Agra: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) experienced a dramatic shift in fortunes, losing five of nine Lok Sabha seats in the Ayodhya region, including the unexpected defeat in Faizabad, home to the Ram temple. However, the party flourished in Lord Krishna’s Braj region, encompassing Agra, Mathura, Hathras and Aligarh.

Hema Malini, the actor-turned-politician and ardent Krishna devotee, secured a comfortable win in Mathura with a margin of 2.93 lakh votes. Jayant Choudhary’s RLD significantly boosted her support among Jat voters. Local hopes are high that Hema Malini will be inducted into the ministry, amid discussions on whether her victory was due to her charisma, work, or the pull of Hindutva in Mathura and Vrindavan.

In Hathras, BJP’s Anoop Pradhan Balmiki decisively defeated the Samajwadi Party’s Valmiki candidate. Aligarh remained a BJP stronghold with Satish Kumar Gautam emphatically beating Samajwadi Party’s Brijendra Singh.