Patna: There is no contradiction in his wife Poonam Sinha contesting as a candidate of the SP-BSP alliance from Lucknow and his fighting the Patna Sahib seat as a Congress member, says actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha on the controversies as to his decision to campaign for his wife in Lucknow. He is confident of a good performance in both the constituencies. His wife Poonam Sinha, also an actor, is making her debut against Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh from Lucknow. Sinha's campaign in Lucknow ruffled some feathers in the Congress that has fielded its own candidate in Lucknow.
"It is my 'patni-dharma' and I will go to Lucknow again to campaign for my wife irrespective of the objections raised by some people. I am a man of honesty, transparency, and clarity. Whatever is happening, is being done with the full consent and knowledge of Mayawati, Akhilesh Yadav, Congress leaders and the dynamic Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi," Sinha said.
"This is nothing new. There have been instances like Rajmata Vijaya Raje Scindia and her son Madhav Rao Scindia simultaneously contesting as candidates of the BJP and the Congress respectively. There have been many more examples of the kind," Patna Sahib MP said.
"Moreover, I will be going to Lucknow not under the banner of the Congress, but as a husband and the father of our children," he added.
He said that the alliance between the Samajwadi Party, which Poonam Sinha joined recently, and the Bahujan Samaj Party is a "deadly combination" and he sees no contradiction in taking time off to seek votes for his wife.
According to him, leaders of the SP-BSP combine wanted him to contest from Lucknow as his candidature, in their view, was a good fit with the social equations in the area.
"But when I said I was committed to contest from my present seat, having proclaimed that the location would be the same even if the situation was different, they suggested Poonam's name.
I asked her and she agreed and hence we had the home minister of Ramayana (the name of Sinhas' mansion at Mumbai) pitted against the home minister of the country. We had enormous crowds when she filed her nomination papers in presence of me, my children and Akhilesh and Dimple. She is doing very well. So when the results are out you should not be surprised." said the Bihari Babu.
He added that his wife stood a good chance from being elected to the Lok Sabha from Lucknow.
Former BJP member praised his rival Union Law and Justice Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad in the Bihar constituency for not engaging in personal attacks during poll campaign. "He is a nice man from a nice family. We have known each other for many years. it's a fight between two ideologies. I highly appreciate and applaud it. I have regard and respect for Ravi Shankar Prasad whom I consider a bhadralok (good human being)," he said.
"I have tremendous faith in the voters of Patna Sahib who have always supported me, blessed me and helped me win with record margins. With my full dedication and commitment to the people, I have left everything to them Unka faisla sar ankhon pe," Sinha added.
Sinha, who recently joined the Congress, is up against BJP heavy-weight Ravi Shankar Prasad. He won twice as a BJP member in what is one of the toughest challenges of his three-decade political career.
Lucknow votes on May 6, while Patna Sahib goes to the polls in the last phase on May 19.
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