As the UP assembly elections draw close, Lucknow Cantt has emerged as a hot seat for various contenders though the BJP has been tight-lipped about who its face will be from the high-profile area.
One of the five constituencies of Lucknow, Lucknow Cantt is considered a safe bet for the BJP as they have been able to win on this seat for more than five times.
The constituency will go to polls on February 23 in the fourth phase of elections but candidature has not been finalized yet from the incumbent party.
The constituency boasts of more than 3,00,000 voters, mostly upper caste Hindus. Buzz over the seat began after Aparna Bisht Yadav, Mulayam Singh Yadav’s younger daughter-in-law, recently joined the saffron party and there are rumors that she could contest from Lucknow Cantt.
On the other hand, Allahabad MP Rita Joshi is seeking a ticket for her son Mayank from Lucknow Cantt. Former MLA of the seat, Joshi even went on record to say that she was ready to leave her MP seat if the party plans to give a ticket to her son.
Amid the conjectures, sitting MLA from Lucknow Cantt Suresh Chandra Tiwari feels otherwise. While talking to News18, Tiwari said the party leadership had already cleared the air about not giving tickets to any family member of sitting BJP MPs so there was no chance that Joshi would be able to secure a ticket for her son.
Talking about Aparna Yadav, Tiwari said he didn’t think Yadav would be given a ticket from any seat and would instead be used for campaigning for different candidates across the state.
“I have shared my willingness to contest the election yet again from BJP ticket. According to my assumption, I am getting the ticket from the seat,” said Tiwari, who has won from the seat four times and has been associated with the BJP for decades now.
However, he adds: “Whosoever would be chosen as a candidate from BJP, I will make all efforts to secure the seat. I will campaign for the candidate, even if I don’t get the ticket.”
With several high-profile aspirants in the ring, it’s now a game of wait and watch as the names are expected to be finalized in a day or two.
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