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Lok Sabha Elections 2019: Mainpuri voters curious about MSY’s presence at joint alliance rally
Samajwadi Party declared Mulayam as the Mainpuri candidate in its first list announced on March 8. But neither has Mulayam said a word about his candidature nor has he visited the constituency or his ancestral village Saifai since then
Mainpuri: Voters in Mainpuri are a curious lot these days, wondering whether Samajwadi Party (SP) patron Mulayam Singh Yadav will attend the joint alliance rally by Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and Rashtriya Lok Dal (SP-BSP-RLD) here on April 19.
Even though the party has declared his candidature from the seat, there is no clear word on whether he will attend or address the rally along with BSP chief Mayawati, RLD’s Ajit Singh and SP national president Akhilesh.
Samajwadi Party declared Mulayam as the Mainpuri candidate in its first list announced on March 8. But neither has Mulayam said a word about his candidature nor has he visited the constituency or his ancestral village Saifai since then. “The village and the constituency are expecting him to come over for Holi as the family always gathers and celebrates Holi in Saifai,” said Anshul Yadav, 24, a voter in Saifai.
“There is no need to hold a joint rally for Netaji. He will win anyway,” said another voter and added: “The Congress is not fielding a candidate against him. We understand that the BJP is also considering whether to refrain from fielding a candidate or field a weak one.”
The BJP has never won the Mainpuri seat. Mulayam first won the seat in 1996, and then again in 2004, 2009, and 2014. In two general elections in 1998 and 1999, as well as two bypolls 2004 and 2009, the seat was won by Samajwadi Party. Mulayam had vacated the seat in 2004 and retained Sambhal. In 2014, he vacated the seat again and retained Azamgarh. The SP patriarch bagged 56% vote share in 2009 and 60% vote share in 2014 on the seat.
The SP patriarch’s silence on contesting the polls has also added to the curiosity among the voters in Mainpuri. He has been silent on contesting the election. A week before the declaration of his candidature for Mainpuri, Mulayam had expressed displeasure over Akhilesh’s tie-up with Mayawati for the polls. He had said that because of the tie-up, the party would only be able to contest on half the seats. But earlier in April last year, he had praised Akhilesh for making a poll pact with the BSP and criticised the SP and Congress tie-up for the 2017 assembly polls.
Akhilesh’s tie-up with the BSP is a leaf out of what Mulayam did in the 1993 UP assembly polls. But after the 1995 guesthouse case of alleged assault by SP workers on Mayawati, a bitter rivalry separated the two parties.
“Guess, there will be more crowd at the April 19 rally because of the curiosity factor,” said a voter requesting anonymity.
Asked if Mulayam will attend the joint rally a party spokesperson said, “A candidate always attends a rally organised in his or her support.”
