Monday, April 29, 2019

Bollywood stars on national duty

Mumbai: BJP’s Lok Sabha candidate from Mathura, Hema Malini and her daughters Esha Deol and Ahana Deol after casting their vote in Vile Parle.

Hong Kong protests

Thousands of people protested in Hong Kong on Saturday over a proposed law change that would allow suspects to be sent to mainland China for trial diluting Hong-Kong autonomy.

Hongkong officials say they need to amend the law before July so that they can extradite a criminals.

Police estimate 22K people took part, while organisers say this figure was closer to hundreds K demonstration.

Yes , the sizeable protest make it the largest demonstration since pro-democracy rallies in 2014 known as the Umbrella Movement.

Official ban on Veil-burqa:Sri Lanka

Sri Lankan President #MaithripalaSirisena issues order for ban on burqa, veil or covering of face in a manner which prevents anyone from being identified. #SriLanka

This order comes in force after ghastly attack on churches and hotels with nine serial bomb blasts which killed nearly 259 people and more than 500 injured on Easter celebration congregation.

Elections to the European Parliament (European elections) will be held in the Member States of the European Union between 23 and 26 May 2019. In the elections, 751 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) from 28 Member States will be elected for the next five-year term.

Election day in Finland is Sunday 26 May. The number of MEPs to be elected in Finland in the 2019 elections is 13. If the United Kingdom withdraws from the EU, a 14th MEP will be elected from Finland in accordance with the results of this election.

Right to vote and voting register

Every Finnish citizen who has reached the age of 18 no later than on election day, irrespective of his or her place of residence, is entitled to vote. If a Finnish citizen has registered to vote in the European elections that are held in some other EU Member State, he or she is not, however, entitled to vote in the European elections in Finland.

Citizens of other EU Member States who have reached the age of 18 no later than on election day and who have a municipality of residence in Finland are also entitled to vote in Finland. In addition, citizens of other EU Member States who are employed by the EU or other international organisations and are resident in Finland may vote in Finland even if they do not have a municipality of residence here. This requires, however, that they have registered to vote in Finland.

The Population Register Centre will send a polling card (i.e. a notice of right to vote) to each eligible voter. The card contains information on the voter’s polling station on election day as well as a list of the advance polling stations in the voter’s electoral district. The card will be sent in electronic format to those eligible voters who have activated the Suomi.fi Messages service and given their consent for all official notifications to be sent to them electronically.

Voting and proof of identity

Voting in the European elections is possible either on election day 26 May or in advance during the advance voting period, which is in Finland from 15 to 21 May and abroad from 15 to 18 May. Candidates in the European elections are the same in the entire country, so the voters may vote for any of the candidates. The master list of candidates and candidate numbers are confirmed on 25 April.

Voters must present some form of official photo ID both when voting on election day and when voting in advance, for example a passport, an identity card or a driving licence. The old cardboard driving licence will also be accepted as proof of identity, if the voter can be identified from the photo and the election official can thus reliably verify the identity of the voter. Voters who do not have a valid proof of identity can obtain a temporary identity card free of charge from the police for voting purposes.

Advance voting in Finland and abroad

The advance voting period in the European elections is in Finland 15–21 May 2019. Advance voting is arranged abroad between 15 and 18 May, but the voting period is shorter than this at several advance polling stations abroad.

Eligible voters may cast their vote at any of the general advance polling stations in Finland or abroad. Information about the addresses and opening hours of the advance polling stations is available on the election website of the Ministry of Justice at www.electionsfinland.fi and at the elections helpline. Calls to the helpline are free of charge, and service is provided in Finnish (0800 9 4770) and in Swedish (0800 9 4771). Election-related questions can also be sent on WhatsApp (050 438 8730).

Persons whose ability to move is so restricted that they are unable to come to an advance polling station or a polling station on election day without undue difficulty may vote in advance in their homes. Those who wish to vote in advance in their home must notify the central electoral committee in their municipality of their intention by 16.00 on 14 May. The family carer of a person entitled to vote at home, living in the same household, may under certain conditions also vote at home.

