A view of a polling station that was damaged by a crowd during the first phase of the general election, in Khurai in Imphal East, Manipur, India, April 19, 2024.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Election Commission orders re-polling in 11 Manipur booths on April 22

The Election Commission of India has declared void the polling conducted at 11 booths across five Assembly segments in Inner Manipur on Friday, with presiding officers reporting mob violence, gunfire and destroyed Electronic Voting Machines in some booths.

The ECI has announced that a re-poll will be conducted at these booths between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. on April 22, the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Manipur said in a statement on Saturday night.

BJP’s Moradabad candidate Kunwar Sarvesh Kumar dies a day after polling

BJP’s Moradabad candidate Kunwar Sarvesh Singh died on Saturday a day after his constituency went to the polls in phase one of the Lok Sabha election.

Dharmapuri records Tamil Nadu’s highest poll percentage

The Dharmapuri Lok Sabha constituency registered a voter turnout of 81.48%, the highest in Tamil Nadu in the 2024 general election, according to data provided by the Election Commission.

Pakistan govt to deploy army to maintain peace during key by-elections on April 21

Pakistan on Saturday decided to deploy army troops to maintain peace during key by-elections that are to be held in the country on Sunday to fill the seats vacated by various candidates or where elections were postponed due to the death of candidates.

Ahead of U.N. meet, India chooses to ‘regulate’, not ban, single-use plastic

Ahead of week-long negotiations involving 192 countries that are expected to begin in Toronto, Canada, next week on getting the globe to progress on eliminating plastic pollution, India is in favour of “regulating” and not outright eliminating single-use plastic, according to an analysis of various countries’ public negotiating positions by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a not-for-profit based in New Delhi.

Delhi BJP to hold mega gathering of Hindu saints and seers at IGI stadium in Delhi on April 21

Ahead of the Lok Sabha polls in the national capital, the Delhi BJP will host a mega conclave of Hindu priests, saints and seers to celebrate the Hindu new year and construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, at the IGI stadium on Sunday, party leaders said.

Prison report says Kejriwal does not need insulin, AAP calls it ‘slow death’

Raj Niwas on Saturday released a medical status report submitted by the Director General (Prisons) to Lieutenant-Governor V.K Saxena which states that according to the doctors who examined him, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s blood sugar levels were “not alarming” and “administration of insulin is not required as of now”.

More than Naxal conflict, expansion of railways, connectivity issues drive campaign in Kanker

In the backdrop of an ongoing Lok Sabha campaign in Kanker constituency, that votes on April 26, the deadliest anti-Naxal operation in Chhattisgarh’s history was carried out in the fringes of the district, with as many as 29 Naxalites killed on April 16.

U.S. House passes billions in aid for Ukraine and Israel after months of struggle

The House swiftly approved $95 billion in foreign aid for Ukraine, Israel and other U.S. allies in a rare Saturday session as Democrats and Republicans banded together after months of hard-right resistance over renewed American support for repelling Russia’s invasion.

IPL-17: DC vs SRH | Sunrisers batters turn on the heat as Capitals wilt

Jake Fraser-McGurk, the young Australian sensation, played a blinder to give Delhi Capitals a slim chance to pull off a miraculous chase. But the right-handed power-hitter proved to be an exception on a night dominated by left-handers.

A BJP stronghold for decades, the profile of the Varanasi Lok Sabha constituency was raised even higher in 2014 when it saw a high-stakes contest between the BJP’s then prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi and a relatively new entrant in politics, Arvind Kejriwal, who was trying to make a mark on the national stage after managing to form a government in Delhi the previous year. 

The battle ended with Narendra Modi emerging victorious with a margin of over 3 lakh votes, but Mr Kejriwal of the AAP also managed to get over 2 lakh people voting for him.

History

Made up of five assembly seats, the Varanasi constituency is home to one of India’s holiest cities. Since 1957, the BJP has won the seat seven times and the Congress six. The BJP has a near-perfect record since 1991, however, losing only once – to the Congress – in 2004.

The constituency has also been the stage for the electoral battles of two Prime Ministers – PM Modi and former PM Chandra Shekhar, who won the seat in 1977 by a staggering 47.9% margin. It is also one of only eleven constituencies in Uttar Pradesh that has never been won by the Samajwadi Party or the Bahujan Samaj Party. 

2014 Strategy

Before PM Modi, the Varanasi seat was held by BJP veteran Murli Manohar Joshi. In 2014, the party as aware that its road to ousting the Congress and coming to power at the Centre would be through Uttar Pradesh, which sends 80 MPs to the Lok Sabha, the highest of any state. It was also aimed at influencing neighbouring Bihar and contests in its 40 Lok Sabha seats. 

Having paved the way for the BJP to get an absolute majority on its own, the seat was picked by the Prime Minister in 2019 and he won against the Samajwadi Party’s Shalini Yadav with a stunning margin of over 4.7 lakh votes. 

Numbers Game

Hindus make up 75% of the total population in the Varanasi constituency, 20% are Muslim and 5% are from other religions. It has a 65% per cent urban population and 35% rural. Of the total number of residents, 10.1% are from the Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Castes account for 0.7%.

The vote share of the winning candidates has fluctuated over the years. BJP had won with a 33.4% share in 1999 and Congress with a 32.6% share in 2004. In 2009, Murli Manohar Joshi achieved victory with a 30.5% vote share, which went up massively to 56.4% for Narendra Modi in 2014 and further to 63.6% in 2019.

Infra Development, What Next

The city has evolved significantly under PM Modi’s tenure, with initiatives like the Kashi Vishwanath Temple corridor project reflecting its enhanced stature on India’s political and cultural map. 

With Varanasi going to the Congress in its seat-sharing deal with the Samajwadi Party for 2024, speculation is rife that Priyanka Gandhi Vadra may make her electoral debut from the constituency. While the BJP has also not officially announced the candidate for the seat, PM Modi is likely to contest from there again.