This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-47114401

The article has changed 152 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 124 Version 125
India's Priyanka Gandhi pets snakes on campaign trail Pulwama: Few voters at India Kashmir suicide attack town
(4 days later)
India is in full election mode: voting began on 11 April, and the final ballot will be 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. India is in full election mode: voting began on 11 April, and the final ballot will be cast 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.
Snakes on a trail Few voters at Kashmir suicide attack town
What happened? What is happening?
Videos of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi casually handling snakes during an interaction with snake charmers in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh have begun making the rounds in Indian media. A constituency in Indian-administered Kashmir which saw a militant attack in February that killed more than 40 Indian troops is among the 51 seats where people are casting their votes on Monday in the fifth phase of polling in India's mammoth general election.
Ms Gandhi who was in her mother Sonia Gandhi's constituency of Rae Bareilly to meet members of a snake charming community, casually picked up two of the reptiles, as some of the men gathered there spoke to her. Pulwama district, which is part of the Anantnag constituency, is one of the areas going to the polls, but there are very few people turning up to cast their vote.
The suicide attack in Pulwama in February, claimed by a Pakistan-based militant group, brought India and Pakistan to the brink of war.
Voting is being held under tight security amid calls for a boycott from separatist leaders.
Why does this matter?Why does this matter?
Priyanka Gandhi has demonstrated yet again that she is one Gandhi family member who is at least capable of grabbing eyeballs. Posters calling the election a "sham exercise" can be seen in many places in the districts, reports Kashmir-based journalist Sameer Yasir.
The discourse is usually dominated by prime minister Narendra Modi and his party, usually through innovative publicity stunts such as Mr Modi's "interview" by a Bollywood star. As polling booths opened 07:00, anxious election staff and security forces could be seen waiting for voters, our reporter says.
However, there has been some adverse reactions to Ms Gandhi's little stunt as well. "The streets looked deserted. At certain booths, few voters showed interest in coming out to cast their votes. In the morning, a polling station in Pulwama's Rahmoo village also came under attack from militants, who lobbed a grenade at it."
Some people on Twitter complain that she is propagating the image of India as a "land of snake charmers". Elections in Kashmir traditionally see low voter turnout.
Furthermore, the Election Commission's 'Manual on Model Code of Conduct' has also asked political parties to stop using animals or paying for them to be used in election campaigns. Many people in the territory do not want it to be governed by India, preferring instead either independence or union with Pakistan.
BJP candidate, accused in terror blasts, banned from campaigning for 72 hours High unemployment and allegations of human rights abuses by security forces fighting insurgents have aggravated the problem.
What happened? "We don't believe in Indian democracy and its farcical elections here," said Mumeen Ahamd, 28, a Pulwama resident.
Sadhvi Pragya Thakur, an accused in a blast that killed seven people and injured 100 others, has been banned from campaigning for 72 hours over remarks that the election commission said violated its guidelines. All political parties and the Election Commission have appealed to people to vote in large numbers.
The Malegaon blasts, as they are widely known, saw two bombs fitted on a motorcycle explode in Malegaon, a Muslim majority town, in the western state of Maharashtra on 29 September 2008. The main contenders in the area are former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, the National Conference's Hasnain Masoodi and the Congress party's Ghulam Ahmad Mir.
Ms Thakur has been accused of conspiracy in the blasts - a charge she denies. Gandhis up for re-election
On 18 April, she said that police officer Hemant Karkare had died in the November 2008 Mumbai terror attacks because she had "cursed" him. A team led by Mr Karkare had arrested her for questioning in connection with the Malegaon blast. What is happening?
During her campaign, she also said she was "proud" of her part in the demolition of the 16th Century Babri mosque. In 1992, right-wing Hindu mobs razed the mosque to the ground, claiming it was built on the site of a temple destroyed by Muslim rulers. The site, which is in the city of Ayodhya, has been a religious flashpoint for Hindus and Muslims for decades. India's main opposition Congress party president Rahul Gandhi, former Congress leader Sonia Gandhi and home minister Rajnath Singh are some of the big names who are facing the ballot on Monday.
She was recently fielded by the governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and is contesting from Bhopal, the capital city of the central state of Madhya Pradesh. Voting is taking place in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Indian-administered Kashmir.
Why does this matter?Why does this matter?
Ms Thakur is locked in a high-profile electoral battle with Digvijay Singh, a senior leader of the main opposition Congress party. Because it's a battle of big names and there's a lot of prestige on the line.
Opposition parties had criticised the BJP's decision to field her as candidate, saying she was a terror accused and should not run for office. Rahul Gandhi is taking on federal minister Smriti Irani in the Amethi constituency of the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.
However, India's electoral laws allow people facing trial to contest elections. Amethi will be particularly closely watched as it is the Gandhi family's bastion. Mr Gandhi won the seat in 2004, 2009 and 2014, and his mother, Sonia Gandhi, won it in 1999.
Both Ms Thakur and her party say that she was falsely accused as part of a political conspiracy. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said it was confident of defeating Mr Gandhi in his own backyard.
