Page 757 - Politics
LS polls phase IV: BJP to defend 45 seats, mostly in Hindi heartland
After completion of polling in 303 Lok Sabha constituencies, 71 seats spread across nine states, mostly in the Hindi heartland, will be up for grabs in the fourth phase on April 29, of which the ruling BJP will have to defend 45.
Accompanied by top NDA leaders, Modi files nomination for Varanasi LS seat
Prime Minister Narendra Modi filed his nomination papers for the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat on Friday, accompanied by a galaxy of top BJP and NDA leaders in what was a massive show of strength for the country's ruling alliance. Bihar Chief Minister and JD-U chief Nitish Kumar, Union minister and LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan, Shiv Sena supremo Uddhav Thackeray and Shiromani Akali Dal patron Parkash Singh Badal were with Modi at the Collectorate as Modi filed his papers, seeking a second term in the Lok Sabha from the temple town. BJP leaders, including party president Amit Shah, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and senior Union ministers Rajnath Singh and Sushma Swaraj, were also present on the occasion. Before reaching the Varanasi collectorate to file his nomination, Modi went to a temple to offer prayers. The prime minister, who reached here on Thursday and brought life to a standstill as he held a seven kilometre roadshow through the town, also addressed party workers in the
Voters unsure who are they angry with: CVOTER-IANS tracker
Most of the voters are undecided about who they are angry with even as people appeared equally disenchanted with state and the central government, according to the latest CVOTER-IANS tracker.
EC not letting state government discharge its duties, alleges Andhra CM
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu Friday accused the Election Commission of usurping the powers of his government and preventing it from discharging its duties. In a letter to Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora, he said the chief electoral officer (CEO) of Andhra Pradesh had reportedly told the media that the chief minister does not have the power to conduct review meetings as the model code of conduct is in force. The CEO has also directed the ADG (Intelligence) not to report to the chief minister, Naidu alleged. "There's no such provision in the model code of conduct... I am duty bound and empowered to conduct review meetings. The CEO is spreading misinformation and exceeding his jurisdiction," Naidu alleged in the letter. "He has also instructed the ADG (Intelligence), who works directly under the control of the chief minister, not to report to the CM," the letter read. Accusing the EC of discriminating against him, Naidu asked if the poll panel has also ...
'PM KISAN scheme to benefit just 38% farmers till polls conclude'
The ambitious PM-KISAN scheme that aims to provide Rs 6,000 annually to small and marginal farmers will reach only 38 per cent of the intended beneficiaries by the end of ongoing Lok sabha polls, thanks to tardy furnishing of information by the states, lack of digitised land records and the election Model Code of Conduct being in force, according to government officials involved in its implementation.
Modi files nomination in Varanasi, shows off NDA strength
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday filed his nomination papers in Varanasi for the Lok Sabha elections amid a show of strength by NDA allies.
T'gana farmers to file nominations from Varanasi to highlight
About 50 farmers from Nizamabad in Telangana have left for Varanasi to file nominations from the Lok Sabha constituency, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking re-election, in a bid to highlight their problems. The farmers are planning to contest as independents to press their demand for remunerative price to turmeric and constitution of a turmeric board. Ganga Reddy, a leader of the group of farmers who plan to file nominations, told PTI Friday they were on the way to Varanasi. Varanasi will go to the polls in the last phase on May 19. He said the group comprised 52 people and that more would reach Varanasi. "We want a turmeric board. We are going to file nominations to make the Centre and all political parties aware of that," he added. The idea is that their nominations would trigger a debate, leading to the constitution of a turmericboard, he said. Reddy said turmeric farmers from Tamil Nadu, who also want formation ofturmeric board, would also reach ...
Seeking second term in office, PM Modi files nomination from Varanasi LS seat
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday filed nomination to fight the Lok Sabha polls from Varanasi- the parliamentary constituency from where he won the 2014 general elections.Varanasi, earlier known as Banaras, will vote in the last phase of the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections on May 19.Almost all prominent leaders of the BJP, as well as members of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and North-East Democratic Alliance (NEDA), accompanied Modi.BJP national president Amit Shah, Union Ministers-Nitin Gadkari, Rajnath Singh and Sushma Swaraj, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker and AIADMK leader Thambidurai, SAD chief Parkash Singh Badal, Lok Janshakti Party president Ram Vilas Pawan and other top leaders extended their support to Modi as he filed his nomination papers.Modi is seeking a second term in office from Varanasi, a ...
Accompanied by NDA leaders, Modi files nomination from Varanasi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday filed his nomination papers from the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat, accompanied by a galaxy of top BJP and NDA leaders. Besides BJP chief Amit Shah, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, top NDA leaders such as Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, SAD leader Prakash Singh Badal and Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray were with Modi at the Collectorate as he filed his papers. Modi offered prayers at a temple before he went to the Collectorate. He won the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat in 2014 by defeating his nearest rival, Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal, by a massive margin of over three lakh votes.
Modi visits Kal Bhairav temple ahead of filing papers
Before filing his nomination papers for the Varanasi Lok Sabha constituency on Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the Kaal Bhairav temple here.
