Free to go wherever you expect more respect: SP writes to Shivpal and Rajbhar

The party issued separate letters to Rajbhar and Shivpal and shared these on its official Twitter handle. In the letter, the SP accused Rajbhar of having a “nexus” with the BJP. The party claimed that the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) chief was “working to strengthen the saffron party.” “If you feel that you will get more respect somewhere else, you are free to go there,” the party said.

In its letter to Shivpal — SP MLA from Jaswant Nagar — the party said, “Mananaiya Shivpal Singh Yadav ji, agar aapko lagta hai, kahin jyada samman milega to wahan jaane ke liye aap swatantra hain (If you think that you will get more respect elsewhere, you are free to go there)”.

Shivpal Yadav heads Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party (Lohia), which he had formed in 2018 after parting ways with the SP. In the recent Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, the party had an alliance with the SP but got only one seat to contest. Shivpal had himself contested under the SP symbol and won. Shivpal had recently questioned SP president  Akhilesh Yadav’s decision to support the Opposition candidate in the Presidential polls. Shivpal has often questioned the leadership of his nephew Akhilesh.

On Friday, Rajbhar received Y-category security cover from the BJP government. His SBSP had contested the Assembly polls earlier this year in alliance with the SP, but the relationship between the two sides has been strained since the loss in the elections. SBSP MLAs were missing from the meeting SP had called in Lucknow on July 7 for Opposition’s joint candidate for presidential elections Yashwant Sinha who had arrived in Lucknow for campaigning.