UP Phase-5 Elections: Voting begins in Rae Bareli, Ayodhya, 59 other seats at 7 am

Here’s what you need to know about the fifth phase of Uttar Pradesh assembly elections:

• Major Constituencies: Amethi and Rae Bareli, once considered a Congress stronghold, and Ayodhya, the epicenter of the Ram temple movement, are the major districts where voting is being held today. Other districts include Sultanpur, Chitrakoot, Pratapgarh, Kaushambi, Prayagraj, Barabanki, Bahraich, Shravasti and Gonda.
• Prominent faces: Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, who is contesting from Sirathu in Kaushambi district. He is facing Apna Dal (Kamerawadi) candidate Pallavi Patel. The other ministers are Siddharth Nath Singh from Allahabad West, Rajendra Singh from Patti (Pratapgarh), Nand Gopal Gupta Nadi from Allahabad South and Ramapati Shastri from Mankapur (Gonda). Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiya, who has been an MLA from Kunda since 1993, is once again in the fray as a Jansatta Dal candidate, with his old colleague Gulshan Yadav contesting against him on a Samajwadi Party ticket. Union Minister Anupriya Patel’s mother and Apna Dal (K) leader Krishna Patel is contesting from Pratapgarh seat. Apna Dal (K) has forged an alliance with the Samajwadi Party.
• With the completion of voting on Sunday, voting will be held in 292 out of the total 403 seats in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly.
• Polling will be held in the last two phases on March 3 and 7.
• The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Samajwadi Party (SP), Congress and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) are the major contenders in the state.
• In 2017, the BJP had won 38 of the 55 seats in the region, while the SP had won 15 and the Congress two.