Former Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar's son Utpal Parrikar, who quit the BJP after not being given a ticket from Panjim constituency and announced he would contest the upcoming assembly election as an independent, has filed his nomination paper from the seat today.
Besides Goa, four other states -- Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Manipur -- are set for polls next month. The state elections will begin on February 10 and culminate with the counting of votes on March 10.
In Punjab, Akali Dal has fielded former minister Bikram Singh Majithia from Amritsar (East) seat, setting up a contest against Congress state chief Navjot Singh Sidhu.
Meanwhile, in Uttar Pradesh, sources said feelers were sent to Rashtriya Lok Dal's Jayant Choudhary over the possibility of an understanding. However, Mr Choudhary tweeted a rebuff: "The invitation is not for me, give it to those 700 farmer families whose houses you have destroyed!!" The RLD leader has worked out an alliance with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav.
Manipur is likely to see a loyalty pledge ahead of elections to protect leaders from switching camps after results are out.
Here are the Highlights on Assembly Elections 2022:
Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday spoke to students who were allegedly beaten by the police during their protest against alleged irregularities in a railway recruitment exam in Prayagraj. "Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has talked to students taking competitive exams," a party statement issued here said.
During the interaction, Priyanka assured the students that she would raise their voice from all forums.
"Don't get afraid. Ensure that elections are held on your issues of your employment. The government did not give you job but commit atrocities on you and suppress you," Priyanka, according to the statement, said.
Rahul Gandhi said today the Congress will soon announce a Chief Minister candidate in Punjab and the decision will be taken by workers.
A Trinamool Congress (TMC) delegation met the Election Commission (EC) in Delhi regarding the upcoming Goa assembly polls.
"On January 21 a team from EC raided the TMC party office in Goa at around 11 pm and vandalised hoardings and flexes while the office staff was kept on hold. Our meeting with the Election Commission was regarding that incident. We spoke for 25 minutes", claimed TMC leader and MP Saugata Roy.
"We told the EC that despite being aware of the new TMC office in Goa, vandalisation on their part was not right", alleged Roy. He claimed that earlier there has been an instance of throwing ink on Mamata Banerjee's photo. "Goa TMC in charge Sourabh Chakraborty was forced to get out of the car and searched", he claimed.
Roy said, "We don't want EC to attack us in this way". He claimed that EC had raided the party office based on somebody's complaint. "We don't know who made the complaint."
In a setback to the Congress ahead of the Goa election, one of its top candidates, Pratapsinh Rane, has decided to withdraw from the contest, which would have pitted him against his daughter-in-law.
Ahead of Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday drew a comparison of BJP with Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Samajwadi Party (SP), and said that unlike them, BJP does not work for one caste or dynasty. "It works for entire society," he said.
Addressing the 'Effective Voter Communication' program in Mathura, Mr Shah said, "Before the BJP government, UP saw SP and BSP governments for a very long time. BSP and SP stand for casteism and dynasty," he added.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant today filed his nomination papers from the Sanquelim Assembly constituency. Mr Sawant expressed confidence of winning from Sanquelim with a "big margin". Addressing the media, the Chief Minister said, "Once again I've filed nomination from Sanquelim constituency. BJP will win the constituency with a big margin and I will be elected from here again." "The workers and I are confident. We are coming back to power in Goa in 2022 with 22 plus seats," he added. (ANI)
Utpal Parrikar, the son of former Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, has joined the race for his father's constituency Panaji as an independent candidate after the BJP denied him a ticket. Read here.
Amit Shah in Mathura: "India cannot progress unless UP - with 200 million people - is not progressing. It is your trust and faith in us that UP is progressing today. It is UP that will decide India's destiny. We have taken criminals and gangsters to task and put them behind bars. We have taken UP away from the 'parivaar-vaad' and 'jaati-vaad' and focussed on development - and you all can see it for yourselves. There was a time when gangsters and criminals were feared such that even the police would fear them. Women and young girls feared venturing out. But that has changed now. The gangsters and criminals are so fearful of the police now that they are surrendering voluntarily - that too with a 'patta' around their necks."
Goa Congress leader and former Chief Minister Pratapsinh Rane says he is withdrawing from contest. The BJP has fielded Mr Rane's daughter-in-law against him. Mr Rane claims he is withdrawing from contest because of age and not family pressure. Mr Rane's son Vishwajeet is a BJP minister.
Shiromani Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia who faces a drugs case cannot be arrested till Monday, the Supreme Court has said. Read here.
Punjab: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi visits the Golden Temple in Amritsar. CM Charanjit Singh Channi and the party's state chief Navjot Singh Sidhu also accompanying him. pic.twitter.com/IQouusbqLt
- ANI (@ANI) January 27, 2022
UP assembly election 2022: The BJP's focus today in the Uttar Pradesh campaign is Mathura, one of the three key temple towns after Ayodhya and Varanasi. Read here
Jat Leader Jayant Chaudhary of Rashtriya Lok Dal said in Muzaffarnagar that he is not switching sides. "They know I will not flip, It is the public they are scared of," he said. His remark comes a day after sources said feelers were sent to him following Amit Shah's meeting with Jat leaders. He had rebuffed saying: "The invitation is not for me, give it to those 700 farmer families whose houses you have destroyed!" The RLD leader has worked out an alliance with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav.
A former Uttarakhand Congress chief, expelled by the party yesterday, has joined the BJP days before the February 14 election in the state. Kishore Upadhyay was expelled for "anti-party activities", said the Congress. Read here.
LEADERS stand with their people despite challenges, COWARDS run away from a fight.@BhagwantMann contested unsuccessfully against @officeofssbadal from Jalalabad in 2017, but now Kejriwal's puppet has fled to Dhuri.Challenge him for another round from Jalalabad if he has the guts.
- Harsimrat Kaur Badal (@HarsimratBadal_) January 26, 2022