News Analysis India

Tag: UP politics

  • Congress SP news: Worries mount as Congress-SP talks in UP hit a wall

    Seat sharing talks between the Congress and Samajwadi Party in UP for the general elections have hit a wall, casting a serious shadow on the future of the alliance.

    Congress general secretary in charge of organisation KC Venugopal however told media separately that discussions are going on and talks will be finalised at any point of time now.

    Talks had been going on between the two INDIA bloc members for over a month. A day ago, Akhilesh Yadav said he will join Rahul Gandhi’s Nyaya Yatra in Raebareli, scheduled for Tuesday, only once the talks were finalised, triggering hectic parlays between the two parties all of Monday, that went on till late night. SP’s final tally for Congress was 17 seats, six more than the 11 seats Akhilesh Yadav bad announced earlier. However, Congress was firm on getting Moradabad- where SP currently has a sitting MP , as well as Kheri. It is also learnt to have been wanting Dhaurahra in Shahjahanpur- seat of former Congress leader Jitin Prasada, however SP has already announced a candidate for the seat and was unwilling to cede. SP sources said they made some adjustments, for example, agreeing on giving Amroha to Congress, among others but Congress remained dissatisfied.

    “Congress has closed talks from their front,” a SP leader, aware of the talks, said.

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  • Hosting Iftar parties gradually waning from the political milieu of Uttar Pradesh

    By IANS

    LUCKNOW: Iftar, which was once an inextricable part of Uttar Pradesh politics, is gradually waning from the political milieu.

    Iftar is the meal with which Muslims break their fast at the time of adhan of the Maghrib prayer during the time of Ramadan. 

    A large part of the month of Ramadan is over and not a single political party has hosted Iftar yet.

    For the past three years, it was Covid that prevented such events and now it is apparently the focus on Hindutva that is making political parties shy away from hosting Iftar parties.

    The Samajwadi Party (SP) was known to host the biggest and best-attended Iftar party at its headquarters. Its founder, the late Mulayam Singh Yadav would personally attend to guests and ensure that each one had a full meal. The menu on the table was equally lavish.

    SP sources now claim that Akhilesh Yadav is wary of hosting an Iftar party since his rivals would brand him as anti-Hindu.

    “We would rather focus on the municipal polls instead of wading into a new controversy,” said a party MLA.

    However, Akhilesh has been attending Iftar parties that are being hosted by his leaders and MLAs.

    The Bahujan Samaj Party has been known to host Iftar parties only when it is in power and the guest list is extremely restricted.

    The Congress had earlier hosted Iftar parties on a regular basis and its leaders from Delhi also made it a point to attend the same.

    However, in recent years, the party has abandoned the tradition and insiders claim that it is mainly the paucity of funds that has made it stop hosting Iftar parties.

    The only time that the BJP hosted an Iftar party was when Rajnath Singh was the chief minister. Other leaders have avoided playing host on such occasions.

    Iftar parties were started in Uttar Pradesh in the early seventies by the then Chief Minister Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna. Thereafter, it became an annual tradition.

    “The Iftar party is aimed at giving a message of communal harmony. Clerics and political leaders would come together, rising above political affiliations, and breaking bread. It created a sense of mutual trust,” said veteran Congress leader Arun Kumar Singh.

    LUCKNOW: Iftar, which was once an inextricable part of Uttar Pradesh politics, is gradually waning from the political milieu.

    Iftar is the meal with which Muslims break their fast at the time of adhan of the Maghrib prayer during the time of Ramadan. 

    A large part of the month of Ramadan is over and not a single political party has hosted Iftar yet.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    For the past three years, it was Covid that prevented such events and now it is apparently the focus on Hindutva that is making political parties shy away from hosting Iftar parties.

    The Samajwadi Party (SP) was known to host the biggest and best-attended Iftar party at its headquarters. Its founder, the late Mulayam Singh Yadav would personally attend to guests and ensure that each one had a full meal. The menu on the table was equally lavish.

