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May 03, 2024 07:43 am | Updated 08:39 pm IST
Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a roadshow for Lok Sabha elections, in Ranchi, on May 3, 2024. | Photo Credit: PTI
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that Congress’ tally in the Lok Sabha polls will be an “all-time low”, as the grand old party would struggle to cross even the “half-century” mark in the hustings. He also mocked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s decision to contest from Uttar Pradesh’s Rae Bareli seat, “sensing defeat” in Kerala’s Wayanad, where he is a sitting MP.
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Congress leader Rahul Gandhi filed his papers from Uttar Pradesh’s Rae Bareli constituency, barely an hour before nominations closed for the Lok Sabha seat. Earlier in the morning, the Congress ended the suspense over Amethi and Rae Bareli, announcing his candidature from the seat held by his mother Sonia Gandhi for the last two decades.
Meanwhile, AAP Lok Sabha candidate from West Delhi, Mahabal Mishra, appreciated the work done by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal saying his “guarantees are visible on the ground” while Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s guarantees are “jumla” (rhetoric). Asserting that the people are angry over the arrest of AAP’s national convener, Mr. Mishra said there is a wave of sympathy for him.
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In Maharashtra’s Raigad district, the pilot of a helicopter was injured after it tilted during landing, a police official said. The chopper was scheduled to pick Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sushma Andhare for a public rally in connection with the ongoing Lok Sabha polls, he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi began a mega roadshow in Jharkhand’s capital Ranchi on Friday evening.
Thousands of people lined up on both sides of the stretch to greet the PM.
The roadshow began amid tight security soon after Mr. Modi landed at the Birsa Munda airport in a special helicopter from Chaibasa after holding a public rally there.
After reaching Ranchi, the PM paid floral tributes to tribal icon Birsa Munda at his statue at Birsa Chowk.
In view of the roadshow, traffic restrictions were imposed along the stretch from the airport to Raj Bhavan, the route being undertaken by the PM.
The entire route from the airport to Raj Bhavan has been declared as no fly zone for drones from 5 a.m. on Friday to 11 p.m. on Saturday, district administration officials said. – PTI
Taking a dig at the Congress’ pledge to tackle wealth and income inequality in its manifesto for the Lok Sabha elections, Mr. Modi remarked that the party had stated that Muslims hold the primary claim to the nation’s resources, contrasting it with his government’s focus on uplifting marginalised communities including the poor, dalits, tribals, and other vulnerable sections.
Mr. Modi said the Congress had announced that it would conduct a survey to find out the property of individuals, gold owned by women, ‘stridhan’, silver, land and redistribute it to those indulging in ‘vote jihad’.
“Can you tolerate the government snatching your hard-earned money and property?” he asked.
Mr. Modi accused the Congress of aiming to take away SC/ST/OBC reservation and allocating them to Muslims, alleging the party’s intention to sow religious divisions in the country. – PTI
In his first election campaign in Jharkhand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday accused the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and its ally, the Congress, of looting the natural resources of the State.
Addressing a rally in Jharkhand’s Chaibasa for the BJP’s Singhbhum candidate Geeta Koda and Khunti nominee Arjun Munda, Mr. Modi alleged that there was a race going on between the Congress and the JMM to loot the State and commit corruption.
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi attacked PM Narendra Modi and said he “bought planes for himself but did not waive off the loan of farmers”.
Priyanka Gandhi held a road show in support of the Congress’ candidate from Fatehpur Sikri Lok Sabha constituency, Ramnath Sikarwar. Sitting atop a vehicle along with Sikarwar and without taking any names, she said, “He has only taken your votes by inciting your emotions during the elections. He has not given you anything. He has given to his rich friends only,” she said.
The Congress general secretary said, “The prime minister bought planes for himself but did not waive off the loans of the farmers. Has Modi ji wiped the tears of a single farmer or has he helped a single poor? He has only run his government for his rich friends and you only get a sack of five kilograms of ration.” – PTI
Actor and TMC’s Ghatal MP Deepak Adhikari’s helicopter caught fire soon after taking off from Malda helipad forcing the pilot to make an emergency landing, police said.
