India recorded as many as 4,194 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours with a positivity rate of 0.52 per cent, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare informed on Friday.
With this increase in fresh infections, the country’s total tally moved up to 4,29,84,261 including 42,219 active cases. Active cases account for 0.10 per cent of the total cases. The Union Ministry informed that as many as 255 COVID-19 fatalities pushed India’s death toll to 5,15,714. Of the fresh fatalities, 227 fatalities were reported in Kerala itself.
The ministry informed that as per the Kerala health bulletin, 24 deaths were reported on March 10 and added 203 pending COVID deaths to the official list. Further, the recovery rate is currently at 98.70 per cent with 6,208 recoveries being reported in the last 24 hours. With this, the total recoveries increased to 4,24,26,328 in the country, as per the government data.
Of the 77.68 crore total tests conducted so far, a weekly positivity rate of 0.55 per cent was observed.
The government informed that about 179.72 crore vaccine doses have been administered so far under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive. On Thursday, India reported a daily positivity rate of 0.48 per cent with 4,184 new cases.
Nearly a week after Disney paused the release of its new movies in Russia, the company has now announced that it is “taking steps to pause all other businesses in Russia”.
As per Variety, the Walt Disney Company is working to halt all of its businesses in Russia following the country’s “unprovoked invasion of Ukraine,” a spokesperson said on Thursday. Disney has many linear channels and consumer product brands across Russia, as well as a cruise port located in St. Petersburg.
Talking about the company’s decision to suspend all of its businesses and services in the country, the Disney spokesperson said, “Given the unrelenting assault on Ukraine and the escalating humanitarian crisis, we are taking steps to pause all other businesses in Russia. This includes content and product licensing, Disney Cruise Line activities, National Geographic magazine and tours, local content productions and linear channels.”
The spokesperson added, “Some of those business activities we can and will pause immediately. Others — such as linear channels and some content and product licensing — will take time given contractual complexities.”
While the businesses are being paused given the current situation, the staff based in Russia will continue to be employed.
“Even as we pause these businesses, we remain committed to our dedicated colleagues in Russia, who will remain employed. And we continue to work with our NGO partners to provide urgent aid and other much-needed assistance to refugees,” Disney’s statement read.
This move comes after the entertainment and media conglomerate on March 1 announced its plans to halt the release of new movies in Russia.
Russia has faced economic blowback to its decision to wage war on Ukraine. In response to the country’s invasion, several entertainment companies including Amazon, Netflix and WarnerMedia, Sony Music have decided to pause or entirely withdraw business in Russia, while all of the major studios including Paramount Pictures have announced they will stop premiering their films in the country.
Outside of Hollywood, companies like Microsoft, Apple and Dell have suspended sales in Russia.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday will address various programmes and dedicate projects in Gujarat during his two-day visit from March 11 in the state. In a tweet today, PM Modi wrote, “Leaving for Gujarat, where I will be attending various programmes today and tomorrow. At 4 PM today, will address a Panchayat Mahasammelan, where several representatives from Panchayati Raj institutions will attend.” On Wednesday, the Prime Minister’s Office had informed that PM Modi will visit Gujarat on March 11-12, 2022. At around 4 PM on 11th March, Prime Minister will participate in Gujarat Panchayat Mahasammelan and address the gathering.
Tomorrow, Prime Minister will dedicate the building of Rashtriya Raksha University (RRU) to the nation at 11 AM. He will also deliver the first Convocation address of the RRU as the Chief Guest. At around 6:30 PM on March 12, Prime Minister will declare open the 11th Khel Mahakumbh and deliver an address on the occasion.
Gujarat has a three-tier Panchayati Raj structure, with 33 district panchayats, 248 taluka panchayats and over 14,500 gram panchayats. ‘Gujarat Panchayat Mahasammelan: Aapnu Gaam, Aapnu Gaurav’ will witness participation of more than 1 lakh representatives from the three tiers of the Panchayati Raj institutions in the State.
Rashtriya Raksha University (RRU) was set up to meet the need for high quality trained manpower in various wings of policing, criminal justice and correctional administration. The government set up a national police university named Rashtriya Raksha University by upgrading the Raksha Shakti University which was established by the Government of Gujarat in 2010. The University commenced its operations on October 1, 2020.
Started in 2010 in Gujarat under the leadership of the then Chief Minister Narendra Modi, with 16 sports and 13 lakh participants, Khel Mahakumbh today encompasses 36 general sports and 26 para sports. Over 45 lakh sportspersons have registered for 11th Khel Mahakumbh.
Khel Mahakumbh has revolutionized the sports ecosystem in Gujarat. With no age bar, it witnesses the participation of people from across the State who compete in various events over a period of one month. It is a unique confluence of traditional sports like kabaddi, kho-kho, tug of war, yogasana, mallakhambh and modern sports like artistic skating, tennis and fencing.
Equity indices opened in green on Friday with Sensex up by 165.08 points and Nifty up by 45.70 points.
The 30-scrip BSE Sensex was up by 165.08 points or trading at 55,629.47 and up by 0.30 per cent at 9.51 am. Similarly, 50-scrip NSE Nifty was trading at 16,640.60 at 9.51 am, up by 45.70 points or 0.28 per cent.
After the declaration of Uttar Pradesh Assembly results, Samajwadi Party Akhilesh Yadav on Friday expressed gratitude to the people for building faith in the party which led to the increase in the number of their seats and vote share.
Former CM Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party came a distant second in the 2022 Uttar Pradesh election, securing 111 constituencies, seeing a massive increase from 47 in 2017, and getting 32.06 per cent votes. Taking to Twitter, Akhilesh Yadav said, “Hearty thanks to the people of UP for increasing our seats by two and a half times and vote percentage by one and a half times!”
He further took a jibe at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-led Uttar Pradesh government, signalling towards more fierce competition in future and said the results have proved that BJP seats can be reduced.
“We have shown that BJP seats can be reduced. This reduction of BJP will continue unabated. More than half the confusion and delusion have been cleared, the rest will happen in a few days. The struggle for public interest will win!” Yadav further tweeted.
BJP has retained power in Uttar Pradesh by winning 255 out of 403 constituencies, securing a 41.29 per cent vote share. However, the party had secured a landslide victory with 312 seats in the 2017 Assembly elections.
New Delhi [India]: As the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) registered a historic win in Punjab Assembly polls by winning a three-fourths majority with 92 seats, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday congratulated the party and assured all possible support from the Centre for the state’s welfare.
Taking to Twitter, PM Modi said, “I would like to congratulate AAP for their victory in the Punjab elections. I assure all possible support from the Centre for Punjab’s welfare.” Notably, the Bharatiya Janata Party has retained power in four states- Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, and Manipur.
I would like to congratulate AAP for their victory in the Punjab elections. I assure all possible support from the Centre for Punjab's welfare. @AamAadmiParty
Punjab Chief Minister-elect Bhagwant Mann has won from Sangrur district’s Dhuri assembly constituency by a margin of 58,206 votes over Congress’ Dalvir Singh Goldy. He announced that his oath-taking ceremony will be held at Khatkarkalan in Nawanshahr district, the ancestral village of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh.
It is AAP’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress.
The ruling Congress managed to secure 18 seats in the 117-member Assembly while Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ended up with two. Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has bagged three seats and Bahujan Samaj Party has won only one.
Punjab witnessed a multi-cornered contest with key players being Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Shiromani Akali Dal-Bahujan Samaj Party alliance, and the coalition of Bharatiya Janata Party-former chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt) led by SS Dhindsa.
In the 2017 Punjab Assembly polls, Congress won 77 seats in the 117-member House whereas Shiromani Akali Dal could win only 15 seats, BJP netted three and independent candidates won two seats. On the other hand, AAP emerged as the second-largest party with 20 seats.
In 1987, Congress won 87 seats. 1977, Shiromani Akali Dal won the maximum number of seats – 59 while in 1997, it won 75 seats.
The polling in Punjab took place on February 20 on 117 assembly seats.
The allegations by the Canadian government that Russia is behind an attack on a hospital ward in the city of Mariupol is based on a fabrication permeated by Kyiv, the Russian Embassy in Ottawa said.
“Russia unequivocally rejects [the] Canadian government’s groundless accusations of having allegedly attacked a maternity hospital in Mariupol. Video and photo footage attempting to present a damaged hospital building as a result of a ‘Russian airstrike’ is nothing but a blatant lie. It is yet another outrageous provocation by the Kyiv regime. A climax of the fake news dissemination campaign,” the Russian Embassy said in a statement on Thursday. The Russian Embassy condemned the story saying it was staged and noted that Canadian media has not made any attempt to independently verify the veracity of Kyiv’s claims.
Russia is conducting strikes in Ukraine with “surgical precision” and the Ukrainian troops and allied neo-Nazi battalions continue to use the civilian population as shields.
Ukrainian opposition lawmaker Illia Kyva, who fled the country, also said he was confident that the story regarding the attack on the Mariupol maternity hospital was a false flag.
“Ukraine is filled with lies and deception. The history of the tragedy in the hospital of Mariupol – another staging and fake,” Kyva said on Telegram.
Mariupol is the site of an intense battle where surrounded Ukrainian troops and neo-Nazi and other extremist battalions have dug in against advancing Russian and allied troops from the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics. The latter has said are intending to end eight years of bloodshed in the area initiated by Ukrainian troops and assorted extremists.
On February 24, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine, responding to calls for help from the Donetsk and Luhansk people’s republics against the intensified attacks by Ukrainian troops. The Russian Defense Ministry said the operation was solely targeting Ukrainian military infrastructure and has emphasized the civilian population is not in danger.
Dehradun (Uttarakhand) : With many tall leaders from the incumbent government and the Opposition parties on the line in the Assembly polls in Uttarakhand, some big names crumbled including sitting Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and former chief minister Harish Rawat as the leaders lost their respective seats.
The BJP has won the Assembly polls for the second consecutive term bagging 47 seats while the Congress which was expecting a return at the office had to confront a crushing defeat as the party was reduced to 18 seats with leading on one seat, according to the Election Commission trends at 10.40 pm. The biggest setback for the BJP came in the form of the loss of its chief minister Puskar Singh Dhami to Congress’ Bhuwan Chandra Kapri by 6,579 votes. Kapri bagged 48,177 votes with a vote share of 51.89 per cent while Dhami got 41,598 votes with a 44.8 per cent vote share.
Another senior leader that suffered defeat was Congress leader and former chief minister Harish Rawat who lost to BJP’s Mohan Singh Bisht by 17,527 votes. Rawat had initially decided to contest from Ramnagar seat in Nainital district. This is the second consecutive defeat of Rawat in two Assembly polls. He had lost in Haridwar (Rural) in the 2017 elections.
Col Ajay Kothiyal (retd), chief ministerial candidate of the Aam Aadmi Party which is contesting for the first time in the state, also lost to BJP’s Suresh Singh Chauhan on the Gangotri seat. Kothiyal got 6,161 votes with a vote share of 10.33 per cent while Chauhan won with a massive vote share of 49.66 per cent and got 29,619 votes.
In the Tehri seat, Congress’ Dhan Singh Negi, who won the seat as BJP candidate in 2017, was defeated by Kishore Upadhyay, who joined the BJP ahead of the elections by 13,417 votes. Negi secured 13.64 per cent votes while Upadhyay got 42.31 votes. Anukriti Gusain, the daughter-in-law of former Uttarakhand Minister Harak Singh Rawat, was defeated by BJP’s Daleep Singh Rawat by a margin of 9,868 votes. Gusain got 14,636 votes with a vote share of 35.35 per cent while Rawat secured 24,504 votes with a vote share of 59.18 per cent.
What came as another jolt to the BJP in the polls was the defeat of cabinet minister Yatishwaranand who was defeated by Anupama Rawat, Harish Rawat’s daughter by a margin of 4,472 votes. Rawat secured 50,028 votes with a 46.59 per cent vote share while Yatishwaranand got 45,556 votes with a 42.42 per cent vote share.
Congress’ Sanjeev Arya, son of former cabinet minister Yashpal Arya who joined Congress ahead of the elections, lost to BJP’s Sarita Arya who got 31,770 votes with a 52.19 per cent vote share. Sanjeev got 23,889 votes with a 39.24 vote share.
Meta, the parent company of social networks Facebook and Instagram, is planning to allow the publication of calls for violence against Russians in response to the invasion of Ukraine, media reports said on Friday.
“As a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine we have temporarily made allowances for forms of political expression that would normally violate our rules like violent speech such as ‘death to the Russian invaders.’ We still won’t allow credible calls for violence against Russian civilians,” Meta spokesperson Andy Stone said in a statement. The Sputnik news agency reported the US media giant is going to allow posts that call for death to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in a number of countries, including Russia, Ukraine and Poland.
This decision comes a few days after Russia blocked access to Facebook and other social media platforms, saying that it had discriminated against Russian media and information resources.
Media reports said that the Russian websites of BBC and Deutsche Welle, Twitter, and Apple and Google’s app stores were all blocked. “In March 2022, a decision was made to block access to the Facebook network (owned by Meta Platforms, Inc.) in the Russian Federation,” the Russian media regulator statement had said.
Meta president Nick Clegg said the company was doing “everything we can to restore our services”.
Russia launched a “military operation” in Ukraine on February 24, which it claimed was a response to calls from the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk for protection against attacks by Ukrainian troops.
The Russian Defense Ministry said the special operation is targeting Ukrainian military infrastructure only and the civilian population is not in danger.
A number of countries including the US, Canada, and Australia have rolled out a comprehensive sanctions campaign against Russia, prompting many international businesses to leave the Russian market.
Bengaluru (Karnataka): Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said that the party’s victory in four out of five states that went to polls will ensure that the BJP’s lotus will bloom in the state Assembly elections, scheduled early next year.
Participating in a function to celebrate BJP’s victory in the five states, the Chief Minister said, “Our responsibility has increased. We have to work more actively to implement the welfare programmes announced in the State budget. I have already instructed the officials to prepare the files before the end of this month and get the work orders issued before the month of April. Implementation of all the programmes will be started without any delay and it is our responsibility to reach them to the common man.” Bommai asked the party workers to take up publicity of the welfare programmes at booth level and help the people to avail the benefit of these programmes.
“We have resolved to see the Lotus bloom and win the 2023 Assembly election by winning the hearts of the people through the public welfare programmes of our government and organisational strength of the BJP. We have taken a pledge to build a prosperous state by returning to power for the next 5 years. We will undertake a state tour with our senior leader BS Yediyurappa and central leaders to further strengthen the party in every part of the State. We are already on the job,” he said and called upon the party workers to be ready to work hard to bring BJP to power again.
“Congress has sunk in the rest of the country. It will sink in Karnataka too. Congress is fighting for survival. Congress has lost direction at the national and state level. It has lost its base all over the country. While BJP is fighting for a bright future for the country, Congress is fighting for existence. That is the difference. “BJP has won in 4 States. We will win in Gujarat in the coming days. The victory of BJP in Karnataka is as true as Sun rising in the East,” Bommai said.
Congress is offering Fridge, TV and other inducements for its party workers who enroll new members for the party in Siddaramaiah’s constituency of Badami. The Congressmen are accustomed to give and take. Nothing works without that. They will grab 10 times more than what they offer now. They have reached such a sorry state, Bommai said.
Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh): After a tough fight in eight assembly constituencies of Varanasi, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allies have won all the seats.
Varanasi went to the polls in the last and seventh phase of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. It’s worth mentioning that Varanasi is the parliamentary constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi who held a massive roadshow and a rally ahead of the polls in the city. Notably, there was a lot of displeasure among the voters regarding the candidates for three seats of Varanasi including Pindra and Rohaniya.
In Pindra, BJP candidate Awadhesh Kumar Singh won by a margin of 35,559 votes. In Shivpur, BJP’s Anil Rajbhar defeated Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party candidate Arvind Rajbhar by 27,687 votes.
Sunil Patel, candidate of Apna Dal (Sonelal), the alliance partner of BJP won from Rohaniya.
In Varanasi Cantt, BJP leader Saurabh Srivastava won by a margin of 86,844 votes. In Varanasi North, BJP’s Ravindra Jaiswal defeated Samajwadi Party (SP) candidate Ashfaque by 40,776 votes.
BJP candidate Neelkanth Tiwari won the Varanasi South constituency by a margin of 10,722 votes. SP fielded Kameshwar alias Kishan Dixit in the seat.
In Sevapuri, Neel Ratan Singh defeated SP’s Surendra Singh Patel and won by a margin of 22,531 votes.
BJP’s Tribhuwan Ram won the Ajagara seat in Varanasi district by a margin of 9,160 votes.
With the BJP-led alliance registering a thumping victory in Uttar Pradesh, it will be the first time in over three decades that an incumbent government will return to power in the electorally crucial state after completing its full term.
New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won all the eight assembly seats in Lakhimpur Kheri district giving shocking defeats to the candidates of the Samajwadi party where eight people, including four protesting farmers, died after allegedly being mowed down by an SUV in which Union Minister Ajay Mishra Teni’s son Ashish Mishra is a prime accused.
BJP candidate from Nighasan, where the Lakhimpur Kheri violence had taken place in October, won with a huge margin. Eight Assembly seats in the district Mohammadi, Gola Gokarannath, Kasta, Lakhimpur, Srinagar, Nighasan, Dhaurahara, and Palia Kalan have overwhelmingly voted for the BJP.
BJP’s Lokendra Pratap Singh secured a win against Samajwadi Party’s Daud Ahmad with a margin of 4871 votes in Mohammadi.
