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Senior BJP leader and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister <keyword id="6355042" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Devendra-Fadnavis" source="Orion">Devendra Fadnavis</keyword> will take decisions on <keyword id="549985" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="seat-sharing" source="Orion">seat-sharing</keyword> and <keyword id="22753690" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="negotiations-with-allies" source="Orion">negotiations with allies</keyword> for the upcoming assembly polls in the state, a party leader has said. The move aims to prevent undesired delays by streamlining preparations for the assembly elections due in a few months, BJP's Mumbai unit chief <keyword id="6367689" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ashish-Shelar" source="Orion">Ashish Shelar</keyword> told reporters on Sunday. "The core committee (of the state unit) has met in Mumbai to delegate all decision-making powers concerning seat-sharing and the selection of assembly constituencies to Fadnavis," he said. Party observer and Union minister Bhupender Yadav, BJP national secretary Vinod Tawde, Union minister and Mumbai North MP Piyush Goyal also attended the meeting. Of the 288 assembly seats in Maharashtra, the BJP won 104 in 2019. Shelar confirmed finalisation of the "formula for winning, besides the planning and seat-sharing arrangements with the allies". "Fadnavis has been granted full authority in this regard," he said. The BJP-led Mahayuti, also comprising Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena and the NCP headed by Ajit Pawar, won only 17 of the 48 Lok Sabha seats in the state in the recent parliamentary polls. The BJP's tally came down to 9 from 23 five years ago. The Maha Vikas Aghadi, consisting of the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP), bagged 30 seats. Shelar said, "We have decided to save time by streamlining the planning, discussions, and decision-making processes with all the NDA constituents to finalise the candidates. Once this is done, we can begin preparations for the assembly polls. The list of candidates will be released at the appropriate time." After the BJP's Lok Sabha tally came down to 9 in Maharashtra, Fadnavis had offered to quit the deputy CM's post to enable him to focus on party work ahead of assembly elections. Later, after a party meeting where state BJP legislators passed a resolution reposing faith in him, Fadnavis said he would continue to work.

Maharashtra polls: Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis to decide on seat-sharing, negotiations with allies

In a major setback to Delhi's <keyword id="19935664" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Aam-Aadmi-Party" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Aam Aadmi Party" meta.hostid="345" meta.entityid="Aam Aadmi Party">Aam Aadmi Party</keyword> government, the <keyword id="19895345" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Supreme-Court" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Supreme Court" meta.hostid="345" meta.entityid="Supreme Court">Supreme Court</keyword> on Monday ruled that the law "expressly enables" the lieutenant governor to nominate <keyword id="22669982" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="aldermen" source="keywords">aldermen</keyword> to the <keyword id="19900879" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mcd" source="keywords">MCD</keyword> and he is not bound by the advice of the council of ministers in the matter. A bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala rejected the <keyword id="19925995" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Delhi-government" source="keywords">Delhi government</keyword>'s plea challenging the LG's power to nominate 10 aldermen in the <keyword id="19907640" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Municipal-Corporation-of-Delhi" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Municipal Corporation of Delhi" meta.hostid="345" meta.entityid="Municipal Corporation of Delhi">Municipal Corporation of Delhi</keyword> without the aid and advice of the council of ministers. The apex court pronounced its verdict on the Delhi government's plea after reserving it for nearly 15 months. In its ruling impacting the fraught relationship between the LG's office and the AAP-led Delhi government, the bench said the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act as amended in 1993 "expressly enables the LG to nominate persons having special knowledge to the corporation". It said the power expressed by the statute in the name of the LG, also seen in the context of other provisions, demonstrates the statutory scheme in which the powers and duties are distributed among authorities under the Act. "The context in which the power is located confirms that the LG is intended to act as per the mandate of the statute and not guided by the aid and advice of the council of ministers. The power to be exercised is the statutory duty of the LG and not the executive power of the state. This is how we analysed the constitutional provisions," Justice Narasimha said while pronouncing the verdict on behalf of the bench. The bench said the statutory power under provision 3(3)(b)(1) which deals with nomination of persons having special knowledge was vested with the LG for the first time by the 1993 amendment of the DMC Act of 1957. The bench said the DMC Act as amended in 1993 recognises five authorities exercising the state's power and duties under the Act -- these are the Central government, the government of NCT, administrator, corporation and the commissioner. It said the amendment Act of 1993 carries out several amendments to the original DMC Act of 1957 by which the power, duties were allocated to the authorities depending on the function they perform under the law. The bench said by way of the amendment the power of nomination of aldermen was given to LG under the provision just like the power of nomination of MLAs was given to the speaker of the House. On May 17 last year, the top court had said that giving the LG the power to nominate aldermen to the MCD will mean he can destabilise an elected civic body. The MCD has 250 elected and 10 nominated members. In December 2022, the Aam Aadmi Party defeated the <keyword id="19894848" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="BJP" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="BJP" meta.hostid="345" meta.entityid="BJP">BJP</keyword> in the civic elections, winning 134 wards and ending the saffron party's 15-year run at the helm of the MCD. The BJP won 104 seats and the Congress finished a distant third with nine. Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for the Delhi government, had contended during the hearing that no separate powers have been accorded to the state government to nominate people to the MCD. For the past 30 years, the practice of the LG nominating aldermen on the aid and advice of the city government has been followed, he said. Additional Solicitor General Sanjay Jain, appearing for the LG's office, submitted that just because a practice has been followed for 30 years does not mean it is correct. The top court had observed that giving the LG the power to nominate aldermen will effectively mean that he can destabilise a democratically elected MCD because these aldermen get appointed to the standing committees and have voting power. Earlier, the top court had questioned the "source of power" of the LG under the Constitution and the law to nominate aldermen to the MCD without the aid and advice of the elected government. On May 12 last year, the top court observed that LG has to act on the "aid and advice" of the council of ministers of the Delhi government in nominating 10 aldermen to the MCD.

SC backs LG's right to nominate aldermen to MCD, setback for AAP govt

<keyword id="20161012" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="BJP-leader" source="keywords">BJP leader</keyword> and Olympic Medal winning <keyword id="19914933" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="wrestler" source="keywords">wrestler</keyword> <keyword id="19911119" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Yogeshwar-Dutt" source="keywords">Yogeshwar Dutt</keyword> expressed his willingness to contest the upcoming <keyword id="22435328" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Haryana-Assembly-elections" source="keywords">Haryana Assembly elections</keyword> from the Gohana Assembly Constituency on Friday. "I have expressed my wish to contest elections to the Chief Minister and the central leadership. I am a sportsperson, and an Olympic medallist, and I have contested elections from <keyword id="19894848" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="BJP" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="BJP" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="BJP">BJP</keyword> earlier also, so I want to get a chance", said Dutt while speaking to Journalists. He further added that he wants to contest from the Gohana assembly constituency and he has told the same to the leadership. "Now it is the time for elections, so I want to get a chance to contest from Gohana. I can't be certain about the future, but I have expressed my willingness, and I have told the leadership that I want to contest.", he added. Yogeshwar Dutt, who won an Olympic Medal in the 2012 Olympics was defeated by Congress nominee Indu Raj Narwal in a bypoll for the Assembly seat of Baroda in 2020. Dutt also lost the seat in 2019 to the Congress's three-time winner Krishan Hooda. The BJP Central Election Committee (CEC) held a crucial meeting on Thursday to discuss the upcoming <keyword id="20390792" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="haryana-assembly" source="keywords">Haryana Assembly</keyword> elections. During the meeting, which was chaired by <keyword id="19898052" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Prime-Minister-Narendra-Modi" source="keywords">Prime Minister Narendra Modi</keyword>, discussions were held on all 90 assembly seats in the state. Out of these, candidates for 55 seats have been finalised. The final decision on the remaining 35 seats will be made in a follow-up meeting today between the Haryana core committee and the BJP President. The party has decided to roll out the candidate names in phases as the election preparations intensify. The meeting, which took place at the BJP headquarters, was attended by key leaders including BJP National President JP Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Satya Narayan Jatia, Iqbal Singh Lalpura, K. Laxman, Nayab Singh Saini, Sudha Yadav, Vanathi Srinivasan, Anil Vij, Bhupender Yadav, Biplab Deb, Satish Poonia, Surendra Nagar, and Dharmendra Pradhan. Voting for 90 seats of the Haryana Assembly elections will be held on October 1. The results will be declared on October 4.

