'There is no link between Article 370 abrogation and a rise in voting percentage.'
"Last time I stood, I was not allowed to speak. The ruling party paid a very heavy price for throttling the voice of one MP," she said, referring to her suspension in the last session.
Akhilesh said the alliance's decision was not informed by any seat-sharing math but its pursuit of victory.
A police officer said the FIR has been registered under sections 342 (punishment for wrongful confinement), 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object), 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) and 367 (kidnapping or abducting in order to subject person to grievous hurt) of the Ranbir Penal Code.
There is a limit to ignoring genuine aspirations of the people and suppressing their legitimate voice in running the affairs of the state, notes Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir affairs.
ASJ Chander Jit Singh underscored he would first consider the issue of jurisdiction and whether or not to transfer the case to a special court meant to try lawmakers, considering Rashid was now an MP.
BJP president JP Nadda said on Sunday that the party does not seek to control the Waqf Board but wants to ensure that those managing it operate within the bounds of law and adhere to established rules. He said the properties and funds of the Waqf Board should be dedicated to promoting education, providing healthcare and employment opportunities for the Muslim community. Nadda also highlighted the BJP's growth and achievements, emphasizing its commitment to national unity and cultural heritage.
Scenes from the election campaign in New Delhi, Mainpuri, Bardhaman, Srinagar, Etah, Mumbai and Puri.
A deadly terror attack targeting tourists in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam on Tuesday drew strong condemnation and outrage. 26 people, including two foreigners and two locals, were killed in the attack, which is the deadliest in the Valley since the Pulwama strike in 2019. Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that the perpetrators will not be spared and their evil agenda will never succeed. Opposition leaders demanded accountability, claiming the government's claims of normalcy in Kashmir have fallen flat.
Karra, who became the J&K Congress chief last Friday replacing Vikar Rasool Wani, said a call is already there for all secular parties who are opposed to the "hegemonic attitude" of the BJP to unite.
'With all outlets of public expression virtually choked for the last five years, suppressed anger and frustration is looking for an opening via the ballot box.' 'There is no escape from the inevitability of the 'Engineer Rashid' factor surfacing in a big enough way to upset everyone's applecart,' alerts Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the veteran commentator on Kashmir affairs.
The EC said polling percentage in the Anantnag-Rajouri seat in Jammu and Kashmir is the highest in 40 years.
An approximate voter turnout of 59.06 per cent was recorded in the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha elections on Saturday in 58 constituencies across six states and two Union territories with the polling percentage in the Jangal Mahal region of West Bengal touching 78.19.
Mehbooba Mufti-led PDP accused National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah of leaving them "no option".
The PDP looks a distant third in the race, observes Mohammed Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir politics.
Over 2.5 million voters will decide the fate of 239 candidates in the fray for 26 Jammu and Kashmir assembly seats in the second phase of the election to be held in the Union territory on Wednesday.
The former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister alleged that government employees were 'forcibly mobilised' and ferried to Modi's rally to paint a 'pretty picture that all is well' post 2019, when the Centre abrogated the provisions of Article 370 of the Constitution and bifurcated the erstwhile state into Union territories.
The National Conference is a part of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) and will continue to be, party leader Omar Abdullah clarified on Thursday and said it is in talks with the Congress for an arrangement in three of the six Lok Sabha seats in Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
If Rashid cannot be the king, he could be the kingmaker after October 8 when the results to the J&K assembly are declared.
Gandhi, who is usually flanked by senior party colleagues, was also greeted by both President Droupadi Murmu and Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar.
'INDIA will easily cross 50 seats out of 90 in Jammu and Kashmir.'
Reuters Photographers Francis Mascarenhas, Almaas Masood, Sanna Irshad Mattoo, Sharafat Ali, Anushree Fadnavis capture fascinating glimpses of polling in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha election on Monday, May 13, 2024, covering 96 constituencies spread over 10 states and Union Territories.
Even as parleys continue in both states, the grand old party is expected to contest less than 110 seats in the November 20 polls for the 288-member Maharashtra assembly.
Owaisi said, 'Srinagar is a ghost town. Yeh kya kar diya hai (What have they done)? The people are very angry. It moved us to see that people were searching for milk. We were told that since last three months children were not going to school, medicines or proper food have been in short supply. They said they were being tormented.They can't bear the torture of their youth."
The People's Democratic Party and the National Conference -- the two Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) partners in Jammu and Kashmir -- will be taking on each other on the three Lok Sabha seats in the valley.
Gogoi was detained by police in May following an altercation when he was allegedly trying to enter a Srinagar hotel with an 18-year-old woman.
In a significant political development, National Conference president Farooq Abdullah announced on Thursday that an alliance with the Congress was finalised for all 90 assembly seats in Jammu and Kashmir, which is going for its maiden assembly polls after being reorganised into a Union Territory.
'Omar Abdullah presented Delhi as a villain in front of the people of Jammu Kashmir before elections and now is shaking hands with them.'
Such a course would require a Constitutional Amendment, requiring a two-thirds majority in both Houses of Parliament. Even assuming that the INDIA combine comes to power at the Centre next year, a two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha could way off the mark for them, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday clinched a stunning hat-trick win in Haryana overcoming anti-incumbency and dashing Congress' hopes of a comeback while the National Conference-Congress combine pulled off a spectacular victory in maiden elections in Jammu and Kashmir after abrogation of Article 370 in 2019.
Abdullah, who was a Lok Sabha member when the government accommodation in high security Gupkar area was provided to him in 2002, released a letter on his Twitter handle that he had written in July this year.
So far 14 Kashmiri Pandits have filed nominations to contest from the valley for the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections, aiming to ensure the return and rehabilitation of their fellow community members, whose number run up to 3 lakh.
Will Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, who gets his orders from New Delhi, call the shots or allow a democratically elected government to independently govern, questions Ramesh Menon.
Five other personnel were injured along with two civilians, including a 10-year-old girl.
With 19 border polling stations along the Line of Control in Rajouri and Poonch, a contingency plan has been worked out to deal with cross-border shelling though chances are negligible given the ongoing ceasefire between India and Pakistan that came into effect in February 2021, officials said.
As the polling dates for the maiden assembly polls after abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir draws near, several organisations of the Kashmiri Pandit community has decided to refrain from the electoral process in the Union Territory over 'persistent denial of their genocide'.
Abdullah said they are claiming that terrorism is over but the ground situation shows that it has increased in otherwise peaceful Jammu region.
Union Minister of New and Renewable Energy and president of the ruling National Conference Dr Farooq Abdullah filed his nomination papers from the prestigious Srinagar parliamentary constituency on Monday. The constituency goes to polls on April 30.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah asserted that the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 was crucial in ending terrorism in Kashmir. He stated that the provision fostered separatism among Kashmiri youth and impeded the region's full integration into India. Shah also highlighted the development initiatives undertaken in Jammu and Kashmir post-Article 370, including a reduction in terrorism, successful local body elections, and an increase in tourism and film production. He emphasized the significance of writing India's history with facts and evidence, countering narratives that had obscured the country's rich heritage.
While Jamaat cannot take part in the elections due to the ban imposed on it by the Union home ministry, it had shown interest in participating in the polls during the Lok Sabha elections if the ban were removed.
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