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The Delhi Police in its chargesheet against Newsclick, a prominent news portal, and its founder Prabir Purkayastha, accused them of several offences including terror funding and promoting Chinese propaganda. The chargesheet, comprising nearly 8,000 pages with annexures, also links Mr Purkayastha to the farmers' protests and the 2020 Delhi riots. Mr Purkayastha is being investigated under the anti-terror law UAPA for allegedly receiving funding to broadcast Chinese propaganda in India. The NewsClick founder and its head of HR Amit Chakravarty were arrested on October 3 last year by Delhi Police's Special Cell. They were taken into custody after police raids across the city, and charged under the UAPA. Both have since been lodged in Delhi's Tihar Jail. The Accusations Terror Financing Allegations: The Delhi Police alleges that Mr Purkayastha was involved in collecting funds for terrorist activities. According to the chargesheet, there is evidence linking him to a conspira...

Jammu and Kashmir BJP chief Ravinder Raina on Tuesday expelled a senior party leader for “hate speech” and “using unparliamentary language” during an election meeting in Poonch district. Poonch district is part of the Anantnag-Rajouri parliamentary constituency where the elections were rescheduled for May 25 by the Election Commission. PDP president Mehbooba Mufti and National Conference leader Mian Altaf are in a direct contest from the constituency. Prominent among 19 other candidates in the fray include Mohammad Saleem Parray of the Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) and J&K Apni Party leader Zafar Iqbal Khan Manhas. Raina ordered expulsion of Poonch district spokesperson Satish Bhargav from the party's primary membership for a period of six years for “gross indiscipline” and using “unparliamentary language and hate speech”. The J&K BJP chief passed the order on the basis of the recommendation by Sunil Sethi, the chairman of the party's disciplinary committ...

The elections to the redrawn Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha seat, which was slated to go to polls on May 7 (third phase), has been deferred to May 25 (sixth phase) by the Election Commission after several political parties of the Union Territory requested to shift the date due to logistic and connectivity issues in the region. Several leaders including Jammu and Kashmir BJP unit chief Ravinder Raina, Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party chief Altaf Bukhari, People's Conference leader Imran Ansari and others had approached the Election Commission requesting for rescheduling of polls to the seat due to adverse weather conditions. "Various representations have been received from different political parties of the UT of Jammu and Kashmir for shifting the date of poll of election from 3-Anantnag-Rajouri Parliamentary Constituency due to various logistic, communication and natural barrier of of connectivity turning out as hindrance in campaigning which in turn tantamount to lack of fair oppor...

Five people have died and several have been injured in landslides and flash floods in Jammu and Kashmir. Several homes have been damaged and hundreds of residents have been affected. Heavy rain and landslides have hit several hilly districts including Doda, Reasi, Kishtwar, Ramban and Baramulla. The Srinagar-Jammu national highway has been closed for the last three days due to landslides at multiple places along the road.  In Kupwara, the situation has started to improve, with the water level receding and people returning to their damaged homes. As seen in the visuals from yesterday, a section of the road has washed away due to flash floods and several houses flooded in knee-deep water. A portion of a house facing the river has been washed off. Yesterday, officials issued a danger warning has been issued for Pohru Nallah in Kupwara.  #WATCH | Roads and buildings damaged in flash floods in J&K's Kupwara due to sudden heavy rains in the area pic.twitter.com/wRjcXQo...

 Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Monday that the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will implement the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the country after winning the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. Addressing an election rally in Bihar's Begusarai district, Amit Shah said: "The leaders of INDI Alliance are saying that if they come to power at the Centre, they will bring triple talaq and Muslim personal law in the country. Neither will they form the government, nor will triple talaq and Muslim personal law be implemented in the country. The BJP will retain power and implement UCC in the country." "The opposition leaders are also saying that they will bring back Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. I want to inform Rahul Gandhi that so long as even a single BJP worker is alive, no one can bring back Article 370 in J&K," he said. The Home Minister also said that hundreds of youths have been killed in Bihar due to Maoist troubles. "But PM Narendr...

Non-stop rains and snowfall have triggered landslides and flash floods in several of Jammu and Kashmir causing damage to public infrastructure and private property. The Srinagar-Jammu national highway was closed today due to landslides at multiple places along the highway.  A large number of vehicles are stranded along the Highway. A video showed rocks and debris sliding down a mountainside and falling on the highway. The highway, the only all-weather road linking Kashmir with rest of the country, was blocked by landslides at Mehar, Gangroo, Mom Passi and Kishtwari Pather in Ramban district. The rains are continuing, hampering restoration works, officials said, advising commuters to avoid journeys on the highway till it is cleared of the debris. Kupwara district in north Kashmir was cut off from the rest of the Valley due to flood waters inundating roads and several villages have also been affected by floods.   In Ramban district, a 13-year-old boy was killed after he wa...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said political rivals who are unable to take on the BJP-led government are now misusing technology to spread fake videos on social media. At an election rally in Karad of western Maharashtra's Satara district, PM Modi raised concerns about the misuse of social media and technology. PM Modi spoke of the emergence of fake videos created using artificial intelligence, and asked people to remain vigilant and report any instances of fake videos to the authorities. "Opponents are using AI to distort quotes of leaders like me, Amit Shah and J P Nadda to create social discord," PM Modi said. "By using technology, these people are making fake videos in my voice, which is creating danger. If you see any fake video, inform the police," he said. "There is a plan to create a big incident in next one month," PM Modi claimed. "It is our responsibility to save the society from such fake videos. I want to request EC to ...

An avalanche hit the Sonmarg area of Jammu and Kashmir today amid heavy rain and snowfall. In a video, the avalanche was seen rumbling down a snow-covered mountainside and a few people and livestock were seen rushing out of the area. Heavy rain has triggered landslides in several parts of Jammu and Kashmir. A hillside house was seen crumbling down after being hit by a landslide in Uri near the Line of Control, showed a dramatic video. The Jammu-Srinagar national highway was also closed Monday following multiple landslides triggered by rain. The highway, the only all-weather road linking Kashmir with the rest of the country, was blocked by landslides at Mehar, Gangroo, Mom Passi and Kishtwari Pather in Ramban district, as per a PTI report. Mughal road, an alternate route linking Poonch and Rajouri districts in Jammu with south Kashmir's Shopian district, remained closed for the third day owing to snowfall in Peer Ki Gali and adjoining areas, officials said. The rain during the l...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday alleged that some countries and institutions want India and its government to be weak to make profits easily. He alleged that Congress was also a beneficiary of "this corruption." “When the country is moving fast, some countries and some institutions don't like it. There are many people who don't like a strong India. They want the country and its government to be weak, so that they can make profits easily,” PM Modi said addressing a public meeting at this taluka headquarters town in Vijayanagara district. Weak government helps them get their work done according to their requirements, he said. “Congress too was a clear beneficiary of this corruption. This was the game going on but the BJP has become a challenge for them. Their worry is that there is a BJP government which no one can bend,” the Prime Minister said. He added that those who are aware of the Lutyens Delhi know that before 2014 brokers ruled the roost in the corrid...

The BJP will neither remove reservations for SCs, STs and OBCs nor will it allow anyone to do so, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Sunday, calling it a "Modi guarantee". Opposition parties have repeatedly claimed that the BJP's call for "abki baar 400 paar" is aimed at winning 400 seats in the Lok Sabha elections to have the numbers in Parliament to scrap quotas for Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs). Speaking at a rally in support of Rajveer Singh, the BJP candidate from Etah-Kasganj, Shah alleged that the opposition parties ignored people from backward communities, who were granted their rights by Narendra Modi after he became prime minister. Targeting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, he said, "Rahul Gandhi says that if the BJP gets 400 seats, it will remove reservation. I want to say that we had a full majority for two terms but Narendra Modi is a supporter of reservation." "I want to say that ...

