NEW DELHI — The Congress party has scripted a comeback story, almost doubling its 2019 tally, as it leads in at least 90 seats and claims nine wins. The power fight by the INDIA bloc was also led by the Samajwadi Party, which currently has leads in 34 seats in Uttar Pradesh. The stakes are high for the Opposition, which has consolidated into the INDIA bloc, and is looking to upset the NDA’s tally. The Opposition has dismissed the exit poll predictions, reposing its faith in “people’s polls”.
As of 4.10 pm, in a neck-and-neck fight, the NDA was leading in 294 seats, while the INDIA bloc was ahead in 230. The BJP on its own is falling short of the majority mark of 272. It is currently leading in 203 seats and has won 36, according to the Election Commission, reducing its 2019 tally, when it won 303 seats.
Here are the big developments:
Will decide which seat to represent, says Rahul Gandhi on Rae Bareli or Wayanad choice
Rahul Gandhi, who has won from both Wayanad and Rae Bareli, on being asked as to which seat he’d choose, said: “I have received a win from both the seats. I would like to thank the voters of Wayanad and Rae Bareli. I can’t take both seats so I will discuss this and decide which seat I will be keeping.”
On the Amethi win, he said: “The BJP does not respect the people and they do not talk to the people properly. Kishori Lal Sharma has a great relationship with Amethi and it’s the people who have elected him. It’s disrespectful to say that he’s a PA. He has been working with the people all throughout.”
INDIA bloc to take call on alliance on Wednesday says Rahul Gandhi
On being asked if there is a chance for government formation, Rahul Gandhi said “We are going to have a meeting with our alliance partners tomorrow and these questions will be discussed there. We respect our partners and we are going to take their opinions before making a decision.”
People of India do not want PM Modi, Amit Shah to run country, says Rahul Gandhi
As the INDIA bloc managed to halt the BJP’s march towards majority, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi came out to hit out at the BJP, saying that the mandate today was a clear indication that the people of the country do not want to PM Modi and Amit Shah to run the country.
It was a fight to save Constitution, says Rahul Gandhi
Now, addressing the media, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, while hitting out at the BJP, said: “This was a fight to save the Constitution of the country and has emerged victorious in it. The country has said that they do not want Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah to run the country.”
Our fight isn’t over, says Cong chief Kharge
Saying that the fight wasn’t over, Mallikarjun Kharge further said: “The BJP made several attempts to crush the Opposition. Those who agreed to stand with him were supported and attempts were made to crush others and to drag them behind bars. But our fight has not reached its destination yet, in the coming days we will continue to fight for the country’s development, for the constitution, for the benefit of the people.”
We fought polls based on issues, PM spread false narratives’
Talking about the results, Kharge said: “You all know that the Congress has fought the elections facing multiple difficulties. Our bank accounts were frozen, but we ensured that the campaign continued to be positive throughout. We fought the elections based on issues of inflation, unemployment but on the other hand the PM was spreading false narratives.”
People’s mandate a win for democracy and against PM Modi, says Kharge
As the INDIA bloc managed to halt the BJP’s march towards majority, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said that the people’s mandate is a win for the people of the country and the democracy.
Rahul Gandhi starts addressing the media
As the INDIA bloc managed to halt the BJP’s march towards majority, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi came out to address the media. The counting of votes is still on and the INDIA bloc now stands at 231 seats as compared to the BJP’s 295.
What Faizabad loss — the seat of Ram Mandir — means for the BJP
In a major setback to Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) in Ayodhya, the party has lost its key Faizabad Constituency within four months of the consecration of Ram Mandir.
While official result is yet to be announced, Lallu Singh, the BJP candidate who was seeking re-election for the third time, accepted his defeat and said that the party will introspect and will fight back.
“Hum aapka aur Ayodhya ka samman bacha nahi paaye. (We couldn’t save the honour of Ayodhya) There could have been some fault in me. You worked very hard and showed full dedication towards the party. My only request is that it may happen that if you go out in the area, opposition leaders and workers may comment on us. But will have to show tolerance and avoid any unwarranted things. Yudh ke maidan me haar jeet toh laga rehta hai (You win some, you lose some in a battlefied),” said Singh, while addressing party workers at the election office in Ayodhya.
He further said, “I will introspect about myself. There could have been a reason that we lost this election. Despite Modi-Yogi leadership, this has happened, so there must be some major flaw in me. Go to your home now. Do not lose your heart.
The Ayodhya defeat is not only losing a single constituency but it is also seen as an ideological defeat for BJP as Prime Minister Narendra Modi performed a consecration ceremony just a few months before the election and it was propagated by him and other party leaders across the country as one of the biggest achievement of the party.
Slogans like “500 varshon baad Ram Lalla apne ghar me aaye hain” and “Jo Raam ko laaye hain hum unko laayenge” were frequently used in the BJP’s rallies. The Ayodhya defeat is also reminiscent of the election held after the demolition of Babri Masjid in 1992.
After the Babri demolition, the Narasimha Rao government dismissed BJP governments in UP, along with Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Himachal Pradesh. In the 1993 election, SP-BSP formed an alliance. While BJP emerged the single largest party with one seat more than the SP-BSP, however, it was kept out of power as other non-BJP parties backed Mulayam.
The result has also inherent message that the ‘Mandir alone’ cannot work when there is a joblessness, paper leaks, rising inflation and local issues are not being addressed properly. — Dheeraj Mishra writes
Naidu and Nitish: Men of the Moment as BJP fights to make 272 on its own
With the BJP likely to fall behind the majority mark, the formation of a new Narendra Modi government will now depend on the support of two veteran kingmakers — the Telugu Desam Party or TDP’s Chandrababu Naidu and Janata Dal (United) or JD(U)’s Nitish Kumar, both partners of the BJP in the NDA.
If the BJP remains below the majority 272 mark, (it is currently at 243), Naidu and Nitish could be the men who would prop up Narendra Modi in New Delhi. Read a short history by Deeptiman Tiwary of these two leaders and their remarkable political trajectories over the years.
After 10 years, Congress opens account in Gujarat
After a decade-long hiatus, the Congress party has made a breakthrough in the Gujarat Lok Sabha Elections as Geniben Thakor, the party’s candidate from Banaskantha, secured victory by defeating her BJP counterpart Rekha Chaudhari, with a resounding margin of over 30 thousand votes.
Rahul Gandhi to address presser at 5.30 pm
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will be addressing a press conference at 5.30 pm today. The Congress leader has won the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seat by a margin of over 4 lakh votes and is also leading in Wayanad.
