News Analysis India

Tag: Samajwadi Party

  • Modi 3.0: Akhilesh Yadav takes jibe at Modi 3.0, says “government stuck in limbo…”

    LUCKNOW: Ahead of Narendra Modi being sworn in as Prime Minister for the third consecutive term on Sunday, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav took a dig at Modi 3.0, stating that a government stuck in limbo is not a government.In a post in Hindi on social media platform X the SP chief Akhilesh Yadav wrote, “Upar se juda koi taar nahin, neeche koi adhaar nahin, adhar mein joh ataki hue woh toh koi sarkaar nahin (The government stuck in limbo is not a government).”Newly elected members of parliament who are among those probable to be included in the new Cabinet and Council of Ministers of Narendra Modi-led government were on Sunday afternoon invited for high tea at the Prime Minister’s residence ahead of the oath-taking ceremony later this evening.Modi will be sworn in as the Prime Minister of India for a historic third time today at 7:15 pm.AllUttar PradeshMaharashtraTamil NaduWest BengalBiharKarnatakaAndhra PradeshTelanganaKeralaMadhya PradeshRajasthanDelhiOther StatesBJP leaders Nirmala Sitharaman and Sarbananda Sonowal were seen arriving at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg, the residence of Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi to attend the tea meeting.BJP leaders Amit Shah, JP Nadda, Rajnath Singh, Kiren Rijiju, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Manohar Lal Khattar, Shivraj Singh Chouhan were among others who arrived for the tea meeting.The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) unanimously passed a resolution to elect Narendra Modi as their leader on June 5.Earlier on June 9, according to sources in the Samajwadi Party, seven SP MLAs, including Chief Whip Manoj Pandey, surprised the party by supporting the BJP’s candidate during the Rajya Sabha elections.

    Following this, Yadav has initiated steps to revoke the membership of these seven MLAs, for which an official letter is also being prepared by the party, which will soon be submitted to the UP Legislative Assembly Speaker by the Samajwadi Party.

    The list of these seven MLAs includes Rakesh Pratap Singh from Amethi Gauriganj, Manoj Pandey from Raebareli Unchahar, Rakesh Pandey from Ambedkarnagar, Pooja Pal from Prayag, Vinod Chaturvedi, Ashutosh Verma, and Abhay Singh.

    According to the Election Commission of India, the Samajwadi Party (SP) won 37 seats, the BJP won 33, Congress won 6, Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) won 2, and Aazad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) and Apna Dal (Soneylal) won 1 seat each in the Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh. (ANI)

  • '200-250 Bhi Mushkil Ho Raha…', Ayodhya's E-rickshaw drivers express dismay after tourist influx reduced post polls

    '200-250 Bhi Mushkil Ho Raha…', Ayodhya's E-rickshaw drivers express dismay after tourist influx reduced post polls

  • Exit poll predictions: ‘People ready for new Independence Movement…’, Akhilesh Yadav attacks BJP – The Economic Times Video

    Lucknow (UP): Former UP Chief Minister and Samajwadi Party Chief, Akhilesh Yadav claimed that people are ready to start a new movement of Independence against BJP. He further said that the public is in the “Do or Die” mode of Mahatma Gandhi. He said, “The results of the elections were distorted by some corrupt media persons and officers. The corrupt policies of the BJP are bad for the future of India. The public is in the ‘Do or Die’ mode of Mahatma Gandhi and is ready to start a new independence movement. The public is ready to sacrifice like freedom fighters. The youth is saying ‘Mera Rang De Basanti Chola’.”

  • BSP Should Join INDIA Bloc: Akhilesh Yadav’s Request To Mayawati’s Party In 2024 Polls |

    New Delhi: Samajwadi Party leader and candidate from Kannauj Lok Sabha seat Akhilesh Yadav urged the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) to join the INDIA alliance to save the constitution. As the fifth phase of Lok Sabha polls wrapped up on Monday, Yadav exaggerated that this time INDIA bloc is going to secure the victory and will surely form the government.

