About 48 hours after announcing the candidature of his nephew Tej Pratap Yadav from Uttar Pradesh's Kannauj Lok Sabha seat, Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav has now declared himself as a candidate from the same seat.

The Samajwadi Party posted on its X account that Akhilesh Yadav would file his nomination papers in Kannauj at noon on Thursday.

According to sources, the Samajwadi Party's cadres were allegedly upset at Tej Pratap’s candidature and wanted the party chief to contest the seat.

Akhilesh Yadav had won the seat in a by-election in 2000, and then in 2004 and 2009. His wife Dimple Yadav won the seat in the 2012 by-election and then in 2014. However, she lost the seat to the BJP in 2019.

Party sources said that Akhilesh Yadav had decided against contesting the elections since he wanted to devote his time to the campaign. Tej Pratap Yadav was earlier the MP from Mainpuri.