Tag: BJP

Veteran politician, BJP MP & ex-Union minister Sreenivasa Prasad dies

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

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Veteran politician, BJP MP and former Union Minister V Sreenivasa Prasad died on Monday, April 29, family sources said.

The 76-year-old Lok Sabha member from Chamarajnagar was ailing for some time and being treated at a private hospital, where he passed away early today.

Prasad is survived by wife and three daughters.

He was a six-time MP from Chamarajanagar and also served as MLA from Nanjangud in Mysuru district for two terms.

On March 18, Prasad announced his retirement from electoral politics, marking his 50 years in public life.

He first contested Assembly elections as an independent in 1974.

Prasad joined the erstwhile Janata Party in 1976 and switched over to the Congress in 1979. He also had a stint with the JD(S), JD (U), and the Samata Party before crossing over to the BJP.

Prasad served as the Union Minister of State for Consumer Affairs Food and Public Distribution in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government from 1999 to 2004.

He returned to the Congress fold later, got elected as an MLA in 2013 and became Revenue Minister in the Siddaramaiah government.

In 2016, Prasad resigned from the Assembly and rejoined the BJP. He contested the 2017 Nanjangud bypolls on a BJP ticket but lost. He then successfully fought the Lok Sabha election from Chamarajanagar in 2019.

Condoling his death, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah described Prasad as a strong voice for the oppressed Dalits. “The departure of the leader who lived the struggle against injustice and inequality is a big setback for the political struggle for social justice in the state,” he added.

“He was a progressive-thinking political leader. Although we worked in different parties for a long time in old Mysuru region, we maintained a respectful relationship with each other. When I met him recently, we reminisced. I never thought Prasad would leave us so soon,” the CM said.

BJP stalwart and former Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said: ‘I met him only a few days ago and I can’t believe that he is not with us now. He was recognised as an influential Dalit leader who had made his mark in the politics of the state and the country.”

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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

Loud echoes of Maratha reservation issue in Maharashtra

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

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In the heart of Maharashtra, the echoes of the Maratha reservation debate reverberate loudly, with Marathwada emerging as a focal point of agitation.

In 2023, the houses of legislators were burnt and vandalized by angry Maratha protesters. Even though the Maharashtra government says that it has given reservation to the Marathas, the issue of Maratha reservation is still resounding.

Also Read | Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Maratha reservation to farmer suicides, key political issues in Maharashtra

The bill granting 10% reservation for Marathas in government employment and educational institutions was unanimously approved by the Maharashtra Assembly during a special one-day session on February 20. Subsequently, the Maharashtra Legislative Council also endorsed the bill.

However, some of the Maratha organisations later claimed that this might not stand judicial scrutiny as the overall quota in the state now exceeds the 50% limit.

According to reports, OBCs constitute 34% of the total population of Maharashtra, while the Marathas account for 28%.

Marathas are 28% of the voters in the state. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged victorious in 23 out of the 48 seats in Maharashtra, with its erstwhile ally Shiv Sena securing victories in 18 constituencies. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), led by Sharad Pawar, secured four seats, while the Congress and AIMIM each claimed one seat. An Independent candidate clinched the remaining seat.

Also Read | Explained: PM Modi’s ‘wealth distribution’ remarks–Part of Congress Manifesto? Or an election manifestation

Earlier, activist Manoj Jarange Patil demanded that an entire Maratha community be provided a quota under the OBC category by identifying them as ‘Kunbi’ — which is an agrarian community that falls in the OBC category. However, Chhagan Bhujbal, a prominent OBC leader, has opposed the demand.

Also Read | BJP spent more than ₹103 crore on ads since May 2018, maximum expenditure on videos

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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

Four unidentified persons booked for threatening journalist over newspaper article

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

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Four unidentified persons were booked on Saturday April 27 for threatening a woman journalist in Mumbai over a newspaper article, a police official said.

Sukhda Sadanand Purav aka Neha Purav of Navkal newspaper, in her complaint at MHB police station in Borivali West, said she had published an article on April 14 about Union Minister and BJP’s Mumbai North Lok Sabha candidate Piyush Goyal reportedly having trouble due to the smell of fish while on a campaign trail.

Four men came to her residence on Thursday April 25 night at around 10:30 pm and warned her against publishing such articles, the MHB police official said quoting her complaint.

Four persons have been booked under Indian Penal Code sections 448 (house trespass), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 34 (common intention) and further probe was underway, he said.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi strongly condemned the incident in a post on social media platform X.

