Lok Sabha Election Phase 2: Over 34 lakh voters in second phase are first-time voters (File)
Eighty-eight constituencies in 13 states will go to polls today, the second phase of the mammoth seven-phased Lok Sabha elections. Earlier, 89 constituencies were scheduled to vote in this phase but the death of a candidate from Mayawati's BSP in Madhya Pradesh's Betul prompted rescheduling. Betul will now vote on May 7 - the third phase.
Voters from five constituencies each in Assam and Bihar, three in Chhattisgarh, 14 in Karnataka, 20 in Kerala, six in Madhya Pradesh, eight in Maharashtra, one each in Manipur, Tripura, and Jammu and Kashmir, 13 in Rajasthan, eight in Uttar Pradesh, and three in West Bengal will exercise their franchise today.
The fates of several high-profile candidates, contesting some high-stakes seats, will be sealed today.
In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP has fielded actor and sitting MP Hema Malini from Mathura. In Meerut, the party has picked Arun Govil as its contender. Mr Govil played Lord Ram in the iconic TV show Ramayana and is an electoral debutant.
Purnia in Bihar has been grabbing headlines ever since veteran politician Pappu Yadav declared his candidature as an Independent after being denied a poll ticket by the Congress. Mr Yadav is up against INDIA bloc candidate and RJD leader Bima Bharti and NDA pick and JDU leader Santosh Kumar Kushwaha - the sitting MP seeking to retain control over the seat.
In Kerala's Wayanad, a three-pronged fight is brewing between Congress's Rahul Gandhi, BJP's K Surendran, and CPI's Annie Raja. Congress and CPI, allies in the INDIA bloc, have pitted candidates against each other in this hill constituency.
Thiruvananthapuram, a high-stakes seat in the south state, will also see a triangular contest. BJP has fielded Rajeev Chandrasekhar against CPI's Pannyan Raveendran, and the Congress's Shashi Tharoor - a three-time MP from the constituency seeking his fourth straight term in Parliament.
Several prestige battles are also brewing in this phase. In Karnataka, Bengaluru South, the BJP's pocket borough, has been voting for the party since 1991. It is currently represented by firebrand BJP MP Tejasvi Surya who is determined to keep his control. However, he is facing a passionate contest from Sowmya Reddy, the daughter of state transport minister Ramalinga Reddy.
Kerala's Pathanamthitta is ready for a crucial fight. Veteran Congress leader and former Defence Minister AK Antony's son Anil K Antony has been pitted by the BJP against Congress's Anto Antony. Anil Antony, who began as a backroom strategist for the Congress in the 2017 Gujarat elections, rose to be the media cell chief of the party's Kerala unit before quitting and joining the BJP over his stand on a BBC documentary on PM Modi.
In Rajasthan, former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's son Vaibhav is contesting on a Congress ticket from Jalore in his second attempt to enter Parliament. He is up against BJP's Lumbaram Chaudhary. The desert state continues to be an uphill battle for Congress as it has failed to win a single seat from the state since 2014.
Over 16 lakh polling officials have been deployed across 1.67 lakh polling stations for nearly 16 crore voters to decide the fates of 1,202 candidates, the Election Commission said.
Of the 16 crore eligible voters, 8.08 crore are male and 7.8 crore are female. Over 34 lakh of them are first-time voters.
Given the heatwave condition, the polling time has been extended till 6 pm in several polling stations of four constituencies in Bihar.
In 2019, the NDA won 56 of these 89 seats. Six of these seats have been redrawn as part of the delimitation exercise.
The third phase of elections for 94 seats across 12 states and Union territories will be held on May 7. Votes will be counted on June 4.