BJP may field Muslim nominee on Azam’s turf

LUCKNOW: BJP is open to the idea of fielding a Muslim candidate in the December 5 byelection to UP’s Rampur assembly seat in a bid to loosen disqualified SP MLA Azam Khan’s stranglehold on the constituency, state party chief Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary said Tuesday.
Rampur will vote along with Khatauli assembly constituency in Muzaffarnagar and Mainpuri Lok Sabha seat that fell vacant with the death of SP patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav.
“A couple of names are in contention for the Rampur ticket, but some BJP seniors is also in favour of fielding a Muslim candidate. The party is open to all options as of now,” Chaudhary said. “If a prospective candidate is strong enough, the party has no issues in fielding him, irrespective of caste and religion.” Azam was disqualified as Rampur MLA within months of being elected after an MP/MLA court handed him a three-year jail term in a hate speech case. The Rampur LS seat that he held prior to this had been wrested by BJP in June bypoll.
As in Rampur, the Khatauli seat had to be vacated by BJP MLA Vikram Saini after he received a two-year jail sentence from the MP/MLA court in Muzaffarnagar for his role in the 2013 riots in the district.
In Mainpuri, it’s almost certain that someone from the Yadav clan would be fielded by SP, party sources said. Azam will have a say on who the party will give the ticket to for the Rampur bypoll. The BJP leadership has asked its district and regional units in Rampur to send the names of suitable candidates for the shortlist that will be sent to the party headquarters.