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There are 8,95,62,706 voters, of which 8,94,46,211 are general electors and 1,16,495 are service voters. Up from 90,403 in 2014, the number of polling booths where people can cast their vote in Maharashtra has gone up to 95,473, reflecting an increase of 5.61 percent.

This is the first state Assembly election since Narendra Modi led the BJP to power at the Centre for a second term.

The Assembly elections are also the first since the government announced the abrogation of provisions of Article 370.

Maharashtra total candidates party wise :

BSP : 262
BJP : 164
CPI : 16
CPI (M) :8
Congress : 147
MNS : 101
NCP : 121
Shiv Sena : 126
Other Registered Parties : 892
Independant : 1400
Total : 3237

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भाजपा की पूरी रणनीती विधानसभा चुनाव को इन दो राष्ट्रीय मुददो पर ही लडने की है.शायद भाजपा को इस बात का अहसास है कि भले ही पांच साल लगातार सरकार चलाकर मुखयमंत्री देवेन्द्र फणनवीस लोकप्रिय तो हुये हैं लेकिन इतने भी नहीं कि उनके नाम पर फिर से सरकार आजाये .इसलिए बीजेपी अपने आजमाये हुए फार्मूले राष्ट्रवाद और अल्पसंख्यक तुष्टीकरण पर ही चुनाव को ले आना चाहती है.

भाजपा के रणनीतीकार और गृहमंत्री अमित शाह भी अपनी हर रैली में केवल कशमीर .आतंकवाद और 370 को हटाये जाने की बात ही करते है . वो कहते है कि केवल 56 इंच वाले मोदी ही ऐसा कर सकते है किसी में हिम्मत नहीं .दोनों ही बडे नेता इस बार विकास पर बात नहीं कर रहे और न ही किसान कर्जमाफी से लेकर रोजगार जैसे मुददों पर कोई बात हो रही है . जब केन्द्रीय मंत्री रविशंकर प्रसाद ने मंदी को लेकर बालीवुड की फिल्मों की कमाई की तुलना कर दी उनको अगले ही दिन सफाई देने भी कह दिया . बीजेपी के रणनीतीकार भी जानते है कि अर्थव्यवस्था की मंदी की बात होगी तो फिर बात नोटबंदी और जीएसटी की भी होने लगेगी जिससे सब परेशान है .इसलिए बीजेपी नेताओं को साफ कहा गया है कि चुनाव में केवल 370 और ट्रिपल तलाक की बात ही कही जाये.

बीजेपी का अपना सर्वे भी कह रहा है कि 370 को हटाये जाने के कारण उसके वोटबैंक में इजाफा हुआ है और इस पर जोर दिया जाये तो सरकार के खिलाफ नाराजगी को रोका जा सकता है. मुशिकल ये है कि विपक्ष अब भी इस रणनीती के खिलाफ अपनी कोई बडी कोशिश नही कर पाया है . विपक्ष अगर पूरी तरह से स्थानीय मुददों पर फोकस कर दे और केवल रोजगार .मंदी .किसान आत्महत्या . सडको की खराब हालत , कर्जमाफी में कमी जैसे मुददों पर ही बात करे तो उसे कुछ फायदा मिल सकता है. हालांकि इसमें बहुत देर हो गयी है . विपक्ष पहले से ही लडाई के लिए तैयार नही दिख रहा है.

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Governor Satya Pal Malik had  lifted the restriction on entry of tourists after holding a security review meeting. The government had asked the tourists to curtail their stay in the Valley “immediately” soon after it took the step to call off the annual Amarnath Yatra on August 2. Then the Parliament effectively scrapped Article 370 of the Constitution that given special status to the state, and divided it into two union territories.

The administration had also imposed restrictions on movement, snapped phone and telephone lines, arrested the state’s political class and deployed more troops to prevent any backlash to the controversial move.

