Assembly Elections 2022 Highlights: Voting is underway across all 40 seats of Goa, all 70 seats of Uttarakhand and 55 constituencies Uttar Pradesh in the second phase of the assembly polls on February 14. Uttar Pradesh had recorded a voter turn out of 39.07 per cent till 1 pm. Uttarakhand registered 35.21 per cent and Goa recorded 44.63 per cent voter turn out till 1 pm. Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, his Uttarakhand counterpart Pushkar Singh Dhami, former CM of Uttarakhand Harish Rawat and jailed Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Azam Khan are among the prominent leaders in the fray in the three states ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). In Uttar Pradesh, voting for 55 Assembly seats spread across nine Uttar Pradesh districts in the second phase of the Assembly elections is started at 7 am . As many as 586 candidates are in the fray in this phase with the seats spread across Saharanpur, Bijnor, Moradabad, Sambhal, Rampur, Amroha, Budaun, Bareilly and Shahjahanpur. Of the 55 seats, the BJP had won 38 in 2017 while the Samajwadi Party bagged 15 (where 10 successful candidates were Muslim) and the Congress two. The areas going to polls in this phase have a sizeable Muslim population influenced by religious leaders of the Barelvi and Deoband sects and are areas considered SP strongholds. In an interview with news agency ANI, chief minister Yogi Adityanath said that the BJP will win the assembly election by winning over 300 seats. Dharam Singh Saini, a Yogi Adityanath government minister who had switched to the SP before the polls, is among prominent candidates in the fray today. Jailed SP leader Mohammad Azam Khan has been fielded from his stronghold Rampur. Khan's son Abdullah Azam has been fielded from the Swar seat. UP's Finance Minister Suresh Khanna is contesting from Shahjahanpur while Minister of State for Jal Shakti Baldev Singh Aulakh is contesting from Bilaspur. In Uttarakhand, where the BJP is seeking a second term, polling is also being held across all 70 seats of Uttarakhand today. As many as 632 candidates are in the fray from all 70 seats of Uttarakhand today. The voting will begin at 8 am in the hill state across 11,697 polling booths. The AAP, which is contesting all 70 assembly constituencies, has offered promises including free electricity up to 300 units to every household to lure voters. The prominent faces in the fray in Uttarakhand include chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, Uttarakhand cabinet colleagues Satpal Maharaj, Subodh Uniyal, Arvind Pandey, Dhan Singh Rawat and Rekha Arya, State BJP president Madan Kaushik, former chief minister Harish Rawat, former minister Yashpal Arya, state Congress president Ganesh Godiyal and Leader of Opposition in the fourth assembly Pritam Singh, among others. In Goa, Voting is underway across all 40 seats today. As many as 301 candidates are contesting from 40 seats of Goa. Usually a bi-polar contest, the Goa election is, this time, witnessing a multi-cornered contest this time with the AAP testing waters in all seats. The Trinamool Congress (TMC) and other smaller parties are also vying to make a mark on Goa's electoral scene. The Congress and the Goa Forward Party (GFP) are fighting the election in alliance, while the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC has joined hands with the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP). The Shiv Sena and the NCP had also announced their pre-poll alliance, while the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP is contesting on its own. The coastal state recorded 82.56 percent turnout during the 2017 elections. The Congress had bagged 17 seats, while the BJP bagged 13. Later, the BJP stitched up an alliance with some regional outfits and independents to form government in the state. The prominent faces in the fray in Goa include chief minister Pramod Sawant (BJP), Leader of the Opposition Digambar Kamat (Congress), former CMs Churchill Alemao (TMC), Ravi Naik (BJP), Laxmikant Parsekar (independent), former deputy CMs Vijai Sardesai (GFP) and Sudin Dhavalikar (MGP), late CM Manohar Parrikar's son Utpal Parrikar and AAP's CM face Amit Paleker.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | Punjab polls: Kejriwal and other AAP leaders hold poll campaigns
AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Monday appealed to the people of Punjab to vote his party to power in the February 20 state assembly polls.
He was campaigning in favour of an Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate in Phagwara. Addressing a gathering, Kejriwal appealed to the people to form an "honest" AAP government for the bright future of the state.
Campaigning for AAP candidate Joginder Singh Mann, the party's national convenor said that every vote cast for Maan would go to the chief ministerial candidate Bhagwant Mann. While campaigning in assembly constituencies of Sham Chaurasi and Hoshiarpur, the Delhi chief minister cited poll surveys and said that his party will win 65 seats in the state.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates |
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | According to the poll panel, special 'divyang dolis' were deployed in Uttarakhand with the help of volunteers from the National Cadet Corps (NCC) for assisting people with disabilities (PwD) and senior citizens to polling stations. In the three states, over 2.19 lakh PwD voters and 4.67 lakh people above 80 years of age were registered to vote across 165 assembly constituencies.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | BJP urges EC to bar Sidhu from campaigning
The BJP on Monday urged the Election Commission to ban Punjab Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu from campaigning in the ongoing assembly polls and register a criminal case against him and his party, alleging that he was promoting hatred and division in the society with his comments. A BJP delegation, including Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, met the EC with a memorandum and claimed that Sidhu had insulted Brahmins with a "derogatory" reference with an aim to divide Punjabis.