Eligible voters living permanently abroad or staying abroad at the time of the elections may also choose to vote by post in the European elections. An eligible voter wishing to vote by post must order the postal voting documents to an address located abroad in advance, cast his or her vote after receiving the documents, and send the ballot in a covering envelope to the central municipal election board of his or her municipality in Finland. Postal voting will be possible from 25 April onwards, once the candidate numbers have been confirmed. Postal votes must arrive at the correct central municipal election board by 19.00 on Friday 24 May. More detailed instructions are available at https://vaalit.fi/en/postal-voting.

Voting on election day 26 May

Election day is Sunday 26 May, and the polling stations will then be open between 9.00 and 20.00. On election day, voters may cast their votes only at the polling station specified on the polling card sent to them before the elections.

The counting of advance votes will be started already on election day while the voting still continues. The counting of votes cast on election day will be started once the polling stations have been closed. Preliminary information about the vote count will be published at 20.00 on election day, when the count of the advance votes has mainly been completed. Preliminary results of the elections will be made available during the evening.

A recount of the votes will be conducted by the constituency electoral committees on Monday 27 May. The constituency electoral committee of Helsinki will confirm the final election results in the entire country in its meeting to be held on 29 May.

Information about European elections available through many channels and in several languages

The elections website of the Ministry of Justice, www.electionsfinland.fi, provides information about the European elections in many different languages (in Finnish, Swedish, Skolt Saami, Inari Saami, North Saami, Finnish and Finland-Swedish Sign Languages, and in several foreign languages, such as English, Estonian and Russian). In addition, the YouTube channel of the Ministry of Justice contains videos on voting in easy-to-understand language and sign language. Brochures in easy-to-read Finnish and Swedish are also available. Information about elections is also provided in a format suitable for the visually impaired.

The Ministry of Justice will also provide information about elections and voting through its social media accounts on Twitter and Facebook.

Election funding disclosure must be filed with the National Audit Office of Finland

Persons elected as Members or Deputy Members of the European Parliament must file a disclosure of their election campaign funding with the National Audit Office of Finland. The disclosure must be filed by 29 July 2019.

4 Phase,Election India today

Polling has begun for the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections. The voting began at 7 this morning amidst tight security arrangements. Polling is taking place for 71 Parliamentary constituencies, spread over nine states and Kulgam district of Anantnag Lok Sabha seat in Jammu and Kashmir.

Voting is taking place for 17 seats in Maharashtra, 13 each in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, eight in West Bengal, six each in Madhya Pradesh and Odisha, five in Bihar, and three in Jharkhand in this phase. The prominent candidates in the fray include Union Ministers Giriraj Singh, SS Ahluwalia, Babul Supriyo, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, PP Chaudhary, Subhash Bhamre and Sudershan Bhagat, Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav’s wife Dimple Yadav, film actor Urmila Matondkar, BJP Bihar unit chief Nityanand Roy and RLSP chief Upendra Kushwaha.

Voting is also being held for the remaining 41 assembly seats in Odisha, by-election to Chhindwara assembly seat in Madhya Pradesh, Nighasan in Uttar Pradesh, and Krishnaganj in West Bengal. In Maharashtra, 17 constituencies going to polls are all the six seats from Mumbai, Thane, Kalyan, Bhiwandi, Nashik, Palghar, Maval, Shirdi, Dhule, Shirur, Dindori and Nandurbar.

In West Bengal, polling is being held for Baharampur, Bolpur, Birbhum, Ranaghat, Krishnanagar, Asansol, Burdwan East, and Burdwan-Durgapur constituencies. 68 candidates are in the fray for 8 parliamentary seats. Besides State Police, around 580 companies of Central forces have been deployed. Election Commission appointed Special Police Observer Vivek Dubey has said that almost all polling booths will be manned by the Central Force this time. Security measures have been tightened along the India-Bangladesh border.

In Bihar, polling is taking place in Darbhanga, Ujjiarpur, Samastipur, Begusarai, and Munger. 66 candidates, including three women, are in the fray five seats. In Uttar Pradesh, polling is progressing peacefully for 13 constituencies amid tight security. The constituencies where voting is going on are Shahjahanpur, kheri, Hardoi, Mishrikh, Unnao, Farrukhabad, Etawah, Kannauj, Kanpur, Akbarpur, Jalaun, Jhansi and Hamirpur.
“There are 152 candidates including 18 womens in the fray in this phase. Twenty seven thousands 512 polling booths have been erected for 2 crore 41 lakh voters . The first time voters are 3 lakh 56 thousand and five. Elaborate security arrangements have been put in place and whole area has been divided into 293 zones and 2 thousand 298 sectors.

