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BJP top brass discuss
strategy
Exit polls show gains for NDA in
Punjab
Sex workers keep date with
democracy
41 pc polling in New
Delhi
40 pc polling in Tamil Nadu
Three killed in poll violence in W.
Bengal
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EVMs damaged in W. Bengal
AIADMK nominee, minister
hurt Cong firms up post-result
stance Voters boycott poll demanding separate
booth
Drunk presiding officer creates a scene, held
BSP candidate says state party chief bribed him
BSP fielded maximum
nominees
Left Front chief apologises
Assam minister’s
son kidnapped
India condemns Grozny killings
USA, Europe want to partner India in moon mission
Next hearing in Dharmendra case on May 20
Court’s nod to probe charges against Tandon
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BJP top brass discuss
strategy New Delhi, May 10 During the over two-and-a-half-hour-long session, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani and Finance Minister Jaswant Singh were understood to have debated on the possible post-poll political scenario and various strategies to meet them. Even as the BJP leaders were putting up a brave face and asserting that the NDA, along with the party, would get a simple majority, the party’s internal feedback as well as that of the RSS, was understood to have unnerved the top leadership. RSS Chief K M Sudarshan gave an indication when he admitted that small parties might play an important part in the formation of the next government at the Centre. However, Mr Sudarshan said it was not for the BJP to invite these parties but it was for them to decide whether they want to join the NDA. Small parties would play an important part in government formation in case there was no clear mandate, he said after casting his vote in the capital early this morning. The RSS Chief also said it was a good thing that parties could no longer be broken and hence the party as a whole had to decide which way to go. He also canvassed for ‘preferential voting system’ where a prime ministerial candidate required support of at least 10 per cent of the MPs. The top BJP leaders reviewed various scenarios that could emerge after the fourth phase of polling and the steps that may need to be taken in the post-poll situation, party sources said. The sources described the meeting as one that “merely took stock of the political situation”. With 182 seats at stake in this fourth and final phase in many of the states where BJP and its allies were not expected to do well, the leaders discussed the pros and cons of the possible outcome, the sources said. The meeting lasted for about two hours. However, none of them spoke to the waiting media as they left the Prime Minister’s residence. Meanwhile, senior BJP leader and party in charge, Uttar Pradesh, Kalraj Mishra clearly indicated the possibility of the BJP seeking the support of either the Samajwadi Party or the BSP in the event of the NDA falling short of the mid-way mark. “In alliance politics no party is untouchable. The NDA will definitely form the new government under the leadership of Mr Vajpayee and any party willing to accept the NDA agenda could very well join the alliance,” Mr Mishra said when asked whether the BJP could go with the BSP or the SP. |
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Exit polls show gains for NDA in
Punjab
New Delhi, May 10 The Sahara DRS exit poll predicted that the NDA would get between 263 and 278 seats, the Star News projected between 263 and 275 seats. However, the Aaj Tak poll
did not give the NDA a majority and put the final figure for the alliance at 248. The Zee News poll also predicted that the NDA would fall short of
the majority mark and gave
the alliance 249 seats in a House of 543. The Congress and its allies are expected to get between 171 and 181 seats according to the Sahara poll. Aaj Tak said that the Congress led alliance will get 190 seats while Star News projected it would get between 174 and 186 seats. Zee News said the Congress would get 176 seats. Others were given 86-96 seats by Star News, 104 by Aaj Tak, 92 to 102 by Sahara Samay
and Zee News gave 117 seats
