Lok Sabha elections phase 7: PM Modi eyes Kashi hat-trick, 'queen' takes on 'prince', Abhishek Banerjee's acid test

PM Modi, Ravi Kishan, Misa Bharti, Kangana Ranaut, Manish Tewari and Abhishek Banerjee are among the key candidates in the fray in this phase

It's time for the final dance before the June 4 verdict. The battle lines are drawn for the seventh and final phase of Lok Sabha elections, with 57 constituencies across 8 states and Union Territories going to polls on June 1.

As many as 904 candidates are in the fray in the final phase, which will cover all the constituencies of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh along with key seats in states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal.

Voting will take place in the following states in the final phase: Bihar (8), Himachal Pradesh (4), Jharkhand (3), Odisha (6), Punjab (13), Uttar Pradesh (13), West Bengal (9), Chandigarh (1).

The key contestants in fray are Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Varanasi, Ravi Kishan (BJP) from Gorakhpur, Manish Tewari (Congress) from Chandigarh, Kangana Ranaut (BJP) from Mandi, Abhishek Banerjee (TMC) from Diamond Harbour, Ravi Shankar Prasad (BJP) from Patna Sahib, Misa Bharti (RJD) from Pataliputra and Anurag Thakur (BJP) from Hamirpur.

Lok Sabha elections phase 7: The key contests on June 1

Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh): Prime Minister Narendra Modi is eyeing a third straight victory from Kashi as he seeks to deepen his legacy in this temple town that holds profound significance for Hindus. Over the years, the Prime Minister has turned Varanasi into a prime model for temple economics, driving a cultural transformation with a slew of developmental projects and the opening of the crucial Kashi Vishwanath corridor. On a personal level, PM Modi has emphasised that his relationship with Kashi has evolved into that of a mother and son, proclaiming that "Ma Ganga has adopted me". Like 2019, the opposition has refrained from fielding a formidable face to challenge the Prime Minister. In 2024, Congress has stuck to Ajay Rai, who was the party's candidate in both 2014 and 2019. In the previous two elections, PM Modi secured a thumping victory from the seat. In 2014, he defeated his nearest rival Arvind Kejriwal of AAP by over 3.7 lakh votes. In 2019, he defeated SP's Shalini Yadav by 4.7 lakh votes.

Mandi (Himachal Pradesh): The constituency in the hill state, also known as "Chhoti Kashi", is bracing for a heavyweight clash between actor Kangana Ranaut of BJP and Congress's Vikramaditya Singh, who is the son of six-time chief minister Virbhadra Singh. The contest is one of royal proportions indeed since Vikramaditya is the scion of the erstwhile Rampur royal family and Kangana is being dubbed as the "Queen" in this fight due to her iconic Bollywood movie of the same name. Both the candidates have indulged in regular name-calling and verbal slugfest in the run up to the elections, adding a dramatic touch to the keenly-watched contest. In Lok Sabha polls, Mandi has oscillated between BJP and Congress over the years. Currently, it is held by Congress's Pratibha Singh who won the by-election here in 2021.

Diamond Harbour (West Bengal): TMC's grip over this southern West Bengal constituency will be put to test when Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee takes on CPM's Pratikur Rahaman and BJP's Abhijit Das(Bobby) on June 1. The constituency has become a stronghold of TMC with Abhishek winning the previous two Lok Sabha elections here with a decisive margin. The elections are an acid test for Abhishek, who needs a third consecutive win to solidify his leadership within the TMC brass and affirm his political influence. A win would also reinforce his position against internal party dissent and opposition allegations. TMC is also betting on the minority votes in the constituency since nearly 38% of the population is Muslim. However, a split in the vote - due to the candidature of Rahaman - may end up benefiting the BJP. The urban-rural divide in priorities, with urban areas focusing on development and rural areas on welfare schemes, will also play a crucial role.

Hamirpur (Himachal Pradesh): Union minister and BJP leader Anurag Thakur is seeking a record fifth term from the constituency that has been his family bastion for years. In 1989, his father and former CM Prem Kumar Dhumal first wrested it from Congress. Thakur first won the seat in the 2008 Lok Sabha bypolls and went on to retain it in 2009, 2014 and 2019. In the previous election, he defeated his Congress rival by nearly 4 lakh votes. This year, he is facing a spirited challenge from Congress's Satpal Raizada. The Congress candidate is also the vice-president of the party's state unit and has served as the MLA of Una.

Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh): BJP is again banking on Bhojpuri star Ravi Kishan to retain the prestigious seat which is associated with the legacy of Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, a former five-time MP from the constituency. He is facing a challenge from actor and SP candidate Kajal Nishad. Notably, Ravi Kishan helped regain the seat for BJP in 2019 after the party lost it to SP's Praveen Kumar Nishad in the 2018 by-election. Despite Ravi Kishan's mass popularity, the influence and clout of Yogi Adityanath in the region will have a big role to play in the elections.

Chandigarh (Union Territory): The Lok Sabha elections in the Union Territory will be held just months after the controversial mayoral polls in which the presiding officer was caught favouring BJP. The party, now in damage control mode, has decided to drop its sitting MP Kirron Kher and has opted for a local face in Sanjay Tandon. Congress and AAP, who are contesting jointly as part of INDIA bloc, are hoping to make inroads into the constituency and possibly gain from the fallout of the mayoral poll controversy. They have fielded Manish Tewari of Congress, who is the sitting MP from Anandpur Sahib. Tewari, a former Union minister, is seen as a formidable challenger to Tandon who has his task cut out for him in 2024.

Pataliputra (Bihar): The high-stakes constituency is featuring a replay of 2014 and 2019 with RJD chief Lalu Prasad's daughter Misa Bharti taking on BJP's incumbent Ram Kripal Yadav for the third time. The BJP leader, who was previously in RJD, defeated Bharti in both 2014 and 2019, albeit with a narrow vote margin. Bharti is now hoping to get third-time lucky as she seeks to take forward her father's legacy, just days after her younger sister Rohini Acharya contested from Saran. Interestingly, AIMIM has also fielded its candidate Farukh Raza from the seat, turning the contest into a triangular clash of sorts. With a sizable Yadav, Bhumihar, Rajput, Kurmi, Dalit and Muslim voter base, caste equations play a big role in the constituency. Moreover, the Grand Alliance's strong performance in the 2020 Bihar legislative assembly elections here adds another layer of complexity to the pivotal race.

Kolkata (West Bengal): The two constituencies in the capital city - Kolkata Uttar and Kolkata Dakshin - are bracing for a triangular clash between TMC, BJP and INDIA bloc comprising CPM and Congress. There's a lot at stake for Mamata Banerjee's TMC here since both the seats are currently held by the party. TMC has repeated its incumbents Sudip Bandyopadhyay (Kolkata Uttar) and Mala Roy (Kolkata Dakshin) in the 2024 elections. The contest in Kolkata Uttar promises to be a thriller since BJP has fielded TMC turncoat Tapas Roy from the seat. Moreover, a section of TMC leaders has opposed the candidature of Bandyopadhyay, who has been representing the seat since 2009. The internal rift is seen as the ongoing power struggle between the old guard and the new crop of leaders in the party. Congress has fielded former Rajya Sabha member Pradip Bhattacharya from the seat. In Kolkata Dakshin, TMC's Mala Roy faces a stiff competition from BJP's Debasree Chaudhary who is challenging Mamata's dominance over the urban constituency. CPM has fielded Saira Shah Halim from the seat - turning the fight into an all-women triangular clash.

Patna Sahib (Bihar): Former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad is seeking re-election from the constituency after his victory over actor and then Congress candidate Shatrughan Sinha in 2019. In 2024, Prasad is facing Congress's Anshul Avijit, the son of former Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar who is contesting his maiden Lok Sabha polls. BJP has a 100% winning record from the seat ever since it came into existence in 2009.

Amritsar (Punjab): The holy city is gearing up for an intense four-way battle between incumbent Gurjeet Singh Aujla of Congress, BJP's Taranjit Singh Sandhu, AAP's Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal and SAD's Anil Joshi. Amritsar, a Congress stronghold since 2014, has witnessed high-voltage clashes in the past. In 2014, then Congress leader Amarinder Singh defeated late Union minister Arun Jaitley from the seat. In 2019, Aujla won the contest against Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri. Despite AAP and SAD fielding their candidates, the contest is again between Congress and BJP. BJP's Sandhu is a former IFS officer who has served as India's ambassador to US. Sandhu is focusing on a development-centric campaign to woo voters and has often raked up his decades-long experience as a diplomat. Aujla is confident of retaining the seat due to his deep connection with the constituency and past work.

Other interesting clashes

Bathinda (Punjab): SAD's Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Congress's Amrinder Singh Raja Warring and AAP's Baljinder Kaur are locked in a fierce three-way clash. Harsimrat, a former Union minister in the Modi cabinet, has been winning the seat since 2009.

Kendrapara (Odisha): BJD's Anshuman Mohanty will take on Baijayanta Panda of BJP in this key constituency. It's a prestige seat for BJD which has been represented by veterans like Biju Patnaik, Rabi Ray, and Srikant Kumar Jena.

Gurdaspur (Punjab): The constituency will see a triangular battle between BJP's Dinesh Singh, Congress's Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and AAP's Amansher Singh. BJP, which won the seat in 2019, dropped incumbent Sunny Deol this year amid his unimpressive record as an MP and charges that he was seldom seen in the constituency.

Exit poll predictions

Voting on June 1 will bring an end to the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections. The results will be declared on June 4.

But before the counting of votes on Tuesday, all eyes will be on the exit poll predictions which will be released shortly after the voting concludes in the final phase. The projections will give interesting insights into which way the election is likely headed before the official results are declared.