UTTAR PRADESH, India's most populous state and a key battleground for prime minister Narendra Modi and opposition groups, will hold elections in seven phases starting from Feb. 10, chief election commissioner Sushil Chandra said on Saturday (8).
The outcome of the election in the northern state, currently ruled by Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), will be seen a barometer for national elections due in 2024.
Voting will be finalised on March 7, with results expected from March 10, the Commission said.
It has announced polling dates for five states at a time when the country is facing a soaring number of coronavirus infections.
Punjab, ruled by rival Congress Party, the BJP-led Himalayan state of Uttarakhand and tourist and mining hotspot Goa in the West will hold elections on Feb. 14, the Commission said. The northeastern state of Manipur, also ruled by the BJP, will have elections in two phases on Feb. 27 and March 3.
Chandra said the political parties were barred from holding election rallies and roadshows until Jan. 15 in view of the rising number of Covid cases.
"(The) Commission shall subsequently review the situation and issue further instructions accordingly," he said, urging the parties to use online channels for campaigning instead.
Last year, Modi's government had faced severe criticism for his handling of the pandemic during a second wave that overran healthcare systems across the country.
Government officials have privately said daily cases in the country's third wave of infections could surpass the record of more than 414,000 hit last May, due to the fast spread of the Omicron variant.
(Reuters)
Moglai Bap and Mo Chara of Kneecap perform at Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset, Britain, June 28, 2025. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
Police may probe anti-Israel comments at Glastonbury
BRITISH police said they were considering whether to launch an investigation after performers at Glastonbury Festival made anti-Israel comments during their shows.
"We are aware of the comments made by acts on the West Holts Stage at Glastonbury Festival this afternoon," Avon and Somerset Police, in western England, said on X late on Saturday (28).
Irish hip-hop group Kneecap and punk duo Bob Vylan made anti-Israeli chants in separate shows on the West Holts stage on Saturday. One of the members of Bob Vylan chanted "Death, death, to the IDF" in a reference to the Israel Defense Forces.
"Video evidence will be assessed by officers to determine whether any offences may have been committed that would require a criminal investigation," the police statement said.
The Israeli Embassy in Britain said it was "deeply disturbed by the inflammatory and hateful rhetoric expressed on stage at the Glastonbury Festival".
Prime minister Keir Starmer said earlier this month it was "not appropriate" for Kneecap to appear at Glastonbury.
The band's frontman Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh was charged with a terrorism offence last month for allegedly displaying a flag in support of Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah at a concert in November. He has denied the charge.
A British government minister said it was appalling that the anti-Israel chants had been made at Glastonbury, and that the festival's organisers and the BBC broadcaster - which is showing the event - had questions to answer.
Health secretary Wes Streeting said he was also appalled by violence committed by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank.
"I'd also say to the Israeli Embassy, get your own house in order in terms of the conduct of your own citizens and the settlers in the West Bank," Streeting told Sky News.
"I wish they'd take the violence of their own citizens towards Palestinians more seriously," he said.
(Reuters)