Defence Minister Rajnath Singh asserted that criminals in West Bengal would face justice under a BJP government, while addressing concerns about joblessness and women's safety in the state.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh addressed a rally in West Bengal, promising to tackle crime and joblessness if the BJP comes to power. He criticised the current government for allegedly favouring criminals and failing to protect women.
The central government has provided armed security to West Bengal's Chief Electoral Officer following potential threats related to the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
Hearings under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls were underway in West Bengal, focusing on 'unmapped' voters who are unable to establish linkage with the 2002 electoral roll. Many people are being asked to prove their citizenship.
A total of 2,208 booths in West Bengal are under the scanner after all the distributed enumeration forms were returned filled up, indicating that there is not a single dead, duplicate or untraceable voter in these booths, EC sources said.
A 30-year-old man in West Bengal's Howrah district died allegedly by suicide on Tuesday, as he was reportedly distressed over errors in his identity document amid the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, a police officer said.
A woman in West Bengal's Howrah district allegedly convinced her husband to sell his kidney for Rs 10 lakh to pay for their daughter's education. After the surgery, she fled with another man, taking the entire amount of money with her.
The Supreme Court of India has asked petitioners in two Public Interest Litigations (PILs) to make representations to the Election Commission of India (ECI) regarding their demand for uploading polling booth-wise voter turnout data on the ECI website. The PILs, filed by TMC MP Mahua Moitra and NGO Association for Democratic Reforms, seek a direction for the ECI to upload the data within 48 hours of the conclusion of polling in Lok Sabha and assembly elections. The ECI, represented by senior advocate Maninder Singh, expressed willingness to deliberate on the matter and suggested a meeting with the petitioners to address their concerns. The court has adjourned the hearing to the week of July 28.
A businessman in West Bengal's Howrah district was allegedly assaulted and his house vandalised after a kangaroo court session was convened by a local panchayat pradhan and Trinamool Congress leader to resolve his marital dispute.
A poster with death threats to West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee and her nephew, party's general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, appeared in Uluberia in West Bengal's Howrah district on Friday, police said.
Responding to the 'Women, Reclaim the Night' call given on social media by commoners, college students, home-makers and employees of offices will congregate in key thoroughfares in small towns and big cities, including in various parts of Kolkata.
The police on Friday claimed to have arrested 'a local Bharatiya Janata Party leader' along with 10 others on charges of running a sex racket in a hotel in West Bengal's Howrah district, while the state's main opposition party denied any association with the accused individuals.
Violent clashes were witnessed in Bengal on Wednesday, September 13, 2022, during the Bharatiya Janata Party's Nabanna Abhijan (March to Secretariat) protest against the Mamata Banerjee government's alleged corruption.
The bench said it would be difficult for the poll panel to mobilise manpower for uploading the voter turnout data on its website.
The Election Commission has opposed in the Supreme Court an NGO's demand to upload polling station-wise voter turnout data on its website within 48 hours of the conclusion of polling for each phase of the Lok Sabha elections, contending it will "vitiate" the electoral space and cause "chaos" in the poll machinery in the midst of the general elections.
More than 80 per cent of Indians live in districts vulnerable to climate risks. Among these, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Bihar are the most vulnerable states to extreme climate events.
Following the direction of the Calcutta high court, the West Bengal government on Wednesday decided to deploy paramilitary forces in three districts of Hooghly, Barrackpore and Kolkata during Hanuman Jayanti celebrations, a senior official said.
Internet connections remained suspended even as prohibitory order under CrPC Section 144 was still in place in and around the area where several shops and residences were vandalised during the clashes, he said.
Firecracker bursting till late Sunday night led to a spike in pollution levels amid low temperatures.
High drama was witnessed at Tamluk in Purba Medinipur district on Sunday afternoon as West Bengal Leader of Opposition (LoP) Suvendu Adhikari was prevented by police from visiting violence-hit areas in Howrah.
Banerjee alleged that the BJP was maligning the name of Lord Ram by organising violence during Ram Navami processions.
Mamata claimed that some political parties were behind the violent incidents that rocked Howrah district
Roads around the 19th century iconic Howrah Station resembled a battleground on Tuesday, with brickbats aimed at police personnel flying thick and fast, and drenched protesters hit by water cannons limping to the safety of nearby alleyways and shops.
Sharma sent an email to the police station expressing her inability to appear before it on Monday, the police officer stated.
Singh appeared before sleuths of the agency in its zonal office here in connection with the cash recovery from Jharkhand MLAs in West Bengal's Howrah district, he said.
Mamata asserted that she has not spoken to anyone in the Congress on seat-sharing in the state for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.
Communal violence took place in West Bengal and Bihar during Ram Navami
Clashes broke out between two groups during a Ram Navami procession in West Bengal's Hooghly district on Sunday evening, police said.
A 12-year-old girl was killed after she came in contact with a dangling live wire that got torn during the squall in Botanical Garden area in Howrah city, the police said.
Two Ram Navami processions were organised in the Rishra police station area, and the second one came under attack near Wellington Jute Mill More on GT Road around 6.15 pm on Sunday, police said.
Fresh incidents of stone-throwing by unidentified people on police personnel, deployed in Howrah's Kazipara area which witnessed violence over the Ram Navami procession on Thursday, triggered tension in the area on Friday afternoon, an officer said.
Security forces were maintaining a strict vigil across West Bengal in view of Hanuman Jayanti celebrations on Thursday, officials said.
The students demanded they be allowed to don the scarves while writing papers for the pre-board exams of class 12 claiming that some of their batchmates had already turned up in the previous day's exams wearing 'hijab', the spokesperson said.
Protests against remarks on Prophet Mohammad by two suspended BJP functionaries had turned violent in a few districts of the state, including Howrah and Murshidabad
"I am ready to fight the money power (of her political opponents), and (central) agencies (which her party alleges has been unleashed on TMC with a political motive), but I will not bow my head," she said.
A purported video of the incident showing the mob beating the women up mercilessly on Wednesday was shared in the social media by Amit Malviya, the head of BJP's IT cell on Saturday.
Questioning the team's authority headed by a former Patna high court judge, Banerjee pointed out that Ram Navami processions organised by the Bharatiya Janata Party had carried arms and driven tractors and deliberately taken routes where 'Namaz' was being offered.
The Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay the order of the Calcutta high court handing over the probe into incidents of violence during Ram Navami celebrations in West Bengal to the National Investigation Agency.
The Calcutta high court on Thursday directed the West Bengal government to take all possible steps to ensure that no violence takes place during any protest over the controversial remarks made against Prophet Muhammad by now-sacked Bharatiya Janata Party spokesperson Nupur Sharma.
The amended Act has put the entire Northeast region and West Bengal on the boil as people fear that it might exacerbate the problem of illegal immigration.