At last, it's not the glamorous Hema Malini but a portly 75-year-old local politician, Lalji Tandon, who will step into former PM AB Vajpayee's shoes for the Lok Sabha election in this city of nawabs.  

Lucknowites are disappointed at being denied the opportunity to witness a blockbuster battle between the 'Dream Girl' and Munnabhai Sanjay Dutt, the SP candidate. BJP circles were agog with talk of Hema Malini contesting from Lucknow.

"It's a huge honour for me," Tandon told DNA from Delhi shortly after the BJP formally announced his name for Lucknow on Friday. Sources said while party president Rajnath Singh was not too keen on him, Atal's personal choice weighed heavily in Tandon's favour. Atal has been a Lucknow MP five times since 1991. 

"If god gives me victory, my top priority would be to complete the projects started by Atalji," Tandon said. Asked how he proposed to combat Sanjay Dutt's star power, he said: "It's not a new thing for me."

He was perhaps referring to Raj Babbar who contested against Atal in 1996 and lost. 

In hindsight, Tandon, who had been Atal's election manager since 1991 when Atal first won from Lucknow, was perhaps the obvious choice all along. Diehard Tandon supporters would often tell doubting mediapersons: "Atalji will never choose anyone else."

Tandon, who started his political career as a municipal corporator, is a rare BJP leader who gets Muslim votes, though from one sect (Shias). He commands respect in the walled city and is also known as the 'Chief Minister of Chowk', which is the old city area of Lucknow. 

Tandon is best known in BJP circles as an Atal acolyte and a successful political go-between. In fact, it was Tandon who put Mayawati in the CM's chair for the first time in 1995 with BJP support. He became Mayawati's rakhi brother and managed BJP support for her to become CM two more times in 1997 and 2002.

BSP general secretary SC Misra reacted to Tandon's candidature saying he would lose his deposit.

Deepak Gidwani/ DNA-Daily News & Analysis Source: 3D Syndication