New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi filed his nomination from his parliamentary constituency Varanasi Tuesday in the presence of top Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders and alliance partners.
Modi is aiming for a third consecutive victory from the seat in Uttar Pradesh which he won with 6,74,664 votes or 63.6 percent of the total votes polled in 2019. In 2014, Modi had defeated AAP leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal by over three lakh votes in this seat.
Varanasi goes to the polls in the seventh and last phase of the ongoing general election on 1 June, when Modi will face off with Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai, among others.
The Prime Minister started the day by offering prayers at Dashashwamedh Ghat and performing an aarti. The priest who took him through the rituals said 14 May was an auspicious day as it was Ganga Saptami, which symbolised the reincarnation of Goddess Ganga.
“The Prime Minister prayed to the goddess for the betterment of the people, for their unity,” the priest said.
Modi also offered prayers to Baba Kaal Bhairav at the Kashi Kotwal temple before heading to the Varanasi Collectorate to file his papers.
The timing of the nomination, between 11.40 and noon, was also believed to be auspicious as it marked the coming together of the Pushya Nakshatra with Ganga Saptami. It is believed that any work undertaken at the time comes to fruition.
This term, the Prime Minister’s name has been proposed by Pandit Ganeshwar Shastri, Baijnath Patel and Lalchand Kushwaha from the OBC community, and Sanjay Sonkar from the Dalit community.
On Monday evening, Modi held a grand six-kilometre roadshow, accompanied by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
He began the event after garlanding a statue of noted educationist and social reformer Madan Mohan Malviya in the city.
Posting glimpses from the campaign, Modi wrote on X: “Today every pore of my body is saluting every particle of Kashi. The affection and blessings I have received from all of you in the roadshow are unimaginable and incomparable. I am overwhelmed and emotional! I did not realise how 10 years have passed under the shadow of your affection. Then I had said Ma Ganga had called me. Today, Ma Ganga has adopted me.”