Election news from across the country, 24 March 2011
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Barun Mitra, New Delhi
Mar 24, 2011, 2:55:11 AM3/24/11
to Empowering India
Headlines:
1) 20 to 40 percent legislators have criminal records says embarrassed
CEC
2) Voter apathy a cause for worry: Election official
3) 'Democracy on the decline' feels Senior citizens
4) Nine former militants join poll fray in Assam
5) Madras Hight Court puts brakes on EC vehicle raids
6) DMK starts campaign, laptops for all students in TN
7) Poll process begins in Bengal's 6 districts Thursday
8) Nomination process begins for Kashmir panchayat polls
---------
1) 20 to 40 percent legislators have criminal records says embarrassed
Chief Election Commissioner
ANI, Sify.com
23 march 2011
Ahead of the upcoming assembly elections in different parts of India,
Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi has said that legislators with
criminal records are a cause of grave concern and embarrassment for
his department.
Speaking to the media in Kolkata, Quraishi said: " When the same
people who look upon us with admiration and ask us about legislators
with criminal backgrounds, it becomes very embarrassing."
Read more,
http://www.sify.com/news/20-to-40-percent-legislators-have-criminal-records-says-embarrassed-chief-election-commissioner-news-national-ldxoahihhaa.html
----
2) Voter apathy a cause for worry: Election Official
Special Correspondent, The Hindu,
24 March 2011
Young voters in urban areas not showing much enthusiasm in elections
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Election Commission feels that voter apathy in
the urban centres of Kerala, particularly among the 18-20 age group,
is a matter for worry.
Interacting with journalists here on Wednesday, Akshay Raut, Director-
General (Information, Education and Communication), Election
Commission of India, said that though voter turnout in Kerala had
always been in excess of 70 per cent, the recent trend of young voters
in cities such as Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram had to be taken serious
note of.
The Commission, he said, was doing its best to ensure that maximum
number of voters cast their votes in the April 13 Assembly elections.
As part of such efforts, the Commission had launched an outreach
campaign, particularly targeted at the young voters. The Commission
was also trying to ensure that voters in difficult areas were provided
with sufficient facilities to cast their votes, he said and added that
the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) had created a response
system to facilitate maximum voter registration and turnout.
Read more,
http://www.hindu.com/2011/03/24/stories/2011032463380100.htm
----
3) 'Democracy on the decline' feels Senior citizens
Abdul Gani, TNN
Mar 23, 2011,
GUWAHATI: The been there', done that' generation has witnessed the
changing political fabric of the state the post-Independence Congress
rule up to the late 1970s; the Assam Agitation between 1979 and 1985;
the rise and fall of AGP; the rise of Congress again with Hiteswar
Saikia coming to power in 1991; and, finally, the last two terms of
Congress's Tarun Gogoi as CM.
True, the biggest chunk of the state's populace is young. As per
estimate, of 224 lakh people residing here, the biggest chunk 59.4 per
cent falls in the 15-59 years age bracket, while only 4.5 per cent are
60 years and above. But the fact remains that this small percentage
that comprises Assam's senior citizens' club is probably equipped with
the maximum knowledge of the state's political scenario and plays a
decisive electoral role.
The biggest problem facing today's politics is the erosion of morality
and ethics, according to elderly people in the state. Noted Gandhian
Hema Bharali, who has been a witness to every socio-political
development in Assam since the 1920s, termed the present-day trend of
politicians running after power and money as a mental illness'.
Read more,
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/guwahati/Democracy-on-the-declineSenior-citizens/articleshow/7775315.cms
-----
4) Nine former militants join poll fray in Assam
Digambar Patowary, Hindustan Times,
March 23, 2011
Guwahati: They had once believed in disrupting polls to send a message
to ‘colonial India’. But now the same rebels have donned the colours
of democracy. Mandate 2011 has nine former militants seeking a berth
to the Assam assembly. Seven of them belonged to the outlawed United
Liberation Front of Asom (Ulfa)
while two were from the disbanded Bodoland Liberation Tigers (BLT).
Prafulla Bora, the Nationalist Congress Party’s candidate for the
Bihpuria seat in north-eastern Assam, was notorious in his Ulfa avatar
as Dhekiyal Phukan. He quit as the outfit’s Lakhimpur area commander
in 1992 to run ‘businesses’, and tried in vain to get a Congress
ticket in the 2001 and 2006 elections.
Read more,
http://www.hindustantimes.com/Nine-former-militants-join-poll-fray/Article1-676907.aspx
------------
5) Court puts brakes on EC vehicle raids
Deccan Chronicle
March 24, 2011
The Madras high court on Wednesday directed the Election Commission of
India (ECI) not to conduct any search and seizure without the
authority concerned arriving at the subjective satisfaction regarding
the nature and source of information.
A division bench comprising Justice Elipe Dharma Rao and Justice M
Venugopal posted to March 28, further hearing of the PIL filed by
Thillai Natarajan, to restrain the ECI from obstructing free movement
or causing inconvenience to the public traveling in motor vehicles and
in transport corporation buses by adopting illegal and arbitrary
method of search and seizure of their properties.
Read more,
http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/chennai/court-puts-brakes-ec-vehicle-raids-284
----------
6) DMK starts campaign, laptops for all students
Veeraraghav T M, CNN-IBN
Updated Mar 24, 2011
New Delhi: DMK Supremo Karunanidhi kickstarted his election campaign
on Wednesday in the run up to polls in Tamil Nadu next month. As usual
he's promising freebies and this time he's targetting young students.
Combating the stain of corruption with a promise of populism 87-year-
old M karunanidhi drove past the DMK cadre lined up to see him embark
on yet another political journey.
Read more,
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/dmk-starts-campaign-laptops-for-all-students/146908-37-64.html
--------
7) Poll process begins in Bengal's 6 districts Thursday
IANS, Economic Times,
23 Mar 2011
KOLKATA: The process for the first phase of polls in the 54 assembly
constituencies of West Bengal's six northern districts will start
Thursday with the Election Commission sounding the bugle with the
issue of notification.
The 54 assembly constituencies fall mainly in Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri,
Cooch Behar, North Dinajpur, South Dinajpur and Malda districts which
will go to polls April 18.
Security has been beefed up in these districts. Police vigil has also
been increased in Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar as it shares
international border with Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh .
Read more,
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics/nation/poll-process-begins-in-bengals-6-districts-thursday/articleshow/7769592.cms
--------
8) Nomination process begins for Kashmir panchayat polls
IANS, Sify.com
23 March 2011
Srinagar, March 23 (IANS) The filing of nominations for Jammu and
Kashmir's first panchayat elections in 10 years has begun, officials
said Wednesday.
The process of nominations for the 16-phase panchayat elections began
Tuesday evening. The April 13-June 30 polls will see more than five
million voters choosing 4,130 village heads and 29,719 panchayat
members in 143 developmental blocks of the state.
Read more,
http://www.sify.com/news/nomination-process-begins-for-kashmir-panchayat-polls-news-national-ldxnOfgbafj.html
1) 20 to 40 percent legislators have criminal records says embarrassed
CEC
2) Voter apathy a cause for worry: Election official
3) 'Democracy on the decline' feels Senior citizens
4) Nine former militants join poll fray in Assam
5) Madras Hight Court puts brakes on EC vehicle raids
6) DMK starts campaign, laptops for all students in TN
7) Poll process begins in Bengal's 6 districts Thursday
8) Nomination process begins for Kashmir panchayat polls
---------
1) 20 to 40 percent legislators have criminal records says embarrassed
Chief Election Commissioner
ANI, Sify.com
23 march 2011
Ahead of the upcoming assembly elections in different parts of India,
Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi has said that legislators with
criminal records are a cause of grave concern and embarrassment for
his department.
Speaking to the media in Kolkata, Quraishi said: " When the same
people who look upon us with admiration and ask us about legislators
with criminal backgrounds, it becomes very embarrassing."
Read more,
http://www.sify.com/news/20-to-40-percent-legislators-have-criminal-records-says-embarrassed-chief-election-commissioner-news-national-ldxoahihhaa.html
----
2) Voter apathy a cause for worry: Election Official
Special Correspondent, The Hindu,
24 March 2011
Young voters in urban areas not showing much enthusiasm in elections
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Election Commission feels that voter apathy in
the urban centres of Kerala, particularly among the 18-20 age group,
is a matter for worry.
Interacting with journalists here on Wednesday, Akshay Raut, Director-
General (Information, Education and Communication), Election
Commission of India, said that though voter turnout in Kerala had
always been in excess of 70 per cent, the recent trend of young voters
in cities such as Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram had to be taken serious
note of.
The Commission, he said, was doing its best to ensure that maximum
number of voters cast their votes in the April 13 Assembly elections.
As part of such efforts, the Commission had launched an outreach
campaign, particularly targeted at the young voters. The Commission
was also trying to ensure that voters in difficult areas were provided
with sufficient facilities to cast their votes, he said and added that
the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) had created a response
system to facilitate maximum voter registration and turnout.
Read more,
http://www.hindu.com/2011/03/24/stories/2011032463380100.htm
----
3) 'Democracy on the decline' feels Senior citizens
Abdul Gani, TNN
Mar 23, 2011,
GUWAHATI: The been there', done that' generation has witnessed the
changing political fabric of the state the post-Independence Congress
rule up to the late 1970s; the Assam Agitation between 1979 and 1985;
the rise and fall of AGP; the rise of Congress again with Hiteswar
Saikia coming to power in 1991; and, finally, the last two terms of
Congress's Tarun Gogoi as CM.
True, the biggest chunk of the state's populace is young. As per
estimate, of 224 lakh people residing here, the biggest chunk 59.4 per
cent falls in the 15-59 years age bracket, while only 4.5 per cent are
60 years and above. But the fact remains that this small percentage
that comprises Assam's senior citizens' club is probably equipped with
the maximum knowledge of the state's political scenario and plays a
decisive electoral role.
The biggest problem facing today's politics is the erosion of morality
and ethics, according to elderly people in the state. Noted Gandhian
Hema Bharali, who has been a witness to every socio-political
development in Assam since the 1920s, termed the present-day trend of
politicians running after power and money as a mental illness'.
Read more,
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/guwahati/Democracy-on-the-declineSenior-citizens/articleshow/7775315.cms
-----
4) Nine former militants join poll fray in Assam
Digambar Patowary, Hindustan Times,
March 23, 2011
Guwahati: They had once believed in disrupting polls to send a message
to ‘colonial India’. But now the same rebels have donned the colours
of democracy. Mandate 2011 has nine former militants seeking a berth
to the Assam assembly. Seven of them belonged to the outlawed United
Liberation Front of Asom (Ulfa)
while two were from the disbanded Bodoland Liberation Tigers (BLT).
Prafulla Bora, the Nationalist Congress Party’s candidate for the
Bihpuria seat in north-eastern Assam, was notorious in his Ulfa avatar
as Dhekiyal Phukan. He quit as the outfit’s Lakhimpur area commander
in 1992 to run ‘businesses’, and tried in vain to get a Congress
ticket in the 2001 and 2006 elections.
Read more,
http://www.hindustantimes.com/Nine-former-militants-join-poll-fray/Article1-676907.aspx
------------
5) Court puts brakes on EC vehicle raids
Deccan Chronicle
March 24, 2011
The Madras high court on Wednesday directed the Election Commission of
India (ECI) not to conduct any search and seizure without the
authority concerned arriving at the subjective satisfaction regarding
the nature and source of information.
A division bench comprising Justice Elipe Dharma Rao and Justice M
Venugopal posted to March 28, further hearing of the PIL filed by
Thillai Natarajan, to restrain the ECI from obstructing free movement
or causing inconvenience to the public traveling in motor vehicles and
in transport corporation buses by adopting illegal and arbitrary
method of search and seizure of their properties.
Read more,
http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/chennai/court-puts-brakes-ec-vehicle-raids-284
----------
6) DMK starts campaign, laptops for all students
Veeraraghav T M, CNN-IBN
Updated Mar 24, 2011
New Delhi: DMK Supremo Karunanidhi kickstarted his election campaign
on Wednesday in the run up to polls in Tamil Nadu next month. As usual
he's promising freebies and this time he's targetting young students.
Combating the stain of corruption with a promise of populism 87-year-
old M karunanidhi drove past the DMK cadre lined up to see him embark
on yet another political journey.
Read more,
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/dmk-starts-campaign-laptops-for-all-students/146908-37-64.html
--------
7) Poll process begins in Bengal's 6 districts Thursday
IANS, Economic Times,
23 Mar 2011
KOLKATA: The process for the first phase of polls in the 54 assembly
constituencies of West Bengal's six northern districts will start
Thursday with the Election Commission sounding the bugle with the
issue of notification.
The 54 assembly constituencies fall mainly in Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri,
Cooch Behar, North Dinajpur, South Dinajpur and Malda districts which
will go to polls April 18.
Security has been beefed up in these districts. Police vigil has also
been increased in Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar as it shares
international border with Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh .
Read more,
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics/nation/poll-process-begins-in-bengals-6-districts-thursday/articleshow/7769592.cms
--------
8) Nomination process begins for Kashmir panchayat polls
IANS, Sify.com
23 March 2011
Srinagar, March 23 (IANS) The filing of nominations for Jammu and
Kashmir's first panchayat elections in 10 years has begun, officials
said Wednesday.
The process of nominations for the 16-phase panchayat elections began
Tuesday evening. The April 13-June 30 polls will see more than five
million voters choosing 4,130 village heads and 29,719 panchayat
members in 143 developmental blocks of the state.
Read more,
http://www.sify.com/news/nomination-process-begins-for-kashmir-panchayat-polls-news-national-ldxnOfgbafj.html
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