    “I would request the Bahujan Samaj (Party) to help the INDIA alliance to save the Constitution…The (INDIA) alliance will surely form the government,” he said.

    Yadav also hits out at the Modi-led government for discriminating against farmers, youth and businessmen for the last 10 years. He further claimed that the BJP will yearn for even 140 seats.

    “This government has discriminated against farmers, youth and businessmen for ten years. This election is to protect the Constitution… The public will make them yearn for even 140 seats,” Yadav said.

    Earlier, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and SP leader Akhilesh Yadav were forced to cut short the public meeting in Prayagraj’s Phulpur constituency on Sunday after the crowd broke the barricades. This incident created a stampede-like situation.

    After the incident, both the leaders of the INDIA Bloc left the rally without addressing the people of the Phulpur constituency. The campaign in Prayagraj was organised in support of SP candidate Amarnath Maurya contesting from the Phulpur Lok Sabha seat.

    The workers from both parties went out of control and attempted to reach the stage to get near the prominent leaders Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav. 

  • LS polls: Farmers of Lakhimpur Kheri await justice

    Amid the rising political heat, people in Tikunia area of Lakhimpur Kheri still remember the unforgettable incident that shook the country three years ago.

    Eight people including a journalist and four farmers were killed when violence broke out after an SUV ran over a group of protesting farmers in October of 2021.

    “I pass by this place everyday. We have tried a lot to forget what happened here but every time we approach this place, the images of that day flash before our eyes,” said Manjeet Singh, a resident of Tikunia pointing towards the ground where the farmers held the protest against the three controversial farm laws, which have been scrapped now. This ground lies on one side of the narrow road leading towards Tikunia, a small town located on the northern most corner of Lakhimpur Kheri district, over 215 km away from state capital Lucknow. AllUttar PradeshMaharashtraTamil NaduWest BengalBiharKarnatakaAndhra PradeshTelanganaKeralaMadhya PradeshRajasthanDelhiOther States”The ground is a constant reminder of how nothing happens to a person with political influence,” said Satwant Singh, another Tikunia resident who participated in the protest and was a witness to the incidents. Ashish Mishra ‘Monu’, the son of Union minister Ajay Mishra ‘Teni’, was made an accused in the case. Ashish Mishra was arrested after the incidents but is currently out on bail. “Ajay Mishra ‘Teni’ was awarded by the BJP for the incident. The party did nothing to him and has now given him a ticket for the Lok Sabha polls,” said Rajdeep Singh, another resident who was injured in the incident. The BJP has renominated Ajay Mishra from the Lakhimpur Kheri seat. The Samajwadi Party (SP) has fielded Utkarsh Verma and the BSP Anshay Kalra. Voting will be held on May 13.

    The 2021 incident occurred in Tikunia but almost all the victims were from different places in the district.

    Mandeep Singh, the son of an elderly farmer Nacchatar Singh who was killed after being run over by the SUV, said, “We were shown how important we are in the incident. Nobody from the government has till date asked about us. We want this to change, we want to see the accused behind bars.”

    Singh declined to comment on the ongoing elections but said he wants to see a change. “Like every other farmer and local we want to see a change.”

    Surendra Singh, a relative of another victim Lovepreet Singh and also a member of farmers union, said, “This was an attack on farmers who produce grains to feed the entire country. We will continue to fight for justice.”

    The Bhartiya Kisan Union (Tikait) unit in Lakhimpur Kheri had objected to the candidature of Ajay Mishra.

    “This is nothing but disrespect to those killed in Tikunia and all farmers. The farmers will respond to this by their votes,” said Surinder Singh Virk, an office bearer of the farmers union.

    Though farmers, especially from the Sikh community in Tikunia and nearby areas, express anger over the incident, the same emotion is not reflected by people of other communities, particularly outside Tikunia.

    “What happened in Tikunia was wrong, nobody will support such an act but we need to come together and move ahead for development of Lakhimpur,” said Prabhat Singh, a former village head in Palia area of the district.

