Modi to file nomination from Varanasi on April 26; Nitish, Uddhav to accompany PM

New Delhi, Apr 23: BJP president Amit Shah on Tuesday confirmed that Narendra Modi will file nomination from the Varanasi parliamentary seat for the Lok Sabha elections 2019 on April 26 and several prominent NDA leaders including JD (U) chief Nitish Kumar, SAD's Sukhbir Singh Badal and Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray would accompany the Prime Minister for the nomination filing.

"Once again Modi Ji will contest from Kashi (Varanasi), he will file his nomination on afternoon of April 26. He will also participate in road show in Kashi on April 25. Sukhbir Singh Badal, Nitish Kumar, Uddhav Thackeray and other NDA leaders will be present during nomination filing by PM Modi on April 26," Shah said today.

When asked about speculations that Priyanka Gandhi may contest from Varanasi, Shah said Congress is in confusion.

"There is democracy in the country, anyone can contest. Congress is in confusion, not us. Our candidate has been declared, Narendra Modi will contest election from here," he said.

Varanasi goes to the polls in the last phase on May 19. The last date of filing nominations for the seat is April 29.

[Will Priyanka contest from Varanasi? Suspense is a double edged sword]

Amid speculations on whether she will fight the Lok Sabha elections from Varanasi against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Priyanka Gandhi on Sunday put the onus on Congress president Rahul Gandhi.

Last month, when asked if she would like to contest from her mother's constituency, Raebareli, Priyanka Gandhi had quipped, "Why not Varanasi". And stopped at that, she did not respond to questions put forth by the scribe after that remark and just kept smiling.

[Priyanka Gandhi to contest against PM Modi in Allahabad?]

Earlier today, while addressing a rally at Rajnagar in Chhatarpur district, Shah said the party's Bhopal Lok Sabha candidate Pragya Singh Thakur was framed in false cases by those who had coined the term "Hindu terror" and indulged in vote bank politics. He defended her candidature and called it an "absolutely right decision".

Year

Candidate's Name	Party	Result	Vote	Vote Share	Margin

2014

Narendra Modi	BJP	Winner	5,81,022	56%	3,71,784
Arvind Kejriwal	AAAP	Runner Up	2,09,238	20%	0

2009

Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi	BJP	Winner	2,03,122	31%	17,211
Mukhtar Ansari	BSP	Runner Up	1,85,911	28%	0

2004

Dr. Rajesh Kumar Mishra	INC	Winner	2,06,904	33%	57,436
Shankar Prasad Jaiswal	BJP	Runner Up	1,49,468	24%	0

1999

Shankar Prasad Jaiswal	BJP	Winner	2,11,955	34%	52,859
Rajesh Kumar Mishra	INC	Runner Up	1,59,096	25%	0

1998

Shankar Prasad Jaiswal	BJP	Winner	2,77,232	43%	1,51,946
Deena Nath Singh Yadav	CPM	Runner Up	1,25,286	19%	0

1996

Shankar Prasad Jaiswal	BJP	Winner	2,50,991	45%	1,00,692
Raj Kishore	CPM	Runner Up	1,50,299	27%	0

1991

Sheesh Chandra Dixit	BJP	Winner	1,86,333	41%	40,439
Raj Kishore	CPM	Runner Up	1,45,894	32%	0

1989

Anil Shastri	JD	Winner	2,68,196	62%	1,71,603
Shyam Lal Yadav	INC	Runner Up	96,593	22%	0

1984

Shyam Lal Yadava	INC	Winner	1,53,076	42%	94,430
Udal	CPI	Runner Up	58,646	16%	0

1980

Kamalapati	INC(I)	Winner	1,29,063	37%	24,735
Raj Narain	JNP(S)	Runner Up	1,04,328	30%	0

1977

Chandra Shekher	BLD	Winner	2,33,194	66%	1,71,854
Raja Ram	INC	Runner Up	61,340	17%	0

1971

Raja Ram Shastri	INC	Winner	1,38,789	47%	85,848
Kamla Prasad Singh	BJS	Runner Up	52,941	18%	0

1967

S. N. Singh	CPM	Winner	1,05,784	38%	18,167
R. Singh	INC	Runner Up	87,617	31%	0

1962

Raghunath Singh	INC	Winner	1,04,682	40%	45,907
Raghuvira	JS	Runner Up	58,775	22%	0

1957

Raghunath Singh	INC	Winner	1,31,087	54%	71,926
Sheomangal Ram	IND	Runner Up	59,161	25%	0

Modi to file nomination from Varanasi on April 26; Nitish\, Uddhav to accompany PM

Modi to file nomination from Varanasi on April 26; Nitish, Uddhav to accompany PM

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