E-Paper
Congress will not field candidates against Akhilesh, Shivpal Yadav
The Congress had already declared not to field any candidate from Jaswant Nagar seat, from where Akhilesh’s uncle Shivpal Yadav is contesting. Shivpal, the chief of Pragitisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia (PSP-L), is contesting the upcoming election on SP ticket.
In a last-minute move, the Congress on Tuesday decided not to field a candidate from Karhal seat, in Mainpuri district, from where Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav is in the fray for his first Uttar Pradesh assembly elections.
The Congress had already declared not to field any candidate from Jaswant Nagar seat, from where Akhilesh’s uncle Shivpal Yadav is contesting. Shivpal, the chief of Pragitisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia (PSP-L), is contesting the upcoming election on SP ticket.
Nominations for both Kahral and Jaswant Nagar ended on Tuesday.
Earlier, Congress had declared Gyanwati Devi as its candidate for Karhal seat but, in a last-minute decision, she was asked by the party high command to not file her nomination.
Gopal Kulshrestha, Congress’s Mainpuri district president, said: “Gyanwati Devi was the Congress candidate for Karhal seat. However, on instructions from the party high command, she was asked not to file her nomination.”
The district will go to polls on February 20 in the third phase of the seven-phase assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.
“Party candidates will be contesting from the other three assembly seats of Mainpuri district. Vinita Shakya will contest from Mainpuri Sadar seat, Prof Vijay Narain from Kisni while Mamta Rajput will contest from Bhongaon seat,” Kulshrestha added.
Former chief minister Akhilesh Yadav on Monday filed his nomination from Karhal, where the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has named Union minister of state for law and justice SP Singh Baghel as its candidate. Baghel, too, filed his nomination on Monday.
Abdul Hafiq Gandhi, Samajwadi Party national spokesperson, welcomed the Congress’s decision.
“It’s on old tradition that both the parties follow regarding direct family members. It’s nothing new. The move is welcome for these two seats. Congress may have had announced the candidate on the Karhal seat because they were not aware that Akhilesh ji would contest it and eventually they withdrew the candidate,” he added.
Both SP and Congress, usually, do not field candidates against the members of each other’s first family. The only exception was in 2009, when the Congress fielded Raj Babbar against Akhilesh’s wife Dimple Yadav during her first attempt at the Lok Sabha elections from Firozabad constituency. Babbar had won the election.
At that time, Akhilesh Yadav expressed his anguish while threatening to field SP candidates against the Gandhis.
