Porbandar LS seat: Mansukh Mandaviya eyes victory on his debut in Lok Sabha polls, to face Congress leader Lalit Vasoya

New Delhi [India], May 5 : Porbandar Lok Sabha seat, one of the 26 parliamentary constituencies in Gujarat will go for polls on May 7 in the third phase of General elections. The seat will witness the contest between the Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Mansukh Mandaviya and Congress leader Lalit Vasoya.
BJP candidate Mansukh Mandaviya, before becoming a Rajya Sabha member, was elected an MLA from the Palitana assembly seat of Bhavnagar in 2002.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Lalit Vasoya encountered defeat with a margin of 2,29,823 votes at the hands of BJP's Rameshbhai Lavjibhai Dhaduk.
In the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, BJP's Radadiya Vithalbhai Hansrajbhai defeated NCP's Jadeja Kandhalbhai Saramanbhai with a margin of 2,67,971 votes.
Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya made a significant outreach during his campaign. Venturing into the forests, he met members of Maldharis - a shepherd community often overlooked by mainstream politics. Expressing his commitment to their well-being, Mandaviya emphasized the need for holistic development, promising to address their educational, healthcare, and living standards.
Speaking to ANI, Mandaviya said, "I met the Shepherd community today. No one from any political party has come to meet them. Even they never talked to them. I talked to them and understood their problem. I want these people to also develop. If they want to shift outside of the forest, then I will help them. I want to provide them with education, healthcare facilities and a better life."
Mansukh Mandaviya said that the issue of development is the party's election campaign. During a roadshow in the Dhoraji area in Porbandar.
"Our issues in Lok sabha election is development and development. In the past our issue was development, today our issue is development and future also it will be the issues of development so I am seeking a vote in the name of development," he said.
Mandaviya cited the strong enthusiasm and support that the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi enjoy among the people.
"The enthusiasm and belief that people have for the BJP and PM Modi and the way people attend my election campaigns, I can say that this is going to be a one-sided election in Gujarat," Mandaviya said.
Lalitbhai Vasoya, the Congress candidate from Gujarat's Porbandar for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections said that he would fight the general polls with "full strength".
Speaking to ANI, Vasoya, in a jibe at the BJP, said that the ruling party at the Centre and the state 'does not have the support base'.
"BJP does not have the support base yet it has given the ticket to a central minister (from Porbandar). I am from Porbandar and I will fight this election with full strength," he said.
A total of 12 candidates are in the fray for the Porbandar Lok Sabha seat and around 17,94,000 voters will decide their fate.
The Congress is in alliance with the AAP in Gujarat where it will contest from 24 seats while the AAP will contest in Bhavnagar and Bharuch constituencies.
Voting for 25 out of 26 seats in Gujarat is set to take place in the third phase of the ongoing general elections on May 7.
However, voting will not take place in Surat as BJP candidate Mukesh Dalal was declared elected unopposed last week. This decision came after the nomination of Congress' Nilesh Kumbhani was rejected, and other candidates withdrew from the contest. The election results will be announced on June 4.