Olympic medallist Yogeshwar Dutt expresses willingness to contest Haryana Assembly elections

The complete list of Chief Ministers in India for 2024

Most <keyword id="21473307" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="BJP-allies" source="keywords">BJP allies</keyword> have kept their cards close to chest on the issue of <keyword id="19934070" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Uniform-Civil-Code" source="keywords">Uniform Civil Code</keyword>, which Prime Minister <keyword id="19895781" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi" source="keywords">Narendra Modi</keyword> strongly backed in his Independence Day speech, with the party's largest partner <keyword id="19910625" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Telugu-Desam-Party" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Telugu Desam Party" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Telugu Desam Party">Telugu Desam Party</keyword> (TDP) saying that it will wait for details to emerge before finalising its stand. The JD(U), the BJP's second biggest ally, said the party supports any such reform but its spokesperson K C Tyagi added that it must be pushed only after evolving a consensus by speaking to all stake-holders, including religious groups and states. Lavu Srikrishna Devarayalu, the head of TDP Parliamentary Party, told PTI that his party will wait for the details of any proposal related to the UCC before finalising its stand. Another party ally <keyword id="20280818" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lok-Janshakti-Party" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Lok Janshakti Party" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Lok Janshakti Party">Lok Janshakti Party</keyword> (<keyword id="20354493" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ram-Vilas" source="keywords">Ram Vilas</keyword>) has also been non-committal, with its president and Union Minister Chirag Paswan recently highlighting cultural, linguistic and regional diversities across the country to wonder how everyone can be brought under one umbrella. Last month, he said that his party will wait for a draft on the UCC before taking a stand. Tyagi cited JD(U) president and Bihar Chief Minister <keyword id="19907431" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Nitish-Kumar" source="keywords">Nitish Kumar</keyword>'s submission in 2017 to the Law Commission to make his point. Kumar had said, "Any attempt to impose a UCC without obtaining through substantive consultations the concurrence of various religious groups, especially the minorities, could lead to social friction and an erosion of faith in the constitutional guarantee of freedom of religion." However, the proposal for simultaneous elections, which was also staunchly advocated by Modi on Thursday, generally enjoys support among the BJP's allies. Tyagi said his party is in complete agreement with the BJP on the issue. Both JD(U) and the LJP(Ram Vilas) had extended their support to the concept 'one nation one election' in their submission to the high-level committee headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind. Another important BJP ally <keyword id="19905334" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Shiv-Sena" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Shiv Sena" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Shiv Sena">Shiv Sena</keyword>, which is headed by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, has been supportive of both UCC and simultaneous elections. Modi had on Thursday made an unequivocal pitch for a uniform civil code in the country, asserting that a "secular civil code" in place of the existing "communal" one is the need of the hour. He also pushed forcefully for 'one nation one election'. Frequent elections are an "obstacle" in the country's growth, and every scheme is seen as a consequence of one poll or another happening every few months, he said in his speech on India's 78th Independence Day. The UCC has been a key ideological plank of the BJP, while the party has also taken a strong stand in favour of <keyword id="20033454" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="simultaneous-polls" source="keywords">simultaneous polls</keyword>, promising both measures on its successive manifestos.