The female Hindu priest has made no secret about her poll plank. But Congress is expecting another win, with party officials pointing to the fact that Mr Gandhi comfortably defeated Ms Irani in 2014.
Soon after her candidature was announced, she told reporters that she was ready for a dharma yuddh or religious war. India politicians are allowed to contest more than one constituency and Mr Gandhi is also contesting from Wayanad in the southern state of Kerala, where voting has already taken place.
Madhya Pradesh is one of the states where the BJP lost the assembly elections to the opposition Congress party in 2018. With this choice of candidate, it looks as though they are banking on religious polarisation to consolidate the Hindu vote. Sonia Gandhi is running in Raebareli - a seat in Uttar Pradesh that she won in 2004, 2006, 2009 and 2014.
On Wednesday, an ex-soldier's nomination was cancelled
What happened?
India's Election Commission cancelled the nomination of an ex-soldier who was running against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Varanasi constituency of Uttar Pradesh state.
The former Border Security Force member, Tej Bahadur Yadav, shot to fame in 2017 after posting three videos, complaining that troops on the border with Pakistan were often served poor quality food. The videos went viral, prompting an official inquiry.
Mr Yadav was sacked four months later for "making false allegations".
The Election Commission said that government employees who were dismissed from service cannot stand in elections for five years.
Why does this matter?
Mr Yadav was contesting against Mr Modi as a joint candidate of the Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). The regional parties have formed an alliance against Mr Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party and the main opposition Congress party.
The ex-soldier, who has never run for office before, was certainly a surprising choice - especially since he was going up against Mr Modi, who won the seat by a huge margin of more than 300,000 votes in 2014.
But he was also bound to grab attention as a candidate because his videos had sparked both sympathy and outrage on his behalf. He had posted videos of burnt food and said the quality of meals was so poor that soldiers often chose not to eat at all.
And his candidacy was also a political statement of sorts - Mr Modi has repeatedly evoked the sacrifices of soldiers during his campaign. National security became an election plank after Indian troops were killed in a suicide attack in Kashmir. India said a Pakistan-based militant group was responsible.
Mr Yadav told BBC Hindi that he would continue to campaign for the SP and BSP.
On Tuesday, a row erupted over Rahul Gandhi's citizenship
What happened?
A row has erupted after the Indian Home Ministry asked Rahul Gandhi - the leader of the main opposition Congress party - to respond to a complaint alleging that he has foreign citizenship.
Subramanian Swamy, a lawmaker from the governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), complained to the ministry that Mr Gandhi had allegedly claimed to be a British citizen in the past.
The Congress was quick to dismiss the allegation - Mr Gandhi's sister, Priyanka, told reporters that "the whole of India knows that Rahul Gandhi is an Indian". And Congress spokesperson Rajdeep Surjewala said the "BJP is in panic mode."
Why does this matter?
In his complaint, Mr Swamy reportedly cited paperwork of a company registered in the UK, according to the official notice issued to Mr Gandhi.
He alleged that Mr Gandhi had declared himself a British citizen in company documents that were filed in 2005-06.
But Mr Swamy is no stranger to controversy. He made the same allegation and citied the same documents in 2015 - this led to a public interest litigation in the Supreme Court demanding an official inquiry but the court dismissed the petition.
Mr Swamy had earlier also raised questions about Mr Gandhi's and his mother Sonia's education qualifications.
Sonia Gandhi is of Italian descent and that too has been the subject of controversy in the past. Back in 2004, opponents attempted to rake it up as an election issue although she had surrendered her Italian passport in favour of Indian citizenship.
On Monday, Mumbai voted in the fourth phase of polls
What happened?
Voting opened in 72 seats across India - including in the financial capital Mumbai - in the fourth phase of the country's marathon elections.
Polling was held in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Orissa, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Indian-administered Kashmir.
In Mumbai, a number of Bollywood stars were spotted either before or after casting their ballots.
Three more phases of voting are due be held before results are announced on 23 May.
Why does this matter?
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allies won 56 out of these 72 seats in the 2014 elections.
The BJP's mission to form a government largely depends on how many seats it manages to retain in this phase.
Several federal ministers, including Giriraj Singh, Subhash Bhamre, SS Ahluwalia and Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, are seeking re-election in this phase.
There are high-profile contests in some of Mumbai's seats.
In north-central Mumbai, the BJP's Poonam Mahajan, who is the daughter of late BJP leader Pramod Mahajan, is contesting against Priya Dutt, the daughter of late Congress leader Sunil Dutt.
Bollywood actress Urmila Matondkar is taking on the BJP's Gopal Shetty in Mumbai north constituency.
Controversial former student leader Kanhaiya Kumar is contesting against BJP's Giriraj Singh in Bihar's Begusarai constituency.
India votes 2019India votes 2019
Coverage from previous weeks:Coverage from previous weeks:
How do you vote in the election?How do you vote in the election?
Here's a video explaining everything that happens inside a polling station - and what happens to your vote after that:Here's a video explaining everything that happens inside a polling station - and what happens to your vote after that: