Indian General Election 2009

Indian general election, 2009 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.
org/wiki/Indian_general_election,_2009
Indian general election, 2009

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
India held general elections—the largest

democratic election in the world—to the 15th Lok ‹ 2004 2014 ›
Sabha in five phases on April 16, April 22/23, April Indian general election, 2009
30, May 7 and May 13, 2009. The results of the All 543 seats in the Lok Sabha
election were announced on May 16, 2009.[1] April 16, April 22/23, April 30, May 7 and May 13, 2009
First party Second party
According to the Indian Constitution, elections in
India for the Lok Sabha (the lower house) must be
held at least every five years under normal
circumstances. With the last elections held in 2004,
the term of the 14th Lok Sabha expires on June 1,
2009.
The election was conducted by the Election

Commission of India, which estimates an electorate
of 714 million voters, an increase of 43 million over
the 2004 election. During the budget presented in
February 2009, Rs.1,120 Crores (€176 million) was
budgeted for election expenses.[2]
Leader Manmohan Singh Lal Krishna Advani
Three Indian states—Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Party UPA NDA
Sikkim also conducted elections to their respective Leader's seat Assam Gandhinagar
legislative assemblies. (Rajya Sabha)
Seats won 261 158
On May 16, 2009, after poor showing in early Seat change 43 -23
trends that showed Indian National Congress and Percentage 48.06% 29.09%
the United Progressive Alliance, with 250+ seats, Swing +12.66% -4.21%
Bharatiya Janata Party conceded defeat, and
acknowledged that they could not be the single Incumbent Prime Minister Prime Minister-designate
largest party or a single largest alliance.[3] Manmohan Singh Manmohan Singh
UPA UPA
After a surprising showing in Uttar Pradesh, West
Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan, the
UPA was given a mandate, and the Indian National Congress are set to form the India
government under the incumbent prime minister candidate Manmohan Singh, who
is the first Prime Minister of India since Jawaharlal Nehru in 1962 to win re-election
after serving a full five-year term.[4][5]
The results not only showed defeat of the National Democratic Alliance, led by the
BJP, but it also showed one of the worst performance from the Left Front, who
were hoping to create a non-Congress, non-BJP government through the Third
Front. Due to the unexpected losses from the AIADMK in Tamil Nadu, and the
TDP and allies in Andhra Pradesh, and a sweep from Congress in Kerala and a big
victory for Congress and its ally Trinamool Congress, in West Bengal, the Third This article is part of the series:
Front along with the Left Front did not prove to be a factor in this election. Politics and government of
India
Union Government
Contents Constitution of India
Fundamental Rights
1 Results
1 of 22 17/5/2009 7:06 PM
Indian general election, 2009 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_general_election,_2009
Executive
1.1 Indian election at a glance President Prime Minister
1.2 Results by alliance Vice President The Cabinet
1.3 Results by states and territories
Parliament
2 2008 Lok Sabha vote of confidence Rajya Sabha Lok Sabha
The Chairman The Speaker
3 Electoral Constituencies
4 Voting infrastructure
4.1 Electronic voting machines Judiciary
Supreme Court of India
4.2 Polling stations Chief Justice of India
4.3 Electoral rolls High Courts
5 Polling schedule District Courts
5.1 Background
5.2 Detailed polling schedule for each Phase Elections
5.3 Polling schedule for each state/UT Election Commission
Chief Election Commissioner
6 Election Day
6.1 Phase 1 – April 16, 2009 Political Parties
6.2 Phase 2 – April 22, 2009 & April 23, 2009 National Parties
State Parties
7 Prime ministerial candidates
7.1 United Progressive Alliance
7.2 National Democratic Alliance National Coalitions
Left Front
8 Campaigning National Democratic Alliance
8.1 United Progressive Alliance United Progressive Alliance
8.2 National Democratic Alliance
8.3 Communist Party of India (Marxist) Local & State Govt.
8.4 Campaign controversies Governor
8.4.1 Indian National Congress State Legislature
8.4.2 Janata Dal (United) Vidhan Sabha
8.4.3 Bharatiya Janata Party Vidhan Parishad
8.4.4 Rashtriya Janata Dal Panchayat
8.4.5 Samajwadi Party
9 Coalition members Other countries · Politics Portal
9.1 United Progressive Alliance Government of India Portal

