Gujarat will go to polls on April 30 in the seventh phase of the Lok Sabha elections 2014. All the 26 constituencies of the state will cast their ballots on the same day. A total of 3,98,71,571 voters in the state, known as the 'Jewel of the West', will decide the fate of the candidates entering in the fray.
Here is a list of seven key battlefields to look out for in the Lok Sabha elections in Gujarat:
Vadodara - The Vadodara constituency will witness a battle between the Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi and the Congress' Madhusudan Mistry. This is Narendra Modi's home turf and his second choice of seat as he will also be contesting from Varanasi constituency. The BJP's Balkrishna Shukla is the sitting MP from Vadodara.
Also read: Narendra Modi is manipulative, I'm contesting from Vadodara to help expose him: Congress' Madhusudan Mistry
Gandhinagar – The Gandhinagar parliamentary constituency is an important political ground even from a national perspective. BJP veteran leader LK Advani has been fielded from this seat against Congress leader Kiritbhai Ishvarbhai Patel. Advani has been the sitting Gandhinagar MP since 1999. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has pitted Rituraj Mehta from this constituency. There are 10 independent candidates in the fray too.
Anand – One of the most prosperous regions of Gujarat, Anand, has the BJP's Dilip Patel contesting against Bharatsinh Madhavsinh Solanki of the Indian National Congress. The seat has been held by the latter for 10 years, since 2004. Anand is also known as the 'Milk Capital' of Gujarat.
Ahmedabad East – This parliamentary constituency will see the famous Bollywood actor and comedian Paresh Rawal as the BJP first-time candidate. He is in the fray against Himmat Singh Patel of the Congress. The BJP's Harin Patel is the sitting MP from Ahmedabad East constituency and has held this seat from 1989.
Surat – The Surat parliamentary constituency is significant for Gujarat as well as for national politics. It will see a contest between the BJP's Darshana Vikram Jardosh and the Congress' Naishadhbhai Desai. This seat has witnessed some of the most prominent political leaders as leaders Members of Parliament, such as former prime minister of the country Morarji Desai as well as BJP veteran leader Kashiram Rana.
Sabarkantha – Sabarkantha will witness a fight between the Congress' Leader of Opposition in the Gujarat Legislative Assembly, Shankarsinh Vaghela and the BJP's Dipsinh Rathod. Vaghela has been a member of the Lok Sabha for four terms. From 1996-97, he was the chief minister of Gujarat and has also been a member of the Rajya Sabha.
Also read: Shankarsinh Vaghela’s tribal bet versus Deepsinh Rathod’s Narendra Modi mantra
Patan – This time, Patan is witnessing a battle between two political veterans, BJP's Liladhar Vaghela and Bhavsinh Rathod from Congress. The seat on which Congress won in 2009, is expected to witness a keen contest this time. The Congress is banking on its prospects to win this seat.
Also read: Lok Sabha Elections 2014: Keen contest expected in North Gujarat seat of Patan
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