Former Union cabinet minister Ashwani Kumar (File Photo)2022 Assembly Election Highlights: Just days before Punjab goes to polls, senior Congress leader from the state and former Union cabinet minister Ashwani Kumar Tuesday resigned from the party. Speaking to The Indian Express soon after he resigned, Kumar said, “…the way Captain Amarinder Singh was humiliated into resignation was painful and has had a very negative effect on the people of Punjab. It appears to me that unless we have all got it wrong, this is a wave election in favour of the Aam Aadmi Party. I don’t see a hung Assembly. Punjab is at the cusp of a transformative change and the election results in the state will have a major bearing on the direction of national politics.”
Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi addressing a physical rally in Punjab’s Rajpura Tuesday said, “A lot of people will give you false promises — Modi ji, Badal ji and Kejriwal ji. But I have been taught to only say the truth.” Reiterating his appeal to voters from Monday’s rally, Gandhi said, “This is not a chemistry lab…where you can do experiments. It’s a border state, a sensitive state. Congress understands Punjab and can maintain peace here. All these parties making false promises, saying give us one chance, will ruin Punjab.” “Hum mar jayenge magar Punjab se shaanti khatam nahi hone denge. (We can give our lives to ensure peace remains in Punjab),” the Congress leader asserted.
Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday accused both the Congress and BJP of getting into “dirty politics” over the Prime Minister’s security. Addressing a press conference in Ludhiana, he said that if AAP is voted to power, “we’ll not indulge in any kind of politics on national or internal security.” Further, responding to allegations by Balbir Rajewal, Sanyukt Samaj Morcha party’s chief ministerial candidate, Kejriwal said that he is “most welcome” to present proof of AAP selling tickets and the party will “vacate the seat immediately” if the allegations are proven. On Monday, Rajewal had told The Indian Express that they will make the evidence public four days ahead of polls.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi being welcomed by supporters during a public meeting, ahead of the Punjab Assembly elections, in Gurdaspur. (PTI Photo)
Not far from where the movie ‘Udta Punjab’ was shot in the villages near Bhikhiwind, the drugs problem of Punjab is once again in focus in the run-up to the state’s Assembly polls.
‘Udta Punjab’ was released in June 2016 just months before the previous Assembly polls and captured the public imagination over drug addiction in the state much to the annoyance of the then SAD-BJP government. (Read full report by Man Aman Singh Chhina)
Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary on Tuesday said Ashish Mishra who killed the innocent farmers is out on bail and can roam freely. His father MoS Ajay Mishra Teni is visiting places and asking people to vote for BJP.
"On the other hand, protesting farmers are still in jail," he added.
It is an unlikely place to wash a car, but two young men are spotted busy washing their four-wheeler at a deserted railway platform of Dera Baba Nanak station.
The almost defunct railway station, which is the last one before the Pakistan border, is being put to good use by the two youth who come from families with different political ideologies but are now united in professing their support for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
(Read full report by Man Aman Singh Chhina)
Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav addressed an election campaign, for Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, in Fatehpur, on Tuesday.
In a scathing attack on the Samajwadi Party, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday said while the BJP believes in "development for all", Akhilesh Yadav "cares only about the development of the Saifai family". Saifai is the native village of Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, the father of party chief Akhilesh Yadav.
At a public meeting here, Adityanath said, "The Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and the Congress were not there for you during the pandemic. But our government gave free vaccine to everyone and ensured that no one sleeps hungry." He claimed the law-and-order situation in Uttar Pradesh has improved and lot and there is no place for anarchy in the state.
"Earlier, there was no security. The property of the poor was grabbed. But during our government, mafia and goons were sent to jail and sisters and daughters were protected," the chief minister said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Shri Guru Ravidas Vishram Dham Mandir, Karol Bagh tomorrow morning on the occasion of Ravidas Jayanti.
Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari came out to support of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Neeraj Bora for Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, in Lucknow.
