DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE MONDAY, MAY 20, 2024, LUCKNOW, LATE CITY, 16 PAGES SINCE 1932 `6.00 ● WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM Chopper ‘crash’ in Iran: President Raisi missing JON GAMBRELL DUBAI, MAY 19 A HELICOPTER carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, the country’s foreign minister and otherofficialsapparentlycrashed in the mountainous northwest reachesof IranonSunday,sparkingamassiverescueoperationin afog-shroudedforestasthepublic was urged to pray. The likely crash came as Iran, under Raisi and Supreme Leader AyatollahAliKhamenei,launched an unprecedented drone-andmissileattackonIsraellastmonth CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Hard-liner, Khamenei ‘successor’ A HARD-LINE religious cleric, Ebrahim Raisi, 63, is seen by many as a strong contender to succeed Ayatollah Khamenei, who endorsed his main policies. Raisi has overseen a strategy to expand Iran’s influence — from backing proxies in West Asia to expediting the nuclear program. He also oversaw a bloody crackdown on anti-government protests. 14U.P.CONSTITUENCIESTOGOTOPOLLSTODAY DECISION 2024 49 seats vote today DECISION WHY I WILL VOTE 2024 &YOUSHOULDTOO PHASE5 Totalseats Candidates 49 695 VOTESHARE (Phase5) NDA INDIA Others 42.85% 28.83% 28.32% SACHIN TENDULKAR, Former captain of Indian cricket team ‘Collective role in shaping India’s future’ A ll of us have a role to play in nation building. Electing the leaders who will represent us is an important contribution of citizens in a democracy. By participating in elections, we all play a collective role in shaping the future of our country. This is what drives me to vote during elections. What can be more exciting than being part of the world’s largest election process and to elect the players who will represent their constituency? To play in a stadium filled with India jerseys is such a grand experience. Imagine the thrill of seeing crores of Indians flaunting the ink on their fingers. It will be a sight to behold and the true mark of our success as a democracy! 2019 The Bandra-Worli Sea Link displays a message in Marathi — “20th May is polling day, do cast your vote” — in Mumbai on Sunday. Ganesh Shirsekar With 13 constituencies voting in this phase, polling to end in Maharashtra MANOJ CG NEW DELHI, MAY 19 AS THE BJP and Opposition partiessharpentheircampaignrhetoric — with Prime Minister NarendraModibringingtheRam Templerepeatedlyintofocusand the INDIA bloc parties keeping theConstitutionandreservation astheirmaintalkingpoints—49 constituenciesacrosseightstates andUnionTerritorieswillvotein the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections on Monday. Asmanyas35Assemblyconstituenciesof Odishaarealso going to polls in this phase. The stakes are significant for theBJPanditsalliesinthisphase, which has the least number of constituencies going to vote. Of the 49 seats, the BJP alone had won 32 in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The undivided Shiv Sena, which was with the BJP From Rajnath, Smriti to Rahul, battle of bigwigs in Uttar Pradesh today BHUPENDRA PANDEY LUCKNOW, MAY 19 WITH 49 Lok Sabha seats across six states and two Union Territories set to vote in the fifth phaseonMonday,thefocusison the 14 constituencies in the crucial battleground of Uttar Pradesh. There are 144 candidates in the fray, including bigwigs such as Union Ministers Smriti Irani (Amethi) and Rajnath Singh (Lucknow), and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi (Rae Bareli). Faizabad, which shot into the BUSINESS AS USUAL BY UNNY limelight after the Ram Temple consecration as Ayodhya falls under it, will also go to the polls and will see BJP’s Lallu Singh attempt to retain the constituency for a third straight term. Other seats that go to the polls include Mohanlalganj, Barabanki,Kaiserganj,Hamirpur, Banda, Fatehpur, Jhansi, Jalaun, Kaushambi, and Gonda. The BJP won 13 of these 14 seats, losing only Rae Bareli. Among the constituencies that will be closely watched are Kaiserganj, where the BJP dropped incumbent MP Brij CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 then, had won seven and the JD(U) and LJP one each. So, the then NDA had won 41 of these 49 seats. The Congress had won just one seat -- Sonia Gandhi in Raebareli -- while its allies had bagged five (four by the Trinamool Congress and one by National Conference). The BJD had won two seats. Withthefifthphase,theelectionexercisewouldbeoverin25 states and Union territories, covering 428 of the total 543 Lok Sabha constituencies. In 2019, the seats going to polls in the fifth phase had recorded an overall voter turnout of 61.82 per cent. While the first three phases recorded a dipinturnoutsincethelasttime, the turnout in 96 constituencies in the fourth phase was 69.16% – slightly higher than the 68.8 per cent turnout in these seats in CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 SEATSGOINGTOPOLLS AND2019TURNOUT(%) Overall 49 61.82% Stateswherepollingends Maharashtra 13 55.5% OTHERS UttarPradesh 14 58.38% WestBengal 7 79.99% Bihar 5 56.95% Odisha 5 72.65% Jharkhand 3 65.41% J&K 1 34.3% Ladakh 1 68.78% TURNOUT(%)IN2024 Phase1 Phase2 Phase3 Phase4 Overall 66.14 66.71 65.68 69.16 66.95 DECISION 2024 ●CM:SPleadersvisiting Azamgarhforpicnic PAGE 3 ‘Crossed limits’: PM after Mamata claims ‘a few monks’ helping BJP SANTANU CHOWDHURY KOLKATA, MAY 19 TARGETING WEST Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for claiming that some members of Bharat Sevashram Sangha and Ramakrishna Mission were helping the BJP in the elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Sunday the TMC had “crossed all limits” this time. He said the Chief Minister was “openly threatening” the two socio-religious organisations to “appease” the TMC's vote bank. Speaking at an election meeting in West Bengal’s Purulia, where he shared the stage with Bharat Sevashram Sangha monk Swami Nityasudhananda among others, Modi said: “Chunav mein Bengal ke logon ko darane, dhamkane, hinsa karane wali TMC sarkar ne iss baar sari hadein paar kar di hain (The TMC government, which has been threatening and unleashing violence on the people of Bengal during the elections, has crossed all limits this time).” CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 ‘Indian films have own ethos... not well understood in the West’ PAGE 1 ANCHOR ALAKA SAHANI MUMBAI, MAY 19 SEVERAL years ago, as a student at Pune’s Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Payal Kapadia,38,startedscriptingthe initial drafts of All We Imagine As Ranabir Das Payal Kapadia’s film is set to premiere at Cannes, May 23 Light as her diploma project. “At thattime,mygrandmotherhada big fall and the normally feisty lady was bound to her bed. She hired a nurse to help her in this difficult state as she lived alone, except when I stayed with her. Spending time with them, I got interested in these women who come from different states to Mumbai to work,” says Kapadia. The lives of such caregivers CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Lucknow