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Home > News > Elections 2004 > Quiz

Can any Bollywood drama ever compare with the awesome spectacle of an Indian election?

Let us check out how much you know about the Great Election Tamasha.

A quiz we will publish every working day till May 13, the day we know who we have elected to the 14th Lok Sabha.

1. Which politician links the then Bombay North East constituency with Madurai in Tamil Nadu?
a. Subramanian Swamy.
b. Mani Shankar Aiyar.
c. Jairam Ramesh.

Wrong! Try again..
Wrong!
The correct answer is A.
Dr Swamy won the then Bombay North East seat twice, in 1977 and 1980 (defeating sitting MP Raja Kulkarni and D N Chaukar, both of the Congress, respectively), then never contested a seat in the city again. In 1996, he contested the Madurai seat in Tamil Nadu and was defeated by the Tamil Maanila Congress' A G S Ram Babu. The winning candidate, Ram Babu, had won the seat twice before, as a Congress candidate. His father A G Subburaman won it in 1980 and 1984. In 1998, backed by J Jayalalithaa and the AIADMK, Subramanian Swamy defeated Ram Babu by 20,897 votes. In 1999, Dr Swamy, abandoned by Jayalalithaa, polled a little less than his 1998 winning margin (20,484 votes) and came in fourth after the CPI-M's P Mohan, the DMK's Pon Muthuramalingam and Ram Babu. Dr Swamy and Mohan are in the 2004 fray as is the AIADMK's A K Bose.

Correct!
Dr Swamy won the then Bombay North East seat twice, in 1977 and 1980 (defeating sitting MP Raja Kulkarni and D N Chaukar, both of the Congress, respectively), then never contested a seat in the city again. In 1996, he contested the Madurai seat in Tamil Nadu and was defeated by the Tamil Maanila Congress' A G S Ram Babu. The winning candidate, Ram Babu, had won the seat twice before, as a Congress candidate. His father A G Subburaman won it in 1980 and 1984. In 1998, backed by J Jayalalithaa and the AIADMK, Subramanian Swamy defeated Ram Babu by 20,897 votes. In 1999, Dr Swamy, abandoned by Jayalalithaa, polled a little less than his 1998 winning margin (20,484 votes) and came in fourth after the CPI-M's P Mohan, the DMK's Pon Muthuramalingam and Ram Babu. Dr Swamy and Mohan are in the 2004 fray as is the AIADMK's A K Bose.

2. Which controversial candidate did Mirzapur send to the Lok Sabha in 1996?
a. Babloo Srivastava.
b. Raghuvir Pratap Singh.
c. Phoolan Devi.

Wrong! Try again..
Wrong!
The correct answer is C.
Virendra Singh won Mirzapur for the BJP in 1991; the Jan Sangh had last won it in 1967. In 1996, the tables were turned on him by Phoolan Devi, bandit turned politician, contesting on the Samajwadi Party ticket. She defeated Singh by 37,000 votes. The Congress, which bagged 37% of the vote when it last won the seat in 1984, plunged to fourth place in 1996 with just 1.13% of the vote. In 1998, Virendra Singh defeated Phoolan Devi by 52,777 votes. Eighteen months later, in October 1999, the Bandit Queen defeated Singh by 84,476 votes. Alas, she was slain midway through her second term in Parliament. Her alleged killer escaped from Tihar jail earlier this year and has not been recaptured.
Correct!
Virendra Singh won Mirzapur for the BJP in 1991; the Jan Sangh had last won it in 1967. In 1996, the tables were turned on him by Phoolan Devi, bandit turned politician, contesting on the Samajwadi Party ticket. She defeated Singh by 37,000 votes. The Congress, which bagged 37% of the vote when it last won the seat in 1984, plunged to fourth place in 1996 with just 1.13% of the vote. In 1998, Virendra Singh defeated Phoolan Devi by 52,777 votes. Eighteen months later, in October 1999, the Bandit Queen defeated Singh by 84,476 votes. Alas, she was slain midway through her second term in Parliament. Her alleged killer escaped from Tihar jail earlier this year and has not been recaptured.

3. What is common to the following winning candidates -- Sheela Devi Gautam, Murli Manohar Joshi, Raj Narayan Pasi, Santosh Gangwar, Santosh Bihari Mishra, Chhatrapal, Mahant Avaidyanath, Ramesh Chandra Tomar, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Ram Nagina Mishra?
a. They have never lost since 1991.
b. They are all BJP candidates.
c. They have all won from UP.