Union minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Tuesday claimed that the Congress did not give due importance to the development of the eight states of the Northeast during the 51 years it ruled India, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi has discovered 'Ashta Lakshmi', the eight forms of the goddess of wealth, in the region.
Development has started taking place in the North-eastern region after Modi became the prime minister seven years ago, Sonowal said at a programme here.
“Ashta Lakshmi is not a political slogan. Modi-ji scripted it after studying the Northeast's hidden potential in trade, commerce, natural resources and diverse culture. He has given a new identity to the Northeast,' the Union minister for ports, shipping and waterways said. Sonowal, also the Union AYUSH minister, said Modi has instructed all Union ministers to visit the region to expedite development works.
“As the prime minister, Modi-ji himself visited the Northeast for 50 times, probably highest by any prime minister of the country,” he said. Sonowal, who is in Tripura to review programmes of the waterways and AYUSH ministries, said the region will represent itself as a new growth engine for the nation.
The eight states of the region are Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura. “The Centre has been focusing on infrastructure development based on science and technology,' he said. (PTI)
The Congress on Tuesday claimed its alliance with the Goa Forward Party (GFP) would get a majority in the 40-member Goa Assembly, while the BJP would secure than 10 seats in the state. Goa witnessed 78.94 per cent voter turnout during polling on Monday. The counting of votes is scheduled on March 10.
Addressing a press conference, Goa Pradesh Congress Committee president Girish Chodankar said people came out in large numbers to vote "against the BJP".
“The Congress-GFP alliance will comfortably surpass the majority figure of 21 seats in the House, while the BJP will be restricted to less than 10 seats,” he claimed.
On Tuesday, the Congress held a meeting with all its candidates in the state capital Panaji to review the polling percentage in their respective constituencies. Congress Goa desk in-charge Dinesh Gundu Rao and GFP chief Vijai Sardesai were present during the meeting. (PTI)
Ahead of the Punjab Assembly Elections, the Aam Aadmi Party National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal during a party's 'Townhall ' program in Dhuri on Tuesday said all surveys are showing that the party is winning in the Punjab elections.
"After being voted to power, steps will be taken to end corruption. We will not end the APMC system," Kejriwal said.
Son of Minister of State Home Ajay Mishra Teni, and prime accused in the Lakhimpur violence case, Ashish Mishra released on bail.
Avdesh Kumar Singh, the Lawyer of the prime accused in Lakhimpur Kheri violence case Ashish Mishra on Tuesday evening said that Mishra will be released from jail in another half an hour.
'Court had demanded a surety amount of Rs 3 lakh twice. There will be no restrictions for going out of the city,' the lawyer added.
A day after clashes broke out between party workers of BJP and Samajwadi Party (SP) over allegations of fake voting in Shahjahanpur, a 25-year-old SP worker was shot dead while an elderly person was left injured at Vikrampur Chakora village in Nigohi police station area Tuesday morning.
The police said the incident comes after the two groups entered into a brawl over an old dispute of the village pradhan election. However, Shahjahanpur Police denied that the murder of the young SP worker, Dinesh Singh Yadav, is linked to Monday’s clashes. (Read the full report by Manish Sahu)
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday accused the Samajwadi Party and the BSP of crumbling the economy of Uttar Pradesh and credited Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath with bringing a turnaround in five years in the state. He also said the 2022 elections are for "strengthening Prime Minister Narendra Modi's hands and for making Yogi chief minister again".
"SP and BSP's 'babua and bua" both had crumbled the economy of such a big state as Uttar Pradesh, the economic system was on the seventh spot in the country which was brought to second spot by Yogiji in five years. Give another chance of five years and it will be taken to the first spot," Shah told an election meeting here.
