Poll body initiates Vice President election process, appoints key officials
A heated discussion is underway within both the BJP-led ruling alliance and the Opposition regarding potential candidates. The INDIA bloc is likely to contest the election after arriving at a consensus on a common candidate, as it believes the numbers are not overwhelmingly against it, despite the BJP-led NDA holding a majority.All members of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, including nominated members, are eligible to vote. The combined effective strength of both Houses of Parliament is 782, and a candidate will require at least 392 votes to win, assuming all eligible members cast their votes.In the Lok Sabha, the BJP-led NDA commands the support of 293 members in the 542-member House, while the INDIA bloc has 234 members.In the Rajya Sabha, the ruling alliance is backed by around 130 members in the 240-member House, including support from nominated members. The INDIA bloc has the support of 79 members.Overall, the NDA enjoys the support of approximately 423 members across both Houses, while the INDIA bloc has 313. The remaining members are non-aligned.- Ends
IN THIS STORY#Parliament
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Indian Express
4 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Election Commission like cheating cricket umpire that cost Congress 2017, 2022 Gujarat polls: Rahul Gandhi to party leaders
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday likened the Election Commission (EC) to a 'cheating cricket umpire' that cost his party the 2017 and 2022 Assembly polls in the state, senior leaders of the party said. The remarks were made by Gandhi in Anand district, at the Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee's (GPCC) inaugural session of a three-day training summit for newly-appointed district and city unit presidents of the party. Calling Gujarat the Gangotri (origin) of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Gandhi told the leaders present that the Congress has to work hard in the state and bring out the 'truth' about the ruling party's 'bad governance'. According to senior Congress leaders, Gandhi said that for years, the Congress in Gujarat had been 'like a cricketer, who wondered why he was adjudged out during his batting'. According to the leaders, Gandhi said that 'getting out constantly makes (a cricketer) feel they were not good enough,' but the losses suffered by the Congress in Gujarat in 2017 and 2022 were 'the doing of a cheating umpire (EC), which manipulated voter lists.' Gandhi said that the Congress workers were 'babbar shers (lions)' who needed to 'get back their roar', senior leaders said. Gandhi urged the party workers to regroup and 'go in the midst' of people to 'clean the Ganges of politics from Gangotri — Gujarat'. In his hour-long address at the closed-door session held in Nijanand resort, Gandhi likened the BJP-RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) combine to a temple, where devotees can pay obeisance but don't have a say in 'what or how much prasad' they will have. Most Congress leaders that The Indian Express spoke to stated that Gandhi's mention of the EC in the context of 'unfair results' in 2017 and 2022 struck a chord with party leaders. Congress's Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Gujarat Assembly, Tushar Chaudhary told this newspaper that Gandhi emphasised that the party leaders must begin verification of voter rolls in advance. Chaudhary said, 'Rahulji mentioned the fact that in 2017 and 2022, manipulated voter lists had a lot to do with the results… He enquired with us as to when we actually receive the electoral rolls. When he learnt that we receive it either on the last day or five days in advance, he said you can't do anything or verify the list in such a short time…' Quoting Gandhi, Chaudhary said, 'The issue of fake voters being added to electoral rolls is changing the results… incidents of 1.5 lakh fake voters found in Karnataka or Maharashtra were mentioned. So, it is a fact that when the updated electoral rolls are received, they have new voters who are of much older age whereas it should be young, first-time voters added to the list.' In his address, Gandhi said the BJP's working model is like a temple. 'You have the right to come to a temple, pay obeisance and bow your head; but how much prasad will be given to you is in the control of the BJP-RSS. They will see which caste one belongs to and decide how much prasad should be given… Adani or Ambani will be given different quantities of prasad (than the rest)… There is no right over the prasad. Whatever is mercifully given to you, you have to accept it. The BJP is being unjust to the people of Gujarat who are being told to visit the temple but no prasad is being given out…' Gandhi is said to have told the leaders. 'The district presidents have been told to create awareness among people about the misadministration under the current BJP-led state government as well as the cheating that the Congress has suffered (at the hands of the EC),' a district president from Central Gujarat said. Gandhi told Gujarat Congress leaders that the BJP's roots in the state should be the party's goal in the upcoming Assembly polls. 'Rahulji said that it has always been a presumption that if the BJP has to be defeated, one has to work hard in UP, Rajasthan and Karnataka. But the fact is that the BJP's gangotri (origin) is in Gujarat and one has to work hard in the state and bring out the truth about their bad governance. The cleaning of the Ganga of politics can be done from Gujarat…,' GPCC Spokesperson Manish Doshi said. GPCC President Amit Chavda said Gandhi has urged the leaders to 'go in the midst' of the people and 'raise voice' in the support of those fighting injustice. 'The three-day camp (in Anand) is part of Sangathan Srujan Abhiyan and Rahulji has urged that the party must be strengthened from root to top in Gujarat and that it should be oriented towards service to people. New leaders should be given the opportunity to work… The party wants to go in the midst of the people to fight the battle against injustice as in the last 30 years of the BJP's rule in the state, there has been a government of fear, coercion and corruption with officer-raj and commission-raj going on in Gujarat,' Chavda said. 'The presence of Rahulji on the first day of the three-day training camp shows how important Gujarat is for him. He has made it clear that in any district, any complaint of the people or any injustice must be taken up by the Congress. Wherever it is necessary, the state leaders, or Rahulji himself, will be by the side of the people… He told the leaders to go to the people. Take up issues related to misadministration and injustice and raise voice against it. On the last day of the Shibir (camp), the party will also put forth the entire roadmap for the state before the high command as well as the people,' Chavda added. Gandhi, Congress leaders said, also met the members of the milk cooperative unions and urged them to 'inform him whatever is needed to be done and if they need him to raise pressing issues related to cooperatives in the Lok Sabha.' Gandhi is the LoP in the Lok Sabha. The families of some of the 21 victims of the Mujpur-Gambhira bridge collapse also arrived at the venue in Anand, where the Congress leader was meeting the milk cooperatives, to make representations to him. According to Congress leaders, the kin of the victims were 'stopped by the police' from meeting Gandhi but later, they were allowed to proceed and make petitions regarding the incident. Doshi said, 'The police said that the victims could not be allowed to meet Gandhi as they did not have a security pass… At first, they were turned away but eventually, we managed to get them to meet Rahul ji, who expressed his solidarity with the families and assured them of assistance in their fight for justice in the incident.'
Mint
4 minutes ago
- Mint
PM Modi ‘deeply honoured' to attend Maldives' Independence day event: ‘Productive talks with President Muizzu will…'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday attended the 60th Independence Day celebrations of Maldives, along with members of his delegation. The event was organised at the Republic Square in Male, where President Mohamed Muizzu and several ministers of the country welcomed PM Modi as the Guest of Honour. After attending the event, PM Modi expressed on X that he was 'deeply honoured' to have witnessed the celebrations. 'The productive talks with President Muizzu will add significant energy to our bilateral relations,' the post read. In another post, he also said that the relationship between the two countries continues to grow and that it is shaped by people-to-people ties and cooperation in various sectors. 'India remains committed to supporting the aspirations of the Maldivian people and to working together for the betterment of our planet,' he added. During the 5-minute event, PM Modi was seen sitting next to Muizzu. The event featured a military parade and cultural performances by children and other artists. The top political and military brass of the Maldives were also present at the event. Members of PM Modi's delegation, including external affairs minister S Jaishankar and foreign secretary Vikram Misri, attended the event too, PTI reported. PM Modi's visit to the island nation marks a significant step towards improving the India-Maldives relations after a brief period of tension as Mohamed Muizzu, known for his 'pro-China' leanings, came to power while running an 'India Out' campaign. He adopted a policy aimed at strengthening relations with China and in a way reducing dependence on India, Mint reported earlier. However, in recent years, bilateral ties have been reset through what experts call a pragmatic approach. Muizzu visited India in October last year, and now PM Modi is on a two-day visit to Maldives. 'The Maldives will not do anything that would harm India's security interests. We value India's role as a close neighbour and friend,' President Muizzu said during the visit, marking a sharp departure from his earlier 'India-Out' campaign.
News18
28 minutes ago
- News18
‘Malaise' has plagued PMs apprenticeship scheme: Congress
New Delhi, Jul 26 (PTI) The Congress on Saturday alleged that 'malaise" has plagued the PM's apprenticeship scheme, claiming that the hallmark of the Modi government has been to make grand announcements with 'zero" follow through. Congress general secretary in-charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, cited a media report that claimed a decline in offers and acceptance rate in the PM Internship Scheme. 'We had previously flagged that the Prime Minister Internship Scheme (PMIS) – inspired by Congress' 2024 Lok Sabha campaign guarantee of 'Pehli Naukri Pakki', a year-long apprenticeship for all graduates and diploma-bearers – is being botched by a government with no administrative talent," Ramesh alleged in a post on X. In May, Ramesh claimed that Modi government's flagship PMIS launched in October 2024 was off to a 'stuttering start" with a low turnout and high attrition. 'It now emerges that the same malaise continues to plague this scheme many months on – 1.18 lakh internship opportunities were opened through PMIS in round two, but only 71,458 offers were made. This is a drop of 13 per cent compared to round one when 82,077 roles were on offer," Ramesh claimed. Till July 17, he further claimed, just 22,584 of the 71,458 offers were accepted by the candidates – less than the 28,000 students who accepted the internship in round one. 'In round one, only 8,725 (7 per cent) of the 28,000 students who accepted the internship offers actually joined the company they were placed at. We are yet to find out how many joined the internship in this round," Ramesh said. 'The funds allocated under this scheme remain constantly under-utilised and the internships actually completed under this programme are minimal – a far cry from the government's stated goal of 1 crore internships in the next five years," the Congress leader added. Ramesh also claimed that the UPA government launched and successfully implemented some of the most complex and elaborate government programmes in the world – the MGNREGA, the Food Security Bill, and Right to Education. 'This government's hallmark has been to make grand announcements with zero follow through – simply because it runs on the whims and fancies of one man," he alleged. PTI SKC ARI view comments First Published: July 26, 2025, 21:00 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
