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“Who can be a better PM than Nitish Kumar?” JD-U MLC Khalid Anwar asks as Lok Sabha results pour in

ANI
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“Who can be a better PM than Nitish Kumar?” JD-U MLC Khalid Anwar asks as Lok Sabha results pour in

Janata Dal-United (JDU) MLC Dr Khalid Anwar hailed Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and said that he is a seasoned politician who understands the country and there is nobody who can be a better Prime Minister than Nitish Kumar.

“Who can be a better PM than Nitish Kumar?… Nitish Kumar is a seasoned politician who understands the society and the country. And he respects all the democratic institutions… We are a part of the NDA Alliance as of now, but earlier and today, people wanted Nitish Kumar to be the PM. The expectations of the people have increased after today’s result…” said Khalid Anwar.

“The way he has taken the state of Bihar ahead. The agriculture roadmap he made for the country when he was agriculture minister is followed till today. He is also remembered for the work he has done for the railway sector of the country,” he added.

Notably, the NDA alliance, which includes the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) and Janta Dal (United), are leading in Bihar, according to the latest trends issued by the Election Commission of India.

Janata Dal (United) is ahead on 14 seats in Bihar, while Bharatiya Janata Party is leading on 11 seats, as per the Election Commission of India.

With 40 Lok Sabha constituencies, the fourth highest among all States and Union Territories, Bihar holds a crucial position in shaping Indian politics.

Meanwhile, Lok Janshakti Party(Ram Vilas) is leading on 5 seats, Rashtriya Janata Dal on five seats, Congress on two seats, Communist Party of India on 1 seat and Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) on 1 seat.

Under the INDIA alliance agreement in Bihar, the RJD contested 26 seats, the Congress nine, and the Left parties contested five out of the state’s 40 Lok Sabha constituencies.

While, in the NDA, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) contested on 17 seats, Janata Dal-United (JDU) on 16 seats, Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) (Ram Vilas) on 5 seats, Hindustani Awam Morcha and Rashtriya Lok Morcha on one seat each in 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

‘Queen’ defeats the ‘prince’: Actor Kangana Ranaut beats Congress’ Vikramaditya Singh in Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi

OpIndia Staff
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‘Queen’ defeats the ‘prince’: Actor Kangana Ranaut beats Congress’ Vikramaditya Singh in Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi

Actor Kangana Ranaut has defeated Congress candidate Vikramaditya Singh, heir of the Rampur royal family and son of the late Virbhadra Singh, a six-time Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, in her political debut as a candidate from Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi constituency in the Lok Sabha elections 2024. 

As per the Election Commission of India’s website, Kangana polled 5,27,463 votes as of 4:30 PM as against Singh’s 4,53,760 votes.

Source: Election Commission of India

Of the four Lok Sabha constituencies in the state, Mandi registered the highest voter turnout at 82.3 percent, followed by Kangra at 80.9 percent, with Hamirpur and Shimla (SC) each at 79.9 percent.

Mandi in Himachal Pradesh is renowned for its abundance of ancient temples and stands out for electing former royals more often than any other area. It is also the largest constituency in the state by geographical area.

The Mandi Lok Sabha seat, once dominated by Congress, has shifted towards the BJP in the last two elections. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, BJP’s Ram Swaroop Sharma defeated Congress’s Pratibha Singh, a former two-time MP, by 39,000 votes.

In the 2019 elections, Ram Swaroop Sharma retained the seat with a substantial margin, securing 647,189 votes. After the death of MP Ram Sharma, his wife Pratibha chose not to run for office following Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut’s announcement of her candidacy from Mandi.

NOTA scripts history, becomes runner up in Indore Lok Sabha seat securing over 2 lakh votes, BJP registers clean sweep in Madhya Pradesh

OpIndia Staff
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NOTA scripts history, becomes runner up in Indore Lok Sabha seat securing over 2 lakh votes, BJP registers clean sweep in Madhya Pradesh

None of the above (candidates) or NOTA has scripted history as it became the runner-up in the Indore Lok Sabha constituency. With over 78% vote share in the constituency, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Shankar Lalwani has won securing over 12 lakh votes (12,23746), registering the biggest victory for any candidate in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections 2024.

According to official data on ECI’s website, Shankar Lalwani has received 78.54% of the votes polled while NOTA secured the second position with 14% vote share (2,18,355) votes. Bahujan Samaj Party’s candidate Sanjay received 49,277, the third-highest votes (3.29%). 

(ECI declares result for Indore, Lalwani registers biggest victory in Lok Sabha elections 2024, Source – ECI Website)

Notably, the Congress, as part of the I.N.D.I. Alliance, had fielded Akshya Kanti Bam from the Indore seat against BJP’s sitting MP Lalwani. Bam had initially filed his nomination papers in the office of the Indore District Collector. However, he later went to the DC’s office along with senior BJP leader and Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya on 29th April and withdrew his nomination. He then joined the BJP. 

Following the development, the Madhya Pradesh Congress announced that rather than supporting any other candidates in the fray, they would campaign for NOTA on this seat. Indore voted on 13th May and saw a turnout of around 61.75% of the 25.27 lakh electors exercising their franchise. 

For those unversed, NOTA allows voters to reject all the candidates contesting from that constituency. According to the news agency PTI, the Lok Sabha seat in Bihar’s Gopalganj recorded the maximum NOTA votes at 51,660, about 5 percent of the total votes polled in the constituency, other than NOTA backed by Congress in Indore. 

Meanwhile, the saffron party which is poised to form government for the third time with their pre-poll alliance, NDA, has swept the state securing all 29 seats of Madhya Pradesh. 

Another setback for AAP: Supreme Court refuses to grant bail to Manish Sisodia in Delhi liquor policy scam

OpIndia Staff
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Another setback for AAP: Supreme Court refuses to grant bail to Manish Sisodia in Delhi liquor policy scam

On Tuesday (4th June), a vacation Bench of the Supreme Court refused to grant bail to AAP leader Manish Sisodia in connection to the Delhi liquor policy scam case.

A Bench of Justices Sandeep Mehta and Aravind Kumar noted the Enforcement Directorate (ED)’s submission that the chargesheet in the case will be filed by 3rd July 2024.

The apex court refused to go into the merits of the case and informed that the AAP leader could file bail petition afresh. It however did not clarify whether the bail petition can be filed before the trial court or the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court ordered, “We will not say anything. We will dispose with liberty to revive your prayers. We are not saying anything on merits and all contentions are left open. In both the CBI and ED cases the order is (common) …. Ordered accordingly and disposed of. Statement of SG that final chargesheet will filed by July 3 recorded.”

While objecting to the court order, advocate Abhsihek Manu Singhvi representing Manish Sisodia said, “Liberty to move Supreme Court? I am inside for 15 months. Let me be very blunt trial courts do not deal with politically sensitive matters (on time).”

Sisodia was arrested by the ED in February last year in connection to the Delhi liquor policy case.

DMK-Congress sweeping in Tamil Nadu, BJP fails to lead even a single seat out of 39 despite strong campaign

OpIndia Staff
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DMK-Congress sweeping in Tamil Nadu, BJP fails to lead even a single seat out of 39 despite strong campaign

As the counting of votes is underway in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)-Congress combine was seen sweeping the Lok Sabha Elections in the state while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) failed to open its account in the state.

All 39 seats in Tamil Nadu voted in a single phase on April 19 in Lok Sabha polls. The voter turnout of 72.09 per cent was recorded in the state.

The DMK is leading on 21 seats, Congress is leading on nine seats, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi on two seats, the Communist Party of India on two seats, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on two seats and Pattali Makkal Katchi, Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Indian Union Muslim League is leading on 1 each.

In Coimbatore, BJP state president K Annamalai is trailing against DMK’s Ganapathy Rajkumar by 22881 votes.

In South Chennai, BJP’s Tamilisai Soundararajan is trailing against DMK’s Tamizachi Thangapandian by 36346.

Meanwhile, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’s Kanimozhi Karunanidhi is leading with 175991 votes against All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’s Sivasamy Velumani R.

DMK’s Dayanidhi Maran is leading with 63631 votes against Bharatiya Janata Party’s Vinoj.

From Sivaganga Congress’ Karti P Chidambaram is leading with 63368 votes against All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader Xavierdass A.

Moreover, Congress’ Manickam Tagore is leading from Virudhunagar by 2129 votes against Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam leader Vijayaprabhakaran V.

In 2019, the DMK-led alliance swept the Lok Sabha polls in Tamil Nadu, winning 38 of 39 seats.

Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA crossed the majority mark in early leads and the INDIA bloc above 200, defying all exit poll predictions.