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People in Uttarakhand have created history by voting in huge numbers. I hope that the new government will work for a golden future of Uttarakhand: Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami in Khatima
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | Goa reports 79% voting in Assembly polls
Goa on Monday registered a very high voter turnout of 78.94 percent in polling for the 40 Assembly seats which passed off peacefully with no untoward incident reported from any part of the state which witnessed a multi-cornered contest, officials said. The electoral fate of 301 candidates was locked in EVMs which will be opened on March 10 for counting.
Addressing a press conference here, Chief Electoral Officer Kunal said the highest voting was registered in the Sankhalim constituency in North Goa at 89.61 percent, while the lowest voter turnout was 70.20 percent at Benaulim in South Goa. He said the overall voting percentage was 78.94 percent.
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“Start-up culture has started in Manipur. We do politics for nation-building,” Defence Minister and BJP leader Rajnath Singh said in Imphal.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates |
“Congress neglected the northeast region. No incident of 'Bandh' took place in the last three years. No innocent persons were killed in encounters: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in Imphal ahead of the Manipur Assembly elections
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | Sonia Gandhi not among Congress star campaigners for 6th phase of Uttar Pradesh polls
Congress president Sonia Gandhi does not figure among the party's star campaigners for the sixth phase of assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh on March 3. Former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and chief ministers of Congress-ruled states of Rajasthan, Punjab, and Chhattisgarh are among those named by the party as its star campaigners in Uttar Pradesh.
Sonia Gandhi has not so far campaigned in this election season even though she figures among the star campaigners of the party in some states. She was not among the star campaigners for the assembly phase that includes constituencies falling under her Lok Sabha seat of Rae Bareli.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | SP objects to distribution of tablets in Kannauj college
The Samajwadi Party on Monday alleged that tablets were distributed to students at a college here in violation of the model code of conduct for elections. Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Gajendra Kumar, however, said the tablets were distributed after permission from the Election Commission (EC).
The tablet distribution took place in the PSM College this morning in which over 100 students were given tablets, the party claimed. When the SP leaders came to know about it, they reached the college and protested.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | Voter turnout in Goa, UP, Uttarakhand till 5 pm
Goa recorded 75.29% voter turnout and Uttarakhand 59.37% till 5 pm, shows Election Commission data. Uttar Pradesh witnessed 60.44% voting in the second phase of Assembly elections
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | Goa sees 60.18% voter turnout till 3 pm
Goa recorded a 60.18 percent voter turnout till 3 pm on Monday as polling is underway for the 40 Assembly seats in the coastal state where a multi-party contest is playing out while the ruling BJP is seeking a third straight term.
As per the Election Commission of India's data, 60.18 percent of voters cast their vote by 3 PM with the Sankhalim Assembly constituency in North Goa recording the maximum 70 percent turnout. Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant is seeking another term as MLA from the Sankhalim segment.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | Nearly 52% voting till 3 PM in second phase of UP assembly election
An average voter turnout of 51.93 percent was recorded till 3 PM on Monday in Uttar Pradesh as polling for the second phase of the assembly election picked up pace after a slow start. Additional Chief Election Officer Brahma Dev Ram Tiwari said polling in the state has been peaceful so far. Voting kicked off in 55 assembly seats spread across nine districts at 7 AM. The first two hours saw few voters at polling booths owing to fog and cold conditions. But as the day progressed, more and more voters stepped out of their homes to exercise their franchise.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | Rahul asks people not to 'experiment' in Punjab polls, choose Congress
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday cautioned people against going for any "experiment" in the Punjab assembly polls, saying that maintaining peace was most important for the state and only his party was capable of it. Addressing a poll rally here, Gandhi asserted that his party understands Punjab very well and can take the state forward. The Congress leader also targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over unemployment, saying he does not talk about it and black money in his election speeches.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | PM Modi in Jalandhar:
“As many as 23 lakh Punjab farmers are getting PM Kisan payment directly in their accounts. We provided pesticides and fertilizers at a lower rate than the global market. We will work on natural and organic farming.”
“Punjab has seen that we had made an SIT to probe the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, but Congress has always given the accused top positions in the party. They (Congress) raised questions on our Army.”
