New Delhi: Political parties in Uttar Pradesh are working hard to reach out to voters.
After going hi-tech with the campaign for seven-phased Assembly elections, the Samajwadi Party (SP), the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress are roping in Bollywood stars to campaign for them in the elections to the 403-seat UP Assembly.
However, Mayawati led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) is not part of the tinsel town’s campaign. The BSP chief like always will be the lone crusader of her party with support from party's general secretary Satish Chandra Mishra.
The ruling Samajwadi Party has already launched a blitzkrieg with party MPs Jaya Bachchan and Jaya Prada virtually camping in Bharthana, one of two seats in UP from where Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav is contesting this time.
News agency PTI quoted party sources as saying that the two actresses would campaign in other parts of the state as well.
With Bollywood connections of Amar Singh not a secret, the SP could well take a lead in bringing stars during the electioneering.
Earlier Amitabh Bachchan's public service message against polio – titled Do Boond Jeewan Ki - had become the centre of a roaring controversy.
The Election Commission has said the campaign is a “surrogate advertising” for the ruling Samajwadi Party just ahead of the state Assembly polls.
It is believed that Bachchans’ proximity to the Samajwadi Party – especially their bonhomie with Mulayam Singh Yadav and party General Secretary Amar Singh – could influence voters.
Meanwhile, the Congress is trying to bring in Shahrukh Khan, party, party MP Govinda, Celina Jaitely,Nagma, Asrani, Poonam Dhillon, Zeenat Aman and a host of other TV stars.
As for the BJP, there are many who are already party MPs. MP from Gurdaspur and yesteryear actor Vinod Khanna, Rajya Sabha member, Hema Malini, MP from Bikaner, Dharmendra, Shatrughan Sinha and the popular Tulsi - Smiriti Irani are active members of the party.
However, item girl-turned-actress Rakhi Sawant too was approached by various parties but she has declined saying “politics is not my cup of tea”.
“Although a celebrity, I am a normal person. I have no interest in politics,” she was quoted in a news report as saying.
Jan Morcha, led by former Prime Minister Vishwanath Pratap Singh has only one star with it - Raj Babbar, a suspended SP MP from Agra.
Other smaller parties like Apna Dal and Janata Dal(U) will have to depend on the joint campaign with the BJP as these two parties are contesting in the alliance with the saffron party.
Similarly, Ajit Singh-led Rashtriya Lok Dal(RLD) has no stars tagged with it and the party president would himself be campaigning for his party candidates.
With inputs from Agencies)
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