Interim Cabinet Minister and Mumbai North Candidate, Piyush Goyal continues to embarrass his party and hurt the sentiments of the first residents of Mumbai, the Koli community by saying he cannot stand the smell of fish. Just for reporting this, Neha Purav, Navakal journalist is… pic.twitter.com/saSAh7762j

— Priyanka Chaturvedi🇮🇳 (@priyankac19) April 26, 2024

In another news, an Australian journalist recently alleged that she was forced to leave India after the government refused to extend her work visa contending that her reportage had “crossed a line”.

Avani Dias, the South Asia Bureau Chief of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, said she had to leave India on April 19, the day the Lok Sabha elections started after the government objected to her reporting on the assassination of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

“Last week, I had to leave India abruptly. We were also told my election accreditation would not come through because of an Indian Ministry directive. We left on day one of voting in the national election in what Modi calls “the mother of democracy,” Dias said on X who had been working in India for the past two-and-a-half years.

(With inputs from agencies)

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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

Odisha Assembly Polls: BJP names 8 more candidates including 4 turncoats

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

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The BJP on Saturday April 27 announced the names of eight more candidates for the assembly polls in Odisha, with four of them being former members of the ruling BJD who switched allegiance to the saffron party recently.

These turncoats are Seemarani Nayak (Hindol), Arindam Roy (Salipur), Geetanjali Sethi (Kendrapara), and Prasant Jagdev (Khurda). Jagdev, formerly a BJD MLA from Chilika, was ousted from the party before he joined the BJP. Roy is a popular Odia actor.

The remaining candidates announced by the party are Fakir Mohan Naik (Telkoi), Murali Manohar Sharma (Champua), Rabindra Andia (Basta), and Banikalyan Mohanty (Basudevpur).

The saffron party has so far announced candidates for 140 out of the 147 assembly segments, the BJD has declared 141 candidates, while the Congress has put forth 138 aspirants for the polls, slated to be conducted in four phases from May 13 to June 1.

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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 replaces Poonam Mahajan with lawyer Ujjwal Nikam for Mumbai North Central Lok Sabha seat

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

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The BJP on Saturday April 27 dropped incumbent Lok Sabha MP Poonam Mahajan as its candidate from the Mumbai North Central seat and named lawyer Ujjwal Deorao Nikam in her place.

Nikam is a well-known name in the legal circle and was a government counsel in the Mumbai terror attack case.

Mahajan, the daughter of late BJP leader Pramod Mahajan, was elected from the constituency in 2014 and 2019. She is also a former president of the BJP’s youth wing.

Party leaders have claimed that the decision to drop her was based on organisational feedback. Though indications had been there for some time that Mahajan would be dropped, it was the party’s search for her replacement that took time, sources said.

The Congress has fielded its city unit chief and Dharavi MLA Varsha Gaikwad from Mumbai North Central.

Voting in Mumbai is scheduled to be held on May 20 in the fifth phase of the polls.

The BJP also named eight more candidates for the Odisha assembly polls, which will be held alongside the general elections.

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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 spent more than ₹103 crore on Google Ads since May 2018, maximum expenditure on videos

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

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The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has crossed ₹100 crore in political advertisements on Google and its video platform YouTube. The party has spent more than ₹103 crore since May 2018, when Google started publishing the Google Ads Transparency report.

In terms of ad formats, 68.2% of BJP’s spend on Google ads published between May 31, 2018, and April 27, 2024, was on video followed by 31.8% on images.

Google’s definition of political ads includes ads placed by news organisations, government publicity departments, and even commercial ads featuring actor-politicians.

Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan are the states that top the list in terms of ads expenditure on states for the BJP.

Congress takes the second spot with the party spending ₹49 crore in the period.

Tamil Nadu’s DMK is the third-biggest political advertiser on Google platforms with maximum ad spends of ₹25 crore since May 2018.

But if you look at the much shorter period, during the second phase of campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections, almost all political parties spent around ₹15 crore on promoting their manifesto, policies, and achievements on Google alone.

BJP’s Google Ads expenditure since 2018 is below

In terms of spends over time, there has been a very clear spike in ad spends on Google platforms in 2024 and compared to all the past years with maximum amount of spends dedicated to video at 80.6 percent

And in terms of states where the maximum ad spend were dedicated, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh topped the charts.

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

Lok Sabha Election 2024: Nearly 61% voter turnout in phase 2 polls; UP, Maharashtra see nearly 54%

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

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Nearly 61% polling was reported in the second phase of Lok Sabha elections covering 88 seats across 13 states amid a few complaints of EVM glitches and bogus voting in some states. Polling for the second stage of the seven-phase elections started at 7 am and ended at 6 pm.

