FILE photo: BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi at a rally in Jammu
It's a battle of the big guns today in western Uttar Pradesh as BJP's prime ministerial candidate
Narendra Modi, Congress Vice President
Rahul Gandhi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav address multiple rallies across the region.
Political parties are eyeing this sprawling part of the state which, with 80 Lok Sabha seats, holds the key to who forms government at the Centre next.
Not surprisingly, Mr Modi, who addressed a rally in Baghpat today and is scheduled to attend another in Amroha later in the day, had kickstarted the second phase of the BJP's election campaign in Uttar Pradesh by addressing a rally earlier this week in Bulandshahr which falls in the same region.
Facing off with Mr Modi today would be Mr Yadav, who has Baghpat as one of his pit-stops in his campaign itinerary. The chief minister, whose Samajwadi Party rules the state, is also scheduled to attend rallies in Sikandra and Garh Mukteshwar.
Rahul Gandhi, meanwhile, will hold rallies in Moradabad and Ghaziabad. He was also scheduled to address a rally in Saharanpur which has been called off following the early-morning arrest of Congress candidate candidate Imran Masood over his remarks threatening to kill Narendra Modi.
(Read)The BJP, which won only 10 seats in UP in the last general elections in 2009, is looking to make major gains in this vital region following the communal polarisation that had taken place in the region after the Muzaffarnagar riots in September last.
The ruling Samajwadi Party, which has been severely criticized for its handling of the riots which claimed over 60 lives and displaced over 40,000, would be desperately looking at damage control. The party majorly depends on Muslims which form a sizeable population in the area.