to others. In Punjab, the exit poll have projected a big gain for the SAD-BJP combine, while in Uttar Pradesh, the BJP appears to be emerging as the party with the largest number of seats, pushing the Samajwadi Party to the second spot. According to the Sahara Samay poll the SAD-BJP combine would get 12 seats with the remaining seat would go to Congress. Aaj Tak said the SAD-BJP would get nine seats, the Congress three and others one. Zee News predicted that the SAD-BJP combine would get eight seats and the Congress would get four seats. In Uttar Pradesh, the Sahara Samay poll gave the BJP 29 seats, Congress eight seats and others (which includes SP and BSP) 43 seats. The Aaj Tak poll predicted that the BJP would 30 seats in UP, Congress 8, SP 29, BSP 12 and other one. Zee News predicted that BJP would get 28 seats in UP, Congress 11, SP 21, BSP 19 and others one. In Haryana the NDA is set to lose considerable ground with Aaj Tak predicting that it would get two seats, the Congress five and others three seats. Zee News also predicted huge gains for the Congress in Haryana and said that it would get five seats, the BJP 3 and others 2. Sahara Samay said that the BJP would get three seats in the state, the Congress five and others two. In Himachal Pradesh, Aaj Tak said the NDA would get only one seat while the Congress would obtain three seats. According to Zee News, the BJP repeats in 1999 feat. Its score stands at three and the Congress is expected to bag |
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Sex workers keep date with democracy
New Delhi, May 10 With their faces covered, sex workers of G. B. Road, Delhi’s largest red light area, reached polling stations in small groups to exercise franchise. The four polling booths of the area recorded a turnout of nearly 50 per cent, a figure which is better than the areas inhabiting educated middle class voters. While many shied away from mediapersons, particularly camerapersons, some shared with them the motivation they had to participate in the democratic exercise. “There is acute shortage of water in our area. Power cuts are frequent, drains are uncovered and roads are dirty,” said Sonali (name changed) after casting her vote along with four other girls, who complained of rising prices of essential commodities and cosmetics. “Our area is neglected by almost everyone. Casting vote is the only way we can express our anger and wish our mundane desires to be fulfilled,” added Sherry (name changed). Apparently respecting the sex workers’ choice of participating in the democratic exercise, the presiding officer of a polling booth dissuaded press photographers from taking their pictures. —
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41 pc polling in New
Delhi
New Delhi, May 10 The voter turnout was 41 per cent at 4 pm. It was expected to touch 50 per cent by the closing time. The prominent candidates whose fate has been sealed in the electronic voting machines are union ministers Jagmohan, Sahib Singh and Vijay Goel of the BJP and INC’s Sandeep Dikshit, son of Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit. The voter turnout was slow in the beginning but picked up as the day progressed and it became brisk during the last two hours. Till an hour before the closing time, the Chandni Chowk and Sadar constituencies had recorded 43 and 42 per cent voter turnout, respectively. Outer Delhi, Karol Bagh and East Delhi recorded more than 39 per cent turnout. On the other hand, South Delhi, where BJP’s V.K. Malhotra is locked in a fight with R.K. Anand of INC, witnessed the lowest polling of 32 per cent. A low turnout was also recorded in New Delhi, which has Jagmohan of the BJP and Ajay Maken of the INC in the fray, with only 35 per cent of the electorate exercising their franchise. At least 9,042 polling stations were set up and 1,058 of the polling stations were declared as sensitive and 278 polling stations hypersensitive. About 3.50 lakh more voters had been added to the electoral roll after the Assembly election last year. Twelve candidates are in the fray for the Assembly by-election in the Moti Nagar constituency.
Chennai, May 10 The MDMK candidate, Mr A. Ravichandran in Sivakasi, had a narrow escape when some activists belonging to the rival AIADMK allegedly threw a bomb on his car. A large number of voters turned to cast their votes in all polling stations in Tamil Nadu and by noon almost 40 per cent of the voters had cast their ballots. Many voters all over the state complained that despite possessing voters’ identity cards their names were missing from the voters’ lists. A woman voter complained to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa when she went to vote in Chennai. Ms Jayalalithaa said, “This issue is not within the jurisdiction of the Chief Minister. We will ask the state’s Chief Electoral Officer to inquire into these complaints.” Among those who found their names missing in the voters’ list included A.P.J. Mohammad Muthumeeran, the elder brother of President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. After casting his vote DMK president, Mr M. Karunanidhi claimed that the Congress and its allies would form the next government at the Centre and there was no question of his party supporting the NDA. |
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Three killed in poll violence in W.
