Maldives poll body confirms opposition victory in elections
Male, Sep 29 : The Election Commission of Maldives on Saturday confirmed the victory of opposition leader Ibrahim Mohamed Solih in the nation's general election and defeat of incumbent President Abdulla Yameen.
Maldives Democratic Party's Solih got 134,705 votes (58.4 per cent) while Yameen, leader of the Progressive Party of Maldives, secured 96,052 votes (41 per cent), Election Commission President Ahmed Shareef said.
"We have announced official results after the bureau decided the complaints will not affect the results in anyway," Shareef said, adding that the results had been delayed as the complaint department had to analyze objections they had received by the ruling party.
The final results confirmed the provisional data released by the poll body after the Sunday elections, The Edition reported.
Prior to the final declaration by the poll body, Yameen accepted his defeat in a live television address. "I know that I have to step down now," said Yameen, who has ruled the country for the last five years amid accusations of authoritarianism.
Yameen's acceptance of the results surprised the opposition, which had been anticipating electoral fraud and a possible crackdown on its supporters. He had earlier asked the poll body to defer the announcement of the election results, according to reports.
Earlier this week, the opposition criticized alleged manoeuvres by Yameen to delay the announcement of results.
However, the Election Commission President had said that the results would not be delayed beyond Sunday and the police and Army promised to "defend the decision made by the people on September 23".
The third elections after the fall of the three-decade long rule of Maumoon Abdul Gayoom were marked by a grave constitutional crisis after Yameen cracked down on opposition leaders, arrested judges and declared a state of emergency earlier this year.
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41 lakh illicit liquor seized, 1.84 lakh arrested in major drive: K'taka Minister tells Assembly
Belagavi (Karnataka) (PTI): The Karnataka Excise Department has conducted a statewide crackdown on illegal liquor trade over the last two years, resulting in arrests and seizures of alcohol, Karnataka Excise Minister R B Timmapur said on Tuesday.
As many as 1,09,017 people were arrested, and seizures included 13.66 lakh litres of liquor and 27.19 lakh litres of beer, he said in a written reply to a starred question by Harihar BJP MLA B P Harish in the Karnataka Assembly.
The Minister said the enforcement drive covered the financial year 2023–24, 2024–25 up to June, and 2025–26 from July to October, targeting unauthorised liquor manufacture, storage, sale and transportation across the State.
"During this period, statewide enforcement drives resulted in a total of 1,84,570 raids against illegal liquor sales,” Timmapur said.
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He noted that 9,179 non-bailable cases and 91,968 bailable and compoundable cases under Section 15(A) of the Karnataka Excise Act, 1965, were registered during the same period.
According to him, there have been no reports indicating that students have become addicted to alcohol due to illegal liquor sales.
The sale of alcohol to minors is strictly prohibited under the Karnataka Excise Act, 1965, and the department has issued periodic instructions to initiate legal action against violators, with strict enforcement and investigation measures in place, the Minister said.
Excise officials are carrying out regular road and night patrols, collecting intelligence, monitoring habitual offenders and conducting raids to identify illicit distillation units, unauthorised liquor outlets and spurious liquor manufacturing centres, he said, adding the department is also enforcing the law to prevent the production, storage, sale and transport of spurious, non-duty-paid and unauthorised liquor.
Regular patrols are being conducted on national and state highways, with suspicious vehicles being subjected to checks.
At the district level, standing committee meetings are held under the chairmanship of Deputy Commissioners, and joint operations are carried out with the police and forest departments to curb excise-related offences.
The department is also conducting awareness programmes through Gram Sabhas and in schools and colleges to educate the public and students about the physical, mental and social health hazards associated with alcohol addiction and substance abuse, Timmapur added.
