Lok Sabha Polls: Lok Sabha Elections 2024: From Wayanad to New Delhi, exciting contests lined up

Annie Raja Vs Rahul Gandhi: Wayanad

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is facing Annie Raja, wife of CPI leader D Raja, as she seeks a second term from Wayanad in Kerala. The contest aroused public interest especially since the Congress and CPI were members of the INDIA alliance and D Raja regularly shared the stage with Gandhi.

Chandrasekhar vs Tharoor: Thiruvananthapuram

Three-time MP and former Union Minister Shashi Tharoor took on Union minister of state for electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar in Thiruvananthapuram, where Tharoor had defeated BJP candidates three times in a row in previous elections. .

Bansuri Swaraj Vs Somnath Bharti: New DelhiThe BJP replaced two-time MP and Union Minister of State Meenakshi Lekhi from this seat with Bansuri Swaraj, the daughter of late Union minister Sushma Swaraj. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) fielded Malviya Nagar MLA Somnath Bharti from the seat for the first time. With the Congress and AAP battling it out in alliance polls, the contest has acquired added significance for first-time candidates from the seat from both the BJP and AAP.Mahabal Mishra Vs Kamaljeet Sehrawat: West Delhi

A veteran Congress leader and former MP Mahabal Mishra is again in the fray but as an AAP candidate. The seat went to AAP in alliance with Congress. The BJP replaced sitting MP Pravesh Verma and fielded former South Delhi mayor Kamaljeet Sehrawat. In 2019, Verma won this seat with the highest margin of 578,000 votes in all seven Lok Sabha seats of Delhi. In 2009, Mishra won the seat by defeating BJP’s Jagdish Mukhi. Mishra is banking on Purvanchali voters in the region, while Sehrawat is betting on traditional Jat voters.

Mahant VS Saroj Pandey: Korba

This seat has traditionally seen a close contest between the Congress and the BJP. In 2019, Congress leader Jyotsna Mahant, wife of senior Congress leader Charan Das Mahant, won by 26,349 votes. This time, the BJP has fielded senior party leader Saroj Pandey from here, making it a challenging battle for Mahant. Behind the scenes it was a contest between Pandey and Charan Das Mahant.

Bhupesh Baghel Vs Santosh Pandey: Rajnandgaon

BJP MP Santosh Pandey will face former chief minister Bhupesh Baghel in the upcoming elections. The BJP has not lost this seat since 2009. The Congress has fielded its best candidate to break the convention and win from the BJP stronghold. Currently, of the eight MLAs in the constituency, five are from the Congress. Other backward classes account for around 30% of the electorate here and Baghel, as the most important OBC face of the Congress, is expected to give a tough fight to Pandey.

Annu Tandon vs Sakshi Maharaj : Unnao

Unnao will see a contest between old political rivals – two-time MP Sakshi Maharaj from BJP and Annu Tandon. The only change is, instead of Congress, Tandon is the SP candidate this time, with the support of the Congress. He was the MP from the seat from 2009 to 2014. Maharaj won the previous two elections from this seat, both with a margin of over 300,000 votes. Unnao is important because of its geographical location, in the middle of Lucknow and Kanpur.

Ashish Kumar Saha vs Biplab Deb: Tripura West

Former chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb is contesting Tripura state Congress president Ashish Kumar Saha. Deb is currently a member of the Rajya Sabha and is contesting the Lok Sabha polls for the first time. In 2019, the BJP won this seat for the first time, when the party’s candidate Pratima Bhoumik won by more than 300,000 votes. The Congress and CPI (M) are in alliance and Saha is the Congress candidate with the support of the left.

Ritesh Pandey Vs Lalji Verma: Ambedkar Nagar

In 2019, when SP and BSP formed an alliance, BSP’s Ritesh Pandey won from Ambedkar Nagar by 95,000 votes. This time, BSP is fighting alone, while SP and Congress are in alliance. Pandey is in the fray on a BJP ticket. The SP fielded its main OBC leader and six-time MLA Lalji Verma from the seat. Verma’s constituency, Katehari, falls under the Ambedkar Nagar Lok Sabha. He was earlier with BSP but joined SP in 2021.