Lok Sabha Elections 2024 HIGHLIGHTS: Rahul Gandhi to address poll rallies in Telangana today

Rajasthan CM Bhajanlal Sharma said that the excitement and enthusiasm of people are visible and there will be a big change in Andhra Pradesh. BJP and its alliance partner will win from here on a huge margin.

People's Conference chief Sajad Lone Thursday asked National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah to stop being a "crybaby" and come up with such lies which have a longer shelf life. Lone's remarks came after Abdullah asked the Election Commission to direct authorities in north Kashmir's Baramulla constituency to allow his campaign programme as per schedule.

The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) released its election manifesto on Thursday. Releasing the manifesto, BJD supremo and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said, “I am lucky to present the party’s manifesto ‘Lokanka Ghosanapatra – Odisha No-1’. 

Amid the intensified poll battle, former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Samajwadi Party candidate from Kannauj Akhilesh Yadav said, "I.N.D.I.A. bloc is winning 79 Lok Sabha seats from Uttar Pradesh of total 80 seats." "We are facing a tough competition on just one seat (referring Varanasi)," Yadav added. It is pertinent to note that Varanasi seat, since 2014, is being represented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 

Amid the Lok Sabha Elections 2024, Anjani Soren, a JMM candidate and daughter of JMM founder Shibu Soren, filed her nomination from Odisha’s Mayurbhanj constituency in the presence of sister-in-law Kalpana Soren. Significantly, the polling in the constituency will be held on 25 May, ( Phase 6 ), as announced by the Election Commission. 

Amid the Lok Sabha poll campaign, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said, 'Narendra Modi worked for people like Adani; ports, airports, infrastructure, defence projects were given to him'. 

The TMC on Thursday registered a complaint against the BJP's Suvendu Adhikari and others with the Election Commission, claiming that a leader of the saffron party has "confessed" on camera that the rape accusations in the Sandeshkhali incident were concocted, and urged the poll panel to issue directions to police to initiate criminal proceedings against the leaders concerned.

The BJP demanded an apology from the Congress party, including Rahul Gandhi, over Sam Pitroda's controversial remarks. Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said, diversity is India's biggest strength and it is held through the common thread of unity. "But the racist statement of the Congress leader abuses our unity and integrity," he added. 

Amid the Lok Sabha Polls 2024, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra interacted with women voters during the election campaign in Raebareli.

Congress candidate from the Khadoor Sahib Lok Sabha seat Kulbir Singh Zira on Thursday filed his nomination papers in Punjab's Tarn Taran district. Former MLA Zira was accompanied by his family members when he filed his papers. The nomination process for the Lok Sabha polls in Punjab began on Tuesday.

Days after he quit the Shiromani Akali Dal, which had fielded him from the Chandigarh Lok Sabha seat, Hardeep Singh on Thursday joined the Aam Aadmi Party here. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann welcomed him into the party fold. Singh, a Chandigarh municipal councillor, said he was impressed by the development work carried out by the Mann government. On May 6, Singh opted out of the electoral contest from the Chandigarh seat and quit the SAD. He ascribed his decision to the SAD's "indifferent" attitude towards Chandigarh. After resigning from the primary membership of the party, Singh also returned the party ticket. It was the first time that the SAD had fielded a candidate from the Chandigarh parliamentary constituency.

Himachal Pradesh Public works minister and Congress candidate Vikramaditya Singh on Thursday filed his nomination papers from the Mandi Lok Sabha seat. He was accompanied by his mother and the state Congress chief Pratibha Singh, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and Congress Working Committee member and in-charge Himachal, Rajiv Shukla. Mandi would be made a smart city and Jalori Jot tunnel would be constructed on the line of the Rohtang tunnel. The remote Pangi area of Chamba would be would also be connected through the tunnel, Singh told media.

AAP MLA in Goa, Venzy Viegas, on Thursday expressed confidence that the INDIA bloc would win the South Goa Lok Sabha constituency comfortably, and said had he got the opportunity to contest this seat, his party's election management and campaign would have been better. He also said that ahead of the polls, the opposition alliance had urged people to channelise their anger into voting wisely. Polling for two parliamentary seats in Goa - North Goa and South Goa - was held on May 7.

Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of being racist by bringing in skin colour in the poll debate, and said the opposition's support to Yashwant Sinha in the presidential election was not based on the colour of skin. In a post on X, he said in the last election to the office of President of India, there were two candidates - Droupadi Murmu and Sinha.

Recognising the limitations of technology in remote areas, politicians of different hues have taken to weekly 'haats' to reach out to people in Odisha's Koraput and Nabarangpur Lok Sabha seats. The two ST-reserved seats and their assembly segments will go to polls in the first phase of simultaneous elections in the state on May 13.

Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann will campaign in Delhi. Mann will conduct a roadshow in Delhi on May 11. He will conduct roadshows in East Delhi and South Delhi.

(With inputs from Bhaskar Mishra) 

The BJP in Madhya Pradesh has hit out at the Congress for appealing to voters to exercise NOTA option and said it is an attack on democracy, while a councillor of the saffron party here removed a poster stuck on an autorickshaw advocating the same. Councillor Sandhya Yadav's act on Wednesday prompted the Congress to approach the Election Commission (EC) and lodge a complaint against her. State BJP chief V D Sharma said instigating people to press `None Of The Above' (NOTA) button on the EVM was a crime in democracy.

Divested of responsibilities as the BSP's national coordinator, Akash Anand on Thursday said he fully respects the decision of his aunt and party president Mayawati whom he described as a role model for the entire Bahujan community He also said that he will continue to fight for the Bhim Mission till his last breath.

Union Minister of State for Social Justice Ramdas Athawale has said he has filed a complaint with the Election Commission, objecting to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's frequent claim that the BJP would change the country's Constitution.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will file his nomination from the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat in Uttar Pradesh on May 14. He will hold a roadshow in his parliamentary constituency on May 13. According to district officials, before starting the roadshow, the Prime Minister will first pay tribute to the Madan Mohan Malviya statue at the main gate of Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in Lanka. The roadshow will end at Kashi Vishwanath Corridor. Lakhs of people are expected to participate in the roadshow.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the YSRCP government in Andhra Pradesh will be a thing of the past after June 4 as people are fed up with "corruption, cronyism and mafia raj". Modi said this after a roadshow here. "Due to its strong link with Congress culture, YSRCP has only furthered corruption, cronyism and Mafia Raj. Andhra Pradesh is totally fed up of the YSRCP. Come 4th June, their government will be a thing of the past," he said in a post on 'X'. The prime minister said that after travelling across the southern state recently, he was convinced that people were voting for the NDA alliance of the TDP, BJP and the Janasena in large numbers.

Leaders of the opposition I.N.D.I.A bloc are likely to meet the Election Commission on Friday over their demand to promptly release the absolute voter turnout figures in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls after each phase, sources said. While the sources had earlier said that the meeting was scheduled for Thursday, it was later changed to Friday. The opposition leaders will also raise the issue of alleged "use of religious symbols" by the BJP in its campaign, the sources added.

Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan on Wednesday said he agreed with NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar's remarks on possible merger or close association of regional outfits with the grand old party going forward. However, everything will depend on the June 4 results of the ongoing Lok Sabha polls, maintained the former Maharashtra chief minister. In an interview to 'The Indian Express', Pawar predicted that in the next couple of years, several regional parties will associate more closely with the Congress, or even merge with it. "I was there when Pawar saheb made those remarks. Everything depends on the result of polls on June 4. We are sure there will be an INDIA alliance government at the Centre after June 4 and to take benefits of power, some parties may join the INDIA alliance or even merge with the Congress. But all these things are based on ifs and buts as everything depends on June 4 results," he said.