    SP president Akhilesh Yadav has talked about the episode in his public meeting held here but his party candidate Utkarsh Verma has made only passing reference in his public meetings.

    BSP’s Kalra, who himself comes from the Sikh community, has raised the issue in his public meetings in Palia and Nighasan area.

  • Lok Sabha Elections: If INDIA bloc comes to power, it will put Babri lock at Ram temple: Amit Shah in UP

    LAKHIMPUR: Hitting out at the INDIA opposition bloc, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said if it comes to power after the ongoing Lok Sabha polls, it will put a “Babri” lock at the Ram temple in Ayodhya. Addressing a rally in support of Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra, who is the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Lok Sabha poll candidate from Lakhimpur Kheri, Shah also accused the Congress, Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) of defaming the saffron party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi by saying if he gets 400 seats in the ongoing election, reservation will be done away with.

    The senior BJP leader said though it is not going to happen, if the opposition parties come to power, they will put a “Babri naam ka tala (Babri lock)” at the Ram temple.

    He said Modi not only won the legal dispute involving the Ram Janmabhoomi, but also performed the “bhoomi puja (groundbreaking ceremony)” of the Ram temple and its “pran pratishtha” (consecration) was held in January. “After the first three phases of the Lok Sabha polls, Modiji has crossed 190 seats…. In the fourth phase, under Modiji’s leadership, we are strongly heading towards 400 seats, while the SP, BSP and Congress have been wiped out,” Shah said. AllUttar PradeshMaharashtraTamil NaduWest BengalBiharKarnatakaAndhra PradeshTelanganaKeralaMadhya PradeshRajasthanDelhiOther StatesLakhimpur Kheri will go to polls in the fourth phase of the election on May 13. The counting of votes will be taken up on June 4.

  • Amethi: Suspense continues over Rahul, Priyanka’s candidatures from Raebareli and Amethi; final decision today

    New Delhi: With just a day left for the filing of nominations for Phase 5 of the Lok Sabha elections, the suspense continued over the Congress’ candidates for the Amethi and Raebareli constituencies of Uttar Pradesh, once considered a stronghold of the Nehru-Gandhi family.

    According to sources, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is already on the Congress ticket from Wayanad in Kerala, which polled in the second phase on April 26, is likely to put himself in the fray from Amethi as well.

    Rahul’s candidature from the seat he lost to Union Minister and BJP leader Smriti Irin 2019 will be formally announced on Thursday, and he will file his nomination from the constituency on Friday, sources said.The sources added that along with Congress leaders, its partners in the INDIA bloc also suggested that Rahul contest Amethi.AllUttar PradeshMaharashtraTamil NaduWest BengalBiharKarnatakaAndhra PradeshTelanganaKeralaMadhya PradeshRajasthanDelhiOther States”They also proposed Priyanka Gandhi Vadra as the candidate from Raebareli,” a source said.The Samajwadi Party (SP), which earlier announced a seat-sharing pact with the grand old party in Uttar Pradesh, told Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge that after its supremo Akhilesh Yadav’s decision to contest Kannauj, Rahul’s entry into the fray along with his sister Priyanka may bring unexpected electoral dividend to the Opposition bloc, sources said.”Kharge told Sonia Gandhi that the party and he, himself, was in favour of Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka contesting the elections (from Amethi and Raebareli),” the source added.However, adding to the intrigue around the Congress’ choice of candidates for these two constituencies, sources claimed that even as Rahul and Priyanka appear reluctant to contest Amethi and Raebareli, Kharge insisted that at least one of them enter the fray.

    At the party’s committee meeting recently, the Congress’ UP unit formally moved a proposal that members of the Gandhi family should contest the Amethi and Raibareli seats and a final decision in the matter was left to Kharge.

    The Congress has not yet put out any official statement on its choice of nominees from Amethi and Raebareli, which were considered the party’s strongholds until the 2019 elections.

