SP-Cong cross swords in Amethi despite seat-sharing pact

Notwithstanding a pre-poll alliance between Congress and Samajwadi Party, former state minister Ameeta Sinh today filed her nomination as a Congress candidate from Amethi seat which has been given to the ruling party for the high-stake Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls.
Her husband and chairman of the 'Prachar Abhiyan Samiti' of state Congress Sanjay Sinh was also present when the former state minister for technical education filed her nomination papers in the respective court on the premises of collectorate at Gauriganj, the district headquarter of Amethi.
Sanjay's estranged first wife Garima Sinh is contesting on a BJP ticket from Amethi seat.

Ameeta became the latest entrant in the list of candidates who have refused to withdraw their candidature despite the seat-sharing pact between SP and Congress.
SP, which has got the Amethi assembly constituency, has given ticket to sitting MLA and controversial leader Gayatri Prajapati from the Congress bastion. SP has already fielded its sitting MLA from Gauriganj seat from where Mohammed Naim of Congress yesterday filed his nomination.
The catchy one liner "UP ko ye saath pasand hai" dotting the Uttar Pradesh skyline does not seem to be reflected on the ground as fledgling alliance partners SP and Congress are crossing swords in over a dozen Assembly seats.

However, both the parties have downplayed it, with AICC general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad saying SP candidates had filed their papers when it appeared that the alliance would not come through and though at some places they wanted to withdraw, they could not do so due to uncertainty.
Out of the 403 assembly seats, SP will contest 298 and Congress the rest 105.