Tag: BJP

INDIA bloc to win Lok Sabha polls, BJP will not even cross 200 seats: Mamata

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee on Saturday claimed that the INDIA bloc will come to power in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and BJP will “not cross the 200 mark” in the polls.

She accused Congress and CPI(M) of having entered into a nexus with BJP in the state to discredit the state government and asked the electorate not to vote for any non-TMC parties which will benefit the saffron camp.

Addressing an election rally at Goghat under the Arambagh Lok Sabha constituency, Banerjee said, “I had coined the name INDIA and at the national level we the coalition partners are all working together to resist the autocratic, demonic Narendra Modi government. TMC will play its role in installing the INDIA bloc to power.”

“See what Modi is telling now he is no more making tall ‘400 paar’ seats by BJP. He can read the writing on the wall already. BJP will not cross even 200 tally. BJP will bite the dust,” she said.

Banerjee alleged that CPI(M), Congress and other Left partners in West Bengal have entered into a ‘mahaghot’ (unprincipled nexus) with BJP just to discredit the ruling TMC which is the only party against Narendra Modi and Amit Shah in the state.

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The TMC supremo also slammed CPI(M) for allegedly committing mass murders at places like Goghat and Sihar during its rule and claimed only she as then opposition leader had dared to face the “Marxist terror at that time braving her life.”

“I know the true face of CPI(M) in Bengal,” she added. Describing Modi and Shah as “anti-Bengal”, she said, “His issuing advertisements in media to profess his love for the state won’t cut much ice with the residents of the state who knows these BJP heavyweight leaders will never understand our ethos and sentiments.”

Banerjee accused Modi and Shah of using doctored, false images of Matuas in one such ad gloating over CAA benefits. Reiterating her allegations about BJP concocting the charges of atrocities against TMC leaders on women of Sandeshkhali, she said, “They made some of the poor, unsuspecting women sign on blank papers and incorporated charges of sexual misconduct in the complaint later.”

She cautioned the voters and the security personnel by alleging that the BJP had planned to remove idols from temples in Sandeshkhali and elsewhere and engineer riots to get votes by dividing people.

In a conciliatory tone, she added: If there had been stray incidents of mistake, those have been rectified and corrective actions taken on our part. Today’s generation might not be aware of the magnitude of atrocities committed on people and political opponents by the CPIM in its reign which had never been addressed by their administration.

The goons of the CPI(M) have changed colours and now working for the BJP, the TMC supremo claimed. At the second rally in Bishnupur Lok Sabha seat, Banerjee mentioned Modi’s comments on alleged consumption of fish by RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav during Navratri.

Also Read: Lok Sabha Election 2024 — how regional parties are challenging national giants in Phase-4

She said, Who are you (Modi) to lecture us whether to eat meat, fish or egg? Let everyone eat what he/she likes. Banerjee said every state has its own culinary and dietary tradition and the PM and his party have no right to impose diktat on the people of a region in a country like India.

Claiming that Union Home Minister Amit Shah has been asking people to invest in shares to boost the stock market, she accused the BJP heavyweight of violating the model code of conduct (MCC). Terming Modi as a jumla PM who only spreads misinformation and gives false promises, she said he had promised two crore jobs every year in the last polls.

So the total number would go up to 10 crore. How many actually get the jobs promised by Modi? Why is he not repeating the same promise this time?… I have not seen such a jumla government in my entire political life, Banerjee said. She accused the prime minister of plotting to divide the nation along religious lines and plundering assets of the country.

Banerjee charged Modi with trying to change the pluralistic values and secular ideals enshrined in the constitution and change the name of India to Bharat. “This has become more pronounced since we named the opposition bloc INDIA,” she said. Banerjee also promised once the INDIA bloc comes to power after the polls, measures will be initiated to scrap the CAA and NRC and the Uniform Civil Code (UCC).

Accusing the BJP of using central agencies to frame TMC leaders in coal and cattle smuggling cases, she said, Who is in charge of border security? Why will Union Home Minister Amit Shah not be arrested if there are such cases of smuggling? Banerjee alleged that BJP is trying to influence monks but that plan will not succeed.

Also Read: In Ayodhya, voters talk of a promise fulfilled and yearning for development

Stating that her government had helped Rama Krishna Mission to renovate the ancestral home of Swami Vivekananda in north Kolkata, she said, I have regular contacts with monastic organizations and that will remain forever. I have great respect for them.

