With the final phase of the election concluded on the 19th of May and the results all set to come out on the 23rd, it is important to see what kind of issues and discussions were raised and debated in these elections. To help, here is an A to Z primer of the election discussions:
Read more: Support for congress blot on Kejriwal, says Sheila Dixit
A for Alliances
Apart from the ruling NDA as well as the opposing UPA, there were also talks of putting together a Third Front, comprising of several major regional parties. However, these talks failed due to a lack of consensus regarding the leader of such an alliance.
B for Branding
A major proportion of the votes in favor of BJP are not because of their policies or actions, but because of the branding of Modi and the faith of the general populace in favor of Brand Modi.
C for Congress
In spite of the comeback in the state elections earlier this year, it is hard to say whether the INC will be able to perform any better in these General Elections than it did the last time.
D for Dynasty
The dynasty politics followed by the INC was one of the major attacking points of the BJP time and again during the elections.
Read more: Will May 23 Arrest The Dangerous Godse Phenomenon?
E for Election Commission
Though the Election Commission has assured both the parties and the people, there are still several opposition parties who have claimed EVM tampering and partisanship by the Election Commission.
F for Farmers
In most northern states, the distressful condition of the farmers was also a hot topic of discussion.
Read more: Chandrababu Naidu reaches Lucknow, likely to hold talks with Mayawati, Akhilesh
G for Gandhi
Mahatama Gandhi, or Bapu, was also used for selfish political gains and advancements, and there were several statements condemning or supporting his assassin Nathuram Godse.
H for Hua to Hua
A Congressman used this phrase for all of the misdeeds committed under the Congress government in the past, and the BJP was quick to use it for their own advantage, linking this to all the Congress’ major decisions.
I for Internal Security
The defence and the armed forced were also not spared from the politics, and the Balakot Airstrikes as well as the Uri Surgical Strikes were repeatedly mentioned.
J for Jobs
The INC was quick to blame the Modi government for their inability to create employment at every possible opportunity.
K for Khan Market Gang
This phrase was coined by Modi himself in reference to the Lutyens when it was being said that they were responsible for building his image. The term has been quite popular on social media ever since.
L for Loan Waivers
The INC had won the recent state elections majorly on the promise of loan waivers to farmers, and it is being alleged by the BJP that these waivers did not happen, though the INC says it did happen in Madhya Pradesh.
M for Mamata
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was also in the limelight this election, by picking a fight with BJP president Amit Shah. Things escalated up to the point where there was violence in one of Amit Shah’s rallies in Bengal and a bust of Vidyasagar was destroyed.
N for Nyay
The Congress scheme of “Nyay” was formulated to solve the problems caused due to the Modi governance, however not many people have been impacted by it.
O for Optics
The entire election was about optics, and Modi made sure to use the Balakot Air Strike as his key point wherever he went.
P for Prime Minister
The General Elections 2019 were held in 7 phases with over 15 major parties contesting for the post of the Prime Minister of the Country.
Q for Quota
Almost all major parties have promised some form of reservation to their vote banks, however the reservation provided by the Modi government to the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) was applauded by many.
R for Rafale
In spite of the Supreme Court hearing clearing all the accused, the INC made it a point to accuse the BJP of corruption and personal gain in the Rafale deal.
S for SP-BSP
The Mahagathbandhan in Uttar Pradesh formed by the two major regional parties SP and BSP have made it the only state wherein even exit polls are not able to identify a clear winner.
T for Temple
Just like always, elections in Ayodhya were contested by BJP on the main promise that the Ram Temple will be built this time for sure.
U for Uri
National security was also a major topic of this elections, and the Uri Surgical Strike was brought up time and again by BJP to highlight their achievements in this regard.
V for Voter
Though the turnout in most major metropolitan cities was quite low, the Election Commission recorded an overall turnout of around 67% in all of India.
W for WhatsApp
WhatsApp along with other forms of social media was excessively used in order to spread false information about almost every candidate.
X for Xenophobia
Amit Shah’s comments of removing every non-Hindu infiltrator from India were termed as xenophobic by many.
Y for YSR
YSR Congress and its chief Jagmohan Reddy have presented a very credible threat to the current Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, as the assembly elections were carried out at the same time as the General Elections.
Z for Generation Z
The generation Z, consisting of those born in the mid-90s voted for the first time this election.