Lok Sabha Election 2019 LIVE Updates: In Purulia, TMC chief Mamata Banerjee said, “Money doesn’t matter to me.That is why when Narendra Modi came to Bengal and accused my party of being tolabaaz (toll collector), I wanted to give him a tight slap of democracy.”

Following his remarks that BJP might need allies’ support to form government, Ram Madhav said, “Based on the ground report that we get from our cadres, BJP will be able to do as good as it has done in 2014, if not better. And together with NDA, we will be having a good majority to run another stable government.”

In Bishnupur, BJP national president Amit Shah lashed out a Congress leader Priyanka Vadra for her ‘Duryodhan‘ jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “Priyanka ji, this is democracy. Nobody becomes Duryodhan just because you called them so. We will find out on 23 May who is Duryodhana and who is Arjuna,” he said.

The East Delhi Election Commission office issued a notice to Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia on Tuesday over an alleged violation of the Model Code of Conduct regarding a tweet on the religion of AAP’s East Delhi candidate Atishi. He has been given tiem until 5 pm on Wednesday to clarify the tweet.

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi in a Haryana rally said, “The BJP leaders never in their poll campaign say whether they fulfilled their promise or not. They seek vote in the name of martyrs or the martyr (Rajiv Gandhi) of my family. Duryodhan had also lots of ego and his ego was the reason of his defeat.”

Defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday addressed a rally in West Bengal and launched a blistering attack on Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over polling day violence in the state, as clashes were reported between BJP and TMC workers during the fifth phase of Lok Sabha election.

She said, “People will be scared to come to polling booths if violence continues in West Bengal. Mamata Banerjee is destroying the democracy in the state. Despite deployment of central forces and assurance to the voters that their presence will make a difference, Didi’s syndicate morcha people are all over the place. Mamata Banerjee screams about democracy,she is the one who is violating democracy.”

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi said that the Congress is fighting the ongoing Lok Sabha election “on behalf” of the people of the country. She said that when the people will go to vote, they will be voting for their own future. “This is not an ordinary election, this is a crucial election,” she said.

BJP chief Amit Shah, in a rally in West Bengal, said, “We will first bring the Citizenship Amendment Bill to give Indian citizenship to the Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain and Christian refugees from the neighbouring countries and then will ensure that every infiltrator is identified and deported out of India.”

BJP president Amit Shah addressed a rally in West Bengal’s Paschim Bengal district on Tuesday and slammed West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee over the ‘Jai Shri Ram’ controversy, which led to a war of words between her and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Shah said, “Mamata Didi, why do you want to stop us from chanting ‘Jai Shree Ram’ in India? Shree Ram is the idol of every Indian, he exists in the culture and ethos of India. No one can stop us from worshipping him.”

On Monday, Modi took a dig at Mamata during a rally and accused her of arresting people who chanted “Jai Shri Ram”. He dared her to arrest him, days after three people were taken into police custody for allegedly saying the words as her convoy passed by.

Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who met with Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, popularly called ‘KCR’ in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday evening expressed confidence in the possibility of a non-BJP, non-Congress front at the end of the ongoing Lok Sabha election.

He said, “Yesterday’s meeting with KC Rao was significant. We discussed the national political scenario. According to KC Rao, both the fronts may not get a majority. So, the regional parties will play a prominent role. There were no discussions about the PM candidate.”

Deputy Election Commissioner Sudeep Jain spoke to the media after the Supreme Court junked the Opposition’s plea for 50 percent VVPAT-EVM verification. The Opposition also demanded stricter guidelines to be implemented by the Election Commission regarding verification of votes.

News18 quoted Jain as saying, “There is no doubt about the integrity of EVMs. Not a single EVMs have recorded wrongly. Review petition had no new facts. There is going to be a four-hour delay on 23 May since four additional VVPATs have been added. Result is expected late evening or next morning.”

 BJP leader Narasimha Rao reportedly slammed the Congress over party leader Shashi Tharoor’s tweet praising Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan for paying tribute to Tipu Sultan on his death anniversary on 4 May.

He said, “Congress is like a plane. Rahul Gandhi has lost his way. Congress plane will crash on May 23. (On Shahshi Tharoor praising Imran Khan) Congress is always finding reasons how to praise Pakistan and their prime minister, instead of criticising it.

“They seem in some kind of compulsion to keep praising Pakistan again and again. They are more communal in nature.”

Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu, who lead the Opposition leaders delegation regarding the demand for 50 percent VVPAT-EVM verification in an Assembly segment, said that the 21 Opposition had taken up the issue to “bring transparency” to the voting process in the country.

Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who appeared for the Opposition parties in their plea to increase VVPAT-EVM verification said, “21 parties represented this petition. This included some sitting chief ministers too. We bow down to the court’s order.

