Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti today said that once Article 370 is scrapped, the state leaders will not be able to fight polls. Her reaction came after a PIL was filed in the Delhi high court to ban Omar, Farooq Abdullah and Mufti from contesting elections.

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav today repeated BSP chief Mayawati’s appeal to not let votes get split. The BSP chief’s speech at Deoband on Sunday was ostensibly aimed at ensuring Muslims stay firmly behind the alliance.

The open appeal to the minority community came at the first joint rally held by the two alliance partners in 25 years. “I want to make an open appeal. It’s not the Congress but the alliance which is fighting the BJP. Congress wants to ensure the alliance does not win. Congress is trying to help the BJP in this election,” she said while sharing the stage with Akhilesh Yadav and RLD chief Ajit Singh.

Ram Mandir, Uniform Civil Code and a zero-tolerance policy towards terrorism are some of the big promises made by the BJP in its 2019 manifesto ‘Sankalp Patra’, Union minister Rajnath Singh has announced. Singh also addressed the contentious issue of Citizenship Amendment Bill, saying it would be implemented without compromising with the identity of states. On Kashmir, he said the party was committed to annulling Article 35A of the Constitution as the provision is discriminatory against non-permanent residents and women of Jammu and Kashmir. “We believe that Article 35A is an obstacle in the development of the state,” he said.

Singh said the party would explore all possibilities within the framework of the Constitution and all necessary efforts to facilitate the expeditious construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. He added that Article 44 of the Constitution of India lists Uniform Civil Code as one of the Directive Principles of State Policy. “BJP believes that there cannot be gender equality till such time India adopts a Uniform Civil Code, which protects the rights of all women, and the BJP reiterates its stand to draft a Uniform Civil Code, drawing upon the best traditions and harmonizing them with the modern times.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while addressing the gathering, said the BJP’s approach is need-based and politics can continue but to move the nation ahead, “our approach is multi-dimensional”. “BJP’s ‘Sankalp Patra’ aims to make India a developed nation by 2047, on completion of 100 years of Independence,” he said, adding that they had made several policies and taken several decisions keeping in mind good, easy, transparent, responsible and accountable governance.

BJP chief Amit Shah kicked off the launch of the party’s manifesto for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, saying it was going with 75 promises to people to celebrate 75 years of Independence. Shah said the party had a strong leader in the form of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP would “do what it takes to make this country great”. The ruling party is likely to make a slew of promises to woo different sections of the society, especially farmers, youth and women, besides the downtrodden. The Congress, meanwhile, reminded voters of the “good old days before 2014 when Indians had jobs & a PM that didn’t lie to them”.

Meanwhile, Modi will campaign in three states — Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. In Maharashtra, PM Modi will address a rally at Osmanabad, a constituency governed by BJP ally Shiv Sena. Then, he will land in Karnataka’s Chitradurga, which is under the Congress. After Chitradurga, it will be Mysuru, which was won by the BJP in the last Lok Sabha election. Later in the evening, Modi will reach Tamil Nadu where he will take the BJP rally forward to Coimbatore.

Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) chief Kamal Haasan launched the party’s manifesto for 2024. He also played down the I-T raids being conducted before the upcoming elections, saying, “Those who hoard people’s money, they should be raided, they should be punished. The raids have not taken place just during elections but before also.”

Meanwhile, Congress President Rahul Gandhi and party general secretary for eastern Uttar Pradesh Priyanka Gandhi are set to address three election rallies in politically crucial Saharanpur, Shamli and Bijnor districts of western Uttar Pradesh, where polling is scheduled to take place in the first phase.

On the other hand, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav will be campaigning in Ghaziabad and Baghpat constituencies, which fall under western UP as well. BSP supremo Mayawati will also address massive rallies across western UP. In Kairana and Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will address four rallies. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will also be in the politically crucial state.

Besides, the Supreme Court will hear the CBI’s plea against former Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar. The CBI had moved the apex court to arrest Kumar and had filed a fresh plea in the SC where it claims that the ex-police chief was evasive and concealed information and may also be responsible for destruction of evidence.