Rampur: Samajwadi Party leader and general secretary Azam Khan has invited party president and former chief minister Akhilesh Yadav to contest from Rampur Lok Sabha seat in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.Azam, who has won the Rampur assembly seat eight times, made this announcement here on Sunday the occasion of Akhilesh’s 46th birthday.The SP leader along with his son, Abdullah Azam, an MLA from Swar Tanda assembly segment of Rampur Lok Sabha constituency, celebrated Akhilesh’s birthday by cutting a cake and distributing sweets to SP workers at their party office situated at Top Khana Gate.Speaking on the occasion, Azam said, “On this auspicious occasion, my wish is that Akhilesh Yadav should contest the forthcoming 2019 general elections from Rampur Lok Sabha seat and this is my greeting to Akhileshji. We are going to offer Rampur Lok Sabha seat to Akhileshji and he should contest the elections from here.”According to the party sources, Akhilesh is away on a vacation to London with his family. However, his 46th birthday was celebrated in style by party leaders and workers in Lucknow and elsewhere. Party workers distributed fruits to patients in city hospitals and organized a ‘bhandara’ (feast) for the poor.Akhilesh was born on July 1, 1973 at Safai in Etawah district.In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections , SP candidate Naseer Ahmad Khan had contested from Rampur Lok Sabha seat. He was defeated by a huge margin by BJP’s Dr Nepal Singh.Till date, only actor-turned-politician Jaya Parda has won the Rampur seat twice on SP ticket in 2004 and in 2009.Akhilesh contested the Lok Sabha bypolls from Kannauj in 2000. He represented the Kannauj seat thrice and vacated it in 2012, when he became the youngest chief minister of UP at the age of 38 years. His wife Dimple Yadav was elected unopposed from his Kannauj seat.

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