All eyes will be on Lok Sabha election results on Tuesday with a number of high-profile electoral battles, starring veterans and debutants, formidable opponents and unlikely contestants. Here are some key contests to watch out for:
Narendra Modi vs Ajay Rai in Varanasi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi contested the Lok Sabha elections from Varanasi for the third time. In 2014, he defeated AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal and won against Samajwadi Party’s Shalini Yadav in 2019.
The Congress fielded Ajay Rai, also its candidate from the constituency in 2014 and 2019. Before Modi, the Varanasi seat was held by BJP veteran Murli Manohar Joshi.
Rahul Gandhi vs Dinesh Pratap Singh in Rae Bareli
Rahul Gandhi contested the Lok Sabha poll from Rae Bareli against BJP’s Dinesh Pratap Singh. He has been an MP thrice from Amethi and was defeated in 2019 by sitting MP Smriti Irani.
The seat, which until February was held by his mother Sonia Gandhi, has remained with the Congress since 1952 barring three elections – 1977, (Janata Party), 1996 and 1999 (BJP).
Rahul Gandhi vs Annie Raja in Wayanad
Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is facing CPI leader and women’s rights activist Annie Raja as he seeks a second term from Wayanad in Kerala. The contest has aroused public interest particularly since both the Congress and CPI are members of the INDIA alliance. In 2019, Gandhi was elected from the Wayanad constituency after he defeated P P Suneer of the CPI by an impressive 4.31 lakh votes.
Smriti Irani vs KL Sharma in Amethi
Amethi, once the pocket borough of the Gandhi family, has seen fierce contests in the last two Lok Sabha polls. While BJP’s Smriti Irani, who wrested the seat from Rahul Gandhi in 2019, is seeking a re-election from the constituency, the Congress fielded Kishori Lal Sharma, a close aide of the Gandhi family.
It is for the first time in 25 years that a Gandhi family member did not contest election from Amethi Lok Sabha seat.
Shashi Tharoor vs Rajeev Chandrasekhar in Thiruvananthapuram
Sitting MP and former Union minister Shashi Tharoor is seeking a re-election from Thiruvananthapuram for a fourth consecutive term. He is facing BJP leader and Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar, who made his Lok Sabha poll debut and wants to open the saffron party’s account in Kerala. The other prominent leader in the contest is CPI’s Pannyan Raveendran, who had won the elections from the constituency in 2005.