SP president Akhilesh Yadav (file)2022 Assembly Election Highlights: Samajwadi Party (SP) on Monday released a list of 159 candidates for Assembly polls. Akhilesh Yadav will contest from Karhal, Nahid Hasan from Kairana, Abdullah Azam Khan from Suar, Azam Khan from Rampur and Shivpal Singh Yadav from Jaswantnagar. SP and RLD had released a list of 29 candidates earlier.
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party Monday announced the seat-sharing formula with its allies—Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress 37 and Shiromani Akali Dal (Sanyukt)—for the upcoming Punjab Assembly elections. “The BJP will contest the election on 65 seats, Punjab Lok Congress 37 seats and SAD-Sanyukt on 15 seats,” BJP president JP Nadda said during a press conference.
In other news, Congress on Monday released the second list of candidates for the Uttarakhand polls, fielding Harish Rawat from Ramnagar. Uttarakhand Congress on Monday also launched a poll campaign, “Char Dham, Char Kam”, making four promises to people of the state if it comes to power in next month’s Assembly polls. The promises included Rs 40,000 per annum to five lakh families in the state and not letting the LPG cylinder price cross Rs 500.
Lucknow: BSP Supremo Mayawati releases first candidates' list of the party for U P Assembly elections, at the party office in Lucknow, Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022. (PTI)
With the countdown for elections having begun in five states, Monday saw a day of frenzied activities that kept the poll pot boiling. In Uttar Pradesh, Samajwadi Party (SP) released a list of 159 candidates while BJP announced the seat-sharing formula with its allies in Punjab.
Moreover, Congress released its second list of candidates for Uttarakhand, fielding former CM Harish Rawat from Ramnagar.
Here are the top developments of the day from the five poll-bound states
Congress on Monday released the second list of candidates for the Uttarakhand polls, fielding Harish Rawat from Ramnagar. Meanwhile, Uttarakhand Congress on Monday launched a poll campaign, "Char Dham, Char Kam", making four promises to people of the state if it comes to power in next month's Assembly polls. The promises included Rs 40,000 per annum to five lakh families in the state and not letting the LPG cylinder price cross Rs 500.
Former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Monday ridiculed Navjot Singh Sidhu's claims of fighting the sand mining mafia, saying the state Congress president had himself led the rebellion against him with the MLAs who were allegedly involved in the activity.
This clearly exposed “his own interest in sheltering them”. the former CM said according to a statement.
The former Punjab CM said considering that many Congress MLAs whom Sidhu had led in rebellion against him had “direct or indirect interest or share in the state's sand mafia”, the ex-cricketer' president's credentials in the matter are “patently dubious”.
“This, coupled with the fact that the PPCC president enjoyed, hobnobbing with anti-nationals elements, including his close friends in the Pakistan leadership, which had even lobbied for his induction to the state cabinet, had exposed Sidhu's self-interest and his complete apathy to Punjab's interests,” Amarinder Singh said. (PTI)
Punjab Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu on Monday dubbed former CM Amarinder Singh a "spent cartridge", responding to his claim that he had got a request from Pakistan to reinstate the ex-cricketer in his government.
Amarinder Singh, who has floated a new party after leaving the Congress and is fighting the Punjab Assembly polls in an alliance with the BJP, said he was told that Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan will be grateful if he can keep Sidhu in the government.
Amarinder Singh had dropped Sidhu from his Cabinet when he was heading the Congress government in Punjab and was against appointing him as the Punjab unit chief of the party.
Reacting to the former CM's remark, Sidhu dubbed the ex-CM as a "spent cartridge" while refusing to make any further comment at a press conference where he attacked the Aam Aadmi Party, describing as ‘scam’ the survey it conducted to select its CM face.
Congress leader Alka Lamba, who was also present, responding to a volley of questions said they will give their reply on the former CM's charge in the next press meet. (PTI)
The Samajwadi Party has written to the Election Commission urging that the Superintendent of Police of Sitapur and SHO of Kotwali Dehat be transferred with immediate effect for alleged bias.
In a statement issued here, the SP's state unit chief Naresh Uttam Patel alleged that the officers were exerting pressure on village pradhan, panchayat members and others to vote for the ruling BJP. This has created fear in the mind of citizens and the election is getting affected, he claimed.
