If surprising trends on counting day could be ranked, Uttar Pradesh would top the list. Nearly four hours into the vote count for the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP’s stronghold of the past two general elections is witnessing an epic neck-and-neck battle between the NDA and the INDIA bloc, comprising the Samajwadi Party and Congress. In fact, the INDIA bloc holds a slim lead over the NDA.
According to the latest Election Commission figures, the NDA is leading in 34 seats (the BJP in 32 and the RLD in two) against the INDIA bloc’s 45 seats (SP in 36 and Congress in nine).
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP-led NDA won 62 of the state’s 80 seats, with the BSP and Samajwadi Party, then allies, winning 10 and five seats, respectively. This time, the BSP is running solo, and early trends do not suggest a strong performance.
The Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party is contesting 62 seats, while the Congress is fighting for 17. The BJP has stuck to its old ally, Apna Dal (Sonelal), and has also brought Jayant Chaudhary’s RLD and OP Rajbhar’s Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party into the NDA fold.
For the Congress, Amethi and Rae Bareli, its family strongholds, are prestige battles. This is especially true for Amethi, where Rahul Gandhi lost to BJP’s Smriti Irani last time. As of 11 am, Ms. Irani is trailing Congress’s Kishori Lal Sharma, a Gandhi family loyalist. In Rae Bareli, Mr. Gandhi is leading by over 60,000 votes.
Exit polls had earlier given the NDA an edge in Uttar Pradesh, but INDIA bloc leaders had dismissed the projections.
Also read: Punjab Lok Sabha Trends: Congress Leads In Seven Of 13 Seats
Among the key Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is currently leading over Congress’s Ajay Rai in Varanasi, while Congress MP Rahul Gandhi is ahead in Rae Bareli. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav is leading from the Kannauj Lok Sabha seat.
In Lucknow, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, seeking a third term, is leading over SP’s Ravidas Mehrotra and BSP candidate Sarwar Malik.
Hema Malini, BJP’s actor-turned-politician, is ahead in the Mathura constituency against Congress’s Mukesh Dhangar. Meanwhile, Union Minister Smriti Irani is trailing behind Congress’s Kishori Lal Sharma in Amethi.
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