In a dig at sitting BJP MP from Bisnupur and party’s candidate Saumitra Khan, Banerjee accused him of amassing huge properties during his five-year tenure but not doing anything to secure the money under 100 days’ central project for the job card holders in three years. Modi, like an emperor, comes to campaign in a luxury aircraft and leaves while she uses a small hired helicopter, she claimed.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

BJP is planning to ban RSS, says Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was planning to ban its ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), after winning a third term in power.

Speaking at his last rally before the campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections ended in Maharashtra, Thackeray also said that the Election Commissioner who was “acting like Modi’s servant” will be removed after the INDIA alliance government comes to power.

“The way they tried to use and throw the Shiv Sena, a similar game will be played by Narendra Modi in future (with the RSS), and that has been stated by (BJP president J P) Nadda,” he said.

Also Read: INDIA bloc will win majority seats in Bihar, says Tejashwi Yadav

Thackeray was referring to Nadda’s comments to a newspaper that when the BJP was a small party and less capable, it needed the RSS, but now the saffron party has grown, become more capable, and “runs itself”.

“Nadda said there was a need of the RSS until now, (but) we are capable now and we don’t need the RSS. If they (BJP) came to power, it is a bigger danger for RSS workers because they will ban the RSS,” Thackeray claimed. In the past, (then Union home minister) Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel had banned the RSS, he noted.

“Those who call our party ‘nakli’ (fake) Shiv Sena will call the Sangh ‘nakli’,” Thackeray further said, referring to Prime Minister Modi’s jibe at the Sena (UBT).

“The entire RSS cadre toils to make you prime minister. Why are you planning to ban the RSS which gave you birth and gave you political power,” Thackeray asked.

Also Read: ‘Modi won’t be Prime Minister’ | Rahul Gandhi Exclusive

He also took a swipe at the Election Commission, stating that “after the INDIA alliance government comes to power, we have to send home the election commissioner who is acting like Modi’s servant.” Whoever is working like the BJP regime’s “servant” will be sacked, the former Maharashtra chief minister said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Punjab Lok Sabha elections: Complete list of Congress candidates

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Two years after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) defeated Congress in Punjab Assembly elections, the grand old party is attempting to regain its lost glory in the border state. The stage is set and it’s the Lok Sabha elections where AAP and Congress — part of the INDIA bloc — are going solo.

Punjab, which comprises 13 parliamentary constituencies, is all set to vote for the 2024 general elections in a single phase on June 1, followed by the counting of votes on June 4.

During the 2019 polls, the grand old party emerged victorious in Punjab, bagging eight of the 13 Lok Sabha seats, leaving the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) with just two seats each, while the remaining constituency went to the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

However, the Congress has witnessed the departure of several veteran leaders, including former chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh, his wife and sitting Patiala MP Preneet Kaur, the party’s former state unit president Sunil Jakhar and two-time Ludhiana MP Ravneet Singh Bittu, to the BJP.

During the 2022 Assembly polls, AAP registered a landslide victory, getting 92 of the 117 seats in the state. Congress could only manage 18 seats, while three went to the SAD, two to BJP and one each to the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and an Independent candidate.

BJP and SAD, the two former allies, earlier failed to reach a common ground and they too are going solo in these polls.

As a result, the state this time is witnessing a multi-cornered contest between the Congress, AAP, the BJP and SAD.

Punjab Lok Sabha elections: Voting dates

In Punjab, polling for the 2024 general elections will be held during the last phase on June 1. All the seats in the state will vote in a single phase.

During the 2019 elections, the state witnessed a total voter turnout of 65.94%.

Punjab Lok Sabha elections: Total seats

In total, Punjab has 13 parliamentary constituencies, of which four seats are reserved for the SC candidates, while the remaining nine are unreserved.

Punjab Lok Sabha elections: Congress candidates

After a strong performance in the last elections, the Congress is hopeful of yet another dominating show in Punjab in the 2024 polls. Here’s a complete list of candidates announced by the grand old party in Punjab:

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Celebrity Kangana vs ‘royal’ Vikramaditya on Himachal’s Mandi seat: Clash of richest titans

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Clash of the two richest titans, a celebrity and a ‘royal’, is on the cards in Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi Lok Sabha constituency, known for electing erstwhile “royals” maximum number of times. The BJP has for the first time fielded a woman and a Bollywood celebrity in Kangana Ranaut who will take on Vikramaditya Singh, scion of the erstwhile Rampur “royal family” and son of six-time chief minister Virbhadra Singh.

Both the rivals have launched a high-pitched campaign, even with offensive outbursts. Vikramaditya fired a salvo at Kangana asking about her vision about the development of the constituency. Taking a dig at his rival, he said she is on a month-long political tourism and would pack up and return to Bollywood after June 4.

