Page 87 - Lok Sabha

Congress' CEC finalises about 40 more candidates for LS elections

Top Congress leadership on Monday discussed over 60 seats in five states of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh and Assam and finalised the names of about 40 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Sources said the party has decided to field former chief minister Kamal Nath's son Nakul Nath once again from Madhya Pradesh's Chhindwara and Ashok Gehlot's son Vaibhav from Jalore in Rajasthan. Speculation was rife about both Kamal Nath and his son Nakul switching over to the BJP ahead of the polls. Both Ashok Gehlot and Sachin Pilot are unlikely to contest, with the former's son entering the poll fray and the latter having responsibility of Chhattisgarh as AICC general secretary, the sources added. The Congress' Central Election Committee (CEC), chaired by party chief Mallikarjun Kharge, met at the party headquarters to finalise candidates, days after the party released its first list of 39 candidates for the polls. Among the seats that were discussed at the meeting ..

BJP's election body holds second meeting to finalise Lok Sabha candidates

The BJP's Central Election Committee on Monday held its second meeting to decide on the party's candidates for the Lok Sabha elections as its senior leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, went through the list of probables for several states to make final choices. The states, which were tipped to come up for discission, included Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Haryana. Ahead of the meeting, Haryana Deputy Chief Minister and Jannayak Janta Party leader Dushyant Chautala held talks with BJP president J P Nadda for distribution of seats among the two allies in the state. Though a section of Haryana BJP leaders has been opposed to the alliance, the party seems to be weighing its options. The BJP had won all 10 Lok Sabha seats in the state in the previous elections in 2019. The JJP had allied with the party after the assembly polls. The BJP has joined hands with a number of parties across the country in the run-up to the general elections, expected to be held in ...

Congress' CEC meetings to finalise candidates for Lok Sabha elections

The Congress' Central Election Committee (CEC) met on Monday to finalise candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, days after the party released its first list for the polls. The Congress had announced its first list of 39 candidates on Friday with Rahul Gandhi to contest from Kerala's Wayanad again. Discussions were first taken up at the CEC meeting chaired by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge for the five Uttarakhand parliamentary constituencies first. Besides Kharge, former Congress presidents Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, Ambika Soni, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, T S Singhdeo and Mohammad Jawaid, among others, are members of the CEC. Sonia Gandhi was present at the meeting along with Congress general secretary in-charge of Uttarakhand Kumari Selja. At the last CEC meet on Thursday, discussions were held on Lok Sabha seats in Delhi, Karnataka, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Sikkim, Tripura, Nagaland, Manipur, Meghalaya and Lakshwadeep. According to the first list of .

Lok Sabha polls: EC directs observers to ensure intimidation-free elections

The Election Commission on Monday asked its observers to ensure polls free of coercion and intimidation and pushed for judicious use of central and state forces keeping in mind that their deployment should not favour any particular party. Addressing a meeting of more than 2,100 general, police and expenditure observers here ahead of the announcement of the Lok Sabha elections and some state assembly polls, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar directed them to ensure a level-playing field for free and fair elections. The polls should be free of intimidation and inducement, he said. The CEC reminded them that as observers, they represent the commission, and are expected to conduct themselves professionally and be accessible to all stakeholders, including candidates. The observers were instructed to be tough but polite in their conduct on the field, the Election Commission (EC) said in a statement. The observers were also asked to be confined physically within the boundarie

Lok Sabha polls: PM Modi set to visit Kerala again on March 15, 17

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Kerala's Palakkad on March 15 to campaign for the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) candidates for the Lok Sabha polls, party sources said here on Monday. Following this, on March 17, Modi will undertake another visit to Pathanamthitta to rally support for Anil K Antony, the BJP candidate and son of Congress stalwart A K Antony, sources said. Party sources said that Modi will conduct a massive roadshow upon his arrival in Palakkad. Although there won't be any public meetings, preparations for the Palakkad event are currently underway, they said. During his Palakkad visit, Modi is expected to focus his efforts on campaigning for three National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidates contesting from Palakkad, Alathur, and Ponnani Lok Sabha constituencies, they said. The official social media pages of the BJP's Palakkad and Pathanamthitta district committees have announced Modi's fourth and fifth visits to the state within a span of three

BJP's CEC to meet today, likely to discuss more Lok Sabha candidates

The meeting is also likely to be attended by the BJP's partners in the NDA from Maharashtra, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Haryana, and Bihar

LS polls: Cong CEC meet to finalise candidates for remaining seats today

Earlier, Congress released its first list of candidates for 39 Lok Sabha constituencies on March 8

Kharge as PM candidate: A pre-election gambit

Umbrella parties with no fundamental commitment to OBC or Dalit politics are not known to have gained electorally from such opportunistic pivoting

No jobs and a bleak future: Has the political class failed India's youth?

