In what could give hope to Aam Aadmi Party's prospects in Uttar Pradesh, the party has fielded Adarsh Shastri, grandson of Lal Bahadur Shastri from the Shastri stronghold of Allahabad.
Lal Bahadur Shastri had won the Lok Sabha elections in 1957 and 1962 before his death. Adarsh had joined AAP in November after quitting a lucrative job in multi-national company Apple and is now looking to take his family legacy forward.
"The party wanted me to fight from Allahabad seat. It has been my home and I will take the Shastri legacy forward," Adarsh told Business Standard.
Allahabad, a holy city, is also a host to one of the largest congregation of devotees during the Maha Kumbh Mela every 12 years.
Shastri will face Bhartiya Janata Party's Shyama Charan Gupta and Congress party's Nand Kumar Gupta from the constituency. Rewati Raman Singh from Samajwadi Party is the sitting MP from the Allahabad seat who has won the previous two elections.
Adarsh said that Allahabad has been a genesis of freedom movement in the country. "It has given birth to the thought of freedom movement and now mine will be a second freedom movement against corruption for India. I am confident that I will be able to defeat the opposition candidates who do not come with clean image," Adarsh said.
Countering the argument of dynasty politics, an issue AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal has taken up to launch scathing attack on the Congress party, Adarsh termed his selection fair and transparent. "There is no question of dynasty politics in this case. When five or six members from the same family are given preferences in the same party then it may be called one," Adarsh said.
Adarsh had earlier told Business Standard that the Congress, a party where his father Anil Shastri is a senior leader, "has become a party of individualistic aspirations". He had said the Congress has "lost track of its own legacy and history and is far removed from the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi and Shastriji" and had termed the Congress as "a private limited company". Incidentally, Adarsh's father Anil had also quit his corporate sector job to successfully contest on a Janata Dal ticket in 1989 from Varanasi.
Meanwhile, the party also announced the candidature of former Member of Parliament and Chhattisgarh High Court Judge Justice Fakhruddin to face Congress President Sonia Gandhi from Rae Bareli, who filed her nomination today. Supreme Court lawyer Ajay Aggarwal is the BJP's candidate from Rae Bareli.
With this, the AAP has declared candidates from 426 LS constituencies.
Lal Bahadur Shastri had won the Lok Sabha elections in 1957 and 1962 before his death. Adarsh had joined AAP in November after quitting a lucrative job in multi-national company Apple and is now looking to take his family legacy forward.
"The party wanted me to fight from Allahabad seat. It has been my home and I will take the Shastri legacy forward," Adarsh told Business Standard.
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Allahabad constituency has elected three former Prime Ministers of India, including Adarsh's grandfather Lal Bahadur Shastri, Jawaharlal Nehru and VP Singh.
Allahabad, a holy city, is also a host to one of the largest congregation of devotees during the Maha Kumbh Mela every 12 years.
Shastri will face Bhartiya Janata Party's Shyama Charan Gupta and Congress party's Nand Kumar Gupta from the constituency. Rewati Raman Singh from Samajwadi Party is the sitting MP from the Allahabad seat who has won the previous two elections.
Adarsh said that Allahabad has been a genesis of freedom movement in the country. "It has given birth to the thought of freedom movement and now mine will be a second freedom movement against corruption for India. I am confident that I will be able to defeat the opposition candidates who do not come with clean image," Adarsh said.
Countering the argument of dynasty politics, an issue AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal has taken up to launch scathing attack on the Congress party, Adarsh termed his selection fair and transparent. "There is no question of dynasty politics in this case. When five or six members from the same family are given preferences in the same party then it may be called one," Adarsh said.
Adarsh had earlier told Business Standard that the Congress, a party where his father Anil Shastri is a senior leader, "has become a party of individualistic aspirations". He had said the Congress has "lost track of its own legacy and history and is far removed from the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi and Shastriji" and had termed the Congress as "a private limited company". Incidentally, Adarsh's father Anil had also quit his corporate sector job to successfully contest on a Janata Dal ticket in 1989 from Varanasi.
Meanwhile, the party also announced the candidature of former Member of Parliament and Chhattisgarh High Court Judge Justice Fakhruddin to face Congress President Sonia Gandhi from Rae Bareli, who filed her nomination today. Supreme Court lawyer Ajay Aggarwal is the BJP's candidate from Rae Bareli.
With this, the AAP has declared candidates from 426 LS constituencies.