The party in the statement demanded that the officers be transferred with immediate effect so that free, fair and impartial polls can be held. (PTI)
After Amarinder Singh claimed on Monday he had got a message from Pakistan to reinstate Navjot Singh Sidhu in his government in Punjab, the Congress said it was shameful on the former chief minister's part to raise such issues and added it was aimed at diverting attention in the run-up to next month's assembly polls.
Asked about Singh's claim, Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said, "He (Amarinder Singh) has been our senior leader and has had a long association with us. But the way he is talking, I feel it is shameful. He has occupied a constitutional post and was chief minister, it is wrong to speak like this...to grab headlines and remain in the news...."
"Today the issues in Punjab are of farmers, of MSP (minimum support price of crops) and of unemployment. By raising such issues, one can only divert attention and that is what he is trying to do," the Congress leader said.
At a press conference at the BJP headquarters here, former chief minister Singh claimed he had got a message from Pakistan to reinstate Navjot Singh Sidhu in his government because he was an old friend of their prime minister. (PTI)
The National People's Party on Monday announced its first list of 20 candidates for Manipur assembly elections with three sitting MLAs, including Deputy Chief Minister Y Joykumar Singh, contesting from their seats.
The party, which is currently in alliance with the BJP, is going it alone in the upcoming polls and has fielded candidates against its ally in all the seats it is contesting.
Y Joykumar Singh will again contest from his Uripok constituency, while NPP's Manipur unit president L Jayantakumar Singh and N Kayisii will seek re-election from Keishamthong and Tadubi assembly segments respectively.
State Sports Minister Letpao Haokip, who had won from Chandel seat on an NPP ticket five years ago, joined the BJP in 2021.
"Three sitting MLAs are among the 20 candidates. Their names were recommended by an election management committee in Manipur and approved by Meghalaya Chief Minister and party chief Conrad K Sangma," an NPP leader said in Shillong.
He also said, "The second list of party candidates for the Manipur polls is likely to be released soon as we are planning to contest in around 40 seats this time." (PTI)
The SP has fielded Congress turncoat Supriya Aron from the Bareilly Cantonment seat. Aron had on Saturday joined the SP despite her name being announced by the Congress in the party’s first list released on January 13. Along with Aron, her husband and former MP from Bareilly, Pravin Singh Aron, has also joined the SP.
The Akhilesh-led party also fielded former UP BSP chief R S Kushwaha from Lakhimpur Kheri’s Nighasan seat. He had joined the SP last year, after quitting the BSP. Read more
The Congress on Monday accused ruling BJP leaders of violating the poll code ahead of the UP Assembly elections and asked if the Election Commission is under pressure.
Naseemuddin Siddiqui, chief of the UP Congress media cell, claimed while his party's event in Bahraich was not allowed allegedly due to poll code violation, Union Home Minister Amit Shah's door-to-door campaign in Kairana took place despite the presence of a large number of people. "The administration appears to be under pressure but is the (Election) Commission also under pressure," he asked while talking to reporters here.
Referring to a programme organised by the Congress in Bahraich on Sunday to pay respects to freedom fighter Subhas Chandra Bose, Siddiqui said, "We had a programme in a closed hall and even before it could start, the administration reached there and stopped it, saying permission has not been taken."
"Is paying homage or garlanding the statue of a great leader violation of model code," Siddiqui asked. "There were only 90 people in the programme, which was not even held and I have been told that a complaint has been given by police in this regard," Siddiqui said, questioning how large number number of people are being allowed in programmes organised by the BJP. (PTI)
Samajwadi Party (SP) releases a list of 159 candidates for Assembly polls. Akhilesh Yadav will contest from Karhal, Nahid Hasan from Kairana, Abdullah Azam Khan from Suar, Azam Khan from Rampur and Shivpal Singh Yadav from Jaswantnagar.
The 12th National Voters’ Day will be celebrated on Tuesday (January 25). The theme for this year’s celebration is ‘Making Elections inclusive, accessible and participative’. An ECI publication, ‘Leap of faith: journey of Indian elections’, will be released on the occasion.
EC’s national voter awareness contest called ‘My Vote is my Future- Power of One Vote’ will be launched. National awards for the best electoral practices for the year 2021-22 will be conferred on state- and district-level officers. During the event, newly enrolled voters would also be felicitated and handed over their Elector Photo Identity Cards (EPIC). (ANI)
Former Uttarakhand CM and Congress leader Harish Rawat breaks into dance along with Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel during the launch of 'Char Dham Char Kam' campaign in Dehradun
With both Congress and BJP announcing their candidates for a majority of seats for the February 14 polls in Uttarakhand, the stage is set for an interesting contest in several constituencies, including Khatima where Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is contesting.
Among the seats where prominent leaders are in the fray are Haridwar, Nainital, Chakrata and Srinagar.
Dhami, who is looking to break the trend of incumbent chief ministers losing in polls in Uttarakhand, takes on the working president of the Congress' state unit, Bhuwan Chandra Kapri, once again in Khatima.
"This time the contest in Khatima is far from being smooth. Incumbent CMs never win in Uttarakhand. Nityanand Swamy lost in 2002, BC Khanduri lost in 2012 and Harish Rawat lost both the seats he contested in 2017," political analyst JS Rawat said. ND Tiwari, the only chief minister of Uttarakhand to complete the five-year term, did not contest in 2007 when he was the sitting chief minister, he said.
The Srinagar seat also has an interesting contest on the cards as state Congress president Ganesh Godiyal has been fielded against arch-rival and Cabinet minister Dhan Singh Rawat from the seat which Congress and BJP have been winning alternately. (PTI)
AAP candidate Joginder Singh for Miranpur assembly seat allegedly poured kerosene oil over his clothes to immolate himself before the district collectorate office here on Monday over the rejection of his poll nomination paper by the returning officer, police said.
The police, however, managed to foil his alleged suicide bid by overpowering him and stopping him from lighting the matchstick, they said. After his failed suicide bid, Singh sat on a dharna before the district magistrate's office, alleging that he was not given an opportunity to rectify his mistake in filling his nomination paper.
Official sources said Singh's nomination paper was rejected by Returning Officer Jayender Kumar due to some crucial omissions in filling it.
Singh, an ex-serviceman, had filed his papers as Aam Aadmi Party candidate for the Miranpur (Meerapur) assembly seat in the Muzaffarnagar district. (PTI)
Former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Monday claimed he had got a message from Pakistan to reinstate Navjot Singh Sidhu in his government because he was an old friend of their prime minister.
Singh, who has floated a new party after leaving Congress and is fighting Punjab assembly polls in an alliance with BJP, said he was told that Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan will be grateful if he can keep Sidhu in the government.
"After I dropped Navjot Sidhu from my government, I got a message from Pakistan that he is an old friend of their prime minister and he would be grateful if you can keep him in the government. If he (Sidhu) doesn't work, then you can remove him," Singh said here during a press conference at BJP headquarters to announce a seat-sharing arrangement.
Singh, who had dropped Sidhu from the Punjab government during his tenure as the state's chief minister, never had smooth relations with the cricketer-turned-politician and was against appointing him as the Punjab unit chief of the Congress. (PTI)
Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait has warned farmers from attempts to "polarise" society and divert their attention by vested interests who will rake up "Hindu-Muslim" issues.
Tikait who was speaking to media persons while attending a private function near Iglas on Sunday night also said that farmers are" fully conscious" of the critical importance of their choice in the forthcoming assembly elections and do not need any prompting. "In the next few weeks Hindu-Muslim and Jinnah will be regular topics in the political discourse and you should be wary of such distractions," the BKU leader said.
Making a cryptic remark, he said "Hindu-Muslim and Jinnah are going to be official guests in UP till March 15."
When asked about farmers' voting preferences Tikait said,"When farmers are being forced to sell their produce at half of their cost price they need no one to prompt them as to how they should vote." Farmers are "fully conscious" of the critical importance of their choice in the forthcoming assembly, he added. (PTI)
“There is no official statement from Samajwadi Party if I will be contesting in the elections or not. Even if I contest, it does not matter to me if some other Muslim candidate from BJP gets a ticket from that seat,” says Abdullah Azam Khan, son of SP leader Azam Khan. (ANI)
Congress releases a list of 30 ‘star campaigners’ for the first phase of UP polls. The list includes party chief Sonia Gandhi, ex-PM Dr Manmohan Singh, party leaders Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Ashok Gehlot, Bhupesh Baghel and Sachin Pilot, among others.
BJP leader and the party's former candidate from Jalalabad, Anil Verma joins Samajwadi Party
Union Home Minister Amit Shah tweets, “NDA under the leadership of PM @NarendraModi Ji is committed to restoring the glory of Punjab and the welfare of farmers, poor and deprived.”
Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) chief Navjot Singh Sidhu on Monday accused Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal of deceiving and scamming the people of Punjab by “fraudulently” claiming that he had received 21.6 lakh messages and calls in four days while taking the public’s opinion ahead of declaring the AAP’s chief ministerial candidate.
Addressing the media on Monday, Sidhu said, “He launched a private number. He said 21.6 lakh messages and calls were received. It means every second 12 incoming phone calls were ringing day and night. Even if it is day and night, even then 5,760 calls or messages cannot be received. It is a deceptive scheme to deceive people. He is promoting this fake news.” Read more
Six-time former Goa Chief Minister and 11-time legislator Pratapsingh Rane on Monday took the blessings of Goddess Bhumika at a temple in his Assembly constituency of Poriem. The temple visit – which comes two days after Rane attended a meeting of the Congress’s election candidates – proved to be a sign of hope for party workers awaiting his decision on contesting the upcoming polls.
Rane, however, said there was nothing out of the ordinary in the temple visit along with his wife Vijayadevi. “It is a part of my routine. I visit the temple every week. The decision (on contesting the upcoming election) will be taken in due course,” he told The Indian Express. Read more
With the BJP taking to the streets with a team of women leaders, at least three of whom joined the saffron party in recent times, the Congress on Monday termed it ‘Priyanka effect’ and a ‘face-saving exercise’ for the government.
Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur, along with a team of women leaders, including the latest entrants- Aparna Yadav, Aditi Singh and Priyanka Maurya- was on the campaign trail in the heart of the state capital on Sunday.
"The 'Ladki Hoon Lad Sakti Hoon' slogan given by Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and the manner in which she has been fighting for their cause has forced other political parties to realize that politics cannot be done without women. What we saw on the roads of Lucknow yesterday (Sunday) can clearly be termed Priyanka effect," Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee chief Ajay Kumar Lallu told PTI in an interview.
"After announcing 40 per cent tickets to women, Priyanka had stated that no party can ignore half the population. This is coming true and we find that the BJP leaders are marching on the streets projecting a women-friendly face," Lallu said. (PTI)
The chief priest of the Ram temple here on Monday said it is good that Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath is not contesting the state Assembly polls from this seat as he would have faced a lot of opposition.
Acharya Satyendra Das said he had earlier suggested that Adityanath should contest from Gorakhpur as people whose houses and shops were demolished here due to infrastructure projects in the wake of the construction of the temple were opposing him.
"It's good that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is not contesting from here. I had suggested it earlier and advised that it will be better that he contest from any seat of Gorakhpur," said Das, who is the chief priest of the makeshift Ram Lalla temple, which is being replaced by a grand temple.
When asked why he suggested that Adityanath should not to contest from Ayodhya, Das said he advised this "after asking Ram Lalla (Lord Ram)". (PTI)
The TMC hit out at Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday for attributing the failure to forge an alliance for the Goa assembly polls to "poaching", calling his remark an attempt to give excuses for the main opposition party's "inexplicable and damaging inability" to respond to a mature and courageous call for greater opposition unity.
The TMC leadership also asked the veteran Congress leader to look at his own party's "inability and failure" to keep its flock together.
"Mr Chidambaram is clutching at straws to explain somehow his party's inexplicable and damaging inability to respond to TMC's mature and courageous call for greater opposition unity. First, he said that there was no concrete response, he is now saying something different after he was countered. He should stop giving such excuses," TMC national vice-president Pavan Varma told PTI. (PTI)
The BJP on Monday slammed Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav for his reported comments that China is India's real enemy while Pakistan is a "political enemy" which is targeted by the ruling party for "vote politics".
BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said this shows Yadav's mindset and he should tender an apology to the country for the comments which show his "love" for Pakistan. What the SP president has said is very unfortunate and disappointing, he said.
Speaking to reporters in Lucknow, Patra said Yadav had also brought M A Jinnah, Pakistan's founder, into the Uttar Pradesh assembly poll campaign as well, and claimed that while the BJP under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is campaigning on development issues, the SP is depending on Jinnah and Pakistan.
An interview in the Economic Times quoted Yadav to have said that India's real enemy is China while Pakistan is a political enemy which the BJP attacks for its "vote politics".
He also hit out at the ruling party for China's alleged encroachment on Indian land. (PTI)
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Monday accused the BJP of garnering votes in the name of religion and caste to come to power, and claimed the saffron party was doing the same in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh.
