BSP releases names of all 80 Lok Sabha candidates in Uttar Pradesh

LUCKNOW: Veteran leader Akbar Ahmed 'Dumpy' will be BSP's candidate against Union minister Beni Prasad Verma in Gonda as per the list of candidates released by the party for all 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh.

Releasing the list of all candidates in one instalment, Mayawati said the party has fielded slain bandit queen Phoolan Devi's husband Ummed Singh "Kashyap" from Shahjahanpur.

Names of candidates with criminal background also feature in the list. Pawan Pandey, having criminal history, has been fielded against BJP's Varun Gandhi from Sultanpur, while Jitendra Singh alias Babloo, involved in an incident of arson at Congress leader Rita Bahuguna Joshi's house, has been announced as candidate from Faizabad seat.

Taking on some prominent names, former minister Jaiveer Singh has been fielded from Farrukhabad against Congress' Salman Khurshid while Vijay Prakash Jaiswal will be contesting against BJP's PM candidate Narendra Modi from Varanasi.

Sanghmitra Maurya, daughter of party's senior leader and former state unit president Swami Prasad Maurya, and Shah Alam alias Guddu Jamali have been fielded against Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav from Mainpuri and Azamgarh seats respectively. BSP has given tickets to two relatives of former minister Ramvir Upadhaya. His wife Seema Upadhyay has been renominated from her sitting constitutency Fatehpur Sikri from where RLD has fielded Amar Singh, while his brother Mukul Upadhaya will contest from Ghaziabad.