Lok Sabha Election 2024 Highlights: ‘Constitution forced on Goans’ remark shows Cong’s hidden agenda that only vote bank matters, says PM at Goa rally

The Election Commission on Saturday ordered repolling at a polling booth in Hanur, under the Chamarajanagar Lok Sabha constituency in Karnataka, news agency PTI reported. The EC, in a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer, said that on the basis of reports submitted by the Returning Officer and General Observer for the constituency, the voting at the Government Lower Primary School, Indiganatha, 221- Hansur, would be declared void. Fresh polling at the station will take place on April 29 from 7 am to 6 pm.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of "deliberately" trying to leak exam papers in Uttar Pradesh to deny the youth the benefits of reservations, news agency PTI reported. "If jobs have to be given, then reservation will also have to be given," Yadav said. He also said that the recruitment process was fair during the tenure of the Samajwadi Party government in UP. Yadav, who is contesting the Lok Sabha elections from the Kannauj constituency, said that the BJP had betrayed every section of the society.

Amid bizz over Congress finalising the names for Amethi and Raebareli seats, Mallikarjun Kharge said, "Wait for few more days."

YSRCP chief and Andhra Pradesh CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has launched the party's poll manifesto.

VIDEO | Andhra Pradesh CM and YSRCP chief Jagan Mohan Reddy (@ysjagan) addressed the party’s manifesto release event at the Tadepalli Camp office in Vijayawada earlier today.

(Full video available on PTI Videos - https://t.co/dv5TRARJn4) pic.twitter.com/Ns22JNgVcl

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) April 27, 2024

"He (PM Modi) didn't implement even a single thing that he promised. Despite that they (BJP) claim that PM Modi has done a lot for the country. People of the Congress were part of country's freedom struggle, BJP didn't fight for country's independence," Kharge said while addressing a rally in Guwahati. 

Addressing a poll rally in Gujarat, Amit Shah says, "During the third term of Narendra Modi-led govt, our economy will be brought to third spot in the world."

The condition of the BJP will worsen in the remaining phases of the Lok Sabha polls, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav claimed on Saturday, a day after the second round of polling was held in 88 seats across 13 states.

After the first phase of polling on April 19, Yadav in a statement had said that the BJP is in a very weak position in the ongoing elections while the INDIA bloc, of which the Samajwadi Party (SP) is a member, is on a strong wicket.

In a post on X, he claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has not got voters in the first two phases and, in the remaining phases, it will note even get booth agents.

"After the first two phases of voting, the condition of the BJP will be worse in the next phases," he said and claimed that people are ensuring the BJP's departure.

Sharing a video clip of a news channel reporter speaking to a purported BJP booth agent, the SP chief said that after "10 years of lies by BJP leaders, a "booth agent of the BJP" is speaking the truth about the party's poor condition.

He is saying that the reason people are for not voting in the BJP's favour is because of inflation and unemployment, Yadav claimed.

Voting in Uttar Pradesh -- that sends 80 members to the Lok Sabha -- was scheduled for all seven phases. --PTI

A day after polling concluded for the 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala, the Congress on Saturday alleged that voters were harassed and the election machinery was hijacked by the ruling CPI(M) in the state with an aim to bring down the turnout percentage.

AICC general secretary K C Venugopal said the alleged hijacking of the election machinery by the ruling CPI(M) was one of the reasons for the decrease in polling percentage this year as compared to the turnout in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Despite heightened political fervour and anticipation about the general elections for the 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala, the process concluded with a notable decrease in voter turnout, as the figure stood at 70.22 per cent at 8pm yesterday. This figure, while significant, was quite a drop from the polling percentage of 77.84 per cent registered in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Venugopal claimed that there were glitches in electronic voting machines (EVMs) in three to five per cent of the polling booths in the state that lead to long delays in the election process which in turn caused discomfort to the voters who had to stand in long queues for hours in the intense heat. The senior Congress leader alleged that 90 per cent of such EVM glitches occurred in booths where the UDF was strong.

"It was a polling process that harassed voters as no drinking water, sitting or lighting facilities were available in the booths where people waited for hours to vote due to the EVM glitches. The election machinery was completely hijacked by the CPI(M) with the aim of bringing down the polling percentage," he alleged. -- PTI

Senior Congress leader K C Venugopal Saturday said the “election process in Kerala was completely hijacked by the CPI(M),” reported PTI. He added that voters were harassed by polling officials and the electoral exercise in the state turned into chaos despite enough time for preparation. All of Kerala completed its voting in Lok Sabha elections after 20 seats of the state cast their ballot on Friday.

