As Shivpal Yadav skips Kannauj, Dimple gets safe passage

KANPUR: After elder brother Mulayam and nephew Dharmendra, Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia (PSPL) chief Shivpal Yadav has decided to give a safe passage to ‘bahu’ (daughter-in-law) Dimple by not fielding a candidate against her from Kannauj Lok Sabha seat.


Dimple is wife of Shivpal’s other nephew and SP president Akhilesh Yadav.

Shivpal had quit SP and launched PSPL in August last after a feud with Akhilesh and subsequently announced that his party will contest on all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state.

Tuesday was the last date of filing of nomination papers in Kannauj, famous for manufacturing ‘attar’ (perfume), which will go to polls in the fourth phase on April 29.

“I was asked by party president not to file nomination from Kannauj, from where Dimple had been winning since 2012 bypolls. The same seat had sent her father-in-law Mulayam Singh Yadav and her husband Akhilesh Yadav to Lok Sabha,” said Sunil Singh Rathore, whose name was announced by PSPL as its candidate for Kannauj.

“As asked by Adhyaksh Ji (party president Shivpal), I did not turn up to file my candidature on Tuesday, the last day for filing nominations,” Rathore told TOI on Wednesday. He added that his name was announced by the party from Kannauj about a fortnight ago.

“Considering that Tuesday was an auspicious day, I had completed all required formalities to file the nomination. However, at the last moment I was asked by Adhyaksh Ji on phone to not file nomination from Kannauj and instead reach Firozabad,” said Rathore.

This is for the third time when Shivpal has created space for a family member. Earlier, he had announced that his party will not field a candidate on Mainpuri seat from which SP patriarch and his elder brother Mulayam is contesting. Similarly, he had not fielded his party candidate from Badaun, from where Dharmendra Yadav, his other nephew and son of brother Abhay Ram Yadav is contesting as a candidate of SP-BSP combine.

Shivpal, however, is leaving no stone unturned to wrestle the Firozabad Lok Sabha seat from his nephew Akshay Yadav, son of his cousin and SP general secretary Ram Gopal Yadav.