PM Modi files nomination from Varanasi amidst grand BJP show of force

Prime Minister Narendra Modi filed his nomination here on Tuesday, an event attended by several NDA leaders including Union ministers and chief ministers in a show of strength as he seeks a third term from the Varanasi Lok Sabha constituency.

Sporting a white kurta-pajama and a blue sadri, Modi reached the district collectorate after a busy morning, which included an aarti on the banks of the Ganga at the Dashashwamedh ghat and prayers at the city’s Kaal Bhairav temple.

Immediately after filing his papers, the prime minister headed for the Rudraksha Convention Centre to address local party leaders and workers.

BJP president J P Nadda and Union ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Hardeep Singh Puri, Anupriya Patel and Ramdas Athawale were among the leaders who flanked Modi as he emerged from the collectorate after filing his papers.

Before he filed his nomination, Modi posted in Hindi on ‘X’, ”My relationship with Kashi is amazing, inseparable and incomparable… all I can say is that it cannot be expressed in words!” Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, his Meghalaya counterpart Conrad Sangma, NCP leader Praful Patel, TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu, Jana Sena Party president Pawan Kalyan, Hindustani Awam Morcha-Secular founder Jitan Ram Manjhi and Rashtriya Lok Morcha chief Upendra Kushwaha among others accompanied Modi to the collectorate.

Uttar Pradesh minister and NISHAD party chief Sanjay Nishad, Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party chief Omprakash Rajbhar, RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary, LJP (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan, PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss, Tamil Maanila Congress chief G K Vasan, BJP leader Devanathan Yadav, BDJS president Thushar Vellappally and Asom Gana Parishad president Atul Bora were also there.

Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) president Nitish Kumar did not attend the event due to health reasons.

According to the BJP’s Varanasi unit media co-in-charge Arvind Mishra, there were four proposers for Modi’s nomination — Pandit Ganeshwar Shastri, long-time RSS functionary Baijnath Patel, Lalchand Kushwaha and Sanjay Sonkar.

All four, along with Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, were present at the collector’s office when Modi submitted his nomination papers.

The prime minister held a dazzling roadshow in Varanasi a day ago and vowed to do a lot more to serve the holy city in his third term. He spent the night in the city and filed his nomination on Tuesday.

Modi posted a clip from Monday’s roadshow on ‘X’ and said, ”The love and blessings that my family members of Kashi showered on me during the road show has become an unforgettable moment in my life.” Voting in Varanasi will take place in the seventh phase of the Lok Sabha election on June 1. The Congress has fielded its state unit president Ajay Rai from the seat and the BSP has nominated Athar Jamal Lari.