Even as the Bharatiya Janata Party made a spectacular show in the Bihar assembly elections with almost all of its 101 candidates registering massive wins, 12 of the nominees missed the bus.
'We share and support the ideology of the NDA and will not work against the NDA.'
The main accused in Bihar's infamous 'topper scam', Amit Kumar, alias 'Bachcha' Rai, has been fielded as a candidate by Asaduddin Owaisi's All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen for the Bihar assembly elections.
'If the Mahagathbandhan ignores Mukesh Sahni's demands as it did in 2020, he will be left with no option but to join hands with the BJP.'
Special Intensive Revision (SIR), the Election Commission's voters' list cleanup exercise, will commence in nine states and three Union territories from Tuesday.
The Election Commission defended its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise for Bihar's voter list in the Supreme Court, calling it accurate and dismissing allegations of impropriety by political parties and NGOs.
"The Election Commission's press conference should be welcomed because it is a good step to clear public doubts regarding the SIR process (in Bihar) and other issues," Rawat told PTI in Indore.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah refuted BJP's claims of Congress funding Bihar elections and defended the state's decision on mandatory permissions for using public premises, stating it's a continuation of a previous BJP policy.
The incident occurred when both leaders attempted to board the van carrying Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, but were stopped by security guards.
The Election Commission (EC) is sharing lists of Bihar electors with political parties and their booth-level agents to verify the status of voters before July 25. The lists include those who have likely died, permanently shifted, or enrolled at multiple places.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, contesting from Raghopur, declares assets worth Rs 8.1 crore, while his wife owns assets worth Rs 1.88 crore.
While it is evident that the INDIA bloc has not shut its doors on Nitish Kumar, those within the NDA are hopeful that the JD-U's support base would benefit them as well
Nitish thought that his stakes as chief minister were far greater than his stakes in protecting one of his party MLAs. He could not allow his rule-of-law train to be derailed by a small rock on the track. On the contrary, if he removed it to keep the train moving at a steady speed he would gain strong public admiration and sympathy that would help him take the masses along in carrying out other tasks. A fascinating excerpt from Arun Sinha's Nitish Kumar And The Rise Of Bihar.
'Prashant Kishor is a businessman before he is a politician, and given that the expected average turnout for JSP candidates is 5,000 to 6,000 votes and since Bihar has a significant number of seats where the margin between the winner and runner-up falls within that range he will capitalise on exactly that to showcase his presence.'
A SWOT analysis of the NDA coalition led by Nitish Kumar as Bihar heads into assembly elections, examining its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats against the INDIA bloc.
The Supreme Court has directed the Election Commission to provide details regarding the 3.66 lakh voters excluded from Bihar's final electoral roll after a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. The court's direction came after concerns were raised by petitioners about the lack of notice or reasons given to the excluded voters.
Gandhi alleged that assembly and Lok Sabha polls were being "stolen" across the country and there was a "conspiracy" in Bihar to do the same through the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
'If this is true, the Election Commission should come forward with data and officially confirm it.'
"While Sinha's age is 57 years in one list and 60 years in another. Is this not fraud and an age scam? He must have filled two different forms in two different assembly constituencies. He deliberately got two votes registered in two different places. If he did not personally sign both forms, then did the Election Commission create two different votes for him in two different assembly constituencies based on forged signatures? Will he receive two different notices, or are these rules only for the opposition leaders?" he alleged.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee led a protest march in Kolkata against Enforcement Directorate searches linked to I-PAC, signaling a show of strength ahead of the 2026 assembly polls. The march featured cultural elements and participation from party members and celebrities.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a sharp critique of the RJD, emphasizing the hardships faced by women in Bihar under its governance. He highlighted the current government's initiatives for women's empowerment and urged them to prevent the RJD's return to power.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accuses the Maharashtra government of a land scam involving government land reserved for Dalits being sold to a company linked to a state minister's son. He questions Prime Minister Modi's silence on the issue.
Nitin Nabin has been formally declared as the BJP national president, succeeding J P Nadda. The leadership transition was witnessed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior ministers.
The Supreme Court has directed the Bihar State Legal Service Authority to assist voters excluded from the final electoral rolls in filing appeals with the Election Commission.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday sounded the poll bugle in Bihar, where assembly elections are due this year, calling for 'an NDA government, once again', which would protect the state from the 'evil intentions' of the Rashtriya Janata Dal-Congress combine.
Following a Supreme Court directive, details of names deleted from Bihar's draft electoral rolls have been published online. The Election Commission defends the special intensive revision process.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed NDA parliamentarians, emphasizing that laws and regulations should serve the convenience of the common people and not cause harassment.
Reacting to the alleged incident, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar directed the DGP to take "immediate action".
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar praised the Narendra Modi government's support for the state's progress and urged voters to support the NDA in the upcoming assembly elections. He also criticized Lalu Prasad's governance and dynastic politics.
'Nitish Kumar is our CM today and he will be CM going forward also. Nitish Kumar will continue as CM till he wishes.'
NDA partners engage in intense lobbying to finalize cabinet berths ahead of the swearing-in ceremony of the new Bihar government led by Nitish Kumar. The new cabinet is expected to include fresh faces from BJP and JD(U), along with representation from smaller alliance partners.
The opposition INDIA bloc has declared RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav as its chief ministerial candidate for the upcoming Bihar assembly elections.
Having struck a seat-sharing deal, leaders of the Janata Dal-United and the Bharatiya Janata Party sat across the table in Patna on Monday to thrash out, among other things, constituencies they planned to swap or give up in favour of smaller allies in Bihar.
'Age matters and the way Tejashwi has been doing an aggressive campaign, only a young leader like him can do it.'
'If you want a bright future of Bihar and your children, I urge you not to vote for anyone with a criminal background or corrupt candidates even if they belong to your caste.'
The Election Commission on Tuesday announced that it has come out with the "final electoral roll" in Bihar ahead of the assembly polls, taking into account all the claims and objections to the draft voters' lists, which were published as part of special intensive revision (SIR).
The Enforcement Directorate conducted searches at the office of political consultancy firm I-PAC and the home of its director Pratik Jain in Kolkata as part of a money laundering probe into an alleged multi-crore rupee coal pilferage scam.
The Bihar government will provide a monthly allowance of Rs 1,000 to unemployed graduate youths for two years under the 'Mukhyamantri Nishchay Swayam Sahayta Bhatta Yojana'. This scheme has been expanded from intermediate-passed youth to include graduates.
'The campaign by the Mahagathbandan has failed to capture the imagination of the electorate given the fatigue factor with the Nitish government.'
Tejashwi Yadav, the INDIA bloc's chief ministerial candidate, alleges that Amit Shah's recent statement indicates BJP's plan to remove Nitish Kumar from power after the Bihar assembly elections.
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