Mr. Adhikari, popularly known as Dev, was unharmed and later travelled by road to reach his subsequent destination in Raninagar for another election rally.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee telephoned Mr. Dev and enquired about the situation.
“It’s natural that there will be a little trauma. This turbulence, smoke, and smell have a psychological effect on me. I called the CM and told her that I did not want to take the helicopter and instead would prefer the road to reach my next meeting at Raninagar in Murshidabad district,” Mr. Dev said.
Mr. Dev was in Malda to attend an election campaign for party candidate for Maldah (Uttar) Lok Sabha constituency Prasun Banerjee.
A senior officer of Malda police told PTI that the fire could have been triggered because of a technical glitch. – PTI
Will PM Narendra Modi scrap 50% limit on reservation, asked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
If the Constitution is changed, India will be unrecognisable, Mr. Gandhi said at election rally in Pune.
“Maharashtra is a ‘Congress state’ in terms of ideology. Congress party’s ‘Nyay’ guarantees will revolutionalise how politics is conducted,” he said. – PTI
Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is trying to create an image of ‘Hindu hriday samrat’ (king of Hindu hearts) in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
The Thiruvananthapuram MP also claimed there was a decline in the voting percentage in certain areas and it reflected the “indifference being felt by the traditional BJP supporter”.
He said Mr. Modi, in 2014, came up with a very persuasive agenda of anti-corruption, replication of his Gujarat development model, which collapsed by the first term itself.
“In 2019, they fought the general polls on Pulwama, Balakot (terror incidents and surgical strikes in response). That was his message. Now, after 2019 he can’t say that because I have said he has been a failure in the Chinese border area,” Mr. Tharoor claimed.
“In 2024, the only message is that the PM is Hindu hriday samrat and is indulging in scare mongering about Muslims. What kind of talk is this? It is embarrassing when the PM of the country talks like this,” Mr. Tharoor claimed. – PTI
Questioning the delay in releasing the final figures for the percentage of votes cast in the first two phases of Lok Sabha election, CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury in a letter to Chief Election Commissioner Rajeev Kumar, asked the panel to explain the 6% surge from the initial figures that the ECI had put out.
Mr. Yechury in his letter pointed out that ECI took 11-days to publish the final figures for the first phase and four days for the second phase. “Unfortunately, the ECI has not come out with any explanation for the cause of this undue delay.” he wrote.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi declared assets of over ₹20 crore in his papers.
Mr. Gandhi has declared movable assets to the tune of ₹9,24,59,264, including shares worth ₹3,81,33,572, a bank balance of ₹26,25,157 and gold bonds of ₹15,21,740.
The former Congress president has declared immovable assets with a current market price of ₹11,15,02,598. These include self-acquired immovable assets currently worth ₹9,04,89,000 and ₹2,10,13,598 worth of inherited assets.
Mr. Gandhi has claimed that he has ₹55,000 cash in hand and a liability of ₹49,79,184.
His annual income in the last financial year (2022-23) was ₹1,02,78,680, as per the nomination papers. – PTI
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Vinod Tawde said the Mahayuti alliance will win more than 40 seats in Maharashtra in the Lok Sabha elections.
Former minister Eknath Khadse will return to the BJP, and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and the party’s state unit chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule had never opposed his rejoining, he said.
Mr. Khadse quit the BJP in 2016 after almost four decades in the party. Last month, the veteran leader, who is with the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar), said he would be rejoining the saffron party.
Mr. Tawde, however, said that the party’s Central leadership will make the final decision about Mr. Khadse’s return to the fold. – PTI
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the BJP and RSS attack democracy continuously and want to “destroy” the country’s Constitution.
Mr. Gandhi, who cancelled his visit to Odisha’s Rayagada district to address an election rally at the last moment for filing nomination papers for Raebareli Lok Sabha seat, has sent a video message in which he attacked the Sangh Parivar and the prime minister.
In the message, Mr. Gandhi said continuous attacks were made on democracy and the Constitution.
“The Congress party and INDIA bloc are trying to protect democracy and Constitution while Modi, BJP and RSS want to destroy it,” Mr. Gandhi said.
