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Two killed, 55 wounded in grenade attack near Srinagar

          Bhagwah: At least two people were killed and 55 wounded in an attack in Kashmir on Wednesday as suspected Muslim rebels stepped up violence to enforce a poll boycott in the disputed region. There was a huge explosion at an election rally in Doda district, south of Srinagar, the region's main city. C H Gulzar, assistant superintendent of police, Doda, said that the explosion took place when former minister Khalid Najib was about to address a rally. "During the rally, someone hurled the grenade and people got injured...We have not counted the number of people injured but it may around 20," he said. Residents said the help from the administration was not immediately available. Najib, a senior member of the National Conference party and a former state minister, is contesting the parliamentary election in the constituency, which is due to vote on May 10.

Vajpayee stress on political stability (Go To Top)

          Farrukhabad: Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Wednesday hit out at the Opposition party leaders for being more interested in coming to power than in providing good governance. "It is not a question of forming a government, but to give the nation political stability," he said in an apparent reference to exit polls that forecast a hung Parliament. Lambasting the Opposition parties, he said its leaders have already begun staking claims to the top post. "There is no dearth of PMs, but the need is for working together as a team," Vajpayee said at an election rally in Farrukhabad. Asking the people to make a judicious choice, the Prime Minister claimed that he had succeeded in providing a stable "non- Congress" alternative government that ran its full course at the Centre. "You need a vision to make India a developed country. Today that dream is about to come true," he said enumerating the economic achievements of the BJP-led NDA government. He also said that from a food-importing nation, India has become a grain-exporting country, inflation is under control, foreign exchange reserves have touched a new high, and exports are soaring.

Vajpayee, Sonia to campaign in UP (Go To Top)

          Lucknow: Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Congress party President Sonia Gandhi will both campaign trail in Uttar Pradesh today. While Vajpayee, who is contesting from the Lucknow Lok Sabha constituency, will address a rally in Gola Gokranath, Gandhi will campaign in the Aligarh constituency. Both areas go to polls on May 5. Uttar Pradesh, with maximum number of seats in the Lok Sabha, is crucial for both the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Congress.

Advani to tour three West Bengal districts (Go To Top)

          Kolkata: Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani will campaign in three districts of West Bengal today. Informed sources said that he would be addressing public meetings at Balurghat, in the industrial town of Burdwan and at Khakurdaha and will return to the capital this evening. West Bengal has 42 seats in the Lok Sabha, which go to polls on May 10.

Congress rallies hard for last two phases (Go To Top)

          Mohanlalganj: The Congress party on Wednesday stepped up campaign in Uttar Pradesh as the exit polls narrowed the winning margins for the ruling BJP. India has held three rounds of a five-stage election involving 670 million voters, that pits the BJP-led coalition against the Congress. Exit polls after the third round of voting on Monday indicated the BJP and its allies were still ahead of Congress but they could fall short of the halfway mark of 273 seats needed to form a government in the 545-member lower house of parliament. Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, addressing a public meeting at Mohanlalganj, on the outskirts of Lucknow, blamed the federal government for ignoring the poor. "You all know that the government of Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee has not done anything for the backward class people," she said. The polls end on May 10. Votes will be counted on May 13 and the results are expected the same day. The BJP-led coalition has brushed aside the exit polls saying on Tuesday it would make strong gains in the final rounds of voting. The poll news had rattled financial markets, worried that a weakened BJP may backtrack on economic reforms and could slow rapid economic growth in the world's second most populous nation.

Repoll in 502 more booths (Go To Top)

          New Delhi: The Election Commission on Wednesday ordered repoll in 502 polling stations in Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa and Uttar Pradesh. As the Commission has sought fresh reports from Returning officers, the Chief Electoral officers of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, the poll panel kept as ''pending'' the decision on repoll or countermanding of elections in Chhapra and Siwan (both Bihar) and Ghazipur in Uttar Pradesh. A spokesperson of the Commission said the decision on these three constituencies have been put on hold. However, no time-frame was given, when the final decision would be taken. The BJP has demanded repoll in the entire constituency of Chhapra and Ghazipur and also submitted a video film, showing large-scale rigging and violence in the Chhapra constituency, where Civil Aviation Minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy is pitted against RJD leader Laloo Prasad Yadav.