Tourist operators had told the media in late August they were badly hit by the sharp drop-off in visitor numbers, and were worried many people would stay away for a prolonged period.

More than half a million people visited the valley in the first seven months of this year, according to official data. In addition, some 340,000 religious tourists were also visiting the valley in July before their pilgrimage was called off due to the terror claims. Just 150 foreign travellers visited Kashmir after August 5, the figures showed.

The measure to lift the travel ban, however, has been called half-hearted by critics, with many pointing out that hardly anyone would want to visit till the communication blackout persists.

Over the last one week, the administration has taken some steps to test the uneasy calm in the state as it has come under increasing international scrutiny for the prolonged clampdown .

On Wednesday, the administration re-opened higher secondary schools, colleges and universities. In Srinagar, security forces were stationed outside the prestigious Sri Pratap College and were allowing students on the campus after checking their identity cards.

The administration will also release three political detainees on Thursday after making them sign a bond, promising “good behaviour”. ​

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NCP MP Udayanraje Bhosale joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in the presence of top saffron party leaders, including its president Amit Shah and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, with Shah asserting that the BJP-led alliance will come back to power in the state with three-fourths majority. 

Bhosale, who draws his political influence due to his descendance from Maratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji”s family, said he agreed with the policies pursued by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and will work for Maharashtra as a BJP leader.

The Satara MP has quit his Lok Sabha membership to join the BJP. Shah said it was a matter of happiness for his party that a descendent of the Maratha king has joined it and asserted that Bhosale”s presence will help it in the upcoming assembly elections. 

The BJP, which had won 122 of the total 288 seats in the 2014 elections, will emerge stronger and its alliance will win three-fourths seats this time, he said. The Shiv Sena and a few smaller parties are part of the saffron alliance in the state.

The Fadnavis government has worked for the state”s all-round development and “restored” its pride in its five-year rule, Shah added. Shah said the BJP and its alliance will receive even bigger support in the Assembly polls after it had decimated the Congress-NCP alliance in the recent Lok Sabha polls.

On the occasion, Fadnavis also voiced his party”s happiness at Bhosale”s decision to join it.  He noted that Bhosale had lauded the Modi government”s move to nullify Article 370, which given special status to Jammu and Kashmir. The decision to hold the bypoll was taken after the Bombay High Court decided on an election petition on Satara Lok Sabha elections. The order reached the Commission on September 23.

The bypoll was necessitated after Member of Parliament (MP) from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP),  Udayanraje Bhosale, recently joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after resigning from Lok Sabha. Counting of votes will happen on October 24 when the Assembly election votes are counted.

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Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)  here, Khan also said the least he expects the international community to do is to urge India to lift the curfew in Kashmir.

Responding to a question, Khan said he had urged his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi to “reset” bilateral ties and his government waited to resume talks until after the elections in India were over but then it found that “India is pushing us in the boycott of the Financial Action Task Force to bankrupt us.”

He said that by abrogating Article 370, India had cast aside the UN Security Council resolutions, the Simla Accord and its own Constitution. Khan said he would ask the UN to play its role on the Kashmir issue.

Pakistan has tried to internationalise the Kashmir issue but India has asserted that the abrogation of Article 370 was its “internal matter”. New Delhi has also asked Islamabad to accept the reality and stop its anti-India rhetoric.

When asked about former US defence secretary James Mattis‘ remark that he considered Pakistan to be “the most dangerous” among all countries he had dealt with, Khan said, “I do not think Mattis fully understands why Pakistan became radicalised.”

Khan said Pakistan “committed one of the biggest blunders” when it joined the US war on terror after the 9/11 terror attacks by the al-Qaeda. “I think the Pakistani government should not have pledged what they could not deliver,” Khan said, referring to the then military dictator General Pervez Musharraf’s decision to side with the US.

Pakistan was one of the three countries which recognised the Taliban government in Afghanistan before the US invasion in 2001 there. After the US invasion of Afghanistan after the 9/11 attacks, Pakistan extended support to American forces against the Taliban.

