Smriti Irani Loses Amethi, SP Looks Set For Highest Tally In Crucial UP

Congress fielded Gandhi family loyalist Kishori Lal Sharma against Union Minister for Minority Affairs Smriti Irani from Amethi Lok Sabha seat.

Amethi went to polls on May 20 during the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections and recorded a turnout of 54.34%. ( Image Source :PTI )

Union minister Smriti Irani of the BJP lost by nearly 1.7 lakh votes in UP's Amethi, according to Election Commission data. Congress candidate Kishori Lal has won the constituency.

The Amethi Lok Sabha seat has historically been a stronghold of the Indian National Congress. However, in 2019, Smriti Irani defeated the then Congress president and incumbent MP Rahul Gandhi by over 50,000 votes, marking a significant victory for the BJP. The Congress has lost the seat only two times before: When Sanjay Gandhi lost to the Janata Party's Ravindra Pratap Singh in 1977, and when Maneka Gandhi lost to Rahul's father and her brother-in-law Rajiv Gandhi in 1984.

Amethi went to polls on May 20 during the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections and recorded a turnout of 54.34%.

This year, the Congress fielded Gandhi family loyalist Kishori Lal Sharma against Union Minister for Minority Affairs Smriti Irani in Amethi, leading to allegations from the BJP that Rahul was running away from his pocketborough. Kishori Lal Sharma, originally from Ludhiana in Punjab, played a crucial role in orchestrating Sonia Gandhi's first electoral win in Amethi in 1999. His political journey in Amethi began in 1983 when he arrived as a Congress activist, and, over the years, he has been a steadfast supporter of the Gandhi family. 

The exit poll predictions of a complete sweep by the NDA have been proven wrong by the final outcome, with the I.N.D.I.A bloc offering a tough fight to the BJP-led coalition. In Uttar Pradesh, politically the most significant state as it accounts for 80 Lok Sabha MPs, the EC trends at 8.15 pm showed the Samajwadi Party (SP) leading in 37 seats against the BJP's 33. The Congress is leading in six seats. 

The candidates from UP include PM Narendra Modi, who has defeated the Congress' Ajay Rai by over 1.5 lakh votes.