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | Law against triple talaq saved families of thousands of Muslim women from breaking-up in UP: PM Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said the law against triple talaq has saved families of thousands of Muslim women from breaking up in Uttar Pradesh. Addressing an election rally here at Kanpur Dehat, the prime minister said the tightening of law and order in the state has also benefitted Muslim girls who used to face problems from miscreants while going to school earlier. PM Modi's remarks at the rally come amid a row in Karnataka where schools have stopped Muslim girls from attending classes while wearing hijab.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | Uttarakhand: 2 villages in Kedarnath constituency boycott polls
Unhappy over a road not being constructed, residents of Jaggi Bagwan and Chilaund villages in Uttarakhand's Kedarnath assembly constituency stayed away from voting in the assembly elections on Monday. Though the district administration is trying to persuade the voters in these villages to come out and exercise their franchise, they have refused to budge. The 225 voters of Chilaund and 376 of Jaggi Bagwan had earlier announced their decision to boycott the polls complaining about non-construction of a road, a long-standing demand of the villagers.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | Uttar Pradesh records average voter turnout of 39% till 1 pm
An average voter turnout of 39.07 percent was recorded till 1 pm on Monday in Uttar Pradesh as polling for the second phase of the state assembly elections picked up pace after a slow start. Voting kicked off in 55 assembly seats spread across nine districts at 7 am. Additional Chief Election Officer Brahma Dev Ram Tiwari said polling in the state has been peaceful so far.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | Goa records 44.62% voter turnout till 1 pm
Goa recorded 44.62 percent voter turnout till 1 pm on Monday as polling was underway for the elections to 40 Assembly seats in the coastal state, as per the Election Commission's data. So far, the highest turnout of 54 percent was reported in Sankhalim (North Goa) Assembly segment, from where Chief Minister and BJP leader Pramod Sawant is contesting.
Besides, the Sanguem constituency in South Goa recorded 53.91 percent polling till 1 pm, while the Valpoi Assembly segment reported a low turnout of 39 percent, as per official figures. Voting began at 7 am and will end at 6 pm. Voting began at 7 am and will end at 6 pm.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates | Over 35% polling recorded in Uttarakhand till 1 pm
Over 35 percent polling was recorded till 1 pm on Monday in Uttarakhand where voting is underway in 70 assembly seats spread over 13 districts, officials said here. Long queues of voters were seen outside polling booths as polling began at 8 am amid strict adherence to Covid protocol. By 1 pm, 35.21 percent polling was recorded in the state, Election Commission officials here said. Uttarkashi recorded the highest turnout till 1 pm with 40.12 percent polling followed by Almora with 30.37 percent.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Muslim women feel safe under BJP rule, PM Modi says in Kanpur amid Hijab row
The back-to-back remarks on Muslim women in poll rallies by Prime Minister Modi assume significance because of sizeable population of the minority community in the region voting in first two of the…... Read More
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: AAP gave tickets to many candidates with criminal background: Charanjit Singh Channi
Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Monday hit out at the AAP, accusing it of spreading falsehood against him and also giving tickets to many candidates with criminal background. Slamming the Arvind Kejriwal led party, he said the AAP gave tickets to 44 people who came from other political parties. Every third and fourth candidate of the AAP is facing criminal cases, Channi charged.
Taking a dig at the AAP's claim of bringing a change, he said the party fielded many candidates who have been rejected by other political parties.
Accusing Kejriwal of building his party's entire campaign on the basis of lies and falsehood, he said the AAP leaders were spreading falsehood against him after realising that they are not going to win the coming elections. Read more here
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Spoke with CMs of Tamil Nadu, Telangana, trying to protect India's federal structure together: Mamata Banerjee
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who is trying to cobble up a united front against the BJP, said on Monday that she had spoken with her counterparts in Tamil Nadu and Telangana, and together they were trying to "protect the country's federal structure from getting bulldozed".
The TMC supremo, who had visited Uttar Pradesh last week to campaign for Samajwadi Party (SP), contended the chief minister of that state was not a "yogi (monk) but a bhogi (worldly person)".
She said that her camp decided against contesting elections in UP in the "larger interest" of the nation. "The TMC did not field any candidate in UP as I did not want Akhilesh Yadav (SP chief) to get weak in any seat. In the first phase, I am hoping Akhilesh's party will win 37 of 57 seats," she told a news channel.
Hitting out at her UP counterpart Yogi Adityanath, Banerjee claimed, "Women are burnt alive and peasants get murdered in that state. The CM there is not a 'yogi' but a 'bhogi'. If India has to be saved, UP will have to be saved first." Banerjee said she would be visiting UP again on March 3 to hold a rally in Varanasi. Read full here
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Goa election candidate with least assets is worth Rs 25,000
Devidas Gaonkar, Shiv Sena candidate from North Goa’s Valpoi, has the second lowest assets at Rs 25,500.... Read More
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Refrain from violating the silence period, Election Commission tells media
The Election Commission of India on February 14 reiterated its guidelines and asked media to comply with provisions that prohibit the display of “poll matter” during the so-called silence period. The reminder comes on the day Goa and Uttarakhand vote for a new assembly, while 55 seats go to the polls in Uttar Pradesh in the second phase of the five state elections.
During the silence period, which kicks in almost 36 hours before the polling day and ends once voting is over, parties and candidates are prohibited from campaigning publically or through TV or digital media.
“In this regard, attention of all media is invited to the Section 126 of the Representation of People Act, 1951 that prohibits displaying any election matter by means, inter alia, of television or similar apparatus, during the period of 48 hours before the hour fixed for conclusion of poll in a constituency," the poll panel said in a statement on February 14, re-producing a portion of Section 126 of RP Act.
An “election matter”, as defined under Section 126 of the Representation of People Act,1951 is any matter intended or calculated to influence or affect the result of an election.
A violation of the provisions is punishable with imprisonment up to two years, or with fine or both. Read details here
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Punjab farmers stood hungry in winters as PM Modi tried to give their hard work to 2-3 billionaires, says Rahul Gandhi at Hoshiarpur rally
Speaking at a rally in in Hoshiarpur, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi took aim at Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "For a year, Punjab farmers stood hungry in winters as PM Modi tried to give their hard work to two-three billionaires. He couldn't give two minutes of silence in Parliament to farmers who died during the protest. He also didn't give compensation, but Rajasthan & Punjab government did," Gandhi said.
He added: "PM Modi said in every speech that he'll deposit Rs 15 lakh in bank accounts, will give employment to 2 crore youth. Did anyone get it? Why does he not speak on corruption or employment? He did demonetization, imposed GST. Who got benefitted?"
Further addressing farmers at the 'Navi Soch Nava Punjab' rally, Gandhi said: ""...Whatever you grow in food park, be it potato chips or tomato ketchup, everything can be manufactured by directly transferring your produce from farms to food processing unit."(ANI)
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Discrimination against minority communities "greatest mockery of democracy", says UP CM Yogi
Even as the second phase of assembly elections began on Monday in Uttar Pradesh with 55 seats at stake, chief minister Yogi Adityanath in an interview with news agency ANI on Monday said he expected the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) to win the ongoing polls in the state by gaining over 300 seats.
“Under the PM’s leadership and with people’s blessings, the double-engine government will return to power in UP. This election has already moved towards 80 vs 20. A gloomy environment prevails in SP (Samajwadi Party), BSP (Bahujan Samaj Party), and Congress camps after the first phase of polls. BJP is achieving its 300-mark target,” Adityanath said.
According to Adityanath, the 80-20 split represents the 80 percent who support progress and 20 percent opposition who have a negative attitude towards everything.
Asked whether minorities are safe in the state, Adityanath said the primary aim of his government was to provide security and prosperity to all, and that discriminatory incidents against minorities were the “greatest mockery of democracy”.
“In five years, did any riot take place? In five years, were obstacles placed in celebrating festivals? If festivals of the Hindus were celebrated with peace, Muslims also celebrated festivals in a peaceful manner. When Hindus are peaceful, they (Muslims) are also peaceful. Hindus are safe so Muslims are also safe. We give security to all, prosperity to all, respect to all but no appeasement to any,” he said.
“In a democracy, if any government disrespects the views of the public sentiments, distributes government schemes by looking at their faces, discriminates on caste, creed, and religion—there can be no greater mockery of democracy than this,” he said. Read full here
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Voter turnout till 1 pm
Uttar Pradesh has recorded39.07 percent voter turnout till 1 pm in Phase 2, as per data from the Election Commission of India (ECI). Meanwhile,Uttarakhand has recorded35.21 percent voter turnout till 1 pm andGoa saw44.63 percent voter turnout till 1 pm.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: PM PM Modi targets Samajwadi Party, says its family members 'looted' Uttar Pradesh
Addressing an election rally for 10 assembly constituencies of Kanpur, Kanpur Dehat and Jalaun districts, PM Modi also derided the TMC for saying that it is fighting elections in Goa to 'divide' Hindu…... Read More
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UP Assembly Elections 2022 - Crorepati candidates
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Opinion | Yogi Adityanath’s candidature seems fraught with trouble
Until a year ago, the road to Lucknow seemed wide open to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), but not anymore.
The Uttar Pradesh elections present much of a challenge for pollsters in divining parties’ fortunes, particularly since there seems to be no strong ‘wave’ in favour of anyone. The BJP’s poor performance in the Panchayat polls, coupled with the ripples created by Samajwadi Party (SP) and others, particularly in Western Uttar Pradesh, have forced commentators to admit that it is not going to be a cakewalk as the Chief Minister and his party would have hoped.