Talking to reporters at Swami Vivekanand Airport in Raipur before leaving for Uttarakhand, which will also go to polls next month, Baghel accused the central BJP-led government of wanting to take control over states through proposed amendments to the IAS (Cadre) Rules-1954.
Baghel is the Congress's senior observer for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, scheduled to be held in multiple phases over the next two months. To a query on Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray's comments targeting the BJP on Sunday, Baghel said, “The BJP has indulged in dividing people on religious lines to get elected to power. It did the same thing last time in UP (during 2017 Assembly polls) and is doing the same now. Except this, it does not have any other formula (to woo voters).”
“You (BJP) get votes by scaring people. You garnered votes in the name of religion and caste, but the question is what did the voters get in return? You got the power, but what did the voters get? The BJP talks about Hindus, but what have Hindus achieved? It is the BJP which has gained, not the voters,” he alleged. (PTI)
Uttarakhand Congress releases its campaign song, promises jobs for 4 lakh youths
The Bharatiya Janata Party Monday announced the seat-sharing formula with its allies—Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress 37 and Shiromani Akali Dal (Sanyukt)—for the upcoming Punjab Assembly elections. “The BJP will contest the election on 65 seats, Punjab Lok Congress 37 seats and SAD-Sanyukt on 15 seats,” BJP president JP Nadda said during a press conference.
The BJP's Miranpur candidate for the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls has been booked for allegedly giving an inflammatory speech at an election meeting and violating EC guidelines on physical campaigning, police said on Monday.
Pershant Gujjar and his 40 supporters have also been booked for holding the meeting without permission on Sunday, Kakroli Station House Officer (SHO) Sunil Sharma said. He said that the meeting took place despite the Election Commission (EC) banning all kinds of physical poll public meetings and rallies in view of the Covid situation.
Gujjar, in a video clip, is heard appealing to people in Chorawala village to support him in the elections as the BJP is of Hindus and the opposition Samajwadi Party (SP) is a Muslims' party.
Sharma said Gujjar and his supporters were booked after investigation of the video, which has gone viral on social media. The election meeting, which Gujjar is addressing, was organised without the permission of district authorities and in violation of EC guidelines, he said.
Gujjar and his 40 supporters have been charged under Section 125 (promoting enmity between classes in connection with election) of the Representation of the People Act, Section 3 of the Epidemic Diseases Act and Section 51 of the Disaster Management Act, Sharma said. (PTI)
The decision of the Election Commission to allow parties use video vans for campaigning in poll-bound states comes with a series of stringent dos and don'ts, including the one which states that the vehicle cannot stop at any "viewing point" for more than 30 minutes.
While extending ban on physical election rallies till January 31 to curb the spread of COVID-19, the EC had on Saturday allowed video vans for publicity with usual COVID-19 restrictions at designated open spaces with a maximum of 500 viewers.
It had cautioned that the video van events should not cause inconvenience to the people and should not be a hindrance to smooth flow of traffic. After allowing use of video vans on Saturday, the Commission had issued instructions to its chief electoral officers on use of such vehicles for campaigning by parties.
"The video van of the political party should be used to propagate its programme and policies to seek votes. Votes or support for of any particular candidate should not be solicited," the EC letter to the CEOs read. However, if the video van is used for seeking votes or support for a candidate, then expenditure of video van should be accounted for by such candidate appropriately. (PTI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said Uttar Pradesh has set a benchmark of development in every field in the last five years and asserted that the multi-dimensional development of the state will continue to play a leading role in 'new India'.
Tagging Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's message to the people of the state on the occasion of Uttar Pradesh's 73rd foundation day, Modi also said new opportunities have been created in the state.
"Uttar Pradesh has set a benchmark of development in every field in the last five years. Due to this, while life of the people of the state has been made easier, new opportunities have also been created," Modi said in a tweet in Hindi.
"I am sure that the multi-dimensional development of Uttar Pradesh will continue to play a leading role in new India" he said. (PTI)
Samajwadi Party MLA Subhash Rai, who represents Jalalpur constituency in the Uttar Pradesh assembly, joined the BJP on Monday.
Rai joined the party here in the presence of deputy chief ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Dinesh Sharma besides state BJP chief Swatantra Dev Singh. Noting that Rai was in the BJP earlier, Singh said his return to the party was "ghar wapsi" which will strengthen it in the region.
