Samajwadi Party finally chooses its Lok Sabha poll candidate — after three attempts — for Gautam Buddha Nagar

In a press conference held by the SP on Friday, Nagar and Awana said their concerns have been addressed. “There are no differences between us now. Awana is ready to fight the election with me… I have the blessings of all senior party leaders.,” said Dr Nagar.

According to SP national spokesperson Pradeep Bhati, Nagar, who joined the party after leaving the Congress two years ago, was picked as the GB Nagar candidate on March 16. But a section of the party, especially the youth, was not satisfied with the decision. So, in its next list on March 20, SP president Akhilesh Yadav chose Awana — which saw objections from senior party leaders. The party president then called Nagar and Awana to Lucknow and a decision was taken to give the ticket to Nagar and accommodate Awana later for another post, said Bhati.

Samajwadi Party declared Dr Mahendra Nagar as its candidate in place of Rahul Awana. (Express File Photo)

According to Nagar, the main issues that the party will take up in the district include unemployment, inflation, poverty, and harassment of women. “I do not see any achievement of the BJP with respect to addressing any district-specific problems. Farmers have been protesting for years but I do not see any satisfactory solution to their problems,” he said.

He further said papers of most job-related exams are being leaked, leaving students in the lurch. “Exam papers are being leaked deliberately so the government would not have to provide jobs. They (BJP) have just one issue — divide the society and rule… Flat buyers are also facing huge problems with the registry… We have formed committees to visit different areas and register their problems,” said the SP candidate.
Awana, meanwhile, said Akhilesh has promised him an MLC or a Rajya Sabha seat in the next election. “Ladai hamari BJP se hai, party ke andar koi ladai nahi hai (We are fighting with BJP, not within the party)… Bhiayya ne bola hai ki MLC ya Rajya Sabha bhejenge. The decision of the party is my decision, I have no objection,” he told The Indian Express.

Asked how the party will counter BJP’s infra push through projects such as the Jewar Airport, Awana said, “It will ultimately benefit big businessmen like Adani and Ambani — the government will hand over this airport also to them like they are doing in other parts of the country. Farmers affected by the land acquisition are still fighting for rightful compensation…”

Meanwhile, Bhati attributed the change in candidate to a change in the political scenario after other parties declared their picks. “We have to factor in many things such as caste and social aspects while deciding tickets. When the BSP announced its candidates, we amended our decision accordingly and chose the best alternative. Every party does this. If we get reports that the candidate does not have a stronghold on the ground, we change our decision. Everybody knows who can beat the BJP, that’s why we are the best alternative to the people. We will perform much better than before,” said Bhati.

On the disgruntled factions, he said, “Our party is a democratic one… We respect positive feedback.”