Lucknow:
After officially declaring her candidacy for the Lok Sabha election from Kannauj,
Dimple Yadav summed up why people should vote for her: "As the chief minister's wife, I am your best option for getting work done."
Major opposition parties appear to agree. Mayawati, who was forced out of power by Mrs Yadav's charismatic husband, Akhilesh, has decided not to field a candidate against Mrs Yadav.
The Congress announced yesterday that it would also skip the election. And the BJP too has not fielded a candidate.
So Mrs Yadav, barring a sudden fiasco, should enjoy a walkover.
That will be a pleasant change from 2009, when she was hammered in the election she contested against actor-politician Raj Babbar in Firozabad. The Congress threw its weight behind the actor, who had recently joined the party after quitting Mr Yadav's Samajwadi Party. Mr Yadav had lashed out at the Congress for his wife's defeat, blaming Rahul Gandhi who had campaigned on Mr Babbar's behalf.
The next two years were devoted by Mr Yadav to refurbishing his party's image in his home state. He cycled the length and breadth of Uttar Pradesh, combining large rallies with small meetings with villagers. His focus on laptops and education endeared him to the youth. His promises of corruption-free governance struck a chord in a state ravaged by systematic graft during Mayawati's regime.
Mr Yadav won the state with a massive margin this year. He then vacated his Lok Sabha seat from Kannauj to become a member of the UP state assembly. His wife was declared his party's candidate for the constituency.
In 2009, as well, Mrs Yadav had stepped in after her husband won both the Lok Sabha seats he contested from Kannauj and Firozabad. He decided to represent the former. She was his party's candidate for the latter. After her defeat, her father-in-law, Mulayam Singh Yadav, had said that the women of the Yadav household would not enter electoral politics again.