Congressman Shatrughan Sinha’s wife joins Samajwadi Party, may take on Rajnath Singh

LUCKNOW: Days after actor-turned-politician

Shatrughan Sinha

snapped ties with BJP to bolster Congress in Bihar, his wife

Poonam Sinha

on Tuesday joined Samajwadi Party (SP) in Lucknow. While Shatrughan is pitted against senior BJP leader and Union law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad in Patna Saheb, wife Poonam is likely to take on Union home minister Rajnath Singh in Lucknow, who filed his nomination on Tuesday.


Poonam reached Lucknow on Tuesday morning and arrived at the Samajwadi Party office, where she joined the party in the presence of Dimple Yadav, wife of party chief, Akhilesh Yadav, who was in

Agra

to address a gatbandhan rally.

Poonam thanked those who welcomed her to Lucknow but refused to take questions from the media. “We will talk tomorrow,” said Dimple as they left the party office.

Senior leaders refused to comment whether she will be declared party candidate from Lucknow.

SP banks on Kayastha & Sindhi vote may announce Poonam’s candidature today
As of now, she has taken primary membership of the party,” said SP spokesperson MLC Udaiveer Singh.

Sources said, the party is likely to formally announce her candidature on Wednesday and she would file her nomination the next day.

Asked about possibilities of Poonam Sinha being fielded against him, Union minister Rajnath Singh reportedly said he would contest with dignity. With the candidature of Poonam Sinha, Samajwadi Party plans to appeal to the Kayastha and Sindhi voters as she’s a Sindhi married to a Kayastha. As per Election Commission estimates, the Lucknow parliamentary constituency has a total electorate of 19.89 lakh voters of whom around 4 lakh are Kayasths and another 80,000 Sindhi voters.

Of the estimated 5 lakh Muslims voters, the party is also eyeing the 3.5 lakh Sunni vote, most of whom are assumed to be SP supporters.