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India election 2019: The week that was 18-22 March - Published India has entered full election mode: voting is due to begin on 11 April, with the final ballot cast more than five weeks later on 19 May. Every day, the BBC will be bringing you all the latest updates on the twists and turns of the world's largest democracy. The latest from the campaign trail A winning alliance? What happened? The main opposition Congress party have just announced an alliance with Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), a political party based in the northern state of Bihar. Following negotiations, the two parties made the announcement on Friday. The RJD will contest on 20 seats while the Congress gets nine seats. Bihar has 40 constituencies in total. Why does this matter? This election has been characterised by a strong resurgence of regional political parties across India. The Congress has certainly taken notice, and hopes to win the election as part of what has been termed the Mahagathbandhan (which means the Grand Alliance). The announcement was not fully unexpected as hints have been dropping for weeks now, but it is a significant move as there are a lot of seats to be won in Bihar. In Bihar's last state assembly elections held in 2015, the Grand Alliance - which included the RJD - emerged victorious. Will Gautam Gambhir score a six for the BJP? What happened? Former India batsman and World Cup winner Gautam Gambhir has just joined the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the general election. He made the announcement at a press conference in Delhi, alongside finance minister Arun Jaitley. "I have been influenced by the prime minister and his vision for the country," he said. "This is a fabulous platform for me to do something for India." Mr Gambhir was recently conferred with the Padma Shri award, India's fourth highest civilian award, and had received a congratulatory letter from PM Modi. Why does this matter? Mr Gambhir, known for his aggressive batting skills, is a regular on social media where he often tweets about politics. He is known for openly talking about nationalistic issues, leading to speculation that he may join politics. His decision to align with the ruling party, months before the general election, may help the BJP draw in more voters as, with nearly nine million followers on Twitter, Mr Gambhir brings with him some considerable star power. PM Modi attacks opposition over 'terror' What happened? Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched a Twitter offensive against opposition leaders and those associated with these parties, accusing them of "insulting" the armed forces. He appears to have picked up several videos and some speeches made by various leaders, including Sam Pitroda, who is very close to the Congress party. Mr Pitroda, who is credited with being the father of the Indian telecom revolution, had objected to "vilifying all Pakistanis" over the Kashmir suicide attack that saw a fresh heightening of tensions between India and Pakistan. Opposition insults our forces time and again.— Chowkidar Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 22, 2019 I appeal to my fellow Indians- question Opposition leaders on their statements. Tell them- 130 crore Indians will not forgive or forget the Opposition for their antics. India stands firmly with our forces. #JantaMaafNahiKaregi https://t.co/rwpFKMMeHY Opposition is the natural habitat of terror apologists and questioners of our armed forces.— Chowkidar Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 22, 2019 This reprehensible statement by a senior leader like Ram Gopal Ji insults all those who have given their lives in protecting Kashmir. It humiliates the families of our martyrs. https://t.co/BZyWbIyJjo The most trusted advisor and guide of the Congress President has kick-started the Pakistan National Day celebrations on behalf of the Congress, ironically by demeaning India’s armed forces.