Around 642 million people voted in Lok Sabha elections held over seven phases in a mammoth six-week period. The counting of votes began starting with postal ballot papers amid tight security.

The Bharatiya Janata Party is eyeing a third straight term in power, while the Opposition under the umbrella of the INDIA bloc is seeking to wrest power from the ruling party.

Most exit polls predicted a straight term for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with quite a few of them projecting a two-thirds majority for the ruling BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

The Congress party and its allies dismissed the exit polls as “orchestrated” and a work of “fantasy”, asserting that the opposition INDIA bloc will form the next government at the Centre.

Even before the counting of the votes, the Bharatiya Janata Party won one seat of Surat Lok Sabha.

The Lok Sabha elections were held across the country in seven phases from April 19 to June 1.

In the 2019 elections, NDA wrested 353 seats, of which the BJP won 303 alone. The Opposition’s UPA got only 93 seats of which the Congress got 52.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

Assembly Elections: Odisha set to get its first BJP CM in the state’s history, party crosses majority mark

OpIndia Staff
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Assembly Elections: Odisha set to get its first BJP CM in the state’s history, party crosses majority mark

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is poised to oust BJD Chief and incumbent Chief Minister of Odisha, Naveen Patnaik, as per the trends in the Odisha assembly results. According to the Election Commission of India’s website, the BJP is becoming the single largest party in the state. It is leading on 76 seats including in Bargarh, Kalahandi, Balangir, Puri, Sambalpur, and Keonjhar constituencies. Notably, 74 is the coveted halfway mark in the state assembly which has a total strength of 147 seats. Naveen Patnaik-led BJD is ahead on 53 seats while Congress is leading on 13 seats. 

If the numbers hold, Odisha may get its first BJP Chief Minister in the state’s history. The BJP had fought the elections on the issue of Odisha Asmita asserting that while the BJD is being run from backdoors by a Tamil-born IAS turned politician, it will make an Odia-born person the Chief Minister of the state. 

While BJP is very likely to form the government in Odisha, it is not clear who will be the Chief Minister. The party didn’t project a CM candidate before the elections.

Additionally, if the trends don’t reverse it will transform state politics, ushering in a post-Naveen era, which has been the buzz among political circles. Naveen Patnaik has been the Chief Minister of Odisha since March 2000. Had he won this time, he would have become the country’s longest-serving Chief Minister in August, surpassing Sikkim’s ex-CM Pawan Chamling. 

Although facing anti-incumbency in his own constituency regions due to ‘Dadan Khati‘ and concerns about his alleged deteriorating health, he is leading in both the constituencies he contested, Kantabanji and Hinjli, but by narrow margins, less then 5000 votes.

During the campaigning, the BJP had launched scathing attacks on the BJD government over the issue of Odia Asmita (pride). It asserted that an Odisha-born person should be the Chief Minister of the state rather than a Tamil-born retired IAS officer running the government without accountability. According to the BJP, BJD was running a proxy government in the name of Naveen Patnaik and Tamil-born bureaucrat turned BJD leader VK Pandian was functioning as the ‘de-facto’ CM who was controlling and dictating terms to 77-year-old Patnaik whose health is allegedly deteriorating.

From an election rally on 29th May, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed concerns about the deteriorating health of BJD Chief, Naveen Patnaik. The development came a day after a video of CM Patnaik went viral in which his alleged proxy, VK Pandian, was seen grabbing his shaking hands to hide them from the public. PM Modi stressed that people who are close to CM Patnaik have expressed concerns about how his health has deteriorated drastically in the last year. He added that it has led many of them to suspect that there could be a conspiracy behind it.

PM Modi announced that after forming the government in the state, the saffron party will form a special committee to probe whether the lobby that is running state in Patnaik’s name is responsible for his poor health.

Furthermore, Lok Sabha and state assembly elections were held simultaneously in Odisha, the state had given a split verdict in the previous election. Contrastingly, the state has voted decisively in favour of the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections. As per ECI trends, the BJP is leading on 19 seats out of 21 Lok Sabha seats.

