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Arvind Kejriwal's wife Sunita on Sunday alleged he was put in jail before the elections to «stifle» his voice and urged people to vote against «dictatorship» when the national capital goes to polls on May 25. Sunita held her third roadshow in the national capital in south Delhi in support of AAP candidate Sahiram Pahalwan on Sunday. She said her husband was put in jail since he built good government schools, mohalla clinics and promised to give Rs 1,000 to every woman in Delhi. «He has put in jail just before polls to stifle his voice. Dictatorship is at its peak. Please save this country. Please cast your vote irrespective of the heat,» she added.

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday said even if the BJP opens the door for him, he will not go back to his former ally, accusing the saffron party of sinking his government in 2022 through «treachery». Addressing a rally at Alibaug in Maharashtra's Raigad district, Thackeray claimed if the BJP wins the Lok Sabha polls, crackers will be burst in India as well as in China as there will be a «timid» government in New Delhi. He slammed the BJP over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remarks that Pakistan was eager to make Congress MP Rahul Gandhi India's next PM. Thackeray said the former ally resorts to fearmongering using Pakistan's name during polls. Referring to the Poonch terror attack, Thackeray said the PM and Union Home Minister Amit Shah won't go there, but visit Maharashtra to destroy him.

reservations and sexual harassment charges against JD(S) leader Prajwal Revanna concluded on Sunday evening in 92 seats spread over 11 states and Union Territories. The stakes are significant for the BJP in this round as the party had in 2019 won an overwhelming majority of these seats, including all in Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh, that will go to polls on May 7. Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the BJP charge, asking the Congress to give in writing that it will not hand over the quota for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes to Muslims. The Congress and its allies accused the BJP of trying to tamper with the Constitution and do away with reservations. The principal opposition party, which has promised to remove the 50 per cent cap on reservations, also asked the BJP to clear its stance on the issue.

Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, where he offered prayers. Ayodhya will be voting in the fifth phase on May 20. Lok Sabha elections are being held in seven phases till June 1 and the counting of votes in all seats is scheduled for June 4. The polling in Uttar Pradesh, which sends the most members to the Lower House, at 80, is being held in all seven phases of the parliamentary elections. Voting in 16 seats was completed in the first two phases.

H D Revanna on Sunday called his arrest over the allegations of abducting a woman, whom Revanna's son is alleged to have sexually abused, an outcome of a political conspiracy. The former minister, who is the son of former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, is facing the charge of kidnapping and illegally confining a woman who is the mother of three children. The complaint was lodged by the woman's son on Thursday. Revanna claimed there is no evidence of his involvement in the case based on the complaint against him registered on May 2.

Kshatriya leaders associated with the BJP in Gujarat on Sunday appealed to the community to forgive Union minister Parshottam Rupala for his remarks and vote for the saffron party in the nation's interest. Rupala is the BJP candidate from Rajkot Lok Sabha constituency. Barring Surat, where the party nominee has won unopposed, the other 25 seats in the state will go to polls in the third phase on May 7. Kshatriyas, also known as Rajputs, have been protesting in different parts of Gujarat over Rupala's alleged derogatory remarks about former rulers, urging people to vote against BJP candidates across the state. With just two days left for polling, BJP's Kshatriya leaders on Sunday issued a joint statement appealing to the community to show a big heart and embrace the Sanskrit verse «kshama virasya bhushanam» (forgiveness is the ornament of the brave).

Rahul Gandhi always wear a white T-shirt? The Congress leader has not one but two reasons — it conveys "transparency" and "simplicity". Gandhi answers several such light-hearted questions in a more than two-minute video released by the Congress on its social media channels. In the video captioned «A day campaigning in Karnataka. Some light rapid fire questions and some very illustrious company», Gandhi also talks about his take on the importance of ideology. «In my view, you cannot go as a large organisation towards power without a clear understanding of the ideology. We have to convince the people of our ideology which is pro-poor, pro-women, plural, treating everybody equally,» he says.

dynastic politics" of the Samajwadi Party and the Congress on Sunday, saying while the opposition alliance partners work only to benefit their own families, he is building a better future for the nation's next generations. «Modi and Yogi are working for the future of your children… we don't have children (of our own),» he said, addressing a Lok Sabha poll rally here in the home district of Samajwadi Party (SP) founder Mulayam Singh Yadav, who died in 2022. The prime minister said that he is laying the foundation to ensure that India remains a powerful nation for the next 1,000 years. «Modi is doing this because irrespective of whether Modi is there or not, the country will always remain and what are these SP-Congress people doing? They are fighting elections for their future and the future of their children,» he added.

Assembly elections in Odisha, the Congress on Sunday replaced its five candidates and announced Akshaya Acharya from the Nilgiri constituency. All India Congress Committee (AICC) in a press release on Sunday said that the Central Election Committee of the party has approved the revised list of Congress candidates for the Odisha Assembly polls. Out of six constituencies, the party replaced the candidates in five constituencies.

Congress and INDIA bloc are using them as pawns, asserting that the community is also coming to the BJP after seeing the development done by it. Addressing a rally in support of the BJP candidate in Dhaurahra, Modi also said that the poor and those belonging to the SC, ST and OBC communities have distanced themselves from the Congress and the opposition alliance, and come to the BJP. «Politics of appeasement has become compulsory for the existence of 'shehzade' of SP and Congress,» he said in an apparent attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav. «Muslim community also understands that the Congress and INDI alliance have made them pawns,» Modi, said adding that the Muslim community is also coming to the BJP after seeing the development done without any prejudice.

Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, and Digvijaya Singh, ended on Sunday evening. More than 1.77 crore voters will decide the fate of 127 candidates in the fray amid intense campaigning by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah from the BJP, and Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra from Congress. The constituencies which will vote on Tuesday include Morena, Bhind (SC-reserved), Gwalior, Guna, Sagar, Vidisha, Bhopal, Rajgarh and Betul (ST-reserved) constituencies.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that a leader who is not being praised in his country but is getting applauded by Pakistleaders, has «no moral right» to do politics. He was addressing a public meeting in Kadapa constituency in Andhra Pradesh on Sunday. «Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is being praised in Pakistan, you can't find anyone praising him in India, but a former Pakistan minister has praised him. As per my understanding, if a person who is not praised in his own country but is being praised but other country, that person has no moral right to do politics in India,» Singh said in his address.

phase of the Lok Sabha election in Uttar Pradesh ended Sunday 6 pm after days of hectic roadshows and rallies by rival political leaders for the 10 constituencies which will go the polls on May 7. Sambhal, Hathras (SC), Agra (SC), Fatehpur Sikri, Firozabad, Mainpuri, Etah, Budaun, Aonla and Bareilly will go to polls in the current phase. The fate of 100 candidates in this phase will be decided by 1.88 crore voters — a little over 1 crore male voters, and more than 87 lakh women voters — in this phase. The third phase of the Lok Sabha polls assumes significance, as it will see seal the fate of Union Minister SP Singh Baghel, UP Tourism Minister Jayveer Singh, Minister of State for Revenue Anoop Pradhan Balmiki, and several members of Mulayam Singh Yadav's family.

Congress leader Charanjit Singh Channi today claimed that the attack by terrorists on an Indian Air Force vehicle in J&K's Poonch on May 4 was pre-planned to help the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He went on to dub it as «stuntbaazi.» «This is stuntbaazi. When elections come, such stunts are done to make the BJP win. These are pre-planned attacks; there is no truth in them,» Channi was quoted as saying by news wire agency ANI. Channi's statement was in stark contrast to that of Congress President Malikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi.

Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar stoked controversy by claiming that former ATS chief Hemant Karkare was «not killed by terrorists during the 26/11 attack but by a police official close to Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh», Shiv Sena leader Milind Deora said that such remarks made by Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Assembly are shameful and the opposition party is busy giving «clean chit to the Pakistan». «It is a very shameful statement. During the 26/11 attack. I saw the pain, suffering and terror that the people of South Mumbai, Maharashtra and India had to witness. Why are they trying to appease Pakistan and blame one community? As an Indian, a responsible leader from an Opposition party is making this statement for the second time from the same party and giving a clean chit to Pakistan,» Milind Deora told ANI. After the outrage, Vijay Wadettiwar issued a clarification, saying that these are not his words and it has been mentioned in the book authored by SM Mushrif, a former Inspector General of Police, Maharashtra.

