Annie Raja Vs Rahul Gandhi: Wayanad
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi faces Annie Raja, wife of CPI leader D Raja, as he is seeking a second term from Wayanad in Kerala. The contest has aroused public interest particularly since both the Congress and CPI are members of the INDIA alliance and D Raja regularly shares the stage with Gandhi.
Chandrasekhar vs Tharoor: Thiruvananthapuram
Three-time MP and former Union minister Shashi Tharoor faces Union minister of state for electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar in Thiruvananthapuram, where Tharoor has defeated BJP candidates thrice in a row in the previous elections.
Bansuri Swaraj Vs Somnath Bharti: New DelhiThe BJP has 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) has fielded Malviya Nagar MLA Somnath Bharti from the seat for the first time. With the Congress and AAP contesting the polls in alliance, the contest has acquired an added significance for the 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 in the fray again but as an AAP candidate. The seat went to the AAP in alliance with the Congress. The BJP has replaced sitting MP Pravesh Verma and has fielded former South Delhi mayor Kamaljeet Sehrawat. In 2019, Verma won this seat with the highest margin of 578,000 votes among all seven Lok Sabha seats of Delhi. In 2009, Mishra won the seat by defeating the BJP’s Jagdish Mukhi. Mishra is banking on Purvanchali voters in the region, while Sehrawat is betting on the 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 is a contest between Pandey and Charan Das Mahant.
Bhupesh Baghel Vs Santosh Pandey: Rajnandgaon
BJP MP Santosh Pandey faces former chief minister Bhupesh Baghel in the upcoming election. The BJP hasn’t lost this seat since 2009. The Congress has put its best candidate to break the convention and win from the BJP’s stronghold. Currently, out of eight MLAs in the constituency, five are from the Congress. Other backward classes account for about 30% of the voters here and Baghel, being the most significant OBC face of the Congress, is hopeful of giving a tough fight to Pandey.
Annu Tandon vs Sakshi Maharaj : Unnao
Unnao will see a contest between old political foes – two-time MP Sakshi Maharaj from the BJP and Annu Tandon. The only change is that instead of the Congress, Tandon is the SP candidate this time, with the support of the Congress. She was the MP from the seat from 2009 to 2014. Maharaj won the previous two elections from this seat, both with a margin of more than 300,000 votes. Unnao holds a significance owing to 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 pitted against the Congress’ Tripura state president Ashish Kumar Saha. Deb is currently a Rajya Sabha member and is contesting Lok Sabha polls for the first time. In 2019, the BJP won this seat for the first time, when party 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 the SP and BSP were in alliance, Ritesh Pandey of the BSP won from Ambedkar Nagar by 95,000 votes. This time, the BSP is contesting alone, while the SP and Congress are in alliance. Pandey is in the fray on a BJP ticket. The SP has fielded its key OBC leader and six-time MLA Lalji Verma from the seat. Verma’s assembly constituency, Katehari, falls under Ambedkar Nagar Lok Sabha. He was earlier with the BSP but joined the SP in 2021.