Claiming success on the law and order front under the Yogi Adityanath government, he asked, "Can any mafia trouble you anywhere, can anyone encroach your land, play with the honour of mothers and sisters? Yogi ji has ensured the migration of mafia from Uttar Pradesh." "Akhilesh Yadav had asked what has happened (during the five years of BJP government), the one who has put yellow spectacles will see everything as pale," he said taking a swipe at the SP chief.
"Yogiji has brought down the dacoity in your time down by by 72 per cent, loot by 62 per cent, murder by 31 per cent and rape by 50 per cent," he said. Later on the Union Home Minister also held a road show in Kanpur.
Former IAS officer Jagmohan Singh Raju has jumped into the electoral battlefield from the Amritsar East seat, promising all-around development of the constituency which looks just like a 'pind', or village, to him due to its "pathetic condition".
BJP candidate Raju, a political greenhorn, is pitted against political heavyweights Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu and Shiromani Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia. Promising all-around development of the Amritsar East seat, he rues about its "pathetic condition". “I could never imagine that an important place of Punjab looks like a 'pind' (village)”.
“There are broken roads, no system for garbage collection, electricity wires are hanging, unorganized construction, no drinking water. It has been a very sad experience to see all these things,” complains Raju.
Raju, born and brought up in Punjab, had joined the IAS at the age of 21 years in 1985 and was allotted the Tamil Nadu cadre. He served in many positions at the Centre and Tamil Nadu state. Before jumping into the poll battle, Raju, who was holding the position of additional chief secretary, took voluntary retirement recently from service after putting in his 37 years. He was to retire in April 2023. (PTI)
AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi held a roadshow in Rupnagar.
SP chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday promised a kilo of 'ghee' to the poor along with free ration for five years if his party comes to power in Uttar Pradesh while claiming that the BJP government was set to discontinue its own free-ration scheme.
"The poor, who are availing their rations, will get it till the elections. It will not be available after the elections. Earlier it was to be given till November but when the UP elections were announced, they said they would get it till March," Yadav said.
Addressing an election rally here, he said the funds for ration has not been earmarked in "Delhi's budget as they know that the election will end in March."
"Ration was given by the Samajwadis earlier as well. As long as there is an SP government, we will give ration to our poor. Along with it, we will give mustard oil as well as two cylinders in a year. To see that the health of our poor gets better, one kilogram of ghee will also be given," the Samajwadi Party chief said. (PTI)
Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh while campaigning in Punjab ahead of the Assembly Elections slammed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Faridkot. He in his speech said that the party has opened liquor stores in every bylane of Delhi and promises to make Punjab free from drugs?
"BJP will work to eradicate drugs and terror from the state. You will see the results after one year of formation of our govt here," Singh added.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president J P Nadda in a rally in Maur Mandi, Bathinda, Punjab said, "132.80 lakh metric tonnes (of crops) were procured and if there is any state that was given the highest MSP by PM Modi, then it is Punjab - record Rs 23,000 crores within a year."
The Trinamool Congress has claimed it will win 12 seats in Goa and its ally Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) will bag seven seats in the 40-member state Assembly.
Polling in all the 40 Assembly constituencies of the coastal state was held on Monday. The counting of votes will be held on March 10. Before the polls, the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) had forged an alliance with Goa's oldest regional party MGP.
Talking to PTI after the voting concluded on Monday evening, TMC Goa chief Kiran Kandolkar claimed his party was the only political outfit that gave a tough fight to the ruling BJP in the state. "The TMC will win at least 12 seats in the state. Our ally MGP will win seven seats," he claimed.
Kandolkar said they might fall short of a few seats, as against the majority mark of 21, but expressed confidence that they will be able to prove the majority on the floor of the House. He dismissed the apprehension that the MGP might part ways with the TMC after the poll results are out. (PTI)
Farmer leader Rakesh Tikait on Tuesday said the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) will approach the Supreme Court over the Lakhimpur Kheri violence episode in which eight people, including four farmers, were killed.
