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<keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi">Narendra Modi</keyword> has led the <keyword id="14666" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="BJP">BJP</keyword> to its biggest <keyword id="6359191" type="EVENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="election">election</keyword> victory. In fact, it is the biggest election victory in the country since Rajiv Gandhi swept to power in 1984, following India Gandhi’s assassination. The outcome for the BJP has been even better than what the exit polls had predicted like Chanakya News. 
 
The BJP has swept away parties like Mayawati’s Bahujan Samajwadi Party and Mulayam’s Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh. BSP was completely decimated and even failed to open its account. 
 <keyword id="1575" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Congress">Congress</keyword>’ national tally has been less than that of the BJP in UP alone. The BJP had won 251 seats and was leading in 31 constituencies, making its total tally to 282 as per the latest update. The Congress had won only 41 and was leading in five, managing just a total of 46, as per the latest update. 
 <keyword id="41281" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="NDA">NDA</keyword>’s tally stood at 337 (lead+win), while <keyword id="6355364" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="UPA">UPA</keyword>’s tally stood at modest 59 (lead+win). 
 
Several Congress heavyweights – Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, PK Bansal, Kapil Sibbal, Sandeep Dikshit, Ajay Makan, Madhsudan Mistry, Sanjay Nirupam and Priya Dutt had to bite the dust. 
 
All the BJP-ruled states - Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh headed the BJP way. 
It remains to be seen what Modi does with this degree of political authority.

It Is Actually Ab Ki Baar Modi Sarkaar, BJP
Is Going To Make The Government In India

It looks like the <keyword id="14666" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="BJP">BJP</keyword> will secure a similar result to its 2014 tally in <keyword id="6355554" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Madhya-Pradesh">Madhya Pradesh</keyword>. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">MP Exit Poll </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Party Names </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">2014 Result </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">C -Voter </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">News 18 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Todays's Chanakya </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">India Today Axis </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">TimesNow - VMR </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">26 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">24</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">26 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">27 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">27 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">24 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">INC (Indian National Congress) </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">3 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">5</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">3 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">2 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">2 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">5 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Others </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0 </td></tr></tbody></table> Business Insider compiled surveys from five reputed sources-- Republic-C -Voter, News 18 , Today's Chanakya, India Today-Axis, and TimesNow - VMR-- amongst many others and the final number is an average of these five polls. As suggested in its name, Madhya Pradesh is a central Indian state. Called as the heart of India, this is the second largest state of India next to Uttar Pradesh and the fifth largest in the country in terms of population. The electoral rolls of Madhya Pradesh has 5,14,68,032 eligible voters. The number of male voters is 2,68,42,970 and the number of female electors is 2,46,23,639 besides the 1,423 third gender voters. From the state of Madhya Pradesh, the BJP got 27 seats during the 2014 general elections leaving the <keyword id="1575" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Congress">Congress</keyword> party with 2 seats to take to the Parliament. The 2014 <keyword id="6355187" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="lok-sabha">Lok Sabha</keyword> elections saw the BJP bagging 16 seats from here with the Congress party claiming 12 places and the BSP winning from 1 seat. In 2004 Parliamentary elections, the BJP got 25 seats leaving the Congress party with 4 seats. Madhya Pradesh has a total number of 29 seats to give the Lok Sabha. Among them, 4 are reserved for the scheduled castes and 6 are earmarked for the scheduled tribes. The state sends 11 Rajya Sabha members. The total number of assembly constituencies in Madhya Pradesh is 231 and the latest assembly elections in the state were held in December 2018. For the Lok Sabha <keyword id="4300495" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Elections-2019">elections 2019</keyword>, Madhya Pradesh went for polling in four phases on April 29, May 6, May 12 and May 19.

Madhya Pradesh exit poll 2019 of Lok Sabha Elections

<table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Assam Exit Poll </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Party Names </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">2014 Result </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">IPSOS-News18 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Todays's Chanakya </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 0pt 2pt 0pt;">TimesNow - VMR </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">7 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">9 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">10 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">6 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">INC(Indian National Congress) </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">3 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">3 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">3 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">7 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Others </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">4 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">2 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">1 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">1 </td></tr></tbody></table> Spread over an area of 78,438 square kilometers and sharing its borders with the North Eastern states of the country, <keyword id="6354915" type="DEFINITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="assam">Assam</keyword> has a total number of 2,18,15,823 voters among whom the males are 1,11,86,860 and females are 1,06,28,460. The third gender voters in the state are 503 in number. During 2014 <keyword id="56978" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lok-Sabha-elections">Lok Sabha elections</keyword>, Assam gave 7 seats to the BJP and 3 seats were bagged by AIUDF. The Congress party won from 3 constituencies while just 1 seat was given to other parties. In 2009 general elections for the <keyword id="6355187" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="lok-sabha">Lok Sabha</keyword>, the state gave 7 seats to the Congress party while BJP could win only from 4 constituencies. The performance of the Congress party was good in 2009 general elections when the party won from 9 constituencies with BJP claiming only 2 seats. The total number of Lok Sabha seats in Assam are 14. Among them, 1 seat is reserved for the scheduled castes and 2 are earmarked for the scheduled tribes. The state can send 7 Rajya Sabha members to represent it. The number of assembly constituencies in Assam are 126. The latest assembly elections in the state of Assam were held in May 2016. The Lok Sabha <keyword id="4300495" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Elections-2019">elections 2019</keyword> happened in the state in three phases on April 11, April 18 and April 23.

