Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 4: Voting in 9 States, Jammu And Kashmir Today: 10 Key Points

The state of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha will be holding simultaneous elections to choose their next government. This phase will involve voting for 42 out of 96 seats, which is 44 percent of the total. This election marks the conclusion of polling in the southern states.

In Jammu and Kashmir, the first election since 2019 will take place. Polling will occur for the Srinagar constituency, one of the two Lok Sabha seats in the Union Territory. It’s worth noting that polling for the Anantnag-Rajouri seat has been deferred to May 25 due to objections from the BJP.

It’s important to highlight that neither the ruling dispensation nor the Opposition bloc has officially been joined by any party. However, both the ruling dispensation and the Opposition have provided “issue-based support” to the Central government multiple times in parliament. Today’s voting raises questions about the role of the Election Commission following the issuance of notices to the BJP and Congress chiefs after controversial comments made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi.

The Aam Aadmi Party received positive news, as party chief and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was granted an interim bail from the Supreme Court. Mr. Kejriwal, who was arrested in a liquor policy case, will need to surrender on June 2, the day after the seven-phase election ends. A number of senior leaders from both the BJP and the Opposition are contesting in this phase.

This includes Union ministers Giriraj Singh and Ajay Mishra, whose son is in jail in connection with the farmers’ death in Lakhimpur Kheri. Notable Opposition leaders in the fray today are Trinamool Congress’s Mohua Moitra, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Congress’s Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Trinamool’s Shatrughan Sinha, and National Conference’s Omar Abdullah. The next phase of the election is scheduled for May 20, with the counting of votes set to take place on June 4 after the last phase ends on June 1.