A day after Mayawati's birthday, many BSP leaders join SP
- All joined at a membership event held in the presence of SP chief Akhilesh Yadav at the party headquarters.
A day after Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati's 65th birthday, the rival Samajwadi Party (SP) gave a jolt to the BSP on Saturday when BSP's Meerut Mayor Sunita Verma, her husband and former BSP MLA from Hastinapur and former BSP minister Yogesh Verma joined the SP. So did former BSP MLA from Bareilly constituency Vijay Pal Singh. Along with them, a former BSP MLA from Thakuardwara (Moradabad) Vijay Yadav and former UP minister Awadhesh Verma also joined the SP. Former BSP MP from Lakhimpur, Dawood Ahmed switched camps.
All joined at a membership event held in the presence of SP chief Akhilesh Yadav at the party headquarters.
Former BJP MLA from a Mirzapur constituency, Ram Bharti, and Gorakhpur's RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh) pracharak, Vineet Shukla too joined the SP.
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Along with Sunita Verma, nearly a dozen corporators of Meerut municipal corporation among the 400 supporters of Sunita and Yogesh Verma joined the SP.
On the occasion, Akhilesh Yadav said, "Regularly and continuously, a large number of leaders and supporters from different parties are joining SP. Today's joining is historical as all these leaders have mass support and a long political career."
As several of these leaders were Dalit leaders, Akhilesh said, "Samajwadi Party will move forward imbibing and following the philosophies of both BR Ambedkar and Dr Ram Manohar Lohia."
By joining SP, these leaders have further boosted the party's morale, he said.