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Lok Sabha Elections 2024 Phase 2: High-Stakes Battle Across States on April 26

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The battle for the 17th Lok Sabha is heating up as the second phase of polling is set for April 26 (Friday). As many as 89 constituencies across 13 states will go to the polls in this crucial phase, deciding the fate of several prominent leaders and parties. The states voting in phase 2 include Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and West Bengal.

Assam (5 seats) In Assam, the key seats are Karimganj, Silchar, Mangaldoi, Nawgong, and Kaliabor. The BJP has fielded Kripanath Mallah (Karimganj), Parimal Suklabaidya (Silchar), and Suresh Bora (Nawgong), while the Congress candidates are Rashid Ahmed Choudhary, Surjya Kant Sarkar, and Pradyut Bordoloi respectively. The AIUDF has put up Sahabul Islam Choudhary in Karimganj and Aminul Islam in Nawgong.

Bihar (5 seats)
In the politically crucial state of Bihar, the Congress and RJD have formed an alliance to take on the BJP-led NDA. The BJP has given tickets to Mujahid Alam (Kishanganj), Santosh Kumar Kushwaha (Purnia), Ajay Kumar Mandal (Bhagalpur), and Dulal Chandra Goswami (Katihar). However, in Purnia, Congress leader Pappu Yadav is contesting against RJD’s Beema Bharti, adding an interesting dimension.

Chhattisgarh (3 seats) The BJP and Congress are locked in a direct fight in Chhattisgarh’s three seats – Rajnandgaon, Mahasamund, and Kanker. All eyes will be on Rajnandgaon, where former chief minister Bhupesh Baghel of the Congress is taking on BJP’s Santosh Pandey. The BJP has held this seat since 2009.

Karnataka (14 seats) Karnataka promises an intense battle with 14 Lok Sabha seats at stake, including prestigious ones like Bangalore Rural, Bangalore North, Bangalore Central, Bangalore South, Hassan, Mandya, and Mysore. Bangalore South will see a contest between BJP’s Tejasvi Surya and Congress’ Soumya Reddy. In Mandya, former CM HD Kumaraswamy is pitted against Congress’ Venkataramane Gowda, while in Hassan, his son Prajwal Revanna is taking on Shreyash Patel Gowda. The royal scion Yaduveer Wadiyar is the BJP candidate in Mysore against M Lakshman of Congress.

Kerala (20 seats) Kerala’s all 20 seats will go to polls, making it a critical state in phase 2. The high-profile Wayanad constituency will witness a triangular contest between Congress’ Rahul Gandhi, CPI’s Annie Raja, and BJP’s state president K Surendran. In Thiruvananthapuram, Shashi Tharoor is locking horns with BJP’s Rajeev Chandrasekhar. Actor Suresh Gopi, contesting on a BJP ticket from Thrissur, is facing K Muraleedharan (Congress) and VS Sunil Kumar (CPI-M).

West Bengal (3 seats)
In West Bengal, voting will happen for Darjeeling, Balurghat and Raiganj. Balurghat is set for a high-profile clash between BJP’s state unit chief Sukanta Majumdar and TMC’s Biplab Mitra. In Darjeeling, BJP’s Raju Bista is taking on TMC’s Gopal Lama in what is expected to be a bipolar fight.

Rajasthan (13 seats) Rajasthan will see polling for 13 Lok Sabha seats in phase 2, including Tonk-Sawai Madhopur, Ajmer, Pali, Jodhpur, Barmer, Jalore, and Udaipur among others. Several big names are in the fray like Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat (BJP) in Jodhpur, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla (BJP) in Kota, and Ashok Gehlot’s son Vaibhav Gehlot (Congress) contesting from Jalore.

Maharashtra (8 seats) The second phase covers 8 Lok Sabha constituencies in Maharashtra – Buldhana, Akola, Amravati (SC), Wardha, Yavatmal-Washim, Hingoli, Nanded, and Parbhani. A key contest will be in Amravati, where Navneet Rana, an Independent MP who had frequent run-ins with the previous MVA government, is the BJP candidate. In Nanded, once a Congress bastion, the BJP has fielded Prataprao Chikhalikar hoping to make inroads after the joining of former CM Ashok Chavan.

Uttar Pradesh (8 seats)
Eight UP seats – Amroha, Meerut, Baghpat, Ghaziabad, Gautam Budh Nagar, Aligarh, Mathura and Bulandshahr – will also vote in this phase. The BJP has some interesting candidates like Ramayana’s Ram Arun Govil contesting from Meerut and actor Hema Malini fighting from Mathura again. The SP-BSP alliance is posing a stiff challenge to the BJP across these western UP seats.

With several political stalwarts in the fray and high-stakes contests brewing across states, the second phase of the 2024 polls is set to be a thrilling battle that could go a long way in deciding the complexion of the next Lok Sabha. Voting will begin at 7 AM on April 26 amid tight security arrangements across all the poll-bound constituencies.

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