The first phase of polling was held on April 19 in 102 seats across 21 states and Union territories. The Election Commission (EC) said polling remained largely peaceful. The tentative figure at 7 pm of voter turnout of 60.96% is likely to go upwards when reports from all polling stations are obtained, the EC said, adding voters reaching polling stations till the end of polling hour are allowed to cast their vote.

EC data showed the highest voting percentage was recorded in Tripura which registered 78.53% polling, followed by Manipur at 77.18% while the turnout was relatively lower in Uttar Pradesh at 53.71% and Maharashtra 53.84%.

Polling was held in all 20 seats of Kerala, 14 of the 28 seats in Karnataka, 13 seats in Rajasthan, 8 seats each in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, 6 seats in Madhya Pradesh, 5 seats each in Assam and Bihar, 3 seats each in Chhattisgarh and West Bengal, and 1 seat each in Manipur, Tripura and Jammu and Kashmir.

Here’s the latest voter turnout from all states that went to polls in the second phase of Lok Sabha elections:

Of the 1,202 candidates in the fray, 1,098 are men, 102 are women and two are from the third gender category. Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar and actor-turned-politician Arun Govil, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar’s brother DK Suresh (Cong), and former Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy (JDS) are among the key candidates while BJP’s Hema Malini, Om Birla and Gajendra Singh Shekhawat seeking a hat-trick of wins from their respective constituencies.

All 20 seats of Kerala, 14 seats in Karnataka, 13 seats in Rajasthan, 8 seats each in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, 6 seats in Madhya Pradesh, 5 seats each in Assam and Bihar, 3 seats each in Chhattisgarh and West Bengal, and 1 seat each in Manipur, Tripura and Jammu and Kashmir are polling today.

The Election Commission (EC) said more than 16 lakh polling officials have been deployed across 1.67 lakh polling stations for over 15.88 crore voters. Voters include 8.08 crore male, 7.8 crore female and 5,929 third gender electors. As many as 34.8 lakh first-time voters are registered to cast their votes. Additionally, there are 3.28 crore young voters in the age group of 20–29 years.

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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

Baghpat Lok Sabha elections: Voter turnout at 53.69%; can RLD reclaim its stronghold?

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

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Polling for the Baghpat Lok Sabha constituency began today (April 26), as part of Phase 2 of the Lok Sabha Elections 2024. The final voter turnout was at 53.69%.

Baghpat, one of the 80 Lok Sabha constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, has been a significant political battleground since its establishment in 1967.

Click here to follow Lok Sabha Elections 2024 Phase 2 Voting Live updates

Comprising five assembly seats—Siwalkhas, Chhaprauli, Baraut, Baghpat, and Modinagar—Baghpat has over 16 lakh voters.

Together, Muslims and Jats are estimated to constitute more than half of the electorate in the area.

While voter turnout in the Baghpat constituency in 2019 elections was at 64.64%, it may be affected this time due to the severe heat wave conditions across the country.

For 2024 Lok Sabha elections, votes will be counted on June 4.

Candidates in the fray:

For the first time in many years, Baghpat’s traditional Lok Sabha seat will not see a candidate from Charan Singh’s lineage participating in the election.

The Rashtriya Lok Dal’s (RLD’s) Jayant Singh, now allied with the BJP-led NDA, has fielded Rajkumar Sangwan while the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has nominated Praveen Bansal. The following are the other candidates:

History of the constituency:

The constituency, which covers the Baghpat district, and parts of Ghaziabad and Meerut districts, has had a dynamic political history.

While the Jan Sangh won the inaugural elections followed by a Congress domination, the political landscape changed drastically post-Emergency.

Former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh won five consecutive victories between 1977 and 1984. His son Ajit Singh, a farmer and Jat leader, continued his legacy by winning six times, except for a defeat in 1988.

In 1997, Ajit Singh founded the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), which has been a part of both the Vajpayee and UPA-II governments.

Through the years, the RLD has maintained a strong base among the Jat community in western Uttar Pradesh and formed alliances with various major parties.

However, despite the longstanding influence of the Chaudhary family, the last two elections resulted in losses for Ajit Singh and his son Jayant Chaudhary, who faced defeat from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

In 2014, BJP’s Satya Pal Singh won decisively over Ajit Singh. In 2019, when the RLD was in alliance with the Samajwadi Party (SP), Satya Pal Singh won the seat with 525,789 votes, surpassing Jayant Chaudhary by a margin of 23,502 votes.

