Page 5 - Election

Poll-related seizures in K'taka cross Rs 300 cr since MCC came into effect

Election-related seizures in Karnataka on Friday crossed the Rs 300 crore mark since the Model Code of Conduct came into effect on March 16, according to the Election Commission. Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka will be held in two phases on April 26 and May 7 for its 28 constituencies. Since March 16 till date, seizures worth Rs 307.61 crore have been made by the Election Commission in Karnataka in coordination with its enforcement teams comprising flying squads, police and static surveillance team, the EC officials said. According to a statement issued by the office of Chief Electoral Officer of Karnataka, since the Model Code of Conduct came into force, the flying squads, static surveillance teams and police authorities have seized Rs 46.01 crore cash, Rs 7.73 crore articles meant for distribution as freebies, liquor worth Rs 147 crore, narcotic substances worth 9.75 crore, and gold worth Rs 24.38 crore, among others. They have also registered 1,587 FIRs with regard to the seizu

BJP 'openly' violating election code but EC not acting, claims Atish

"Openly and brazenly the model code of conduct was violated by the BJP, and yet there was no action from the EC," Atishi added

No, India did not interfere in elections: Official Canadian investigation

The probe found that a group of senior Canadian officials overseeing the elections in the country were not informed of any attempt by India to influence the polls

New govt will transfer Rs 1 lakh into accounts of SC, ST women, says Rahul

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday exuded confidence to win the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and said the new government will transfer Rs 1 lakh annually into accounts of women belonging to SC, ST, and backward categories. Addressing a rally at Dhanora in Seoni district, which is part of the Mandla Lok Sabha constituency, Gandhi also assured to provide guaranteed apprenticeships to unemployed youths. "Our manifesto mentions three to four revolutionary steps taken by us like transferring Rs 1 lakh into (bank) accounts of women belonging to SC and ST categories, backward classes, and for women from poor families. This way we will provide thousands of rupees in their accounts every month," he said. Congress has fielded former minister and MLA Omkar Singh Markam from the Mandla constituency against the sitting MP and Union minister Faggan Singh Kulaste. The Congress has also promised to double the money being paid to Asha and Anganwadi workers, Gandhi said. "We will also bring a n

BJP wasn't formed to make anyone PM or CM, hence never split: Fadnavis

The Bharatiya Janata Party was not established to make anyone the prime minister or the chief minister and hence never faced an internal division, said Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday. The senior BJP claimed that theirs is the only national party in the country's history that has not experienced a split. Addressing his party workers during an event here to mark the 44th foundation day of the BJP, Fadnavis asked the cadres to work as the soldiers of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to make India a developed country. From leaders like Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee, Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi to PM Modi, all have worked to grow the party, he said. BJP leaders were never self-centred or selfish, Fadnavis said. This party was never made for making anyone the prime minister or chief minister or any other post but was established to create an ideology that will serve the nation's interests. This party always

Over 99% independent candidates lost deposits in LS polls since 1991

As India heads to the 18th general election, data over the years show voters' trust in independent candidates has been diminishing, with more than 99 per cent of independent candidates losing their deposits since 1991. Data compiled by the Election Commission of India show that since independence, even as the number of independent candidates has remained high, numbers of those winning polls have come down from over six per cent in 1951 and eight per cent in 1957, to around 0.11 per cent in 2019. An independent candidate is one who is not aligned with any recognised party. In the first elections of 1951-52, 533 independent candidates had contested, and 37 of them won, around 6.90 per cent. Election Commission regulations stipulate that candidates failing to secure a minimum of one-sixth of the total valid votes polled would have their deposits redirected to the treasury. The security deposit amount was Rs 500 for general candidates and Rs 250 for candidates from SC/ST communities i

Congress seeks action against BJP, Gadkari 'for violating' poll rules

The Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee says the BJP and the union minister used school students 'in election-related activities'

Lok Sabha polls: 55 candidates left in fray for five seats of Uttarakhand

One independent candidate from Almora has withdrawn from the contest leaving only 55 candidates in the fray for the April 19 Lok Sabha polls in Uttarakhand. Arjun Kumar Dev, the independent candidate from Almora, withdrew on the last date for withdrawal of nominations on Saturday, Additional Chief Electoral Officer Vijay Kumar Jogdande said. Dev was the lone candidate to withdraw, he said. There are now a total of 55 candidates in the fray for the five Lok Sabha constituencies in the state which go to polls in the first phase on April 19. There are 11 candidates in the fray for Tehri seat, 13 for Pauri Garhwal, 7 for Almora, 10 for Nainital and 14 for Haridwar, Jogdande said. The additional chief electoral officer said that publishing and broadcasting of exit poll results will be completely prohibited during the entire election process as per the Election Commission's instructions. Jogdande said that there will be a ban on the publication and telecast of exit polls from 7 am on A

I-T, CBI also detected Rs 45 cr kickback used in AAP Goa poll campaign: ED

The money trail of the alleged Rs 45 crore kickbacks generated from the Delhi excise policy "scam" and used for the 2022 Goa election campaign by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), as claimed by the Enforcement Directorate, has also been "substantiated" by the CBI and the Income-Tax department in their separate investigations, according to documents filed in court. A wide network of Hawala operators and 'Angadiyas' are also being investigated by the ED in this case where it recently arrested Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and claimed he and his political outfit are liable to be prosecuted in the alleged laundering of these funds. Statements of five 'Angadiya' firm operators have also been recorded by the ED to establish the "money trail" of this alleged Rs 45 crore bribe amount. 'Angadiyas' are informal courier and bank services like Hawala which are especially used by diamond and jewellery sector businesses to transfer big cash amounts and other valuables by skirting the KYC-based ..

