New Delhi:

The Lok Sabha elections begin today with the first phase of voting in 102 seats across 21 states and Union Territories. Among the contestants are ministers, senior leaders and multiple winners, all defending their territories. Several issues are also at stake, including tribal rights and Article 370. Here are the 10 most notable contests:

Bikaner, Rajasthan

Bikaner in Rajasthan, once a Congress stronghold, has become a bastion of the BJP since 2004. Tomorrow, sitting MP Arjun Ram Meghwal of the Bharatiya Janata Party will contest for the fourth time against Govind Ram Meghwal of the Congress. It’s a battle Congress hopes to win this time. The BJP MP has won the seat four times since 2009. Arjun Ram Meghwal is also a member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet, while the Congress candidate is a former state minister.

chennai center tamil nadu

Central Chennai, one of the 39 constituencies in Tamil Nadu, has been a DMK stronghold and will be defended by incumbent Dayanidhi Maran. The former union minister is being challenged by state BJP president Vinoj P. Selvam. The BJP candidate lost to DMK’s PK Sekhar Babu from the Harbor Assembly constituency in 2021.

Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh

Chhindwara is the only Congress bastion still standing in Madhya Pradesh. This has been the residence of the Kamal Nath family for 44 years. This time, Kamal Nath’s son Nakul Nath will defend his father’s seat against BJP challenger Vivek Bunty Sahu ). Determined to take over Chhindwara, the BJP has deployed heavy hitters to campaign for its candidate. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav has campaigned for Mr Sahu from this seat in Mahakoshal district six times.

Dibrugarh, Assam

Dibrugarh, one of the 14 constituencies in Assam, will witness former Union Minister and Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal meeting India Group member Asom Jatia A high-profile battle between Lurinjyoti Gogoi of Asom Jatiya Parishad. Mr. Sonowal had won from this constituency as a candidate of Asom Gana Parishad. For the past two terms, the constituency has been represented by Rameswar Teli, a member of the tribal community that makes up the electorate. Neither candidate is part of the community this time, making for an interesting fight. The candidate belonging to the tea tribe in this triangular contest is Manoj Dhanowal of the Aam Aadmi Party, who is likely to cannibalize the votes of the AJP candidate.

Jamui, Bihar

Jamui is one of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar and is expected to see a direct contest between the Rashtriya Janata Dal’s Archana Ravidas and the National Democratic Alliance’s Arun Bhatti. Mr. Bhatti is the brother-in-law of Lok Janshakti Party chief Chirag Paswan, who won the seat last time. Both are first-time candidates and the battle is expected to be fierce as Ms Ravidas is the wife of local RJD leader Mukesh Yadav.

Jorhat, Assam

Jorhat, the 14-seat Lok Sabha seat in Assam, is expected to be the most watched, with Gaurav Gogoi, son of three-time chief minister Tarun Gogoi Gogoi) is trying to wrest back the erstwhile Congress bastion from the BJP. It’s a prestige battle for both sides. Jorhat is where Tarun Gogoi won the title twice in the 1970s. The seat belonged to Congress legislator Bijoy Krishna Handique for six terms from 1991 to 2014, until it was captured by the BJP in 2014. personal interest. Gaurav Gogoi, deputy leader of the Congress House, who served twice as Kaliabor MP, had to shift to Jorhat after delimitation.

Nagaur, Rajasthan

Nagaur, one of the 25 Lok Sabha seats in Rajasthan, will be another high-profile race in the desert state that is expected to resolve the issue of whether voters focus on parties or candidates when casting their votes. Both candidates have changed positions over the past few years. Jyoti Mirdha won the Congress seat in 2009 and currently joins the Bharatiya Janata Party. Rashtriya Loktantrik Party chief Hanuman Beniwal won the 2019 NDA election and is now part of the India Group.

Nagpur, Maharashtra

Nagpur in Maharashtra is one of the state’s 48 constituencies where the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the ideological mentor of the BJP, is headquartered and has voted for the state for decades. After the Grand Party, Nagpur switched its support to the party in 2014. Union minister and BJP heavyweight Nitin Gadkari stormed the seat, defeating seven-time Congress MP Vilas Muttemwar by nearly 300,000 votes . In 2019, the Grand Old Party failed in its bid to contest the seat, when its candidate was current state Congress president Nana Patole. Mr Gadkari, a two-time winner, is ready to defend his seat for a third time. The Congress is pinning its hopes on Vikas Thakre, the city’s former mayor and sitting MP from Nagpur West ward.

Meghalaya Tula

Tula in Meghalaya is gearing up for a thrilling three-cornered battle between the BJP allies, the ruling state party and the Congress. Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress, which officially became part of the India Bloc, has also fielded a candidate in a move expected to eat into the Congress vote. The candidate of the ruling NPP is current legislator Agatha Sangma. Meghalaya occupies two of the 25 Lok Sabha seats in the northeast. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma – the BJP’s face in the northeast – predicted the NDA would win at least 22 of the 25 seats.

Udhampur, Jammu and Kashmir

Jammu and Kashmir’s Udhampur is expected to be a tough test for the development claims claimed by the BJP after revoking Article 370, which gave special status to the erstwhile state. While Article 370 is a major issue in the Kashmir Valley, Udhampur in Jammu region is dominated by Rajputs. As in Kashmir, Article 370 is an issue here, but issues such as unemployment and development are crucial in the Hindu-majority region. The battle is expected to be fierce, with Congress MP Chaudhry Lal Singh challenging two-time winner Union Minister Jitendra Singh. The Ghulam Nabi Azad-led DPAP (Democratic Progressive Azad Party) has fielded former J&K minister GM Saroori in a triangular contest.