The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has refuted reports that indelible ink marks on voters' fingers were being wiped off during the ongoing civic polls. The BMC clarified that the Municipal Commissioner had not made any such statement.
'If the BJP had contested all 227 seats, I believe they would have managed to secure a majority on their own.'
Electors in the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls will be required to present either a voter photo ID card or any one of the 12 alternative identity documents approved by the State Election Commission to cast their vote, officials said.
More voter deletions recorded in draft SIR exercises than to the combined SSRs in the past 10 years.
The Election Commission (EC) clarified that Nobel laureate Amartya Sen is not required to appear for a hearing regarding discrepancies in the spelling of his name in the voter list. The correction will be handled administratively. The EC also issued instructions to ensure timely delivery of notices related to voter list discrepancies.
According to official records, Kishor is enrolled as a voter in West Bengal at 121, Kalighat Road, the address of the Trinamool Congress headquarters in Kolkata's Bhabanipur assembly constituency, which is Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee's seat, he said.
BNP chairman Tarique Rahman called for maintaining law and order and sought cooperation in building a safe and humane Bangladesh after his party's victory in parliamentary elections.
Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar expressed satisfaction over the completion of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar, stating that the exercise has 'purified' the voters' list after 22 years. He made the announcement during a press conference in Patna.
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat cast his vote in the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) polls and commented on the NOTA option, stating it indirectly helps promote an unwanted candidate.
'Marathi-speaking people of Mumbai have now emerged as a consolidated vote bank standing firmly behind the Thackerays.'
The Supreme Court declined to entertain a petition by Jan Suraaj Party seeking annulment of the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, citing violation of the Model Code of Conduct. The court directed the party to approach the Patna High Court.
Mohammed Shami on Tuesday appeared before poll officials in Kolkata for his scheduled hearing under the ongoing SIR exercise in West Bengal.
A delegation of Opposition leaders in Maharashtra, including Sharad Pawar, Uddhav Thackeray, and Raj Thackeray, met with the state's chief electoral officer to raise concerns about alleged irregularities in the poll process, particularly regarding the voters' list, ahead of local body elections.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday accused the Congress of handing over Assam's land to infiltrators for votes during its rule in the northeastern state.
Sonia Gandhi's counsel argued in a Delhi court that a complaint alleging she was included in the electoral roll before acquiring Indian citizenship was politically motivated.
The BJP-Shiv Sena alliance has made significant progress in challenging the Thackeray family's control over Mumbai's Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) after nearly 25 years. The results mark a potential shift in Mumbai's civic politics, with the BJP emerging as a central force.
Alankar Agnihotri said several organisations of the upper-caste community would participate in the stir if the central government fails to withdraw the SC/ST Act by February 6.
The Supreme Court has sought a response from the Election Commission on a plea by Trinamool Congress MPs alleging irregularities in the revision of electoral rolls in West Bengal.
A BMC spokesperson said the average voter turnout stood at 29.96 per cent till 1.30 pm in the metropolis, which has more than 1 crore eligible electors.
The first phase of the Bihar assembly polls recorded a historic turnout of 65.08 per cent, the highest in the state's history, according to the Election Commission.
The Congress party has alleged that approximately 23 lakh women's names have been removed from the voter list in Bihar, particularly in constituencies with close contests in the 2020 elections. They claim this is a deliberate act of 'vote theft' orchestrated by the ruling party through the Election Commission.
All along, we were told SIR was an essential exercise carried out as part of the Election Commission's regular duties. But now that the ideological mentor of the ruling party has declared that SIR is a means of detecting infiltrators, one understands the unseemly haste with which it is being carried out, notes Jyoti Punwani.
The Election Commission is ramping up preparations for a special intensive revision of voter lists across India, assessing the progress made on mapping current electors with voters as per the last SIR in different states.
Despite her special leave petition being pending before the Supreme Court, she was deported to Bangladesh from the Matila transit camp on December 19.
The Supreme Court has directed the Bihar State Legal Service Authority to assist voters excluded from the final electoral rolls in filing appeals with the Election Commission.
'It's not hidden, it's not unintentional -- inciting hate and violence is in the DNA of Dhurandhar.'
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar expressed anger when a group of women left an event where he was speaking about government initiatives for women's empowerment.
The Maharashtra State Election Commission has prohibited civic poll candidates from using microphones and moving in large groups during door-to-door canvassing after the end of the public campaign. Opposition parties have criticised the decision.
Criticising the Election Commission ahead of the local body elections, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Monday claimed that 9.6 million fake voters have been added, as per the information received.
The BJP and Shiv Sena are leading in the early trends of the Zilla Parishad and Panchayat Samiti polls in Maharashtra. Counting began on Monday morning for elections to 12 Zilla Parishads and 125 Panchayat Samitis.
Stepping up political pressure ahead of the assembly elections, the Congress-led Opposition bloc in Assam has lodged an FIR against state Bharatiya Janata Party President Dilip Saikia, accusing him of directing BJP MLAs to delete Opposition voters during the ongoing Special Revision of electoral rolls.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday charged the Trinamool Congress government with 'playing with national security by protecting infiltrators' for vote-bank politics, and said ending the ruling party's 'maha jungle raj' was vital to restore law and order, development and investor confidence in the state.
Rahul Gandhi said that had an INDIA Bloc government negotiated the trade agreement with the US, it would have told US President Donald Trump that he should treat India as an equal.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged industry and start-ups to focus on quality and make excellence a benchmark in manufacturing. He also lauded the start-up ecosystem and greeted the nation on National Voters Day and Republic Day.
The Supreme Court has directed the Election Commission to provide details regarding the 3.66 lakh voters excluded from Bihar's final electoral roll after a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. The court's direction came after concerns were raised by petitioners about the lack of notice or reasons given to the excluded voters.
The CM recently said that only'miyas' were being 'harassed' during the ongoing Special Revision (SR) of electoral rolls in the state, as they cannot be allowed to vote in Assam, and claimed that no Assamese -- Hindus or Muslims -- were facing any problem in the exercise. Opposition parties criticised him for this comment.
The Election Commission will conduct phase two of the special intensive revision of electoral rolls in 12 states and Union territories between November and February, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar announced on Monday.
Film folk stepped out to vote in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections on January 14, and paused to show off their inked fingers as well as encourage the rest of the voting population to cast their votes too.
The second phase of the Systematic Integration of Rolls (SIR) in West Bengal is causing distress among elderly, disabled, and vulnerable voters, leading to political accusations ahead of the assembly polls.