During a programme held at Assam State BJP head office at Basistha in Guwahati, the Assam Chief Minister released the party's 'Sankalp Patra' with several promises for the all-around development of Deori tribes.

Islamabad [Pakistan], May 7 (ANI): Pakistan federal government on Saturday appointed Lahore-based advocate Ashtar Ausaf Ali as the new Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP).

Kaziranga (Assam) [India], May 5 (ANI): Ahead of the first anniversary of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Assam government, a two-day conference of MLAs of BJP and allied parties is going to be held at Kaziranga starting from Thursday.

Guwahati Apr 22 PTI Polling for Guwahati Municipal Corporation GMC being held after a gap of nine years began on a brisk note on Friday morningPeople queued up in front of the polling stations under a clear sky to elect their new councillorsAltogether 197 candidates are in the fray in 57 wards while BJP candidates in three wards have already been elected uncontestedElectronic Voting Machines EVMs are being used for all the wards under the GMC for the first timeA total electorate of 796829 comprising 396891 males 399911 females and 27 of the third gender is eligible to exercise their franchiseThe counting of votes will be undertaken on April 24Political parties had gone all out to woo the voters promising a flood-free and crime-free city with piped water to all households and all other basic civic amenities in the run up to the pollsChief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma led the BJPs election campaign addressing multiple rallies across the city while the saffron partys coalition partner at Dispur Asom Gana Parishads AGP campaign was helmed by Agriculture Minister and party president Atul BoraThe BJP has fielded candidates in 53 wards while AGP is contesting in the remaining sevenAssam Pradesh Congress Committee chief Bhupen Borah led the states main Opposition party on its campaign trailThe Congress has put up candidates in 54 wardsThe other parties were also not to be left behind with Aam Aadmi Party bringing in its Delhi MLA Atishi Marlena to woo voters while Assam Jatiya Parishad had its chief Lurinjyoti Gogoi leading the campaignBesides door-to-door canvassing and rallies the parties took out car and bike rallies through the streets of the city with the campaign reaching its crescendo on Wednesday when the campaign endedThe notification for elections to the 60 wards of GMC was issued on March 23 and the model code of conduct came into force with immediate effect PTI SSG SSG RG RG

Guwahati Mar 31 PTI The counting of votes for the two Rajya Sabha seats in Assam for which polling was held on Thursday has been delayed following the demand of the opposition Congress to cancel the votes of five MLAs including three of the ruling BJP for allegedly violating rules The Congress also suspended its MLA Siddeque Ahmed for not following the procedure intentionally violating the whipSeniors leaders including AICC in charge of Assam Jitendra Singh Abhishekh Manu Singhvi and state party president Bhupen Kumar Bora in a video conference urged the Chief Election Commissioner to cancel votes of the five MLAs and take action against them for violating the election rules party spokesperson Manjit Mahanta said The Congress has demanded action against its MLA Sashikanta Das who was suspended earlier BPF legislator Durgadas Boro and three BJP MLAs - Hitendra Nath Goswami Ganesh Limbu and Sanjay KishanDas who was suspended by the party in December had on Tuesday said he will vote for the ruling BJP-led coalition candidates in the Rajya Sabha polls for the cause of development The Congress submitted video and documentary evidence alleging defiance of the party whip of its suspended legislator and violation of election rules by the other MLAs the spokesperson said The returning officer is waiting for directives from the CEC to begin the counting process The polling for the two Rajya Sabha seats concluded at 4 pm but the counting of votes scheduled to begin at 5 pm was delayed following the complaint by the CongressThree candidates two from the BJP-led ruling alliance and one from the Congress as the joint opposition nominee are in the fray for the two seats The BJPs Pabitra Margherita is contesting for the first seat while its alliance partner UPPLs Rwngra Narzary and Congress candidate and sitting Rajya Sabha MP Ripun Bora were battling for the secondMargheritas victory is assured while Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has urged all Congress MLAs to vote for the candidate of the ruling alliance for the second seatMLAs take part in the Rajya Sabha election as members of the Upper House of Parliament are elected by legislators in state assemblies It is an election through proportional representation In the 126-member state assembly the ruling NDA has 79 seats with 63 from the BJP nine from AGP and seven from the UPPL Among the opposition parties there are 27 MLAs from the Congress 15 from AIUDF three from BPF and one from the CPIM while there is an independent candidate The BPF has lent its support to the government in the assembly but is yet to enter into a political alliance formallyThe two seats for which elections were conducted were held by Congress leaders Bora and Ranee Narah Meanwhile state Congress president Bhupen Bora suspended the partys Karimganj South MLA Siddeque Ahmed from the primary membership of the party with immediate effect for intentionally disobeying the three-line whip issued by the partys Chief Whip Wazed Ali ChoudhuryThere are seven Rajya Sabha seats from Assam Three of them are held by the BJP and one by its alliance partner AGP The Congress and an independent member hold the three other seats PTI DG NN NN