Most BJP allies keep away from supporting Uniform Civil Code, positive to idea of simultaneous polls

Chandigarh: Listing out the measures taken by his government to compensate <keyword id="19934969" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="farmers" source="keywords">farmers</keyword> over this year's subnormal rain, Haryana Chief Minister <keyword id="20928101" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="nayab-singh-saini" source="keywords">Nayab Singh Saini</keyword> countered the <keyword id="19895371" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Congress" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Congress" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Congress">Congress</keyword> criticism over the issue, saying the opposition party would give only "meagre amounts" while it was in power. Stepping up the attack ahead of the possible announcement of assembly polls in the state, <keyword id="20361506" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Saini" source="keywords">Saini</keyword>, addressing a press conference on Friday, hit out at Congress's '<keyword id="22376578" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Haryana-Maange-Hisab" source="keywords">Haryana Maange Hisab</keyword>' campaign and accused it of spreading lies. Asked if he has any information on whether Haryana's poll dates will be announced later in the day, Saini quipped: "Who said so? Polls will be held as per schedule." The chief minister pointed to the recent cabinet decision to compensate farmers affected by less rains at a rate of Rs 2,000 per acre as a bonus. "We have released the first instalment of Rs 525 crore on Friday," he said. All the farmers who have registered on the designated portal will be compensated for their losses, he said. Saini said the BJP-led government in the state has taken several steps for farmers' welfare in the past ten years. "Congress sheds crocodile tears in the name of farmers. They should tell how much crops they procured from farmers in the ten years between 2005-2014," Saini said. "During their rule, Congress used to handover cheques of meagre amounts of Rs 2, Rs 5 for crop damage. The <keyword id="19894848" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="BJP" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="BJP" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="BJP">BJP</keyword> government has given Rs 13,276 crore as compensation to farmers for crop damage in the past ten years," he said. During the Congress rule, farmers would "dump their produce" on roads as they did not get the required price, the CM said. Under the BJP government, payment is made to the farmers' bank accounts within 72 hours, Saini said. Dubbing the 'Haryana Maange Hisab' campaign as a "jhooth ki yatra" (yatra of lies), he added, "Those who are seeking an account from us, I want to show them the mirror and tell them how we are taking decisions in favour of farmers and empowering them," he said. Saini said while the Congress is wearing a mask of honesty these days, everyone knows how farmers' land was "snatched by them in the name of CLU (change of land use)" and handed them over to builders. The Congress has been attacking the BJP as part of its 'Haryana Maange Hisab' campaign, after its launch on July 15, targeting the ruling party over several issues concerning farmers as well as unemployment, law and order and others.

Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini attacks Cong's 'Haryana Maange Hisab' campaign, asks what it did for farmers