The Congress’s central election committee (CEC) will sit down on Saturday evening and is likely to finalise candidates for the remaining Lok Sabha seats, including Amethi and Raebareli in Uttar Pradesh. The Congress has so far announced candidates for 317 Lok Sabha seats.

As campaigning for phase three of polls resumes, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s wife Sunita will campaign for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the Lok Sabha polls today evening. She will begin her campaign with a roadshow in the East Delhi constituency. Additionally, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Goa on Saturday to attend a public meeting near BITS Pilani in Mormuga.

The Congress’s central election committee (CEC) will sit down on Saturday evening and is likely to finalise candidates for the remaining Lok Sabha seats, including Amethi and Raebareli in Uttar Pradesh. The Congress has so far announced candidates for 317 Lok Sabha seats.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday held a roadshow in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, accompanied by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds a roadshow in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh

CM Yogi Adityanath is also present. #LokSabhaElections2024 pic.twitter.com/6XLTOra43F

— ANI (@ANI) April 26, 2024

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday expressed his gratitude to voters as polling for the Lok Sabha elections Phase 2 nears conclusion. "The unparalleled support for NDA is going to disappoint the Opposition even more. Voters want NDA’s good governance. Youth and women voters are powering the strong NDA support," Modi wrote in a post on X. 

Phase Two has been too good!

Gratitude to the people across India who have voted today. The unparalleled support for NDA is going to disappoint the Opposition even more. Voters want NDA’s good governance. Youth and women voters are powering the strong NDA support.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 26, 2024

Banjarumale, a hamlet located in Belthangady taluk of Dakshina Kannda district, recorded 100 percent voter turnout on Friday under Phase 2 of the Lok Sabha elections, news agency PTI reported. The hamlet has 111 eligible voters, all of whom turned up for the polling which lasted two hours.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday said that naxalism would be eliminated from Chattisgarh if Prime Minister Narendra Modi was given a third term. Addressing an election rally in Bemetara, Shah hit out at the Congress party, alleging that they had the Muslim League's agenda and that they would make a separate law for the minorities. Shah also called the Congress 'anti-OBC', adding that it was Modi's guarantee that the SC, ST and OBC reservations would not be touched. The Home Minister also said that those who declined the invitation to attend the Ayodhya Ram Temple consecration had no right to rule the country. n

BJP MP and Lok Sabha candidate for the Bangalore South seat Tejasvi Survya was booked for seeking votes on religious grounds, the Election Commission said on Friday. "Case is booked against Tejasvi Surya MP and candidate of Bengaluru South PC on April 25 at Jayanagar police station for posting a video on X handle and soliciting votes on the grounds of religion," the Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer posted on X. 

A five-member team of the Election Commission on Friday searched a helicopter used by Odisha Chief Minister and BJD chief Naveen Patnaik's close aide, V K Pandian, news agency PTI quoted an official as saying. The official said that "no objectionable material" was recovered from the helicopter, which was searched when it landed at Umerkote. Pandian was in Umerkote to address an election rally for the Nabarangapur Lok Sabha constituency in Odisha.

Voting has concluded for the 20 constituencies in Kerala which went to polls in Phase 2 of the Lok Sabha elections. The state had a voter turnout of 67.27 percent till 5 pm, as per the data provided by the Election Commission.

Congress candidate from the Surat Lok Sabha constituency Nilesh Kumbhani, whose nomination form was rejected due to discrepancies, was on Friday suspended from the party. "To be fair to you we have given time to you to explain your case but instead of coming before the party disciplinary committee you have gone incommunicado. After your form was rejected by the authorities, BJP went ahead and got form of other eight candidates withdrawn. This has deprived people of Surat their voting rights," PTI quoted the Congress disciplinary committee as saying.  Kumbhani's form was rejected by Surat district collector and District Election Officer Saurabh Parghi, on finding discrepancies in signatures of his proposers.

The total turnout across all constituencies was recorded at 39.13% till 1 pm.

A large number of voters travelling to Assam’s Barak Valley to cast their votes on Friday were affected when nine trains were cancelled and another seven were terminated while on the way on Thursday night and Friday morning.

