Samajwadi Party candidate Dimple Yadav on Thursday won the Mainpuri parliamentary bypoll in Uttar Pradesh, defeating her nearest rival and BJP candidate Raghuraj Singh Shakya by 2,88,461 votes.
Considered as the SP's bastion, the seat was held by party founder and Dimple Yadav's father-in-law Mulayam Singh Yadav and got vacated after his death on October 10.
In 2019, Mulayam Singh Yadav won the Mainpuri seat by defeating BJP candidate Prem Singh Shakya by 94,389 votes.
Claiming Mulayam's legacy
Dimple Yadav contested the Manipuri by-elections to claim Mulayam's legacy.
The entire Yadav family joined hands to ensure that the seat remains in the family, estranged leaders Akhilesh Yadav and Shivpal Yadav also patched up, much to the relief of family members.
For Akhilesh, this election was extremely crucial because ever since he took over the reins of the party, he has been facing a series of defeats. From the 2017 Assembly polls to 2019 Lok Sabha polls, then the 2022 Assembly polls and the following bypolls in Azamgarh and Rampur, the party has faced losses.
The victory in Mainpuri has not only strengthened his position as the party leader but has also boosted the morale of the cadres.
