'What is the harm in having more polling booths?'
'Rather than criticising the kind of candidates fielded by political parties from our living rooms, NOTA in a sense implores the electorate to say this by turning up in person at a polling booth to ensure their protest is registered.'
Meanwhile, the Congress' data analytics department chairperson Praveen Chakravarty on Tuesday wrote to Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar, seeking assembly-wise voter rolls in excel sheet format for the Lok Sabha elections and the assembly polls in Maharashtra.
Gyanesh Kumar, a 1988-batch Kerala Cadre IAS officer, has been appointed as the next Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of India. Kumar, who was previously an Election Commissioner, will serve until January 26, 2029. His appointment comes amidst controversy as the Congress party demanded the government defer its decision until the Supreme Court concludes its hearing on a petition challenging the composition of the selection panel. Kumar's tenure will see him oversee several state assembly elections, including Bihar, Kerala, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal.
The identity of the informant shall be kept a secret, it said.
'Mr Ballot Box' occupied the front row seat in the aircraft escorted under the watchful gaze of the Assistant Returning Officers of their respective states.
Most exit polls for the Delhi Assembly elections indicate a strong lead for the BJP, with the ruling AAP trailing behind. According to Election Commission trends, the BJP is projected to win 20 seats and lead in another 27, while AAP has won 11 seats and leads in 12. The Congress is unlikely to secure any seats. Exit polls like Axis My India, Today's Chanakya, and CNX predict a significant victory for the BJP, while some, like Wee Preside and Mind Brink Media, predict a win for AAP. A few exit polls, including Matrize and DV Research, show a closer contest, with both BJP and AAP projected to win a considerable number of seats. The Congress is predicted to win minimal seats in most surveys.
Bharatiya Janata Party MP Parvesh Verma on Wednesday said he will file a Rs 50 crore defamation suit each against AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for levelling "false allegations against" and claiming he called Punjabis a "threat" to the country.
Communist Party of India-Marxist leader Brinda Karat on Saturday alleged she had to wait for almost an hour to cast her vote as the battery of the electronic voting machine (EVM) control unit at her polling booth 'drained out'.
The notice requested Rashid or a representative of his to appear before the district expenditure monitoring committee within two days to address the discrepancy and ensure timely submission of the expenditure report to the Election Commission of India.
The EVMs are based on a technology where they work as aggregator of votes in direct elections such as the Lok Sabha and state assemblies.
Polling is scheduled in all 13 seats of Punjab and four of Himachal Pradesh, 13 constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, nine in West Bengal, eight in Bihar, six in Odisha and three seats in Jharkhand besides Chandigarh.
Lok Sabha polls will be held in seven phases beginning from April 19 and the counting of votes will take place on June 4 for the world's biggest election exercise in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi will bid for a third consecutive term.
'AAP lost as it failed to understand the need to serve people selflessly and took the wrong path. Money took the front seat which dented AAP's image, leading to its defeat'
Sources said the party has also tasked its senior leaders to be observers at the meeting of the Congress Legislature Party in Haryana to elect its new leader.
The Congress on Tuesday said it cannot accept the Haryana assembly polls verdict as there were 'serious issues' about the integrity of the counting process and functioning of the EVMs in some districts, and asserted that it would take up the matter with the Election Commission.
The Election Commission on Wednesday dubbed the 'Haryana results unacceptable' statement of senior Congress leaders as 'unheard in the rich democratic heritage' of the country and far from a legitimate part of free speech.
Patel emphasised that one of the most important features of the bill is the establishment of a dedicated tribunal for resolving disputes, reducing the burden on the judiciary and ensuring quicker justice.
Seeking to ensure a level-playing field in the Lok Sabha elections, the Election Commission on Monday ordered the removal of home secretaries of Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, sources said.
Celebrations started at AAP's office in New Delhi with supporters carrying party flags distributing sweets and dancing to the beat of drums.
Sources said the leaders during the meeting discussed the possible reasons for the "unexpected" results in Haryana and decided to set up the team to ascertain the reasons behind such results and also look into complaints of "discrepancies" in EVMs, as alleged by party candidates.
This is the first campaign ban imposed by the poll body in this Lok Sabha election cycle.
Taking potshots at the Bharatiya Janata Party, some opposition leaders also wondered if Goel resigned to contest the Lok Sabha polls on its ticket like former Calcutta high court judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay.
India has lodged a strong protest with Canada over the "threatening language" and "unacceptable imagery" targeting Indian leadership at a parade held in Toronto. The floats at the parade reportedly featured pro-Khalistan propaganda and imagery attacking Indian leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi. India conveyed its concerns to the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi, calling on Canadian authorities to act against "anti-India elements" who are spreading hatred and advocating extremism and a separatist agenda. This incident comes days after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's victory in the general election, which was seen as an opportunity to repair India-Canada ties that had been strained under Justin Trudeau's leadership. The two countries have been grappling with strained relations since Trudeau's allegations in September 2023 of the "potential" involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil.
'All governments are scared of a negative image.' 'Somehow, this government has a tendency to create a narrative that things are improving.' 'When the real data gives a different picture, they are upset.'
Delhi Lt Governor V K Saxena has ordered an inquiry against private persons allegedly gathering personal details of women in the name of Mahila Samman Yojana, his office said on Saturday.
At the customary meeting ahead of the session beginning Monday, the opposition raised various issues, including voter roll revision in Bihar, the Pahalgam terror attack and Trump's 'ceasefire' claims.
The Centre has granted absolute powers to the Delhi lieutenant governor to constitute any authority, board and commission such as the Delhi Commission for Women and the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission.
The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance government will implement 'one nation, one election' within its current tenure, sources said, exuding confidence that the reform measure would receive support across party lines.
Alleging that an "unannounced emergency" has been clamped in Delhi to manipulate poll outcome, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday slammed the removal of Narendra Modi's hoarding and transfer of station house officers in the city and charged the police with being hand in glove with Sheila Dikshit government in harassing opposition workers.
'The Congress cannot speak the BJP's words while targeting Kejriwal.' 'What is the difference between the two? Where is the unity of INDIA then?'
A 10-member delegation of Trinamool Congress (TMC) had announced the dharna after meeting a full bench of the Election Commission (EC) to press their demand.
Two vacancies of election commissioners came about following the resignation of Arun Goel on Friday and Anup Chandra Pandey's retirement on February 14.
The Supreme Court on Monday sought the Election Commission's response on a PIL challenging its decision to increase the maximum number of voters from 1,200 to 1,500 at every polling station, saying no elector should be excluded.
Kumar also hinted that the Maharashtra elections could be held after Diwali.
'One nation, one election' is not possible under the present Constitution. It requires at least five constitutional amendments'
Congress leaders were seen giving media bytes at various places at the headquarters, arguing that the trends would change by 1 PM but it did not happen.
Elections to the posts of mayor and deputy mayor of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi that were slated for April 26 were postponed on Thursday, with Lt Governor V K Saxena citing 'unprecedented' circumstances where the chief minister is under judicial custody and cannot discharge his constitutionally obligated functions.
The Delhi high court on Friday refused to entertain a PIL seeking direction to the Centre and the Election Commission to make voting compulsory in parliamentary and assembly polls, saying it cannot force a person to vote.
Nationalist Congress Party-SP chief Sharad Pawar on Thursday turned 84 and celebrated his birthday with members of his family and well-wishers, including estranged nephew and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.
