The Election Commission released the names of deleted voters in West Bengal ahead of the publication of the draft electoral rolls for the upcoming assembly elections.
Votes will be counted on January 16 and the outcome will be keenly watched as the BJP-led Mahayuti will seek to stamp its supremacy in urban landscape, especially in Mumbai, while the Opposition parties will try to redeem themselves after last year's rout in assembly polls.
According to Election Commission data, Bhabanipur had 2,06,295 voters as of January 2025. The draft rolls now carry 1,61,509 names, indicating that 44,787 voters, nearly 21.7 per cent of the electorate, have been deleted.
The CM recently said that only'miyas' were being 'harassed' during the ongoing Special Revision (SR) of electoral rolls in the state, as they cannot be allowed to vote in Assam, and claimed that no Assamese -- Hindus or Muslims -- were facing any problem in the exercise. Opposition parties criticised him for this comment.
The Bombay High Court criticized the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for its lack of action in addressing air pollution in Mumbai, questioning the approval of numerous large construction projects and urging preventive measures.
The Congress party has alleged that approximately 23 lakh women's names have been removed from the voter list in Bihar, particularly in constituencies with close contests in the 2020 elections. They claim this is a deliberate act of 'vote theft' orchestrated by the ruling party through the Election Commission.
'Challenging an authority like the Election Commission is uncalled for. In my view, Khurshid ought to have settled this diplomatically instead of showing defiance,' says retired Supreme Court Justice Santhosh Hegde.
According to reports, the exit polls will be banned from 7 am on Monday when polling for the first phase in Chhattisgarh starts till 5:30 pm on December 4 when the Delhi Assembly polls end.
Analysis of election expenditure reports reveals Congress spent more on propaganda and social media, while BJP's overall expenses were higher in the Delhi assembly elections.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday told the poll panel that his remarks were aimed at containing graft and sought a review of its order to allow him to repeat the comments.
In Bihar, women outvoted men and, perhaps, became one of the decisive factors behind the NDA's landslide victory in the assembly polls in the state on Friday.
The Supreme Court has addressed the issue of reservation quotas in Maharashtra local body elections, stating that the final results of elections in 57 local bodies, where the 50% quota ceiling has been breached, will depend on its judgment in the case.
Opposition parties are questioning the Election Commission's intentions behind the second phase of special intensive revision of electoral rolls in 12 states and Union Territories. The BJP has slammed the Congress and called the opposition a 'herd of dissatisfied souls'.
Booth-level officers in Kolkata scuffled with police during a protest against alleged excessive work pressure related to the ongoing SIR process. The officers allege unrealistic deadlines and lack of support from the Election Commission.
Prateek Yadav is the son of Mulayam Singh Yadav's second wife, Sadhna Yadav. His stepbrother and former chief minister, Akhilesh Yadav, currently heads the Samajwadi Party, the main opposition in Uttar Pradesh.
Days after Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar undertook an hours-long trek to a remote polling station in Uttarakhand, the poll panel on Tuesday decided to double the remuneration of polling officials going to such booths as early as three days before voting day.
For successive governments the Election Commission remains a 'holy cow', where unhealthy precedents are allowed to be nurtured since Independence, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
As many as 90,000 electors in Goa have either been found absent, shifted, deceased or possessing duplicate voter cards in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in the state, a senior official said on Sunday.
The Election Commission has extended the schedule for the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in several states and Union Territories following concerns raised by opposition parties.
The Election Commission (EC) has de-listed 474 more registered unrecognised political parties for flouting norms, including not contesting elections in the last six years. This follows a previous de-listing of 334 parties in August.
'Jan Suraaj Party was the BJP's 'B' team. It is proven now.' 'You have seen their performance and it proves that they only worked to dent Opposition votes by working for the BJP.'
The Assam government on Tuesday distributed the report of the Tewary Commission, which had probed into the 1983 Nellie massacre during which over 2,000 people were killed, and large-scale violence that year, in the Assembly on first day of Winter Session.
The Supreme Court declined to entertain a plea seeking a special investigation team (SIT) probe into alleged electoral roll manipulation in Bengaluru Central and other constituencies, advising the petitioner to approach the Election Commission of India.
"The truth is that the election system in India is already dead. Please remember one thing that the prime minister of India enjoys a very slim majority. If 10-15 seats were rigged, and we suspect the actual figures to be closer to 70-80 to 100, he would not have been the prime minister of the country," the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha claimed.
Maharashtra Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule blames the State Election Commission (SEC) for the Bombay High Court's decision to defer the counting of votes for local bodies polls, citing 'misinterpretation of laws'.
Kerala's Chief Electoral Officer announces that over 2.4 million voters are untraced after the enumeration stage of electoral roll revision, raising concerns among political parties.
'Rahul Gandhi's problem is that he doesn't think big.' 'He looks more like an activist, while politics is like a game of chess. You attack and then defend and have a game-plan.'
Its ally JD-U recorded one of the most notable gains in this election, with its vote share jumping to 19.26 percent from 15.39 percent in 2020. The party also contested 101 seats this time, as against the 115 seats in the last elections, the EC said.
The BJP has emerged as the most dominant force in the recently-held municipal council and nagar panchayat elections in Maharashtra, securing the highest number of seats in five out of the state's six administrative divisions.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday claimed that a 'systematic vote chori' method, evolved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Election Commission to 'kill Indian democracy', will be deployed in the Bihar assembly polls as well.
The Election Commission sent a notice to Mangal Prabhat Lodha, the BJP's Mumbai chief. This is probably because a leading newspaper highlighted his utterances on its front page.
The Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing for January 21 on pleas challenging the Election Commission's decision to allot the 'bow and arrow' symbol to the Eknath Shinde faction of the Shiv Sena. The court will also hear arguments on a similar dispute concerning the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on January 22.
A series of deaths and health-related incidents involving staff deployed for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in multiple states has triggered alarm, even as West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday launched a sharp attack on the Election Commission, calling the ongoing exercise 'chaotic, coercive and dangerous'.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accuses the Election Commission of being complicit in 'vote theft' in Bihar, alleging manipulation of voter lists and preventing people from voting. He claims the EC officials are committing 'treachery against the Constitution'.
The order is is contrary to the Central Information Commission's directive bringing six national parties under the transparency law.
'This will split the Marathi and Shiv Sena vote.' 'The BJP has conducted 3 surveys indicating they shall secure 109 seats in the BMC.' 'They do not wish for the Shinde Sena to demonstrate excessive strength in the BMC.' 'If the Thackerays secure 60-70 seats, that will affect Shinde's seats.'
The application claimed that since the inception of the SIR process in the state, the EC has issued instructions to officers at the ground level through "informal and extra-statutory channels", such as WhatsApp messages and oral directions conveyed during video conferences, instead of issuing formal written instructions.
Bangladesh's Election Commission has announced that general elections will be held in the first week of February 2025. The announcement comes amid concerns about ensuring a free, fair, and impartial election. The BNP is expected to participate, potentially without its former ally, Jamaat-e-Islami.
In another post, Trump is seen hoisting a US flag in Greenland, with a milepost that reads, "Greenland US Territory Est 2026".
Bina Das, 21, got up at her graduating ceremony to assassinate the governor of Bengal. He escaped and she was imprisoned for 9 years.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances