New Delhi:

The Election Commission on Thursday directed the Union home ministry to retain 25 companies of central forces in Andhra Pradesh even after counting of votes on June 4 following post-poll violence in the state as it conveyed its displeasure to the state chief secretary and the police chief over the incidents.

In a statement, the EC said “without mincing any words”, it directs the chief secretary and the director general of police to ensure that such violence is not repeated and all SPs to be tasked with take pre-emptive measures to avoid such a situation in future.

The poll authority had summoned chief secretary K S Jawahar Reddy and DGP Harish Gupta to Nirvanchan Sadan here to seek “personal explanation” over the incidents of violence reported on Monday and Tuesday.

“The Commission decided to direct the Ministry of Home Affairs to retain the 25 CAPF (central armed police force) companies in Andhra Pradesh for 15 days after counting, to control any violence after declaration of results,” the poll panel said.

It said the state government had requested that central forces be retained for 15 days post counting.

Post-poll violence was reported in parts of Andhra Pradesh on Monday and Tuesday where Lok Sabha and assembly polls were held simultaneously on Monday.

The leaders of the ruling YSRCP and opposition TDP have levelled allegations against each other for the incidents.

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

Srinagar:

A voter turnout of more than 36 per cent took place in the redrawn Srinagar Lok Sabha seat without any untoward incident on Monday, the highest since 1996 when the constituency in Jammu and Kashmir recorded nearly 41 per cent polling.

The Srinagar constituency recorded 36.58 per cent voting till 8 pm, the Election Commission of India said.

This was the first general election in the valley after the abrogation of Article 370 and the enactment of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, the EC said in a statement.

Voting took place in the districts of Srinagar, Ganderbal, and Pulwama, and partly in Budgam and Shopian districts at around 2,135 polling stations across the Srinagar parliamentary constituency with live webcasting at all the polling stations.

Polling started at 7 am with long queues of enthusiastic voters waiting to cast their votes, the statement said.

Voters of Srinagar, Budgam, Ganderbal, Pulwama, and Shopian showed up in record numbers to cast their votes in a show of faith and enthusiasm in the election process, it added.

According to the EC, the highest polling in this constituency in the last 34 years has been in 1996 when nearly 41 per cent voters used their franchise.

In 2019, 14.43 per cent votes polled whereas the figure in previous parliamentary elections stood at 25.86 per cent (2014), 25.55 (2009), 18.57 (2004), 11.93 (1999) and 30.06 per cent (1998), the statement said.

National Conference candidate Aga Ruhullah, PDP’s Wahid Para, JK Apni Party’s Ashraf Mir and DPAP’s Amit Bhat are among 24 candidates fighting from the Srinagar seat. In the 2019 general elections, only 12 candidates were in the fray from the seat.

The Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency was redrawn after the delimitation and parts of Budgam in central Kashmir were taken away from it, while Pulwama district and parts of Shopian district were added.

Polling and security personnel worked tirelessly to ensure that an atmosphere of calm, peace and festivities welcomed voters at the polling stations, the EC added.

More than 8,000 polling staff were on duty to cater to the over 17.47 lakh-strong electorate.

Command-and-Control centres have been working 24×7 in Srinagar as well as Jammu since March 16, the date of announcement of the general elections, to ensure free and fair elections, the EC said.

In order to ensure inclusive voting, polling stations managed by women, specially abled persons and youths were set up. There were 21 green and eco-friendly polling stations, it added.

The Commission has enabled Kashmiri migrant voters residing at various relief camps in Delhi, Jammu, and Udhampur to also have the option of voting in person at designated special polling stations or using postal ballot.

As many as 21 Special Polling Stations were established at Jammu, one at Udhampur and four at Delhi.

Planned, consistent and targeted interventions to promote voter awareness as part of SVEEP activities has contributed to the noteworthy rise in voter turnout, the EC said.

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

Leh:

What should have been a direct contest between the BJP and the Congress in the Ladakh Lok Sabha constituency is now a three-corner fight with an alliance of local groups fielding an Independent to challenge the national parties.

The seat, the largest in the country in terms of area (173.266 square kilometers), goes to polls on May 20 — the first major electoral battle in the region after it was carved out of Jammu and Kashmir and granted Union Territory status in 2019. While the BJP has fielded Tashi Gyalson, chief executive councilor-cum-chairman of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (Leh), from the seat after dropping sitting MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal, the Congress has nominated Tsering Namgyal as its candidate. Springing a surprise, the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) fielded Haji Haneefa Jan, the Kargil district president of the National Conference (NC), which like the Congress is a constituent of the INDIA bloc.

The Congress has won the seat for the highest number of times — six — and had fielded Tsering Namgyal, the leader of opposition in the LAHDC, according to an agreement with the NC, as they were members of the INDIA bloc and the Leh Apex Body (LAB).

It was the LAB and the KDA that were spearheading the agitation in support of various demands of the Ladhaki people, including statehood and sixth schedule of the Constitution, for the past four years. But it hit a block in March after the BJP-led Centre did not agree with the demands.

However, now with the KDA fielding Jan, the challenges for the Congress as well as the BJP has increased in this seat that has more than 1.84 lakh voters — a majority (95,926) in Muslim-dominated Kargil district and 88,877 in Leh district. The resentment against the BJP over its government at the Centre not fulfilling the demands is palpable and the party, which is eyeing a third consecutive term from Ladakh, has rushed Union Minister Kiren Rijiju to handle the situation. He arrived in the Union Territory (UT) on Saturday.

The agitation had intensified on March 6 with Leh observing a complete shutdown followed by a 66-day hunger strike which was suspended three days ago in view of the Lok Sabha elections. Renowned educationist and social reformer Sonam Wangchuk, who was also part of it, ended his 21-day hunger strike on March 26.

Talking to reporters after arriving here on Saturday, Kiren Rijiju said, “…all the big demands of the people can only be fulfilled by the central government. I have come here to convey the message that any pending issue will be resolved by the (Narendra) Modi government alone.” Seeking cooperation and support of the people of Ladakh, Kiren Rijiju said it is imperative for the BJP to win the seat because “if we lose the elections, we will be sad after doing so much for the region over the years, including fulfilling the dream of UT status”. He said it is the right of the people to raise their issues and “it is our responsibility to safeguard the future of Ladakh which is a very sensitive and fragile region having distinct culture, traditional practices, customs and language…”.

Thupstan Chhewang won the seat for the BJP for the first time in 2014. However, he resigned from the party’s basic membership in 2018 and is currently heading the LAB.

The BJP managed to retain the seat in 2019 with Jamyang Tsering Namgyal, who was denied the ticket by the party this time and who openly revolted against the decision. However, he joined the campaigning for Gyalson after being persuaded by the BJP leadership.

Trouble for the Congress candidate started when the KDA unanimously decided to field Jan as an Independent and also persuaded two others, who were contesting as Independents, to withdraw their candidature in his support.

The entire NC unit of Kargil resigned from the party on May 6 to revolt against the its leadership for “putting pressure” on them to support INDIA bloc candidate Tsering Namgyal instead of Jan. The NC has won the seat twice in the past, while independents have won it thrice.

After attaining UT status, Ladakh witnessed elections to both Leh and Kargil chapters of the LAHDC in October 2020 and 2023, respectively.

While the BJP retained power in the Leh hill council elections by winning 15 seats — five short of its 2015 election tally, the Congress increased its tally from six to nine seats while two seats went to Independents.

In the Kargil hill council elections, the NC-Congress combine won 22 seats against two by the BJP and two by Independents. The NC on its own got 12 seats and the Congress 10.

Amid intensified Lok Sabha poll campaigning, which also saw several BJP leaders, including national general secretary Tarun Chugh, reaching out to the voters, Gyalson had said his primary focus will be resumption of dialogue between the Centre and the Ladakh leadership for resolution of “pending issues”.

“My primary focus will be resumption of stalled dialogue (between the Ladakh leadership and central government). I don’t believe that the dialogue is derailed but because of the Model Code of Conduct, no headway has taken place. Once the new government is in place, I am sure about the resumption of the dialogue,” he had said.

Congress candidate Tsering Namgyal said his party has taken a historic decision to include granting sixth schedule to Ladakh in its manifesto.

“We support the four-point demand of the LAB and the KDA and we will forcefully raise the demands within and outside Parliament to fulfill the aspirations of the people,” he said. 

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

Kolkata:

Two days before the May 13 Lok Sabha elections at Ranaghat in West Bengal’s Nadia district, Swastika Maheshwari, the wife of Trinamool Congress candidate Mukut Mani Adhikari, joined the BJP on Saturday.

Swastika Maheshwari, who is already contesting a divorce suit against her husband, joined the BJP at a party rally at Ranaghat in the presence of megastar and BJP leader Mithun Chakraborty.