Village Defence Guard (VDG) member was injured in a gunfight with terrorists in a remote village in Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur district early Sunday, police said. The exchange of fire was reported from Panara village of Basantgarh when a patrolling party of police and VDGs confronted the suspected terrorists around 7:45 am, they said. Police and Army reinforcements were rushed to the village and a massive search operation is underway to neutralise the hiding terrorists, they said. After the initial firing, the terrorists, whose number was not known immediately, fled deep into the forest area and are being chased by the security forces, police said. "After receipt of inputs regarding the movement of suspicious individuals late Saturday evening, J&K Police activated the security grid in Basantgarh police station limits. Today morning, a party of police picket Sang carrying along with them VDG members proceeded towards Chochru Gala heights where a face-off ensued with a...

The Indian Metrological Department (IMD) on Saturday said that it has issued a red alert for Odisha and Gangetic West Bengal due to severe heatwave conditions in this part. Soma Sen Roy, senior scientist at IMD, said that severe heatwave conditions have been prevailing in Gangetic West Bengal for many days and hence a red alert has been issued. "Severe heatwave conditions are also being faced in Odisha, especially in North Odisha, although not like in West Bengal but severe enough for many days and hence a red alert has been issued for this part too," she said. She further added that currently the temperature is very elevated and above normal in eastern and peninsular India. Heatwave conditions are also prevailing in east India, South Peninsular India, and northern parts of Kerala. IMD has issued Orange alert for East India, like Bihar and Jharkhand, and a Yellow alert for Eastern Uttar Pradesh and northern parts of Kerala Speaking about the sudden change in the weather ...

Challenging the abrogation of Article 370 in the Supreme Court might have been a mistake but not doing so would have made things worse politically for the mainstream parties of Jammu and Kashmir, People's Conference chief Sajad Lone has said. The Supreme Court had, in December last year, upheld the Centre's August 5, 2019 decision to abrogate Article 370, which bestowed a special status on the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. In an interview with PTI, Mr Lone said the Centre could have propped up anyone to take the case to the Supreme Court had the mainstream parties stayed away from taking legal recourse. "I do not know, it could be," Mr Lone told PTI when asked whether approaching the court was a mistake as the verdict has left almost no chance of getting the special status back. "You see we (mainstream political parties in Kashmir) could have worked together and said let us save it for a rainy day. But, that could not have stopped somebody else from g...

India is currently  engrossed in democratic fervour as voting for the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections started earlier this month. And amid this celebration, the iconic Qutub Minar has embraced the spirit of "Jashn-e-Matdan" ( celebrating elections) with a dazzling display of the “Chunav Ka Parv” (election) theme. The Qutub Minar, a symbol of India's rich heritage and culture, has become a vision at night. It gleams with election-themed lights, posters and visuals to celebrate the spirit of elections and voting. The Election Commission of India posted a clip to X and encouraged people to vote. “Qutub Minar radiates the spirit of Jashn-e-Matdan with its dazzling display of the #ChunavKaParv theme,” the ECI wrote. “Let's celebrate this festivity by casting our votes.” Qutub Minar radiates the spirit of Jash-e-Matdan with its dazzling display of the #ChunavKaParv theme. Let's celebrate this festivity by casting our votes...

Ten Indian nationals working as support staff with the Russian military have been released and have returned to India, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said New Delhi has been pressing Russia to ensure the return of all other citizens serving in similar positions in the country's military. "Ten such individuals have come back to India and they have been released and they have returned home," Mr Jaiswal said at his weekly media briefing. After two Indians, working as support staff with the Russian military lost their lives, India last month called on its nationals to not risk their lives by taking up such jobs. Mr Jaiswal said the Indian side is very actively pursuing the case of all Indians serving with the Russian military at various levels, including with the foreign ministry, defence ministry and several other organisations in Russia. "We are committed to bringing back all the people who so far have got...

