Gujarat results raise questions on Modi's credibility: Rahul

As Punjab votes in the last phase of 18th Lok Sabha polls on June 1, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in a letter addressed to the voters of the state said that PM Narendra Modi has indulged in most vicious form of hate speeches, which are purely divisive in nature.

"Modi has indulged in most vicious form of hate speeches, which are purely divisive in nature," said Singh in the letter shared by Congress on social media platform X.

Singh in the letter added that 'no PM in past has uttered such hateful, unparliamentary terms to target either a specific section of society or opposition.'

"No PM in past has uttered such hateful, unparliamentary terms to target either a specific section of society or opposition," remarked Manmohan Singh in the letter.

“In the past ten years, the BJP government has left no stone unturned in castigating Punjab, Punjabis and Punjabiyat. 750 farmers, mostly belonging to Punjab, were martyred while incessantly waiting at Delhi borders, for months together. As if the lathis and the rubber bullets were not enough, none less than the Prime Minister verbally assaulted our farmers by calling them "Andolanjeevis" and "Parjeevi" (Parasites) on the floor of the Parliament. Their only demand was the withdrawal of the three farm laws imposed on them without consulting them," said the former Prime Minister.

On economic front:

Manmohan Singh further continuing his attack on Modi-led government said that in the past 10 years, 'the nation's economy has witnessed unimaginable turmoil.'

"The imposition of the demonetisation disaster, a flawed GST, and the painful mismanagement during the COVID pandemic has resulted in a miserable situation, where an expectation of a subpar 6-7 per cent GDP growth has become the new normal. Average GDP Growth under BJP Government has plunged to under 6 per cent, while during Congress-UPA tenure, it was about 8 per cent (New Series)," commented Singh.

"While the Congress-UPA, despite challenges, increased the purchasing power of our people, the misrule of the BJP Government has resulted in depletion of household savings to a historic 47-year low. Rural wages have witnessed a systematic fall, and wage disparity has led to widespread distress," noted Singh in the letter.

On Agniveer scheme:

On Agniveer scheme, Singh said "BJP govt imposed Agniveer scheme; it thinks value of patriotism, service is only 4 years, shows their fake nationalism."

"Those who trained for regular recruitment were woefully betrayed by the outgoing regime. The youth of Punjab, the son of the farmer, who dreams of serving the motherland through the Armed Forces, is now thinking twice about getting recruited only for a 4-year stint. Agniveer Scheme endangers National Security. Congress party has therefore promised to abolish the Agniveer Scheme," added Singh.

Earlier. during campaigning in various parts of the country, PM Modi had accused Singh of saying that Muslims have the first right on the country's resources.Singh said people of India are seeing through all of this. "This narrative of dehumanisation has now reached its peak. It is now our duty to save our beloved nation from these forces of discord," Singh said in the letter.

The Ministry of External Affairs has received a letter from the Karnataka government requesting the cancellation of the diplomatic passport of suspended Janata Dal Secular MP Prajwal Revanna, official sources said on Thursday. However, the diplomatic passport has not yet been canceled.

The Karnataka government's request to the Narendra Modi-led union government came after Prajwal Revanna, facing multiple charges of sexually abusing women, fled the country using his diplomatic passport last month.

"The MEA has received a letter from the Karnataka government for the cancellation of the diplomatic passport in respect of MP Prajwal Revanna. This is being processed," official sources said.

Prajwal, grandson of former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda, is at the center of a political storm after hundreds of explicit videos allegedly featuring him leaked late last month. The 33-year-old MP faces multiple cases of rape, sexual harassment, voyeurism, and criminal intimidation.

Prajwal, the NDA nominee for the Hassan Lok Sabha seat, reportedly fled to Germany on April 27, hours before the first case was filed against him.

The Karnataka police's Special Investigation Team (SIT) is now probing the high-profile case, and a lookout notice and a Blue Corner notice have been issued to track Revanna down.

In the wake of the allegations, Prajwal Revanna said in a social media post on May 1, "As I am not in Bangalore to attend the enquiry, I have communicated to C.I.D Bangalore through my Advocate. The truth will prevail soon."

His father, HD Revanna, a JDS MLA and son of HD Deve Gowda, is also accused in cases of molestation and kidnapping. He was arrested earlier this month and is now out on bail.

The veteran leader faces a case in which a man has alleged that he was involved in kidnapping his mother, who worked as a house help at his home for six years. The complainant alleged that a video showing Prajwal Revanna sexually abusing his mother leaked recently, and his mother went missing soon after.

HD Revanna, however, has termed the case a "political conspiracy."

After nearly two months of high-pitch campaigning and a hectic poll schedule of 7 phases, exit polls numbers have started coming in. According to five pollsters so far, the Narendra Modi-led NDA government is coming back to power with a landslide victory while the Opposition’s I.N.D.I.A. bloc managing somewhere between 125 and 150. 

Meanwhile, in a U-turn, Congress-led I.N.D.I.A. bloc has decided to participate in exit poll debates. Track all the latest updates on exit polls results as we provide you with minute-by-minute updates on the outcome of the Lok Sabha polls predicted by exit polls.

While the numbers vary, five exit polls are predicting that the INDIA bloc will be left far behind. None, though, have yet put the NDA across its dream score of 400 of 543 Lok Sabha seats. 

Exit Polls do not always get it right.

An aggregate of five exit polls indicates that the NDA will get 365 seats, the INDIA bloc will get 142 seats.

The maximum number of seats predicted for the NDA was 362-392, in the exit poll by Jan ki Baat. It predicts the Opposition bloc will get 141-161 seats.

It is followed by India News-D Dynamics, which is predicting that the NDA will get 371 seats and INDIA 125 seats.

The lowest score for the NDA comes from Republic TV-P MARQ – 359, and a corresponding higher score for the INDIA bloc, 154.