While Samajwadi Party’s prestige to save their bastion is at stake, the third phase elections in Uttar Pradesh would also be a litmus test for many senior leaders of almost all the parties to carry forward their dynasty.
This round would also be a challenge for the SP and the Congress party to retain their seats while it would also test whether BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi’s wave had influenced the Yadavs and other backward-dominated constituencies which would go to polls on coming Thursday.
The seats where the third phase of polling would take place on April 24 include — Mathura, Fatehpur Sikri, Firozabad, Mainpuri, Etah, Farrukhabad, Kannauj, Akbarpur — along with four reserved seats of Agra, Hardoi, Hathras, and Etawah.
The biggest challenge in this round is for the SP supremo as not only Mulayam’s prestige is at stake from Mainpuri lok Sabha seat but his daughter-in-law Dimple Yadav (wife of Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav) is also engaged in a triangular fight with the BSP and BJP from Kannauj lok Sabha seat. last time during by-polls in Kannauj, which was vacated following the resignation of Akhilesh Yadav, his wife Dimple Yadav created a history of going to Parliament unopposed.
Another prestigious seat for Mulayam Singh Yadav is Ferozabad, which Dimple lost last time to Raj Babbar in bypolls.
This time, Mulayam’s nephew Akshay Yadav, son of SP leader Ram Gopal Yadav is contesting and to facilitate his victory, the the Congress has shifted sitting MP Raj Babbar to Ghaziabad and fielded a dummy candidate. It may also be mentioned that Congress not fielding any candidate against Mulayam and his daughter-in-law and in return gift, the SP also declared not to fight from Rae Bareli and Amethi, represented by Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi respectively.
like Mulayam Singh Yadav, prestige of another former Chief Minister and veteran BJP leader Kalyan Singh Yadav is also at stake. Kalyan, who was in the SP’s camp during last Parliament elections, has recently joined the BJP just to ensure a better future for his son Rajveer Singh, who is contesting of Kalyan Singh’s traditional Etah seat. Another seat which would be a prestige for Kalyan Singh is Farrukhabad from where his loyalist Mukesh Rajput is in fray.
Rajput, always stand behind Kalyan Singh, even when he left the BJP to join the SP or to form a new party. Mukesh Rajput, however faced stiff challenge from the Congress as Union Minister and sitting MP Salman Khurshid, is seeking re-entry from the same lok Sabha seat. Kalyan’s prestige is also at stake as he is known to be lodh leader, the community which constitutes a big segment of voters in Agra, Ferozabad, Mathura and Agra, and if the BJP fails to perform poor, than his stature in the party would receive a setback.
like Mulayam and Kalyan Singh, another leader who is trying to carry forward his dynasty in Rashtriya lok Dal leader, Ajit Singh, whose son Jayant Chaudhary is fighting it hard to retain Mathura Parliamentary constituency. Dream Girl of Bollywood, Hema Malini, who is riding high on her glamour and Modi wave, had snatched the sleep of sitting MP. Hema Malini, who projected herself at wife of Jat hero Dharmendra, is also making a dent on RlD’s traditional vote bank and now all hope of Jayant is on minority vote bank.
Yet another senior leader Swami Prasad Maurya’s, leader of Opposition in the State Assembly, had put his prestige at stake by fielding his daughter Sanghmitra Maurya, and that too against SP’s chief Mulayam Singh Yadav from Mainpuri.
Mulayam is also contesting from Azamgarh. Former Minister in the State Government Rambeer Upadhya had also fielded his wife Seema Upadhya, from Fatehpur Sikri lok Sabha seat.She is facing tough contest from Amar Singh, who had merged his party and is fighting on RlD’s ticket. Amar Singh, had already added glamour to his contest by bringing in many Bollywood heroines but he was bit upset after Jaya Bachchan campaigned against him in Fatehpur Sikri.