The name of Dinesh Lal Yadav has been in circulation in BJP circles as the likeliest candidate from Azamgarh, the Lok Sabha seat from which Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav recently resigned.
Better known by his screen name Nirahua, Dinesh is a Bhojpuri singer-actor.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections he was the BJP’s candidate against Akhilesh and had stood second with 3.6 lakh votes.
Nirahua enjoys a massive fan following in the Bhojpuri film industry, where film titles often bear his name. Titles from one his most popular series for instance include, Nirahua Chalal Sasural and Nirhaua Rickshawala (Nirhaua goes to his in-laws and Nirahua the rickshaw puller). Though a serious contender and a much in demand star campaigner for his party in the 2019 elections, he was often dismissed by the opposition as a ‘gavaiya’ (singer).
The 43-year-old had told The Week in an interview during his previous campaign that politics had never been part of his plans. “I was shooting a song with Amitabh Bachchan, in the nature of a dialogue between a father and a son on the pitfalls of joining politics. Bachchan ji told me how he had disregarded his father’s opinion and done so to face disastrous consequences,” he had said.
Azamgarh, however held a special charm for him as many of his movies had been shot there. “Azamgarh made me a star. Now I am here to work for Azamgarh,” he had said. “Politics in eastern UP is rife with casteism and nepotism. This is the biggest poison for democracy, and I am here to end that”, he had said in reference to Akhilesh’s candidature. He had also been emphatic that he would not give up his career in entertainment as his fans worldwide wanted to see more of his work.
Azamgarh has been a stronghold of Mulayam Singh Yadav’s family. Mulayam himself had won from the seat in 2014.
Meanwhile there is also speculation that the SP could field Dimple Yadav from the seat. Dimple has served two terms in the Lok Sabha, with her first win being in a bye election in 2012. In one of the biggest upsets of the 2019 Lok Sabha election, she had lost from her constituency Kannauj.
In the 2022 Vidhan Sabha election, though she was not very visible in the campaign, she was very active behind the scenes.
