Mayawati fields candidate for RS seat

LUCKNOW: Despite having an effective strength of merely 19 MLAs in the 403-member Uttar Pradesh Assembly, the BahujanSamaj Party (BSP) has decided to field its national coordinator RamjiGautam for the tenth RajyaSabha seat from the state. According to party sources, the candidature of Gautam is learnt to have been finalised in a meeting of party MLAs on Thursday. Sources said Gautam's nomination is likely to be filed on October 26. The election is scheduled for November 9.

According to sources in the party, Gautam's selection is crucial as he belongs to the Dalit community, a vote bank which Mayawati needs to consolidate before the next Assembly elections in the state.

However, the BSP which had won 19 seats in 2017, now has an effective strength of 15. Three BSP MLAs — Anil Singh, RamvirUpadhyay and Mohammed AslamRaini — have rebelled against the party and are openly supporting the BJP while another legislator, Mukhtar Ansari, is in jail. A candidate needs 36 votes to win while the BSP has only 15. Party sources said the BSP game plan was to corner the other opposition parties. (IANS)

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