Lucknow, June 4: Counting of votes for Uttar Pradesh's 80 Lok Sabha seats began at 8 am, election officials said on Tuesday. The counting process is underway at 81 centres in 75 districts of the state. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union ministers Rajnath Singh and Smriti Irani, and opposition leaders Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav are among the 851 candidates in the fray in Uttar Pradesh.

Modi is eyeing a hat-trick from the Varanasi constituency while Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who contested from the Lucknow seat, is also seeking a third consecutive victory from the constituency. Irani, who defeated Rahul Gandhi in the Amethi seat in 2019, is bidding to retain the constituency. Lok Sabha Elections 2024 Results Live News Updates: Who Will Win, NDA or INDIA? Counting of Votes Begins.

Counting of Postal Ballots Underway

Union ministers Mahendra Nath Pandey and Anupriya Patel, among others, are also in the fray. Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi contested these elections from the Rae Bareli constituency, a seat earlier represented by his mother Sonia Gandhi.