Lok Sabha Election 2024 Highlights: 'Congress leaders tried to save terrorist Kasab after 26/11 attacks,' says PM Modi

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal says, "Punjabis have decided to save Punjab. They have decided to make Akali Dal win.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived in Kolkata, West Bengal. He will address four public meetings across the state, in Bardhaman- Durgapur, Krishnanagar, Bolpur and Singhbhum tomorrow, on 3rd May.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: Congress party has fielded Tsering Namgyal as its candidate from Ladakh seat in the Lok Sabha polls 2024.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: On being asked who will contest from Amethi in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Amethi Congress President Pradeep Singhal says, "...Yeh Congress hai kuch bhi ho sakta hai...If it was in our hands we would have announced the candidate from Amethi two months ago...

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: Madhya Pradesh CM Mohan Yadav is holding a roadshow in Bhopal in view of the Lok Sabha polls.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: Union Minister and BJP candidate from Mumbai North, Piyush Goyal has accused the Congress party of always indulging in appeasement politics. 

"... Congress has always been doing appeasement politics. For us, voters will give an answer to the Congress. Seeing the excitement among people, I believe Maharashtra will give a record number of votes to PM Narendra Modi...," said Goyal.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: Amid suspense over Congress' Raebareli and Amethi candidates, Uttar Pradesh Deputy CM KP Maurya has exuded confidence about BJP's win.

 "No matter who contests- be it from Congress, Yadav family or BSP, BJP will only win," he said as quoted by news agency ANI.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday attacked the BJP on the issue of the Covishield vaccine side effects and said that people who got the injection will vote against the party. Addressing a rally in Budaun in support of Samajwadi Party (SP) candidate Aditya Yadav, he also repeated the allegation that the BJP collected "donations" from the companies that manufactured the vaccine. "Not only is there a threat to the Constitution, but you also have a threat to life due to their decision," the SP chief said. "Think what those who have got the vaccine administered will be going through when they see their certificates. Now these people will also come out to vote against the BJP this time because it was looking for an opportunity in a disaster," he claimed.

Sakshi Malik on Thursday lashed out at BJP for choosing former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Shahran Singh's son, Karan, as its candidate for the Lok Sabha polls from the Kaiserganj seat in Uttar Pradesh, saying the decision has defeated the country's daughters. Top wresters, including Sakshi, Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat, had accused Brij Bhushan of sexually harassing women wrestlers during his tenure as Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief and sat at Jantar Mantar for months demanding his arrest. Brij Bhushan is the sitting Member of Parliament from Kaiserganj, and his son now getting the Bharatiya Janata Party ticket for the seat has rankled the protesting wrestlers.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: Telangana minister Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy has predicted that the Congress party would win 14-15 seats in Telangana. He said "Congress will win 14-15 seats in the state. KCR will not win even one seat. BJP will not be able to retain its four seats in the state."

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: BRS working president KT Rama Rao has claimed that Congress leader and Telangana CM Revanth Reddy is following the footsteps of PM Modi. 

"...Rahul Gandhi doesn't even understand that Revanth Reddy is not following in his footsteps. Revanth Reddy is a CM of the Congress party. But he is following in the footsteps of PM Modi. For past several months, he is against the line of Rahul Gandhi. Rahul Gandhi says Chowkidar chor hai, Revanth Reddy says Chowkidar is his older brother. Rahul Gandhi says Adani is a fraud but Revanth Reddy says that Adani is a friend...There is a partnership going on between the 'bada bhai' and 'chhota bhai'. EC seems to be influenced by that...," said Rao.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: While addressing a public rally in Uttar Pradesh's Sitapur, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that the party would not let anyone take away the reservation of backwards classes and give it away to Muslims.
 

 "Till the BJP workers are alive, we will not let anyone take away the reservation of backwards classes and give it away to Muslims... Congress has given a provision of 15% reservation in jobs for Muslims, they want to divide India into North and South India, they want to hold talks with terrorists, they want to revoke Article 370, and they want to bring back triple talaq," said Shah as quoted by news agency ANI.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: Former Bihar Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav has slammed the government over the Prajwal Revanna sex scandal case in Karnataka. 

"...BJP has no topic, keeps saying the same thing. 5 lakh people got jobs, how it could be 'jungle raj'? The exploitation has happened to 3000 women and PM Modi is doing the publicity of that rapist; PM Modi has accorded a ticket to him...now he has absconded abroad, which 'raaj' (rule) is this? Beti Bachao Beti Padhao is just a saying, the reality is to shield rapists and then send them abroad...," said Yadav as quoted by news agency ANI.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: While addressing a public rally in Jamnagar, PM Narendra Modi said, "Congress is contesting these elections on two strategies. First, dividing society based on caste. Second, uniting their vote bank through politics of appeasement... Congress is now giving its all to its main motive in these elections. Congress wants to take away reservation from SC, ST, and OBC and give it away to Muslims based on religion, by changing the Constitution."

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: While addressing a public meeting in Gujarat's Jamnagar, PM Narendra Modi accused the Congress leaders of trying to save terrorist Kasab and other culprits after the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai. 

"Congress leaders came forward to save terrorist Kasab and others after the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai. Books were written to save such terrorists and Congress leaders released those books," said PM Modi

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: While addressing a public meeting in Gujarat's Jamnagar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi slammed Congress leaders for talking about "vote jihad".

 "INDI alliance leaders are appealing muslim voters to do vote jihad. Congress leaders talking about vote jihad," said PM Modi.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: While addressing a public rally in Jamnagar, PM Narendra Modi said, "The Maharaja of Jamnagar, Digvijays Singh, gave refuge to the citizens of Poland during the WW-II. And even today, the Parliament session in Poland begins with remembering Maharaja Digvijaya Singh of Jamnagar. Seeds sown by him have helped us maintain strong relations with Poland... I am making a museum dedicated to the royal families who contributed greatly for the integrity of India... Those who forget history can never make history."

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: BJP leader Rohan Gupta has claimed that the traditional vote bank of Congress is slipping out of their control so the party is spreading lies about reservation.

 "... Congress party has been forced to spread lies on the reservation because the central government schemes have started reaching the most backward classes and the people have started realising who is good for them and who is not. The traditional vote bank of Congress is slipping out of their control... Ever since I left Congress, I have been saying that they need to accept the reality... PM Narendra Modi and the BJP never said they are against reservation and spreading rumours that reservation will be removed once BJP wins more than 400 seats tells that the Congress is rattled... SC and ST people have benefited from government schemes that is why BJP has been able to win Chhattisgarh...," said Gupta.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: J&K National Conference vice president and candidate from Baramulla Lok Sabha seat Omar Abdullah says, "Today, the forces of Delhi are trying to defeat (J&K) National Conference... If the militancy had decreased, our Parliament and Assembly elections would have happened together. Every party agreed to 'One Election' when the Election Commission came. But they gave a reason for not letting that happen. They do not have that much security force, and it is an abnormal situation in Jammu & Kashmir... Militancy has not ended..."

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is holding a public meeting in Gujarat's Jamnagar.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: BJP candidate from UP's Rae Bareli seat, Dinesh Pratap Singh has exuded confidence about his win from the constituency. 

"...I assure the country that farewell of 'nakli' Gandhis from Rae Bareli is certain. It is certain that BJP's 'lotus' will bloom, and Congress will lose. I have even fought against 4-time MP Sonia Gandhi, so Priyanka Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi are not important to me. Whichever Gandhi comes to Rae Bareli, they will lose," said Singh as quoted by news agency ANI.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: Bharatiya Janata Party has nominated Dinesh Pratap Singh from Rae Bareli seat and Karan Bhushan Singh from Kaiserganj seat in Uttar Pradesh

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: BJP has dropped Brij Bhushan Singh from Kaiserganj seat and given ticket to his son

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav has said that the ongoing Lok Sabha polls are to protect India's Constitution. 

"These elections are to protect the Constitution, to remove those who are playing with the Constitution. Under this government, neither the Constitution nor lives of people are safe. People are ready to save the Constitution," said Yadav as quoted by news agency PTI.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: Congress leader and Thiruvananthapuram candidate Shashi Tharoor has claimed that the BJP is losing ground in the ongoing polls.

 "...We have seen positive trends among the public in the first couple of phases. The public is increasingly disenchanted with the BJP government at the centre...As I said yesterday, I don't think '400 paar' is even going to be repeated by them; '300 paar' is impossible, and '200 paar' is looking challenging for them and we will see how it works out. At the moment, campaigning is going very well across the country and in the two phases, all indications from the turnout, voting pattern are that the BJP is losing ground," said Tharoor as quoted by news agency ANI.