Uttar Pradesh minister Om Prakash Rajbhar
Credit: PTI Photo
Lucknow: The BJP was left red faced after the president of its alliance partner Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP) and UP minister Om Prakash Rajbhar on Monday said that the high voter turnout in the first phase of Bihar assembly polls indicated that ‘Mahagathbandhan’ might come back to power in the state.
‘’My research shows that the RJD has benefited whenever the voting percentage has risen above 60,’’ Rajbhar said.
The SBSP is contesting on 6r seats in the Bihar assembly elections. Rajbhar and his two sons Arun and Arvind have addressed several election meetings in Bihar where they criticised the Nitish Kumar government.
At a time when the NDA leaders have been making claims of a landslide victory in Bihar, the statement of one of its own constituents not only came as an embarrassment for the BJP but also provided ammunition to the opposition to attack the saffron party.
Rajbhar also came down heavily on the ‘padyatra’ (foot march) undertaken by Hindu seers Dheerendra Shastri of Bageshwar Dham from Delhi to Vrindavan and said that these days the seers staged dramas with the intention to join politics.
‘’They will also become MPs like Sakshi Maharaj and Chinmayananda once they become famous and join a political party,’’ he added.
SBSP, which commands considerable influence over the ‘Rajbhar’ (an OBC) community, which was in sizable numbers in several eastern UP districts, may hurt the NDA in Bihar if it is able to wean away the Rajbhar voters in the state.
The second and final phase of voting in Bihar would take place on Tuesday. The counting of votes will be taken up on November 14.