Manyata to contest polls on SP ticket?

Samajwadi Party General Secretary Amar Singh said if Sanjay Dutt is not qualified to contest the Lok Sabha polls, his wife Manyata will be the party's candidate from Lucknow.

If Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt is not qualified to contest the Lok Sabha elections, his wife Manyata will be the Samajwadi Party candidate in his place, party general secretary Amar Singh said in New Delhi on Saturday.

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"If Sanjay Dutt is unable to contest the polls, we will request the Dutt family to allow (his wife) Manyata to fight from Lucknow," Amar Singh told reporters in New Delhi.

He had announced on Thursday that Sanjay Dutt would be the party candidate from Lucknow for the poll expected by May. However, the actor has a number of criminal cases pending against him and may not be qualified to contest.

Former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee represents the Uttar Pradesh capital in the Lok Sabha.