LUCKNOW: Hours after nomination, Akhilesh Yadav's estranged uncle Shivpal Yadav accused the SP of betrayal. Shivpal fell just short of snapping all his ties with the party he founded and dropped broad hints that his Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia (PSP-L) of which he is the national president, would now charter "an independent course to fight all its future political battles".
SPlitsville: Shivpal says will chart independent course
Hours after SP candidates had filed their nomination for the four UP legislative council seats that the party is eyeing, party chief Akhilesh Yadav's estranged uncle Shivpal Yadav accused the SP of betrayal.
On Wednesday, Shivpal fell just short of snapping all his ties with the party he founded and dropped broad hints that his Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia (PSP-L) of which he is the national president, would now charter "an independent course to fight all its future political battles". He accused the SP of betrayal despite full commitments from his side and announced that his party will contest the local body elections as a separate political entity.
"Last few months have been the most 'testing times' of my life. I joined hands with the SP ahead of the assembly polls keeping in mind the sentiments of the party workers. I was completely committed to SP but what I got back in return was betrayal. The result of this betrayal is that today Samajwadi Party is sitting in the opposition," he said addressing members of PSP-L's state executive at the party headquarters. Shivpal had contested the 2022 assembly elections on SP symbol.
Alliance partner Mahan Dal was rather direct and blunt. Its president Keshav dev Maurya accused Akhilesh of being surrounded by sycophants and valuing only those allies who believe in arm-twisting.
"We have distanced ourselves from Samajwadi Party. Mahaan Dal is being continuously side-lined by SP leadership, so much so that I don't get an appointment to meet Akhilesh," he said.
"When other alliance partners like Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary went and had chaat with Priyanka Gandhi and Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) chief Om Prakash Rajbhar called on BJP leader Dayashanker Singh in the run-up to assembly polls, SP gave them their desired seats," Maurya added. "But we were given two seats and asked to wait. Now we did not get anything in MLC polls," he said. That is not all. SP veteran and former MP, Reoti Raman Singh, is unhappy that his Rajya Sabha term, which is about to end, has not been renewed by the party. Another alliance partner, SBSP chief Om Prakash Rajbhar, is also unhappy that despite having six MLAs, none of his party leaders has been given a ticket in any of the three elections. Last month too, the SBSP chief had made a veiled attack on SP chief when he said that Akhilesh Yadav was "too used to air-conditioned rooms".