Returning the salvo, Kangana dubbed Vikramaditya as “Chhota Pappu”. It was a mocking reference to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi who is often dubbed as “Pappu” or a novice by his political opponents. Kangana called Vikramaditya a “junior Pappu”. She asked him why he stood mum when Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu took “anti-Mandi decisions” like stalling the Rs 250-?crore Shiv Dhan project, curtailing the jurisdiction of Mandi University and pushing the Sundernagar airfield project under the carpet.

Kangana’s main agendas include restarting all the stalled projects besides improving connectivity to remote tribal areas, and popularising local cuisines and traditional attires, and promoting women-centric rural tourism in Seraj and Karsog. “Mandi will be made a smart city,” this is my promise, said Vikramaditya, adding that Jalori Jot tunnel will be constructed on the line of Rohtang tunnel and remote Pangi area of Chamba will be connected with Tissa, besides the construction of Beas river front.

The alleged insulting remarks by Kangana on farmers during the farmer agitation are recoiling and the Samyukt Kisan Manch has rendered their support to Vikramaditya. On the other hand, Kangana got support from unexpected quarters. The scion of Kullu Maheshwar Singh, who was an aspirant of a BJP ticket from Mandi; former Union minister Sukh Ram’s grandson Ashray Sharma, who was defeated by BJP candidate Ram Swaroop Sharma in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls; and Kargil hero Brig Khushal Singh, who was defeated by Pratibha Singh in the 2021 parliamentary byelection with a narrow margin have extended their support to the Bollywood actor.

Kangana dubbed Vikramaditya also as a “bigda hua shezada” (spolit prince) and a ‘paltu’ (one who makes U-turns) and said he used to criticise his own government but now is praising it. Singh retaliated by saying she will return “purified” from the ‘Dev bhoomi’.

Both Bollywood reel ‘Queen’ Kangana and ‘Raja’ Vikramaditya Singh have declared their assets over of Rs 90 crore. Kangana is banking on her celebrity image, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Ram temple factors.

Vikramaditya is hoping to sail through riding on the legacy of his father Virbhadra Singh and state Congress chief Pratibha Singh, the sitting MP from Mandi. Vikramaditya, who was active during the monsoon disaster in 2023, has been asking where Kangana was when it had hit the state and caused havoc in the Mandi-Kullu region.

The BJP candidate is accused of being unfamiliar with her constituency while the Congress candidate has extensively campaigned for his mother in the last byelections. Out of 19 parliamentary elections, including two byelections held in Mandi since 1952, the Congress has won 13 times, with both Virbhadra Singh and Pratibha Singh winning thrice. Further, the scions of erstwhile princely states won from Mandi 13 times while the “non-royals” were elected six times.

Raj Kumai Amrit Kaur of the Kapurthala dynasty and Raja Joginder Sen Bahadur of the princely state of Mandi were elected once, Raja Lalit Sen of Suket represented Mandi twice, Virbhadra Singh and Pratibha Singh three times each and Raja Maheshwar Singh of Kullu won thrice. Sukh Ram who won from Mandi three times, Ram Swaroop who won two times and Ganga Singh who won once, when he defeated Virbhadra Singh in 1977, were the exceptions who hailed from non-royal families.

The sprawling constituency spreads over six districts and comprises 17 assembly segments. In the 2022 assembly polls, the BJP had won 12 assembly seats falling under Mandi parliamentary constituency. The seat has become prestigious for former chief minister Jai Ram Thakur, who has to establish that the BJP still holds sway in Mandi.

Vikramaditya Singh has to prove that the impact of the Rampur ‘ruling’ family is deep-rooted in this constituency. There are 13,77,173 voters in the Mandi Lok Sabha constituency, including 6,98,666 males, 6,78,504 females and three third gender.

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Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Fight of heavyweights in Sambalpur where farmers, weavers hold the key

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Unemployment and distress sale of paddy are the pressing issues in Odisha’s Sambalpur Lok Sabha constituency, where Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan of the BJP and influential BJD general secretary (organisation) Pranab Prakash Das are poised for a showdown. The candidates’ attention is squarely on farmers and weavers, who are crucial in a region that encompasses the catchment area of the Hirakud reservoir and has a thriving handloom industry.

The majority of Sambalpur’s population, concentrated in five of its seven assembly constituencies, relies either on agriculture or the harvesting of Kendu and Sal leaves for their livelihoods. Pradhan, who is a Rajya Sabha MP from Bihar, is contesting elections after a gap of 15 years. He had last unsuccessfully contested assembly elections from Parlahara assembly segment in 2009.

