News Highlights: BJP leader Madhavi Latha slams Owaisi for neglect of minorities and suppression tactics

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BJP leader Madhavi Latha on her candidature from Hyderabad against AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi, says, "If you had protested against triple talaq. I would have been happy. You don't have the heart to provide for the minorities of your country. You don't wish to educate them in your constituency however blackmail them over religion. You want to suppress them so that you can rule."

Congress Central Election Committee (CEC) has cleared names for 12 Lok Sabha seats in Madhya Pradesh, Nakul Nath will contest from the Chhindwara seat: Sources

West Bengal LoP and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari says, "This election will make Narendra Modi, the prime minister for the third time. You do not need to discuss as to who is standing from where."

Rajasthan Congress chief Govind Singh Dotasra after party's Central Election Committee meeting, said, "In CEC (meeting), we had discussion regarding various seats. We have also given our opinions on the names presented by the chairperson of our screening committee."

Congress leader Jitu Patwari after attending the party's central election committee meeting in Delhi, said, "Our candidates on 70 per cent (Lok Sabha) seats have been finalised. As far as decision regarding me or any other leader is concerned, we will abide by the decision taken by the party."

ED, Delhi Zonal Office has provisionally attached an amount of Rs 10.29 crore of All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) party in the form of a Demand Draft tendered by it during the investigation into the offence of money laundering by Alchemist Group & others.

"This alliance is going to be a superhit. This (alliance) is going to break all records of earlier elections," says former YSRCP leader K Raghu Rama Krishna Raju on alliance of TDP, JSP and BJP in Andhra Pradesh.

Congress Central Committee gathers for 2024 election strategy Session

Congress' Central Election Committee meeting underway at party headquarters in Delhi in the presence of party president Mallikarjun Kharge and senior leader Sonia Gandhi, among others.

Former Himachal Pradesh CM Jairam Thakur on the FIR filed against MLAs over 'electoral offences' related to the recent Rajya Sabha polls in Himachal Pradesh, said, "The implication here is that you (referring to Himachal Pradesh CM) have absolutely no trust left in your MLAs. That's why all these actions are being taken. And I strongly condemn the FIR filed against the (rebel Congress) MLAs and their families."

JKNC leader Omar Abdullah at a press conference in Jammu, said, "The BJP lacks confidence. If it were confident, it wouldn't need to rely on religion to win elections. What harm does it do to make a claim? I can also claim that we are going to win all six seats (in Jammu and Kashmir), and even BJP claims that they will win three seats, I'll wait and see how they achieve that."

Union Minister Nityanand Rai on BJP's alliance talks in Bihar, "Everything is alright, you will get to know when everything is finalised. The NDA is united and will win all the 40 seats in Bihar. Chirag Paswan is with the NDA and will remain with the NDA."

BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla says, "his is not new for the Congress party to use such kind of abusive language, threats and try to make these kinds of personalized remarks on the Prime Minister. In fact, the entire INDIA alliance has been targeting his 'parivaar'. This is the DNA of the Congress party. They cannot tackle or answer for the developmental works done by Prime Minister Modi or the work done for the poor people of this country. They have now become so frustrated that they want to even abuse and beat up the Prime Minister and abuse the constitutional positions. In their hatred for Modi and BJP, they abuse the army, culture and the Constitution. They go on foreign soil and they abuse India and they do not even spare the public. They don't spare Hindus."

BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad on TMC announcing candidates on all 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal, says, "It was bound to happen. They (opposition) have nothing in the name of leader, policy or intention but a conflict of personal interests."

Election Commission of India tweets "In the run-up to General Elections 2024, ECI today organised a briefing for Observers to be deployed in the States/UTs. CEC Rajiv Kumar & senior EC officials briefed over 2150 senior officers drawn from IAS, IPS, IRS & IAAS officers

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on AAP and TMC contesting LS polls solo in Punjab and WB, says, 'no setback on INDIA alliance, a strategic move instead'.

Senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi drew parallels between the upcoming Lok Sabha polls and Mahabharat, saying the elections will be a battle between the "good and evil" and "virtue and unfairness".

Addressing party workers in Murshidabad district of West Bengal, the former Union minister asserted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will win this battle as he represents "cultural nationalism with a commitment to the country's safety, prosperity, and empowerment of all".

- Ten candidates of the NDA, including seven from the BJP, on Monday submitted their nomination papers here for the biennial elections to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council. Monday is the last date for filing of nomination papers by the candidates. Monday is the last date for filing of nomination papers by the candidates.

- The NDA candidates filed their nominations in the presence of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. Those who filed the nomination papers from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) include former ministers Mahendra Singh and Ashok Katariya, Vijay Bahadur Pathak (state BJP vice-president), Mohit Beniwal, Ram Tirath Singhal (former mayor of Jhansi) and Dharmendra Singh.

- Congress veteran Kamal Nath on Monday ruled out the possibility of contesting the upcoming Lok Sabha poll from Jabalpur and said he will not leave Chhindwara, his political stronghold in Madhya Pradesh.

- The Chhindwara Lok Sabha seat is currently represented by his son Nakul Nath.

- Former MP chief minister Kamal Nath has represented Chhindwara Lok Sabha constituency nine times. He is currently an MLA from Chhindwara assembly seat.

- Asked if he will contest the upcoming Lok Sabha election from Jabalpur, a prominent parliamentary segment in Mahakoshal region of MP, Kamal Nath said, "There is no plan. I will not leave Chhindwara in any case." He was talking to reporters in Chhindwara.

After joining Congress, Rahul Kaswan says, "I am grateful to Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi along with Rajasthan Congress chief Govind Singh Dotasra and Party's state incharge Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa. I am thankful to PM Narendra Modi as I got the chance to work for the people for 10 years. The voice of farmers is being neglected. There are many such issues on which I decided to join the Congress Party..."

Here's what Churu MP Rahul Kaswan said after joining Congress earlier today.

"My entire family was working with honesty and dedication in the region, but a time came where I felt that my voice was not being heard (in the BJP). I felt that I will suffocate if I cannot raise the issues of my farmer brothers. "

- The Election Commission (EC) on Monday organised here a meeting for the observers it will be deploying for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. The day-long briefing for the over 1,800 observers is being addressed by EC officials on different subjects.

- Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar is also likely to address the observers drawn from different services. These police, general and expenditure observers are drawn from services such as IAS, IPS, IRS and other allied services.

- They are deployed in poll-bound areas ahead of announcement of elections and work as eyes and ears of the poll authority in the states.

- BJP's Churu MP Rahul Kaswan announces resignation from party, Lok Sabha membership

- Churu MP Rahul Kaswan joins Congress after quitting BJP

- Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Kerala's Palakkad on March 15 to campaign for the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) candidates for the Lok Sabha polls, party sources said here on Monday.

- Following this, on March 17, Modi will undertake another visit to Pathanamthitta to rally support for Anil K Antony, the BJP candidate and son of Congress stalwart A K Antony, sources said.

Meeting of TDP, BJP and JanaSena Party to be held today to discuss seat sharing for the upcoming Andhra Pradesh Assembly Elections and Lok Sabha 2024 elections. The rally of PM Narendra Modi, scheduled to be held in Andhra Pradesh on 17th March, to also be discussed.

The Congress State Election Committee of UP has sent a proposal to the central leadership recommending that members of the Gandhi family should contest the elections from Amethi and Rae Bareli. There is a Central Election Committee meeting today at 5 pm. In the second meeting of Congress CEC today, the seats of Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Haryana to be discussed: Sources (ANI)

"Out of the 117 seats, you gave us 92 (in Punjab Assembly polls). Now, make us win all 13 (Lok Sabha) seats (in Punjab). We don't want these seats for ourselves but for the development of Punjab," says Delhi CM and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, addressing a gathering in Punjab's Mohali.

