The Samajwadi Party has changed its candidate from Haridwar parliamentary constituency and decided to field BJP rebel leader Anita Saini from here. Saini who had earlier held district level positions in BJP joined SP on Monday and will contest the election on SP ticket from Haridwar, said SP state president Dr Satyanarayan Sachan on Tuesday.
Earlier, the SP had declared Azmal Shahnawaz as its candidate from Haridwar parliamentary constituency. Shahnawaz has been undergoing treatment in Jolly Grant Hospital, Rishikesh for the last 20 days because a bullet hit him in the head while he was cleaning his licensed revolver, he added.
Talking to The Pioneer, Saini said, “I had joined the BJP in 1998 and was a dedicated party worker but the party ignored me repeatedly. I was never given a chance to be elected a public representative by the BJP. To serve the Saini community, I joined SP which has fielded me from Haridwar. Having worked as a BJP worker for more than 15 years I am aware of the problems being faced by the people of the constituency. In the past, I had also protested for redressal of public grievances in the district, "she added. She alleged that successive state governments had ignored the Saini community in the constituency. Problems faced by this community will be addressed if she is elected to the lok Sabha. Meanwhile, Sachan said that SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav had approved the candidature of Saini from Haridwar.