The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) on Friday announced its first list of 11 candidates for Uttar Pradesh that includes the name of former JD(S) leader Danish Ali from Amroha. Ali, who was general secretary of Janata Dal (Secular), had quit the party and joined the Mayawati-led party last week.
The first list of candidates covers almost all seats of first and second phases as the other seats have been left for alliance partners Samajwadi Party and Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD).
According to officials of the BSP, the candidates are Haji Fazlur Rahman from Saharanpur, Girish Chandra from Bijnor-Nagina, Danish Ali from Amroha, Haji Muhammad Yaqoob from Meerut, Satbir Nagar from Gautam Buddha Nagar, Yogesh Verma from Bulandshahr, Ajeet Baliyaan from Aligarh, Manoj Kumar Soni from Agra, Rajveer Singh from Fatehpur Sikri and Shrimati Ruchi Veera from Aonla.
Interestingly, around 100 BSP supporters from Moradabad staged a protest in front of the party office here on Friday, demanding reason from the high command for denying ticket to Girish Chandra from Bijnor-Nagina seat.
A supporter, Ashutosh, said that Girish, a coordinator of the BSP, was working against the party.
Mayawati, also declared the list of her party’s star campaigner for the first phase of polls to be held for eight seats in western UP on April 11.
BSP supremo Mayawati heads the star campaigners’ list followed by party general secretary Satish Chandra Mishra. Akash Anand, nephew of Mayawati, is the third name in the list and thereafter comes the name of BSP state president RS Kushwaha. Thereafter, the remaining 16 names are of leaders of western UP mostly Dalits besides one Muslim, Samsuddin Raini.