Political consultancy firm I-PAC has reacted to the Enforcement Directorate's raids at its Kolkata premises, calling it an "unsettling precedent." The raids have triggered political upheaval in West Bengal, where elections are due in months. The firm, engaged by the TMC, said it would continue to work in an "unfazed and unperturbed" manner.
'The BJP will win comfortably if the Congress and AAP fight separately -- though not with 162 seats.' 'But if they form an alliance, it will become a major problem for the BJP. That's precisely why this expansion is happening now.'
An alliance between the Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress in Delhi and in different states, including Gujarat and Haryana, for the Lok Sabha polls may be officially announced on Saturday, sources in the AAP said.
Raut said a Congress-AAP alliance would have crushed the BJP in Delhi assembly polls, as counting trends show the Arvind Kejriwal-led party losing many seats amid the saffron surge.
Lok Sabha on Monday turned into a battleground for the Delhi assembly polls with Bharatiya Janata Party member Ramvir Singh Bidhuri launching an all-out attack on the Aam Aadmi Party government, alleging that they 'looted' the national capital and turned it into 'hell'.
Yogendra Yadav, a founding member of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), believes the party's defeat in the Delhi Assembly polls is a setback for the entire opposition and raises questions about its future. He attributed the loss to factors like the liquor scam, the 'Sheesh Mahal' row, and the constant fights between the Delhi LG and the AAP government.
The BJP won the Chandigarh mayoral election on Thursday, defeating the AAP-Congress alliance. Harpreet Kaur Babla of the BJP was elected as the new mayor, while the AAP-Congress alliance won the posts of senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor. The victory of the BJP candidate indicated that cross-voting took place during polling. The Supreme Court had previously overturned the result of the 2023 mayoral poll, which had seen the BJP candidate win despite allegations of tampering with ballots. The court had ordered prosecution of the returning officer for the poll, Anil Masih, a BJP leader, for his "misdemeanour." The court had also declared defeated AAP-Congress alliance candidate Kuldeep Kumar as the new city mayor. This latest victory is a significant win for the BJP in the city and represents a setback for the AAP-Congress alliance.
The resolution, moved by Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, was passed unanimously as besides the BJP MLAs, members of the Opposition Congress as well as the Aam Aadmi Party extended their support to it.
What India needs more than one simultaneous election is better governance both at the central and state level. Yes, we need reforms, but our priority should be to make elections less expensive, make it more democratic, do away with freebies which are actually bribes before elections, allow only those who are educated to contest, and bring in a bill to make it impossible for criminals to contest, advocates Ramesh Menon.
The Congress and the AAP fought the Lok Sabha polls together in Delhi while they had contested separately in Punjab.
No final decision has been taken on the alliance with the Congress for the October 5 Haryana assembly polls yet, sources in Aam Aadmi Party said on Sunday. The last date to file nominations is September 12.
The Congress has proposed AAP should contest five seats while the Samajwadi Party and Left parties could contest one seat each.
The talks between two sides have been stuck over the number of seats to be contested by AAP, with the party demanding 10 seats and the Congress offering 5, party sources said.
The Congress-AAP alliance this time aims to give a tough fight and stop the division of anti-BJP votes.
A total of 19 legislators from the opposition Congress and Aam Aadmi Party were suspended from the Gujarat assembly for a day on Wednesday after they shouted slogans against the Bharatiya Janata Party government before walking out of the House over the issue of a fake trainee PSI found undergoing training at a state-run police training academy.
Sources said the Congress leadership is also in talks with AAP leaders and senior leaders within the party are trying to convince Delhi Congress leaders for an alliance.
Taking note of a plea of an Aam Aadmi Party councillor alleging wrongdoing in the polls, the court issued notices to the Chandigarh authorities, including the civic body.
The bench told Masih that it was clear that he was putting the "X" mark on the ballot papers.
The three AAP councillors switching sides is set to tilt the scales in favour of the BJP whenever fresh mayoral polls are held.
Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned on Monday amid protests by Opposition members, over the issue of Kerala CM Chandy being reportedly asked not to attend a function.
The Aam Aadmi Party on Friday alleged that some of its leaders, including MLAs and councillors, were place under house arrest or detained, while its volunteers stopped from participating in a protest outside the Bharatiya Janata Party headquarters in New Delhi.
A councillor of the Aam Aadmi Party has moved the Supreme Court challenging a Punjab and Haryana high court order that has refused to grant any interim relief to the party seeking fresh mayoral polls in Chandigarh.
This election will be remembered for being the first election where the Election Commission failed to take action on gross violations involving the ruling party that repeatedly used religion, communal slurs, lies and undocumented allegations, observes Ramesh Menon.
The petition was filed ahead of the Chandigarh mayoral polls on Thursday. The polls for the posts of mayor, senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor will be held.
"Special circumstances" exist in Punjab, Wasnik said and added that in view of these, the AAP and the Congress have decided to fight the Lok Sabha polls separately in the state.
The Congress and AAP said the logo looks like the party symbol of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
A BJP delegation arrived in Nuh on Wednesday to meet administrative officials and take stock of the situation in the violence-struck district, even as a delegation by AAP was stopped on its way to the district.
Several opposition leaders on Sunday criticised the bill on the appointment and service conditions of the chief election commissioner and election commissioners at an all-party meeting as "anti-Constitution" and "anti-democratic", sources said.
The Aam Aadmi Party on Wednesday said it is not in any sort of coalition or understanding with the Congress and expects "support of the majority" on the floor of the House for its 18 issues, failing which it will "move out".
In a further escalation of the confrontation between the Congress and the government, the opposition party claimed that a committee constituted by the Delhi government has found 'gross financial irregularities' in the DDCA during that period.
The election of Tytler as an AICC delegate drew strong reactions from Delhi's ruling AAP and the BJP, which said it exposed the opposition party's character of creating division and chaos in the country.
The Congress won 77 seats or 42% of seats in the 2017 polls. How then can Gujarat be called a BJP bastion, asks Sanjeev Nayyar.
He told PTI in an interview that parties that are still thinking of 'being the leader' of a possible united front against the Bharatiya Janata Party in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls have not understood the gravity of the situation at all.
The bone of contention is believed to have been the number of the seats the Congress wants to contest in the national capital.
Though the Congress, AAP and other Opposition parties may have high hopes and some positive takeaways to seize on from the results, it is the BJP which has a big headstart and is firmly in the lead.
A region-wise analysis of the Gujarat assembly results shows that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) swept Saurashtra region, winning 40 of 48 seats, regaining its hold over a region where the Congress held sway in 2017 polls.
TRS leader K T Rama Rao confirmed that Kishor's Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) is working for TRS officially.
The Capital appears to be heading for assembly elections within next six months with all three major parties -- the Bharatiya Janata Party BJP, the Aam Aadmi Party and Congress -- contending that there was no option but to seek people's mandate afresh for formation of a new government.
'It is creditable that the BJP builds the organisation set-up and then looks for leaders.' 'The Congress on the other hand has to care for the leaders more than the organisation.'
Several exit polls on Monday forecast a clear majority for the Bharatiya Janata Party in Uttar Pradesh and the Aam Aadmi Party in Punjab with some of them giving an edge to the saffron party in Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur.
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