Whatever benefits the tribals, Dalits and backward communities have received, it was only because of the Constitution, he said.
“These people are trying to finish the book (Constitution) which has given you all these rights,” he said adding that without the Constitution, there would be nothing. – PTI
The CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front and the BJP in Kerala lashed out at Rahul Gandhi for filing his nomination from Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh for the Lok Sabha polls.
They alleged that the Congress leader cheated the people of Wayanad in Kerala, where he contested the general election on April 26, and said that fighting polls from another seat “does not align with political morality”. – PTI
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has said he should have parted ways with his uncle Sharad Pawar in 2004 itself when the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) gave up its claim on the chief minister’s post while forming a government in the state in alliance with Congress.
Speaking at a campaign rally at Indapur in Pune district for his wife Sunetra Pawar who is pitted against sitting MP and his cousin Supriya Sule of NCP (Sharad Pawar) in the Baramati Lok Sabha constituency, Mr. Pawar said when his uncle made any unexpected political moves, it was called strategy, while his own political decisions are described as betrayal. – PTI
Should have split away from Sharad Pawar in 2004 when NCP ceded CM post to Congress: Ajit
AAP Lok Sabha candidate from West Delhi, Mahabal Mishra, has appreciated the work done by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal saying his “guarantees are visible on the ground” while Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s guarantees are “jumla” (rhetoric).
Asserting that the people are angry over the arrest of AAP’s national convener, Mr. Mishra said there is a wave of sympathy for him.
In an interview to PTI, he said the BJP MPs did not work for the development of their constituencies in the last 10 years, which is why the saffron party has fielded new faces this time around.
Barring Manoj Tiwari from Northeast Delhi, the BJP has not repeated any of its MPs from the remaining six seats in Delhi.
– PTI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that Congress’ tally in the Lok Sabha polls will be an “all-time low”, as the grand old party would struggle to cross even the “half-century” mark in the hustings.
He also mocked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s decision to contest from Uttar Pradesh’s Rae Bareli seat, “sensing defeat” in Kerala’s Wayanad, where he is a sitting MP.
Addressing back-to-back rallies in the Bardhaman-Durgapur and Krishnanagar Lok Sabha constituencies, Mr. Modi said that if Congress is voted to power, it would “snatch” quotas meant for the Scheduled Caste, Dalits and OBCs and give those to its “jihadi vote bank” to pursue the party’s “appeasement politics”.
– PTI
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy urged people to remember the good things that happened to them during YSRCP tenure before casting their vote in the forthcoming elections, and listed out a slew of welfare schemes introduced by his government.
The ruling party chief said this during a public meeting in Narasapuram in West Godavari district.
“Think under whose tenure good things happened and under whom will that good continue. Everybody should think about it and then vote,” said Mr. Reddy.
– PTI
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi filed his papers from Uttar Pradesh’s Rae Bareli constituency, barely an hour before nominations closed for the Lok Sabha seat.
Earlier, in the morning, the Congress ended the suspense over Amethi and Rae Bareli, announcing his candidature from the seat held by his mother Sonia Gandhi for the last two decades.
Mr. Gandhi had lost from the adjoining Amethi constituency in 2019, but won from Wayanad in Kerala – a seat he is contesting this time as well.
He was accompanied by Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra as he filed his papers around 2 p.m. on the last day for filing nominations for the May 20 phase of polling.
– PTI
I will not spare those who looted people of Bengal, this is Modi’s guarantee: PM Modi said at a poll rally in Birbhum.
The Bengal teacher recruitment scam reveals true character of TMC leaders, Mr. Modi added.
– PTI
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is contesting the Lok Sabha elections from Raebareli in Uttar Pradesh after running away from Amethi and predicted that he will lose the polls there against the BJP candidate by a huge margin.
He also said former AICC President Sonia Gandhi’s multiple attempts to “launch” Rahul Gandhi had failed and claimed that this was the twenty-first attempt.
“Modi ji tried and at once Chandrayaan (mission to Moon) got launched. Sonia Gandhi has launched this ‘yaan’ named Rahul Baba (Rahul Gandhi) twenty times, but her launching has not been successful. Today for the twenty-first time, running away from Amethi, he has filed nomination from Raebareli,” Mr. Shah said.
