Having stunned all with a formidable performance in the recently held Lok Sabha elections, the Samajwadi Party is brainstorming to select suitable candidates for the upcoming by-election for 10 assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh.

After the return of party president Akhilesh Yadav from Delhi, the party leaders are meeting everyday to discuss the probable candidates, who can be strong enough to counter any BJP onslaught after their humiliating loss in the Lok Sabha polls in the state.

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SP President Akhilesh Yadav has already called upon the party officials of the respective district units to work wholeheartedly for victory in the by-elections so that the results obtained in the Lok Sabha elections can be repeated in the future as well.

Elections are to be held on 10 vacant assembly seats in UP soon. Of these, one seat has become vacant due to the conviction of Sisamau (Kanpur) SP MLA Irfan Solanki, while nine MLAs have now become Lok Sabha MPs.

Of these, five seats – Karhal, Sisamau, Milkipur, Katehari and Kundarki – are currently with the SP, while Khair, Ghaziabad and Phulpur seats are with the BJP, Majhwa seat is with the Nishad Party and Meerapur with the RLD.

According to party sources, the SP will field former MP Tej Pratap Singh Yadav from Karhal, which has fallen vacant after Akhilesh Yadav’s election to the Lok Sabha from Kannauj. The most important seat for the SP is Milkipur in Ayodhya.

Milkipur MP Awadhesh Prasad’s son Ajit is a contender for the ticket. But the party is not ready to take any chance as the BJP would put all its power to wrest the seat to counter the SP’s narrative on Ayodhya. Milkipur is one of the 5 assembly segments of Faizabad Lok Sabha seat.

Katehari assembly seat has become vacant due to the election of Lalji Verma as MP from Ambedkarnagar Lok Sabha seat. Lalji Verma’s daughter Chhaya is said to be the frontrunner from her father’s seat.

In Sisamau assembly seat in Kanpur, only a member of Irfan Solanki’s family is likely to be fielded. The name of Vandana Vajpayee, wife of SP MLA from Kanpur, Amitabh Vajpayee is also being considered.

It is almost certain that Turks and Muslims will be fielded from Kundarki assembly seat in Moradabad district. SP sources say that looking at the BJP candidates, the party will assess its caste equations and prepare its electoral battlefield on the same basis.

This is the reason why names of Muslim, Gurjar and Jat claimants are being considered for Meerapur (Muzaffarnagar) seat. An RLD leader is also said to be in touch with the SP for the ticket from Khair seat.

The SP will bet on the leader of Patel or Kushwaha community from Phulpur while in Majhwa (Mirzapur) assembly seat, a leader of Brahmin or Bind community may get a chance. Jat and Dalit equations are being considered in Ghaziabad assembly seat.