SP chief Mulayam releases 'consensual' candidates list for assembly polls

Lucknow: Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav on Wednesday released a list of 325 candidates for 2017 assembly elections of Uttar Pradesh sans many Akhilesh-loyalists .

Asserting the names were finalised on the basis of consensus. the SP chief stated that the party would soon announce remaining 78 names. As many as 4200 candidates had applied for the tickets out of which these have been selected, he told the reporters on the occasion.

Mulayam, however, has denied tickets to former ministers Pawan Pandey and Arvind Singh Gope, who are considered close to Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav. Later, addressing party workers at the party headquarters in Lucknow, Mulayam said that not only Akhilesh but 'several' others gave him their lists. "I tried to adjust as many as possible. But the final names are my choice," he made it clear.

What Mulayam Singh Yadav said?

- Samajwadi Party (SP) will retain power in the state.

- People, who didn't get tickets, will be given other assignments0.

- The list includes the names of 'winnable' candidates.

- We will form the government in Uttar Pradesh with complete majority.

- People who didn't get party tickets should not feel offended.

In slides: See list of the candidates...