BJP was toying with the idea of a likely split in the party given its concern over the rise in Akhilesh Yadav’s popularity as SP chief, Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Awadhesh Prasad on Thursday ousted the rumour as “baseless allegations”.
The deputy chief minister of Uttar Pradesh made the allegation in the wake of the arrest of several Samajwadi Party MPs who were in touch with the BJP ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections on 2027. Maurya further put out a possibility that up to 25 – 26 Members of Parliament could quit the party in the near future.
Responding in the wake of the allegations, Prasad said the BJP felt politically threatened as Akhilesh Yadav and the Samajwadi Party continued to tantalise the public with their growing support. He dismissed public trust and confidence in the leadership of the SP as having increased greatly such that the ruling party was spreading rumours of defection.
The tension further went up when the Uttar Pradesh minister and chief of Bharatiya Samajwadi Party, Om Prakash Rajbhar predicted a major fissure in the Samajwadi Party. Rajbhar claimed that some leaders were in the process of crossing theμη, among them senior SP chief Ram Gopal Yadav.
On countering such allegations, Akhilesh Yadav strongly stood up for the Samajwadi Party saying that the party had stayed united and its workers and leaders were also sticking to the party. He charged the opposition political parties with trying to pull the wool over people’s eyes as they go into upcoming contests.
The exchange has also led to the further rise of political tension in Uttar Pradesh where preparations for Assembly elections 2027 are already underway. Both sides have leveled accusations against each other, with the BJP alleging that there was trouble within the SP and the opposition lodge a rumour in the BJP to demoralize their opponents.