The Congress has decided not to field a candidate against Maneka Gandhi in Aonla, instead it will put its weight behind the Mahan Dal, a little-known outfit with some following among the Shakya community which has a presence in the area. The party has, however, fielded one of Maneka's relatives, V M Singh, against Varun in Pilibhit.

Explaining the party’s decision, state Congress spokesperson Subodh Srivastava said, “We do not have an appropriate candidate for Aonla, so we would rather be supporting the Mahan Dal candidate.”

For the record, even local Congress leaders don’t know the name of the Mahan Dal candidate they are supporting. “We haven't heard much about the party, but since some parts of Badaun have a Shakya population, we expect it to do well. The real situation will be clear only after the elections,” said Onkar Singh, a senior Congressman from Badaun.

In 2004, the Congress candidate had polled 50,000 votes in Aonla. This time, the Congress initially considered the name of a Brahmin candidate, but later decided against it.

Among the nine other seats the party won’t be contesting are Mainpuri, from where Mulayam Singh Yadav is contesting, and Firozabad and Kannauj, from where his son Akhilesh is contesting. This is in return for the SP’s gesture of not fielding candidates against Sonia Gandhi in Rae Bareli and Rahul Gandhi in Amethi.

The Congress is also not likely to contest Mohanlalganj and Jaunpur, which it is planning to leave for Rashtriya Swabhiman Party of R K Chaudhary, a former associate of the late Kanshi Ram. Akbarpur has been left for Sarvoday Kranti Party of Raja Ram Pal, a local outfit.

... contd.