    Earlier, Congress leader KL Sharma told ANI, “Today, we had a meeting in Amethi and Raebareli as the party is still undecided on its choice of candidates from these two constituencies. People expect someone from the Gandhi family to contest (these seats) and I, too, feel the same. Since the last date for filing nominations is May 3 (Friday), we had to rush through the preparations. Hence, two meetings were held today (in Amethi and Raebareli).”

    Addressing reporters on Wednesday, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said, “The Central Election Committee (CEC) has empowered our party president Mallikarjun Kharge to take a final call on our candidates for Amethi and Raebareli. I expect a formal announcement to be made in the next 24 to 30 hours.”

    The Congress, which is contesting 17 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh as part of the seat-sharing deal with the Samajwadi Party (SP), has announced candidates for all the seats barring Amethi and Raebareli.

    Amethi is scheduled to poll in the fifth phase on May 20, with the last date for filing nominations scheduled on May 3.

    Rahul’s defeat in Amethi, once considered a Congress ‘pocket borough’, at the hands of Irani in the 2019 polls was seen as a significant blow to the party’s national prestige.

    Rahul represented Amethi in the Lok Sabha from 2004 to 2019. His father and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, too, was an elected member of Amethi in the Lower House from 1981 till his death in 1991. Sonia Gandhi contested elections from here in 1999 before passing the baton on to Rahul in 2004.

    Rahul currently represents Wayanad in the Lok Sabha while Irani is bidding for a fresh term from Amethi.

  • After Owaisi, Akhilesh Yadav To Visit Mukhtar Ansari’s Family; Know Arithmetic Behind Power-Tussle |

    Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav will be visiting the family of gangster-politician Mukhtar Ansari today. Ansari was cremated last month in his hometown Ghazipur. Since then, there has been political bickering over his death with the opposition parties demanding a probe and the government ordering it.  While AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi visited him this week, Akhilesh Yadav’s visit holds a significant space in the state’s political dynamics. Ansari’s brother Afzal Ansari is contesting the Lok Sabha polls on the Samajwadi Party ticket from Ghazipur. He is the sitting MP from the seat. However, Mukhtar Ansari’s influence is not limited to just one seat. 

    आज मुख्तार अंसारी के घर जाएंगे अखिलेश यादव#AkhileshYadav #SamajwadiParty #muktaransari #LokSabhaElections2024 | @priyasi90 @mayurshukla29 pic.twitter.com/jflGBosMba
    — Zee News (@ZeeNews) April 7, 2024

    Mukhtar Ansari And UP Politics

    According to reports, the political parties are trying to cash in on the resentment among Muslims after the death of Ansari. There are 28 districts in Purvanchal. It has a population of 83% Hindus and 17% Muslims. Of these, five districts have a greater Muslim population. These districts are- Balrampur with 37% Muslim Population, Bahraich 34%, Shrawasti 31%, Siddharthnagar 29% and 23%. Mukhtar Ansari’s popularity and fear were such in Purvanchal that he won elections from prison. Mukhtar Ansari has been a key factor in eight Lok Sabha seats in six districts. These are – two seats each in Ghazipur and Jaunpur, Mau, Azamgarh, Varanasi, and Mirzapur. 

    Samajwadi Party’s Purvanchal Bid

    By visiting Ansari, Akhilesh is looking to win over Muslim votes in an attempt to bag these seats. The BJP is looking to clean sweep Uttar Pradesh but the SP in alliance with Congress is not looking to sit back and just watch the game. It has planned to once again tap the M-Y (Muslim-Yadav) combination to defeat the BJP. 

    Vote Equation In Uttar Pradesh

    On these crucial seats, the M-Y combination has often emerged as a winning combination. On the eight seats of Purvanchal, there are 17% Muslims, and 13-14% Yadav and together they form around 31% of the votes. The BJP claims to have the support of 9-10% Brahmins, 6-7% Rajputs, 3-4% Rajbhars, 5-6% Kurmis and 4% Mauryas and these account for around 29-30% of voters. Then there are 20-21% SC voters. The swing in SC votes thus becomes crucial for winning.