— Chowkidar Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 22, 2019 Shame! https://t.co/puSjTK8Y4x Why does this matter? This is quite a series of statements from the prime minister and he has really come into this attack no holds barred. Those who follow US President Donald Trump will recognise the style: Mr Modi seems to have followed a very similar formula, with an attacking statement, followed by a one word conclusion, like "shame!" or "sad!". In essence, he is saying that to question the official version of what happened in Pakistan - which has been queried by several leading media organisations - is an "affront" to the army itself. He is also saying that to express anything less than severe reprobation against Pakistan is a slight on the army and makes the opposition a supporter of nothing less than terrorism. This is another clear attempt to refocus the debate around the polls on anti-Pakistan sentiment, which has served the party well ever since a suicide attack in Indian-administered Kashmir killed 40 troops. Mr Modi and his government had been battling real discontent over issues like rising unemployment, increasing farmer suicides and a slowing economy. But after the attack in Pulwama, all this was laid aside in the interest of heightened patriotism and national fervour. When Mr Modi confirmed that India had carried out air strikes against militant camps inside Pakistan, his approval ratings soared. Even at that point, as he addressed a campaign rally in the northern state of Rajasthan, his message was clear: the nation is in safe hands. Since then - and in spite of a crackdown on the use of the military in campaign materials - Mr Modi and his party have ensured it is anti-Pakistan feeling, and not the other issues, which are firing up voters. This is not the first time Mr Modi has used Pakistan as a poll issue. He alleged during the 2017 Gujarat election campaign that former prime minister Manmohan Singh had colluded with Pakistan to influence election results. The Congress demanded an apology, which quietly came many months later in a statement made in the upper house of parliament. BJP releases list of candidates What happened? The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has released an initial list of 180 candidates who will be contesting elections from the party ticket. The list of names covers more than 20 states. The names include Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will once again contest from the north Indian city of Varanasi, and party president Amit Shah, who will contest from Gandhinagar in Gujarat state, replacing party stalwart LK Advani. Why does this matter? There has been a lot of anticipation ahead of the release of this candidate list, because it is the clearest indication of the ruling party's strategy for polls. And there are several very interesting factors in it. Arguably the most interesting is the decision to field Mr Shah in place of Mr Advani. Although Mr Shah has played a key role in party strategy for polls, he is not formally a part of the federal government. This means that he is likely to play a much bigger formal role in the government if the BJP comes back to power. The decision to sideline Mr Advani, a 91-year-old stalwart who is widely credited with transforming the BJP into a political force, also marks a formal shifting of the guard. Indian media reports speculate that this has paved the way for the party to also sideline other older members. Other things to note in the list: - The party has decided not to field any candidates who lost their seats in recently concluded state elections in Chhattisgarh, where the BJP suffered a huge loss to the opposition Congress - It has granted several tickets to members from the opposition who have recently crossed over - There are only 20 women in the initial list - a stark contrast to several high profile regional parties who have made a conscious decision to field more women - High profile candidate Smriti Irani is being fielded against Rahul Gandhi in a direct challenge to his home constituency of Amethi, in Uttar Pradesh On Thursday.. it was all about playing nice What happened? It's Holi - the festival of colours that marks the beginning of spring - in India today. That means that people are casually walking around with bright orange, pink and green skin, roads are stained with coloured powder... and politicians are taking a break to play nice - for once. As a result, Twitter handles are being used to deliver greetings instead of attacks on political rivals. होली के पावन पर्व की सभी देशवासियों को ढेरों शुभकामनाएं। हर्ष और उल्लास का यह त्योहार हमारी एकता और सद्भावना के रंग को और प्रगाढ़ करे। pic.twitter.com/glZ6eQHaoe— Chowkidar Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 21, 2019 आपको और आप के परिवार को होली के पावन अवसर पर मेरी और मेरे समस्त कांग्रेस जन की ओर से हार्दिक शुभकामनाएं।— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) March 21, 2019 होली का यह त्यौहार आपके जीवन को खुशीयो के रंग से सराबोर कर दे , मेरी ईश्वर से यही कामना है।#HappyHoli 🌈 होली के शुभ अवसर पर आप सभी को हार्दिक शुभकामनाएं। pic.twitter.com/SKc5ayMRot— Chowkidar Arun Jaitley (@arunjaitley) March 21, 2019 Why does it matter? It doesn't really, but we thought it was a nice change. On Wednesday.... Mayawati delivered a poll shock Mayawati, the Dalit icon and leader of the powerful regional Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), based in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, announced she is not contesting the general election. Her party has tied up with regional rival Samajwadi Party (SP) in a bid to counter the influence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP. Uttar Pradesh sends 80 MPs to parliament. Why does it matter? We still don't have too much detail about what is behind her decision. All we know for now is that she addressed a press conference in the state capital, Lucknow, where she said she would concentrate on the "alliance". Ms Mayawati is an extremely important figure in the politics of the country. She speaks for millions of people from the Dalit (formerly known as untouchables) community, and has been the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh four times. It was widely anticipated that she would be a key figure in any coalition alliance, so it is unclear how her decision to not run will impact this. She was also an MP in the upper house of parliament before resigning in July 2017 in protest, complaining that her voice was being "muzzled" after not being allowed to complete an impromptu speech about the treatment of Dalits. Also on Wednesday.... Watching the watchmen What happened? The newest buzzword on the campaign trail is "chowkidar" or "watchman". Prime Minister Narendra Modi has used the term for a while now, telling the people that he is their "watchman" - someone who looks out for them and serves them. However in recent weeks, he has really upped the ante, even changing his Twitter handle to "Chowkidar Narendra Modi" - prompting other senior members of his cabinet to do the same. He is also going to address a crowd of 250,000 watchmen across the country through an audio link on Wednesday. Why does it matter? This is important for two reasons. Firstly, it is a clever use of the term to address the issue of national security. The second reason this is important is the fact that Mr Modi is once again demonstrating he is utterly in control of the narrative - forcing opposition parties to counter him on his own terms. So even when a leader like Rahul Gandhi says "Chowkidar Chor Hain" (The watchman is a thief), he is still essentially playing by Mr Modi's rules. In the meantime, the "Chowkidar" theme has proverbially broken the internet in India with memes, tweets and posts galore. There's even a ring tone. Apart from leaders, supporters of the BJP have started changing their social media handles and pictures to include the word. Admire the spirit and confidence! Please convey my regards to your mother. https://t.co/VypEZCSfNM— Chowkidar Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 19, 2019 Now make #MainBhiChowkidar as Ur Caller Tune.— Chowkidar Krunal N. Shah🇮🇳 (@shahkrunalsagar) March 20, 2019 Dial 57878617 from ur Airtel mobile phone Dial 53711116475 from ur Vodafone mobile phone Dial 5678911116415 from ur Idea mobile phone Jio users can type Chowkidar and send SMS to 56789 and follow instructions pic.twitter.com/QSbChBfML1 Being a watchman in India has never quite been so glamorous. New kid on the block What happened on Tuesday? Pramod Sawant, a lawmaker from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is Goa's new chief minister. The former CM, Manohar Parikkar, died on Sunday. Mr Sawant, 46, was sworn in around 02:00 local time (20:30 GMT) on Tuesday, only fitting in a state famous for its nightlife. Why does this matter? Parrikar's death sparked