'Do not conspire against us, don't betray us. They should tell us straight that they don't need Samajwadis'
The incident sparked a political blame game in the state where bypolls to nine assembly seats will be held on November 20. Opposition parties blamed the BJP government in the state and said the deaths raise serious questions about the negligence of the administration.
Spread over 10 districts, polling in these constituencies will be held from 7 am till 6 pm on Thursday.
Modi said that Congress' tally in the Lok Sabha polls will be an "all-time low"
A police officer in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh, has sparked outrage after suggesting that those uncomfortable with Holi colors should remain indoors, drawing criticism from opposition parties who accused him of bias and demanded action. The officer's remarks came during a peace committee meeting ahead of Holi, which coincides with Friday prayers during Ramzan. Opposition leaders condemned the statements, calling them "condemnable" and accusing the officer of acting as a "BJP agent." They demanded action against him for his "political statement." The incident comes after violence erupted in Sambhal last year during protests against a court-ordered survey of a Mughal-era mosque.
Yogi Adityanath was on Thursday unanimously chosen the leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party legislature party in Uttar Pradesh in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
A video had surfaced on social media which purportedly showed SP leader Mukesh Siddharth making the controversial statement.
Leaders from 26 opposition parties, in power individually or in alliance in Delhi and 10 states, are meeting in Bengaluru to discuss strategy to take on the Narendra Modi-led NDA in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
The ruling Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh on Friday expelled its three leaders in Etah, including a former member of Legislative Assembly, for their involvement in anti-party activities.
Commenting on the seat sharing in the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), Samajwadi Party president and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday said in Ballia that a decision will be made as soon as Surya Uttarayan occurs.
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi along with the five other Congress MPs from Uttar Pradesh will visit violence-hit Sambhal on Wednesday, party's state unit chief Ajay Rai said.
"Ramgopal Yadav was expelled from the party for six years on 30 December, 2016. Therefore the party's national convention called by him on 1 January, 2017 was illegal," he asserted.
Some of the lawyers claimed they suffered injuries as police personnel used batons on them, and police officials alleged that agitating advocates set a local police outpost on fire.
A visibly upset Shivpal Yadav said, "I was never called to any meeting (of the SP) and no information was given to me."
Senior Janata Dal-United leader Dhananjay Singh pitched for Opposition unity ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and said party workers in Uttar Pradesh want Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to contest the elections from the state's Phulpur constituency.
Samajwadi Party MP R K Chaudhary's demand to replace the Sengol installed next to the Lok Sabha Speaker's chair with a copy of the Constitution triggered a war of words on Thursday, with opposition leaders backing him, and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party castigating him for 'disrespecting' Indian and Tamil culture.
With the Yogi Adityanath government taking credit for cracking down on criminals and making it an election issue, political parties are now having a rethink on aligning with those who have a criminal background but also enjoy influence in their areas.
Parties like the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party, Mahaan Dal, and Janvadi Party-Socialist had distanced themselves from the SP after its defeat in the 2022 state assembly elections.
The Bharatiya Janata Party faces an uphill task of repeating its performance of the last assembly election of winning 53 out of 58 constituencies in western Uttar Pradesh where polling will be held in the first phase on February 10.
Upset with the Congress for not conceding any seat for the Samajwadi Party in the Madhya Pradesh assembly polls, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday hinted that the Congress could get the same treatment from his party in Uttar Pradesh.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi slammed the UP government over the incident 'Another proof of 'goondaraj' (hooliganism) in UP. When police is not safe how can people be?. My condolences are with family of martyrs and I wish speedy recovery of injured,' he said in a tweet.
The remarks of the bench came after advocate MS Dhingra, appearing for UP legislative council chairman's office, sought time to file the reply.
To repeated questions, the SP chief asserted that the Congress was 'very much in the alliance'.
Voting for the seventh and final phase of the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections covering 54 seats, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi's parliamentary constituency Varanasi, will be held on Monday to decide the phase of 613 candidates.
State deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya among 692 candidates are contesting on 61 seats spread across 12 districts in the fifth phase.
The BJP had registered a one-sided victory on all the 17 SC-reserved seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. But in 2019, out of these 17 seats, it lost Nagina and Lalganj seats to the Bahujan Samaj Party.
The last two phases of the elections will be held on March 3 and 7.
Akhilesh Yadav's stock rose dramatically on Tuesday with his Samajwadi Party cutting the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party down to size in Uttar Pradesh.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Monday criticized the Uttar Pradesh government over the severe traffic congestion in Prayagraj, claiming it has led to a shortage of essential commodities and inconvenienced devotees visiting the Maha Kumbh Mela. He also posted a video on X with people sharing their experiences and pointing out at the chaos. Yadav alleged that the officials are giving orders sitting in their rooms but are not coming down to the ground and that residents of Prayagraj have got nothing except filth, traffic jams and price rise.
BJP heavyweights Smriti Irani, Arjun Munda, Ajay Mishra Teni and Kailash Chaudhary were among the 13 Union ministers who tasted defeat in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, as stunning losses in three Hindi heartland states forced the BJP to rely on allies to form the government.
The Nishad Party also demanded 160 seats for the 2022 state elections.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday took a dig at Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and BSP leader Mayawati, saying they had 'fear' of visiting Noida in Gautam Buddh Nagar during their terms at the helm of the state.
Speaking to ANI, Mayawati said, "We have decided that to defeat the SP candidate in future MLC elections in UP, we will put all our force and even if we have to give our vote to BJP candidate or any party candidate, will do it. Any party candidate, who will be dominant over the SP's 2nd candidate, will get all the BSP MLAs' vote for sure."
To a question as to whether the upcoming assembly elections in UP will see an alliance between the Samajwadi Party and AAP, Singh said, "I cannot say anything on this matter."
Saini's elevation as Haryana chief minister fits in with a pattern that has gathered pace in the BJP after the Congress and its allies like the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh and the Rashtriya Janata Dal in Bihar began making an aggressive bid to woo the largest group of communities and politically most significant, especially in Hindi-speaking states, by pushing for a caste census.
The Uttar Pradesh legislative assembly secretariat on Friday announced the disqualification of Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan from the House, a day after a court sentenced him to three years in jail in a hate speech case.
While the Bharatiya Janata Party already has a good presence on social media platforms, the Samajwadi Party and others are putting in efforts to strengthen their digital army and chalking out strategies to boost their support base.
While the opposition alliance is putting up a united front in Ghosi constituency in Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand's Dumri, Dhanpur and Boxanagar in Tripura and Uttarakhand's Bageshwar, its constituents are contesting against each other in Dhupguri in West Bengal and Puthuppally in Kerala.
A bench of Justices Ajay Rastogi and CT Ravikumar issued notice to the Uttar Pradesh government and others on the appeal filed against the Allahabad high court order.
'The opposition wants the country to run on the basis of Shariat but this cannot happen'
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