Wrong! Try again..
Wrong! The correct answer is A, B and C.
A googly, folks! All these BJP candidates have won four Lok Sabha elections in a row from their respective constituencies in UP. Sheela Devi Gautam (Aligarh), Murli Manohar Joshi (Allahabad), Raj Narayan Pasi (Bansagaon), Santosh Gangwar (Bareilly), Santosh Bihari Mishra (Bilhaur), Chhatrapal (Bulandshahr), Mahant Avaidyanath (Gorakhpur), Ramesh Chandra Tomar (Hapur), Atal Bihari Vajpayee (Lucknow) and Ram Nagina Mishra (Padrauna).
Correct!
A googly, folks! All these BJP candidates have won four Lok Sabha elections in a row from their respective constituencies in UP. Sheela Devi Gautam (Aligarh), Murli Manohar Joshi (Allahabad), Raj Narayan Pasi (Bansagaon), Santosh Gangwar (Bareilly), Santosh Bihari Mishra (Bilhaur), Chhatrapal (Bulandshahr), Mahant Avaidyanath (Gorakhpur), Ramesh Chandra Tomar (Hapur), Atal Bihari Vajpayee (Lucknow) and Ram Nagina Mishra (Padrauna).

4. What connects Bombay North, Bombay North East, Midnapore and Trivandrum constituencies?
a. V K Krishna Menon.
b. K Karunakaran.
c. K R Narayanan.

Wrong! Try again..
Wrong! The correct answer is A.
V K Krishna Menon, Jawaharlal Nehru's much-hated defence minister (who many Indians believe was responsible for India's defeat in the 1962 war with China), won the 1957 election from Bombay North, the 1962 election from Bombay North East, lost the 1967 election from Bombay North East, won a by-election from Midnapore in West Bengal in 1969 and the 1971 election from Trivandrum in his native Kerala.
Correct!
V K Krishna Menon, Jawaharlal Nehru's much-hated defence minister (who many Indians believe was responsible for India's defeat in the 1962 war with China), won the 1957 election from Bombay North, the 1962 election from Bombay North East, lost the 1967 election from Bombay North East, won a by-election from Midnapore in West Bengal in 1969 and the 1971 election from Trivandrum in his native Kerala.

5. Thanks to the Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh is one town permanently associated with the Muslim community for many Indians. What is peculiar about the Aligarh Lok Sabha constituency?
a. It has never elected a Muslim to the Lok Sabha.
b. It is the largest constituency in UP.
c. It once sent a future President to the Lok Sabha.

Wrong! Try again..
Wrong! The correct answer is A.
This most Muslim of constituencies has never elected a Muslim MP. Consider its MPs since 1952 -- Nardeo Snatak (Congress, 1952, 1957), B P Maurya (Republican Party of India, 1962), Shiv K Shastri (Independent/Janata Party, 1971, 1977), Indra Kumari (Janata Party, 1980), Usha Rani (Congress, 1984), Satya Pal Malik (Janata Dal, 1989), Sheela Devi Gautam (BJP, 1991, 1996, 1998, 1999).
Correct!
This most Muslim of constituencies has never elected a Muslim MP. Consider its MPs since 1952 -- Nardeo Snatak (Congress, 1952, 1957), B P Maurya (Republican Party of India, 1962), Shiv K Shastri (Independent/Janata Party, 1971, 1977), Indra Kumari (Janata Party, 1980), Usha Rani (Congress, 1984), Satya Pal Malik (Janata Dal, 1989), Sheela Devi Gautam (BJP, 1991, 1996, 1998, 1999).

Election Quiz is best viewed in Internet Explorer and Netscape above version 6.0.

Quiz 1
Quiz 2
Quiz 3
Quiz 4
Quiz 5
Quiz 6
Quiz 7
Quiz 8
Quiz 9
Quiz 10
Quiz 11
Quiz 12
Quiz 13
Quiz 14
Quiz 15
Quiz 16
Quiz 17
Quiz 18
Quiz 19
Quiz 20
Quiz 21
Quiz 22

Compiled by G K Gokhale
Image: Uttam Ghosh



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