Over 2.82 lakh new Covid cases were reported in India over the past 24 hours, a rise of 18 per cent from yesterday's case count. Akhilesh Yadav today refused to confirm reports that he has decided to contest the Uttar Pradesh election for the first time. He was also evasive about the constituency he plans to fight from. "I will seek the permission of the people of Azamgarh if I decide to contest the elections. I need to seek their permission because they elected me from there," said the Samajwadi Party MP. Lawyer and social worker Amit Palekar is the Aam Aadmi Party's chief ministerial candidate for Goa, party leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced today.