Congress government in Karnataka will provide financial assistance to those allegedly sexually assaulted by JD(S) leader Prajwal Revanna, the national party said on Sunday. Congress general secretary and the party's Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala made this announcement at a press conference here in the presence of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. He said former Congress president Rahul Gandhi had demanded that appropriate action be taken against the accused. «Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has announced financial assistance to the rape victims who are in hundreds, since it is a unique case which has never happened in the last 75 years,» Surjewala said.

Election Commission to initiate action against BJP's national president J P Nadda and other senior leaders for allegedly violating the model code of conduct by posting a video on social media intimidating members of SC and ST community not to vote for a particular candidate. In a complaint to the Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer, the Congress mentioned about a video uploaded on social media platform 'X' by the official account of Karnataka State Bharatiya Janata Party @bjp4karnataka which is operated by Amit Malviya, the head of IT cell on instructions of J P Nadda, BJP National President, B Y Vijayendra, BJP State President and Social Media incharge- Karnataka BJP on May 4 at 5.34 pm. «The said video posted on social media featured animated characters of Rahul Gandhi and Siddaramaiah. In the clip, SC, ST and OBC community are portrayed as „eggs“ in a nest and it also suggested Rahul Gandhi planting a big egg labelled as Muslim community. It is projected as though funds are being fed to the chick depicting the Muslim community, which then kicks out SC, ST and OBC community.»

Sanjay Raut on Sunday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi will seek votes in the name of Lord Ram but will not speak on development, inflation and jobs. Talking to reporters in Mumbai, Raut claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was trailing after the first two phases of the Lok Sabha elections. The third phase of polls will take place on May 7. Prime Minister Modi is scheduled to visit the Ram temple in Ayodhya on Sunday and hold a roadshow.

sting video', claiming that the BJP faked the Sandeshkhali horrors to defame the ruling Trinamool Congress in the state; Dilip Ghosh, the latter's candidate for the Bardhaman-Durgapur Lok Sabha seat, said people were being 'bought and sold' in the state. Also weighing in on the controversy around the molestation charge against Bengal Governor CV Anand Bose by a staffer at the Raj Bhavan, Ghosh claimed that people were also being installed at the governor's official residence in exchange for money. Speaking to on Sunday, the BJP's former state president said, «People are being bought and sold (under the TMC). They are even being seated or installed at the Raj Bhavan in exchange for money. However, this (alleged sting video) wouldn't make any difference (to the outcome of the Lok Sabha elections in the state). It was not the BJP but the common people of Sandeshkhali who erupted in protest and came out on the streets against the ruling party. (Sheikh) Shahjahan (expelled TMC strongman and key Sandeshkhali accused) has confessed to the charges against him. It was his henchmen who attacked the ED and CBI (teams).»

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has expressed confidence in the Congress party winning at least 20 out of 28 seats ahead of the second phase of polling in the state. Addressing a joint press conference along with Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and Congress general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala in Belagavi on Sunday, the Karnataka CM asserted that the Congress government have fulfilled all the five guarantees that voted them to power in the state. Karnataka is voting in two phases for the 28 seats in the Lower House. Polling for 14 seats was held on April 26 and the remaining seats will vote on May 7 in the third phase of the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections.

Narendra Modi will headline more campaign events on Sunday at Etawah, a known stronghold of the Samajwadi Party (SP), as well as Dhaurahra and Ayodhya in BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh. After winding up his scheduled public meetings in Jharkhand and Bihar, PM Modi reached UP on Saturday evening and took out an elaborate roadshow in Kanpur, flanked by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. He will address a public meeting in Etawah around 2.45 pm and hold another later in the day at Dhaurahra around 4.45 pm.