The second phase of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections is scheduled for tomorrow when a total of 88 parliamentary constituencies across 13 states and Union Territories will go to polls. Dr Naresh Kumar, a senior scientist from the India Meteorological Department, spoke to NDTV about the heatwave forecast in the places where voting will take place. Key battlegrounds in Phase 2 include 20 seats in Kerala, 14 in Karnataka, 13 in Rajasthan, eight each in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, six in Madhya Pradesh, and five each in Bihar and Assam. Three seats each in Chhattisgarh and West Bengal and one each in Tripura and Jammu and Kashmir will also go to polls, on Friday as will the remaining part of the Outer Manipur constituency. Here is a summary of Dr Naresh Kumar's forecasts: West Bengal Several parts are likely to see a heat wave or a severe heatwave. A Red Alert has been issued for the next three days. Bihar Heatwave conditions are anticipated with ...

National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah's sons, Zahir and Zamir, today said they will campaign for their father who is contesting from north Kashmir's Baramulla parliamentary constituency. Both the sons have been seen attending election campaign meetings of the party with their father across the length and breadth of the valley. "In Sha Allah (God willing), we both will go and campaign," Zahir told reporters when asked if the brothers will campaign for their father. The two accompanied their father to the deputy commissioner's office here where party candidate Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi submitted nomination papers from the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency. However, Zahir refused to answer another question, saying he had to meet the people. "I want to meet the people. You take Omar sahab's byte," he told media persons. His brother Zamir said while he has no intention of joining politics, yet he wants to remain connected with the people. ...

After the Kashmir issue was mentioned in the joint statement issued at the conclusion of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi's visit to Pakistan, India said that they have taken up this matter with the Iranian authorities, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Thursday. "We have taken up the matter with Iranian authorities," Mr Jaiswal said on being asked how MEA sees the joint statement on Kashmir issue. Earlier, Pakistan and Iran agreed that the Kashmir issue should be resolved through "peaceful means based on the will of the people" of the region, said a joint statement issued by the two countries after Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi's maiden visit. President Raisi paid an official visit to Pakistan from April 22-24 at the invitation of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. He was accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising the Foreign Minister Amir Abdollahian, as well as other members of the cabinet and senior officials....

Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Shashi Tharoor, and actor-turned-politician Arun Govil are among the key candidates in the fray for the second phase of the Lok Sabha polls with BJP's Hema Malini, Om Birla and Gajendra Singh Shekhawat seeking a hat-trick of wins from their respective constituencies. Staggered over seven stages, the first phase of the elections held last Friday for 102 seats across 21 states and Union territories saw a voter turnout of around 65.5 per cent. In the second phase of Lok Sabha polls on Friday, polling is scheduled in all 20 seats of Kerala, 14 of the 28 seats in Karnataka, 13 seats in Rajasthan, eight seats each in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, seven in Madhya Pradesh, five each in Assam and Bihar, three seats each in Chhattisgarh and West Bengal, and one seat each in Manipur, Tripura and Jammu and Kashmir. Rahul Gandhi is the sitting MP from Wayanad in Kerala and is seeking re-election. He is pitted against CPI's Annie Raja and BJP's K Sur...

 National Conference leader Omar Abdullah claimed that Mehbooba Mufti-led People's Democratic Party (PDP) has joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as its 'C team'. Mr Abdullah's statement comes after BJP leader Mushtaq Bukhari notably urged members of the Pahari community to vote for Mehbooba Mufti in the ongoing Lok Sabha election. Referring to this, the NC leader said, "If we have to defeat the BJP here, and the powers spreading poison in the whole country, then people should look at INDIA alliance leaders on all five seats of J-K. All others are connected to the BJP in some way. Be it the 'A' or 'B' team that meets Tarun Chugh sahib or PDP. I am assuming that now Mehbooba Mufti will put pressure on the BJP to get Mushtaq Bukhari's statement changed. PDP has joined BJP as its 'C' team." When asked about sitting BJP Ladakh MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal who dropped as a candidate from the constituency in this election, Mr Abdulla...

