The Election Commission (EC) has published the draft electoral rolls for Bihar, marking a key step ahead of the upcoming assembly elections. The publication follows a month-long Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.
If he cannot do it this term by using his bureaucracy and experts from different fields, it will be a tragedy, asserts Ramesh Menon.
The Supreme Court Monday stayed till further orders the local body election in Maharashtra on 27 per cent seats reserved for the Other Backward Classes (OBC).
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar during the first day of review of poll preparedness of the state asked the district election officers and municipal commissioners to explain the steps taken by them to deal with 'urban apathy'.
Actor-politician Vijay held his first public meeting in Puducherry, criticising the central government for neglecting the union territory's demand for statehood and praising the local government's impartiality. He also targeted the DMK government in Tamil Nadu, suggesting they could learn from Puducherry.
Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar arrived in Bihar to review preparations for the upcoming assembly elections. The visit includes meetings with political parties, police, administrative officials, and state leaders to ensure smooth conduct of the polls. The visit follows the publication of the final electoral roll after a Special Intensive Revision, which has sparked controversy among political parties.
Soon after Gandhi's press conference, the Election Commission said it will respond with full facts in writing.
'The Congress has faded and fighting for survival.'
A 35-year-old woman in Bihar, India, was mistakenly listed as 124 years old in draft electoral rolls, sparking a political demonstration and raising questions about the accuracy of voter registration.
A prankster in Samastipur, Bihar, posed as Donald Trump to apply for a residence certificate, leading the district administration to order an FIR and investigation.
When the government chooses to either ignore or use identity documents only when it suits them, it shakes people's sense of stability, notes Shyam G Menon.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the BJP of 'linguistic terror' and plotting to delete Bengali voters from electoral rolls, vowing to protect voting rights.
'I disagree with much of Modi's politics, but it cannot be denied that in these years in office, he has carved more than a niche for himself in history,' points out Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, author, Narendra Modi: The Man, The Times.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's Chandrabhanu Paswan was leading by 3,991 votes over the Samajwadi Party's (SP) Ajit Prasad after the first round of counting for the Milkipur assembly bypoll on Saturday, according to the Election Commission website.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah promised a defence corridor and factories in each district of Bihar if the NDA wins the upcoming elections. He also outlined plans for flood control, infrastructure development, and revival of sugar mills.
Coming down hard on the Election Commission for its response on 'vote theft' allegations, former chief election commissioner S Y Quraishi on Sunday said the poll body should have ordered a probe into Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi's charges instead of 'shouting' at him in a language that was 'objectionable and offensive'.
The Election Commission (EC) is sharing lists of Bihar electors with political parties and their booth-level agents to verify the status of voters before July 25. The lists include those who have likely died, permanently shifted, or enrolled at multiple places.
On the eve of counting of votes for the Delhi Assembly elections, AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal accused the Election Commission (EC) of refusing to upload Form 17C, which contains details of votes polled per booth in each Assembly segment. In response, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has launched a website where it has uploaded Form 17C data for all the Assembly seats. Kejriwal stated that ensuring such transparency should have been the responsibility of the apex poll body. The office of the chief electoral officer responded by saying that the rule requiring presiding officers to furnish Form 17C to polling agents was complied with on the day of polling.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi is likely to take up the matter in which the EC has justified its ongoing SIR of electoral rolls in Bihar, saying it adds to the purity of the election by "weeding out ineligible persons" from the electoral rolls.
Union Minister Nityanand Rai launched a scathing attack on Congress, stating that the party takes "pleasure" in insulting Bihar and its people.
Internal discord within the INDIA bloc has led to alliance partners contesting against each other in at least eight assembly seats in Bihar. The Congress, RJD, and Left parties are facing challenges in seat-sharing arrangements for the upcoming elections.
The Congress party stated that Rahul Gandhi's lawyer raised the issue of a threat to his life without his consent and will withdraw the statement in court. The lawyer filed an application stating Gandhi could face harm from followers of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and Nathuram Godse's ideology.
'If the BJP had its way, it would sideline him in favour of someone else. But that's not feasible. There is no vote catcher in Bihar for the BJP.'
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of a "scam" after the poll panel admitted to the existence of duplicate voter ID numbers. The ECI has said it will address the issue in the next three months. TMC leader Saket Gokhale alleged that the ECI is trying to "protect" someone and demanded answers about the extent of the duplication and why it took 25 years to address the problem.
The PM's speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort today was " stale, hypocritical, insipid, and troubling", the Congress general secretary said.
His victory means that his party will have to learn from him, because after the rise of Donald Trump, the Democrats have been in disarray. They have had no real answer to the Trump phenomenon and Zohran, with his emphatic and clear policies aimed at working class Americans offers them a national path for a return, asserts Aakar Patel.
In a decision that is likely to have an impact on several state chess associations affiliated with the All India Chess Federation, the AICF's ethics commission has ordered that Bharat Singh Chauhan cannot be recognised as, or continue as, president of the Delhi Chess Association.
The Election Commission will publish the draft electoral rolls for Bihar assembly polls, triggering a period for claims and objections amid fears of voter exclusion.
The State Election Commission in Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday imposed restrictions on conduct of exit polls till the last of the eight-phase District Development Council election is completed.
Nitish thought that his stakes as chief minister were far greater than his stakes in protecting one of his party MLAs. He could not allow his rule-of-law train to be derailed by a small rock on the track. On the contrary, if he removed it to keep the train moving at a steady speed he would gain strong public admiration and sympathy that would help him take the masses along in carrying out other tasks. A fascinating excerpt from Arun Sinha's Nitish Kumar And The Rise Of Bihar.
Shinde He said anyone can go anywhere, it is their personal choice, but people support those who work for them and think about their welfare.
A string of welfare schemes and promises tests the state's budget, which is already heavily dependent on central support and spends little as capital outlay.
A resident of Bhojpur district in Bihar on Thursday called on the Chief Electoral Officer of the state to plead that he was alive.
The number of similar electoral photo identity card or EPIC numbers found were "miniscule", averaging to around one in four polling stations, they said.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday said that 99 per cent of electors have already been covered under the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in poll-bound Bihar, ECI said.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday took a major step to implement its key plank of "one nation, one election" as the Union Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved the constitutional amendment bill to roll out the concept of simultaneous Lok Sabha and state assembly polls, sources said.
Opposition parties in India's Rajya Sabha, including the Congress and the TMC, walked out of the chamber after their demand for a discussion on the Election Commission's alleged lapses in issuing duplicate voter ID cards and delimitation was disallowed. The Deputy Chairman, Harivansh, rejected the notices under Rule 267, citing non-compliance with previous rulings. While TMC and Congress MPs focused on the duplicate voter ID issue, Tamil parties expressed concerns about the impact of delimitation on southern states. Despite raising slogans and pressing for a discussion, the opposition staged a walkout after their notices were rejected and their statements deemed not part of the official record.
The Supreme Court declined to hear a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking directions to the Election Commission and state election bodies to address purported duplication and multiple entries in voter lists. The court suggested the petitioner approach high courts with specific grievances and file representations with appropriate authorities.
Eighteen distinct amendments to the Constitution and other statutes would be required for the implementation of the Kovind committee's recommendations on simultaneous elections, according to the panel's report accepted by the Union Cabinet on Wednesday.
The commission will announce the dates for assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Telangana and Mizoram.
