LS polls highlights: First phase Lok Sabha election campaign concludes
General Elections 2024 news updates: Catch all the news updates on the announcements related to Lok Sabha polls here
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The election campaigning for the first phase of Lok Sabha elections concluded at 3 pm today in the North East, and in other areas, it ended at 6 pm, says Election Commission of India.
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has unveiled its manifesto for the upcoming Lok Sabha Elections, 2024, promising a range of welfare schemes aimed at uplifting every Indian. Titled "Didir Shopoth," the manifesto outlines key initiatives, including the repeal of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and halting the National Register of Citizens (NRC). Additionally, the manifesto pledges welfare measures such as doorstep ration delivery and providing 10 free cooking cylinders to families below the poverty line (BPL). TMC spokesperson expressed their commitment to ensuring guaranteed employment, universal housing, free LPG cylinders, minimum support price (MSP) for farmers, and scholarships for students belonging to marginalised communities.
Addressing an election rally in support of four TMC candidates in Silchar, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today said the CAA and NRC will be scrapped if opposition bloc INDIA forms government at the Centre. "They (BJP) made the entire country a detention camp... I have never seen such a dangerous election in my life," Banerjee said. "If the INDIA bloc wins, there will not be the National Register of Citizens (NRC), Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and Uniform Civil Code. We will repeal all discriminatory laws," Banerjee stated.
Addressing an election rally at the Borkura ground, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today stated that he went to people with hope in 2014, trust in 2019 and guarantee in 2024. PM Modi also said that the birth celebrations of Lord Ram were being held in the temple at Ayodhya after 500 years with a 'Surya Tilak' ceremony.
Addressing a joint press conference with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Rahul Gandhi today stated the electoral bonds scheme was the biggest "extortion scheme" in the world and that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the "champion of corruption". "The electoral bonds scheme is the biggest extortion scheme in the world. India's businessmen know it very well. No matter how much the prime minister clarifies, it will have no impact because the entire nation knows that the prime minister is the champion of corruption," Gandhi said.
Responding to a query on who will be the INDIA bloc's prime ministerial face, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge stated that the alliance needs to win the elections first. The Rajya Sabha MP from Karnataka said after Congress won Assembly polls in Karnataka, Telangana and Himachal Pradesh things are looking "positive and good." Kharge also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is already charting programmes for next five years calling all secretaries, and "this kind of overconfidence and arrogance is not good for the country and democracy." Reacting to Modi's claims about NDA winning over 400 seats in the Lok Sabha polls, Kharge said, "Luckily, he has not said 'ab ki baar 600 par'. This egoistic propaganda, undermining the opposition and portraying that everything is me is unfortunate."
Aam Aadmi Party(AAP) leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh on Tuesday asserted the INDIA bloc will win all seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi adding that the arrest of his party's senior leaders will hurt the poll prospects of the BJP. Singh told reporters at a press conference that voters have realised that they are under severe stress due to inflation, unemployment and corruption. Reacting to question on how the AAP and Congress would perform in Delhi where they have reached a four-is-to-three seat-sharing deal, he said that the two parties are hopeful of winning all seven seats in the national capital. He added that the country will vote for a change in this General Elections.
7:19 PM
First phase Lok Sabha Election campaign concludes
The election campaigning for the first phase of Lok Sabha elections concluded at 3 pm today in the North East, and in other areas, it ended at 6 pm: Election Commission of India
6:17 PM
Campaign ends for lone LS seat in Nagaland
Campaigning for the lone Lok Sabha seat in Nagaland, which would witness a three-cornered fight, came to an end on Wednesday.In a notification, Nagaland Chief Electoral Officer Vyasan R said no person would be allowed to convene, hold, attend, join or address any public meeting or procession in connection with the elections after 4 PM on Wednesday.He also said display to the public of any election matter using cinematograph, television or other similar apparatus is also restricted.Three candidates – Congress nominee S Supongmeren Jamir, ruling NDPP's Dr Chumben Murry and Independent Hayithung Tungoe Lotha – are in the fray.
5:55 PM
TMC unveils poll manifesto 'Didir Shopoth'; promises to repeal CAA and halt NRC
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has unveiled its manifesto for the upcoming Lok Sabha Elections, 2024, promising a range of welfare schemes aimed at uplifting every Indian. Titled "Didir Shopoth," the manifesto outlines key initiatives, including the repeal of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and halting the National Register of Citizens (NRC). Additionally, the manifesto pledges welfare measures such as doorstep ration delivery and providing 10 free cooking cylinders to families below the poverty line (BPL). TMC spokesperson expressed their commitment to ensuring guaranteed employment, universal housing, free LPG cylinders, minimum support price (MSP) for farmers, and scholarships for students belonging to marginalised communities.
