This Article is From Sep 22, 2015

Mulayam Singh Yadav, Ajit Singh on test in third phase of polling in UP today

Mulayam Singh Yadav, Ajit Singh on test in third phase of polling in UP today
New Delhi: The third phase of polling in Uttar Pradesh today, covering 12 constituencies in western and central Uttar Pradesh, is likely to test the clout of two important regional players -Mulayam Singh Yadav's Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Rashtriya Lok Dal, or the RLD, which is led by union minister Ajit Singh.

In 2009, contesting in alliance with the BJP, the RLD had won two of the 12 seats -Hathras and Mathura. Mr Singh's son, Jayant made his debut in the Lok Sabha by wresting Mathura from the Congress. (Elections Candidates | Schedule)

The SP, contesting alone, had bagged five seats in 2009. Mr Yadav himself sailed through comfortably in Mainpuri, while his son Akhilesh, fighting from Firozabad and Kannauj, won both. He vacated the Firozabad seat soon after, but his party suffered the mortification of ceding the constituency to the Congress' Raj Babbar in the by-election held later that year. After Mr Akhilesh shifted to Lucknow in 2012 to take over the reins of Uttar Pradesh, his wife Dimple was elected unopposed from Kannauj. The SP had also walked away with Hardoi and Etawah five years ago.

A resurgent BJP, propelled by the growing appeal of its prime ministerial candidate and the success attained by his close associate Amit Shah in bringing the upper castes, non-Yadav OBCs and a section of Dalits together in the state, is threatening to upset the calculations of both the SP and the RLD.

The BJP could win only the Agra seat in the previous national elections. Its tally went up to two when former chief minister Kalyan Singh, a powerful  Lodh Rajput leader, rejoined the party last year. He had won from Etah as an independent in 2009. Lodhs have pockets of influence in Farrukhabad, Firozabad, and Mainpuri, besides Etah. Mr Singh's return too has boosted BJP's prospects. (Full Coverage: Elections)

The Congress, which had won three of the 12 seats in the last Lok Sabha polls, has forged an alliance with the RLD. But it could still emerge as the biggest loser.
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