Das, on the other hand, is the sitting MLA of Jajpur seat in the coastal region. He is known to be an influential organiser of the party. The prestigious Sambalpur parliamentary constituency was represented by the BJD during its alliance with BJP three times in a row in 1998, 1999 and 2004.

In 2009, 2014 and 2019, however, voters of the constituency elected Congress, BJD and BJP candidates respectively. Pradhan, a resident of Talcher town in Angul district and son of former Union minister Debendra Pradhan, has been a central minister since 2014 and is banking on the initiatives of the Union government to register a victory.

“We are optimistic that people will vote on the lotus symbol. The BJP-led Centre has established IIM Sambalpur and people are happy with the developmental work of the Union government,” he said. Das, a three-term Jajpur MLA and son of former Janata Dal state president Ashok Dash, claimed that people love Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and have been benefited from the BJD governments’ schemes for farmers, weavers, students, youths and women.

“The BJD government’s Kalia scheme for farmers is very popular in this region,” Das said. Although a total of 14 candidates are in the fray, the contest is directly between Pradhan and Das.

Congress has nominated former BJD MP and ex-minister Nagendra Pradhan, who quit the ruling party in the state and joined the grand old party a few days before filing his nominations. The Congress had first named Dulal Chandra Pradhan from the seat but later changed its candidate to Nagendra Pradhan, who had won from the constituency in 2014 on a BJD ticket, after he joined the grand old party. Aggrieved by the party’s decision, Dulal Chandra Pradhan later joined the BJP.

Nagendra Pradhan was elected from the Athamalik assembly segment three times, in 1990 on a Janata Dal ticket and in 2004 and 2014 as a BJD candidate. He had also served in the Naveen Patnaik cabinet. The Sambalpur parliamentary constituency was reorganised in a delimitation exercise ahead of the 2009 Lok Sabha polls.

It comprises Sambalpur, Rairhakhol, Kuchinda and Rengali assembly constituencies in Sambalpur district, Athamallik and Chhendipada assembly segments in Angul district and Deogarh assembly constituency in Deogarh district. BJD had won the Rairhakhol, Kuchinda, Chhendipada and Athamallik assembly seats, while the BJP bagged Sambalpur, Deogarh and Rengali assembly seats in the 2019 elections.

In the 2009, 2014 and 2019 elections, Sambalpur sent three different party candidates to the Lok Sabha. In 2009, the Congress won by a margin of 14,874 votes, while the BJD secured the seat in 2014, winning by 30,574 votes. The BJP bagged the seat in 2019 by a margin of only 9,162 votes.

The candidates of the three major parties were seen campaigning in the scorching heat, reaching out to representatives of various communities, entrepreneurs, artistes and sportspersons.

Also Read: Lok Sabha Election 2024: What rural Delhi wants

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Fire breaks out at Delhi BJP office, no casualties reported

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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A fire broke out at the Delhi BJP office located in central Delhi on Thursday (May 16), officials of the Delhi Fire Services said. No casualties were reported during the incident.

According to the officials, they received a call around 4.25 PM reporting a fire incident at the BJP head office in Pandit Pant Marg.

#WATCH | Fire breaks out in BJP’s Delhi State Office at Pandit Pant Marg. Fire tenders being rushed to the spot. More details awaited. https://t.co/j15I12d1qW pic.twitter.com/6WGk954MTA

— ANI (@ANI) May 16, 2024

“Three fire tenders were pressed into service,” the DFS official said, adding that the fire was brought under control within a few minutes. Police was further informed to investigate the matter, a Delhi Fire Services official said.

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The party office statement claimed that there was a short circuit in the electricity meter box at the Delhi BJP office at around 4.15 pm which triggered a minor fire incident.

“The NDMC electric staff and fire brigade team reached the office in less than 15 minutes. The fire was controlled by 4.30 pm. Only the electricity of the office has been turned off which may take few hours to restore. There was no damage to property and no one was injured,” BJP said in a statement.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Watch | BJP’s Hyderabad candidate Madhavi Latha checks voter IDs of women at polling booth; case registered

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Hours after Madhavi Latha, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate from the Hyderabad seat, wasspotted checking the voter ID cards of a few women at a polling booth on Monday, a case was registered against her.

Responding to a tweet, which carried a clip of the BJP candidate asking women in burqa to show their faces and voter ID cards, the Returning Officer of the constituency said that the case was registered at the Malakpet Police Station under Sections 171C, 186, 505(1)(c) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 132 the Representation of the People Act.

Earlier in the day, Madhavi Latha’s video went viral on social media, with many questioning why she was allowed to enter the polling booth and who gave her the right to verify voter IDs.

