Cong picks party veterans’ kin for 2 bypoll seats in UP

Lucknow: Congress has declared candidates for two of the eight bypoll seats in UP. The party has announced the candidature of Aarti Vajpayee for Bangarmau seat in Unnao and Haider Ali Khan for Suar seat of Rampur. Both hail from the families of Congress veterans.

Aarti Vajpayee hails from the family of late Delhi CM Sheila Dikshit. Dikshir’s father-in-law Uma Shankar Dikshit was a contemporary of Jawaharlal Nehru during the freedom struggle and later served as cabinet minister in Indira Gandhi’s government. Uma Shankar Dikshit’s nephew and Aarti’s father Gopinath was a five-term MLA from Bangarmau.

Sources said the Congress took into consideration factors like the presence of Brahmins, popularity of the Dikshit family and the party’s recent campaigns in Unnao demanding justice for the rape survivor while nominating Vajpayee. Bangarmau seat fell vacant following the disqualification of then BJP MLA Kuldeep Sengar, who was convicted in a rape case last year.

The candidate from Suar seat, Haider Ali Khan, is the third generation of five-term Congress MP from Rampur, Nawab Zulfikar Ali Khan. The legacy was kept intact by Nawab’s wife Begum Noor Bano. Haider’s father Nawab Kazim Ali Khan has been the MLA from Suar seat for four consecutive terms.

Suar seat fell vacant after sitting SP MLA Abdullah Azam was disqualified for quoting wrong date of birth in his poll affidavit. Abdullah Azam along with his father Azam Khan and his mother, who is Rajya Sabha member of the SP, is languishing in jail.

“Both our candidates are strong in their own ways. They enjoy the immense trust of the locals and have enough proof to show their commitment to public service,” said a UP Congress media team member. Congress is the first party to announce the candidates for bypolls where voting will be held in October. The candidates for the remaining six seats will be released in a day or two, sources said.

Meanwhile, the BJP accused the Congress of patronising nepotism. “Congress is about one family and several small loyal families. It’s eveident from the names of the candidates announced,” said a BJP media team member.