3rd Phase Lok Sabha Elections Underway; Know Key Candidates Whose Fate Will Be Sealed In EVMs Today

New Delhi: Polling for the third phase of the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections is in progress in a total of 93 constituencies across 11 states and Union Territories on Tuesday.

A total of 1,352 candidates are contesting from the 93 Parliamentary constituencies where voting commenced at 7 am for the third phase of the Lok Sabha elections. Voting is slated to continue till 5 pm.

The Election Commission of India (ECI)  has deployed robust security measures to uphold the integrity of the electoral process and ensure a free and fair voting environment for all.

Over 18.5 lakh polling officials have been deployed in 1.85 lakh polling stations where 17.24 crore voters – 8.85 crore males and 8.39 crore females – are to exercise their franchise.

Prominent candidates in this phase include Union Home Minister Amit Shah, contesting for a second term from Gujarat’s Gandhinagar, and Union Ministers Jyotiraditya Scindia (Guna, Madhya Pradesh), Mansukh Mandaviya (Porbandar, Gujarat), and Pralhad Joshi (Dharwad, Karnataka). Former Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai is also among the heavyweight contestants in the third phase of polling.

Earlier, the Election Commission Of India had announced that Anantnag-Rajouri seat of Jammu and Kashmir will go for polls in the third phase However after a request from BJP and other regional parties, on April 30, the poll body postponed the voting date from May 7 to May 25 in the constituency.

The polling in Madhya Pradesh’s Betul constituency was shifted from phase 2 (April 26) to phase 3 after the demise of the BSP candidate from the seat.

The 93 seats, where polling is currently underway, include 25 seats in Gujarat, 14 seats in Karnataka, 11 seats in Maharashtra, 10 in Uttar Pradesh, 9 in Madhya Pradesh, 7 in Chhattisgarh, 5 in Bihar, 4 each in Assam and West Bengal and 2 seats each in Goa and Dadra Nagar Haveli & Daman & Diu.

Union Minister Amit Shah is contesting for a second term from Gujarat’s Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat. Before Shah, the seat was represented by one of the founders of the Bharatiya Janata Party, L K Advani. In 1991, former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee represented the constituency for a brief period. In 2019, in his first Lok Sabha contest, Amit Shah defeated Chatursinh Javanji Chavda of the Congress party by a huge margin of over 5.56 lakh votes. This time, the Congress party has fielded Sonal Patel against the former BJP chief. Sonal, aged 62, is an architect by profession and currently serves as AICC secretary.

Jyotiraditya Scindia

Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, who switched sides with other Congress leaders amid the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020 to join the BJP, has been named as the candidate by the saffron party from Madhya Pradesh’s Guna constituency, known as the bastion of the Scindia family.

Shivraj Singh Chauhan

BJP veteran and former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan is vying for his 6th victory from Madhya Pradesh’s Vidisha Lok Sabha seat. Having served as the state’s chief minister for nearly 17 years, Chouhan now aims to secure a seat in the Parliament from Vidisha, where he last won as an MP in 2004. Shivraj has represented the Vidisha Lok Sabha constituency for five terms between 1991 and 2004. Congress Pratap Bhanu Sharma is main opponent against former MP CM from the seat.

Basavraj Bommai

Former Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai is contesting against Congress’ A G Math from Haveri Lok Sabha seat. The seat has been held by BJP since 2009.

Badruddin Ajaml

Maulana Badruddin Ajmal, the perfume baron and AIUDF chief is seeking a fourth term from Assam’s Dhubri Lok Sabha seat. Ajmal has won last three Lok Sabha elections from the seat. Ajmal will compete against Rakibul Hussain of Congress and Zabed Islam of Asom Gana Parishad.

Supriya Sule

The NCP(SP) Working President Supriya Sule (54) is locked in a rare battle with Sunetra Pawar (61), the wife of her cousin brother and rival NCP President Ajit Pawar.

Supriya Sule is making her fourth bid for the LS as compared to Sunetra Pawar trying her maiden attempt for Baramati which comprises six Assembly constituencies – Baramati, Daund, Purandar, Indapur, Bhor and Khadakwasla – of which two are held by NCP (including 7-time MLA Ajit Pawar), two with ally BJP and two with the Congress.

Digvijay Singh

Former Madhya Pradesh chif minister Digvijay Singh has been fielded by the Congress party from Rajgarh Lok Sabha seat. In 2019, Digvijay faced defeat with the hands of BJP’s Pragya Thakur in Bhopal.

Dimple Yadav

Dimple Yadav, wife of Samajwadi Party supremo Akhilesh Yadav is contesting from Mainpuri Lok Sabha seat. The seat is considered as the pocket borough of the Yadav family. BJP has fielded Jaiveer Singh against Dimple.

Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury

Senior Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Choudhury is seeking sixth term from West Bengal’s Baharampur Lok Sabha seat. Adhir has been holding the seat since 1999. This year, the Baharampur election has been watched closely as TMC has fielded former cricketer Yusuf Pathan against the Congress leader.

Prahlad Joshi

Union Minister Pralhad Joshi is contesting from Karnataka’s Dharwad Lok Sabha seat to register a fourth victory from here. He is up against Congress’ Vinod Asooti.