Bengal: CEC Gyanesh Kumar faces 'go back' slogans, shown black flags outside Dakshineswar temple
Kolkata (PTI): Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar faced protests with a group of people raising 'go back' slogans and showing black flags to him during his visit to Dakshineswar Kali Temple near here on Tuesday morning.
A similar protest over alleged arbitrary deletions in the post-SIR electoral rolls in the state was held outside the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport upon his arrival in Kolkata on Sunday night.
He had faced the 'go back' slogans and was shown black flags on Monday morning when he visited the Kalighat Temple in the southern part of the city.
Despite the protests outside the Dakshineswar Kali Temple, Kumar continued with his scheduled programmes in the state.
The CEC also visited Belur Math in Howrah district this morning, and said the poll panel is committed to violence-free elections in West Bengal.
He said the commission will make efforts to ensure that voters can exercise their franchise in a festive environment.
“The EC would like to ensure that polls will be violence-free or intimidation-free,” Kumar said while speaking to reporters during his visit to Belur Math.
The CEC is on a visit to the state to review poll preparedness and held meetings with political parties and officials on Monday ahead of the assembly elections.
During the meetings on Monday, Kumar warned that any lapse in maintaining law and order ahead of the elections would not be tolerated and stressed the need for strict monitoring to ensure free and fair polls.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had accused Kumar of threatening state officials during a meeting with the administration on Monday, and warned that "false bravado" by constitutional authorities was not acceptable, stepping up the confrontation between the state government and the poll panel over the voter deletions in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
According to official data released on February 28, 63.66 lakh names, around 8.3 per cent of the electorate, have been deleted since the SIR process began in November last year, reducing the voter base from about 7.66 crore to just over 7.04 crore.
In addition, over 60.06 lakh electors have been placed under the "under adjudication" category, meaning their eligibility will be determined through legal scrutiny in the coming weeks, a process that could further reshape constituency-level electoral equations.
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8 children between ages of 1 and 14 dead after mass shooting in Louisiana, police say
Shreveport(US) (AP): A gunman in Louisiana killed eight children in shootings at two different homes early Sunday in the nation's deadliest mass shooting in more than two years, police in Shreveport said.
The victims ranged in age from one to about 14 years old, said Shreveport police spokesperson Chris Bordelon. A total of 10 were shot and some of the children were related to the suspect, Bordelon said.
The gunman later died after a chase with officers who fired at the suspect, Bordelon said. The suspect stole a car while leaving the scene of the shootings and was followed by police, according to Bordelon.
Police did not release the name of the suspect but did say he was an adult male. The shootings were the result of a “domestic disturbance,” Bordelon said.
Officials said they were still gathering details at the crime scenes south of downtown Shreveport — the two homes and a third location.
“This is an extensive scene unlike anything most of us have ever seen,” he said.
It was the deadliest mass shooting in the US since eight people were killed in a Chicago suburb in January 2024, according to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today in partnership with Northeastern University.
At a news conference outside the residence where one of the shootings occurred, officials appeared stunned, requesting patience and prayers from the community as they sorted through multiple crime scenes.
“I just don't know what to say, my heart is just taken aback,” Shreveport Police Chief Wayne Smith said. “I cannot begin to imagine how such an event could occur.”
“This is a tragic situation — maybe the worst tragic situation we've ever had,” said Tom Arceneaux, mayor of the city in northwestern Louisiana with about 180,000 residents. “It's a terrible morning.”
Louisiana State Police say their detectives have been asked by Shreveport police to investigate. In a statement, state police say no officers were harmed in the shooting that involved an officer after a police pursuit into Bossier City on Sunday morning.
State police are asking anyone with pictures, video or information to share it with state police detectives.
Louisiana Gov Jeff Landry said in a statement that he and his wife were heartbroken. “We're deeply grateful to the law enforcement officers and first responders working tirelessly on the scene,” he added.
