After Swami Maurya, SP’s Apna Dal ally speaks out over ‘sidelining’ of backwards

Now Pallavi Patel, who won the Assembly seat from Sirathu in 2022 on the SP symbol, with her party Apna Dal (Kamervadi) as SP’s ally, has said she won’t cast her vote for the Rajya Sabha polls. The vote of the lone Apna Dal (K) leader could become crucial for the SP in getting all three of its nominees elected to the Rajya Sabha.

Patel has objected to the fact that two of the three candidates nominated by the SP are not from PDA communities, and she suggested Wednesday that it was not certain that her party would continue as an SP ally.

SP sources claimed her real grievance was that her mother Krishna Patel wasn’t nominated. SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, still recovering from the exit of ally RLD, asserted that there was no cause for worry.

The SP, which can win 3 of the 10 Rajya Sabha seats from Uttar Pradesh that are falling vacant, has nominated former chief secretary Alok Ranjan, actor-turned-politician Jaya Bachchan — both Kayasths — and Ramji Lal Suman, a Dalit.

Other party leaders too said on Wednesday that there was a difference between what SP chief Akhilesh Yadav is preaching and what he does.

“To vindicate his PDA pitch, he should have sent three PDA people to the Rajya Sabha. He has sent Jaya Bachchan ji, who is a reliable leader for the SP. But was it the right choice in an election year? The second choice — Alok Ranjan — has raised more eyebrows within the party. He is from an upper caste, has no grounding in politics. The party leadership could have chosen a woman from a marginalised community. Maybe a Muslim woman and a backward class leader…,” a Lucknow-based SP leader said.

Another SP leader said: “Look at what the BJP is doing. They have given Bharat Ratna to a farmer leader (Chaudhary Charan Singh) and a backward leader (Karpoori Thakur). This is all a part of their election strategy. Akhileshji and the top leadership could have also made the nominations a tactical move. The Muslims are a main vote bank for the SP now, but it seems they have no standing within the party.”

Speaking to reporters, Patel said: “There is no anger. But our slogan is PDA, irrespective of how strong a candidate might be. For example, Jaya Bachchanji may be accomplished, but she is not from the PDA… If the PDA is your slogan, and you have three seats, then give it to Muslims, backwards and Dalits.” She also asked why no Muslim figured in the SP list, while raising questions regarding the choice of Ranjan.

On whether her party would contest the Lok Sabha polls with the SP as a partner, Patel said the decision would be taken by her mother Krishna Patel, who is also the party chief.

The other Apna Dal faction, led by Pallavi’s sister Anupriya Patel, is an ally of the BJP.

Akhilesh, who was on SP turf of Mainpuri Wednesday, played down the issue. Asked about Maurya’s resignation, the former CM said, “We will discuss the issue within the party and find a solution.” He added that what was more important was addressing the concerns of protesting farmers.

About Patel saying she would not vote in the Rajya Sabha polls, he said, “The BJP and its people are panicking over PDA. I hope our ally (Apna Dal-Kamervadi) will strengthen the fight for PDA. Several Rajya Sabha seats will fall vacant in the future. The PDA fight is not getting weakened due to one round of Rajya Sabha elections.”