Bengal
Kolkata, May 10 In some incidents of violence, three persons, one at Domkal( Murshidabad) and two others in Nanur( Birbhum) and Barrackpore (North 24 Parganas) were killed. At Nanur, in a clash between the CPM and the Trinamool Congress, a local TMC leader was killed and several others were injured by gunshot injuries. Some 20 CPM supporters were also hurt. The state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Mr Basudev Bandopadhyya, claimed the poll had been free and fair and there was no major complaint from any political parties on conducting of the polls. The Central observers on election duty moved freely and there was no complaint from anybody. There were a few cases of snatching of EVMs from the polling stations, from where after receiving formal report from the respective electoral officers, the re-polling would be held on May 12, said the CEO. According to the CEO, till 5 p.m, the average percentage of polling had been 45 per cent to 55per cent In Kolkata, there were some incidents of bomb throwing and brickbattings at Beliagathata, Entally and Burtola areas falling within Kolkata NE constituency where the TMC leader, Mr Ajit Kumar and the CPM minister, Mohammed Salim are locked in a battle with the Bollywood actress Moshumi Chatterjee, a Congress candidate. The polling in the Beliaghata area was stopped for some time. At Sonarpur in Kolkata South constituency, the CPM and the TMC workers clashed in which bombs and other lethal weapons were freely used. On this seat, Ms Mamata Banerjee, CPM leader Rabin Dev and Congress’ Nafisa Ali are involved in a triangular contest. However, there was no incident in the MCC-infested areas in Coochbehar, Jalpaiguri and Dinajpur in North Bengal and Purulia, Bankura and Birbhum, where the average turn had been 35 per cent to 40 per cent. In Darjeeling hill areas, the local people, responding to Mr Ghising’s call, voted in favour of the Congress candidate Dawa Norbulla. In the last three Lok sabha polls since 1991, the people in Darjeeling, Kurseong and Kalimpong did not exercise their franchise following poll boycott call by Mr Ghising. Some sporadic incidents of violence were also reported from Malda, Murshidabad, and Birbhum where the party stalwarts like A.B. A Ghani Khan Chaudhury (Congress), Pranab Mukherjee (AICC General Secretary) and Somnath Chatterjee of the CPM are contesting.
Kolkata, May 10 Chief Electoral Officer Basudev Bandopadhyay said clashes led to damage of the EVMs in booth number 93 and 94 at Titagarh under Barrackpore Lok Sabha constituency. The police said polling was halted at a booth in Moyna under the Tamluk parliamentary constituency in East Midnapore district following some disturbances, during which the EVM was either displaced or fell down. The police rushed to the booth, located at a primary school, and retrieved it. The CEO said the Returning Officer was asked to send a detailed report to him about the Moyna incident, adding that preliminary reports had been received from the officers. He said that central observers rushed to Titagarh and Moyna. “Any decision on possible re-poll in the affected booths, will be considered with the receipt of the reports of the Returning officers and the Observers,” the CEO said. He said complaints were also received about EVMs from booths in the Darjeeling and Coochbehar constituencies. —
PTI
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AIADMK nominee, minister hurt
Madurai, May 10 The police said seven persons had been arrested in connection with the incident in which a TV crew member was also injured. The police said an escort of the minister fired in the air to disperse a group which pelted stones at Inbatamizhan’s car. The minister was proceeding to the spot where a clash had earlier taken place between Kannan’s supporters and some MDMK and DMK volunteers at Sitthuparai. While the minister was hospitalised, the candidate was treated and discharged. Referring to the incident in which the candidate was injured, the police said a clash broke out between the two groups after a heated exchange over a “poll survey.” In the clash Kannan was injured. His supporters escorted him to safety. In yet another incident at Tiruparankunram, fans of actor Rajnikanth and DMK volunteers clashed after the former found the volunteers reportedly pinning badges having the actor’s picture on their shirts and doing election work. A police officer rushed to the spot and dispersed the crowd. —
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Cong firms up post-result
stance New Delhi, May 10 At the same time, it also positioned the Congress-led secular alliance as the only alternative at the Centre. By doing so, the Congress also made the first step in projecting its party president Sonia Gandhi as its prime ministerial candidate. Although party spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi reiterated that the leadership issue will be decided through consensus by all the allies after the results come out, he also said Mrs Sonia Gandhi will be the Congress party’s choice for the top job in these post-poll discussions. If the Congress improves its tally substantially, it will be seen as an endorsement of Mrs Gandhi’s leadership. The Congress stance was firmed up at its strategy committee meeting here this evening under the chairmanship of senior leader Manmohan Singh. Based on its own internal assessments and the exit polls, the Congress made it clear that as an incumbent Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee will have no moral right