Page 726 - Politics
Stone pelting near polling booths in J-K's Kulgam
Several incidents of stone pelting took place Monday in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir where polling is underway for election to the Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency, police said. "Isolated incidents of stone pelting near polling stations have been reported from various parts of Kulgam district but the situation is under control due to timely action of security forces," a police official said. He said there were no reports of anyone getting hurt in the stone pelting incidents so far. The Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency is spread over four districts of Anantnag, Kulgam, Shopian and Pulwama with 16 assembly segments. The Lok Sabha polls to this constituency are being held in three phases due to security reasons. Anantnag district went to polls on 23 April, while voting in Pulwama and Shopian districts will take place on 6 May. The Election Commission has curtailed the polling duration for Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency by two hours following a request from the state police to this
SP needs political health tonic: Dinesh Sharma
Taking a swipe at the Samajwadi Party, Deputy UP Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma Monday said efforts made by Akhilesh Yadav to safeguard the political health of the SP are "failing" and his party is in dire need of a "political health tonic". Sharma also dubbed the SP-BSP tie up as an "unnatural alliance, which will taste defeat similar to the one in 2017." "When a person is physically weak, he needs a (health) tonic. Similarly, when a political party become weak politically, it needs a political health tonic. If anybody needs it the most today, then it is the Samajwadi Party," Sharma told PTI here in an interview. Sharpening his attack on the SP, the Deputy Chief Minister said, "In 2017 UP Assembly elections they had aligned with the Congress, which was itself a weak party from the political point of view. They suffered a humiliating defeat in UP polls. Now, they have forged an alliance with the BSP, which had failed to open its account in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. I feel efforts ..
20.87 per cent polling in Jharkhand till 11 am
An estimated 20.87 per cent of the 45.26 lakh electorate cast their votes till 11 am on Monday in three Lok Sabha constituencies of Jharkhand, in the first phase of elections in the state. Women voters were seen in large numbers at many booths in Lohardaga (ST), Palamu (SC) and Chatra constituencies, where voting began at 7 am, election officials said. Ranchi Sadar Sub-divisional officer Garima Singh presented a citation to a woman, who became the first voter to turn up at a booth in Lohardaga constituency, they said. The election officials said all preparations have been made to ensure fear and free polling till 4 pm. There are a total of 6,072 polling stations for the three seats, where 25,727 polling personnel have been deputed. Police said there was no untoward incident reported so far from any part of the three constituencies. A total of 45,26,693 voters will decide the fate of 59 candidates, including two women. Union Minister of State for Tribal Affairs Sudarshan ...
People of Madhya Pradesh will vote for BJP to teach Congress a lesson: Shivraj
Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said here that there were two major issues in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections - National security and welfare of people."Only the leadership of PM Narendra Modi could help create a stable government. The Congress government that came in four months ago in the state has created a chaotic environment in the state and people are also feeling that they have done a mistake by not electing a BJP government. People will surely vote for BJP to teach a lesson to the Congress government in the state," the former CM said.On being questioned about his views on Kanhaiya Kumar campaigning for Digvijay Singh, Shivraj said, "People who have sedition charges against them and who make anti-national statements are campaigning for them-- are these the only people who Digvijay Singh has got for campaigning?"Further commenting on Congress's claims, he added, "Congress is making a record of lies. Their national president is in such shambles that he .
Turmeric farmers filing nominations from Varansi are TRS leaders: BJP
A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader on Monday alleged that 10 people who claimed to be turmeric farmers from Nizambad and are planning to file nomination from Varanasi t, belong to the Telangana Rashtriya Samiti (TRS) party.Speaking to ANI, D Arvind, sitting MP and BJP candidate from Nizambad said, " Ten people who claimed themselves to be turmeric farmers from Nizambad and planning to file nomination from Varanasi are related to TRS party and sponsored by CM KCRs daughter and Nizambad TRS MP K Kavita.""The same 10 people are holding different positions in TRS party, they are not supported by the village farmers," TRS Rajya Sabha MP Srinivas' son echoing similar sentiments said.Launching a scathing attack on TRS party, Arvind said, "TRS can't digest that BJP has created turmeric board and gave a fixed price for turmeric crop. K Kavita has never taken up farmer issues from Nizambad, she has failed miserably from Nizambad constituency."The statement from the BJP leader comes after a ..
