Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh):: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, filing his nomination from Varanasi today, appeared at the Election Commission's office with four proposers. The video was widely circulated on social media and became the talking point of the day.
The proposers included Pandit Ganeshwar Shastri, who had decided the "mahurat" of the Ram Temple consecration and "bhoomi pujan"; Baijnath Patel, a member of Other Backward Classes and a dedicated worker of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh or RSS, the ideological mentor of the BJP; Lalchand Kushwaha, another member of the OBC community and Sanjay Sonkar, BJP worker and a member of the Dalit community.All four are residents of the city.
The messaging of inclusivity was not missed, with many on social media commenting on it.
A group of the party's seniormost leaders also accompanied the Prime Minister, who is seeking mandate for the third time from Varanasi. Among them were BJP chief JP Nadda, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP state president Bhupendra Chaudhary. The list of Chief Ministers included Yogi Adityanath, Pushkar Singh Dhami, and Mohan Yadav.
There were a group of NDA leaders as well, including Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, his Meghalaya counterpart Conrad Sangma, NCP leader Praful Patel, Jana Sena Party chief Pawan Kalyan and former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu.
"Filed my nomination papers as a candidate for the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat. It is an honour to serve the people of this historic seat. With the blessings of the people, there have been remarkable achievements over the last decade. This pace of work will get even faster in the times to come," PM Modi later posted on X, formerly Twitter.
"I am honoured by the presence of our valued NDA allies in Kashi today. Our alliance represents a commitment to national progress and fulfilling regional aspirations. We will work together for the progress of India in the years to come," read a second post.
"I am overwhelmed and emotional. I did not even realise how 10 years passed under the shade of your affection. 'Aaj Maa Ganga ne mujhe god le liya hai' (today, Maa Ganga has adopted me)," he also said.
Voting will take place in in Varanasi in the seventh and last phase of the Lok Sabha election on June 1. The Congress has fielded its state unit president Ajay Rai and the BSP has nominated Athar Jamal Lari in the seat..