As it happens in any election in India, things have changed at such a pace that even the party’s move to let CM Adityanath contest an assembly seat, particularly from his home district, is being scrutinised. This has cast some doubt on Adityanath and his party’s chances at capturing the largest assembly in the country. Is the party perhaps faltering in projecting Adityanath as the party’s face, as opposed to their modus operandi of projecting the PM as the face of the campaign? Read full here
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Muslim girls feel safe under the BJP’s rule in Uttar Pradesh : PM Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on February14 thatUttar Pradesh had become safe for everyone, including Muslim women under Yogi Adityanath-led government.“Muslim girls feel safe under the BJP’s rule in Uttar Pradesh. A large number of Muslim girls are going to schools and colleges in the state now,” Modi said addressing a rally in poll-bound Kanpur Dehat
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: 26.63% polling till 11 am in Goa; Governor, CM cast vote
An average 26.63 per cent votes were cast till 11 am on Monday in Goa as polling was underway for the state Assembly elections, officials said. Long queues were seen outside some polling booths in the coastal state, where 301 candidates are in the fray for the 40 Assembly seats. Voting began at 7 am and will conclude at 6 pm.
Till 11 am, 26.63 percent polling was recorded in the state, as per officials of the Election Commission. The Sankhalim constituency (North Goa), represented by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, recorded the highest 33 percent voting so far since morning, followed by Sanguem (South Goa) where 32.87 percent votes were polled, they said.
Sanvordem and Benaulim constituencies (South Goa) recorded a low turnout of 22.85 percent and 22.96 percent, respectively, as per official figures.
Goa Governor PS Sreedharan Pillai and his wife were among the early voters. They stood in a queue at a booth in Taleigao Assembly constituency near state capital Panaji at 7 am to cast their votes. Polling was going on peacefully, the governor said and congratulated the state poll machinery for the smooth conduct of the elections. He said people of Goa are peace-loving. "Normally, there is no untoward incident here during the elections which shows the success of democracy," he said.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant also exercised his franchise at a booth in Sankhalim Assembly constituency. He claimed that his party BJP will win over 22 seats and retain power in the state.
Himachal Pradesh Governor Rajendra Arlekar, who hails from Goa, and his wife also cast their votes in Vasco Assembly constituency of the coastal state. "I have come here from Himachal Pradesh specially to cast my vote. Voting is a fundamental right. I appeal to people to come out in large numbers to vote. There should be cent per cent voting," Arlekar said. He said Goa had a track record of very high voter turnout in the past.
Over 11 lakh people are eligible to cast their votes in Goa. They include 9,590 people with disabilities, 2,997 aged over 80 years, 41 sex workers and nine transgenders. The average number of eligible voters per booth in the state is 672, which is the lowest in the country, a poll official said.
The average number of eligible voters per booth in the state is 672, which is the lowest in the country. The Vasco Assembly constituency has the highest number of 35,139 eligible voters, while the Mormugao seat has the lowest number of voters at 19,958, he added. (PTI)
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Average voter turnout of 23 percent recorded till 11 am in UP polls
An average voter turnout of 23.03 per cent was recorded till 11 am on Monday in Uttar Pradesh as polling for the second phase of the state assembly elections picked up pace after a slow start.
Voting kicked off in 55 assembly seats spread across nine districts at 7 am. Additional Chief Election Officer Brahma Dev Ram Tiwari said polling in the state has been peaceful so far. Additional Chief Election Officer Brahma Dev Ram Tiwari said polling in the state has been peaceful so far.
The first two hours of polling saw few voters reaching polling booths owing to fog and cold conditions. But as the day progressed, more and more voters stepped out of their homes to cast their votes. As many as 586 candidates are in the fray in this phase. The 55 seats are spread across Saharanpur, Bijnor, Moradabad, Sambhal, Rampur, Amroha, Budaun, Bareilly and Shahjahanpur districts.
According to the Election Commission, Saharanpur recorded a voter turnout of 25.26 percent till 11 am, Bijnor 24.34 percent, Moradabad 25.99 percent, Sambhal 22.95 percent, Rampur 21.76 percent, Amroha 22.99 percent, Budaun 21.87 percent, Bareilly 20.99 percent and Shahjahanpur 21.58 percent.
