Ihe ruling Samajwadi party faces an uphill task in protecting its fort in east Uttar Pradesh in the sixth phase of the State Assembly election. This phase of election will also decide the future of the leadership of the party president Akhilesh Yadav as most of his political decision will face the litmus test.
The stunning success of the SP east UP in 2012 Assembly elections had catapulted the Samajwadi party to power in 2012 and the party for the first time in its history had won clear majority in the Atate Assembly.
The SP not only faces a tough challenge from the resurgent BJP, but also from its old comrades who had deserted the party and joined the BSP after being denied the ticket. Another challenge to the party comes from the Mafia don Mukhtar Ansari who commands considerable influence in Ballia, Mau and Azamgarh districts. SP patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav is MP from Azamgarh lok Sabha seat. In 2012 Samajwadi Party had won 9 out of the 10 seats in the district.
The political decisions by Akhilesh Yadav as national president of the party like denial of ticket to two former Ministers Ambika chowdhary, Narad Rai in Ballia his refusal to merge the Kaumi Ekta Dal of Mukhtar Ansari with his party and to keep his father Mulayam Singh Yadav away from campaigning will face the scrutiny of the voters. Mukhtar Ansari later joined the Bahujan Samaj party and Mayawati obliged him with tickets for his son and brother also.
The stakes are high for the BJP also as the party had won all the lok Sabha seats in the region barring the Azamgarh which elected Mulayam Singh Yadav. Union Minister Kalraj Mishra is MP from Deoria, Mahant Adityanath of Gorakhpur. In 2012 State elections out of the 49 Assembly seats going to polls in sixth phase SP had won 27 seats followed by BSP 9 seats and, 7 by BJP, 4 by Congress and others 2.
The districts going to the polls in the sixth phase are Maharajganj, Kushinagar, Gorakhpur, Deoria, Azamgarh, Mau and Ballia.