Rahul Gandhi has been criticised for "trivialising" the security breach in Parliament by belatedly raising unemployment as a political issue

LS polls: Will do away with 'secular' in Preamble, says Karnataka BJP MP

Six years since Anantkumar Hegde said the BJP would change the Constitution to do away with the word "secular" in its preamble, the BJP MP on Sunday reiterated it, exhorting the public to ensure two-thirds majority for the saffron party in Lok Sabha to amend the country's founding document. The BJP needs a two-thirds majority in both houses of Parliament to amend the Constitution and "set right distortions and unnecessary additions made to it by the Congress", Hedge said, addressing a gathering here, going on to explain the numbers required to amend the preamble of the Constitution. The party would also need to come to power in more than 20 States for this, the six-time Lok Sabha MP from Karnataka said. "If the Constitution has to be amended -- the Congress fundamentally distorted the Constitution by forcefully filling unnecessary things in it, especially by bringing in laws that were aimed at suppressing the Hindu society -- if all of this has to be changed it is not possible with

Lok Sabha elections: En route to 370 seats, BJP looks for co-travellers

It is tying up with regional parties - big and small - to reach the target the PM has set for the 2024 polls

BJP, TDP, Jana Sena will form alliance for upcoming LS, Andhra polls: Naidu

The BJP, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the Jana Sena Party have come to an understanding for stitching up an alliance for the upcoming Lok Sabha and Andhra Pradesh Assembly polls, former chief minister of the southern state N Chandrababu Naidu said on Saturday. "Andhra Pradesh has been destroyed badly. The BJP and the TDP coming together is a win-win situation for the country and the state," Naidu told a group of reporters here while lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership. The alliance will sweep the polls in Andhra Pradesh, he asserted, lashing out at the YSR Congress, which is in power in the southern state. The three parties sealed their alliance following a second round of talks involving their senior leaders on Saturday, sources said. They said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Jana Sena may together contest around eight and 30 Lok Sabha and Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh. The TDP will contest the remaining 17 Lok Sabha and 145 Assembly seats, they said

We converted difficulties into opportunities: Rajnath Singh lauds PM Modi

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday said it is the result of the "jan seva" (public service) being done by the double engine government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's guidance that the entire country along with Lucknow is progressing by leaps and bounds. Prime Minister Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of 782 development projects worth Rs 34,700 crore from Azamgarh that included inauguration of the airports of Azamgarh, Shravasti, Moradabad, Chitrakoot and Aligarh, and the new terminal of Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport, Lucknow. Addressing the gathering at an event in his parliamentary constituency, Singh said, "Under the visionary leadership of the prime minister, the specialty of our government has been that we converted difficulties into opportunities. There was already a system running in the country which kept the common man away from the elite class and we removed this system." "If I talk about the infrastructure in the aviation sector, ..

Lok Sabha polls: Lord Krishna is with us, says Kejriwal in Kurukshetra

AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said his party has 'dharma' with it and asked people to decide whether they are with 'dharma' or 'adharma'. Addressing a public meeting in Haryana's Kurukshetra Lok Sabha constituency, the Delhi chief minister urged people to vote for his party candidate Sushil Gupta from the seat. The AAP and the Congress will fight the Lok Sabha polls in alliance in Haryana. Under the tie-up, the AAP will contest from the lone Kurukshetra seat out of total 10 parliamentary seats in the state. Addressing the gathering, Kejriwal invoked the Mahabharata and said Kurukshetra is a pious land where the 'dharmayudh' was fought. 'Pandavas' had won it despite 'Kauravas' having everything, said the AAP convener who was accompanied by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. "What Pandavas had? Lord Shri Krishna was with them," he said. "Today, what we have with us. We are too small. Lord Shri Krishna is with us," said Kejriwal. Referring to the BJP-led Centre, Kejriwal sa

Will voice aspirations of people of Kashmir in Parliament: Sajad Lone

Peoples Conference president Sajad Gani Lone on Sunday sought support of the electorate in the Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency and said he will restore the region's glory and voice the aspirations of the people in the Parliament. "These elections will undoubtedly pave way for the collective betterment of our region, provided the right choices are made by sending representatives who can truly convey the aspirations and pain of the people of Kashmir in the Parliament," Lone, who is the party candidate for the Baramulla constituency, said at a convention of the party workers at Baramulla town. Questioning the performance of the National Conference MPs, who have been elected by the people for more than half a century, Lone criticized them for failing to meet the hopes of the people and remaining mute spectators to the issues concerning the people of Jammu and Kashmir. "There is a lot of pain, agony and suffering among the people, and only those who understand it can truly speak up for

