Phase 2 Started With 88 Seats

On April 26th Loksabha Elections started with 88 Seats in the 13 states , this is the second phase of the election.Thisp hase will see over 15.88crore voters exercisingt heir franchise in 1.67 lakh polling stations across the country.

A total of 1,202 candidates are in the fray — 1,098 male, 102 female and two transgender person

All 20 seats of Kerala, 14 of the 28 seats in Karnataka, 13 seats in Rajasthan, eight seats each in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, six seats in Madhya Pradesh, five seats each in Assam and Bihar, three seats each in Chhattisgarh and West Bengal, and one seat each in Manipur, Tripura and Jammu and Kashmir will go to the poll

Over 16 lakh polling officials have been deployed for the exercise involving 8.08 crore male, 7.8 crore female and 5,929 thirdgender electors, the Election Commission said. A total of 34.8 lakh first time voters and 3.28 crore voters in the age group of 20-29 years are expected to exercise their franchise on Friday.

Also, over 14.78 lakh voters above 85 years of age, 42,226 voters above 100 years, and 14.7 lakh persons with disability have been provided the option to vote from the comfort of their homes. Voting in Betul of Madhya Pradesh, which was also scheduled to be held on Friday, was shifted to
the third phase on May 7 following the death of Bahujan Samaj Party candidate Ashok Balawi.
Some of the prominent leaders in the fray include Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Shashi
Tharoor, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar of the BJP, and actor-turned-politicians Hema Malini and Arun Govil.

After the second phase, voting will be over in Kerala, Rajasthan and Tripura.

The campaign for the Lok Sabha polls in Gujarat is expected to intensify with
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi
Vadra scheduled to hold rallies in the State from next week. The Prime Minister will
address as many as six rallies across Kutch-Saurashtra, north and central Gujarat, as
well as a roadshow in Vadodara and public gatherings in Banaskanthaand Anand on May 1.

He will address rallies in Surendranagar, Bharuch and Sabarkantha on May 2. Meanwhile, Priyanka Gandhi will hold a roadshow in Valsad Constituency, with Rahul Gandhi set to address a
mega-rally in Patan in north Gujarat. Voting for all 26 Lok Sabha seats in the State will
be held on May 7.

The Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) on Thursday released its manifesto, favouring caste census while promising a panel for farmers welfare,
right to apprenticeship, 50% job reservation for women and scrapping of the Agnipath
scheme.

The manifesto of the NCP (SP), a constituent of the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi
supported full Statehood for J&K, and opposed the idea of ‘one nation, one election’.
NCP (SP) leader Jayant Patil, who unveiled the manifesto in the presence of
party chief Sharad Pawar, said the NCP (SP) would demand a Constitutional amendment to
raise the 50% cap on reservations. He said the party endorsed the five guarantees
given by the Congress in the latter’s manifesto.

Further, Defence minister Rajnath Singh Adress the Basic structure of the constitution:-

No question of ending reservation, says the Defence Minister; he adds that simultaneous polls will surely happen, while more persuasion is needed
for a Uniform Civil Code; he alleges that the dip in voter turnout during the first phase of Lok Sabha polls was due to INDIA supporters staying away

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has been travelling non-stop as he campaigns
for BJP candidates in the Lok Sabha election. He speaks on Uniform Civil
Code (UCC), voter turnout and the Opposition’s claims on investigative agencies being used to harass them. Excerpts:

It’s not an issue of concern for us, because we believe that a majority of those
who want the current government to continue turned out to vote. Those
who felt that the INDI Alliance is not in a position to form a government, they
possibly felt that it was of no use to vote.