In 2006, BJP's Hindutva leader Vinay Katiyar, a prominent OBC face of the party contested against Gandhi and failed to make an impact. BJP did not get more 30,000 votes in last three elections.
This time the party had initially tried to field former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Uma Bharti considering her stature and her OBC credentials from the seat, where Lodhs have a good presence. However, Bharti declined saying she will not leave Jhansi constituency.
Aam Aadmi Party had fielded Justice Fakhruddin but he pulled out from the race at the last moment. He was a judge of the Madhya Pradesh High court for 12 years and also its acting Chief Justice for some time. Social activist Archana Srivastav is now the AAP candidate.
The constituency has age-old ties with the Nehru-Gandhi family and after Feroz Gandhi, Indira Gandhi won from the seat thrice in 1967, 1971 and 1980. 1977 was an exception, when Indira lost it to Lok Dal's Rajnarayan in the post Emergency anti-Congress wave.
After winning the seat in 1980, Indira had resigned from it and retained the other seat Chikamagarlur in Karnataka, which she had won in 1978 after losing from Raebareli a year before.
