Bhim Army's Chandra Shekhar will contest the Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh against Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. The BJP has fielded Adityanath from Gorakhpur Sadar.
Azad, a prominent Dalit leader, had said earlier he would contest against Yogi Adityanath. Today, his party, Aazad Samaj Party (Kanshiram), formally announced Azad's candidature from Gorakhpur Sadar.
The lawyer-turned-activist had co-founded the Dalit rights outfit Bhim Army and he is its national president. He launched the ASP (K) in March 2020 and is the party president.
“Taking forward the ideology of Babasaheb Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar and Kanshiram sahib for 'Bahujan Hitaay - Bahujan Sukhaay', the Aazad Samaj Party (Kanshiram) announced Chandra Shekhar Aazad as a candidate from Gorakhpur Sadar (322) seat,” the party said in a statement on social media.
Azad, 34, had famously backtracked after announcing in 2019 that he would contest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He later explained that since he had no party at the time, it was best to support Mayawati's party.
Yogi Adityanath is running for MLA for the first time. Gorakhpur Sadar is considered to be his stronghold. Adityanath won parliamentary elections for a record five terms since 1998 from Gorakhpur. He had to resign in 2017 after he was made the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. He was then elected to the Legislative Council.
Gorakhpur Sadar will go to the polls on March 3 during the sixth phase of elections in the state. The results will be declared on March 10.
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