Lucknow: As the opposition alliance in Uttar Pradesh is showing cracks, the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SPSB) is keeping the Samajwadi Party (SP) guessing on whom it will support in the ensuing presidential election. Sources in the party said on Tuesday that its leaders would take a decision on the issue after meeting SP president Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday.
The SBSP has so far sent mixed signals whether its legislators would vote for the opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha or the National Democratic Alliance’s nominee Droupadi Murmu. A leader of the party, however, said that they would remain with the SP-led alliance. Earlier, SBSP chief Om Prakash Rajbhar said that he would take a decision on the issue after meeting Yadav. The meeting between Yadav and Rajbhar scheduled for Tuesday was cancelled because of the death of Mulayam Singh Yadav’s wife Sadhna Yadav. Rajbhar had created a flutter in the opposition camp by attending a dinner hosted by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in Lucknow on Friday.
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Political observers felt that it showed cracks in the opposition camp. Besides Rajbhar, uncle of Akhilesh Yadav and head of the Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party (Lohia), formally an SP ally, also attended the dinner. Jansatta Dal Loktantrik chief Raghuraj Pratap Singh, also known as Raja Bhaiyya, and the lone Bahujan Samaj Party MLA in Uttar Pradesh, Uma Shankar Singh, were also present at the dinner. Political observers feel that Akhilesh Yadav has to be cautious about handling the situation arising out of Yogi’s dinner