North Korea's Kim leaves Vladivostok after Putin summit
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un left the Russian city of Vladivostok on Friday after a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin where the two vowed to pursue closer ties. Kim took part in a departure ceremony at Vladivostok station before his armoured train departed around 0530 GMT. Kim and Putin met Thursday in the Far Eastern port of Vladivostok for their first face-to-face talks. The two men agreed to seek stronger relations between Moscow and Pyongyang and Kim accused Washington of acting in "bad faith" in negotiations over the North's nuclear arsenal. Putin left the city on Thursday for another summit in Beijing while Kim stayed on overnight for events including a wreath-laying ceremony.
Sri Lanka police chief resigns over bombings: president
Sri Lanka's top police official, Inspector General of Police Pujith Jayasundara, has resigned over failures that led to the deadly Easter bomb attacks, the country's president said Friday. "The IGP has resigned. He has sent his resignation to the acting defence secretary. I'll nominate a new IGP soon," President Maithripala Sirisena told reporters. Sirisena's nominee has to be confirmed by a constitutional council. The resignation comes after the country's top defence ministry official, defence secretary Hemasiri Fernando resigned on Thursday.
Curbing insurgency in Northeast my biggest achievement as home minister: Rajnath
Curbing insurgency in the Northeast has been his biggest achievement as home minister, according to Rajnath Singh who says Naxal violence in the country is also on the wane. The Union home minister asserts that BJP will come back to power with a thumping majority as people want the good governance of the Narendra Modi dispensation to continue. "The way Modiji has led the country at national and international levels in the last five years, there is not an iota of doubt about our win with three-fourths majority in these polls," he claims. Singh says as home minister, he worked, among other things, towards curbing insurgency in the Northeast and Naxalism in parts of the country. "Insurgency in Northeast is almost finished. We are now in the most favourable position since 1971, when more security personnel used to get killed than Naxals. Now the trend has reversed... Our security forces have been giving a befitting reply and eliminating Naxals," he told PTI in an interview. Earlier Naxals
Pyongyang tried to bill US $2mn for Warmbier care
North Korea presented the US a $2 million bill for the hospital care of Otto Warmbier, the American student who was held as a prisoner by Pyongyang, and insisted Washington to sign a pledge to pay it before releasing him in 2017, the media reported on Friday.
NDA to get three-fourth majority in Lok Sabha: Rajnath Singh
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Friday that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will get a three-fourth majority in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections."The NDA will get three-fourth majority in the country," Singh, who was in Varanasi, told ANI.Apna Dal (S) convener and Union Minister of State Anupriya Patel said that the enthusiasm of the people shows that the NDA is headed towards an absolute majority in Lok Sabha and will form the government again under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi."The NDA is coming to power again. There is no doubt that it will be under the leadership of Narendra Modi. The way people greeted and welcomed Modi ji on streets of Varanasi shows that people want to see Modi ji again as the Prime Minister. We will break all records in Uttar Pradesh," she noted.Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister and BJP leader Sushma Swaraj told ANI, "The people of Varanasi are very lucky as they are choosing the Prime Minister of India, while people of ...
Modi biopic to release after LS polls, SC will not step in
The Supreme Court on Friday refused to interfere with the Election Commission on the biopic "PM Narendra Modi".
Cong more keen on forming UP govt in 2022, rather than halting BJP: Akhilesh
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav Friday said the Congress game plan was not to stop the BJP from forming the government at the Centre, but to come to power in Uttar Pradesh in 2022. He also that the SP and BJP have sacrificed seats in national interest. "Our intention is clear right from the word go. We formed alliance (with BSP and RLD) to stop the communal party and in the process, we in the SP and also the BSP had to sacrifice seats in national interest," he told PTI in an interview. But, the Congress' agenda in the ongoing parliamentary polls is not to stop the BJP from forming the next government at the Centre. They are working for making the next UP chief minister in 2022 (when the next assembly polls are due) Akhilesh said. His no holds barred attack came days after he lashed out at the Congress for its "too big ego". The SP chief's remarks assume significance against the backdrop of Congress President Rahul Gandhi himself asserting that his party will form the government ..
Congress MLC attacked during TV debate
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) supporters attacked Congress MLC Deepak Singh on a live debate on a TV news channel in Uttar Pradesh here.
NDA to get two-third majority in Lok Sabha: Rajnath Singh
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Friday that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will get a two-third majority in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections."The NDA will get two-third majority in the country," Singh, who was in Varanasi, told ANI.Apna Dal (S) convener and Union Minister of State Anupriya Patel said that the enthusiasm of the people shows that the NDA is headed towards an absolute majority in Lok Sabha and will form the government again under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi."The NDA is coming to power again. There is no doubt that it will be under the leadership of Narendra Modi. The way people greeted and welcomed Modi ji on streets of Varanasi shows that people want to see Modi ji again as the Prime Minister. We will break all records in Uttar Pradesh," she noted.Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister and BJP leader Sushma Swaraj told ANI, "The people of Varanasi are very lucky as they are choosing the Prime Minister of India, while people of other ...
Kim concludes Russia trip after summit with Putin
North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un on Friday concluded his first-ever trip to Russia, a day after his historic summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.