In Kanpur, my direct fight is with BJP, alliance is nowhere in the contest: Sriprakash Jaiswal

Kanpur: The SP-BSP alliance is nowhere in the fight in Kanpur; it is a direct contest between us and BJP, which we will win, said Congress candidate from Kanpur and former union minister Sriprakash Jaiswal.
Congress has smelt its chances in Kanpur and its top brass has put in a special effort here -- Priyanka Gandhi has held a road show for Jaiswal last week and party president Rahul Gandhi held a rally for him on Wednesday. Many however say Jaiswal could win mainly on his own goodwill and record rather than the Congress backing.

It is also a high-profile seat given that BJP has dropped its sitting MP and veteran party leader Murli Manohar Joshi who had defeated the three-time MP Jaiswal in the 2014 elections amidst a ‘Modi wave’.

Jaiswal told ET there is “no Modi wave” this time and the state’s industrial capital has missed development and progress in the past five years. “If this was the reason why the party replaced Joshi, it is for them to tell the voters. My promise is simple -- kaam kiya hai, kaam karenge (I did development, and I will do it now too),” Jaiswal told ET.

He speaks of how people have continued to throng his residence for the past five years despite him not being the MP. BJP has put up state minister and local MLA Satya Dev Pachauri against Jaiswal -- the two had earlier squared up in 2004 when Jaiswal had defeated him by 5600 votes.

“In the UPA era, Jaiswal was involved in the coal scam. We will reopen the case and send Jaiswal to jail,” Pachauri claimed. But Jaiswal scoffed at such allegations saying BJP has been unable to prove anything against him all these years.

He also dismissed the prospects of the alliance in Kanpur -- SP has put up Ram Kumar on this seat. “SP and BSP were neither in the contest in Kanpur earlier, nor now. It is our direct fight with BJP. My win is certain after Priyanka Gandhi’s grand road show here,” Jaiswal told ET.

With about 3 lakh Muslim and as many Brahmin voters, Kanpur has been a Congress fiefdom since 1999 when Jaiswal had won for the first time till he lost the seat in 2014. Both the main contestants are from Kanpur, with Pachauri being the MLA from Govind Nagar constituency in Kanpur -- hence the outsider card is not in play. Jaiswal is hoping that his goodwill and people’s disappointment with Joshi’s tenure as MP will see him through.