Rahul pays tributes to Sardar Patel on last day of his yatra in Gujarat

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi visited the Swaraj Ashram in Surat on Sunday and paid tributes to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel during the last leg of his 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' in Gujarat. After covering seven districts of Gujarat in four days, the yatra ended in the state and it will resume from Maharashtra's Nandurbar district on Tuesday after a one-day pause, senior leader Jairam Ramesh told reporters here. Gandhi visited the Swaraj Ashram at Bardoli in Surat district and offered tributes to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. "For a few minutes, he went to the Swaraj Nivas which was set up by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in 1922. It was a moment of inspiration for the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra amid injustice being meted out to farmers from different states gathered at Delhi-Haryana border," Ramesh said. Gandhi later left for New Delhi from Vyara in Tapi district after completing the Gujarat leg of the yatra, a mass outreach programme ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, covering more than 400 kilometres in

Yusuf Pathan, Mahua Moitra among names in TMC's Lok Sabha candidate list

The TMC on Sunday announced the candidate list for all 42 Lok Sabha seats of West Bengal, dropping at least eight sitting MPs and bringing in several new faces such as former cricketers Yusuf Pathan and Kriti Azad. The party renominated 16 sitting MPs and fielded 12 women. Cricketer Yusuf Pathan will contest from the Baharampur Lok Sabha seat, whereas Kirti Aazd will fight from the Bardhaman-Durgapur constituency. From the Basirhat Lok Sabha seat, where Sandeshkhali is situated, TMC pitted its former MP Haji Nurul Islam by dropping sitting MP Nusrat Jahan. The TMC also renominated expelled Lok Sabha MP Mahua Moitra from Krishnanagar seat for the second consecutive term. The list was announced from TMC's mega rally held at Brigade Parada Grounds in Kolkata, where West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the party will contest Lok Sabha elections alone in all 42 seats in the state.

Demand for private jets, helicopters likely to rise 40% during LS polls

As political parties prepare to fight it out in the Lok Sabha polls, the demand for chartered planes and helicopters is expected to jump by up to 40 per cent compared to the previous general elections, according to industry experts. Helicopters are anticipated to be more in demand compared to fixed-wing aircraft as choppers will help in providing accessibility to rural and remote areas in a shorter time. "There will be an exponential demand for private jets and the demand is expected to outstrip the availability of chartered planes and helicopters. There is a limited supply of chartered planes and helicopters," Club One Air CEO Rajan Mehra told PTI. With increased demand, some players will be taking chartered planes and helicopters on lease during the general elections for which the dates are expected to be announced in the coming days. Chartered plane and helicopter services are charged on an hourly basis. The industry experts opined that the prices can vary between Rs 4.5 lakh t

PM Modi, what he stands for, will be at centre of LS polls: Kapil Sibal

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be at the centre of the Lok Sabha polls and whether what he stands for is for the good of the people of the country would be the subject matter of the elections, Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal said on Sunday. In a video interview with PTI, Sibal also said the opposition INDIA bloc needs to come out with a joint vision document which entails what key issues are there before the country which need to be addressed. Asserting that no election is a done deal, Sibal quipped, "I don't know whether picture baki hai ki nahi lekin jo picture chal rahi hai woh desh ke liye theek nahi hai (I don't know whether or not there is more to the film but the one that is playing is not good for the country)." Asked about the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) losing its way with JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar crossing over to the NDA and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee saying her party will go solo in the polls, Sibal said negotiations with Banerjee were still o

Gurugram Police issues traffic advisory for PM Modi's visit on March 11

In view of the inauguration of Dwarka Expressway by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 11, Gurugram Traffic Police has issued an advisory prohibiting heavy vehicles to ply on the road. A senior traffic police officer said the prime minister will also hold a rally on the same day near the Antariksh Chowk here, due to which traffic congestion is expected in the area. Therefore, it is advised that people going from Dwarka Clover Leaf towards IMT till 4 pm on March 11 use the Antariksh Chowk route only if it is absolutely necessary, he added. "Antriksh Chowk Road will be closed for some time due to crowd in the rally. On the other hand, movement of heavy vehicles on Dwarka Expressway will be prohibited from 5 pm on Sunday, hence all heavy vehicle drivers should use KMP during this period," read the advisory issued on Saturday.