From Gola Gokarannath BJP candidate Arvind Giri has won by a margin vote of 29294 against SP’s Vinay Tiwari. BJP candidate Saurabh Singh won Kasta seat against SP’s Suneel Kumar Lala with a margin of 13817 votes. In Lakhimpur SP candidate Utkarsh Verma Madhur lost to BJP’s Yogesh Verma with a margin of 20578 votes.
Manju Tyagi of BJP, who fought against SP’s Ram Sharan won by a margin of 17608 votes in Sri Nagar. In Nighasan BJP’s Shashank Verma won by 41009 votes, BJP’s Vinod Shankar won by a margin of 24610 votes in Dhaurahara. In Palia Kalan SP’s Pritinder Singh Kakku lost to Harvinder Kumar Sahni alias Romi Sahni of BJP by 38129 votes.
The opposition parties including Samajwadi Party (SP), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Congress joined forces against the BJP as the Lakhimpur Kheri violence incident took place at a time when farmers’ agitation was at the peak in the country.
Now scrapped farm laws and the perceived anger among the electorally influential ‘Jat’ community had led many political experts to believe that the BJP could suffer a serious dent in the UP polls, especially in the western region but the results indicated otherwise.
On October 3, eight people, including four protesting farmers, died after allegedly being mowed down by an SUV belonging to Union Minister Ajay Mishra Teni’s son Ashish Mishra. A local journalist was also killed in the violence.
The incident hit national and international dailies. Ashish Mishra was arrested and was in jail. Allahabad High Court recently granted bail to Ashish Mishra in Lakhimpur Kheri violence.
Bharatiya Janata Party’s Yogesh Verma had won the Lakhimpur seat in the 2017 Assembly polls by defeating Samajwadi Party’s Utkarsh Verma Madhur with a formidable margin of more than 37,000 votes.
The prestige of the Union Minister of State for the Home Affairs Ajay Mishra Teni was also at stake in the Lakhimpur Kheri constituency. He’s a local MP, besides having been at the centre of controversy after his son was named in the FIR in the incident leading to the deaths of the farmers.
Interestingly, both the BJP and the SP have repeated their candidates. Since the 1977 election, the SP has won the polls here four times whereas the BJP has won thrice.
New Delhi [India]: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday slammed the Opposition parties and their “ecosystem” for the “conspiracy” to stop action being taken against the corrupts and said that the parties shield the corrupt by “defaming the independent investigating agencies”.
Addressing the party workers in the BJP headquarters after the party’s impressive performance in four of the five states that went to Assembly polls, PM Modi said, “I want to raise an issue in front of the people, that is, the conspiracy to stop the action against corruption. Shouldn’t there be stringent action against the corrupt? There is a sense of hatred among people against corruption and the corrupt. The people voted us back to power in 2019 seeing our clean image since 2014. The people expect us to take strict action against the corrupt.” “But today we are witnessing that the impartial and independent institutions if they take action against corruption, they along with their ecosystem come forward to shield the corrupt by defaming those institutions. It is a misfortune of the country that the people immersed in corruption have started putting pressure along with their ecosystem. They find ways to stop the investigation agencies. They do not trust the judiciary,” the Prime Minister added.
Stating that the Opposition “paints the action taken against any corrupt with the colour of religion, caste and state”, PM Modi urged the people to banish the “corrupt and mafia” to strengthen the society and community.
“They paint the action taken against any corrupt with the colour of religion, caste and state. I urge the people from all communities that they have to think of making the courageous move of banishing such corrupt people and mafia from the society, community and caste. This would strengthen the society and community. One of the reasons for our victory in UP is also that the people have understood that they have to remain away from the people who defame the caste and community and give priority to the state’s development,” he said.
“The election results reflect the mood of the nation towards our commitment to the nation for the next 25 years,” PM Modi added.
Talking about the majority that the party got for the second consecutive term in the Assembly polls, the Prime Minister said that the people have shown that they have chosen the politics of development.
“Some people defame UP by saying that elections are driven by caste. The people of UP have shown see the results of 2014, see the results of 2017, 2019 and now again in 2022 also, every time the people of UP have chosen the politics of development. The people of UP have given this lesson that the dignity of caste should be to unite the country, not divide it,” he said.
The Prime Minister also took a swipe at the “political experts” and said that just like they called the victory of the party in the 2019 general elections the decision that was decided in the 2017 Assembly elections, they would do the same for the 2024 general elections as well.
“Some political ‘experts’ had said after our victory in 2019 that it was decided in 2017 after the victory in Uttar Pradesh. I hope these experts will say that 2022 UP results have already decided 2024 Lok Sabha results,” he said.
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday lashed out at the opposition parties for their ‘no-confidence motion’ and said that his first target would be Pakistan People’s Party co-chairperson, Asif Ali Zardari for his involvement in corruption and money laundering.
He made these remarks during a public rally of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers at Governor House during his day-long visit to the metropolis. Pakistan PM said that the no-confidence motion against him would turn out to be the ‘political demise’ of the opposition, Pakistani newspaper Business Recorder reported on Thursday.
He said that he was waiting for this moment when the opposition would submit the no-confidence motion and he could launch his war against the corruption that he was pursuing for the last 25 years.
Imran said that Zardari was focused on buying loyalties of the members of PTI, adding that a PTI Member National Assembly (MNA) told him that he was offered Pakistani Rupees (PKR) 200 million.
Imran Khan also lashed out at Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz President, Shahbaz Sharif and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam’s chief Fazlur Rehman for joining Zardari in a bid to save one another. He also accused Shahbaz Sharif of laundering billions of rupees to his son and son-in-law abroad, and Fazal-ur-Rehman for possessing wealth worth billions even without owning any business.
Imran said the gang of dacoits had got united against him, adding that the corrupt were not making the move to save the country, but themselves, according to Business Recorder.
Citing the letter penned by the EU urging Pakistan to vote against Russia during the UNGA session, Imran said that he had not given any statement against the European Union, but reminded it that Pakistan was its ally in the war against terrorism which cost the country over 80,000 casualties.
Imran Khan said Pakistan was in favour of maintaining friendly relations with all countries, but not at the cost of its own integrity. Recently, his persistent anti-west utterances have irked the United Kingdom as the UK called off two key meetings with Pakistan.
Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh): Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, a monk-turned-politician, won his first-ever Assembly election by a margin of 1,03,390 from Gorakhpur Urban constituency, defeating Samajwadi Party candidate Subhawati Upendra Dutt Shukla, who secured 62,109 votes in the recently-concluded UP Assembly election.
Adityanath secured 1,65,499 votes in the elections. This is the first time that Adityanath has been elected as an MLA. Earlier, he had become the chief minister the first time after being elected as a Member of Legislative Council. When the BJP won the 2017 Assembly election, the party chose him as the chief minister.
After becoming the CM of the state, he kept 36 ministries under his direct control, including Home, Economics and Statistics, Sainik Welfare, Home Guard, Personnel and appointment, as well as Civil Defence.
Before being sworn as UP chief minister in 2017, he was Gorakhpur MP for five consecutive terms from 1998 to 2017. At 26, Adityanath was the youngest Lok Sabha MP. He is also the head priest of the Gorakhnath Math which is a Hindu temple in Gorakhpur.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has always endorsed him by praising his work as UP chief minister. PM Modi coined a new slogan on “UP plus Yogi bahut hai upyogi” (UP plus Yogi is very useful). The Gorakhpur Sadar seat had also been a bastion of the BJP, which the party had never lost since 1967 since the days of the Jan Sangh.
Bucking the trend, Yogi Adityanath will be the first chief minister in the last 37 years to return to power after completing a full term in Uttar Pradesh. Adityanath is the first CM to return to power after Uttarakhand was carved out of Uttar Pradesh. Congress stalwart Narayan Dutt Tiwari, aka ND Tiwari, was the last chief minister of undivided Uttar Pradesh to secure consecutive terms in 1985, which makes Yogi Adityanath first chief minister in 37 years to retain power in Uttar Pradesh.
The Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government is facing criticism for the “ridiculous attitude” of the Pakistan police during their “violent” operation in Parliament Lodges.
The police on Thursday stormed the Parliament Lodges and arrested several Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) MNAs including Salahuddin Ayubi and Maulana Jamal-ud-Din. Imran Khan’s government has been facing backlash on social media for the “extremely shameful and reprehensible” act by the police.
According to the Express Tribune, the police stormed the lodges on a tip-off about the presence of volunteers of JUI-F’s subsidiary Ansarul Islam and detained around 10 to 12 workers of the party.
According to reports, Pakistan’s law enforcement agency broke the door of the MNAs’ room to make the arrests.
Meanwhile, Dawn reported that chief of the opposition Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) alliance Maulana Fazlur Rahman, after arriving at the lodges, called on his party workers to gather in the Islamabad.
“Our volunteers got here peacefully,” he said. “They (police) stormed into our lodges and attacked our MNA.
“I want to tell my party workers to either reach Islamabad or block roads in their cities and resist this incompetent govt,” he added.
Justifying the operation, Federal Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid said that those who have been arrested by the police were members of a “private militia” Leader of Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif condemned the operation and demanded immediate expulsion of police from the Parliament Lodges.
Pakistan Police stormed the Parliament Lodges and arrested 19 people including Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) MNAs Salahuddin Ayubi and Maulana Jamal-ud-Din.
On Thursday, Dawn newspaper reported that the police entered the lodges and conducted an operation inside the Parliament Lodges. This comes after members of Ansarul Islam, a uniformed volunteer force of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F), entered the Parliament Lodges in large numbers. According to reports, Pakistan’s law enforcement agency broke the door of the MNAs’ room to make the arrests.
Meanwhile, JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has reportedly asked party workers to reach Islamabad and he also reached the lodges accompanied by other lawmakers, Dawn reported.
Fazl earlier took to Twitter to claim that police wanted to “abduct” his party’s workers and his volunteers had arrived at the lodges to protect them. He added that his party wanted to “provide security to the MNAs.”
Islamabad Inspector General of Police Muhammad Ahsan Younus took notice of the group’s presence inside the lodges.
New Delhi [India]: After the announcement of assembly election results in five states, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said the success that the BJP has achieved is because of the work the party did in these states under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi.
Gadkari said, “The success that BJP has achieved is because of the work we did in these states under the leadership of PM Modi. People have given their support to that work through this victory. We’ll work for the development of these states and the country.” He further said, “I want India to be a self-reliant, happy and prosperous country. For achieving this , the government is working. I want to thank everybody who voted for the BJP.”
BJP retained power in UP, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa.
Hyderabad (Telangana): AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said that the people of Uttar Pradesh have decided to give power to the BJP and he respects their decision.
Addressing mediapersons in Hyderabad, Owaisi said, “UP public has decided to give power to BJP; I respect the decision of the public. I thank AIMIM’s state president, workers, members, and the public who voted for us. Our efforts were quite a lot, but the results didn’t come as per our expectations. We’ll work hard again.” He further said, “All political parties are trying to hide their defeat by raising EVM issues.
It’s not EVM’s fault, but the chip in people’s minds. There has been a success but it’s 80-20. We’ll start working again from tomorrow and I believe we will do better next time.”
The Hyderabad MP added, “Minorities of Uttar Pradesh have been used as vote banks only… BJP won in Lakhimpur Kheri as well, that’s why I’m saying it’s an 80-20 win; this 80-20 situation will stay for years. People need to understand that… Our spirits are still high.”
New Delhi [India]: The results of five assembly polls came as a shock to the Congress which was hoping to do well to revive its prospects for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and to fend off the emerging challenge from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Trinamool Congress to replace it as the fulcrum of anti-BJP politics in the country.
The Congress was on the right side of “anti-incumbency” in Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur as it was the major opponent of the ruling BJP in these states. And in the electorally-crucial Uttar Pradesh, the party was hoping to turn the tide in the election effort led by party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. Congress leaders also strongly spoke against the farm laws which were eventually repealed by the Centre. The party was reduced to a historic low in Uttar Pradesh, making the task of its revival even more difficult if not impossible.
The rise of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Punjab is another worrying signal for Congress. The Congress finds it difficult to revive itself in a contest that has strong local players and the BJP, Delhi being the latest example. Now with AAP sweeping Punjab and top leaders of Congress including Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi and state PCC chief Navjot Singh Sidhu losing their seats, the task of revival in Punjab will also be a big challenge.
With their success in Punjab, AAP leaders are talking about the party being a “national force” and it emerging as a “national and natural replacement” of Congress. They also say that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal “will be the principal challenger of the BJP” in the future. AAP leader Raghav Chadha has talked about Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal “being in bigger role of Prime Minister in 2024 if people give an opportunity”.
The Trinamool Congress leaders want to see West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in this role and she has talked about the need of broad opposition unity against the BJP. She has met leaders of Shiv Sena and NCP and has also interacted with Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin. There appears to be competition as also churning in opposition ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha polls and both AAP and Trinamool Congress are keen to be seen as the prime challengers of BJP, a role that Congress has been espousing so far.
The BSP’s decimation in the assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh also points to the party’s dwindling strength and polity in the state getting increasingly bipolar between the alliances led by BJP and Samajwadi Party.
Congress will hold a meeting of its working committee soon to analyse the election results. Upset over the results, Congress G-23 leaders, who had written to Sonia Gandhi seeking widespread reforms including elections at various levels, are slated to meet in the next 48 hours.
Party leader Shashi Tharoor, a member of G-23, on Thursday called for reforming the party’s “organisational leadership in a manner that will reignite those ideas and inspire the people”. “One thing is clear — Change is unavoidable if we need to succeed,” he said in a tweet.
The Congress has to elect a president at the culmination of organisational elections this year and the poll outcome will cast a shadow on the process. It remains to be seen if suggestions continue to be made by a section of the party for Rahul Gandhi to again take up the role.
Rahul Gandhi, who lost the Lok Sabha election from Amethi in 2019 and won from Wayanad, said on Thursday that the Congress will learn from the poll results “and keep working for the interests of the people of India”.
The Congress has seen some of its young promising leaders and even a few among the old guard leaving the party over the past several months.
While BJP increased its vote share in Uttar Pradesh in this poll, the Congress vote share declined though it was fighting almost all 403 seats after a long gap. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra gave 40 per cent tickets to women candidates and held nearly 200 rallies and roadshows in UP. The party also came up with a youth manifesto. The party won just two seats and 2.33 per cent votes compared to seven seats it won in 2017 when it had fought on 114 seats as part of an alliance with the Samajwadi Party. The Congress had got 6.25 per cent vote in the previous assembly election. Congress had won 28 seats with 11.65 per cent votes in 2012 assembly polls and 22 seats with 8.61 per cent votes in 2007.
The Congress indicated on Thursday that the clashing ambitions of its leaders had hurt the party’s prospects.
Party leader Randeep Singh Surjewala said there was need to “seriously introspect, re-examine, re-think” whether the race for political positions “is undermining the position of the party to an extent where we end up helping the cause of our opposition and where we end up causing loss to the Congress party”.
He said this question needs to be answered “not only in Punjab, not only in Uttarakhand, not only in Goa, but across the country”.
Surjewala also talked of anti-incumbency in Punjab, which was ruled by Congress. “In Punjab, Congress presented a new leadership through Charanjit Singh Channi who is the son of the soil, but the entire anti-incumbency of 4.5 years under Captain Amarinder Singh could not be overcome and hence people voted for AAP for change,” he said.
In the results of five elections declared on Thursday, Congress won 18 seats in Punjab, 19 in Uttarakhand, 11 in Goa, and five seats in Manipur.
Congress will face a tough test this year in assembly elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. The party has not been able to oust BJP from power for over two decades in Gujarat though it put up a spirited fight in the last polls. In Himachal Pradesh, BJP will seek to buck the pattern of alternate turns at power and replicate its victory in Uttarakhand. Apart from putting its house in order in the two states, Congress will also have to watch for challenges from a resurgent AAP.
The BJP confirmed its return to power in Manipur, with the party bagging 32 seats seats in the 60-member Assembly, according to the Election Commission website. As per the results, NPP, which is a part of the incumbent government, bagged seven seats and Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) won six seats. The Congress, on the other hand, decimated in its once-bastion. From being the single-largest party with 27 seats in 2017, the party managed to win only five seats.The Naga People's Front and the Kuki People's Alliance won seven and two seats respectively.
Panaji (Goa) [India]: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which fell one seat short of the majority figure in Goa is set to retain power in the state with the help of Maharashtrawadi Gomantak (MGP) and Independent candidates.
The BJP emerged as the single largest party in Goa winning 20 seats in the 40-member state assembly and decimated Congress to 11 seats.
Independent candidates bagged three seats while two seats each went to tally of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Maharashtrawadi Gomantak (MGP) tally.
Revolutionary Goans Party and Goa Forward Party (GFP) got one seat each. According to Election Commission, BJP got 33.31 per cent vote share followed by Congress (23.46 per cent), MGP (7.60 per cent), Aam Aadmi Party (6.77) and Trinamool Congress (5.21 per cent).
Goa election in-charge Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday evening said that it will form a full majority government in the coastal state with the support of Maharashtrawadi Gomantak (MGP) and three independent MLAs– Antonio Vas, Chandrakant Shetye and Alex Reginald.
“We have won 20 seats. MGP has also given us a letter of support. Three independent MLAs have also supported us. So, now we are 20+3+2 =25. There is a possibility that more candidates will join us. So we are forming the government,” Fadnavis said in a press conference here.
Accepting defeat in Goa, Congress leader P Chidambaram said that the Congress lost by a ‘very small’ margin. “We accept the verdict of the people of Goa. Our candidates fought bravely, despite several obstacles… People have voted BJP to power and we accept that. In several constituencies, we lost with very small margins,” said Chidambaram while addressing a press conference.