Assam exit poll 2019 for Lok Sabha Elections

<ul><li>The ‘super star’ from Tamil Nadu is slowly transitioning into a politician ahead of the assembly election next year. </li><li>As one of Asia’s highest-paid actors, Rajinikanth’s popularity is beyond question but there is lack of clarity in what he stands for. </li><li>As a politician focussed on Tamil Nadu, he is trying to keep himself away from the BJP but is barely managing to. </li></ul>Rajinikanth, the ‘Super Star’ from Tamil Nadu, is slowly transitioning into a politician with an eye on the upcoming state assembly polls in 2021. So far, the only thing clearly known about Rajinikanth’s political stance is that it will be rooted in ‘spirituality’. For everything, the actor, known for his style and stunts, has done a volte face. Yet, he seems to have too much in common with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Prime Minister Narendra Modi who have very little traction among the people in Tamil Nadu. Modi featured on the Discovery show Man vs Wild hosted by Bear Grylls just days before the national elections in 2019 and Rajinikanth is set to do the same this year. But that is not the only thing they have in common. In the last few years, there have been multiple occasions ⁠— from his support for demonetisation to his stand on the Sterlite shootings to his recent attack on a iconic social reformer, Periyar ⁠— Rajinikanth has found himself on the same side of the debate as the BJP. Something that his rivals never fail to highlight. <div type="image" title="Chennai: Union Home Minister Amit Shah with actor Rajinikanth during the release..." msid="73721594" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Union Home Minister Amit Shah with actor Rajinikanth during the release of the book &amp;quot;Listening, Learning and Leading&amp;quot;, a chronicle of the Vice President of India&amp;#39;s two years in office, at a function in Chennai.Photo) (&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>

 “Hats off to Modiji” When the ill-advised demonetisation was announced on November 8, 2016, Rajinikanth was elated. <div type="twitter" handle="rajinikanth" handlename="Rajinikanth" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/980000107415314432/pJ3ANCkn_normal.jpg" favoritecount="72691" retweetcount="37187" status="Hats off @narendramodi ji. New india is born #JaiHind" createdat="1478625887000" id="796040786965991424"></div>

 A couple of years later, he had to eat his earlier words. In November 2018, <a href="https://www.financialexpress.com/india-news/govt-should-have-announced-demonetisation-after-detailed-research-says-rajinikanth/1379833/">he reportedly said</a> the government should have done a ‘detailed research’ and the implementation of the note ban was ‘wrong’. The Sterlite faux pas <div type="image" title="rajinikant at sterlite protest" msid="73721635" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Rajinikanth blamed &amp;#39;anti-social elements&amp;#39; for the protests against Sterlite copper smelter in Tuticorin after 14 people died in police firing. The super star had to eat his words later.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>

 In May 2018, Rajinikanth landed in Tuticorin where protests against the Sterlite copper smelter were peaking, and 14 people had been killed by police bullets. But <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ip3CMKK1_r8">the actor’s comments blaming</a> ‘anti-social elements’ were seen as justifying the action of the state, which is ruled by the BJP-friendly All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK). Few months later, he had to call it <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtB19xd6V48">the ‘government’s failure’</a>. Saffron or not? As a politician focussed on Tamil Nadu, Rajinikanth is trying to keep himself away from the BJP but is barely managing to. Thiruvalluvar is an ancient Tamil poet and philosopher whose faith is not clear. The Dravidian parties have portrayed him as a Jain saint. The recent attempt by the BJP to appropriate the historic icon as a Hindu resulted in another controversy. Rajini, as his fans often refer to him, claimed that <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/thiruvalluvar-and-i-wont-get-caught-in-bjps-saffronisation-bid-rajinikanth-says/articleshow/71968243.cms">‘neither Thiruvalluvar nor him can be trapped in saffron’</a>. 
	<div type="image" title="thiruvalluvar saffron" msid="73721951" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Thiruvalluvar is an ancient Tamil poet and philosopher, commonly believed to be a Jain saint from Tamil Nadu, popular for his couplets called &amp;lt;em&amp;gt;Thirukkural &amp;lt;/em&amp;gt;which are seen as guiding principles for life by the Tamil people. &amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>

 However, just this month, in his speech at the 50th anniversary of an iconic Tamil magazine, Tughlak ⁠— known for its satire and hard-hitting take on controversial issues, and its bellwether editor the Late Cho Ramaswamy⁠— the ‘super star’ ended up making <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/rajini-stirs-a-storm-with-periyar-remark/articleshow/73503264.cms">a controversial comment</a> that has landed him court. <div type="image" title="rajinikanth at tughlak event" msid="73721384" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;In his speech at the 50th anniversary of an iconic Tamil magazine, Tughlak, Rajinikanth ended up making &amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/rajini-stirs-a-storm-with-periyar-remark/articleshow/73503264.cms&amp;quot;&amp;gt;a controversial comment&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; against Periyar that has landed him court. He was sharing the stage with Vice President and BJP leader, Venkaiah Naidu, as well as RSS ideologue S Gurumurthy .&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>

