{"id":7558,"date":"2024-05-13T00:20:13","date_gmt":"2024-05-13T00:20:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/samvadbharatnews.com\/?p=7558"},"modified":"2024-05-13T00:20:13","modified_gmt":"2024-05-13T00:20:13","slug":"elections-2024-may-11-highlights-rahul-accepts-invite-to-debate-with-pm-modi-the-hindu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/samvadbharatnews.com\/?p=7558","title":{"rendered":"Elections 2024 May 11 Highlights:: Rahul accepts invite to debate with PM Modi – The Hindu"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Updated – May 11, 2024 09:04 pm IST<\/span>
Published – May 11, 2024 06:15 am IST <\/span>
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi addresses a public meeting in Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh on May 11, 2024. | Photo Credit: PTI
T<\/span>he campaigning for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections ended on May 11. 96 constituencies from 10 States will go to the polls on May 13. Andhra Pradesh and Telangana will vote in a single phase on Monday. Voters in Andhra Pradesh will also elect their representatives for the State Assembly.\u00a0
Read: These are the Lok Sabha constituencies and States going to polls in Phase 4<\/a><\/strong>
There has been a controversy regarding PM Narendra Modi\u2019s age. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal claimed that Mr. Modi would retire next year, when he turns 75. He said, \u201cHe [Mr. Modi] is seeking votes for making Amit Shah the prime minister. Will Shah fulfil Modiji\u2019s guarantee?\u201d Union Home Minister Amit Shah has clarified that there was no such plan. \u201cModi will complete the term and will continue to lead the country. There is no confusion in BJP on this,\u201d he said. Meanwhile, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said it is surprising that the Election Commission of India responded to a letter he wrote to INDIA bloc leaders, but ignored several complaints he raised to the body. In a letter addressed to the CEC and other officials, he said the poll panel was not showing urgency in dealing with \u201cblatantly communal and casteist\u201d statements being made by leaders from the ruling party.
Also read: Surprised that ECI responded to my INDIA bloc letter but ignored complaints I raised before it, says Kharge<\/a><\/strong>
Congress leader and Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi accepted an invitation by two prominent jurists and a senior editor <\/a>to participate in a public debate. In his reply, Mr. Gandhi said that either he or Mr. Kharge would attend the debate and let them know if Mr. Modi agreed to participate in the event.
Meanwhile, Mr. Modi claimed that the Congress will not win even 50 seats in the Lok Sabha elections<\/a> and will not be able to get opposition party status after the polls.
Addressing an election rally in Phulbani in Odisha\u2019s Kandhamal Lok Sabha seat, he asserted that a \u201cdouble engine\u201d government will be formed in the State.\u00a0
The updated voter turnout figures for the third phase of polling in the Lok Sabha elections stood at 65.68%, the Election Commission said on May 11Saturday. The poll panel gave a similar voter turnout figure on May 8, a day after the voting. Read the report here.<\/a><\/strong>
Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not make any offer to NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar to join NDA, but only gave him advice, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has said.\u00a0
\u201cThe news about PM Modi\u2019s offer to Sharad Pawar to join NDA is wrong. It\u2019s not an offer but a piece of advice. Sharad Pawar will be defeated in Baramati. Both Uddhav Thackeray and Pawar are on sinking boats. Be with us if you want to fulfil your political aspirations. This is the exact advice Modi gave,\u201d Mr. Fadnavis said. \u201cElections cannot be won with a certain narrative. The Opposition doesn\u2019t have any topics to comment on. I am 100 per cent confident we will win in Baramati,\u201d he told reporters in Pune.\u00a0
Baramati in Pune district has been a stronghold of Sharad Pawar and his family. With the split in the original NCP, the constituency saw Sharad Pawar\u2019s daughter Supriya Sule facing off with Sunetra Pawar, wife of his nephew and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, in the third phase on May 7.
In the Pune constituency, where polling will be held in the fourth phase on May 13, the BJP has fielded Murlidhar Mohol against the Congress\u2019 Ravindra Dhangekar. – PTI<\/em>
A day after his release from Tihar Jail, AAP convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal held his first roadshow for Lok Sabha election on May 11 in support of party\u2019s South Delhi candidate Sahi Ram Pehalwan.\u00a0
He was joined by other party leaders, including his Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann. Party workers gathered in large numbers to attend the roadshow. He will also take part in a roadshow in East Delhi constituency in support of AAP candidate Kuldeep Kumar – PTI<\/em>
Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi has accepted an invite by a senior journalist and two former judges to participate in a public debate<\/a> on the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. \u201cWe agree that such a debate will help people understand our respective vision and enable them to make an informed choice,\u201d Mr. Gandhi said in his reply. \u201cAs the principal parties fighting the election, the public deserve to hear from their leaders directly. Accordingly, either myself or the Congress President would be pleased to participate in such a debate,\u201d he said.
