Kanpur, a bellwether seat, to witness straight fight between BJP, Congress

Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh) [India], May 9 : Kanpur, one of the largest cities in Uttar Pradesh on the banks of the Ganges and one of the 80 Lok Sabha constituencies in the state, is all set for an electoral battle between Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress as both parties have filed their candidates for the fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls scheduled for May 13.
Apart from being a major industrial city in the state, which was once known as "Manchester of the East" because of its booming textile industry also remains politically active and its citizens are considered bellwethers of India's voting behaviour and assert that whoever wins Kanpur forms the government in New Delhi.
This assertion remained true mostly since 1977 with the exceptions of 1991 and 1999. After, 2004 it's been completely true as in 2004 and 2009 and Congress candidate Sriprakash Jaiswal won the seat and Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) formed the government.
In 2014 and 2019 BJP candidates won the seat and BJP-led National Democratic Alliance came to power.
BJP has fielded Ramesh Awasthi while Congress has shown confidence in Alok Mishra. Both had filed their nomination papers on Saturday. It will be intriguing to see how the voters respond to these candidates in this highly anticipated electoral battle.
The Kanpur parliamentary constituency comprises five assembly seats: Govind Nagar, Sisamau, Arya Nagar, Kidwai Nagar, and Kanpur Cantt. As per the 2011 census, the total population of the Kanpur Lok Sabha seat is 2,226,317, with the Scheduled Caste population at 11.72% and the Scheduled Tribe population at 0.12%.
Apart from Brahmin, Vaishya, and Muslim voters, Punjabi voters also wield significant influence in the constituency.
In the 2019 elections, BJPs Satyadev Pachauri emerged victorious from the seat, securing 468,937 votes. Congress Sriprakash Jaiswal secured the second position with 313,003 votes.
Similarly, in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, BJPs former president Murli Manohar who has shifted from Varanasi defeated Congress Sriprakash Jaiswal by a margin of 222,946 votes.
On May 4 Prime Minister Narendra Modi conducted a roadshow in Kanpur and was seen waving at people lined up on both sides of the road and showed the BJP's 'Lotus' poll symbol to canvass support for the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections.
During the roadshow, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was also present.
As per the seat agreement between the Samajwadi Party and Congress in Uttar Pradesh, Congress is contesting 17 seats and the Samajwadi Party has the remaining 63 seats in the electorally crucial state.
In the 2019 general elections, the BJP emerged triumphant, securing 62 out of 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh, supplemented by two seats clinched by its ally Apna Dal (S). Mayawati's BSP managed to secure 10 seats, while Akhilesh Yadav's SP garnered five. Conversely, the Congress party secured only one seat.
The ongoing Lok Sabha election is making history as the largest-ever election, surpassing even the 2019 Indian general polls. Spanning 44 days, it ranks second only to the 1951-52 national elections in terms of length.
Lok Sabha elections are being held between April 19 and June 1, 2024, in seven phases, to elect 543 members of the Lok Sabha. On June 4, the votes will be counted, and the results will be announced.