 His statements are being portrayed as an attack on Periyar, much like the barbs from H Raja, one of BJP’s top faces in Tamil Nadu. So far, the demigod has <a href="https://theprint.in/opinion/newsmaker-of-the-week/rajinikanth-not-apologising-for-periyar-remark-will-show-where-tamil-nadu-politics-is-headed/354350/">refused to apologise</a>. Rival Dravida Munnetra Kahagam (DMK), led by MK Stalin, which was at the receiving end of Rajinikanth’s barb, has still not mounted a strong protest ⁠— possibly to avoid giving the actor the mileage that he is gunning for. The state election in Tamil Nadu in 2021 For six decades, the politics in Tamil Nadu has been dominated by the Dravidian ideology, which barfs at majoritarianism unlike the Hindutva espoused by the BJP. However, there is some fatigue, growing discontent with the corruption, is a vacuum in leadership with the passing away of iconic leaders like J Jayalalithaa and M Karunanidhi. There is a growing clamour for change. Aside from the need for change, what works for Rajinikanth is the unprecedented popularity, and the fact that there aren’t any rival leaders of his stature. But it is still not conclusive if the people will accept BJP or its allies. <div type="image" title="rajinikant politics" msid="73721646" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Actor Rajinikanth, who has announced his intent to contest the assembly polls, greets his fans after unveiling a statue of former chief minister MG Ramachandran at the Dr MGR Educational and Research Institute in Chennai on Monday.05-03-2018&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>

 The current economic slowdown too, has affected voter sentiment against the Modi government. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="72294625" title="India’s GDP growth is as bad as the worst estimates ⁠— as the economy slows down for the fifth quarter in a row" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div>
 Rajinikanth’s experience with Bear Grylls may give him some perspective on the ‘law of the jungle’, which may be useful in political manoeuvres. But only a clearly expressed political stance, whether it is in sync with BJP or not, will help garner votes. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/entertainment/news/kamal-haasan-net-worth-and-his-finances-after-2-years-in-politics/articleshow/73290359.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">Kamal Haasan's ₹25 crore loan revealed a lot about his finances after nearly 2 years in politics</a>

Rajinikanth’s shared interests with Narendra Modi goes beyond Bear Grylls’ Man vs Wild

Exit polls bring good news for Congress as their coalition partner, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) will sweep the state, winning over 25 seats. Today’s Chanakya and India Today and India Today-Axis’ polls foretell that they will cross 30 seats. BJP’s poll partner, on the other hand, AIADMK (All India Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) might find it tough to win more than ten seats, according to most polls. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 0pt 2pt 0pt;">TamilNadu Exit Poll 2019 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Party Names </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">TimesNow - VMR </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">India Today Axis </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">C -Voter </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">News 18 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">AIADMK +BJP </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">9 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">3 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">11 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">14 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">DMK+Congress </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">29 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">34 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">27 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">23 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Others </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">1 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">1 </td></tr></tbody></table> Tamil Nadu is the southernmost state of the Indian subcontinent. Bordered by Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh on three sides, Tamil Nadu has a 940 km coastline along the Bay of Bengal, which is the third longest in India. Tamil Nadu is the eleventh largest state in India in terms of area and the sixth largest in terms of population. The total number of eligible voters in the state is 5,89,78,232 consisting of 2,91,92,130 males and 2,97,80,641 females in addition to 5,461 third gender voters. In 2014 general elections for the Parliament, Tamil Nadu elected the AIADMK from 37 seats giving 1 seat each to BJP and PMK. In 2009 Lok Sabha elections, DMK secured 18 places giving 9 places to AIADMK, 8 seats to the Congress and 4 seats to other candidates. In 2004 general elections for the Lok Sabha, the state elected DMK from 16 constituencies, INC form 10 seats, PMK from 5 places and other candidatesfrom 8 seats. The total number of Lok Sabha constituencies in Tamil Nadu is 39 and hence it sends 39 MPs to the Lok Sabha. 7 among them are reserved seats for the scheduled castes. 18 Members represent Tamil Nadu in the Rajya Sabha. The state has 235 assembly constituencies and the latest state elections were held in May 2016. For the Lok Sabha 2019 elections, Tamil Nadu voted in a single phase on April 18, 2019 when the country voted during the second round of polling.

