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Car controversy latest irritant in ties between SP and SBSP
The car controversy came to the fore on Thursday amid protracted uncertainty over the alliance between the parties.
A controversy has erupted over a car gifted purportedly by the Samajwadi Party (SP) to Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) chief Om Prakash Rajbhar.
The car controversy came to the fore on Thursday amid protracted uncertainty over the alliance between the parties.
On Friday, Rajbhar is likely to hold a press conference in Lucknow that is expected to clear his party’s stand on the Presidential elections and, to an extent, the fate of the alliance.
A section of the media on Thursday reported that the SP had gifted a Fortuner car to Rajbhar. However, the SBSP was quick to deny the reports vehemently.
Piyush Mishra, national spokesperson for the SBSP, said: “Our chief (Om Prakash Rajbhar) likes Innova and not Fortuner. He moves around in his own Innova car.”
There was a similar car controversy last month when the Mahan Dal split with the SP. The SP reportedly had asked Mahan Dal chief Keshaw Dev Maurya to return the Fortuner car it had “gifted” him.
Maurya, who had returned the vehicle to the SP, on Thursday said: “Both the SBSP and the SP are unnecessarily dragging their differences. It would be better if they decently split up, instead of making unpalatable comments on each other. Om Prakash Rajbhar should have learnt from me. I split up when I realised that the SP doesn’t need me”.
As for the Presidential elections, Mishra said: “The SP did not invite us to the opposition meeting regarding the Presidential elections in which opposition presidential candidate Yashwant Sinha was present. Now, you can guess, if we were not invited, then what choice we would have.”
On the fate of the SBSP-SP alliance, Mishra said: “The SP has to decide the fate of the alliance. Or else Ram Ram, Jai Siya Ram (goodbye)”.
The SP had allied with the RLD, SBSP, Mahan Dal, Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia, Apna Dal (Kamerawadi), and Janwadi Party (Socialist) for the 2022 Uttar Pradesh assembly polls.
The Mahan Dal and Janwadi Party (Socialist) have formally split with the SP. PSP-L chief Shivpal Yadav has announced that he will vote for the BJP-led NDA’s presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu, instead of the SP’s choice Yashwant Sinha.
The SBSP and the SP have had strained relations for the past several weeks.
