Akhilesh Yadav will contest from Azamgarh, father Mulayam's seat
What's the story
A short while ago, Samajwadi Party released a new list of candidates. The party president, Akhilesh Yadav will fight upcoming Lok Sabha polls from Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh.
Mulayam Singh Yadav, Akhilesh's father, is the sitting MP from Azamgarh, which is seen as an easy constituency for SP.
The list also revealed that Azam Khan will fight polls from Rampur constituency, his bastion.
Constituency
Winning Azamgarh won't be difficult for Akhilesh
Earlier, it was speculated Akhilesh would fight polls from Kannauj, the seat currently held by his wife Dimple. But the latest list puts an end to rumors.
Azamgarh has a sizeable Muslim-Yadav vote bank, so Akhilesh's chances look bright.
Meanwhile, Mulayam has been shifted to another SP bastion, Mainpuri. He had won from Mainpuri in 2014, but resigned later.
List
Mulayam absent from SP's "star campaigners" list
SP also released a list of "star campaigners". The coveted list had names of Akhilesh, Ram Gopal Yadav, Azam Khan, Dimple Yadav, and Jaya Bachchan, but the party's patriarch Mulayam wasn't included.
Notably, Mulayam was part of this list before the 2017 assembly elections but his brother Shivpal was left out
Later, Shivpal formed another party called Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party.
Twitter Post
Here is the list of SP's "star campaigners"
Samajwadi Party releases its list of star campaigners; Akhilesh Yadav, Ram Gopal Yadav, Azam Khan, Dimple Yadav and Jaya Bachchan included in the list; Mulayam Singh Yadav's name not there. #LokSabhaElections2019 pic.twitter.com/QUZYpoC6ce
— ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 24, 2019
Alliance
SP's ally Mayawati decided to not contest elections this time
To recall, SP forged an alliance with former bitter rally Bahujan Samaj Party, led by Mayawati for the upcoming polls. While SP got 37 seats in the alliance, BSP got 38.
A few days ago, Mayawati confirmed she will not contest polls as she has other important things to take care of.
"I can vacate a seat and contest later if I wish," she had said.
Details
BSP-SP and BJP will lock horns this time
UP sends 80 MPs to Lok Sabha and plays a pivotal role in Indian politics.
In 2014, BJP won 71 seats in the state scripting history. SP managed to win 5 but BSP failed to even open its account.
This time around SP-BSP and BJP will be locked in a direct battle as Congress continues to remain a minor player in the state.