LS Elections HIGHLIGHTS: Varun Gandhi Speaks At His First Poll Rally In Sultanpur, Mother Maneka's Battlefield
Lok Sabha Elections 2024 HIGHLIGHTS: Please stay tuned with this page brought to you by ABP Live for all the latest updates and developments on the 18th general elections of India.
The high-pitch electioneering for the ongoing Lok Sabha polls ended in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday as the campaigning for the Anantnag-Rajouri constituency came to a close in the evening.
The newly-carved out Lok Sabha seat in the south Kashmir-Pir Panjal region is scheduled to go to polls on Saturday, marking the conclusion of voting in Jammu and Kashmir as polling has already been held in the four other constituencies of the Union Territory.
The Anantnag-Rajouri constituency has 20 candidates in the fray, including People's Democratic Party (PDP) president and former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, who is hoping to return to Parliament following her defeat in the 2019 Lok sabha polls.
With record-high polling in Srinagar and Baramulla, political observers feel that the south Kashmir constituency will also register a higher-than-expected voter turnout. (PTI Input)
BJP leader Varun Gandhi on Thursday addressed his first rally in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls in support of Maneka Gandhi, and said his mother has a close connection with the people of her Sultanpur constituency.
"Elections are going on everywhere in the country...but there is only one region in the country where people don't call their MP, Sansad ji, Mantri ji, or by her name, but call her mata ji," the Pilibhit MP said here amid applause from the public.
"I am confident that this time you people are going to break all the records. I have no enmity with anyone. When I came to Sultanpur for the first time, I felt the 'Khusbhu' (fragrance) of my father here, but today I feel proud to say that I have come to my motherland," he said.
This is the first time Varun Gandhi has addressed a rally this election season. He has remained out of the public space ever since he was replaced by the BJP with Jitin Prasada from Pilibhit, which went to polls in the first phase of the elections. (PTI Input)
The BJP is filling the void in Tamil Nadu politics left by the death of AIADMK supremo and former chief minister J Jayalalithaa, who was a "far superior" Hindutva leader, the BJP's state chief K Annamalai has said.
In an interaction with PTI Editors here, Annamalai said he is confident that the BJP will get a double-digit vote share in Tamil Nadu in the Lok Sabha elections and emerge as a third major party in the southern state.
The IPS officer-turned-politician said he will not let the BJP play second fiddle to any political party in Tamil Nadu, where there is a great scope for his party to fill the void created by the AIADMK's "drifting away" from the Hindutva ideology after Jayalalithaa's passing.
"Now, if you look at it, sir, till Jayalalithaaji was alive, she was a far superior Hindutva leader than anybody in Tamil Nadu. Pre-2014, when you have a party like the BJP and Jayalalithaa as a leader the natural choice of a Hindu voter would be Jayalalithaa, who displayed her Hindu identity openly," Annamalai said.
He said Jayalalithaa was the first politician in the country, other than BJP leaders, to support the cause of a Ram temple in Ayodhya and enact an anti-conversion law in Tamil Nadu in 2002-03. (PTI Input)
Two candidates in the fray in the fourth and final phase of assembly elections in Odisha have declared zero assets in their affidavits, according to a report.
Mayurbhanj, Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapara and Jagatsinghpur Lok Sabha constituencies along with 42 assembly segments falling under these parliamentary seats will go to polls in the last phase on June 1.
The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and Odisha Election Watch have analysed the self-sworn affidavits of 394 candidates, who are contesting from 42 assembly seats in Odisha.
Sanjay Kumar Das, an Independent candidate contesting from Dhamnagar assembly segment, and Ambedkarite Party of India nominee from Korei constituency, Gopal Krushna Mohant, declared that they did not own any asset.
Several other candidates have declared that they own assets worth less than Rs 10,000.
Independent candidate Benudhar Mohapatra is contesting from Udala assembly seat with only Rs 645 in hand. Another Independent nominee Jharanarani Jena, who is contesting from Basta constituency, has declared that she has only Rs 1,000. (PTI Input)
Speaking exclusively to ABP LIVE on the sidelines of a rally in south Kashmir, Former J&K CM Omar Abdullah says BJP claims an improved security scenario in Kashmir ‘far removed’ from ground reality. Read the full interview here.
Delhi Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) P Krishnamurthy said on Thursday that the commencement of the ‘silence period’, begins 48 hours before the sixth phase of polling on May 25.
PM Narendra Modi in his address at a public gathering in Haryana's Bhiwani, says, "...In West Bengal they have issued OBC certificates to Muslims overnight and that too to infiltrators. The High Court has invalidated all the OBC certificates issued to Muslims in the last 10-12 years."
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his “God has sent me” remark and said that it is strange that this 'person who was sent by God' only works for 22 people. The Congress leader also said that the Prime Minister does everything as per Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani's wishes, and he does nothing for the poor people of the country.
Deogarh, Odisha: Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma says, "This time, people of Odisha want change. People want such a government that can do justice to the people of Odisha, safeguard its self-respect and do all-round development of Odisha. So, people of Odisha want a change this time."
West Bengal: Security personnel deployed in Nandigram; use baton force to disperse people. BJP workers in Nandigram, Purba Medinipur protested and block road earlier today after a party worker died in an attack by miscreants on a few houses last night. Local party workers allege that the attack was carried out by TMC workers.
