JD-U fields ex-BJP candidate

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Priyanka Gandhi Vadra interacts with women during her election campaign in support of the Congress at Ashkamau, in Amethi

The NDA ally JD(U) threatens to make the going tough for the BJP in Tulsipur Assembly seat in the terai belt of Uttar Pradesh.
The reason for discomfort in the saffron camp is the fact that the JD(U) has fielded Koushlendra Nath, who had won from here in 2007 on a BJP ticket, as its candidate.
However, Tulsipur is known for the Pateshwari Shaktee Peeth wielding considerable political influence. Mr Nath had won the 2007 elections, while he was the mahant (head priest) of the temple. Later, he was evicted both from the temple and the BJP at the behest of Yogi Adityanath, Lok Sabha MP of the saffron party from Gorakhpur.
“He (Mr Nath) was found not to be the right person to head the temple,” said Yogi Mithilesh Nath, who now heads the temple.
He added, “Maharjji (Adityanath) has blessed the BJP candidate and rest maa (Goddess Durga) will do”.
The BJP candidate Hanumant Singh, who was minister in the Kalyan Singh’s Cabinet for sugarcane, appears to be counting on the blessings of Yogi Adityanath and developmental work he executed earlier by building a couple of bridges in the area.
“This is the land of Hindutva,” said Ajay Kumar Verma, a resident of Tulsipur.
However, the Samajwadi Party also appears to be in strong contention here, as the party has fielded Masood Khan, who is vying for the Muslim votes along with Salman Zaheer of the BSP.