Good News for UPA in Tamilnadu as per all Exit poll 2019

It seems that the <keyword id="14666" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="BJP">BJP</keyword> and Shiv Sena will clean up in <keyword id="13126" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Maharashtra">Maharashtra</keyword> once again. The alliance members are expected to get close to 40 seats, while the <keyword id="1575" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Congress">Congress</keyword> and NCP will struggle to reach double digits. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;"></colgroup></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Maharashtra Exit Poll </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Party Names </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">2014 Result </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">C -Voter </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">News18 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Todays's Chanakya </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">India Today Axis </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">TimesNow - VMR </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">BJP + Shiv Sena </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">41</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">34</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">43 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">38 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">40 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">37 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">INC + NCP</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">4 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">14</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">5</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">10</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">8 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">11 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Others</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">3</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0</td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td></tr></tbody></table> Business Insider compiled surveys from five reputed sources-- Republic-C -Voter, ABP, Today's Chanakya, India Today-Axis, and TimesNow - VMR-- amongst many others and the final number is an average of these five polls. Maharashtra is a western state of India that is the third largest in the country in terms of area and the second largest in India in terms of population. Spanning over an area of 307,713 square kilometers, the state of Maharashtra has 8,74,34,919 registered and eligible voters on its electoral rolls. This figure is made of 4,58,05,196 males, 4,16,27,637 females and 2,086 third gender electors. In the 2014 <keyword id="6355187" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="lok-sabha">Lok Sabha</keyword> elections, the state gave 23 seats to the BJP, 18 constituencies to the Shiv Sena, 4 places to the NCP and 3 seats to the other candidates. The election results for the Lok Sabha polls 2009 in Maharashtra was 17 seats for INC, 11 places for the Shiv Sena, 9 places for BJP and 11 constituencies for the other candidates. In 2004 Parliamentary elections, the INC had bagged 13 seats, BJP won from 13 constituencies, SHS got 12 constituencies and others could win from 10 places. Maharashtra has a total number of 48 seats to give the Parliament. Among them, 5 are reserved for the scheduled castes and 4 are reserved for the scheduled tribes. Maharashtra is represented by 19 members in the Rajya Sabha. Maharashtra has 289 Assembly constituencies in total and the state went for the latest assembly elections in October 2014. Polling for the Lok Sabha <keyword id="4300495" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Elections-2019">elections 2019</keyword> happened in Maharashtra in four phases on April 11, April 18, April 23 and April 29.

Maharashtra exit poll 2019 result: INC+NCP will struggle to reach double digits in Maharashtra

<table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Telangana Exit Poll </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Party Names </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">2014 Result </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">C -Voter </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">News18 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Todays's Chanakya </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">India Today Axis </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">TimesNow - VMR </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">TRS (Telangana Rashtra Samithi) </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">11 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">14</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">13</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">14</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">11</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">12</td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">1 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">1 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">2</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">2</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">3</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">1</td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">INC (Indian National Congress) </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">2 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">1</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">2</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">1</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">3</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">2</td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">Others </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">3 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">1</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">0</td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.75pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.75pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;">2</td></tr></tbody></table> Business Insider compiled surveys from five reputed sources-- Republic-C -Voter, News18 , Today's Chanakya, India Today-Axis, and TimesNow - VMR-- amongst many others and the final number is an average of these five polls. Telangana is the twelfth largest state in India formed after carving it out from the Andhra Pradesh in 2014. In terms of population, it is the twelfth largest in India. The total geographical extent of Telangana is 112,077. As per the statistical information gathered from the electoral rolls, the number of eligible voters in the state of Telangana is 2,95,30,838. This figure comprises of 1,48,53,993 males and 1,46,74,752 females. The number of third gender voters in the state is 2,093. In 2014 general elections, Telangana elected the TRS from 11 seats, INC from 2 constituencies, BJP from 1 place and other candidates from 3 seats. In 2009 <keyword id="6355187" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="lok-sabha">Lok Sabha</keyword> elections, INC won from 12 seats, TDP from 2 constituencies, TRS from 2 places and other candidates from 1 seat. The results of the 2009 general elections for the Lok Sabha showed up INC in 13 constituencies, TDP in 3 places and CPM in 1 seat. The state of Telangana has 17 seats to give the Lok Sabha. 3 of them are reserved for scheduled castes and 2 are reserved for scheduled tribes. 7 members represent Telangana in the Rajya Sabha. The number of assembly constituencies in Telangana is 120 and the latest assembly elections were held in December 2018. Telangana went for polls during the Lok Sabha <keyword id="4300495" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Elections-2019">elections 2019</keyword> on April 11 during the first phase of elections.

Telangana exit poll 2019 for Lok Sabha Elections

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party has suffered a devastating blow.</li><li>Though Modi is claiming victory, his party is seeing major losses in the country's general election.</li></ul>For a decade, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has held a decisive grip on his country's politics.But as election results rolled in Tuesday, it appeared Modi's grip may be slipping.Modi, who leads India's Bharatiya Janata Party, is <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/india-election-results-narendra-modi-bjp-congress-2024-6">claiming victory</a> for a historic third term as the country's prime minister. But even though Modi will hold on to his position, his party didn't do as well as he'd predicted.India wrapped up counting the votes in its general election, and Modi's party lost its majority in Parliament. That's a big blow to Modi, whose party was long expected to win a majority.Now, he'll have to gather enough allies to form a government.The BJP's main opposition party, the Indian National Congress, performed better than expected.The Indian National Congress had set a goal to double its 52 seats in Parliament, and as of Tuesday evening Eastern Time, it had won 99 seats.In an election that saw record voter turnout — with 642 million people voting, according to <a target="_blank" href="https://aje.io/hcofgh">Al Jazeera</a>, in the seven-phase process that began in April and ended Saturday — the surprise results indicate that voters' trust in the BJP is waning.The BJP's Hindutva ideology promotes Hindu nationalism, which critics have accused of stoking anti-Muslim hate and right-wing extremism.Modi has even accused the Congress party of plotting to redistribute India's wealth to the Muslim minority, Business Insider previously reported. Modi has denied targeting the Muslim minority to win the favor of the Hindu majority, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.reuters.com/world/india/indias-modi-denies-stoking-divisions-win-election-files-nomination-2024-05-14/">Reuters reported</a>.Though Modi is still popular across India, some see him as an <a target="_blank" href="https://apnews.com/article/india-election-narendra-modi-hindu-nationalism-rss-79c30c8ae750a9c037d86b9e2c1b640c">authoritarian leader</a>, and his opponents on Tuesday called signs of his fading power a victory for democracy.The president of the Congress, Mallikarjun Kharge, called the election a "moral and political loss" for Modi, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/modi-wins-3rd-term-in-indias-general-election-narrowly-securing-majority">PBS NewsHour reported</a>. "This is public's victory and a win for democracy," he added.Raghuram Rajan, a former governor of the Reserve Bank of India, echoed Kharge's sentiment in <a target="_blank" href="https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/activity%3A7203737299170312192/So ">a LinkedIn post</a>."The Indian voter has spoken," Rajan wrote. "And what a wise decision! This is a win for Indian democracy and a win for the Indian economy. Regardless of what happens over the next few days, we will have a strong opposition that forces the government to change course."Update: June 4, 2024, 6:27 p.m. ET: This story has been updated to reflect the latest election result numbers.

Shocking Indian election results are a crushing blow to Modi

<keyword id="1857762" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Business-Insider-India">Business Insider India</keyword> has seen an extremely happening and fruitful year in 2015-16 and has therefore taken to expanding its editorial team and is now hiring for many exciting roles across Delhi and Bangalore. Pay packages will be competent with the industry and designations are negotiable basis experience and capabilities. 
 
All applicants must possess the following skills: 
 
· 3-5 years relevant experience 
· Ability to write impeccable, conversational copies that are smart, engaging, timely, and accurate 
· Creative, outside-the-box thinker 
· A knack for finding new and interesting stories within beats 
· Ability to stay organized, meet deadlines, and work well under pressure, while adapting to fast-paced organizational changes 
· Understand Business Insider’s audience and writing style 
· Experience using Photoshop and content management systems is a plus, but not required 
 
Startup and IT Correspondent 
Location: Bangalore 
· 3-5 yrs experience covering StartUps and the IT Sector 
· Ability to break news and write out of the box stories from within the beat 
· A good hold and understanding of developments in most companies based out of Bangalore 
· In-roads in to top and mid-management levels of all big IT companies 
· Writing interesting human stories from these companies 
· Ability to closely track and report on all trends and happening in start-ups 
· Covering IT and Start-Up events in Bangalore 
 
Economy and Finance Correspondent 
Location: Delhi 
· 3-5 yrs experience covering economic and financial sector developments 
· In-roads in to the Finance Ministry for all big economy/financial policy related news 
· In-roads into most big Banks to track and report on key developments in the sector and the Banks 
· Ability to write knowledgeably about big policy changes and financial sector news and their impact on the common man 
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· A good understanding of the latest and biggest consumer gadgets launched/to-be launched and writing about them from the consumer’s point of view, not that of a gadget geek. 
 
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If you are interested in applying, send your Resume and a Cover Letter of 400 words to Debdatta.Das@timesinternet.in 
 
