K. Deepa, 37, a person with disabilities, of the Narikurava community, casting her vote at a polling booth at Devarayaneri in Tiruchi district on Friday.
| Photo Credit: M. MOORTHY

While ramps and wheelchairs were provided, complete accessibility to cast vote was still not achieved for the disabled community in the first phase of the Lok Sabha Elections that was held in Tamil Nadu on Friday.

For first time voter T. Saravanan, 19, a wheelchair user, the EVM was not accessible, leading to him not being able to cast his own vote. “I was very excited to take part in the elections but there was no space for my wheelchair to move into the EVM space. My mother had to vote on my behalf. I couldn’t even touch the EVM,” he said.

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Disabled persons highlighted that there was no accessible toilet while most polling booths were also missing handrails to help them up the ramps nor were the ramps at the right height for easy access. They also noted that they weren’t allowed to take their vehicles past the gate of the polling booth to access their booths.

K. Kamalnathan, wheelchair user voting in North Chennai constituency, crawled on the floor to reach the EVM. He said the officials offered to carry him. “Why should they? Shouldn’t I have my privacy and dignity to cast my vote,” he questioned.

Ummul Khair, a member of the Disability Legislation Unit said that she asked the officials to move the EVM to make space to accommodate the wheelchair and did not move until the space was made but her troubles didn’t end there. “I reached the EVM and realised I could not reach the buttons. It was difficult,” she added.

Meanwhile, Aranga Raja, who is visually impaired, used the braille sheet and Form 7A but found it difficult to cast his vote as the EVM was’t numbered and it was assembled from right to left, something which he was not prepared for. “The polling officer had to help me and my privacy to cast my vote was lost,” he said.

People with low vision complained that the rooms were poorly lit making it difficult to see the symbols while some others also noted that the symbols were small too.

“It has been a half-hearted effort. Despite access audits of the polling booths conducted out of the efforts of the community, many people were still unable to vote as the EVMs were not accessible or the ramps were too steep,” said Aishwarya Rao, member of the Disability Rights Alliance.

In Pallapalayam in Coimbatore, 77-year-old Shanmugham said he had cast his vote for 12 MP elections. “I had voted when Nehru was elected the Prime Minister,” he claimed. “I used to work in a textile mill. My movement is restricted because I suffered a stroke,” he said.

In Tiruchy, Mohamed Ibrahim (57) from Muslim Street, who had cast his vote at a polling booth at Al-Jamieathus Sadhik Matriculation School in Khajamalai, said he has been exercising his franchise without fail. “I eagerly waited for the polling day to cast my vote. I follow political news and strongly believe that effecting change is in our hands,” said Mr. Ibrahim.

A view of Katchatheevu island in Sri Lanka.
| Photo Credit: L. Balachandar

The story so far: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 31 raised again the controversial matter of Katchatheevu, a few weeks ahead of the Lok Sabha poll in Tamil Nadu. Citing a report in a daily and posting it on “X” (formerly Twitter), he said: “Eye-opening and startling! New facts reveal how Congress callously gave away Katchatheevu….” Subsequently, the State BJP and the AIADMK sharpened their attacks on the DMK and the Congress while the responses were swift too. Even though almost 50 years have lapsed since the signing of the original agreement in 1974, the matter comes back to the fore as political parties use it for attacking their adversaries. On March 16, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK chief M.K. Stalin contended that Katchatheevu was ceded to Sri Lanka despite strong protests by the DMK. He asked the Prime Minister what steps were taken by the latter to retrieve the islet. About one-and-a-half months ago, Katchatheevu was in limelight as, in late February, fishermen associations in Ramanathapuram district boycotted the annual two-day festival, as a mark of protest against the Sri Lankan Government’s continuing arrests of Indian fishermen on charges of poaching.

When did Katchatheevu become a part of Sri Lanka?

During June 26-28, 1974, the then Prime Ministers of India and Sri Lanka, Indira Gandhi and Sirima R.D. Bandaranaike, signed an agreement to demarcate the boundary between the two countries in the historic waters from Palk Strait to Adam’s Bridge. A joint statement issued on June 28, 1974, stated that a boundary had been defined “in conformity with the historical evidence, legal international principles and precedents.” It also pointed out that “this boundary falls one mile off the west coast of the uninhabited” Katchatheevu. The pact brought to a close the talks held between the two sides since October 1921. Initially, the negotiations were held between the governments of the then Madras and Ceylon.