Voting for the two Lok Sabha seats in Assam’s primarily Bengali-speaking Barak Valley — Silchar and Karimganj — were underway on Friday. Since a large number of voters from the area work or study elsewhere, many of them were travelling to arrive in time to cast their votes on Friday.

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Officials are saying that 54.98 percent poll turnout was recorded till 1 PM at the East Tripura ST-reserved Parliamentary constituency.

54.98 percent poll turnout was recorded till 1 PM at the East Tripura ST-reserved Parliamentary constituency, officials said.

Mousumi Ghosh, a polling officer at Surma assembly segment under the East Tripura Parliamentary constituency, was suspended today after she was caught commenting about leaders of a political party on camera.

Ghosh is a government clerk at a higher secondary school in Tripura's Dhalai district. She was suspended as per an order from the secondary education directorate as per direction from the East Tripura Parliamentary constituency Returning Officer, an official informed.

Fifteen voters including few women were injured after a swarm of bees attacked them when they were waiting in queue in front of the Borobil area in Khowai district today.

Officials said fire service personnel were rushed to the spot and the injured voters were rescued and shifted to Khowai District Hospitals. They were released after treatment and sent to their homes.The fire and emergency service personnel later destroyed the beehive which had been set up in a government building close to the the polling station.

Speaking to reporters amidst the rescue operation, a fire service personnel said that eight persons were rescued so far and more were being rescued. 

One of the voters who were waiting at the ground, later said the bees came out all of a sudden and started stinging them. He said they rushed for cover hither and thither when security personnel rushed in and tried to rescue them.

Polling resumed after a brief gap at the polling center.

he construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya has instilled faith in the voters of Mathura that the BJP governments under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will see the dispute over the city’s Shahi Idgah mosque complex and the Krishna Janmasthan resolved in the courts, just as it has for the Ayodhya dispute.

Though the dispute of the Shahi Idgah and the Krishna Janmasthan doesn’t find mention in the speeches of BJP leaders, locals are discussing the issue. However, this alone is unlikely to decide the vote for Hindus in Mathura.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday slammed the TMC over the cancellation of around 26,000 jobs following a high court, stating that the youths of West Bengal have suffered due to the "cut-and-commission" culture of the party, which is now "synonymous with scams".

Addressing an election rally in Malda, the PM highlighted that the youths, who had taken loans to pay bribes to TMC leaders, are burdened by this situation. "The TMC indulges in scams for which the people of the state have to suffer.

The party has been playing with the future of the youths of Bengal," he said. "The teacher recruitment scam snatched the livelihood of around 26,000 families," he said.

Earlier this week, the Calcutta High Court declared the recruitment process of the State Level Selection Test-2016 (SLST) in West Bengal government-sponsored and aided schools as "null and void," ordering the cancellation of all appointments made through it. "Under TMC rule, only one thing exists - scams totalling thousands of crores. The culprit is TMC, but the entire state is forced to pay for its deception," he said. -- PTI

BJP state president Sukanta Majumder has alleged that the TMC was indulging in “hooliganism” in Balurghat, which the ruling party denied.

Majumder – who is seeking re-election from the Balurghat seat – is fighting against veteran TMC leader and state minister Biplab Mitra in the second phase. While casting his vote in Balurghat, Majumder was seen entering into a verbal altercation with the voters outside a polling booth. He claimed that a BJP worker was beaten up outside the booth.

“The police are doing nothing. TMC workers within 100 metres of the booth are shouting slogans at us. Our booth agent was beaten up. The TMC is indulging in hooliganism to win the election,” said Majumder. He said a complaint has been lodged with the Election Commission against the TMC. The poll panel has asked the administration to submit an action-taken report in connection with the incident at the earliest. Read more

As per the ECI, here is the voter turnout across all 13 states polling today so far: 

• Karnataka - 22.34%
• West Bengal - 31.25%
• Assam - 27.43%
• UP - 24.31%
• Chhattisgarh - 35.47%
• MP - 28.15%
• Rajasthan - 26.84%
• Kerala - 25.61%
• Tripura - 36.42%
• J&K - 26.61%
• Bihar - 21.68%
• Maharashtra - 18.83%
• Manipur - 33.22%

PTI is reporting that BJP president J P Nadda has accused the Congress of seeking to snatch the rights of SCs, STs and OBCs to benefit Muslims, alleging that it is the hidden agenda of the opposition party.

This echoes BJP's attempts to project the Congress as a party championing interests of Muslims at the cost of traditionally deprived Hindu groups. Nadda reportedly added that the opposition party has long been making the grounds for the minority community to be declared as SCs and give them reservation.

He issued a video statement as the second phase of the Lok Sabha polls got underway.

The BJP leader cited the then prime minister Manmohan Singh's 2006 statement of minorities, especially Muslims, having the first rights on the country's resources and added that he made similar comments in April 2009. The Congress has accused the BJP of selectively quoting Singh and claimed that the ruling party has resorted to spreading falsehoods and communal division for polarisation during the elections due to a lack of public support to it in the ongoing polls.

Prominent persons, including senior politicians and candidates contesting in the Lok Sabha polls, turned up during the initial hours of polling in Kerala for the general election.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Leader of Opposition in the state assembly V D Satheesan, BJP state president K Surendran, saffron party candidates Suresh Gopi and Anil Antony as well as Congress' K C Venugopal and Shafi Parambil were seen casting their votes early in the morning.

Besides them, Congress stalwart A K Antony, KPCC president K Sudhakaran, LDF convener E P Jayarajan and CPI(M)'s Thomas Isaac also came in the morning to exercise their right to vote. -- PTI

Karnataka CM Siddarmaiah casts his vote in Siddaramanahundi, Mysuru district.

(Photos by Shashi Ghosh)

Tripura Tribal Affairs minister Bikash Chakma cast his vote at a polling center of Raimavalley assembly segment - his home turf at East Tripura ST-reserved Parliamentary constituency.

He said election is going on peacefully and appealed voters to come out in huge numbers to strengthen democracy. On being asked why opposition polling agents were not seen in many of the centers, Debbarma said the opposition doesn't have any people left in their support as all their supporters now want to achieve 'Viksit Bharat' which is the slogan of BJP.

The Supreme Court Friday dismissed all petitions seeking the complete cross-verification of votes cast using Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) with Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trails, or VVPATs and also rejected a return to the ballot paper system for elections.

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Google Doodle commemorated the second phase of Lok Sabha elections 2024 with a voting symbol.

To catch all the live updates from Karnataka, where polling is underway for the second phase of LS polls, click here.

As per the ECI, here is the voter turnout across all 13 states polling today so far: 

• Karnataka - 9.21%
• West Bengal - 15.68%
• Assam - 9.71%
• UP - 11.67%
• Chhattisgarh - 15.42%
• MP - 13.82%
• Rajasthan - 11.77%
• Kerala - 11.98%
• Tripura - 16.97%
• J&K - 10.39%
• Bihar - 9.84%
• Maharashtra - 7.45%
• Manipur - 15.49%

Voting for three Lok Sabha constituencies, having Naxalite presence, in Chhattisgarh in the second phase of general elections began on Friday, with 15.42 per cent of the electorate exercising their franchise in the first two hours.

“Polling in Kanker, Rajnandgaon and Mahasamund Lok Sabha constituencies started at 7 am. Till 9 am, 15.42 per cent polling has been registered,” a poll official said. --PTI

The TMC has lodged 31 poll complaints, of which 17 are from Balurghat, between 9 to 10 am.

An estimated 9.15 per cent of 77,26,668 electors voted till 9 am in five parliamentary constituencies of Assam, where polling is underway in the second phase on Friday, officials said.

The highest polling of 14.13 per cent was recorded in Diphu (ST), followed by 9.61 per cent in Karimganj, 9.16 per cent at Darrang-Udalguri, 9.07 per cent in Nagaon and the lowest 5.49 per cent in Silchar, they said.

Nearly 15.7 per cent of 51.17 lakh voters in three Lok Sabha constituencies of West Bengal exercised their franchise till 9 am on Friday, an Election Commission official said, reported PTI.

Polling began at 7 am in Darjeeling, Balurghat and Raiganj constituencies and would continue till 6 pm.

Raiganj registered the highest voter turnout of 16.46 per cent, while Darjeeling recorded 15.74 per cent and Balurghat 14.74 per cent, till 9 am, he said.

The eight constituencies in Uttar Pradesh recorded a total of 11.67% turnout till 9 am. Amroh saw the hightest turnout at 14.32%, while Mathura saw the lowest at 10.09%.

Voting started at East Tripura ST-reserved Parliamentary constituency on time with some minor hiccups of EVM malfunctions in a few places. The machines were soon replaced and poll process continued smoothly.

