PM Modi to hold poll campaigns in J&K, Rajasthan today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be interacting with people of Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur and Rajasthan's Barmer on Friday.

The Prime Minister will also be holding a road show in Rajasthan's Dausa Friday.

"In this great festival of democracy, the echo of BJP is being heard all over the country. Today I will get the opportunity to receive the blessings of my family members of Jammu-Kashmir and Rajasthan," PM Modi said in a post on X.

Sharing his itinerary, the Prime Minister said, "In the morning I will interact with people in Udhampur of Jammu-Kashmir and in the afternoon, in Barmer of Rajasthan. After this, I will get the opportunity to be among the people in a road show at Dausa."

The Prime Minister will be campaigning for Union Minister Jitendra Singh who has been representing Udhampur since 2014. Singh had defeated former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad from Udhampur in 2014.

The Congress has fielded Choudhary Lal Singh from Udhampur. The Congress took Lal Singh back within its fold six years after he was forced to resign following his participation in a rally held in support of the Kathua rape accused, in which a child was raped. The Peoples Democratic Party, partner in the INDIA bloc, has extended their support to Lal Singh.

Udhampur will vote in the first phase on April 19. The BJP had won three out of six seats in Jammu and Kashmir in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. The National Conference won the remaining three seats.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be travelling to Rajasthan, the second day after he addressed a public meeting in Rajasthan's Karauli on Thursday. In Barmer, the BJP has fielded sitting MP Kailash Choudhary for the Lok Sabha polls against Congress' Umaidaram Beniwal.

In Dausa, a constituency reserved for the Scheduled Tribe, the BJP has fielded Kanhaiya Lal Meena from Dausa against Congress's Murari Lal Meena. BJP's Jaskaur Meena won the 2019 Lok Sabha polls from Dausa.

Notably, Rajasthan sends 25 MPs to the Lok Sabha. The polling will be held in two phases on April 19 and 26. The counting of votes will be held on June 4. The BJP had won all 25 seats in the state in 2014. In 2019, the BJP-led alliance won all 25 seats, with the BJP winning 24.