Odisha continues to grapple with intense heatwave, 18 cities record above 41 degrees Celsius

Lucknow came with a different bowling plan in the Powerplay overs against Mumbai, and it paid off well as Marcus Stoinis in his second over of the spell got rid of dangerous Suryakumar Yadav on the score of 10.

Earlier, Mohsin Khan dismissed skipper Rohit Sharma for four runs in the second over of the inning.

Tilak Varma got run out in the chaos of an lbw appeal by Ravi Bishnoi guiding the backward point, as he forgot about where the ball was. Then walked skipper Hardik Pandya in the crease. He got out for a first-ball duck. Mumbai were in serious trouble with 28 for 4 on the scoreboard in the powerplay.

Mayank Yadav, on return from injury bowled the seventh over of the innings and was a fairly long first over and got smoked for eight runs in the over. And once the field spread and LSG went to their spinners, it became harder to score boundaries for MI.

Five boundaries in eight overs and Kishan trying to go for more was out caught for 32 off 36. Ravi Bishnoi, nominally a leg spinner, took out another left-hander with his googly. Nehal Wadhera and Ishan Kishan added run-up ball 53 for the fifth wicket.

In the midst of a difficult time for Mumbai, Nehal Wadhera was leading Mumbai forward. He finished on 46 off 41. It was the kind of innings no batter wanted to play in T20s. Much of his acceleration was the result of him taking on Mayank. Their head-to-head was 21 off 12 with two fours and two sixes.

Mayank left the field due to injury with the figure of 1 for 31 in 3.1 overs. However, the nature of injury is still unknown.

Mumbai lost more wickets (4) than boundaries (3) in the powerplay. Four of those six overs went for a run a ball or less. Their top-scorer had to play an innings where he had to be 9 off 15, then 13 off 20 and finally 46 off 40. But they went to put 144 for 7 in 20 overs on the board as Tim David charged late and scored 35 in 18 deliveries including three boundaries and two sixes.

Brief score:

Mumbai Indians 144 for 7 in 20 overs (Nehal Wadhera 46, Tim David 35; Mohsin Khan 2-36, Naveen-ul-Haq 1-15) against Lucknow Super Giants

(IANS)

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Addressing an election rally at Zaheerabad in Telangana, the Prime Minister said, “In this (case), the names of Telangana Congress and RR himself are coming up,” apparently referring to Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, who along with four other leaders of Telangana Congress has been summoned by the Delhi Police in a case related to doctoring a video of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

“Tell me, can any countryman expect such acts from persons holding Constitutional posts,” he asked the gathering.

He also alleged that Congress started a new industry in these elections to shatter the spirit of democracy to pieces.

PM Modi declared that as long as he is alive, he will not allow the reservations of Dalits, STs, and OBCs to be given to Muslims in the name of religion.

Addressing the gathering, he launched a scathing attack against the Congress for ‘insulting’ the Constitution.

The Prime Minister said the Constituent Assembly after debating for months decided that there will be no reservation on the basis of religion and that only Dalits, tribals, and OBCs will get reservations.

“But today, they are back-stabbing Ambedkar by snatching the rights of Dalits, tribals, and OBCs from the back door and giving reservations to their vote bank,” he said.

The Prime Minister also said that in 2004 and 2009, when the Congress had a record number of MPs and MLAs in combined Andhra Pradesh, it robbed reservations of SCs, STs, and Backward Classes and turned the state into a laboratory of appeasement. It took away the reservation rights of Backward Classes and gave it to Muslims, he said.

“There were 26 castes among Lingayat and Maratha communities demanding inclusion in OBCs, but Congress ignored them and overnight made Muslims the OBCs,” he said.

The Prime Minister also alleged that the TRS/BRS and the Congress dashed the hopes of the Banjara community.

They also betrayed the Madiga community, said PM Modi, as he reiterated that he will fight for Madigas to fulfil their long pending demand of sub-categorisation of SC reservation.

Reacting strongly to the claims made by Congress that the BJP is planning to change the Constitution, he alleged that it was the Congress that hated the Constitution drafted by B.R. Ambedkar.

He also alleged that from the very first day, Congress insulted the Constitution, adding that from Jawaharlal Nehru to Rahul Gandhi, the entire family insulted the Constitution.

He said the first sin was committed by the first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, who got illustrations from Ramayana and Mahabharatha removed from the Constitution, which were part of the original manuscript.

Later, his daughter (Indira Gandhi) blew the Constitution into pieces by imposing Emergency when lakhs of people were jailed.

PM Modi also said that Rajiv Gandhi dealt a huge blow to the Constitution by bringing a law to curb press freedom, but he had to take back the same after strong public resistance.