“Split in votes among various parties ended up in our numbers being less than what we had hoped for…BJP won by a little over 33 per cent of votes, remaining votes got divided”, he added.
Late Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s son Utpal Parrikar, who contested independently in the Goa Assembly elections, has lost from the Panaji constituency by 716 votes. He was up against BJP heavyweight Atanasio Monserrate, who won 6,787 votes to Parrikar’s 6,071.
In Goa’s Bicholim, Rajesh Patnekar, BJP candidate and assembly speaker lost his seat to independent candidate Chandrakant Shetye.
Chandrakant Kavlekar, BJP candidate from Quepem assembly constituency and former deputy Chief Minister lost to Altone DCosta of Congress with a margin of 3601 votes.
In Margao, BJP after a long see-saw battle, Congress’ Digambar Kamat defeated Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader Ajgaonkar Manohar (Babu) by a margin of 7,794 votes. In the last elections, BJP had fielded Ajgaonkar from Margao in South Goa.
In Goa, predictions were for a hung assembly, due to a multi-cornered contest with parties including the BJP, Congress, Trinamool Congress, and AAP.
In 2017, Congress had emerged as the single largest party in the state, winning 17 seats but the BJP, which won 13 seats, managed to form the government with the support of the Goa Forward Party and the MGP which had won three seats each, and two independents.
Dehradun (Uttarakhand): The BJP has come back to power for the second consecutive term in Uttarakhand with a two-third majority in the 70-member Assembly.
The party has won 47 seats and got a vote share of 44.33 per cent, a drop of nearly two per cent from the previous 2017 Assembly elections. The BJP had secured a 46.51 per cent vote share in the 2017 Assembly election. However, the BJP suffered a loss of 10 seats in comparison to the previous polls in 2017 when the party had come with an even bigger majority with 57 seats.
The incumbent Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, however, suffered a loss to Congress candidate Bhuwan Chandra Kapri by a margin of 6,579 votes in the Khatima constituency. Dhami got a total of 41,598 votes with a vote share of 44.8 per cent as against Kapri who got 48,177 with a huge vote share of 51.89 per cent.
However, some BJP MLAs including Kailash Gahtori and Suresh Gadiya have expressed their willingness to give up their respective seats for Dhami to contest as he suffered defeat in Khatima.
The Congress party, which was hoping to return to power in this election managed to win 19 seats. The party’s top leader and former chief minister Harish Rawat lost his seat from the Lalkuwa seat to BJP’s Mohan Singh Bisht by 17,527 votes.
Anupama Rawat, daughter of Harish Rawat defeated sitting minister Yatishwaranand from the Hardwar Rural seat by a margin of 4,472.
Chandigarh (Punjab): AAP has bagged a historic win in Punjab Assembly polls by winning a three-fourths majority with 92 seats – the highest number of seats won by any party in the state in over four decades.
It is AAP’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress. The ruling Congress managed to secure 18 seats in the 117-member Assembly while Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ended up with two. Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has bagged three seats and Bahujan Samaj Party has won only one.
Punjab witnessed a multi-cornered contest with key players being Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Shiromani Akali Dal-Bahujan Samaj Party alliance, and the coalition of Bharatiya Janata Party-former chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt) led by SS Dhindsa.
In the 2017 Punjab Assembly polls, Congress won 77 seats in the 117-member House whereas Shiromani Akali Dal could win only 15 seats, BJP netted three and independent candidates won two seats. On the other hand, AAP emerged as the second-largest party with 20 seats.
In 1987, Congress won 87 seats. 1977, Shiromani Akali Dal won the maximum number of seats – 59 while in 1997, it won 75 seats.
AAP’s chief ministerial candidate Bhagwant Mann, MP from Sangrur on Thursday said that he will take the oath as Punjab’s Chief Minister in Bhagat Singh’s village Khatkarkalan, and not at the Raj Bhawan in Chandigarh. His mother Harpal Kaur said that her son is on the right path.
“I am very happy. His father must have been happy too, to see his son becoming a Chief Minister…Earlier also he was on the right path, today also he is on the right path…” she said.
With Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) winning only three seats, party’s chief Sukhbir Singh Badal said that they whole-heartedly accept the mandate of the people adding that the party will continue to serve the people.
“We whole-heartedly & with total humility accept the mandate given by Punjabis. I am grateful to lakhs of Punjabis who placed their trust in us & to SAD-BSP workers for their selfless toil. We will continue to serve them with humility in the role they have assigned to us,” Badal tweeted.
He said, “As the president of SAD, I congratulate AAP and Bhagwant Mann on their victory in the Punjab poll. I offer them my sincerest good wishes for success and I am sure they will live up to the people’s expectations.”
On the other hand, Congress went into the polls having battled factionalism and anti-incumbency.
Congress could not overcome the anti-incumbency of 4.5 years under the leadership of former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh and thus people of the state voted for AAP for change, said Congress General Secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala on Thursday.
Congratulating AAP, state Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu said, “The voice of the people is the voice of God. Humbly accept the mandate of the people of Punjab. Congratulations to Aap !!!”
Meanwhile, Congress Punjab Incharge Harish Chaudhary took responsibility for the Party’s performance in Punjab polls.
“I take the responsibility for party’s descent in these elections. However, mine or any other’s resignation is party’s internal matter,” said Chaudhary.
Incumbent Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi also said that he humbly accepts people’s verdict.
“I humbly accept the verdict of the people of Punjab and Congratulate @AamAadmiParty and their elected CM @BhagwantMann Ji for the victory. I hope they will deliver on the expectations of people,” Channi said in a tweet.
Notably, in an unprecedented manner, several political stalwarts in Punjab also lost the constituencies on which they were contesting. These include former chief ministers Parkash Singh Badal and Amarinder Singh, Channi, Sukhbir Singh Badal, Sidhu and SAD’s Bikram Singh Majithia.
Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh): The BJP has retained power in Uttar Pradesh by winning 255 out of 403 constituencies, securing a 41.29 per cent vote share.
This is the first time in 37 years that a party has been able to retain power in Uttar Pradesh after completing a full term. Narayan Dutt Tiwari in 1985 had secured two consecutive terms in the state. Former CM Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party came a distant second in the 2022 Uttar Pradesh election, securing 111 seats and getting 32.06 per cent votes.
The two other major parties – Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Indian National Congress (INC) – were reduced to a single digit. BSP won one seat and Congress two seats.
Moreover, the vote shares of BSP and the Congress party stood at 12.88 per cent and 2.33 per cent, respectively.
In the 2017 Assembly election, SP had got 47 seats and BJP had secured 312 seats.
New Delhi [India]: Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the BJP workers from the party headquarters here on Thursday evening.
Addressing the gathering, PM Modi congratulated all voters particularly the first time voters for exercising their right to franchise.
He also thanked and congratulated all party workers as well as Party General Secretary JP Nadda.
He praised the party workers for full-filling their promise of starting Holi celebrations early.
He said that the BJP performance proved the anti-incumbency theory wrong as the BJP vote share actually increasing in UP & Uttarakhand.
Talking of the importance of good governance and its effective delivery, he said, that he will not rest till he ensures its 100% delivery to the poor of India.
Thanking the women voters for their faith in the BJP, he said their vote helped BJP ensure better traction and vote percentage.
He also supported the atmanirbhar campaign and said that this is the only way forward in a tumultuous international situation.
He took a shy at the opposition and said that the opposition were destructive in nature and only wanted to create conditions of fear and anxiety in the country. This was evident while the government was trying to evacuate students from Ukraine as well as one of the the largest COVID vaccine programme in the world.
Condemning nepotism and its supporters, he said that nepotism was against the principles of democracy and it is imperative that it is rooted out as soon as possible.
Talking on the agenda of cleaning the country of corruption, one of the electoral promises BJP made, he said that the opposition was trying to prevent independent agencies from doing their jobs.
Many senior leaders and Ministers were present at the party headquarters including JP Nadda, Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, Smriti Irani and many more.
Beijing [China]: China is facing the heat of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war as global energy prices have surged and Beijing is dependent on imports for its energy requirements.
China is facing severe challenges in managing the pressure on its external sector as more than 70 per cent of China’s oil requirements and 80 per cent of iron ore requirements are fulfilled through imports, reported local media. Rising prices of major Chinese import items such as oil and gas, coal, iron ore, etc. is also likely to augment the import payments.
This would in turn drain out the country’s foreign exchange reserves to cover the import bills amid reduced export receipts, local media said.
However, China has been highlighting around 13 per cent growth in total trade with both exports and imports registering a double-digit rise during the first two months of 2022 and stable foreign exchange reserves at around USD 3.2 trillion at the end of February 2022.
The rise in the values of both imports and export may primarily be attributed to the rising global prices rather than any substantial increase in the volume.
Moreover, there is a possibility of a decrease in demand for Chinese exports due to prevailing anti-China sentiments in the international market.
At the same time, the imports are expected to increase on account of rising demand from China’s large manufacturing sector, plans to stockpile its gas and coal reserves as well as its energy-hungry projects such as South-North Water Transfer Project, despite the adoption of policies to decrease its dependence on imports.
The ongoing crisis between Russia and Ukraine has placed China in a difficult position as Beijing struggles to balance its stance to protect its economic and strategic interests.
China and Russia relations have become closer since 2014 when it stepped in to help Russia, which was dealing with heavy economic sanctions post its annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and establishing a de-facto republic.
After the annexation, Russia was heavily sanctioned, impacting its economy. China stepped in and helped Russia’s economy to recover by buying oil, investing in companies, etc.
China has neither supported nor denounced Russia’s actions against Ukraine.
However, it has been alleged that Russia has finally moved against Ukraine despite being heavily sanctioned because it has China’s backing. Moreover, China has issued directives for covering the Russia-Ukraine crisis which includes not showing Russia in an unfavourable light and not being pro-West.
However, China is Ukraine’s biggest trading partner as it imports wheat, corn, iron ore, sunflower oil and barley from Ukraine and exports machinery and consumer goods to the country. Since 2018, Ukraine has been supplying modern engines for jets to China. Ukraine is also a major arms supplier to China. Ukraine joined the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China’s ambitious infrastructure project, in 2017. In 2020, Ukraine and China signed agreements for the financing and cooperation of BRI.
Ideally, China needs to maintain friendly relations with Ukraine because of extensive trade relations as supporting Russia would bring China’s robust trade with Ukraine to a screeching halt. Further, China would also face severe backlash and economic sanctions from Eastern Europe as well.
Antalya [Turkey]: The talks between Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and Russia Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Turkey amid the third week of war between the two nations failed to yield any progress on a ceasefire and humanitarian corridors, said the Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Thursday.
“Ukraine, Russia made no progress towards agreeing on a ceasefire after the Russian invasion at tense talks in Turkey,” Kuleba said. Kuleba said he raised the prospect of establishing a humanitarian corridor to allow civilians to flee from the besieged city of Mariupol, but “unfortunately Minister Lavrov was not in a position to commit himself to it.”
In a press conference following the short meeting, Kuleba said a 24-hour ceasefire was also raised in order “to resolve the most pressing humanitarian issues,” but he said they “did not make progress” on the issue “since it seems there are other decision-makers for this matter in Russia.”
Kuleba said they did agree to continue efforts to “seek a solution to the humanitarian issues on the ground,” and added that he is ready to meet again “in this format if there are prospects for substantial discussion and seeking solutions.”
Earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov informed that a meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba will take place in Turkey’s Antalya.
“In #Antalya, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey #Lavrov holds a meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry #Kuleba,” tweeted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia.
This comes against the backdrop of Russian forces launching military operations in Ukraine on February 24, three days after Moscow recognized Ukraine’s breakaway regions – Donetsk and Luhansk – as independent entities.
Kathmandu [Nepal]: The people in Nepal organised a protest march against Chinese atrocities in Tibet to mark the Tibet Uprising Day on March 10.
The people were joined by Tibetan refugees living in Nepal. Protesters carrying posters condemned Chinese atrocities in Tibet as they walked through Bijuli Bazar to Babarmahal in the capital Kathmandu.
March 10 marks a very important day for Tibetan people all over the world. It was on this day in 1959, when the Tibetans revolted against the forcible occupation of their motherland by the Chinese Communist Party.
The Tibetan Uprising in 1959 began as a spontaneous act of peaceful protest demonstrations against the Chinese in the capital Lhasa which later turned violent in which thousands of Tibetans were killed by the marauding soldiers of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
Sangrur (Punjab): After Aam Aadmi Party’s win in Punjab assembly elections, the mother of Bhagwant Mann, Harpal Kaur on Thursday said that her son is on the right path.
Mann is AAP’s chief minister candidate from Dhuri. Speaking on the win, Kaur said, “I am very happy. His father must have been happy too, to see his son becoming a Chief Minister…Earlier also he was on the right path, today also he is on the right path…”
Meanwhile, Bhagwant Mann will take the oath as Punjab’s Chief Minister in Bhagat Singh’s village Khatkarkalan, and not at the Raj Bhawan in Chandigarh.
“I will take oath as the CM in Bhagat Singh’s village Khatkarkalan, not at the Raj Bhawan,” Mann, said in Sangrur.
Mann also said that in his term, no government offices will have Chief Minister’s photos. “There will be pictures of Shaheed Bhagat Singh and Babasaheb Ambedkar,” he said.
Mann has won from Sangrur district’s Dhuri assembly constituency by a margin of 58,206 votes over Congress’ Dalvir Singh Goldy.
Mann was announced as AAP’s chief ministerial candidate on January 18. The party claimed the decision was taken after it conducted telephonic polls to decide the chief ministerial candidate.
Born in Satoj village of Sangrur in 1973, Mann started his career as a comedian. He began his political career in 2011 with the Punjab Peoples Party, which is led by Manpreet Singh Badal. In 2012, he fought the elections from the Lehragaga constituency but lost.
Later, he joined the Aam Aadmi Party in 2014 and contested the election from the Sangrur Lok Sabha seat. His importance in Punjab politics increased when he defeated the veteran leader of Punjab Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, who was then with Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD).
Mann has been elected to the Punjab Lok Sabha seat of Sangrur for two terms in a row since 2014.
He gained popularity from his satires in the TV show ‘Jugnu Mast Mast’. He also featured in several other comedy shows.
As AAP wins Punjab, it will be the party’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress.
Panaji (Goa): With Bharatiya Janata Party winning 20 seats out of the 40-seated Goa assembly, the party’s Goa election in-charge Devendra Fadnavis said that it will form a full majority government in the coastal state with Maharashtrawadi Gomantak (MGP) and three independent MLAs’ support.
“We have won 20 seats. MGP has also given us a letter of support. Three independent MLAs have also supported us. So, now we are 20+3+2 =25. There is a possibility that more candidates will join us. So we are forming the government,” Fadnavis said in a press conference here.
BJP Goa Desk Incharge CT Ravi said, “Presently we have 20+5 seats, but it is possible that we will have more seats when we go for floor test in Assembly.”
Goa BJP president Sadanand Shet Tanavade also confirmed that three independent MLAs have given BJP their letter of support.
“Three independent MLAs have given us their letter of support, so we will form the government with a full majority,” he said
He said that Goans have shown faith in Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The BJP has won 20 seats followed by Congress (10), Maharashtrawadi Gomantak (2) and three seats went to Independents.
In Goa, predictions were for a hung assembly, due to a multi-cornered contest with parties including the BJP, Congress, Trinamool Congress, and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
In 2017, Congress had emerged as the single largest party in the state, winning 17 seats but the BJP, which won 13 seats, managed to form the government with the support of the Goa Forward Party and the MGP which had won three seats each, and two independents.
New Delhi [India]: As Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is all set to return to power in four states- Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday expressed gratitude to people for reposing their faith in the BJP under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi.
Taking to Twitter Shah said, “The grand victory of BJP in Uttar Pradesh is a victory of the unshakable faith of the poor and farmers of the state in PM Narendra Modi.
People have put their stamp on Yogi Adityanth ji’s corruption-free good governance. I express my heartfelt gratitude to the people of UP for this massive victory. I bow to the people of Uttar Pradesh for expressing their unwavering faith in the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji in 2014, 2017, 2019 and in 2022.”
“Thanks to the people of Uttarakhand for giving BJP a chance to serve again. Devbhoomi has expressed its unwavering faith in the development works and public-welfare policies of the BJP government led by PM Narendra Modi. Congratulations to the workers of Pushkar Singh Dhami, Madan Kaushik and BJP Uttarakhand,” Shah said.
भाजपा को पुनः सेवा का मौका देने के लिए उत्तराखंड की जनता का आभार।
देवभूमि ने पीएम @narendramodi जी के नेतृत्व वाली भाजपा सरकार के विकास कार्यों और लोक-कल्याणकारी नीतियों पर अपना अटूट विश्वास जताया है।
He said BJP’s returning to power in Manipur is a testament that Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds a special place in the hearts of the people of the North East.
“Thank you, Manipur. PM Narendra Modi Ji’s resolve for a prosperous North-East has earned him a special place in the hearts of the people of our NE region, this victory is a testament to the same. Congratulations to CM N Biren Singh ji, Adhikarimayum Sharda Devi ji and our karyakartas,” Shah said.
Thank you, Manipur.
PM @narendramodi Ji's resolve for a prosperous North-East has earned him a special place in the hearts of the people of our NE region, this victory is a testament to the same.
On Goa, he said, “Grateful to the people of Goa for reposing their faith in the BJP. BJP under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi ji will leave no stone unturned in fulfilling the aspirations of our sisters and brothers of Goa. Congratulations to Pramod Sawant, Sadanand Shet Tanavade and our karyakartas.”
