- LATEST
- WEBSTORY
- TRENDING
INDIA
Paswan readies to challenge Maya’s might
Defeated LJP chief will contest bypoll from the Ferozabad seat vacated by Mulayam’s son
Updated : Nov 19, 2013, 11:17 PM IST
TRENDING NOW
)
India vs Australia Live Streaming: When and where to watch first Test of Border-Gavaskar Trophy on TV and online
)
Allu Arjun, Rashmika Mandanna's Pushpa 2 has already earned Rs 1000 crore before its release, here's how
)
Hinduja Group firm gets key approval for acquisition of Anil Ambani's debt-ridden Reliance Capital
)
Gandii Baat, XXX actress Aabha Paul sets Instagram on fire with hot photos
)
Amid divorce rumours with Aishwarya Rai, Abhishek Bachchan tells Amitabh Bachchan: 'I hope people don't...'
)
7 times XXX, Gandii Baat actress Aabha Paul crashed the internet by flaunting her sexy curves
)
After separation from ex-wife Saira Banu, AR Rahman makes major announcement: 'I am deeply grateful to...'
)
Shweta Tiwari's wedding photos with Bigg Boss 13 contestant Vishal Aditya Singh go viral, here's the truth behind them
)
Mukesh Ambani's Jio to get tough competition from BSNL, plan provides unlimited benefits for less than Rs...
)
Meet Mathira Khan, Pakistani influencer whose private video leaked after Minahil Malik, Imsha Rehman
)
'Good to be back': After breaking up with Malaika Arora, Arjun Kapoor reunites with his 'partner-in-crime after ages'
)
Amid Aishwarya Rai-Abhishek Bachchan divorce rumours, Jaya Bachchan says 'not my daughter' in viral video
)
After breakup with Malaika Arora, Arjun Kapoor dedicates his new tattoo to this special person in his life
)
'It's Abhishek, Aishwarya': Netizens react after celeb divorce lawyer says star couple is facing 'breakdown in marriage'
)
Meet richest footballer of 2024, not Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, his net worth is...
Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) president and former Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan may have lost election from Hajipur (Bihar), but he may not sit outside the 15th Lok Sabha for long, thanks to alliance partner and good friend Mulayam Singh.
The Samajwadi Party (SP) chief is learnt to have offered the Ferozabad seat in UP, vacated by his son Akhilesh, to the Dalit leader and eight-time MP. (Akhilesh also won another seat in UP — Kannauj — which he has retained.) This is being seen as Mulayam’s bid to mount a Dalit challenge to CM Mayawati and to start eroding her Dalit vote bank.
SP sources said Paswan would contest from Ferozabad as an LJP candidate supported by the SP. Paswan, Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad and Mulayam had formed a fourth front before the Lok Sabha election.
Political watchers said after Meira Kumar’s elevation as Lok Sabha speaker, it had become a question of political survival for Paswan. Kumar, a prominent Dalit leader of the Congress, won from Sasaram in Bihar.
“Paswan would be pushed into oblivion if he remains away from the national scene for the next five years,” a journalist who has covered Bihar for years said.
Ironically, it is almost a quarter of a century later that the three players are part of a political game again. It was in 1985 that Kumar, Paswan and Mayawati had contested a byelection in Bijnor, a seat in UP reserved for Dalits. Mayawati, just 27 then, was contesting her first election. She ranked third, while Kumar won and Paswan was runner-up.
Paswan is preparing to challenge Mayawati’s might in the electoral arena once again. After the BSP’s poor show in the recent election, this lone Lok Sabha byelection in UP would indeed be a matter of prestige for Mayawati.
The BSP is expected to repeat SP Singh Baghel, a former Samajwadi MP who fought on a BSP ticket but lost to Akhilesh. The Congress is considering actor Raj Babbar, who lost from Fatehpur Sikri.