Ashish Mishra, the son of Union Minister Ajay Mishra 'Teni', is a key accused in the case and the Allahabad High Court granted him bail on February 10. Ashish was expected to walk out of the jail on Tuesday.
Tikait, a prominent face of the farmers' stir and the national spokesperson of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), which is part of the SKM, also hit out at the BJP amid ongoing assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh. “The whole country and whole world watched the most infamous Lakhimpur Kheri episode of Ajay Teni and Ashish Teni, who despite having committed a heinous crime gets bail within three months. Everybody is seeing that and he will walk out of jail today,” Tikait told reporters, adding the SKM would approach the Supreme Court.
"So is such dictatorial government needed, or this type of system needed in which someone who mows down people under a vehicle walks out of jail within three months. How will they behave with the public in times to come? These are our issues that people need to understand,” the farmer leader said. (PTI)
In his resignation letter to the Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi, former Law minister Ashwani Kumar said, "...in the present circumstances and consistent with my dignity, I can best subserve larger national causes outside of the party-fold."
In an exclusive interview with The Indian Express shortly after his resignation, Kumar said, the future leadership that the party offers is not what the nation wants. Read the interview here
Former MLA Nadeem Javed has been announced as the Congress candidate from the Jaunpur Assembly constituency for Uttar Pradesh polls, in place of district president Faisal Tabrez Hassan.
Addressing a rally in Uttar Pradesh's Auraiya, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday promised free gas cylinders to voters. "Holi is on 18th (March), counting is on 10th. Bring BJP governemnt to power on 10th, free gas cylinders will reach your house on 18th," Shah was quoted as saying by ANI.
"No farmer will have to pay electricity bills for the next five years," he added.
Addressing a physical rally in Punjab’s Rajpura Tuesday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said, "Hum mar jayenge magar Punjab se shaanti khatam nahi hone denge. (We can give our lives to ensure peace remains in Punjab)."
Reiterating his appeal to voters from Monday’s rally, Gandhi said, “This is not a chemistry lab…where you can do experiments. It’s a border state, a sensitive state. Congress understands Punjab and can maintain peace here. All these parties making false promises, saying give us one chance, will ruin Punjab”
"A lot of people will give you false promises — Modi ji, Badal ji and Kejriwal ji. But I have been taught to only say the truth," he said.
Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Badal released a joint manifesto with Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader Randhir Benipal for upcoming Punjab Assembly election.
AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal held a roadshow in Ludhiana, just days before the Punjab elections. Speaking at a press conference earlier, Kejriwal had accused Congress and BJP of playing 'dirty politics' over the PM's security.
"It appears to me that unless we have all got it wrong, this is a wave election in favour of the Aam Aadmi Party. I don’t see a hung Assembly. Punjab is at the cusp of a transformative change and the election results in the state will have a major bearing on the direction of national politics," Ashwani Kumar told The Indian Express following his resignation from Congress. Read the exclusive interview here
Speaking to The Indian Express post his resignation from Congress, Ashwani Kumar said, "The political discourse about the office of the chief ministership, the language used by senior leaders with reference to each other in the middle of the campaign and the way Captain Amarinder Singh was humiliated into resignation was painful and has had a very negative effect on the people of Punjab." Read the exclusive interview here
Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal held a road show on the Rahon Road in Punjab's Ludhiana. Speaking to the supporters, Kejriwal said, "The surveys show AAP is forming the government in Punjab with 60-65 seats. Those are not enough, we want more than 80 seats."
In an exclusive interview with The Indian Express shortly after he resigned from the Congress party, former Law minister Ashwani Kumar said, "You can never write the epitaph of a party as old as the Congress. There is nothing wrong with the ideology of the Congress." Read the interview here
Former Union minister Ashwani Kumar resigned from the Congress party Tuesday. In an interview with The Indian Express Deputy Associate Editor Manoj C G soon after his resignation, Kumar said the future leadership that the party offers is not what the nation wants. Additionally, the endless wait for appointments with senior leaders to discuss party affairs is a very diminishing experience, he said.
