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Lucknow, Apr 21 (UNI) Campaigning for the crucial April 23 Phase-IV election in Uttar Pradesh, covering 57 assembly seat, across 10 districts, ended this evening.

Campaigning started on a dull note, but picked up in the later stages with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul Gandhi pitching in for the Congress candidates while the BJP fielded party president Rajnath Singh, former deputy prime minister L K Advani along with several other leaders.

Ruling SP president and chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav is spearheading the electioneering, addressing eight to ten meetings daily, while BSP supremo Mayawati is striving hard to consolidate her position.

Prominent candidates, whose fate will be decided in Phase-IV include bureaucrat-turned-politician P L Punia from Fatehpur, UP assembly Speaker Mata Prasad Pandey (Itwa), Uttar Pradesh minister Arvind Singh Gope (Haidergarh) and Reshma Arif, wife of former Congress leader Arif Mohammad Khan from Bahraich.

One-day chief minister of Uttar Pradesh Jagdambika Pal (Basti), Dr Waqar Ahmad Shah (Bahriach), who locked horns with senior Samajwadi Party leader Beni Prasad Verma resulting into the latter deciding to field his separate candidates, former UP Director General of Police (DGP) Yashpal Singh's wife Gita Singh (Balrampur), and estranged SP leader Beni Prasad Verma's son, Rakesh Verma (Masauli and Dariyabad), are also in the fray.

The fourth phase of polling will be crucial for the SP, as rebel party leader Beni Prasad Verma's mettle will be tested in districts like Barabanki and bahraich. Mr Verma had floated a new political outfit, Samajwadi Kranti Dal (SKD), just before the polls.

The caste base in the phase will consist of Kurmi in the region of Kheri, Sitapur, Barabanki and Bahraich where the SP scooped up in the previous elections.

Due to the strong Kurmi population in this phase, Apna Dal, the pre-poll alliance partner of the BJP, has announced it would field its candidates in more than 10 seats.

In nine constituencies of Phase-IV, there are more than four candidates facing criminal cases. These constitutuencies are Naugarh, Nighasan, Balrampur, Mehndawal, Biswan, Gainsari, Shoratgarh, Itwa and Domariaganj.

Elaborate security arrangments have been made by the Election Commission for conducting free and fair polls in the phase with deployment of about 660 companies of the Central Para Military Forces (CPMF). Besides this more than 60,000 state police personnel will also be deployed to maintain law and order in these 10 districts where polling will be held on Monday.

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