BJP eyes slice of political pie in Uttar Pradesh

The BJP’s allies are eyeing a slice of the political pie in Uttar Pradesh (UP) and have demanded a seat-sharing arrangement with the lead partner for the Assembly elections due early next year.

The Republican Party of India (A), led by Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Ramdas Athawale, has sought a seat-sharing pact with the BJP claiming that it could help consolidate the Dalit voters in UP.

The Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP), led by Minister of State for Human Resource Development Upendra Kushwaha, too, has sent feelers to the BJP for a possible pre-poll arrangement.

“Since we experienced defeat in Bihar elections...such mistakes should not be repeated in Uttar Pradesh...The BJP and all of us should learn from those mistakes. We will discuss the issue from this perspective,” Kushwaha said here on Monday.

The RLSP wields influence among the Kushwaha community in Bihar, while the RPI (A) has a following among Dalits and neo-Buddhists in Maharashtra. Both the parties are not key players in Uttar Pradesh, but could help the BJP get some fringe benefits.

“We want to ally with the BJP. We expect some 20-25 seats, but have not spoken to the BJP leadership yet,” Athawale told reporters here on Tuesday.