Separately, the poll panel also issued a notice to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, asking him to respond to the complaints filed by the BJP against him and the main opposition party's senior leader Rahul Gandhi regarding their remarks.
An FIR has been registered against the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray and a Marathi news channel for allegedly violating model code of conduct ahead the civic polls.
No government in the past initiated the process of policy making for its next tenure even before going in for elections. Once the Model Code of Conduct is enforced by the Election Commission, should the government of the day refrain from taking an active interest in policy making for the next five years and let that be the function of the new government?, asks A K Bhattacharya.
The Election Commission on Friday issued a show-cause notice to Delhi minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Atishi, asking her to back with facts her statement that the Bharatiya Janata Party approached her to join the party.
A notice has been issued to BJP MP Ramshanker Katheria on Sunday evening for flagging off the Shatabdi from Tundla railway station and the Election Commission has also been informed, District Magistrate Surendra Singh said.
"It is a fair assumption that INC possesses the material/empirical/verifiable evidence based on which these specific/explicit 'facts' have been published, an action which can fairly be assessed to embed knowledge, motive and intent to do so by the author," the EC notice read.
The Maharashtra Assembly elections are taking place today, with the ruling BJP-led Mahayuti alliance seeking to retain power and the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) hoping for a comeback. The campaign saw prominent leaders like Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, Rahul Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra crisscrossing the state to garner votes. The Mahayuti is banking on popular schemes while the MVA focuses on issues like caste-based census and social justice. The elections have also seen a significant rise in the number of candidates and voters.
A police complaint has been filed against BJP leader L K Advani by the Election Commission officials for alleged breach of model code of conduct by talking to mediapersons outside a polling booth during the Assembly elections, police officers said.
Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar has sent a legal notice to Shashi Tharoor, accusing the Congress MP of making defamatory statements against him on a TV channel recently.
First Investigation Reports have been filed against Bihar minister Jitan Ram Manjhi and four Members of Parliament including Bharatiya Janata Party's Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Pappu Yadav of Rashtriya Janata Dal and his wife for allegedly violating the model code of conduct for elections.
Karnataka Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre on Monday said the state government will pay the hospitality bill of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had come to Mysuru in April last year to commemorate 50 years of Project Tiger, which runs up to Rs 80 lakh.
'A political party taking the law into its hands is objectionable, especially in the context of the 2002 incidents in Gujarat.'
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.
Stating that Mahim was his party's seat, Uddhav said there was lack of time to hold a rally in each and every constituency of the state.
A day after Ansari's burial, police constable Faiyaz Khan, posted at a police station in Lucknow, allegedly made certain comments in favour of the gangster-politician on his WhatsApp status and also raised doubts over his death.
The Madhya Pradesh unit of Congress has demanded a ban on 'Shivraj App' and 'Modi Run' applications for promoting the Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and the BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.
The state was asked not to publicise the disbursement during the poll code as part of the condition.
Shah said that the complaint was lodged based on the provisional certificate which he got after receiving the shot at a vaccination centre on Thursday morning.
The Model Code of Conduct for the ongoing Lok Sabha elections has come in the way of release of routine economic data like the consumer price indices.
The Election Commission on Monday granted four days more time to Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi to reply to its notice for Model Code violation over his remark that Pakistani's Inter Services Intelligence was in touch with Muzaffarnagar riot victims.
A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta is likely to hear the matter.
The commission will tour Pondicherry on March 27 and Tamil Nadu on March 28 and 29 to review preparations.
With Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal having been sent to judicial custody till April 15 by a city court in connection with the excise policy case, buzz over his replacement intensified even as his party leaders asserted that he will continue to head the government no matter how long he stays in jail.
The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) on Friday decided at its Special General Meeting (SGM) that it will start functioning at 'no cost to the government' model if its request to lift the suspension is not considered by the Sports Ministry.
The prime minister had violated the model code of conduct by holding a 'roadshow' after voting in the Gujarat assembly polls, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala alleged.
Telugu Desam Party on Saturday alleged that YSR Congress Party president Jaganmohan Reddy violated the model code of conduct by stretching his road show beyond stipulated time limit at Mylavaram town in Krishna district.
He made the announcement after Maharashtra minister and member of Maratha quota sub-committee Shambhuraj Desai, Shiv Sena MP Sandipan Bhumre met him at his native Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district and discussed the issue.
'Apparently, the EC deals with such communications as mine in a summary manner, and it has no intention to conduct its affairs, as a quasi-judicial authority ought to.'
Political battle over 'Pujari Granthi Samman Yojna' announced by Aam Aadmi Party supremo Arvind Kejriwal intensified on Tuesday, as he launched registration process for the scheme at a temple in Kashmiri Gate in New Delhi.
A panel of Union ministers held a fourth round of talks with farmer leaders in Chandigarh on Sunday over their demands, including a legal guarantee of MSP, as thousands of protesting farmers camped at the Punjab-Haryana border.
Hyundai's French rally driver Adrien Fourmaux was handed a 10,000 euro fine, with another 20,000 suspended, in Sweden on Sunday, however, for swearing in a live post-race broadcast interview.
In a letter to Ramesh, the poll panel has asked him to share details regarding his claim by 7 pm on Sunday.
Noting that he fully respects the Supreme Court order on electoral bonds, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday said the scheme was introduced to end black money in politics and added that it should have been improved rather than scrapped.
This is the first campaign ban imposed by the poll body in this Lok Sabha election cycle.
"Nothing objectionable was found, and officials then allowed the vehicle to go, and the Chief Minister continued his journey," sources added.
The party strongly raised the issue of alleged violation of the model code of conduct by the prime minister.
The Aam Aadmi Party on Wednesday said Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh and Delhi minister Saurabh Bhardwaj would accompany the media on a tour of the chief minister's residence, which the Bharatiya Janata Party claims was turned into a 'Sheesh Mahal' during Arvind Kejriwal's tenure.
