Bhubaneswar: Signalling a perilous portend for the democracy in Odisha, the 2019 verdict has a shocker for the State. Voters in the State have opted for NOTA (none of the above) in a big way and the gravity is it played a crucial role in determining the fate of winning candidates. Such a menacing trend […]
As the Sunday evening progresses, one after another exit polls keep playing the same tune ‘phir ek baar Modi sarkar’. Almost all the exit polls telecast today are unanimous on the return of the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to power winning a thumping majority of seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. CVOTER-IANS […]
By Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: As parties await May 23 with bated breath indications are that it is going to be a tight race between BJP and its rivals. The BJP may not like such a scenario to emerge but it has to prepare itself for that. Newspaper reports suggest that Congress is already reaching out […]
Bhubaneswar: Amid political speculations on increasing nearness between the BJP and BJD, senior saffron party leader and former minister Damodar Rout on Wednesday created a flutter by claiming that Odisha might witness a hung Assembly in 2019 polls as BJP will win a number of seats. “In the last elections, BJP managed to win only […]
Cuttack: The Orissa High Court (HC) today granted anticipatory bail to BJP MLA candidate from Satyabadi Assembly constituency Om Prakash Mishra in connection with the alleged vandalisation of EVM in a booth in Puri during the third phase polls. As per the High Court order, no police action can be initiated against Mishra until further […]
Mayurbhanj: Despite widespread awareness to cast vote, as many as 450 voters of three villages in Mayurbhanj district refrained from exercising their adult franchise during the fourth phase of general elections in Odisha on Monday alleging delay in construction of bridge in their area. Hundreds of residents of Balama, Talabalama and Madakami villages in Kundabai […]
Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Electoral officer Surendra Kumar on Saturday admitted that a control unit from booth no 62 under Brahmagiri Assembly Constituency (AC) is ‘missing’. Addressing a presser, Kumar informed that the particular control unit was not kept in the specified strong room and there were lapses on part of the official who received the […]
Jajpur: Coming down hard on the Centre, BJD supremo and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today asserted that BJP will definitely lose the 2019 general elections. While addressing poll meetings in Balasore, Bhadrak and Jajpur which will go to polls in the fourth phase, Patnaik questioned why despite having double engine government in MP, Chhattisgarh, […]
Bhubaneswar: As 2019 election battle in Odisha gains momentum, several incidents of violence from different parts of the State have now emerged as a major concern. Moreover, the ruling-BJD and BJP are now at loggerheads with leaders of either party blaming each other for such unrest. Be it the attack on BJP candidates in Bhubaneswar […]
Bhubaneswar: At a time when BJP heavyweights are making whirlwind tours to Odisha, the Congress has now pinned hope on AICC president Rahul Gandhi who is slated to attend a series of public meetings in the State ahead of the third and fourth phase polls. Rahul is likely to visit Odisha twice and attend address […]
Bhubaneswar: Campaigning for the upcoming polls in Odisha by BJP’s top brass hit fever pitch with party’s firebrand leader and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath addressing public rallies in Odisha today. Unable to get permission to take a chopper ride due to delay, Yogi who was scheduled to attend party’s Vijay Sankalp Samabesh at […]
Jagatsinghpur: Tension erupted at Mundala Chhak in Naugaon area of the district after clashes broke out between two groups of BJD workers during a poll campaign. According to sources, volunteers of Jagatsinghpur BJD leader Amarendra Das allegedly stopped the supporters of local party candidate Prasant Muduli while the latter was conducting a roadshow near Mundala […]
Bhubaneswar: Amid rising dissidence over allotment of tickets, the ruling-BJD today declared candidates for nine Assembly constituencies in Odisha. Reposing faith on sitting legislators, the party has fielded six-time MLA Pradeep Maharathy from Pipili and Samir Ranjan Das from Nimapara Assembly seat. Similarly, Pramod Mallick, the current party MLA from Niali constituency, Kakatpur MLA Surendra […]
Bhubaneswar: While the BJP, to achieve its 120+ seats-mission, has roped in former IAS officer Aparajita Sarangi for the Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha constituency, the ruling-BJD in the State has turned to former Mumbai top cop Arup Patnaik. Along with the reputation that is associated with winning the mandate of people in country’s leading Smart City, […]
Bhubaneswar: With the general elections just around the corner, it’s not just the politicians who are facing pressure of the electoral race, but musicians and singers are also busy churning out music for several political parties. As the parties have announced most of their candidates, campaigning has also gathered pace. While contestants are reaching out […]
Koraput: Ahead of the crucial elections in Odisha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today kicked off party’s poll campaign in the State by addressing a mega public meeting at Jeypore in Koraput district. Modi launched scathing attacks both on Congress and the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) for keeping Odisha backward for decades. “People of Odisha […]
Bhubaneswar: With growing dissidence within the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) following the release of its candidate list, the party has reportedly braced itself up to bring immediate changes in its strategy of ticket allotment. The BJD is so much wary of the brewing resentment within the party that even after selection of candidates for the […]
Bhubaneswar: After two Congress leaders, Sadan Nayak and Mala Madhi filed nominations ahead of the ticket announcement; Kotpad MLA Chandrasekhar Majhi today filed his nomination papers as well without waiting for the official announcement. Justifying his action, Majhi said that as it is getting a bit late, people of his constituency want him to file […]
Bhubaneswar: Disappointed with the candidate list announced by the party late last night, Congress chief whip Tara Prasad Bahinipati today expressed that despite being a senior leader, he feels he doesn’t have a say in any decision taken by the party. Bahinipati also claimed that it is party working president Pradeep Majhi who calls the […]
Bhubaneswar: As general elections inch closer, political parties are lining up visits of their stalwarts to Odisha. BJP chief Amit Shah’s back-to-back Odisha visits, followed by Nitin Gadkari and former Jharkhand CM Arjun Munda’s visit to Keonjhar today, the saffron party is leaving no stone unturned to make its Mission 120 plus seats successful. As […]
New Delhi: Assembly elections in Haryana, Maharashtra and Jharkhand–all three ruled by the BJP– may be advanced by several months to be held with the Lok Sabha elections in April-May this year. While elections for the Assemblies of Haryana and Maharashtra are due in October this year that of Jharkhand are scheduled for December. There […]
Bhubaneswar: Setting the tone for the upcoming general elections slated to be held in a few months from now, BJP chief Amit Shah is now scheduled to make back to back visits to Odisha. Party’s State in-charge Arun Singh today informed that Shah, who is scheduled to visit Odisha tomorrow will also come to the […]
New Delhi: Rejecting the demand of major opposition parties, the Election Commission on Thursday ruled out going back to the era of ballot papers and asserted it cannot be “bullied or coerced” into discarding the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and VVPATs. “We are going to keep on using EVMs. We are going to keep on […]
Sundergarh: Issuing a stern warning to officials, Sundergarh Collector Surendra Meena on Saturday suspended two government officials for their alleged dereliction of duty. As per reports, Additional Block Education Officer (BEO), Bisra, Sarat Kumar Pati and Vedavyasa UP School Headmaster Bibekananda Das were suspended for allegedly showing laxity in work during Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) […]
Bhubaneswar/Bolangir: Prime Minister Narendra Modi may have gone soft on the ruling-BJD once again, but Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan made sure he did not miss such opportunity and trained his guns on the State government during ‘Jabab Maguchhi Odisha’ programme in Bolangir today. Addressing the public rally, Pradhan stated that the Centre is committed towards […]
Bhubaneswar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday lashed out at the Odisha government alleging non-utilisation of District Mineral Foundation (DMF) funds towards the development of the areas and people affected by mining related operations. Addressing a huge gathering at Bolangir, Modi said that Odisha has over Rs 4000 crore in its DMF funds but it […]
Bhubaneswar: The defeat in the recently-concluded assembly elections in the hindi-heartland seems to have taken the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by surprise and the party seems to be in no mood to take any chances on its ‘look-east’ policy. Continuing its focus on eastern states like Odisha and West Benagal, the star campaigners of BJP, […]
Bhubaneswar: In a bid to create awareness among voters about Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) & voter verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) machine ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in the state, a ‘voter awareness vehicle’ was flagged off from the capital city today. As per reports, Khurda collector Nirmal Chandra Mishra flagged […]
Bhubaneswar: Criticising the Naveen Patnaik-led BJD government in Odisha, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Sunday said that the State government is trying to avoid basic issues such as price, pension and farm loan waiver by announcing the Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation (KALIA) scheme. He alleged that the Odisha government has no intention […]
Bhubaneswar: Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) chief Niranjan Patnaik today launched a scathing attack on Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Prime Minister Narendra Modi alleging their indifference to the issues concerning the people of Odisha. He accused Naveen-Modi of trying to fool the people by promising false assurances. The OPCC chief said that Modi’s […]
Bhubaneswar/Kendrapara: With elections round the corner and Prime Minister Narendra Modi set to visit Odisha on December 24, the party’s Kendrapara workers are all geared up to welcome the PM. The Kendrapara unit of BJP on Friday held a meeting under the chairmanship of State BJP president Basant Panda at the party office in the […]
Bhubaneswar: Despite defeat in the recently-concluded assembly elections in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is confident of winning big in Odisha during the upcoming general polls. BJP national president Amit Shah, while speaking during the ‘Republic Summit 2018’ in Mumbai said that the party will win more seats in the […]
Mumbai/Pune: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is reaching here Tuesday on a day’s visit to Maharashtra in which he will launch infrastructure and housing projects worth about Rs 41,000 crore in the state, officials said. Soon after landing at Mumbai, Modi will attend an event organised by a TV channel and later release the book ‘Timeless […]
New Delhi: In the wake of BJP’s defeat in three big states which many attributed to growing farm distress, the party-led Maharasthra government is considering a host of measures like ex-gratia grant and transport subsidy for onion growers to provide them relief against sliding prices. The Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) has suffered a rural drubbing […]
New Delhi: Calling for extensive debate on issues related to public interest, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday hoped that matters of national interest will prevail over party considerations ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. His remarks came ahead of the commencement of the winter session of Parliament. “The winter session of Parliament is […]
Bhubaneswar: Disappointing though for the oldest party in the country, the latest war of words between Srikant Jena and Niranjan Patnaik today, after the former’s removal from the party’s manifesto committee for the 2019 polls, clearly doesn’t augur well for rank and cadres besides supporters of the Congress. Jena today brought allegations against Niranjan of […]
New Delhi: Facing intense scrutiny over the misuse of its platform globally during elections, Facebook has announced fresh steps to increase ad transparency and defend against foreign interference ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls in India. Now anyone who wants to run an ad in India related to politics will need to first confirm […]
Bhubaneswar: Senior BJD leader and MLA Mahesh Sahoo on Tuesday dared Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to contest the upcoming general elections from Pallahara Assembly constituency. Though the Petroleum minister has kept all guessing on the constituency from where he will contest, he is already being projected as BJP’s chief ministerial candidate in Odisha for the […]
Bhubaneswar: Just ahead of the 2014 general polls, the then Congress stalwart and Leader of Opposition (LoP) Bhupinder Singh left the party mid-way and joined the BJD giving an unexpected blow to the party. Five years later, with a few months to go for the 2019 elections, speculations are rife that Congress will again witness […]
Bhubaneswar: With the general elections for Lok Sabha and Assembly seats round the corner, the State Chief Electoral Officer will hold an all-party meeting today to discuss several issues pertaining to the poll preparations, sources said. CEO Surendra Kumar will meet leaders and representatives of various political parties and discuss issues like use of EVMs, […]