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Assembly Election 2021 LIVE Updates: I-T officials search MK Stalin's son-in-law's home and office ahead of 6 April TN polls

Assembly Election 2021 LIVE Updates: This is the second such raid on those associated with the DMK ahead of the 6 April Tamil Nadu Assembly polls. Last month, DMK candidate EV Velu's premises were searched in Tiruvannamalai and Chennai

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Assembly Election 2021 LIVE Updates: I-T officials search MK Stalin's son-in-law's home and office ahead of 6 April TN polls

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LIVE NEWS and UPDATES

Apr 02, 2021 - 13:02 (IST)

Tamil Nadu Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates

DMK-Congress guarantee neither ‘safety nor dignity’: Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi hit out at the DMK and Congress for trying to turn peace-loving Madurai into a mafia district because of “complications in DMK's first family”.

Pointing out that the rival parties don’t understand the ethos of Madurai, Modi said, “In the 2016 Tamil Nadu Congress manifesto, there was a call for ban on Jallikattu. Congress and DMK should be ashamed of themselves. People sought a solution and wanted Jallikatu to continue. Our government then cleared ordinance by AIADMK, which allowed it to take place.”

The prime minister went on to say that the BJP will focus on the textile and food processing sectors. “A mega investment textile park scheme 'MITRA' has been announced in this year's budget. Seven textile parks will come up in three years, he said.

"From the Red Fort last year, I had said that the Centre is going to spend Rs 100 lakh crore for creation of next-gen infrastructure which will cater to the needs of not just the present, but also the future generations. In this year's Union budget, a series of economic corridors have been announced, and one of them is the Madurai-Kollam corridor. Funds allocated for railway infra projects in TN have increased by a record 238 percent compared to 2009," Modi told crowds at the Madurai rally.

Apr 02, 2021 - 12:42 (IST)

Tamil Nadu Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates

At Madurai rally, Modi rakes up culture and water

Addressing a rally in Madurai ahead of the 6 April Tamil Nadu Assembly polls, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the city is closely associated with the world's oldest language - Tamil. “Here, one thinks about the Tamil Sangams. I want to appreciate all those working to make Tamil culture and literature more popular. This land had a great influence on Mahatma Gandhi,” he said.

Invoking MGR’s legacy and hailing his “vision for an inclusive and prosperous society”, Modi said even though Congress dismissed his democratically-elected government in the 1980s, he won from Madurai. “South Tamil Nadu and especially Madurai has a special association with MGR. We all know TM Soundararajan lent his voice to MGR,” he further said.

Modi also pointed out that over 60 lakh water connections have been installed in Tamil Nadu since the launch of the Jal Jeevan Mission.

Apr 02, 2021 - 12:17 (IST)

Tamil Nadu Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates

Narendra Modi address poll rally in Madurai 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is addressing a poll rally in Madurai on Friday ahead of the Tamil Nadu Assembly election. Elections to 234 Assembly seats in Tamil Nadu are slated on 6 April and the BJP is facing the polls in alliance with the ruling AIADMK.

Apr 02, 2021 - 12:15 (IST)

West Bengal Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates

Mithun Chakraborty campaigns in Pursurah 

Actor and BJP leader Mithun Chakraborty has arrived in Pursurah of Hooghly district on Friday. He will be campaigning will for party's candidate Biman Ghosh ahead of the third phase of Bengal Assembly polls on 6 April.

Apr 02, 2021 - 11:54 (IST)

Tamil Nadu Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates

MK Stalin's son-in-law's home and office raided by I-T officials

Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief MK Stalin's son-in-law Sabareesan's residence and office were raided by the Income Tax department on Friday. Several other places connected to him are also being searched, ANI reported.

This is the second such raid on those associated with the DMK ahead of the 6 April Tamil Nadu Assembly election. Last month, DMK candidate EV Velu's premises were searched in Tiruvannamalai and Chennai.

Apr 02, 2021 - 11:45 (IST)

West Bengal Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates

No disruption during polling at booth 7 in Nandigram: EC

The Election Commission cited the report of its general observer in West Bengal on Thursday to say voting was not disrupted at any moment at polling station number 7 in Nandigram, from where Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is contesting.

In a statement, the commission said "many sections of media have been covering the incident of alleged gherao of Chief Minister of West Bengal and crowding at Polling Station no. 7 at 210 Nandigram AC (assembly constituency) today that inter alia resulted in disruption of poll process".

It said general observer Hemen Das, an IAS officer, and police observer Ashutosh Roy (IPS) were asked to go to the spot immediately. The panel said the general observer's report was received at 4.06 pm.

Apr 02, 2021 - 11:00 (IST)

West Bengal Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates

TMC delegation to poll officials in Kolkata today 

A seven-member delegation of the Trinamool Congress comprising MPs and ministers will meet poll officials in Kolkata on Friday at 1.30pm, reported News18. The delegation is expected to discuss issues faced during the first two phases of elections in West Bengal. 

