A parliamentary committee on Friday batted for reducing the minimum age to contest Lok Sabha and assembly elections, saying it would give the youth equal opportunities to engage in democracy.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday said the Centre's decision to include caste enumeration in the next census has exposed the difference between the Modi government's 'true intentions' and the 'empty sloganeering' of the Congress.
The proportion of postal votes polled in the general elections has gradually risen since 2009.
Dharashiv, earlier Osmanabad, is among the eight districts that comprise the state's Marathwada region, where activist Manoj Jarange has led an agitation demanding reservation for Marathas in education and government jobs.
'The BJP has killed public anger. They have killed people's self-respect.'
Former Commonwealth Games gold-medallist Narsingh Pancham Yadav was elected chairman of the Wrestling Federation of India's Athletes' Commission in Varanasi on Wednesday, completing a process that was mandated by the sport's world governing body.
Lok Sabha polls will be held in seven phases beginning from April 19 and the counting of votes will take place on June 4 for the world's biggest election exercise in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi will bid for a third consecutive term.
The TMC-led West Bengal government has already started laying the groundwork for the election, setting the tone with the recent Bengal Global Business Summit and the state Budget.
He asked what action was taken when other political leaders earlier called women leaders as "Jersey cow" and "Surpankha".
The Election Commission has advised the West Bengal Governor to call off his proposed tour of Cooch Behar on the eve of the Lok Sabha polls' first phase as it was violative of the Model Code of Conduct, sources said on Wednesday.
As many as 624 candidates are in the fray in this round of voting being held in Pilibhit, Lakhimpur Kheri, Sitapur, Hardoi, Unnao, Lucknow, Rae Bareli, Banda, and Fatehpur districts.
Nearly Rs 3,400 crore (Rs 34 billion) in cash and other items were seized in the elections in 2022-2023, an increase of 835 per cent over 2017-2018.
Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar leader Rohit Pawar on Friday alleged 25-30 Bharatiya Janata Party workers at midnight tried to enter the strong room where electronic voting machines (EVMs) of Karjat-Jamkhed constituency, from where he contested, are kept.
Sources said the leaders during the meeting discussed the possible reasons for the "unexpected" results in Haryana and decided to set up the team to ascertain the reasons behind such results and also look into complaints of "discrepancies" in EVMs, as alleged by party candidates.
The measures include an information search prompt with the Election Commission of India (@ECISVEEP) and State Election Commissions to provide reliable information around the elections, a custom emoji to encourage participation, a series of pre-bunks and debunks to tackle election-related misinformation, and a youth discussion series titled #DemocracyAdda aimed at voter literacy and civic participation among young Indians for the upcoming elections.
Congress leaders were seen giving media bytes at various places at the headquarters, arguing that the trends would change by 1 PM but it did not happen.
The Bharatiya Janata Party, which claims itself as the biggest political party in the world, has a whopping cash and bank balance of Rs 7,113.80 crore against the principal opposition Congress party's Rs 857.15 crore as on March 31, 2024, according to figures provided to the Election Commission.
'It will split people and create caste clashes. Unity of people will be affected for the time being.'
The Election Commission (EC) on Wednesday increased the polling time for the Lok Sabha elections in Telangana by an hour in view of heatwave conditions prevailing in the state.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has dismissed speculation about dissent within the Aam Aadmi Party's state unit, asserting that Congress leaders have a history of switching parties while AAP leaders remain dedicated. Mann's remarks came after Punjab Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa claimed that over 30 AAP MLAs were in touch with his party. Mann, however, dismissed Bajwa's claims, stating that Congress has a culture of switching sides. The meeting follows AAP's defeat in the Delhi Assembly elections, sparking speculation about instability in its Punjab unit. Mann reiterated the unity within AAP, highlighting his government's achievements, including closing 17 toll plazas, stopping multiple pensions for MLAs, and implementing the Delhi model in Punjab. On the promise of financial assistance of Rs 1,000 to women, he said it will be provided in the coming days. Meanwhile, the BJP has also intensified its attack on the AAP, with BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa taking a dig at Kejriwal for holding a meeting with Punjab MLAs despite AAP's defeat in Delhi.