Guwahati Mar 21 PTI Three candidates two from the BJP-led ruling alliance and one from the Congress as the joint opposition nominee on Monday filed their nomination papers for elections to the two Rajya Sabha seats from Assam scheduled to be held on March 31 The BJPs Pabitra Margherita its alliance partner UPPLs Rwngra Narzary and Congress candidate and sitting Rajya Sabha MP Ripun Bora filed their nomination papers in the assembly secretarys office here Monday is the last day of filing nomination papers Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma accompanied Margherita when the candidate filed nomination papers Margheritas victory is assured while a contest is on the cards for the other seat with the chief minister urging all Congress MLAs to vote for the candidate of the ruling alliance for that seat We do not want the votes of the AIUDF but I urge all Congress MLAs to vote for the ruling alliance candidates as they can raise the voice of the people and the state in the Rajya Sabha Sarma said The CMs visit to the residence of suspended Congress MLA Sashi Kanta Das on Sunday had created a stir as he announced that he would vote for the candidates of the ruling alliance Congress Legislature Party leader Debabrata Saikia told reporters outside the assembly that the chief minister has resorted to horse-trading and is out to destroy the democratic process in the state The opposition parties AIUDF and the Raijor Dal had agreed to support the Congress candidate and accordingly Boras candidature was announced Realising that it would be difficult for the second candidate of the ruling alliance to win the chief minister has reached out to our party MLAs Saikia said Admitting that the BJP has reached out to Congress MLAs the CM asserted that it does not amount to horse-trading I will also talk to them while party members will go to their homes with gamosa and tamul-paan and request them to vote for the ruling alliance candidates he said In Assam gamosa traditional hand towel and tamul-paan areca nut and betel leaves are presented to people as a sign of respect The present condition of the Congress in the entire country is pitiable and I request the elected members of the opposition to consider which party can ensure the well-being of the people and the state Sarma said If an MLA does not weigh the pros and cons before voting it is only then that he should be called a horse and not the other way round Sarma quipped On Boras statement that all Congress MLAs will receive Rs 10 lakh each year for their assembly constituencies from his MP Development Fund Sarma said the legislators should question him why he did not give it in the last six years when he was a Rajya Sabha member Both the seats for which elections have been scheduled are currently held by Congress members- Bora and Ranee Narah There are seven Rajya Sabha seats from Assam Three of them are held by the BJP and one by its alliance partner AGP The Congress and an independent member hold the three other seats In the 126-member state assembly the ruling NDA has 79 seats with 63 from BJP nine from AGP and seven from the UPPL Among the opposition parties there are 27 MLAs from the Congress 15 from AIUDF three from BPF and one from the CPIM while there is an independent member The BPF has lent its support to the government in the assembly but is yet to enter into a political alliance formally MLAs will participate in the Rajya Sabha election as members of the Upper House of Parliament are elected by legislators in state assemblies It is an election through proportional representation PTI DG NN NN