“Anyone voting for Mukut Mani Adhikari will be cheated exactly like me,” she said.

The development comes as a major embarrassment concerning Mukut Mani Adhikari, against whom Swastika Maheswari filed a complaint just a few days after their marriage last year accusing him of cruelty against her.

Mukut Mani Adhikari’s nomination as Trinamool Congress candidate has been marred with controversy. He was elected as a BJP legislator in the 2021 West Bengal assembly elections from the Ranaghat-Dakshin constituency, one of the seven under the Ranaghat Lok Sabha.

Earlier this year, he joined Trinamool Congress. However, his name was announced as a Trinamool Congress candidate from Ranaghat before he resigned as a BJP legislator. As the BJP started making an issue of it, he finally resigned from the state assembly as a member last month.

Till the time this report was filed, there was no reaction from Mukut Mani Adhikari.

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

New Delhi:

The Chief Electoral Officer of Delhi has tied up with a bike taxi company under which eligible voters will be provided a free ride from the polling booths to their homes on voting day.

As Delhi prepares for Lok Sabha polling day on May 25, the collaboration between the office of Delhi Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) and Rapido aims to address transportation barriers and encourage citizens to exercise their democratic right to vote, said a statement by the Delhi CEO’s office.

As per the arrangement with Rapido, eligible voters in Delhi will be provided with an option to avail a free of charge ride from the polling booths to their home on the day of voting.

On the day of polling, voters after casting their vote can conveniently book and avail a complimentary bike ride using the Rapido app. A dedicated rider will pick up the elector from the polling station and ensure their safe return to home, the statement said.

Chief Electoral Officer of Delhi P. Krishnamurthy said, “By offering option of free bike rides on the polling day, we aim to ensure ease of voting experience and to encourage citizens to exercise their vote and contribute to the democratic process. Every vote counts and it is essential to ensure that every eligible voter can cast their vote without hindrance.” 

Rapido has a pool of eight lakh bike drivers in Delhi with a subscriber base of 80 lakh. The availability of bike riders across Delhi will be facilitated and ensured at the designated polling booths, the statement said. 

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

Betul, Madhya Pradesh:

The Election Commission (EC) on Wednesday ordered repolling at four booths in Madhya Pradesh’s Betul Lok Sabha seat on May 10 after electronic voting machines were damaged when a bus ferrying them and polling personnel post-voting caught fire, an official said.

The bus was ferrying election staffers and electronic voting machines after polling in the Betul Lok Sabha seat during the day when it caught fire on Tuesday at around 11 pm near Gola village, causing damage to a few EVMs, he said.

However, no one was injured in the incident, Betul Collector Narendra Suryavanshi told PTI earlier.

After the district administration submitted a report on the fire incident, the EC on Wednesday ordered re-election at four polling stations of the constituency. The repolling is scheduled from 7 am to 6 pm on May 10 (Friday) on these booths located under the Multai assembly segment of the parliamentary seat, the official said.

These booths were set up at Government Integrated High School, Rajapur, Government Integrated High School, Raiyat, Government Primary School Kunda, Raiyat and Government Integrated High School, Chikhlimal, he said.

The fire broke out because of a spark in the bus, the collector said.

Six polling parties and half a dozen EVMs were in the bus at the time of the incident and four of the voting machines were damaged, Suryavanshi said.

In the four affected EVMs, either a control unit or a ballot unit suffered damage, he said.

An estimated 72.65 per cent polling was recorded in the Betul Lok Sabha seat on Tuesday, a poll official said.

Betul was among nine seats in Madhya Pradesh where voting took place in the third phase of Lok Sabha elections. 

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

Hyderabad:

The city police have registered a case against Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency candidate K Madhavi Latha and other BJP leaders for allegedly using minors in a poll campaign here recently.

In a complaint to the Telangana Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) vice- president Niranjan Reddy alleged that on May 1 during a BJP rally from Laldawaza to Sudha Talkies, a few minor children were on the dais with Amit Shah.

Niranjan Reddy alleged that a child was seen with a BJP symbol, highlighting that it was a clear violation of the guidelines of the Election Commission, according to information available on the FIR copy.

Following his complaint to the poll panel, the CEO forwarded it to the city police for a factual report, resulting in the registration of an FIR against Amit Shah by the Moghalpura police station at 7 pm on Thursday.

Other accused persons in the case include T Yaman Singh and senior BJP leader G Kishan Reddy and legislator T Raja Singh.

Police registered the case under IPC Section 188 (violation of an order issued by a public servant ) and are probing it further.