Tiwari holds road show for 3rd consecutive day
Bhojpuri actor and singer Manoj Tiwari, re-contesting the North East Delhi Lok Sabha seat, held an 8-km-long road show in his constituency for the third consecutive day on Monday.
Over 21% voting recorded till 11 am in UP
An estimated 21.15 per cent voters exercised their franchise till 11 am in 13 constituencies of Uttar Pradesh in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections Monday. Seats where polling is underway are Shahjahanpur (SC), Kheri, Hardoi (SC), Misrikh (SC), Unnao, Farrukhabad, Etawah (SC), Kannauj, Kanpur, Akbarpur, Jalaun (SC), Jhansi and Hamirpur. Polling in this phase is specially important for the ruling BJP as it is aiming for a clean sweep by winning all 13 seats, including Kannauj which was the only seat the Samajwadi Party had managed to win in 2014. Kannauj was won by Samajwadi Party's Dimple Yadav. On four of these seats -- Shahjahanpur, Hardoi, Mishrikh and Etawah-- the BJP has opted for new faces. The SP-BSP alliance has fielded six BSP candidates and seven SP candidates. While the BSP is contesting from Shahjahanpur (SC), Misrikh (SC), Farrukhabad, Akbarpur, Jalaun (SC) and Hamirpur, the SP has fielded candidates from Kheri, Hardoi (SC), Unnao, Etawah, Kannauj, Kanpur and ...
Counter Terrorism Bill could prevent SL attacks: PM
Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the Easter Sunday attacks could have been prevented if the new Counter Terrorism Bill was passed in Parliament without delay.
Security forces resort to lathi-charge after clashes between TMC, BJP workers in Asansol
Security forces resorted to lathi-charge on Monday at a polling station in Asansol parliamentary constituency after clashes erupted between TMC and BJP supporters over allegations of electoral malpractices.There were reports of altercations between supporters of TMC, BJP and CPI (M) from several polling booths in the constituency.A BJP delegation which will include Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Vijay Goel and Anil Baluni, is scheduled to meet the Election Commission of India (ECI) in Delhi today over the issue of poll-related violence in West Bengal.At polling booths 125-129 in Asansol, TMC workers insisted on polling to begin despite absence of central forces leading to protests from BJP and CPI (M) supporters. When the central forces arrived, TMC workers clashed with the security personnel.Union Minister and BJP candidate from Asansol, Babul Supriyo, had an altercation with polling officers and TMC cadres at a booth, alleging that supporters of Mamata Banerjee-led party were capturing ...
US dismisses resurgence of 6-party talks for N Korea
The US does not prefer the resurgence of the six-party talks for North Korea's denuclearisation, according to its National Security Adviser John Bolton.This comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested that the talks, which collapsed in 2009, be reinstated to overcome the roadblock in denuclearisation negotiations between the United States and North Korea, according to Yonhap News Agency.Bolton made the comment during an interview with Fox News when asked whether US President Donald Trump would accept the Russian President's approval."I think it's not just what our preference is...I think Kim Jong-un, at least up until now, has wanted the one-on-one contact with the United States, which is what he has gotten," Bolton said.In a first, the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un recently held a meeting with Putin in the Russian city of Vladivostok. The meeting was held amidst the prevailing deadlock in negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang.It is largely being perceived as a ...
Babul Supriyo's car vandalised in Bengal's Asansol
Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Babul Supriyo's car was vandalised on Monday in West Bengal's Asansol, but the leader was unharmed in the attack.