As the election campaigning for the sixth phase entered its last day, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), led by Union Minister Rajnath Singh, came out all guns blazing during the campaigning in the national capital and attacked Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and the I.N.D.I.A bloc.
Lok Sabha Polls: On Arvind Kejriwal and Delhi govt, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh says, "...He (Kejriwal) has cheated his guru Anna Hazare, so how can he win the trust of people of Delhi?...AAP has never delivered on the promises they made. Delhi government which could not provide safety to women have no right to be in power...Today, they are working as the 'B' team of Congress in I.N.D.I.A alliance."
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is campaigning in Delhi's Dwarka area ahead of 25th May polling date.
Uttar Pradesh Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya says, "...We have the goal to win 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh and BJP, along with its alliance, is going to achieve that goal. Be it SP, BSP or Congress - they are all 'bayaanveer'. They have nothing concrete on the ground. Nobody wants goons, criminals and mafia. Everyone wants good governance, security and development."
State Government writes to Election Commission of India in wake of drought situation in several districts of the state, seeks relaxation in Model Code of Conduct so that immediate help and schemes regarding the same can be extended: Maharashtra Government
West Bengal: BJP workers in Nandigram, Purba Medinipur protest and block road after a party worker died in an attack by miscreants on a few houses last night. Local party workers allege that the attack was carried out by TMC workers.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address three election meetings in Punjab on May 23 and 24, a senior party leader told PTI on Sunday. The PM will address a rally in Patiala in support of party candidate Preneet Kaur on May 23.
The stakes are high for the BJP this time as it is in the parliamentary fray alone for the first time. The Akali Dal snapped nearly three-decade-long ties and pulled out of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in September 2020 over the contentious, now-repealed farm laws. On earlier occasions, the BJP and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) had been contesting as part of the seat-sharing pact since 1996.
Repolling has been ordered at two booths in Odisha where voting was disrupted on May 20, a statement issued by the Chief Electoral Officer said on Tuesday.
Repolling will be held at booth numbers 26 and 28 in Kantamal assembly segment of Kandhamal Lok Sabha seat from 7 am to 4 pm on May 23, the statement said. It is to be noted that the polling was held in these two booths in the Kantamal assembly seat along with 34 other assembly segments and five Lok Sabha seats on May 20.
The polling process was disrupted in the two booths due to some incidents, news agency PTI reported citing sources.
BJP president J P Nadda and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and his Assam counterpart Himanta Biswa Sarma will address election rallies in Odisha on May 23, news agency PTI reported citing a senior party leader.
While Nadda will address four meetings at Karanjia, Dhamnagar, Barchana, and Balikuda, Adityanath, who will campaign in Odisha for the first time this election, will address rallies at Chilika and Kulia, BJP's state unit vice-president Golak Mohapatra told PRI. Sarma, on the other hand, will address rallies in Deogarh, Barbil, Choudwar, and Baramba.
Background
Lok Sabha Elections 2024 HIGHLIGHTS: Hello and welcome to this Live Blog. Please follow this space and keep refreshing the page for all the latest updates and developments on Lok Sabha elections.
Repolling At 2 Booths In Odisha Today
Repolling has been ordered at two booths in Odisha where voting was disrupted on May 20, a statement issued by the Chief Electoral Officer said on Tuesday.
Repolling will be held at booth numbers 26 and 28 in Kantamal assembly segment of Kandhamal Lok Sabha seat from 7 am to 4 pm on May 23, the statement said. It is to be noted that the polling was held in these two booths in the Kantamal assembly seat along with 34 other assembly segments and five Lok Sabha seats on May 20.
The polling process was disrupted in the two booths due to some incidents, news agency PTI reported citing sources.
PM Modi To Address Election Meetings In Punjab Today
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address three election meetings in Punjab on May 23 and 24, a senior party leader told PTI on Sunday.
The PM will address a rally in Patiala in support of party candidate Preneet Kaur on May 23.
The stakes are high for the BJP this time as it is in the parliamentary fray alone for the first time. The Akali Dal snapped nearly three-decade-long ties and pulled out of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in September 2020 over the contentious, now-repealed farm laws. On earlier occasions, the BJP and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) had been contesting as part of the seat-sharing pact since 1996.
During the 2019 elections, the Congress won eight out of 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab. The BJP and SAD won two seats each, while the AAP could only manage to secure one seat. Punjab will go to the polls in a single phase for 13 parliamentary seats on June 1.
Nadda, Adityanath, Himanta To Address Rallies In Odisha On Thursday
BJP president J P Nadda and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and his Assam counterpart Himanta Biswa Sarma will address election rallies in Odisha on May 23, news agency PTI reported citing a senior party leader.
While Nadda will address four meetings at Karanjia, Dhamnagar, Barchana, and Balikuda, Adityanath, who will campaign in Odisha for the first time this election, will address rallies at Chilika and Kulia, BJP's state unit vice-president Golak Mohapatra told PRI.
Sarma, on the other hand, will address rallies in Deogarh, Barbil, Choudwar, and Baramba.
Senior BJP leader Arun Govil, who is best known for playing Lord Ram in the TV series 'Ramayana', will address public meetings in Champua, Telkoi, Bhubaneswar, and Dhenkanal on May 22.
Elections will be held in Sambalpur, Keonjhar, Dhenkanal, Cuttack, Puri, and Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha seats and 42 assembly segments falling under their parliamentary constituencies on May 25.
- - - - - - - - - Advertisement - - - - - - - - -