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.
Following the 'dog babu' incident, another canine application for a residence certificate has surfaced in Nawada, Bihar. An FIR has been registered for the attempt.
Leaders of several INDIA bloc parties met the Election Commission over the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar and raised concerns over its timing, alleging that over two crore voters of the state may be disenfranchised by this mammoth exercise being done just ahead of assembly elections.
Salient features of the National Sports Governance Bill that promise to overhaul several aspects of sports governance and the grievance redressal system for athletes and administrators alike in the country.
The certificate of residence was issued last week in Masaurhi circle, falling under the eponymous sub-division, apparently as part of a scramble for such documents during the special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Bihar.
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi's lawyer on Thursday withdrew from a Pune court the plea claiming apprehension of threat to the parliamentarian from followers of Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar.
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.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday called on President Droupadi Murmu separately within hours at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.
Senior Congress leader Pawan Khera claims 89 lakh irregularities were flagged in Bihar's electoral rolls revision but rejected by the Election Commission, demanding a re-exercise.
Addressing a massive Martyrs' Day rally in Kolkata, Banerjee gave a clarion call to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party in the 2026 assembly elections and eventually oust it from power at the Centre, declaring, "If this linguistic profiling doesn't stop, our resistance movement will reach New Delhi."
Uttam Ghosh offers his take on the Election Commission's controversial role this election.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the BJP-led NDA parliamentary party meeting, focusing on current issues, the upcoming vice president's election, and likely addressing opposition concerns.
The effective strength of both the Houses together is 786 and the winning candidate will require 394 votes, considering that all eligible voters exercise their franchise.
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.
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.
The PM's speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort today was " stale, hypocritical, insipid, and troubling", the Congress general secretary said.
Gandhi's remarks came on a day it emerged that the Election Commission has formally written to him on his allegations of rigging in the 2024 Maharashtra polls, saying all polls held by the poll panel strictly as per laws passed by Parliament and rules, and the entire exercise involves thousands of personnel, including booth-level agents appointed by political parties.
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.
The Congress party has accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of incompetence and partisanship following the Chief Election Commissioner's (CEC) defense of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar. The party alleges the CEC failed to address concerns about voter list irregularities and is acting in favor of the ruling BJP.
The Uttarakhand high court has asked two top officials of the state to find out whether an officer who has no knowledge of English can effectively control an executive position after an additional district magistrate responded in Hindi during the hearing of a public interest litigation (PIL).
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee criticized the BJP-led central government for allegedly harassing Bengali-speaking people across India, warning of political consequences. She also accused the Centre of influencing the Election Commission and vowed to fight any persecution of Bengalis.
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.
Former chief justices of India, who have conveyed their views to a parliamentary committee on the bill proposing simultaneous polls, have endorsed the constitutionality of the 'one nation, one election' concept but have raised concerns over its various aspects, including the power given to the Election Commission, and offered suggestions.
Aam Aadmi Party's Gopal Italia on Monday won from Gujarat's Visavadar assembly constituency and his party also retained Punjab's Ludhiana West seat while the Congress-led United Democratic Front wrested Nilambur from the ruling Left Democratic Front in Kerala, according to results of assembly bypolls in four states.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) has appointed Abhishek Banerjee as its new parliamentary leader in the Lok Sabha, replacing Sudip Bandopadhyay. The decision was made during a virtual meeting chaired by Mamata Banerjee. This move is seen as a generational shift and a preparation for the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections.
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.
Gandhi cited the example of Maharashtra assembly elections, claiming there was an addition of 65 lakh voters to the voter list in two hours, "which was impossible."
'The Congress has faded and fighting for survival.'
The election for the post of Vice President will be held on September 9, with the notification being issued on August 7 and the last date for filing nominations on August 21.
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.
Amit Shah seemingly encouraging AIADMK dissident Sengottaiyan after party boss Edappadi K Palaniswami had removed his one-time mentor from all party posts has not gone down well with party cadres. They are now ready to buy Team EPS' theory that the BJP and Amit Shah are out to liquidate the AIADMK, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Over 90 former bureaucrats have expressed concern over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, alleging it could disenfranchise voters, particularly the poor and marginalized.
'I am alive, I have not died. Look, I am standing and speaking,' says Imarti Devi who is listed as deceased and whose name has been deleted from the voter's list. M I Khan reports from Dharaichak, a village in Bihar where 200 voters have been removed from the voter's list.
The development came in the backdrop of the Supreme Court's direction that details of the deleted names be made public by August 19 and a compliance report be filed by August 22.
'Many are saying that some significant announcement regarding Jammu and Kashmir or even separate statehoods might come; that possibility cannot be ruled out given today's date.'
The Election Commission has banned all exit polls pertaining to the coming assembly elections from 7.00 am on February 10 to 6.30 pm on March 7.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced that it will set up mobile phone deposit counters at polling stations to ensure that voters do not have to carry their phones inside the polling booth. This decision was taken after it was observed that several voters were concealing their phones in their clothes due to the absence of a facility to deposit it. The ECI has also rationalized the permissible norms for canvassing in line with the electoral laws to 100 meters from the entrance of the polling station.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf activists staged a protest after Khan was disqualified by the Election Commission of Pakistan in the prohibited funding case last year.
Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, the architect of the Indian Constitution, is also credited with the creation of the Election Commission of India. An amendment he brought to the Constituent Assembly led to the establishment of the Election Commission as an independent body responsible for conducting elections. Ambedkar's amendment consolidated election authority into a centralized body, headed by a chief election commissioner appointed by the President, rather than separate commissions for the Centre and states. This article delves into the historical context and the importance of Ambedkar's contribution in establishing the Election Commission of India.
Fearing use of its electronic data to create 'malicious narratives', the Election Commission has instructed its state poll officers to destroy CCTV camera, webcasting and video footage of the election process after 45 days, if the verdict is not challenged in courts within that period.
