Shivpal Yadav named as one of star campaigners for Samajwadi party in UP polls

|HT|

Shivpal Yadav, the estranged uncle of Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav and brother veteran Mulayam Singh Yadav, was on Monday named as one of the star campaigners for the party for the ongoing Assembly election in Uttar Pradesh. In what seemed to be a hint towards bettering of ties between Akhilesh and his uncle, the Samajwadi Party named Shivpal, who heads the Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party (Lohiya), in the new list along with Mulayam, Dimple Yadav and others. Shivpal's name was missing in the list of campaigners released by the Samajwadi Party ahead of the election.

The move came close on the heels of the Mulayam clan hitting the campaign trail together for Akhilesh in Karhal Assembly constituency. Malayalam is likely to campaign for the party in the coming days for the remaining four phases of the election.

Other prominent names in the new list include Ram Gopal Yadav, Kiranmoy Nanda, and Swami Prasad Maurya, the former Union minister who had left the BJP weeks ahead of the polls. The Samajwadi Party and Shivpal’s Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party (Lohiya) are jointly contesting the state election and the alliance has expressed confidence in forming the next government in the state.

The BJP had taken a jibe at the Akhilesh-led party for using Mulayam’s services on the campaign trail in Karhal constituency. Addressing a poll rally in Unnao, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, "They (the SP) are about to lose the seat (Karhal) that they were considering safest. It is getting out of their hands. You must have seen the father (Mulayam Singh Yadav), who was earlier pushed away from the stage, humiliated and his party captured, had to plead to save his son from a certain defeat."

The third phase of the Uttar Pradesh election ended with a 61.02 per cent average voter turnout.

The last phase of voting will take place on March 7 and the counting of the votes will be done on March 10.

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