Besides 1 lakh 73 thousand civil police and other security personnel, two hundred thirty companies of Central Armed Police Forces and 58 companies of PAC have been deployed. The key contestants in this phase are SP president Akhilesh Yadav’s wife Dimple Yadav, Salman Khurshied and Sripraksh Jaiswal of Congress, Satyadev Pachauri, Sakshi Maharaj and Ram Shankar Katherina of BJP. MS Yadav Reporting for AIR News From Kannauj.”

In Jammu and Kashmir, strict security arrangements are in place in Kulgam district, part of the Anantnag parliamentary constituency. Officials said a multi-layered security set up has been put in place for the protection of polling booths, handling of law and order problems and thwarting the designs of anti-national elements to disrupt the polls. All of the 433 polling stations have been designated either as hypersensitive or sensitive.

Pedro Sánchez’s short of majority

Pedro Sánchez’s Socialist Workers’ party (PSOE) won the country’s election on Sunday and gained the most votes, but fell short of a majority in the snap election and now must seek backing from smaller parties to maintain power.

Their win comes as far-right party Vox rode an unprecedented surge of support to enter the lower house of parliament for the first time in four decades.

The Socialists, led by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, won 29 per cent of the vote, capturing 123 seats in the 350-seat Congress of Deputies.Vox rode an unprecedented surge of support to enter the lower house of parliament for the first time in four decades.

The Socialists, led by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, won 29 per cent of the vote, capturing 123 seats in the 350-seat Congress of Deputies.

Vox party made its national breakthrough, though, by capturing 10 per cent of the votes, gaining 24 seats.

Mr Sanchez announced he would soon open talks with other political parties, telling crowds gathered at the gates of his party headquarters in central Madrid that “the future has won and the past has lost”.

He hinted at a preference for a left-wing governing alliance but also sent a warning to Catalan separatists, whose support he may need, that any post-electoral pact must respect the country’s 1978 constitution, which bans regions from seceding.
Vox’s success came at the expense of the once-dominant conservative Popular Party, which fell to 66 seats, losing more than half of its representation since the last election in 2016. Vox Santiago Abascal leader to retain opposition leader or be the partner to ruling with 24 seats

Mr Naresh Kumar SagarEditor
Sagar Media Inc

Dear Ms. Sagar,

Greetings from The Policy Times (https://thepolicytimes.com)
May I express my heartfelt thanks for accepting our request and joining us in the Interaction on “Investment Opportunities in Viet Nam” with Ambassador H.E. (Mr.) Pham Sanh Chau, The Socialist Republic of Viet Nam to India on 25th April 2019, New Delhi jointly organized by The Policy Times and Embassy of Viet Nam, New Delhi.

I am delighted to share that over 107 distinguished members from Indian industry, civil society and Media from over 80 organizations participated. There has been a round of meetings between delegates, with the Ambassador, Chief Guest, and other Senior Embassy officials.

Feedback received from our distinguished speakers and other delegates have been well received by all. The Interaction served the very purpose of facilitating business exchange and networking. The Excellency is very happy and satisfied meeting you personally during the Interaction.

We will summarize outcomes of the Interaction in the form of a Business Report which will be published and released by the Ambassador soon.

But there is always scope for improvement. Kindly let us know if you have any feedback to share which can help us improve further in future.

Also let us know if you have any business proposal or idea that you or your organization would like to explore in Viet Nam. The Policy Times would be extremely happy to help you connect with relevant stakeholders at the Embassy and in Viet Nam.

Once again, I thank you for your wonderful support and cooperation to make the Interaction a grand success.

I hope to connect and work with you to explore some opportunities mutually beneficial for us in future.

Attached are some photographs of the Interaction for your reference.

With warm regards
Akram Hoque
Founder Editor
The Policy Times