-The Indian Express The Election Commission order, however, continues to permit gatherings of up to 500 people in West Bengal. The Election Commission (EC) on Thursday banned roadshows, vehicle rallies, and public meetings of more than 500 people in West Bengal, noting that Political Parties and candidates were “still not adhering to the prescribed safety norms” during campaigning. Permissions already given for such events stood withdrawn, the Commission said. The directive came hours after...

-The Hindu The Matuas became a significant political entity after the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2003, came into being On a sultry April day, Thakurnagar, the holy site of Matuas in the Bongaon sub-division of West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district bordering Bangladesh, sizzles with banners of rival Political Parties asking for votes. As if indifferent to the ongoing political tension and the pandemic threat, a boisterous religious rally makes its way through...

-The Hindu Tamil Nadu tops with inducements worth ₹446.28 crore recovered. The Election Commission on Friday said it had seized cash, liquor, drugs, precious metals and other freebies worth ₹1,001.43 crore meant for distribution to voters in the ongoing Assembly elections. “Seizures crossed ₹1,000 crore for the first time in any Assembly electoral process,” the EC said in a statement. Of the total seizures as on Thursday in Assam, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West...

-The Hindu With no ownership of land or houses and denial of minimum wage, lakhs of workers continue to live in a vicious cycle of bondage plucking Over the past few elections, Benam Oraon, a tea garden worker at Nagrakata Tea Estate in West Bengal, attended several election meetings and kept a note of the promises which Political Parties made. This election, however, he is contesting the polls as a candidate from...

-The Hindu As incidents escalate amid the marathon Assembly polls, analysts point to a historical antecedents of widespread attacks Kolkata: Halfway into the marathon 33-day, eight-phase Assembly polls in West Bengal, leaders of the two major Political Parties are already talking about how violent these ongoing elections are. The ongoing 2021 poll is being compared to the 2018 panchayat polls in the State. While Union Home Minister and BJP leader Amit Shah said...