  • Uttar Pradesh: After failed BSP experiment in 2019, SP pins hope on Congress tie-up to stop BJP juggernaut in UP

    The coming general election may throw some surprising results in Uttar Pradesh with the SP-BSP alliance now replaced by the SP-Congress pact under the INDIA bloc. The Samajwadi Party-Bahujan Samaj Party alliance in 2019 had offered some resistance to the BJP on a handful of seats in the western and eastern parts of UP, but failed to make a big impact.

    With BSP supremo Mayawati deciding to duke it out alone this time, it will be up to the SP and Congress to stop the marauding juggernaut of the NDA, which has now has RLD on its side, as well as a number of caste-based regional parties in the Poorvanchal region.

    In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP and allies won 73 out of 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state. The party ceded some ground in the 2019 general election, when the opposition parties scraped their combined tally to 16.

    Even with the conventional anti-incumbency apprehensions at work, the saffron party laid its claim on the state winning 62 seats, bolstered further by two more won by its ally Apna Dal (Sonelal).

    In 2019, the maximum seats — 23 — for the BJP came from the state’s western part, where the SP-BSP alliance could manage to win only four seats each. The BSP won Saharanpur, Bijnor, Amroha and Nagina (SC seat) in the western UP, while the Samajwadi Party emerged victorious in Sambhal, Moradabad, Mainpuri (first held by Mulayam Singh Yadav then by Dimple Yadav in a bypoll) and Rampur that year. The central region of the state has prominent parliamentary constituencies of Amethi and Rae Bareli — both long considered bastions of the Congress.

    In 2019, former Congress president Sonia Gandhi retained her Rae Bareli seat, while her son Rahul Gandhi lost the long held Amethi constituency to Union minister Smriti Irani.

    Defence minister Rajnath Singh won from Lucknow.

    The BSP won only one seat from this region in Ritesh Pandey, who bagged Ambedkarnagar Lok Sabha constituency. The SP scored a zilch.

    The BJP won 13 seats from the region, which includes the coveted Faizabad Lok Sabha seat, the epicentre of a Hindu reverie that drowned parts of the nation in a collective religious fervour after the Ram Temple consecration.

    Varanasi, represented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Lok Sabha, is one of the 30 seats in the eastern part of the state.

    From this region, the BSP won five seats, while the SP won one, Azamgarh. Apna Dal (Sonelal) won two seats from here.

    The Bundelkhand region was swept in 2019 by the BJP, which won all four Lok Sabha seats of Jhansi, Banda, Hamirpur, and Jalaun-SC.

    The parched Bundelkhand region has been seeing the start of some irrigation projects and its residents getting safe drinking water.

    Expressways, new airports in different parts of the UP have narrowed the regional disparity the state has witnessed for a long time.

  • Rajya Sabha Election 2024 Live Updates: Cross-Voting In UP, HP May Benefit BJP |

    Voting for the Rajya Sabha elections in three states – Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh – are underway with 15 seats up for grabs. The polls are likely to be highly competitive for three seats in two states governed by the Congress and one seat in Uttar Pradesh. Due to the fear of cross-voting in Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh, the Congress and Samajwadi Party are keeping a close eye on their MLAs. In a setback for the Samajwadi Party, while an MLA (Manoj Kumar Pandey) resigned from the party, two other indicated that they will vote for the ruling party candidate. According to Zee News TV, at least 7 SP MLAs held a meeting with the BJP minister.

    On Samajwadi Party MLA Manoj Kumar Pandey’s resignation, UP Minister Dayashankar Singh said, “Manoj Pandey has always been a supporter of Sanatana Dharma. He has always been giving statements regarding the same. He wanted everyone to visit Ayodhya and have a darshan. This is the reason he is showing faith in PM Modi’s leadership and is taking such a decision…”

    02.20 PM: According to Zee News TV, the affirmative reports of cross-voting have come from both Himachal Pradesh and UP, 7 MLAs from UP, while 8-10 MLAs from Himachal Pradesh’s Congress have allegedly voted for the BJP. Sudhir Sharma, Rajeev Rana, Ravi Thakur, Davinder Kumar (Bhutto), Chaitanya Sharma, and Inder Dutt Lakhanpal are some names who have reportedly voted for the BJP. 

