New Delhi: Every Lok Sabha election has its own fair share of hotly contested seats. Some obscure constituencies hit national headlines because a big leader tries his or her luck from there. Sometimes oddballs contest from such seats making it national news. In the current Lok Sabha elections, there are at least 25 such seats across India.
Varanasi, the holiest place for Hindus, is witnessing a big battle this time. All eyes are on Varanasi or Benares. The Prime Ministerial candidate of the BJP Narendra Modi is trying his luck from Varanasi. He is likely to contest from one more seat in his home state of Gujarat. Modi has chosen Varanasi to enthuse the BJP cadres in Eastern UP.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Chief Arvind Kejriwal has surprised the BJP camp by announcing his candidature against Modi from Varanasi. Even though, he will confirm his candidature only after a referendum early next week, AAP sources say he will surely contest from Varanasi. Kejriwal vs Modi contest has turned the national focus on Varanasi, which was not a very important seat till this year. Eastern UP strongman Mukhtar Ansari is also contesting against Modi and Kejriwal from Varanasi.
SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav has also surprised people by announcing his candidature from two seats. Besides his seat Mainpuri, he is also contesting from Azamgarh in Eastern UP. It is being seen as a challenge to Modi, who is hoping to sweep the entire Eastern UP in the coming elections.
The fight for Amethi is also getting interesting. Congress Vice President and sitting MP Rahul Gandhi is facing Kumar Vishwas of the AAP in Amethi. Kumar Vishwas has been camping in Amethi for over two months.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi is seeking re-election from Rae Bareli. If other parties don't field formidable or interesting candidates, there won't be much fun or it won't generate much heat.
Bangalore South Lok Sabha seat has also hit the national headlines after IT giant Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani declared his candidature on a Congress ticket. He is facing BJP's five time MP and former Union minister Ananth Kumar in his debut election. The battle for Bangalore South is a keenly watched fight in the south of India.
Bihar is also witnessing one such big battle this time. In Pataliputra seat RJD chief Lalu Prasad's daughter Misa Bharti is taking on BJP's Ram Kripal Yadav, who was a close close confidante of her father for many years. It is Misa's political debut. One more seat which will generate a lot of interest in the state is Madhepura where JDU chief Sharad Yadav faces RJD's Rajeev Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav.
In Chandigarh two new entrants are taking on former union minister PK Bansal of the Congress. Actress and model Gul Panag on the AAP ticket and veteran actress Kirron Kher on the BJP ticket are locking horns in Chandigarh.
In Ghaziabad bordering Delhi, it is former Army Chief General VK Singh of the BJP versus one of the most famous faces of the AAP Shazia Ilmi. Will the General win his debut electoral battle or surrender to Shazia Ilmi?
In neighbouring East Delhi, Mahatma Gandhi's grandson Rajmohan Gandhi is taking on former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit's son Sandeep Dikshit. He is hoping that 'Gandhigiri' will work in his favour.
In New Delhi seat, investigative journalist Ashish Khetan is taking on Congress heavy weight Ajay Maken and BJP's new face Meenakshi Lekhi. In Chandni Chowk, Union minister Kapil Sibal is facing former journalist Ashutosh of the AAP and Delhi BJP chief Dr Harshvardhan.
Former India cricket captain and a Hyderabadi, Mohammad Azharuddin, has continued with his constituency hopping. Azharuddin, who won on Congress ticket from Moradabad in UP in 2009, is now contesting from Sawai Madhopur in Rajastan.
Veteran actress Jaya Prada, who won on the SP ticket from Rampur in 2009, is now with the RLD of Ajit Singh. She is now contesting from Bijnore and her mentor Amar Singh is contesting from Fatehpur Sikri. It is his first direct election. Win or lose, all the eyes are on both Jaya Prada and Amar Singh.
The AAP ideologue and renowned psephologist Prof. Yogendra Yadav is trying his luck from Gurgaon in Haryana. In his debut poll, he is taking on Rao Inderjit Singh, who has just defected to the BJP from the Congress.
In Thiruvananthapuram, union minister Shashi Tharoor is seeking a re-election. The Left front has fielded an independent against him. The BJP has fieled veteran O Rajagopal against him.
In Ernakulam, former CNN and Time journalist Anita Pratap of the AAP is taking on union minister Prof. KV Thomas of the Congress. Anita's entry has added some colour, but her chances are dim.
In West Bengal, one of the most politically colourful states, Mamata Banerjee has fielded famous actress Moon Moon Sen from Bankura to add to some colour and spice to the polls.
She has also fielded historian and Netaji Subhashchandra Bose's nephew Sugata Bose from Jadavpur. The BJP which is not a major force in the state is also not far behind. It has fielded internationally known magician PC Sorkar from Barasat. Veteran journalist Chandan Mitra is trying his luck from Hoogly on a BJP ticket. For him, it is his first direct election.
The TMC has fielded football star Baichung Bhutia from Darjeeling. The Gurkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) has refused to accept him saying that he is an 'outsider'. But, it has backed BJP 'outsider' SS Ahluwalia from Darjeeling against Bhutia.
In Nagpur, former national president of the BJP Nitin Gadkari is taking on Ajali Damania of the AAP. For both, it is their first direct election. The BJP leader Arun Jaitley, who never contested in a direct election in his entire political career, is now contesting from Amritsar. Former cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu, who lost the seat to Jaitley is now sulking.
The main accused in the 2G scam and former telecom minister A Raja is seeking re-election from the beautiful Nilgiris in Tamil Nadu. According to local reports, he is on a strong wicket in his seat.
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