UP elections: Samajwadi Party rules out alliance with RLD

New Delhi: Chances of the formation of a ‘grand alliance’ in Uttar Pradesh to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dimmed with the ruling Samajwadi Party (SP) saying it is not in talks with the Ajit Singh-led Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) and doesn’t fancy giving any seats out of its share to the party.

On Thursday, before an official announcement of the alliance between the Samajwadi Party and the Congress, a senior leader of the former said it would contest 300-plus seats in polls for the 403-member assembly. The Congress would contest the rest, said Kironmay Nanda, national vice-president of the Samajwadi Party. He added that his party’s alliance was only with the Congress and that it is not in talks with the RLD.

The RLD said it had been talking to the Samajwadi Party but that talks hit a dead-end when no consensus on seat-sharing could be reached.

“We wanted the seats of our choice but there was no agreement on it,” said Anil Dubey, RLD spokesperson.

However, not ruling out the possibility of RLD coming on board, another Samajwadi Party leader maintained that if the Congress wants it could give some seats from its share to the RLD.

“As long as the Congress does not violate the basic premise of this alliance, we are not concerned about what it does internally with its share of seats,” added this person who is handling the chief minister’s campaign and did not wish to be identified.

“The contours of the alliance are being worked out, the moment it is ready we will announce it,” said Randeep Surjewala, Congress chief spokesperson on the SP-Congress alliance.

In an effort to recreate the grand alliance (mahagathbandhan) which defeated the BJP in Bihar in 2015, the chief minister Akhilesh Yadav-led faction of the Samajwadi Party—it is increasingly looking like the only faction of the party—joined hands with the Congress on Tuesday. It was also in talks with the RLD, which is influential in western Uttar Pradesh.

“Now, it is up to the Congress to decide on their nominees,” said Nanda, adding that details of the seats would be announced soon by Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav.

Polling in the state will take place in seven phases from 11 February to 8 March.

Analysts are predicting a tight three-cornered contest between the SP, BJP and Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). They said the decision to not ally with the RLD could actually help the Samajwadi Party.

“Western UP is dominated by people of the Jat and Muslim communities. While RLD enjoys a loyal voter base among Jats, Muslims have been a SP stronghold. However, the relations between the two communities soured after the Muzaffarnagar riots in 2013. In this scenario, if Akhilesh Yadav decides to ally with RLD, his party is at a great risk of losing the minority vote,” said Ramesh Dixit, Lucknow-based political analyst.

The power struggle between Akhilesh Yadav and his father and party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav ended with the former winning the support of most partymen and with the Election Commission deciding that his faction should get the symbol (the bicycle) assigned to the SP. Since then, Mulayam Singh Yadav seems to have surrendered the reins of the party and decided to support his son. The SP has finalised its candidates for the first two phases of the upcoming polls on 11 and 15 February.