Lok Sabha Election 2009: Leader of the Opposition L K Advani

.
.
.

India will hold general elections to the 15th Lok Sabha in 5 phases on April 16, April 22, April 23, April 30, May 7 and May 13, 2009.Results will be announced on May 16, 2009. The elections for 499 out of 543 Parliamentary Constituencies in all the states, NCT of Delhi and Union Territory of Puducherry (except Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Manipur and Nagaland) will be held on the basis of the newly delimited constituencies as determined by the Delimitation Commission set up under the Delimitation Act, 2002

Elections in India for the Lok Sabha (the national parliament) must be held at least every five years under normal circumstances. With the last elections held in 2004, the term of the 14th Lok Sabha expires on June 1, 2009.

During the budget presented in February 2009, Rupees 1,120 Crores (Approx. EUR 180 M) was budgeted for election expenses.

Polling Schedule

The following is the polling schedule for states announced by Chief Election Commissioner N Gopalaswami on March 2nd, 2009:

April 16 - Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Andaman and Nicobar Island, Lakshadweep.

April 23 - Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Goa, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Orissa, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand.

April 30 - Bihar, Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Sikkim, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Dadar and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.

May 7 - Bihar, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, westbengal and Delhi.

May 13 - Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Uttarakhand, Chandigargh and Puducherry

Lead up to the announcement of polling dates

India's Chief Election Commissioner, N. Gopalaswami, had stated on December 28th, 2008, that the elections were likely to be held between April and May of 2009. He attributed this schedule to the examination period from February to March, making polling places unavailable.

Prime Ministerial Candidates

United Progressive Alliance Following the August 2008 confidence vote victory for the current government, a statement by Indian National Congress President Sonia Gandhi has caused speculation that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would be projected as the Prime Ministerial candidate in the next elections. Nationalist Congress Party leader Sharad Pawar has indicated that he is also a possible Prime Ministerial candidate post elections. On January 24th, 2009, Manmohan Singh underwent cardiac bypass surgery at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi. Following the surgery, speculation of alternate PM candidates arose both within the Congress and amongst coalition partners. In an attempt to quell such speculations, Sonia Gandhi on February 6th, 2009, wrote in the Congress party magazine Sandesh that Manmohan Singh is the UPA coalition's Prime Ministerial candidate for the 2009 elections.

National Democratic Alliance The main opposition, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its coalition partners in the National Democratic Alliance, announced on December 11, 2007 that their candidate for prime minister would be BJP party leader Lal Krishna Advani, the Leader of the Opposition. On January 23, 2008, leaders from BJP and other NDA parties convened to officially elect him their candidate. No other party or alliance has announced a prime ministerial candidate.

United National Progressive Alliance A motley group of regional parties, as well as the Communist parties, have been striving to form a third front to counter the BJP-led and Congress-led alliances. Among the possible members are the United National Progressive Alliance, India's Left parties and the Bahujan Samaj Party. Once again, the media has speculated that Mayawati, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, could potentially be projected as the front's Prime Ministerial candidate, but no official move has taken place yet. If Mayawati's party can win enough seats, she has openly stated that she would be willing to take the support of the national parties to become Prime Minister. No other candidate has publicly expressed interest in becoming Prime Minister thus far.

Coalition Member

United Progressive Alliance

^*1 - Though not officially a UPA member, the Trinamool Congress announced on March 1st, 2009, that it would form an alliance with the Indian National Congress in the state of West Bengal for the 2009 general elections.

National Democratic Alliance

United National Progressive Alliance

Reference News:


‹ 2004
Indian general election, 2009 543 seats
April 16, April 22, April 23, April 30, May 7 and May 13, 2009

Leader	Manmohan Singh	Lal Krishna Advani
Party	Congress	BJP
Leader's seat	Assam (Rajya Sabha)	Gandhinagar
Last election	151 seats, 26.7%	130 seats, 22.2%

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_general_election,_2009#Prime_Ministerial_Candidates

.
.
.
It is curtains for 14th Lok Sabha, praise for Speaker

NEW DELHI: As the curtains came down on the 14th Lok Sabha on Thursday, parliamentarians seemed to have put the rancour and bitterness of the past behind them.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in a statement, paid compliments to Speaker Somnath Chatterjee and Leader of the Opposition L.K. Advani. Mr. Advani wished the Prime Minister an early recovery and Mr. Chatterjee put on record his appreciation of the leaders of all political parties.

The Lok Sabha was adjourned sine die by the Speaker, but he put on record his dismay at the alarming trend of disruptions and adjournments and “the politics of intense of confrontation” which cost the House about 24 per cent of its time.

Though the Prime Minister — convalescing after a heart surgery — could not attend the last sitting, he described the 14th Lok Sabha as “unique” in several respects. His statement read out by the Leader of the House and External Affairs Minister, Pranab Mukherjee, said the country experienced some of its best times during the last five years as it became the second fastest growing economy in the world.

“It also witnessed some very challenging times when the global rise in oil prices led to a spiral of price rise in commodities, resulting in higher inflation which we brought under control through prudent economic policy.” The Prime Minister assured the House that India would emerge the least affected from the current crisis.

Lauding the Speaker’s contribution in upholding the dignity of the high office in trying times, the Prime Minister said: “You stood like a rock to defend our best Parliamentary traditions and, in doing so, have raised the bar for those to follow.”

In an oblique reference to Mr. Chatterjee’s expulsion from the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Dr. Singh said the Speaker’s sagacity prevailed on occasions when he had to take a call between defending Parliamentary propriety and heeding the demands of the organisation, which he spent a lifetime building.

Acknowledging the “constructive” attitude of Mr. Advani, the Prime Minister said he had always been helpful in collectively addressing national challenges in spite of occasional disagreements.

He named the Right to Information Act, the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, the Unorganised Workers’ Social Security Act and the Scheduled Tribes and Other Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act as a few of the many “path-breaking, radical, social and economic legislation” enacted during the UPA government’s term.

Source: the Hindu

Lok Sabha Election 2009

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Indian General Election, 2009

Lead up to the announcement of polling dates

Reference News:

Friday, February 27, 2009

It is curtains for 14th Lok Sabha, praise for Speaker