The BJP captured 62 out of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state during the year, which marked a decrease of nine seats from their 2014 results.

In early March this year, Jayant Singh quit the I.N.D.I.A bloc to join hands with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to collaboratively participate in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Also Read: RLD president Jayant Singh’s grandfather Chaudhary Charan Singh awarded Bharat Ratna

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

Silchar Lok Sabha Election: 65.57% voter turnout as BJP’s Suklabaidya fights INC’s Sarkar

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

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Silchar, one of the 14 parliamentary constituencies in Assam, is voting for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in the second phase today, i.e. on April 26. The seat comprises seven Assembly segments — Udharbond, Lakhipur, Katigorah, Barkhola, Silchar, Sonai and Dholai. The approximate voter turnout was 65.57%. In the 2019 general elections, the seat saw a voter turnout of 79.42%.

The highest polling of 72.99% was recorded in Darrang-Udalguri, 71.12% in Karimganj, 69.65% in Diphu (ST) and 71.88% in Nagaon.

In the past few general elections, the constituency has sent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress candidates to the Lok Sabha.

Of the seven Assembly segments, four are presently with the BJP while two seats — Borkhola and Katigorah — are represented by the Congress. The remaining one seat (Sonai) belongs to the AIUDF.

The Silchar Lok Sabha seat was won by Dr Rajdeep Roy of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the 2019 elections. Roy defeated sitting Congress MP Sushmita Dev by over 81,000 votes. Dev later moved to the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC.

In the 2024 general elections, the constituency is witnessing a triangular contest between BJP’s Parimal Suklabaidya, who is an Assam minister and five-time MLA from Dholai constituency; Radheshyam Biswas, a former AIUDF MP from Karimganj, who is representing Trinamool Congress; and Congress’ Surya Kanta Sarkar.

Voting date

Polling for the 2024 polls in Assam is taking place in three phases. While five seats went for polls in the first phase on April 19, voting will take place on five others in the second phase on April 26. The remaining four constituencies will vote on May 7.

In Silchar, people will cast their vote on April 26. This time, the seat is reserved for the Scheduled Caste (SC) candidates.

List of candidates

In total, there are eight candidates contesting polls from the Silchar seat this time. Here is a complete list of all the candidates:

2019 results

In the 2019 elections, BJP’s Dr Rajdeep Roy received 4,99,414 votes and secured a 53% vote share. Roy defeated rival Congress candidate Sushmita Dev, who could only manage 4,17,818 votes.

Click here to follow Lok Sabha Elections 2024 Phase 2 Voting Live updates. 

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

Mandya Lok Sabha elections: Congress’ ‘Star Chandru’ challenges ex-Karnataka CM HD Kumaraswamy; 75% voting recorded till 5.30 pm

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

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Mandya, one of the 28 parliamentary constituencies in Karnataka, is witnessing a high-stakes battle in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections between former Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy and contractor Venkataramane Gowda, popularly known as ‘Star Chandru’. The voter turnout till 11 am was 21.24%. During the 2019 elections, the constituency registered a total voter turnout of 80.56%. By 3 pm, 57.44% voter turnout was recorded. The polling percentage increased to 75% by 5.30 pm.

Venkataramane Gowda and his wife Kusuma have declared assets worth ₹622.96 crores in the election affidavit, thereby making him the richest candidate in the second phase of the 2024 elections, according to a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).

The Mandya constituency comprises eight Assembly segments, of which six are currently held by the ruling Congress party in the state.

In the 2019 polls, this Lok Sabha seat came to the spotlight after Kumaraswamy son’s Nikhil lost his maiden election against Independent Sumalatha Ambareesh, who was backed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Back then, the JD(S) and Congress were contesting polls together.

Sumalatha, who recently joined the BJP, has decided not to contest the polls this year. The saffron party is contesting polls in alliance with the JD(S) this time.

Sumalatha’s late husband Ambareesh earlier represented this constituency in Parliament a couple of times.

Voting date

The 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka will be conducted in two faces. While 14 seats will go to polls in the second phase on Friday, April 26, the remaining 14 constituencies will vote during the third phase on May 7.

Voting in Mandya will take place on April 26.

List of candidates

A total of 14 candidates are contesting polls from the Mandya seat in the 2024 elections, with the major contest between former CM Kumaraswamy, who is representing the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), and Congress candidate Venkataramane Gowda. Here are a few prominent names on the list this time:

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