How important has been Kachatheevu to the fisherfolk?

Fisherfolk of the two countries have been traditionally using the islet for fishing. Though this feature was acknowledged in the 1974 agreement, the supplemental pact in March 1976 made it clear that fishing vessels and fishermen of the two countries “shall not engage” in fishing in the historic waters, territorial sea and exclusive zone or exclusive economic zone of either of the countries “without the express permission of Sri Lanka or India.”

St. Anthony’s Church there holds an annual festival, either in February or March, drawing devotees from both sides of the Palk Bay, a tradition which has been going on.

What triggered the negotiations between India and Sri Lanka?

Sri Lanka claimed sovereignty over Kachatheevu on the ground that the Portuguese who had occupied the island during 1505-1658 CE had exercised jurisdiction over the islet. India’s contention was that the erstwhile Raja of Ramnad [Ramanathapuram] had possession of it as part of his zamin. According to a news item published by The Hindu on March 6, 1968 which was based on the interview of the erstwhile Raja Ramanatha Sethupathi, Kachatheevu was under the jurisdiction of the zamin “from time immemorial” and it was the “last post’ of the Ramnad Estate. He added that the zamin had been collecting taxes till 1947 when it was taken over by the State government following the Zamindari Abolition Act. However, replying to the debate on the matter in Lok Sabha in July 1974, the then External Affairs Minister Swaran Singh asserted that the decision had been taken after “exhaustive research of historical and other records” on the islet.

How was the 1974 agreement received?

The present demand for the Katchatheevu retrieval traces its origin to the opposition that the pact generated in 1974. During the debates in both Houses of Parliament in July 1974, most of the Opposition including the DMK, AIADMK, Jan Sangh, Swatantara and the Socialist Party, staged walk outs in the two Houses. Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who was the Jan Sangh’s leader, had contended that the decision to transfer the islet had been taken “behind the back” of the people and Parliament. He was supported by Madhu Limaye, veteran Socialist leader. The then Chief Minister M.Karunanidhi, even in 1973 when the talk of the islet transfer had been doing rounds, had urged Indira Gandhi that the popular feeling was in favour of retaining Katchatheevu which “belonged to India and not to Tamil Nadu alone,” according to a report published by The Hindu on October 17, 1973. Three months later, he wrote a letter reiterating the stand, a copy of which was released a day after the 1974 agreement was signed. M. G. Ramachandran, founder of the AIADMK, which was a fledgling party then, had criticised Karunanidhi for “his failure to guide the Centre properly” on the issue and sought his resignation.

When did the issue get a fresh lease of life?

After remaining low nearly for over 15 years, the Katchatheevu issue got revived in August 1991 with the then Chief Minister Jayalalithaa demanding retrieval during her Independence Day address. She later modified her demand to one of getting back the islet through “a lease in perpetuity.” The Tamil Nadu Assembly had witnessed a number of debates on the matter. In the last 15 years, both Jayalalithaa and Karunanidhi had approached the Supreme Court on the matter.

What has been the stand of the Union government on the issue?

In August 2013, the Union government told the Supreme Court that the question of retrieval of Kachchatheevu from Sri Lanka did not arise as no territory belonging to India was ceded to Sri Lanka. It contended that the islet was a matter of dispute between British India and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and there was no agreed boundary, a matter of which was settled through 1974 and 1976 agreements. In December 2022, the Union government, while referring to the two agreements, pointed out in its reply in the Rajya Sabha that Katchatheevu “lies on the Sri Lankan side of the India-Sri Lanka International Maritime Boundary Line.” It added that the matter was sub-judice in the Supreme Court.

New Delhi:

The Congress on Thursday released its third list of 56 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, fielding Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury from Berhampore, party chief Mallikarjun Kharge’s son-in-law Radhakrishna from Gulbarga and former Union minister Sushilkumar Shinde’s daughter Praniti Shinde from Solapur.

The Congress has left the Sikar constituency in Rajasthan for the Communist Party of India (Marxist).

With this, the party has declared a total of 138 candidates for the Lok Sabha polls.

In its third list, the Congress has declared candidates for two seats in Arunachal Pradesh, 11 in Gujarat, 17 in Karnataka, seven in Maharashtra, five in Rajasthan, five in Telangana, eight in West Bengal and one in Puducherry.