"There is rule of law in the state. Peace and spirit of nationalism are in ascendence in the state," he said, saying Rai joined the party due to these reasons. (PTI)
Aam Aadmi Party leader Raghav Chadha submits a letter to Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit “seeking his immediate intervention in the multilayered illegal sand mining racket in Punjab allegedly run by and under the aegis of CM Channi”.
Leaders of the BJP-led alliance in Punjab will jointly address a press conference at 3 pm today.
The BJP's Miranpur candidate for the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls has been booked for allegedly giving an inflammatory speech at an election meeting and violating EC guidelines on physical campaigning, police said on Monday. Pershant Gujjar and his 40 supporters have also been booked for holding the meeting without permission on Sunday, Kakroli Station House Officer (SHO) Sunil Sharma said.
He said that the meeting took place despite the Election Commission (EC) banning all kinds of physical poll public meetings and rallies in view of the Covid situation. Gujjar, in a video clip, is heard appealing to people in Chorawala village to support him in the elections as the BJP is of Hindus and the opposition Samajwadi Party (SP) is a Muslims' party. (PTI)
Days after Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav's daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav joined the BJP, the party said another “eminent personality” will be taken into its fold.
The Congress CEC will meet today for the selection of candidates for the Punjab Assembly elections. The CEC will also decide on the remaining candidates for the Uttarakhand polls.
With the Assembly elections round the corner, AAP requests the people of Delhi to campaign for the party so that other states also enjoy the development and facilities that their government is offering in Delhi. The party is launching a campaign called “Ek mauka Kejriwal ko”. Under this, Kejriwal has asked people to make a video listing the developments that have taken place in Delhi since AAP took charge. Kejriwal asked them to upload the videos on their social media accounts. “I request all AAP volunteers to share these videos. After I win the elections, I will have dinner with 50 people whose videos went viral.”
BSP president Mayawati on Monday said the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh is trying to take credit for works started by her when she was chief minister. She also said that the "biggest" problems in the state are poor law and order, unemployment and migration. Slamming the Yogi Adityanath dispensation, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief said it is very sad that state is lagging behind. "Fear, corruption, discrimination and insecurity of life and property, that is, poor law and order, unemployment and migration of lakhs, are the biggest problems of this state with a huge population," Mayawati said in a tweet in Hindi.
Veteran politician and TRS MP D Srinivas scheduled to formally return to Congress in the presence of AICC President Sonia Gandhi.
The sub-divisional magistrates of Sangrur and Dhuri have issued notices to the Aam Aadmi Party’s chief ministerial candidate Bhagwant Singh Mann for violating Covid-19 norms during election rallies. Mann, who is AAP’s Punjab chief and a Member of Parliament from Sangrur, launched his campaign on Sunday to contest the upcoming elections from the Dhuri Assembly seat.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel, who is visiting Uttarakhand today to lead the party’s campaign in the state ahead of the assembly polls, said: “Congress's position in Uttarakhand is good...BJP divides people on the basis of religion. They have done it in Uttar Pradesh and are still doing it.”
President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday greeted residents of Uttar Pradesh on the state's foundation day and expressed hope that it will continue to progress on the path of development and prosperity. The state government celebrates 'Uttar Pradesh Divas' on January 24 every year, the day when the erstwhile United Provinces was renamed as Uttar Pradesh in 1950.
“Hearty greetings to all the residents of the state on Uttar Pradesh Diwas. The hardworking and talented people of Uttar Pradesh have made impressive contributions to history, art, culture, literature and politics of India. I wish that this state continues to progress on the path of development and prosperity,” Kovind tweeted. (PTI)
In a recent interview, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal claimed that a Dalit voter in Punjab had come to him and said he would vote for AAP. “I asked him, why not [Punjab CM] Charanjit Singh Channi who is claiming to be the messiah of Dalits. He said AAP has transformed government schools in Delhi and it is only education that can change the lives of people,” he said, making an appeal to vote for AAP if voters “want state-of-art government schools in Punjab like in Delhi.”
In a state where panth and religion have long dictated electoral politics, education has emerged as one of the core issues with the AAP and Congress, the two main contenders in the fray, indulging in politicking, discussions and debates. There has even been a Twitter war between the education ministers of Punjab and Delhi — led by Congress and AAP governments, respectively — eventually forcing other parties to specify their roadmap for school and higher education. Read Divya Goyal's report
The Samajwadi Party’s 34-year-old candidate from UP’s Fatehabad constituency, Roopali Dixit, completed her postgraduation and management studies in the UK and worked in a multinational company in Dubai before returning to her home in Agra in 2016 after her father, Ashok Dixit, and four other family members were sentenced to life imprisonment in a murder case. Read Manish Sahu's report
The Samajwadi Party is organising a mega virtual rally today owing to the curbs imposed by the Election Commission on large public gatherings due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Akhilesh Yadav-led party is hoping for a comeback as it steps up outreach programmes ahead of the elections.