“We must make it clear that this is an All India political campaign to make people aware at hand. Today was a hearing on the review petition by 21 opposition parties of India on issue increase of VVPAT. We bow down to the court order which has dismissed our petition.”

 The counsel of the Opposition leaders, Abhishek Manu Singhvi said that they had “grave and serious” concerns regarding the VVPAT-EVM verification. He listed the points after the Supreme Court rejected the review petition: He expressed gratitude to the court to increase the VVPAT verification from one to five.

The principle point of the review petition was that there is no “meaningful” implementation of the order, which is a “mere” 2 percent. “We want the verification increased to 33 percent, or worse come to worst, 25 percent.”

 The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected the petition filed by 21 Opposition parties, demanding 50 percent verification of EVMs with VVPAT slips. The hearing ended in under a minute, reports said. According to reports, Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu, CPM’s D Raja and National Conference chairman Farooq Abdullah were present at the court.

Chandrababu Naidu has arrived at the Supreme Court ahead of the apex court’s hearing on the Opposition’s petition to have 50 percent verification of EVMs with VVPATs.

Opposition leaders had sought the review of the apex court’s order, saying the “increase from 1 to 5 is not a reasonable number and does not lead to satisfaction desired by this court”.

Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu has written to the Election Commission (EC) demanding to the verification of 50 percent of EVMs using VVPAT slips in an Assembly segment.

Opposition leaders led by Naidu have sought the review of the Supreme Court’s order on increasing VVPAT verification from one to five, saying the “increase from 1 to 5 is not a reasonable number and does not lead to satisfaction desired by this court”. The case will come up in the court today.

With the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha election having concluded on Monday, BJP and Opposition leaders will be on the campaign trail on Tuesday, in preparation for the sixth phase of the General Election.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi will address public rallies in Jharkhand’s West Singhbhum and Dhanbad districts, and West Bengal’s Purulia district on Tuesday. Meanwhile, BJP president Amit Shah will be campaigning in West Bengal and Bihar. Shah will address rallies in Ghatal, Paschim Medinipur, and Bishnupur in West Bengal and also in Patna in Bihar.

Congress general secretary for eastern Uttar Pradesh, Priyanka Gandhi will address multiple public meetings in Haryana. She will hold rallies in Ambala and Hisar, and conclude with a roadshow in Rohtak, reports said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday threw a challenge at the Congress, asking it to contest the remaining phases of the Lok Sabha elections in the name of Rajiv Gandhi, who he recently dubbed as “bhrashtachari no. 1″. He also dared the Congress to a debate on the Bofors scandal and other issues ahead of the last two phases of the polling.

“A few days ago I had called a member of the naamdar parivar (dynasty) as ‘bhrashtachari (corrupt) no. 1′ and some people got such a severe stomach ache that they started crying aloud. The more they cry, the more will today’s generation come to know of the old truths.

“How a family looted the country in the 20th century, destroyed it — the youth of the country should know. I am challenging the Congress from this dais that when polling takes place in the remaining phases in Punjab, Delhi and in Bhopal let it fight the elections in the name of Rajiv Gandhi. I am hopeful that the Congress will accept this challenge,” he told an election rally.

Rahul has been repeatedly daring Modi to debate on issues of national security, especially the Rafale fighter jet deal, asserting that when it happens, the truth will be out in the open.

Responding to Modi’s comments that his father Rajiv’s life ended as “Bhrashtachari No 1,” Rahul had on Sunday tweeted “Modi Ji, the battle is over. Your Karma awaits you. Projecting your inner beliefs about yourself onto my father won’t protect you. All my love and a huge hug”

Modi, without naming anyone, said, “A member of the ‘naamdar parivar’ is abusing the prime minister for the last one year, without caring for the dignity (of the chair)… You do not have respect for the prime minister’s post”.

Claiming that the ‘Mahamilawati’ have surrendered after four phases of polling and are floundering during the fifth phase on Monday, the prime minister said, “Let the Congress and its allies take the challenge to fight over Bofors issue in the remaining phases.

“Don’t run away, this is democracy. Where did the ex-prime minister take the country?” he said. Alleging that the Congress had done “injustice” to the country over the past 70 years, Modi said he cannot claim to have completely negate it in five years. “But I have cleaned it up to the maximum extent.”

Accusing the Congress of making an independent MLA (Madhu Koda), who was convicted in a coal scam case and is now on bail, the chief minister of Jharkhand, Modi said now the Congress has given ticket to a member of his family (Gita Koda) to contest from Singhbhum. “This is shameful,” he said. Modi also mentioned Congress’ alliance with Lalu Prasad’s RJD in this context.

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