Many even questioned the Election Commission of India and sought a response.

“Who authorised her to verify voters? Where is the administration? Hello @ECISVEEP, what’s your say on this?” read a comment.

ALSO READ | Watch | YSRCP MLA slaps voter at polling booth in Andhra Pradesh’s Guntur; he gives it back

Another person asked, “Who gave her the authority to go inside the polling station and check citizens I’d card?”

“Is this allowed?” read another comment.

#WATCH | Telangana: BJP candidate from Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency, Madhavi Latha visits a polling booth in the constituency. Voting for the fourth phase of #LokSabhaElections2024 is underway. pic.twitter.com/BlsQXRn80C

— ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2024

When questioned about the same, she claimed that as per law, the candidate had the right to check ID cards without the facemasks. “I am not a man, I am a woman and with a lot of humbleness, I have only requested them – can I please see and verify with the ID cards? If somebody wants to make a big issue out of it, that means they are scared…” she told ANI.

She further claimed that the police personnel seem “very dull, they are not active”.

“They are not checking anything. Senior citizen voters are coming here but their names are deleted from the list. A few of them are residents of Goshamahal but their names are in the list of Rangareddy,” she added.

ALSO READ| Watch | PM Modi, wearing a turban, serves langar at Patna gurdwara

In Hyderabad, the BJP has fielded Madhavi Latha against AIMIM’s Asaduddin Owaisi, who is eyeing a fifth consecutive term from what’s been his family bastion for four decades.

In another incident, Arvind Dharmapuri, the sitting BJP MLA from Nalgonda, was seen questioning women voters for wearing a burqa at polling stations, according to reports.

BURKHA TO THE RESCUE?! #Nizamabad BJP MP candidate Dharmapuri Aravind who has been facing a lot of flak for not doing anything in the constituency … on the day of election resorts to primordial rhetoric! Questions women for wearing a burkha for voting.

Well! Women’s choice… pic.twitter.com/xOFHtGY8mO

— Revathi (@revathitweets) May 13, 2024

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Odisha records over 64% voter turnout for Lok Sabha and Assembly polls

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The polling for four Lok Sabha constituencies and 28 assembly seats in Odisha is concluded on Monday, May 13, amid stringent security measures in the fourth phase of the General Elections.

More than 64% of 62.87 lakh voters exercised their franchise in the four Lok Sabha and 28 assembly constituencies in Odisha on Monday, May 13, officials said.

Voting started at 7 am in 7,303 polling stations in Berhampur, Koraput, Nabarangpur, and Kalahandi parliamentary constituencies along with 28 assembly segments within the jurisdiction of these seats.

Lok Sabha and assembly elections are being held simultaneously in Odisha.

Till 5 pm, nearly 63% voters cast their votes, officials said, adding that the highest voter turnout was recorded in tribal-dominated Kalahandi Lok Sabha seat at 67.07% followed by Nabarangpur (65.07), Koraput (61.43), and Berhampur (58).

Of the eight districts where the simultaneous polls are being held, highest 68.84% polling was recorded in Nabrangpur district followed by Kalahandi (67.37), Nuapada (66.35), Gajapati (63.71), Rayagada (62.96), Koraput (61.22), Malkangiri (57.68) and Ganjam (55.65).

The polling is being held in Berhampur, Koraput, Nabarangpur, and Kalahandi parliamentary constituencies along with 28 assembly segments within the jurisdiction of these Lok Sabha seats.

Koraput Lok Sabha seat Congress candidate Saptagiri Ulaka, BJP candidate from Berhampur LS seat Pradeep Panigrahy, BJP’s Kalahandi LS candidate Malavika Keshari Deo, BJD Nabarangpur LS candidate Pradeep Majhi, BJP candidate Balabhadra Majhi, Congress MLA Taraprasad Bahinipati, Congress leader Bhakta Charan Das and other senior leaders were among the early voters.

Over 62.87 lakh electors are eligible to exercise their franchise across 7,303 polling booths. As many as 37 candidates are vying for the four Lok Sabha seats and 243 contestants for 28 assembly segments.

Polling ended at 6 pm with adjustments in certain remote and Maoist-hit areas, where voting will conclude earlier.

Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) NB Dhal assured adequate arrangements for voters’ convenience.

Dhal highlighted unique challenges, such as airdropping polling officials for six booths in the remote Nuapada district and using boats in other areas to ensure accessibility.

To address potential threats, police have deployed 17,000 personnel, particularly focusing on areas vulnerable to Maoist activities.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow