
Kaliganj bypolls: TMC candidate Alifa Ahmed urges people to
Nadia (West Bengal) [India], June 19 (ANI): Trinamool Congress' candidate Alifa Ahmed, for West Bengal's Kaliganj assembly constituency, cast her vote on Thursday for the ongoing bypolls and urged the people to come out in large numbers and 'vote for the right party.'
'It is an important day for me. Voting is the biggest right in the Constitution, and I feel proud to use that right. I request all the voters in the constituency to come out in large numbers to vote for the right party,' Ahmed told ANI.
Voting is currently underway in five of the Assembly constituencies across the country. Apart from Kaliganj- Gujarat's Visavadar and Kadi, Kerala's Nilambur, and Punjab's Ludhiana West.
In Kaliganj, BJP's Ashish Ghosh and Congress' Kabil Uddin Shaikh are also contesting in the by-election.
As of Election Commission data till 11 AM, Voter turnout in the Assembly by-elections saw varied participation, with Kaliganj recording 30.34%, the highest out of 5 constituencies.
Nilambur had 30.15%, Visavadar 28.15%, Kadi 23.85%, and Ludhiana West at 21.51%, as per the Election Commission of India.
The polling began at 7 am for the assembly constituency seat. A mock poll was held just before the polling booth opened, with the visuals showing election officials casting a vote and conducting a mock-polling drill before the actual polling begins.
The results of all the constituencies will be declared on June 23.
On Punjab's Ludhiana seat, the BJP has fielded Jiwan Gupta as its candidate. The Aam Aadmi Party has chosen Rajya Sabha MP Sanjeev Arora from the seat, which fell vacant after the death of AAP MLA Gurpreet Bassi Gogi due to a self-inflicted bullet injury last year.
On Gujarat's Visavadar constituency, the BJP has fielded Kirit Patel, Congress has nominated Nitin Ranpariya, while AAP has placed its former Gujarat president, Gopal Italia.
On Kadi seat, the BJP has fielded Rajendra Chavda. Congress has fielded Ramesh Chavda, a former MLA who won the seat in 2012, while AAP has chosen Jagdish Chavda. (ANI)

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


India Today
11 minutes ago
- India Today
In pics: From J&K to New York, celebrations galore on International Yoga Day
From New York to Tokyo, the world came together on June 21 to celebrate the 11th International Yoga Day. In India, people from various walks of life performed yoga. Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the celebrations in Visakhapatnam with breathtaking views as captured by drone visuals, and with over 3 lakh participants joining the mass live updates of International Yoga Day 2025 hereadvertisementThis year's theme is 'Yoga for One Earth, One Health'. In his address, PM Modi said yoga offers a direction of peace as the world witnesses unrest, tension and instability today. His remark was in reference to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran, which spiralled into a global worry. PM Modi performs yoga in Visakhapatnam. (Photo: PTI) Indian Navy personnel also performed yoga on board an INS ship off the Visakhapatnam coast in Andhra Pradesh. More than 11,000 naval personnel and their family members from Eastern Naval Command participated in the grand morning yoga session with the Prime Minister. Navy personnel perform yoga aboard an INS ship. (Photo: Screengrab/ANI video) advertisementBollywood veteran Anupam Kher joined the yoga celebrations at iconic Times Square in New York city along with thousands. Bollywood veteran Anupam Kher perform yoga at Times Sqaure in New York city. (Photo: @IndiainNewYork/X) The Yoga Day celebrations were grand in Tokyo, with spouses of the Japanese PM and the country's Foreign Minister, respectively, present. Indian envoy Sibi George addressed the gathering of over 2,000 yoga enthusiasts. Grand yoga celebrations in Tokyo. (Photo: @IndianEmbTokyo/X) People also took part in Yoga Day celebrations in London organised by the High Commission of India. Yoga celebrations in London. (Photo: PTI) In Jammu and Kashmir, people performed yoga against the backdrop of an engineering marvel and the world's highest rail bridge - the Chenab Rail Bridge - which was opened weeks ago by PM Modi. People perform yoga under the Chenab Rail Bridge in J&K. (Photo: Screengrab/ANI video) Must Watch IN THIS STORY#Yoga Day#Narendra Modi#Japan#Anupam Kher#Om Birla#Yogi Adityanath#Rajnath Singh


