19 April,2024 02:00 PM IST | Gondia | mid-day online correspondent
NCP leader Praful Patel/ Screengrab
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Praful Patel expressed the nation's sentiment, indicating that the mood favours Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership and development plan before voting begins in the first phase of the 2024 general election.
After voting at a polling booth in Gondia, Maharashtra, Patel expressed trust in Modi's leadership, citing the delivery of promised initiatives over the last decade. He said that the nation has developed and become vibrant under Modi's leadership, while also admitting lingering challenges and the path forward to overcome them, reported ANI.
"The mood of the nation is for development. The mood of the nation is for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership. All the schemes that he has promised in the last ten years, he has delivered. The country has become a vibrant nation. There will always be problems. You cannot say that all problems have been solved but the direction is to solve the problems and overcome them. This is a big change," Praful Patel told ANI after casting his vote at a polling booth in Gondia.
Per the report, voting for first phase Lok Sabha Elections 2024 is currently underway for five of 48 seats in Maharashtra and the constituencies--Chandrapur, Bhandara-Gondiya, Gadchiroli-Chimur, Ramtek, and Nagpur--as part of 102 constituencies across 21 states and Union Territories.
With over 16 crore eligible voters in this phase, polling for assembly elections in Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim is also being held on Friday. Arunachal Pradesh is voting for two Lok Sabha seats and a 60-member assembly, while Sikkim is choosing representatives for 32 assembly seats and a lone Lok Sabha seat.
Through Lok Sabha Elections 2024, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third consecutive term, while the opposition coalition, INDIA, aims to challenge the ruling BJP.
Union ministers like Nitin Gadkari, Kiren Rijiju, Bhupendra Yadav, and Arjun Ram Meghwal are among the 1625 candidates contesting in the first phase of Lok Sabha Elections 2024.