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Akhilesh fields OBC candidate on Yogi's turf

Last Updated 18 February 2018, 15:21 IST

Springing a surprise, the Samajwadi Party (SP) forged an alliance with Nishad Party (NP), a caste-based outfit, and fielded an OBC candidate in the forthcoming Lok Sabha bypoll  in Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's home turf of Gorakhpur.

SP supremo Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday announced an electoral alliance with the NP  and Peace Party and nominated NP president Sanjay Nishad's son Praveen Kumar Nishad as it candidate.

The Nishad community forms the largest electoral bloc in Gorakhpur Lok Sabha constituency, numbering around 3.7 lakh.

The Peace Party, on the other hand, wields considerable influence on the Muslim community.

It was mainly active in around half a dozen districts in the eastern region of the state.

In the 2014 general elections, both the SP and BSP had fielded Nishad candidates from the constituency, who had together polled over four lakh votes.

Speaking to reporters here, Akhilesh, who was flanked by Sanjay Nishad and Peace Party president Ayyub, exuded confidence that his party would win both Phulpur and Gorakhpur seats, where bypolls  are slated for March 11.

Congress has nominated a Gorakhpur-based  woman doctor for the seat while the BJP is yet to declare its candidate.

It  is not yet clear if the BSP would field its nominee in the bypolls. The BSP has in the past chosen not to contest bypolls.

The last date for filing nominations is Tuesday.

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(Published 18 February 2018, 15:00 IST)

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