Assembly Elections 2022: 'Rahul Gandhi is a fake Gandhi,' says BJP's Giriraj Singh

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal will file nomination from the Jalalabad constituency on Monday.

Rahul Gandhi is a fake Gandhi. The BJP-led government and Yogi government are working on fulfilling Mahatma Gandhi's dream: Union Minister and BJP leader Giriraj Singh on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's 'Hindutvavadi' remark.

Today's BJP (Goa unit) is an old Congress consisting of all those people who had defected us. Corrupt people are with BJP. If he listens to Goa Ex-Governor Satya Pal Malik then he will know how much corruption is there in their government. People of Goa are fed up with BJP: Dinesh G Rao

Union Minister Pralhad Joshi on Sunday accused the Congress party of making just a show of its love for the armed forces with an eye on polls and asked why did it not implement the one-rank-one-pension plan if it cared for them.

Dubbing INC as an acronym for the "Indian National Confusion", Joshi, also the BJP's Uttarakhand election in-charge, said it becomes a party of Hindus whenever convenient and a lover of the armed forces when the polls are round the corner.

"It should explain why did it not implement the OROP scheme despite being in power at the Centre for decades if it cared for the armed forces personnel. It should tell why did it not buy modern weapons and equipment required by the armed forces, he asked. 
 

BJP to contest all 60 Manipur Assembly seats, declares an entire list of candidates

The Congress on Monday will highlight the issue of rising prices and will launch a 'BJP brought inflation' booklet in poll-bound states. The Congress will organise a series of press conferences underlining the problems faced by the people due to inflation and hold the central government responsible for it.

Congress' chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala will hold a press conference in Lucknow, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel in Chandigarh and former Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan in Goa.  
 

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to release party's manifesto for Uttarakhand Assembly elections 2022 on February 2 in Dehradun.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) will hold a virtual review meeting to assess the situation on Monday when the ban on physical political rallies and roadshows for the upcoming Assembly Elections comes to an end. 

On January 22, the ECI had extended the ban on physical rallies and roadshows till January 31 amid rising COVID cases.
The meeting is scheduled for 11 am tomorrow. 
 

In a major political development, Punjab Chief Minister Charanint Channi will contest from two seats-  Bhadaur and Chamkaur Sahib- in the upcoming assembly election. 

BJP will launch its mega election campaign in Uttarakhand on February 1. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar and Himachal Pradesh CM Jai Ram Thakur will address rallies of 500 people on that day, informed Pralhad Joshi, Union Minister and BJP's Uttarakhand election in charge.

Former Punjab Chief Minister and Shiromani Akali Dal leader Parkash Singh Badal to file nomination from Lambi constituency on Monday, January 31.

"BJP brought development to Goa. For the Gandhi family, Goa is just a vacation spot. We raised the state's budget from 432 Cr (2013-14) to 2,567 Cr (Yr 2021). Ex-CM Digambar Kamat did nothing on infrastructure development. We did what we promised," Union Home Minister and BJP leader Amit Shah in Ponda.

"In Goa, I have seen boards of TMC, AAP and NCP in a small state like Goa. I have no idea why so many parties have jumped in, but development will only happen where there is stability... Can these small parties give development to Goa?" Amit Shah questions.

Abdullah Azam Khan, son of former UP Minister Azam Khan and SP candidate from Rampur's Suar on Sunday said, "I am being followed. A conspiracy has been hatched to put me behind bars in a fake case. BJP candidates from Suar & Rampur seats could orchestrate an attack or road accident to kill me."

No one can defeat Congress. Only Congress can defeat itself: Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu on being asked about factionalism in the state unit

Congress ally Tauqeer Raza's daughter in law Nida Khan joins BJP, hails PM Modi

BJP to fight Manipur elections in the leadership of N Biren Singh, announces BJP, releases candidate list. N Biren Singh to contest from Heingang.

"Our govt not only curbs goons or mafias but corona as well. When we talk about Bulandshahar we can not forget former cm late Kalyan Singh. People used to demand hospitals here in Bulandshahar and we gave one medical college to Bulandshahar," said Adityanath in Bulandshahr.