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

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has nominated Dinesh Pratap Singh as its candidate for the Raebareli Lok Sabha seat, which has been a Congress stronghold for decades. Mr Singh, a three-time Member of the Legislative Council in UP, will face former Congress President Rahul Gandhi, who replaced his mother Sonia Gandhi in the family bastion. 

Mr Singh had lost the 2019 elections to Mrs Gandhi by a margin of over 1.6 lakh votes. 

Here are some facts on Dinesh Pratap Singh:

1. Born on October 3, 1967, Dinesh Pratap Singh is from the Gunawar Kamangalpur village in Rae Bareli district. Mr Singh graduated from Feroze Gandhi Degree College, Raebareli, in 1986. 

2. Mr Singh started his political journey in 2004 with the Samajwadi Party, unsuccessfully contesting as an MLC. Three years later, he switched to the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and contested his first Assembly elections. Despite BSP forming the government in Uttar Pradesh at the time, Mr Singh lost his seat. 

3. In 2010, Dinesh Pratap Singh jumped ship again, joining the Congress and winning two successive terms as an MLC. In 2017, he was suspended from the Congress for allegedly misbehaving with the general secretary of the Raebareli Congress committee and other local party leaders. He was also accused of attempting to undermine Kishori Lal Sharma, AICC general secretary and Sonia Gandhi’s representative in the constituency. 

4. In 2018, he joined the BJP and contested against Sonia Gandhi in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. In 2022, he was elected as an MLC again, this time with the support of the Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government in UP. 

5. Dinesh Pratap Singh has claimed that no matter “which Gandhi comes to Raebareli, they will lose”. Mr Singh is believed to hold significant influence in the Thakur community.  

Hyderabad:

Amid Congress attack that the BJP would change the Constitution and scrap reservations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday asserted that he would not let the quotas of Dalits, Adivasis and OBCs be given to Muslims on the basis of religion.

Training his guns on the Congress, he accused the grand old party of making undivided Andhra Pradesh a “laboratory of appeasement” when it was in power in 2004 and 2009, by giving reservation of BCs to Muslims and also of harbouring “hatred” towards the Constitution since its birth.

Addressing an election rally in Zaheerabad Lok Sabha constituency in Telangana, he said, “As long as Modi is alive, I will not let reservations of Dalits, Adivasis, OBC to be given to Muslims on the basis of religion.” When Congress won a record number of MPs and MLAs in undivided Andhra Pradesh in 2004 and 2009, it gave the reservation of backward classes to Muslims, he claimed.

While 26 castes in Telangana have been seeking OBC status for a long time, the Congress did not approve of that but categorised Muslims as OBC “overnight”, he said.

The Congress had started insulting the Constitution from “day one” when it removed drawings of Ramayan and Mahabharat on the Constitution given by B R Ambedkar, he said.

In a veiled reference to Rahul Gandhi, the PM said the “grandmother of shehzada” (former PM Indira Gandhi) crushed the Constitution and imposed emergency in the country and jailed lakhs of people in the country.

The first Prime Minister (Jawaharlal Nehru) insulted the Constitution and the second big insult was from “his grandmother” (Indira Gandhi), he alleged.

The father of ‘shehzada’ (a reference to former PM Rajiv Gandhi) brought a law to scare the newspapers in the country which was opposed by BJP and the media and the move had to be halted, he said.

Recalling that ‘shehzada’ (Rahul Gandhi) tore off copies of an ordinance brought out by the then UPA government in 2013 in a press conference, he sought to know how the former could talk about safeguarding the Constitution.

The ordinance of the Manmohan Singh government was a decision of the then cabinet which is formed by the Constitution, he said.

The constituent Assembly had decided that there will be no reservation based on religion in the country and that quotas were meant for Dalits, Adivasis and OBCs, he added.

In an apparent reference to Rahul Gandhi, he alleged that an attempt is being made to provide quotas through the backdoor “dishonestly” on the basis of religion to strengthen vote bank.

Describing the Constitution as a ‘dharm grandh’ (spiritual text) for him to run the government, he recalled that he had bowed while entering into Parliament in 2014 after assuming power.

The “royal family” of Congress was not ready to accept even the party’s Constitution and Sitaram Kesri, who was Congress president then, was “locked in a bathroom” and “thrown on the footpath” and the “royal family” occupied the Congress party regardless of the party constitution, he charged.

The first amendment to Constitution was made by the first Prime Minister Nehru.

