Key leaders in the fray as 49 constituencies in Phase 5 elections | Fusion - WeRIndia

Today, voters in 49 constituencies across six states and two Union Territories will decide the fates of many key leaders, including Union Ministers and party chiefs.

Voting is underway in various states including Bihar, Maharashtra, Odisha etc., and the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. 

By 9 am, an average turnout of 10.3% was recorded. In Odisha, simultaneous polling is taking place for both Assembly and Lok Sabha seats.

Although this phase has the fewest seats, it features many high-profile constituencies with Union Ministers and leaders of national and regional parties. In 2019, the BJP won 32 of these 49 seats.

Major battles are expected in Bengal’s seven seats and Maharashtra’s 13 seats. 

In Maharashtra, ten seats are in the Shiv Sena stronghold, with a significant clash between factions led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his predecessor Uddhav Thackeray.

In Bengal, intense contests are expected, with Congress and CPM challenging what was anticipated to be a direct fight between BJP and the ruling Trinamool Congress.

In Uttar Pradesh, BJP had won 13 of the 14 seats in the last election, with Sonia Gandhi winning the exception, Raebareli.

Key candidates include Union Ministers Piyush Goyal (Mumbai North), Bharati Pawar (Dindori), Smriti Irani (Amethi), and Rajnath Singh (Lucknow). 

Notable allies include Lok Janshakti Party-Ram Vilas chief Chirag Paswan (Hajipur) and Shrikant Shinde, son of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde (Kalyan).

From the Opposition, Congress’s Rahul Gandhi is defending Raebareli after his mother Sonia Gandhi moved to Rajya Sabha.

RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav’s daughter Rohini Acharya is contesting against BJP’s former Union Minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy from Saran. 

Shiv Sena-UBT leader and former Union Minister Arvind Sawant is running from Mumbai South.

Former Chief Minister and National Conference chief Omar Abdullah is up in Jammu and Kashmir’s Baramulla, against PDP’s Faiyaz A Mir, People’s Conference chief Sajad Ghani Lone, and jailed Awami Ittehad Party chief Engineer Rashid.

The next phase, with 58 seats, will occur on May 25, including Delhi and Haryana. Vote counting is scheduled for June 4.

This phase’s outcomes will significantly impact the political landscape, with prominent leaders vying for crucial seats.

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