In a recent setback to the Congress in Uttar Pradesh, its veteran chief and possible candidate for the Kanpur Nagar Lok Sabha seat, Ajay Kapoor, 56, left the social gathering to hitch the BJP on Wednesday. Kapoor, who has been with the Congress for over three many years and has represented it thrice within the state Meeting — moreover having served on numerous social gathering posts over three many years — was the serving AICC secretary and co-in-charge of Bihar.
In contrast to different leaders who’ve left the social gathering within the current previous, after it appeared unlikely that they’d get tickets, Kapoor’s determination comes at a time when the Congress was contemplating him for the Kanpur Nagar seat. Sources mentioned his title was really useful throughout the social gathering’s current state election committee (SEC) assembly in Lucknow.
Congress state president Ajay Rai claimed that investigating businesses have been misused to place stress on Kapoor and his household. “We have now come to know that just lately some raids have been performed on his relations in Kanpur, and that his household was being pressured. The truth that he has joined below stress could be ascertained from the truth that there was no smile on his face on the time of his becoming a member of the BJP. Anybody can see that within the video,” Rai informed The Indian Express.
As per Rai, this additionally proved that the BJP is “falling wanting candidates to subject, and is banking on Congress defectors”. “Those that have been shouting ‘Congress Mukt Bharat’ slogans are actually making ‘Congress Yukt BJP’ by drawing in Congress leaders to strengthen their social gathering.”
Kanpur Nagar is likely one of the 17 Lok Sabha seats allotted to the Congress in its alliance with the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh. Until now, veteran chief Sriprakash Jaiswal used to contest on this seat. A former Union Minister throughout the UPA regime, he isn’t contesting this time as a result of ill-health, sources mentioned, due to which the title of Kapoor, who has base in Kanpur, got here up on the social gathering’s current SEC assembly, together with some others.
Between 2002 and 2012, Kapoor has represented totally different Meeting seats in Kanpur thrice. He gained for the primary time in 2002 from the Govindnagar Meeting section, securing 56% of the votes polled, in opposition to the BJP’s Balchandra Mishra. In 2007, he retained the seat, securing about 1.10 lakh votes in opposition to the BJP’s Hanuman Mishra. In 2012, he narrowly gained the newly created Kidwai Nagar Meeting seat in opposition to the BJP’s Viveksheel Shukla.
Whereas he misplaced to the BJP’s Mahesh Trivedi the final two Meeting elections, in 2017 and 2022, Kapoor is seen as a powerful contender nonetheless, having secured round 77,000 votes every time.
A supply mentioned names of another leaders, together with that of Ashok Mishra, had been really useful together with Kapoor’s.