The Election Commission is likely to announce schedule for assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir and Jharkhand on Saturday.
The results for bypolls to seven assembly seats in six states will be declared on Friday in what is being seen as a major test for the opposition's Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance against the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance ahead of the polls in five states later this year and Lok Sabha elections in 2024.
Modi accused the JMM, Congress and RJD of using Bangladeshi infiltrators for "vote bank politics," facilitating their settlement in Jharkhand, which is a threat to the state's social structure.
Counting of votes for the 81-member Jharkhand assembly will be taken up on Wednesday to decide the fate of 1,489 candidates who contested the five phase elections from November 25 to December 18.
The Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Congress's alliance in Uttar Pradesh came under scrutiny as both parties did not hold a single joint campaign for the bypolls to nine assembly seats. While both parties maintained that the alliance is strong, BJP ally Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) claimed a crack in the alliance. The Congress opted out of the bypolls and announced coordination committees for all nine seats to support the SP. However, the absence of joint rallies raised questions about the alliance's strength. The SP campaign was spearheaded by its chief Akhilesh Yadav, while the Congress cited its leaders' busy schedules in Maharashtra and Jharkhand for the lack of joint campaigns. The bypoll results will be announced on November 23.
A total of nine premises in the state's capital Ranchi and Jamshedpur are being raided in an operation that started early morning. A security team of the CRPF is assisting the I-T sleuths, the sources said.
Amid the political blame game over Bengal's potato ban, which led to shortages in Jharkhand and Odisha, Uttar Pradesh farmers are the unlikely winners.
Global factors and FII activity will dictate trends in domestic equity markets this week while assembly poll results of Maharashtra and Jharkhand may impact stocks on Monday, say analysts. Stock markets witnessed a spirited recovery on Friday with benchmark Sensex and Nifty notching the best single-day gains in more than five months and offering relief after weeks of correction.
A total 61.92 per cent votes were cast in the first phase of polls in 13 of the 81 assembly seats in Jharkhand amidst sporadic incidents of damage to Electronic Voting Machines.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday urged Jharkhand Governor Syed Ahmed, who has recommended placing the assembly in suspended animation, to dissolve the house to pave the way for mid-term polls in the state.Outgoing Chief Minister Arjun Munda had recommended dissolution of the House, following a cabinet decision to the effect before tendering his resignation to the governor on January 8, after coalition partner Jharkhand Multi Morcha withdrew support.
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for over nine-and-half-hours on Thursday in connection with its investigation into an alleged illegal mining case.
A high-level committee on Thursday recommended simultaneous elections for Lok Sabha and state assemblies as the first step followed by synchronised local body polls within 100 days.
Jharkhand Chief Minister Arjun Munda on Tuesday resigned and recommended the dissolution of the 82-member assembly, leaving the situation wide open for the governor to decide the future course of action. Earlier in the day, coalition partner Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, in a letter to Governor Syed Ahmed, formally withdrew its support to the 28-month-old government, pushing it into a minority.
Altogether 80 out of 81 members of Legislative Assembly in Jharkhand Assembly voted in the presidential elections on Thursday with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party alone among alliance partners backing P A Sangma.
He asserted that it was time to "throw such forces out" to protect "mati, beti, roti" (land, daughter, bread).
Despite the personal and political challenges posed by her husband's legal battles, Kalpana has proven to be a resilient and dynamic leader.
'Whenever the hike in voting percentage is more, the NDA gains more, and when the hike is negligible, the NDA falls.' 'I have established this in UP, Haryana and Jharkhand.'
The JMM-Cong-RJD alliance won 47 seats in 81-member assembly while the incumbent BJP managed to win only 25 seats. CM Das lost his seat to a party rebel despite giving the first full-term government to the state.
The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha's vote share in the just-concluded Jharkhand assembly polls has slumped to 18.72 per cent despite the party winning 30 of the total 81 seats in the state. The JMM had won 19 seats in 2014 polls with a vote share of 20.43 per cent. This time the party bagged 30 seats but its vote share came down to 18.72 per cent.
Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday pulled up senior Congress leaders in Jharkhand for factional politics which was harming the party interests in the state.
A freebie once granted can hardly be discontinued. All that can happen is to substitute it with a bigger freebie, notes A K Bhattacharya.
