Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh on Monday said that the Congress and Samajwadi Party are the main contenders in Uttar Pradesh assembly polls, as the ruling "BSP (Bahujan Samaj Party) is involved in corruption, while BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) is nowhere in the picture."
In the morning, he offered prayers at the Dashashwamedh Ghat and the Kaal Bhairav temple in Varanasi.
SP president Akhilesh Yadav and ally RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary are unlikely to participate in the Yatra due to "preoccupation" with their party programmes, their party leaders said.
Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party chief Om Prakash Rajbhar, Rashtriya Lok Dal's Anil Kumar and two Bharatiya Janata Party leaders were sworn in on Tuesday as Yogi Adityanath expanded his council of ministers, weeks ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
Chirag Paswan said he believes two classes of people -- rich and poor -- exist in the society and persons of different castes and religions fall in both categories.
The ministers who failed to find places in the second term of the BJP government in the state included Dinesh Sharma, Satish Mahana, Ashutosh Tandon, Shrikant Sharma, Siddharth Nath Singh, and others.
Soon after meeting, Raut hinted at a pre-poll alliance with the Congress in UP and Goa, stating that the parties are thinking of working together in both the states that are scheduled to go to assembly polls early next year.
Accompanied by Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Chaudhary reached Uttar Pradesh assembly premises in the morning to file his nomination.
With no apparent wave on the ground or pressing everyday issues, that's what it boils down for voters as Rajasthan readies for assembly polls this week.
'Priyanka Gandhi play is not only about winning allies and lifting spirits; it's also about cash'
Over 60 per cent voter turnout was recorded on Monday in 49 constituencies in six states and two Union territories in the fifth phase of Lok Sabha elections, with Baramulla in Jammu and Kashmir recording its highest-ever voting percentage.
An Indian Air Force plane will bring the bodies of the Maharashtra pilgrims killed in a bus accident in Nepal to Nashik on Saturday, officials have said.
The electoral battle in Varanasi, according to locals and political experts, is not about whether the PM will win for a third successive occasion, but if he will increase his share of the votes polled and his win margin.
A delegation of opposition party leaders on Friday met the top brass of Election Commission to raise its concerns over poll code violations by the ruling party leaders, and also flagged concerns over delay in release of voter turnout figures for the first two phases of the polls.
Modi was born on September 17, 1950 in a small town in Gujarat.
"Ladki Hoon, Lad Sakti Hoon is a slogan but Congress didn't give me a chance to fight," she added.
Singh targeted the Congress using a 'snakes and ladders' analogy, saying the party will fall to zero from 99 after being bitten by a snake -- referring to the grand old party winning 99 seats in the Lok Sabha polls.
A day after 21 houses were set on fire in Bihar's Nawada district, a top state government official on Thursday said 15 people have been arrested in this connection.
Congress and Rashtriya Lok Dal held a crucial meeting in New Delhi on Thursday night to finalise seat sharing arrangements for Uttar Pradesh assembly elections to be held early next year.
In a letter to Kharge, Khan said he will not campaign for party candidates for the remaining phases of the Lok Sabha polls and is also resigning from the state Congress campaign committee.
A voter turnout of over 40 per cent was recorded till 1 pm on Monday in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections in 96 constituencies spread over 10 states and Union Territories amid incidents of violence in Andhra Pradesh and reports of poll boycott in some villages of Uttar Pradesh.
SP has already fielded its sitting MLA from Gauriganj seat.
At its Jaipur meeting, the BJP will focus on this year's assembly elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh while the Congress's Chintan Shivir in Udaipur will discuss how it can resurrect itself.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Sunday declared 13 candidates from Uttar Pradesh for the Lok Sabha polls including actor Arun Govil, who played Lord Ram in popular TV serial Ramayan, from Meerut, while replacing sitting MP Varun Gandhi from Pilibhit with state minister Jitin Prasada.
Local residents have stressed that land acquisition for rehabilitation must be completed promptly, as it has been delayed after estate owners challenged it in the Kerala high court.
Though the police have not found their links in Siddique's murder case as of now, the accused were being further interrogated, she said.
Chavan said he requested Wasnik to contest the Rajya Sabha polls from Maharashtra, his home state.
The Congress is all set to fire the first major salvo against Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati when Rahul Gandhi flags off 10 simultaneous yatras on April 14, which would cover the entire state and carry the message of the Congress and the United Progressive Alliance's achievements and mark the 20 years which the state of Uttar Pradesh has "existed" without Congress rule.
Reacting to his win, Sharma expressed his gratitude to the people of Amethi and the Congress party, saying the 18th Lok Sabha election in Amethi will be the biggest example of a strong and empowered democratic country.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader Maneka Gandhi on Saturday indicated that her son Varun Gandhi's writings that were sometimes critical of the government may have cost him the party's Lok Sabha ticket from Pilibhit but asserted that he would do very well even without it.
Delhi faces a severe financial crunch and the deficit is largely due to numerous welfare schemes without adequate revenue flowing in. The success of welfare schemes and electoral promises will need careful financial planning and out of the box thinking to whip up additional revenue, notes Ramesh Menon.
Celebrations had already begun at BJP headquarters before the full announcement of results.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi criticized the BJP for claiming to protect the Constitution while citing V D Savarkar's remarks that there was nothing Indian about it. He also drew parallels to the story of 'Eklavya' to illustrate the BJP's alleged economic policies hurting small businesses and farmers. He further supported the removal of the 50 percent cap on reservations and advocated for a caste census.
Voters include 8.4 crore men, 8.23 crore women and 11,371 from third gender. There are as many as 35.67 lakh first time voters, besides 3.51 crore young voters in the age group of 20-29 years.
The party renominated Shashi Tharoor from the Thiruvananthapuram seat.
In a breakthrough, Mumbai Police and Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) on Sunday arrested wanted shooter Shivkumar in Nationalist Congress Party politician Baba Siddique murder case from the northern state along with four others, an official said.
Several BJP-backed state governments have unveiled schemes targeting the poor, women, farmers and students, following the party's setback in the Lok Sabha polls.
A group of supporters stopped the vehicle of former Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan outside the swearing-in ceremony site for the newly designated Madhya Pradesh CM in Bhopal on Wednesday, chanting slogans and expressing support with cries of 'mama, mama'.
As Mallikarjun Kharge won the Congress president poll, his electoral rival Shashi Tharoor on Wednesday said the 'democratic contest' has galvanised vibrancy at all levels and has prompted a healthy and constructive discussion on change, which will serve the party in good stead in the future.
Though the 91-year-old leader is no longer politically much active, his joining the saffron party is being seen as a boost to it ahead of the Uttarakhand assembly polls.
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