LS polls: RJD to contest on 26, Cong, Left to field on 14 seats in Bihar

In the seat-sharing formula for the Mahagathbandhan allies, RJD gets key constituencies in Madhubani and Hajipur while Congress to contest from Kishanganj and Muzaffarpur

US, UK accuse China over spy campaign that may have hit millions

Britain's government is expected to blame a string of cyberattacks targeting the U.K.'s election watchdog and lawmakers on hackers linked to the Chinese government, Officials are expected to announce Monday measures against cyber organizations and individuals affiliated with the Chinese government for an attack that may have gained access to information on tens of millions of U.K. voters held by the Electoral Commission, as well as cyberattacks targeting lawmakers who have been outspoken about the China threat. The Electoral Commission said in August that it identified a cyberattack on its system in October 2022, though it added that hostile actors had first been able to access its servers since 2021. At the time, the watchdog said the data included the names and addresses of registered voters. But it added that much of the information was already in the public domain, and that possessing such information was unlikely to influence election results. Separately, three lawmakers, ...

SDF releases Sikkim's LS, state polls list; fields Bhaichung Bhutia

Former Sikkim Chief Minister and SDF supremo Pawan Kumar Chamling will seek election from Poklok-Kamrang seat in Namchi district while former India footballer Bhaichung Bhutia will contest from Barfung constituency for the state Assembly election, the party announced on Monday. The opposition Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) announced the names of 30 candidates for the state assembly election and for the lone Lok Sabha seat in the Himalayan state. Chamling, a five-term former chief minister shifted to the Poklok-Kamrang seat from his sitting Namchi-Singhithang seat to avoid a contest with Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang's wife Krishna Kumari Rai who has entered the fray from there. Former India footballer Bhaichung Bhutia will contest from the Barfung (BL-Reserved) seat, while MG Bhutia has been given ticket for Yuksom-Tashiding (BL-Reserved) seat. Elections to the 32-member Sikkim Assembly and the lone Lok Sabha seat in the Himalayan state will be held simultaneously on April ...

LS elections: Kangana to Varun Gandhi, key highlights of BJP's 5th list

Popular Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut and famous TV personality Arun Govil were the surprise names among the nominations, while the BJP did not give Pilibhit MP Varun Gandhi the ticket

Overseas Friends of BJP launches 'Modi for 2024' campaign in Australia

The campaign is aimed at drumming up overseas support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) going into the Lok Sabha elections in the country

Electoral bond disclosures: Small, unrecognised parties reap benefits

Most unrecognized parties had disclosed their share of electoral bonds received as 'nil', as per the electoral bonds disclosure in digitised form on 17 March 2024

Prabowo Subianto wins Indonesia's presidential election, says poll body

Prabowo is expected to take over from outgoing President Joko Widodo in October. He is expected to speak later on Wednesday

Nationalism and democracy

In a thriving democracy, free and fair elections are vital, but so is strengthening constitutionally empowered institutions

LS polls: Cong holds CEC meeting, finalises candidates for 12 Bengal seats

"Discussions took place for Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, and West Bengal by the screening committee," said Congress leader Jaivardhan Singh

Electoral bonds dropped at office, got by post: Political parties on donors

Several political parties declined to share details of electoral bond donors citing various legal provisions, while others said they received the funding instruments through "drop box" or by post without any name. The DMK, which received most of its donations from a lottery firm, reached out to its donors to seek details of the electoral bonds as demanded by the Supreme Court in 2019. The BJP cited the amendments to the Representation of People Act, 1951 and the relevant portions of the Reserve Bank of India Act and the Income Tax Act for not revealing its donors. "It is duly submitted that the electoral bonds were introduced with the aim of bringing only accounted for funds in political funding while protecting the donors from any consequences, therefrom," the BJP said in its letter to the Election Commission. The Congress shot off a letter to the State Bank of India (SBI) seeking details of donors of electoral bonds, the amount, the bank account in which it was credited and the .

This is fight between 'Asuri Shakti', 'Daivik Shakti': Congress slams PM

The Congress on Monday hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his remark that the INDIA bloc's manifesto talks about finishing 'Shakti', saying the elections will decide whether the country would be run by 'Asuri Shakti' (demonic power) or 'Daivik Shakti' (divine power). A day after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, at a rally in Mumbai, commented that the "fight against Modi is not on a personal level since Modi is a 'mask' who works for a 'Shakti' (power)", the prime minister asserted that the fight is between those who want to destroy 'Shakti' and those who worship it. Prime Minister Modi, referring to the opposition rally in Mumbai's Shivaji Park, said, "They announced their manifesto... and said their fight was against 'Shakti'. For me, every mother and every daughter is a form of 'Shakti'. Mothers and sisters, I worship you as 'Shakti'. I am Bharat Maa's pujari." In retaliation, the Congress likened the BJP to 'Asuri Shakti' and alleged that the nation has seen atrocities .