Former Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Nabam Tuki has been fielded from Arunachal West. In Gujarat, the party has named Sonal Patel from Gandhinagar, Prabhaben Taviyad from Dahod (ST) and Nilesh Kumbani from Surat, among others.

Mr Kharge’s son-in-law and the children of five ministers figure in the second list of 17 candidates for Karnataka announced by the Congress.

It has fielded Priyanka Jarkiholi from Chikkodi, Radhakrishna from Gulbarga (SC), Vinod Asooti from Dharwad, M Rajeev Gowda from Bangalore North, Sowmya Reddy from Bangalore South, Mansoor Ali Khan from Bangalore Central and state minister Lakshmi Ravindra Hebbalkar’s son Mrunal Ravindra Hebbalkar from Belguam, among others.

The Congress has fielded Shahu Shahaji Chhatrapati, a descendant of Chhatrapati Shivaji, from Kolhapur in Maharashtra. It has also fielded Vasantrao Chavan from Nanded and Ravindra Hemraj Dhangekar from Pune.

In Telangana, the party has fielded Sunitha Mahender Reddy from Malkajgiri, Danam Nagender from Secunderabad, Gaddam Vamsi Krishna from Peddapalle (SC), Gaddam Rajith Reddy from Chevella and Mallu Ravi from Nagarkurnool (SC).

In Rajasthan, the Congress has fielded Sunil Sharma from Jaipur, Sangeeta Beniwal from Pali, Urmila Jain Bhaya from Jhalawar-Baran.

The party has again fielded Mr Chowdhury from Berhampore, setting up the much-anticipated clash between the veteran Congress leader and cricketer-turned-politician Yusuf Pathan, who has been fielded by the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) in West Bengal.

In West Bengal, the Congress has also fielded Pradip Bhattacharya from Kolkata North, Mostaque Alam from Maldaha North, Ali Imran Ramz (Victor) from Raiganj, Mohammed Murtoja Hossain (Bokul) from Jangipur, Nepal Mahato from Purulia and Milton Rashid from Birbhum.

The party has renominated its incumbent MP from Puducherry, Ve Vaithilingam.

Also, the Congress has fielded Isha Khan Choudhury, son of Abu Hasem Khan Choudhury, from Maldaha South. Abu Hasem Khan Choudhury is the incumbent MP from the seat.

Earlier, the Congress had announced 82 candidates in two lists for the seven-phase Lok Sabha polls beginning April 19. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Seeking to woo the country’s youth ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the Congress will for the first time ever offer them the “right to employment” as part of its poll promise for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections besides mulling stringent punishment to those responsible for paper leaks in examinations.

The party top leadership is likely to make an announcement on the ‘right to employment’ during a public rally at Badanawar in Madhya Pradesh, where both Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi will be present.

Top party sources said the promises will be part of the Congress manifesto which is likely to be finalised soon, once the Congress Working Committee approves it.

“This is the first time ever that such a scheme to give ‘right to employment’ will be given to the youth of the country and some allowance may also be offered to the youth,” a source said, adding that even developed countries do not offer their youth such a scheme.

The party would also provide for a stringent law and punishment against those responsible for paper leaks in the country and will suggest measures to bring transparency in government recruitments in its manifesto.

The measures come after Rahul Gandhi during the ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’ has focussed on the plight of lakhs of students suffering due to frequent paper leaks and cancellation of exams thereafter in some cases like in Uttar Pradesh.

The thrust of the manifesto is likely to be on the 5-nyay (five pillars of justice) promised by the Congress during party leader Rahul Gandhi-led ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’, the sources said.

The party would also focus on giving legal guarantee to minimum support price and promising a caste-based census in the country for filling up the government vacancies.

The Congress is likely to give a thrust to some welfare measures like providing financial assistance to marginalised sections of society and ensuring that they get justice and be part of the state welfare measures.

This comes after the Congress promises made to the people helped the party get into power in states like Karnataka, Telangana and Himachal Pradesh recently. The Congress manifesto committee, headed by former union minister P Chidambaram, met here to give a final shape to the manifesto for the Lok Sabha polls at a five-hour meeting last evening.

Several members of the party’s manifesto committee were present during the meeting at the AICC headquarters.

Chidambaram said the committee has given final shape to the draft manifesto which will become the party document once the CWC approves the same.

The panel wound up internal deliberations for giving final shape to the party manifesto which is likely to include some innovative measures like an apprenticeship scheme for the youth to deal with the issue of unemployment.

“We have completed our draft manifesto. It’s a draft. It will go to the Congress working committee. It is the Congress Working Committee which finalises the manifesto and then it becomes a Congress party document. At the moment, we have completed the work on the draft manifesto,” Chidambaram told reporters after the meeting.

“I hope to be able to present it to the Congress president along with members available in Delhi sometime tomorrow,” he added.

The party’s manifesto committee also has senior leaders like Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Shashi Tharoor and Anand Sharma, among others. Vadra and Sharma were, however, not present in the meetings held on Monday and Tuesday.

Among those who participated in the discussions on Tuesday include Chidambaram and Tharoor, minority chief head Imran Pratapgarhi, Ranjeet Ranjan and Gurdeep Sappal.

Pratapgarhi after the meeting said, “We had taken views from all across the country and compiled it accordingly. It combines everything, youth women, unemployment, inflation etc.” “It will go now to the CWC and will notify upon issued,” said Ranjan.

Sources also said the party manifesto will focus on empowering the youth, women, poor and farmers.

They added the party is mulling a plan to tackle the menace of paper leaks and is likely to present its vision for bringing about transparency in government recruitments.

The 16-member panel includes Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and former union minister Jairam Ramesh while former Chhattisgarh deputy chief minister TS Singh Deo is its convenor.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Jumai, Bihar:

 Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) Chief Chirag Paswan on Tuesday said that he is paving the way for his mother to fight the Lok Sabha election from Bihar’s Hajipur constituency.

“I cannot disappoint the people of Jamui (Chirag Paswan’s parliamentary constituency), but I cannot assure you about whatever the condition is going to be. However, I am paving the way for Maa to fight from the Hajipur constituency so that I can continue with Jamui. But this is for sure that the LJP (Ram Vilas) will fight from both Hajipur and Jamui”, Mr Paswan said while speaking to reporters in Bihar’s Jamui.

“If Maa does not get ready to fight from Hajipur, then we will accept the decision taken by the party’s parliamentary board. But I am trying that my relationship with Jamui remains constant”, he added.

The LJP Chief further said, “I came to Jamui as a son, but will leave from here as an elderly”.

The Lok Sabha polls are scheduled to be held in 2024.

It is worth mentioning that Chirag Paswan’s father and founder of the LJP, Ram Vilas Paswan represented the Hajipur constituency.

However, post-Ram Vilas’s demise in 2020, the LJP got bifurcated in 2021 owing to inner conflicts leading to the formation of Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) (Ram Vilas) and Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party (RLJP).

The LJP is currently headed by Chirag Paswan and the RLJP is headed by Ram Vilas Paswan’s brother and Union Minister, Pasupati Kumar Paras.

Both parties are partners in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) bloc, headed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Meanwhile, Pasupati Kumar Paras has also been reiterating his claims on the Hajipur constituency.

In an apparent dig at his nephew Chirag Paswan, RLJP Chief Paras earlier said that Chirag should contest from the seat where the late Ram Vilas Paswan wanted him to contest.

“I will contest the election from Hajipur. I’ve said many times that during my political career, I will stay with NDA and will continue to serve the people of Haijpur. There is no other contestant (for the Hajipur seat). All other contestants are bogus contestants. He (Chirag Paswan) should go where (late Ram Vilas Paswan) Paswan had taken him and serve those people…,” Mr Paras said.

In 2019, Pashupati Paras won from Hajipur while Chirag Paswan emerged as the winner from Jamui.

However, the uncle-nephew fight shows no sign of relenting for close to three years.

Pashupati Kumar Paras and Chirag Paswan first locked horns over claiming the legacy of Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) founder Ram Vilas Paswan.

Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) was formed in October 2021 after the Election Commission allotted a separate symbol to Chirag Paswan’s faction following his differences with his uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras, who heads a separate faction.

Meanwhile, in the 2020 Bihar assembly elections, Chirag Paswan had walked out of the NDA, raising a rebellion against Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

In the Bihar assembly elections 2020, the LJP managed to secure only a 5.66 per cent vote share winning a single seat.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)