Daily wrap: Modi 2.0 wave in India; BJP no more 'Chowkidar'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has reigned again. BJP, now, stands as the single largest party. Opposition’s constant charges on Modi and BJP has most certainly not affected the party’s image. BJP-led NDA has only grown as a bigger party this Lok Sabha elections, retaining most of the seats and winning some in addition.
Arunachal MLA who was shot dead by insurgents wins Khonsa West seat
Arunachal Pradesh MLA Tirong Aboh, who was shot dead by insurgents near Bogapani in Tirap district on Tuesday (May 21), has reportedly won Khonsa West the constituency from where he was seeking a re-election. The slain NPP candidate defeated the BJP’s Phawang Lowang by nearly 4,000 votes. However, fresh election are likely to be declared on the seat as per the Election Commission of India (ECI) norms.
How the counting unfolded leading to a DMK-Congress sweep in TN
The DMK-led secular democratic front has swept the Lok Sabha polls in Tami Nadu, bagging 38 of the 39 constituencies in the state and Puducherry. Since counting began at 8 am on Thursday, all DMK candidates have been leading in all the constituencies except in Dharmapuri. DMK’s key candidates, including MK Kanimozhi, A Raja, TR Baalu, Tamizhachi Thangapandian, S Jagathrakshagan were leading from the start and managed to stay ahead with high margins in all the constituencies they contested.
Modi no more ‘Chowkidar’, others follow suit
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Prime Minister Narendra Modi removed the prefix ‘Chowkidar’ from his Twitter handle on Thursday (May 23), after the party and the alliance secured a major win in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. PM Modi said he was dropping the prefix ‘Chowkidar’ from his Twitter handle. He but tweeted, ‘it remains an integral part of me.’
Dynasts bite the dust across India, but not in Tamil Nadu
The saffron surge in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections has brought along the fall of several ‘naamdaars’ (dynasts). BJP leaders had made dynasts a campaign theme in their attacks on the Congress. The fall begins with a jolt to the Congress with the party president Rahul Gandhi losing his pocket borough of Amethi in Uttar Pradesh, which he had represented for the last three terms. His safe bet, however, was his second candidature from Kerala’s Wayanad, where he won by a huge margin. The defeat in Amethi, a long-time Congress fortress, wasn’t unprecedented and at the same time, not expected. The Congress president conceded defeat to BJP candidate Smriti Irani.
TINA factor, strategy, messaging aided BJP quest for victory, paved way for Modi 2.0
What can be said about an election that looks like a replica of results five years ago? The BJP’s tally of around 345 seats—with a few more allies—makes it appear that absolutely nothing changed in the country since the day Narendra Modi swept to power in 2014. But, when you look closely at the results, the difference between the two results becomes clear: In 2014, the BJP won because it was able to harness public anger against the then UPA government. In 2019, the BJP has won because there was nobody in the opposition to talk forcefully about Modi’s failures and emerge as a viable alternative. This was an election where there was no alternative to Modi and the idea he represents.
How a silent Modi wave uprooted SP-BSP mahagathbandhan in UP
With the 2019 election results in Uttar Pradesh coming out, it seems, the Samajwadi Party (SP)’s ‘cycle tyre’ has been punctured and the Bahujan Samaj Party’s (BSP) elephant has gone berserk. It seems that the days of caste politics in the Hindi-heartland state are over, forever. The much-hyped Bua-Bhatija mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) in Uttar Pradesh has gone for a six.
Also read: Lotus finally blooms in West Bengal as Mamata suffers setback
Naveen Patnaik creates history; set to get sworn in for record fifth term
Naveen Patnaik’s BJD is on its way to forming the government in Odisha, with the party leading in 110 Assembly constituencies in a house of 147 Assembly seats, followed by the BJP leading in 25 and the Congress in 10 seats. Patnaik’s victory seems to have turned the tables on naysayers who had predicted the BJP of eating into a major share of BJD votes in Odisha. This is the second consecutive time that Patnaik had survived the Modi wave.
Also read: KCR receives jolt as BJP makes inroads into Telangana
These writers-turned-politicians pen a new political story in TN
Literature and politics have always gone hand-in-hand in Tamil Nadu. There are many writers-turned-politicians who contested this Lok Sabha election. D Ravikumar of Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), K Kanimozhi and Thamizhachi Thangapandian of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Jothimani of the Congress and Su Venkatesan of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) are the literateurs who contested in this election. It is interesting to note that this is the first time that such a long line-up of writers in the state contested in the Lok Sabha polls.
9 die in western Mexico shootout, official slain in south
A shootout between rival gangs in western Mexico killed at least nine people and wounded four, authorities said on Wednesday. Prosecutors in the state of Michoacan said the confrontation occurred near the city of Uruapan. They did not identify the gangs involved, but the Jalisco cartel and a small gang known as the Viagras have been active in the state. Assault rifles were found at the scene. Also on Wednesday, authorities said gunmen killed a city official in the southern state of Guerrero. The state prosecutors office said in a statement that Simón Gama García was exercising on Wednesday morning when two people approached and shot him. He was identified as secretary-general of the town of Coyuca de Catalan.
Suicide car bomb kills at least 9 in Somalias capital
Islamic extremists exploded a suicide car bomb near the presidential palace in Somalias capital on Wednesday, killing at least nine people, including former Foreign Minister Hussein Elabe Fahiye, who was an adviser to the current president. Capt Mohamed Hussein told The Associated Press that an additional 13 people were wounded and most of the casualties were soldiers. The Somalia-based extremist group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the blast in Mogadishu, saying it targeted vehicles carrying government officials. The car bomb exploded at a security checkpoint near the presidential palace as soldiers were conducting security checks on vehicles on the main road.
Dead gray whale found on island is Alaskas third this year
A third gray whale has been found dead in Alaska. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says a gray whale was spotted Tuesday on Kodiak Island. Carcasses also were found this spring near Cordova and south of Anchorage. NOAA in release says the dead whale on Kodiak was along a rocky shore below a steep cliff and inaccessible for a necropsy. The agency says its not unusual to have two or three gray whale strandings by late May in Alaska. However, theyre part of an unusually high number of gray whale deaths along the West Coast. At least 60 dead gray whales have been found dead from Mexico to Alaska. Gray whales make migrations of up to 10,000 miles (16,100 kilometers) round trip to summer feeding grounds in the Arctic.