Stressing that the security of Indians based or settled overseas, especially in conflict zones, was paramount for the government, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said 'Modi's guarantee' doesn't stop at the country's borders. Addressing a forum for nationalist thinkers in Hyderabad on Tuesday, the External Affairs Minister said, "Modi's guarantee doesn't stop at the borders of India. Modi's guarantee is global." Invoking the Covid-19 pandemic and ongoing conflicts that necessitated diplomatic intervention in securing the lives of distressed natives, Mr Jaishankar said, "We have seen it in Covid. een it in conflicts in Ukraine. We saw it in Sudan. We saw it in Israel recently. So we have to prepare for those challenges as well." Addressing the session on 'Foreign Policy The India Way: From Diffidence To Confidence' in Hyderabad, the External Affairs Minister underscored the importance of a 'good system', highli...

 Police on Tuesday claimed a foreign terrorist codenamed "Abu Hamza" of the proscribed Lashkar-e-Taiba was involved in the killing of a government employee in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district and announced a Rs 10 lakh reward for information on him. Mohammad Razaq (40) was killed on Monday in the Kunda Top village of the Thanamandi area. Razaq worked in the government's Social Welfare department while his brother Mohammad Tahir Choudhary is a soldier in the Territorial Army. Razaq was buried in the village on Tuesday. "Two terrorists affiliated to the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) barged into the compound of a Territorial Army official in the village," a police spokesperson said. Choudhary, however, escaped unhurt from the attack, she said. A case has been filed at the Thanamandi police station, the official said and added, "An investigation has been launched to track down each person involved in this act of terror." Credible evidence has been obt...

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday made serious allegations against the Congress and said the grand old party has in its election manifesto expressed its intention to implement the 'Sharia law' in the country and redistribute people's property. Addressing an election rally in Amroha, Adityanath said, "The Congress and its allies have betrayed the country and have once again come to you with their false manifesto. If you look at the Congress' manifesto, they say that if they form a government, we will implement Sharia law." "You tell me, will this country be run by the Constitution made by Baba Saheb Bhimrao Ambedkar or by Shariat?" he asked. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has in his election rallies said the Congress has included redistribution of people's property in its manifesto. "Congress people talk in their manifesto that they will implement 'vyaktigat kanoon' (personal laws). That means Sharia law will be...

Two Pakistani terrorists shot dead a government employee in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri in a targeted attack on Monday evening, the police said, adding that a case has been registered under anti-terror laws. Mohammad Razak, an employee at the social welfare department, was shot outside his home in the district's Shahdra Sharief. He died of his injuries in a hospital.  His brother, a soldier in the territorial army, was also with him when the terrorists opened fire. They tried to kidnap him but he managed to escape unhurt, a senior officer said. According to the police, the terrorists used a US-made M4 rifle and a pistol in the attack. “We have recovered bullets of M4 rifle used in the attack. A cordon and search operation has been jointly launched by the army and police to track down attackers," a senior police officer said. Over 20 years ago, Mr Razaq's father was also killed by terrorists in the same area. The attack comes after two non-locals were targeted  in ...

A government employee was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in another targeted attack in Jammu and Kashmir this evening. Mohammad Razaq was shot soon after he came out of a mosque at Shadra Sharief area of Rajouri. He died of his injuries in a hospital. The 40-year-old was an employee in the social welfare department. Security personnel rushed to the spot and launched a massive cordon and search operation to track down the terrorists, they said. This comes close on the heels of two non-locals being shot dead in Anantnag and Herpora districts respectively. A migrant worker from Bihar was shot dead by terrorists in a targeted attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag district on Wednesday just a week after a resident of Dehradun was shot at by terrorists in south Kashmir's Herpora. While such attacks have decreased in frequency this year because of the crackdown on terrorism, the latest killing comes at a time when campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections is approaching its peak ...

