The first time the Election Commission has taken cognisance of a model code of conduct complaint against a sitting prime minister.
The Mahayuti landslide in Maharashtra will leave the state assembly without a leader of opposition as no party outside the ruling alliance has been able to get the mandatory minimum 29 seats.
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar during the first day of review of poll preparedness of the state asked the district election officers and municipal commissioners to explain the steps taken by them to deal with 'urban apathy'.
'According to JP, Indira Gandhi was not much of a danger to democracy. He said, it was Sanjay Gandhi and his gang.'
The None of the Above (NOTA) option once again found few takers, with 0.75 per cent of the electorate pressing the button in Maharashtra and 1.32 per cent in Jharkhand. Votes for the assembly elections in these two states were counted on Saturday.
AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal filed his nomination for the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections from the New Delhi constituency on Wednesday, declaring net assets totaling Rs 1.73 crore. According to Kejriwal's affidavit submitted to the Election Commission (EC), his assets include Rs 2.96 lakh in bank savings and Rs 50,000 in cash. His immovable assets are worth Rs 1.7 crore. The affidavit also revealed that Kejriwal owns no house or car. Kejriwal's wife, Sunita, has total assets worth Rs 2.5 crore, including a house in Gurugram and a small car. The couple's combined net assets are worth Rs 4.23 crore. Senior AAP leader and former Delhi minister Satyendar Jain also filed his nomination, from the Shakur Basti assembly constituency, declaring a net worth of Rs 4.4 crore.
The RSS-affiliated ABVP has won the post of joint secretary in the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) election, ending a nine-year period out of office. The ABVP's victory marks a significant shift in the political landscape of JNU, breaking the Left's long-standing dominance. Left candidates won the remaining three central panel posts, but the ABVP's victory is seen as a major gain for the right-wing group.
The Congress party in India has alleged "serious and grave inconsistencies" in the data relating to the polling and counting processes for the recently concluded Maharashtra Assembly elections. The party has sought an in-person hearing from the Election Commission to present evidence of alleged discrepancies, including the arbitrary deletion and addition of voters and inexplicable increases in voting percentages. The Congress leaders claim these irregularities benefited the ruling BJP-led alliance, which won a decisive victory in the polls.
Prajwal Revanna is the grandson of JD-S patriarch and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda, and is the only candidate from the party to have won the Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka in 2019.
Adarsh Kumar, the son of a farmer and a Class 12 student from rural Bihar, is on a mission to build one of India's largest free skill development movements, powered only with a laptop, free Internet and his relentless determination.
'The BJP is racing against its opponents by putting a chain on their legs.'
The Mahayuti, which comprises the BJP, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar-led NCP, is leading on more than 210 of the 288 assembly seats.
'Amit Shah had promised Ajit Pawar and Praful Patel that even if there were only one third of MLAs with them, they would be given the party symbol.' 'He promised them that the Election Commission would not take a decision against them and that they would get the party name and symbol.'
Banking on the Budget's tax relief, the BJP seeks to energise Delhi's middle class; the AAP is doing its bit too. But will their outreach mobilise this politically crucial yet disengaged electorate?
Transit accommodation in the Western Court Annexe or state bhavans will be provided to the newly-elected members who don't already have a government house in Delhi till they are provided regular accommodation by the Lok Sabha's House Committee, it said.
Kumar also said exit polls create a huge distraction by raising expectations and it was a matter for self-introspection for the media, particularly electronic media.
Political leaders and candidates should not use children for campaign activities in any manner including holding a child in their arms, carrying a child in a vehicle or in rallies, the poll watchdog said.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party has informed the Election Commission that he has been elected national president of the party.
This might be the first time in the country's electoral history that the poll body has convened a press conference on the conclusion of polls.
The Delhi government has requested the Centre's air quality panel to suspend the fuel ban on older vehicles, citing implementation challenges and public discontent. The government is also seeking solutions to restrictions on end-of-life vehicles.
A turnout of about 59 percent -- the highest in the past seven elections -- was recorded in the first phase of assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday, Chief Electoral Officer P K Pole said, adding polling passed off peacefully.
A vacancy will arise in the three-member poll panel when Election Commissioner Anup Chandra Pandey demits office on February 14.
The Congress on Wednesday demanded a thorough probe into 'discrepancies' found in some Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) during the counting of votes of the Haryana assembly polls and demanded that such EVMs should be sealed and secured pending the inquiry.
'If you want to have fair elections you should have an officer, who is appointed as per the rules laid down for such appointments, which is based on seniority.'
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.
Opposition leaders on Monday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his comments made at an elections rally in Rajasthan, with some leaders also appealing to people to reach out to the Election Commission of India.
The government has set up a search committee under Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal to shortlist names for the appointment of the next chief election commissioner, sources said on Monday, citing an order.
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.
The Congress top brass headed by party chief Mallikarjun Kharge held a review meeting on Thursday on the party's shock defeat in the Haryana assembly polls and discussed the possible reasons for the 'unexpected' results.
The BJP said the former Congress chief's comments during the public meeting were "extremely objectionable" as they are not just in violation of the model code of conduct but could have serious implications.
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.
The Supreme Court declined to hear a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking directions to the Election Commission and state election bodies to address purported duplication and multiple entries in voter lists. The court suggested the petitioner approach high courts with specific grievances and file representations with appropriate authorities.
Thackeray also drew a comparison between the current regime and Hitler.
The EC asked him to provide factual evidence with specific and pointed response to type, quantity, nature and manner of poisoning of Yamuna.
As required, Modi submitted the affidavit while filing his nomination papers Tuesday as an election candidate from the Varanasi parliamentary constituency, a seat he has held twice earlier.
A 22-year-old youth and a person with disability died, while at least 11 were injured, in separate rain-related incidents in the national capital on Wednesday evening. The incidents occurred amid sudden changes in weather in Delhi, as a rainy storm marked by hail wrecked havoc across the city, throwing traffic out of gear as far as Delhi-Noida, Delhi-Ghaziabad, and Delhi-Gurugram roads and uprooting several trees.
From Instagram to X, social media platforms, in the run-up to the polls have seen bitter poster wars and even bitter meme battles for political one-upmanship.
The Election Commission of India has dismissed claims by the Congress party alleging voter list irregularities during the recent Maharashtra assembly elections. In a detailed response, the EC asserted that there were no arbitrary additions or deletions of voters and that the electoral process was conducted with transparency and adherence to rules.
The poll body recognised that both the leaders have violated the provisions of the MCC by attacking each other with derogatory personal attacks during public addresses while electioneering in the southern state over the past several days.
Aam Aadmi Party supremo Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday announced the launch of the Mukhya Mantri Mahila Samman Yojna to give a monthly assistance of Rs 1,000 to women in Delhi, and promised the amount would be raised to Rs 2,100 after the elections.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances