Top 10 Contests in the Penultimate Phase of Election

Amethi: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, who is aiming to score a hat-trick of victories from this constituency, faces a tough contest, with the BJP deciding to field popular TV personality Smriti Irani. The Aam Aadmi Party's Kumar Vishwas is also in the fray. Narendra Modi, the BJP's prime ministerial candidate, held a well-attended rally in Amethi on Monday in an attempt to swing popular mood in his party's favour in a constituency which has come to be regarded as a Gandhi family stronghold.

Sultanpur: BJP general secretary Varun Gandhi is fighting to reclaim his father Sanjay Gandhi's legacy from a constituency which lies right next to Amethi. Sanjay Gandhi had won from Amethi in 1980. Varun is locked in a difficult contest with former national Badminton champion Amita Singh, whose husband Sanjay had won the seat as a Congress candidate in 2009. Sanjay Singh, a close friend of Sanjay Gandhi, is now a Rajya Sabha member from Assam

Saran: Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav popularity among the voters is on test in this constituency. Mr Yadav had won the seat in 2009, but he was barred from contesting this time as he has been convicted for five years in a fodder scam case. He has, instead, fielded his wife Rabri Devi, a former chief minister of the state, to take on BJP general secretary Rajiv Pratap Rudy. The RJD is banking on the Muslim-Yadav combination to come to its rescue.

Hajipur: Lok Janshakti Party founder Ram Vilas Paswan, who was instrumental in forging an alliance with Narendra Modi's BJP, is fighting with his back to the wall to wrest this constituency from senior Janata Dal (United) leader Ram Sundar Das.  The 93-year-old JD(U) leader had defeated the LJP leader, who had represented the constituency  8 times in the past, in 2009.  Mr Paswan, an important Dalit leader, is banking on the perceived Modi wave to avenge his defeat five years ago.

Hamirpur: Anurag Thakur, who heads the BJP's youth wing, faces a triangular contest in this lower Himachal constituency. Kamal Kanta Batra, mother of Kargil martyr Vikram Batra, has entered the race as a candidate of the Aam Aadmi Party. The Congress has put up Rajinder Singh Rana, a BJP leader who quit the party before the 2012 assembly polls to contest as an independent from Sujanpur. He won the seat, but has now joined the Congress.

Haridwar: Renuka Rawat, wife of Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat,  faces challenge from a resurgent BJP, which has fielded former chief minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank from this prestigious constituency. The Uttarakhand chief minister had won the seat in 2009, but vacated it after taking over the reins of the state in January this year.

Tehri: This Uttarakhand constituency witnesses a re-run of the 2012 by-election contest, which was won by the BJP's Mala Rajya Laxmi Shah, a member of the Tehri royal family. She had defeated Saket, son of Vijay Bahuguna, who was then the chief minister of the state. Saket has been fielded again by the Congress. His father had walked away with the seat in 2009, but he vacated it after becoming the Uttarakhand chief minister in 2012. He was replaced by Harish Rawat in January this year.

Pauri: Another former chief minister B C Khanduri is the BJP candidate from this constituency. He faces sitting Congress MLA Harak Singh Rawat, who was asked to enter the parliamentary race after sitting MP Satpal Maharaj crossed over to the BJP earlier this year. Maj Gen (Retd.) Khanduri has represented the constituency four times in the past. He has also been the chief minister of Uttarakhand twice.

Visakhapatnam: Former Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy's wife YS Vijayamma is contesting on the platform of YSR Congress, the party floated by their son YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. The Reddys hail from Kadapa, but have staked their family prestige in Visakhapatnam. Andhra Pradesh BJP chief K Hari Babu is her main challenger. He enjoys the backing of N Chandrababu Naidu's Telugu Desam Party (TDP), which has entered into an alliance with Narendra Modi's party.

Bankura: CPM veteran Basudeb Acharia has been representing this constituency without a break since 1980. His quest to enter the Lok Sabha for the 10th term faces a stiff challenge from filmstar-turned-politician Moon Moon Sen, who has been put up by the Trinamool Congress. Her roadshows have drawn huge crowds, but it remains to be seen whether this will translate into votes.