Lok Sabha Elections 2019 News Updates: BJP’s Central Election Committee Meeting Held

From Sam Pitroda making a controversial statement over Pulwama and Balakot attacks to Gautam Gambhir joining BJP, here's a look at the host of developments ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.

Updated: March 22, 2019 10:06 PM IST

By India.com News Desk | Edited by Roma Das

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New Delhi: Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections 2019, Congress’ Indian Overseas chief Sam Pitroda started a controversy saying attacks like Pulwama happen all the time. Prime Minister Narendra Modi sharply responded to the attack and labelled the Opposition as ‘terror apologists’.

Union Minister Arun Jaitley too condemned Pitroda over his statement on the Balakot airstrike and attacked Congress President Rahul Gandhi over the same.

Meanwhile, former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir joined Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the upcoming polls in the presence of Jaitley and Ravi Shankar Prasad and said he decided to do so after getting influenced by PM Narendra Modi’s vision. Jaitley lauded Gambhir’s addition to the party saying ‘people of eminence are joining BJP’.

Adding to the poll drama, Congress’ spokesperson Randeep Surjewala addressed a press conference stating contents of the ‘Yeddy Diaries’ published by Caravan magazine.

The Congress cited the report to claim that B S Yeddyurappa made payoffs amounting to Rs 1,800 crore to top BJP leaders. “Yeddyurappa recorded these alleged payouts in a Karnataka state assembly legislator’s 2009 diary, in Kannada, in his own hand…. The copies of the diary pages note that Yeddyurappa paid the BJP Central Committee Rs 1,000 crore; that he paid the finance minister Arun Jaitley and the transport minister Nitin Gadkari Rs 150 crore each; that he gave the home minister Rajnath Singh Rs 100 crore; and that he paid the BJP stalwart LK Advani and the senior party leader Murli Manohar Joshi Rs 50 crore each. Besides this, the entry notes, Yeddyurappa paid Rs 10 crore for ‘Gadkari’s son’s marriage’,” the Caravan report says.

It must be noted that Rahul Gandhi was supposed to address the press conference on Friday morning which was later addressed by Surjewala. The BJP thus mocked the Congress after it deferred its press briefing. Congress was scheduled to address the media around 10 am, however, it later said that the press conference would be held in the afternoon. Taking a dig at the Congress, BJP said it seems that Rahul Gandhi is unable to wake up in the morning.

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