9.1.1 Constituents
9.2 National Democratic Alliance
9.2.1 Constituents
9.2.2 Constituents
9.3 Others
10 Opinion polling
10.1 Pre-poll surveys
10.2 Exit polls
11 The Counting Day
12 The Final Result
13 References
14 External links
Results
Indian election at a glance
Eligible voters: 714 million voters
Polling centres: 828,804
Voting days: 16, 23, 30 April; 7, 13 May
Vote counting: 16 May[6]
2 of 22 17/5/2009 7:06 PM
Results by alliance
Summary of the 20/26 April and 5/10 May Lok Sabha of India election results
Announced results: 541/543 Pending: 2/543
As of May 17, 2009 5:00PM IST
Sources: [2] (http://eciresults.nic.in/PartyWiseSeats.pdf) [3] (http://ibnlive.in.com/politics
/loksabhafinal/plist.php)
Alliances Party Seats won Change

United Progressive Alliance Indian National Congress 205 +60
Seats: 260
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam 18 +2
Seat Change: +79
Nationalist Congress Party 9 -
All India Trinamool Congress 19 +17
National Conference 3 +1
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha 2 -3
All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen 1 -
Republican Party of India (Athvale) - -
Indian Union Muslim League 2 +1
Kerala Congress (Mani) 1 +1
National Democratic Alliance Bharatiya Janata Party 116 -22
Seats: 159
Janata Dal (United) 20 +12
Seat Change: -17
Shiv Sena 11 -1
Rashtriya Lok Dal 5 +2
Shiromani Akali Dal 4 -4
Asom Gana Parishad 1 -1
Indian National Lok Dal - -
Telangana Rashtra Samithi 2 -3
Third Front Left Front 24 -29
Seats: 78
Bahujan Samaj Party 21 +2
Seat Change: -27
Biju Janata Dal 14 +3
All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam 9 +9
Telugu Desam Party 6 +1
Janata Dal (Secular) 3 -
Haryana Janhit Congress 1 +1
Pattali Makkal Katchi - -
Fourth Front Samajwadi Party 22 -14
Seats: 26
Rashtriya Janata Dal 4 -20
Seat Change: -38
Lok Janshakti Party 0 -4
Other Parties
18 -
Seats: 18
Source: Election Commission of India
Results by states and territories
3 of 22 17/5/2009 7:06 PM
State Seats % of
Party Alliance
(# of seats) won votes
United Progressive
Indian National Congress 34
Alliance
Telugu Desam Party 6 Third Front
Andhra Pradesh National Democratic
Telangana Rashtra Samithi 1
(42) Alliance
All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul United Progressive
1
Muslimeen Alliance
Others 0 None
United Progressive
Alliance
Arunachal Pradesh National Democratic
Arunachal Congress 0
(2) Alliance
National Democratic
Bharatiya Janata Party 0
Alliance
United Progressive
Alliance
National Democratic
Assam Alliance
(14) Assam United Democratic Front 1 None
National Democratic
Asom Gana Parishad 1
Alliance
Others 1 None
National Democratic
Janata Dal (United) 20
Alliance
National Democratic
Alliance
Bihar
(40) Rashtriya Janata Dal 4 Fourth Front
United Progressive
Alliance
Others 2 None
National Democratic
Alliance
Chhattisgarh
United Progressive
(11) Indian National Congress 1
Alliance
Others 0 None
National Democratic
Alliance
Goa
United Progressive
Alliance
Others 0 None
National Democratic
Alliance
Gujarat
United Progressive
Alliance
Others 0 None
4 of 22 17/5/2009 7:06 PM
United Progressive
Alliance
Haryana
Haryana Janhit Congress 1 Third Front
(10)
National Democratic
Others 0
Alliance
National Democratic
Alliance
Himachal Pradesh
United Progressive
Alliance
Others 0 None
Jammu & Kashmir Jammu & Kashmir National United Progressive
3
(6) Conference Alliance
United Progressive
Alliance
Independent 1 None
National Democratic
Others 0
Alliance
National Democratic
Alliance
United Progressive
Jharkhand Jharkhand Mukti Morcha 2
Alliance
(14)
United Progressive
Alliance
Others 3 None
National Democratic
Alliance
Karnataka United Progressive
(28) Alliance
Janata Dal (Secular) 3 Third Front
Others 0 None
United Progressive
Alliance
Left Front 4 Third Front
Kerala
(20) United Progressive
Indian Union Muslim League 2
Alliance
United Progressive
Others 1
Alliance (1)
National Democratic
Alliance
Madhya Pradesh United Progressive
(29) Alliance
Bahujan Samaj Party 1 Third Front
Others 0 None
United Progressive
Maharashtra Alliance
(48) National Democratic
Shiv Sena 11
Alliance
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National Democratic
Alliance
United Progressive
Nationalist Congress Party 8
Alliance
Others 3 None
United Progressive
Manipur Indian National Congress 2
Alliance
(2)
Others 0 None
United Progressive
Alliance
Meghalaya
United Progressive
(2) Nationalist Congress Party 1
Alliance
Others 0 None
United Progressive
Mizoram Indian National Congress 1
Alliance
(1)
Others 0 None
Nagaland Nagaland People's Front 1 None
(1) Others 0 None
Biju Janata Dal 14 Third Front
United Progressive
Alliance
Orissa
Communist Party of India 1 Third Front
(21)
National Democratic
Alliance
Others 0 None
United Progressive
Alliance
National Democratic
Punjab Shiromani Akali Dal 4
Alliance
(13)
National Democratic
Alliance
Others 0 None
United Progressive
Alliance
Rajasthan
National Democratic
(25) Bharatiya Janata Party 4
Alliance
Others 1 None
Sikkim Sikkim Democratic Front 1 None
(1) Others 0 None
United Progressive
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam 18
Alliance
Tamil Nadu All India Anna Dravida Munnetra
9 Third Front
(39) Kazhagam
United Progressive
Alliance
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United Progressive
Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi 2
Alliance
Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra
1 None (ally of AIADMK+)
Kazhagam
Pattali Makkal Katchi 0 Third Front
National Democratic
Alliance
Others 0 None
Communist Party of India
2 Third Front
(Marxist)
Tripura
United Progressive
Alliance
Others 0 None
Samajwadi Party 23 Fourth Front
United Progressive
Alliance
Bahujan Samaj Party 20 Third Front
Uttar Pradesh
(80) National Democratic
Alliance
National Democratic
Rashtriya Lok Dal 5
Alliance
Others 1 None
United Progressive
Alliance
Uttarakhand
National Democratic
Alliance
Others 0 None
United Progressive
All India Trinamool Congress 19
Alliance
United Progressive
West Bengal Indian National Congress 6
Alliance
(42)
National Democratic
Alliance
United Progressive
Socialist Unity Centre of India 1
Alliance
Territory Seats % of
Party Alliance
(# of seats) won Votes
National Democratic
Andaman & Nicobar Alliance
Islands United Progressive
(1) Alliance
Others 0 None
Chandigarh United Progressive
Alliance
7 of 22 17/5/2009 7:06 PM
National Democratic
(1) Alliance
Others 0 None
National Democratic
Alliance
Dadra & Nagar Haveli
United Progressive
Alliance
Others 0 None
National Democratic
Alliance
Daman & Diu
United Progressive
Alliance
Others 0 None
United Progressive
Alliance
Delhi
National Democratic
Alliance
Others 0 None
United Progressive
Alliance
Lakshadweep
National Democratic
Alliance
Others 0 None
United Progressive
Puducherry Alliance
(1) Pattali Makkal Katchi 0 Third Front
Others 0 None
2008 Lok Sabha vote of confidence

The UPA faced its first confidence vote in the Lok Sabha on 22 July 2008 after the CPI (M)-led Left Front withdrew
support over India's approaching the IAEA for the Indo-US civilian nuclear agreement. In the 543-member Lok
Sabha, the UPA needed 272 votes for the government to enjoy a simple majority. The UPA won the confidence vote
with 275 votes to the opposition's 256 (10 members abstained from the vote) to record a 19-vote victory. The
government's winning the vote of confidence proved crucial, since this allowed Manmohan Singh to finish his full
term.
Electoral Constituencies
When announcing the elections on March 2, 2009, the Election Commission of India also announced that 499 out of
the total 543 Parliamentary constituencies will see elections conducted on the basis of the newly delimited
constituencies as determined by the Delimitation Commission set up under the Delimitation Act, 2002. This includes
the NCT of Delhi, the Union Territory of Puducherry and all the states except Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Jammu &
Kashmir, Jharkhand, Manipur and Nagaland.[7]
Voting infrastructure
Electronic voting machines
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The election was conducted using Electronic voting machines (EVM), as was done with the 2004 election. There
were 1,368,430 voting machines available across the country.
The complete EVM consists mainly of two units – (a) Control Unit and (b) Balloting Unit with cable for connecting it
with Control unit. A Balloting Unit caters to up to 16 candidates. Four Balloting Units linked together catering in all
to 64 candidates can be used with one control unit. The control unit is kept with the Presiding Officer and the
Balloting Unit is used by the voter for polling.
The Balloting Unit of EVM is a small box-like device, on top of which each candidate and his/her election symbol is
listed like a big ballot paper. Against each candidate's name, a red LED and a blue button is provided. The voter polls
his vote by pressing the blue button against the name of his desired candidate.
Polling stations
There were 828,804 polling stations in the country, a 20% increase over the 2004 election. This was done mainly to
avoid vulnerability to threat and intimidation, geographical barriers and to reduce the distance travelled by voters.[7]
The CEC also announced that the polling station in Banej village in the Una segment of Junagadh Lok Sabha
constituency, Gujarat had the unique claim to being the only polling station in the country that catered to a single
elector – Guru Shree Bharatdasji Bapu, a priest of a Shiva temple in the middle of the Gir Forest.[8]
Electoral rolls
The electoral rolls had to be completely updated because of the delimitation that took effect from 2008. The process
of updating the electoral rolls continued until the last date of filing nominations. 714 million people were eligible to
vote in 2009, up 6.4% (43 million) from 2004.
This election also saw almost the entire country (except Assam, Nagaland and Jammu & Kashmir) use photo electoral
rolls. This meant that photos of the electors were printed on the electoral rolls which was intended to facilitate easy
identification and prevent impersonation.
In addition to the photo electoral rolls, the electors also needed to provide separate photo identification. Those
electors who had already been issued Electoral's Photo Identification Cards (EPIC) were only permitted to use the
EPIC for identification at the polling station. According to the EC, 82% of the country's electors (except those in
Assam) have been issued EPIC. [7]
Polling schedule
9 of 22 17/5/2009 7:06 PM
got together on March 2, 2009 to announce the details of the general election.
Subsequently, the President's House announced on March 4, 2009 that the incumbent CEC N. Gopalaswami would
retire as scheduled on April 20, 2009 and Navin Chawla would take over as CEC starting April 21, 2009.[15] For the
first time in the history of Indian politics, two different people will oversee different phases of the same election.[16]
Detailed polling schedule for each Phase

Detailed Schedule for 2009 General Elections
Phases
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4 Phase 5
Phase Phase Phase Phase Phase Phase Phase
Poll Event 2A 2B 3A 3B 3C 5A 5B
Announcement & Issues
Mon, 02 Mar
of Press Notes
Mon, 23 Sat, 11
Issue of Notification Sat, 28 Mar Thu, 02 Apr Fri, 17 Apr
Mar Apr
Last Date for filing Mon, 30 Sat, 18
Sat, 04 Apr Thu, 09 Apr Fri, 24 Apr
Nominations Mar Apr
Tue, 31 Sat, 11 Mon, 20
Scrutiny of Nominations Mon, 06 Apr Fri, 10 Apr Sat, 25 Apr
Mar Apr Apr
Last Date for Withdrawal Thu, 02 Mon, 13 Wed, 15 Mon, 13 Wed, 22 Mon, 27 Tue, 28
Wed, 08 Apr
of Candidature Apr Apr Apr Apr Apr Apr Apr
Thu, 16 Wed, 22 Thu, 23 Thu, 7
Date of Poll Thu, 30 Apr Wed, 13 May
Apr Apr Apr May
Counting of Votes Sat, 16 May
Date before which
election shall be Thu, 28 May
Completed
Number of States & UTs 17 1 12 6 1 4 8 8 1
Number of
Parliamentary 124 1 140 77 1 29 85 72 14
Constituencies
Source: [7]
Polling schedule for each state/UT
11 of 22 17/5/2009 7:06 PM
Polling schedule for each State/UT in 2009 General Elections
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4
16 [17] 22/23 [17] 30 [18] 7 [19

States/UTs Constituencies Phases Apr Turnout Apr Turnout Apr Turnout May Turnout
Andaman &
Nicobar 1 1 1 64.15% - - -
Islands
Andhra
42 2 22 69.75% 20 75.50% - -
Pradesh
Arunachal
2 1 2 65.00% - - -
Pradesh
Assam 14 2 3 67.61% 11 70.06% - -
Bihar 40 4 13 43.21% 13 45.83% 11 46.12% 3 37.00%
Chandigarh 1 1 - - - -
Chhattisgarh 11 1 11 58.19% - - -
Dadra & Nagar
1 1 - - 1 73.22% -
Haveli
Daman & Diu 1 1 - - 1 71.85% -
Delhi 7 1 - - - 7 51.79%
Goa 2 1 - 2 55.42% - -
Gujarat 26 1 - - 26 47.92% -
Haryana 10 1 - - - 10 67.67%
Himachal
4 1 - - - -
Pradesh
Jammu &
6 5 1 49.68% 1 44.73% 1 26.43% 1 25.38%
Kashmir
Jharkhand 14 2 6 51.16% 8 48.86% - -
Karnataka 28 2 - 17 60.00% 11 58.48% -
Kerala 20 1 20 73.33% - - -
Lakshadweep 1 1 1 86.10% - - -
Madhya
29 2 - 13 51.39% 16 51.22% -
Pradesh
Maharashtra 48 3 13 55.74% 25 49.18% 10 41.24% -
Manipur 2 2 1 83.70% 1 75.50% - -
Meghalaya 2 1 2 64.40% - - -
Mizoram 1 1 1 50.93% - - -
Nagaland 1 1 1 90.21% - - -
Orissa 21 2 10 64.90% 11 62.00% - -
Puducherry 1 1 - - - -
Punjab 13 2 - - - 4 72.78%
Rajasthan 25 1 - - - 25 48.50%
Sikkim 1 1 - - 1 82.00% -
Tamil Nadu 39 1 - - - -
Tripura 2 1 - 2 83.91% - -
12 of 22 17/5/2009 7:06 PM
Uttar Pradesh 80 5 16 45.37% 17 45.48% 15 46.12% 18 48.00%

Uttarakhand 5 1 - - - -
West Bengal 42 3 - - 14 80.71% 17 82.60%
Total
543 124 141 107 85
Constituencies 59.07% 56.66% 52.12% 52.32%
Total States/UTs polling on this day 17 13 11 8
States/UTs Constituencies
Number of States & UTs polling in single
22 164
phase
Number of States & UTs polling in two
8 163
phases
Number of States & UTs polling in three
2 90
phases
Number of States & UTs polling in four
1 40
phases
Number of States & UTs polling in five
2 86
phases
Total 35 543
Source: [7]
Election Day
Phase 1 – April 16, 2009
The first phase of the 2009 election took place on Thursday, April 16 with elections in 124 constituencies across 15
states and 2 union territories. There were incidents of violence in a few places in Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Bihar,
Jharkhand and Maharashtra and between 17 to 19 people were killed in Naxal attacks.[21] The dead included five
poll officials and 10 security personnel, whose families received a compensation of Rs 10 lakh.[22] Naxals set fire to
voting machines, attacked voters, security personnel and polling workers, and destroyed vehicles.[23][24] According
to one news source, "It was apparent that the Naxals had clearly planned to disrupt the polls."[23]
Despite these incidents, the ECI expressed satisfaction about the conduct of the polls due to peaceful polling in many
other parts of the country. Initial reports from the ECI place the voter turnout for this phase at approximately
60 percent. This phase of the election was held in 1.85 lakh (185,000) polling stations, serving an electorate of over
14.31 crore (143,100,000) deciding the fate of 1,715 candidates.[25][26]
The ECI ordered repoll in 46 polling booths across 7 of the states where polling took place in the first phase. These
include 29 polling booths in Andhra Pradesh, 5 each in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, 3 in Nagaland, 2 in Kerala and
1 each in Jammu & Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh. The repoll in all these polling booths were held on April 18, 2009.[27]
One of the positive stories emerging from this phase of election was from Kandhamal district, where refugees of the
2008 Kandhamal riots came out in huge numbers to exercise their franchise. It is estimated that there was a turnout of
90% amongst Kandhamal refugees and 50% across the entire district. The administration had earlier identified large
parts of the area as naxal affected and vulnerable. Hence, the administration had deployed extra security in the area
and the ECI has arranged for special transport to shuttle the refugees from the refugee camps to the polling booths.
Both of these actions helped achieve the high turnout.[28]
Phase 2 – April 22, 2009 & April 23, 2009
The second phase of the 2009 election was spread across Wednesday, April 22 (Phase 2A) and Thursday, April 23
13 of 22 17/5/2009 7:06 PM
(Phase 2B). Phase 2A saw election in a single constituency in Manipur as it was a state holiday on April 23.[7]
According to the EC, the election in Manipur in Phase 2A was peaceful and witnessed a voter turnout of about
62%[29]. Following the election, though, the CPI and MPP have alleged vote rigging by Congress workers during the
polls in Phase 2A.The MPP claimed that the Congress workers captured 11 booths in the Andro Assembly segment of
Imphal East.[30]
Phase 2B saw polling in 12 states for 140 constituencies – the most in any phase of this election. This phase was
largely peaceful and saw about 55% turnout. There were stray incidents of violence in areas with active Naxalite
groups in Jharkhand and Bihar.[31] The poor turnout in this phase was blamed on a heat wave sweeping the country
that took the noon-time temperature on election day up to between 42 and 46 degrees Celsius in various parts of the
country.[32] Two polling officials even died due to sun stroke in Orissa.[33]
Prime ministerial candidates

Each of the party coalitions has indicated their choice for prime minister, should they win a majority to form a
government.
United Progressive Alliance
Following the August 2008 confidence vote victory for the current government, a statement by Indian National
Congress President Sonia Gandhi has caused speculation that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would be projected as
the Prime Ministerial candidate in the next elections.[34] Nationalist Congress Party leader Sharad Pawar has
indicated that he is also a possible Prime Ministerial candidate post elections.[35] On January 24, 2009, Manmohan
Singh underwent cardiac bypass surgery at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi.[36] Following the
surgery, speculation of alternate PM candidates arose both within the Congress and amongst coalition partners. In an
attempt to quell such speculations, Sonia Gandhi on February 6, 2009, wrote in the Congress party magazine Sandesh
that Manmohan Singh is the UPA coalition's Prime Ministerial candidate for the 2009 elections.[37]
National Democratic Alliance
The main opposition, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its coalition partners in the National Democratic Alliance,
announced on December 11, 2007, that their candidate for prime minister would be BJP party leader Lal Krishna
Advani,[38] the Leader of the Opposition. On January 23, 2008, leaders from BJP and other NDA parties convened to
officially elect him their candidate.[39] No other party or alliance has announced a prime ministerial candidate.
Campaigning
The Congress party has bought the rights for the Oscar winning soundtrack Jai Ho from the movie Slumdog
Millionaire and this song will be used as the official campaign tune by the party. The song title Jai Ho translates to
Let there be victory, and the Congress hopes that this popular song will galvanise the masses during the almost one
month long election season.[40]
On March 24, 2009, Congress President Sonia Gandhi released the party's manifesto for the 2009 election.[41] The
party's slogan for the election is Aam Admi Ke Badthe Kadam, Har Kadam Par Bharat Buland which roughly
translates to The common man moves forward, And with his every step India prospers. The manifesto highlights all
the achievements of the UPA Government over the last five years in power and identifies improving various policies
to favour more rural & under-privileged sections of the Indian society. The full text of the manifesto is available at
the Congress website.[42]
14 of 22 17/5/2009 7:06 PM
To counter the Congress' selection of Jai Ho as their official anthem, the BJP coined the phrase Kushal Neta,
Nirnayak Sarkaar which translates to Able leader, decisive government. The BJP hope to benefit from the fact that
they have been consistently projecting one single leader, Advani, as the party's Prime Ministerial candidate for more
than one year, while the Congress appears to have dual power centres (party President Sonia Gandhi and incumbent
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh). The BJP intends to use Advani's name & image as the main focus in these
elections.[43]
On April 3, 2009, BJP released its election manifesto in New Delhi.[44] The party is taking on the incumbent UPA
Government on the 3 fronts of Good Governance, Development and Security. The manifesto highlights all the
different NDA policies that the UPA reversed over the last five years. The manifesto lays a lot of importance on
requiring strong, POTA-like anti-terrorism laws and vows to make India a safer place if the BJP is elected. The full
text of the manifesto is available at the BJP website.[45]
Communist Party of India (Marxist)
The CPI(M) has created a campaign website hosting its campaign information to attract sympathisers among the
netizen public to vote for the party.[46][47]
Campaign controversies
Indian National Congress
The Election Commission took exception to a full page advertisement on the 2010 Commonwealth Games
taken out in major Delhi newspapers. The advertisement listed the infrastructural facilities that have come up in
preparation for the 2010 event – including 24 flyovers, 75 aerobridge airport, 1,285 km of better roads, 5,000
low-floor buses, 80 new metro destinations, 11 world-class sports venues and thousands of job opportunities.
The EC served notice to the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, the Cabinet Secretary and the Chief
Secretary of Delhi, stating that the advertisement is a clear violation of the model code of conduct since it
enumerates the achievements of the UPA Government. The EC has also asked the violators to pay from their
own pockets.[48][49]
Congress MP and Bollywood actor Govinda is being investigated by the Mumbai Suburban District Collector
for giving money to supporters outside his Mumbai house on March 12, 2009.[50]
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy is being investigated for addressing an election
meeting within a Government school's premises during a Class 10 public examination in the school. His
son-in-law Anil Kumar, an evangelist, has a case filed against him for distributing religious pamphlets
promoting Government programs in a church. Three others were arrested in the case and Anil Kumar is
expected to be arrested as well.[51][52]
Two Congress Lok Sabha candidates from Pilibhit and Shrawasti constituencies from Uttar Pradesh booked for
violating the model code of conduct, the Congress nominee from Pilibhit B.M. Singh was registered for using as
many as 98 four-wheelers in his procession, against the three authorized by the district authorities, whereas the
party’s nominee from Shrawasti, V.K. Pandey, was booked for conducting a road show Tuesday without taking
permission from the district authorities [53]
Janata Dal (United)
JD(U) leader Jeetan Ram Manjhi was booked by EC on March 9, 2009, for violating the model code of conduct
which took effect from the day the election was announced by the EC. Manjhi attended an election meeting in
Nalanda district using the official car made available to him for his position as the Social Welfare Minister in
the Government of Bihar.[54]
Bharatiya Janata Party
An FIR was filed against BJP MP & spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy for holding a press conference at circuit
house in Chapra on March 4, 2009 in violation of the model of conduct.[55]
The EC directed the District Magistrate of Pilibhit to lodge a criminal case against the BJP's candidate Varun
Gandhi for his inflammatory speech against non-Hindus made on March 7, 2009.[56] This decision was taken
15 of 22 17/5/2009 7:06 PM
after the EC had earlier issued a notice[57] to Varun Gandhi and the BJP. After reviewing the incident, the EC
found Varun Gandhi guilty of violating the model code of conduct by creating feeling of enmity and hatred
between different communities. However, since Varun has not been convicted by a court of law, the EC can
not bar him from contesting the election. Instead, they have recommended to his party, the BJP, to drop him
from their list of candidates.[58] The BJP have since come out in support of Varun and have refused to drop
Varun as a candidate, saying that the EC has no right to provide such a recommendation.[59] Subsequently,
Varun Gandhi was arrested and booked under India's strict National Security Act on charges of inciting
communal tensions. This charge could see him kept under detention for up to one year.[60]
Senior BJP leader and former Finance Minister of India Jaswant Singh was caught on tape on March 31, 2009
distributing money during an election meeting in Gajaria village in Barmer. Singh's son Manvendra Singh is
contesting the election on a BJP ticket from Barmer Lok Sabha constituency. The District Collector of Barmer
collected and presented the facts of the incident to the EC. Jaswant Singh has denied the charges of violating
the model code of conduct, instead saying that it was the party tradition to help the poor and needy.[61][62]
Former BJP Lok Sabha MP Ananth Kumar Hegde became the second BJP leader of this election to be reported
for making a hate speech against a particular community. During an election rally at Karwar. Kumar allegedly
threatened to prevent Muslims from celebrating religious festivals after cautioning the people against activities
of Islamist terror groups. Karnataka's Chief Electoral Officer has sent a report on this incident along with a CD
of Kumar's speech to the CEC.[63]
Rashtriya Janata Dal
RJD's Lok Sabha MP, Pappu, and his wife have been charged with violating the model code of conduct for
attending public receptions under Sadar, Khat and Kasba police stations without seeking prior permission from
competent authorities.[64]
An FIR was filed against RJD MP Ramkripal Yadav, former RJD MLA Dharmendra Kumar and Masaurhi
block RJD president Chandrashekhar Prasad Singh for holding a public meeting at Kharoch without
permission.[65]
Samajwadi Party
SP's chief Mulayam Singh Yadav was issued a notice on March 12, 2009, by the EC for allegedly bribing voters
during an election rally on March 11 in his native village of Safai in Etawah Lok Sabha constituency. The party
workers were seen distributing Rs. 100 notes to all those who attended the rally. The party claims that the
money was being given away as a gift to the people of the village and that the gathering was to celebrate the
festival of Holi and was not a political rally.[66][67] On March 31, 2009, the EC decided not to proceed on this
case and no action will be taken against either Mulayam Singh Yadav or the party.[68]
The EC on March 30, 2009 also served notice to Mulayam Singh Yadav for his alleged threats against Ministhy
Dileep, the District Magistrate of Mainpuri. Mulayam is expected to contest the election from Mainpuri Lok
Sabha constituency.[69]
Jayaprada, the Samajwadi Party candidate in Rampur was issued a notice by the Election Commission on April
26, 2009, for violating the code of conduct by distributing bindis to women in Rampur's Swar locality.[70]
Coalition members
The 2009 general election will see three main national pre-poll alliances take on each other. Given the volatile nature
of coalition politics in India, the alliances may change over time – before and after the polls.
The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) was formed after the 2004 general election to bring together parties that
either allied with the Congress in various states, or were willing to support a Congress-led national Government.
Though the UPA never enjoyed a clear majority on its own, it has managed to complete its five-year term from 2004
to 2009 by securing outside support from the Left Front, Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party at different times
during this tenure.
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Constituents
The UPA comprises the following constituent parties: Indian National Congress, Samajwadi Party[71], Rashtriya
Janata Dal[71], Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam[72], Nationalist Congress Party[73], Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, Lok
Janshakti Party[71],Trinamool Congress[74][75], Jammu & Kashmir National Conference, Indian Union Muslim
League, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, Republican Party of India (Athvale), Sikkim Democratic Front
among others.
The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) was the first large national coalition formed by one national party
supported by various regional parties. It was formed after the 1998 general election and the NDA formed the
Government led by BJP's Atal Bihari Vajpayee. However, the Government collapsed a few months later. The NDA
returned to power after the 1999 general election and this time the Vajpayee-led Government completed its full term
from 1999 to 2004.
Constituents
The NDA comprises the following constituent parties: Bhartiya Janata Party, Shiv Sena, Janata Dal (United),
Shiromani Akali Dal, Rashtriya Lok Dal, Asom Gana Parishad[76], Indian National Lok Dal, Mizo National Front
amongst others.
Constituents
The Third Front comprises the following constituent parties: Communist Party of India (Marxist), Biju Janata Dal[77],
Communist Party of India, Telugu Desam Party,Janata Dal (Secular), Revolutionary Socialist Party, All India
Forward Bloc, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam ,[78],
Pattali Makkal Katchi[79] among others.
Others
Some parties have either not yet announced the coalition they support or have decided to fight the election on their
own. This list is likely to change as we near election dates. Parties that remain un-allied even after the election, could
play the role of king-maker in determining who will form the next Government. Many of these parties are regional
parties who have limited presence outside their home states.
These include Bahujan Samaj Party[80][81], Nagaland People's Front[82], National Loktantrik Party[83], Kerala
Congress[84], Jammu & Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party[85][86], Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam[87], Praja
Rajyam[88] among others.
Opinion polling
Most opinion polls conducted by major agencies till date are giving the UPA an edge over the NDA, but none are
predicting either to come close to the requisite figure for a majority, while reckoning other regional parties could play
an important role by winning a substantial number of seats. In results where the "Fourth Front" is indicated, the SP,
RJD and LJP are not being counted in the UPA figure.
Pre-poll surveys
Agency Dates Results

