UP: BSP RS candidates face uphill task in polls

Lucknow, March 13: Naresh Agarwal’s entry into the BJP has imparted an interesting twist to the Rajya Sabha battle in Uttar Pradesh, after the former Samajwadi Party heavyweight declared his MLA son will vote for the saffron party, a move that may upset the BSP candidate’s applecart.

The BSP, with 19 MLAs in the 403- member Assembly, is already short of 18 first preference votes and with Mr Agarwal’s son Nitin likely to vote for the BJP, the task will be all the more difficult for Mayawati’s candidate Bhimrao Ambedkar.

In order to ensure a straight win in the Rajya Sabha elections from the state, a candidate has to get 37 first preference votes.

The BJP- led NDA has 324 MLAs, enough to clinch eight seats. The BJP, which has fielded 11 candidates for the state’s 10 RS seats, will still be left with 18 surplus votes. Its Noorpur MLA died in a road accident recently.

“The character of the BJP has been to indulge in horse trading, and in order to flaunt the clout of the BJP government in the ongoing Rajya Sabha elections, the ruling party has put up additional candidates to widen the gulf between the SP and BSP,” SP MLC and spokesperson Sunil Singh Sajan said.