Page 55 - West Bengal

Will lend support to 'INDIA' from outside to form govt at Centre: Mamata

West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said her party will extend support to the opposition INDIA bloc from outside to form the government at the Centre and vowed to repeal the CAA, NRC and UCC once the BJP government is voted out of power. Expressing skepticism about the BJP's ambitious target of achieving 400 seats in the Lok Sabha elections, she said people will reject them totally. "BJP is claiming that it will win 400 seats, but people are saying it will not happen. The entire country has understood that the BJP is a party full of thieves. We (TMC) will support the INDIA bloc from outside to form a government at the Centre. We will extend our support so that in (West) Bengal, our mothers and sisters never face a problem... and those who work in the 100 days' job scheme, also do not face problems," Banerjee said. The TMC supremo, who was addressing an election rally at Chinsurah, Hooghly district, however, clarified that in West Bengal, her party .

LS elections 2024: Polling for 8 seats in Bengal, 51.87% turnout till 1 pm

Polling was underway peacefully in eight Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal as 15.24 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 9 am on Monday, an election official said. Polling started at the eight Lok Sabha constituencies of Baharampur, Krishnanagar, Ranaghat (SC), Bardhaman Purba (SC), BardhamanDurgapur, Asansol, Bolpur (SC) and Birbhum, at 7 am amid tight security arrangements. A total of 1,45,30,017 voters 73,84,356 men, 71,45,379 women. and 282 third-gender are eligible to exercise their franchise in 15,507 polling stations on Monday. "Polling remained peaceful in the first two hours and there is no untoward incident anywhere in the eight Lok Sabha constituencies. A voter turnout of 15.24 per cent recorded till 9 am," he told PTI. Both the Trinamool Congress and the BJP have lodged complaints alleging EVM malfunctioning, agents being stopped from entering polling booths and voters being either threatened or stopped from going to cast their votes in different constituencies. The

Ex-Judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay moves Cal HC, alleges police overaction

Former Judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay, a BJP candidate from Tamluk Lok Sabha seat, on Monday moved the Calcutta High Court alleging police overaction by registering an attempt to murder case against him. Justice Jay Sengupta, before whose court the matter was mentioned, directed that the petition will be taken up for hearing on Tuesday. Alleging malafide and overaction on the part of police, Gangopadhyay's lawyer Rajdeep Majumder submitted before the court that the FIR was lodged to prevent him from campaigning for the election. Majumder stated that section 307 (attempt to murder) was registered against Gangopadhyay. Gangopadhyay, who resigned as a judge of the Calcutta High Court in March, is a BJP candidate from Tamluk Lok Sabha constituency. An alleged incident of protest against him by some persons claiming to belong to a teachers' organisation is stated to have taken place when Gangopadhyay went to file his nomination papers for the polls.

Highlights: PM Modi addresses rally in Bengal, gives 5 guarantees to the state

Latest LIVE updates: Catch all the latest updates related to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rally in Bengal here

TMC threatening women in Sandeshkhali to protect culprits, says PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday slammed the "vote bank" politics of the Trinamool Congress and alleged that the party's goons are threatening the tormented women of Sandeshkhali, where allegations of sexual abuse against TMC leaders have surfaced, to protect the culprits. While addressing an election rally at Barrackpore in North 24 Parganas district, Modi alleged that under the TMC rule, Hindus have turned into second-class citizens in the state and asserted that as long as Modi is there, no one can repeal the CAA law. All of us have seen what the TMC has done with the sisters and mothers of Sandeshkhali. The TMC goons are now threatening the women in Sandeshkhali as the name of the main culprit is Shajahan Sheikh. TMC is doing everything to protect the culprits of Sandeshkhali, he said. His remarks come in the backdrop of multiple purported videos surfacing on social media, which claimed that a local BJP party leader made several women of Sandeshkhali sign on blank papers .

New video claims 70 women in Sandeshkhali received money to protest

In a purported video that surfaced from Sandeshkhali, a local BJP leader was heard saying that over 70 women had received Rs 2,000 each for taking part in protests against local TMC satrap Shahjahan Sheikh and his aides who were accused of sexual assault and land grab. In the video, lasting over 45 minutes, a man resembling Sandeshkhali mandal president Gangadhar Kayal told this to the questioner. It was Kayal who had earlier said in another purported clip, the first in a series in the past week, that the rape allegations were staged. PTI did not independently verify the authenticity of the videos. In the latest tape that surfaced on Saturday night, Kayal was heard saying that 70 women got Rs 2,000 each for taking part in protests against Sheikh who was arrested and later suspended by the police. "We will need Rs 2.5 lakh in cash for 50 booths where 30 per cent of protesters would be women. We have to keep the SC, ST and OBC people here in good humour by paying them satisfactorily.

Lok Sabha polls Phase 4: 96 seats go to polls on May 13; all details here

May 13 will witness another high stake battle in the fourth stage of Lok Sabha elections in 10 states and union territories. A total of 96 constituencies in these states and UTs will go to polls

Lok Sabha polls 2024: PM Modi to hold four rallies in West Bengal today

Voting will take place for eight Lok Sabha seats of West Bengal in the fourth phase of voting to be held on May 13

West Bengal deprived by Centre for last 10 years, says Abhishek Banerjee

Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee on Saturday said the BJP government at the Centre had deprived West Bengal "wilfully" for the last ten years and it is time a righteous government be installed at the Centre now. Speaking at a public rally at Uluberia in Howrah district, Banerjee who is also the nephew of Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, said that the people of West Bengal should give a suitable reply to the BJP by pressing the appropriate button during the Lok Sabha elections. "The BJP government at the Centre has deprived the people of West Bengal for the last ten years. The Centre has stopped paying dues which the state owes under schemes like 100 days work and Awas Yojana", he said. "People should throw out this government at the Centre by pressing the appropriate button during polls. It is sure that the INDIA bloc will form the new government and all pending dues of the state will be realised", he said, adding that "It is only a matter of time that the new ..

Contenders for Medinipur face more resistance internally than from Oppn

Medinipur is probably the only Lok Sabha seat in West Bengal where both the prime contenders, the BJP and the TMC, seem more troubled with resistance from within than from the opposition outside. Should pollsters choose to add yet another layer of political complexity to the seat, there are those who view the battle for Medinipur as that taking place between current and former TMC supporters, roughly translated into followers of party supremo Mamata Banerjee and turncoat Suvendu Adhikari, with both rooting for candidates of their choice. What could have been a cakewalk for the BJP is now an arena where the fight is thrown wide open, with the saffron camp deciding to relocate popular sitting MP and former state party president Dilip Ghosh to Bardhaman-Durgapur, replacing him with the party's state Mahila Morcha president Agnimitra Paul as its candidate for Medinipur. Paul, a Kolkata-based fashion designer and sitting Asansol Dakshin MLA, has had a meteoric rise in the BJP since she w

LS polls: Royalty, history take centre stage in 3-way Krishnanagar fight

The incumbent MP is TMC's Mahua Moitra, who was expelled from the LS in Dec

TMC to file complaint with EC against NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma

The Trinamool Congress on Friday said it will file a formal complaint with the Election Commission against National Commission for Women's chairperson Rekha Sharma over allegations of atrocities on women in West Bengal's Sandeshkhali. NCW had recommended to President Droupadi Murmu that President's rule be imposed in West Bengal over alleged violence and atrocities on women in Sandeshkhali. "TMC will go to the Election Commission against Rekha Sharma, who is the chairperson of National Commission for Women," West Bengal minister and TMC spokesperson Shashi Panja said. Some videos on Sandeshkhali went viral which were shared by TMC. PTI did not verify the authenticity of the videos shared by TMC. Panja said that the TMC has already filed complaints against BJP and Leader of Opposition in West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari before the EC over such allegations.

Bengal BJP launches portal for candidates affected by school jobs scam

The West Bengal unit of the BJP has set up a dedicated legal support website and a helpline number to assist "genuine" candidates affected by the alleged school jobs scam, a senior party leader said on Thursday. The helpline number and the portal were made public on Wednesday night, days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked the state unit of the BJP to establish a legal cell for the "genuine" candidates. "As per the instructions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, West Bengal BJP is duty-bound to stand beside the eligible candidates who were affected due to the TMC's illegal recruitment of some people," BJP spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya said. The legal support website is 'bjplegalsupport.org' and helpline number is 9150056618, he said. "Once a complaint is received through the helpline number or the website, we will speak to the candidate concerned and seek the status of his or her case, following which we will provide legal help accordingly," he said. While addressing election

SC stays Calcutta HC order cancelling over 25,000 jobs in education dept

The top court, however, permitted the central probe agency, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), to continue with its investigation and said it may probe even members of the state cabinet if needed

Sandeshkhali woman revokes rape case against TMC men, alleges BJP coercion

The woman said that she was misled by a local BJP Mahila Morcha functionary and other party members, who initially sought her signature under the guise of enrolling her for PMAY

WB teacher recruitment scam: 'It is a systemic fraud', says CJI Chandrachud

The bench noted that the state government lacked evidence indicating that its authorities had maintained the data and inquired about its availability

Rabindranath Tagore Jayanti 2024: Are banks closed today? Check details

Rabindranath Tagore Jayanti 2024: On May 8, 2024, banks remain closed in West Bengal due to the birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore

WBCHSE HS 12th Result 2024 will release today, here's how to check

WBCHSE HS 12th Result 2024: The board will release class 12th results today at 1 pm through a press conference. Here's how to check and download

LS polls: MCC turned into Modi code of conduct under BJP rule, says Mamata

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday alleged that the Election Commission has turned a blind eye to the allegations against BJP leaders that they indulge in hate speeches during campaigns, converting the Model Code of Conduct to "Modi code of conduct". Addressing an election rally at Purulia, the TMC supremo also claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other top BJP leaders consider only themselves as Hindus, and they do not think about other communities. Modi and other BJP leaders by their "hate-filled speeches" are intimidating lower caste Hindus, minorities and other marginalised sections, but the Election Commission is silent, she alleged. "The Election Commission's Model Code of Conduct has turned out to be a mockery and should be rechristened as Modi code of conduct. But we will continue to flag every incident of violation of rights of citizens of this country," Banerjee said.

Phase 3 Lok Sabha elections 2024: What was the voter turnout at 1 pm?

Lok Sabha elections 2024: Phase 3 of the general elections sees 93 constituencies in 11 states and Union Territories going to polls. Votes will be counted on June 4