It is obvious that secularism is not merely about non-discrimination in government schemes, and the prime minister is trying to conceal the true intent of his politics using sophistry and subterfuge.

The speeches of the two reveal two kinds of politics.

Referring to Modi taking the names of Ambani and Adani, the Congress leader said, 'When somebody is frightened, he takes the name of a benefactor who can save him. Modi remembered his two friends. He is pleading with Adani-Ambani to save him.'

The Congress said Modi was compelled to speak on the Adani-Ambani issue because of Rahul Gandhi’s persistent attacks on corporate loot and crony capitalism.

Notably, Modi didn’t answer any of the over 100 questions asked by the Congress on his nexus with Adani, giving specific examples of misuse of power to award contracts and provide protection from investigative agencies.          

Feedback from the ground suggests that talk of 'samvidhan' and 'gareeb' has found resonance in voters' core concerns, compelling top leaders to prioritise this along with prices and unemployment.

"You should ask how the BJP became the richest party in the world and you became poorer. You should ask why the sugarcane dues of Rs 15,000 crore can’t be cleared and a new Parliament worth Rs 20,000 crore is built," Congress's Priyanka Gandhi-Vadra said, calling for accountability of politicians.

Narendra Modi has shown a tendency to drag Muslims and Pakistan into the electoral discourse. This time around he has said that there is a partnership between the Congress party and Pakistan. 

The Congress chose to deal with the propaganda threat, of Rahul being painted as timid for abandoning UP, with a googly, not as per the projections of the BJP or even analysts. All in all, the presence of someone from the Gandhi family in the political fiefdom of Amethi-Rae Bareli was essential for future politics of the Congress.

State-based parties, which are accused of pursuing a narrow political agenda and being oblivious to the national priorities, have assumed the responsibility of protecting the idea of India.

While the prime minister himself had kept the embers burning by talking about 'samshan-kabristan’ and arguing that trouble-makers can be recognised by their clothes, other key leaders have also constantly refurbished their credentials as the custodians of Hindu interest with their divisive politics.

The BJP had used the issue of allocations to defame the Manmohan Singh government and accuse it of scams.

Most Congress leaders are intrigued by the fact that real and substantive issues have not triggered any fierce debate.

This assertion was aimed at smashing the smokescreen created by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to blur the messaging of the Congress's manifesto in his recent speeches.

Congress leader Abhishek Singhvi, who was part of the delegation that submitted the complaint, said the ECI “is on trial” now as the entire nation was waiting to see whether action would be taken against Modi for brazenly violating the model code of conduct by targeting Muslims.

The low voter turnout is being analysed as tangible evidence of the absence of any wave and deepening voter fatigue. There is no pull factor.

The Congress's leadership is enthused by inputs from the ground, which suggest that many people, particularly Dalits and Muslims, spoke of the need to save the constitution during the first phase of voting yesterday.

Big money and big advertising firms handling election campaigns of major political parties have not thrown up creative slogans. Political communication was far more exciting and reflected social realities more vividly when people who struggled at the grassroots for decades wrote them.

Responding to the prime minister's 'char sau paar' claim, the Congress leader claimed that the BJP will struggle to cross 150 seats.

The opaque scheme through which the BJP netted over Rs 8251 crore was stuck down by the Supreme Court as 'unconstitutional' in February.