Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav with Rashtriya Lok Dal President Jayant Chaudhary during a rally ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, in Ghaziabad, Saturday, Jan 29, 2022.
Credit: PTI File Photo
New Delhi: The I.N.D.I.A. bloc could be staring at another desertion, with speculation suggesting that the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) is prepping to jump ship after striking a seat-sharing deal with the Samajwadi Party for at least seven seats in the Lok Sabha elections.
The speculation about the RLD and its chief Jayant Singh’s potential switch to the BJP-led NDA comes close on the heels of Samajwadi Party sending a positive signal to the grand old party, with Akhilesh Yadav accepting an invite by the Congress to join the Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra that is entering Uttar Pradesh.
While Singh was not available for comments, Akhilesh said that the RLD chief is a "straight forward and a well-educated person" who "understands politics really well".
"I am hopeful that he will not let the fight for farmers weaken," Akhilesh said.
SP Lok Sabha MP Dimple Yadav, who is also Akhilesh’s wife, referred to the farmers’ issue and the wrestlers’ protest and said, "There's no mention of MSP in the (interim) budget. BJP has also insulted our wrestler sisters."
"I don't think Jayant Singh will take any such decision that is directly against farmers' welfare," she told reporters here.
In Lucknow, senior Samajwadi Party leader Shivpal Singh Yadav claimed that the BJP was trying to create "confusion" while insisting that the RLD would remain with the I.N.D.I.A. bloc.
"The BJP is trying to create confusion. He (Jayant) is not going anywhere. He will remain with the I.N.D.I.A. bloc with full strength and will do the work of defeating the BJP... I know Jayant, he is a secular person," Shivpal Yadav said.
Last month, the Samajwadi Party and the RLD had announced their alliance for the Lok Sabha elections. RLD was slated to get seven seats in western UP, its stronghold.
Responding to a post by Akhilesh announcing the seat-sharing arrangement, Singh had said, "Always ready to protect national and constitutional values. We expect all workers of our alliance to move forward together for the development and prosperity of our region."
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the RLD had contested three seats—Mathura, Baghpat and Muzaffarnagar—but lost all. Singh himself, as well as his father Ajit Singh, were defeated. In the 2022 Assembly polls, the RLD, which again contested in an alliance with the SP, had won eight seats.