"If people of Punjab give me 13 hands in the Parliament, no one at Centre will then dare to stop funds of Punjab," said Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann earlier today, while addressing a gathering in Mohali.

Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the emergence of the INDIA—the coalition of Opposition parties—ignited considerable enthusiasm aimed at impeding the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP’s) progress. For a moment, it appeared that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's path might face significant obstacles this time around. However, just as it approached the finish line, the INDIA alliance encountered setbacks. Initially, Janata Dal (United) chief and Bihar Chief Minister (CM) Nitish Kumar's retreat set off ripples of uncertainty, and now, shadows of doubt linger over West Bengal. Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo and West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee's decision to field candidates on all 42 seats in the state has further complicated the electoral landscape, leaving the Congress party in a state of flux. The crucial questions emerge: how will India challenge the BJP? What narrative does INDIA convey by exposing these internal divisions? Read here

Farmers’ protest, the Agniveer scheme and the ill-treatment of women wrestlers were the three reasons he quit the BJP, Brijendra Singh, who represented Haryana’s Hisar in the Lok Sabha, told Moneycontrol on March 11.

A day earlier, Singh, who took voluntary retirement from the Indian Administrative Services in 2018 to join the BJP, announced his decision to quit the party on the X platform, formerly Twitter. He joined the Congress within hours after he also resigned from the Lok Sabha.

Launching the election campaign of the YSRCP from Andhra Pradesh's Bapatla district on March 10, Chief Minister (CM) YS Jagan Mohan Reddy asserted that the forthcoming elections were crystallising into a "one versus all" showdown.

Speaking at his fourth 'siddham (ready)' rally in Addanki, a constituency primarily dominated by Kammas, the YSRCP leader set a bold goal for his party to secure victory in all 175 assembly seats. He posed the rhetorical question, "Why not 175?" Notably, Reddy's rival, TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu, also belongs to the Kamma community, underscoring the complex dynamics at play in the electoral contest.

Election Commission's observers' briefing meeting for the General Election to Lok Sabha and General Election to Legislative Assemblies 2024 is underway, in Delhi.

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday claimed that if the Constitution is amended according to the BJP-RSS agenda, it will be the end of parliamentary democracy, federalism, rights of the minorities, and English being one of the two official languages.

Chidambaram's remarks came over BJP MP Anantkumar Hegde's statement that his party needs a two-thirds majority to amend the Constitution.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said that it was an important day for connectivity across India ahead of inaugurating the Dwarka Expressway. Modi will visit Haryana's Gurugram later in the day where he will inaugurate and lay foundation stone of 112 National Highway projects spread across the country worth about Rs. One lakh crore.

Ahead of the big Central election committee meeting, BJP leaders discussed seat sharing with Pawan Kalyan's Jan Sena party

(From agencies)

A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court to prevent the government from appointing the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners under Sections 7 and 8 of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment Conditions of Service and Terms of Office) Act, 2023. Bar & Bench tweeted about this.

Uddhav Thackeray’s close associate and three-time MLA from Jogeswhari East Ravindra Waikar, on Sunday, joined the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.

Waikar, 65, was under the scanner of central investigative agencies with the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in October 2023 registering a money laundering case against him in connection with the construction of a luxury hotel, claiming it was in violation of his agreement with the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

Delhi chief minister and AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal to kickstart Lok Sabha poll campaigning from Punjab. He will address a rally in Mohali at 12pm today.

Senior leaders (of TMC) are corrupt and new people are not joining the party. They (TMC) have to bring candidates from Bihar, Gujarat etc. This is the plight of TMC... Their party symbol has now become the symbol of corruption... TMC has never trusted educated Bengalis. It has trusted criminals like Sheikh Shahjahan.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah held discussions for seat sharing in Maharashtra for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections with coalition partners Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde and NCP president Ajit Pawar. Shinde and Pawar -- chief minister and deputy chief minister of Maharashtra -- held talks with Shah here late Friday. Senior BJP leader and Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis was also present in the meeting.