    01:55 PM: Karnataka JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy said, “Congress has been disturbing JD(S) MLAs everyday. Each day they have been saying that more than 12-13 JD(S) are ready to join Congress. To show our strength, we put forward a candidate in this election.”

    01.45 PM: On speculation of cross-voting, Himachal Pradesh CM Sukhvinder Sukhu said, “We have 40 MLAs. If no one is sold, then we will receive 40 out of 40 votes. (Agar koi bika nahi hoga toh humein 40/40 votes aayenge).”

    01.36 PM: In response to speculations about cross-voting in the Rajya Sabha elections by Karnataka BJP leader ST Somashekar, Congress MLA Dinesh Gundu Rao asserts our unity remains unshaken. He added, “For the BJP, it has become a practice to use any method to win.”

    01.22 PM: ST Somashekar, BJP MLA Basanagouda R Patil (Yatnal) said that sometimes such things happen. He added, “The party had given clear direction to vote for BJP-JD(S) candidates.”

    01.15 PM: UP’s Jansatta Dal (Loktantrik) leader Raja Bhaiya affirmed that 8candidates from BJP will win. “We had made it clear that Jansatta Dal will support BJP candidates,” he added.

    01.03 PM: Voting concluded for the Rajya Sabha polls of Himachal Pradesh, a total of 68 MLAs voted.

    12.40 PM: Responding to the rumours of cross-voting Himachal Pradesh Congress chief Pratibha Virbhadra Singh accused the BJP of using money power. “We will see when the results come out and face the situation. We will sail through, we have the majority,” she added. While, Himachal Pradesh minister & Congress leader Vikramaditya Singh said my conscience is clear.

    12.33 PM: On rumors of cross-voting in Rajya Sabha elections, BJP Chief in Karnataka Assembly, Doddanagouda G. Patil says, “It is confirmed that ST Somashekar has cross-voted. We are discussing what can be done and what action to be taken.”

    12.24 PM: On Himachal Rajya Sabha elections, CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said”…All our MLAs have voted for the elections. I hope they have all voted on the ideology of the party. We can only say anything once the results are declarred. ‘BJP mein antar-aatma naam ki chiz nahi hai, waha toh paisa antar-aatma chalta hai’…”

    12.14 PM: A number of cross votings were witnesses in Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh during the ongoing Rajya Sabha polls. While SBSP MLA Jagdish Narayan, part of the BJP-led NDA alliance, voted for the Samajwadi Party, several SP MLAs voted for the BJP candidate. These MLAs include Manoj Pandey, Rakesh Pratap Singh and Pallavi Patel. In Karnataka, BJP MLA S. T. Somashekhar cross-voted in favour of the Congress. 

    12.05 PM: Reacting to the cross-voting, Akhilesh Yadav said that the BJP manipulated and lured MLAs by hook and crook method. Yadav alleged that some MLAs were offered various incentives while some were threatened. “Not everybody has the guts to stand against the Government…pressure is put on everybody, is there anyone who doesn’t know that BJP would go to any extent to win. BJP was dishonest during Chandigarh elections also… When it comes to UP, BJP did everything to get votes and those who left, might not have had the guts to stand against the govt. Action will be taken because our party leaders want such people to be kept away from the party,” said Yadav.

    12.00 Noon: On Karnataka Rajya Sabha elections, Congress MLA Rizwan Arshad said, “There will be no cross-voting. Congress candidates will get more votes than required. If people from some other party want to vote for us, then we won’t say no to it.”