to continue in office in the absence of a clear mandate. “Our assessment is that the NDA is not getting a majority. This amounts to decisive rejection of the ruling combine,” Congress spokesperson Anand Sharma said, stating that if Mr Vajpayee does not get a majority, it means he has not got the mandate. Mr Sharma said it is also their contention that the Congress-led secular alliance is the only alternative which will be in a position to form the next government. The Congress formulation, carefully crafted at today’s meeting, was meant to put pressure on the BJP in case it tries to poach on its allies to make up the shortfall in its numbers. On the other hand, it was also a message to its own allies and prospective partners that the NDA coalition is unlikely to make it. By repeatedly maintaining that the future belongs to a non-NDA, Congress-led secular alternative, the Congress is emphasising that it will not support a third front government as it had done in the past and, if as the single largest party of the alternative alliance, it will be the obvious choice to lead this front. The Congress contention is that it will be possible to have a stable government only if the reins of the government are handed to the single largest party of the alliance. The NDA, it is argued, would not have survived had the BJP supported a smaller party. Although the election results will be out only on May 13, post-poll positioning has already begun. The Congress effort is to ensure that its pre-poll allies are not vulnerable to poaching by the NDA. Its leaders are constantly in touch with their alliance partners. Realising that it will still need the support of either the Samajwadi Party or the BSP to reach the half-way mark, the Congress is learnt to have revived its contacts with the SP. This is based on the belief that the SP will have no choice but to go along with the secular alliance as it would loose its Muslim support base if it joins hands with the NDA. |
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Voters boycott poll demanding separate booth
Chennai, May 10 A report from the district said about 600 persons in Veludhalambedu colony belonging to a particular community boycotted voting demanding that seperate booth be set up for them to cast their votes. This was following some differences they had with the caste Hindus in the village. About 200 voters boycotted polling at Periya Seemavaram village in protest against the shifting of the polling station to a neighbouring village. In other instances of protests, about 400 voters resorted to road blockade at Velayampatti village near Ponneri, as their names had been deleted from the voters’ list. At Vyalur Agara village, about 70 persons protested in front of Thiruvallur Collectorate demanding action against officials responsible for deletion of names of 268 voters from the electoral rolls. —
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Drunk presiding officer creates a scene, held
Dehra Dun, May 10 Police said drunk K.N. Pathak created a scene at the polling booth before he was arrested. The incident took place at around 1130 hours. Udhamsingh Nagar falls under the Nainital Lok Sabha constituency in Uttaranchal. —
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BSP candidate says state party chief bribed him
Bhopal, May 10 Mr Rajendra Raghuvanshi (BSP’s Hoshangabad candidate) claimed that the tape shows Mr Chaudhary’s son, Hitendra, and party General Secretary Ashok Pawar demanding Rs 1 lakh on April 29. However, Mr Chaudhary, who is the BSP candidate from Morena, denied the charge, adding that he would come out with the details before the media. ‘’Mr Raghuvanshi asked me about election expenditure and related material but the same conversation was tampered with,’’ he said. The videotape in possession of Mr Raghuvanshi shows him asking Hitendra that the demand be confirmed by Mr Chaudhary. The tape shows Hitendra contacting his father on a mobile phone and later the senior Chaudhary tells Mr Raghuvanshi that ‘’Since finances are limited, arrangements should be made for as much as possible.’’ —
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New Delhi, May 10 But it is the ‘elephant’ which has already won the race in the 14th general election in at least one area: it has fielded the maximum number of It is neither the Congress nor the BJP which can grab the credit for fielding the maximum number of nominees in the current elections. Surprisingly, the Mayawati-led Of the total 5435 candidates from various parties in the race (excluding Independents), the Congress comes a close second to the BSP by fielding 417 candidates while the BJP is a distant third at 364 nominees. The three other national parties — the CPM, the CPI and the Nationalist Congress Party — have fielded 69, 34 and 32 candidates, respectively. Of the 40 state parties which have fielded candidates in the 14th general election, the Samajwadi Party tops the list with 237 nominees. It is followed by the Janata Dal (United) with 73 nominees, the CPI(ML) with 65, the Shiv Sena with 56, the Janata Dal (Secular) with 43, the Rashtriya Janata Dal with 41 and the All-India Trinamool Congress, the Rashtriya Lok Dal, the Telugu Desam Party and the All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam with 33 each. Others among the state list include the Indian National Lok Dal which has fielded 20 candidates, the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP-19), the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK-16), the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP-12) and the Biju Janata Dal (BJD-12). —
