The model code of conduct has come into force with immediate effect for Mandi by-polls to be held on June 23, Uttarakhand Chief Electoral Officer Narinder Chauhan said.

The ruling SAD-BJP combine in Punjab on Tuesday notched up an emphatic win in Zila Parishad and Block Samiti elections held on May 19.

If polls are held today, the BJP is likely to emerge as the single-largest party with 137 seats while the Congress is predicted to finish at second position with its tally dropping to 116, according to an opinion poll by Headlines Today-CVoter opinion poll.

The Congress on Wednesday lashed out at the BJP for playing negative politics and said the party would achieve a hat-trick of sitting in the opposition after the 2014 general elections.

Under attack from the opposition over corruption and lack of governance, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will present the fourth and last report card of the UPA-II government on May 22.

President Asif Ali Zardari on blamed national and international forces for his Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) defeat in the May 11 polls.

Hours after Pakistan's Prime Minister-designate Nawaz Sharif complained that President Asif Ali Zardari had not yet congratulated him on his victory in Pakistan's general elections, the President set things right by telephoning the PML-N Chief.

Congress is likely to emerge winner in the Karnataka Assembly elections while ruling BJP could end up a distant loser, exit polls and predictions by TV channels claimed on Sunday.

President Asif Ali Zardari has said that he should have quit his position and led the Pakistan People's Party's campaign in order to ensure a better performance in the just concluded general election. 

Six candidates are left in the fray for Maharajganj Lok Sabha by-polls, which is all set to see a triangular contest in the elections.