SP pulls out of grand alliance, to contest Bihar polls alone

September 3, 2015

Lucknow, Sep 3: The Samajwadi Party today pulled out of the 'grand alliance' in poll-bound Bihar, saying it felt "humiliated" as it was not consulted while deciding seats and would contest the Assembly elections in the state on its own.

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The SP's decision ahead of the Bihar polls comes as a jolt to the grand alliance which was floated to counter the BJP in the state.

SP National General Secretary Ram Gopal Yadav told reporters here that "In Bihar the party will contest separately. The bigger parties in the alliance did not consult us while declaring seats due to which the SP felt humiliated. This is not the 'gatbandhan dharma'".

The final decision on the Bihar Assembly polls was taken at a party parliamentary board meeting here in presence of SP national President Mulayam Singh Yadav.

Yadav said that it was the duty of the major constituents to consult the SP before deciding over seat sharing.

"We came to know about this through the media. This is not the 'gatbandhan dharma' and SP felt humiliated," he said.

Yadav said the party was not happy with the paltry two or five seats offered out of the 243 in the state assembly.

"We will win much more seats by contesting on our own as compared to that being offered by the alliance. We will contest respectfully," he said.

On the future of 'Janata Pariwar', Yadav said at that time itself he had said that he would not sign the "death warrant" of the party.

"Respecting the sentiments of the party workers, SP has decided to go all alone in Bihar Assembly elections," he said.

The JD-U and Lalu Prasad-led RJD have been alloted 100 seats each while the Congress got 40. The NCP was alloted three seats.

The SP spokesman said Janta Parivar could never come together, but he would not comment as to who was responsible for that.

If required, the SP would take support of some other parties in Bihar, he said.

"President of Bihar unit Ramchandra Yadav is in consultation with some other parties. Names of the candidates will be decided once the process of consultation is over," he said.

Asked if cracks in Janta Parivar would boost the morale of communal forces, he said, "I wan't to know from you whether there was division of secular votes in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chattisgarh and BJP won."

"Why would we have won the 2012 UP Assembly elections if victory and defeat was based on division. In Bihar there is a contest between secular forces. This is not the logic," he said.

On being asked about his meeting with the Prime Minister and BJP chief Amit Shah and whether there was any discussion on the case of former Noida chief engineer Yadav Singh, he said, "Why should we have any fear in the Yadav Singh case. An inquiry should be conducted if any person has committed irregularity, and others should also be probed.

You as well as we all know who were the persons Yadav Singh was close to."

Yadav Singh is accused of amassing illegal wealth.

"The manner in which hurdles are being created in the working of the state government. If such a situation will arise we finally met the President and now the PM. If required we will meet again," he said.

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News Network
December 16,2025

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The deletion of over 58 lakh names from West Bengal’s draft electoral rolls following a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has sparked widespread concern and is likely to deepen political tensions in the poll-bound state.

According to the Election Commission, the revision exercise has identified 24 lakh voters as deceased, 19 lakh as relocated, 12 lakh as missing, and 1.3 lakh as duplicate entries. The draft list, published after the completion of the first phase of SIR, aims to remove errors and duplication from the electoral rolls.

However, the scale of deletions has raised fears that a large number of eligible voters may have been wrongly excluded. The Election Commission has said that individuals whose names are missing can file objections and seek corrections. The final voter list is scheduled to be published in February next year, after which the Assembly election announcement is expected. Notably, the last Special Intensive Revision in Bengal was conducted in 2002.

The development has intensified the political row over the SIR process. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress have strongly opposed the exercise, accusing the Centre and the Election Commission of attempting to disenfranchise lakhs of voters ahead of the elections.

Addressing a rally in Krishnanagar earlier this month, Banerjee urged people to protest if their names were removed from the voter list, alleging intimidation during elections and warning of serious consequences if voting rights were taken away.

The BJP, meanwhile, has defended the revision and accused the Trinamool Congress of politicising the issue to protect what it claims is an illegal voter base. Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari alleged that the ruling party fears losing power due to the removal of deceased, fake, and illegal voters.

The controversy comes amid earlier allegations by the Trinamool Congress that excessive work pressure during the SIR led to the deaths by suicide of some Booth Level Officers (BLOs), for which the party blamed the Election Commission. With the draft list now out, another round of political confrontation appears imminent.

As objections begin to be filed, the focus will be on whether the correction mechanism is accessible, transparent, and timely—critical factors in ensuring that no eligible voter is denied their democratic right ahead of a crucial election.

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News Network
December 6,2025

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New Delhi: IndiGo, India’s largest airline, faced major operational turbulence this week after failing to prepare for new pilot-fatigue regulations issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The stricter rules—designed to improve flight safety—took effect in phases through 2024, with the latest implementation on November 1. IndiGo has acknowledged that inadequate roster planning led to widespread cancellations and delays.

Below are the key DGCA rules that affected IndiGo’s operations:

1. Longer Mandatory Weekly Rest

Weekly rest for pilots has been increased from 36 hours to 48 hours.

The government says the extended break is essential to curb cumulative fatigue. This rule remains in force despite the current crisis.

2. Cap on Night Landings

Pilots can now perform only two night landings per week—a steep reduction from the earlier limit of six.

Night hours, defined as midnight to early morning, are considered the least alert period for pilots.

Given the disruptions, this rule has been temporarily relaxed for IndiGo until February 10.

3. Reduced Maximum Night Flight Duty

Flight duty that stretches into the night is now capped at 10 hours.

This measure has also been kept on hold for IndiGo until February 10 to stabilize operations.

4. Weekly Rest Cannot Be Replaced With Personal Leave

Airlines can no longer count a pilot’s personal leave as part of the mandatory 48-hour rest.

Pilots say this closes a loophole that previously reduced actual rest time.

Currently, all airlines are exempt from this rule to normalise travel.

5. Mandatory Fatigue Monitoring

Airlines must submit quarterly fatigue reports along with corrective actions to DGCA.

This system aims to create a transparent fatigue-tracking framework across the industry.

The DGCA has stressed that these rules were crafted to strengthen flight safety and align India with global fatigue-management standards. The temporary relaxations are expected to remain until February 2025, giving IndiGo time to stabilise its schedules and restore normal air travel.

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