“They are not concerned about the Constitution. For the royal family, everything is good when power is with them. But, everything is worthless when they lose power,” he added.

PM Modi announced that, in his third term in office, the 75 years of Constitution would be celebrated on a grand scale and also taking the “sins” of Congress to every street in the country.

In a veiled attack on Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, PM Modi alleged that the money collected in the state through “double R (RR) tax” is being channelled to Delhi.

He made these comments while referring to blockbuster Telugu film titled ‘RRR’, which received global accolades.

Targeting the Congress party over the fake video case, he said the party has started a game of misleading people and creating tension in the society.

The Delhi Police has summoned Revanth Reddy to join its probe on May 1 in connection with Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s ‘doctored’ video being circulated on social media.

Alleging that the Congress would impose 55 per cent inheritance tax if voted to power, PM Modi said when the whole world was economically progressing, India was suffering from policy paralysis under the previous UPA government.

“If Congress comes to power, they will bring inheritance tax. Congress is planning to collect more than half- 55 per cent as tax on inheritance (received from parents),” he claimed.

Taking a dig at the Congress, he said whenever the grand old party is in power, it has five political symbols– first, false promises; second, vote bank politics, third, supporting mafia and criminals, fourth dynastic politics and fifth is corruption.

PM Modi further alleged that first it was BRS, which looted Telangana and now it is Congress.

Revanth Reddy has repeatedly claimed in his Lok Sabha poll campaign speeches that the BJP would change the Constitution and abolish reservations.

When in opposition, the Congress sought a probe into the ‘Kaleshwaram scam’ of BRS. But, the party is now sitting on the files of the scam after coming to power, PM Modi alleged.

Similarily, when the BRS was in power, it did not let the probe into the ‘cash-for-vote’ issue progress, he claimed.

In 2015, Revanth Reddy, who was in TDP then, was arrested for allegedly trying to bribe a nominated MLA to vote for his party’s nominee in Telangana Legislative Council polls.

PM Modi also said the “Indi (INDIA) alliance” is so desperate and disappointed today that it has lost the hope to become the authorised opposition.

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

Ahmedabad:

If voted to office for a third term, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will completely eliminate Naxalism from the country within two years, Union Home Minister Amit Shah asserted on Tuesday.

Amit Shah claimed the BJP and its NDA allies are winning at least 100 seats in the first two phases of the Lok Sabha elections (covering 190 constituencies) which have concluded and added “BJP’s chariot is moving towards achieving the target of 400-plus seats”.

Addressing a poll rally in Ahmedabad city’s Naroda area, Amit Shah said before the BJP came to power at the Centre, Naxalites were “dreaming about creating a red corridor from Pashupatinath in Nepal till Tirupati” in Andhra Pradesh, but their activities are now confined to just parts of Chhattisgarh.

During the last five years, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh have become free from the Naxal menace, noted the senior BJP leader.

“Naxalites still exist in some parts of Chhattisgarh. The BJP has formed a government in that state recently. Just today (Tuesday), the Chhattisgarh police eliminated nine Naxalites. Give a third term to PM Modi and I assure you that Modiji will eliminate Naxalism completely from the country in two years,” declared Amit Shah.

Referring to the BJP’s manifesto for the Lok Sabha polls, Amit Shah said the Modi government will provide free healthcare to every individual above 70 years of age under the Ayushman Bharat Yojana.

“Those above 70 years of age, whether crorepati or roadpati (rich or poor), won’t have to spend a rupee on medical treatment if PM Modi wins a third term,” the Union minister told the gathering.

He underscored that though former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was an economist, he could not improve India’s ranking in the world economy despite being in power for 10 years (2004-14).

“The country’s economy remained on the 11th spot during Singh’s ten-year tenure. It was PM Modi who turned our country into the fifth largest economy. Just give him a third term and he will take our economy to the third spot,” said Amit Shah.

He alleged that instead of functioning as a constructive opposition, the Congress always opposed pro-people projects in Gujarat, be it BRTS (Bus Rapid Transit System), metro rail or Sabarmati Riverfront.

Amit Shah addressed the rally in support of BJP candidate from the Ahmedabad-East Lok Sabha seat, Hasmukh Patel.

Voting on 25 Lok Sabha seats (BJP candidate from Surat has been elected unopposed) in Gujarat will take place on May 7 in a single phase.

Amit Shah is the BJP candidate from the Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat, from where he is seeking a second term.

In 2019, the BJP had won all the 26 Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat, the home state of PM Modi. 

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