Express File Photo
Kumar also added that he does not consider any political party a pariah and it is unfair to single out any individual for all the ills in the country. Read the full interview here
Just days before Punjab goes to polls, senior Congress leader from the state and former Union cabinet minister Ashwani Kumar Tuesday resigned from the party. Kumar, a veteran Congressman, is the first senior UPA cabinet minister to leave the Congress post its debilitating Lok Sabha election defeat in 2019.
Speaking to The Indian Express soon after he resigned, Kumar said, “The continuous decline of the Congress in terms of vote percentage, in terms of popular support clearly shows that the party is out of sync with the way the nation thinks. It is the function of a political party to both gauge the national mood and where necessary to transform it. Can anybody seriously or honestly deny that this has not been the case with the Congress party?” Read more
Hitting out at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in a virtual rally in Manipur, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Tuesday said that the central government's policies only benefit two-three big industrialists, leaving the poor and middle class don't their own.
"Once MSMEs are strengthened in Manipur, we'll create big employment opportunities," Gandhi added.
Backing AAP’s Amritsar East candidate Jeevanjot Kaur, Kejriwal in a press conference in Ludhiana said that both Navjot Singh Sidhu of Congress and Bikram Singh Majithia from SAD will lose from the seat.
Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday accused both the Congress party and the BJP of getting into "dirty politics" over the Prime Minister's security.
"I want to assure every Punjabi that we'll take responsibility for public safety if AAP is voted to power. We'll not indulge in any kind of politics on national or internal security", Kejriwal was quoted as saying by ANI at a press conference in Ludhiana.
Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said that Balbir Rajewal, Sanyukt Samaj Morcha party’s chief ministerial candidate, is “most welcome” to present proof of AAP selling tickets and the party will “vacate the seat immediately” if the allegations are proven.
The Delhi CM was addressing a press conference in Ludhiana.
On Monday, Rajewal had told The Indian Express that they will make the evidence public four days ahead of polls.
Urging people not to do any “experiment” in the Punjab Assembly polls, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi Monday said that maintaining peace and brotherhood was most important for the state and only his party was capable of doing that.
“Punjab’s peace is the most important thing. Remember, this is not a laboratory…not a chemistry lab to carry out an experiment…because if peace goes and if hatred starts to spread here, it will not only be Punjab’s, but nation’s loss…You understand the Congress party. It can take everyone along and maintain peace. We have experience in doing so. This is not the time to experiment,” said Gandhi, who addressed poll rallies in Hoshiarpur and Gurdaspur. Read more
As polling was underway for the second phase of the UP Assembly polls on Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hit out at the Opposition over a TMC leader’s purported remark on “not allowing consolidation of Hindu votes” in Goa, which also voted on Monday.
Addressing a poll meeting in Akbarpur in Kanpur Dehat district, the PM said: “A TMC leader said her party has forged an alliance so that the Hindu votes in Goa could be divided. You see this audacity (‘himmat’). Is this democracy? Is this secularism? Aap khule aam, hindu vote ko baatna chahte hain, toh aap kiske vote ikkhata karna chahte hon? (You are openly saying you want to divide the Hindu votes. Then whose votes are you trying to gather?”.
He was apparently referring to TMC MP Mahua Moitra’s alleged remarks that her party has prevented the consolidation of Hindu votes by tying up with the MGP in Goa. Read more
Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) chief Omprakash Rajbhar said he was attacked during the filing of nomination of party candidate Arvind Rajbhar from Varanasi's Shivpur constituency on Monday. "(CM) Yogi ji wants to get me killed. Goons of BJP and Yogi were sent there in black coats," he was quoted as saying by ANI.
He said, "I demand the Election Commission of India to provide security to Omprakash Rajbhar and Arvind Rajbhar."
