Lok Sabha elections: From Shah to Gandhi; Key candidates whose fate 'hangs in balance' today

It is the first time Congress president is contesting from a seat in South India. Gandhi will also be contesting from Amethi seat against Smriti Irani, but voting will not be taking place today.

All images: PTI

New Delhi: The voting for the third phase of the Lok Sabha election begins today, where 117 seats are set to go to polls, which is the maximum number of seats as compared to all other phases. Voting is also taking place on Anantnag seat in Kashmir, where polling will take place in three phases. The voting for the third phase becomes very important as the Presidents of two major political parties Congress and BJP are going to polls in this phase. The fate of both Rahul Gandhi and Amit Shah will be finalised today as voting for Wayanad and Gandhinagar seats is taking place on Tuesday. It is the first time Congress president is contesting from a seat in South India. Gandhi will also be contesting from Amethi seat against Smriti Irani, but voting will not be taking place today. Amit Shah on the other hand was given BJP veteran LK Advani’s Gandhinagar seat, where the polling is taking place today. Besides them, the fate of Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh also hangs on balance as the voting for Mainpuri seat will also take place today. The battle will also be seen between SP leader Azam Khan, who has recently been making headlines over his repeated controversial remarks and actor-turned politician Jaya Prada. The two are fighting from Rampur seat. It is also a big day for senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor who is contesting from Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala against BJP leader Kummanam Rajasekharan, who is also a former Governor of Mizoram.