I am with Mamata Banerjee, says Satabdi Roy after meeting Abhishek

Agencies
January 16, 2021

I am with Trinamool: Satabdi does a U-turn | India News,The Indian Express

Kolkata, Jan 16: Birbhum MP Satabdi Roy said on Friday that there was no question of her leaving the Trinamool Congress, after a two-hour-long meeting with senior leader Abhishek Banerjee, who reached out to her as she voiced discontentment amid an ongoing exodus of leaders from the party ahead of the assembly elections.

Roy, an actor-turned-politician who is a leading face in Mamata Banerjee's cultural brigade, had claimed that she was not being informed about party events in her constituency, causing "mental pain".

The three-time lawmaker had said that she will inform the public at 2 pm on Saturday if she takes any "decision", following which the jittered Trinamool Congress started reaching out to her.

At first, TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh met Roy at her south Kolkata residence in the afternoon after she spoke to a number of TV channels, dropping hints of her next political move.

"I have tried to reach out to the leadership but it has been of no use. If I am not able to work for the masses then what is the use of continuing in the post," she had told reporters.

As per party sources, Roy was having differences with TMC's Birbhum district chief Anubrata Mondal, who has often hit the headlines for controversial statements.

In the evening, Roy met Abhishek, the nephew of the chief minister, at his residence.

After coming out of the meeting, she told reporters that all the issues have been sorted out.

"I am with Mamata Banerjee. She is my leader. There was never any question of my leaving the party," she added.

Earlier in the day, Ghosh claimed that BJP leader Mukul Roy had reached out to Satabdi and requested for a meeting in Delhi on Saturday.

Roy, who had snatched the Birbhum seat from CPI(M) heavyweight Ram Chandra Dome in 2009 on debut, managed to win it by an overwhelming margin in 2019, even as the BJP routed the Trinamool Congress in the nearby constituencies.

She was last seen with the chief minister during a roadshow in Bolpur on December 29.

Amid a rising BJP in the state, the Trinamool Congress is facing an exodus in the top and middle orders ahead of the assembly elections.

Last month, Suvendu Adhikari, along with 35 party leaders including five MLAs and an MP, joined the BJP, setting off a churning as several disgruntled leaders rallied behind him.

Elections to the 294-member state assembly are likely in April-May.

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News Network
March 18,2024

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New Delhi, Mar 18: The Election Commission on Monday afternoon issued orders for the removal of six Home Secretaries - including the top bureaucrats from Gujarat, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh.

The poll panel also directed the transfer of West Bengal's Director-General of Police, the top cop of a state that has seen several instances of poll-related violence in recent years. The poll panel further said a shortlist of three potential replacements had to be prepared and submitted by 5 pm.

The re-shuffle, not an uncommon move by the Election Commission before major polls, also includes the transfer of the Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand Home Secretaries, as well as senior officials attached to the offices of the Mizoram and Himachal Pradesh Chief Ministers.

In addition, Iqbal Singh Chahal, who is Commissioner of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, and other officials in municipalities across Maharashtra, have been removed too.

All of this comes less than a month before the 2024 Lok Sabha poll; the ECI on Saturday said voting will begin on April 19 and run over seven phases till June 1.

This is, in fact, the first bureaucratic re-jig by the ECI since it announced polling dates.

The ECI's move comes after a meeting of Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and his two associates, the newly-appointed Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu. This step comes as part of the poll panel's commitment to ensure a level playing field for all political parties in the forthcoming Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, as well as by-polls for 26 seats in 13 states.

Sources said the personnel removed were found to be holding dual charge in the offices of the respective chief ministers of each state, and this could compromise, or be seen to be compromising, required neutrality, particularly in relation to law-and-order before, during and after polling.

Bengal's ruling Trinamool has not yet reacted to the removal of DGP Rajiv Malik, who is seen by some to be close to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's party. In the past, the state government has questioned the last-minute re-shuffle of senior civil service and police officials so close to an election, arguing it actually hampers prep work since the new faces need time to adjust to the post.

Bengal has frequently witnessed violence during polling season; in June last year over a dozen people were killed across the state as voting for a panchayat election was underway.

The Trinamool accused the opposition of instigating violence and criticised central forces for their failure to protect voters, while the Congress claimed the state had let thugs loose on the people.

While announcing the dates on Saturday, the Chief Election Commissioner said the poll panel would take a very dim view of any violence during the election. Mr Kumar said the ECI is prepared to come down hard on any such incident. "We're putting political parties on notice," he declared.

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News Network
March 14,2024

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The high-level committee on simultaneous elections, chaired by Ram Nath Kovind, on Thursday met President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan and submitted its report on 'One Nation, One Election'. The report comprises 18,626 pages.

Home Minister Amit Shah was also present at Rashtrapati Bhawan when Kovind led panel submitted the report.

"Simultaneous polls to Lok Sabha and state assemblies can be held in first step, followed by local body polls within 100 days in second step," reported PTI quoting the panel.

"Synchronised polls for all three tiers of government to improve governance architecture, in line with quest of aspirational India," it added.

The report has been submitted 191 days after the constitution of the panel on September 2, 2023.

It's further reported that the proposal also puts focus on having a singular electoral roll for holding Lok Sabha, state assembly and local body polls.

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News Network
March 21,2024

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New Delhi, Mar 21: Election Commission (EC) on Thursday directed the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology of Narendra Modi-led government to put an end to bulk WhatsApp messages labelled 'Viksit Bharat Sampark.' It has also sought a compliance report immediately from the ministry.

EC had received several complaints that such messages are still being delivered on citizens’ phones despite the announcement of Lok Sabha elections and the model code of conduct (MCC) entering into force.

In response, the govt informed the commission that although the letters were sent out before MCC came into force, some of them could have possibly been delivered to recipients with a delay because of systemic and network limitations.

In the past few days, several WhatsApp users have received messages from 'Viksit Bharat Sampark' seeking feedback and suggestions from the public. 

The message comes with a PDF that has a letter from Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioning government schemes like Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, Ayushman Bharat, Matru Vandana Yojana, etc, and seeking suggestions from the citizens over government initiatives and schemes.

The letter which addresses users as 'my dear family members' had sparked political controversy. Congress has called the PDF file attached with the message a ‘political propaganda’.

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