52 candidates in fray for five seats in U'khand

Fifty-two candidates are in the fray for the five Lok Sabha seats in Uttarakhand, the state election commission said Friday.

The last date of withdrawal of nominations for Tehri, Pauri Garhwal, Nainital, Haridwar and Almora (reserved) seats ended on Thursday.

Haridwar and Tehri seats will see the maximum number of candidates trying their luck -- 15 each. The minimum number of candidates -- six -- are in the Almora seat, while nine candidates will be battling it out in Pauri Garhwal and seven in Nainital, it said.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, the Congress and regional outfit Uttarakhand Kranti Dal have fielded their nominees from all the seats, while the Bahujan Samaj Party will contest in four and the Samajwadi Party in Pauri Garhwal. The SP and the BSP are in an alliance.

The state goes to polls in a single phase on April 11.