Lalji Tandon is BJP candidate from Lucknow

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has decided to field senior party leader Lalji Tandon from Lucknow constituency that was earlier represented by Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Tandon is an old BJP warhorse and a familiar face in Lucknow. The other two candidates in the fray are BSP candidate Akhilesh Das and Samajwadi Party's Sanjay Dutt.

Vajpayee had represented Lucknow seat for five terms and his victory was considered certain from the constituency. However, owing to his ill health and age, the party has fielded Tandon.

Though BJP has been on the down slide in Uttar Pradesh over the last decade, the party has been fetching votes from the urban constituencies. Tandon has been associated with the party from the days of Jan Sangh.

However, it will not be an easy task for him to sail through as Akhilesh Das, the BSP candidate, had begun campaigning long back. The popularity of film star Sanjay Dutt should also be a cause for worry for Tandon.

TIH Bureau