Lucknow:
The Yadav Bahu of Uttar Pradesh, Dimple Yadav is once again set to test political waters. The wife of UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, will contest the Kannauj Lok Sabha by-election slated for June 24.
The parliamentary constituency fell vacant after Mr Yadav resigned from the Lok Sabha after he was sworn in as a member of the UP Legislative Council after becoming the Chief Minister.
The Samajwadi Party Parliamentary Board met in Lucknow yesterday to finalise the name Mrs Yadav as the party's candidate for the by-polls. Ram Gopal Yadav the party's Parliamentary Board Chief Ram Gopal Yadav announced that the board had decided on Mrs Yadav's name after party workers demanded that she be given the ticket to contest the election.
In 2009, Akhilesh had contested from two parliamentary constituencies - Kannauj and Firozabad. He won both seats, but relinquished the Firozabad seat. His wife then contested the by-election from there. She lost to the Congress's Raj Babbar.
Interestingly in the run up to the assembly polls in UP, party chief Mulayam Singh had said that after Mrs Yadav defeat in 2009 the women of the Yadav household will not enter electoral politics.
Talking about other decisions made by parliamentary board, Mr Ram Gopal said the board had decided that the party workers would be free to contest local body polls, but they would not be authorised to use the party symbol.
He said that a large section of the workers were of the view that they should be allowed to contest local body polls like panchayat elections.
"Conceding to the demands of the workers the board decided that the workers would be free to contest elections, but no one will be authorised to do so on the party symbol," Mr Ram Gopal said.
The SP leader said it was also decided that the two-day national executive meeting would be held in Kolkata from July 10. On presidential elections, he said no decision had been
taken.