Lok Sabha Elections LIVE updates: BJP 1st list out; PM Modi to contest from Varanasi\, Amit Shah from Gandhinagar

Lok Sabha Elections LIVE updates: BJP 1st list out; PM Modi to contest from Varanasi, Amit Shah from Gandhinagar

BJP 1st list of candidates: Top BJP leaders to meet for the party's Central Election Committee meeting today; more names likely to be discussed in it.

The BJP has released a list of 184 candidates for the Lok Sabha elections 2019.

The BJP has released first list of 184 candidates for the Lok Sabha elections 2019, with big names like Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party President Amit Shah contesting polls from Varanasi and Gandhinagar, respectively. The list includes names for the seats where the first phase of voting will be held. The Lok Sabha elections 2019 have been scheduled to start from April 11 and will go on till May 19. With little time left to woo voters, parties have increased their activities, with prominent leaders holding several rallies every day. From public rallies to workers' meetings, big leaders of the national as well as state parties are leaving no stone unturned to ensure victory in the polls. BusinessToday.In brings complete timeline of all the updates related to the General Elections 2019 through our blog.

11.30am: Rahul Gandhi to lead 'Congress special press conference' today at 1 pm.

11.15am: Former Cricketer Gautam Gambhir likely to join BJP today, reported ANI.

8.51am: "People wanted me to contest from here again, I'm thankful to Amit Shah ji and Modi ji for choosing me again," says Hema Malini.

 

8.46am: The Congress party has also released the seventh list of candidates for Andhra Pradesh.

 

8.39am: The BJP has also released the list of candidates for the Assembly elections in Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim.

 

8.35am: The Central Election Committee of the BJP has decided the names of 100 BJP candidates for the Odisha Assembly polls.

8.20am: "It would be a matter of pride for me to strengthen the BJP in Parliament by offering a lotus from Amethi," says Union minister Smriti Irani.

8.15am: "I am thankful that the party has once again chosen me from the Nagpur Lok Sabha constituency. We'll again win with record margin from Nagpur," says Nitin Gadkari.

पार्टी ने फिर एक बार नागपुर से प्रत्याशी चुना है इसके लिए आभार। नागपुर की जनता के स्नेह और विश्वास के दम पर रेकॉर्ड मतों से हमारी जीत होगी और केंद्र में मोदीजी के नेतृत्व में फिर एक बार एनडीए की सरकार बनेगी, यह भरोसा है। pic.twitter.com/zMw1BEuU1j

8.09am: The party has announced names of its 28 candidates from UP. It has dropped six incumbent MPs this time, including Union minster Krishna Raj from Shahjahanpur and Scheduled Caste (SC) Commission head and Agra MP Ram Shankar Katheria. Actor-turned-politician Hema Malini will contest from Mathura.

8.05am: Union ministers VK Singh, Mahesh Sharma, Kiren Rijiju, DV Sadananda Gowda, and Babul Supriyo have been given tickets from Ghaziabad, Gautam Buddha Nagar, Arunachal West, Bengalore North and Asansol, respectively. They had won on all these seats in the last elections.

8.00am: The biggest surprise of the BJP's first list is senior leader Lal Krishna Advani. The 91-year-old party stalwart, who called the shots in the BJP for decades before Modi's rise eclipsed him, has been replaced by Amit Shah from Gandhinagar. Advani has been representing Gandhinagar in the Lok Sabha since 1998.

7.45am: Union minister Smriti Irani will reprise her electoral battle with Congress President Rahul Gandhi from Amethi, where she lost to him in 2014 but was seen to have put up a spirited fight.

7.30am: BJP heavyweights such as Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari have been fielded from Lucknow and Nagpur seats respectively with the party reposing its faith in all but one Union minister from the constituency they had won in 2014.

Edited by Manoj Sharma