“In the 1980s, when the Soviets invaded Afghanistan, Pakistan, helped by the US, organised the resistance to the Soviets. The ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence) trained militants who were invited from all over the Muslim world to do jihad against the Soviets,” Khan said in response to a question.

“And so we created these militant groups to fight the Soviets… Jihadis were heroes then. Come 1989, Soviets leave Afghanistan, the US packs up and leaves Afghanistan… and we were left with these groups,” he added.

“Then comes 9/11, and Pakistan again joins the US in the war on terror and now we are required to go after these groups as terrorists. They were indoctrinated that fighting foreign occupation is jihad but now when the US arrived in Afghanistan, it was supposed to be terrorism,” Khan added.

“So Pakistan took a real battering in this,” the prime minister said, adding that Pakistan should have stayed neutral in the conflict. He insisted that there could be no military solution in Afghanistan and said he will urge President Donald Trump to resume peace talks. “For 19 years if you have not been able to succeed, you are not going to be able to succeed in another 19 years,” he added.

On Pakistan’s fragile economy, Khan said his government had inherited “the biggest current account deficit” in the country’s history and “so the first year has been a real struggle.” Khan thanked China for helping “when we were at the rock bottom”. “China has given us a great opportunity to lift ourselves up from where we are now,” he added.

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The White House has announced that Trump would join Modi at the mega Houston rally, which would be attended by more than 50,000 Indian Americans, on September 22.

“Trump joining Modi for the Howdy Modi event in Houston is a truly historic tribute to the contributions of the Indian-American community to the prosperity of our country and the strength of US-India relations,” Alice G Wells, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, tweeted on Tuesday.

Senator Ted Cruz, and a former Republican presidential aspirant said he was looking forward to welcoming Modi to Houston to celebrate the culture and contributions of the Indian-American community and the vibrant US-Indian alliance, which is critical to America’s national security and energy future.

According to Ronak D Desai, Law & Security Fellow at New America and a scholar at Harvard University’s South Asia Institute, with the partnership confronting several significant irritants now; Trump’s appearance with Modi is a welcome reminder of the importance of symbolism in US-India ties and the strong foundation underlying them.

“President Trump’s appearance with Prime Minister Modi in Houston confers tremendous political benefits to both leaders at home and abroad,” he said.

The news that President Trump will appear alongside Prime Minister Modi at Houston just weeks after the two leaders met at the G-7 is a powerful reminder that the overall foundation of the US-India strategic partnership remains strong, regardless of ongoing bilateral challenges, Desai observed.

The bipartisan consensus around the relationship remains firmly intact despite being tested in recent years. The event – like the relationship – enjoys strong, widespread support from both Democrats and Republicans alike at almost every level, he said.

“Trump’s decision to join Modi in Houston will inevitably give more fodder to their supporters and critics alike. But the joint appearance should be viewed as less about the two leaders individually than the robustness of the US-India relationship,” Desai said.

The last 15 years have illustrated over and over that while personalities matter, the strategic partnership continues to grow and evolve regardless of who occupies the White House in Washington or the Prime Minister’s residence in Delhi, he said.

Stating that Trump’s appearance with Modi in Houston is a significant win for India diplomatically, Desai noted that it will signal clear support for India at a time when New Delhi is inviting increasing scrutiny over its handling of Kashmir.

“For US president to stand along the prime minister just weeks after the revocation of Article 370 is another sign of India’s changing place in the world and Modi’s growing stature globally,” Desai said.

The Houston event – Modi’s biggest to date – makes clear that the Diaspora remains a central priority for the prime minister as his second term gets underway, he said.

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While President Trump will address Indian-Americans along with PM Modi at the “Howdy Modi!” event in Houston on Sunday, the American president did not say when or where he would meet Imran Khan.

