Today in Politics: PM Modi, Rahul Gandhi to campaign in Kerala; SC will hear Kejriwal’s plea against ED arrest

All 20 Lok Sabha seats of the state go to polls in the second phase on April 26. Sources said Modi’s rallies are being held with an aim to bolster the party’s chances in a state where the BJP has never won a Lok Sabha seat. The party has fielded Union minister Rajeev Chandrashekar from Thiruvananthapuram, where the Congress’s Shashi Tharoor is in the fray while it has fielded actor Suresh Gopi from Thrissur.

This is Modi’s sixth visit to the state this year. He will proceed to Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu, where is expected to address a public meeting in the evening.

Meanwhile, Rahul will arrive in the state for a two-day tour and hold a United Democratic Front (UDF) rally in northern Kozhikode in the evening and take part in several programmes in his constituency over the next couple of days.

Party leaders claim his candidature from the state will boost the party’s chances in the upcoming polls. The UDF had won 19 of the 20 seats from the state in 2019.

The former Congress president will be up against senior CPI leader Annie Raja and K Surendran, the Kerala BJP chief from Wayanad.

SC to hear Kejriwal’s plea challenging ED arrest

The Supreme Court on Monday will hear Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s plea challenging his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate.

A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta will hear the matter. Earlier this month, the Delhi High Court upheld his arrest by the central agency.

“He (Kejriwal) is allegedly involved in the offence of money laundering in two capacities. Firstly, in his personal capacity as he was involved in the formulation of the excise policy and in demanding kickbacks. Secondly, in his capacity as the national convenor of the Aam Aadmi Party as per Section 70(1) of PMLA, for use of proceeds of crime of ₹45 crore in AAP’s election campaign in 2022 Goa elections,” the court had said.

Kejriwal was arrested by the ED last month in connection with the money laundering probe linked to the Delhi excise policy case. Last week, a Delhi court sent him to judicial custody till April 15.

The Delhi CM had moved the Supreme Court after the Delhi high court said there was no contravention of legal provisions.

BJP bigwigs continue campaign

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday will attend a public rally in Kumarghat of Tripura following which he will head to Hapta Kangjeibung in Imphal to attend a public meeting, Manipur BJP general secretary K Saratkumar Singh said.

In the evening, he will hold a roadshow in Jaipur from Sanganeri Gate to Choti Chowpad.

BJP national president J P Nadda will be in Uttarakhand, where he will hold a public meeting in Mussoorie on Monday.

Meanwhile, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will address a rally in the Kathua-Udhampur-Doda Lok Sabha seat in support of his Cabinet colleague and BJP candidate Jitender Singh.

Priyanka in Rajasthan, Kharge rally in Puducherry

Congress star campaigner and AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Monday will participate in roadshows in Rajasthan’s Alwar and Dausa.

According to sources, in Alwar, where the Congress has fielded Lalit Yadav, Priyanka will hold a roadshow with former CM Ashok Gehlot. Yadav is pitted against Union minister Bhupendra Yadav.

Later in the evening, she will address a gathering in Dausa along with former deputy CM Sachin Pilot. The party has fielded Murari Lal Meena from the seat, which is reserved for Scheduled Tribes (ST). Murari will face off against BJP’s Kanhaiya Lal Meena but is also facing dissent from senior leader Naresh Meena, who was denied a ticket.

Meanwhile, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge will hold a rally in support of party candidate V Vaithilingam in Puducherry.

– With PTI inputs