Six years since Anantkumar Hegde said the BJP would change the Constitution to do away with the word "secular" in its preamble, the BJP MP on Sunday reiterated it, exhorting the public to ensure a two-thirds majority for the saffron party in Lok Sabha to amend the country’s founding document.

The BJP needs a two-thirds majority in both houses of Parliament to amend the Constitution and "set right distortions and unnecessary additions made to it by the Congress", Hedge said, addressing a gathering here, going on to explain the numbers required to amend the preamble of the Constitution.

Just days before the announcement of the Lok Sabha poll schedule, election commissioner Arun Goel on March 9 resigned from his post. The sudden resignation comes at a time when the poll panel, led by chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar, is travelling across states to review poll preparedness for the upcoming general election. The resignation has been accepted by President Droupadi Murmu with effect from Saturday.

The reason for Goel's resignation was not immediately known. His tenure was originally slated to continue till December 2027.

Who is Arun Goel? Read here

The Communist Party of India (CPI) announced on March 10 that it has parted ways with the opposition bloc INDIA, announcing that it will contest in eight of the 14 Lok Sabha seats in the upcoming elections.

The CPI has no representation in the Lower House of Parliament from Jharkhand.

BJP Central Election Committee meeting to be held today evening at the party headquarters in Delhi.

Two election commissioners are likely to be appointed on March 15 under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, sources aware of the matter told News18. This comes as a move to fill the vacancies created by the retirement of Anup Chandra Pandey and the surprise resignation of Arun Goel as the Election Commissioner (EC).

A selection committee meeting will also be conducted, headed by PM Modi along with a Union minister and Lok Sabha’s Leader of Opposition Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, who will name two persons for the appointment as election commissioners, Times of India reported. Following this, the official appointment will be done by the President.

Trinamool Congress on Sunday announced its list of 42 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. MP Mahua Moitra will contest the polls from the Krishnanagar constituency, while Partha Bhowmick has been fielded from Barrackpore.

Earlier PM Modi said what is INDIA (alliance), he is enough alone, but now they are running after BJD, Pawan Kalyan, and Chandrababu Naidu, trying to revive NDA...There are two 'I' in India if we take out those two 'I'- 'Imandari' and 'Insaniyat', only NDA is left...These are our two issues for the 2024 elections- 'Imandari' and 'Insaniyat.'

(From ANI)

The second meeting of the Congress party's Central Election Committee (CEC) will be held at the All India Congress Committee (AICC) headquarters in Delhi on Monday evening, party sources told business daily Mint.

According to the report, the meeting will convene at 6 pm and will be chaired by party national president Mallikarjun Kharge. Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and party MP Rahul Gandhi are also expected to attend the meeting.

The Elections Commission will be in Jammu and Kashmir till Wednesday to assess when polls can be held in the Union Territory. "The dates for the Lok Sabha elections are likely to be revealed immediately after that," sources were quoted as saying. The Supreme Court of India had on December 11, 2023, asked the central government to hold assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir by September 30, 2024 and restore statehood at the earliest.

The Election Commission of India is likely to announce the dates for the Lok Sabha elections 2024 around March 14-15, sources told NDTV on Saturday. They said the Election Commission may declare the poll schedule after visiting Jammu and Kashmir from Monday.

Four leaders of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), including two former MPs, and a Congress leader joined the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in New Delhi on Sunday (March 10) ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. The newly joined leaders are former MP Godam Nagesh, former MLA Saidhi Reddy, former MP Sitaram Naik, and former MLA Jalagam Venkat Rao. Srinivas Gomase also joined the party on Sunday. He had resigned from his position as General Secretary of Telangana Congress.

Trinamool Congress (TMC) announced the candidate list for all 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal. The candidate list, which was read out by TMC national secretary Abhishek Banerjee, was accompanied by the party supremo and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee walking on the 300-ft-long ramp built on the rally ground with the nominees. This was something that had not been witnessed in any state in the past.