Voting for the third phase of Lok Sabha elections will take place on May 7 across 94 constituencies. In this phase, eight Lok Sabha seats of Madhya Pradesh - Morena, Bhind, Gwalior, Guna, Sagar, Vidisha, Bhopal and Rajgarh - will go to polls.
The other states and Union territories which will vote on May 7 include Assam (4 constituencies), Bihar (5 constituencies), Chhattisgarh (7 constituencies), Goa (2 constituencies), Gujarat (26 constituencies), Karnataka (14 constituencies), Maharashtra (11 constituencies), Uttar Pradesh (10 constituencies), West Bengal (4 constituencies), Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu (2 constituencies) and Jammu & Kashmir (1 constituency).
The Hindi heartland, currently ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), sends 29 members to Lok Sabha. Of the total seats, six went to polls in the first phase (Chhindwara, Sidhi, Shahdol, Jabalpur, Mandla and Balaghat). Seven seats including Tikamgarh, Damoh, Khajuraho, Satna, Rewa, Hoshangabad and Betul voted in the second phase on April 26.
These are the key Madhya Pradesh constituencies and candidates to watch out for in the third phase:
Guna: This constituency, which has been a Scindia stronghold for ages, is likely to witness one of the most interesting battles in Madhya Pradesh on May 7. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has fielded Union civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia from Guna against Congress' Rao Yadavendra Singh Yadav. Scindia, as a Congress leader, represented Guna from 2002 until his defeat in 2019. He joined the saffron party in 2020 and is eyeing another term from Guna in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. It was in 1957 when the seat was first represented by a Scindia - Vijaya Raje Scindia. In 1971, her son Madhavrao Scindia won from the seat as a Bharatiya Jana Sangh leader. He managed to retain Guna in 1977 as an Independent and again emerged victorious from the seat in 1980 as a Congress leader.
Vidisha: Another important Madhya Pradesh constituency is Vidisha, which is currently represented by BJP's Ramakant Bhargava. What makes the 2024 battle interesting is the return of former Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan to his stronghold Vidisha. A five-time MP from Vidisha, Chouhan is fondly known as 'mamaji'. He is pitted against Congress leader Pratap Bhanu Sharma in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Former external affairs minister late Sushma Swaraj emerged victorious from the prestigious seat in 2009 as well as 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
Rajgarh: The Congress has fielded senior leader Digvijaya Singh from Rajgarh against incumbent Rodmal Nagar. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP leader had defeated Congress' Mona Sustani by over 4.3 lakh votes. Digvijaya Singh, who served as the chief minister of Madhya Pradesh for two terms, is contesting from Rajgarh after a span of over 30 years which makes the race for Rajgarh extremely interesting. His brother Lakshman Singh also represented the seat five times, one as a saffron party candidate. He was elected MP on a BJP ticket between 2004 and 2009.
Bhopal: This Lok Sabha constituency covers the entire Bhopal district and part of Sehore district. Bhopal Lok Sabha seat is currently represented by BJP's Pragya Singh Thakur, also known as Sadhvi Pragya. In 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Thakur defeated senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh by a margin of over 3.64 lakh votes. For the upcoming election, the saffron party has fielded Alok Sharma by dropping Thakur who is an accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case. Former Madhya Pradesh CM Uma Bharti had emerged victorious from Bhopal Lok Sabha seat in 1999.
Morena: In 2019 Lok Sabha elections, BJP's Narendra Singh Tomar defeated Congress leader Ramnivas Rawat by a margin of over 1.13 lakh votes. This time, however, the saffron party has fielded Shivmangal Singh Tomar against Congress' Satyapal Singh Sikarwar. Narendra Singh Tomar has emerged victorious from the seat in 2009 as well. The BJP has managed to retain Morena Lok Sabha constituency since Ashok Argal won in 1996. Argal himself represented Morena four times - 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2004.
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