Guwahati Mar 21 PTI The Opposition staged a walkout in the Assam Assembly on Monday over alleged horse trading of MLAs by the ruling BJP ahead of the Rajya Sabha pollsAs soon as the House assembled in the morning the Leader of the Opposition Debabrata Saikia of the Congress said the Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and the ruling BJP were indulging in undemocratic practices by allegedly trying to buy MLAs to win both the Rajya Sabha seats from Assam for which elections will be held on March 31Speaker Biswajit Daimary tried to pacify the Opposition and requested them to allow continuance of the Question Hour but his pleas fell on deaf earsThe chief minister on Sunday had claimed that suspended Congress MLA Sashi Kanta Das will vote for BJP-led NDA candidates during the upcoming Rajya Sabha election in the state after a meeting with himThis is being done to weaken the Opposition and democracy Saikia said adding the chief minister allegedly said all Congress and opposition MLAs are ready to join the BJPThe treasury bench strongly opposed this resulting in a noisy situation inside the House The opposition started shouting slogans and waved placards with slogansThe opposition comprising the Congress AIUDF CPIM and the Raijor Dal moved to the well of the House and shouted slogans like Save Democracy Wont Allow Death of Democracy Inquilab Zindabad Follow Constitution and Jai Aai Asom among othersThese were countered by BJP MLAs with shouts of Bharat Mata Ki Jai and Jai Shree RamYou opposition please sit down and discuss the issue Only then we can solve it Theres no problem in discussing the issue in the House The Rajya Sabha polls will be held as per rule Daimary saidAfter continuously shouting slogans inside the well of the House for 35 minutes during which the Question Hour continued members of the four opposition parties staged a walkout from the AssemblyThe BJP has nominated Pabitra Margherita as its candidate for one seat while United Peoples Party Liberals UPPL working president Rwngwra Narzary was named for the second seatThe two seats for which elections are due are currently held by Ripun Bora and Ranee Narah of the Congress Bora is in the fray this time as the Opposition parties joint candidateThe ruling coalition stands comfortably poised to get one of its candidates easily elected though it may fall short by a couple of votes if the Opposition votes as a bloc for its lone nominee so farOut of seven Rajya Sabha seats from Assam the BJP currently holds three and Congress two BJP ally Asom Gana Parishad AGP has one member in the Upper House while the remaining one is held by an IndependentThe BJPs strength in the 126-member Assam Assembly is 63 while its allies AGP has nine and UPPL has seven MLAsIn the opposition camp the Congress strength is 27 All India United Democratic Front AIUDF has 15 members Bodoland Peoples Front BPF has three and CPIM has one MLAs There is also one Independent MLA PTI TR MM MM

Guwahati (Assam) [India], March 9 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies are leading in 64 out of 80 Municipal Corporations in Assam for which votes are being counted on Wednesday.

Islamabad [Pakistan], March 6 (ANI): Audit of 2020-21 fiscal year has revealed various irregularities in the financial affairs of the Press Information Department (PID), a key wing of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in Pakistan, local media reported.

Guwahati Feb 18 PTI All three nomination papers filed for the by-election to Assams Majuli Scheduled Tribe constituency were found valid after scrutiny on Friday an official statement said The bypoll will be held on March 7 The ruling BJP-led alliance has fielded Bhuban Gam for the seat while the opposition Assam Jatiya Parishads AJP nominee is Chittaranjan Basumatary The third candidate is Bhaity Richong of the SUCIC The main opposition party Congress had decided not to contest and leave the seat for the AJP in a bid to unite the anti-BJP forces The last date for withdrawal of nomination papers is February 21 and counting of votes is slated for March 10 The election to the constituency was necessitated following the resignation of Union Minister for Shipping Ports and Aysuh Sarbananda Sonowal following his election to the Rajya Sabha in September last year Sonowal a former chief minister was elected to the assembly from Majuli constituency for two consecutive terms in 2016 and 2021 Majuli is the worlds largest river island and it got the status of a district when Sonowal was the Assam chief minister The 126-member Assam legislative assembly currently comprises 78 members of the ruling alliance with the BJP having 62 members and its allies AGP and UPPL having nine and seven MLAs respectively The Congress has 27 MLAs AIUDF 15 BPF three CPIM one and an independent member PTI SSG MM MM