Gorakhpur: Samajwadi Party (SP) candidate Sanjayan Tripathi on Tuesday filed a fresh nomination for the Gorakhpur-Faizabad Teachers’ Constituency MLC election, days after entering the contest as an independent candidate following the denial of a BJP ticket.Tripathi had submitted his nomination as an independent on Oct 1 after the BJP retained three-time sitting MLC Dhruv Kumar Tripathi as its candidate. His emotional decision to remove the BJP flag from his vehicle and his subsequent remarks had drawn considerable attention in political circles.The political equations changed on Oct 3 when SP president Akhilesh Yadav inducted Tripathi into the party in Lucknow and declared him the official SP candidate for the constituency. The move led to the withdrawal of the party’s earlier nominee, Kamlesh Yadav.On Tuesday, Tripathi reached the nomination venue along with SP leaders and supporters. His backers gathered at his residence before accompanying him to the collectorate.Party leaders said he is scheduled to hold a meeting with SP district presidents from all 17 districts in the constituency to discuss election strategy and booth-level preparations.Meanwhile, BJP candidate Dhruv Kumar Tripathi filed his nomination in two sets on Monday. Former runner-up Ajay Singh and UP Madhyamik Shikshak Sangh leader Rakesh Singh are also among the contestants.With nominations closing on Tuesday, the focus is now expected to shift to campaigning and outreach among teacher voters across the constituency.