He claimed that the Constitution is a religious scripture for him to run the government, adding that he was the only Chief Minister to celebrate 60 years of the Constitution.

Alleging that the Gandhi family only wants power and has nothing to do with the Constitution, he said it does not want the Parliament to function and even raised questions on the Election Commission and EVMs.

He also announced that during his third term, the 75 years of the Constitution will be celebrated on a grand scale and the misdeeds of the Congress will be exposed on every street.

Claiming that the INDI Alliance has lost hope of becoming the main opposition, he predicted that the Congress' tally of seats in the Parliament will probably be the lowest ever after the Lok Sabha polls.

Claiming that the BJP is the only alternative, PM Modi said his government gave lakhs of crores to Telangana which helped speed up schemes for the welfare of the poor.

The Prime Minister also accused the Congress government in the state of creating hurdles in works like the construction of Sammakka Sarakka National Tribal University, among others.

(IANS)

PM Modi wrote a separate letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, lauding his leadership and contributions to the successful execution of key policy measures.

By praising Amit Shah’s involvement in the abrogation of Article 370 and the passage of the CAA, PM Modi apparently sought to underscore the BJP's commitment to its nationalist agenda.

PM Modi’s communication to the BJP candidates and Amit Shah on Tuesday has provided key talking points for the party workers on the BJP-led government's achievements, particularly the significant policy decisions such as the abrogation of Article 370 and the passage of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

These achievements are portrayed as emblematic of the BJP's commitment to national security, unity, and inclusive governance.

The reference to Article 370 could also be interpreted as symbolic, suggesting that the BJP aims to secure ‘370’ parliamentary seats in the Lok Sabha elections. It may serve as a strategic messaging tactic to capture public attention and generate buzz around the BJP's poll campaign.

The contentious issue of Article 370 may be linked to the BJP’s goal of winning as many Lok Sabha seats.

The letter also instructs the party workers to create awareness among the voters about the ‘intentions’ of the opposition, particularly the Congress.

PM Modi accuses the Congress of seeking to “take away hard-earned wealth” and “snatch reservation” from the marginalised communities for its vote bank. This narrative aims to paint the opposition as a divisive force that is focused on appeasement, rather than national interests.

By urging the candidates and party workers to highlight what he perceives as the Congress' “politics of division and appeasement”, PM Modi is likely aiming to consolidate support for the BJP by framing the opposition party as divisive and focused on appeasing certain groups rather, than prioritising national interests.

The letter also focuses on portraying the Congress as a threat to the economic well-being and social rights of the people. The language used in the letter, alleging that the Congress is "bent upon taking away hard-earned wealth" and "snatching reservation" from marginalised communities, is designed to set a strong narrative that affects the grassroots strata of the society.

By framing the Congress as a force that “prioritises its own electoral interests over the welfare of the people”, PM Modi seeks to consolidate support for the BJP by presenting it as the defender of economic prosperity and social justice.

The mention of reservation policies further amplifies this narrative, tapping into the existing anxieties and insecurities among certain sections of society.

The matters such as abrogation of Article 370, implementation of CAA, etc., which PM Modi referred to in the letter to Amit Shah, are portrayed as decisive steps towards safeguarding national security and protecting the persecuted minorities.

PM Modi's letter to the Home Minister reinforces the BJP's narrative on issues related to national security, territorial integrity, and protection of persecuted minorities. It also seeks to project the BJP as a decisive and proactive government committed to upholding the interests of the nation.

Additionally, by directly involving himself in the communication with the candidates, PM Modi is, understandably, leveraging his personal popularity and influence within the party to underscore the importance of this messaging strategy.

It is also believed that this approach not only reinforces the party line, but also emphasises PM Modi's central role within the BJP’s election strategy.

Moreover, the timing of the letters, ahead of the third phase of elections scheduled on May 7, suggests that the BJP sees this as a critical juncture in the campaign where it needs to solidify its messaging and energise its base to secure electoral gains.

With a strong narrative on developmental and nationalist issues as mentioned in the letters, PM Modi seems to have aimed to maintain momentum and sway the undecided voters in BJP’s favor.

PM Modi’s letters also underscore the party's focus on narrative control, ideological positioning, and leveraging his personal appeal to shape the electoral discourse in BJP’s favour. Analysts believe that “this strategy aims to tap into nationalist sentiments and rally support by portraying the BJP as the guardian of India's unity and national interest”.

In other words, PM Modi has sought to portray the Congress as a party that caters to specific groups at the expense of national unity, thus positioning the BJP as the party of the entire nation.

(IANS)