Highlights: PM Modi to kick off Uttarakhand poll campaign from Rudrapur

Lok Sabha elections 2024 latest news: Catch all the latest updates on the announcements related to General Elections here

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will begin the BJP's Lok Sabha poll campaign in Uttarakhand on Tuesday by addressing a rally in Rudrapur, which is part of the Nainital-Udham Singh Nagar constituency. 

Senior BJP leaders have sought to address the concerns of workers as differences emerged among them over the selection of candidates in some Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat. 

The Congress in Madhya Pradesh on Sunday launched a "one note, one vote" campaign seeking donations to fight the Lok Sabha polls claiming the party has run out of money since its bank accounts have been frozen by the central government.

 MP Congress chief Jitu Patwari stated the move to freeze the bank accounts after the model code of conduct kicked in was aimed at financially weakening the party in the run-up to elections. The "one note, one vote" campaign was launched at the busy Roshanpura crossing. Congress candidates from Bhopal and Jabalpur,  Arun Shrivastava and Dinesh Yadav, campaigned with boxes in their hands and sought one rupee from a voter, besides seeking votes for the party.

Congress General Secretary in-charge Communications Jairam Ramesh hit out at the BJP-led central government over the unemployment rate.  Slamming Union Minister Anurag Thakur for deriding the ILO's Employment Report as a symptom of India's "slave mentality," the Congress leader said, "Instead, he made the absurd claim of having added 52 million new formal jobs between FY20 and FY23 based on the EPFO, ESI, and National Pension Scheme databases." News agency ANI reported that Ramesh stated that, as many economists have since show, the total job creation between FY20-23 was at best 2.27 crore. These 2.27 crore jobs over three years are a far cry from Modi Sarkar's original promise of creating 2 crore jobs a year. 

Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday asserted that the BJP will win all the 25 Lok Sabha seats in Rajasthan and the margin of victory will be much more than the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Shah added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is taking the country towards all-inclusive development.

10:25 PM

LS polls: BJP candidate Taranjit Singh Sandhu says his campaign will focus on increasing exports from Amritsar

ormer diplomat and BJP candidate from Amritsar Lok Sabha seat Taranjit Singh Sandhu on Monday said his campaign will focus on raising exports of goods like shawls, 'phulkari', and vegetables from Amritsar to increase income of people. Sandhu, who recently joined the saffron party, also stressed on enhancing skills of the youth, asserting that education should be skill oriented rather than being degree oriented. The 61-year-old former ambassador to the US is the grandson of Teja Singh Samundri who was one of the founding members of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee and who played an important role in the gurdwara reform movement.

9:56 PM

'Mahayuti' allies close to finalizing seat-sharing in Maharashtra for LS polls: Fadnavis

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday said 'Mahayuti' partners are close to finalizing their seat-sharing arrangement and a decision has been taken by the ruling alliance on fielding candidates in Lok Sabha constituencies going to polls in the second phase in April. "We are close to finalizing the seats and we will announce the arrangement soon," said the senior BJP leader. Fadnavis, speaking to the media at the Nagpur airport, was replying to a query on delay by 'Mahayuti' allies in deciding distribution of Lok Sabha seats among themselves.

8:58 PM

'Difficult for BJP to get even 200 seats in coming LS polls': Siddaramaiah takes swipe at '400 paar' slogan

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday claimed that the BJP is talking about NDA winning more than 400 seats as a strategy because an internal survey conducted by it showed that it is difficult for the party to even get 200 seats in the coming Lok Sabha election. "In an internal poll conducted by itself, it is known that it is difficult for BJP to win even 200 Lok Sabha seats. So it is saying that it will win 400 seats due to strategy," Siddaramaiah told reporters here. Taking a swipe at the BJP, he said that those who keep fooling the people of the country will become fools in front of the people.

7:53 PM

BJP urges Election Commission to take strictest action against Rahul Gandhi for his 'match-fixing' remarks

The BJP on Monday urged the Election Commission to take the strictest action against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and issue directions to lodge an FIR against him for his "match-fixing" remarks at an opposition INDIA bloc rally here a day ago. A BJP delegation comprising Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri and BJP national general secretary Arun Singh lodged the complaint against Gandhi with the poll panel, urging it to direct the Congress leader to tender an "unconditional public apology" to the nation and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for levelling "false allegations" against him.

6:45 PM

LS polls: PM Modi to address public meetings in Uttarakhand, Rajasthan tomorrow

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address public meetings in Uttarakhand and Rajasthan on April 2. PM Modi will speak at public gatherings in Uttarakhand's Rudrapur and Kothrutali in Rajasthan. Additionally, as part of his campaigning, the Prime Minister will conduct an election tour in Uttar Pradesh. He will address a public meeting in Saharanpur on April 6 and hold a roadshow in Ghaziabad on the same evening. The Prime Minister will also hold a huge public meeting in Pilibhot on April 9. He is likely to hold a public meeting in UP's Moradabad on April 16.

5:58 PM

LS polls: When opposition has no issues, they talk about Constitution getting changed, says Ajit Pawar

Opposition parties raise the bogey of the Constitution being changed every time polls are near since they do not have better issues to discuss, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said on Monday. Addressing a gathering after Rashtriya Samaj Paksha leader Mahadev Jankar filed his nomination for Parbhani Lok Sabha seat, Pawar said people must not fall prey to such baseless statements. "The opposition does not have issues. Now they say the ruling alliance, after winning 400 seats, will change the Constitution. It will not happen," Pawar said.

5:36 PM

LS polls: Viksit Bharat agenda takes centre stage at first meeting of BJP's manifesto committee

The road map for the government's "Viksit Bharat" agenda took centre stage at the first meeting of the BJP's election manifesto committee on Monday as eight Union ministers and three chief ministers joined other party leaders to deliberate on its key promises for the Lok Sabha elections. Defence minister and former BJP president Rajnath Singh chaired the meeting, with Union minister Piyush Goyal telling reporters that the party has received over 3.75 lakh suggestions through its missed call service and nearly 1.70 lakh on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's app (Namo). "The road map for Viksit Bharat by 2047 was discussed in the meeting. People's enthusiastic participation for our manifesto shows their trust in the prime minister and their expectations from him," he said.

5:15 PM

General Elections news updates: Tough battle expected on at least 6 out of 25 Lok Sabha seats in Rajasthan

A keen contest is expected on at least six out of 25 Lok Sabha seats in Rajasthan where polling will be held in two phases this month. The BJP has given tickets to candidates on all 25 seats.Congress has fielded 22 candidates and left two seats of Nagaur and Sikar under the tie-up with the RLP and CPI (M) respectively, whereas the decision on the Banswara seat is pending. Churu, Kota-Bundi, Sikar, Nagaur, Banswara and Barmer are such seats where relatively tough electoral battles are seen. 

5:09 PM

General Elections 2024 updates: Mian Altaf Ahmad is NC's candidate for Anantnag-Rajouri seat

The National Conference on Monday today named veteran leader Mian Altaf Ahmad as the party's candidate for the Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha seat in Jammu and Kashmir. "Senior National Conference leader and veteran politician Mian Altaf Ahmed has been nominated as the National Conference candidate for the South Kashmir Pir Panjal parliamentary seat," a party spokesperson said.

5:06 PM

General Elections 2024 updates: BJD's LS MP Anubhav Mohanty joins BJP

Days after quitting the BJD in Odisha, Lok Sabha MP Anubhav Mohanty joined the BJP on Monday, saying he was feeling "suffocated' in Odisha's ruling party. Mohanty, a cine star, praised the Narendra Modi government, saying for a developed India, people should support Modi.

5:03 PM

General Elections LIVE: PM Modi to kick off Uttarakhand poll campaign from Rudrapur

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will start the BJP's Lok Sabha poll campaign in Uttarakhand on Tuesday by addressing a rally in Rudrapur, which is part of the Nainital-Udham Singh Nagar constituency. "Uttarakhand lives in the heart of the prime minister. The people of Uttarakhand also look forward to his visits eagerly," Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said.

5:01 PM

Kerala CM Vijayan rakes up Congress' role in investigation against Kejriwal, rift in Opposition widens

The harmony among Opposition parties, who gathered in New Delhi to protest the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, displayed signs of weariness a day later when CPI(M) leader and Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday accused the Congress of demanding the ED probe into the Delhi liquor excise policy case. Seeking votes for LDF candidates, who are in direct fight against the Congress-led UDF in many constituencies, Vijayan alleged that it was the grand old party which levelled the allegations against the Delhi government, demanded the ED probe, and lodged a complaint regarding the matter.

4:54 PM

Lok Sabha polls 2024: All things to know about phase six of General Elections

Phase six of the Lok Sabha polls will be held on May 25 in seven states and Union territories on 57 constituencies. Here is a detailed article on the coming Lok Sabha polls.

3:23 PM

Amit Shah to hold road show during his day-long engagement in Karnataka tomorrow

Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah is all set to fulfill a range of obligations in Karnataka, including participating in a road show, scheduled for Tuesday. During his day-long busy schedule, Shah will address the Sakti Kendra Pramukh Sammelan at Palace Ground in Bengaluru on Tuesday morning. The event is aimed at bolstering grassroots leadership and organizational strength ahead of Lok Sabha elections.

3:11 PM

Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai holds roadshow ahead of Lok Sabha polls 2024

Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president and party's Coimbatore candidate K Annamalai today conducted a roadshow ahead of Lok Sabha polls, news agency ANI reported.