Gujarat Elections Phase 2: 5 Seats To Watch Out For

Ghatlodia - This urban constituency in Ahmedabad city was won by the highest margin - 1.17 lakh votes - in 2017. The winner was Bhupendra Patel, the incumbent Chief Minister of Gujarat. Mr Patel is seeking a second term from Ghatlodia, which was represented by former Chief Minister Anandiben Patel between 2012 and 2017. 

Unjha - This constituency holds significance as PM Modi's hometown of Vadnagar falls here. In the 2017 elections, the BJP lost it to the Congress by a margin of 19,529 votes. However, the Congress MLA, Asha Patel, later joined the BJP and got re-elected. A Patidar-dominated constituency, Unjha is a BJP bastion since 1995. This time, the BJP has fielded debutant Kiritkumar Patel.

Vav - Situated in north Gujarat, this constituency is a part of the Banaskantha Lok Sabha seat. Vav recorded a close contest between the Congress and the BJP in the 2017 polls, with the former winning by less than 7,000 votes. In the 2022 polls, it is set to witness a contest between two Thakors. The incumbent Congress MLA as well as the BJP candidate belong to the numerically significant Thakor community.

Chhota Udaipur - This tribal-dominated constituency will witness a 'Rathwa versus Rathwa' rivalry this election. The BJP has fielded Rajendrasinh Rathwa, the son of 10-time legislator Mohansinh Rathwa, who has represented the seat since 2012. The Congress has given the ticket to Sangramisinh Rathwa, the son of party MP Naranbhai Rathwa. Winning margins have been wafer-thin since the 2007 polls, with the Congress winning two out of the last three elections.

Maninagar - Represented by PM Modi between 2002 and 2014, Maninagar constituency covers southern parts of Ahmedabad city. A BJP bastion since 1990, Suresh Patel currently represents the constituency after winning the bypoll in 2014. In the upcoming polls, BJP has replaced Patel with Amulbhai Bhatt.