    SP sources now claim that Akhilesh Yadav is wary of hosting an Iftar party since his rivals would brand him as anti-Hindu.

    “We would rather focus on the municipal polls instead of wading into a new controversy,” said a party MLA.

    However, Akhilesh has been attending Iftar parties that are being hosted by his leaders and MLAs.

    The Bahujan Samaj Party has been known to host Iftar parties only when it is in power and the guest list is extremely restricted.

    The Congress had earlier hosted Iftar parties on a regular basis and its leaders from Delhi also made it a point to attend the same.

    However, in recent years, the party has abandoned the tradition and insiders claim that it is mainly the paucity of funds that has made it stop hosting Iftar parties.

    The only time that the BJP hosted an Iftar party was when Rajnath Singh was the chief minister. Other leaders have avoided playing host on such occasions.

    Iftar parties were started in Uttar Pradesh in the early seventies by the then Chief Minister Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna. Thereafter, it became an annual tradition.

    “The Iftar party is aimed at giving a message of communal harmony. Clerics and political leaders would come together, rising above political affiliations, and breaking bread. It created a sense of mutual trust,” said veteran Congress leader Arun Kumar Singh.

  • SP seeks front-row seat next to Akhilesh for Shivpal in UP assembly

    By PTI

    LUCKNOW: After his patch-up with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and appointment as the party’s National General Secretary, Shivpal Singh Yadav could be seen sitting in the front row in the Uttar Pradesh assembly which begins on February 20.

    SP chief whip Manoj Kumar Pandey has written a letter to Speaker Satish Mahana for a change in the seating arrangement.

    “Now Shivpalji will sit in the front row on party MLA Awadhesh Prasad’s seat. Prasad will sit next to Akhilesh Yadav.” Pandey told PTI.

    Till now the seat next to Akhilesh Yadav, the leader of the opposition, was reserved for Azam Khan.

    Now Prasad, SP MLA from Milkipur seat in Ayodhya, will sit there.

    Shivpal, who is party MLA from Jaswant Nagar seat in Etawah district, was till now seen sitting in a seat in the back row.

    “We have got the letter. Arrangements will be made accordingly,” a senior official of the state assembly said.

    On the rocks since 2017, the “chacha-bhatija” relationship improved after the death of SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav in October last year.

    The two have been seen together a number of times since, a probable factor in Dimple Yadav’s winning the Mainpuri Lok Sabha by-poll by a record margin.

    The relationship between Shivpal Yadav and his cousin Ramgopal Yadav has also seen a concomitant improvement.

    Since the development, the BJP, which tried to leverage the rift in the family for its gains, has turned hostile towards Shivpal.

    During the campaign in the Mainpuri by-election, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had likened Shivpal Yadav to a pendulum for his “swinging” from one party to another.

    LUCKNOW: After his patch-up with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and appointment as the party’s National General Secretary, Shivpal Singh Yadav could be seen sitting in the front row in the Uttar Pradesh assembly which begins on February 20.

    SP chief whip Manoj Kumar Pandey has written a letter to Speaker Satish Mahana for a change in the seating arrangement.

    “Now Shivpalji will sit in the front row on party MLA Awadhesh Prasad’s seat. Prasad will sit next to Akhilesh Yadav.” Pandey told PTI.

    Till now the seat next to Akhilesh Yadav, the leader of the opposition, was reserved for Azam Khan.

    Now Prasad, SP MLA from Milkipur seat in Ayodhya, will sit there.

    Shivpal, who is party MLA from Jaswant Nagar seat in Etawah district, was till now seen sitting in a seat in the back row.

    “We have got the letter. Arrangements will be made accordingly,” a senior official of the state assembly said.

    On the rocks since 2017, the “chacha-bhatija” relationship improved after the death of SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav in October last year.