Please let us know if and when the Prime Minister agrees to participate, following which we can discuss the details and format of the debate, he said, adding that he looks forward to participating in a productive and historic debate. Read the report here.<\/a><\/strong>
Union Home Minister and BJP leader Amit Shah has asserted Prime Minister Narendra Modi will continue to lead the country and hit out at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for claiming that Mr. Modi would retire next year. Mr. Shah said, \u201cI would like to tell Arvind Kejriwal and company and the whole INDI alliance, Modi becomes 75, there is no need for you to feel happy. It is not written anywhere in BJP\u2019s constitution. Modi will complete the term and will continue to lead the country. There is no confusion in BJP on this.\u201d
Mr. Kejriwal had charged that Mr. Modi was asking for votes for Mr. Shah. \u201cThese people ask INDIA bloc about their (PM) face. I ask BJP who will be their PM? Modi ji is turning 75 on September 17 next year. He had made the rule that people aged 75 will be retired. They retired L.K. Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Sumitra Mahajan,\u201d he said. He asked, \u201cHe (Modi) will retire next year. He is seeking votes for making Amit Shah the prime minister. Will Shah fulfill Modiji\u2019s guarantee?\u201d – PTI<\/em>
Former Karnataka Chief Minister and senior BJP leader B.S. Yediyurappa said his party and JD(S) will contest the upcoming Legislative Council elections, scheduled on June 3, together.\u00a0
He said the alliance would not be affected in the wake of cases being filed against present Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna over alleged sexual abuse of several women. \u201cOur alliance with the JD(S) will not be affected. That [Prajwal case] has no connection with the alliance. I\u2019m confident that the alliance will continue,\u201d he said. \u201dWe had a discussion that they [JD(S)] will contest in two seats and BJP in four seats,\u201d he added. – PTI<\/em>
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said it is surprising that the Election Commission of India chose to respond to a letter he wrote to INDIA bloc leaders but ignored several other complaints he raised directly to it.\u00a0
In a letter addressed to the CEC and other election commissioners, he said the poll panel is showing no urgency in dealing with \u201cblatantly communal and casteist\u201d statements made by leaders from the ruling party.
\u201cIt is surprising that the Election Commission of India wanted to respond to this letter while ignoring several other complaints given directly to it. I have certain misgivings about the language of the letter, but I will not press on that issue as I understand the pressures they are working under,\u201d he wrote in his letter.
He said the EC letter says the Commission respects citizens\u2019 right to ask questions and while it \u201cthreatens citizens in the form of an advise to exercise caution\u201d. The Congress chief also said he is puzzled by the need to write that the Commission is \u201cnot legally bound to publish any voter turnout data at aggregate level of a constituency or state\u201d, even though it is factual. \u201cI am sure many voters of our country would be surprised too. Many voters who are deeply interested in the elections would also like to see the absolute number of votes polled to be put out in the public domain by the Commission directly,\u201d he said. – PTI<\/em>
The Maratha community will teach Maharashtra\u2019s Mahayuti government a lesson for denying reservations and registering criminal cases against protestors, quota activist Manoj Jarange has said, as the State gears up for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections.\u00a0
He also said the community has not taken any political stand in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections though there is simmering anger against the establishment. This anger has forced Prime Minister Narendra Modi to campaign extensively in Maharashtra, he said. \u200bRead the report here.<\/a>\u200b<\/strong>
During his visit to the Kadapa parliamentary constituency<\/a>, Rahul Gandhi visited former Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy\u2019s samadhi at Idupulapaya and paid his respects at his grave. He called Dr. YSR a close associate of his father Rajiv Gandhi and hailed him as a fatherly figure. \u201cWhen I missed my father, Dr. YSR used to act as a mentor by asking me frequently to reach out to the public,\u201d he said at a rally in support of APCC President Y.S. Sharmila Reddy, who is the party nominee for Kadapa Lok Sabha seat. He added that YSR\u2019s famous Padayatra w<\/em>as a source of inspiration for his Bharat Jodo Yatra<\/em>.