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Left Front chief apologises
Kolkata, May 10 Mr Basu had publicly incited party cadres against some observers, who had formally lodged a complaint to the Election Commission against Mr Basu. Responding to their complaint, the Chief Election Commissioner has asked the state Election Commissioner to file an FIR against Mr Basu for allegedly threatening the observers and obstructing their functioning. |
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Assam minister’s
son kidnapped
Haflong (Assam), May 10 Nirmal, along with two others, was abducted on April 27 by a group of armed youths while they were on their way from Nellie to Umpanai in the Baithalangsu police station area. The other two youths Sanju Phangsu, son of a senior bureaucrat, and Thensum Teron, were released the next day but Langthasa’s family members were sent a ransom note demanding Rs 3 crore, the minister’s family sources said. A close family member said that the police was informed of the incident and negotiations were on to secure the release of Nirmal. The police, when contacted, neither confirmed nor denied the incident. —
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India condemns Grozny killings
New Delhi, May 10
A brief statement issued by the Ministry of External Afairs here said: “We extend our deepest condolences to the bereaved families and those injured in the cowardly attack. India expresses firm solidarity with the Russian Federation in its efforts to deal with terrorism and extremism. Both countries are committed to close cooperation in resolutely tackling all forms of terrorism.” |
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USA, Europe want to partner India in moon mission
Bangalore, May 10 ISRO Chairman G Madhavan Nair told reporters at function here that the proposals had come from USA, Europe and Canada. “Israel has also sent a proposal”, he added. “We have 20 proposals on hand now. At the best we can take only two. A scientific committee has been appointed which is going to review and short-list the proposals”, Mr Nair said. He said the two foreign agencies selected would basically carry out auxillary experiments during the mission, slated for 2007. The mission is estimated to cost Rs 350 crore. ISRO’s present plans are to have an unmanned moon mission, and Mr Nair categorically said there was no proposal at the moment to have a manned one. —
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Gujarat on high alert as storm approaches
Ahmedabad, May 10 Officials said the alert was sounded at the Saurashtra coast, which could be targeted by high speed winds with a velocity of up to 90 km an hour. The meteorological department said yesterday that a high velocity windstorm was likely to hit the Saurashtra coast. The cyclone, positioned about 450 km from the port town of Porbandar, is moving towards the Gujarat coast at high speed, warned the officials. Following the warning, Indian Air Forces’s (IAF) bases in the state have moved its aircraft to safer spots as a precaution. Fighter planes at the Naliya base in the border district of Kutch were moved into safe bunkers whereas helicopters at the Jamnagar air base were sent to Vadodara and other centres. The choppers, however, would continue to be on alert and would be pressed in service if needed for disaster management, IAF sources said. The Border Security Force too ordered patrolling vehicles in high seas to return to headquarters in the event of a cyclone. Though cyclonic storms off Arabian Sea historically hit Saurashtra and Kutch regions, other parts of the state are equally on alert. The southern city of Surat and Dahej port near Bharuch are also on high alert. Fishermen along the coastal districts have been told not to venture out into the sea. In the past three days, untimely rains have already claimed six lives in the |
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Next hearing in Dharmendra case on May 20
Bikaner, May 10 Chief Judicial Magistrate (II) Mahendra Singh fixed May 20 for next hearing in the case. Advocate Jagdish Sharma, a member of the Congress legal cell, had in his petition demanded that a case under Sections 420, 505 and 295 of the IPC be lodged against the film star since he had given wrong information about his religion in his nomination papers. He said Dharmendra had presented himself as a Hindu Jat Sikh to deceive the electorate while he had embraced Islam at the time of his marriage with Rajya Sabha member and actress Hema Malini in 1979. A similar case against the actor is also pending in an Indore court. —
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Court’s nod to probe charges against Tandon
Lucknow, may 10 Sources said Additional Sessions Judge R.N. Singh here gave the police the permission to investigate the corruption charges under Section 171-B of the IPC against Mr Tandon and others. “Since the case was not cognisable, the court clearance was required,” said an official. On May 17, the police had lodged an FIR against Tandon and others in the Lucknow stampede case, a day after the EC recommended the filing of a case against him. The FIR had named Mr Tandon and Mr Brijendra Murari Yadev, a former BJP corporator now attached with the Nagrik Sewa Samiti, along with “others” for “bribing” the electorate by distributing free sarees to “induce their votes in favour of BJP candidates”.—
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