Indians will cast their votes on May 20 for the fifth phase of the world’s largest election campaign, as the national election enters its final stages after weeks of intense campaigning and seemingly lower-than-expected voter enthusiasm. .
Elections will be contested in 49 constituencies spread across six states and two union territories (Union Territories). Rahul Gandhi, leader of the main opposition National Congress party, is voting in his family stronghold Rae Bareli in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh (UP), while Defense Minister Rajnath Singh is seeking his third term in the UP capital Lucknow. will aim to win the election.
Voting for the seven-phase election will begin on April 19, with the final phase taking place on June 1, concluding a mammoth election in which at least 969 million people have registered to vote. People from 36 states and union territories are expected to elect 543 members of the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament. Votes will be counted on June 4th.
Voter turnout in the first four phases (April 19, April 26, May 7, and May 13) was 66.1 percent, 66.7 percent, 61 percent, and 67.3 percent, respectively.
Most political parties are aligned with two major coalitions of 26 parties: the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and the Indian National Inclusive Alliance for Development (INDIA). Parliament, the main opposition party.
Who will vote in Phase 5?
Registered voters in the following states and union territories will cast their votes on May 20.
- Jharkhand: 3 out of 14 constituencies in Eastern Province
- Orissa: 5 out of 21 constituencies in Eastern Province
- Uttar Pradesh: 14 out of 80 constituencies in Northern Province
- Bihar: 5 out of 40 constituencies in Eastern Province
- Maharashtra: 13 out of 48 constituencies in Western Province
- West Bengal: 7 out of 42 constituencies in Eastern Province
- Ladakh: The only constituency in the Union Territory
- Jammu and Kashmir: One of the five constituencies in the Union Territory
What are the major constituencies?
Amethi, Rae Bareli, Kaiserganj, Faizabad (Uttar Pradesh): All eyes will be on Amethi and Rae Bareli, the estates of the Nehru-Gandhi family. Rahul Gandhi is contesting against Rae Bareli on behalf of his mother, former Congress president and four-time MP Sonia Gandhi. The Gandhi scion is seeking re-election in Wayanad, the southern state of Kerala, where voting is already underway.
Battle lines are fiercely drawn in the neighboring Amethi constituency, with the Congress party seeking to wrest it from Union Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani. The party has dominated these two constituencies for decades and has the distinction of sending two prime ministers to Congress: Indira Gandhi and Rahul’s grandmother and father Rajiv Gandhi. Rahul Gandhi won Amethi in 2004, 2009 and 2014, but Iran defeated him in 2019. This time Congress supporter KL Sharma is taking on Iran.
Kaiserganj is also in Uttar Pradesh state, where Bharatiya Janata Party MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh was denied candidacy on sexual harassment charges. The former president of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) denies the charges. However, his son Karan Bhushan is the party candidate.
About 100 km (60 miles) away is Faizabad, home to the controversial Ayodhya Ram temple. Lal Singh is seeking re-election on the Bharatiya Janata Party ticket against his main rival Awadesh Prasad of the Samajwadi Party, which is part of the Indian Union. The Bharatiya Janata Party, which won 62 of the state’s 80 seats in 2019, is hoping to repeat its performance here or even improve its number of seats.
Saran, Hajipur (Bihar): Former Prime Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav’s daughter Rohini Acharya is challenging Rajiv Pratap Rudy of the Bharatiya Janata Party in Saran. Her father also represented this seat in the past. Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal party is part of the Alliance of India.
Meanwhile, Yadav’s trusted ally Shiv Chandra Ram is aiming for an upset in Hajipur constituency, which was in the media spotlight with Ram Vilas Paswan’s record victory in 1977. Mr. Paswan went on to represent the constituency eight times. His son Chirag is competing in his late father’s fort. Paswan belongs to the BJP-led NDA.
Ladakh (Ladakh): The only constituency in the union territory of Ladakh, carved out of Indian-administered Kashmir in 2019, saw protests against the Bharatiya Janata Party’s rejection of the candidacy of incumbent MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal. is happening. The Congress party hopes to capitalize on local grievances, chief among them the demand to bring the region under the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution. Congress has promised to include Ladakh in the Schedule, which means protection of the region’s tribal status. Many local residents fear that without this provision, their land, jobs and education benefits will be taken away by people from other parts of the country.
The region is ecologically sensitive and protesters have warned of the dangers of overtourism. Ladakh has also been at the forefront of a tense standoff on the India-China border since deadly clashes in May 2020 that left at least 20 Indian soldiers and four Chinese soldiers dead.
Many analysts say there is evidence that China has nibbled on territory previously controlled by India in Ladakh, but New Delhi denies this claim.
When does voting start and end?
Voting begins at 7:00 am local time (01:30 GMT) and ends at 6:00 pm (12:30 GMT). Voters who were already in line by the polls deadline will be able to vote, even if it means polling places will be open longer.
Complete election results for all stages are expected to be announced on June 4.
Which political party is controlling the states where polls are being held in the fifth phase?
- The BJP has complete control over Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
- Maharashtra and Bihar are ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party and its coalition partners.
- Odisha is ruled by the NDA-aligned Biju Janata Dal (BJD).
- Jharkhand is ruled by the Indian Union led by the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha.
- The All India Trinamool Congress Party, a member of the Indian Alliance, has ruled West Bengal since 2011.
- Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are directly administered from New Delhi.
Who won these parliamentary seats in 2019?
In the last Lok Sabha elections, the Congress and parties currently affiliated with the Indian Alliance, along with parties then affiliated with the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance, won eight of the 49 seats to be decided on May 20. won a seat.
The BJP and NDA-allied parties won 39 seats in 2019.
How many people in India have voted so far?
The fate of 380 MPs has already been decided in the first four stages of parliamentary elections.
So far, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Meghalaya, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Karnataka, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Telangana, Nagaland, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh Voting has ended for all seats in the state, Goa, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Sikkim. Tripura; Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman, Diu, Lakshadweep, Union Territory of Puducherry.
The sixth phase will begin on May 25th, and the seventh and final phase will begin on June 1st.