Apr 02, 2021 - 10:56 (IST)

Kerala Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates

Modi to campaign in Pathanamthitta, Thiruvananthapuram today

Narendra Modi will also be visiting poll-bound Kerala on Friday. He is expected hold public meetings in Pathanamthitta and Thiruvananthapuram at 1.45 pm and 6.16 pm respectively.

Apr 02, 2021 - 10:53 (IST)

Tamil Nadu Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates

PM to address rallies in Madurai and Kanyakumari today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is in Tamil Nadu to campaign for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its alliance AIADMK for the upcoming state elections, will be addressing rallies in Madurai and Kanyakumari on Friday. 

Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates: This is the second such raid on those associated with the DMK ahead of the 6 April Tamil Nadu Assembly polls. Last month, DMK candidate EV Velu's premises were searched in Tiruvannamalai and Chennai.

A seven-member delegation of the Trinamool Congress comprising MPs and ministers will meet poll officials in Kolkata on Friday at 1.30 pm. The delegation is expected to discuss issues faced during the first two phases of elections in West Bengal.

Bodoland Peoples Front (BPF) candidate Rangja Khungur Basumatary Thursday joined BJP ahead of the third phase of poll in Assam when the constituency in which he is a contestant is slated to go to the poll.

Basumatary had reportedly gone missing for two days and at around midnight on Wednesday, senior BJP leader Himanta Biswa Sarma had tweeted that he had met the BPF candidate, who would join the saffron party.

BPF is an ally of the Opposition Congress in Assam, where two out of the slated three phased poll got over on Thursday.

"Official candidate of BPF and so called Congress-led alliance from Tamulpur Assembly constituency, Sri Ram Das Basumatary met me a short while ago. He has expressed his desire to Join @BJP4India and retire
from the election," Sarma tweeted.

Rangja Khungur Basumatary is also known as Ram Das Basumatary.

Basumatary told a local TV channel that he had decided to resign from BPF as the party did not lend any helping hand to him during the campaign.

Efforts made to contact him failed as his phone was switched off. A statement by the Congress confirmed that Basumatary has joined the BJP on Thursday.

Tamulpur constituency is in Baksa district under Bodoland Territorial Region and will go to the poll during the third phase on 6 April.

Reacting to the development, Congress MP Manish Tiwari said that Basumatary had gone missing due to threatening by BJPN and lambasted the saffron party for it.

"Never in India did such immoral activities take place during elections - you (BJP) threatened to use the National Investigation Agency against the party and the candidate. You (BJP) want to win the poll by wrong means. This is a fascist mentality and it is BJP's education. That party does not believe in democracy and democratic systems. This is absolutely the worst spectacle of fascism that is on display in the Assam polls," he told a press conference in Guwahati.

Tiwari demanded that the BJP government in the state tell the people what had happened to Basumatary for two days.

"I demand a detailed probe into the incident by Election Commission. How come such an incident took place in front of the EC? Is the EC blindfolded?" the Congress leader said.

AICC spokesperson Gourav Vallabh said a Congress delegation will meet the EC Thursday evening to seek deferment of voting in Tamulpur constituency and disqualification of Sarma, a senior Assam minister, from contesting and further campaigning for the state poll as he is a "repeat offender" of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC).

Vallabh questioned why the EC was not checking Basumatary's call records to find his whereabouts.

"We demand that the call records of Basumatary be made public so that the people of Assam get to know what coercion, intimidation or what proposal forced him to join hands with the BJP," Vallabh said.

Commenting on the EC notice to Sarma for allegedly threatening BPF chief Hagrama Mohilary with using the NIA against him, Tiwari said "The EC issued the notice because it is convinced that such threatening language is not acceptable."

"The EC prima facie found him guilty. It is a conspiracy against the candidate. It is an attempt to subvert the election process. They (BJP) don't believe in democracy and that is why they are resorting to such practice of threatening a candidate who is in the poll contest," he said.

Sarma had said that he had got evidence of Mohilary's alleged links with the recent recoveries of arms in Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR) and the case was being given to the NIA for investigation.

Later the state Director General of Police Bhaskar Jyoti Mahanta had reportedly said that there was evidence of militant and his group in the arms recovery.

"We ask the Gujarati Mama (referring to Sarma's allegiance to BJP and that he is popularly called 'Mama') when did that evidence come? If it came before the MCC came into force, then why were you silent? It means you were indulging in a criminal offence. If it came after the MCC came into
force, then how and who gave the evidence to you because police now reports to the Election Commission. Yesterday the DGP said that he has all the information. Is it a coincidence or deliberate? DGP Sir why
are you not taking any action? Who has tied your hands? By making such statements, you are not strengthening the democracy, but weakening it," Vallabh added.

Updated Date: April 02, 2021 11:58:43 IST

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