Lok Sabha Elections 2024: The campaigning for the second phase of Lok Sabha polls in 88 seats throughout 13 states on April 26 wrapped up on Wednesday night. The first phase, held final Friday for 102 seats throughout 21 states and Union territories, noticed a turnout of roughly 65.5 per cent.
States and no. of seats for second phase:
- Kerala: 14
- Karnataka: 28
- Rajasthan: 13
- Maharashtra: 08
- Uttar Pradesh:08
- Madhya Pradesh: 06
- Assam: 05
- Bihar: 05
- Chhattisgarh: 03
- West Bengal: 03
- Manipur: 01
- Tripura: 01
- Jammu and Kashmir: 01
Who are key contestants?
Among the distinguished contestants are Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar (Thiruvananthapuram), BJP’s Tejasvi Surya (Karnataka), Hema Malini and Arun Govil (each Uttar Pradesh), Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi (Wayanad) and Shashi Tharoor (Thiruvananthapuram), Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar’s brother DK Suresh (Cong), former Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy (JDS).
During the campaigning, Prime Minister Narendra kicked up a row on Sunday whereas addressing a rally in Rajasthan’s Banswara. Slamming the Congress manifesto, he alleged that the opposition social gathering was planning to present folks’s hard-earned cash and valuables to (*26*) and “those who have more children” and referred to former prime minister Manmohan Singh’s speech in 2006 to contend he had mentioned that Muslims have the “first claim” on the nation’s assets.
The Congress was fast to react, saying that after going through “disappointment” in the primary phase of Lok Sabha polls, the prime minister was resorting to “lies” and “hate speech” to divert folks from the actual points. The social gathering additionally urged the Election Commission to take motion in opposition to Modi for his remarks, alleging they have been ‘divisive’, ‘malicious’ and focused a specific spiritual neighborhood.
First phase of polling was on April 19
After Friday’s phase, polling shall be over in Kerala, Rajasthan and Tripura. In the primary phase on April 19, polling was accomplished in all seats of Tamil Nadu (39), Uttarakhand (5), Arunachal Pradesh (2), Meghalaya (2), Andaman and Nicobar Islands (1), Mizoram (1), Nagaland (1), Puducherry (1), Sikkim (1) and Lakshadweep (1). In 2019, the NDA had received 56 of these 89 seats and the UPA 24. Six of these seats have been redrawn as half of the delimitation train.
(With PTI inputs)
ALSO READ: Lok Sabha Elections 2024 Phase 2: List of 88 constituencies, states, events and candidates