SBSP is contesting the UP polls in alliance with Samajwadi Party.
While addressing a poll rally at Langthabal constituency, Imphal West district on Monday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said the Centre is ready to hold a dialogue with insurgent groups in Manipur.
The Union minister said, “I can boldly say that violence in Manipur is at the lowest point today during the last five years. I assure you that the BJP will completely put an end to this violence to bring lasting peace in the region.”
The defence minister appealed to insurgency groups to shun violence and come to the negotiating table to resolve problems. Read more
Do not give us food, but our people need arms licences.”
As Capt Amarinder Singh addressed a virtual rally as CM in Tarn Taran in September last year, this was how Gurchet Singh Bhullar, father of sitting Congress MLA and now party’s Khemkaran candidate Sukhpal Bhullar, had summed up the local preference for private licensed weapons.
Kanwaljit Singh, Principal in Guru Angad Dev government-aided college at Khadoor Sahib in district Tarn Taran, argued: “Sikh gurus had asked Sikhs to must carry weapons. Weapons have been part of Sikh culture over the centuries and instinct to own weapon is natural. Imagine the history of Punjab without this instinct of owning weapons. So it is not surprising that people of Punjab want to own weapon. Blaming weapons for violence is too much generalisation. Violence is a vast subject and not all kind of violence is caused by weapons.” Read Kamaldeep Singh Brar's report here
The annual three-day fair, held at Seer Goverdhanpur town in Varanasi, is organised to mark the birth anniversary of Sant Ravidass, a 15th-16th Century mystic poet saint of the Bhakti Movement.
A voter from Punjab, Kulwant Singh, 45, is glad he could make it to Varanasi for Ravidass Jayanti — and still be able to cast his vote back home. It doesn’t take any prodding for Singh to reveal his electoral preference. “My vote is for Channi maharaj (Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi) and the Congress. Why should I not vote for a party that has made a Dalit the CM?” says Singh, who owns a motorcycle repair shop in Jalandhar and comes to the fair every year.
His brother Dilbag Singh, however, says he will vote for the Aam Aadmi Party because Punjab needs “change”. Read Asad Rehman's report here
As PM Narendra Modi addressed his first physical rally in poll-bound Punjab after repealing of the farm laws, Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi claimed that his chopper was denied permission to take off twice during the day due to flying restrictions imposed during the PM’s visit.
Channi had to skip AICC leader Rahul Gandhi’s rally in Hoshiarpur as he could not take off. The Punjab CM was to fly to Hoshiarpur by AICC chopper from Rajindra park helipad in front of his official residence.
Sources in the aviation department of the state government said they checked with airport authorities and found that they had not declared any “no-fly zone”. Read more
Uttarakhand recorded a 65.1% voter turnout in the single-phase elections held Monday, according to the office of Chief Electoral Officer, ANI reported.
BSP supremo Mayawati is set to address a rally at a grain market in Nawanshahr city of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district, a day after phase two of Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections concluded.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah is set to address public rallies and meetings in Uttar Pradesh today (Tuesday).
Meanwhile, party chief JP Nadda will be addressing three public rallies in Punjab, with just days to go before the polling in the state.
Women have outnumbered men in exercising their franchise in the last two Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, with the number of Assembly segments with higher female voter turnout as compared to men also rising sharply in the state. The overall percentage of women voters in UP has also been on the rise, increasing from 60.28 per cent (as against 58.68% male voters) in 2012 to 63.61 per cent (against 59.15% men voters) in 2017. Read Harikishan Sharma's analysis here
AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal Monday accused the Congress, Akali Dal and the BJP of closing ranks to attack his party.
“Together they are abusing me and our CM candidate Bhagwant Mann and conspiring against us,” Kejriwal, who was in Amritsar on Monday, said.
