Election wrap: Rahul Gandhi's quandary after double victory, Narendra Modi likely to take oath as PM on June 9 and more

Rahul Gandhi

As NDA constituents partake in multiple rounds of negotiation over portfolio allocation, Narendra Modi is likely to take oath on June 9. State chief ministers of various BJP-ruled states and senior party leaders are expected to reach Delhi today.

Here are the other developments of the day: 

Narendra Modi likely to take oath as PM for 3rd time on June 9

Narendra Modi is likely to be sworn in as the Prime Minister of India for the third time on June 9. Initially, there were reports indicating that the swearing-in ceremony would occur a day earlier.

On June 5, Modi submitted his resignation to President Droupadi Murmu, who accepted it and requested him to continue in office until the new government assumes office.

'Karmabhoomi' or 'second home'? Rahul Gandhi's quandary after double victory

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi got a double boost in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections after he decisively won from both his constituencies, Wayanad in Kerala and Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh. In Wayanad, Rahul defeated his CPI challenger Annie Raja by over 3.6 lakh votes and in Rae Bareli, he prevailed over BJP rival Dinesh Pratap Singh by a huge margin of 3.9 lakh votes.

But now, the Congress leader faces a tricky task of dropping one constituency. The Representation of the People Act (RPA), 1951, permits a candidate to contest the Lok Sabha election from up to two constituencies. However, if the candidate wins both seats, he or she must vacate one.

So far, Rahul said he has not decided which seat he will represent in the Lok Sabha. "I can't stay in two seats but I haven't decided which one I will give up," he said.

Why are TDP AND JD(U) eying the speaker's post in NDA coalition?

The results of the recently concluded Lok Sabha election came as a surprise to many as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which was widely expected to win a convincing mandate, fell short of the majority mark by over 30 seats. However, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) alliance as a whole, of which the BJP is a leading member, got over 290 seats, as a result of which it can form the government.

However, as per media reports, the BJP’s major alliance partners Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Janata Dal (United) or JD(U) have put forth certain demands to extend their support, without which government formation becomes difficult if not impossible It has been widely reported that the TDP and JD (U) have asked for the post of Lok Sabha speaker in addition to a plum few plum ministries to extend their support to the NDA.

The TDP, a constant ally of the BJP, played an instrumental role in forming the first NDA government between 1999 and 2004. Between 1999 and 2002, its Bala Yogi was the speaker of the Lower House until he was killed in a helicopter accident.

AAP's 'jail ka jawab vote se' fails to cut ice with voters as LS success remains elusive

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) contested in 22 seats across Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and Assam in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. However, for the third time in a row, it only picked up seats in Punjab where three of its candidate won in 2024.

Cabinet minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer, AAP chief spokesperson Malvinder Singh Kang and Dr Raj Kumar Chabbewal were the three AAP winners from Punjab.

However, it was still a poor show for the party in Punjab, given that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had launched ‘Mission 13-0 (13 seats for the AAP)’ and had refused to tie up with Congress. Mann’s refusal came despite the AAP being a constituent of the INDIA alliance at the national level. The Punjab CM had at least 122 rallies and road shows in the last one month.

Congress candidate Sashikanth Senthil emerges biggest winner in LS polls in Tamil Nadu

Former IAS officer Sasikanth Senthil has emerged as the candidate with the highest victory margin in the recently concluded Parliamentary elections in Tamil Nadu.

Senthil, the Congress candidate for Tiruvallur Lok Sabha seat, defeated BJP's V Pon Balaganapathy by a whopping margin of 5,72,155 votes, according to the Election Commission. Senthil garnered 7,96,956 votes overall while Balaganapthy managed to get 2,24,801 on the April 19 polls held in the state. In Virudhunagar constituency, Congress' Manickam Tagore obtained the lowest winning margin in the state.

Veteran DMK leader T R Baalu won a record 7th term by defeating AIADMK nominee G Premkumar by a margin of 4,87,029 votes in Sriperumbudur LS segment, which was the second largest victory margin in the state.

Lok Sabha polls: 65.79% voter turnout recorded in 2024, excluding postal ballots, says EC

A voter turnout of 65.79 per cent was recorded in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls, but the final figures may vary as it does not include postal ballots, the Election Commission (EC) said on June 6.

The general election took place in seven phases from April 26 to June 1 while the counting of votes took place on June 4. Reportedly, a total of 64.2 crore voters exercise their franchise.

"Overall, 65.79 per cent voter turnout was recorded in general elections 2024 at the polling stations," EC said in a statement. Voter turnout at polling station means votes polled in electronic voting machines.

The turnout was 67.40 per cent in 2019 parliamentary polls. The country had 91.20 crore voters in 2019 out of which 61.5 had exercised their franchise. This time, the size of the electorate grew to 96.88 crore voters.