Amit Shah, Adhir Ranjan in 8-member Kovind panel on simultaneous polls
New Delhi (PTI) : The government on Saturday notified an eight-member high-level committee to examine and make recommendations at the earliest on the issue of holding simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha, state assemblies, municipalities and panchayats.
The committee will be headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind and will have Home Minister Amit Shah, Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, former leader of the opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and former Finance Commission chairman N K Singh as members.
The panel, which will commence functioning immediately and make recommendations at the earliest, will also have former Lok Sabha Secrertary General Subhash C Kashyap, senior advocate Harish Salve and former Chief Vigilance Commissioner Sanjay Kothari as members.
Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal will attend the meetings of the committee as a special invitee, while Legal Affairs Secretary Niten Chandra will be secretary to the panel.
The committee will examine and recommend specific amendments to the Constitution, the Representation of the People Act and any other laws and rules which would require amendments for the purpose of holding simultaneous elections.
It will also examine and recommend, if the amendments to the Constitution would require ratification by the States.
The committee will also analyse and recommend possible solutions to scenarios such as hung House, adoption of no-confidence motion, or defection or any such other event in case of simultaneous elections.
The committee will hear and entertain all persons, representations and communications which in its opinion can facilitate its work and enable it to finalise its recommendations.
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111 killed, 72 injured as storm, rain batter UP; relief work underway
Lucknow (PTI): At least 111 people were killed and 72 injured after a strong storm and heavy rain pounded several districts of Uttar Pradesh, uprooting trees and damaging houses, an official statement said on Thursday.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath took cognisance of the loss of lives and damage caused by the unseasonal rain, thunderstorms and lightning on Wednesday and directed officials to ensure relief reaches the affected families within 24 hours.
In a statement, the Relief Commissioner's office said, "Due to bad weather on May 13, including storms, rain, hailstorm and lightning, reports of 111 deaths were received from 26 districts. 72 persons were injured, 170 livestock losses and damage to 227 houses have been reported in the state."
It said Adityanath has directed all divisional commissioners and district magistrates to verify the incidents "with full sensitivity" and ensure financial assistance is distributed to affected families within 24 hours while establishing direct communication with them and extending other necessary help.
The commissioner's office said it is continuously monitoring the situation through direct coordination with district officials, and necessary funds are being made available to districts.
According to a list issued by the Prayagraj district administration, till morning, 17 deaths were reported due to the storm and rain. As reports pour in from other areas, the district administration said that a total of 24 deaths have come to the fore in Wednesday's incidents.
In Bhadohi, district administration sources said at least 16 people died in storm-related incidents. Additional District Magistrate Kunwar Virendra Kumar Maurya said trees and electric poles were uprooted in several areas, while many houses were damaged in the storm.
Fatehpur Additional District Magistrate Avinash Tripathi said nine people were killed and 16 were injured in storm-related incidents in the district.
"Eight people, including five women, died in Khaga tehsil, while a woman died after a wall of a house collapsed in Sadar tehsil," he said.
In Pratapgarh, four people died in separate incidents of wall and cemented shed collapses and lightning strikes amid strong winds and rain, officials said.
Superintendent of Police Deepak Bhukar said Bhim Yadav (25) died after he was trapped under the debris of a cemented shed that collapsed in Ojha Ka Purwa village in the Lalganj Kotwali area. He said Bhushan Pandey (56) died after a wall collapsed in Sari Swami village under the Baghrai police station area.
Bhukar said Shanti Devi (46) of Narangpur village and Lal Bahadur (44) of Chhatrapur Shivala Raghna village also died in storm-related incidents.
In Kanpur Dehat district, two persons died in rain-related incidents, the officials said.
Police sources said a 19-year-old woman, Ruchi, died after being struck by lightning in Bhauthari village under the Rasulabad area while standing under a neem tree with goats during heavy rain. Several goats also died in the incident.
A 60-year-old man standing nearby was injured, they added.
Additional District Magistrate (Finance and Revenue) Dushyant Kumar said reports regarding human and livestock losses have been sought from local officials, and financial assistance will be provided as per government rules.
In Deoria, Komal Yadav (62), a resident of Bhimpur Gaura village, died after being struck by lightning, district administration sources said. Two others were injured in the incident.
In another incident, Ramnath Prasad (65), a resident of Neruari village, died in a lightning strike.
In Sonbhadra district, Madhav Singh (38) died after being trapped under a tree uprooted during the rain and the storm.
Adityanath directed the district magistrates and officials of various departments to visit the affected areas and provide all possible assistance to the victims and their families.
He also instructed the officials to remain alert and ordered the revenue and agriculture departments, along with insurance companies, to conduct a survey of the damage and submit a report to the government.