He said that Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi only attacks him and Bhagwant Mann, but he does not speak anything against Sukhbir Badal and BJP. Hitting out at Channi, who has been targeting Kejriwal during his poll rallies, the Delhi chief minister said, “Channi abuses me from morning till late evening. These days Channi is unable to sleep. When he closes his eyes, I come in his dreams like a ‘bhoot’ (ghost) and then he wakes up.” Read more
As polling concluded in Goa’s 40 Assembly constituencies on Monday, the tentative turnout stood at 78.94 per cent, higher than other states that voted on Monday but a tad lower than the state’s 2017 count of 81.21 per cent. All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge of Goa, Dinesh Gundu Rao, told ANI, “There is a huge anti-incumbency wave and that’s the reason this high number of voting is taking place. I think it’s going to be a very good result for Congress and we will get an absolute majority.”
He added that the highest voter turnout in Sanquelim, where BJP has fielded incumbent Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, "shows that there is huge anger against the CM."
"In his constituency, we saw the Chief Minister becoming desperate and going door-to-door because he knew he was losing the elections. The high voter turnout in his constituency is a very good thing for us. Our Congress candidate will pull through in the contest," Rao was quoted as saying.
The BJP MLA from Uttarakhand's Laksar, Sanjay Gupta, told news agency ANI that the party's state unit chief, Madan Kaushik, "has worked against several BJP candidates to ensure their defeat in this election."
"He supported the BSP candidate contesting against me. He is a traitor. I demand the BJP leadership to sack him from the party," Gupta was quoted as saying.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday claimed that the AAP's rival parties in Punjab are targeting him and its chief ministerial candidate Bhagwant Mann as they do not want the state to have an honest government.
The national convenor of the Aam Aadmi Party said the only fault of his party and its leaders is that they talk about improving the condition of schools and hospitals in Punjab, giving jobs to people and ensuring justice in sacrilege cases.
In a swipe at his Punjab counterpart, Kejriwal said Charanjit Singh Channi has been having nightmares about him and is unable to sleep these days.
Blaming corruption for the inflow of drugs into the state, the AAP leader asserted it will stop once his party comes to power. Addressing a news conference in Amritsar, Kejriwal said, "During the past few days you must have observed that all parties and their leaders are only abusing me and Bhagwant Mann. Yesterday, (Union Home Minister) Amit Shah came (to Punjab) and he abused me and the AAP."
"Since morning till late evening Channi abuses me and Mann, but he does not take the name of (SAD chief) Sukhbir Singh Badal. "Sukhbir Badal also abuses me and Bhagwant Mann, but he does not take Channi's name. Priyanka Gandhi (who was in Punjab on Sunday) also abused me. It seems they all have come together and are targeting us," he said. (PTI)
The Assembly elections in Goa and Uttarakhand on Monday reported 78.94 per cent and 59.51 per cent voter turnout respectively, as per the Election Commission’s figures till 8 pm, while Uttar Pradesh’s second phase logged 61.72 per cent turnout.
More than 2.95 crore people voted at 36,823 polling stations spread across 165 constituencies in Goa, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. While Goa’s 40 constituencies and Uttarakhand’s 70 went to the polls in single-phase elections, people voted in 55 segments in UP’s second phase of elections. As a total of 1,519 candidates contested the seats that went to the polls, 158 of them were women. Read more
The BJP on Monday urged the Election Commission to ban Punjab Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu from campaigning in the ongoing assembly polls and register a criminal case against him and his party, alleging that he was promoting hatred and division in the society with his comments.
A BJP delegation, including Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, met the EC with a memorandum and claimed that Sidhu had insulted Brahmins with a "derogatory" reference with an aim to divide Punjabis.
Sidhu had also recently made an appeal to Muslims in the state that their votes should not be divided, the BJP noted.
Naqvi said the Congress leader's comments are in violation of the Model Code of Conduct and the Indian Penal Code as well. He also accused opposition parties in Uttar Pradesh of trying to hinder Muslim women from voting and asked the EC to look into it.
