Lok Sabha Election result 2019: BJP's Jaya Prada trails against Azam Khan in Rampur

Although it is a three-way contest for the Rampur Lok Sabha seat, all eyes are on the fight between BJP's Jaya Prada and Samajwadi Party's Azam Khan. While Congress is also in the fray, it matters little in comparison to the battle for prestige between the two political stalwarts from the seat.  Khan is leading against Jaya Prada, according to early trends.

The electorate of Rampur is familiar with both Jaya Prada and Azam Khan. The former has represented the constituency in Lok Sabha twice - firstly in 2004 and then again in 2009. Jaya Prada won both times on Samajwadi Party's ticket, but she is flying a different banner this time. The two-time Rampur MP has been fielded by Bharatiya Janata Party, which she joined just before the 2019 Lok Sabha election.

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Her former colleague from the Samajwadi Party, Azam Khan, has been the MLA from the Rampur Assembly seats for nine times. This is his first attempt at becoming a parliamentarian, though. One of the founding members of SP, Khan has been notorious for controversial remarks, and of late, his remarks have been aimed at his rival Jaya Prada too.

While campaigning for the 2019 Lok Sabha election, Azam Khan had made certain derogatory comments against Jaya Prada with reference to her newfound affiliation with the BJP. This sparked angry responses across political circles, even from Khan's own party, but he remained unapologetic in this entire episode. And this was not the first distasteful encounter between the two, either.

Both Khan and Jaya Prada are significant political figures in Rampur. Where a victory will establish the third party to this contest, Congress' Sanjay Kapoor, cannot be discounted easily either. Like his opponents, Kapoor too is a known face and has his roots in Rampur. His clean image is likely to benefit him to some extent. Even if he is not able to turn the tide in this Lok Sabha election, he is expected to introduce an interesting angle to the high-voltage electoral contest in Rampur.