Grateful to the people of Goa for reposing their faith in the BJP.
BJP under the leadership of PM @narendramodi Ji will leave no stone unturned in fulfilling the aspirations of our sisters & brothers of Goa.
Votes are being counted in five states – Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur – where state assembly elections were recently concluded.
Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) is poised to return to power with a comfortable majority for an unprecedented second term in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is on course to a historic victory in Punjab, according to election results and trends on Thursday.
In the other two states of Manipur and Goa, which also went to polls in February-March, the BJP has emerged as the single largest party and is on course to form the government.
New Delhi [India]: With Congress faring badly in five states – Manipur, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Goa and Punjab, the party has decided to convene a Congress Working Committee meeting soon to introspect the results, said Congress General Secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala on Thursday.
“The results of 5 states have come against the expectations of the Congress party but we accept that we failed to get the blessings of the people. Sonia Gandhi has decided to convene Congress Working Committee meeting soon to introspect the results,” Surjewala said addressing a press conference in Delhi. Reacting to the trends of the poll results, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said that he humbly accept the people’s verdict adding that the party will learn from it.
“Humbly accept the people’s verdict. Best wishes to those who have won the mandate. My gratitude to all Congress workers and volunteers for their hard work and dedication. We will learn from this and keep working for the interests of the people of India,” Rahul Gandhi tweeted.
Humbly accept the people's verdict. Best wishes to those who have won the mandate.
My gratitude to all Congress workers and volunteers for their hard work and dedication.
We will learn from this and keep working for the interests of the people of India.
The election results came as another jolt to Congress which could not retain Punjab or come to power in Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur where it was the main rival of the BJP.
BJP is currently on 268 seats in the 403-member Uttar Pradesh assembly. Samajwadi Party is leading on 130 seats, BSP on one seat and Congress on two.
In Punjab, Aam Aadmi Party is on course to three-fourths majority having won 92 seats in 117 member assembly. Congress has won 18, SAD has won 4 seats and BJP has won 2 seats.
In the 70-member Uttarakhand assembly, where exit polls had predicted a tight race, BJP has won 48 seats, Congress has 18 seats where as BSP has won 2 seats. No party has retained power in Uttarakhand since the creation of the hill state.
In Goa, where predictions were for a hung assembly, BJP has 20 seats, Congress has won 12 seats and Aam Aadmi Party has won two seats.
In Manipur, BJP has won 32 seats, Congress has won 4 seats, JD-U won 6 seats, National People’s Party won 8 seats.
Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India]): As Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) is poised to return to power with a comfortable majority for an unprecedented second term in Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday said that this victory shows that people have once again voted for nationalism and good governance.
He further said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP will be forming governments in Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Manipur, and Uttarakhand. “Everyone had their eyes on UP, given the vastness of the state. I am thankful to the people for making us win with the majority. Under PM Modi’s leadership we will be forming governments in UP, Goa, Manipur, and Uttarakhand,” said Yogi after winning Uttar Pradesh.
The Chief Minister said that the seven-phase election in the state were conducted peacefully. “It sets a great precedent,” he added.
“Amid the fervour, we have to stay focused…When we were fighting COVID, they (Opposition) were conspiring against us. By making us win people have once again voted for nationalism, good governance. It’s our responsibility to continue working on these issues,” he said.
He also showed a victory sign when he arrived at the BJP office in Lucknow as he was received by a huge crowd of party workers.
New Delhi [India]: With current trends of the Assembly election results showing that the Congress is faring badly in five states – Manipur, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Goa and Punjab, party leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said that he accepts the people’s verdict and will take lessons from it.
“Humbly accept the people’s verdict. Best wishes to those who have won the mandate. My gratitude to all Congress workers and volunteers for their hard work and dedication. We will learn from this and keep working for the interests of the people of India,” Gandhi tweeted. Of the five states that went into Assembly polls, Congress was the incumbent government only in Punjab. Congress went into the polls, battling factionalism and anti-incumbency in the state.
The election results came as another jolt to Congress which could not retain Punjab or come to power in Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur where it was the main rival of the BJP.
According to election trends at 3 pm, BJP has won three seats and is leading on 243 seats in the 403-member Uttar Pradesh assembly. Samajwadi Party is leading on 120 seats, BSP on one seat and Congress on two. The Apna Dal (Soneylal), an ally of BJP, is leading on 11 seats and its other ally NISHAD party on seven seats.
Samajwadi Party’s ally RLD is leading on 10 seats and Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party on 4 seats.
In Punjab, Aam Aadmi Party is on course to three-fourths majority having won 37 seats and is leading on 54 seats in 117 member assembly. Congress has won four seats and is leading on 15, SAD has won one seat and is leading on two seats, BJP has won one seat and is leading on one more and BSP is leading on one seat.
In the 70-member Uttarakhand assembly, where exit polls had predicted a tight race, BJP is leading on 48 seats, Congress has one seat and is leading on 17, BSP is leading on two seats and independents on two seats. No party has retained power in Uttarakhand since the creation of the hill state.
In Goa, where predictions were for a hung assembly, BJP has won eight seats and is leading on 12 seats, Congress has won four seats and is leading on seven, Goa Forward Party is leading on one seat and Aam Aadmi Party has won one seat and is leading on one seat. Independents have won two seats and are leading on one.
Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party is leading on two seats and Revolutionary Goans is leading on one seat in the 40-member state assembly.
In Manipur, where trends are available for 46 of 60 seats, BJP has won 10 seats and is leading on 12 seats, Congress has won two seats and is leading on one seat, JD-U won three seats and is leading on three, National People’s Party won two seats and is leading on four, Kuki People’s Alliance is leading on one seat and Naga Peoples Front is leading on five seats. Independents won two seats and are leading on one seat.
Senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister Harish Rawat is trailing by over 10,000 votes from the Lalkuwa Assembly seat in early trends of Uttarakhand state elections.
His daughter Anupama Rawat, however, is leading from the Haridwar Rural Assembly seat. Rawat led the Congress campaign in the state being head of the campaign committee of the party.
Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) comfortably crossed the majority mark in early trends and now leads on 43 seats in Uttarakhand Assembly elections, as per the Election Commission Data at 12 PM.
The counting of votes for the recently held elections for the 70-member Uttarakhand Assembly commenced at 8 am on Thursday.
The counting started at 8 am and all the results would be declared later in the day. The exit polls on Monday predicted a close race in Uttarakhand, with many of them giving an edge to the BJP to form the government.
Some exit polls have also predicted that Congress would finish ahead and cross the halfway mark in the 70-member Assembly.
Polling in Uttarakhand took place on February 14 and the counting of votes has begun today.
Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh): Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Yogi Adityanath won Gorakhpur Urban seat with a massive margin of 54,858 votes.
His victory comes as the BJP is on course to retain power in Uttar Pradesh. The counting of the votes polled in assembly elections is underway. According to the Election Commission of India, Adityanath, who is contesting the Assembly elections for the first time, received 85,356 while his nearest rival SP candidate Subhawati Upendra Dutt Shukla got 30,498 votes.
Azad Samaj Party chief Chandra Shekhar Azad garnered only 4,501 votes. Adityanath represented the Gorakhpur Lok Sabha seat until 2017 when he was chosen as the UP Chief Minister after the Bharatiya Janata Party’s landslide victory in the state polls. The Gorakhpur Sadar seat had also been a bastion of the BJP, which the party had never lost since 1967 since the days of the Jan Sangh.
Meanwhile, according to the latest trends of the Election Commission of India as the counting of the votes is underway, the BJP has 13 seats and is leading in 237 constituencies. The Samajwadi Party is leading on 116 seats and Congress leading only in two constituencies.
Chandigarh [India]: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate Jeevan Jyot Kaur defeated Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu and senior Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia on the Amritsar East Assembly seat in Punjab.
Amritsar (East) was witnessing a key battle where Sidhu, who was the sitting MLA from the seat, took on former state minister Majithia, who is the brother-in-law of SAD President Sukhbir Singh Badal. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on the other hand fielded a female candidate Jeevan Jyot Kaur from the seat. Kaur won the Assembly constituency Amritsar East constituency by bagging total votes of 39,679. Trailing second behind the AAP candidate was Congress’ Sidhu with 32,929 votes. Majithia finished at the third spot with 25,188 votes.
Punjab witnessed a multi-cornered contest this time with Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Shiromani Akali Dal-Bahujan Samaj Party alliance, and the coalition of Bharatiya Janata Party-former chief minister Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress party as key players.
According to the Election Commission of India, AAP has won 54 seats and is leading on 38 others at 3:57 PM in the 117 seat Punjab assembly.
As AAP is set to win Punjab, it will be the party’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress.
Congress went into the polls, battling factionalism and anti-incumbency. The party changed its Chief Minister in September last year even as the party’s new state unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu hinted about his own chief ministerial ambitions. Congress finally declared Charanjit Singh Channi as the first Dalit Chief Minister of Punjab, endorsing him for the chief ministerial face days before the polling on February 20.
The Shiromani Akali Dal, which had broken off the alliance with the BJP over the three farm laws that were eventually repealed, tied up with Bahujan Samaj Party for the Assembly elections.
It is the first time that the BJP fought on over 65 seats in Punjab. It tied up with former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt) led by SS Dhindsa.
Punjab recorded an average voter turnout of 65.50 per cent on February 20 compared to over 77 per cent in 2017.
Manchester City drew a rare home blank against Sporting CP but had already done more than enough to reach the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday.
The Premier League champions advanced to a fifth straight UEFA Champions League quarter-final after a 0-0 draw with Sporting CP confirmed a 5-0 aggregate triumph. With one foot already in the last eight, City lacked their customary fluency for much of the first half and it was not until Phil Foden’s cute pass played in Raheem Sterling that Antonio Adan was required in earnest.
Gabriel Jesus looked to have broken the deadlock soon after half-time but his effort was ruled out for offside.
Sporting had half-chances of their own before Paulinho snuck through for perhaps the best of the game – he was thwarted, however, by substitute keeper Scott Carson, who had come off the bench for only his second-ever Champions League appearance. Sporting’s late replacement, 16-year-old Rodrigo Ribeiro, was not yet born when Carson made his own competition debut in April 2005.
Karim Benzema hit a hat-trick in the space of 18 second-half minutes as Real Madrid came from 2-0 down on aggregate to stun Paris Saint-Germain and seal a place in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday.
Kylian Mbappe’s jet-heels were propelling Paris on a direct course to the last eight for the first hour in Madrid. The 23-year-old doubled the French side’s advantage with his second of the tie and was looking unplayable, with two more efforts chalked off for offside. Another goal appeared only a matter of time and it duly came – at the other end. Gianluigi Donnarumma dallied fatally and the opportunistic Benzema blocked, the ball spinning for Vinicius Junior, who duly returned it to his senior partner for a simple finish.
Fifteen minutes later, thanks to the abolition of away goals rule, the tie was level as Benzema collected Luka Modric’s pass and fired in. If Paris had been rocking before they were all at sea now and Benzema completed the turnaround straight from the kick-off after another Vinicius Junior assist.
India’s veteran pacer Jhulan Goswami on Thursday equalled the tally of most wickets in the ICC Women’s World Cup.
Goswami equalled the tally of 39 wickets taken by Lyn Fullston of Australia from 1982 to 1988. The 39-year-old achieved this feat against New Zealand in the ongoing ICC Women’s ODI World Cup 2022 at Hamilton. On Thursday, Goswami took the record-tying wicket in the last over of the innings against the White Ferns. Goswami knocked Katey Martin over. With the wicket, Goswami became the joint-highest wicket-taker in Women’s World Cup history, joining Lynette Ann Fullston at the top with 39 scalps. In India’s opening match, she bowled a brilliant spell, returning 2/26, in India’s win over Pakistan.
In an illustrious career spanning two decades, Goswami has now 39 wickets to her name across five Women’s Cricket World Cups since 2005.
Talking about the match, Pooja Vastrakar scalped four wickets as India restricted New Zealand to 260/9 in the ongoing ICC Women’s 50-over World Cup here at Seddon Park.
Amy Satterthwaite and Amelia Kerr played brilliant innings of 75 and 50 respectively. For Women in Blue, Pooja Vastrakar scalped four wickets and was involved in a crucial ran out, while Rajeshwari Gayakwad dismissed two players.
New Delhi [India]: Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal along with Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain offered prayers at Hanuman Temple in Delhi as the AAP is heading towards a landslide victory Punjab assembly elections.
As per the Election Commission, Aam Aadmi Party is leading in 92 seats on the 117 seat Punjab Assembly by 2:45 pm, followed by Congress (17) and Shiromani Akali Dal (6). It is AAP’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress.
Congress went into the polls, battling factionalism and anti-incumbency. The party changed its Chief Minister in September last year even as the party’s new state unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu hinted about his own chief ministerial ambitions. Congress finally declared Charanjit Singh Channi as the first Dalit Chief Minister of Punjab, endorsing him for the chief ministerial face days before the polling on February 20.
The Shiromani Akali Dal, which had broken off the alliance with the BJP over the three farm laws that were eventually repealed, tied up with Bahujan Samaj Party for the Assembly elections.
It is the first time that the BJP fought on over 65 seats in Punjab. It tied up with former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt) led by SS Dhindsa.
Punjab recorded an average voter turnout of 65.50 per cent on February 20 compared to over 77 per cent in 2017.
Imphal (Manipur): Bharatiya Janata Party is inching towards the majority mark with the incumbent party leading on 20 Assembly seats, the Election Commission data showed on Thursday afternoon.
As per the ECI data at 2 pm, the BJP is leading on 20 seats and trailing on one seat. Congress is leading on three seats, Janata Dal (United) is leading on two seats and trailing on three seats. Further, parties namely Naga Peoples Front and National People’s Party are leading on five seats each.
Chief Minister N Biren Singh is leading in Heingang assembly seat by 18,271 votes. The BJP candidate Usham Deben Singh defeated Congress rival Md Fajur Rahman by a slender margin of 50 votes in the Wabgai constituency.
The JD(U) is leading on three seats.
Notably, JD(U) won a seat in Manipur after 22 years with candidate Ngursanglur Sanate by defeating BJP’s Chalton Lien Amo in Tipaimukh seat.
The BJP’s Thokchom Satyabrata has won from the Yaiskul seat.
The election results for 60 Assembly seats in Manipur will be declared today. Exit polls had predicted BJP to have an edge over rivals in Manipur.
As counting is underway, proper security measures have been taken including the imposition of Section 144 CrPC around the counting centres to ensure that peace and tranquillity are not disturbed and counting of votes is conducted smoothly, the Chief Electoral Officer, Manipur informed.
In 2017, the BJP had formed the government in Manipur with the support of the National People’s Party (NPP), Naga People’s Front (NPF) and the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) but this time, it decided to go solo and is contesting on all the 60 seats.
On the other hand, Congress had formed an alliance of six political parties and named it Manipur Progressive Secular Alliance (MPSA). The coalition partners in MPSA include Congress, Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India (Marxist), Forward Bloc, Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) and Janata Dal (Secular).
Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh): The BJP’s comprehensive win in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections finally broke a 36-year-old jinx of the incumbent government being voted back to power in the state.
The incumbent UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath led the BJP to poll victory, riding a high-decibel election campaign, with thrust on the development agenda along with welfare schemes. Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the BJP’s campaign from the outset, first by fully backing the Chief Minister and afterwards by leading an intense campaign in the state.
According to the latest data of the Election Commission of India on the trends of the counting of the votes, the BJP has crossed the majority mark of 202 Assembly seats in the state while leading in more than 245 constituencies, whereas the Samajwadi Party is leading on 122 seats and Congress leading only in one constituency.
Moreover, the exit poll results had also predicted that the monk turned politician, Yogi Adityanath is on course to retain power in Uttar Pradesh for the second time.
In Uttar Pradesh, the Indian National Congress had a stronghold in the 1980s as the party retained its power from 1980-88. However, the state witnessed political instability after 1988 with multiple political parties, including Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, and the BJP ruling the state in the 1990s.
However, BJP in 2000 again came to power by forming an alliance with the BSP and senior party Rajnath Singh was sworn in as the Chief Minister. In a major setback, the BJP could not even hold its government for a year as the BSP took back its support and broke the alliance.
Since then, the BJP could not come to power, and the state was ruled by the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party separately till 2017. The BJP had swept 2017 polls in Uttar Pradesh, winning more than 300 seats and senior party leader Yogi Adityanath was sworn in as the Chief Minister.
The electorally-crucial state witnessed a multi-cornered contest with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Samajwadi Party (SP), Congress, and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) vying for the popular mandate and creating history this time.
In Uttar Pradesh, the political parties held intensive electoral campaigns, but BJP and SP garnered most of the eyeballs. Congress also hit the ground hard, with the party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s vivacious campaigns. However, BSP seemed to lag a little behind its rivals.
The BJP fielded its top leadership, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, in the campaigning to bolster the party’s support base. During the campaigns, Adityanath, who is in the electoral fray from Gorakhpur Urban constituency, got a new name “Baba Bulldozer”.
“Bulldozer” is a reference to the action taken by the Yogi government to vacate illegally occupied land and properties using the Bulldozer machine.
Moreover, PM Modi himself was deeply involved in the BJP campaigning for the UP polls and ensured that there was no factionalism in the party. The Prime Minister heaped praises on the UP CM Yogi Adityanath for the development works done in the state and coined a new slogan on “UP plus Yogi bahut hai upyogi (UP plus Yogi is very useful)”.
