PM Modi files nomination from Varanasi after offering prayers at holy ghat

PM Modi files nomination from Varanasi Lok Sabha constituency

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday filed his Lok Sabha nomination papers from Varanasi - his constituency for the last 10 years - after offering prayers at the holy Dashashwamedh Ghat on the banks of the Ganga.

In a grand show of strength, PM Modi was accompanied by several NDA leaders and chief ministers of NDA-ruled states. Varanasi will vote on June 1 in the seventh and final phase of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

Ahead of filing his nomination, PM Modi posted on X about his relationship with Kashi: "My relationship with Kashi is amazing, inseparable, and incomparable... all I can say is that it cannot be expressed in words!"

Narendra Modi in Varanasi LIVE: PM Modi files nomination papers for Lok Sabha Elections 2024 in Varanasi, follow for LIVE Updates

Here's all you need to know: 

• PM Modi's four proposers for the nomination were Pandit Ganeshwar Shastri, Baijnath Patel, Lalchand Kushwaha and Sanjay Sonkar. All the four proposers represented different communities.
• Before filing the papers, PM Modi offered prayers at Dashwamedh Ghat and took a dip in the River Ganga before boarding the cruise ship to Namo Ghat.
• Chief ministers of 12 BJP-ruled and alliance states, including UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath, were present when the PM filed his nomination.
• Several Union ministers, including defence minister Rajnath Singh and home minister Amit Shah, and presidents of various National Democratic Alliance (NDA) allies were also present.
• On the eve of his nomination filing, PM Modi held a mega roadshow in Varanasi on a 6-kilometre stretch, surrounded by a "sea" of over 100,000 saffron supporters. He also offered prayers at Kashi Vishwanath temple. The roadshow began from the Malviya Chauraha in Varanasi's Lanka area.
• In Varanasi, the Congress has fielded its Uttar Pradesh chief Ajay Rai against PM Modi. This will be the Congress leader's third attempt to challenge PM Modi in his stronghold.
• In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, PM Modi won the seat with over 6,74,664 votes and commanded a vote share of 63.6 per cent.