The <keyword id="19895345" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Supreme-Court" source="keywords">Supreme Court</keyword> on Monday deferred by six weeks hearing on a plea of Chief Minister <keyword id="19901384" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Arvind-Kejriwal" source="keywords">Arvind Kejriwal</keyword> challenging a <keyword id="19895875" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Delhi-High-Court" source="keywords">Delhi High Court</keyword> order upholding the summons issued to him in a criminal <keyword id="19917023" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="defamation-case" source="keywords">defamation case</keyword> for retweeting an allegedly defamatory video circulated by YouTuber <keyword id="21917603" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dhruv-Rathee" source="keywords">Dhruv Rathee</keyword> in 2018. A bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna, Sanjay Kumar and R Mahadevan posted the matter for hearing after six weeks after senior <keyword id="22757218" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="advocate-Abhishek-Singhvi" source="Orion">advocate Abhishek Singhvi</keyword>, appearing for <keyword id="19895701" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="kejriwal" source="keywords">Kejriwal</keyword>, sought some more time to work out a settlement. "We express regret but some more time may be given (for settlement). Currently, too many things are going on in this man's life," Singhvi submitted. Advocate Raghav Awasthi, appearing for the complainant, submitted that time may be given (to Kejriwal) but it should not be unlimited and some negotiations have to take place. Singhvi submitted that although he (Kejriwal) expresses regret for the tweet but it cannot be on his (complainant's) terms. The bench posted the matter for hearing after six weeks to enable the parties reach a settlement. Earlier, Kejriwal has admitted that he "committed a mistake" by retweeting the alleged defamatory video. On March 11, the top court asked Kejriwal whether he wanted to give an apology to the complainant in the matter. Kejriwal had on February 26 told the apex court that he made a mistake by retweeting the allegedly defamatory video related to the <keyword id="20738764" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="BJP-IT-Cell" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="BJP IT Cell" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="BJP IT Cell">BJP IT Cell</keyword>. The counsel appearing for complainant Vikas Sankrityayan had told the top court that Kejriwal may issue an apology on social media platforms like microblogging platform 'X' or Instagram. On February 26, the apex court, without issuing notice on Kejriwal's plea challenging the high court order, had asked the complainant whether he wanted to close the matter in view of the petitioner accepting it was a mistake. The top court had asked the trial court not to take up the defamation case involving Kejriwal till further orders. In its February 5 verdict, the high court said that reposting alleged libellous content would attract the defamation law. It said a sense of responsibility has to be attached while retweeting content about which one does not have knowledge and added that retweeting defamatory content must invite penal, civil as well as tort action if the person retweeting it does not attach a disclaimer. The high court, while refusing to quash the trial court's 2019 order summoning Kejriwal, had said when a public figure tweets a defamatory post, the ramifications extend far beyond a mere whisper in someone's ears. It had said if the act of retweeting or reposting is allowed to be misused as it is still considered to be a vacant grey area of law, it will encourage people with ill intentions to misuse it and conveniently take a plea that they had merely retweeted a content. The chief minister had said in the high court that the trial court failed to appreciate that his tweet was not intended or likely to harm the complainant. Sankrityayan claimed the YouTube video titled 'BJP IT Cell Part II' was circulated by Rathee, who lives in Germany, "wherein a number of false and defamatory allegations were made".

Defamation case: Supreme Court defers hearing on Arvind Kejriwal's plea to enable settlement by six weeks

