Priya Saroj: Youngest MP from Purvanchal in Lok Sabha Elections from Jaunpur

In the Lok Sabha elections this year from 13 constituencies of Purvanchal’s 10 districts, major political parties placed their bets on five women candidates for the first time. However, following the trend since 2014, only two women candidates managed to make it to the Parliament for the third time. Among the victorious women candidates were Anupriya Patel from Mirzapur Lok Sabha and Priya Saroj from Machhlishahar Parliamentary constituency.

This time in Purvanchal, in the Lok Sabha elections, Anupriya Patel from Mirzapur, Priya Saroj from Machhlishahar, Rinki Kohl from Robertsganj (Lok Sabha), Kajal Sonkar from Lal Ganj (Lok Sabha), and Dr. Indu Chaudhary from BJP were in the race. Anupriya Patel won her constituency in Mirzapur, representing the voters of the district for the third consecutive term. She is the only female leader in Purvanchal who has won Lok Sabha elections for the third time.

In addition to that, Priya Saroj paved her way from her first attempt in the Lok Sabha seat of Machhlishahar to the Parliament. On the other hand, three other women candidates Rinki Kohl, Kajal Sonkar, and Dr. Indu Chaudhary were rejected by their respective constituencies’ voters.

In 1952 until the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, only six women managed to reach the Parliament by winning the elections eight times from Purvanchal. The first time in Purvanchal, Mohsina Kidwai from the Azamgarh Lok Sabha emerged victorious in the 1978 by-polls representing Congress. Then, after six years in 1984, Chandauli Lok Sabha saw the victory of Chandra Tripathi, the daughter-in-law of veteran Congress leader Pandit Kamalapati Tripathi.

Subsequently, in 1996, Dasyu Sundari Fulan Devi won the Mirzapur Lok Sabha seat on the Samajwadi Party’s symbol. In the 1999 general elections, Fulan Devi once again clinched victory in Mirzapur on the Samajwadi Party’s symbol. In the 2014 general elections, Anupriya Patel and Kajal Sonkar were elected MPs from Mirzapur and Lal Ganj (Lok Sabha) respectively. In the 2019 general elections, Anupriya Patel from Mirzapur and Sangita Azad from Lal Ganj (Lok Sabha) were elected as MPs.

The significance of women representation in the Parliament continues to be highlighted as Purvanchal saw a steady presence of female leaders over the years, representing various political parties including Aam Aadmi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, Bhartiya Janata Party, and Congress among others.