Page 98 - Lok Sabha

Eyeing Lok Sabha elections, Amit Shah to attend BJP meeting in Telangana

Union Home Minister Amit Shah will participate in a BJP state-level meeting on Thursday and chalk out a roadmap to the party's Telangana unit leaders and cadre for the general elections to be held in a few months. This is Shah's first visit to the state after the recently concluded Assembly polls which gave "disappointing" results to the saffron party though it could improve its tally in terms of votes and seats. The BJP which emerged as a principal challenger to the BRS at one point of time after winning a couple of by-polls and the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation elections, before the November 30 Assembly elections, finally ended up doubling its vote share to nearly 14 per cent besides improving its tally to eight seats in the 119-member House. "Amit Shah will visit the Sri Bhagyalakshmi temple (near the historic Charminar). Afterwards, he will address the gathering of party leaders from across the state. Basically the meeting will delve into the party's performance in the

Cong to sound poll bugle with mega rally in Nagpur; Sonia to address event

The Congress is set to kickstart its campaign for next year's Lok Sabha elections with its mega rally 'Hain Tayyar Hum' in Maharashtra's Nagpur city on Thursday, the party's 139th foundation day. It will be a historic moment for the people of the country, Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole on Wednesday said addressing a press conference at the venue of the event. The party will give a message of change to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre, he said. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chiefs Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi will address the rally, according to party leaders. The mega event assumes significance as it will be held in Nagpur, where the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's (RSS) headquarters and 'Deekshabhoomi', the historic place where Dr B R Ambedkar embraced Buddhism, are located. The rally, with the theme 'Hain Tayyar Hum' (we are ready), will send a good message throughout the country. The Congress will sound the bugle for the Lok

Congress appoints communication coordinators for states, ahead of LS polls

The Congress appointed communication coordinators for states on Wednesday, ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Party spokesperson Gourav Vallabh has been appointed as the communication coordinator for Karnataka, Radhika Khera has been given the responsibility for Chhattisgarh, Mathew Antony will look after northeastern states and Mahima Singh will look after Assam. The other communication coordinators are B R Anil Kumar (Andhra Pradesh), Alok Sharma (Bihar), Harshad Sharma (Goa), Sachin Sawant (Gujarat), Ajay Upadhyay (Haryana), Amrit Gill (Himachal Pradesh), Jyoti Kumar Singh (Jharkhand), Arshpreet Khadial (Jammu), Parvez Alam (Kashmir and Ladakh), Lavanya Ballal Jain (Kerala), Charan Singh Sapra (Madhya Pradesh), Surendra Singh Rajput (Maharashtra), Bobbeeta Sharma (Odisha), Anshul Avijit (Punjab), Ritu Choudhary (Rajasthan), Bhavya Narasimhamurthy (Tamil Nadu and Puducherry), Sujata Paul (Telangana), Chayanika Uniyal (Uttarakhand), Abhay Dubey (Uttar Pradesh) and Anshuman Sail

Lok Sabha breach: Accused Neelam Azad moves HC, calls police remand illegal

Neelam Azad, an accused arrested in the December 13 Parliament security breach case, Wednesday approached the Delhi High Court alleging her police remand was illegal as she was not allowed to consult a legal practitioner of her choice to defend her during the trial court proceedings. In her petition seeking a writ of habeas corpus directing her production before the high court as well as an order to "set her at liberty", Azad said not allowing her to consult a lawyer of her choice amounted to violation of her fundamental right guaranteed under the Constitution, making the remand order unlawful. The trial court has remanded her in police custody till January 5. The matter is likely to be mentioned for urgent hearing before a vacation bench of the high court on Thursday. Under Indian laws, a detainee or a person on their behalf can file a habeas corpus petition in a high court or the Supreme Court for their production if they feel they have been detained illegally. Upon production, if

LS polls: Party Prez Kharge, Rahul hold meeting with Cong leaders in Andhra

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, party leader Rahul Gandhi and other central leaders of the party held a meeting with leaders of its Andhra Pradesh unit to discuss strategy for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. The meeting comes amid a series of meetings being held by the Congress high command with its state leaders ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. Taking to X, the Congress president called it an important strategy meeting where leaders shared their thoughts on strengthening the party for the general elections. "Everyone believes that ground situation has drastically changed after government formation in Karnataka and Telangana. Every leader and worker is going to work hard and re-establish the bond which the people of Andhra Pradesh once shared with the Congress party," Kharge said. Andhra Pradesh has 25 Lok Sabha seats, of which 22 are presently with the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP), while the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) has three seats.

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Madhya Pradesh Congress holds meeting for upcoming Lok Sabha elections

Speaking to reporters Patwari said that the Party was enthusiastic about its chances in Upcoming Lok Sabha Polls

Amit Shah and Nadda to visit West Bengal, assess BJP's state organisation

Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP president J P Nadda are scheduled to arrive here on Monday night on a two-day visit to assess the organisational landscape in West Bengal ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha polls next year, according to a party leader. Shah and Nadda are expected to arrive in the city late tonight and will preside over a series of organisational meetings on Tuesday. However, there are no plans for them to address any public events or meetings. "Both will engage with state leaders late on Monday night. Amit Shah Ji and J P Nadda Ji will visit Gurudwara Bara Sikh Sangat and Kalighat temple on Tuesday morning. In the afternoon, they will conduct a series of meetings with state leaders, and frontal organizations, and assess the organisational strength in preparation for the Lok Sabha polls," stated the state BJP leader. Later in the evening, the leaders will participate in a closed-door programme at the National Library before departing for New Delhi, he added. Accord

