Pilibhit (Uttar Pradesh): All eyes are on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is hitting campaign trail in three states, including Uttar Pradesh's Pilibhit on Tuesday in his first rally since helming the top post in 2014.
To maintain law and order, PAC, paramilitary, and heavy police force have been deployed. Three kilometers away from the rally site, helipads have been lined up, and there are traffic detours in place. The PM wants to use this gathering to gain support for Jitin Prasada, the new contender who has taken Varun Gandhi's place.
Gandhi expressed his disappointment at the ticket denial in an impassioned letter to constituents. Over the previous two years, Gandhi had voiced his disapproval of the party's leadership.
With this, chances are very less that Varun would be participating in the rally. Also, he said that he has not been keeping well, which adds to doubts about him gracing the event with his presence. It is to be noted that neither has Gandhi extended his support in favour of of Prasad nor made any political attack.
The BJP aims to win the support of voters for the upcoming Lok Sabha Election, particularly since Pilibhit is expected to cast their votes in the first round on April 19. The party wants to refute the claim that Prasada is a "outsider."
Former Union Minister Prasada, who served in the Congress-led UPA, is up against Bhagwat Charan Gangwar of the Samajwadi Party (SP) and Anees Ahmad Khan of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).
For the past 35 years, Pilibhit has been Maneka Gandhi and Gandhi's customary seat. This time, Gandhi was not given a ticket by the party. Gandhi recently spoke to members of his constituency after the party refused him a ticket, vowing to stick with them "at all costs."
The BJP has turned three of the region's seats—Meerut, Saharanpur, and Pilibhit—into a source of prestige this time around. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the party lost the seat of Saharanpur, but it narrowly prevailed in Meerut. In the absence of Varun or Maneka, the saffron party is doing everything in its power to hold onto Pilibhit and convey a message.
On Tuesday, during his second visit to the state in three days, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to speak at a second electoral rally in the Naxal-affected Balaghat area of Madhya Pradesh later in the day. It is anticipated that PM Modi's rally at Balaghat will begin at 2.30 PM.
The Mahakoshal region's hub, Jabalpur, hosted a roadshow by the PM on Sunday. On April 19, the Lok Sabha seats located in Sidhi, Shahdol (ST), Jabalpur, Mandla (ST), Balaghat, and Chhindwara will cast their votes in the preliminary round of elections.
The regions of Vindhya and Mahakoshal are home to these constituencies. The three candidates running for Balaghat are Bharti Pardhi (BJP), Samrat Saraswat (Congress), and Kankar Munjare (BSP).
The only Lok Sabha seat left in Madhya Pradesh in 2019 that the BJP did not win was Chhindwara, which the Congress managed to hold onto. Approximately 25,000 to 30,000 people are anticipated to attend the PM's rally here today, according to the BJP.
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