Lucknow: The Samajwadi Party, on Saturday, announced the names of six more Lok Sabha candidates from Uttar Pradesh, making this the fifth list the party has released for the upcoming seven-phase parliamentary elections. The six candidates, as announced by the party via a post on the social media platform X, are as follows- Dharmendra Yadav (Azamgarh), Mahendra Kumar (Gautam Buddh Nagar), Manoj Kumar Rajvanshi (Misrikh), Bheem Nishad (Sultanpur), Jitendra Dohare (Etawah) and Narayan Das Ahirwar (Jalaun). 

In the by-poll to the Azamgarh seat after SP chief Akhilesh Yadav resigned as MP after being elected as an MLA in the 2022 assembly elections, his cousin Dharmendra Yadav was the party's candidate. He was defeated by BJP's Dinesh Lal Yadav Nirahua.

Dinesh Lal Yadav got over 3.12 lakh votes, Dharmendra Yadav over 3.04 lakh votes and Guddu Jamali, who contested on a BSP ticket, over 2.66 lakh votes. Jamali recently joined the SP and is currently an MLC.

According to a statement of the SP, Akhilesh Yadav told party workers on Saturday: "The people are ready to save democracy by defeating the BJP. We have to defeat the BJP through the PDA (pichhrhe, dalit, alapsankhyak)." This election is also a litmus test for democracy, and hence, everyone has to start campaigning from today itself, he said.

Akhilesh Yadav also alleged that crime and corruption have been at their peak in the tenure of the BJP.

The BJP is in power at the Centre as well as in Uttar Pradesh. Most scams have taken place during the government of the BJP, the SP chief alleged and claimed that the ED, the CBI, and the Income Tax Department are being used to implicate people in false cases and defame opposition leaders.

He also claimed that the government is praising itself by claiming the development works done during the SP's tenure in the state as its own or by changing their names.

Following the policy of divide and rule of the British Raj, the BJP is working to spread hatred and division in society, Akhilesh Yadav said.

With inputs from PTI.