He added, "In the coming time, Kalyan Singh medical college in Bulandshahar will be there. If any emergency comes they do not remember India, but Italy. Earlier govts used to give Tamancha for crimes. They used to hide money in their houses. Our govt seized that as well. They used to loot poor people.  They only awaken when the bulldozer is being run over mafias".

"BJP is the only political party, be it Pakistan or Afghanistan, no matter how many minorities are there if they want to come to india and want citizenship we promised that we did this as soon as we formed govt. We promised ram mandir in Ayodhya. People used to make fun of us when e used to include this in our manifesto," said Rajnath Singh in Farrukhabad

"BJP govt is going to form the govt in these elections. There was a time when BJP workers were mocked by SP and BSP. But now finally we will have the Ram mandir. They talk about ram and give tickets to people like Nahid Hasan," said Irani in an Agra rally.

She added, "Young girls couldn't go for education. Their brothers were killed if they accompanied their sister for protecting them. I challenge him to come and speak on crime rates".

Jasbir Singh Khangura, former MLA from Qila Raipur in Punjab quits Congress party

"The news of the brutal murder of Ram Veer ji, a close aide of Chaudhary Laxmi Narayan ji, a BJP candidate from Chhata Assembly constituency of Mathura, is deeply saddening. My humble tributes to the departed soul and my deepest condolences to the family and supporters," wrote Dy CM KP Maurya on Twitter

Union HM Amit Shah to visit South Goa today; after a public meeting at Sun Grace Garden, Ponda, & in Sharda Mandir Multipurpose Hall, Sanvordem, which will be broadcasted digitally, we'll launch an Umbrella campaign in Vasco:BJP Goa chief Sadanand Shet Tanavade

317 Nominations were filed in Punjab on Day 4. With 302 nominations filed on earlier days, now the total number of nominations filed in the state is 619.

In Rampur, FIR has been registered against 27 named and 60 to 70 unknown persons including Abdullah Azam Khan, son of SP MP Azam Khan. Allegedly, Abdullah Azam Khan has violated Corona protocol during the election campaign. This action was taken late night by Tanda Kotwali police.

The Election Commission has banned all exit polls pertaining to the coming Assembly elections from 7.00 am on February 10 to 6.30 pm on March 7.

In a statement issued here on Saturday, UP's Chief Electoral Officer Ajay Kumar Shukla said that conducting the exit polls, its publication in print or electronic media or its publicity has been banned from 7.00 am on February 10 to 6.30 pm on March 7.

Any person who violates the order will be punished with a two-year jail term or fine or both.

 A complaint has been filed against Tilhar SP candidate Roshan Lal Verma for hiding criminal cases against him in his election affidavit, an election official said on Saturday. 

The complaint has been filed by a woman named Sarita Yadav, who has claimed for years that she is wife of Verma's deceased son, Vinod Verma.

Yadav told reporters here that Verma has 14 criminal cases against him and not three as he mentioned in his affidavit.  

Verma has maintained that only three cases are pending against him, and the rest of the cases were dismissed by the police. 

The woman has raised objections about Verma educational qualifications too. 

Himanshu Upadhyay, election officer, Tilhar, confirmed to PTI that a complaint has been received from Sarita Yadav and another person Devvrata against Roshan Lal Verma.

Verma, the sitting MLA from Tilhar, had crossed over to Samajwadi Party from the BJP, following the exit of former UP minister Swami Prasad Maurya.

Verma's son had died in 2019. In 2012, Sarita Yadav had accused Roshan Lal Verma of raping her. 

"She is making false claims, and she has no proof of it. She is hatching a conspiracy to malign our image. She is in the fray, but this will not make any difference to my image," Verma told 

The Election Commission of India has seized valuables worth Rs 100 crores in Punjab ahead of the assembly elections. 
The surveillance teams have seized 17.61 lakh litres of liquor worth Rs 7.43 crore, psychotropic substances amounting to Rs 74.64 crores besides confiscating unaccounted cash of Rs 16.73 crore. 

As per sources, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will reach Gorakhpur on February 2 on a four-day tour. He will file his nomination from the constituency on February 4 at 10:30 am

Samajwadi Party promises the opening of party restaurants, Kirana stores to provide food at minimal prices to the poor, if voted to power. 

BJP in-charge of Bihar, Bhupendra Yadav on Saturday informed that Janata Dal-United (JDU) will contest on 11 seats, BJP on 13 seats and will give one seat to RLJP (Pashupati Paras) from its quota in the impending Legislative Council elections in the state. 

If voted to power, we will provide 50% reservation to women in local bodies of Goa, announces TMC leader Luizinho Faleiro. "Goa, which used to be a cradle of peace, has become capital of crime & prostitution. BJP Govt has taken us to a situation that Goa has never seen," he says. 

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to campaign for the Bharatiya Janata Party in Kasganj and Amritpur (Farrukhabad) constituencies on January 30 ahead of the UP Assembly elections 2022.

BJP candidate Laxminarayan Chaudhary’s proposer Ramveer shot dead in Uttar Pradesh's Mathura. 

SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary address joint press conference in Ghaziabad, issuing a slew of promises:

• Samajwadi canteens, Samajwadi grocery stores will be set up when the SP government is formed. Thali will be arranged in this canteen at ₹ 10.
• If the SP government is formed, employment will be arranged on the lines of MNREGA with the "Employment Guarantee Act".

While filing nomination for the Amritsar East constituency, Navjot Singh Sidhu denied allegations levied on him by his sister Suman Toor. He said, "Never cheated anyone, let alone my mother."

"The BJP government has done the work of providing electricity for 24 hours in the cities and about 22 hours in the villages.  Akhilesh ji, what do you talk about free electricity, if your government comes, you will not get as much electricity as you are getting now," said Amit Shah in Muzaffarnagar rally.

He added, "Some farmers told me that sugarcane payment gets delayed. We have decided that in the manifesto of the BJP, we are going to announce that the interest for the delay will be recovered from that mill and farmers will be paid with interest".

Commenting on SP-RLD ties, he said,"Yesterday Akhilesh ji and Jayant ji held a press conference. They say that we are together. But how long is this together?  If its government is formed, then Jayant ji will leave the government and Azam Khan will come back."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the first virtual rally for Uttar Pradesh on 31st January

5-6 Candidates of Punjab Lok Congress to contest on Symbol of Bhartiya Janta Party, reported sources. The candidates are among 22 candidates announced by Captain Amarinder Singh

"I have lots of support for the people. The last time, the party (BJP) asked me not to contest, I agreed to them and did not contest. This time, I didn't agree because of the candidate they fielded. I have seen a leader's son becoming Mayor and I have to fight with such things. There are certain local leaders who have nothing to do with the state's development. It was a tough decision, it is not easy for me to do this," said Utpal Parrikar to Republic TV

He added, "I work for people, for my place. I have put the risk of my political career. People of Panaji know the reality. People like my father because of what he stood for. There are people who control politics with money, not able to see all those things and hence took the decision.

AAP CM Candidate Bhagwant Mann to file nomination from Dhuri Assembly Constituency today

SP leader Abdullah Azam Khan says, "You have officers with you, Police with you, two govts with you. I'm alone, I have no one with me. I don't even trust the Policemen who are with me, they can shoot me...They're not deployed for my security but for my recce."

Akhilesh Yadav and Jayant Chaudhary will hold to joint-pressers in Ghaziabad and Hapur at 12:30 PM and 3:30 PM respectively

BSP chief Mayawati is scheduled to visit Punjab on 8 February to hold rally in Nawanshahr, Punjab for BSP-SAD alliance

Refraining to comment on allegations against Navjot Sidhu, Congress MP Ravneet Singh Bittu said, "This is a personal matter. Why should I or someone else comment on this? This is a serious thing. They are brother-sister, they will come together at the end and the middlemen will be in trouble. One should refrain from giving statements on such issues".

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav has confirmed that he will contest the upcoming Uttar Pradesh polls from Mainpuri's Karhal constituency. Yadav - who is currently the Azamgarh MP - had previously refused to contest UP polls. While he has now chosen Karhal, he was mulling to contest from Azamgarh's Gopalpur constituency or any constituency in Kannauj or Sambhal.

