One of the high-profile contests in the high-stakes Bengal polls is likely to be a direct fight between Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her former confidant and now BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari in Nandigram seat.
West Bengal on Sunday recorded 79.70 per cent voting in the second phase of assembly polls in 56 constituencies.
The Congress party announced its intention to challenge the constitutionality of the recently passed Wakf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 in the Supreme Court. AICC general secretary Jairam Ramesh stated that the party will "very soon" file a petition, citing concerns about the bill's impact on constitutional principles. Ramesh highlighted the Congress's ongoing legal challenges against other legislation, including the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), amendments to the Right to Information (RTI) Act, and changes to the Conduct of Election Rules. He emphasized the party's commitment to defending the Constitution's principles, provisions, and practices.
The protests by resident doctors at government hospitals in several states across the country ended on Thursday as major doctors' bodies called off their 11-day strike over the rape-murder of a trainee medic in Kolkata after the Supreme Court made an appeal to them to resume work.
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.
While speaking at the programme at the EZCC, Chakraborty said, "In 2026, the masnad will be ours, and we will do everything to achieve the goal."
The State Election Commission on Friday informed the Calcutta high court that it has requisitioned 822 companies of central forces for the July 8 panchayat polls in West Bengal.
Counting of votes for the Lok Sabha elections has begun across states and Union Territories, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar told PTI.
A voter turnout of 10.82 per cent was recorded till 9 am on Saturday in 58 constituencies in six states and two Union territories where polling is underway in the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha elections.
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.
Former Lok Sabha MP and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Arjun Singh alleged that a group of people threw stones, hurled bombs and fired multiple gunshots at his office-cum-residence Meghna More in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas around 8.30 am on Friday.
As the final five phases of polls draw closer, rift among Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) partners, Congress-Left combine and the Trinamool Congress, which are fighting separately has intensified, triggering a fierce contest across half of the remaining 36 constituencies in West Bengal driven by local issues such as Sandeshkhali and the SSC scam.
Moderate to high turnout was recorded in 13 assembly constituencies across seven states where bypolls were held on Wednesday amid sporadic incidents of violence in Uttarakhand, Bihar and West Bengal.
'The TMC can't go on forever taking advantage of the people's fright of the BJP.'
'The protection of secrecy and anonymity gets lost with this linking.'
Polling and police officers travel in a boat with election materials to reach to a remote polling station ahead of the first phase of India's general election in the Majuli district, Assam, April 18, 2024.
The e-mail, detailing the points which were discussed and agreed upon between the two sides and also those which weren't, was sent as per the state's requirement based on which the government is expected to issue directives, the doctors said.
Hitting back at Prashant Kishor, Kailash Vijayvargiya remarked that the country will lose a poll strategist after his part forms the government in the state after the upcoming elections in the state.
He was reviled by critics in his party as a neo-liberal in disguise but till the end, he retained his belief in secularism and the humanity of Communism.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday asserted that she would win the ongoing state polls despite injury and eventually aim for power in Delhi.
Trinamool Congress councillor Dulal Sarkar was shot dead by unidentified miscreants in West Bengal's Malda district on Thursday morning. Sarkar, popularly known as Babla, was shot multiple times from close range by bike-borne assailants at Jhaljhalia More area. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee expressed shock over the killing and blamed the callousness of the Malda SP. Two contract killers have been arrested in connection with the murder.
'If you stay out of power for long, you become irrelevant, your party members become restless and start looking to jump ship.'
Polling is scheduled in all 13 seats of Punjab and four of Himachal Pradesh, 13 constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, nine in West Bengal, eight in Bihar, six in Odisha and three seats in Jharkhand besides Chandigarh.
Here are the constituency-wise mapped leads/results for the West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu assembly elections!
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has slammed the Maha Kumbh as a "Mrityu Kumbh" (Death Kumbh), accusing the Uttar Pradesh government of suppressing the actual toll in the stampede that occurred at the religious gathering. Banerjee also criticized the lack of planning and management at the event, highlighting the plight of Bengal residents who died in the stampede. The BJP, however, has condemned Banerjee's remarks, calling her an "anti-Hindu chief minister" and accusing her of political opportunism.
A voter turnout of over 40 per cent was recorded till 1 pm on Monday in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections in 96 constituencies spread over 10 states and Union Territories amid incidents of violence in Andhra Pradesh and reports of poll boycott in some villages of Uttar Pradesh.
The governor had opened a 'Peace Room' at the Raj Bhavan to address violence-related complaints from people in districts during the recently held panchayat elections.
The ED officers are conducting raids at 15 places in the state during the day and Sajahan's house is one of them, an officer said.
'The Election Commission is conducting the National Register of Citizens in Bihar through the backdoor.'
He termed the allegations as "just random statements" and demanded that people making such allegations should demonstrate how the EVMs can be "hacked"
The apex court, which dismissed the pleas filed by the West Bengal government and the State Election Commission (SEC) challenging the high court order, said the tenor of the high court order was ultimately to ensure free and fair election in the state.
Banerjee also appealed to the people of West Bengal not to get provoked over matters concerning the current situation in Bangladesh.
A poster with death threats to West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee and her nephew, party's general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, appeared in Uluberia in West Bengal's Howrah district on Friday, police 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.
Bose is likely to meet Shah on Monday morning, he said, adding that the governor has prepared a report on his views after visiting violence-hit areas in the backdrop of the rural polls.
The direction comes after Kolkata Police constituted an inquiry team to probe into the woman's allegation against the governor.
Sporadic incidents of unrest marred the West Bengal bypolls, with a local Trinamool Congress worker Ashok Shaw dying following a crude bomb attack in Bhatpara, an area adjoining Naihati assembly constituency where voting was underway.
The welfare schemes of the government, particularly Lakshmir Bhandar, have had a major impact on the electoral outcome.
The West Bengal Congress unit issued a denial and said the state president meant "TMC and BJP are just the opposite sides of the same coin as both are venomous and spread lies".
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