BJP on Monday issued a show cause notice to former Union Minister Jayant Sinha for not participating in the Lok Sabha elections after Manish Jaiswal was declared candidate from the Hazaribagh Lok Sabha seat and thereby maligning the party’s image. Jayant Sinha is the son of former union finance minister Yashwant Sinha and is the sitting MP of Hazaribag. Sinha did not participate in elections in Hazaribag Lok Sabha seat.

Sinha has been accused of not paying attention to his organizational duties and did not participate in the election campaigning since Jaiswal’s candidacy was announced. His absence during elections in Hazaribag Lok Sabha seat on Monday has further intensified the situation in BJP. The notice issued on Monday requires Sinha to provide an explanation within 2 days, as per instructions from state BJP president and former Jharkhand chief minister Babulal Marandi. Sahu said further actions will depend on Sinha’s response.

Attempts were made to reach him for his comments but Sinha remained unavailable and did not respond to calls and messages. Earlier Sinha took to X and expressed his desire to shift his focus towards combating global climatic change and highlighting his attention to continue working with economic and governance issues.

In the past Hazaribag has been represented by both Yashwant Sinha and his son Jayant Sinha and holds substantial political weight in Jharkhand. In the 2019 general elections Jayant Sinha was victorious by a margin of 4.79 lakh votes and defeated Congress’s Gopal Sahu. Jaiswal whose nomination sparked controversy had earlier contested elections from the Mandu assembly seat on a JVM ticket.

 Earlier Jayant Sinha has served on India’s council of ministers from 2014 and 2019, and also as the minister of state for finance and minister of state of civil aviation. The BJP MP is also known for helping launch the UDAN regional connectivity scheme that increased the number of operational airports in India by 50% in 3 years.

A voter turnout of 56.68 % was recorded in phase 5 till 5 pm as per the Election Commission’s Voter Turnout App, with the highest voting percentage in West Bengal (73 %) and the lowest in Maharashtra (48.66 %). Lok Sabha elections are taking place in 49 constituencies across 8 states and Union Territories in the 5th phase of Lok Sabha elections 2024.

Voter turnout of 56.68% was recorded till 5pm. The breakup is as follows: J&K: 54.21%, Bihar: 52.35%, Ladakh: 67.15%, Jharkhand: 61.90%, Maharashtra: 48.66%, UP: 55.80%, Odisha: 60.55% and West Bengal: 73%. The fate of 4 Union ministers, including Rajnath Singh and Smriti Irani, as well as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will be decided in the ongoing Lok Sabha election. Former UP CM Mayawati, BJP’s Rae Bareli candidate Dinesh Pratep Singh, Smriti Irani were among the early voters today who cast their vote in the morning.

 The Lucknow East Lok Sabha seat will also hold a bypoll on the same day. The Lok Sabha seats which are participating in this phase include Rae Bareli, Mohanlalganj, Jalaun (SC), Amethi, Hamirpur, Jhansi, Banda, Kaushambi (SC), Fatehpur, Faizabad, Barabanki (SC), Gonda  and Kaisarganj. The candidates also include and minister of state of consumer affairs Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti (Fatehpur) and minister of state for housing and urban affairs Kaushal Kishor (Mohanlalganj). Rahul Gandhi is contesting from Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seat which was previously held by his mother and former Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

 The total number of voters expected to cast their vote in this phase is over 2.68 crore voters, with 144 candidates looking for their support. 11 BJP incumbent Lok Sabha MPs are contesting in this phase, while nominating new candidates in Kaisarganj and Barabanki (SC) Lok Sabha seats.

Voter turnout at 1 pm was recorded at 36.73% for the 5^th phase of the Lok Sabha elections. As this unfolds, significant political showdowns are set to take place across eight states and union territories. Bihar: 34.62%, Jharkhand: 41.89%, Jammu and Kashmir: 34.79%, Maharashtra 27.78%, Ladakh: 52.01%, Uttar Pradesh 39.55%, Odisha 35.31%, West Bengal: 48.41%

Voters in 49 Lok Sabha seats will decide the fate of 695 candidates, with many high-stakes contests featuring political dynasties and senior leaders striving to retain their influence. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is contesting from Raebareli, a seat held by his mother, Sonia Gandhi, since 2004. He is also contesting the election from Wayanad in Kerala. After losing Amethi to Union Minister Smriti Irani in 2019, the Congress has fielded dedicated worker KL Sharma to challenge Irani this time.

Rohini Acharya, daughter of former Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, makes her political debut from Saran Lok Sabha seat. Chirag Paswan of the LJP (Ram Vilas) aims to retain the legacy of his late father, Ram Vilas Paswan from Hajipur Lok Sabha seat.

13 out of 48 parliamentary seats in Maharashtra are undergoing elections including high-profile candidates: Dindori: Union Minister Bharati Pravin Pawar (BJP) vs. Bhaskar Bhagare (NCP). Dhule: BJP’s Subhash Ramrao Bhamre vs. Congress’s Shobha Dinesh Bachhav.

Palghar: Hemant Vishnu Savara (BJP) vs. Bharti Kamadi (Shiv Sena UBT). Nashik: Rajabhau Waje (Shiv Sena UBT) vs. Godse Hemant Tukaram (Shiv Sena). This election phase will also serve as a crucial battleground for the factions of Shiv Sena to measure their support among voters.

In Ladakh, an independent candidate is posing a significant challenge to both BJP and Congress contenders. Simultaneous assembly and Lok Sabha polls are taking place in Odisha with the fifth phase, covering 5 Lok Sabha seats and 35 assembly constituencies. Voters in 3 parliamentary Lok Sabha seats — Chatra, Koderma, and Hazaribagh—will cast their votes in this phase.