Meanwhile, BJP has fielded incumbent CM Yogi Adityanath from Gorakhpur Urban seat - his home constituency. Gorakhpur is the hometown of Adityanath and he had been the MP from Gorakhpur Lok Sabha seat since 1998 until he became the chief minister in 2017. Facing him, Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad announced that he will contest against Adityanath for the Gorakhpur Urban constituency. 

On the other hand, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra 'declared' herself as Congress' CM face, only to retract it mere hours later.  Speaking to the media, the Congress general secretary contended that she was "irritated" after being asked the same question multiple times. It is also unclear if Vadra will contest polls as she has never done so till date.

Uttar Pradesh:

Republic P-MARQ Opinion poll predicts that the Bharatiya Janata Party (and allies) is likely to emerge as the single largest party once against in Uttar Pradesh with 252-272 seats in the 2022 Assembly polls. However, the saffron will suffer a major seat loss as Akhilesh Yadav's Samajwadi Party and its allies may win 111-131 seats. The Bahujan Samaj Party's seat share is likely to reduce further as the Republic P-MARQ Opinion Poll suggests only 8-16 seats for Mayawati's party. On the other hand, Congress may get 3-9 seats.

Uttarakhand:

Republic P-MARQ Opinion poll predicts that BJP is likely to retain power with the party projected to win 36-42 seats in the 70-member Assembly. On the other hand, Congress is likely to see major gains. The grand old party is projected to win 25-31 seats, while debutant AAP can win 0-2 seats. The other parties and independents are likely to win 1-3 seats.

Punjab:

Republic P-MARQ Opinion poll predicts that Punjab may witness a hung assembly as Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party might win 50-56 seats, just short of the majority mark. The ruling Congress is predicted to win 42-48 seats while Shiromani Akali Dal can get 1-17 seats. BJP, who is fighting polls in alliance with Captain Amarinder Singh's Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Sanyukt), can win 1-3 seats.

Goa: 

Republic P-MARQ Opinion poll predicts the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is likely to win 16-20 in the 40-member House. On the other hand, Indian National Congress, which was the single largest party in the 2017 assembly elections, is likely to get 9-13. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) which went black in the last polls might win 4-8 seats. Debutant Trinamool Congress can get 1-5 seats. The majority mark is 21.

Manipur: 

Republic P-MARQ Opinion poll predicts that BJP is likely to stay ahead in the race as the poll shows the saffron party bagging the most 31-37 seats out of 60 seats followed by the Indian National Congress winning 13-19 seats. The National People’s Party (NPP) and the Naga People’s Front (NPF) remain behind INC with 2-9 and 1-5 seats respectively.

Elections are set to commence in 5 states - Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Manipur and Punjab. The ruling BJP in Uttar Pradesh under CM Yogi Adityanath faces a resurging Akhilesh Yadav, in Uttarakhand it faces a strong Congress under ex-CM Harish Rawat, in Goa, Pramod Sawant faces a tricorner fight with Congress, TMC and AAP in the fray and Manipur CM Biren Singh faces a beleaguered Congress. However, in Punjab, it is the ruling Congress, which is now heavily embroiled in infighting, faces a rising AAP, Akali Dal-BSP and an unlikely combination of BJP-Amarinder Singh, apart from the farm union political leaders. Results for all elections will be declared on March 10.

Dates for Elections are as follows:

Uttar Pradesh: 7 phase election for 403 seats

Issue of notification: January 14, January 21, January 25, January 27, February 1, February 4, February 10
Last date of filing nomination: January 21, January 28, February 3, February 8, February 11, February 17
Polling dates: February 10, February 14, February 20, February 23, February 27, March 3, March 7

Punjab: 1 phase election for 117 seats

Issue of notification: January 21
Last date of filing nomination: January 28
Polling date: February 20

Uttarakhand: 1 phase election for 70 seats

Issue of notification: January 21
Last date of filing nomination: January 28
Polling date: February 14

Goa: 1 phase election for 40 seats

Issue of notification: January 21
Last date of filing nomination: January 28
Polling date: February 14

Manipur: 2 phase election for 60 seats

Issue of notification: February 1, February 4
Last date of filing nomination: February 8, February 11
Polling dates: February 27, March 3

Results for all elections will be declared on March 10