UP local body polls | A wedding gift to remember: New bride fielded by AAP wins Azam’s stronghold - The Indian Express

For 31-year-old Sana Khanam, the urban local body polls in Uttar Pradesh changed the entire course of her life in less than a month. From an English teacher at a local school in Rampur, she became the wife of 45-year-old Mamoon Shah, an AAP functionary, and created history by winning the Rampur municipality seat, a stronghold of Samajwadi Party’s Azam Khan for 20 years.

Sana, who won 43,121 votes, defeated BJP candidate Mashrat Mujib (32,173 votes) and SP’s Fatma Jabin (16,273 votes) to become the new chairperson of Rampur Nagar Palika Parishad.

Between April 15 and May 13, when the election results were declared, Sana got married, joined politics, earned an AAP ticket, filed nomination, campaigned and won the municipal polls.

The marriage also brought luck for Mamoon, who had been a Congress leader for the past 25 years, starting from Youth Congress to reaching the city committee, but failed to get the ticket to contest the local body polls.

He left the Congress just before his marriage on April 15 and joined the AAP, along with his wife, the next day. During the entire election campaign, the couple was referred to by local residents as “newlyweds” and Sana as “nayi naveli dulhan” (newlywed bride).

“I have no hesitation in admitting that this is a victory for Mamoon Sahab, who is a known face in Rampur. My victory also indicates that it’s time for change in Rampur. Marriages are certainly made in heaven. With his (Mamoon’s) cooperation, I would lead the region to development,” Sana told The Sunday Express.

Daughter of a bank manager, Sana, who did her Master’s in psychology from Government Raza College in Rampur and later pursued B.Ed before becoming a teacher at the local secondary school, had never thought of joining politics. She was teaching English to Class 8 students, when her family got the marriage proposal from Mamoon, with a condition that their daughter will have to contest polls soon after the wedding.

“Mamoon Shah is a known figure in Rampur. He was eyeing a Congress ticket from the seat but as it was reserved for women, some advised him to get married and field his wife. He came to us and asked if we would field his wife if he gets married and we agreed,” said Faizal Khan Lala, ex Congress leader, who joined AAP and is now its state spokesperson.

Faizal, who has been a witness to the entire process, further revealed, “Her guardians agreed to the marriage and her contesting the polls. The marriage took place at 10 pm on April 15. The next day, the newlywed couple came to our office and joined the AAP.”

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