Akhilesh meets uncle Shivpal, Dimple Yadav ahead of Mainpuri bypoll

Ahead of the Mainpuri Lok Sabha bypoll, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday met PSPL chief and his uncle Shivpal Singh Yadav along with his wife and party candidate Dimple Yadav.

The bypoll on the seat has been necessitated due to the demise of Samajwadi Party (SP) patron Mulayam Singh Yadav and the area is considered to be the party's stronghold.

In a tweet after the meeting, Akhilesh Yadav said, "Along with the blessings of Netaji and elders of the family, the people of Mainpuri are also with us."

Akhilesh Yadav also shared a picture with Shivpal Singh.

Shivpal Yadav on Wednesday held a meeting with party workers and exhorted them to ensure the victory of the SP candidate in the bypoll.

Shivpal Singh Yadav's role in the election is important as his assembly constituency Jaswantnagar comes under the Mainpuri Lok Sabha constituency.

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Shivpal has a close relationship with the people of Mainpuri and used to go as Mulayam's representative in various programmes held in the area when the SP patriarch was unavailable.

Shivpal Yadav's campaigning in favour of Dimple is also considered important as the BJP has nominated Raghuraj Singh Shakya, who was once a close aide of Shivpal Yadav, as its candidate from this seat.

Shivpal Singh, who heads the Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party Lohia (PSPL) and the SP chief had come together during the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls in March to take on the BJP but after the elections, the relationship saw a dip and they again parted ways.

The bypoll will be held on December 5 while the result will be announced on December 8.

Dimple Yadav filed her nomination papers last Monday. At that time neither Shivpal Singh Yadav nor his son Aditya Yadav were present.