16.97 percent turnout was recorded across all 30 assembly segments under the East Tripura Parliamentary seat till 9 am. The highest polling was recorded at Ramchandraghat area in Khowai district while Pecharthal in North Tripura showed slowest voting till now with 14.9 percent turnout (till 9 am).

As of 9:31 am, the voter turnout in Karnataka stands at 9.21%. Dakshin Kannada tops at 14%, while Bangalore South stands at 9% and Bangalore North, Central and Rural stand at 8%.

BJP's Balurghat candidate Sukanta Majumdar’s name wasn’t found on the list when he came to cast his vote along with his wife. Majumdar started creating scene at the polling booth only to his name found in the list that too at last number.

Voters present there started shouting and protesting against Majumdar, who was accompanied by Central forces for troubling them. Majumdar was seen entering into a verbal altercation with the voters. Majumdar claimed one of the worker of his party was beaten up outside the booth and there were TMC workers within 100 metres of the booth.

He said TMC workers shouted go back slogan at Majumdar. "The police is doing nothing. TMC workers within 100 metres of the booth is shouting slogan at us. Our booth agent was beaten up. The TMC is indulging in hooliganism to win the election," said Majumdar.

He said a complaint has been lodged with the Election Commission against the TMC.

The Trinamool Congress has lodged several complaints over EVM issues and central forces intimidating female voters in West Bengal. The party lodged 58 complaints between 7 to 8 AM, and 54 complaints between 8 to 9 AM.

The BJP has accused people associated with the Trinamool Congress (TMC) of threatening to kill BJP workers and rape women if they don't hand over the booth to their party immediately. The complaint has been lodged in Patiram Girls High School, Tapan, Balurghat Booth 100. 

Reasi District Election Officer (DEO) Vishesh Paul Mahajan on Friday joined early voters to exercise his democratic right as polling began in Jammu Lok Sabha constituency in the second phase. Mahajan, who hails from the Bahu area of Jammu, cast his vote at a pink booth at Government Higher Secondary School in the district headquarters immediately after the voting started at 7 am.

Reasi district is part of Jammu parliamentary constituency with more than 17.81 lakh voters eligible to exercise their franchise to decide the fate of 22 candidates.

Incumbent MP Jugal Kishore Sharma of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is eyeing a third straight term in the Lower House of Parliament after he won the seat in the 2014 and 2019 elections. His main contender is Congress candidate and former minister Raman Bhalla. - PTI

People cast their vote in Mathura during the second phase voting for Lok Sabha. (Express photos by Gajendra Yadav)

Senior Congress leader and former Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel is contesting the Lok Sabha election from the Rajnandgaon constituency, which has been a bastion of the ruling BJP. In an interview with The Indian Express, Baghel speaks on various issues related to the polls including the Congress’s prospects and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s campaign.

Click to read the excerpts of the interview here.

Mansoor Ali Khan, the Congress candidate for Bengaluru Central Lok Sabha, cast his vote along with his family.

“I voted for change, I voted against hate. I voted for the leader who will be my voice in Parliament,' says actor Prakash Raj after voting in Bengaluru.

I have Voted .. please go and Vote #justasking #SaveDemocracySaveIndia pic.twitter.com/shg7jDSVpU

— Prakash Raj (@prakashraaj) April 26, 2024

PTI is reporting that Kerala witnessed 5.62 per cent turnout after the first hour of voting.

People queued up since early morning outside the over 25,000 polling booths in the state to avoid the hot weather that was likely as the day progressed.

"Voters have to come out and vote, this should be first and foremost priority. This country now needs a change, they have to come out and vote for a change. I am very confident, I believe in people of Alleppey (Alappuzha), they will give maximum majority. Overall in Kerala, the situation is very good for UDF. I think we will win 20 (seats) out of 20," says Congress leader KC Venugopal.

VIDEO | "Voters have to come out and vote, this should be first and foremost priority. This country now needs a change, they have to come out and vote for a change. I am very confident, I believe in people of Alleppey (Alappuzha), they will give maximum majority. Overall in… pic.twitter.com/zaWPFkV3Jv

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) April 26, 2024

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharam casts her vote in Bengaluru and says, "Everyone should come out of their homes to cast their vote. Yes, it can be a hot day in Bengaluru but it is worth coming out. Choose your time, please come, do vote. India needs every vote."