Lok Sabha elections Phase 2: Legacy battle for ex-CMs, test for Modi ministers in key Rajasthan seats

Lok Sabha elections Phase 2: 13 seats of Rajasthan will vote on Thursday. The countingg of votes will be on June 4.

Rajasthan prepares for its last phase of Lok Sabha elections, with voting on the remaining 13 seats, following voting on the other 12 seats on April 19.

Rajasthan gears up for final phase of Lok Sabha polls. (PTI)

Among the 152 candidates in this phase are Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla, two Union ministers, the Bharatiya Janata Party state president, a former assembly speaker and two constituencies where former chief ministers campaigned for their sons. Let's have a detailed look.

1. Chittorgarh: This constituency witnesses a fierce contest between BJP's state president, Chandra Prakash Joshi, and Congress' Udai Lal Anjana, a former Rajasthan minister. Anjana gained prominence in the 1998 Lok Sabha polls when he defeated former defence minister Jaswant Singh from the seat. Joshi won the seat in 2019 with a significant margin of 5,76,247 votes.

2. Jhalawar-Baran: This constituency remains in focus as BJP's Dushyant Singh, son of former chief minister Vasundhara Raje, seeks reelection. He faces Congress' Urmila Jain, a Zila Pramukh and wife of former minister Pramod Jain Bhaya. The constituency has been a stronghold for the BJP.

3. Tonk-Sawai Madhopur: Here, Harish Chandra Meena from Congress battles it out with BJP's Sukhbir Singh Jaunapuria. BJP has emerged victorious in the last two Lok Sabha elections, and they aim to maintain their winning streak in this general seat.

4. Jodhpur: Union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat faces a neck-and-neck fight with the Congress' Karan Singh Uchiarda. Shekhawat is contesting from Jodhpur for the third time after winning the seat in 2014 and 2019.

5. Jalore: This constituency sees Congress' Vaibhav Gehlot, son of former chief minister Ashok Gehlot, challenging BJP's Lumbaram Chaudhary, a two-time MP from Pali. Gehlot lost his first Lok Sabha election in 2019 to the BJP's Gajendra Singh Shekhawat from Jodhpur.

6. Barmer-Jaisalmer: A triangular contest is expected here among Independent candidate Ravindra Singh Bhati, the Congress' Ummedaram and MoS agriculture and BJP leader Kailash Chaudhary. Bhati, 26, is an Independent MLA from the Sheo constituency of Barmer district.

7. Kota: Lok Sabha speaker and BJP leader Om Birla is seeking reelection against Congress' Prahlad Gunjal, who quit the BJP after losing in the 2023 Rajasthan Assembly elections. Birla has previously won in 2019 and 2014 Lok Sabha polls.

8. Pali: BJP's P P Chaudhary faces Congress' Sangeeta Beniwal in a constituency historically won by BJP. Chaudhary clinched victory in 2019 with 9,00,149 votes.

9. Udaipur: Congress' Tarachand Meena challenges BJP's Manna Lal Rawat in a constituency where BJP's Arjunlal Meena secured victory in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

10. Ajmer: Incumbent BJP candidate Bhagirath Choudhary is facing Congress' Ramchandra Choudhary in a battle targeting the Jat community for votes.

11. Banswara: This tribal-dominated seat sees an interesting contest as the Congress pledges its support to Bharat Adivasi Party candidate Rajkumar Roat. Congress' Arvind Damor did not withdraw his nomination, making it a unique contest.

12. Bhilwara: Former Rajasthan assembly speaker C P Joshi contests as the Congress candidate against BJP's Damodar Agarwal.

13. Rajsamand: The parliamentary constituency, previously won by BJP's Diya Kumari, who left it to become state's deputy chief minister, sees battle between Mahima Vishweshwar Singh from BJP and Congress' Dr Damodar Gurjar.