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday conducted searches at nine locations in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, in a case linked to terror activities. The ongoing raids, initiated early Monday, are being conducted in collaboration with security forces at various sites associated with individuals linked to terrorism as part of a case registered by the agency in 2022. Acting on specific information received regarding certain suspects residing in Srinagar, the anti-terror agency launched the searches. The search operation was conducted almost a month after the NIA chargesheeted two accused in the Kokernag (Jammu and Kashmir) encounter case. The suspects in the case are linked to The Resistant Front (TRF), an offshoot of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), sources said. Both LeT and TRF are proscribed organisations and have been involved in the continuous instigation and motivation of Kashmiri youth to join the terror outfits in the name of 'Jihad'. The two outfits are operating on...

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday asserted that considering the development taking place in India, the people of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir will themselves demand to be with this country. Mr Singh also said India was taking giant strides in the defence sector, maintaining that the country is fast turning into a defence-equipment exporting nation from that of an importer. "PoK was, is and will remain ours," Mr Singh said, addressing a rally at Siliguri in Darjeeling constituency, where the BJP has renominated sitting MP Raju Bista. "The way the country is developing and its economy growing, the people of PoK will themselves demand to be with India," he claimed. The senior BJP leader said India has attained a stature where no one can browbeat the country. Mr Singh also asserted that India does not interfere in the matters of others, "but if we are interfered with... you understand what will happen". India will be among the top three economies in ...

The people of Jammu and Kashmir after living in a period of normalcy following the scrapping of special status to the erstwhile state feel encouraged to seek a true democracy, Union Minister Jitendra Singh told NDTV in an interview. Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's April 12 speech in Udhampur in the Union Territory about restoring statehood and holding a state election, Mr Singh said it is the Opposition's false portrayal of the ground situation in the border state that is misleading people. Udhampur, where voting was held on April 19, is Mr Singh's Lok Sabha constituency. "Elections had been happening for decades in Jammu and Kashmir, but with a very small voting percentage. It was a travesty of democracy that we had a voting percentage of just about 10 per cent. People would elect MPs and MLAs, particularly from Kashmir valley, and they would go on becoming MPs, MLAs, ministers, generations after generation," the Union Minister of Science and Techn...

Accusing the Congress of being against the Other Backward Classes, Union Home Minister Amit Shah Saturday said even if the opposition party wants to do away with the reservation given to SC, ST and OBCs, the BJP will not allow that to happen. Prime Minister Narendra Modi belongs to the OBC community, he said, adding that it was Modi who implemented schemes for people of small backward classes. Mr Shah was addressing an election rally in support of Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, the BJP's candidate and sitting MP from the Kota Lok Sabha seat. "Even if the Congress party wants to remove SC, ST and OBC reservation... we will not allow it. This is Modi's guarantee," he asserted. The Congress is a party which opposes Other Backward Classes (OBC), Mr Shah alleged. "The Congress government did not implement the Mandal Commission report. During a discussion in Parliament on the reservation, Rahul baba 's father Rajiv Gandhi spoke against it for two-and-a-half hours...

Jammu and Kashmir Police on Saturday busted a terrorist hideout in the Arnas area. "Acting on the reliable information regarding the presence of a hideout in the general area of Dalas Barneli, subdivision Arnas, an operation was launched to sanitise the area in the Dalas Barneli area of Arnas," police said. As per the officials, during the search and cordon operation, the police team recovered a huge quantity of arms and ammunition from the hideout. The recovered items include two detonators, 12 cartridges of Assault Rifle, one pull-through, One hand-held Tape recorder IED Enabled, One calculator IED enabled, one battery and a few connecting wires, police said. "Search operations are still going on in the area of Arnas and Reasi Police is committed to neutralising any nefarious designs of anti-national elements," Reasi Senior Superintendent of Police Mohita Sharma said. On April 17, police recovered an improvised explosive device (IED) from a terrorist hideout ...

