Akhilesh, Ambika among SP candidates for council poll

LUCKNOW: Chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and revenue minister Ambika Chaudhary are among the seven candidates announced by the Samajwadi Party on Thursday for the forthcoming Legislative Council election to be held on April 26. Going by the SP's present strength of 224 in the Vidhan Sabha, all the seven candidates are likely to win.
While Akhilesh did not contest the assembly polls, Ambika lost from Phephna.Both of them were required to reach the state assembly or council within six months after being sworn in. Other names in the list include party's chief spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary, national president of party's women wing Dr Madhu Gupta, Umar Khan, Vijay Yadav and Naresh Uttam.
Umar Khan's inclusion in the list is surprising as he is a newcomer to the SP. Son-in-law of the Shahi Imaam of Jama Masjid, Umar had contested the assembly elections from Saharanpur but lost. The party has now paved the way for his entry into the state legislature through the council route. Opposing Umar Khan's candidature from Saharanpur, Mulayam's old loyalist Rasheed Masood left SP a few months before the state assembly elections and joined Congress.
After Lucknow's mayoral seat was declared reserved for women, Madhu Gupta, who had contested the election unsuccessfully twice in the past, was being seen as the obvious choice. But, by fielding her in the council poll, the party has indicated that it will for a new face for the mayor's election.
Vijay Yadav happens to be the son a long-time Mulayam loyalist Ram Karan Yadav of Ghazipur. After Ram Karan's death, Mulayam nominated Vijay Yadav to the council for the first time in late 1990s. Another candidate who has earlier been a member of the council is Naresh Uttam from Allahabad. He too is a Mulayam loyalist and has been associated with the party since the start of his political career.
Same is the case with senior leader Ambika Chawdhary. One of the very few party members who has been a part of every single Mulayam Singh cabinet, Chaudhary contested from Phephna in Ballia in the assembly election as his traditional Koachit seat ceased to exist after delimitation. The changed demographic and caste character of the new constituency didn't go in his favour and he lost narrowly to the BJP candidate. But, he was still inducted in the cabinet as the revenue minister. So, his candidature for the council poll was a foregone conclusion.
Party spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary has been a Mulayam loyalist since the days of the Janata Party. He also became an MLA in 1977 and has been handling the media all through the political lull that the party had to face till the recent past.