Kangana Ranaut leads by a large margin, says "Won in the name of PM Modi."

Actor Kangana Ranaut, making her political debut as the BJP candidate from Himachal Pradesh's Mandi, has taken a substantial lead as per initial trends reported by the Election Commission. With a lead of over 70,000 votes, Ms Ranaut seems to be on track for a significant victory.

The 37-year-old Bollywood star took a dig at her rival Congress candidate Vikramaditya Singh, suggesting that he might have to "pack his bags and leave." Ms Ranaut's comments were in response to allegations that she would leave Mandi and return to Mumbai after the elections.

"They will have to suffer the consequences of talking so poorly about a woman... And that is becoming clear today with the way we have gained the lead. Mandi has not taken kindly to the insults directed at daughters," Ms Ranaut told ANI.

The BJP, which won all Lok Sabha seats in 2014 and 2019, was relying heavily on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "charisma" after his three election rallies to retain all parliamentary seats and win six Assembly seats. The Congress, on the other hand, was counting on its strong vote bank of 2.5-lakh government employees, whose demand of restoring the old pension scheme has been implemented by its government led by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.