The EC reiterated that the process was transparent with the involvement of candidates or their agents at every stage.
Rahul Gandhi, the leader of India's opposition party, was fined Rs 200 for skipping a court appearance in a defamation case related to his comments about freedom fighter Vinayak Damodar Savarkar. The case stems from Gandhi's remarks during his Bharat Jodo Yatra in 2022, where he allegedly made derogatory comments about Savarkar. The court has scheduled the next hearing for April 14.
The Congress has tried to inflict capital punishment on true secularism, he claimed, asserting that the Waqf law has no place in the Constitution.
'Arithmetic could decide the Haryana election given the presence of multi-cornered contests.'
While acknowledging that they needed strong allies for a chance in the assembly polls, AIADMK cadres seemingly prefer actor-politician Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam to the BJP, owing to the latter's 'communal agenda' and consequent hardline Hindutva image, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
'Rahul Gandhi is showing an 'I-don't-care-attitude'.' 'He is showing the same attitude towards what is happening in Maharashtra or in various parts of the country.'
'Maharashtra election result is a chamatkar of EVM.' 'There has been a sudden one percent rise in the voting percentage after the counting day.' 'This is what made the difference to the election results.' 'How did this vote percentage increase after counting day?
The Samajwadi Party announced on Saturday that it would walk out of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi after Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray chief Uddhav Thackeray's close aide hailed the demolition of Babri mosque and a related newspaper advertisement.
'The BJP has killed public anger. They have killed people's self-respect.'
Maharashtra Minister Nitesh Rane, a BJP leader, has sparked controversy by stating that supporters of the Shiv Sena (UBT) and other opposition parties will not receive development funds for their areas. He urged opposition party members to join the BJP if they wanted development in their constituencies. His remarks drew strong criticism from opposition leaders, who questioned his adherence to his oath of office.
Deora further said the Congress has not only failed to come back to power but has also failed to effectively serve as a constructive opposition at the Centre.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced that he, his deputies Ajit Pawar and Eknath Shinde, will work in shifts to ensure round-the-clock governance. Fadnavis will work from 12 noon to midnight, Ajit Pawar, known for his early rising habits, will be on duty in the morning, and Shinde, known for his late-night work ethic, will handle the night shift. This arrangement comes after Ajit Pawar's controversial return to the BJP-led government following a split from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). The NCP, under Sharad Pawar's leadership, is now a part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance with the Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT). The recent assembly elections saw the Mahayuti alliance, comprising the BJP, Shiv Sena, and Ajit Pawar's NCP faction, securing a comfortable majority.
Embattled Maharashtra minister and Nationalist Congress Party leader Dhananjay Munde on Thursday said he has been diagnosed with Bell's Palsy, a condition that causes sudden weakness in face muscles, which had severely affected his ability to speak.
The PM said the Congress and its allies should not encourage the "Pakistan agenda" and speak the language of separatists.
Addressing a public event in Kolhapur city on Monday evening, Fadnavis pointed out instances wherein women were tricked into inter-faith marriage and subsequently abandoned after they gave birth to children.
Barring a few, such as Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu (74), Union Minister C R Patil (69) and Uttar Pradesh Finance Minister Suresh Khanna (71), most other ministers attending the WEF represent the next generation of India's politicians.
It is not clear how much money the government will transfer into the bank accounts of women in Maharashtra.
Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar working president Supriya Sule has said her party, which won just 10 seats in the Maharashtra assembly elections, will introspect over the poll results and pledged to work towards a capable, inclusive and progressive state.
'Have we reached the stage of open kidnapping of the mandate?'
The father of Murali Naik, a soldier from Andhra Pradesh who died during cross-border shelling in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch, said his son joined the Army despite his opposition as he wanted to serve the nation. Naik, a 23-year-old Agniveer, died in the line of duty on Friday. He was the primary breadwinner for his family, which has been living in Mumbai for the past 32 years. Naik's death has been mourned by politicians and officials, including Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
The 40-metre-long crack was detected near Fatiyabad village on chainage 443/650, a release from the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation said.
Bharatiya Janata Party Yuva Morcha (BJYM) workers vandalised a Congress office in Mumbai on Thursday, claiming the party had always insulted Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar. The protest followed Congress leaders' accusations against Union Home Minister Amit Shah for insulting Ambedkar in a Rajya Sabha speech. Several BJYM workers were detained and an FIR was filed against them.