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<div class="image-container float_right"><div class="image">REUTERS/Babu</div></div><keyword id="3658" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="India">India</keyword> is in desperate need of reforms.
With <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/india-economic-slowdown-2013-5">economic growth at a ten-year low</a>, the rupee down over 12% year-to-date against the dollar, capital outflows, and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/indias-great-debt-transfer-2013-8">collapsing corporate profits</a>, it's no surprise that biggest story in India over the next year are the May 2014 elections.
Unfortunately, the government isn't expected to pass any major reforms between now and May 2014, and risk voter wrath.
What's worse, it's looking less likely that the incoming government will have the clear majority needed to pass any drastic, growth-stimulating reforms.
The latest opinion polls show the Congress party (which is largely expected to push populist measures) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP - which is fiscally conservative and focused on a development agend) losing ground to a "third-front coalition."
The third-front refers to <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/16/us-india-politics-parties-idUSBRE97F0HN20130816">regional parties, that are now expected to win nearly 50% of seats in parliament</a>. India holds general elections every five years, so, if elected, this third-front could stay in power till 2019. The president can however dissolve the lower house of parliament in extreme circumstances and call for general elections before the five-years are up. 
The rise of the third front is bad news because the smaller parties have their own agendas and are likely to push for reforms centered on certain regions or communities, and are "unlikely to have strong national policies," argues CLSA analyst Mahesh Nandurkar. 
"We see the chances of a weak leadership largely made up of regional parties - each with their own agenda and incapable of pursuing the bold reforms needed to kick-start India's economy - as the most probable scenario," writes Nandurkar. "This would usher in a period of prolonged weak and patchy policy making."
And the make-up of the government is likely to moves markets. From Nandurkar:
"Market reaction to electoral results can be strong and immediate. Following 2009 election results, the market moved rallied 17% over two days as the ruling Congress won a stronger-than-expected mandate. After the 2004 result, the market dropped 17% in two days as the right wing BJP lost unexpectedly and a Congress coalition, supported by left-wing parties, came to power. In both cases, Congress won the elections."
Nandurkar expects a third-front coalition to claim 200 - 250 seats. He expects both the BJP and Congress to "woo" the regional parties and form alliances.
Of course political alliances are prone to change and the results of the upcoming state elections in November and December will also weigh on the 2104 elections. Moreover, there are 70 million new voters, or 10% of the electorate, that will take part in the 2014 elections and this could also impact the outcome. 
Earlier this year, the Financial Times reported that in a <a href="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/de41f46c-157f-11e3-b519-00144feabdc0.html?siteedition=intl#axzz2dtk8mwte">"confidential note" the IMF</a> was forced to make "a humbling series of U-turns over its global economic assessment."At a time when growth in developed markets is just beginning to return, <keyword id="6359891" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="emerging-markets">emerging markets</keyword> have failed be the engine of growth that the world had come to expect.
This is obviously key for foreign investors and businesses looking to make a footprint in India.

Why India's Economy Could Be In Trouble For 5 More Years

55-year old Imran is a watchman in one of the residential buildings in suburban Mumbai. He sleeps on the same chair he sits on to guard the building and uses the common toilet in the parking lot to clean up. He works two shifts a day of 12 hours each, for a total salary of ₹13,500. If he had worked one shift a day, he would have got ₹7,000 a month and would have had to find himself an accommodation. He would rather send nearly all his earnings to his family in a village in Uttar Pradesh than rent a room in Mumbai. Imran was blissfully unaware of the ongoing trend on Twitter where leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and their supporters have prefixed the word 'chowkidar' to their profile names. Chowkidar is the Hindi word for watchman or security guard and it has since become a buzzword on social media. When told about his humble job being at the centre of the country's political discourse ahead of the elections, Imran's first reaction was that of amusement. "Wasn't it chaiwala the last time?" he asked with a smirk and thinly veiled sarcasm. 'Chaiwala' is what Indians call the local tea vendor in Hindi. Modi's claim to fame in the run up to the 2014 elections was that he had worked in his father's tea stall in Gujarat as a child. He used his humble origins effectively as he challenged the country's political royalty-- the Gandhi family which has sent three Prime Ministers in the past-- and caught the fancy of an aspiring voter base. At the same time, a series of corruption charges against the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) tilted the scale further in Modi's favour and the BJP swept the elections with a majority in Lok Sabha, the lower house of Indian Parliament. This was the first time any party had managed to score a full majority in India's Parliamentary elections since 1984. Modi is banking once again on a strategy that worked for him five years ago. The word 'chowkidar' has been bandied around by BJP leaders pitching Modi as a man of strength but someone who lacks political pedigree. That can hardly be true for a person who has been a politician for over two decades, a chief minister for three terms, and currently, the prime minister seeking re-election. The playbook-- underdog versus the entitled-- is as old as time but no one has claimed the 'underdog' tag effectively after the first surprise. But Modi is giving it another shot And in this battle of catchphrases, Modi may have an upper hand over his rivals. First of all, the move has either distracted or diluted the debate on more pressing issues like the economy, policies, and unemployment. Modi's rivals are essentially talking about things that he wants them to talk about. While charging the government with corruption, senior Congress leaders have tweeted '<keyword id="6895071" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Chowkidar-chor-hai">chowkidar chor hai</keyword>' or 'the watchman is the thief'. However, by referring to Modi as the watchman repeatedly, even in slander, the opposition is unwittingly fortifying the image he wants: a strongman of a humble background who is guarding the country not just from adversaries across the borders but also keeping a watch on home-grown muggers looking for a way out to safety. For example, the opposition is mocking Modi citing the government's failure to stop billionaire fugitives like Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, and Mehul Choksi with unpaid loans and alleged bank frauds to their name from leaving the country. However, even if one of the three are nabbed ahead of the elections, it will be forgotten that each of the three businessmen, with close ties to the BJP in the past, did mysteriously escape from the country. The time spent on countering the chowkidar claim could have been used to question the government on its economic blunders like demonetisation, the troubles of the small enterprises, and the rise in unemployment in the last five years. In the run up to the 2014 elections as well as in every state election thereafter wherever the BJP was the challenger, Modi had, in no uncertain terms, demanded an account of the incumbent government's performance. He would set the agenda and let the party in power respond. The strategy has been so successful that BJP is now in power in 17 out 29 Indian states. Instead of holding him to account for the last five years, his rivals are following Modi's lead in political rhetoric. This hollow, partisan, inconsequential, farcical political debate is a lost opportunity for the opposition. Over a 1,300 kilometres away from Mumbai in Gurgaon, Kabir (name changed on request), gets paid ₹15,000 for a 12-hour shift as a watchman. That's more than twice that of Imran, but it's still not enough for him to run a family comfortably. Kabir had seen the rhetoric around watchmen in India on news television and he saw hope. "The PM is one of us and he will improve our working conditions after he wins the elections," he said. In the words of Emily Dickinson, hope is the thing with feathers. SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/elections-2019-latest-opinion-poll-pegs-unemployment-as-the-biggest-issue/articleshow/68475510.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">Modi may not take the fall for rising unemployment in India, latest opinion poll shows</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/general-elections-2019-vvpat-how-to-verify-vote/articleshow/68475130.cms">Here’s how you can verify your vote using VVPAT</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/is-indias-2019-election-really-a-foregone-conclusion/articleshow/68423465.cms">Is India's 2019 election really a foregone conclusion?</a>