PM Modi held rallies in Prayagraj, Kaushambi, Bahraich, Amethi, and a massive roadshow in Varanasi which attracted a huge crowd.
On the other hand, Samajwadi Party also held numerous campaigns to challenge the Yogi Adityanath led government whereas Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi also ran a campaign “Ladki hoon, Ladd Sakti hoon” and gave 40 percent seats to women. Assembly elections were held in Uttar Pradesh from February 10 to March 7 in seven phases to elect all 403 members of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly.
Bhagwant Mann will take oath as Punjab’s Chief Minister at the birthplace of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh.
Mann, whom the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) fielded as their Chief Ministerial candidate, said that his swearing-in ceremony will be held not at Raj Bhavan but at Khatkar Kalan where the revolutionary freedom fighter was born in 1907. “I will take CM’s oath from Khatkar Kalan, the birthplace of Shaheed Bhagat Singh,” said Mann while addressing party workers from the terrace of his Sangrur residence, as his mother emotionally hugged her soon-to-be Chief Minister son.
The AAP is set to sweep the Punjab state, with initial trends in the day showing surge of the Arvind Kejriwal-led party.
Mann, who won from the Sangrur district’s Dhuri constituency, also announced that the AAP government in Punjab will not hang his photos on the walls of their offices. “We will take a decision that the photos of Bhagat Singh and BR Ambedkar will be installed in Government offices instead of mine,” said Mann.
The stand-up comedian turned politician added that governance will be done from the villages of Punjab and not from the palatial houses of politicians.
“We have to run Punjab together, earlier Punjab used to be run from the big houses of leaders but not will be run from wards, villages and cities of Punjab,” said Mann. Taking a dig at opposition leaders, the AAP leader said that they “made a personal attack on me and Arvind Kejriwal. Forgive them for that but from now onwards they will have to respect 2.75 crore public of Punjab.”
According to the Election Commission of India, the AAP has won 20 seats with leading on 71 others at 2:40 PM on the 117 seat Punjab assembly.
As AAP wins Punjab, it will be the party’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress.
The Congress went into the polls, battling factionalism and anti-incumbency. The party changed its Chief Minister in September last year even as the party’s new state unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu hinted about his own Chief Ministerial ambitions. Congress finally declared Charanjit Singh Channi as the first Dalit Chief Minister of Punjab, endorsing him for the Chief Ministerial face days before the polling on February 20.
The Shiromani Akali Dal, which had broken off the alliance with the BJP over the three farm laws that were eventually repealed, tied up with Bahujan Samaj Party for the Assembly elections.
It is the first time that the BJP fought on over 65 seats in Punjab. It tied up with former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt) led by SS Dhindsa.
Punjab recorded an average voter turnout of 65.50 per cent on February 20 compared to over 77 per cent in 2017.
Sangrur (Punjab): Bhagwant Mann will take oath as Punjab’s Chief Minister at the birthplace of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh.
Mann, whom the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) fielded as their Chief Ministerial candidate, said that his swearing-in ceremony will be held not at Raj Bhavan but at Khatkar Kalan where the revolutionary freedom fighter was born in 1907. “I will take CM’s oath from Khatkar Kalan, the birthplace of Shaheed Bhagat Singh,” said Mann while addressing party workers from the terrace of his Sangrur residence, as his mother emotionally hugged her soon-to-be Chief Minister son.
The AAP is set to sweep the Punjab state, with initial trends in the day showing surge of the Arvind Kejriwal-led party.
Mann, who won from the Sangrur district’s Dhuri constituency, also announced that the AAP government in Punjab will not hang his photos on the walls of their offices. “We will take a decision that the photos of Bhagat Singh and BR Ambedkar will be installed in Government offices instead of mine,” said Mann.
The stand-up comedian turned politician added that governance will be done from the villages of Punjab and not from the palatial houses of politicians.
“We have to run Punjab together, earlier Punjab used to be run from the big houses of leaders but not will be run from wards, villages and cities of Punjab,” said Mann. Taking a dig at opposition leaders, the AAP leader said that they “made a personal attack on me and Arvind Kejriwal. Forgive them for that but from now onwards they will have to respect 2.75 crore public of Punjab.”
According to the Election Commission of India, the AAP has won 20 seats with leading on 71 others at 2:40 PM on the 117 seat Punjab assembly.
As AAP wins Punjab, it will be the party’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress.
The Congress went into the polls, battling factionalism and anti-incumbency. The party changed its Chief Minister in September last year even as the party’s new state unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu hinted about his own Chief Ministerial ambitions. Congress finally declared Charanjit Singh Channi as the first Dalit Chief Minister of Punjab, endorsing him for the Chief Ministerial face days before the polling on February 20.
The Shiromani Akali Dal, which had broken off the alliance with the BJP over the three farm laws that were eventually repealed, tied up with Bahujan Samaj Party for the Assembly elections.
It is the first time that the BJP fought on over 65 seats in Punjab. It tied up with former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt) led by SS Dhindsa.
Punjab recorded an average voter turnout of 65.50 per cent on February 20 compared to over 77 per cent in 2017.
Chandigarh (Punjab) : Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu on Thursday congratulated the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for sweeping Punjab Assembly polls and said that the voice of people (mandate) is the voice of God.
“The voice of the people is the voice of God. Humbly accept the mandate of the people of Punjab. Congratulations to Aap !!!,” tweeted Sidhu. Meanwhile, Congress Punjab Incharge Harish Chaudhary took responsibility for the Party’s performance in Punjab polls.
“I take the responsibility for party’s descent in these elections. However, mine or any other’s resignation is party’s internal matter,” said Chaudhary.
As per the Election Commission, Aam Aadmi Party is leading in 89 seats on the 117 seat Punjab Assembly by 2 pm, followed by Congress (20) and Shiromani Akali Dal (5).
Sidhu himself is trailing from the Amritsar East seat.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate Jeevan Jyot Kaur is leading with 25,536 votes followed by Congress’s Navjot Singh Sidhu on 20,334 votes and Shiromani Akali Dal’s candidate Bikram Singh Majithia with 16,154 votes.
Shiromani Akali Dal’s Sukhbir Singh Badal is also trailing by a margin of 11,165 votes from Aam Aadmi Party’s Jagdeep Kamboj.
SAD’s chief Prakash Singh Badal is also trailing from Lambi seat by a margin of 9,474 votes from Aam Aadmi Party’s Gurmeet Singh Khudian.
From Patiala constituency, Aam Aadmi Party candidate Ajit Pal Singh Kohli is leading with 39,852 votes, followed by Punjab Lok Congress Party’s Amarinder Singh with 25,169 votes.
Incumbent Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi is also trailing from both the seats he contested– from Bhadaur seat by a margin of 22,843 votes from AAP’s Labh Singh Ugoke and by 2,671 votes from Chamkaur Sahib.
As AAP wins Punjab, it will be the party’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress.
Congress went into the polls, battling factionalism and anti-incumbency. The party changed its Chief Minister in September last year even as the party’s new state unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu hinted about his own Chief Ministerial ambitions. Congress finally declared Charanjit Singh Channi as the first Dalit Chief Minister of Punjab, endorsing him for the Chief Ministerial face days before the polling on February 20.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), which had broken off the alliance with the BJP over the three farm laws that were eventually repealed, tied up with Bahujan Samaj Party for the Assembly elections.
It is the first time that the BJP fought on over 65 seats in Punjab. It tied up with former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt) led by SS Dhindsa.
Punjab recorded an average voter turnout of 65.50 per cent on February 20 compared to over 77 per cent in 2017.
Mathura (Uttar Pradesh) : After Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) crossed the majority mark of 202 Assembly constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, BJP MP from Mathura, Hema Malini, on Thursday said that “nothing can come in front of a bulldozer”.
“Bulldozer” is a reference to the action taken by the Yogi government to vacate illegally occupied land and properties using the machine Bulldozer. The actor-turned-politician said that the BJP workers worked for the development of every sector in Uttar Pradesh.
“We already knew our government will form; we have worked for every developmental aspect, which is why the public trust us… nothing can come in front of a bulldozer, as it can finish everything within a minute, be it cycle or anything else,” said Malini. According to official trends, BJP is leading in 258 constituencies and Samajwadi Party is ahead in 112 assembly seats.
Following these trends, celebrations kicked off at the BJP office in Lucknow as State Assembly polls counting indicated that BJP is set to retain power in Uttar Pradesh with the party crossing the majority mark of 202 seats.
BJP workers were seen holding party flags playing Holi at the party office in Lucknow. They were raising slogans “UP mein ka ba? UP mein Baba”.
The counting of votes began at 8 am and will continue till the final results.
Chandigarh (Punjab) [India]: Aam Aadmi Party national convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday congratulated the people of Punjab for party’s stellar performance in the state assembly polls, calling the mandate “revolutionary”.
“Iss Inquilab ke liye Punjab ke logon ko bahut bahut badhai (congratulations to the people of Punjab for this revolution),” tweeted Kejriwal with a photo of him and the AAP Chief Ministerial candidate Bhagwant Mann, showing the victory sign. As per the Election Commission, Aam Aadmi Party is leading in 91 seats out of the 117 seats in the Punjab Assembly at 2 PM, followed by Congress (17) and Shiromani Akali Dal (7).
If AAP wins Punjab, it will be the party’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress.
Congress went into the polls, battling factionalism and anti-incumbency. The party changed its Chief Minister in September last year even as the party’s new state unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu hinted about his own chief ministerial ambitions. Congress finally declared Charanjit Singh Channi as the first Dalit Chief Minister of Punjab, endorsing him for the chief ministerial face days before the polling on February 20.
The Shiromani Akali Dal, which had broken off the alliance with the BJP over the three farm laws that were eventually repealed, tied up with Bahujan Samaj Party for the Assembly elections.
It is the first time that the BJP fought on over 65 seats in Punjab. It tied up with former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt) led by SS Dhindsa.
Punjab recorded an average voter turnout of 65.50 per cent on February 20 compared to over 77 per cent in 2017.
Lhasa [Tibet]: As China completes 70 years of its rule in Tibet, a former member of the Tibetan parliament in exile has asked what has Beijing got to show after seven decades of occupation of the region.
In an editorial published in Taipei Times, Khedroob Thondup said, “Today China is celebrating 70 years of the “peaceful liberation” of Tibet. Over 100,000 Tibetans died defending their country. One million Tibetans perished in the past seventy years.”
Thondup recalled that China invaded Tibet in 1950 under the pretext of peaceful liberation. The Tibetan people were completely taken by surprise, and we were not prepared to defend ourselves, he added.
Even after 70 years of Chinese rule, Thondup said Tibetans in Tibet hate the Chinese. Likewise, he said Tibetan cadres are not trusted by the Chinese and are treated as second-class citizens.
“No religious freedom, absolutely no freedom of speech or movement. No Tibetan in the past 10 years has been able to get a Chinese passport. No Tibetan can travel to China without being questioned,” he added.
Reiterating calls for the liberation of Tibet, the former member of the Tibetan parliament in exile said Tibetans deserve the right to choose their own destiny. “Tibet is now being flooded with Han Chinese settlers making Tibetans a minority in the big cities such as Lhasa and Shigatse.”
He further asked what China has accomplished is the systematic degradation of Tibetan culture to the point where the Tibetan people are completely subservient to China. Commenting on Chinese President Xi Jinping’s recent visit to Tibet, Thondup said there was no mention of the 17 Point Agreement during Xi’s visit to the region. “However, his visit itself during this tense situation and his high-profile meetings with the military in Tibet certainly showed China’s commitment to the defence of their strategic interest in Tibet,” he added.
Asserting that Beijing has lost the race to control the minds of the Tibetan people, the former member of the Tibetan parliament in exile said the spirit of Dalai Lama lies in the minds of the Tibetan people.
“No Tibetan can be coerced to change their strong traditional religious beliefs. Beijing is trying to raise the image of their appointed Panchen Lama in front of the Tibetan people, thinking that one day he will be able to replace the Dalai Lama,” he added.
Islamabad [Pakistan]: Pakistan’s financial condition is in a precarious situation under the inefficient leadership of its Prime Minister Imran Khan.
As reported on February 28, the country’s former finance minister and well-known economist Dr Hafeez A Pasha disclosed that the current account deficit was heading towards a historic record by touching the USD 20 billion-mark or 6 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the current fiscal year. He said the international prices of various commodities were witnessing skyrocketing trends and now the Current Account Deficit (CAD) would witness more pressure with the possibility of touching a historic high.
“For God’s sake, the political parties must shun their differences because the country is heading towards a serious financial crisis,” he appealed.
Amidst such horrific statistics, Imran Khan is announcing one economic package after another. On March 2, he launched an interest-free loan programme worth PKR 407 billion under the “Kamyab Pakistan Programme”, which he claimed that it would contribute to making the country’s low-income groups self-reliant.
Addressing the programme’s launching ceremony at Faisal Mosque in Islamabad, the premier said 4.5 million families would benefit from interest-free loans under this initiative to set up. The prime minister stressed the need for transforming Pakistan into a welfare state, along the lines of the state of Madinah, saying that the country was envisioned as a socio-welfare state.
Three days back, on February 28, he announced the slashing of the price of petroleum products by PKR 10 per litre and electricity tariff by PKR 5 per unit as part of a series of measures to bring some relief to the public.
No increase in petrol and electricity prices until the next budget; tax exemption for companies and freelancers in IT sector; foreign exchange exemption; exemption from capital gain tax for IT startups and Ehsaas stipend increased to PKR14,000 from PKR12,000.
However, in reality, while the cut in petrol and energy prices were immediately implemented, the other measures announced by Imran Khan might take more time or might not even see the light of day until the adoption of next budget.
The process of designing and executing these reforms, other than Ehsaas transfers, may take another two to three months, when it is time for the next budget. The proclamation, though, will be enough to create some goodwill on its face value and buy the government some time.
Incidentally, Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are also scheduled to hold review talks this week whereby both sides will discuss the merits of relief package announced by Imran Khan for reducing the Pakistan Oilfields Limited (POL) and electricity prices amidst a challenging external environment.
If indeed the government will push on for the execution of all the measures announced by Imran Khan, it would not only be defaulting on its commitments to the IMF, specifically in relation to fiscal reforms and pricing in the energy sector, but also jeopardising the seventh review by the Fund.
Not only will this hurt the government’s credibility, any form of derailment from the IMF programme will have an adverse effect on the exchange rate as well as the foreign exchange reserves, further elevating the inflationary pressure. This in turn can have wide ranging medium to long term consequences for the economy.
Earlier on November 24, shamefully, official figures revealed that Pakistan’s total debt and liabilities have crossed PKR 50.5 trillion, an addition of PKR 20.7 trillion under the current government alone.
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) released the debt figures till September 2021, a day after Prime Minister Imran Khan described the increasing debt as a “national security issue”. As expected, figures showed that the total debt and public debt situation deteriorated during the tenure of current Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.
Pakistan’s total debt and liabilities jumped to the record PKR 50.5 trillion at the end of September 2021, an addition to PKR 20.7 trillion in the past 39 months. There was an increase of nearly 70% in total debt of the country.
The so-called benefits announced will be celebrated briefly as “relief” but will further deteriorate Pakistan’s financial health, because they will create a burden that its decrepit tax machinery cannot shoulder through practical revenue collection elsewhere.
For an efficient economic system, it is essential that prices be connected directly to costs. When primary costs rise, as they do when international commodity prices increase, the government cannot insulate the population from higher domestic prices without creating a higher debt burden for future generations. Insufficient tax collection from broad paths of the economy and a lack of productivity in comparison to other countries are at the core of ailments of Pakistan’s economy, under Imran Khan’s government.
There is no doubt that the Prime Minister is living in his self-created bubble, miles away from reality and actual ground situation of the country. But, at the same time, it has to be kept in mind that, Pakistan will go into general elections in less than 1.5 years. As a politician, he has already started to ‘project’ the efficiency of his party in comparison to others.
On March 1, he said that the previous governments have failed to uplift the economy of the country because they did not pay attention on the small and medium scale industries whereas his government has made policies especially for these industries.
There is no doubt that Khan has been at the receiving end of people’s rage and outburst due to skyrocketing inflation, somewhat because of external reasons like exorbitant fuel and commodities prices, and he is trying to make a fool out of common Pakistani citizen by showing them these economic ‘goodies’ with no stable, secured and self-sustaining future.
New Delhi [India]: India reported 4,184 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare informed on Thursday.
On Wednesday, India had reported 4,575 new COVID-19 cases. With a single-day rise of 4,184 infections and 104 fatalities, India’s COVID-19 tally of cases has been pushed to 4,29,80,067 and the death toll to 5,15,459, the government data said.
The country’s active caseload currently stands at 44,488 and accounts for 0.10 per cent of the total cases.
The recovery rate of those infected with the virus is currently at 98.70. 6,554 recoveries were reported in the last 24 hours. The total recoveries have reached 4,24,20,120.
As many as 8,73,974 tests have been conducted in the last 24 hours, thereby taking the total COVID-19 tests in the country to 77.60 crore approximately. Of the daily tests conducted, a daily positivity rate of 0.48 per cent was observed.
Under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive, 179.53 cr vaccine doses have been administered so far, the ministry said.
Chandigarh (Punjab): Aam Aadmi Party’s in charge of Punjab, Raghav Chadha on Thursday said Punjab will now no longer be known as ‘Udta Punjab’ (a reference to the drug menace) but as ‘Uthta Punjab’ (Awaking of Punjab residents) as early trends from the counting of votes by the Election Commission indicated a sweep for AAP in the state.
