‘SBSP is not interested in nation building, party no threat to BJP’

Varanasi: BJP’s Rajbhar face and UP minister Anil Rajbhar on Tuesday said his party was not worried about alliance partner SBSP chief Om Prakash Rajbhar’s announcement to field 39 candidates in Lok Sabha elections independently.
“The SBSP president has taken this decision as he is not interested in development of the ‘samaj’ (Rajbhar fraternity), which is with Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” said Anil, who was promoted by BJP in east UP when Om Prakash had threatened BJP on the issue of seat-sharing in LS elections.

He added, “SBSP chief’s move will expose his political standing.” Talking to TOI after Om Prakash’s announcement to field 39 candidates in Lucknow on Tuesday, Anil said, “The decision will not impact BJP’s prospects. He should himself contest and also field his son to know about the voters’ mood. In 2014, SBSP had contested alone and its candidates could bag only 400-4,000 votes. In fact, many Independent candidates had performed better than SBSP candidates.”

Anil also claimed that BJP’s ‘benevolence’ fuelled SBSP chief’s expectations. “BJP included SBSP in its alliance before the 2017 assembly polls and allowed it to field candidates on eight seats, though SBSP could win only four. Despite gaining power in UP with a majority on its own, BJP did not forget ‘gathbandhan dharma’ and gave Om Prakash a cabinet berth. Five-six SBSP leaders were given important positions, but Om Prakash has forgotten all the concessions given to him,” said Anil.

He claimed that the community was still backing Modi. “The SBSP chief wrongly thinks that Rajbhar fraternity is with him. In fact, each and every member of the community is standing solidly with Modi and the results of LS polls will make it clear,” he claimed.

SBSP chief had been pressurizing BJP to divide the 27% OBC quota into three categories — ‘Pichhada’, ‘Ati Pichhada’ and ‘Sarvadhik Pichhada’. On failing in his bid, Om Prakash had alleged in 2018 that the BJP had ditched his party in local body polls.

When BJP held a show in Ghazipur to woo the Rajbhar community on December 29 and invited Modi to release a postal stamp on the community’s icon Maharaja Suheldeo, Om Prakash boycotted the event, alleging that “BJP leadership never felt it necessary to invite me on dais of any event of the PM in Varanasi, Ghazipur or Azamgarh”.

In the meantime, he also accused the BJP of not showing any interest in holding talks for seat sharing for LS elections. He declared to disclose SBSP’s decision on continuing alliance at a rally in Varanasi on February 26, but later postponed his decision.