The BJP memorandum urged the EC to also censure and warn the Indian National Congress for promoting hatred and division by "allowing and acquiescing in the sinister designs" of Sidhu. (PTI)
BJP president J P Nadda targeted the Samajwadi Party on Monday and said it was synonymous with "corruption, commission and crime" as he canvassed for his party candidates in the ongoing assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.
Nadda addressed election rallies in favour of his party candidates in Kasta, Dhaurhara and Kursi assembly constituencies of Barabanki and Lakhimpur Kheri districts.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav is making lofty promises to farmers nowadays, but he had done nothing for them when in power, the BJP president charged.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given Rs 1.80 lakh crore to more than 10 crore farmers of the country under the Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme. He also listed various achievements of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Nadda alleged that the erstwhile governments led by the SP and the Bahujan Samaj Party encouraged "mafia raj" in Uttar Pradesh and allowed goons to unleash a reign of terror, but the BJP dispensation led by Adityanath eliminated them. (PTI)
As PM Narendra Modi addressed his first physical rally in poll-bound Punjab after repealing of the farm laws, Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi claimed that his chopper was denied permission to take off twice during the day due to flying restrictions imposed during the PM’s visit.
Channi had to skip AICC leader Rahul Gandhi’s rally in Hoshiarpur as he could not take off. The Punjab CM was to fly to Hoshiarpur by AICC chopper from Rajindra park helipad in front of his official residence.
Sources in aviation department of state government said they checked with airport authorities and found that they had not declared any “no-fly zone”. Read more
A farmer union leader was among the two people arrested on Monday in connection with the attack on BJP candidate from Ludhiana's Gill constituency Sucha Ram Ladhar, police said.
Ladhar was injured and hospitalised after his car was attacked Sunday evening. The 63-year-old retired IAS officer was returning from a village in his constituency after campaigning when the attack took place.
The Ludhiana Police registered a case against Jagwinder Singh Raju, circle head of the Kisan Union Ekta (Ugrahan), Luvjit Singh and 20 others in connection with the attack.
Both Raju and Luvjit Singh have been arrested. (PTI)
Jailed gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari's son Abbas Ansari on Monday filed his nomination papers from Mau Sadar seat as a candidate of the Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party, an allay of the Samajwadi Party.
“As the administration was creating hurdles in filing my father's nomination papers, I have filed the nomination today,” Ansari told reporters.
He alleged that the senior Ansari had been “unconstitutionally” kept in jail and that he will go to the people and take up their issues.
Mau will go to polls in the seventh and last phase on March 7. (PTI)
Goa recorded over 78% voter turnout on Monday. The turnout was the highest (89.64%) in Sanquelim, the CM’s constituency. It was the lowest in Benaulim (70.2%).
Uttar Pradesh recorded a voter turnout of over 60 per cent till 5 pm Monday in the second phase of the assembly elections with another hour to go before polling booths closed.
Additional Chief Election Officer Brahma Dev Ram Tiwari said polling in the state had been peaceful till then.
Polling across 55 assembly constituencies assembly in nine districts got off to sluggish start at 7 am due to the cold and fog at several places. But the pace picked up after a couple of hours.
The constituencies in the second phase are spread across Saharanpur, Bijnor, Moradabad, Sambhal, Rampur, Amroha, Budaun, Bareilly and Shahjahanpur districts. Altogether 586 candidates are in the fray in this phase.
Till 5 pm, Saharanpur recorded a turnout of 67.13 per cent, Bijnor 61.48, Moradabad 64.88, Sambhal 56.93 percent, Rampur 60.30 percent, Amroha 66.19, Budaun 55.91, Bareilly 57.88 and Shahjahanpur 55.25. The overall turnout till then was 60.44 per cent.
The same districts had recorded an average turnout of 65.53 percent in the 2017 assembly polls and 63.13 percent in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. (PTI)