister on March 5 inaugurated and laid the foundation for development projects worth more than Rs 7,200 crore at Sangareddy, about 60 km from Hyderabad. Addressing a BJP rally at Sangareddy, Modi had attacked the Congress, saying it was 'scared' to promote young leaders. He also said the "dynastic parties" were targeting him as he was exposing their "scams worth several thousands of crores of rupees." The BJP is trying to make significant electoral gains in the south. The party had won four out of the total 17 Lok Sabha seats in Telangana in 2019 general elections. The BJP has decided to go solo in Telangana in the coming Lok Sabha .

Election Commission set to announce Lok Sabha elections dates today

The dates for the polls will be announced at a press conference scheduled for Saturday at 3 pm

Senior Punjab Congress leader Raj Kumar Chabbewal quits party, joins AAP

In a setback to the Congress ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, senior party leader from Punjab and MLA Raj Kumar Chabbewal on Friday quit the party and joined the ruling Aam Aadmi Party. The 54-year-old Chabbewal quit as a legislator from the Chabbewal assembly constituency in the Hoshiarpur district. He was also the Deputy Leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly. The prominent Dalit leader joined the AAP here and was welcomed into the party fold by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. Chabbewal is the second Congress leader from Punjab to join the AAP within a week. Gurpreet Singh GP, a former Congress MLA from Bassi Pathana, had recently joined the AAP. The AAP, which named its candidates for eight of the 13 Lok Sabha seats on Thursday, is likely to field him from the Hoshiarpur reserved parliamentary constituency. Speaking to reporters here in the presence of Punjab ministers Harpal Singh Cheema and Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer, Chabbewal said he is impressed with the pro-people policies

Ahead of LS polls, Chattisgarh announces 4% hike in DA for state employees

Hailing 'Modi Ki Guarantee' (Modi's guarantee), the chief minister said the promise of procuring 21 quintals of paddy at Rs 3,100 per quintal has been fulfilled

Electoral bonds was world's biggest extortion racket, says Rahul Gandhi

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday alleged that the electoral bonds scheme was the world's biggest extortion racket and a "brainchild" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Speaking at a press conference here, Gandhi, who is on the last leg of his 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra', also claimed that the funds obtained through the scheme were used to split parties like the Shiv Sena and NCP, and topple governments. Congress' central election committee and party president Mallikarjun Kharge would decide if he should contest the Lok Sabha election from Amethi, he said in reply to a question. "Some years ago, the prime minister claimed to have designed the electoral bonds (scheme) to clean up the political finance system. It turns out that this was the way of extorting money from India's largest corporates. It was meant to intimidate corporates into giving money to the BJP....It is the largest extortion racket in the world....I hope investigation takes place," he said. To a question about some

Senior Punjab Cong legislator Raj Kumar Chabbewal quits party, joins AAP

In a setback to the Congress ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, senior party leader from Punjab and MLA Raj Kumar Chabbewal on Friday quit the party and joined the ruling Aam Aadmi Party. The 54-year-old Chabbewal said he has quit as a legislator from Chabbewal assembly constituency in Hoshiarpur district.The prominent Dalit leader was the Deputy Leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly. He joined the AAP here and was welcomed into the party fold by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. Chabbewal is the second Congress leader from Punjab to join the AAP within a week. Gurpreet Singh GP, a former Congress MLA from Bassi Pathana, had recently joined the AAP. In a post in Punjabi on X, the AAP state unit said the party has been further strengthened with the joining of Chabbewal. Impressed by the pro-people policies of Bhagwant Mann, Chabbewal, who is an MLA, has joined AAP. Many many congratulations to him from the party, the AAP posted along with photos of Chabbewal being welcomed by the ...

AAP withdraws candidate from Guwahati, asks Cong to step back on 2 seats

The Assam unit of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Friday withdrew its candidate from the Guwahati Lok Sabha constituency "for the sake of opposition unity" to defeat the ruling BJP nominee. It challenged the Congress to return the gesture and withdraw its candidates from Dibrugarh and Sonitpur seats, for which the AAP has declared its nominees. Both the Congress and AAP are part of the 16-party United Opposition Forum, Assam (UOFA), formed to contest the general elections together, but a rift had emerged with members of the forum announcing candidates against each other in various constituencies of the state. The AAP, in a statement, expressed its grievance towards the Congress for naming its candidates for the three seats in which the former had also announced its nominees. The grand old party declared its candidate list for 12 seats on Tuesday, leaving Dibrugarh for UOFA partner Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) and still remaining undecided on the candidate for another seat, Lakhimpur. AJP

Lok Sabha polls: Lotus is going to bloom in Kerala this time, says PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said the BJP will win seats from Kerala in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls and said the people of the state were suffering from the corrupt and incompetent government. Addressing the public campaign here for candidates of the BJP-led NDA, he said, "Lotus is going to bloom in Kerala this time." Attacking the Left and the Congress in Kerala, Modi said the people of the state have endured hardship under governments plagued by corruption and incompetence. Modi said due to the corrupt and incompetent government in Kerala, people are suffering, and they will benefit only if the cycle of consecutive LDF and UDF governments is broken. "In the last elections, the people of Kerala made us the double-digit vote percentage party. And now, our destiny of double-digit seats here is not so far," Modi said. He said both the LDF and UDF governments have turned a blind eye to the struggles of rubber farmers. "Additionally, the state's law and order situation has