Mayawati, Sonia to kick off poll campaigns in UP

A week before the first of Uttar Pradesh’s seven-phase elections begin on 8 February, political parties are pulling all the stops to make the best of the time they have left. And the Congress and Bahujan Samajwadi Party are only too aware of this. With security at its fortified best, the stars campaigners of both parties —  Sonia Gandhi and Mayawati — will today kick off their campaigns in an effort to woo the electorate in full force. Putting their best foot forward, two of India’s most powerful women politicians will clash head on in their bid to stake their claims to the country’s most populous state. At stake are 403 assembly seats and 80 Lok Sabha seats. While reigning chief minister of the state Mayawati will address rallies in Sitapur and Barabanki, Congress President Sonia Gandhi will kick off her campaign from Deoria and Gonda — her first rallies in the state this election season. Mayawati is expected to address rallies in 12 districts of the state between February 1 and February 5, a BSP statement said. With Assembly polls in three states — Manipur, Punjab, Uttarakhand — over and the elections in Goa on 3 March, the Congress will now be concentrating on UP with Priyanka Gandhi camping in the twin constituencies of Rae Bareli and Amethi from 3 February. [caption id=“attachment_199564” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=" At stake in Uttar Pradesh are 403 assembly seats and 80 Lok Sabha seats. Reuters"]  [/caption] According to KL Sharma, a representative of her brother Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka will address nukkar sabhas (roadside meetings) and take part in road shows during her stay in Rae Bareli and Amethi. The polls in these two constituencies is scheduled for 15 and 19 February. Rahul has already attended rallies in Sitapur, Faizabad and Barabanki. He will also be holding meetings in Bahriach, Faizabad, Ambedkarnagar, Meerut, Varanasi, Jaunpur, Siddhartnagar, Sant Kabirnagar, Basti and Gonda among others in the next couple of days. Playing the quota card in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, the Congress yesterday promised reservation for socially and economically backward minorities and very backward Dalits in proportion to their population. The Congress also vowed to ensure that all parties to the Ayodhya dispute stuck to the court verdict, promised to work for setting up the second States Reorganisation Commission and reiterated its promise of creating more employment opportunities if voted to power. Its manifesto also said it would set up a UP skills and employment mission to provide job related skills and training to 20 lakh youths and placement in jobs in the next five years . As campaigning reaches a peak, all parties are trying to woo the Muslim voter . While the Congress promised reservation to backward minorities, the BJP  played up the issue of the Ram temple promising the completion of the Ram temple in Ayodhya and the removal of the 4.5 percent quota for minorities within the 27 percent quota reserved for OBCs. The first round of the seven-phase polling will be held in 55 constituencies on February 8.