Hans India
30 minutes ago
- Hans India
Allegations, suspensions and a govt under fire
The stampede outside M Chinnaswamy Stadium on June 4 during RCB's first IPL victory parade has spiralled into a political and administrative quagmire. Claiming 11 lives and injuring over 50, the incident has exposed glaring failures in crowd management and safety protocols. Activist T J Abraham has levelled serious allegations against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, and the Karnataka government's response, marked by hasty suspensions of IPS officers and a delayed report to the Centre, raises questions about accountability and competence. Documents reveal that Bengaluru police had flagged concerns about insufficient preparation time, yet the event proceeded with gates allegedly kept closed on DyCM Shivakumar's orders to create a spectacle. This decision, coupled with last-minute event scheduling, set the stage for a deadly crush. Activist T J Abraham's complaint, filed at Cubbon Park Police Station, names 14 individuals, including Siddaramaiah, Shivakumar, and Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh. Abraham accuses Shivakumar of leveraging the event for personal gain, alleging negotiations to acquire an RCB stake and planning unsafe festivities. The closed gates, he claims, were a deliberate move to amplify the crowd's fervour, directly contributing to the stampede. Rajneesh faces charges of misusing public funds for publicity, while Siddaramaiah's oversight as CM is questioned. A second complaint by activist Snehamayi Krishna echoes these sentiments, intensifying pressure on the Congress-led government. The Opposition BJP has demanded resignations and labelled the incident a result of 'utter mismanagement.' On June 5, the Karnataka government hastily suspended five top police officials, including Bengaluru Police Commissioner B Dayanand, ACP (West) Vikas Kumar, and DCP (Central Division) Shekhar. The stated reason was 'dereliction of duty'. However, this move smacks of scapegoating according to netizens. Police had warned of logistical challenges, yet the suspensions target lower-tier officials while sparing political leaders implicated in decision-making. Vikas Kumar has challenged his suspension at the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), arguing it overlooks systemic issues. In a bid to restore public trust, the Karnataka government has drafted the Karnataka Crowd Control (Managing Crowd at Events and Venues of Mass Gathering) Bill, 2025. The proposed legislation imposes up to three years in jail and Rs 5 lakh fines on commercial organisers, with lighter penalties for non-commercial ones, for safety violations. Compensation provisions, recoverable as land revenue if unpaid, aim to hold organisers accountable.


Hans India
30 minutes ago
- Hans India
Seminar in Madikeri revives Codava demand for geo-political autonomy
A renewed call for Codava autonomy and tribal recognition resonated from the hills of Kodagu as the Codava National Council (CNC) organised a high-profile seminar near Madikeri, marking 35 years of the organisation's apolitical movement seeking constitutional and cultural safeguards for the Codava people. Delivering the keynote lecture, Supreme Court advocate and constitutional law expert Vikram Hegde underscored the community's long-standing demands, including geo-political autonomy under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, Scheduled Tribe status, language inclusion in the Eighth Schedule, and protection of traditional land, cultural, and religious rights. Referring to the Codavas as an 'animistic, mono-ethnic group with deep-rooted ties to their ancestral lands,' Hegde noted that the community met several criteria under both domestic law and international conventions on indigenous peoples, particularly the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). He argued for a 'holistic and historically informed assessment' of the Codavas' demand for Scheduled Tribe classification. CNC President N.U. Nachappa Kodava, who presided over the seminar, reiterated the community's call for a Codava Autonomous Region (CAR) within the Indian Union—akin to the Gorkha Hill Council or the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils. 'Our aspiration is not secession but dignity—through federal accommodation of our unique identity,' Nachappa said. Citing the dilution of Codava presence in Parliament since the 1967 election of C.M. Poonacha, the seminar highlighted how Kodagu's merger with Karnataka in 1956 eroded the political representation of the community. Hegde called for serious consideration of Constitutional mechanisms such as inclusion under the Fifth or Sixth Schedule or a new provision like Article 371 tailored for Kodagu. 'Asymmetric federalism is not alien to India—it is the framework by which we have protected many identities. Codavas, with their contributions to national defence and administration, deserve similar recognition,' he said. The seminar also addressed growing concerns over the application of general laws—such as the Karnataka Hindu Religious Institutions Act and the SARFAESI Act—which threaten to undermine Codava religious freedom and land tenure. Senior Karnataka High Court advocate M.T. Nanaiah, supporting the CNC's legal initiatives, emphasised the community's peaceful advocacy over decades. 'Codavas have not resorted to agitation. They have used democratic and legal means. That alone deserves attention from the Centre,' he said.