– PTI
People should fulfil Mahatma Gandhi’s wish that Congress should be dissolved and be not in politics, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said at a rally in Rohtak.
Rahul Gandhi ran away from battle, such kind of people want to lead country, Mr. Singh said on the Congress leader shifting to Rae Bareli from Amethi.
– PTI
Congress loyalist K.L. Sharma filed his nomination from Amethi Lok Sabha seat.
Mr. Sharma filed his papers at the collectorate, accompanied by local Congress leaders.
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra earlier in the day urged the the public in Amethi to vote for Mr. Sharma.
– PTI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said he has asked the West Bengal BJP unit to create a separate legal cell to provide help to “genuine teachers and candidates” who have lost jobs due to the School Service Commission (SSC) scam.
While addressing an election rally at Bardhaman-Durgapur, Mr. Modi said “Although he wants those involved in corruption by the TMC to be punished but doesn’t want the innocent to suffer.” “The corruption that the TMC has done in Bengal in school recruitment is shameful. Due to this scam, several genuine candidates have suffered. I have asked the Bengal BJP unit on behalf of the party to create a separate legal cell and social media platform to provide help to the genuine candidates and teachers,” he said.
“BJP will support such honest candidates and will provide them legal help and will fight for them. This is Modi’s guarantee,” he said.
PTI
Addressing a rally in West Bengal on Friday, PM Modi. referring to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s candidature from Rae Bareli, said Congress ‘shehzada’ is so afraid that he is now contesting from Rae Bareli.
He further said that he challenged Congress to give in writing about not providing reservations based on religion, but they were silent. “Congress wants to change the constitution, snatch Dalit and OBC quotas and provide reservation to ‘jihadi’ vote bank,” he said.
PTI
Congress leader Kishori Lal Sharma thanked party national president Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chief, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi for the opportunity to contest from the Gandhi family’s “traditional seat” Amethi in Uttar Pradesh.
On him “replacing” Rahul Gandhi in Amethi and BJP’s allegations that Gandhi “ran away” from the seat, K.L. Sharma said that Rahul is fighting for the whole country.
“I would like to thank Khargeji, Sonia ji, Rahul ji, and Priyanka ji for giving a “chotte” karyakarta like me an opportunity to contest from a seat that is their family bastion. I will work hard. I have been working in this constituency for the last 40 years. I came here in 1987 as a Youth Congress member and from then I have been here. I started my career with Rajiv ji. In 1987, Rajiv ji brought me here. Then the circumstances were such that I stayed here. We made Sonia ji win from here, Rajiv ji win from here,” KL Sharma said while speaking to ANI on his candidature.
ANI
“TMC has turned Hindus into second category citizens in West Bengal. The TMC has objection to Ram Temple, processions of Ram Navami, and also to slogans of Jai Shri Ram,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, while addressing an election rally at Bardhaman in West Bengal.
The pilot of a helicopter was injured after it tilted during landing in Maharashtra’s Raigad district on Friday, a police official said.
The chopper was scheduled to pick Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sushma Andhare for a public rally in connection with the ongoing Lok Sabha polls, he said.
The helicopter got tilted when the pilot tried to land on a makeshift helipad at Mahad around 9.30 a.m, he said.
While the pilot suffered injuries, the helicopter’s rotor blades got damaged in the incident, he said, citing preliminary findings.
PTI
WhatsApp Image 2024-05-03 at 10.56.11.jpeg
The surprise nomination of Rahul Gandhi from Uttar Pradesh’s Rae Bareli brings the focus back on the VVIP segment which was first represented in the Lok Sabha by the former Congress president’s grandfather Feroze Gandhi, who held the seat in the first two elections after Independence.
The strong foundations that Feroze Gandhi laid in the constituency were later nurtured and strengthened by his wife and former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, who won from the seat in 1967, 1971 and 1980, followed by friends and family members of the Gandhi family.