With this, the Congress is embracing the YSR\u2019s legacy.
Addressing a mammoth public meeting in Kadapa in support of APCC President Y.S. Sharmila Reddy, who is also the party nominee for Kadapa Lok Sabha seat, Mr. Gandhi insisted that the party was not behind getting YSR\u2019s name included in the CBI charge sheet after his demise.
FM Nirmala Sitharaman attacked the Congress, saying the approach of the party towards terrorism has been \u201csoft\u201d.\u00a0
\u201cYou saw it during the ten years of UPA rule led by the Congress how terror attacks were tolerated… proper response was not given,\u201d she said. \u201cThey believed in sending dossiers to Pakistan to the extent that you will recall that handlers of the Mumbai attack are still not punished,\u201d she said after an interaction with youths from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in New Delhi. \u201dSo, the attitude and approach of the Congress party towards terror has always been weak and soft,\u201d Ms. Sitharaman said.
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused the Congress of not taking swift action after the 26\/11 terror attacks over fears that their \u201cvote bank\u201d will shift. He also said the people of Jammu and Kashmir have struggled for decades because of the Congress\u2019 \u201cweak mindset\u201d.
\u201cIndia will never forget the times when the country used to suffer frequent terrorist attacks and the Congress leaders would sit with the perpetrators of terrorism,\u201d he said.- PTI<\/em>
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said that his party\u2019s manifesto guarantees the universal right to health for all. \u201cThe complete mismanagement of the healthcare sector is part of the long list of failures of the Modi Sarkar\u2019s 10 years of Anyay Kaal<\/em>. On June 4, every Indian can rest assured the Congress Party\u2019s guarantee of a Right to Health for All,\u201d he said in a post on X.\u201cIn our Nyay Patra <\/em>has guaranteed a universal Right to Health for every Indian. At the center of this Right to Health is \u20b925 lakh in health coverage for every single citizen,\u201d he said. – PTI<\/em>Read the report here<\/a><\/strong>
Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur said the BJP will hit a four and six in Himachal Pradesh by winning all the four Lok Sabha seats and bypolls in six Assembly constituencies in the State.
Mr. Thakur, the BJP candidate from Hamirpur Lok Sabha seat, said that people were happy with the performance of the BJP led government at the Centre and wanted to make Narendra Modi the Prime Minister for the third term.
\u201cWe constructed the Ram Mandir. The Congress says it will build a mosque. The Opposition parties said that they would crush Sanatan and equated it with HIV Aids and malaria,\u201d Mr. Thakur said addressing a huge gathering at Gandhi Chowk in Hamirpur.
\u201cLike the Mughals and Britishers came and left, the Congress is also going. Sanatan tha, sanatan hai and sanatan rahega<\/em>\u201d, he added. Mr. Thakur said the Congress says Pakistan has nuclear bomb, but the truth is that Islamabad is struggling for food as the grand old party is struggling for votes. \u201cWe defeated Pakistan in 1965, 1971 and the Kargil war and if Pakistan would raise eye on India we will not take time to raise it to the ground,\u201d said Mr. Thakur. – PTI<\/em>
Hitting out at Andhra Pradesh CM Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy and other Opposition parties in the State, Rahul Gandhi said BJP stands for Babu (TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu), Jagan and Pawan (Jana Sena founder Pawan Kalyan).
Addressing a poll rally in Kadapa, the Congress leader alleged the remote control of the three leaders is with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Invoking the name of former CM Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy (YSR), Rahul Gandhi said the former\u2019s marathon political walkathon ( padayatra<\/em>) across Andhra Pradesh was the inspiration for his nationwide Bharat Jodo Yatra.
As and when the INDIA bloc comes to power at the Centre after the 2024 general elections, he claimed it will accord a 10-year special category status to Andhra Pradesh and fulfil other promises such as completing the Polavaram project, Kadapa steel plant and others.
Canvassing for party candidates for the Assembly polls in the southern State, he promised to waive select farm loans, free education from kindergarten to post graduation, \u20b95 lakh housing loan for poor people and others. – PTI<\/em>
The National Conference (NC) accused the administration in Jammu and Kashmir of revoking permission for the party\u2019s boat rally and roadshow in the interior area of Dal Lake, in Srinagar, on \u201cflimsy reasons\u201d to allow \u201ca BJP-aligned proxy party\u201d to campaign in the same location.
The party\u2019s chief spokesperson Tanvir Sadiq said the NC had applied for permission for a boat campaign rally and roadshow in Mir Behri Dal Lake interiors for Srinagar Lok Sabha candidate Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi. Mr. Sadiq said permission for the rally was first granted by the administration, but then revoked. The administration, however, said the Apni Party, led by Altaf Bukhari, had sought permission for a rally in the same location and date before the NC.
It said the permission given to NC for the rally and roadshow was withdrawn to avoid a clash between the parties. \u201cThis sequence of events, from permission to withdrawal, is truly shameful,\u201d he said, posting the order of permission and then its subsequent revocation. – PTI<\/em>
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra dubbed PM Modi\u2019s election speeches as \u201chollow talk\u201d, and said he should imbibe qualities such as courage and determination from former PM Indira Gandhi.
Speaking at a rally in Nandurbar (Maharashtra) to drum up support for Congress candidate Gowaal Padvi, a day after PM Modi addressed a public meeting in this tribal-dominated constituency, she accused the BJP of not respecting the culture and tradition of adivasis<\/em> (tribals).
\u201cAll that Modiji speaks is \u2018 khokhli baatein<\/em>\u2019 (hollow talk) that does not carry any weight. Yesterday, he said he respects Shabri. So why was he silent when several Shabris suffered atrocities in Unnao and Hathras? Why didn\u2019t he raise a finger when women wrestlers were on the streets protesting against the harassment, but the BJP gives ticket to the son of the accused person,\u201d she said referring to BJP leader Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who is facing sexual harassment charges.
\u201cLord Ram respected the common people and was committed to fulfilling their wishes,\u201d she said.
\u201cWhat kind of leader do you want? The one who walks for 4,000 km and comes to you to understand your problems or a leader on whose kurta you will not find marks of dust and is scared to come near you. Do you want a leader who wipes your tears or the one who sheds crocodile tears on stage? Do you want a leader who is fearless and speaks the truth irrespective of the pressure or the one who lies throughout,\u201d she asked.
She also asked people if they want politics of principles, service and dedication or politics of power and self glory. – PTI<\/em>
BJP national president J. P. Nadda along with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) general secretary Nara Lokesh and Janasena leader K. Naga Babu held a roadshow in Tirupati, on May 11.
Addressing the gathering, the BJP chief said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the country is progressing and the common man, Dalits, youth and farmers, among others, were empowered.
He further said as many as 1.50 lakh panchayats in the country are being connected through optical fibre network. Two lakh villages were connected through common service centres. He said that under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna, four crore houses were constructed, and BJP, if voted to power again, will construct three crore houses.
Elections to the 175-member Assembly and for 25 Lok Sabha seats in Andhra Pradesh will be held on May 13. – PTI<\/em>
Demanding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi be barred from campaigning for 96 hours and an FIR be lodged against him for his alleged hate speeches, several civil society groups undertook a nationwide joint campaign on May 11, including in Karnataka, with the slogan \u201cGrow a Spine or Resign.\u201d
The activists in Bengaluru submitted a memorandum to the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) for Karnataka holding the ECI accountable for its \u201cinaction\u201d against violations of the MCC and laws during the Lok Sabha elections.
\u201cI spoke to many experts since getting out from my own convictions. I don\u2019t think they (BJP) will be forming government on June 4. They will have 200-220 seats, not more than that,\u201d Mr. Kejriwal said.\u00a0
He said that in the centre, INDIA bloc will form government. The Aam Aadmi Party will be in that government and will fight for Delhi\u2019s Statehood. \u201cDelhi\u2019s L-G will be Delhi\u2019s L-G, and the current one is from Gujarat,\u201d he said.
Further, CM Kejriwal said that Hemant Soren shouldn\u2019t have resigned either. \u201cIf we do that, they will arrest any Opposition CM and demolish their government. I did not resign, not because I am hungry for a post but because I was fighting a dictatorial rule,\u201d Kejriwal added.
\u201cI thank the Supreme Court for giving 22 days. I will go around the country in these days to fight for our country. I have come to beg in front of the 140 crore people of our country to save our nation from dictatorship. Please save my nation. I will put my heart, soul and everything else I have for this country,\u201d CM Kejriwal said.