5:01 PM
O Panneerselvam to face IUML, AIADMK in three-cornered fight in Ramanathapuram constituency
Former Chief Minister O Panneerselvam is contesting as an independent candidate against AIADMK's Jayaperumal and K Navaskani from the Indian Union Muslim League, an ally of the DMK. Chandraprabha has been fielded by the Naam Tamilar Katchi party from the Ramanathapuram Lok Sabha constituency.
4:59 PM
Odisha Assembly polls 2024: CM Naveen Patnaik to contest two assembly seats
Odisha Chief Minister and BJD supremeo Naveen Patnaik today announced he will contest from Kantabanji in western Odisha apart from his pocket borough of Hinjili. He opted for a second seat—Bijepur in western Odisha—for the first time in his two-decade political career in 2019.
4:46 PM
Lok Sabha polls 2024 update: RJD fields Mamta Bhuiyan from Palamu
The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) Jharkhand unit today declared that Mamata Bhuiyan will be its candidate for the Palamu Lok Sabha seat in the state. The RJD was allotted only the Palamu Lok Sabha constituency out of the 14 seats in the state, according to a seat-sharing formula among the JMM-led alliance partners in the state. Bhuiyan has recently switched to RJD from the BJP.
4:43 PM
General Elections 2024 updates: Ex-Union minister Pratik Patil unhappy over Cong not getting Sangli LS seat
Former Union minister has expressed his indignation over the Congress ceding the Sangli Lok Sabha seat, once his family bastion, to ally Shiv Sena (UBT). Pratik Patil is the grandson of ex-Maharashtra chief minister late Vasantdada Patil. Pratik Patil, who served as minister of state in the Manmohan Singh government, said he had quit the Congress after it gave in to ally NCP (then undivided) to "weaken" Vasantdada Patil's family.
"Vasantdada Patil may no longer be alive, but his faction within the Maharashtra Congress still exists even if it is non-functional," he said.
4:29 PM
What Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said on NDA's '400 paar' slogan
"If such an election is conducted in the country where there is no 'gadbadi' in the EVM, then they will not win more than 180 seats. The basis on which they are saying they will cross 400 seats is well known to them. They have already done some mischief that they know they are getting over 400 seats," Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said.
4:26 PM
Lok Sabha LIVE updates: TMC manifesto promises ration at doorstep, 10 free cooking cylinders for BPL families
The TMC today released its Lok Sabha poll manifesto promising multiple social welfare measures and repeal of the CAA if the opposition INDIA bloc comes to power at the Centre. Senior TMC leader Amit Mitra said,"We promise to control petrol and diesel prices through the formulation of a price stabilisation fund. We also promise to repeal the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and stop the National Register of Citizens (NRC) exercise in the country."
3:37 PM
People may be cheated once, but not repeatedly: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on BJP's poll promises
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan today stated that the people of the state won't believe the heap of promises showered upon them by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the recent election rallies. "Narendra Modi came here (to Kerala) and showered several promises. But will any person ever believe this? They may be cheated once, but not repeatedly," he said while addressing an election meeting in Pattambi in Palakkad.
3:23 PM
Will repeal NRC, CAA if INDIA bloc voted to power: West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said the CAA and NRC will be repealed if opposition bloc INDIA forms government at the Centre, after alleging that the BJP has made the entire country a "detention camp." "If the INDIA bloc wins, there will not be the National Register of Citizens (NRC), Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and Uniform Civil Code. We will repeal all discriminatory laws," Banerjee said at the rally.
"They (BJP) made the entire country a detention camp... I have never seen such a dangerous election in my life," Banerjee said.
3:09 PM
We are focusing to enhance connectivity in Northeast: PM Modi in Agartala
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today that the BJP has decided to construct 3 crore new houses in India. He added that Tripura's people to benefit great deal from it.
3:02 PM
North east plays a major role in making India 'Viksit': PM Modi in Tripura rally
"North East plays a major role in making India 'Viksit'. After years of Independence and during the rule of Congress justice was not done with the capabilities of the states in North East. Communists ruled in Tripura and they just destroyed the people of Tripura. But, today in Delhi there is a government that continuously thinks about North East and Tripura. North East 'mere liye politics ka nahi, prem aur prathmikta ka vishaya hai', " PM Modi said today.
2:57 PM
After 500 years and a long wait, Lord Ram is 'Virajman' in Ayodhya's temple: PM Modi in Agartala
2:50 PM
Lok Sabha polls LIVE: Clean sweep of INDIA bloc from Ghaziabad to Ghazipur, says SP chief Akhilesh Yadav
Stating that 'winds of change' are blowing from western Uttar Pradesh, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday said there will be an INDIA bloc 'clean sweep' from Ghaziabad to Ghazipur.
Topics : Narendra Modi Rahul Gandhi BJP Congress mallikarjun kharge All India Trinamool Congress DMK
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First Published: Apr 17 2024 | 9:26 AM IST