Indira Gandhi contested from two seats in 1980 — Rae Bareli and Medak in Telangana — and chose to retain the Medak seat. Arun Nehru won the 1980 bypoll and subsequently in 1984.
From Arun Nehru, who was late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s right-hand man, to Sheila Kaul, another Gandhi kin, Rae Bareli returned several of the Gandhi family members and aides to the Lok Sabha.
The seat was held by Congress’ R.P. Singh in the 1960 bypoll after the demise of Feroze Gandhi, and by another Congress leader Baij Nath Kureel in 1962.
Sheila Kaul, an aunt of Indira Gandhi, represented the seat in 1989 and 1991. In 1999, another friend of the Gandhis, Satish Sharma represented the Rae Bareli constituency, till Sonia Gandhi shifted there.
The only time the Congress did not represent the seat was in the wake of the Emergency in 1977 when Janata Party’s Raj Narain defeated Indira Gandhi, who was then the Prime minister, and BJP’s Ashoke Singh in 1996 and 1998.
Although Sonia Gandhi upon entering electoral politics chose to make her electoral foray from neighbouring Amethi Lok Sabha seat in 1999, a seat her husband Rajiv Gandhi had held earlier, she soon vacated it for her son Rahul’s debut in politics in 2004.
Sonia Gandhi subsequently held Rae Bareli four times between 2004 and 2019, although of late, her winning margins began dwindling. The party’s calculation behind fielding Rahul from Rae Bareli instead of Amethi, also rests on the conclusion that Rae Bareli is a better, safer seat for the former Congress president, who lost Amethi to BJP’s Smriti Irani in 2019 by nearly 50,000 votes.
PTI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address an election rally in Jharkhand and undertake a roadshow in Ranchi on Friday, a party official said.
The PM is scheduled to visit the West Singhbhum district on Friday where he will address an election rally ‘Maha Vijay Sankalp Sabha’ at Tata College Ground, Chaibasa, from 3 p.m. and seek votes for party candidates in two Lok Sabha constituencies—Singhbhum and Khunti, both are scheduled tribe (ST) reserved seats, he said.
After the rally, the PM is scheduled to arrive at Ranchi’s Birsa Munda Airport in the evening and will undertake a roadshow till Raj Bhawan amid heavy security deployment.
PTI
Development, or the alleged lack of it, and recurrent floods in every monsoon are the key issues of the erstwhile red bastion Arambagh Lok Sabha constituency in West Bengal’s Hooghly district, an SC-reserved political hotspot of the state in terms of law and order volatility.
The TMC may have won the 2014 and 2019 editions of parliamentary polls in Arambagh, but the party’s steady decline in vote share over the last two editions coupled with BJP trumping Trinamool in four of Arambagh’s six Assembly seats in Hooghly in the 2021 State polls are signs of an upcoming battle which Mamata Banerjee’s party may find tougher to tide past than what appears on paper.
That’s perhaps why Prime Minister Narendra Modi chose Arambagh to kick start his poll campaigns in Bengal and addressed one of the poll season’s first public meetings on March 1 from where he slammed the Mamata Banerjee government for “betraying the people of the state”.
The State’s ruling dispensation has replaced its two-time MP Aparupa Poddar with Hooghly Zilla Parishad member Mitali Bag who debuts in parliamentary polls. The BJP nominated Arup Kanti Digar, also a first-timer.
PTI
Liberal commentators critique PM Modi's politics vs. economics, Hindutva ideology sees cultural nationalism as key to prosperity.
Ending days of suspense, Congress has decided to field Rahul Gandhi and Kishori Lal Sharma in the Rae Bareli and Amethi constituencies respectively in Uttar Pradesh.
Mr. Sharma, a Gandhi family loyalist, used to handle the constituency office for Rae Bareilly for Sonia Gandhi.
He also handled the constituency office for Amethi in the early years of Rahul Gandhi’s membership of the Lok Sabha from there.
The Congress never dispossessed the ‘mangalasutra’ of women but instead granted land to lakhs of people through land reforms, AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge said, in a reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent controversial comment.
General Elections 2024 / Indian National Congress / Bharatiya Janata Party / politics / election / Lok Sabha
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