SP MP Says Alliance Seat Formula Will Be Clear by Diwali

Ballia: Samajwadi Party MP Rama Shankar Rajbhar has justified Congress's demand for 200 seats in Uttar Pradesh, arguing that every ally has the right to make such a claim. He said the opposition alliance was working toward a common winning strategy and that an announcement on seat sharing could come before Diwali.

Rajbhar said that wanting more seats is natural for any party. He pointed out that senior leaders in both Congress and the Samajwadi Party have long held the view that the BJP must be defeated in Uttar Pradesh through the PDA framework. According to him, all parties need to agree on a single formula, and that formula is the formula of winning, which he said had already been developed.

"A coalition partner has every right to put forward a claim. Each party naturally wants more seats, but from the start our big leaders, whether in Congress or the Samajwadi Party, have held the same position. The formula for victory is ready, and I feel you will hear this good news before Diwali," he said.

On Congress's demand for 200 seats, Rajbhar said there was no objection to asking. He said it would be tested how many of those seats could realistically be won. He also raised the issue of BJP allies, claiming that parties expected to win three seats were seeking 33 and those expected to win nine were seeking 100. He insisted that victory alone mattered in the fight against the BJP and said people would soon know more.

Rajbhar was also asked about the poster outside Akhilesh Yadav's house that read 'Brahmin will blow the conch, Kevat will take the boat across'. He said he saw nothing wrong with it. He listed the problems he said were visible across the state, including violence against women, unemployment, and the condition of education, health and trade.

He said that the public had supported the BJP between 2014 and 2022 but now felt let down. He claimed that in 2024, half of the voters who felt betrayed had moved to the Samajwadi Party, even though the BJP had the same ration, funds and resources. He said the same unity of communities would be seen in 2027, which would lead to the BJP being pushed back sharply.

Rajbhar sharply criticised Gyanesh Kumar and the Election Commission. He said the INDIA bloc would continue to protest against what he called vote thieves until Gyanesh Kumar was removed from his post. He added that a much larger movement would begin after Diwali.

He alleged that 87,000 voters had been deleted from the voter list in Uttar Pradesh. He said that when the Samajwadi Party asked for an explanation, none was given. He stressed that these voters had neither died nor left their homes, yet their names had been cut.

He said an opposition that does not defend democracy has no real purpose. He argued that the opposition has a crucial role in a democracy and warned of strong agitation against Gyanesh Kumar. He said the fight would continue until every eligible voter was included in the voter list, and that if names kept being removed online and whole villages were excluded at the BJP's behest, history would record Gyanesh Kumar's role in black ink.

On the objectionable slogans written on walls at Jamia and later at JNU, Rajbhar said there was deep public anger against the government across the country. He claimed that efforts were being made to distract people through aircraft shows in some places and provocative posters and banners in others. He described the posters in Ballia, JNU and Lucknow as part of this attempt to divert attention from public discontent.

He further alleged that ruling party supporters were using their resources and workers to carry out these activities. He said aircraft were being displayed in Varanasi too, and that the people there were also angry, so the exercise was meant to divert their attention.