Gadkari, Rijiju, VK Singh: The Bigwigs to Watch Out for in Phase 1

VK SIngh, Nitin Gadkari are among the many leaders seeking mandate in the first phase.

(Photo: The Quint)

The battle for 2019 is expected to be a fierce one, with big faces, contests and constituencies outweighing the rest in the seven-phase electoral exercise.

Here’s the entire list of who and what to watch out for in the first phase of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Key Faces

General VK Singh | Ghazibad (Uttar Pradesh)

Minister of State for External Affairs VK Singh. (Photo: PTI)

General VK Singh is seeking re-election from Ghaziabad, while battling the charge of being ‘unavailable’ in the constituency during this tenure.

The former general is up against Samajwadi Party-Bahujan Samaj Party-Rashtriya Lok Dal (SP-BSP-RLD) alliance candidate Suresh Bansal and Dolly Sharma of the Congress.

Urban votes play a crucial role in Ghaziabad unlike in other constituencies in Uttar Pradesh.

Nithin Gadkari | Nagpur (Maharashtra)

Senior BJP leader Nitin Gadkari will seek mandate again from the city where the RSS is headquartered. (Photo: The Quint)

Senior BJP leader Nitin Gadkari is seeking mandate again from the city where the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is headquartered.

He is contesting against giant killer Nana Patole, who in the last election had defeated Praful Patel from Bhandara-Gondia.

Patole was the sitting MP from Bhandara-Gondia constituency. He later quit the BJP to join the Congress..

Kiren Rijiju | Arunachal Pradesh West

MoS Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju will take on former state CM Nabam Tuki from the Congress and NPP’s Khyoda Apik.(Photo: The Quint)

MoS Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju is taking on former state CM Nabam Tuki from the Congress and the NPP’s Khyoda Apik.

The fourth candidate in the constituency, Jarium Ete, who is contesting on a Janata Dal (Secular) ticket, is Arunachal’s first woman candidate.

Asaduddin Owaisi | Hyderabad (Telangana)

AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi.(File photo: PTI)

A stronghold of the AIMIM since 1984, Hyderabad will once again see party chief Asaduddin Owaisi seek a re-election.

The Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) has put up a ‘weak candidate’ against Owaisi, as both parties have an alliance.

K Kavitha | Nizamabad (Telangana)

K Kavitha. (File Photo: IANS)

Telangana Chief Minister KCR’s daughter K Kavitha will take on the Congress’ Madhu Yakshi Gowd in Nizamabad.

The constituency has a total of 185 candidates – 170 of which are farmers who are campaigning against Kavitha.

The Election Commission had to make special arrangements for EVMs that can accommodate 185 candidates.

Dr Mahesh Sharma | Gautam Buddh Nagar (UP)

Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma.(File Photo: IANS/PIB)

Incumbent MP Dr Mahesh Sharma of the BJP is seeking a re-election from this seat on a BJP ticket and is pitted against the alliance’s candidate Satveer Nagar of the BSP and Dr Arvind Singh of the Congress party. In 2014, Sharma had secured 50% of the votes polled.

However, he is facing charges of anti-incumbency and allegations of ignoring the farmers of Jewar, Dadri and Khurja.

Hansraj Ahir | Chandrapur (Maharashtra)

Union MoS Home Affairs Hansraj Gangaram Ahir. (Photo: IANS/PIB)

Union Minister of State for Home Affairs and the man known for exposing the coal scam, Hansraj Ahir, has a tough fight ahead of him in Chandrapur. The Congress has fielded Suresh Dhanorkar, who had switched over from Shiva Sena.

Dhanorkar is a member of the Kunbi community, which has a sizeable population in the Chandrapur constituency.

Manish Khanduri | Pauri (Uttarakhand)

Manish Khanduri, the son of former Uttarakhand Chief Minister B C Khanduri.(Photo: IANS)

Son of the former BJP chief minister BC Khandhuri, Manish Khanduri had recently joined the Congress party. In Pauri constituency, he is taking on Tirath Singh Rawat, a close associate of his father.

Chirag Paswan | Jamui (Bihar)

File image of LJP leader Chirag Paswan. (Photo: IANS)

Chirag Paswan, son of Lok Janshakti Party’s (LJP) Ram Vilas Paswan is contesting from Jamui constituency. The actor-turned-politician is the sitting MP. Being a key ally of the BJP, LJP will face a tough battle against the Opposition alliance.

Key Contests

Muzaffarnagar (UP)

In Muzaffaranagar, the fight is between the RLD’s Chaudhary Ajit Singh, who is the son of former prime minister Chaudhary Charan Singh, and the BJP’s Sanjeev Balyan, who is the sitting MP. Both the leaders are strong Jat leaders, but the arithmetic suggests that the masses may go with Ajit Singh.

Saharanpur (UP)

Called the gateway to western Uttar Pradesh, Saharanpur will see a tough battle between three main contenders – the BJP, the SP-BSP-RLD and the Congress. The contest is tricky this time as both the Congress and the SP-BSP-RLD alliance have fielded popular Muslim candidates. That could split the votes in favour of the BJP.

Baghpat (UP)

The Mahagathbandhan has fielded Jayant Chaudhary, the son of RLD chief Ajit Singh, in Baghpat. He is contesting against former Mumbai police chief and minister Satyapal Singh. This constituency too is considered a big battleground for the unity of the Mahagathbandhan.

Kairana (UP)

Kairana is the major litmus test for the Mahagathbandhan. In the 2018 bypoll, following the demise of then MP Hukum Singh, the alliance had won the seat giving a boost to the Opposition alliance. Sitting MP Tabassum Hasan is contesting on an SP ticket with the alliance support and the BJP changed its candidate from Hukum Singh’s daughter Mriganka Singh to local MLA Pradip Chaudhary.

Gautam Buddh Nagar (UP)

The Gautam Buddh Nagar parliamentary constituency is set to witness a triangular contest between the BJP, the BSP-SP-RLD alliance and the Congress.