India Political Highlights: Mob attacks police outside polling booth in Bihar's Purnea, states see moderate to high turnout

Opposition stays away from all-party meeting on reservation issue in Maharashtra

The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) stayed away from an all-party meeting on the reservation issue convened by the Maharashtra government on Tuesday evening amid the ongoing agitation by the Maratha community for quota under the OBC category.

-PTI

Read more

Assembly bypolls: People turn up to cast their votes in West Bengal's Raiganj

PM Modi arrives in Austria to further deepen bilateral ties

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived here on Tuesday from Moscow on a two-day visit to Austria during which the two nations will explore ways to further deepen their bilateral relationship and closer cooperation on the many geopolitical challenges.

Read more

Bengal constituencies: Maniktala in Kolkata, Ranaghat Dakshin and Bagdah in North 24 Parganas

Polling began for by-elections in four assembly seats in West Bengal on Wednesday, amid heavy deployment of security forces, an official said.

Voting started at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm.

Three of the four constituencies - Maniktala in Kolkata, Ranaghat Dakshin and Bagdah in North 24 Parganas - are in the southern part of the state.

The fourth, Raiganj, is in north Bengal’s Uttar Dinajpur district.

There are around 10 lakh voters across the four assembly segments.

The Election Commission has deployed around 70 companies of security forces to secure 1,097 polling booths spread across the four assembly seats.

The counting will take place on July 13.

- PTI

Bihar constituency: Rupauli

Polling began for the by-election to the Rupauli assembly seat in Bihar on Wednesday, amid tight security arrangements, an official said.

The voting started at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm.

More than three lakh voters will decide the electoral fate of 11 candidates.

The bypoll was necessitated by the resignation of sitting MLA Bima Bharti, who won the seat for JD(U) several times but quit the party to contest Lok Sabha elections on an RJD ticket.

She lost her deposit in the parliamentary poll and is again in the fray for the bypoll as an RJD candidate.

The JD(U) has fielded Kaladhar Prasad Mandal, who had contested the 2020 assembly polls from Rupauli as an Independent.

Former MLA Shankar Singh, who had quit the LJP (Ram Vilas) headed by Union minister Chirag Paswan, is also in the fray as an Independent.

- PTI

Tamil Nadu constituency: Vikravandi

Polling began for the by-election to Vikravandi assembly constituency in Tamil Nadu on Wednesday with people arriving at polling stations enthusiastically from 7 am onwards to exercise their franchise.

A total of 29 candidates are in the fray, while the counting of votes will be taken up on July 13.

There are 2.34 lakh voters, including 1.15 lakh men and 1.18 women voters in the constituency.

Tight security arrangements have been made at the polling booths in a triangular contest with ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's candidate Anniyur Siva (alias Sivashanmugam A) pitted against Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) C Anbumani and Naam Tamilar Katchi's K Abinaya.

The principal opposition All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and its ally Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) have decided to boycott the bypoll.

PMK, an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party, and Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) are determined to upset the ruling DMK’s prospects at the hustings.

The seat fell vacant following the death of DMK legislator N Pughazhendhi, who died due to illness on April 6.

- PTI

Mayawati says SIT report in Hathras stampede case is politically motivated

The BSP leader, "The tragic death of 121 innocent women and children etc. in the stampede at the Satsang in Hathras district of UP is a living proof of government negligence, but the report presented to the government by the SIT seems to be more politically motivated than based on the gravity of the incident, which is very sad."

Bihar: 18.48 pc voter turnout till 11 am in Rupauli assembly bypoll

A voter turnout of 18.48 per cent was recorded till 11 am in the by-election to the Rupauli Assembly seat in Bihar on Wednesday, an official said.

Polling, which started at 7 am, will continue until 6 pm.

Over three lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise to determine the fate of 11 candidates in the bypoll.

-PTI

Himachal records 15.99 per cent polling in first two hours

A voter turnout of 15.99 per cent was recorded in the first two hours of polling on Wednesday for the bypolls in three assembly segments of Himachal Pradesh.

Voting started at 7 am at 315 polling stations. While Dehra recorded a turnout of 15.70 percent, Hamirpur recorded 15.71 percent and Nalagarh 16.48 percent, poll officials said.

A total of 2,59,340 people are eligible to cast their vote in the three assembly seats which fell vacant after the three independent legislators Hoshiyar Singh (Dehra), Ashish Sharma (Hamirpur) and K L Thakur (Nalagarh), who had voted in favour of the BJP in the Rajya Sabha polls held on February 27, resigned from the House on March 22.

-PTI

Uttarakhand bypolls: 26.99 per cent polling in Manglaur, 21.20 per cent in Badrinath till 11 am

A voter turnout of 26.99 per cent was recorded in Manglaur assembly bypoll and 21.20 per cent in Badrinath assembly bypoll in Uttarakhand till 11 am on Wednesday, officials said.

Voting began at 8 am and will go on till 6 pm, they said.

The Manglaur bypoll was necessitated by the death of sitting BSP MLA Sarwat Karim Ansari in October last year. The Badrinath seat fell vacant after sitting Congress MLA Rajendra Bhandari resigned and switched to the BJP in March this year.

In Manglaur assembly constituency in Haridwar district, some people were injured as workers of two political parties clashed with each other at a polling booth.

-PTI

Reports of violence emerging from Uttarakhand's Manglaur during assembly polls

Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole has filed nomination papers for elections to president of Mumbai Cricket Association

Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole.

Expected more, solid announcements for inflation & unemployment: Sachin Pilot reacts to Rajasthan Budget

"We were expecting some solid announcements regarding the inflation and unemployment. People are struggling for water and electricity. They just presented it. They could not fulfil the announcements made in agriculture. They have announced jobs but could not implement the jobs given by our government. There would not be significant impact of Budget on people," the Congress leader said today.

Congress counters BJP's 'balak buddhi' jibe, shares PM's video of 'gaffes'

A mob attacked a police party leaving two officials injured in Bihar

In Purnea, Sub Divisional Police Officer (Sadar) Pushkar Kumar said, "A large crowd gathered at a booth in Bhawanipur block. When the police personnel on duty asked the bystanders to disperse, they were attacked with stones and sticks".

The SDPO added that polling got disrupted for some time because of the clash in which a sub-inspector and a constable were injured.

Moderate to high turnout amid bypolls; sporadic incidents of violence in Uttarakhand, Bengal and Bihar

Moderate to high turnout was recorded in 13 assembly constituencies across seven states where bypolls were held on Wednesday amid sporadic incidents of violence in Uttarakhand, Bihar and West Bengal.

Voting time was from 7 am to 6 pm. According to the Voter Turnout app of the Election Commission (EC), Tamil Nadu's Vikravandi assembly seat registered the highest polling percentage among the 13 constituencies and Uttarakhand's Badrinath seat saw the lowest turnout. (PTI)