    The two have been seen together a number of times since, a probable factor in Dimple Yadav’s winning the Mainpuri Lok Sabha by-poll by a record margin.

    The relationship between Shivpal Yadav and his cousin Ramgopal Yadav has also seen a concomitant improvement.

    Since the development, the BJP, which tried to leverage the rift in the family for its gains, has turned hostile towards Shivpal.

    During the campaign in the Mainpuri by-election, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had likened Shivpal Yadav to a pendulum for his “swinging” from one party to another.

  • Politicians continue to make a beeline for Lakhimpur Kheri

    By Express News Service

    LUCKNOW:  Lakhimpur Kheri violence continued to be a political flashpoint on Thursday with leaders of various parties jostling to visit the grieving families of deceased farmers. In all eight persons were killed of which four were farmers, one was a journalist and rest three were BJP workers.

    While former Uttar Pradesh chief minister and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Bahujan Samaj Party leader Satish Mishra went to Lakhimpur Kheri, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra went to Nanpara in Bahraich district to meet the farmers’ families.

    Raising the pitch of justice for the victim families, the SP chief expressed doubts over the intent of the government asking how justice would be ensured when the main accused was the son of a Union minister. Yadav said the main accused had not yet been arrested although evidence pointed to his role.

    “All fingers are raised towards MoS in the BJP government. The accused are not yet sent to jail,” said Yadav. The SP chief also launched a broadside on the BJP government over a Kanpur trader’s killing in Gorakhpur. “We want to know what was done in Kanpur’s Manish Gupta’s case. Why are policemen still absconding? Why an absconding IPS officer is not arrested?”

    Priyanka sought justice for the victim families of Bahraich and said the matter “should be probed by a sitting Supreme Court or high court judge”. For an unbiased probe, the minister must resign, she asserted.On the other, Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu was taken into custody in Saharanpur while leading a protest march by Congress workers to Lakhimpur Kheri. He was taken to Sarsawa Air Force station. The party members accompanying Sidhu were also taken into custody. Another delegation led by Uttarakhand Congress leaders including Harish Rawat was also taken into custody in Saharanpur.

  • Yogi Adityanath ‘changed’ caste of King Mihir Bhoj for votes: Akhilesh Yadav 

    By PTI

    LUCKNOW: Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday accused the BJP of “changing” the caste of ninth-century ruler Mihir Bhoj and tampering with historical facts to secure the votes of a certain community.

    This comes days after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath unveiled a 15-foot statue of the ruler in Gautam Buddh Nagar’s Dadri, stoking a controversy that saw sections of Gurjar and Rajput communities stake claim over the king’s legacy.

    “It is taught in history that King Mihir Bhoj was a Gurjar-Pratihar. But the BJP people have changed his caste,” Yadav said in a tweet in Hindi.

    “This is condemnable. The BJP is deliberately trying to tamper with historical facts and divide society to secure the votes of a particular side,” he said.

    The SP chief added that his party stood for respect and honour for all sections of the society.

    After unveiling the statue on September 22, Adityanath had said, “No foreign ruler was able to intrude India during the rule of King Mihir Bhoj.

    They were so frightened of him that nobody dared to attack India even 150 years after his rule until Mehmud Ghaznavi invaded and plundered the country.”

    “A community that forgets its past and traditions is unable to protect its geography also, and something like this has happened with us as well,” he said then.

    Soon after, a controversy erupted between sections of Gurjar and Rajput communities in Dadri over the king’s legacy.

    Later, a video surfaced purportedly showing a local community leader tampering with the foundation stone plaque of the statue and changing the prefix in the king’s name.

    Noting the rift between the two communities, Adityanath advised them against confining great icons within the boundaries of caste, saying their sacrifices were for the whole of India to cherish.

    “Maa Panna Dai had taken Maharana to a safe place by sacrificing the life of her son. Not just the Gurjar community, but entire India should feel proud of her great sacrifice,” he tweeted.