'It is an art form': TMC's Kalyan Banerjee mimics VP Dhankhar again

Videos showed Kalyan Banerjee mimicking Rajya Sabha Chairman Dhankhar during an Opposition protest outside Parliament last Tuesday. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was also seen recording Banerjee's act

J-K Cong leaders to meet Kharge, discuss Lok Sabha election preparations

The Congress has said that it disagrees with the manner in which the government abrogated Article 370, which conferred special status to Jammu and Kashmir

Can't meet, out of Delhi: INC chief Kharge's reply to VP Dhankhar's invite

On Sunday, Vice-President and Rajya Sabha Chairperson Jagdeep Dhankhar, had invited Mallikarjun Kharge to his residence on December 25 to discuss disruptions in Parliament

With BJP on a roll, UP a sour grape for Opposition ahead of LS polls

The question lingers: Is the heady blend of a bold excise policy and airport expansion enough of a pick-me-up? ADITI PHADNIS writes

From consultant to Congressman

Sunil Kanugolu may have assisted the Congress with the winning strategy in Telangana, but to win the Lok Sabha elections, the party will need more than just his expertise

Will talk with party heads in states where alliances can be formed: Baghel

Congress formed the five-member NAC earlier this week, with Wasnik as convenor and leaders including ex-Raj CM Gehlot, Baghel, former Union minister Salman Khurshid, and Mohan Prakash as members

Uddhav to sound poll bugle with convention, rally in Nashik on Jan 23

The Shiv Sena (UBT), headed by former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, will hold a "mahashibir" and a public rally here on January 23, 2024, the birth anniversary of Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray, Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut said on Sunday. Uddhav Thackeray will participate in both the events, Raut told reporters. The former CM is expected to sound the poll bugle for the next year's Lok Sabha elections with the convention and rally. "Uddhav Thackeray will hold a mahashibir and address a public meeting in Nashik on January 23," Raut said. All the party leaders will arrive in Nashik on Monday to work out details for hosting the two events, the Rajya Sabha member said. The (then undivided) Shiv Sena contested the Nashik Lok Sabha election in alliance with the BJP and won the seat in 2014 and 2019. Later, two-time MP Hemant Godse switched over to the Shiv Sena camp led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. In June 2022, Shinde and 40 other MLAs revolted against the Shiv Sena .

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Focus on youth, poor, women and farmers: PM Modi at BJP office bearer meet

Bharatiya Janata Party's national office bearers' meeting was held on Friday, which was presided over by party president JP Nadda

Only 16 of 172 Bills in Lok Sabha had over 30 MPs present in debate: Report

Half of the bills passed by the 17th Lok Sabha so far were discussed for less than two hours each and only 16 per cent of them were referred to parliamentary standing committees, data compiled by think tank PRS Legislative Research shows. According to an analysis by PRS Legislative Research, 172 bills were discussed and passed during the term of 17th Lok Sabha, of which 86 bills in the Lok Sabha and 103 bills in the Rajya Sabha were discussed for less than two hours each. Similarly, of the 172 bills, only 16 bills in the Lok Sabha and 11 in the Rajya Sabha saw more than 30 members taking part in the debate. The report came a day after the conclusion of the Winter session - the last full-fledged session of the 17th Lok Sabha. It stated that no bills were referred to House committees in the Winter session. The proportion of bills referred to committees has decreased from 71 per cent during the 15th Lok Sabha and 25 per cent in the 16th Lok Sabha to 16 per cent during the 17th Lok ...

Ajit Pawar bats for Modi over Kharge, vows to stick by ruling alliance

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Friday said there was a "huge difference" between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, and people would support Modi again in the coming Lok Sabha elections. Speaking to reporters here, he also averred that he would not betray his alliance with the BJP and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena. "There is a huge difference between Modi and Kharge. People of India will support Modi again and everyone should come together to back his leadership," the Nationalist Congress Party leader said to a question. Some parties in the INDIA grouping have proposed Kharge as the Opposition alliance's candidate for prime minister. Pawar, who split the NCP in July this year to join the ruling Mahayuti (grand alliance), said he would not betray his new partners, but nor would he contest on the BJP's symbol. "I will not change the political stand I have taken. I am ready to give this assurance on a stamp paper," he said. Pawar .

Parliament security breach: Manoranjan D maybe mastermind, suspects police

The Delhi Police Special Cell suspects Manoranjan D one of the six people arrested in the Parliament security breach - to be the mastermind behind the conspiracy, hatched to send a message to the ruling government by doing "something big," said a source privy to the probe. According to police, Lalit Jha, another accused, has revealed to the interrogators that Manoranjan was the one who motivated other members to do something big and planned the breach in the parliament. However, his, Jha's, role was only to destroy the evidence after the act. Manoranjan was arrested along with Sagar from inside the parliament on December 13. Both had jumped into the well of the Lok Sabha and opened yellow colour canisters hidden in their shoes. Manoranjan, a native of Mysore, had quit engineering to engage in social work. Though he was unemployed, he managed to visit Cambodia, the source said. Jha was produced before the court on Friday from where he was sent to 14 days of police custody. Police t