The humble security guard at the centre of India’s election debate is a sign that Modi is still setting the agenda

<ul class="summary-list"><li>John Oliver, the host of Last Week Tonight, turned his satirical eye to India's elections. </li><li>Oliver called out the country's polarizing leader, Narendra Modi, for censorship and anti-Muslim violence. </li></ul>TV host John Oliver took aim at <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/india-election-results-narendra-modi-bjp-congress-2024-6">India's elections and its prime minister, Narendra Modi, </a>on Sunday night, warning that the nation was "sliding towards authoritarianism.""Basically, if you criticize Modi, there's a good chance that things are going to be very unpleasant for you," Oliver said on the latest episode of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/john-oliver-hbo-streaming-youtube-jon-stewart-daily-show-free-2024-2">Last Week Tonight</a>. "Meaningful criticism of Modi is scarce on TV in India."In his classic "roast" style, Oliver noted Modi's increasing tendency towards censorship and anti-Muslim rhetoric."There's been a noticeable shift in his rhetoric this election season," said the HBO host."Modi and his party have seemed increasingly comfortable threatening democratic institutions by, among other things, stifling political opposition and freedom of the press," he added, pointing to cases of intimidation toward rival political parties and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.reuters.com/world/india/bbc-tax-raids-shine-light-indian-media-freedom-under-modi-some-journalists-say-2023-03-04/https://www.reuters.com/world/india/bbc-tax-raids-shine-light-indian-media-freedom-under-modi-some-journalists-say-2023-03-04/">raids at critical news networks</a>."It's worth remembering: that is not a bug of Modi's leadership, it is a feature," he said.Oliver also joked about Modi's tendency to take credit for things, showing an ad that suggested the leader had personally halted the war in Ukraine to bring home an Indian student.He also ridiculed Modi's economic policies, saying that despite the narrative around India's recent growth, the country has "fallen in the Global Hunger Index, and now sits behind North Korea and war-torn Sudan.""Anyone can get rid of 'all' poverty if you just change the definition of poor people to something else like, I dunno, 'fire hydrants' or 'opposite snakes,'" joked the British comedian.Finally, Oliver called for an end to the "uncritical, fawning praise" for Modi coming from the international community.Over the past six weeks, hundreds of millions of Indian citizens have been voting in the country's election, and on Tuesday, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/india-election-results-narendra-modi-bjp-congress-2024-6">Modi secured a third term,</a> though his ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/indian-election-results-shocking-blow-narendra-modi-2024-6">fell well short of securing an expected majority</a> in India's 543-member parliament.Prior to voting, Modi said the BJP sought to win around 400 seats, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-asia-india-69072275">per the BBC.</a> In reality, the party gained only 240 seats, and must now seek to build a coalition government. Modi, who has been in office since 2014, is a highly popular leader among a large segment of the Indian population. He's credited with <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/india-economy-growth-booming-modi-seize-moment-problems-davos-2024-2">driving forward India's economy</a> and raising its standing on the global stage.However, others have criticized Modi for divisive Hindu nationalist policies, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/india-citizenship-laws-muslims-modi-2020-2">persecution of Muslims</a>, erosion of the judiciary, and suppression of protests and the free press."It should be possible to acknowledge the good things that Modi has managed to do for India, while also acknowledging that many Indians live in active fear of what he seems more than happy to represent," Oliver said.

John Oliver warns India is 'sliding towards authoritarianism' as Modi wins in tighter-than-expected election

<a href="https://www.scmp.com/topics/india/">Indian</a> courts and political parties are calling for Chinese company ByteDance's most popular mobile app <a href="https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3001893/how-short-video-app-tiktok-became-first-chinese-made-app-take">TikTok</a> to be banned. On Tuesday, The Economic Times newspaper reported that India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology had asked Google and Apple to pull video social media platform <keyword id="6762469" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="TikTok">TikTok</keyword> from its mobile application stores. The South China Morning Post was unable to independently verify the report. The news follows an order of the <keyword id="6360667" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="madras-high-court">Madras High Court</keyword>, located in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, on April 3 that banned TikTok over concerns about children using the app being vulnerable to exploitation by sexual predators. TikTok is rated 12+ on the Apple app store and has a "teen maturity" rating on Google Play, but United States-based Common Sense Media, which reviews tech products for families, recommends that children be at least 16 years old to use the app. In February, the US Federal Trade Commission <a href="https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/2187990/chinese-owned-video-sharing-tiktok-app-pay-us57-million-fine-settle">fined TikTok US$5.7 million</a>, the largest such sum in a child privacy case, for illegally collecting personal information from children under the age of 13. Meanwhile, the Delhi state unit of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) complained to the country's Election Commission on March 29 that ByteDance, which it identified as a Chinese company, was "interfering in the Indian election process through its social media applications". The BJP cited Facebook's takedown of 11,000 advertisements from another of the company's apps - Helo - for violation of its rules concerning transparency in political spending. Helo's adverts featured doctored images of politicians accompanied by sensationalised text. In a statement, ByteDance said it was committed to respecting local laws and regulations and maintaining a safe and positive in-app experience for its users in India. "We have faith in the Indian judicial system and we are optimistic about an outcome that would be well received by over 120 million month active users in India, who continue using TikTok to showcase their creativity and capture moments that matter in their everyday lives," the company said. ByteDance denied that its Helo platform has been sharing any political adverts, saying the company had promised India's Election Commission it would abide by the country's code of conduct. "We are not serving any paid political advertisements during this election period and are not proactively onboarding any political figures or parties on our platform." Out of all adverts generated from Helo since its launch last June, ads related to politics amounted to "less than 0.1 per cent", said the company. ByteDance is the world's largest internet start-up - valued at US$75 billion in its latest funding round, knocking US-based Uber, valued at US$72 billion, into second place. According to mobile app intelligence company Sensor Tower, 88.6 million of TikTok's 188 million new users in the first quarter of 2019 were from India - a more than eightfold year-on-year increase. By comparison, just 13.1 million new TikTok users over the same time period were based in the US. TikTok was also the third most downloaded app in the world during the first quarter of 2019. As of Tuesday, it was the second most popular free Android app in the Google Play store in India, while Helo was ranked 11th. ByteDance also offers short video product Vigo Video to Indian users. Helo, launched in June, is a social media platform created with Indian small towns and rural areas in mind - offering content in 14 languages. It is currently the subject of a legal case filed by the makers of ShareChat, which describes itself as the largest "Indian-language social media platform" and ranks seventh on Google Play store in India. "We believe Helo is a copycat app of ours," said Berges Y Malu, head of ShareChat's public policy team. ByteDance denies the allegation and the case is still being heard by the Delhi High Court. A representative for Helo said that the number of original adverts cited by the BJP in its complaint to the Election Commission that <a href="https://www.scmp.com/topics/facebook">Facebook</a> had found problematic amounted to 770, with translations across multiple languages increasing that number to 11,000. The app, which has brought entertainers, journalists and news organisations on board by providing them verified handles, has decided not to do the same for politicians and political entities. The representative said the idea was to promote entertainment-related content. Helo has not placed adverts featuring political content since the Indian electoral process began. "Out of all the ads that have been generated from Helo since we launched in June 2018, unique ads citing political mentions amount to less than 0.1 per cent. These ads were all generated prior to the declaration of general elections by the Election Commission of India and the enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct," said Helo in a statement. The first major call to ban TikTok in India was made in February by the Tamil Nadu government, citing obscenity as the reason. However, responses from politicians indicated that they were already annoyed at the political content being generated by the app's users, who had posted lip-synched videos to political speeches. "I will be the happiest if TikTok is banned. They mock someone like me most on that platform. The app may have been designed to make people happy, but it is often crossing the limits of decency," said Tamilisai Soundararajan, who heads the BJP - the party of Prime Minister <a href="https://www.scmp.com/topics/narendra-modi">Narendra Modi</a> - in Tamil Nadu state. After Tamil Nadu banned TikTok on April 3, the app's makers appealed to the Supreme Court of India, which refused to suspend the ban immediately but will hear the matter again on April 22. Meanwhile, the Madras High Court on Tuesday appointed an independent counsel to assist with the case as the app's lawyers appeared before it to appeal. The lawyers told the court that TikTok had removed 6 million videos based on a review of its Indian users; the court responded by saying that the ban will remain in place for now. In a statement, TikTok said it welcomed the decision of the Madras High Court to appoint an independent counsel. "We have faith in the Indian judicial system and we are optimistic about an outcome that would be well received by over 120 million monthly active users in India, who continue using TikTok to showcase their creativity and capture moments that matter in their everyday lives," it said. ByteDance did not immediately respond to a request for comment. This article originally appeared on the <a href="http://www.scmp.com">South China Morning Post (SCMP)</a>, the leading news media reporting on China and Asia. For more stories, please download our <a href="https://go.onelink.me/3586748601?pid=3rdpartycontentexchange">mobile app</a>, follow us on <a href="https://twitter.com/scmpnews">Twitter</a>, and like us on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/scmp">Facebook</a>. Copyright (c) 2019. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

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