  • UP assembly polls: AAP accuses Om Prakash Rajbhar of lying, denies alliance talks with SBSP

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: There is no talk of an alliance between the Aam Aadmi Party and the SBSP, AAP leader Sanjay Singh clarified on Tuesday amid reports of a tie-up between the two parties ahead of assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh next year.

    Singh also accused Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party chief Om Prakash Rajbhar of lying on Monday when he said he will meet AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal this week to firm up an alliance for the elections.

    “O P Rajbhar ji is lying. No meeting of Kejriwal ji with him has been fixed. Nor is there any talk of alliance with them,” Singh said on Twitter.

    “Whatever news is being published about the meeting of Om Prakash Rajbhar Ji with Arvind Kejriwal Ji is false and baseless…,” the Rajya Sabha MP and AAP UP in-charge added.

    Rajbhar had said he would meet Kejriwal on July 17 in the presence of Singh.

    “During the meeting talks will be held to include the AAP in the Bhagidari Sankalp Morcha as an ally,” Rajbhar said.

    The Morcha is a front of small parties led by Rajbhar.

  • Sakshi Maharaj says Owaisi’s AIMIM will help BJP in UP, West Bengal

    Express News Service
    LUCKNOW: Welcoming the proposed move of All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) to contest UP panchayat polls likely to take place March-April, this year, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from Unnao Sakshi Maharaj said that AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi had helped the saffron party in Bihar and he would continue to do so in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal as well.

    The BJP MP’s comments were made in response to the Hyderabad MP’s party actively entering the political fray in the northern state. While interacting with media persons in Kannauj while on his way to Delhi, Maharaj said, “May God give more strength to Owaisi. He has helped us in Bihar and will do so in UP and Bengal.”

    READ HERE | Owaisi’s AIMIM may jump into UP panchayat poll fray

    Owaisi had been on a day-long  trip to eastern UP districts including Varanasi, Mau, Jaunpur and Azamgarh on Tuesday to strengthen his party’s base ahead of the 2022 Assembly polls in the state. He had even charged Samajwadi Party president and former UP CM Akhilesh Yadav with barring him from coming to UP 12 times.

    “When Akhilesh Yadav’s government was in power in the state, we were stopped from coming to the state 12 times. Now, I have arrived. I have come to keep my commitment with SBSP president Om Prakash Rajbhar,” Owaisi had said in Varanasi.

    ALSO READ | Owaisi says Akhilesh stopped him from visiting UP 12 times during his regime

    Owaisi had struck an alliance with the Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP)  — Bhagidari Sankalp Morcha — for the Assembly polls in Bihar. Even Bahujan Samaj Party had also contested Bihar polls in alliance with Owaisi. The other smaller outfits in the Morcha included former UP Minister Babu Singh Kushwaha’s Jan Adhikar Party, Babu Ram Pal’s Rashtriya Uday Party, Anil Singh Chauhan’s Janata Kranti Party and Premchand Prajapati’s Rashtriya Upekshit Samaj Party. Rajbhar and Owaisi had recently met in Lucknow to chalk out final terms of the alliance in the wake of 2022 UP Assembly elections.

  • Ex-IAS officer and Modi’s trusted lieutenant AK Sharma joins BJP, likely to get crucial role in UP

    Express News Service
    LUCKNOW: Believed to be a trusted lieutenant of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, AK Sharma, the Gujarat cadre former IAS officer of 1988 batch, joined the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Lucknow on Thursday. He was inducted into the party by UP BJP chief Swatantra Dev Singh in the presence of Deputy CMs Keshav Prasad Maurya and Dr Dinesh Shrma along with other senior office-bearers of the party.

    While Sharma is tipped to be a BJP candidate in the upcoming council elections scheduled for January 28, the political corridors are abuzz with speculations of he (Sharma) taking up a crucial role in the state with UP Assembly elections just a year away.