Rise of Khalistan movement in Punjab: Pro-Khalistan separatists Amritpal Singh and son of former PM Indira Gandhi’s assassin Sarabjeet Singh Khalsa leading over rivals

OpIndia Staff
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Rise of Khalistan movement in Punjab: Pro-Khalistan separatists Amritpal Singh and son of former PM Indira Gandhi’s assassin Sarabjeet Singh Khalsa leading over rivals

With the counting of votes for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections underway, one important tidbit that has emerged from the recent trend is the rise of the Khalistani movement in Punjab in the form of Khalistani separatists taking the lead in their respective constituencies. Jailed Amritpal Singh from Punjab’s Khadoor Sahib seat while Sarabjeet Singh Khalsa from Faridkot is leading the polls.

Jailed Khalistani separatist and Waris Punjab De Chief Amritpal Singh is leading with over 118237 votes from Punjab’s Khadoor Sahib seat in the Lok Sabha elections 2024, according to the latest trends shown by the Election Commission of India. Meanwhile, Congress candidate Kulbir Singh Zira is in the second spot with 153908 votes.

The Khalistani separatist was arrested by Punjab police in April last year, weeks after evading police for over a month and the stringent National Security Act was invoked against him. 

In February last year, Amritpal Singh made the headlines when crowds attacked a police station after the arrest of one of his followers. Amritpal Singh was arrested following a huge crackdown, prosecuted under the NSA, and shifted to Dibrugarh jail.

In the 2019 general election, Congress candidate Jasbir Singh Gill won the Khadoor Sahib seat.  Amritpal Singh’s father, Tarsem Singh, had earlier said that he was reluctant to contest the elections, however, he changed his mind after the Sangat (community) insisted. 

Notably, Khadoor Sahib is deemed to be a ‘Panthic’ seat. The Akali Dal, the other Panthic party in the race, has stated that the Khalistani separatist is contesting the polls to “free himself”.

In Faridkot, Sarabjeet Singh Khalsa, the 45-year-old son of Beant Singh, one of the two assassins of former PM Indira Gandhi, is leading with 56796 votes, ahead of Aam Aadmi Party’s Karamjit Singh Anmol who has polled 1,64,118 votes so far. Sarabjit had previously contested on the ticket of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) or SAD(A) in the 2004 general and 2007 state polls, and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in the 2014 parliamentary elections but had lost those elections.

Assembly Elections: TDP-BJP-Jana Sena alliance set for landslide victory in Andhra Pradesh

ANI
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Assembly Elections: TDP-BJP-Jana Sena alliance set for landslide victory in Andhra Pradesh

TDP leader Varla Ramaiah on Tuesday expressed confidence in the TDP, BJP and Jana Sena party alliance victory in the Lok Sabha election saying that they would achieve a landslide victory.

He also predicted that the TDP, BJP and Jana Sena party alliance in Andhra Pradesh might win 161 seats in the assembly and win all 25 Lok Sabha seats

“The alliance consisting of TDP, BJP and Jana Sena Party is going to get a landslide victory in the elections…We may secure more than 161 seats in the assembly and win all 25 Lok Sabha seats…The public has a lot of confidence in the alliance…Voters of Andhra Pradesh took a decision to get rid of the rule of Jaggan Mohan Reddy… The public has rejected his rule absolutely,” he told ANI.

As per the latest trends by the election commission, the TDP is leading in 131 seats while its ally the BJP is leading in 7 seats and the Jana Sena in 17.

The exit polls on Sunday have predicted victory for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly polls held on May 13.

The Axis My India predicted 78-96 seats for TDP, 55-77 seats for YSRCP, 16-18 seats for JSP, 4-6 seats for BJP, and 0-2 seats for Congress.

Polling for all 175 seats of the State Legislative Assembly of Andhra Pradesh was held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls. The Assembly polls took place on May 13 in a single-phase polling process.

The ruling YSRCP contested on all 175 seats eyeing another term while as part of a seat-sharing arrangement among NDA partners, TDP is contesting on 144 assembly seats, Jana Sena on 21, and BJP on 10.

During the 2019 elections, YSRCP registered a landslide victory in Andhra Pradesh, winning 151 of the 175 seats in the Assembly, dethroning the TDP government.

Strict security measures have been implemented to ensure the smooth counting of votes for more than 8,000 candidates in this general election. Vote counting commenced at 8 pm today.

Earlier, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said that a “very robust system” has been put in place. “There are around 10.5 lakh booths. Each booth will have 14 tables. There are observers and micro-observers. Nearly, 70-80 lakh people are involved in the process,” he said.

Results of the Assembly elections in Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh were held simultaneously with voting for the 543-member Lok Sabha. Results of 175 Assembly constituencies in Andhra Pradesh and 147 Assembly constituencies in Odisha and results of bypolls in 25 Assembly constituencies will also be declared today.

The Lok Sabha elections were conducted in seven phases- on April 19, April 26, May 7, May 13, May 20, May 25 and June 1.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

UP: Danish installs secret camera in bathroom of businessman’s house in Lucknow, blackmailed and raped his daughter, arrested

OpIndia Staff
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UP: Danish installs secret camera in bathroom of businessman’s house in Lucknow, blackmailed and raped his daughter, arrested

In Uttar Pradesh’s Lucknow, a man named Danish working at a businessman’s house in the PGI police station area put a camera in the bathroom and filmed his daughter bathing. The accused used the video to blackmail and rape the girl. The police have arrested the accused.

The welding business owner employed accused Danish and provided him with a room in his house along with free food. Along with working at the business’s shop, the accused also worked at their home and gained the trust of the family. However, the accused Danish secretly installed a camera in the bathroom. He began blackmailing and raping the girl after taking videos of her bathing. The victim girl is now being counselled by police.

The incident left the girl depressed and as her health deteriorated, she informed her about Danish’s crimes. As the victim’s family asked Danish to delete the videos, the accused started demanding money and threatened to make the objectionable video viral online and send it to the family’s relatives. Reports say that after failing to extort money from the victim’s family, the accused Danish circulated the girl’s videos and photos on social media platforms.

Following this, the victim’s mother filed a complaint with the local police, who arrested the accused Danish. SHO PGI Brijesh Chandra Tiwari stated that a case has been filed against Danish under sections 376, 66 IT Act 384, and 506 of the IPC, and that further legal action is being conducted.

Khalistani separatist Amritpal Singh leading from Khadoor Sahib seat

Shraddha Pandey
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Khalistani separatist Amritpal Singh leading from Khadoor Sahib seat

Jailed Khalistani separatist and Waris Punjab De Chief Amritpal Singh is leading with over 190416 votes from Punjab’s Khadoor Sahib seat in the Lok Sabha elections 2024, according to the latest trends shown by the Election Commission of India. Meanwhile, Congress candidate  Kulbir Singh Zira is in the second spot with 116317 votes.

Besides, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate Laljit Singh Bhullar is also trailing with 99318 votes followed by BJP’s Manjit Singh Manna, Shiromani Akal Dal leader Virsa Singh Valtoha and an independent candidate.

Source: ECI website

The Khalistani separatist was arrested by Punjab police in April last year, weeks after evading police for over a month and the stringent National Security Act was invoked against him.

In February last year, Amritpal Singh made the headlines when crowds attacked a police station after the arrest of one of his followers. Amritpal Singh was arrested following a huge crackdown, prosecuted under the NSA, and shifted to Dibrugarh jail.

In the 2019 general election, Congress candidate Jasbir Singh Gill won the Khadoor Sahib seat.  Amritpal Singh’s father, Tarsem Singh, had earlier said that he was reluctant to contest the elections, however, changed his mind after the Sangat (community) insisted.

Notably, Khadoor Sahib is deemed to be a ‘Panthic’ seat. The Akali Dal, the other Panthic party in the race, has stated that the Khalistani separatist is contesting the polls to “free himself”.

“How can a person who wears a ‘chola’ and partakes ‘amrit’ one year ago represent the ‘panth’ and not a 103-year-old party with a consistent track record of safeguarding ‘panthic’ values,” SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal questioned.

It is pertinent to recall that Amritpal Singh rose to popularity quickly after the death of Khalistani separatist Deep Sidhu. ‘Waris Punjab De’ was the brainchild of Deep Sidhu. Following his death, Amritpal Singh was given the charge of the organisation. At that time, he was in Dubai, running a transport company.

Singh shifted to India around August 2023. In September 2023, he was officially handed over the charge of the organisation in a Dastarbandi event organised in the parental village of Khalistani terrorist Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.

Singh, who dressed strikingly similar to Bhindranwale, had a similar idea of forming a separate country called Khalistan. Just like Bhindranwale, he started a march across Punjab to encourage youth to join him.

The concept of a separate nation disguised as “noble” causes like de-addiction. By the time he got arrested, Khalistani elements in Punjab had started to see “Second Bhindranwale” in Amritpal Singh.

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