While the responses of the candidates were predictable, depending on which side they belonged to, an interesting point slipped through when Rahul Shewale cited the Dharavi Redevelopment Project as a scheme that would add to Mumbai's importance. No big infrastructural project in Mumbai, he said, could be successful without the Centre's nod.
Top leaders of the two parties are campaigning in Jharkhand and Maharashtra for the ongoing assembly polls in the two states.
Thackeray also drew a comparison between the current regime and Hitler.
Bawankule said that the BJP has always respected Matoshri (Uddhav Thackeray's home) and its legacy.
Raut said such friendly fights should happen on all 48 seats in Maharashtra as well as in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
Raut said there is always give and take in an alliance and they gave Ramtek and Kolhapur seats to the Congress. He said Sena-UBT has also given Amravati to the Congress.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader and forest minister Ganesh Naik on Monday held a janta darbar in Thane, the home turf of Deputy CM Eknath Shinde, rejecting speculation of one-upmanship in the Mahayuti alliance.
Indian Overseas Congress chief Sam Pitroda has denied owning any land, home, or stocks in India, responding to allegations by a BJP leader that he illegally acquired 12.35 acres of government land in Bengaluru. The BJP leader, N R Ramesh, has filed a complaint with the Enforcement Directorate and the Karnataka Lokayukta, alleging that Pitroda, with the help of government officials, acquired the land for his organization, FRLHT. Pitroda, in a statement on X, categorically denied the allegations, stating he has never taken any salary during his time working with the Indian government and has never paid or accepted any bribe. He further clarified that FRLHT received a five-year lease on the land for conservation purposes, which expired in 2001 and was extended for another 10 years. Ramesh claims the lease expired in 2011 and the land, now worth over Rs 150 crore, was not reclaimed by the forest department. He has urged the ED to file a criminal case against those involved in the alleged land grab, including the officials responsible.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath launched a scathing attack on Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, alleging that the latter purposely keeps mum on the tragic death of his mother and sister in an attack by Razakars in order to avoid losing Muslim votes. Adityanath claimed that Kharge's village, Varawatti, was burned down by Razakars and that his mother, aunt, and sister died in the attacks. He accused Kharge of suppressing this painful personal memory for political expediency and for fear of losing Muslim votes. Adityanath also alleged that Congress ignores historical atrocities for the sake of vote bank politics and conveniently forgets the history of the Razakars.
As suspense over who will become the next Chief Minister of Maharashtra continues, Nationalist Congress Party leader Chhagan Bhujbal on Sunday backed his party's chief, Ajit Pawar, for the top post.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Congress' chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala and senior leader Jairam Ramesh were among the 10 candidates elected to the Rajya Sabha on Friday from Karnataka, Rajasthan and Haryana, while counting was underway in Maharashtra after an eight-hour delay due to wrangling by rival parties over alleged breach of voting rules.
The Bahujan Vikas Aghadi supporters gheraoed Vinod Tawde and raised slogans.
He asked if DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, "who speaks of Tamil culture, such a serious allegation has been made--will DMK snap ties with Congress, for Tamil pride and the Tamil people."
He expressed confidence that the Maha Vikas Aghadi of the Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray, NCP (Sharad Pawar group) and Congress will come to power in Maharashtra after the 2024 elections.
The Devendra Fadnavis-led ministry in Maharashtra has successfully passed a trust vote in the state assembly, securing a commanding majority of 230 seats in the 288-member house. The BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP 'Mahayuti' coalition, with a majority mark of 144, had a comfortable win with the support of smaller parties and independent MLAs. The trust motion was tabled by Shiv Sena MLA Uday Samant and others, and was passed by a voice vote. The 15th legislative assembly began its tenure on December 7, and the floor test was considered a mere formality. Fadnavis was sworn in as the chief minister for the third time on December 5, with Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar as deputy chief ministers.
Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Rahul Narwekar was on Monday elected unopposed as the speaker of the 15th Maharashtra legislative assembly.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut has stated that his party wants to go solo in the upcoming local body elections to strengthen its base. This statement has raised questions about the unity of the opposition INDIA bloc and the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), which includes Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress, and NCP (SP). Raut clarified that the party has not called for the dissolution of either bloc and that the local body elections are an opportunity to empower party workers at the grassroots level. He also criticized Congress leaders for reacting to his comments without hearing the full context.
On balance, RG contesting from Raebareli instead of Amethi isn't the masterstroke the party's adherents are touting it to be, but neither is it the blunder the BJP and its tame media is framing it as, points out Prem Panicker.
