Denied poll ticket from UP’s Chandausi, teary-eyed SP worker says party only values money

Sharing a video of his plight, Satish Premi, an SP worker from Chandausi constituency in Sambhal district said the Akhilesh Yadav-led party only valued money and resources.

A Samajwadi Party (SP) worker in Uttar Pradesh was left in tears after he found his name was missing from the party’s candidate list for the upcoming Assembly election.

File photo: Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav. (PTI)

Sharing a video of his plight, Satish Premi, an SP worker from Chandausi constituency in Sambhal district said the Akhilesh Yadav-led party only valued money and resources.

In the video, Premi can be seen breaking into tears for not being given a ticket to fight the elections even as he claimed to be a “dedicated worker” of the SP for the last 25 years.

A report in PTI said Premi’s tearful video is now being circulated in local circles as he expressed his anguish over the selection of Vimlesh Kumari as the party's candidate from the reserved Chandausi seat.

Kumari was with the Congress till last year and had joined the SP four months ago, he said, adding she had lost the 2017 Assembly poll from Chandausi.

“Friends, I have failed today. I never discriminated on grounds of caste or religion, but only wanted to be with you all during your good and bad times. I have been with Akhilesh Yadav and the Samajwadi Party for a long time with hope but the party valued only money and resources,” Premi was quoted as saying by PTI.

“Today, I curse my fortunes. I only have you all (people) with me now. I don't even have my parents with me. I hope to have your support in future and hope to be by your side in future,” he added.

However, he added his words were not aimed at the “central leadership” of the SP, but a section of party workers. He also told reporters that even if he is not given the ticket, his party will win the election from the Chandausi seat, which goes to the polls on February 14 in the second phase of the assembly election in UP.

Earlier in the day, the SP released its first list of 159 candidates for the Uttar Pradesh polls, slated to be held in seven phases between February 10 and March 7.

Among the key faces named in the list are party president Akhilesh Yadav and jailed party MP Azam Khan.

Yadav, who had earlier said he would have to seek permission of the people of Azampur from where he is a parliamentarian to join the Assembly poll battle, was officially declared the SP’s candidate from Karhal in Mainpuri.