Delhi Polls Dairy: EC orders removal of Anurag Thakur, Parvesh Verma as BJP’s star campaigners and more

Delhi’s oldest voter is yet again ready to cast her vote

Wizened Kalitara Mandal is all set to cast her vote, she is believed to be the oldest voter in Delhi. Mandal, a 110-year-old resident of south Delhi’s Chittaranjan Park, is always determined especially when it comes to exercising her franchise, according to a report by Hindustan Times (HT).

According to HT, She is originally from Barishal (now in south-central Bangladesh) and still remembers voting in pre-independence India. Kalitara Mandal is the oldest among the 150 centenarians registered with the Delhi’s chief electoral officer (CEO) ahead of the February 8 Delhi Assembly polls.

Hindustan Times quoted Kalitara Mandal as saying, “I will vote till I am alive. I had first voted before the Partition while I still lived in Barishal.”

In last year’s general election, Mandal’s grandson drove her to the polling station, from where she walked inside to cast her vote. But this year, her family has registered for a postal ballot.

EC orders removal of Anurag Thakur, Parvesh Verma as BJP's star campaigners

Election Commission of India has ordered the removal of Anurag Thakur & Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma from the list of star campaigners of BJP for Delhi Elections 2020.

The order said the two leaders who made objectionable comments while campaigning during election rallies be removed from the list of BJP's "star campaigners".

Thakur and Verma can still canvass for the BJP but they will have to bear the campaign expenditures.

A political party bears the expenses of canvassing by star campaigners. But the candidate has to show expenses of organising meetings and rallies by other campaigners in his/her election expenditure accounts.

While political parties have no limit on the amount they can spend for electioneering, candidates can spend a maximum of Rs 28 lakh for campaigning in Delhi assembly polls.

"The Election Commission has ordered the removal of Anurag Thakur and Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma from the list of star campaigners of the Bharatiya Janata Party for the general elections to the Legislative Assembly of the NCT of Delhi with immediate effect and until further orders," an EC press note stated.

Responding to a question during a Cabinet briefing here on the EC order, Union minister Prakash Javadekar said, "I have just got information that EC has issued some direction. We will study and if necessary, present a letter and application." He also said if something wrong has been uttered, the BJP will take cognisance as it is a thinking party. "I will speak only after examining the order." "But more importantly, the BJP is putting up a balanced campaign with positivity. We are discussing the development of Delhi. What we will do for Delhi what the Modi government has done for Delhi and the way the state government created hurdles 9in our efforts) ... this is our mainstay. Development is the focus of the speeches made by main speakers," he said.

Language used by BJP leaders appalling: P Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Wednesday said BJP leaders have "bid goodbye" to civilised political discourse as they are facing "imminent defeat" in the Delhi assembly elections.

He hit out at Union minister Anurag Thakur and other BJP leaders such as West Delhi MP Parvesh Verma and party's West Bengal president Dilip Ghosh, saying the language used by them is "appalling" and asked why the prime minister and the BJP chief are not admonishing them.

AAP seeks 48-hour campaigning ban on Amit Shah

AAP has asked the Election Commission to impose a 48-hour campaigning ban on Union Home Minister Amit Shah for allegedly tweeting a "fake" video on Delhi government schools, party leader Sanjay Singh said on Wednesday.

AAP leaders Singh and Pankaj Gupta complained to the EC against the circulation of the "fake" videos of Delhi government schools by BJP leaders to "falsely defame" Delhiites.