Polling for the third phase of the Lok Sabha elections for 94 seats will take place today, covering 11 States and Union Territory.
A day after announcing the dates for assembly polls in West Bengal, the Election Commission on Saturday removed Additional Director General of Police (Law and order) Jawed Shamim and brought in Jag Mohan in his place, an official order said.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued notices to the Centre and the West Bengal government seeking their response on how to meet the requirement of security personnel for conduct of panchayat elections in the state.
Polls to 108 municipalities of West Bengal will be held on February 27, the State Election Commission said in its notification on Thursday, setting the stage for yet another contest for the ruling Trinamool Congress and the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, nine months after the assembly polls.
The Calcutta high court on Tuesday directed that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) be handed over the case of attack on Enforcement Directorate officials at Sandeshkhali and the custody of suspended Trinamool Congress leader Shajahan Sheikh, as it slammed West Bengal Police for 'totally biased' conduct and said every attempt is being made to delay the probe to 'protect' the accused.
Security measures have been heightened in view of the violence in the previous phases, particularly the death of five people in Cooch Behar in the fourth phase of polling on April 10, an Election Commission official said.
The other three crore -- nearly 40 percent -- will have to provide one of the 11 listed documents to establish their place or date of birth.
Polling for the fifth phase of the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections will take place on May 20, 2024, with 49 seats going to the polls across 8 states.
Over 84 lakh voters in West Bengal will decide the political fate of 283 candidates on Thursday, when 35 assembly constituencies go to polls in the eighth and final phase, amid a raging second wave of Covid-19.
Communist Party of India-Marxist and Trinamool Congress workers clashed on Sunday during the fiercely-contested West Bengal civic polls, which recorded a high voter turnout of around 75 per cent. The polls, seen as a semi-final before the 2011 Assembly elections, were held in 81 civic bodies and in the 141-ward Kolkata Municipal Corporation involving an electorate of 85 lakh.
Emerging from a meeting with Banerjee at the state secretariat, Yadav said that the first priority of his party was to stop the Bharatiya Janata Party's progress in West Bengal.
Questioning the eight-phase assembly elections in West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Friday that she suspects that the dates were announced as per the suggestions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah for better management of the BJP's poll campaign.
While EC Secretary General Umesh Sinha would be visiting Tamil Nadu next week, Deputy Election Commissioner Sudip Jain would be in West Bengal in the coming days, sources said.
The repolling started at 7 am amid tight security with four central forces personnel deployed in each booth, besides state police. Till 11 am, 10.9 per cent voter turnout was recorded.
According to an official release, the voting percentage is likely to go up when reports from all polling stations are obtained, as polling was scheduled until 6 pm in many constituencies.
The welfare schemes of the government, particularly Lakshmir Bhandar, have had a major impact on the electoral outcome.
The home ministry dispatched a terse reminder to the West Bengal government on Wednesday to submit a detailed report on the post-poll violence in the state, warning it that the matter will be taken 'seriously' in case it fails to do so, and asked it to take necessary measures to stop such incidents 'without any loss of time', officials said.
The poll panel has convened a press conference at 4.30 pm.
Modi alleged that Banerjee has let loose goons in the state, dashing the hopes of people.
A 10-member delegation of Trinamool Congress (TMC) had announced the dharna after meeting a full bench of the Election Commission (EC) to press their demand.
The West Bengal state Election Commission on Monday moved the Calcutta high court appealing that the Panchayat election date notified by the state government be rejected.
The Calcutta high court on Tuesday refused to accept the West Bengal State Election Commission's plea for 800 companies of central armed police force for holding the panchayat poll in the state and directed that the state may requisition them from other states or the Centre if there was any shortfall.
The people of West Bengal have lost faith in the state police and therefore their demand for deployment of central forces, Nayak said.
'We said that our party will abide by all COVID-19 protocols put in place by the Election Commission, and urged that no steps be taken that discriminates those voting in the next phases from those who have already exercised their franchise'
Widespread violence between supporters of the Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party over alleged electoral malpractices in strife-torn Sandeshkhali marred the final phase of Lok Sabha polls in West Bengal on Saturday, resulting in injuries to a number of people.
A large voter turnout of more than 80 per cent despite sporadic incidents of violence and allegations of vote fraud on Thursday marked the second phase of West Bengal assembly polls.
Local trains will be allowed to operate with 50 per cent capacity till 7 pm, while all shopping malls and markets will be allowed to remain open till 10 pm but with half their capacities, he said.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has found the report submitted by the West Bengal government on the alleged attack on Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Nandigram on March 10 as 'sketchy' and asked Chief Secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay to elaborate it, a poll official said.
In a letter to the TMC, the EC said at the outset, it needs to be stated that injuries sustained by Banerjee on Wednesday evening in Nandigram is "indeed an unfortunate incident and deserves to be inquired into with promptitude and dispatch."
Kumar, who played a key role in implementing decisions following the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution in Jammu and Kashmir during his stint in the Union home ministry, took charge as an election commissioner on March 15, 2024.
From Instagram to X, social media platforms, in the run-up to the polls have seen bitter poster wars and even bitter meme battles for political one-upmanship.
Voters in 30 assembly constituencies of West Bengal and 47 of Assam exercised their franchise on Saturday.
Five people were killed, including 4 in the firing by Central Industrial Security Force personnel, during the fourth phase of polling
While naming him as the NDA candidate for the Vice President's post, the BJP had described him as 'Kisan putra', a move seen in the political circles aimed at reaching out to the politically significant Jat community which had participated in huge numbers in the year-long farmers' protests against agriculture reform measures unveiled in June 2020.
The Election Commission on Wednesday slapped show-cause notices on Bharatiya Janata Party leader Dilip Ghosh and Congress leader Supriya Shrinate for their offensive remarks against West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Kangana Ranaut respectively.
"The NIA categorically refuted allegations of mala fide in its Bhupatinagar blast case," an agency spokesperson said.
While the state government, contending that it had the power to notify panchayat elections under section 42 of the state Panchayat Act and as such notified the election in two phases on April 26 and April 30, the poll panel refused to budge.
Infighting within West Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) came to the fore after a video of an alleged verbal spat between party MPs and screenshots of heated exchanges from its official WhatsApp group for parliamentarians went viral. The incident reportedly involved a public altercation at the Election Commission headquarters, followed by a heated exchange on the party's WhatsApp group, leading to accusations of misconduct and leaked screenshots. The controversy has triggered calls for action against the party chief whip, Kalyan Banerjee, who is accused of misbehavior and tarnishing the party's image.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has decided to deploy 125 companies of central forces in West Bengal by February 25 for the ensuing assembly elections, a senior official said on Friday.
According to sources, the filters were applied on Saturday night soon after the poll schedule was announced.
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