Even as COVID-19 spikes across the country, political parties are deploying leaders to campaign for assembly elections in five states scheduled to be held in February-March.
To be sure, politicians have already been addressing rallies and attending public meetings in Uttar Pradesh (UP), Uttarakhand, Goa, Manipur and Punjab. They range from top leaders in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, to Samajwadi Party’s Akhilesh Yadav and All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM)’s Asaduddin Owaisi.
Follow our LIVE blog for the latest updates of the Omicron varaint of coronavirus
And due to relentless campaigning as poll season hots up, many including Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and BJP’s Manoj Tiwari have been infected with the virus. Kejriwal had been addressing several rallies in states ahead of assembly elections. On January 3, he participated in the party's Uttarakhand Nav Nirman rally at the Parade Ground in Dehradun.
Congress general secretary incharge of UP, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who was also busy campaigning in UP, is isolating after a member from her family and one of her staff tested positive for COVID-19 on January 3.
READ: Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal tests positive for COVID-19, symptoms mild
Speaking of today, here are the political rallies scheduled for January 4 when the country saw 37,379 new cases and 124 more fatalities due to COVID-19, according to the Union Health Ministry.
PM Narendra Modi in Manipur
The prime minister visited Manipur to inaugurate 22 developmental projects worth Rs 4,800 crore in the state on January 4. He also dedicated 2,387 mobile towers built at a cost of around Rs 1,100 crore to the people of Manipur besides addressing a gathering in Imphal.
The election to the 60-member Manipur assembly is scheduled to be held soon as the term of the assembly expires on March 19.
Congress’ marathon rally in Bareilly, UP
The UP Congress committee organised a marathon rally in Bareilly on January 4 as part of Priyanaka Gandhi Vadra’s “Ladki Hun Ladsakti Hun” (women can fight) campaign that saw thousands of girls participate, reportedly leading to chaos. In visuals, hundreds of women and teenage girls were seen without masks at the marathon in UP's Bareilly, according to a report in NDTV.
The election to the 403-member UP assembly is scheduled to be held in six-seven phases. The incumbent UP assembly expires on May 14. The state is considered the most crucial among all assembly elections as it could foretell performance in 2024 general elections.
Also, read: Surge in cases indicative of third COVID-19 wave in India: Expert
The Election Commission of India is committed to holding free and fair assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh with strict implementation of the COVID-19 protocol, chief election commissioner Sushil Chandra said last week, adding that all political parties in the state wanted elections as per schedule.
Uttar Pradesh reported 992 fresh cases of COVID-19 in last 24 hours on January 4, a jump from 572 cases reported a day before.
CM Yogi Adityanath in Deoband, UP
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath laid the foundation stone of an Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) commando training center and launched a slew of developmental projects worth Rs 200 Crores in Deoband area of UP's Saharanpur district on January 4. Aditynath also addressed a public rally. Adityanath shared a picture of the crowd (jan sailab) at the event on his Twitter handle.
Asaduddin Owaisi in Moradabad, UP
The AIMIM chief and member of Parliament (MP) from Hyderabad Asaduddin Owaisi addressed a public meeting in Moradabad in western UP on January 4. His party is contesting at least 100 of the 403 seats in UP. The public meeting organised by Shoshit, Vanchit Samaaj in Kindarki assembly of the Moradabad district of Moradabad. Owaisi shared a picture of the meeting on his Twitter handle.
BJP’s UP women wing president and MP Geeta Shakya is scheduled to address a convention of BJP Mahila Morcha in Unnao on January 4. The convention is being organised at Normal School ground in Unnao district.
More election rallies are scheduled in the coming days as poll dates draw near.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