“Punjab will not be known as ‘Udta Punjab’ from now onwards, but ‘Uthta Punjab’,” said Chadha addressing party workers in Chandigarh. Making a reference to Arvind Kejriwal’s performance in New Delhi in the field of education, Chaddha said “Other parties tried to defame us, called Arvind Kejriwal a terrorist, people proved he in not ‘atankwadi’ but a ‘shiksha-wadi’.
“Punjab has proven that it likes the Arvind Kejriwal-Bhagwant Mann pair and no other party’s pair,” he added.
Crediting the party workers for the performance of the party in the recently held Assembly polls in the state, the AAP leader said, “All the credit goes to AAP workers, they didn’t see day or night, summer or winter and continued working for the party. AAP will work for everybody progressively.”
According to Election Commission, AAP is leading on 90 seats in the 117 seat Punjab Assembly at 12:15 PM. This was followed by Congress (18) and Shiromani Akali Dal (6).
If AAP wins Punjab, it will be the party’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress.
Congress went into the polls having battled factionalism and anti-incumbency. The party changed its chief minister in September last year even as new Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu hinted about his own chief ministerial ambitions. The Congress finally declared Charanjit Singh Channi, the first Dalit Chief Minister of Punjab, as its chief ministerial candidate days before the polling on February 20.
The Shiromani Akali Dal, which had broken off its alliance with BJP over three farm laws that were eventually repealed, tied up with Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) for the assembly elections.
It is the first time that BJP has fought over 65 seats in Punjab. It tied up with former chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt) led by SS Dhindsa. BJP leaders have talked of putting up a strong performance in the polls.
Punjab recorded an average voter turnout of 65.50 per cent on February 20 compared to over 77 per cent in 2017.
Bharatiya Janata Party is inching closer to attaining halfway mark in Goa with the party maintaining leads on 19 Assembly seats, according to the Election Commission of India data on the poll trends.
Congress is leading on 11 seats followed by Maharashtrawadi Gomantak with three seats and independent candidates taking lead on three seats. Aam Aadmi Party is also leading on two seats.
According to sources the BJP leaders will call on Governor today itself to stake claim for the government formation.
Chief Minister and BJP Candidate Pramod Sawant is leading with a margin of 350 votes from the Sanquelim Assembly seat, according to the data of the ECI.
The BJP candidate Atanasio ‘Babush’ Monserrate secured the prestigious Panaji seat by defeating former Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s son and independent candidate Utpal Parrikar by a margin of 700 votes.
Speaking to reporters today, Utpal Parrikar said, “As an Independent candidate it was a good fight, I thank the people. I am satisfied with the fight but the result is a little disappointing.” Goa Forward Party president Vijai Sardesai has won from the Fatorda constituency by 1,300 votes.
Amid predictions of a hung Assembly by the pollsters, leaders of the BJP and Congress in Goa would be keeping a close watch on the popular verdict to assess their chances of forming government in the state.
Congress, which is also hopeful of forming the government, has asked its candidates to stay at a resort to prevent any attempt at “poaching”. The party’s leaders in Goa are learnt to be in touch with state leaders of Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) “to prevent the BJP from returning to power” in the state.
The BJP fought the elections on all 40 seats in the state while the Goa Forward Party (GFP) entered into a pre-poll alliance with Congress. The TMC allied with the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party for the polls.
Panaji (Goa): Utpal Parrikar, son of late Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, thanked Goans who voted for him and expressed slight disappointment after knowing that he was trailing in terms of the vote share from his seat.
As of now, he is trailing by 713 votes in Panaji, the Election Commission of India informed. Speaking to reporters today, Utpal Parrikar said, “As an Independent candidate, it was a good fight, I thank the people. Satisfied with the fight but the result is little disappointing.”
Bharatiya Janata Party in Goa is inching closer to the halfway mark as early trends of the counting of votes showed the party leading on 18 Assembly seats.
The Election Commission of India’s data at 10.30 am showed the BJP leading on 18 Assembly seats out of the total 40 seats in the state.
While the BJP is leading on 18 seats, Congress was ahead on 12 constituencies. The incumbent Chief Minister Pramod Sawant is leading by over 300 votes so far in Sanquelim Assembly seat, official data by 10:30 am said. The majority mark in the state is 21 Assembly seats.
Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party is leading on five seats, ECI data showed while Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is also leading on one seat as well.
In terms of vote share, BJP is leading thereby standing at 33.74 per cent followed by Congress with a 23.77 per cent vote share. Goa Forward Party is leading on one seat. Deputy Chief Minister Chandrakant ‘Babu’ Kavlekar is trailing by 1,400 votes to Congress’ Altone d’ Costa from Quepem constituency.
Former CM and Congress legislative party leader Digambar Kamat, a six-time MLA from Margao, is leading against the BJP’s Manohar Azgaonkar. Congress’ ally, Goa Forward Party chief Vijai Sardesai is leading in his stronghold in the Fatorda constituency.
On the Panaji Assembly seat, BJP’s Atanasio ‘Babush’ Monserrate is leading against independent candidate Utpal Parrikar, son of former Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar. Congress candidate Michael Lobo, former BJP Minister, has secured a comfortable lead in his bastion Calangute constituency while BJP’s Rohan Khaunte is leading in the Porvorim seat.
Amid predictions of a hung Assembly by the pollsters, leaders of BJP and Congress in Goa would be keeping a close watch on the popular verdict to assess their chances of forming government in the state.
Congress, which is also hopeful of forming the government, has asked its candidates to stay at a resort to prevent any attempt at “poaching”. The party’s leaders in Goa are learnt to be in touch with state leaders of Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) “to prevent the BJP from returning to power” in the state.
The BJP fought the elections on all 40 seats in the state while the Goa Forward Party (GFP) entered into a pre-poll alliance with Congress. The TMC allied with the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party for the polls.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Yogi Adityanath is leading from Gorakhpur Urban Assembly constituency, according to the early trends of the Election Commission of India.
Adityanath is leading against the Samajwadi Party candidate Subhawati Upendra Dutt Shukla with a margin of over 8,000 votes. Meanwhile, the BJP has crossed the halfway mark with leads on 241 seats in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, as per official data. The counting of votes began at 8 am today and will continue till the final results. Adityanath represented the Gorakhpur Lok Sabha seat until 2017 when he was chosen as the UP Chief Minister after the Bharatiya Janata Party’s landslide victory in the state polls. The Gorakhpur Sadar seat had also been a bastion of the BJP, which the party had never lost since 1967 since the days of the Jan Sangh. The Samajwadi Party had fielded Subhavati Shukla, the widow of the late BJP leader Upendra Dutt Shukla against Adityanath. The Congress fielded Chetna Pandey and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) pitched a first-timer Khwaja Shamsuddin in the fray. Azad Samaj Party’s Chandra Shekhar Azad ‘Ravan’, a young Dalit leader with a base in western Uttar Pradesh is also in the fray for the seat. Gorakhpur is a city on the banks of River Rapti with a population of more than 6,73,446, the city is home to the popular Gorakhnath Math, a Gorakshanath temple.
Delhi Deputy Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodia on Thursday lauded the party’s performance in the Punjab Assembly polls, saying that the victory is an acceptance of the Arvind Kejriwal model of governance.
“Punjab has given chance to Kejriwal’s model of governance. Today, his model of governance has been established at the national level,” said Sisodia. Adding that the Kejriwal model includes focusing on education, healthcare, employment opportunities and women safety, Sisodia said, “Kejriwal is fulfilling the dream of freedom fighters, BR Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh. This is not a victory of the AAP but a win of the common men.”
On the party’s poor performance in other states, the AAP leader said, “we had fielded candidates in Goa, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, but somewhere the focus was on Punjab. Gradually people in these states will also start to believe in our party.” Earlier in the day the AAP leader Raghav Chadha had also said that the party is now a natural replacement of Congress.
“In future, Arvind Kejriwal will be the principal challenger of the BJP, and AAP will be Congress’ national and natural replacement,” said Chadha. Meanwhile, the AAP workers and supporters across the country began celebrating the party’s stellar performance in the Punjab polls. As per the Election Commission of India, Aam Aadmi Party is leading in 89 seats on the 117 seat Punjab Assembly at 11:35 AM, followed by Congress (15) and Shiromani Akali Dal (8).
If AAP wins Punjab, it will be the party’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress.
Congress went into the polls, battling factionalism and anti-incumbency. The party changed its Chief Minister in September last year even as the party’s new state unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu hinted about his own chief ministerial ambitions. Congress finally declared Charanjit Singh Channi as the first Dalit Chief Minister of Punjab, endorsing him for the chief ministerial face days before the polling on February 20. The Shiromani Akali Dal, which had broken off the alliance with the BJP over the three farm laws that were eventually repealed, tied up with Bahujan Samaj Party for the Assembly elections.
It is the first time that the BJP fought on over 65 seats in Punjab. It tied up with former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt) led by SS Dhindsa.
Punjab recorded an average voter turnout of 65.50 per cent on February 20 compared to over 77 per cent in 2017.
New Delhi [India]: Delhi Deputy Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodia on Thursday lauded the party’s performance in the Punjab Assembly polls, saying that the victory is an acceptance of the Arvind Kejriwal model of governance.
“Punjab has given chance to Kejriwal’s model of governance. Today, his model of governance has been established at the national level,” said Sisodia. Adding that the Kejriwal model includes focusing on education, healthcare, employment opportunities and women safety, Sisodia said, “Kejriwal is fulfilling the dream of freedom fighters, BR Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh. This is not a victory of the AAP but a win of the common men.”
On the party’s poor performance in other states, the AAP leader said, “we had fielded candidates in Goa, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, but somewhere the focus was on Punjab. Gradually people in these states will also start to believe in our party.”
Earlier in the day the AAP leader Raghav Chadha had also said that the party is now a natural replacement of Congress.
“In future, Arvind Kejriwal will be the principal challenger of the BJP, and AAP will be Congress’ national and natural replacement,” said Chadha.
Meanwhile, the AAP workers and supporters across the country began celebrating the party’s stellar performance in the Punjab polls.
As per the Election Commission of India, Aam Aadmi Party is leading in 89 seats on the 117 seat Punjab Assembly at 11:35 AM, followed by Congress (15) and Shiromani Akali Dal (8).
If AAP wins Punjab, it will be the party’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress.
Congress went into the polls, battling factionalism and anti-incumbency. The party changed its Chief Minister in September last year even as the party’s new state unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu hinted about his own chief ministerial ambitions. Congress finally declared Charanjit Singh Channi as the first Dalit Chief Minister of Punjab, endorsing him for the chief ministerial face days before the polling on February 20.
The Shiromani Akali Dal, which had broken off the alliance with the BJP over the three farm laws that were eventually repealed, tied up with Bahujan Samaj Party for the Assembly elections.
It is the first time that the BJP fought on over 65 seats in Punjab. It tied up with former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt) led by SS Dhindsa.
Punjab recorded an average voter turnout of 65.50 per cent on February 20 compared to over 77 per cent in 2017.
AAP ki sarkaar in Punjab. AAP is doing phenomenally well in Punjab. The AAP wave has swept-off almost all stalwarts in the state with Parkash Singh Badal, Capt. Amarinder Singh, Sukhbir Singh Badal, CM Channi & Navjot Singh Sidhu all trailing in their constituencies.
AAP candidate Bhagwant Mann is leading from Dhuri.
Congress candidate and Chief Minister Charanjit Channi is trailing from both BhadaurChamkaur Sahib constituencies.
Two times Chief Minister Capt. Amarinder Singh is trailing from Patiala constituency by 4,926 Votes.
5-times chief minister Parkash singh Badal is trailing from Lambi by a margin of 19,220 Votes.
SAD leader and former CM Sukhbir Singh Badal is trailing from Jalalabad by 16,504 Votes
The early trends from the counting of votes for Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections revealed that the Bharatiya Janata Party is leading on a total of 62 constituencies, followed by the Samajwadi Party on 28 seats. The BJP nominee from Rae Bareli Aditi Singh is leading in the early trends. According to the Election Commission of India data at 9.20 am, the BJP candidate Alka Singh is leading against Bahujan Samaj Party’s Abdul Mannan with a margin of 1,358 votes on the Sandila seat. The BJP’s Ramkesh Nishad is leading against the Samajwadi Party’s Brajesh Kumar Prajapati with a margin of 2,299 votes on the Tindwari seat. The BJP’s Anil Kumar is leading against the BSP’s candidate Mu Rafik from the Shikarpur seat with a margin of 2,597 votes, whereas the BJP candidate Pankaj Singh is ahead of the SP’s Sunil Choudhary with a margin of 3,074 votes from the Noida seat. Meanwhile, the BJP’s Om Kumar is leading with a margin of 1,232 votes from Rashtriya Lok Dal’s Munshiram on the Nehtaur constituency. On Lalitpur’s seat, the BJP’s Ramratan Kushwaha is ahead of the SP’s Ramesh Prasad with a margin of 2,100 votes. The BJP’s Jai Pratap Singh is leading against the SP’s Naveen from the Bansi seat with a margin of 723 votes, as per official data at 9.20 am. However, Samajwadi Party is also leading on four seats which includes Behat, Najibabad, Chandpur, and Pilibhit seat. In addition, the RLD and Apna Dal are leading on Chhaprauli and Nanpara constituencies respectively. Counting for 403 assembly seats began at 8 am on Thursday across the state. Exit polls on Monday predicted a clear victory for BJP in Uttar Pradesh with the scale of the party’s victory varying across various surveys.017.
BJP is comfortably ahead in Uttar Pradesh and is leading in over 250 seats. It is expected to close near the 300 mark, an ambitious target set by the BJP.
CM Adityanath Yogi from the BJP is leading from Gorakhpur Urban with a margin of 10,888 Votes
SP candidate Swami Prasad Maurya is trailing from Fazilnagar 5,060 Votes.
BJP’s Keshav Prasad Maurya is trailing from Sirathu by 3,392 Votes.
SBSP’s Om Prakash Rajbhar is leading from Zahoorabad.
Sangeet Som of the BJP is leading from Sardhana by 21,183 Votes
Congress party candidate Archana Gautam is trailing from Hastinapur by 218 Votes
Uttarakhand’s Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is trailing from Khatima in early trends as counting of votes began for the 70-member state assembly on Thursday. Senior Congress leader and former chief minister Harish Rawat is also trailing, from the Lalkuwa assembly constituency. Ahead of the counting, Rawat exuded confidence of his party’s victory in the hill state and Punjab. “We are winning on most of the seats and there is a close contest where we are trailing. In an hour, these leads will convert into a majority for the Congress in Uttarakhand and it will get a majority in Punjab as well,” Rawat had told ANI. BJP is leading on 26 seats, while Congress is leading at 18. Bahujan Samaj Party is leading on two seats, as per the data on the Election Commission website. The counting of votes for the recently held elections began at 8 am on Thursday, and the final result is expected to get clarity later in the day. The exit polls on Monday predicted a close race in Uttarakhand, with many of them giving an edge to the BJP to form the government. Some exit polls also predicted that Congress would cross the halfway mark in the 70-member Assembly. Polling in Uttarakhand took place on February 14.
Uttarakhand’s Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is trailing from Khatima in early trends as counting of votes began for the 70-member state assembly on Thursday. Senior Congress leader and former chief minister Harish Rawat is also trailing, from the Lalkuwa assembly constituency. Ahead of the counting, Rawat exuded confidence of his party’s victory in the hill state and Punjab. “We are winning on most of the seats and there is a close contest where we are trailing. In an hour, these leads will convert into a majority for the Congress in Uttarakhand and it will get a majority in Punjab as well,” Rawat had told ANI. BJP is leading on 26 seats, while Congress is leading at 18. Bahujan Samaj Party is leading on two seats, as per the data on the Election Commission website. The counting of votes for the recently held elections began at 8 am on Thursday, and the final result is expected to get clarity later in the day. The exit polls on Monday predicted a close race in Uttarakhand, with many of them giving an edge to the BJP to form the government. Some exit polls also predicted that Congress would cross the halfway mark in the 70-member Assembly. Polling in Uttarakhand took place on February 14.
In early trends, Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, state Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu and Punjab Lok Congress leader Amarinder Singh are trailing from Chamkur Sahib, Amritsar East, and Patiala seats respectively. As per the Election Commission of India, Aam Aadmi Party’s candidate Charanjit Singh is leading with 8785 votes followed by Congress candidate and incumbent CM Charanjit Singh Channi on 6852 votes on Chamkaur Sahib seat at 9:50 am. On the Bhadaur seat also Channi is trailing behind Aam Aadmi Party’s candidate Labh Singh Ugoke. On the Amritsar East seat, Aam Aadmi Party candidate Jeevan Jyot Kaur is leading with 3058 votes followed by Shiromani Akali Dal’s candidate Bikram Singh Majithia with 2468 votes and Congress’ Navjot Singh Sidhu on 2091 votes. On former Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh’s Patiala seat, Aam Aadmi Party’s Ajit Pal Singh Kohli is leading with 12,693 votes followed by Singh with 4926 votes. The early trends show that the AAP in Punjab has crossed the halfway mark in Punjab. It is leading on 79 seats, followed by Congress (14) and SAD (7). If AAP wins Punjab, it will be the party’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress. Congress went into the polls having battled factionalism and anti-incumbency. The party changed its chief minister in September last year even as new Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu hinted about his own chief ministerial ambitions. The Congress finally declared Charanjit Singh Channi, the first Dalit Chief Minister of Punjab, as its chief ministerial candidate days before the polling on February 20. The Shiromani Akali Dal, which had broken off its alliance with BJP over three farm laws that were eventually repealed, tied up with Bahujan Samaj Party for the assembly elections. It is the first time that BJP fought over 65 seats in Punjab. It tied up with former chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt) led by SS Dhindsa. BJP leaders have talked of putting up a strong performance in the polls. Punjab recorded an average voter turnout of 65.50 per cent on February 20 compared to over 77 per cent in 2017.
Early leads show the BJP has crossed the halfway mark in Uttarakhand, while the Congress is trailing in the hill state.
As at 10:00am, the early leads gave BJP 44 seats and Congress 23. The Aam Aadmi Party, or AAP, and Bahujan Samaj Party got one each in the state where the assembly has 70 seats.
The BJP appeared to take an unassailable lead over rivals in UP.
By 10 pm, the BJP was at 249 leads, SP at 122, and Congress & BSP were at 8 leads a-piece. it seemed, BJP could cross 300 – the ambitious target set by the party for itself.
The Samajwadi Party, trailing in double digits, gained over the last election but fell far short of the party’s expectations.
New Delhi: Early trends from the counting of votes in Punjab show Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) taking an unassailable lead, as predicted by all exit polls earlier. Almost all stalwarts including Parkash Singh Badal, Capt. Amarinder Singh, CM Channi are trailing in their constituencies
As of 10:00 am, trends have AAP at 85 and Congress at 17 out of total 117 seats. Akalis are at 10 and BJP and allies at 4.
The BJP has crossed the halfway mark in Goa, early trends show. As of 10 am, the BJP was leading in 21 seats, while the Congress came behind with 10 in the 40-member house. The Trinamool Congress got 3 and the Aam Aadmi Party only 1 seat, the trends show.
Two-time Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh is trailing in his pocket borough Patiala Urban seat by 3,575 votes on Thursday, according to initial poll trends.
Five-term Punjab chief minister and SAD leader Parkash Singh Badal was trailing from his home turf Lambi seat by 1,416 votes, according to initial poll trends.
Domestic equity market benchmarks BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 were trading over 2 per cent higher, on the back of positive global cues on a day of weekly F&O expiry.
BSE Sensex rallied over 1100 points or 2.04 per cent to trade at 55,800, while NSE Nifty 50 index jumped over 500 points to 16757 levels.
Barring Nifty Metal, all the Nifty sectoral indices were trading in the positive territory, led by Bank Nifty which was up by 3.6 per cent. Nifty Auto gained 3.15 per cent, Nifty FMCG added 2 per cent.
Washington [US]: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba had a telephonic conversation and discussed their coordinated efforts to provide Ukraine with additional security and humanitarian assistance, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said in a readout.
The official statement was released after the call and it reads, “Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke today by phone with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba,” Sputnik reported on Thursday. “They discussed coordinated efforts to provide additional security assistance and humanitarian support to Ukraine,” the statement added.
Blinken and Kuleba also discussed the ongoing diplomatic efforts to stop Russia’s military operation, Price said.
Washington [US]: The Biden administration publicly warned Wednesday (local time) that Russia might seek to use chemical or biological weapons in Ukraine. White House press secretary Jen Psaki warned of the potential use of chemical weapons in Ukraine after Moscow alleged the United States was housing biological weapons in Ukrainian territory.
Psaki rubbished the claim and said Russia’s allegations are “false” and “preposterous.” She further warned it could serve as a pretext for the Russians to deploy chemical weapons in their assault on Ukraine.
In a series of Tweets, the spokeswoman noted that the false claim that the US has biological weapons labs and chemical weapons development facilities in Ukraine was also echoed by Chinese officials.
“This is all an obvious ploy by Russia to try to justify its further premeditated, unprovoked, and unjustified attack on Ukraine. Now that Russia has made these false claims, and China has seemingly endorsed this propaganda, we should all be on the lookout for Russia to possibly use chemical or biological weapons in Ukraine, or to create a false flag operation using them. It’s a clear pattern,” Psaki said.
“It’s the kind of disinformation operation we’ve seen repeatedly from the Russians over the years in Ukraine and in other countries, which have been debunked, and an example of the types of false pretexts we have been warning the Russians would invent,” Psaki wrote.
“Also, Russia has a track record of accusing the West of the very violations that Russia itself is perpetrating. In December, Russia falsely accused the US of deploying contractors with chemical weapons in Ukraine,” she continued.
Maria Zakharova, a Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, claimed Russia discovered evidence of a program to develop anthrax and other biological weapons run by the United States in Ukraine. She alleged the program was backed by the Pentagon.
“This Russian disinformation is total nonsense and it’s not the first time Russia has invented such false claims against another country,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement. “Also, these claims have been debunked conclusively and repeatedly over many years.”
At least 516 civilians have been killed and 908 others injured in Ukraine since Russia launched the war against its neighbour, according to UN figures, with the real toll feared to be higher.
More than 2.1 million people have fled Ukraine to neighbouring countries, according to the UN Refugee Agency.
Washington [US], At least six US states have been targeted by hackers linked to China in the last 10 months as part of a persistent information-gathering operation, cybersecurity company Mandiant has said.
The wide range of state agencies targeted include “health, transportation, labour (including unemployment benefit systems), higher education, agriculture, and court networks and systems,” the FBI and US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) said in a separate, private advisory to state governments obtained by CNN. For agencies in two states, the hackers broke into networks using a critical software flaw that was revealed in December, according to CNN.
It reported that hundreds of millions of computers around the world ran the vulnerable software, US officials later estimated. For weeks, US officials urged companies to update their software; the White House hosted a meeting in January with tech executives to try to address the root problem of software that is not secure by design.
CNN further reported that within hours of the CISA advisory, the Chinese hackers had begun using the Log4J flaw to break into the two US state agencies, according to Mandiant.
Agencies in four other states were hacked via other means, it added. As per analysts, Chinese hacking continues to pose a challenge to the Biden administration’s efforts to defend government networks. Suspected Chinese hackers compromised at least five US defence and technology firms in an apparent espionage effort, CNN reported in December.
“We assess that China presents the broadest, most active, and persistent cyber espionage threat to US Government and private sector networks,” US intelligence agencies said in their annual assessment of global threats released on Tuesday.
Washington [US]: US President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed an executive order calling on the whole government to examine the risks and benefits of cryptocurrencies, placing great urgency on the research and development of a possible digital US dollar.
“Digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, have seen explosive growth in recent years, surpassing a 3-trillion-US dollar market cap last November,” the White House said in a fact sheet, adding around 16 percent of adult Americans, approximately 40 million people, have invested in, traded, or used cryptocurrencies.
“The rise in digital assets creates an opportunity to reinforce American leadership in the global financial system and at the technological frontier, but also has substantial implications for consumer protection, financial stability, national security, and climate risk,” the White House said.
The executive order lays out a national policy for digital assets across six key priorities: consumer and investor protection; financial stability; illicit finance; U.S. leadership in the global financial system and economic competitiveness; financial inclusion; and responsible innovation, according to the White House.
Meanwhile, the order directs the US government to assess the technological infrastructure and capacity needs for a potential US Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) and encourages the Federal Reserve to continue its research, development, and assessment efforts for a US CBDC.
“We’re placing the highest urgency on the effort to assess the potential benefits and the risks of a digital dollar on payment systems, on financial stability, on national security,” a senior administration official said Tuesday on a call with reporters.
“We are constantly assessing and monitoring any developments that relate to a core policy objective of ours, which is to maintain the centrality of the dollar in global financial markets and in the global economy,” the official said.
More than 100 countries are currently exploring or piloting central bank digital currencies for both cross-border and domestic use, and many of these countries are also working together to set standards for CBDC design and cross-border systems, according to the White House.
“I do think that the majority of countries will have central bank digital currencies eventually,” Tobias Adrian, financial councillor and director of the International Monetary Fund’s Monetary and Capital Markets Department, told Xinhua in an interview in January.
“Looking at the paper by the Federal Reserve, they’re not going to rush into anything, they really want to think carefully about the design of central bank digital currencies,” Adrian said. “I would expect it will occur eventually, but perhaps not immediate.”
The Fed in January released a discussion paper that examines the pros and cons of a potential US CBDC, but the paper does not favour any policy outcome.
“We look forward to engaging with the public, elected representatives, and a broad range of stakeholders as we examine the positives and negatives of a central bank digital currency in the United States,” Fed Chair Jerome Powell said.
Islamabad [Pakistan]: Women in tribal areas of Pakistan are still the victim of Karo-Kari and Vani, a new study of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) revealed.
HRCP has concluded a fact-finding mission to southern Punjab, comprising chairperson Hina Jilani, vice-chair Punjab Raja Ashraf, council member Nazir Ahmed, and regional coordinator Faisal Tangwani, a Pakistani newspaper reported on Wednesday.
Vani is a custom in parts of rural Pakistan in which girls are forcibly married as part of the punishment for a crime committed by their male relatives, while Karo-Kari is the honour killing, according to Pakistani channel Geo News and newspaper Dawn stated respectively.
The team also noted that women in the tribal areas of Dera Ghazi Khan and Rajanpur are trapped in practices like Karo-Kari and Vani to such an extent that the Border Military Police also couldn’t help to pull them out of that trap.
Moreover, many women were denied their basic rights like holding a citizenship document by male members of their families and, as a result, have no political voice. HRCP’s study also sees the common use of blasphemy laws to intimidate Hindu, Christian families for land grabbing. The study also stated that the forced conversion against minorities in religion is still the main concern in Pakistan, according to Dawn.
The study also revealed that the bonded labourers received less amount than the fixed minimum wages and the case of land acquisition in Cholistan by the military is still pending.
The team has also noted that lady health workers have continued to struggle without adequate security during their work, often putting their lives at risk in the line of duty and with negligible benefits to compensate them.
Mexico City [Mexico]: Nine people, including three women, were shot dead early Wednesday morning at a private residence in Atlixco, a town in central Mexico’s Puebla state, state authorities confirmed.
One survivor was “in critical condition,” with shots to the head, leg and shoulder, the Puebla Attorney General’s Office said. “Everything points to the fact that this was an inter-gang execution,” Puebla Governor Miguel Barbosa said at a press conference. According to preliminary investigations, the house where the victims were attacked was “a drug distribution and sales location,” he said.
The victims have yet to be identified, but “apparently, they were not from Atlixco or Puebla,” Barbosa said.
The governor said via social media that federal, regional and local authorities launched a joint operation following the attack.
Hong Kong: Hong Kong’s COVID-19 death rate per million has hit the highest in the world, with the elderly, many of whom were unvaccinated, becoming the prime victim of infection.
As of March 6, the city recorded 25.5 new deaths per million people over a seven-day moving average, according to the figures shown by the scientific online publication, Our World in Data in collaboration with Oxford University researchers. The figure is more than twice that of Latvia’s 9.26, six times that of 4.29 in the United States, and far more than Singapore’s 1.86. Australia’s was 1.41, Japan’s, 1.68, and South Korea’s, 2.89, Singaporean newspaper The Straits Times reported on Wednesday [local time].
The case fatality rate in Hong Kong touched 0.4 per cent, higher than South Korea’s 0.2 per cent, Australia’s 0.16 per cent and Singapore’s 0.13 per cent.
Hong Kong government showed the data on Tuesday that over 2,300 people had died since the end of December when the latest Covid-19 surge occurred. The data also stated that about 70 per cent were elder, aged 80 and above.
Despite the Hong Kong government’s constant effort to vaccinate all the beneficiaries, slightly less than half of everyone under 80 years are still unvaccinated.
The city recorded over 42,000 new cases on Tuesday, bringing the total to over 5,39,000 cases with over 2,400 deaths.
Chief Executive Carrie Lam planned to conduct a mass test of the city’s 7.4 million population next month, but there is still a possibility in the government’s stance from the focus on mass testing and isolation to lowering deaths, The Straits Times citing the local media reported.
Meanwhile, people are suddenly witnessing a severely overstretched healthcare system, depicting China’s unsuccessful ‘zero-covid’ policy.
New Delhi [India]: The political fervour goes high as all eyes are on the counting of votes of Assembly elections in five States including Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Manipur, Punjab and Uttarakhand on Thursday.
The elections occurred in 690 assembly constituencies in the above-mentioned five states. Further counting will also take place for the by-polls held in Majuli in Assam. The counting of votes will start at 8 am with postal ballots. The counting of electronic voting machines (EVM) will commence at 8.30 am.
According to Election Commission (EC), 671 counting observers, 130 police observers, and 10 Special Observers will be on the ground to ensure the smooth counting process. Commission has also deputed two special officers- CEO Delhi to Meerut and CEO Bihar to Varanasi to supervise the counting arrangements.
EC said all strong rooms, where polled EVMs are kept, are under three-layered security with an inner cordon manned by Central Armed Forces. Concerned candidates have been watching the strong room arrangements through CCTV coverage of 24×7. In poll going States, District Administration has imposed sec 144 CrPC around the counting Halls to ensure that peace and tranquillity is not disturbed. After each round of counting, tabulation of results in a prescribed format will be done.
This will be signed by RO and Observer, and a copy will be shared with the candidates. After the announcement of the round-wise result, counting of the next round will be taken up as per extant instructions. Postal ballot results will also be shared in the prescribed format after obtaining the signatures of candidates’ agents.
Assembly elections were held in Uttar Pradesh from February 10 to March 7 in seven phases. Goa and Uttarakhand went to polls on February 14. Assembly polls in Punjab were held on February 20. Assembly polls in Manipur were conducted in two phases on February 28 and March 5.
Amongst these five states, BJP holds power in four States including Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, Goa and Uttarakhand. Further, there is a Congress government in Punjab. In the 403-member Uttar Pradesh assembly, the majority mark is 202 and the exit polls predicted that the BJP is poised to comfortably return to power with its allies for an unprecedented second term with most of them stating that the party’s tally would be less than that in 2017 elections when it had scored a landslide victory.
The Samajwadi Party (SP), which fought the polls with RLD and some other parties, would improve its performance, the exit polls predicted.
Exit polls predicted a clear victory for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the 117-member Punjab Assembly with the scale of the party’s victory varying across various surveys. Several surveys predicted Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP, which is in power in Delhi, getting a landslide victory.
The surveys also predicted that the ruling Congress will finish a distant second in the state followed by Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) which had allied with Bahujan Samaj Party. The BJP and its allies are not predicted to do well, according to the surveys. If the results come as per the prediction of exit polls, it will be the first time that AAP will come to power in Punjab.
The multi-cornered contest in Goa could lead to a hung assembly verdict, exit polls predicted with some of them putting the BJP ahead but some also stating that Congress would the single-largest party close to the halfway mark in 40-member state assembly.
The exit polls predicted a close race in Uttarakhand, with many of them giving an edge to the BJP to form the government. Some exit polls also predicted that Congress would finish ahead and could cross the halfway mark in the 70-member Assembly. The exit polls in Manipur gave a clear edge to the ruling BJP in forming the next government with many of them predicting that it may fall short of the halfway mark. The majority mark is 31 for the 60-member Manipur Assembly.
Imphal (Manipur) [India]: Riding on their poll plank of development and improved connectivity in the state in the last five years, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will try to retain the power in Manipur while the Congress-led alliance is seeking to wrest the state from the BJP and is hoping for a favourable verdict as the countdown begins for the counting of votes polled in the 2022 Assembly elections.
Days ahead of the counting on March 10, the exit polls in Manipur gave a clear edge to the ruling BJP followed by Congress, a distant second. Elections for the 60-member Manipur Assembly took take place in two phases on February 28 and March 5. Ahead of the counting, proper security measures have been undertaken including the imposition of Section 144 CrPC around the counting centres to ensure that peace and tranquillity is not disturbed and counting of votes is conducted smoothly, the Chief Electoral Officer, Manipur informed.
The BJP, which formed the government in Manipur in 2017 with the support of the National People’s Party (NPP), Naga People’s Front (NPF) and the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), this time, has decided to go solo and is contesting all 60 seats alone.
On the other hand, Congress has formed an alliance of six political parties and named it Manipur Progressive Secular Alliance (MPSA). The coalition partners in MPSA include Congress, Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India (Marxist), Forward Bloc, Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) and Janata Dal (Secular).
BJP Manipur President Adhikarimayum Sharda Devi exuded confidence over her party’s victory in the state polls. She said that BJP has set a target of bagging more than 40 seats out of a total of 60 constituencies in Manipur.
“We have set a target of over 40 seats and are confident of forming a stable government. When the final results are declared, we expect the number to be 40 plus only… We haven’t taken a decision on Chief Ministerial candidate and there is no point of a new CM here,” Devi said.
Meanwhile, Congress general secretary Mukul Wasnik said that people’s verdict will be in favour of the Congress in Manipur.
“People’s verdict will be in favour of the congress and will be forming the govt here along with the other alliance parties. Time and again exit polls have found to be wrong. We believe what came out in the exit poll is far from what we will see on March 10,” he said.
Among the key contestants, Chief Minister N Biren Singh is in the fray from the Heingang seat while Congress leader and former Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh is testing his luck from Thoubal. Others include PWD Minister Th Biswajit Singh who is in the fray from Thongju; Govindas Konthoujam Singh, former Manipur Congress chief, who recently joined the BJP, from Bishenpur; Education Minister S Rajen from Lamshang, Agriculture Minister O Lukhoi from Wangoi.
The BJP has fielded former national football player Somatai Shaiza from the Ukhrul seat.
