Express News Service
LUCKNOW: Just a couple of days after Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath spoke about the tacit understanding between the Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav and All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen chief Asaduddin Owaisi, the murmurs of alliance between the two have been doing the rounds in the political corridors of the poll-bound state.
The charge UP CM made was even substantiated when SBSP chief OP Rajbhar shook hands with Akhilesh Yadav and hinted that Owaisi could be welcomed in an alliance led by SP but with certain conditions. However, Akhilesh Yadav has been making it amply clear that his party is having no interest either in Owaisi or in his party. But Rajbhar’s recent claim that the doors of alliance with SP were not closed for Owaisi has made the situation a bit tricky for the SP.
Rajbhar said that an alliance between SP and AIMIM was possible only if Owaisi was ready to climb down on the number of seats he was intending to contest on. “AIMIM needs to scale down his demand for seats. If he is ready to contest on just 5 to 10 seats, the SP alliance is open to him,” Rajbhar had said recently. He had maintained that nobody would be given 100 seats to contest. “It will be better to fight 10 seats, rather than a hundred. Contest from 100 and lose 100…or contest from 10 and win all 10,” he said.
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When confronted by journalists, Akhilesh Yadav expressed disinterest in having an alliance with AIMIM. However, Rajbhar claimed that he was asked by the SP chief to explore alliance possibilities with AIMIM. “Akhilesh Yadav has never spoken against Owaisi and I am in constant touch with the AIMIM chief,” said Rajbhar.
Meanwhile, sources in AIMIM denied that there were talks between SBSP chief Rajbhar and Owaisi in connection with alliance and that the party was looking to contest around 100 seats in UP in alliance with smaller outfits.
Unfazed by these statements, Rajbhar continues to stick to his offer. “Once I am with the Samajwadi Party, my effort to bring other smaller parties, including AIMIM, onboard will continue.”
Earlier this year, the AIMIM had been a part of the Bhagedari Sankalp Morcha — an umbrella organization of 10 smaller parties led by Rajbhar. The SBSP’s decision to break away from the grouping had been a blow to Owaisi’s efforts to stitch together an alliance of non-BJP parties ahead of the Assembly polls. The Hyderabad MP had earlier indicated that his party was in talks with Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party leader Shivpal Yadav and Azad Samaj Party chief Chandra Shekhar Azad.
At the beginning of November, Akhilesh Yadav had announced that the SP would stitch an alliance with his uncle’s (Shivpal Singh Yadav) party. Reportedly, the Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party (Lohia) chief has demanded 100 seats as part of the alliance deal with SP. No official announcement has been made thus far.