According to the Election Commission of India, the code has evolved over the last 60 years to assume its present form.
The Election Commission on Thursday made public a fresh data set of electoral bonds, including their alpha-numeric numbers that can help match their purchasers with the political parties that received the funds.
The Bombay high court on Friday constituted a three-judge special bench to hear the pleas challenging the constitutional validity of the law providing Maratha reservation following a Supreme Court directive.
Kumar also hinted that the Maharashtra elections could be held after Diwali.
While members from Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Nagaland and Tripura are retiring on April 2, five members from Punjab are retiring on April 9.
When the Bharatiya Janata Party's Mukesh Dalal was declared elected unopposed to the Lok Sabha from Surat on Monday, he became the first candidate to achieve the feat from Gujarat since its formation 64 years ago though the erstwhile state of Saurashtra saw a similar instance in 1951.
The top court issued notice to the Election Commission on the PIL filed by author, activist and motivational speaker Shiv Khera.
It said that increased focus on expenditure monitoring was the reason being the seizures, which included freebies such as sarees, 'food kits', pressure cookers and kitchen appliances.
The notice requested Rashid or a representative of his to appear before the district expenditure monitoring committee within two days to address the discrepancy and ensure timely submission of the expenditure report to the Election Commission of India.
The WFI will resume national camp from March 27, after after almost 16 months with Sonepat and Gandhinagar in Gujarat to be the likely venues for men and women respectively.
'One nation, one election' is not possible under the present Constitution. It requires at least five constitutional amendments'
Senior Congress leader Ripun Bora has been summoned by Assam Police for questioning in connection with a case related to party colleague Gaurav Gogoi's alleged links with Pakistan. The summons comes after Bora publicly stated that Gogoi's wife received salaries from the Pakistan government, which prompted Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma to claim that Bora "knows a lot" about Gogoi's alleged links. The case centers around allegations of Pakistani national Ali Tauqeer Sheikh, who is claimed to have links with Gogoi's British wife Elizabeth Colburn, interfering in India's internal affairs. Gogoi has vehemently denied the allegations and accused Sarma of making baseless accusations.
A delegation of the National Commission for Women (NCW), led by its chairman Vijaya Rahatkar, met with riot-affected women in Murshidabad district of West Bengal, assuring them of safety and demanding an NIA probe into the recent communal clashes. The women narrated their harrowing experiences and demanded permanent BSF camps in select areas of the district. The NCW team also visited relief camps in Malda district and assessed the condition of women affected by the violence.
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.
Raut claimed that by not deciding on the disqualification petitions, Chandrachud kept doors and windows open for defections.
Seeking to ensure a level-playing field in the Lok Sabha elections, the Election Commission on Monday ordered the removal of home secretaries of Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, sources said.
'All my wealth I earned in the US. It is all money earned transparently. I have paid all taxes.'
The elections in the country should be held within the stipulated time of 90 days after the dissolution of the National Assembly.
'The second Covid wave spread due to the irresponsibility of the Election Commission of India and now they are committing the same mistake.'
NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar has thrown his weight behind villagers in Solapur, Maharashtra, who are demanding a repoll using ballot papers after raising doubts about the accuracy of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). Pawar met with villagers in Markadwadi, where a police case was filed against over 200 people for attempting to conduct an unauthorized re-election. He expressed support for their concerns, claiming that the villagers were "the ones who thought of conducting polls using ballot papers." Pawar criticized the police action, calling it a restriction on the villagers' right to assemble and vowing to raise the issue with the Chief Minister, the state Chief Electoral Officer, the Prime Minister, and the Election Commission of India.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances