Bengal Assembly polls: Left Front-AISF fail to reach seat-sharing pact

Posted on by Vividh Bharathi

Kolkata, Feb 24 (IANS) The seat-sharing arrangement between the Left Front in West Bengal and the All India Secular Front (AISF) for the upcoming Assembly elections in West Bengal scheduled to be held later this year could not be reached even after a significant bipartite pact between AISF and the CPI-M here on Tuesday.

At the meeting which was attended by the lone AISF MLA in West Bengal Assembly, Nawsad Siddique, the Left Front Chairman in West Bengal Biman Bose, and the CPI-M Politburo member and the party’s West Bengal unit Secretary, Mohammed Salim, the seat-sharing pact was caught between AISF’s demand for 45 seats and the Left Front’s proposal to limit that to 30.

“There will be another round of meetings on this count again on Wednesday in this matter. We are hopeful that, finally, an amicable seat-sharing arrangement will be reached,” Siddique said at the end of the meeting.

Meanwhile, a Central Committee CPI-M member said that the main hurdle within the Left Front for an amicable seat-sharing arrangement with AISF is the All India Forward Bloc, which is demanding a larger share in the number of Assembly seats, considering that Congress had already backed out from any seat-sharing arrangement with the Left Front.

“If the demands of both AISF and Forward Bloc were met, in that case CPI-M would contest the upcoming state polls with a much lesser number of seats this time, after meeting the demands of two other Left Front allies, namely CPI and Revolutionary Socialist Party. But there is a limit up to which CPI-M can sacrifice its own share in the seat-sharing arrangement,” the party’s Central Committee member said.

On the other hand, AISF contends that since the Congress had already decided to walk out of any seat-sharing agreement with the Left Front for the upcoming Assembly elections in West Bengal this year, there would not be much of a problem for the Left Front to meet AISF’s demand for at least 40 seats.

“Had Congress been a party of the seat-sharing arrangement this time, their demand in the share of seats would have been much more,” an AISF leader said.

–IANS

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AICC review of Telangana govt an affront to state’s pride: BRS leader Harish Rao

Hyderabad, Feb 18 (IANS) Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader and former minister T. Harish Rao on Wednesday termed the Congress leadership’s review of the Telangana government’s performance in Delhi as an affront to the state’s pride and self-governance.

In an open letter addressed to the All India Congress Committee (AICC), Harish Rao said that the review of the Telangana government’s performance by the central leadership was not merely an administrative exercise but raised concerns about the autonomy and self-respect of the state.

“The spectacle of the Telangana government’s performance being reviewed by leadership seated in Delhi is not a routine administrative exercise but a direct affront to Telangana’s pride and the very idea of self-governance,” he wrote.

He added that Telangana was formed after a prolonged movement centred on the principles of self-rule and political accountability to the people of the state.

“Telangana was not created to function as a remote-controlled state or as a political outpost answerable to periodic approvals from Delhi. The Telangana movement fought for self-rule with self-respect, grounded in the principle that the state would be governed by leaders accountable to its own people,” the BRS leader stated.

Harish Rao referred to former Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao’s political position that governance must remain accountable to the people of Telangana.

“He consistently stated that the people of Telangana are his boss. That assertion represented a clear political doctrine: authority flows upward from the people, not downward from distant power centres,” he said.

He further alleged that there was a growing public perception that the current Telangana Congress leadership was more accountable to the party high command in Delhi than to the people of the state.

“Today, however, there is a growing and unmistakable public perception that the present Telangana Congress leadership resides politically in Delhi rather than among the people of Telangana. Decisions appear shaped more by high-command considerations than by the lived realities of farmers, youth, women, students and workers within the state,” Harish Rao added.

Addressing Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Harish Rao said that while the AICC was reviewing the Telangana government’s performance, the people were reviewing the Congress party’s poll promises, including the Six Guarantees and other commitments made ahead of the Assembly elections.

“As AICC reviews the Telangana Congress government, the people are reviewing your Six Guarantees, the Warangal Rythu Declaration, and the Ashok Nagar promises,” he said.

He alleged that several key promises made by the Congress government had not been fully implemented, including financial assistance schemes for farmers, agricultural labourers and unemployed youth.

“Rs 15,000 per acre assistance has not been implemented for both farmers and tenant farmers. Rs 12,000 support for agricultural labourers remains pending. Rythu Bharosa for two seasons is incomplete. The MSP bonus promised for 10 crops was restricted to fine rice, excluding Rabi crops and leaving cultivators short-changed,” he said.

He further claimed that employment-related promises such as filling government vacancies and providing unemployment assistance had not been fulfilled.

“Two lakh government jobs remain a slogan without visible execution. The Job Calendar lacks urgency. The Rs 4,000 unemployment allowance has not reached youth. The Youth Commission and Rs 10 lakh interest-free loans remain announcements without delivery,” Harish Rao said.

Addressing AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge, the BRS leader also questioned the implementation of commitments made to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

“These were not casual statements; they were solemn political commitments made in the name of social justice. Today, the gap between assurance and action is glaring. The 18 per cent SC reservation remains unlegislated. Ambedkar Abhaya Hastham Rs 12 lakh per family is still at the announcement stage,” he said.

He also alleged delays in housing schemes and implementation of forest rights for tribal communities.

“Rs 6 lakh Indiramma housing has not reached the required scale. Implementation of the Forest Rights Act, including Podu pattas, remains incomplete. Telangana is demanding that the guarantees and declarations you made be fulfilled in full, in letter and spirit, without dilution or delay,” Harish Rao added.

–IANS

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Never enquired about how many Pak jets shot down: BJP takes ‘Nishan-e-Pakistan’ swipe at Rahul Gandhi

New Delhi, May 20 (IANS) Amid the growing verbal exchange between the Congress and BJP over India’s ‘alerting’ Pakistan ahead of Operation Sindoor, the latter stepped up the offensive and took a caustic jibe at the Leader of Opposition (LoP), Rahul Gandhi, on Tuesday.

BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya took to X to share a picture of Congress MP and Pak Army chief Asim Munir overlapping with each other.

“What’s next for Rahul Gandhi? The Nishan-e-Pakistan?” he wrote, taking a sharp swipe.

Rahul Gandhi, along with other Congress leaders, has been targeting the Centre over External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s statement that India gave a warning to Pakistan before launching a military operation. Congress claims that it was not just a strategic lapse but an ‘unpardonable’ crime. However, the charges have been outrightly refuted by the Ministry.

Amit Malviya, sharing the juxtaposed picture of Rahul and Pak Army chief on X, accused the Congress leader of speaking on behalf of Pakistan.

“It is not surprising that Rahul Gandhi is speaking the language of Pakistan and its benefactors. He hasn’t congratulated the Prime Minister on the flawless Operation Sindoor, which unmistakably showcases India’s dominance.”

He also claimed that the Congress MP hasn’t once inquired about how many Pakistani jets were shot down during the conflict, or how many were destroyed while parked in their hangars when Indian forces pounded Pakistani airbases.

“Instead, he repeatedly asks how many jets we lost – a question that has already been addressed in the DGMO briefings,” Malviya claimed.

The controversial image of Rahul and Asim Munir, put together in one frame, is set to create a political furore, with Congress taking a strong objection to it.

Early this morning, Assam cabinet minister Ashok Singhal also shared the same image and captioned it – ‘divided by borders, united by agenda’, reiterating the party’s charge that Congress’ talk of national security merely remains on paper and when it comes to action, they start taking sides of India’s adversary.

In another post, Malviya wrote that Rahul Gandhi was the new age Mir Jafar and also shared a cartoon.

–IANS

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Two Dy CMs, one CM-hopeful, others in fray across 121 seats of different hues in Bihar’s first phase

New Delhi, Nov 4 (IANS) In Bihar, the 121 Assembly constituencies going to polls in the first phase on Thursday, November 6, across 18 districts together, look like an irregular ellipse in the middle of the state, meeting the eastern border of Uttar Pradesh.

Poll campaign decibel level within this part was muted on Tuesday, November 4, evening as per election rules, where a host of political heavyweights are in the fray among 1,314 candidates. The second phase of polling will be held on November 11.

Among candidates in phase one are Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) nominees Samrat Chaudhury and Vijay Kumar Sinha, both Deputy Chief Ministers in the state National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. This round of polls also hosts Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav, the Chief Minister hopeful from the Opposition platform of Mahagathbandhan.

Samrat Choudhary has entered the heat-and-dust of the electoral trail after two terms as a member of the Bihar Legislative Council. Earlier, he had twice represented the Parbatta Assembly constituency (2000 and 2010) in the Legislative Assembly as an RJD candidate. He has served as a minister in various cabinets, headed by RJD’s Rabri Devi, currently Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) leader Jitan Ram Manjhi, and Janata Dal (United) chief Nitish Kumar. His responsibilities also included Agriculture, Panchayati Raj, Urban Development and Housing, Health, and Metrology and Horticulture.

Samrat Choudhary is now representing the BJP from Tarapur, where in the 2020 Assembly election, JD (U)’s Mewa Lal Choudhary defeated his nearest rival, Divya Prakash of the RJD, by over 7,000 votes. He will turn 57 two days after the results are declared on November 14.

His party and cabinet colleague Vijay Kumar Sinha, 58, is contesting from Lakhisarai – a seat he has represented since 2010. In 2020, he defeated Congress candidate Amaresh Kumar by a margin of close to 10,500 votes and Ramanand Mandal of the JD (U) in 2015 by more than 6,500 votes, when Nitish Kumar contested with a bloc of parties opposed to the BJP.

Sinha, too, has been a minister in various departments, and Leader of Opposition (2022-2024) and Speaker (2020-2022) in the Bihar Legislative Assembly.

Meanwhile, Lalu Prasad’s heir apparent Tejashwi Yadav, who will turn 36 on November 9, is contesting from Raghopur, which he won twice (2015, 2020). On both occasions, he defeated BJP’s Satish Kumar, who had wrested the seat from his mother Rabri Devi in this Yadav family bastion in 2010. His estranged elder brother is contesting from Mahua, a seat he won for the RJD in 2015 before moving to Hasanpur in 2020.

This time, he is representing his recently launched Janshakti Janata Dal, after expulsion over alleged anti-party activities.

The first phase is a high-octane opening that packs symbolic and substantive significance, combining not only marquee showdowns but intense localised battles shaped by caste and welfare politics, and a contentious backdrop of candidates with serious criminal allegations.

Among the latter, Mokama is one constituency where JD(U) candidate Anant Singh was arrested last week for his alleged involvement in the death of Jan Suraaj supporter Dularchand Yadav recently in a clash. If convicted, he stands to be disqualified as a candidate. He is already facing at least 28 cases, including murder, attempt to murder, criminal intimidation, rioting, among others, according to the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and Bihar Election Watch analysis of election candidates’ self-sworn affidavits.

Anant Singh filed his nomination this time after being acquitted by the Patna High Court in a conviction under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

Among other constituencies going to the election in this phase is Begusarai, once termed as the “Leningrad of Bihar”, reflecting decades of strong Left‑wing organisation, trade‑union presence and a public culture that celebrated Marxist politics. But the 1990s’ political realignments after the Mandal era altered Begusarai’s arithmetic, leading to the waning of the Left.

In 2020, the BJP wrested the seat and continues to dominate, except for the 2025 election. Sitting BJP MLA Kundan Kumar will again be contesting against Congress candidate Amita Bhushan.

Other big names in this phase include JD(U) state president Umesh Kushwaha and RJD’s Bhola Yadav, who is a close aide of party chief Lalu Prasad.

Then there are celebrities who have entered the race, such as Bhojpuri actor Khesari Lal Yadav (RJD) and popular folk singer Maithili Thakur (BJP).

–IANS

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