    11.40 AM: Reacting to the BJP-JDS fielding additional candidate, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah said, “They (BJP) have also fielded candidate to win the elections, but for the 5th candidate they required 45 votes, do they have 45 votes? How will they win without numbers? Though they know that they don’t have numbers they fielded Kupendra Reddy and they tried to poach our MLAs, that’s why an FIR has been lodged against him. I’m sure all our 3 candidates are going to win.”

    Resort Politics In Karnataka

    Ruling Congress in Karnataka has relocated its MLAs to a hotel to safeguard them from external pressures. On Monday, the Congress shifted all its MLAs to a hotel, marking the beginning of the state’s trademark resort politics. All parties have issued whips to their MLAs ahead of today’s election. On Monday, Janardhan Reddy, Karnataka MLA and chief of Kalyana Karnataka Pragati Paksha, met CM Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar after he announced his support for Congress in the Rajya Sabha election. This further solidifies Congress’s winning chances. 

    While the Congress had a smooth path in securing four of Karnataka’s three seats due to its numerical strength, the BJP-Janata Dal Secular alliance complicated matters by nominating a second candidate. If there were four candidates, each would need 45 votes to win; however, in the case of additional candidates, preference votes would come into play. The Congress with 135 MLAs has the exact number to elect its three candidates, Ajay Maken, Nasir Hussain and G C Chandrashekhar.

    The entry of multi-millionaire real estate baron, D Kupendra Reddy, a Janata Dal (Secular)-BJP candidate has turned the elections to the fourth seat into a keen contest. Reddy, who declared Rs 1,200 crore assets in his election affidavit, has been fielded by the JD(S)-BJP combine. Reddy is confident that he will get the votes to win the election. Earlier, the Congress has complained that MLAs are being blackmailed to vote for Kupendra Reddy. A Congress delegation filed a complaint with the Bengaluru Police Commissioner. The BJP has 66 MLAs, which means it can easily get its main candidate, party worker Narayansa Bhandage, elected. Combined with the 19 JD(S) MLAs, the BJP-JDs second candidate Kupendra Reddy will need to get support of three Independents and get at least three Congress MLAs to cross-vote if he wants to win.

    Khela In Uttar Pradesh

    In Uttar Pradesh, the cross-voting fear has gripped the Samajwadi Party but the leading opposition party has maintained that all is well. According to Zee News TV sources, 8 to 10 of the Samajwadi Party MLAs may vote for the BJP alliance. The ruling BJP and SP had sufficient support to secure the unopposed election of seven and three members to the Rajya Sabha, respectively. However, the BJP escalated the competition by nominating Sanjay Seth, a former SP member and industrialist, as its eighth candidate. To secure an election, a candidate from the state requires approximately 37 first-preference votes.

    Ahead of voting, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav hoped that all three candidates of his party will win despite the BJP’s tactics. “BJP will do everything possible for victory. Some of our leaders who want personal gains can go to the BJP,” said Yadav expressing apprehension of the cross-voting.

    The SP has put forward Jaya Bachchan, an actor-MP, retired IAS officer Alok Ranjan, and Dalit leader Ramji Lal Suman. This decision has reportedly caused a rift with ally Apna Dal (Kamerawadi) leader Pallavi Patel, who expressed disagreement with the choice of Bachchan and Ranjan and stated she would abstain from voting.

    Congress’s Whip To MLAs In Himachal 

    In Himachal Pradesh, the actions taken were not as extreme as in Karnataka. The party has warned its MLAs about the election of its lone Rajya Sabha seat.  The focal point of the Congress’ contest in the state is its senior leader, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, pitted against the BJP’s core committee member, Harsh Mahajan. The Congress enjoys a clear majority with 40 MLAs, while the BJP has 25 members. Three MLAs, including two BJP rebels, identify as independents. Sources indicate that the BJP is currently seeking to woo dissatisfied Congress MLAs. 

    41 MPs Elected Unopposed

    Elections were due for 56 Rajya Sabha seats but since 41 leaders were elected unopposed including former Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, BJP chief JP Nadda, Ashok Chavan, Union ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw and L Murugan, the elections are being held for 15 seats in Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh.