Campaigning for the seventh and final phase of the Lok Sabha elections ended on Thursday. Polling in 57 seats in seven states and the Union territory of Chandigarh is scheduled to be held on June 1.

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik clarified that bureaucrat-turned-politician VK Pandian is not his “successor” and that such speculations were an “exaggeration”.

Union minister Rajnath Singh said that efforts would be made to implement simultaneous elections within the next five years as “frequent elections are not good for the country”.

Here is a look at today’s top developments:

  • The 75-day campaigning for the seven-phased general elections ended on Tuesday, with both the Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress asserting they would secure a majority. Polling in all 13 seats of Punjab, 13 seats in Uttar Pradesh, nine in West Bengal, eight in Bihar, six in Odisha, four in Himachal Pradesh and three seats of Jharkhand will be held on June 1.

  • Amid repeated criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party about Pandian’s growing influence in the Biju Janata Dal, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik clarified that the former bureaucrat is not his political successor, reported The Indian Express. “I cannot understand these exaggerations,” said Patnaik. “You may have noticed that he is not even standing for elections.” When asked if Pandian was his successor, the chief minister said: “He is not my successor. And I see all of this as exaggerations and falsehoods.” He said his successor “will be decided by the people of the state”.

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party believe that frequent elections are not good and that polls to the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies should be held simultaneously, said Union minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday, reported PTI. “In five years we will try our best to make provisions for one nation, one election,” said the minister. On Sunday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah told the news agency that simultaneous elections and a nationwide Uniform Civil Code will be implemented within the next five years if the Bharatiya Janata Party retains power in the Lok Sabha polls.

  • Shiromani Akali Dal leader and former Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal said on Thursday that the people of Punjab “should not waste their vote on” national parties. “The three national parties – BJP, Congress and Aam Aadmi Party – talk about their national agendas, while Akali Dal is the only party which talks about regional issues related to Punjab,” Badal told ANI. The Shiromani Akali Dal had contested the 2019 Lok Sabha elections as part of the National Democratic Alliance. However, the party left the alliance in 2020 amid the protest against three farm laws that have since been repealed.

  • Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav said on Thursday that “something major” will take place in Bihar after the Lok Sabha election results on June 4. “Ever since I made the prediction that chacha [uncle] will take a big decision after Lok Sabha polls, he has not been going out to campaign,” said Yadav, referring to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Yadav said on Tuesday that Kumar would make a “big decision” after the election results. He had alluded that the Janata Dal (United) chief may once again switch sides.