LS polls highlights: Cong's poll body meets to finalise candidates

Lok Sabha elections 2024 latest news updates: Catch all the latest updates from around the world here

The top leadership of the Congress is attending a meeting in the national capital on Thursday to finalise the party's candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chief Sonia Gandhi and general secretary, organisation, K C Venugopal, as well as other senior leaders who are part of the Congress' Central Election Committee (CEC) were present at the meeting. Finalising candidates for Delhi, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Telangana, Lakshadweep, Kerala, Meghalaya, Tripura, Sikkim and Manipur, among others, is expected to be discussed during the meeting. The Congress has not declared any candidate so far. Last week, the BJP came out with its first list of 195 candidates for the Lok Sabha elections.

Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections and Assembly elections in Odisha, there are discussions that the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) in Odisha led by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik will forge an alliance with the BJP, years after their break-up. Although there has been no formal announcement of the same, leaders of both parties have winked at reports of the latest realignment, news agency PTI reported. The BJD had broken ties with the BJP-led NDA in 2009. Odisha BJP leaders on Wednesday met Home Minister Amit Shah and the party's national president J P Nadda amid indications that it may enter an alliance for the Lok Sabha and assembly polls, which are held simultaneously in the state, with the BJD.

Senior Tipra Motha leader Animesh Debbarma on Thursday resigned as the Leader of the Opposition in Tripura Assembly. He, along with another lawmaker of the party, Brishaketu Debbarma, will take oath as ministers in the BJP-led government in the northeastern state during the day.

In case of an alliance, the BJP will definitely contest a majority of Lok Sabha seats in the state while the regional party will contest a majority of assembly seats, news agency PTI reported citing sources.

The INDIA bloc has  offered eight Lok Sabha seats in Bihar and two in Uttar Pradesh to Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan, sources have told NDTV. Paswan is reportedly being offered only six Lok Sabha seat in Bihar by the NDA and even those are linked to fulfillment of certain conditions - the seats will have to be split with his uncle and Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party chief Pashupati Paras. 

The INDIA alliance offer comes with all six seats that the undivided Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) had contested in 2019, and a  sweetener in the form of two additional constituencies in Bihar and two in Uttar Pradesh, NDTV reported today citing sources.

7:34 PM

Cong's poll body meets to finalise first list of candidates for general elections

The top leadership of the Congress is attending a meeting in the national capital on Thursday to finalise the party's candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

 

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chief Sonia Gandhi and general secretary, organisation, K C Venugopal, as well as other senior leaders who are part of the Congress' Central Election Committee (CEC) were present at the meeting.

 

Finalising candidates for Delhi, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Telangana, Lakshadweep, Kerala, Meghalaya, Tripura, Sikkim and Manipur, among others, is expected to be discussed during the meeting.

 

The Congress has not declared any candidate so far. Last week, the BJP came out with its first list of 195 candidates for the Lok Sabha elections.

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BJP-BJD alliance: Will decide what will be conducive to Odisha's development, says BJD leader

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News update: Tripura LoP Animesh Debbarma resigns, to take oath as minister in BJP-led govt

Senior Tipra Motha leader Animesh Debbarma on Thursday resigned as the Leader of the Opposition in Tripura Assembly. He, along with another lawmaker of the party, Brishaketu Debbarma, will take oath as ministers in the BJP-led government in the northeastern state during the day.

"The Tipra Motha has 13 MLAs in the 60-member assembly. It will join the government as an ally of the BJP and will be allotted two ministerial berths," Animesh Debbarma said.

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Why BJD, BJP are forging an alliance against Congress in Odisha

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