The MLAs were disqualified under the anti-defection law, after they quit JD(U) and joined the RJD.
Acting Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, in his first visit to the national capital after leading his ruling alliance to an unprecedented second straight term in the state.
Rashtriya Janata Dal supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav on Wednesday claimed the support of 43 legislators in the 82-member Jharkhand Assembly and asserted that the United Progressive Alliance will provide a stable government.
In Maharashtra's 288-member assembly, the share of legislators with college degrees increased over the past decade.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said his statement on 'Shakti scheme' was distorted and presented as if the Congress government in the state wanted to withdraw it.
The Ranchi police arrested the suspended BJP leader after a case was registered against her at the Argora police station.
The voting will be held on November 30, December 7, 12, 16 and 20.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday appointed observers for Jharkhand and Jammu and Kashmir a day after the party's good show in the assembly elections in the two states.
Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar, set to retire next month, plans to spend several months in solitude in the Himalayas. He also expressed a desire to teach underprivileged children, recalling his own humble beginnings. Kumar's tenure as CEC saw him oversee landmark elections, including the 16th Presidential and Vice-Presidential elections in 2022 and assembly elections in 11 states.
Temples across Uttar Pradesh were packed with devotees on Sunday for Ram Navami, with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath leading prayers at the Gorakhnath Temple. Heavy crowds were witnessed at temples in Lucknow, Gorakhpur, and Varanasi, where security was heightened. In Gorakhpur, Adityanath performed the traditional kanya pujan ritual, while in Varanasi, a 51-foot statue of Lord Ram has become a major attraction. The festival was celebrated with enthusiastic fervor across the state.
An impressive performance in Jharkhand and, especially, Maharashtra assembly polls next month by the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance will lay to rest the doubts over the party's political dominance after its underwhelming performance in the Lok Sabha polls and strike a body blow to the Opposition.
The average age is 56, making the Lower House the oldest in India's parliamentary history and a year older than the previous Lok Sabha.
The BJP has sought the disqualification of Soren as an MLA accusing him of allocating a mining lease to himself while he held the state Mining portfolio in 2021.
Naik Mukesh Singh Manhas, a 29-year-old soldier from Jammu and Kashmir's Samba, was killed in an IED blast carried out by terrorists near the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu's Akhnoor sector. Manhas, who was supposed to get married in April, had returned to his Army unit on January 28 after his engagement and giving final touches to his new house. He was killed along with Captain Karamjit Singh Bakshi from Jharkhand's Ranchi. Manhas's family and friends mourned his death, remembering him as an enthusiastic cricketer and a kind-hearted individual.
Amidst tight security, polling for the Tamar assembly constituency began on Monday morning.Jharkhand Chief Minister Shibu Soren is among the 15 candidates contesting for the seat, which had fallen vacant after Janata Dal - United legislature party leader Ramesh Singh Munda was killed by suspected Maoists on July 9 last year.The results will be announced on January 8.
While the MNS had fielded 125 candidates, the VBA had 200 candidates in the fray.
Bypolls in three assembly constituencies in as many states passed off peacefully on Monday with around over 70 per cent voter turnout, though some technical glitches in electronic voting machine were reported in Tamil Nadu and the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal alleged that the Central Reserve Police Force was "influencing" voters.
Rajiv Kumar, the 25th chief election commissioner of India, has demitted office after a nearly three-year tenure marked by both electoral successes and allegations of bias from opposition parties. Kumar oversaw the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the Jammu and Kashmir assembly polls, among other major elections. During his tenure, he implemented reforms across various aspects of the Election Commission's functioning, including structural, technological, capacity development, communication, international cooperation, and administration. However, he faced criticism from opposition parties and activists on several issues, including the efficacy of Electronic Voting Machines, alleged fudging of voter data, and being "lenient" on the ruling BJP. While the Commission responded to the allegations, Kumar often defended himself and the poll authority through poetry. In his farewell address, Kumar expressed concerns about the timing of petitions raising doubts over poll processes and the impact of freebie promises on the fiscal health of the state. He also criticized the practice of showing early trends on counting day by news channels, calling it "nonsense". Kumar's tenure was marked by numerous controversies, with opposition parties and activists alleging bias and irregularities. While the Election Commission defended its actions, the allegations cast a shadow over his time in office.
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