Welcome to our first coverage of the top weekly updates on Indian elections in 2024.
Roadshows and rallies have kicked off and election fever has gripped the nation.
India goes to polls on 19 April to elect its new parliament. Voting will be held till 1 June through seven phases across the entire country.
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The election pits two-term strong leader Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his regional allies against an alliance of two dozen opposition parties. Surveys have suggested a comfortable win for PM Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata party (BJP).
In the week of 25-31 March, the Lok Sabha election highlights were grabbed by PM Modi’s first Lok Sabha campaign rally from a key town in Uttar Pradesh; another rally by the opposition INDIA bloc rally in Delhi; and updates on electoral bonds and key opposition leader Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest.
PM Modi kicks off Lok Sabha election campaign from Meerut
Prime Minister Narendra Modi held his first election rally in Meerut in the important north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh (UP) on 31 March.
In 2014 and 2019 as well, Modi had opened his campaign from Meerut.
What is significant this time however, is that BJP has fielded actor Arun Govil from Meerut, who is famous for playing the role of Lord Ram in the famous TV serial Ramayan.
The rally signals BJP’s move to capitalise on the Hindu nationalist sentiment in UP, especially after the recent Ram temple consecration in the State’s Ayodhya town.
Modi said his government has already begun preparations for the third term.
“We are charting a roadmap for the next 5 years. Rapid progress is being made in determining major decisions to be taken in the first 100 days.”
He spoke of women empowerment, development, and criticized the opposition over corruption. A big chunk of his speech was about the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) government’s performance report in the last 10 years.
Read full speech here: https://www.narendramodi.in/prime-minister-narendra-modi-attends-public-meeting-in-meerut-up-580982
INDIA bloc holds first public rally since formation
The opposition INDIA bloc came out strong on 31 March against PM Modi and the NDA in its first public meeting held in Delhi since it was formed in 23 June last year.
The “Loktantra Bachao” (Save Democracy) rally was addressed by top leaders of the opposition coalition including: top Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Samajwadi Party chief and former UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s wife Sunita Kejriwal, Jammu and Kashmir People’s Democratic Party (PDP) leader Mehbooba Mufti, Maharashtra Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray, Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann among others.
The rally accused the BJP of misusing central probe agencies to attack opposition leaders and demanded free and fair election to safeguard democracy. The BJP has denied the allegations.
The rally made five demands of the INDIA bloc: the Election Commission (EC) should ensure a level playing field for the 2024 elections; the EC should stop the misuse of IT, ED and the CBI and stop the coercive action taken against the Opposition parties; jailed opposition leaders (without proper evidence) should be freed; financial clampdown on Opposition parties before the election should be stopped; and the Supreme Court should form a committee to probe electoral bonds and political funding.
More than 20,000 people are said to have attended the rally, mostly dominated by party workers of Congress and Aam Admi Party (AAP).
Electoral bonds saga continues
Prime Minister Narendra Modi reacted to the electoral bonds controversy last week.
He said electoral bonds brought in transparency in political funding trail, and rejected the notion that it will cause a setback to BJP during the election.
Introduced in 2017, electoral bonds allowed individuals and corporate groups to donate unlimited amounts of money to any political party anonymously.
India’s Supreme Court struck down the electoral bonds scheme altogether, weeks before the general election, calling the scheme unconstitutional.
Recent data had revealed that half of the $1.98 billion received in funding between 2018 and 2024, went to PM Modi’s BJP (around $987 million). The Congress, India’s main opposition party, ranked a distant second with $233.5 million.
Critics of the scheme say it has skewed campaigns and party financing heavily in favour of the ruling party. The BJP denies any wrongdoing and believes that the scheme actually ensures curbing of black money during elections.
US diplomat summoned over remarks on Arvind Kejriwal arrest
India on 27 March summoned a US diplomat and expressed “strong objection” to the remarks of the spokesperson of the US State Department on the arrest of Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in a case of alleged corruption.
“We take strong objection to the remarks of the Spokesperson of the US State Department about certain legal proceedings in India. In diplomacy, states are expected to be respectful of the sovereignty and internal affairs of others. This responsibility is even more so in case of fellow democracies. It could otherwise end up setting unhealthy precedents,” said the Ministry of External Affairs in a response.
On 25 March, the spokesperson of the State Department had said the US government hoped Kejriwal’s case would be treated through a “timely legal process”. “We encourage a fair, transparent, and timely legal process for Chief Minister Kejriwal,” the US spokesperson had said.
Gloria Berbena, the US Acting Deputy Chief of Mission, was summoned to a 40-minute meet to convey the protest officially.
Along with Kejriwal, other leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) arrested in the case include former deputy chief minister of Delhi Manish Sisodia and AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh.