“I’ll see Prime Minister Modi and I will – we’ll – be meeting with (prime ministers of) India and Pakistan and I think a lot of progress has been made there…lot of progress,” President Trump told reporters in response to a question at the White House, without mentioning Kashmir.

Trump’s schedule suggests that his meeting with Imran Khan may take place on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly Session in New York later this month.

After addressing a record crowd of more than 50,000 Indian-Americans at the “Howdy Modi!” event, Trump will travel to Ohio and then is expected to fly to New York to attend the Annual General Assembly Sessions of the United Nations.

Tension between India and Pakistan escalated after New Delhi ended special status to Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 on August 5. Reacting to India’s move on Kashmir, Pakistan downgraded diplomatic ties with India.

Pakistan has tried to internationalise the Kashmir issue but India has asserted that the decision on Article 370 was its internal matter. New Delhi has also told Islamabad to accept the reality and stop its anti-India rhetoric.

The “Howdy, Modi!” event will be the first time that an American president addresses thousands of Indian-Americans at one place in the US.

It comes ahead of the 2020 presidential elections in the US where the influential Indian-American community members are expected to play a significant role. President Trump, a Republican, has already announced his candidature.

India’s Ambassador to the US Harsh Vardhan Shringla has called Trump’s participation in the “Howdy, Modi!” event “historic” and “unprecedented”

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Fresh restrictions have been imposed in areas around Hazratbal, while the curbs continued in five police station areas of downtown interior areas of the city, the officials said.

They said the restrictions under Section 144 CrPc have been imposed to support law and order.

The authorities have imposed restrictions in vulnerable areas of the valley every Friday, apprehending that vested interests might exploit the large gatherings at big mosques and shrines to fuel protests.

Friday prayers have not been allowed at any of the major mosques or shrines including Jamia Masjid in Nowhatta or Dargah Sharief in Hazratbal – in the valley for the past over a month now.

The restrictions were first imposed across Kashmir on 5 August when the Centre announced its decision to abrogate Article 370 of the Constitution and bifurcate the state into two Union territories. The restrictions were lifted in phases from many parts of the valley as the situation improved with the passage of time.

While landline across the valley were functional, voice calls on mobile devices were working only in Kupwara and Handwara police districts of north Kashmir.

The efforts of the state government to open schools have not borne any fruit as parents continued to keep children at home due to apprehensions about their safety.

Most of the top-level and second rung separatist politicians have been taken into custody while mainstream leaders including three former chief ministers Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti have also been either detained or placed under house arrest.

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The ruling party will also reach out to prominent personalities from the fields of film, sports and academia among others in creating awareness among the masses about the Centre’s Kashmir move.

The saffron leadership will also organise a ‘Jan Jagran Abhiyan‘ (public awareness campaign) on the matter and will hold indoor meetings at state and district levels across the country.

BJP’s Jan Jagaran Abhiyan and Sampark Abhiyan on Article 370 will begin from September 1 and run till September 30.At the same time, the party also wants to check the opposition’s propaganda on the issue.

Small indoor meetings at 370 different locations across the country with 500-1000 opinion-makers at the district level, and 35 big indoor meetings having a gathering of 2,000 people will be held at capitals of all states and Union territories in the country, according to party sources.

BJP’s top brass, including its president and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, will address some of these indoor meetings at the state level.

The BJP leadership has recently also formed a committee to carry out this campaign. The panel includes Union Ministers Pralhad Joshi, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Dharmendra Pradhan and Jitendra Singh.

Besides them, former Union Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, party’s MP from Ladakh Jamyang Tsering Namgyal and another MP Tejaswi Surya are members of this committee.

BJP working president JP Nadda is the head of the panel and party general secretary (organisation) BL Santhosh, vice-president Baijayant Panda and its national secretary Y Satya Kumar are the other members of the panel.

The first meeting of the panel was held on Tuesday where the leaders deliberated on the “positive feedback” from the ground and gave the last touches to the campaign.

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