some late-night political wrangling as the BJP rushed to retain its hold over the coalition government. The Congress tried to woo some of the lawmakers to challenge the BJP's majority, but their hopes were dashed when the ruling party scraped together enough seats by partnering with two regional allies. It's a crucial win for the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha polls as it proves that regional allies are willing to bet on them. But it's a blow for the Congress, which has been struggling to forge alliances in other key states. To add insult to injury, their rushed attempts to wrest power - before Parrikar's funeral had even been held - earned them flak on Twitter from BJP supporters. And soon, the hashtag #VampireCongress was trending. Dear friends today we are trending to expose the nasty power hungry Congress.— Chowkidar Madhav 🇮🇳 (@mahesh10816) March 18, 2019 Let's expose congress Lust for Power #VampireCongress Kindly start tweeting in 15 minutes. By 9 A. M sharp. RTs are as important as tweets. What is the hurry #VampireCongress? Can’t you at least wait till the last rites of one of the best CMs that Goa ever had? Sick people who will do anything for power! pic.twitter.com/c6M6DScEdi— Shefali Vaidya ஷெஃபாலி வைத்யா शेफाली वैद्य (@ShefVaidya) March 18, 2019 Highlights from the last week: But here are some of the stand-out moments: - The week began with some concerns over the dates of the election, which had been announced the day before. Some people claimed that the way the election had been staggered over several states would unfairly benefit the ruling BJP, although others were quick to dismiss their worries as "rubbish". - It also saw the official start of the main opposition Congress party's election campaign in the prime minister's home state of Gujarat. Priyanka Gandhi, the charismatic younger sister of party leader Rahul Gandhi, got on stage to make her first speech as a fully-fledged politician to mixed reviews. - Also noteworthy was the fact that firebrand social activist Hardik Patel, who rose to fame challenging the prime minister in Gujarat, officially joined the Congress party and sat on stage next to national party leaders, although he did not address the crowd. The 25-year-old commerce graduate, who was not old enough to stand for election under India's rules until this year, first rose to political fame as the face of massive caste protests which rocked Mr Modi's state in 2015. - However it was certainly not a week of complete triumph for the opposition party. Tom Vadakkan, a leader seen as close to former party president Sonia Gandhi, crossed over to the BJP after telling reporters that he was "upset" with his party's response to a suicide attack which killed 40 troops in Indian-administered Kashmir last month. This was seen as yet another instance of a BJP strategy to "chip away" at opposition parties. - Women were front and centre of political agendas, with West Bengal leader Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress (TMC) announcing its candidate list, revealing 40% of them were women. This put pressure on other parties to follow suit. - The other significant piece of news last week came from the United Nations, when China blocked a bid to designate Jasih-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar a global terrorist at the Security Council. Rahul Gandhi mocked "weak Modi" and the Congress were quick to paint the vote as a foreign policy failure by none other than the prime minister. This was seen as a bid by the party to attack Mr Modi's image among voters as the man to lift India to its "rightful place" on the global stage. Weak Modi is scared of Xi. Not a word comes out of his mouth when China acts against India.— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) March 14, 2019 NoMo’s China Diplomacy: Swing with Xi in Gujarat Hug Xi in Delhi Bow to Xi in China https://t.co/7QBjY4e0z3 - The BJP retaliated by saying that they were in this position in the first place because India's first prime minister - and Mr Gandhi's great-grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru - was responsible for China having a security council seat in the first place. This didn't really find too many takers though, and was refuted by Congress leader and Nehru biographer Shashi Tharoor. It also gave rise to some jokes like this: WANTED— Milind Khandekar (@milindkhandekar) March 15, 2019 Jawaharlal Nehru Alias The Original Sinner The Telegarph front page this morning pic.twitter.com/4g20bs3koP Other highlights included Narendra Modi bombarding Bollywood with democracy-loving tweets, Priyanka Gandhi's very first tweet and controversy over the alleged withholding of yet another jobs report by the government. What about the week before? The election hadn't even been announced, but no one could have been unaware that it was coming: the BJP had placed adverts in 150 newspapers across the country extolling its successes over the last five years - all of which had to come to a stop on Monday, due to election rules. - Want to know more about India's 2019 election? Our correspondent Soutik Biswas has put together this handy explainer. How do the Lok Sabha elections work? India's lower house of parliament, the Lok Sabha, has 543 elected seats. Any party or coalition needs a minimum of 272 MPs to form a majority government. Some 900 million voters - 86 million more than the last elections in 2014 - are eligible to vote at 930,000 polling stations. Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) will be used at all polling stations. The entire process will be overseen by the Election Commission of India. Who are the main players? Prime Minister Narendra Modi who won a landslide victory in 2014 is seeking a second term for both himself and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). His main challengers are the main opposition Congress party led by Rahul Gandhi, and a consortium of regional parties called the Mahagathbandhan (which translates from the Hindi into massive alliance). The Mahagathbandhan has seen some of India's strongest regional parties, including fierce rivals, come together. This includes the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) led by Dalit icon Mayawati, normally fierce rivals in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, which sends the most number of MPs to parliament. The alliance also includes the Trinamool Congress which is in power in the state of West Bengal and Arvind Kejriwal whose Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) rules Delhi. The aim of the alliance is to consolidate regional and anti-BJP votes, in order to oust Mr Modi from power. Other regional players including Tamil Nadu's DMK and AIADMK and Telangana's TRS in the south are not part of the alliance, but are expected to perform well in their own states, which is likely to make them key to any coalition government. When do I vote? The dates at a glance 11 April: Andhra Pradesh (25), Arunachal Pradesh (2), Assam (5), Bihar (4), Chhattisgarh (1), J&K (2), Maharashtra (7), Manipur (1), Meghalaya (2), Mizoram (1), Nagaland (1), Odisha (4), Sikkim (1), Telangana (17), Tripura (1), Uttar Pradesh (UP) (8), Uttarakhand (5), West Bengal (2), Andaman & Nicobar (1), Lakshadweep (1) 18 April: Assam (5), Bihar (5), Chhattisgarh (3), Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) (2), Karnataka (14), Maharashtra (10), Manipur (1), Odisha (5), Tamil Nadu (39), Tripura (1), UP (8), West Bengal (3), Puducherry (1) 23 April: Assam (4), Bihar (5), Chhattisgarh (7), Gujarat (26), Goa (2), J&K (1), Karnataka (14), Kerala (20), Maharashtra (14), Odisha (6), UP (10), West Bengal (5), Dadar and Nagar Haveli (1), Daman and Diu (1) 29 April: Bihar (5), J&K (1), Jharkhand (3), MP (6), Maharashtra (17), Odisha (6), Rajasthan (13), UP (13), Bengal (8) 6 May: Bihar (1), J&K (2), Jharkhand (4), Madhya Pradesh (MP) (7), Rajasthan (12), UP (14), Bengal (7) 12 May: Bihar (8), Haryana (10), Jharkhand (4), MP (8), UP (14), Bengal (8), Delhi (7) 19 May: Bihar (8), Jharkhand (3), MP (8), Punjab (13), Bengal (9), Chandigarh (1), UP (13), Himachal Pradesh (4) 23 May: Votes counted Key: Date: State (number of seats being contested))
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भारत निर्वाचन: राहुल गान्धीको केरलामा परीक्षा, नरेन्द्र मोदीद्वारा गुजरातमा मतदान भारतका विभिन्न राज्यमा मङ्गलवार तेस्रो चरणको मतदान हुँदैछ। यो चरणमा १४ राज्य तथा केन्द्रशासित स्थानमा गरेर कुल ११५ संसदीय क्षेत्रमा निर्वाचन हुँदैछ। तीमध्ये धेरैको ध्यान केरलाको एउटा र गुजरातको अर्को क्षेत्रमा परेको छ। भारतको मुख्य विपक्षी दल कंग्रेस पार्टीका नेता राहुल गान्धी पहिलो पटक दक्षिण भारतीय राज्य केरलाको वायनाडको चुनावी मैदानमा छन् भने गुजरातमा भारतीय जनता पार्टीका नेता तथा प्रधानमन्त्री नरेन्द्र मोदीले गृहराज्य गुजरातमा मतदान गरे। गान्धी वायनाडबाहेक अर्को क्षेत्रबाट पनि उठेका छन्। केही हप्तापछि उनको परीक्षा उत्तर प्रदेशको अमेठीमा पनि हुँदैछ। त्यो कांग्रेसको पुरानो पकड क्षेत्र हो। दुवै स्थानमा विजयी भएमा उनले एउटा स्थान छोड्नु पर्नेछ। दुई स्थानबाट किन? वायनाडसँगै मङ्गलवार भारतको लोकसभा निर्वाचन २०१९ को तेस्रो चरणअन्तर्गत मतदान हुँदैछ। यस क्रममा गुजरात, केरला, कर्नाटक, महाराष्ट्र, गोवा, असम, बिहार, ओडिशा, उत्तर प्रदेश, छत्तीसगढ, पश्चिम बङ्गाल, दमन र दीव, दादर नागर हवेली र जम्मु-कश्मीरमा मतदान हुँदैछ। वायनाडलाई पूरै निर्वाचनको एउटा महत्त्वपूर्ण क्षेत्रको रूपमा हेरिएको छ। यो निर्वाचनलाई सन् २०१४ देखि सत्तामा रहेका प्रधानमन्त्री नरेन्द्र मोदीको पक्ष र विपक्षमा मत खस्ने जनमत सङ्ग्रहको रूपमा हेरिएको छ। वायनाडको क्षेत्र कंग्रेसका लागि सुरक्षित हुन सक्ने ठानिएको छ। सन् २००९ यता कांग्रेसले यो स्थानबाट दुई पटक विजय हासिल गरिसकेको छ। राहुल गान्धी उठेको उत्तर प्रदेशको अमेठीमा चाहिँ मे ६ तारिखमा मतदान हुँदैछ। अमेठीमा गान्धी परिवारको पकड रहँदै आएको छ। राहुल गान्धी सन् २००४ देखि अमेठीबाट लड्दै र जित्दै आएका छन्। त्यसअघि अमेठीबाट उनकी आमा, बुवा र काकाले आफ्नो सक्रिय राजनीतिक जीवनकालमा जित हासिल गर्दै आएका थिए। त्यसैले उनले वायनाडबाट पनि उठ्ने निर्णय गर्दा धेरै जना आश्चर्यचकित हुन पुगेका थिए। वायनाड भारतको पश्चिमी घाटमा अवस्थित हरियालीयुक्त सुन्दर स्थान हो। कंग्रेसले भनेको छ, "गान्धीलाई त्यहाँबाट निर्वाचन उठाउनुको अर्थ हो त्यो दलले दक्षिणी राज्यहरूलाई पनि महत्त्व दिन्छ र सम्मान गर्दछ।" तर विपक्षीहरुले भने गान्धीले अमेठीमा जित्ने निश्चित नभएकाले उनले अर्को स्थानमा पनि बाजी थापेका हुन्। मतदानका चरणहरू संसद्को तल्लो सदन लोकसभाका लागि भएको यो निर्वाचन अन्तर्गत मे १९ तारिखसम्म सात चरणमा मतदान हुनेछ। सबैतिर मतदान सकिएपछि मतगणना २३ तारिखमा सुरु हुनेछ। प्रधानमन्त्री नरेन्द्र मोदी दोस्रो कार्यकालका लागि निर्वाचित हुन खोजिरहेका छन्। यो निर्वाचनलाई उनका लागि जनमतसङ्ग्रहका रूपमा हेरिएको छ। यद्यपि रोजगारी सिर्जना गर्ने र किसानको समस्या सम्बोधन गर्नेजस्ता आफ्ना वाचा सरकारले पूरा गर्न नसकेको विपक्षीहरूको आरोप छ। कहाँ के हुँदैछ? यो निर्वाचनबाट भारतीय संसद्को तल्लो सदन लोकसभाका लागि प्रत्यक्ष रूपमा नयाँ सांसद चुन्नेछ। लोकसभामा ५४३ स्थान छन्। बहुमत ल्याउन २७२ सांसद हुनुपर्छ। गत एप्रिल ११ मा पहिलो चरणमा उत्तरप्रदेश, बिहार, पश्चिम बङ्गालसमेत १८ राज्य र दुई केन्द्रशासित क्षेत्रमा मतदान भएको थियो। पहिलो चरणमा मतदान भएका स्थानमा ९१ सांसद निर्वाचित हुनेछन् भने दोस्रो चरणको मतदानबाट ९५ सांसद छानिनेछन्। दोस्रो चरणमा असम, बिहार, छत्तीसगढ, जम्मू-कश्मीर, कर्नाटक, महाराष्ट्र, मणिपुर, ओडिशा, पुद्दुचेरी, तमिलनाडु, त्रिपुरा, उत्तर प्रदेश तथा पश्चिम बङ्गालका निर्वाचन क्षेत्रमा मतदान भएको थियो। निर्वाचनमा को बलियो? मोदीको हिन्दू राष्ट्रवादी भारतीय जनता पार्टी सन् २०१४ को निर्वाचनमा विजयी भएको थियो। भाजपाले अहिलेको जस्तै बहुमत कायम राख्न निर्वाचन अभियान चलाएको छ। तर बलिया क्षेत्रीय पार्टीहरू र राहुल गान्धीले नेतृत्व गरेको प्रमुख प्रतिपक्षी कंग्रेस पार्टीबाट उसले चुनौती खेप्नुपरेको छ। राहुल गान्धीका बुवा राजिव गान्धी, हजुरआमा इन्दिरा गान्धी र जिजुबुवा जवाहरलाल नेहरू सबै नै भारतको प्रधानमन्त्री बनेका थिए। उनकी बहिनी प्रियङ्का गान्धी गत जेनुअरीमा राजनीतिमा प्रवेश गरेकी थिइन्। प्रचारप्रसार निकै उग्र देखिएकोले केही पर्यवेक्षकहरूले यो मतदानलाई दशकौँको सबैभन्दा महत्त्वपूर्ण निर्वाचनका रूपमा हेरेका छन्। आलोचना किन मोदी सत्तारूढ दलका लागि मत तान्ने प्रमुख व्यक्तिमा रूपमा रहेका छन्। तर आलोचकहरूले आर्थिक वृद्धि र रोजगारी सिर्जना गर्ने उनको वाचा पूरा हुन नसकेको बताएका छन्। मोदीको नेतृत्वमा धार्मिक ध्रुवीकरण भएको भन्दै उनीहरूले आलोचना गरेका छन्। यो निर्वाचनमा झन्डै ९० करोड योग्य मतदाताले देशभरिका एक लाख मतदान केन्द्रमा मतदान गर्नेछन्। सन् २०१४ मा भएको निर्वाचनमा झन्डै ६६ प्रतिशत मतदाता सहभागी भएका थिए। सन् २०१४ मा भएको निर्वाचनमा भाजपाले दुई सय ८२ स्थानमा जितेको थियो भने कंग्रेस पार्टी ४४ स्थानमा खुम्चिएको थियो। कोही पनि मतदाताले मतदान केन्द्र पुग्नका लागि दुई किलोमिटरभन्दा पर पुग्नुपर्नेछैन। भारतमा निर्वाचनको इतिहास संयुक्त अधिराज्यबाट सन् १९४७ मा स्वतन्त्र भएको भारतमा पहिलो चोटि सन् १९५१/५२ मा निर्वाचन भएको थियो। पहिलो निर्वाचन सकिन तीन महिना लागेको थियो। सन् १९६२ देखि १९८९ सम्म निर्वाचन सकिन चारदेखि १० दिन लागेको थियो। सन् १९८० मा चार दिनमा सकिएको निर्वाचन देशकै सबैभन्दा सानो समयावधिमा सकिएको थियो। यसपालि सन् २०१४ को निर्वाचनपछि थपिएका आठ करोड ३० लाख मतदाता छन्। नयाँ मतदातामा १८ देखि १९ वर्ष पुगेकाको सङ्ख्या डेढ करोड छ।