NEW DELHI: Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh with his family cast his vote on Monday in the 5th phase of Lok Sabha elections in Lucknow. In a tweet on X, he said, “I voted with my family in Lucknow. Those who are going to vote today are requested to vote in large numbers along with their family and friends.”
He was accompanied by his wife Savitri Singh and their son Pankaj Singh, an MLA from Noida. After voting, they showed their inked fingers and urged voters to participate in large numbers. “I want to appeal to all voters in Lucknow and across the country to definitely go and vote today, bringing all your family members with you. This is our appeal,” he said in an interaction with the media.
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The two-time incumbent MP from Lucknow, Rajnath Singh is contesting for the third time from the city of Nawabs. Opposing him are Ravidas Mehrotra of the Samajwadi Party (SP) and Sarwar Malik of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). In the 2019 general elections, Rajnath Singh defeated Poonam Sinha of Samajwadi Party by a margin of 3.47 lakh votes. The 2019 polls also saw his voting percentage increase to 56.7% from 54.27% in 2014.
Earlier in a tweet, he urged the voters of Lucknow to come out in large numbers to vote. “Today, my humble request to voters of all the seats of the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections, including Lucknow, is that they should vote in record numbers. The more you vote, the stronger will be the resolve for a developed India. My special appeal to the first-time voters, youth, and women is that they should come forward in large numbers to cast their votes and participate enthusiastically in this festival of democracy.”
Lucknow has traditionally been won by the Bharatiya Janta Party since 1991. Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was a 5 times consecutive MP from Lucknow. In 2009, Lal ji Tandon, former governor of MP and later Bihar, emerged victorious from Lucknow on a BJP ticket. Post that, the former Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh won elections from this seat in 2014 and 2019.
Meanwhile, the Indian National Congress (INC) has won the Lucknow parliamentary seat 6 times, with Vijay Lakshmi Pandit, becoming the first MP from Lucknow in 1952.
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