Mulayam to contest from 2 seats
Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, Aug 22 — Unsure about the electorate in Sambhal, the Samajwadi Party (SP) chief, Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav, in a bid to ensure his return to the Lok Sabha has decided to file his nomination from another constituency also in Uttar Pradesh.

The SP spokesman, Mr Amar Singh, today said that Mr Yadav would also be filing his nomination from Kannauj, besides Sambhal. He had earlier decided to seek re-election from Sambhal, a constituency in Western Uttar Pradesh, which in the past had been the domain of Mr D.P. Yadav.

In what could be described as a "safe constituency syndrome", the decision of Mr Yadav to file from the second constituency was no surprise, especially as there had been reports that he was looking for a safe constituency which would ensure his return to the Lok Sabha.

The Tribune, in its report on August 9, had pointed out that the SP chief, was on a hunt for a safe constituency and Kannauj could be one such constituency from where he could file his nomination.

There had also been reports that the voters of Sambhal were not very happy with Mr Yadav as they had been ignored by him in the past one year after he won the elections with a handsome margin. His recent rallies in the area had also not been very successful and he had been trying hard to woo the minorities, but without much success.

Party sources here disclosed that Mr Yadav had already made up his mind to contest from Kannauj also, when he announced his decision to seek re-election from Sambhal. He apparently announced Sambhal as the first constituency with the basic idea of wooing the electorate by showing that he attached importance to the constituency over the other.

Besides, it was also possibly done to show that he was not changing his constituency on this occasion. He has had a history of changing his constituency on every occasion the polls have been held and has never returned to it to seek re-election.

However, stung by the reports of a possible shift in the priorities of the minority vote-bank, Mr Yadav had been on a hunt for a "safe constituency" ever since the BJP-led coalition government lost the vote of confidence and an alternate government at the Centre could not be put in place.

Mr Yadav had been informed by his party leaders that Sambhal was no longer a safe constituency as the minority vote-bank of the area had shifted its priorities. Besides, the electorate was extremely disenchanted with him, especially as he had paid little attention to the constituency ever since he got elected from there. He had been informed that returning to the Lok Sabha by fighting only from Sambhal would not be a very easy task.

While Mr Yadav had on various occasions been informed about a steady shift in the Muslim vote bank, the attendance at his recent rallies, which had mostly been in the minority-dominated areas, had actually come as an eye-opener for him. Besides, a large number of minority community leaders had also left him to join other parties.

Reports said Mr Yadav had been tossing between four other constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, besides Sambhal. These were Azamgarh, Kannuaj, Mainpuri and Badaun.

The reports said Mr Yadav would file his nomination from Kannauj on August 24 while the papers for the Sambhal constituency would be filed on August 31.