Who will form the government at the Centre, the NDA or the INDIA bloc? Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has called a meeting of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) in Delhi on June 1 to evaluate their performance in the ongoing elections and chalk out a strategy ahead of the results on June 4. The meeting will discuss various post-poll scenarios and also pool in the estimates of regional players to assess the performance of the opposition alliance against the ruling BJP. TMC chief Mamata Banerjee declared that she would not attend the meeting, saying the state has been still dealing with the aftermath of cyclone Remal and the final phase of polling was scheduled on June 1. However, the Trinamool has softened its stance and insists that while an electoral arrangement could not be attained, the party remains with the INDIA bloc at the national level.
HIMACHAL BY-POLLS IN 6 SEATS CRUCUAL FOR CONGRESS TO RETAIN GOVT
The by-polls to six assembly seats in Himachal Pradesh will be held on June 1, simultaneously with the polling for four Lok Sabha constituencies have become highly important for Congress to save its government, and for the BJP to come back to power in the assembly. The constituencies where by-elections will be held include Lahul and Spiti, Dharamshala, Sujanpur, Barsar, Gagret, and Kutlehar. All six rebel Congress MLAs are in the fray again, but on a BJP ticket. The six rebel leaders in the fray are RajinderRana, Sudhir Sharma, Devinder Kumar Bhutto, Chaitanya Sharma, Inder Dutt Lakhanpal and Ravi Thakur. If the six Congress defectors win, the BJP’s number in the Himachal Pradesh assembly will increase to 31. However, this is still short of the majority mark of 35.In such situation the support of the three independent MLAs will take the BJP to 34 members at par with the Congress. That is predominantly why these six seats matter. It can even turn the tables in the Himachal Pradesh assembly, depending on who wins how many of these six seats at stake.
SIDDARAMAIAH BATS FOR INTER-CASTE MARRIAGE, RECALLS HIS FOILED ATTEMPT
Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah, a true socialist known for his progressive outlook, recently recollected some old memories regarding how caste sentiments and traditions foiled his attempt to marry a girl from another caste. Speaking at a function organised by Janaspandana Trust and Manava Mantapa in Mysuru to launch a website for registration of inter-caste couples, Siddaramaiah said: “I wanted to have an inter-caste marriage, but it did not happen. The girl did not accept it.” However, Siddaramaiah batted for inter-caste marriages and said more inter-caste marriages should be encouraged so that caste inequalities are removed from the society. He cited B.R. Ambedkar to say that political independence in the country will not be successful as long as economic independence and social equality is not achieved.
NON-OBC YADAV VOTERS CRUCIAL IN 13 UP SEATS; MODI’S VARANASI IN FRAY
As the Lok Sabha elections enters the seventh and final phase, the focus has shifted to the ‘non-Yadav’ OBC voters in UP, whose support can determine the outcome of contests on 13 seats going to polls on June 1. The constituencies going to the polls in the final phase include Varanasi, Maharajganj, Gorakhpur, Kushinagar, Deoria, Bansgaon, Ghosi, Ghazipur, Ballia, Salempur, Chandauli, Mirzapur, Robertsganj. Although in Mirzapur, incumbent MP Anupriya Patel, the daughter of Apna Dal founder and OBC leader Sonelal Patel, is fielded against Ramesh Bind, the sitting BJP MP from adjoining Bhadohi, who joined the SP after the BJP denied him a ticket. Anupriya’s recent statement: “Now kings are born from EVMs and not the wombs of queens”, triggered a controversy as it was interpreted as targeting the powerful Thakur politician Raghuraj Pratap Singh. Patel’s core support comes from the Patel community, which constitutes a significant portion of Mirzapur’s electorate, with approximately 3.5 lakh votes. Brahmins, Vaishyas, and Kshatriyas together account for over 3.9 lakh votes. The Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) has fielded Manish Tripathi, a Brahmin candidate, potentially causing a split in the Brahmin vote, which typically favours the BJP.
TEJASHWI SHARES VIRAL VIDEO OF CAMARADERIE OVER LUNCH WITH RAHUL
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav shared a video of lunch with family and friends on social media, which has been highlighted and has become the talk of the town. The video clip shows Congress leader Rahul Gandhi as the guest of honour at the get-together. In a conversation during the meal, Tejashwi said, that Rahul had mutton twice at their place now, possibly referring to the time when former Bihar CM Lalu Yadav cooked Champaran mutton for Rahul Gandhi and taught him its intricacies. Rahul and Tejashwi during this whole episode had political discussions and lastly, Rahul said that it is time for him and sister Priyanka to cook for the RJD leader’s family. (IPA Service)