    Speaking to reporters after the induction, Sharma said that he was happy to join the party and would be happy to work for the welfare of the people. UP BJP chief expressed confidence that the BJP would benefit from Sharma’s administrative experience gained while working with the PM closely — especially the six years which he spent in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

    A Bhumihar by caste, Sharma is a postgraduate in political science from Allahabad University and hails from Kajha Khurd village in Muhammadabad Gohna tehsil in Mau district in eastern UP. He joined Modi as the secretary in October 2001 when the former took over as the Gujarat CM. He continued to work with him in the PMO from 2014 onward as well and took over as the MSME secretary in April 2020.

    While top leadership of the state BJP seemed to be tight-lipped over the possible role Sharma would be playing in UP, those who have followed his stint as a bureaucrat as Modi’s lieutenant believe that he would not come to UP just for becoming an MLC. While the BJP’s state unit is keeping a guarded silence over the role of Sharma, those privy to the developments, said, he may be entrusted with the deputy chief ministership in the Yogi Adityanath cabinet.

    However, in such a situation, the sword of suspense would hang existing deputy CMs – Keshav Maurya and Dinesh Sharma – and the responsibility they would be entrusted with in future. “Obviously, the party leadership must be having a bigger plan behind sending Sharma to UP Council,” said a senior BJP functionary seeking anonymity.

    Nominations for the Parishad polls are being filed till January 18 and BJP is sure to win 10 out of 12 seats falling vacant. The party is likely to announce the list of its candidates in a day or two. The political experts feel that if Sharma gets a key role in the government, he would be the second most trusted person of the PM in Lucknow after Governor Anandiben Patel.

     A low-profile officer, Sharma is known for delivering time-bound results. He earned Modi’s trust as the secretary in his CMO and by successfully handing Vibrant Gujarat campaign to get investment to the state. Before taking voluntary retirement, he was handling affairs in MSME (micro small and medium enterprises), a crucial department that was working on PM Modi’s plan for revival of the economy post-Covid lockdown.

    While there are precedence of top bureaucrats joining the government at the Centre, like foreign minister S Jaishankar and civil aviation and urban development minister Hardip Puri, it’s a rare instance of an officer of Sharma’s stature being elevated in the state unit of the BJP. It seems that the reshuffle of Yogi cabinet is close on the cards .

  • Owaisi’s AIMIM may jump into UP panchayat poll fray

    By Express News Service
    LUCKNOW:  In its quest to become a national party, the Asaduddin Owaisi- led All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) is likely to contest the panchayat polls in Uttar Pradesh under an electoral pact with the regional outfit Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP).

    The Hyderabad-headquartered party is looking to expand its footprint after its success in Bihar where it had fielded 20 candidates and won in five constituencies. Owaisi had recently visited poll-bound West Bengal.

    The Bengal Imam Association had lashed out at Owaisi accusing him of creating a communal divide in the eastern state. In December, Owaisi had announced his plan contest the next state elections in Uttar Pradesh as part of the front led by the SBSP. Former UP minister Om Prakash Rajbhar of the SBSP is trying to form a rainbow coalition of like-minded parties under the Bhagidari Sankalp Morcha for the election.

    “Candidates belonging to Asaduddin Owaisi’s party are likely to be fielded in the panchayat elect ions as the Morcha’s joint candidate,” Rajbhar said, adding the Morcha constituents will hold meetings at all the 75 district headquarters on January 17.

    “A joint rally will be organised which will be addressed by Owaisi as well as other leaders of the front.” Uttar Pradesh has a total of 58,758 gram panchayats and as many panchayat heads. The five-year tenure of 58,660 gram panchayats, ended on December 25.

    AIMIM leader looking to expand his baseGoing by various reports, Owaisi has set his eyes on Gujarat, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh,  Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka. In November, Owaisi had announced that his party will contest the polls in Tamil Nadu