CNN-IBN–CSDS 8 Jan to 15/09 UPA 215–235, NDA 165–185, Others 125–155 [89]
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5 Mar to 17 Mar
Star–Nielsen
2009 UPA 257 (Congress 144), NDA 184 (BJP 137), Others 96 [90]
26 Mar – 3 Apr UPA 203 (Congress 155), NDA 191 (BJP 147), Third Front 104,
Star–Nielsen
2009 Fourth Front 39 [91]
Outlook India–The March – April
Week 2009 UPA 234 (Congress 144), NDA 186 (BJP 140), Third Front 112 [92]
Times of India March 2009 UPA 201 (Congress 146), NDA 195 (BJP 138), Others 147 [93]
Exit polls
In February 2009, the ECI banned the publishing of all exit polls starting 48 hours before Phase 1 of the election until
the end of Phase 5. This was intended to prevent exit polls from earlier phases affecting voter decision in later
phases.[94] The ban ended with the close of Phase 5 voting at 5:00 pm IST on May 13.
Publish
Agency Predictions
Date
CNN-IBN – Dainik May 13, UPA 185–205, NDA 165–185, Third Front 110–130, Fourth Front
Bhaskar 2009 25–35 [95]
May 13,
Star-Nielsen
2009 UPA 199, NDA 196, Third Front 100, Fourth Front 36 [95]
May 13,
India TV – CVOTER
2009 UPA 189–201, NDA 183–195, Third Front 105–121 [95]
The Counting Day

The counting of votes of all the phases was started on 16th May 2009 at 08 hrs. The EVMs were localized to 1080
centers across the country. The UPA took early lead and maintained it and evolved victorious. The BJP leader
Rajnath Singh said tha "The BJP's performance in the results is very unexpected. The success for the NDA that we
had hoped for has not materialised. The reasons for this will be discussed later".[96]The CPM led third front later said
it is ready to sit in the opposition.
The Final Result

The Congress led UPA swept 261 seats up from 218 last election. This huge increase is achieved despite the
withdrawal of left parties, MDMK, TRS, BSP, PDP and PMK. The BJP led NDA stood with 158 down 181. The
CPM led Third front made only 68. The communist parties could make up only few seats in West Bengal and Kerala,
which is considered as a major setback.
Party Won
UPA 261
NDA 158
Third Front 68
Fourth Front 27
Others 29
With more number of seats, the Congress led UPA is all set to back in power with Dr. Manmohan Singh as Prime
18 of 22 17/5/2009 7:06 PM

Indian General Election 2009

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Indian general election, 2009 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.

Indian general election, 2009

India held general elections—the largest

The election was conducted by the Election

9.1 United Progressive Alliance Government of India Portal

Alliances Party Seats won Change

Source: Election Commission of India

Results by states and territories

2008 Lok Sabha vote of confidence

Detailed polling schedule for each Phase

Polling schedule for each state/UT

Polling schedule for each State/UT in 2009 General Elections

Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4

16 [17] 22/23 [17] 30 [18] 7 [19

Uttar Pradesh 80 5 16 45.37% 17 45.48% 15 46.12% 18 48.00%

Phase 2 – April 22, 2009 & April 23, 2009

Prime ministerial candidates

United Progressive Alliance

National Democratic Alliance

National Democratic Alliance

Communist Party of India (Marxist)

Indian National Congress

Janata Dal (United)

Bharatiya Janata Party

Rashtriya Janata Dal

United Progressive Alliance

National Democratic Alliance

Agency Dates Results

The Counting Day

The Final Result

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