New Delhi, June 05 (UNI) The BJP has not only managed to pass the halfway mark, but it has also suffered a significant blow in the Lok Sabha election with the loss of several of its ministers.
In Uttar Pradesh, six Union Ministers have lost in the election, including Smriti Irani, Rajeev Chandrasekhar and Ajay Mishra Teni.
BJP’s Lok Sabha candidate Smriti Irani from Amethi, was eyeing the seat for a second consecutive term, and lost by a big margin of 1,67,196 votes against Congress’ K L Sharma.
Conceding defeat, Smriti Irani said, “Congratulations to those who have won the elections today. Hope they will work for the people in the same way as we have heard their problems. I express my gratitude to Modiji and Yogiji and thank all BJP workers.”
The Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra Teni also lost from the kheri seat with the margin of 33,323 from the SP candidate Utkarsh Varma.
Mishra Teni made headlines due to his involvement in a controversial incident in October 2021, adding to the challenges in his electoral battle.
Union Minister Kaushal Kishore from Mohanlalganj, seat lost with a margin of 70,292 from the SP candidate R.K. Chaudhary, while Mahendra Nath Pandey, who is the Minister in the Modi-led government has lost from the SP candidate Virendra Singh with a huge margin of votes.
Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti has not been able to secure her seat from Fatehpur. She lost against Samajwadi Party’s Naresh Uttam Patel by a considerable margin of over 26,000 votes.
The Union Minister and BJP candidate from Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha seat Rajeev Chandrashekhar conceded his defeat against Congress MP Sashi Tharoor. He was defeated by the margin of 16077 votes.
Speaking to the media Rajeev said, “It is disappointing given that we worked very hard….We ran a very positive campaign….3.4 lakh people supported us which is a record number.”
“I believe we are on the right track….I am disappointed that I could not win…My commitment to Thiruvananthapuram and the people of Thiruvananthapuram remains steadfast,” he added.
In Jharkhand’s Khunti Lok Sabha constituency, Union Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda is facing a setback as he trails Congress candidate Kalicharan Munda by over 1.28 lakh votes, according to the latest updates from the Election Commission.
V Muraleedharan, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs, was defeated in Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram. L Murugan, the Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying, lost to DMK’s A Raja in Tamil Nadu’s Nilgiris by a substantial margin of 2,40,585 votes.
Nishith Pramanik, the Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, lost the Cooch Behar seat in West Bengal to TMC’s Jagadish Chandra Basunia by over 39,000 votes.
Minister of State for Education Subhas Sarkar was defeated by Trinamool Congress candidate Arup Chakraborty in the Bankura Lok Sabha seat of West Bengal by a margin of 32,778 votes.
Kailash Choudhary Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers’ form Rajasthan’s Barmer finished third, trailing by 4.48 lakh votes.