Australia holds first election debate as race tightens
A fresh opinion poll showed Australia's bare-knuckle election campaign tightening significantly but the centre-left opposition Labor party maintaining a narrow lead ahead of a first televised leaders' debate Monday. The Newspoll survey showed Labor's edge over the conservative governing coalition narrowed to two percentage points, well within the margin of error. For months the polls had shown the opposition headed for a landslide victory at the May 18 vote. The latest result heaps pressure on the 51-year-old Labor leader Bill Shorten ahead of Monday's prime time debate. He will meet face-to-face with Prime Minister Scott Morrison Monday night in the West Australia state capital of Perth, for the first of up to three debates. Monday's opinion poll underscores how competitive Australian elections are. The campaign so far has been dominated by shrill attacks and hyperbolic accusations of impending doom if one side or the other wins. Morrison and his influential backers in Australia's ...
Biden to hit campaign trail before blue-collar supporters
Former US vice president Joe Biden, the newest Democratic presidential candidate, will hit the campaign trail in earnest on Monday with a rally before union members who have been a mainstay of his and the party's support. For his first public event since announcing his candidacy last Thursday, Biden chose Pennsylvania, the state where he was born 76 years ago -- and more specifically Pittsburgh, a blue-collar city now remaking itself as a tech hub. Perhaps best-known as former president Barack Obama's two-term deputy, Biden has set himself apart from most of the sprawling Democratic field by opting for a strategy of full-on confrontation with President Donald Trump. He accuses the current Republican president of undermining long-time American values. Whether that approach appeals to voters -- or if they prefer other Democrats' focus on issues like healthcare, the environment and infrastructure -- will become clear in coming months. But Biden, with name recognition earned not just with
Over 11% voting in Bihar LS polls (10 a.m.)
Bihar recorded 11.88 per cent voting till 10 a.m. on Monday in five Lok Sabha seats in the state, an official said.
Rs 64,500 cash seized from car outside Sena nominee's office
The flying squad of the Election Commission seized Rs 64,500 cash from a car parked outside the poll campaign office of Shiv Sena candidate in Maharashtra's Palghar district on Monday, a police official said. The raid was carried out in the early hours by the EC's staff near Central Park in Tulinj area where the poll campaign office of Sena's nominee Rajendra Gavit is located, he said. The action was taken following a complaint by Bahujan Vikas Aghadi activists, including Vasai-Virar mayor Rupesh Jadhav, who alleged that cash was being distributed to lure voters, he said. Based on the complaint, the car parked outside Gavit's office was checked by the police and EC staff, who found Rs 64,500 cash in the vehicle, he said. During enquiry, the police found Shiv Sena MLC Ravindra Phatak and his supporters at the poll campaign office, he said. The Tulinj police filed a complaint against Phatak for being present in the constituency even after the campaign was over, the ...
Defence ministers of India, China hold bilateral in Kyrgyzstan
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman held a bilateral meeting with her Chinese counterpart General Wei Fenghe on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Defence Ministers' Meet here on Monday.The two sides discussed regional and bilateral security issues during the meeting.The Defence Minister is currently in Kyrgyzstan on a three-day visit to attend the SCO meet, along with holding bilaterals with a handful of other member-countries on the summit's sidelines.She is scheduled to attend the SCO ministerial meeting later today. The eight member-states will discuss ways to increase cooperation in combatting terrorism, amongst other issues, during the meet.The current SCO meeting is being held in the run-up to the SCO summit, which is expected to take place from June 14 to June 15 this year.In 2018, India participated in the SCO Defence Ministers meeting for the first time. Speaking at that meeting, Sitharaman had highlighted India's keen interest in developing an ...
EVM malfunctioning galore in Uttar Pradesh
EVM malfunction was reported from a number of constituencies as polling began for the fourth phase of elections in Uttar Pradesh for 13 Lok Sabha seats.
Samajwadis under house arrest in Kannauj
The Samajwadi Party has claimed that a number of its leaders have been put under house arrest in Kannauj where party President Akhilesh Yadavs wife Dimple Yadav is contesting the Lok Sabha elections.
Congress moves SC over EC inaction against Modi, Shah
The Congress on Monday moved the Supreme Court against the Election Commission for alleged inaction on complaints against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah.
Less than 3% voting in J&K's Anantnag (9 a.m.)
Less than 3 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 9 a.m. on Monday in the second phase of polls in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag Lok Sabha seat, an election official said.