\u201cThe BJP is doing something very dangerous, their mission is \u201cone nation, one leader.\u201d They have been after all Opposition leaders. If they win the elections, they will put all Opposition leaders behind bars. \u201cThey ruined Vasundhra Raje, Manohar Lal Khattar and so many other leaders from within their party, because they are focussed on one nation, one leader. They will go after Yogi Adityanath next,\u201d CM Kejriwal said.
\u201cI want to thank everyone who has joined us in this heat. Friends, I am coming straight from jail, after 50 days in Tihar. I had no hope that I will come out of jail in between elections. This is the blessings of lord Hanuman,\u201d Arvind Kejriwal said.
Mr. Kejriwal said, \u201cThe Aam Aadmi Party is a small party, we are in power in two States and the PM is determined to finish our party. Together, they sent four top leaders of our party to jail – myself, Manish Sisodia, Sanjay Singh and Satyendra Jain. They thought this will finish us but the truth is that we are not just a party but a thought.\u201d
He said, \u201cThe PM says I am fighting against corruption, but all the corrupt people join the BJP and they accept them. I tell the PM, that if he wants to fight corruption, he needs to learn from me. All the thieves and liars have joined the BJP, and their cases vanished. But, he arrested me to send a message. The message was to tell everyone that if he can arrest Kejriwal, then he can arrest anyone.\u201d
\u201cIn the future when some asks who saved this country from dictatorship, the answer would be Mr. Kejriwal and the two crore people of Delhi who voted for him. The PM only has ten words in the name of election to ask for votes \u2013 Muslims, cows, mangalsutra and all. No speeches about inflation, poverty and other issues,\u201d Punjab CM Bhagwat Mann said.
\u201cArvind Kejriwal has become the most loved politician in this country. Everyone saw what happened with him. We kept the press conference (PC) to discuss what happened but the outpouring support of people has shown us it\u2019s not just a PC but a rally for Mr. Kejriwal,\u201d Punjab CM Bhagwat Mann said.
He said that in the first three rounds of elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi got to know that it\u2019s \u201cnot 400 paar<\/em> but it\u2019s beda par<\/em>.\u201d
\u201cThere is happiness in our office today because our loved Arvind Kejriwal is out but only 100 metres from here (where the BJP HQ is) they must be wondering how this happened and fighting with each other. On June 4, mark my words, government won\u2019t form without Aam Aadmi Party.\u201d
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik are \u201ctwo sides of the same coin\u201d, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said on May 11, accusing the BJP and the BJD of being \u201cin cahoots\u201d with each other.
PM Modi is on a two-day poll campaign tour of Odisha<\/a> and will address three rallies in the State on Saturday. Lok Sabha and Assembly elections are being held simultaneously in Odisha.
Attacking the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), Mr. Ramesh said the Odisha party has bailed out the Modi government on a number of occasions in Parliament.
The BJP on Saturday made light of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi\u2019s readiness for a debate with Prime Minister Narendra Modi as it questioned his knowledge of issues and his standing, noting that he is neither the president of his party nor the leader of the opposition.
Addressing a press conference, BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi also took a swipe at Gandhi over his claim that the opposition INDIA bloc will win the Lok Sabha polls, saying someone who could not file his nomination from Amethi is speaking about forming government at the Centre.
\u201cPhenomenon thy name is Rahul Gandhi,\u201d he said mockingly.
– PTI<\/em>
Medinipur is probably the only Lok Sabha seat in West Bengal where both the prime contenders, the BJP and the TMC, seem more troubled with resistance from within than from the opposition outside.
Should pollsters choose to add yet another layer of political complexity to the seat, there are those who view the battle for Medinipur as that taking place between current and former TMC supporters, roughly translated into followers of party supremo Mamata Banerjee and turncoat Suvendu Adhikari, with both rooting for candidates of their choice.
– PTI<\/em>
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BJP\u2019s Smriti Irani has carved her identity by opposing Rahul Gandhi but cannot do so in Amethi this time and will face defeat, Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel has said, exuding confidence that his party will win both the Amethi and Rae Bareli seats in Uttar Pradesh by \u201cbig margin\u201d in the Lok Sabha polls.
Former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, who lost Amethi to Irani in the 2019 elections, has this time been fielded by the Congress from Rae Bareli and is contesting against BJP\u2019s Dinesh Pratap Singh. Gandhi family aide Kishori Lal Sharma is taking on Irani in Amethi. Both the seats have had close ties with the Gandhi family since Indira Gandhi contested and then Sanjay Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi have all fought the polls from either of these two constituencies, Mr. Baghel said.
– PTI<\/em>
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday claimed that the Congress will not win even 50 seats in the Lok Sabha elections and will not be able to get opposition party status after the polls.
Addressing an election rally in Phulbani in Kandhamal Lok Sabha seat in Odisha, he asserted that a \u201cdouble engine\u201d government will be formed in the state and \u201ca son or daughter of the soil who understands Odia language and culture\u201d will be made the chief minister of the BJP government.
Recalling the achievements of the previous BJP government at the Centre under Atal Bihari Vajpayee, he said that on this day 26 years ago, Pokhran tests had enhanced the image of the country across the globe.
– PTI<\/em>
\u201cPolitical leaders promised many things but has anything changed,\u201d asks Kamali Devi, who runs a small store in the Ghausina area.
This appears to be a common refrain in Uttar Pradesh\u2019s Lakhimpur Kheri Lok Sabha constituency where farmers want better prices for their produce and respite from the stray cattle menace and others want political leaders to talk about job creation instead of issues like the Ram temple and Article 370.
The district came into the spotlight in October 2021, when four Sikh farmers and a journalist were run over by an SUV in the Tikunia area.
Ashish Mishra alias Monu, the son of sitting Lakhimpur Kheri MP and Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Mishra \u2018Teni\u2019 was made an accused in the case.
– PTI<\/em>
Ahead of addressing three election rallies in Odisha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that the state will create a history in the simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly polls.
The PM, who is set to address election rallies in Kandhamal, Bolangir and Bargarh Lok Sabha seats later in the day, took to X, saying, \u201cIt\u2019s clear that Odisha will create history in these elections!\u201d\u00a0
– PTI<\/em>
With the Parliamentary election and six byelections coming up in the month of June, the ruling Congress party in Himachal Pradesh has sharpened its attack on the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP), as both parties engage in a direct electoral battle in the hill State.\u00a0
Hitting out at the BJP, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on May 10 accused the former Chief Minister and current Leader of the Opposition Jairam Thakur of indulging in politics of \u2018regional bias\u2019 and \u2018corruption\u2019 during the BJP regime.
\u200bRead the full story here.<\/a>\u200b<\/strong>
Amid election season, Aam Aadmi Party Supremo Arvind Kejriwal\u2019s absence from political centre stage for 50 days due to being lodged Tihar jail shaped the party\u2019s campaign narrative centered around \u2018Jail Ka Jawab Vote Se\u2019. AAP\u2019s campaign inadvertently focused on aspects of Mr. Kejriwal\u2019s arrest the by the Enforcement Directorate.\u00a0
AAP leader Saurabh Bhardwaj said, \u201cthere are crores of people who were awaiting the release of Mr. Kejriwal. This release is a big game changer for the entirety of INDIA bloc. The biggest mistake by the BJP was his arrest in which\u2019s aftermath, he dominated the narrative on issues of his arrest during the elections first, then related to insulin and his bail from Supreme Court across the country.\u201d\u00a0
Armed with two voter cards issued by two states, over 5,500 electors of the disputed Kotia region are eligible to exercise their franchise in both Andhra Pradesh and Odisha elections in the fourth phase on May 13.
Twenty-one of the 28 villages of the picturesque Kotia cluster are claimed by both states and a case over the dispute has been pending with the Supreme Court since 1968.
Due to the dispute, residents of Kotia get the best of both worlds since they have Aadhaar and ration cards issued by both states and receive the benefits of schemes announced by the two governments.
– PTI<\/em>
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will visit the Hanuman Temple at Connaught Place today a day after he walked out of Tihar Jail after being granted interim bail by the Supreme Court.
The Chief Minister is also scheduled to hold a press conference later in the day at the Aam Aadmi Party office in Delhi. The Aam Admi Party national convenor said on Friday that he would also participate in a road show in South Delhi in the evening.
– ANI<\/em>
A petition was filed in the Supreme Court on May 10 highlighting the inordinate delay in the publication of voter turnout data coupled with unusually high revisions after the first two phases of polling in the Lok Sabha elections.
Association for Democratic Reforms, represented by advocates Prashant Bhushan, Neha Rathi and Cheryl D\u2019Souza, said the delay in publishing the voter-turnout details and a sharp spike in figures from the initial percentages released by the Election Commission have raised concerns and public suspicion regarding the accuracy of the data. <\/p>\n

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Plea in SC questions EC\u2019s delay in publishing voter turnout data of LS polls <\/p>\n