Campaigning ended on Wednesday evening for 102 Lok Sabha seats across 21 states and Union territories which will go to polls in the first phase on April 19 with top leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance and the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) making a last-gasp effort to woo voters.
Besides the national capital, polling will be held Saturday in 14 seats in Uttar Pradesh, all 10 seats of Haryana, eight seats each in Bihar and West Bengal, six seats in Odisha, four seats in Jharkhand and one seat in Jammu and Kashmir. Simultaneously, polling will be held for 42 assembly constituencies in Odisha.
The Akshaya Patra Foundation, which provides free and nutritious meals to nearly a million children in government schools in half-a-dozen Indian states, last week made a $7 million commitment to feed an additional 100,000 schoolchildren. The organisation made the pledge at the Clinton Global Initiative in New York last week.
Saturday's voting will mark the end to the marathon polling process that began on April 19 month and has already covered 486 Lok Sabha seats in 28 states and Union territories.
Modi said that those who call themselves the biggest sympathisers of the backward communities are in reality their biggest enemies.
Finance ministry maintains that all KYC requirements will be followed.
Bharatiya Janata Party's Sandeshkhali leader Gangadhar Koyal on Friday moved the Calcutta high court, claiming that technology-aided videos mimicking his voice were being circulated in a bid to defame him, and prayed for security be provided to him by central agencies.
Asked how many seats INDIA bloc will get, Gandhi said, "Have you heard Sidhu Moose Wala's song '295'? So 295 (seats)."
The curious onlookers that greet the candidates are, however, unaware about the importance of history. They are just there to catch a glimpse of 'Rani Ma' Amrita Roy or Mahua Moitra.
Senior AAP leader Raghav Chadha said the residence in question was built in 1942. The Delhi government's Public Works Department (PWD), after an audit, had recommended its renovation, he said.
Displaying a washing machine on its press conference dais, the Congress on Saturday taunted the Bharatiya Janata Party over the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filing a closure report in a 2017 corruption case against Nationalist Congress Party leader Praful Patel and said the ruling party's 'fully automatic washing machine' works on the principle -- 'join BJP, case closed'.
Meanwhile, the Congress and RSP whole-heartedly backed the Kollam MP.
No immediate reaction was available from the Aam Aadmi Party on the BJP's allegation.
Citing Section 144 CrPC was in force in parts of Sandeshkhali and it would not be prudent to allow them access to the area even in groups of four-five, senior police officers stopped their convoy at the Bhojerhat area, which is around 52 km from the riverine area, on Basanti Highway.
The Congress has not released a poll manifesto but a declaration of appeasement.
When Baskey reached the hospital on being informed of the development, Ayushman accused Patra of forcing Sunita to drink her own urine, and requested his friend to save the maid before she suffered more damage.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday received wholehearted support from a group of women from the troubled Sandeshkhali area who met her after a Trinamool Congress rally in Kolkata, party sources said.
'The 2020 assembly election was a Tejaswi Yadav election; whereas this is a Lalu Yadav election. It is his plan.'
The BJP released a sting video shot purportedly by a former AAP volunteer from north west Delhi's Rohini to allege the AAP sold tickets for Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) polls.
Over 60 per cent voter turnout was recorded on Monday in 49 constituencies in six states and two Union territories in the fifth phase of Lok Sabha elections, with Baramulla in Jammu and Kashmir recording its highest-ever voting percentage.
He also said there are leaders who stand firm in their ideology but their number is gradually declining.
The Gujarat high court on Monday said it does not have faith in the state machinery which gets into action only after innocent lives are lost, as it pulled up the Rajkot civic body over the purported lapses in functioning of the game zone facility where a massive fire killed 27 persons.
Speaking at the Congress manifesto launch programme, Gandhi said it is a much closer contest than what is propagated by the media, and expressed confidence in winning the polls.
The continuing global uncertainity has complicated the fight against inflation, opined Reserve Bank Deputy Governor Michael Debabrata Patra during the Monetary Policy Committee meeting held on February 8. According to the minutes of the MPC meeting released on Wednesday, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das also mentioned that there is considerable uncertainty due to a host of global factors such as rising non-oil commodity prices. The RBI on February 8 hiked the key short-term lending rate by 25 basis points to 6.5 per cent, citing sticky core inflation.
Armed with sticks, they set ablaze thatched structures near a fishing yard in Belmajur area of Sandeshkhali, venting their fury against the elusive TMC leader Shahjahan Sheikh and his brother Siraj. The torched structure, it was revealed, belonged to Siraj.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday accused NIA officials of attacking villagers in Purba Medinipur district, the BJP hit back at her saying that the attack on the NIA officials is Sandeshkhalli 2.0 orchestrated by the state.
Why wait to be invited to a Parsi wedding to taste their heartwarming cuisine?
The chemicals sector's recovery could be delayed until FY25 if the current trends of weak demand and flat pricing continue. Following a subdued September quarter, the revenue and profit performance of listed chemicals companies are anticipated to fall short of initial expectations of an improvement. Despite some price stability, the demand trajectory remains uncertain.
Neither the BJP, nor the Congress before it, made any manifesto commitments on defence spending, even though allocations have plummeted from 4 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in the late 1980s to less than 2 per cent today, points out Ajai Shukla.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday did not appear before the Enforcement Directorate for questioning in a case linked to the now scrapped Delhi excise policy and wrote to the central agency demanding the "recall" of its summons to him, calling it "vague, motivated and unsustainable in law".
A special court in Mumbai on Wednesday granted bail to Shiv Sena member of Parliament Sanjay Raut in a money laundering case pertaining to the Patra Chawl redevelopment project.
Polling for the municipal elections in Delhi will be held on December 4 and votes will be counted on December 7.
Amit Malviya said Twitter was in violation of India laws for an extended period (between 2020-2022).
Rajya Sabha deputy chairman Harivansh on Monday announced a probe into the complaints of at least four MPs that their names were included in a proposed select committee of the house for the Delhi services bill without their consent.
GFI president Sudhir Mital said the uncertainty over the participation of Indian gymnasts in the upcoming Asian Games is causing confusion and having a "psychological" impact on the athletes.
The ED had last week filed the supplementary charge sheet, naming Raut as an accused in the case.
Sukanta Majumdar, the state BJP president, said, "Amit Shah has set a target of 35 seats. We will achieve that".
The government is doubling down on existing 'temporary' restrictions on the import of gold. Some were introduced under the last administration, and had a transitory effect, reducing gold imports through the official channel.
A special court in Mumbai on Monday extended Shiv Sena member of Parliament Sanjay Raut's judicial custody by another 14 days in a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the redevelopment of a Mumbai 'chawl'.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday alleged that Congress president Sonia Gandhi was the "driving force" behind the "conspiracy" to implicate then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi in the 2002 riots case in the state.
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