India election 2019: 29 April - 3 May the week that was
- Published
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.
On Thursday, Priyanka Gandhi petted snakes on the campaign trail
What happened?
Videos of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi casually handling snakes during an interaction with snake charmers in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh began making the rounds in Indian media.
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.
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.
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.
However, there has been some adverse reactions to Ms Gandhi's little stunt as well.
Some people on Twitter complain that she is propagating the image of India as a "land of snake charmers".
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.
BJP candidate, accused in terror blasts, banned from campaigning for 72 hours
What happened?
Sadhvi Pragya Thakur, an accused in a blast that killed seven people and injured 100 others, was banned from campaigning for 72 hours over remarks that the election commission said violated its guidelines.
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.
Ms Thakur has been accused of conspiracy in the blasts - a charge she denies.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
However, India's electoral laws allow people facing trial to contest elections.
Both Ms Thakur and her party say that she was falsely accused as part of a political conspiracy.
The female Hindu priest has made no secret about her poll plank.
Soon after her candidature was announced, she told reporters that she was ready for a dharma yuddh or religious war.
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.
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.
Tej Bahadur Yadav was a soldier with India's Border Security Force
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.
One of Mr Yadav's videos showed curry and lentils, which he said contained only salt and turmeric
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, external.
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, external.
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.
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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.
Student leader Kanhaiya Kumar is engaged in a high-profile contest in Bihar
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 2019
Coverage from previous weeks:
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:
Journey of a vote
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