Samajwadi Party (SP) patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav appealed to voters to support the party. "I appeal that you lend your valuable support to the Samajwadi Party to help it win with a huge mandate. Ensure victory of SP candidates in the second phase and all other upcoming phases," Yadav, who is in Delhi, said in a brief video message. This was the first election-related message to voters from the 83-year-old leader in this poll campaign. Earlier, he had addressed party workers in Lucknow. (PTI)
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates:
Visuals from a polling booth in Guniyal Gaon, Dehradun district, Uttarakhand (PC: Sounak Mukherjee, Moneycontrol)
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Voter turnout in UP points to BJP's return to power in state, says PM Narendra Modi in Kanpur Dehat rally
Addressing a public rally in Kanpur Dehat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared that the voting turnout in second phase polling in Uttar Pradesh points at BJP returning to power again.
"The 'Parivaarwadi' will again be defeated by the people of Uttar Pradesh. The festival of colours- Holi will be celebrated in Uttar Pradesh on 10th March itself," the PM said.
He also jibed at the opposition: "When they keep changing their allies, then how will they serve the people of Uttar Pradesh?...Earlier governments looted the people of the state,"
He also dismissed allegations about Goa. "In an interview to a news publication in Goa, a TMC leader said that they have formed alliance with a particular party to divide Hindu votes in Goa. I want to tell Goa voters that is the chance to bury such kind of politics," ANI quoted PM Modi say in Kanpur Dehat. (ANI)
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Land rights, environment top election agenda in India's Goa
India's undisputed tourist hot spot, and the tiniest state in the worlds largest democracy, is voting to elect a new government with an eye toward restoring an economy ravaged by the pandemic and saving the environment threatened by an unbridled real estate boom.
More than 1.1 million voters in the western Goa state will decide who among the 301 contestants can help save their ecologically fragile coastal land that is struggling to cope with uncontrolled tourism. The locals cant afford an apartment or a house or a plot of land in Goa anymore since the real estate prices have been driven sky high by those who want a slice of this paradise, said Atish Fernandes, who runs the popular Joseph Bar in capital Panjim.
The state has a population of less than 2 million but hosted more than 8 million tourists in 2019, before the pandemic shuttered restaurants and rendered thousands jobless. The travel and tourism industry, the lifeline of Goa's economy, is slowly recovering but not all jobs have come back.
Goa has also emerged as a preferred second home destination for India's affluent middle class, fueling frenetic construction activity. Fernandes said land rights are a major issue for every Goan since the new wealth is mostly being generated from the sale of ancestral lands, real estate development or brokerage to feed a growing demand.
At a campaign rally in the heart of Goa on Thursday, PM Narendra Modi offered voters his vision of a Golden Goa with prosperity fueled by tourism and infrastructure. The opposition Congress and the Delhi-based Aam Aadmi Party are promising sustainable development, jobs and a corruption-free government, while the Trinamool Congress, from West Bengal, has plans for generous welfare programs for the unemployed. The two prominent regional parties joined the fray to explore their national ambitions.
For Goa's native communities like farmers and fishermen, what is at stake is a distinct way of life that for centuries has been in sync with its lush green environment and coastal biodiversity.
In the quaint Fontainhas area of Panjim, the narrow, winding streets are lined with Portuguese-style homes and bars. A UNESCO World Heritage site, Fontainhas is steeped in the colonial history of Goa, a Portuguese territory until 1961.
At the Joseph Bar, tucked between Fontainhass ancient buildings, many rue the inevitable change that free market brings, especially in an economy where every third person is engaged in tourism.
The local people who are the stakeholders and voters here are always looking back at what they had and what they have lost, said Fernandes. If you ask an average Goan what he wants, he wants a life he had 15-20 year ago. (AP)
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Opinion | Is BJP facing headwinds in UP from SP-RLD combine?
As the mega battle for Uttar Pradesh starts on February 10, with the first phase of voting for 58 of the 403 assembly seats, the big question is whether the Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-driven Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s campaign for a second term in office is facing strong headwinds in what was its bastion until the last elections.
Issues such as unemployment caused by the economic slowdown and COVID-19, and the agricultural market reform laws, which the Narendra Modi-led Centre withdrew after a year-long protest by farmers, are seen as hurdles for the ruling party.
In the 2017 assembly polls, the BJP bagged 53 of these 58 seats, while the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) got two seats each. One seat went to the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD). The BJP won 312 of the 403 seats across UP, polling in 40 percent of the votes.
Two years later, in the general elections, the BJP won 62 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats from UP, with a polling percentage of 50.
The SP-RLD alliance is what will be bothering the BJP in the region. While it is unlikely that the new-found friendship between SP leader Akhilesh Yadav and RLD leader Jayant Chaudhary will upset BJP in this predominantly Jat belt of western UP, the national party will have to break sweat to repeat the 2017 performance.
This is because the SP-RLD pact is an attempt to revive the old social bonhomie between the Jats and the Muslims, which has been scarred since the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots. Read full here
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Request Yogiji to get Azam Sahab out of jail, says SP leader Imran Masood
He (UP CM Yogi Adityanath) has said it rightly so, he just made a mistake. 80 percent people are with us (Samajwadi Party) & 20 percent with them (BJP), SP leader Imran Masood, told ANI in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh. He was responding to the UP CM's jibe that Akhilesh Yadav doesn't want Azam Khan to come out of jail.
"I request Yogi Ji only with folded hands to get Azam Sahab out of the jail. We'll be grateful. What is he talking about, framing Azam Sahab for robbery with no shame? He has made a joke out of politics," Masood said.
Also responding to Yogi's statement, Tanzeem Fatima, wife of imprisoned SP candidate for Rampur, Azam Khan told ANI, "This is wrong. CM Yogi Adityanath gives a lot of wrong statements, this is one of them." (ANI)
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates:
UP candidates in fray - education qualification & criminal records
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Smaller parties may play key role in Goa govt formation, feel poll observers
Goa has so far witnessed shifting of power largely between the Congress and the BJP, but poll observers feel that after the February 14 Assembly elections, smaller parties and new entrants are likely to play a crucial role in government formation. The observers said that the smaller parties may eat into the votes of major players in the fray. The observers said that the smaller parties may eat into the votes of major players in the fray.
A total of 301 candidates are contesting the election to 40 Assembly constituencies in the state. Apart from the traditional contenders - BJP and Congress - Aam Aadmi Party, Goa Forward Party (GFP), Trinamool Congress Party (TMC), Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Shiv Sena, Revolutionary Goans Party, Goencho Swabhimaan Party, Jai Mahabharat Party and Sambhaji Brigade are in the fray. Besides, 68 independent candidates are also in the poll arena.
Most opinion polls have indicated that no single party is likely to get a clear majority. Since the last four Goa elections - from 2002 - it was only once that any party crossed the magic figure of 21 in the 40-seat assembly. It was only in 2012 that the BJP managed to achieve that feat. Any party forming the government had to take help of smaller parties and independents.
In the 2017 elections, the Congress had won 17 seats, while the BJP had bagged 13. But the BJP had quickly stitched up an alliance with some regional outfits and independents to form government in the state. This time, the BJP is battling a 10-year anti-incumbency. This is also the first assembly poll that the BJP is contesting without former chief minister Manohar Parrikar, who died in 2019.
To add to it, the party is facing a rebellion. Utpal Parrikar, son of Manohar Parrikar is contesting as an independent from Panaji after being denied the ticket from the seat. So is former chief minister Laxmikant Parsekar from Mandrem. The Congress is contesting in alliance with the GFP. While the Congress has fielded 37 candidates, three others are in the fray on ally GFP's ticket.
However, this time the West Bengal-based TMC is also in the fray. It has taken several Congress and NCP leaders from the state into its fold. The TMC is contesting the polls in alliance with the MGP, a regional force with pockets of influence in north Goa.
The AAP, which had contested all 40 seats in the 2017 Goa Assembly polls and lost 39, has made determined efforts this time. It has also wooed the dominant Bhandari community and named a chief ministerial candidate from it. The Shiv Sena and the NCP have formed an alliance in this state for the first time.
There are regional parties like the Revolutionary Goans Party (RGP). This youngest party in the state has fielded 38 candidates out of 40 in the state. Sanjay Kumar of Centre for the Study of Developing Societies said there is a clear four-cornered contest in the state - BJP, Congress, TMC and AAP.
"With multiple parties in this fray, there is likely to be fragmentation of votes in the state. This is also because the size of Goa's constituencies is very small. So is the margin of victory," Kumar said, adding that it will be interesting to see who eats whose votes in each constituency. Sandesh Prabhudesai, researcher-journalist said it is not that Goa is seeing a multi-cornered contest for the first time.
"But this time, there is a strong resentment against two main parties - the BJP and Congress. This is largely due to defections," Prabhudesai said. So there is likely to be a fractured mandate, he added. He said that it is necessary to keep a watch on the AAP and RGP as to whose and how much votes these parties will eat into. (PTI)
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Congress leader Michael Lobo casts vote from Calangute
Congress candidate from Calangute, Michael Lobo and his wife Delilah Lobo cast their vote at a polling booth in the constituency.
AAP CM candidate Amit Palekar along with his mother also cast their votes in Assembly elections. "This is our moment to bring a change. People are voting enthusiastically to defeat corruption, we will witness sea-change; let's wait for March 10 results," Palekar said.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: 26.63 percent voter turnout till 11 am in Goa
Goa has recorded 26.63 percent voter turnout till 11 am, Election Commission of India said on February 14. UP has recorded 23.03 per cent while Uttarakhand, where polling began at 8 am, has registered 18.97 per cent voter turn out till 11 am, the poll panel said.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Some glimpses from polling booth as Uttarakhand votes today
As many as 632 candidates are in the fray from all 70 seats of Uttarakhand today. The voting will begin at 8 AM in the hill state across 11,697 polling booths.