INDIA bloc leaders gathered at <keyword id="19895812" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Jantar-Mantar" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Jantar Mantar" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Jantar Mantar">Jantar Mantar</keyword> here on Tuesday to demand the release of Delhi Chief Minister <keyword id="19901384" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Arvind-Kejriwal" source="keywords">Arvind Kejriwal</keyword> amid his declining health and hit out at the BJP-led Centre for "suppressing" the voice of <keyword id="19895395" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="opposition" source="keywords">opposition</keyword>. They also blamed the Centre for obstructing the work of the Delhi government, therefore leading to the recent incident in Rajinder Nagar where three students died after getting trapped in a flooded basement of a coaching centre. Slogans of "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" and "End dictatorship" were raised during the <keyword id="19895811" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="protest" source="keywords">protest</keyword> rally called by the <keyword id="19914482" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="AAP" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="AAP" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="AAP">AAP</keyword>. CPI(ML) Liberation leader Dipankar Bhattacharya said three senior AAP leaders -- Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain were put in jail as "part of a conspiracy". He also accused the Centre of obstructing the work of the Delhi government, and held them responsible for the situation in the national capital, including the Rajinder Nagar coaching centre deaths. "The Modi government is responsible for the anarchy in Delhi. This anarchy took the lives of the three <keyword id="20217536" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="UPSC-aspirants" source="keywords">UPSC aspirants</keyword> in Rajinder Nagar. <keyword id="19894848" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="BJP" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="BJP" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="BJP">BJP</keyword> took the lives of three UPSC aspirants," Bhattacharya said during the rally. "They tried to end AAP, weaken Delhi government as part of a conspiracy. The elected chief minister is in jail. Umar Khalid and many activists are in jail in false charges in Delhi riots. Bhima Koregaon fake case, father Stan Swamy was in jail and he even died while in custody. There is a huge conspiracy against leaders, activists," he said. The BJP-led Centre is "trying to suppress the voice of those who oppose them", he said. "Six months ago when Arvind ji, Hemant ji were arrested, we knew it was a conspiracy because Lok Sabha elections were there," he said. "Hemant ji came out, there was an appeal to stop his bail but it was dismissed. Kejriwal ji was released for less than a month. Now though he has been given a bail there is a conspiracy to keep him in jail," he said. "It is a conspiracy to finish a democratically elected government and a political party," Bhattacharya said, urging the people to give their reply to the BJP in upcoming assembly polls in Haryana, Maharashtra and Jharkhand by defeating the BJP. "The recent mandate has proved that people won't tolerate tyranny. We will ensure justice,"he added. Communist Party of India general secretary D Raja also demanded the immediate release of the Delhi chief minister, and expressed concerns about his health. "After BJP's coming to power, democracy is no longer 'for' the people, democracy is 'far' from people, democracy is not 'of' the people, it is 'off' the people, and it is not 'by' the people, it is 'buy' the people," Raja said. "Kejriwal is one of the victims of the central agencies used by the Modi government. Can we allow this? How much longer can we tolerate this situation in the country. Kejriwal is not well and his health has deteriorated," he said. AAP Delhi convener Gopal Rai said Kejriwal's sugar levels are going down in custody. "He was granted bail by trial court and Supreme Court but a conspiracy was hatched to keep him in jail. Why does BJP want to put opposition leaders in jail? Who is responsible for the deaths of the three UPSC aspirants?" Rai said. "When LG is being asked about the incident, he is quiet. The BJP, which is demanding Kejriwal's resignation, snatched away the powers of the Delhi government. They want rights but run away when they are held accountable," he charged. has been accusing the BJP of "conspiring to kill" Kejriwal in jail and cited his medical report to show that his sugar levels have fallen 34 times between June 3 and July 7. Nationalist <keyword id="19895371" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Congress" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Congress" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Congress">Congress</keyword> Party - Sharadchandra Pawar (NCP-SP) chief Sharad Pawar and Deputy Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi are also present in the INDIA bloc rally. Congress Rajya Sabha MP Pramod Tiwari referred to Kejriwal's wife Sunita as a "symbol of resistance" as he began his address. "We have come to give complete moral support to AAP and Kejriwal on behalf of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, and party leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in the struggle against illegal arrest of Arvind Kejriwal. The arrest of Kejriwal in an illegal and unconstitutional manner indicate nothing but the bad intentions of the BJP," he alleged. Tiwari said it was "height" of inhumanity to keep Kejriwal in jail despite his medical reports showing dip in his blood sugar to a dangerous level. The Congress and AAP had fought the recent Lok Sabha elections in Delhi in alliance. AAP had fielded candidates on four seats and Congress on three seats. However, the alliance drew a blank. Gogoi warned the BJP and its leaders saying they cannot scare the opposition whether it is AAP, Congress or any other party. "Their illusion lies shattered with this rally. If fair Lok Sabha elections had been held in 2024, the BJP would have been in opposition and we would have been in power. The BJP-led government is not going to complete its five-year term," he stressed. Kejriwal was arrested on March 21 by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case linked to the alleged excise policy scam and has been granted bail by the Supreme Court. However, he is currently lodged in Tihar in a connected CBI case.

INDIA bloc leaders gather at Jantar Mantar, demand release of Delhi CM Kejriwal

<keyword id="1575" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="congress" source="Orion">Congress</keyword> president <keyword id="19897159" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mallikarjun-Kharge" source="keywords">Mallikarjun Kharge</keyword> on Monday wrote an open letter to the country's bureaucracy on the eve of counting of votes for the <keyword id="19923279" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lok-Sabha-elections" source="keywords">Lok Sabha elections</keyword>, urging officers to adhere to the Constitution and serve the nation "without fear, favour and ill-will against anybody". "Do not get intimidated by anyone. Do not bow down to any unconstitutional means. Do not be afraid of anyone and discharge your duties, based on merit, on this counting day," he wrote. "We owe it to future generations, a vibrant Democracy and a long-lasting Constitution, as penned by the makers of modern India," he said. The counting of votes polled in the Lok Sabha elections will be held on Tuesday. <div type="javascript" title="Custom" contenttype="Infographic"><cdata><![CDATA[]]></cdata></div> "In this hope that India remains truly Democratic in nature, I extend good wishes to each one of you, and expect that our eternal ideals of the Constitution remain untarnished," the Congress chief said. In his appeal to all civil servants and officers, he said he is writing in his capacity of the Leader of the Opposition (Rajya Sabha) and as the president of the <keyword id="19964138" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-National-Congress" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Indian National Congress" meta.hostid="83" meta.entityid="Indian National Congress">Indian National Congress</keyword>. He congratulated the Election Commission of India, the Central Armed Police Forces, state police forces, civil servants, district collectors, volunteers and all in the bureaucracy who were involved in the smooth conduct of the mammoth general elections. "Our inspiration and India's First Home Minister, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel famously called the civil servants as the 'Steel frame of India'. The people of India are well aware that it is the Indian National Congress which established numerous institutions, laid their solid foundation, and devised mechanisms for their independence, on the basis of the Constitution of India. "Independence of the institutions is paramount, for every civil servant takes oath of the Constitution that they 'will faithfully and conscientiously discharge their duties and will do right to all manner of people in accordance with the Constitution and the law, without fear or favour, affection or ill-will'," he said. "In this spirit we expect every bureaucrat and officer - from top to bottom of the hierarchy, to discharge their duties in the spirit of the Constitution, without any coercion, threat, pressure or intimidation either from the ruling party/coalition or from the opposition party/coalition," the Congress chief said in his letter. He said that the Congress, through the Constitution prepared by inspirational founding members such as Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, B R Ambedkar, Rajendra Prasad, Maulana Azad, Sarojini Naidu and countless others, not only created a framework of strong governance, but also ensured affirmative action through representation of the marginalised in the bureaucracy and the civil society. "The last decade has witnessed a systemic pattern to assault, undermine and suppress our autonomous institutions by the ruling party. India's Democratic ethos are being consequently damaged. There is a widespread tendency to turn India into a regimental dictatorship. "We are increasingly seeing some institutions shedding their independence and brazenly following the diktats of the ruling party. Some have completely adopted their style of communication, their way of functioning, and in some cases even their political rhetoric," Kharge said. But it is not their fault, he said. "With brute power, threat, coercive mechanisms and misuse of agencies, this tendency to bow to the powers that have become a way for their short-term survival. Even though, in this denigration, India's Constitution and Democracy have become a casualty." The Congress chief also said that the "will of the people" is supreme, and people want Indian bureaucracy to again be the same 'Steel frame of India' as envisaged by Sardar Patel. "Indian National Congress now urges the entire bureaucracy, to adhere to the Constitution, enact their duties, and serve the nation, without fear, favour and ill-will against anybody," Kharge said. Counting for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections would be held on Tuesday, and both the ruling NDA and the opposition INDIA bloc have claimed victory. Meanwhile, BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya shared a purported letter of the Congress in which it has asked all its cadres to reach the counting centres. However, there was no confirmation of the letter from the Congress. "<keyword id="1571" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="congress-party" source="Orion">Congress party</keyword>'s instruction to its workers' reads like a manual to riot...There is absolutely no merit in asking people to assembly in state and district offices because counting happens in a designated secure zone for each Lok Sabha, unless the idea is to unleash mobs and disrupt the process," Malviya said in a post on X while sharing the unsigned letter of the Congress.

'Follow Constitution, serve nation without fear': Congress chief Kharge writes open letter to bureaucrats

Descendants of royal families, who are contesting the 2024 <keyword id="19923279" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lok-Sabha-elections" source="keywords">Lok Sabha elections</keyword> on <keyword id="19894848" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="BJP" source="keywords">BJP</keyword> tickets, have performed fairly well with a majority of them leading with a huge margin on their respective seats. <keyword id="29632" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="jyotiraditya-scindia" source="Orion">Jyotiraditya Scindia</keyword>, the scion of the erstwhile royal family of Gwalior who severed his 18-year-long ties with the <keyword id="19895371" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Congress" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Congress" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Congress">Congress</keyword> in 2020 and joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is leading with over 5 lakh votes from the Guna parliamentary constituency in <keyword id="19898705" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Madhya-Pradesh" source="keywords">Madhya Pradesh</keyword>. The Union civil aviation minister is pitted against the Congress' Rao Yadvendra Singh. This is the first time in his political career that Scindia (53) is contesting as a BJP candidate from Guna, which was earlier represented by his late father Madhavrao Scindia and late grandmother Vijayaraje Scindia. The BJP is having a clean sweep in Madhya Pradesh by securing huge vote margins on all 29 seats. Another royal candidate Dushyant Singh, Prince of Dholpur state in <keyword id="19898913" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rajasthan" source="keywords">Rajasthan</keyword>, who has been elected four times in the past, is also leading from Jhalawar-Baran with over 3.5 lakh votes against his rival Urmila Jain of the Congress. Mahima Kumari Mewar, the wife of <keyword id="21351143" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="vishvaraj-singh" source="keywords">Vishvaraj Singh</keyword> Mewar who is a descendant of Maharana Pratap, is also leading from Rajsamand Lok Sabha seat in Rajasthan with around 4 lakh votes against her nearest rival Dr Damodar Gurjar of the Congress. In Rajasthan, the BJP has won one seat and is leading on 13 out of 25 parliamentary constituencies. In the south, <keyword id="20932800" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="yaduveer-krishnadatta-chamaraja-wadiyar" source="keywords">Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar</keyword>, 31-year-old US-educated who was crowned as the titular head of the erstwhile Mysuru royal family in 2015 making him the 27th 'King' of the Wadiyar dynasty, is a BJP candidate for the Mysuru Lok Sabha seat. Yaduveer is leading with over 1.3 lakh votes against Congress' candidates M Lakshmana from this seat. As per the latest trend, the BJP has won one seat and leading on 15 seats out of 28 parliamentary seats in Karnataka. The Congress is leading on 10 seats. In Odisha, while contesting as a BJP candidate, Malvika Devi, wife of former MP Arka Keshari Deo, a member of the royal family of Kalahandi district, is leading with about one lakh votes against her nearest rival Lambodar Nial of Biju Janata Dal (BJD). The BJP has put up a significant performance in Odisha as its candidates are leading on 19 out of 21 seats. Among the Northeastern states, Kriti Singh Debbarma, a member of the Tripura's erstwhile royal family, who is a joint candidate of the regional party Tipra Motha and the BJP, is leading with over 5.5 lakh votes on Tripura East seat from her nearest rival Rajendra Reang of the Communist Party of India (CPI). Tripura has two parliamentary constituencies and the BJP is leading on both of them. Among the losing royal challengers of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections is Vikramaditya Singh, who is contesting from the Congress from the Mandi Lok Sabha seat. Singh, the heir of the Rampur royal family and son of the late Virbhadra Singh, a six-time chief minister of Himachal Pradesh, is trailing as his rival, actress-turned-politician Kangna Ranaut of the BJP, is ahead of him with over 70,000 votes. Another royal candidate is Rajmata Amrita Roy from the Krishnanagar seat in West Bengal, who is also trailing by over 50,000 votes against Trinamool Congress' (TMC) Mahua Moitra. Roy, married to the family of Maharaja Krishnachandra Roy, is revered as the "Rani Maa" or Queen Mother by the constituency, carrying a legacy rich in tradition and aristocracy.

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