Good morning and welcome to The Indian Express's election coverage. We bring to you latest news and updates from the five poll-bound states — Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa, Uttar Pradesh and Manipur.
Former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Sunday claimed that the state Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu has “no brains” and he had advised party president Sonia Gandhi five years ago not to induct “this incompetent man' in the party.
The former CM also said despite getting inputs of the involvement of present CM Charanjit Singh Channi and some other Congress leaders in illegal sand mining in the state, he did not act against them out of his 'sense of loyalty to the party' and also because he did not get a 'go-ahead' from Sonia Gandhi.
Talking to reporters after announcing the first list of his party's Punjab Lok Congress candidates from 22 constituencies, Amarinder Singh also said he did not act against Channi in a #MeToo case as the woman IAS officer did not pursue her complaint.
Asked if he had said he would fight against Sidhu, the 79-year-old scion of the erstwhile Patiala royal family, said, “I had said we will not allow him to win. Because he is a totally incompetent man.” (PTI)
Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu on Sunday questioned the timing of the recent Enforcement Directorate raids and called them as “political vendetta” but asserted that he was not giving a clean chit to anyone.
Sidhu further said his party will win at least 70 seats of the 117-assembly seats in the coming state assembly elections if a “clear agenda” for the state is incorporated in the poll manifesto.
Replying to a question on the Enforcement Directorate raids at many places including at the premises of Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi's nephew, Sidhu slammed the BJP-led Centre over the raids and said the ED took action after nearly four years of the registration of the case. He said they were sleeping for four years and when the state assembly elections came near, the raids were conducted by the Enforcement Directorate.
When asked whether he was giving a clean chit by questioning the timing of the ED raids, Sidhu said, “I am not giving any clean chit. Please do not misunderstand me. I am not giving anyone a clean chit. Let the law take its course. If you can prove a link then I will be the first one to criticize. But if you are doing political vendetta then I am not with you. Because I know the ED, the CBI and agencies have been used politically. That is the fact. If they can prove a link then I will say what I have to say. But today it is clear that it is a political vendetta,” Sidhu said in a select media interaction. (PTI)
Amid a multi-cornered contest in Punjab, Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Sunday said his party would win over 80 seats in the Assembly polls despite “forces from Delhi trying hard to weaken the party”.
Addressing a public meeting in support of SAD candidate Nusrat Ekram Khan Bagga in Malerkotla, Sukhbir said, “Forces from Delhi are trying a lot to weaken the Shiromani Akali Dal… Last time too they did it. But we are getting stronger day by day. We are Punjabis’ only regional party… If the SAD is strong, Punjab is strong…The Congress, the BJP and the AAP are all being controlled from Delhi.” Read more
The Hagrama Mohilary-led Bodoland People’s Front (BPF), which had snapped ties with the BJP ahead of the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) elections in December 2020 and allied with Congress-led Mahajot for the 2021 Assembly elections, will now support Himanta Biswa Sarma-led government in the Assam Assembly.
Addressing a press conference in Guwahati, Chief Minister Sarma said that the Opposition Bodo party had been “admitted as one of the BJP-led government’s partners in the Assam Assembly.”
“We will have total floor coordination with the BPF…they will sit with the ruling party in the Assembly,” Sarma said, adding that this “friendship was confined to the Assembly.” Read more
AAP has named a 45-year-old political debutant Amit Palekar as its Chief Ministerial candidate in the 14 February Goa Assembly elections. A lawyer-turned-politician, Palekar belongs to the Bhandari community, which is Goa’s largest caste group constituting a significant percentage of its Hindu population. His selection is in keeping with the AAP’s earlier announcement that its CM nominee for the Goa polls will be from the Bhandari community.
Declaring Palekar as the AAP’s CM face on 19 January, AAP supremo and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal had said his party was not resorting to caste politics but was “correcting” the “injustice” the Bhandari community had long suffered at the hands of Goa’s major parties who, he added, never picked a CM from the community despite its numerical strength. But who are the Bhandaris? Read explainer by Mayura Janwalkar
The BJP is necessary for the country's development and with its farsightedness, it has brought positive changes, said Aparna Yadav, the younger daughter-in-law of SP patron Mulayam Singh Yadav, who recently joined the saffron party.