Prominent leaders in the fray today include Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, his cabinet colleagues Satpal Maharaj, Subodh Uniyal, Arvind Pandey, Dhan Singh Rawat and Rekha Arya besides state BJP president Madan Kaushik. Candidates from Opposition Congress include former chief minister Harish Rawat, former minister Yashpal Arya, state Congress president Ganesh Godiyal and Leader of Opposition in the fourth assembly Pritam Singh.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Punjab Assembly Elections 2022 Update
"Aam Aadmi Party never comprises on national security. If voted to power in Punjab we'll work together with the Centre on the issue of security in Punjab and the country," said AAP Chief Arvind Kejriwal. He added that there should be "no politics" on the issue of security of the PM, "but politics was done from both sides."
Punjab CM and Congress leader Charanjit S Channi, during his rally in Chandigarh has promised 1 lakh government jobs. "On being voted to power, we will provide 1 lakh government jobs to the youth of the state," Channi said. (ANI)
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: BJP will win over 22 Assembly seats in Goa; PM Modi has conveyed best wishes: CM Pramod Sawant
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Monday claimed the BJP will win more than 22 seats in the 40-member state Assembly, the polling for which is currently underway, and said he will continue to hold the top post if his party forms government in the coastal state.
After casting his vote at a booth in Sankhalim constituency of North Goa district, Sawant also said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to him in the morning over phone and conveyed his best wishes for the Assembly polls.
Voting began at 7 am will conclude at 6 pm in the single-phase elections in the coastal state, where 301 candidates are in the fray for the 40 Assembly seats.
The prime minister called me over phone around 7 am to convey his best wishes to me and all the BJP workers for the polling day, and gave his blessings, Sawant, who is contesting the election from the Sankhalim Assembly seat, told PTI.
Sawant said the PM's call further boosted the morale of the BJP workers to work for the party's victory. The BJP will win more than 22 seats in the state, he claimed. Read more here
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Expecting record voter turnout this year: Goa CEO
Chief Electoral Officer of Goa,Kunaltold news agencyANIthat he expected the coastal state to register a record voter turnout this time. “Polling process peaceful with 11.04 per cent voter turnout so far. We want more and more people to vote this time, expecting record-breaking voting. 5 Control Units, 11 VVPATs replaced during mock polls, this is a normal procedure,” Kunal said. Goa had recorded 82.56 percent turnout during the 2017 elections. All 40 seats of Goa are voting today.
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: UP candidates in fray by gender & age demography
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Top minister says first round of polling reflects religious polarisation in UP
The first phase of polling in UP for 58 assembly seats, held on February 10, has BJP clearly in the lead, said state Cabinet Minister Sidharth Nath Singh in an interview with Moneycontrol. Singh is the more civil face of the BJP, a fluent bilingual, official spokesperson of the party, and key member of the Yogi Adityanath establishment.
What does he base his assessment on? ``There is no doubt that there has been religious polarisation. The Samajwadi Party (SP) has been trying to get Muslim votes and has indulged in out and out minority appeasement, so Hindus have lined up in large numbers to vote for the BJP,” said Singh, who is the grandson of former Prime Minister of India Lal Bahadur Shastri.
In Singh’s opinion, the Jats, who were perceived to have been cut up with the BJP on account of the year-long farmers’ agitation, did not come out to vote in large numbers, blunting the edge of the SP-Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) combine in west UP.
Will Priyanka Gandhi make an impact, as some observers claim she will? “The Congress would be lucky to get as many as seven seats, which they won in the 2017 state assembly elections,” said Singh, who is contesting from the prestigious Allahabad West constituency. Read full here
Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Constitution will prevail Sharia Law: Yogi Adityanath on Hijab row
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on February 14 that the Constitution of India would prevail over Sharia Law (Islamic Law) as a system of government functioning in India.
Adityanath response come in response to AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi's remark that Hijab is a fundamental right and that one day a hijab-clad girl will become the prime minister of India.
"It is for the freedom and rights of every girl that PM Modi put a stop to the malpractice of Triple Talaq. It is for ensuring justice and honour and empowerment of the girl that these decisions are being taken," Adityanath said in an exclusive interview with news agency ANI.
"We can only say that the system will not work as per the Sharia, but will work as per the Constitution. When the system will work according to the constitution, every girl will be protected, honoured and become self-reliant," the UP CM said on a day when 55 seats of Uttar Pradesh are voting in second phase of state assembly polls. The comments come in the wake of Hijab row from Karnataka schools that has now spread to other parts of the country. Read more here