The Coimbatore Lok Sabha seat will see a high-stakes battle, with Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai facing DMK leader Ganapathy P Rajkumar and AIADMK's Singai Ramachandran. The candidature of its Tamil Nadu state president shows the BJP is pressing hard to increase its presence in south India. Union Minister and BJP leader Nitin Gadkari is eyeing a third straight victory from Maharashtra's Nagpur seat. The seat will see a contest between Mr Gadkari and Congress candidate Vikas Thakre, who is at present the Nagpur West MLA. Jitin Prasada, who quit Congress in 2021, is among the key candidates of the BJP in the first phase. He replaced two-time MP from Uttar Pradesh's Pilibhit, Varun Gandhi. The BJP got a solid majority in UP in the previous two Lok Sabha elections. The Samajwadi Party fielded Bhagwant Saran Gangwar, and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) fielded Anees Ahmes Khan against Mr Prasada. Former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi is contesting from Gaya. This elec...

The first phase of the 2024 Lok Sabha election - a 44-day, seven-phase democratic exercise to elect a new government - begins this morning with over 16.63 crore voters, including 35.67 lakh first-timers, heading to 1.87 lakh polling booths set up in 102 seats across 21 states and union territories. Voting will run from 8 AM to 6 PM, with a 60-minute window for voters who reach polling stations before the cut-off time and are in queue when the booths close. The results will be out on June 4. The 2024 election is largely expected to be a NDA vs INDIA battle, with the ruling BJP banking heavily (again) on the 'Modi factor' and entrenched support from the Hindi heartland to trump a fledgling Congress-led alliance with only one electoral win - the Chandigarh mayoral election - to its name. The INDIA bloc has exuded confidence over the past days and weeks, insisting it senses a wave of change, driven by dissatisfaction over unemployment and a cost of living crisis, as well as conc...

The first phase of polls will be held on all seats of Tamil Nadu (39), Rajasthan (12), Uttar Pradesh (8), Madhya Pradesh (6), Uttarakhand (5), Arunachal Pradesh (2), Meghalaya (2), Andaman and Nicobar Islands (1), Mizoram (1), Nagaland (1), Puducherry (1), Sikkim (1) and Lakshadweep (1). Besides, there will be five seats each in Assam and Maharashtra, four in Bihar, three in West Bengal, two seats in Manipur, and one seat each in Tripura, Jammu and Kashmir, and Chhattisgarh. Four states -- Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh -- will also pick new assemblies along with the Lok Sabha. Of these, Arunachal Pradesh (60 seats) and Sikkim (32) are first down today. Backed by a frenzied, hardcore campaign led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah, the BJP is aiming to win 370 of 543 Lok Sabha seats – a steep rise from its score of 2019. The Prime Minister has set the NDA a target of 400. In the last election, the NDA won 353 seats -- up by 5 per cent from 2014. The ...

The campaigning for the first phase ended yesterday evening for 102 Lok Sabha seats across 21 states and Union territories which will go to polls in the first phase tomorrow with top leaders of the BJP-led NDA and the opposition INDIA bloc making a last-gasp effort to woo voters. Polling will be held in all seats of Tamil Nadu (39), Uttarakhand (5), Arunachal Pradesh (2), Meghalaya (2), Andaman and Nicobar Islands (1), Mizoram (1), Nagaland (1), Puducherry (1), Sikkim (1) and Lakshadweep (1). The voting for first phase will take in 21 states.  Here's a list of 102 constituencies that will go to polls tomorrow. Alipurduars West Bengal Almora Uttarakhand Alwar Rajasthan Andaman & Nicobar Islands Andaman & Nicobar Islands Arakkonam Tamil Nadu Arani Tamil Nadu Arunachal East Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal West Arunachal Pradesh Aurangabad Bihar Balaghat Madhya Pradesh Bastar Chhattisgarh...