In its election manifesto for Manipur, the BJP promised preservation of the rights of the indigenous people, two extra LPG cylinders, and free electric scooty to college-going girls among others. The Congress manifesto promised to bring Manipur Cultural Diversity Policy, provide free critical medical treatment for children, creation of Manipur regiment and request the Centre to repeal AFSPA. During a poll rally, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra promised unemployment allowance to the youth of Manipur if her party comes to power in the state. As per the Manipur Chief Electoral Officer’s website (https://ceomanipur.nic.in/), over 20 lakh (20,91,398) voters were eligible to exercise their franchise.
During this election, the total number of polling stations in the state was 2,959. A total of 1099 polling locations and 763 polling locations were identified as “vulnerable and critical”.
The voting percentage was recorded at 88.69 per cent in the first phase of elections while in the second phase, it was 90.09 per cent.
In 2017, the BJP stunned the Congress which ruled for 15 years in Manipur as it emerged as the second-largest party winning 21 seats in the 60-member state Assembly. The National People’s Party (NPP) and Naga People’s Front (NPF) bagged four seats each while the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) managed to secure only one constituency. The BJP bagged 36.28 per cent vote share while Congress received 35.11 per cent of the total vote.
Later, the BJP stitched a coalition with the NPP, NPF, and LJP to form the government under the leadership of Biren Singh.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, out of two parliamentary seats in Manipur, the BJP and the NPF won one seat each.
New Delhi [India]: With exit polls predicting a close race in Uttarakhand, leaders of both the ruling BJP and the opposition Congress have exuded confidence about emerging victorious during the counting of votes on Thursday.
If BJP is able to win the election, it will be the first time that a government will be repeated since the formation of Uttarakhand. Congress is hoping to gain from “anti-incumbency” against the government.
The BJP had won 57 out of 70 seats in the last assembly polls, a rise of 26 seats from its 2012 tally.
The BJP had secured 46.51 per cent vote share in the 2017 polls. The Congress could win only 11 seats though the party had 33.49 per cent vote share.
The BJP changed three chief ministers in about a year in the hill state. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is in the fray from the Khatima constituency in Udham Singh Nagar district.
Dhami has said the party’s numbers will be more than that predicted by exit polls. “Most exit polls have shown the BJP government again forming in Uttarakhand. Our actual numbers will be more than what has been projected by the exit polls, and the party will form a majority government… People have given the certificate of the work done by the BJP in the state,” he said.
Congress poll effort is led by former Chief Minister Harish Rawat, who is in the fray from Lalkuwa seat. He had initially decided to contest from Ramnagar seat in Nainital district. While Rawat is leading the party’s campaign, he has not been declared the party’s chief ministerial candidate. He is up against BJP candidate Mohan Singh Bisht and Aam Aadmi Party’s Chandrashekhar Pandey.
Harish Rawat on Wednesday exuded confidence of Congress emerging a full majority in Uttarakhand Assembly elections.
“We are sure that we are going to get a full majority. We do not have a C-plan. But there are many senior leaders who have not been able to get tickets, we will take their cooperation,” he said.
The Aam Aadmi Party is also keen to emerge as a big player in the state and projected Col Ajay Kothiyal (retd) as the chief ministerial candidate. He is contesting from the Gangotri seat and will lock horns with BJP’s Suresh Chauhan and Congress’ Vijaypal Singh Sajwan.
In the Tehri seat, Congress’ Dhan Singh Negi, who won the seat as BJP candidate in 2017, is up against expelled Congress leader Kishore Upadhyay who later joined the BJP. State BJP president Madan Kaushik is contesting from Haridwar.
Anukriti Gusain, daughter-in-law of former Uttarakhand Minister Harak Singh Rawat, has been fielded by the Congress from Lansdowne.
Harish Rawat’s daughter Anupama is in the fray from Haridwar (Rural). Harish Rawat had lost the seat in 2017. She is against BJP’s Swami Yatishwaranand.
The exit polls have predicted a tight race in Uttarakhand with many of them giving an edge to the BJP in forming the government. Some exit polls also predicted that Congress would finish ahead and could cross the halfway mark in the 70-member assembly.
The polling in the state took place on February 14 in a single-phase election.
Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh): After a month-long fierce political battle, the much-awaited results of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls will be declared on Thursday.
The electorally-crucial state witnessed a multi-cornered contest with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Samajwadi Party (SP), Congress and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) as prime contenders.
Anupriya Patel-led Apna Dal (Sonelal) has been part of the BJP’s alliance and contested in 18 seats. Sanjay Nishad-led Nishad Party also contested the UP polls in alliance with BJP.
On the other hand, SP formed an alliance with Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD). Further, OP Rajbhar-led Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP), a former BJP ally, also grabbed the hands of SP.
In the 403-member Uttar Pradesh assembly, the majority mark is 202 and the exit polls predicted that the BJP is poised to comfortably return to power with its allies for an unprecedented second term with most of them stating that the party’s tally would be less than that in 2017 elections when it had scored a landslide victory. The SP which fought the polls with RLD and some other parties would improve its performance, the exit polls predicted.
Even after the conclusion of voting, UP’s poll fever went high on Tuesday with SP chief Akhilesh Yadav alleging manipulation of electronic voting machines. SP workers staged protests in Varanasi over the issue. Following this, Election Commission ordered action against Varanasi Additional District Magistrate.
Looking back to the 2017 Assembly polls, BJP along with its alliance partners garnered 325 seats. Apna Dal and OP Rajbhar’s Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) were part of the BJP+ alliance. BJP alone had won 312 seats whereas Apna Dal got nine and SBSP bagged four seats.
SP, which held the government then, reduced to 47 seats. Notably, SP and Congress contested the 2017 elections together and Congress could only manage to get seven seats. Further, BSP had bagged just 19 seats in that election while RLD won just one seat.
Now, the constituency that garnered most of the limelight in this election is Ayodhya, the reason being the construction of the Ram Mandir. With the development of the temple town and the sentiments of Hindu voters regarding “Ram”, BJP finds itself in a relatively comfortable position in this region than its contenders, especially the Samajwadi Party.
Further, Karhal turned out to a high-profile seat as SP chief Akhilesh Yadav contested from the constituency. Similarly, Gorakhpur Urban was also caught attention as Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath contested from the seat.
When it comes to key issues in this election, farmers’ protest, job losses among migrant labourers, unemployment and most-importantly stray cattle menace may have hounded the ruling BJP leading to a jerky ride for the party. Further, some sort of anti-incumbency factor was believed to exist that might reflect on the ballot box.
However, BJP was banking on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s charismatic image, double-engine rhetoric, free ration during the COVID pandemic and PM Awas Yojana. On the other hand, Akhilesh Yadav-led SP was eying on youth electorates besides its traditional game of consolidation of Yadav and Muslim vote bank. Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM which was also in the fray may prove to be a spoiler in SP’s social engineering when it comes to Muslim voters.
BSP supremo Mayawati who appeared to be on relatively back-foot in terms of aggressive campaigning was relying on its core Dalit vote bank.
As Priyanka Gandhi Vadra steered Congress’ power-packed campaigns, the party has hoped that the “Ladki hoon lad sakti hoon” campaign would mobilize women voters bringing a good share of votes.
Ahead of the counting of votes, the Additional Director General of Police (law and order) on Wednesday said that Uttar Pradesh police have ramped up the police presence and actions will be taken against those disturbing peace on the day of results.
“For March 10, we have deployed about 70,000 civil police workers, 245 company – paramilitary forces and 69 company PSE commanders. We have ensured peaceful voting, we will ensure peaceful counting also, said Prashant Kumar, UP ADG (Law and Order).
Meanwhile, the state Excise government has prohibited the sale and operation of liquor in the entire state on the day of the result.
Assembly elections were held in Uttar Pradesh from February 10 to March 7 in seven phases to elect all 403 members of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly.
New Delhi [India]: Amid predictions of a hung assembly, leaders of BJP and Congress in Goa would be keeping a close watch on the results of assembly elections on Thursday to assess their chances of forming government in the state.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has expressed confidence of the BJP forming the next government in the state. The Congress, which is also hopeful of forming the government, has asked its candidates to stay at a hotel to prevent any attempt at “poaching”.
The party’s leaders in Goa are learnt to be in touch with state leaders of Trinamool Congress and Aam Aadmi Party “to prevent BJP from returning to power” in the state. Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Wednesday held a meeting with ally Goa Forward Party and briefed the candidates at a hotel in Goa’s Margao on the eve of the counting of votes.
After the meeting, Karnataka Congress president DK Shivakumar told ANI that they have sought an appointment with the Governor on Thursday.
“We will get a majority. BJP is very much known for poaching. That is the reason we have asked all our MLAs to stay in a private hotel at Margao,” he said.
Goa witnessed a multi-cornered contest with AAP and Trinamool Congress also in the fray apart from the traditional rivals Congress and BJP.
BJP fought the election on all 40 seats in the state while the Goa Forward Party (GFP) entered into a pre-poll alliance with Congress. Trinamool Congress allied with Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party.
The exit polls have predicted a neck-to-neck fight between BJP and the Congress-led alliance.
In the 2017 assembly polls, Congress had emerged as the single largest party winning 17 seats, but the BJP moved swiftly and formed government after roping in the support of regional parties and independent MLAs.
The BJP contested this election without Manohar Parrikar, its tall leader from the state. His son Utpal contested from Panaji seat as an independent candidate after BJP did not give him ticket from the seat. The BJP has fielded Atanasio “Babush” Monserrate from the constituency.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant contested from the Sanquelim constituency against Congress’ Dharamesh Saglani while Margao saw a fascinating contest with BJP pitting Goa Deputy CM Manohar Ajgaonkar against Congress veteran Digambar Kamat. Goa Forward Party president Vijai Sardesai is eyeing a third consecutive win from the Fatorda seat while Churchill Alemao is seeking another term from Benaulim but on a TMC ticket.
Michael Lobo was a minister in the Pramod Sawant-led government until January when he resigned from the cabinet and joined Congress. He fought Calangute from against BJP’s Joseph Sequeira.
All arrangements have been put in place for counting on Thursday. More than 1,500 counting officials have been trained and deployed for the purpose.
Assembly elections were held on February 14 in a single phase in Goa. The state saw 79.61 per cent polling.
New Delhi [India]: One Nation One Election is a good suggestion, but this will need a change in the Constitution and it is to be decided in parliament. The Election Commission is fully prepared and is capable of conducting simultaneous elections, said Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra.
Chandra said, “According to the Constitution, all the elections should be held simultaneously. The parliament elections that are held since independence, all three of them are simultaneous elections. It is only later that sometimes the Assembly was dissolved, sometimes parliament, which disturbed the schedule. One Nation One Election is a good suggestion but this needs a change in the constitution.”
“An assembly which will not be able to complete the 5-year term in the Assembly will have to think about whether we can abolish it under the Constitution or we need to increase the tenure of parliament for simultaneous election in the country, he said.
Chandra further added that it is to be decided in Parliament that should we take half of the assembly together and the next time take the other half together, it is to be decided in parliament, but the election commission is fully prepared and the election commission is capable of holding all the elections simultaneously and is ready to elect it only once in 5 years,” he said
Talking about the just concluded election in five states, Chandra said banning the rallies and padyatras was a tough decision. “When this election process started which we start from the month of September, October, no one knew that the third wave of coronavirus was to come. But as we approached December, we felt that the Omicron was spreading. The commission discussed with the Union Health Secretary and talked to the Chief Secretary of the State and the State Health Secretary. We found that the COVID is spreading,” he said.
“In some of the states, not everyone has been vaccinated, so the commission decided that there will be no physical rally in the first week of the beginning and there will be no padyatras, only a digital rally and at the same time you can do door-to-door campaigning, which is also in restricted numbers. The basic concept of commission is that the vote should be safe and the voter should also be safe,” he said.
Every Saturday Sunday, we reviewed the situation with the Chief Secretary, Health Secretary, directed the Chief Secretary of election-bound states to vaccinate everyone, while banning the rally will not spread Covid19 further. On the other hand, we were slowly opening this ban. After every week, we relaxed by graded responses.
“I would like to tell you that no political party has opposed it. I am thankful to all the political parties, also to the voters that they took our decision correctly and understood it correctly and we had also increased the limit of expenditure to campaign through digital means. So that there can be campaigning in the hybrid model which can be replicated further that you can also digitalise and physicalise it,” said the CEC.
“No party has opposed this decision and all the parties have campaigned through a digital medium. The mode was changed. As you notice that work from home started in the second wave of coronavirus. The companies were not closed. Similarly, the campaign did not stop, the campaign started in another way. Before the elections, apart from Manipur, the rest four states have provided the first dose of the vaccine to its 100% population. The second dose was also given to most people. In the polling station also, we had maintained safety, due to which the voter was also safe and the voting was also safe.
During ban, our officials took the MCC violation very seriously. 2270 FIR has been filed for violation of Covid protocol norms as well as MCC violation in all the five states.
Chandra said that knowing your candidate application was a grand success initiative by the commission. There was a petition suit in the Supreme Court in which people from criminal backgrounds are coming to the election. The Supreme Court had decided that those who are people of criminal background should be known to voters. That is why we created an app and made it mandatory for people with criminal images that you will put their criminal history on the website. Out of 6,900 candidates, more than 1,600 were with a criminal background, 25% of candidates were of the criminal antecedent.
It is the job of the Election Commission that our voters should get all kinds of information if he/she knows that there is a criminal case registered against this candidate. This will help them to make their choice. This is necessary for the cleaning of democracy that candidates having criminal background don’t deserve in politics, but ultimately it depends on the choice of voters. Our responsibility is to tell voters the background of candidates, he said.
Chandigarh (Punjab): With exit polls predicting Aam Aadmi Party’s victory in Punjab, the party is looking forward to the results on Thursday with heightened expectations even as Congress leaders have also expressed confidence of retaining the state.
If AAP wins Punjab, it will be the party’s maiden victory in the state and a vast improvement from its performance in the 2017 elections when it had finished second behind Congress. Congress went into the polls having battled factionalism and anti-incumbency. The party changed its chief minister in September last year even as new Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu hinted about his own chief ministerial ambitions.
The Congress finally declared Charanjit Singh Channi, the first Dalit Chief Minister of Punjab, as its chief ministerial candidate days before the polling on February 20. The Shiromani Akali Dal, which had broken off its alliance with BJP over three farm laws that were eventually repealed, tied up with Bahujan Samaj Party for the assembly elections.
It is the first time that BJP fought over 65 seats in Punjab. It tied up with former chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt) led by SS Dhindsa. BJP leaders have talked of putting up a strong performance in the polls. AAP’s chief ministerial candidate Bhagwant Mann exuded confidence of the party’s victory on Wednesday.
“We talked about hospitals, schools, electricity (during campaigns). People have rejected other parties and good results will come tomorrow. I’m not an astrologer but I know people of Punjab want a change. The number of seats we can cross is 80 even 100,” Mann said.
Channi played down the prediction of exit polls and urged people to wait for the results.
“Only boxes (EVMs) will tell what has to happen. All of you, please wait till March 10,” he said.
Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal expressed hope of the party getting majority with its ally.
“SAD represents the voice of people. I hope God gives us the chance to do Seva of the people,” he said.
Punjab Congress has called a meeting of the party’s legislative party on Thursday evening.
All necessary arrangements have been made for counting in the state which will start at 8 am.
Punjab recorded an average voter turnout of 65.50 per cent on February 20 compared to over 77 per cent in 2017.
In the 117-member Punjab Assembly, the majority mark is 59.
While Bhagwant Mann is contesting from the Dhuri, Channi is contesting from two seats – Chamkaur Sahib and Bhadaur.
Amritsar (East) is also witnessing a key battle Sidhu is pitted against Shiromani Akali Dal’s (SAD) Bikram Singh Majithia, who is the brother-in-law of SAD President Sukhbir Singh Badal.
Former Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh is seeking re-election from the Patiala constituency.
Shiromani Akali Dal leader Parkash Singh Badal is contesting from Lambi seat. Exit polls on Monday predicted a clear victory for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Punjab with the scale of the party’s victory varying across various surveys. Several surveys predicted Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP, which is in power in Delhi, getting a landslide victory.
The surveys also predicted that the ruling Congress will finish a distant second in the state followed by Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) which had allied with Bahujan Samaj Party. The BJP and its allies are not predicted to do well, according to the surveys.
The International Monetary Funds has approved USD 1.4 billion in emergency financing for Ukraine amid the ongoing war with Russia, the fund said in a statement. “The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today approved a disbursement of USD 1.4 billion (SDR 1005,9 million) under the Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI) to help meet urgent financing needs and mitigate the economic impact of the war,” Russia’s Sputnik News Agency reported citing the statement. On Monday, the World Bank approved a USD 723 million package of loans and grants for Ukraine, providing government budget support amid the all-out conflict with Russia. The international lender approved a supplemental budget support package for Ukraine, called Financing of Recovery from Economic Emergency in Ukraine – or FREE Ukraine – for USD 489 million, the bank said in a statement.
“The package approved by the Board consists of a supplemental loan for USD 350 million and guarantees in the amount of USD 139 million and is also mobilizing grant financing of USD 134 million and parallel financing of USD 100 million, resulting in total mobilized support of USD 723 million,” it added.
The bank informed that the initial World Bank support was increased with guarantees from the Netherlands for 80 million euros (USD 89 million equivalent) and Sweden for USD 50 million.
The World Bank has also set up a multi-donor trust fund (MDTF) to facilitate channeling grant resources from donors to Ukraine, with contributions from the UK, Denmark, Latvia, Lithuania, and Iceland in the amount of USD 134 million thus far. The World Bank is calling for further grant contributions to the MDTF. In addition, Japan is linking USD 100 million in parallel financing to the support package.
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