She also said that for the safety of women, it is necessary that a BJP government is formed in Uttar Pradesh. Yadav's joining the saffron party comes ahead of next month's polls to the 403-member state assembly.
In a statement issued on Sunday by the BJP headquarters here, Yadav said, "I joined the BJP because of nationalism. In the BJP government, women have got respect." The thought process of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, and their farsightedness, have brought positive changes, she said. (PTI)
BJP women leaders including newly inducted Aparna Yadav, Aditi Singh and Priyanka Maurya campaign in Lucknow.
Samajwadi Party patron Mulayam Singh Yadav, party chief Akhilesh Yadav and new entrant to the party Swami Prasad Maurya are among its 30 star campaigners for the first phase of the Uttar Pradesh assembly election.
The other prominent star campaigners are national vice-president Kiranmay Nanda, principal general secretary Ramgopal Yadav, Rajya Sabha MP Jaya Bachchan, the party's Uttar Pradesh unit chief Naresh Uttam Patel, leader of opposition in the Assembly Ramgobind Chaudhary.
The party's national executive member Javed Ali Khan and Samajwadi Yuvjan Sabha president Mohammad Fahad have also been named as star campaigners.
Dara Singh Chauhan and Dharam Singh Saini, who quit as ministers and from the BJP to join the SP, are not in the list of 30 star campaigners. (PTI)
Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Sunday said the people of his state and he himself wanted the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act to be lifted but added that it should be done with consent of the Centre.
Underlining that national security is top priority, Singh said, "We are a border state and share an international border with Myanmar. I have to see the national interest as well."
Ahead of the assembly election in the state, there has been a growing chorus for the withdrawal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, or AFSPA. "The people of Manipur, including me, want that AFSPA should be lifted, but after a mutual understanding with the central government as national security is the first priority for us," Singh told PTI in an interview. (PTI)
BSP president Mayawati on Sunday said that the Congress is in dire straits in Uttar Pradesh and people should not “waste” their votes on the grand old party. In a sly dig at Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, she further said that the Congress CM candidate has “changed her stand within hours”.
“In the UP Vidhan Sabha elections, the condition of the Congress is so bad that their CM candidate changed her stand within a few hours. In such a situation, it would be better if people don’t waste their votes on Congress and instead vote for BSP,” Mayawati tweeted on Sunday morning. Read more
Samajwadi Party on Sunday wrote to the Election Commission seeking a ban on opinion polls being shown on TV channels in order to ensure a fair election. A letter was written by party state president Naresh Uttam Patel to the Chief Election Officer.
The letter read, “The dates for the Vidhan Sabha polls in UP were announced on January 8, 2022, and the nomination process for the first phase has also been completed. The state will have elections in the seven phases and voting for the last phase will happen on March 7, while counting will be done on March 10. Several news channels, which are showing opinions polls, are confusing the voters, and is a violation of the Model Code of Conduct. We ask you to put a stop the opinion polls so that a fair and unbiased election is possible.”
On January 8, the Samajwadi Party had submitted a memorandum to the Chief Election Commissioner seeking the removal of four senior officers from their posts. (ENS)
Ahead of the first-phase polling in Uttar Pradesh, the BJP MLA from Agra's Fatehabad constituency, Jitendra Verma, resigned from the party and said that he has joined the Samajwadi Party.
Verma's name did not figure in the list of candidates released by the BJP for the first phase of elections. He was replaced by Chhotelal Verma. In his two-line resignation letter sent to Uttar Pradesh BJP chief Swatantra Dev Singh, Verma wrote, "I am resigning from the primary membership of the BJP. Kindly accept it."
Speaking to PTI, he said, "There are many reasons why I left the BJP. Even 15 days after I was denied ticket, the party leadership did not talk to me. I have joined the Samajwadi Party and I will not contest this election."
He claimed that BJP workers and MLAs have no say in the party. "If you are not able to provide fertiliser to a farmer, what are you an MLA for? Not only me, but a number of MLAs will also be leaving the BJP," he said.
Earlier, Uttar Pradesh ministers Swami Prasad Maurya, Dara Singh Chauhan and Dharam Singh Saini had tendered their resignations and joined the Samajwadi Party. (PTI)